Chapter 17 TIKR Vol. 1 Chapter 3 Part 5

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Flames flickered, casting shifting shadows into the darkness.

Arl descended a long staircase leading underground. Without the candlestick he carried, the darkness would have been absolute. His footsteps echoed heavily on the stone steps. Finally, he reached the bottom and pushed open a heavy door.

“—I’ve been waiting for you, Senpai.”

His junior knight, Kei, stood ready to greet him.

“You took your time. Is something wrong… Senpai? Your face is red.”

“…It’s nothing.”

Just remembering, Arl thought, forcing the image of Rosetta out of his mind.

“Is everything alright back at the Guild?”

“Ngh—Ah, yes. Rosetta went to rest a little while ago. I couldn’t exactly bring her here, not when it’s under the Academy’s control.”

They walked deeper into the gloomy underground chamber. It was empty aside from the two of them.

“So, the <Noah> personnel have already left?”

“They finished their initial sweep, apparently. They’ve withdrawn, leaving only guards posted above ground. Made it easy enough to sneak in.”

Kei, whose face was well-known as an Imperial guard, sounded pleased with herself.

“Honestly, though, I underestimated <Noah>’s competence. Finding the Serpents’ nest this quickly…”

“They had jurisdiction over the whole area,” Arl noted. “That must have streamlined the investigation.”

—The Serpents of the Sordid Garden’s base has been located.

That report had reached Arl about six hours after the monster incident concluded. He’d immediately contacted Kei, who had already been dispatched to the scene. Now, Arl was walking through the enemy’s lair. But as he looked around, there wasn’t a single sound, let alone any sign of life.

“Looks like they got away. We were too late.”

“Yes. There are signs of activity, but the place is completely empty now. However… they did find several unidentified bodies. They’ve already been moved topside, but… they’re likely the missing people… the ones infected by the monster’s curse.”

“…That’s a grim task for Kirsi and her people.”

Rosetta’s deduction had been correct. The curse spreading like a disease, the disappearances… it all pointed back to the Serpents of the Sordid Garden.

“Also, separate from the missing persons… they found the body of someone believed to be the Count inside the base.”

“The Serpents’ collaborator?”

Arl’s eyes widened at Kei’s grave report. He’d only been a suspected collaborator.

“…Silenced?”

“It’s possible the Serpents eliminated him when they cleared out the base.”

“Cause of death?”

“A single, clean downward slash from the front. Looks like a wide blade, probably a greatsword. Very smooth cut… suggests a skilled user. The Count himself was a high-ranking mage, so whoever took him out must have been extremely proficient.”

“A greatsword…”

Arl immediately thought of one executioner who fit the description. The Black Knight, clad head-to-toe in dark armor. They were one step behind. Arl cursed inwardly.

“We were walking right through the Count’s territory. I expected the Serpents to be on alert, but… to cut ties with their collaborator and flee this quickly…”

“It just means we were getting close. Looking back, that monster attack was probably just a diversion to buy them time. A monster appearing in the capital for the first time in years, right when we started looking for their base… it’s far too convenient.”

Kei had further reason for her certainty.

“‘A monster’s curse is a blessing, monsterification is a holy ritual’—that’s the Serpents’ creed. They’re the kind of fanatics who willingly host the curse in their own bodies.”

“Yeah,” Arl agreed grimly. “That monster earlier was likely just one of their own members, transformed… Still, I can’t believe this hideout was important enough for them to sacrifice a monster just to cover their escape. And it still doesn’t explain how the curse was spreading to the residents.”

“—About that. There’s something I need you to see, Senpai.”

Kei led him to the very back of the underground chamber. The deepest part opened into near-total darkness, from which tendrils of black, smoke-like mist drifted. Arl recognized it instantly, his expression hardening.

“Kei, stay back.”

“So you know what this is. The <Noah> mages said it’s monster miasma, dense enough to become visible… like a vaporized curse.”

Kei pulled out a scarf and wrapped it around her neck and lower face – the kind used for dust protection in deserts.

“They said as long as you don’t inhale it, short-term exposure should be fine. Do you need one, Senpai?”

“I’ll be alright. But tell me immediately if you feel anything strange.”

As they approached, the source became clear. A complex magical sigil was carved into the floor, and the black miasma was seeping out from it.

“…So this was the origin.”

Arl’s voice was filled with disgust.

“This much miasma… it’s like the land itself is cursed. No wonder the infection spread throughout this area.”

