Chapter 195 - Episode 26. Great Forest (1)
Chapter 195: Episode 26. Great Forest (1)
──────
「When the era of the Three Ancient Gods ended 210,000 years ago, the souls who became Lost Ones had to seek their own way to survive.
Some went searching for new gods. Some returned to their gods through death. Others preserved their lives by cooperating with Big Brother.
Most, however, remained neither one nor the other.
They had no will to follow a new god, no intention of clinging to Big Brother, yet could not give up on life.
They drifted into the 〈Great Forest〉, where they eventually lost their reason, became monsters, and died.
That is how the legend goes.
Yet from what I experienced firsthand, this legend differs slightly from the truth.
There are venerable Followers in the 〈Great Forest〉 who have lost their gods yet still protect their worlds. Those who watched their worlds perish with their own eyes. Those who still refuse to leave their ruined worlds.
Whenever I saw them, I found myself feeling something strange.
Why was it?
Why did those who had lost their gods
look so happy?」
Mulack Armelt, from 『Record of the Abyss』
* * *
“Go! Faster!”
Sirwen’s airship was cutting through the skies of 〈Caspion〉.
An explosion rang out nearby.
Cheongheo, Karlton, Yu Seolha, and Jin Eunsae stared blankly at the sight displayed on the airship’s screen.
What in the world were they seeing?
Two collapsing towers. Gigantes slaughtering gods at the center of the auction house.
Sirwen screamed wildly.
“Go! Someone get out there and bring them back, now!”
Karlton and Cheongheo moved.
The screen showed Karavan carrying Jaehwan and Runald on his back.
Fortunately, the two soon returned safely to the airship with Karavan.
“Push the speed to the limit! They’re coming after us!”
The gods who had seen Jaehwan board the airship had now changed targets and were closing in on the Destruction.
Sirwen gripped the controls and bit down hard on her lip.
“What the hell happened?”
She had finally met him. Barely managed to meet him, only to find the man she had waited for in that state.
“Oh, you little brat!”
Jaehwan said nothing, apparently unconscious.
Cheongheo was the first to administer emergency treatment. He was the Divine Doctor of Despair, a legendary Divine Doctor said to save even patients on the verge of disappearing.
After spending over ten minutes groaning as he treated Jaehwan’s wounds, Cheongheo finally wiped away his sweat and let out a breath.
“Fortunately, it isn’t bad enough to kill him. He’s naturally tough, so he’ll be fine after some rest. Though there may be some lingering effects.”
Only then did the Allies let out quiet sighs of relief.
Cheongheo’s expression remained grave.
“What happened?”
Everyone turned toward Karavan and Runald.
* * *
After hearing a brief explanation from Karavan and Runald, the Allies reacted in much the same way. Their faces first turned pale, then they began breaking out in cold sweat.
Sirwen cursed.
“Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! What the hell is this?”
Driving the Destruction at full speed, Sirwen cried out.
“Isn’t becoming the Great Lords’ sworn enemy enough? Why the hell did he have to pick a fight with the Seven Divine Thrones and Rupture too?”
Yu Seolha, who had quietly listened, spoke up as well.
“Are you sure the Rupture Lord intervened?”
“Yes.”
Karavan’s heavy reply made Yu Seolha sink into thought.
The airship shook irregularly amid deafening explosions.
High-grade gods, 「Rupture」, and even checkpoint troops who had traced the illegal infiltration route were firing at the airship.
Karlton checked the radar and spoke.
“There are too many of them.”
There was nowhere to run. The other side had airships too, while this side had few escape routes. If they randomly flew through portals, they could quickly have their coordinates traced and risk being shot down.
That was when Jaehwan faintly opened his eyes.
“Great Forest.”
After saying that, Jaehwan lost consciousness again.
Cheongheo’s eyes widened. What did he mean, suddenly bringing up the Great Forest?
While Cheongheo hesitated, Karavan shouted.
“That’s it, the Great Forest! Take us to the Great Forest!”
“The Great Forest? Why?”
“If we want to completely heal this guy, we need to go there.”
Of course, Jaehwan was not why Karavan wanted to go to the Great Forest.
Karavan recalled the message Andersen had left him at the end.
“Go to the Great Forest and find the Mad God. There, you may learn how to restore your link to your god.”
〈Great Forest〉. A forbidden region of the 《Abyss》 bordering the Eighth Site, Caspion.
Anyone who had spent any real time in the Abyss knew of the place.
