Chapter 18: Meeting the Corrupt Priest.
Scarlet blood splattered.
The severed head of a black beast rolled across the floor. As I calmly ducked my head, snow-white claws viciously slashed through the space where my head had just been.
Whirrrrrrrrr!
I swung.
The violently rotating saw blades ground the head of the claw's owner. Blood and flesh rained down once more. My muscles, burning hot, steamed in the cold air.
An endless wave of beasts and monsters surged in.
There was no time to catch my breath.
- Kreeee!
A monster resembling a black panther pounced. I swung the Butcher, hacking its forelegs into chunks. My white priest robes were already stained with blood and gore, no longer recognizable.
I mechanically ground down monsters and beasts. I continued onward along the dark night road, relying on the faint moonlight.
Like the lord said, there were four places where divinity could be felt. Of those, I continued walking towards the one closest to this location.
Kill!
Sharp teeth dug into my shoulder, taking advantage of a moment when I was lost in thought. I reached out my left hand and crushed the head of the beast that had bitten my shoulder with my grip strength. I felt the squish of brain matter, blood, and flesh on my palm.
The teeth marks that had pierced my shoulder slowly healed. Even while recovering, I mechanically swung the Butcher, steadily creating new chunks of meat.
"Some hospitality, huh?"
Kill!
Mother warned me another attack was coming from behind. I quickly twisted my body to deflect the attack and swung the Butcher.
Whirrrrrrrrr!
Bodily fluids splattered. I wiped my face on my collar to clear my vision. Scanning my surroundings, I realized that the composition of the gathering beasts and monsters had changed slightly.
The number of snow spiders appearing was gradually increasing.
"If every day's like this, I'll need to start carrying a bathtub instead of a washbasin."
Kill!
I chuckled at Mother's reproach to focus more instead of joking around.
"Guess the only one who worries about me is Mother..."
- Kreeee!
A snow-white snow spider rushed in violently. I cut off its raised forelegs and then embedded the Butcher directly into its head and started it up.
Whirrrrrrrrr!!!
Due to the shock of being ground from the inside of its head, the snow spider couldn't even scream before dying.
Damn, this thing's got some kick.
After steadily hacking my way through monsters and following the energy, I finally reached a new area.
A giant cave. The cave was pitch black and huge, like a giant's house.
The beasts that had been chasing me didn't dare follow me once I entered the entrance of the giant cave.
- Kiiiiiiiiii!!!
Except for one, the snow spiders. Only after another brawl with the snow spiders could I finally look around.
"Hmm."
Even though the spider guts mostly covered it, I could still see dark red bloodstains all over the floor. The color, distinctly different from the bodily fluids of the snow spiders, was clearly human.
Holding the Butcher in my hand, I walked into the silent cave, and broken pieces of wood and debris were visible here and there.
The carriage I'd found earlier was empty because these monsters had taken the stuff.
I could feel divinity undulating not far away. Some evil god's worshiper was hiding deep in the cave, waiting for me to just waltz right in.
"Real subtle invitation, huh? I can totally see through this. Cute."
Kill!
"Mother, please don't worry. I'm not the type to let my guard down."
I took a few deep breaths to prepare for the fight, and slowly started forward. My body, which had been heated up, gradually cooled down in the cool breeze blowing in.
As I went further inside, cocoons tangled with silk were visible here and there. When I got closer and ripped open those silk bundles, dried-up corpses tumbled out – so drained I couldn't even tell if they were male or female.
"I don't get that kind of decorating sense."
The number of cocoons gradually increased as I went further inside. How many people did they eat? There's no way they could have gone through this many in just three days.
When I reached the end of the passage, a giant cavern greeted me. If the passage was big enough for a giant, this cavern was big enough for a whole family of them.
I crossed the silent cavern, my footsteps echoing. I could feel the undulating divinity from above.
"Come out. I know everything."
My voice barely echoed through the cavern before the snow spiders' screams drowned it out.
- Kiiiiiiiiiiii!
- Kiiiiiiiiiiii!
- Kiiiiiiiiiiii!
Then, with a chorus of creepy screeches, it dropped from the ceiling.
Thump!
It had giant legs the size of carriages, a huge, white body like a moving building, and eight red eyes bigger than a person's head.
The snow spider queen showed herself.
- Kreeee!
A roar that sounded like a woman screaming in agony filled the cavern.
I gripped the Butcher tightly, tense.
Kill!
Mother warned me I could die if I slipped up for even a second.
Divine power coursed through every inch of the spider queen's massive claws. Normally, I could heal from anything, but wounds from divine power were a different story – I was just as vulnerable as any other human.
The possibility of death. The fear of it slowly tightened around my neck. In the midst of fear, I raised my left hand and murmured quietly.
"Mother. Draw the line, please."
Dark green light flowed down my body and quickly crawled across the cave floor. The divinity of corruption drew a line at the entrance of the cavern.
A line the living can't cross.
With this, there was no chance of the divinity of corruption leaking out of the cavern. Nothing alive could cross it.
I faced the giant spider queen and quietly wished.
"I need your power, Mother of Corruption."
As always, Mother responded to my wish. The air shimmered, and a massive giant appeared with a roar.
- Guh aah....
The Corruption Giant, instead of roaring like usual, stopped and just stared at me. I smiled awkwardly and said.
"Sorry for ditching you last time...?"
- Guh AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!
