Chapter 244: The Mountain of Light and Darkness (2)

It was a strange figure.

A completely transparent human-shaped statue stood in the middle of the summit.

A part of the demonic grimoire was embedded in its chest, as if it were holding it in an embrace.

When Yuri approached, the hikers warned him.

“Please, be careful. There’s a dangerous energy.”

And just as they said, upon getting closer, an invisible pressure pricked his body. But there was something odd.

The black magic he had experienced until now was purely evil. However, what he felt here was different.

It was an energy so dense that it would be impossible for a normal person to approach, but within it was housed a kind of unknown essence.

Yuri stared at the statue, stunned.

Inside, barely visible, fragments of parchment could be distinguished, and they were undoubtedly written in the language of resentment of the demonic grimoire. And it wasn’t just a single page, but several layered together, as if torn out entirely.

Even so, how was something like this possible?

Around it, the perpetual snow had melted and grass was growing. In land exposed to black magic, not a single blade of grass grows. Only monsters sprout from the corruption.

Yuri murmured.

“It feels warm here.”

“Right?”

One of the hikers approached. He seemed affected by the statue’s energy, as he frowned while speaking.

“This is a sacred relic.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s not officially recognized by the temple, but these are the remains of Saint Artem. Of course, if this were known, we’d be branded as heretics.”

Yuri took a step back and asked him.

“What’s the story behind this?”

“They say Artem sacrificed his life to seal a demon. That right there is the demonic grimoire. His body turned into crystal, and the demon was sealed within him forever. Artem fused with the demon and will suffer eternally, but thanks to his sacrifice, humanity was saved.”

“Is that true?”

“It’s a story passed down as legend. But it’s not just legend. Look, the proof is right here.”

With that, he sat in front of the statue and began to pray. The other hikers also set down their backpacks and clasped their hands together.

Yuri stood, watching the scene in silence.

The hiker continued speaking with his eyes closed.

“They say that demon possessed immense power. Artem, on the other hand, was just a devout coachman with a kind heart. Even so, he faced the demon alone. No matter how strong and dense the darkness may be, it can never overcome a spark of true light. Before true light, evil vanishes like mist at dawn.”

“I see…”

As he listened silently, Yuri suddenly asked:

“Does this Saint Artem have any relation to the Tyrant King of the past?”

“The Tyrant King… I couldn’t say. I never heard anything like that.”

He returned to his prayer.

Thanks to the statue’s energy, the summit wasn’t so cold. Some removed their mountain clothes to dress in white robes and perform a ritual.

Jared approached Yuri.

“Isn’t that the demonic grimoire?”

“Yes.”

“What’s going on here…?”

Jared also frowned.

“Whatever it is, it’s intense. It’s not black magic energy, but…”

“It seems to have been purified.”

Yuri looked back at the statue.

Being transparent, it couldn’t be seen clearly, but it was so realistic that it looked like a living person transformed into crystal.

“I’m going to take a closer look.”

“What?”

Yuri stepped forward.

Even though the demonic energy had been subdued, the pressure was still there, so he activated his Cut of the soul and the heart to protect himself.

With his hand on Guilty’s hilt, he walked cautiously.

Little by little, the figure of the statue became clearer. They said Artem had been crystallized while sealing the demonic grimoire within his body. It sounded absurd, but.

This was a world where absurd things happened daily.

Yuri placed his hand on the statue. A warm energy rose through his palm.

He expanded the domain of Cut of the soul and the heart. Then, the landscape of the summit lit up in a whiteness more blinding than the snow. The outlines of things began to blur.

But there was one thing that did not disappear.

It was strange.

The statue, which had previously appeared almost invisible, now, within the mental domain, acquired a vivid color and occupied the center of his vision.

Small, yet immense. Weak, yet defined.

Transparent, yet radiant.

An existence that defied human understanding. And yet, to Yuri, it felt familiar.

Chaos.

That’s what resided there.

As he observed the scenery of Mount Zenel within the domain, Yuri began to understand, albeit faintly, what that chaos was that he had accessed through his technique.

He stepped closer to the statue.

And the chaos within it poured into him.

…

Memories of the past flowed. They didn’t entirely match what the hiker had said.

The demonic grimoire had traveled the world spreading chaos for a long time.

In the past, a feudal lord obtained a torn-out page of the grimoire and, consumed by his resentment, committed atrocities. When that lord died, the parchment sought a new host.

And that host was Artem, the coachman of the lord’s carriage. While checking on the fainted noble inside the carriage, he accidentally touched the parchment, and in that instant, his mind was corrupted.

But Artem did not give in to the malicious voices. To prevent others from approaching the parchment, he went to the most remote place he knew—the summit of Mount Zenel.

He climbed alone to the top, and already half-fused with the grimoire, knelt and prayed to God.

The countless grudges stored within the grimoire could not break his will.

His mind reached the deepest potential of humanity. He became the eternal seal of the grimoire himself.

And thus that statue was born.

