Chapter 130: The One Who Was Not Forgiven (5)

Gert remembered the past.

Although his memories were blurry like a dirty crystal, he could clearly recall that, a long time ago, he had fought against that demon flower.

He had not been able to defeat it.

From the beginning, that thing was not something that could be killed. Even though it manifested on the surface, its true essence existed beyond the physical plane, in a place that could not be cut with a sword.

‘I will give you a mandate.’

A fleeting voice crossed his mind. Gert’s eyes flickered with a flash.

That was the reason.

Because of that command, he had fought for so long. It was the only reason he still existed.

‘Gert. My most loyal knight.’

At the time, he seemed overwhelmed by a strong emotion. But now, he no longer had a heart.

Like his body, consumed and reduced to bones, his soul had also worn down, and he was nothing more than an automaton, repeating his orders like a wind-up doll.

But precisely because of that, he could carry out that one mission perfectly.

The great library was completely collapsing. Perhaps that was for the best.

Once, it had been a sanctuary containing all the knowledge of Adelein, but ever since it had been tainted by dark magic, it had become a hellish nest that destroyed human souls.

It had all begun with an impure book, whose origin and arrival no one could explain.

[Annihilate.]

He slashed through the tentacles breaking out of the walls. Every time he swung his sword, clusters of tentacles were shredded, and the thick petals beyond trembled and bled with spasms.

The greedy mouth that lay beyond recognized Gert. Upon seeing its old enemy, it contorted into a grimace of rage.

Its saw-like teeth ground against each other with a harsh sound.

Then, a thick dark mist began to spread everywhere.

Gert felt the evil energy trying to infiltrate him. The demon flower had the power to control those who succumbed to its energy.

And Gert, after all, was also a product of dark magic. His body began to move on its own.

But then.

The character engraved on his core burned red, as if bleeding.

「Mandate」

Gert clenched his jaw. The force of it shattered several molars still attached to his jaw.

He released a surge of black energy. With it, all the demonic energy trying to invade him was immediately repelled.

Dragging his sword across the ground, he approached the demon flower once more.

The great library was now only ruins. What now floated was a creature in the shape of a flower.

Though he didn’t know why, he could clearly feel that inside that thing dwelled an immense life.

It had been revived at the cost of countless human lives and had never been so full of vitality.

From his fading memories, Gert recalled an old scene. The people of Adelein walked hypnotized toward that creature and offered themselves willingly.

Every time a human body was torn apart between its jaws, the demon flower turned red, as if bathed in blood.

Once, a small girl entered holding her mother’s hand, as if they were on a field trip.

“Gert!”

Someone called him from behind, but Gert didn’t notice. He kept moving forward, indiscriminately destroying the tentacles around him.

One of the toothed tentacles struck him and shattered a rib, but he didn’t care.

Limping on a broken leg, Gert continued walking.

“Slow down!”

The humans attacked the demon flower. Distracted, the creature couldn’t focus solely on him.

Gert silently moved toward the center of the flower.

Suddenly, a human jumped to his side.

“Sir Gert, aren’t you fighting a bit too alone? What spirit! Hahaha!”

It was a burly man.

Gert stopped. It had been ages since anyone called him “Sir.”

Old memories began to surface from the depths of his mind. Since becoming a death knight, he had never recalled them.

They were too vivid, too colorful, dazzling for someone so immersed in darkness.

‘Sir Gert, aren’t you always too serious?’

‘Sir Gert always takes everything so seriously.’

‘Sir Gert is a knight you can trust.’

‘When Sir Gert smiles, he actually looks adorable.’

Not a good sign.

Those memories only hindered the mechanical fulfillment of his duty. He had to wander Adelein for what seemed like an eternal time.

Perhaps that mission would never end, and to fulfill it, he had to completely eradicate all emotion.

The past only devoured his sword. But there was no time to think further. The burly knight raised his sword.

“I’m with you!”

They advanced together, and the resistance decreased considerably. Every time their swords moved, the tentacles were torn to shreds.

They were already close to the mouth at the center of the demon flower.

The tentacles writhed everywhere. At one point, they were completely surrounded, cutting off all outside light.

Now they had to fight in darkness against unseen tentacles.

And then…

A sound of something being pierced.

“Huh?”

Gert looked down. One of the tentacles, glowing red, had pierced his core.

“Sir Gert?”

The character 「Mandate」 that burned at the top of his core began to fade slowly.

And at the same time, the life force it held began to vanish rapidly.

[No… I’m… fine.]

Gert tried to cut the red tentacle with his sword. But it quickly retracted.

It was different from normal tentacles.

Gert tore out a rib with his own hands and wrapped it around his core.

He had to stop the loss of his life force.

As time passed, his strength drastically diminished.

He ground bones into powder and packed them over the core to seal the hole.

He managed to partially stop the leak, but could not fully recover.

The damaged character did not reappear. Now, his core no longer bore the symbol 「Mandate」.

Gert’s eyes dimmed.

[It’s… dangerous.]

He lifted his head.

Born from darkness, he could no longer resist the cursed scent exhaled by the demon flower. Without his only means of protection, he would soon be controlled like any other human.

[Run… away…]

Said Gert.

His vision blurred. Every strand of tentacle around him no longer looked as it did.

The corpses of those who died because of the demon flower had fused into the tentacles, and now they stared at him. From everywhere, they screamed at him to just die already.