Karlton, known as the Edict Doctor, gave his opinion.
“It is dangerous. Many airships have vanished for unknown reasons after entering the Great Forest carelessly. I saw it once on a 《Little Brother》 mystery channel.”
“There are several forbidden regions in the 《Abyss》 where you must never fly. The Great Forest is one of them.”
Even Sirwen added her thoughts, and Karavan’s face darkened.
Yu Seolha asked, “Why do you want to enter the Great Forest right now?”
“Well... I heard some information. Anyway, I was told that going there is the only way this guy can fully recover.”
“I can treat the little brat! Rather than make such an absurd choice...”
Yu Seolha shook their head and cut Cheongheo off.
“It isn’t entirely absurd. Running that way might give us a better chance of survival. The pursuit force will never expect us to enter the Great Forest.”
“You want us to flee from bandits by entering a tiger’s den?”
“The Great Forest is a forbidden region, but its high disappearance rate only applies to those who enter by airship. A few people who entered overland have survived.”
Yu Seolha looked over the group.
“We split up. One group takes the airship, the other goes overland. The airship group will turn in another direction as soon as it reaches the Great Forest. The overland group...”
“Will enter the Great Forest.”
At Cheongheo’s question, Yu Seolha nodded and looked down at Jaehwan.
“If he mentioned the ‘Great Forest,’ then he must have a reason.”
The Allies’ expressions turned even more serious.
Jaehwan was not someone who said meaningless things. If he had mentioned the Great Forest, it meant he had a reason to go there.
Cheongheo looked resentfully at Jaehwan before opening his mouth.
“Then I’ll take the little brat...”
“Master can’t. You don’t know the way through the Great Forest.”
“Then I’ll go!”
“Dream Demon can’t either. You’re the only one who can fly the airship.”
“Argh! Damn it!”
Sirwen screamed and glared at Karlton.
Her eyes seemed to say that the 《Little Brother》 nerd should know something.
Karlton shook his head.
“Actually, I have been searching for information about the Great Forest, but there is nothing useful. Every video was made by people who had never even gone near it...”
Jin Eunsae, who had been listening the whole time, was no different. Having spent a lifetime training in 「Rupture」, Jin Eunsae knew less about the geography of the 《Abyss》 than expected.
In the end, the turn came back to Karavan.
“I know the way to the edge of the Great Forest, at least. I went there once with my god.”
“I’ll go too. I got lost around the Great Forest once before.”
Runald stepped forward as well.
Karavan added, “I’ll take responsibility for getting this guy to the Great Forest. You all know who I am, right? Just trust me.”
“And who the hell are you?”
At Cheongheo’s question, Karavan let out a soft sigh and pointed to his forehead. A flame-shaped mark of Ignis appeared there.
An authority only the Seven Divine Thrones and their Vicegerents could manifest.
Cheongheo and Karlton drew their weapons at once, shocked.
“Why is a Vicegerent of one of the Seven Divine Thrones here? What are you plotting? What do you intend to do to Jaehwan?”
“Damn it, don’t look so serious and shocked. I’m not your enemy. Besides, my god is a fan of this guy.”
At the word fan, Sirwen, who had been pressing down on the accelerator, spoke as if she had remembered something.
“Come to think of it, I often saw the God of Flames on broadcasts featuring Jaehwan. I thought one of the Seven Divine Thrones had gone insane from living too long. Was that really Ignis?”
“That’s what I’m saying! Anyway, I’m helping this guy for personal reasons. I have no intention of fighting you, and no intention of harming him. I swear it on my god’s name.”
It was an oath made on a god’s name.
At that point, the Allies had no choice but to believe him. A god’s honor was the strongest guarantee a Vicegerent could offer.
Then Yu Seolha’s lips moved slightly.
“You lost your god, didn’t you?”
Karavan flinched and stepped back, glaring at Yu Seolha.
Come to think of it, Yu Seolha was from 「Rupture」. And all the Awakened Ones from 「Rupture」 they had met at the auction house had targeted the Vicegerents of the Seven Divine Thrones.
Yu Seolha watched Karavan for a moment before speaking.
“Master, I’ll head out too.”
“You’re going to the Great Forest as well?”
“I don’t know the way. But I can buy some time. There are members of our 「Rupture」 among those chasing us.”
“How can we trust you won’t join their side?”
“If I were going to, there would have been bloodshed here already.”
That was true. If Yu Seolha had harbored hostility toward the Allies, everyone here would have been wiped out long ago.
