#034

A desolate air hung in the atmosphere. Kiyen stared at Cullen wordlessly, then began to walk again. Cullen quietly began to follow him.

Emotions he had never felt before clinked and collided like small, sharp stones inside him. It became a feeling that was difficult to define as either sorry or disappointed.

They walked for a long time in silence. The cave was incredibly vast, as Arne had said. While Kiyen pushed aside rocks, Cullen guarded the surroundings. He tried to clear his mind, but it was not very effective.

‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.’

Such words repeatedly swirled in his mouth and disappeared.

This time, it really felt like they had gotten closer than before.

Just as he thought that, a cold wind blew from somewhere. A chill, as if rising from the depths of winter, crept up his ankles. Breaking the long silence, Kiyen spoke.

“There it is.”

Kiyen pointed to a gap in the high stone walls. There was a space hidden between two steep stone walls. A faint green light emanated from it.

“I’ll go first.”

Without waiting for Kiyen’s reply, Cullen took the lead. It had been too long since he had considered the other person’s feelings, and the current situation felt suffocating. Kiyen let Cullen go.

Standing between the stone walls, Cullen looked up. The green light spreading from within served as illumination, allowing him to survey the area roughly. There were no signs of falling rocks. He took a deep breath and slowly began to walk. As his scabbard hit the wall, stone dust trickled down.

After walking for about 10 minutes, Cullen came face to face with the source of the green light. The green light filling the space, like a cave within a cave, was leaking from a certain sword.

Looking at the dazzling light, which was almost painful to his eyes, he soon discovered something strange. The sword was not stuck in the ground.

The sword was stuck in the heart of a boy who looked no older than twenty. The boy’s corpse, with a pale complexion as if decay had stopped, had its eyes open. The ambiguous time when decomposition stopped made it impossible to know when he died.

“This sword.”

Kiyen approached and said quietly, looking down at the boy.

Cullen knelt on one knee on the ground. The boy’s red hair made his face strangely familiar. He wasn’t someone he knew. However, it was a face he had seen recently. While Cullen tried to recall his memories, Kiyen examined the sword.

“Seeing it up close, it’s certain. Someone brought a power that does not belong to this world.”

“How can a power that does not belong to this world exist here?”

Kiyen reached out slightly and touched the sword. However, his white hand was repelled with a tang sound. It was as if an invisible transparent barrier had struck him.

“To be precise, it is a power that does not originate from the goddess.”

Kiyen scanned the walls. His eyes, drawn to the green light and the corpse, had not noticed the paintings on the walls. They were not delicately drawn by an artist, but ancient traces that seemed faded with time.

“The goddess says nothing at times like these.”

Kiyen said in a subdued voice.

“This is the first time I’ve seen this symbol.”

Cullen re-examined the mural. The right side of the mural was slightly odd. Something had originally been drawn there, but it seemed to have been erased by time. The remaining mural itself was very faded, so it wasn’t strange.

However, he felt a sense of déjà vu. The blurry drawing, which looked like the shape of a person holding a sword, was similar to a form Cullen had seen somewhere.

“Me too. It doesn’t make sense. If it’s ancient, I should know everything.”

Kiyen knelt down completely in front of the mural. As a result, their distance rapidly narrowed. His body stiffened. Kiyen seemed to have forgotten about the previous incident, his attention focused on the mural.

Although it was clearly a good thing, his mood did not improve. He wondered if the incident with him meant nothing to Kiyen. Was it just a moment of anger at an unpleasant scene he happened to witness?

“It seems there is a part of the drawing that is erased.”

Kiyen nodded. Cullen quietly turned his head and gazed at Kiyen’s profile. Watching his thoughtful face, Cullen hesitated to speak. He wanted to give the explanation from earlier. He couldn’t say it properly, but at least that he was grateful to him.

Even if it meant nothing to Kiyen, he just wanted to do so.

“Earlier…”

“This drawing looks like Carias.”

The words came out at the same time. Cullen quickly closed his mouth, but Kiyen didn’t miss it. He turned his gaze and stared directly at Cullen. His expressionless blue eyes held him intently.

“Speak.”

Kiyen commanded quietly. Cullen moved his lips.

“Kiyen-nim, you may find our relationship unpleasant, but that’s not the meaning with which I… asked.”

As he struggled to utter the words, Kiyen’s expression became ambiguous. He furrowed one eyebrow slightly. His face in the darkness, lightly dusted with stone powder, was still beautiful at this moment. Cullen managed to move his stiff tongue again awkwardly.

“If I were to say….”

He felt his breath catch as he was about to say, ‘I didn’t dislike it.’

What are you doing, Cullen. Is there any need to deliberately provoke Kiyen? Just expressing gratitude should be enough to show courtesy. No, why do you even want to impress Kiyen? What does it matter how others see you? You’ve lived without caring all this time.

Why can’t it be that way with Kiyen?

“The fact that Kiyen-nim is the subject…”

His mouth moved, ignoring Cullen’s will. His insides burned. He clenched and unclenched his fists, moistening his dry tongue. But Cullen’s words did not continue.

“You were here!”

Lasano’s cheerful voice echoed. Kiyen looked at Cullen for a few seconds, then turned his gaze backward. Cullen closed his mouth.

“I’ve been looking for you for a while. I thought we were trapped and would starve to death, but seeing you two puts my mind at ease.”

The atmosphere suddenly became strained, and he stood up. With people present, he couldn’t bring up this conversation anymore. It would be best to postpone it for later.

“Oh, is this it?”

