How to Survive as a Dungeon Manager in Another World

23 – Kalmash (3)

The primeval language, runes.

It is the language of gods, the supreme power containing the world’s fundamental laws.

To wield this power, a special resource is needed, the trace of divinity etched into the soul… in other words, an Image.

For the forgotten gods, Images were infinite.

Because they were in contact with the world’s origin, they could regenerate depleted Images at any time.

But humans are different.

With a mortal body, they could never reach the origin of the world, and so…

‘Once an Image is used, it can’t be replenished.’

This is the fundamental difference between gods and humans, and the inherent limit of a mortal.

And what allows one to overcome that limit is the Ring of Ifrasia.

A cursed object that defies the laws of the world, an item imbued with original sin that twisted causality.

But Arkan, who has no way of knowing about the ring, must see this scene as if…

‘…Like I’ve broken through a wall.’

I maintained my poker face and lightly turned around.

She had admirably blocked all the aftereffects of the surging explosion.

Ludine and Adina also seemed safe under Arkan’s protection.

But Arkan’s gaze fixed on me was unsettling.

She looked shocked, yet her expression was almost one of rapture.

‘…What to do now?’

Suddenly, a passage from the original work, where Arkan evaluated humanity, came to mind.

Humans are an inherently weak species.

But at the same time, they are also the beings with the most potential.

In a short lifespan of barely a hundred years, they collide with limits countless times, converging, and then shattering them.

If an individual fails, the family will succeed; if the family fails, all of humanity will carry on that brilliant flame.

Arkan loved that flame.

For her, who had lived for hundreds of years, that brilliant flame inherited by humanity was one of the few sources of amusement.

But, in the end, humans are just humans.

Though they advanced step by step toward new branching points, they remained pathetically weak.

That was the wall.

A colossal wall that the human race could never overcome.

And now, she would think she had met a human who had breached that wall for the first time.

…Of course, that was merely a grand delusion.

“…Hahaha!”

As expected.

The corners of Arkan’s lips stretched as if they would tear.

It was the exact same reaction as a scene from the original.

Later, she would witness the original protagonist overcoming the wall, and from that moment, the Arkan Council, who had maintained neutrality for hundreds of years, would side with the protagonist for the first time.

And now.

Her obsession, which should have been directed towards the protagonist…

Was beginning to stray in a misguided direction.

“Luke Richter.”

Arkan’s eyes sparkled.

They held a flustered gaze, like a child eagerly anticipating a gift.

The words she would utter to me, in all probability…

“You, want to be a Lord?”

Ah, god damn it.

I knew this would happen.

Elfriede Trivia.

She began wandering the streets alone around the age of eight.

That period when she was driven out by her parents for a mere commoner abusing divine power without the permission of the Constellation.

“Mother! I was wrong! Please forgive me!”

“Get lost! Are you not leaving? Who are your parents, parents are!”

“It’s cold… please…”

“Before I cut off that wrist, won’t you get out of here this instant!”

“I was wrong, I was wrong, so…”

A divine power, one that healed wounds and purified evil.

It was the sole domain of the Holy Order.

Thus, anyone not a member of the Order who dared misuse such power was branded a heretic and ostracized.

In this unforgiving world, an eight-year-old orphan labeled a heretic faced what was, in effect, a death sentence.

To abandon one’s own child for the petty offense of violating the Order’s doctrine.

Unbelievably barbaric, yet that barbarity was the spirit, the very madness of the age they inhabited.

The speed with which rumors spread was unimaginable, making even finding honest work nearly impossible.

No employer, not even the most compassionate, would take in a young girl stained with the mark of heresy.

She swiftly lost her family, her home, and was reduced to begging, scavenging the streets.

Condemned to a miserable existence, surviving by rummaging through refuse.

“Child.”

“…”

“Will you not come with me, to the Holy Order?”

“……Yes.”

And so, when she finally drew the attention of the Order.

And when, a man offered to take her into its fold.

Elfriede could not bring herself to refuse.

It was like the whisper of an angel come to deliver her from ruin.

“From this day forth, you are a member of the Holy Order. That means we are family now.”

“……Then you won’t abandon me?”

“Of course not. A god never abandons his followers. Unlike your parents.”

Unlike her parents, who had cast her out like unwanted baggage, the man’s words, that the god would never forsake his own, were sweet.

It was an obsession born of deprivation, but Elfriede did not dwell on it.

She did not want to overthink it.

She was content enough with her current situation, where she no longer had to starve or shiver in the cold.

“You were born with divine power.”

“……”

“There is no need to be afraid. To be born with the power of god is a thing to be celebrated. Your possessing such power must also be by the will of god. But power comes with responsibility. There is something you can do for the Holy Order. What do you say, are you willing?”

“Yes, I will.”

Elfriede accepted the Sanctum’s proposal without hesitation.

To her, the Sanctum was everything, and defying their will was unthinkable; there was no reason to refuse when they needed her abilities.

“From today, you are her substitute.”