“<Noah> reached the same conclusion. That the miasma carries the same effect as a monster’s toxin, the curse. You’ve encountered this before, Senpai?”

“Yes. I know it well.”

His mind flashed back five years. To the unprecedented monster disaster that had engulfed the capital.

“—During the Great Collapse, hordes of monsters attacked the city. But the greatest damage… was caused by a single monster.”

One entity, more devastating than an army of thousands. The monster that had pushed the Empire to the brink of annihilation.

“An Origin. The progenitor of monsters, a special individual that could be called their king. Most monsters we see today are ‘acquired’—humans transformed by the curse. But Origins are said to be born as monsters.”

“…I am aware,” Kei nodded, though she looked puzzled by the sudden topic. “It’s said the Imperial Knights gave their lives to defeat it during the Great Collapse.”

“No,” Arl said, a bitter twist to his lips. “We didn’t defeat it. We sealed it.”

“Sealed…? But the records—”

“The official story is that it was slain. …The Origin was too powerful. Normal magic couldn’t even scratch it. Its mere presence spread the curse. Even with all twelve Imperial Knights working together… the best we could do was suppress it. Seal it away… within the land itself.”

At the mention of the land, Kei’s eyes widened. She looked down at the miasma seeping from the floor sigil with dawning horror.

“Could this miasma…?”

“It belongs to the Origin. The seal we placed five years ago… is breaking.”

As he spoke, the iris of Arl’s left eye began to glow with magical light. He started chanting, the words like a sacred verse.

“Open, White Score: First Movement, First Verse—♪”

A soft light, like fireflies, emanated from Arl. The particles sank into the sigil on the floor, absorbing into it. The swirling black miasma dissipated, fading away like smoke from an extinguished flame.

“That’s a temporary fix. I’ve reinforced the seal here. It should stop the curse from spreading any further from this point… but this is just one location. The Serpents were likely experimenting here, trying to break the seal entirely. And judging by this… they seem to have succeeded.”

“? Senpai?”

“…The seal we created five years ago was strong. Even for the Serpents… it shouldn’t have been easy to break.”

Arl knew this firsthand. If someone could break that seal, it would have to be— He cut off the thought.

“…No. Regardless, if the Serpents can break the seal, then we’re out of time.”

“Then their goal is…”

Arl answered Kei’s unspoken question with near certainty.

“Yes. To release the Origin… No,” he corrected himself, the Black Knight’s ominous words echoing in his mind: ‘A new calamity is coming… one that will rival the Great Collapse.’

“It’s the return… of the Great Collapse.”

“…Is there any way to stop it?”

“The Origin’s seal is rooted in the land itself, spread throughout the capital. Which means… they could potentially interfere with it from anywhere. Honestly… the Origin could manifest at any moment.”

Seeing Kei’s face pale, Arl added, “But, conversely, if they haven’t released it yet, there must be a reason. Maybe they need specific conditions, or perhaps… they’re waiting for the right time.”

“…The ceremony.”

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Kei’s temple as the horrifying implication hit her.

“The upcoming Memorial Ceremony in the capital? High-ranking officials from all over the Empire, even the Imperial family, will be gathered in one place. If something happened then—”

“It would be the perfect opportunity to strike a devastating blow against the Empire.”

The situation was dire. Arl ran a hand over his face, looking up at the ceiling. Can I talk them into canceling it? No, it was a state event; mere speculation wouldn’t be enough. Can we capture the Serpents before the ceremony? No, they’d already vanished, leaving no further clues. Which left…

“…We intercept the Serpents… at the ceremony venue.”

It was the only option left.

“If they plan to act, they have to make a move there. We have to stop them beforehand. Using the authority of the Three Great Organizations, we should be able to insert ourselves into the ceremony’s security detail, even now.”

“But, Senpai…”

Kei interjected, her voice filled with worry. Beyond the difficulty of reacting to an unknown plan, there was another fatal flaw in his proposal. If all three organizations were mobilized, working together under his command…

“Won’t… won’t those troublesome fanatics just end up fighting each other? And if you show up in person, won’t that massively increase the risk of your identity being exposed?”

“……Don’t say it.”

Before the potential second coming of the Great Collapse, the greatest crisis in the Empire’s history… Arl envisioned the nation potentially being destroyed first by a catastrophic brawl between the leaders of the Three Great Organizations, fighting over him. His face twitched violently at the thought.