Episode 66: Reward (1)
All combat personnel, including the Vanquishers, stood on high alert before the storm of lightning.
The moment that massive force field disappeared, they were ready to charge forward at any time.
“Please…”
Park Gwang-chul stared at the storm of lightning before him, his grip unconsciously tightening.
The destructive flow of mana completely obscured the situation inside.
— Crackle!
Sporadic discharges of electricity made it even harder to discern what was happening beyond the storm.
He had definitely seen haein’s attack land accurately.
But immediately after, the Apostle released a surge of lightning, blocking their vision.
Although it felt like an eternity had passed, in reality, it was only an instant.
Then—
— Bzzz…
The force field that had been obstructing their view slowly began to dissipate.
And the first thing that came into sight was Jung Haein.
He is clutching his spear with all his strength, hanging onto the enemy’s body.
His entire body was charred black, a complete mess.
The Vanquisher members clenched their teeth and turned their gazes to the one responsible for putting him in that state.
However—
The target in question did not even budge.
With a spear embedded in its heart, it simply stood there motionless.
— Flash!
Park Gwang-chul and Lee Do-hyun moved simultaneously.
Lee Do-hyun’s sword slashed toward the creature’s neck, while Park Gwang-chul’s fist drove into its side.
— Thud.
The sensation was like striking an ancient, withered tree—dry and brittle. The enemy’s body allowed the sword and fist to penetrate without resistance.
— Thud.
The head was severed effortlessly, flying into the air.
A flicker of confusion crossed Lee Do-hyun’s face.
The severed head spun once before dropping heavily to the ground.
Only then did the creature’s face come into view.
Its expression was frozen solid. Its skin looked dried out as if all moisture had evaporated.
Like a corpse that had been mummified over countless years.
The skin was cracked and crumbling, looking as if it would disintegrate at the slightest touch.
And then—
At the center of its decaying chest.
Between the cracks in its skin, a black jewel (寶玉) emerged.
— Thump… Thump…
It pulsed like a living heart.
An overwhelming malice radiated from it, an aura so alien and repulsive that even touching it seemed impossible.
“What… is this…?”
Faced with the cold, lifeless corpse, no one could easily find the words to speak.
And then—
Jung Haein’s body began to fall from the air.
“Ah…!”
“Catch him!”
With the support of his spear gone, he lost his balance and plummeted dangerously.
— Thud!
The old man dashed forward like lightning, catching him just in time.
He held him in his arms and quickly checked his breathing.
“Ha…”
He let out a sigh of relief.
He is alive.
But he is in a critical condition.
The old man turned mid-air and headed straight toward the Paladin unit.
Immediate medical attention was necessary.
“I’ll take care of him!”
Sophia, the leader of the Paladins, rushed over.
The injuries were clearly severe.
A high-ranking priest’s sacred arts would be required.
After safely handing Haein over, the old man returned to the battlefield’s center.
Lee Do-hyun tilted his head slightly, then ran a finger lightly across his neck.
A signal—confirmation of the target’s death.
“…….”
It should have been a moment of triumph.
Everyone here had felt the enemy’s overwhelming power firsthand.
Killing such a foe was undoubtedly a great victory.
And yet, no one cheered.
A heavy silence settled over them.
“Hic…”
“My lady….”
From the Paladin priests and the Blue Wind Squad members came stifled sobs.
There had been no time to react.
In an instant, she was gone.
No one… no one had been able to protect them.
The old man knelt on the ground, clutching his forehead with his hand.
“Sion…”
Once again, he had failed to protect them.
Even though he had promised.
“I have no face to show you…”
She—Sion’s mother, the daughter of Ha Tae-sung.
Now, he had sinned against her once more, unable to even face her.
Then—
—KWA-AAAAANG!!
All at once, magical energy erupted across the battlefield.
Wind, shadow, chains—
Magic of different attributes burst forth in all directions.
Each explosion occurred precisely where the captives had been taken.
A surge of malevolent energy spread simultaneously.
“Prepare for battle!!”
At the old man’s shout, all combat personnel immediately raised their weapons.
The first to react were the Vanquishers.
Before them, a pillar of absolute silence rose.
The fluctuations of mana rippled, shaking the pillar.
They instinctively knew—
Something was about to emerge.
Holding their breath, everyone stood tense, waiting.
And finally—
The silent pillar collapsed, revealing the figure within.
It was not an Apostle.
It was Ha Sion.
She lay there, unconscious and covered in blood.
Her body was riddled with wounds, and crimson blood trickled from her nose and lips.
But—she was not dead.
Everyone here had braced for the worst outcome.
Yet, Sion was there, alive.
The old man rushed forward, checking Sion’s condition.
He pressed his fingers to her pulse, listened for her breath.
“She’s… alive.”
A single, trembling declaration.
And in that moment, the emotions held back for so long unraveled.
“Ah…”
Seong Ara collapsed to the ground.
Park Gwang-chul pressed a hand to his forehead, letting out a deep sigh.
And then—
“Saintess!!”
“Young Miss!!”
“Vice President!!”
As the pillars disappeared one by one, the other kidnapped women reappeared.
They were all severely wounded, yet in the end—
They had all survived.
“Reinforcements are here!!”
Then, from the distance, the association’s reinforcements began to arrive.
Dozens, hundreds of troops flooded the battlefield, swiftly moving to tend to the wounded.