Cheongheo asked, “You may be defying a Commander. Are you all right with that?”
“Have you forgotten? I’m Rupture’s Second Division Commander.”
Yu Seolha looked down at Jaehwan for a moment.
“If the Commander is making the wrong judgment, it is also a division commander’s duty to point it out. I’ll buy you some time, so get away safely. And Eunsae, escort them to the entrance of the Great Forest.”
“Understood, Commander.”
“Then I’m off.”
With those final words, Yu Seolha flung open the airship’s door and dove backward while looking at the group.
Soon, explosions sounded in the distance, and the speed of Rupture and the gods pursuing them visibly slowed.
Yu Seolha had kept the promise.
Cheongheo spoke.
“Let’s begin too.”
* * *
The plan was simple.
“Over here, you bastards!”
Naked Cheongheo and Karlton clung to the top of the airship, waving their bodies and arms. The enraged gods immediately began rushing toward them.
“Over there! Catch them!”
“The God Slayer is over there!”
While Cheongheo and Karlton hung from the airship to lure away the enemies, Jaehwan’s Allies escaped through the side door.
Fortunately, the remaining distance to the Great Forest was not far.
The moment he landed, Karavan hoisted Jaehwan onto his back and began running. Runald and Jin Eunsae supported him from either side.
The sound of bombardment continued again and again.
That was when Karavan felt a chill run through him.
“Some of them have caught on.”
“Let’s take that mountain path.”
Their pursuers were closing in faster. On the other hand, this group could not pick up speed. Karavan was carrying Jaehwan, his link to his god had been severed, making it difficult to freely use World Force, and Runald was still a child.
In the end, Jin Eunsae made a decision.
Jin Eunsae took several strange-looking dolls and nails from a backpack, then hammered them into different spots in the ground.
The next moment, a massive disruption barrier formed around them.
Karavan felt his hearing and sense of smell rapidly grow dull, and spoke in admiration.
“Can all Rupture kids do this?”
“Not all of us. I’m just good.”
“Thanks. If you come visit the Third Site sometime, I’ll buy you something nice.”
“Just go already. I’ll buy you as much time as I can.”
Karavan and Runald ran with Jaehwan on Karavan’s back. They ran and ran, forcing themselves to ignore the faint screams and the acrid smell of burning behind them.
Rain poured from dark clouds that had gathered from somewhere. Karavan grabbed Runald’s hand when the boy slipped on the wet soil, and they pushed through the rough mountain path.
Seeing Jaehwan’s fingers twitch now and then in the cold rain, Karavan grumbled.
“You lucky bastard.”
When Ignis first claimed to be Jaehwan’s fan, Karavan could not understand it. He thought Ignis had finally gone senile after living too long. What was so good about a guy who was always taking his clothes off?
Yet even as the most terrifying enemies in the 《Abyss》 chased Jaehwan, there were still people helping him.
At first, Karavan could not understand it. What did they even like so much about this guy?
He was blunt, and whenever he opened his mouth, he only said rude things. What was there to like about someone so hard to grow attached to?
Had he let his guard down? His left foot caught on a mound of dirt as he ran. His body tilted, about to fall, when Runald caught him.
“Come on. We’re almost there.”
Instead of thanking him, Karavan asked, “Why are you going this far?”
Karavan had a reason he needed to go to the Great Forest.
But this kid was different. At least, he thought so.
“He’s my god.”
Runald said it as though the question itself made no sense.
Karavan shook his head.
“You’re still young. You could undergo God Severance and go to another god whenever you want. If you stick with someone like this, you’ll die soon.”
“Maybe.”
The boy’s voice was cold and deep, nothing like a child’s.
“But Jaehwan-nim would have done the same for someone like me.”
Karavan still did not understand why they helped Jaehwan.
But he felt he understood their hearts a little.
“I see.”
Jaehwan had a power that drew people in. Something that made them hope.
It was not simply because Jaehwan was strong.
Why people liked Jaehwan, if Karavan had to put it into words, was this.
Jaehwan acted.
No one truly understood what he did, what he wanted to do, or what he wanted to become. Yet whenever Karavan looked at Jaehwan, he remembered a childhood dream.
A memory from so long ago that he no longer even remembered what it had been.
Perhaps Jaehwan’s Companions were the same.
Those who wanted to see it, or believed in it, helped him.
They risked their lives for him and saved him.
And so,
they finally arrived at the 〈Great Forest〉.
Footnotes:
Chapter discussion