“Substitute?”

“What do you know of the Saintess?”

“An apostle of the Gods. One who fights against evil and corruption.”

“You know her well. From today, you will become the Saintess’s substitute.”

Me?

How?

“We need your divine power.”

“…Does the Saintess not possess divine power?”

“That is not for you to concern yourself with. Suffice to say, there is a matter in which your divine power will be of great use.”

“What is it?”

It was a genuinely earnest question.

She was both family of the Sanctum and a devout believer, so she had no reason to refuse their request.

“The Demon King has descended upon the mortal realm.”

“Demon King?”

“Yes, a fragment of chaos, seeking primal evil.”

“Is it dangerous?”

“Dangerous indeed! Fragments of chaos are beings born to realize evil. They are rotten to the core.”

The descent of the Demon King.

With it, the continent was plunged into chaos once more.

In response, the Imperial family formed an expedition to subjugate the Demon King; they would soon be known as the “Hero Party.”

Rumor had it that the Saintess of the Sanctum had also joined this expedition, but that was not the truth.

The truth was that Elfriede, possessing immense divine power, would pose as the Saintess and participate in the expedition in place of the inept one.

Subjugating the Demon King was arduous.

They faced countless trials, despaired before crises, and ultimately overcame them.

Through such ordeals, Elfriede also grew.

And in the process, she realized something: her divine power was anything but ordinary.

“Hey, are you sure you’re just a fake Saintess?”

“…Yes.”

“Honestly. A fake? What fake in this world is more capable than the real thing? I’m telling you, the Order got you good. Do you even know what those b*stards get up to, peddling the name of god?”

“……”

The hero’s words were the truth.

Elfriede was no fake, but a true Saintess.

An Apostle chosen and appointed directly by God, not the Order.

Yet she shook her head, banishing the thought.

There was no longer a need to covet, no reason to do so.

To complete the given task and return – that was all Elfriede needed to do now.

To stand aside.

That was the choice she had made.

And the price of standing aside was devastating.

“…The, the psychic residue!”

“Everyone, take cover!”

“Elfriede! What are you doing there! Move, quick!”

The Demon King’s body was merely a shell.

Though they had succeeded in beheading the Demon King with the Holy Sword, the chaotic psychic residue dwelling within his soul erupted with terrifying speed.

The place that residue headed.

“ELFRIEDE!!!!”

Elfriede Trivia.

None other than the Saintess.

The curse of chaos pierced deeply into her soul.

It gnawed at her reason, stoked the flames of madness.

Her skin gradually decayed, and even controlling her mind was a struggle.

The excruciating pain made her wish for a swift death.

But the powerful divine force residing within her would not even allow that.

“You’ve suffered much, Elfriede.”

“Please… save me…”

“Haha, what nonsense is this? You’re perfectly alive, aren’t you?”

Barely clinging to hope, she turned to the Order.

The man who took her in merely smiled.

“I’d rather just die…”

“That simply won’t do. Do you think the world’s causality would permit your death?”

Huh?

Causality?

“Causality signifies a role. And if one appointed a role were to suddenly die, wouldn’t that be troublesome? Therefore, the world protects them. Until they can complete the role they’ve been given. That, is what it means to be bound by causality.”

“Then this divine power, too…”

“Indeed! It exists because it would be inconvenient if Elfriede, you, were to die before fulfilling your appointed role. If you don’t believe me, try it now. See if you can meet the death of your choosing.”

It was as he said.

She could throw herself from buildings, stab herself in the throat with a knife, yet she could not die.

A being protected by the world… a being bound by causality… that was what it meant.

“Anyway, good work. Now that its usefulness is exhausted, the Order can no longer accept you.”

“…What?”

“You said you wanted to die? Then leave for Blackmoor. Perhaps, who knows, crossing the boundaries of chaos, you might find death.”

She was abandoned.

The words that a god never forsakes their followers were a lie.

Everything was vanity.

She wanted to take revenge. She wanted to set the world ablaze, but the desire to die was even more potent.

As if one’s spirit follows the state of one’s flesh, that desire grew ever more intense.

She walked aimlessly.

She walked, walked, and walked some more.

Thus, she left the city, headed towards the demon realm, and finally, she crossed the boundary.

Bound in endless chains of torment, she could only wait for death.

And yet.

“……”

…A man appeared before Elfriede.

Her vision was blurred.

Only the hazy image of a man approaching her, a man reaching his hand out towards her, was seared into her mind.

The man’s piercing blue eyes focused on Elfriede.

The moment their gazes met, a choking sensation, a rising nausea, overwhelmed her.

The man’s hand reached for Elfriede, his fingertips brushing her forehead.

A soft, warm, indescribable temperature seized her reason.

*Shooosh!*

Her thoughts failed to keep pace with the current of events.

But, somehow, the unbearable, terrible pain slowly subsided.

In that very instant, something hot streamed down Elfriede’s cheek.

It was a feeling so utterly foreign.

It was… salvation.