Yuri could fully feel the luminous soul of Artem and his pure sacrifice. No matter how dark the grimoire was, darkness can never invade the light.

Artem was living proof of that.

“Huff…”

Yuri let out a long sigh. When the memories ended, something began to flow from the sealed parchment within the statue into his body.

The dark energy was gone, but its essence remained. Thanks to that, Yuri was able to observe the true form of black magic without difficulty.

He felt that he was beginning to understand something.

As he examined it for a moment, suddenly a broad back appeared in his field of vision.

It was the Tyrant King.

His memory was also imprinted there.

The Tyrant King, in the past, had touched Artem’s statue at the summit of Mount Zenel and had seen the same thing Yuri did.

That was the moment that changed his life.

That Tyrant King, who once only sought strength, experienced a kind heart for the first time when he encountered Artem’s statue.

And so he decided to use his power for good. He rose up to liberate the oppressed from tyranny.

Artem, a mere coachman, had sealed the demonic grimoire. And though he was frozen at the top of Mount Zenel, his will was inherited by the Tyrant King.

And now by Yuri.

“Wow… impressive.”

Yuri smiled slightly.

The heroic spirit he had felt when climbing Mount Zenel filled him once again at that moment.

There were moments when even Yuri doubted his victory. The more he learned about the demonic grimoire, the more he was haunted by the fear that perhaps he wouldn’t be able to stop Cedric.

But not anymore.

The proof that he could win was right before him.

“What this friend accomplished… There’s no reason why I, Yuri Briol, can’t do the same.”

He murmured in a voice that carried a slight laugh. Then, Artem responded.

“Isn’t that so?”

Yuri opened his eyes wide.

The statue of Artem, holding the scroll, turned its head and looked at him. Yuri was surprised for an instant, but soon nodded.

By sealing the demonic grimoire, Artem had reached that domain Yuri called chaos.

In that place, anything could happen. In fact, what Artem had accomplished from the beginning was already a miracle.

Artem continued.

“But you must fulfill something even more important.”

“Something more important?”

“By being bound to this, I came to know of you. The scroll is connected, you know?”

And now Yuri could clearly see his face. He was a young man with a kind smile.

“This fears you. Through what I carry within, I can hear its voices full of fear. I barely managed to seal it, but you—you must go beyond.”

Yuri understood perfectly what Artem was saying. He was the bearer of the Cut the soul and the heart.

Erich Briol had forged that sword, capable of cutting even black magic.

“You must cut the demonic grimoire.”

“Of course.”

Yuri nodded without hesitation.

“From the beginning, that has always been the plan.”

“I see. I’m glad. At last, I will be able to rest.”

“Of course. Just wait a little longer and I…”

“This is where my role ends.”

Said Artem.

“Fulfill your duty, Yuri Briol.”

Yuri remained still, watching Artem’s face float intensely within the blazing landscape of the spiritual domain.

It didn’t take long for him to decide.

He gripped Guilty’s hilt.

“Yes, this is how it should be.”

He raised the sword.

The energy of the Cut of the soul and the heart flowed along the blade.

An aura of edge capable of cutting the soul—even the heart—spread with an icy light.

The demonic grimoire had only been neutralized thanks to Artem’s sacrifice. It had not been destroyed.

If Artem had saved the people, then Yuri had to destroy that abomination. That was the mission entrusted to him.

“Rest in peace.”

Yuri swung Guilty.

The statue of Artem, which seemed too solid to break, split in two with utter ease.

And in that very instant, the mental domain vanished.

“N-no way…!”

“What’s happening?”

“Ah!”

The hikers opened their eyes wide. The statue of Artem split cleanly in two, right in the center where the demonic grimoire was located.

But it didn’t collapse or fall to the ground.

On the contrary, the two halves began to rise together into the air. And then they dissolved into a radiant light.

It was like watching powdered diamond scatter across the sky. With each angle of sunlight, every color in the world shimmered one by one.

There wasn’t a trace of darkness in that spectacle. Within the light, there was no room for shadow.

“Ah…”

The hikers looked up, stunned by the wondrous scene.

Artem, finally free, gazed from the sky at those who had climbed to the summit of Mount Zenel.

“It’s a miracle…”

“My God…!”

“It’s Saint Artem!”

The hikers shouted.

Artem looked at Yuri and said:

“Thanks to you, I’ve found rest. Thank you, Yuri Briol.”

His voice sounded sacred, like a divine messenger proclaiming a revelation.

The hikers prostrated themselves, while Yuri merely shrugged.

“No need to thank me.”

“Then, I take my leave.”

Freed from his long confinement, Artem now departed to where his soul was meant to go.

Yuri didn’t know what lay beyond. Perhaps after death, there was nothing. But even so, he didn’t feel afraid.

Just before ascending to the heavens, Artem’s voice brushed Yuri’s ear like a whisper.

“It will be a difficult path. Someone close to you may betray you. Take care of those around you, and no matter what happens, don’t lose your courage.”