SMT 70

“There’s no way a monster is here… Ah, it’s that reversed speech again.”

That meant he would go ahead and check if it was safe. But even that interpretation didn’t feel right to me.

I couldn’t just stand still no matter what. I moved on purpose and I arrogantly replied.

“Be careful. If a monster appears, it might side with me and attack the Grand Duke…”

I stopped.

As soon as I turned past the pillar, I froze in place and lost my words. My body turned rigid while looking straight ahead when I heard a puzzled question.

“What’s wrong?”

I slowly turned to Tairok. He stood five or six steps ahead of me.

“Don’t go any farther.”

He slightly raised his eyebrows, but he looked at the direction he had been about to walk and asked.

“What do you see ahead?”

I wanted to ask could he really not see what was right there?

There was a massive dome-shaped shield large enough to touch the ceiling of the cave. The surface was covered with net-like holes, but black energy enveloped the whole thing. That smoky flickering energy made me feel disgusted. So I knew the moment I saw it.

That was imprisoning the divine beast. And the divine beast was probably in the pond visible beyond the shield.

It was a large, deep blue body of water whose depth couldn’t be known. I looked down at my wrist.

“Are you trapped in there?”

The tail didn’t move, but the small head turned toward the pond. That was enough of an answer. I looked back at Tairok.

“Step back. There’s a pond right ahead, and an enormous shield covers all of it. But the shield feels very unpleasant.”

Tairok examined the front with a cold gaze and asked.

“Why does it feel unpleasant?”

Right. Why did it feel so unpleasant? Because of the color? Because the mesh pattern was creepy?

No. Since when did I care about shapes? I frowned, but I didn’t have a reason.

“I’m not sure. But it’s true.”

I thought he wouldn’t believe it since I had no proof, but his reaction was the opposite.

“Alright.”

He stepped back from the black shield. The shield was disturbing, but Tairok’s reaction surprised me even more.

“You believe me?”

He laughed and picked up a stone from the ground. Then he threw it toward the direction I had pointed. The stone arced through the air, but there was no sound of it falling. Instead, the moment it touched the black shield, it instantly turned into fine black ash and scattered on the ground.

Damn it, what the hell is that thing, and he just threw a stone at it…

I was shocked but Tairok’s face didn’t change. His eyes sparkled fiercely as he looked at the black ash on the ground. He seemed angry that the divine beast was trapped inside such a place, no matter how much he disliked it.

“There’s a divine beast inside that?”

He asked while looking at my wrist. I followed his gaze to the divine beast. The small head of the divine beast was silently facing the pond. I quietly asked.

“Do you know how to break that black shield?”

[Dorgo.]

“Since Dorgo made it, it seems only he can break it.”

I was about to explain that to Tairok when I felt heat surging through my arm, and a voice rang in my head.

‘Obtain the key first, child.’

The divine beast’s words sounded like my grandmother’s voice again, and I still couldn’t get used to it. So I asked back a beat later.

‘Where is the key?’

‘I gave it to Borhumi.’

Zav? But then I realized the divine beast meant Zav’s ancestor, Borhumi from long ago.

‘What does the key look like?’

‘A key is a key.’

I had forgotten how non-human beings spoke. Fortunately, the divine beast wasn’t completely incomprehensible.

‘Find what should be cherished but isn’t being cherished.’

‘That’s hard. Give me another clue.’

But instead of explaining, my grandmother’s voice told me something else.

‘When you take the key, my contract with Borhumi will end. You must find a new contractor.’

I flinched. Then I understood why the divine beast had suddenly entered my head.

It wanted me to find it? That was such a burden out of nowhere.

‘Do you want to choose Kun?’

I couldn’t answer right away. If I decided, Tairok would be able to use Borhumi’s divine beast power completely? But Tairok already had his family’s divine beast. Everyone thought it had perished, but it was only sleeping.

‘He already has a divine beast, but can he still be chosen?’