The ground he stepped on, the sky above him…

Everything was made from the bones and flesh of the dead.

Then, in his mind, an eye emerged. And the moment he felt its gaze, Gert could resist no more.

His fading memories began to turn red.

Everyone… was covered in blood.

***

Yuri furrowed his brow.

“This… I think we’re screwed.”

Gert fought the demon flower wildly. Seeing that he was diving too deep alone, Yuri had sent Jose to support him.

With the two fighting together, their offensive power doubled. The tentacles were shredded as if passed through a shredder.

But they had gone too deep. Just as they neared the flower’s center, the tentacles wrapped around them—and something happened inside.

Gert’s core was pierced.

If it had just been weakened, it wouldn’t matter—but what Yuri feared happened.

“Cory.”

“Yes.”

“You can’t save Gert?”

“Maybe because he’s a death knight… I can’t protect him. I’m doing everything I can, but…”

Cory was protecting the group from the dark energy the demon flower emitted. Thanks to that, Yuri’s group hadn’t been controlled like the mercenaries and could still fight.

However, his magic seemed to have no effect on Gert.

Cory was sweating profusely as he repeatedly cast the seals of his spell, but Gert showed no reaction. He simply stood there, sword dropped, eyes vacant.

Yuri’s gaze pierced the Soul Domain. He shouted to Jose.

“Jose!”

“Yes!”

“Run!”

“Huh?”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Gert attacked Jose. Frightened, Jose blocked the blow and stepped back—but the tentacles waited right behind him.

With the demon flower and Gert combined, even Jose struggled to hold his ground.

Though he kept defending, he began to take wounds.

“Damn it.”

Yuri dashed forward. Laurent and Jared followed.

“Sir Jose, let’s retreat!”

“Wouldn’t it sound better to call it a tactical withdrawal rather than a retreat?”

“Tactical, my ass—this is a retreat to survive!”

When Gert struck, Yuri’s group had no choice but to fall back. Yuri cut tentacles to pave the way for Jose.

Laurent and Jared held off Gert.

“Ggh…”

By force, Laurent parried with his sword, turned the blade to create an opening, and retreated sharply.

“Jared, let’s go.”

“Yes, of course.”

They unleashed swordwaves to slow Gert and turned to escape.

“First, get away from that flower!”

“Yes!”

Yuri’s seven-member group fled through the ruins of Adelein. The demon flower moved slowly, but Gert was different.

As an ally, he had been reassuring.

As an enemy, he was the most terrifying opponent.

“Damn it…”

“It’s hard to run—he’s too fast.”

“We’re gonna have to fight. Everyone, get ready.”

“Haa…”

Yuri watched Gert through the Soul Domain. If he could sever the black magic controlling him, that would be ideal—but this seemed like a different case.

No severable bond was visible. All he saw was Gert wrapped in darkness.

“Did all this start with losing that character?”

The character glowing in Gert’s core, “Mandate,” had disappeared. Yuri didn’t know how it worked, but that mark seemed to prevent Gert from falling into darkness.

Yuri looked at Gert again in the Soul Domain. Though damaged, traces of the character remained.

Evidence: whenever Gert released energy, a faint light flickered briefly before fading.

“Prince.”

Cory, running beside him, spoke.

“Eh?”

“That character in his core… what exactly did it look like?”

Yuri looked, surprised by the question.

“You can see it?”

“Yes.”

Cory nodded.

“I can see it, though hazily. And…”

He paused before continuing.

“I’m going to try to repair it.”

“You?”

“Yes.”

As they spoke, Gert closed in from behind. His sword descended toward Simon’s head.

Jose jumped to defend.

Their swords clashed again and again, force exploding outward.

Yuri looked at Cory. He didn’t look away.

In the past, he wouldn’t even meet his gaze. But now, his eyes reflected clear resolve.

“Alright.”

Yuri grabbed Guilty and etched a character on the ground.

「Mandate」

Cory watched and nodded.

“Prince. I’ll try.”

Before, he would’ve worried about failure—but now he accepted the weight of responsibility. Yuri smiled and ruffled his hair.

“I trust you.”

Cory knelt, gazed at the character and began concentrating. Yuri turned his head.

The others fought around Gert. Except Jose, no one could withstand his attacks.

Each strike from his sword sent one into the air, another at his side. A brutal wearing-down fight.

Yuri tightened his grip on Guilty and surged forward.

“Of course—after all, we came to stop Gert.”

The Cut of the Soul and Heart flared like a flame. It joined the battle immediately.

As Jose and Gert’s swords clashed, Yuri’s flew straight for Gert’s waist.

He blocked it with a raised knee, then kicked Yuri in the chest. Yuri flew back, carving a mark into the ground as he slid.

He spat saliva mixed with blood and charged again.

The three clashed blades in a brutal dance.

***

Meanwhile, Cory stared at the character 「Mandate」 with a strange sensation.

He raised his gaze to Gert. The character, fading on his chest, still appeared disturbingly clear.

Somehow, he felt he could do it. It was a gut feeling.

But he didn’t know how.

Cory focused on that character, struggling to find the answer. Suddenly, he saw the Third Prince—who had saved him—get struck by Gert and fly across the ground.

His heart raced.

But he forced himself to stay calm. A mage must never lose control.

His heart and mana resonated in unison. A single character.

A contained magic within it.

Unconsciously, a word began to flow from Cory’s lips.