Lasano approached the sword. Cullen quietly followed him and saw Arne. His pale face looked so unwell that it would be understandable if he fainted. He was staring blankly, then raised his head at Lasano’s words.

Soon, his eyes widened.

“……Martin?”

A faint sound escaped. Lasano turned around. Arne was looking at the boy’s corpse with an expression of terror.

“Ah, ah, ah…!”

Making a sound as if he would faint, Arne backed away like a madman and bumped into the wall, falling. He began to pant as if having a seizure.

“M-Martin, Martin, why are you… why are you here…”

Arne, trembling, crawled towards the boy’s corpse. Water quickly welled up in his gentle, puppy-like brown eyes. The tears that instantly welled up wet his cheeks. He couldn’t dare to touch the boy, no, Martin, and began to weep and wail before him.

“I’m sorry, Martin. I… I’m sorry.”

The moment he heard the name Martin, Cullen confirmed the identity of the sense of déjà vu he had felt looking at the boy’s face. The boy bore a strong resemblance to the girl named Marie he had seen in the shrine.

Was this boy what Arne had been hiding?

Lasano watched Arne expressionlessly, as if he had heard something. Arne, who had been gasping for breath, suddenly looked up at Cullen and said,

“M-Martin is the… connection point for everything? Is that right?”

His trembling voice held a sense of certainty. As if he had guessed.

“What is your relationship with this boy?”

Arne managed to say, between choked sobs.

“I, I… it’s as if I… killed Martin. It’s all my fault. I…”

He couldn’t properly continue his explanation. Lasano took his place.

“Arne-nim seems to be responsible for this boy’s death.”

Lasano, his cheerful demeanor gone, scanned the surroundings as he passed Arne. He examined the floor and walls stained with blood, then bent down and swept the floor.

“Upon closer inspection of the corpses that attacked us, there were children who had not yet reached adulthood.”

Cullen tried to recall. At the time of the attack, it was dark and chaotic, so he hadn’t been able to properly confirm. Lasano wouldn’t have been attacked because of the pendant, so he would have had more time to look around.

“But that is illegal. It is something the Empire strictly forbids above all else.”

At Cullen’s words, Arne flinched. He hunched over. His sobs intensified.

“That’s right.”

Lasano picked up a piece of cloth from the floor. What had been hidden by the small stones and dust slowly came into view. Torn bandages and rotten cloth were scattered on the floor.

“But there are many things in the world that do not run according to reason. As you know well, Cullen… this place is like a tomb.”

“Indeed.”

Kiyen, who had been silent, scanned the surroundings and stood up.

“Then it makes sense. I don’t know what happened, but as always, it’s due to human greed. If such young ones have died, their resentment must be immeasurable… This sword must be the medium.”

Kiyen approached the sword again. Arne, who had been lying at Martin’s feet, blankly raised his head. His gentle face was a mess, streaked with tears.

“What in the world did you do?”

Cullen asked. That was when the change occurred. The sword glowed greener, and a faint whisper echoed from somewhere.

‘It’s your fault.’

Startled, everyone’s gaze turned. It seemed Cullen wasn’t the only one who heard it. Arne looked down at Martin with wide eyes.

‘You killed us.’

The voice was right beside them. Cullen also slowly lowered his gaze. Was he going mad? The sword was speaking. The hallucination came from it. The sword’s green light pulsed. As if telling them to grasp it.

“If this sword amplified resentment and caused this… I believe there is only one solution.”

Lasano said coldly. He was looking down at Arne.

“We just need to find the one responsible for this situation. Everything ends where it begins. Brother, you are clearly responsible for this boy’s death. As you confessed.”

Despair settled on Arne’s face. He gazed endlessly at the sword, then turned to Cullen. He spoke softly.

“As the High Priest said… I am responsible for Martin’s death. I failed in my duty as a priest. I ignored Martin, who looked at me for help, and I stood by and watched this situation.”

His voice, which had been trembling terribly, gradually subsided. As he spoke more, his voice grew smaller, and at the same time, he sounded resolute.

“This happened because of me.”

Cullen frowned. He couldn’t agree with that part. He wasn’t sure what Arne had done yet, but ultimately, this situation wasn’t solely the problem of a mere Common Priest.

“The justice of Aksha is punishment befitting the sin. If one has sinned, they must receive the corresponding punishment.”

But Lasano whispered, not stopping him. Arne looked back and forth between Cullen and Kiyen with large, tear-filled eyes, then stood up. He then bowed.

“I am the cause.”

Arne’s hand grasped the sword’s hilt. The sword stuck to his hand and was pulled from the corpses in an instant.

“So if I die… everything will be resolved. I am not worthy to live.”

The priest, who had seemed so timid and frail, raised the sword as if he had been waiting for this moment. His veined hand moved downward, aiming to pierce his chest. Cullen scowled.

Cullen, approaching swiftly, grabbed Arne’s wrist.

“Let go, Cullen.”

Arne said calmly, his voice choked with sobs. Despite his actions, he was surprisingly strong. Whether he had made up his mind, he twisted his wrist, which refused to be freed. He bit his lip, enduring, but finally, unable to overcome Cullen, he let go of his trembling hand. The sword fell to the floor.

Arne tried to grab the sword again, but Cullen was much faster. His skin stuck to the hilt. The sword, which had caused no reaction when Arne pulled it, now spread an eye-searing green light, engulfing the surroundings the moment it stuck to Cullen’s hand.

“Cullen!”

Kiyen’s voice was heard. His vision turned pitch black.