It didn’t answer. The heat faded. The small head of the divine beast stayed motionless, still facing its body as if nothing had happened.

Then a low sound reached my confused ears.

“Lu.”

I turned to Tairok and realized I had been silent for too long. I should explain at least part of it to someone that quick-witted.

“The key was given to Borhumi. We probably have to take it from him.”

I hesitated and told him my guess.

“Then Zav probably can’t use the divine beast’s power at all. But it didn’t say anything about the key’s exact location or shape. It only said to find something that should be cherished but isn’t being cherished.”

“Alright.”

“What do you mean by alright? Do you know what the key is?”

Tairok started walking and looked back at me with a helpless expression.

“It means I know what we have to do after we get out of here.”

Ah… Huh? We?

Once we got out of here, we could just go our separate ways though.

I stopped myself from speaking. If he joined in finding the key, well, he might be some help.

Actually, he would probably be a lot of help. I gave the temporary ally precise information about where the shield was set up, just in case.

“Be careful not to touch this part. But all the walls with light stones embedded in them are completely safe…”

As I spoke, I saw the divine beast’s tail move.

[Secret passage.]

“Oh? There seems to be a secret passage here?”

I quickly told Tairok and looked down again to check, but the small body coiled around my wrist was starting to fade.

I realized that its strength had run out.

I also realized I wouldn’t be able to see it again until I freed it.

Maybe it was because of those blue eyes that were still staring straight at me even as it vanished.

“What’s wrong?”

I couldn’t take my eyes off its fading figure, and I stayed like that for a while. Maybe because of my grandmother’s voice, I felt it was regretful that we have to part ways.

“The divine beast… disappeared.”

I swallowed once and barely opened my mouth. Then I thought of something else and quickly looked up at Tairok.

“Are you alright?”

“The power that entered once is still there.”

That was a relief.

“But I don’t know how long it’ll last.”

“When will the original power return?”

“You want to kiss me?”

What kind of old man joke was that? I immediately turned serious.

“I can hit you with a stick to help you get your mind straight.”

Tairok didn’t get angry, he laughed and turned away. Then he walked very quickly like someone with a destination in mind.

“Where are you going?”

I hurried after him, worried he might touch the shield. Fortunately, he moved along the wall and reached the opposite side. Then he tapped the wall a few times with his sword and gave an order.

“Step back.”

“Why? Is something there?”

“There’s an artificial mark.”

Where exactly? I tried to approach to look too, but he held out his hand to stop me. Then he raised his sword high.

Clang!

He was again thrusting his sword into the wall, and smashing it force. I didn’t know how thick the wall was, but it… worked.

Boom. Boom.

He thrust his sword twice more, and fragments of stone came crashing down the floor.

Soon a hole wide enough for one person to barely pass appeared, and beyond it was an empty space.

With that kind of brute strength, who even needed a Swordmaster? He could just beat monsters to death with force alone.

I was impressed and envious, I walked closer and saw him lift his sword again.

“Huh? The hole’s already open.”

Why was he trying to smash it again? But without any explanation, he gave me a brief look and brought down his sword without hesitation.

Bang!!

A much louder noise echoed through the cave and the wall collapsed again. Before, one would’ve had to crawl through the hole, but now it was tall enough to pass through by just lowering one’s head slightly.

At this point, the sword was even more astonishing. What kind of material was that made of?

While I looked at his sword with jealousy, he stepped inside through the hole. Then he held his hand out to me.

“You can come.”

“…..”

“What are you doing?”

“Don’t.”

“What?”

“Don’t act like you’re taking care of the weak. If I need help, even if you tell me not to ask, I’ll still ask.”

I spoke solemnly, but it didn’t work. He smiled even more.

“What if it’s the opposite?”

“The opposite?”

“I mean if I’m the one weakened and asking you to take care of me.”

Then he moved his hand slightly.

“Take it.”