Finally, those who remained let out a breath they had been holding.
The unbearable tension that had gripped them finally unraveled.
They had survived.
Some exhaled in quiet relief.
Some sank to the ground, struggling to catch their breath.
Some simply clasped their hands together and prayed in silence.
The Gangneung Demon Nest Eradication Operation.
Casualties: Zero.
Four Apostles: Mysteriously withdrawn.
Apostle Barkus: Eliminated.
An unprecedented victory in human history.
And a victory that would never happen again.
This battle had ended in humanity’s triumph.
***
I opened my eyes.
The soft sensation of a bed pressed against my back.
“Ah…”
A sound escaped my throat—barely recognizable as my own.
It was more of a rasp, almost metallic.
Maybe because I had just woken up, I couldn’t grasp the situation at all.
My eyelids felt heavy. My head was a chaotic mess, filled with the aftermath of a brutal shock.
The last thing I remember…
I had been curled up, holding my breath.
And then, finally—I had driven a fatal blow into Barkus’ heart.
If I’m still alive here, that must mean I succeeded… which is good, I guess.
Wait.
What about the others?
Forgotten memories began resurfacing, one by one, rushing back at full speed.
Four people had been kidnapped.
Even if I had managed to take down Barkus, there was no way in hell I could have defeated the remaining four.
Which means—
I instinctively tried to sit up.
“Ah… shit.”
My entire body screamed in agony.
Joints creaked, muscles felt like they were being torn apart.
—Creak.
I could feel my body protesting, begging me to stop moving.
But I didn’t have the luxury of listening to it.
Nurse call.
I reached out.
Nearby—right beside the table.
A small, protruding red button caught my eye.
My fingers trembled. Slowly, I dragged my body toward it.
And then—
—Bang!
I slammed the button hard enough to nearly break it.
For the next few seconds, I lay there, sprawled out.
—Tat-tat-tat.
Hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway.
From the sound alone, I could tell—there were several of them.
—Clatter!
The door swung open violently.
At the same time, the lights in the room flared to life.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
“Patient Jung Haein has regained consciousness!”
A voice called out as soon as they entered.
Doctors in white coats. Cleric healers.
Some rushed to check the machines.
Others came straight toward me.
“Patient, can you hear me?”
A healer waved a hand in front of my face.
“Patient, try moving your fingers!”
“I’m fine—”
Before I could even finish my sentence—
—Beep——!
An alarm blared from one of the machines.
The nurses immediately sprang into action.
“Ah, fuck…”
A wave of pain surged through me, blurring my vision.
And once again, darkness swallowed me whole.
***
When I opened my eyes again, the old man was in front of me.
“Are you alright?”
“No.”
Not okay. Not even close.
It was better than dawn, but still absolute hell.
The old man had just finished explaining what had happened.
The four Apostles repelled.
Barkus eliminated.
Zero casualties.
And most importantly—
The safe return of key individuals.
Apparently, everyone had already recovered from their injuries and was back attending the academy as usual.
It was an unbelievable outcome.
“How the hell…?”
“It seems you played a crucial role.” the old man said.
The moment I killed Barkus, explosions and pillars of light erupted simultaneously.
In other words, his death had been a trigger—one that forcibly caused the other Apostles to retreat.
The old man added that if they had arrived even a little later, the kidnapped children would have been in grave danger.
So that’s what happened.
Even from the start, it was strange for five Apostles to appear at this point in time.
Deploying Apostles wasn’t a decision taken lightly—not even for the Evil Gods.
To them, Apostles weren’t just expendable pawns.
They were beings granted power directly by the Evil God themselves, forces comparable to divine authority.
Sending them out meant delaying their own resurrection.
So, the Evil God must have created a failsafe, linking the Apostles’ deaths to a retreat mechanism—an underhanded trick to minimize their losses.
They never expected an Apostle to die in the first place.
And even if one did, there was no way the Evil God would bear the burden without a contingency plan.
But in the end, that careless decision had cost them dearly.
One of their valuable assets was dead.
The rest had been forced to flee.
At this rate…
They wouldn’t be able to show themselves for a while—of that, I was certain.
But then, a sudden thought crossed my mind.
“Wait a second. Didn’t you say one of the Apostles died?”
“I did.” the old man replied firmly.
“Then… was there anything left behind? Something dark, kind of sticky, like a sphere…?”
The Remnants of an Evil God.
The fundamental source of power that transformed them into transcendents and formed the foundation of their restrictions.
If the Apostle was truly dead, that essence should have been left behind.
“…There was.”
Perfect.
This was an unexpected jackpot.
If I could study and analyze that remnant, even I had no idea what kind of results it might yield.
But one thing was certain.
It was a clue—an opportunity to understand the power of the Evil God and their Apostles, and perhaps even turn it against them.
In the original story, it was nothing more than a useless junk item—a mere trophy.
But I had always believed in its hidden potential.
Because every setting I had carelessly created was now a living, breathing reality in this world.
A disaster had come, completely unforeseen.
But I had survived it.
And in return, an unexpected reward had landed in my hands.
The future I had once foreseen—
‘The complete annihilation of the Vanquishers.’
That bleak, inevitable conclusion.
But now, right in front of me, stood the old man, watching me.
The outcome had changed—completely, utterly reversed from the future I once knew.
“Hah.”
A grin spread across my face.