Only after I apologized did the Corruption Giant let out a satisfied roar and turn to the spider queen. At the same time, the dark green Mark of Corruption glowed on my skin.
I unleashed everything I had. My heart pounded wildly. The fear of death was still tightening around my neck, but even that was just a thrill.
"Mother. Tonight, I'll offer you the head of this man-eating spider."
Kill!
Mother told me not to get hurt, and the battle began.
- Guh AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!
- Kreeee!!!
The Corruption Giant charged across the cavern at the spider queen. The spider queen raised claws the size of houses and slammed them down directly onto the head of the Corruption Giant. The claws crushed the giant's head, digging deep into its body. The giant, now headless, swung its fist and smashed the queen's head.
- Kreeee!!!
The spider queen let out a scream of pain and started ripping into the Corruption Giant's body. The shockwave from their collision shook the cavern, and tons of snow spiders rained down around me.
So this is where all the snow spiders were hiding?
Whirrrrrrrrr!
The Butcher roared to life.
- Kreeee!
- Kreeee!
- Kreeee!
Fueled by the Mark of Corruption, I charged into the swarm of snow spiders. Fresh gore splattered over the barely-dried gunk.
I hacked away at the spiders, keeping an eye on the giant and queen's fight. Unfortunately, the Corruption Giant was way smaller than the queen – she was probably twice its size. The giant roared and fought hard, but it was clearly losing ground.
I had to help.
But the endless snow spiders kept blocking me from getting to their queen.
Whirrrrrrrrr!
I ground down another snow spider. But I couldn't win this way. If the queen took down the Corruption Giant and then came after me, I was dead meat.
I made up my mind.
I channeled all my divine power into my legs. The tattoo on my legs glowed a bright, dark green. I pushed my muscles to the limit and launched myself forward.
The air rushed against my face. I jumped high, but came down just as fast.
- Kreeee!!!
Dozens of sharp-toothed mouths gaped open below me. I gritted my teeth, used a snow spider's head as a springboard, and jumped again. In that split second, their claws raked across my body, leaving deep gashes. A searing pain shot through me.
My body screamed at me to stop.
I ignored my human instincts. I pushed down the urge to survive.
This body... no, I could still do more. I could push further.
Bang!
After dozens of jumps, I finally broke free from the damn spiders. My body was wrecked, but my mind was clear.
"Go!!!"
- Guh AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!
The beat-up Corruption Giant charged at the queen, not even trying to defend itself.
- Kreeee!!!
The queen and the giant wrestled, shaking the whole cavern. I, fueled by divine power, leaped onto the giant's back. I ran across the queen's heaving body and reached my target.
The only place I was aiming for was one place.
The weak spot between its cephalothorax and abdomen, right in the middle of its body.
Whirrrrrrrrr!
The Butcher's blades whirred faster than ever, like they knew what I wanted.
"Haaaap!"
The Butcher's teeth ripped into the carapace, trying to cut the queen in half at the waist.
-Kreeee!!!
The body I was standing on shook like crazy. I dug my feet in and kept grinding, grinding, grinding – trying to saw her in half.
- Guh AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!
The Corruption Giant held on tight to the queen. I kept swinging the Butcher.
Thud.
Finally, the queen's huge abdomen ripped away and fell. With only her top half left, the queen let out a dying screech.
- Kiiiiiiiiiii...
I did it. I won.
I grinned, covered in goo. And then.
A woman burst out of the dead queen's head. A beautiful woman with long, white hair glared at me with red eyes and screamed.
"You fucking asshole!!!"
I smiled gently and replied.
"So you were human after all."
The woman glared at me and bared her snow-white teeth.
"You fucking asshole!!! What the hell kind of bastard are you, barging in and screwing everything up! You're just another evil god worshiper like me! Do you have any idea how much work I put into controlling this queen? Do you!!!"
I slowly walked towards the woman.
"What is your purpose in besieging Kelton?"
"Why the hell would I tell you that?! Ow! That hurts, you bastard!"
A frost steel sword shot out from its scabbard and pierced the woman's shoulder. I smiled gently and asked softly.
"What is your purpose in besieging Kelton?"
Her red eyes blazed with anger.
"You crazy son of a bitch!!! Shit! It hurts! I said it hurts!!!"
I slowly twisted the frost steel sword. The woman's shrill screams echoed through the cavern.
"What is your purpose in besieging Kelton?"
I asked again. Tears welled up in her eyes from the pain.
"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! I won't tell you shit, you bastard!"
"Have it your way."
"What?! Wai—"
Slice.
The severed head of the woman rolled down the queen's body and fell to the floor. I smiled, wiping the blood from the sword blade.
"I always think this, Mother. I really love murderers. It's so easy to kill them without feeling bad. I offer this woman's corpse to you. Please accept it."
This white-haired demon worshiper was worth three and a half fingers. A thousand units of divine power flowed from her decaying body into me.
[Divinity: 5582]
"I'm more than halfway to my next power-up."
I chuckled.
"Just thinking about the next evil god worshiper gets me excited. I wonder which one of them will finally spill the beans about what's going on."
Kill!
"You're saying the third? I'll bet on the fourth."
I sent the Corruption Giant back and left the cave. It was still night, but bright lights lit up the dark ground.
I was shocked by what I saw.
"Damn it."
Kelton, the city I'd left behind, was burning. The whole place was going up in flames.
