Chapter 364 : On Sin (2)

About two weeks later.

Following Alon’s suggestion, soldiers began gathering at the Magic Tower.

Like warriors preparing for their final battle, both soldiers and knights assembled with resolute expressions.

Their numbers had already filled the area surrounding the Tower.

It was an overwhelming sight.

Day after day, the army continued to converge endlessly around the Magic Tower.

“Yutia.”

“Rine, it’s been a while.”

Rine and Yutia were there as well.

“Your true body must still be in Fildagreen, huh?”

Rine nodded to Yutia, who asked with her usual calm smile.

“Yes. As I mentioned last time, it’s still not in any condition to move.”

“That’s unfortunate. It would’ve been a great help to the Lord.”

Yutia spoke with genuine regret, and Rine quietly gazed at her, her eyes thoughtful as if weighing something.

“What is it?”

Yutia asked upon seeing Rine’s expression.

Rine shook her head a few times.

“I just had something on my mind. And you don’t have to worry about that part.”

“What part?”

“The help. I think I might be able to provide some, at least for now.”

Yutia nodded gently.

“So, why did you come to see me?”

“Can’t I just come by to visit?”

Rine countered softly.

But Yutia didn’t lose her smile.

“I don’t think that’s the reason.”

“...That’s a little harsh, you know.”

“Is it? When you wanted to see me as a child, you’d always make up excuses—like pretending not to know a word just to come and ask.”

“W-wait! Why are you bringing up something like that all of a sudden?!”

Flushing slightly, Rine hurried to stop her.

Yutia chuckled at her reaction and naturally took a seat in her assigned office chair.

“That’s how well I know you. After all, we spent quite some time together.”

“...Haah.”

“So then, what’s your business this time?”

With a small sigh, as if resigned, Rine fell silent for a moment before speaking.

“Yua... did she know about Pluto?”

She asked the question quietly.

“Of course—didn’t you show it to her yourself?”

Yutia replied, but Rine shook her head.

“No, I mean before that.”

“Before?”

“Yes. I’m asking if she already knew about it even before I ever used Pluto.”

At that, Yutia fell silent.

She only looked straight at Rine, her expression unreadable.

Some time passed like that.

“Why are you asking me this?”

Yutia’s calm voice filled the room.

Rine met her gaze squarely.

“I know you’re hiding something, Yutia. But I’m not going to ask about it. You wouldn’t answer anyway.”

“You know me well.”

“More importantly, I also know things about you.”

“Oh?”

Yutia’s voice rose slightly, almost amused.

But then—

“So?”

“Yes. You wouldn’t do anything that would put us at a loss.”

Her certainty made Yutia waver ever so slightly.

The smile didn’t vanish from her face.

Her expression remained the same.

Still smiling.

Still composed.

But for the briefest instant—

She froze.

It was subtle, but noticeable enough.

“So, I won’t ask about your secrets.”

Rine continued calmly.

“There’s only one thing I want to know.”

After all, what she sought wasn’t Yutia’s reaction—

It was the answer.

“Tell me.”

“Who destroyed the Illanef Empire?”

Rine looked straight into Yutia’s eyes.

“Does it matter?”

Yutia replied evenly, her expression unchanging.

“I always thought the world had been destroyed by Sin.”

Rine began to explain what she had learned so far.

That both Pluto and Sin were creations of the Illanef Empire.

That “Sin” had been the name of the Empire’s guardian weapon.

And that Sin had never once been used during the Empire’s downfall.

“You’ve done quite a bit of research.”

“My library holds every piece of information there is… except about you.”

Yutia didn’t respond.

She simply tapped her finger lightly—

Tap. Tap.

On the desk, as if deep in thought.

Rine didn’t interrupt her.

She knew Yutia wasn’t someone who gave up information easily.

After a while, Yutia finally spoke.

“I can’t answer your question directly.”

“...I see.”

“But I can give you a few hints.”

“...Hints?”

“Yes. Hints.”

Smiling again, Yutia tilted her head slightly, as though deciding what to reveal.

“First of all—yes, as your research shows, Sin was indeed created in the Illanef Empire. And yes, it was designed as a ‘guardian weapon.’ In other words, just as you read in your library—”

“It wasn’t Sin that destroyed the Illanef Empire.”

“The second one is—”

Yutia spoke softly as she looked at Rine.

“Gwehyeol.”

“...Gwehyeol?”

“Look it up in your library. You might find yourself closer to the answer you’re searching for.”

Yutia smiled as she finished her words.

Rine opened her mouth as if she still had more to ask—

Knock, knock.

The sound of someone knocking forced her to close it again.

“Cardinal Yutia, it’s time for the meeting.”

Hearing the voice, Yutia rose from her seat.

“It seems that’s all we can talk about for now. I’ll be going. I hope you find your answer.”

Leaving those words behind, she walked out of the room.

And then—

Left alone in the office, Rine murmured quietly.

“...Gwehyeol?”

She repeated the name Yutia had left behind under her breath.

***

About a week later.

Most of the army had gathered around the Magic Tower.

They began their march toward the fallen city of Ashtalon.

The sight of countless troops moving as one—enough to surround the entire tower— was overwhelming, even for Alon, who was never one for romanticizing such scenes.

The sheer scale of it sent a shiver down his spine.

That’s how massive the army was.

“Phew—”

Yet despite the awe, Alon let out a sigh that sounded somewhere between relief and frustration.

“What’s wrong, Marquis?”

Penia, who had been diligently calculating something beside him, turned to look at him.

“There’s just… a lot on my mind.”

“Is it about the strategy?”

“That too.”

Penia nodded thoughtfully.

“Well—sure, it’s natural to worry. Strategy can collapse in an instant if things don’t go as expected. But from what you’ve told me, I don’t think there’s any other way.”

“I suppose you’re right. Still, if something goes wrong, sacrifices are inevitable.”

Penia tilted her head slightly.

“You know, Marquis… you’re a strange one.”

“How so?”

“In that way.”

“In what way?”

“The way you try to avoid sacrifice.”

“Is that strange?”

“Of course it is. It’s impossible to have a war or a subjugation without casualties. Even a small conflict brings sacrifice. Thinking otherwise is… idealistic.”

Alon scratched his head.

She wasn’t wrong.

“Still, there’s no harm in wanting it, right?”

“Sure, but whenever you think like that, you stop acting like yourself.”

“...Do I?”

“Yes. You always look a little down when that happens. Not like someone who’s accepted reality, but like someone who actually wants to change it.”

“...Really?”

Alon touched his face, puzzled.

He wasn’t an idealist.

He knew full well that sacrifices were unavoidable.

He didn’t feel particularly burdened or sorrowful about it either.

So he wondered briefly what she meant.

“Oh, right—how’s the magic preparation going?”

“It’s done. Fully under control.”

“Then the plan’s on track.”

“Yeah. As long as the power doesn’t spiral out of control, there shouldn’t be any issues. But—what are you doing?”

He glanced at Penia’s hands, which hadn’t stopped moving throughout their conversation.

Penia let out a small exclamation.

“Oh, this?”

“Yes.”

“It’s a scripture I got from Sili.”

“A scripture?”

“Yeah.”

“Why are you reading that all of a sudden?”

“Well—it’s not about the content. I’m looking for something suitable to use as a spell incantation.”

“An incantation?”

“Yes. I stopped studying magic formulas a while ago, but remember how I used ritual formulas for activation before?”

“Ah.”

Alon nodded.

Before he’d fully learned to interpret magic, he’d been experimenting with using divine invocations through reverse flow research.

“So that’s what you were studying again?”

“Sort of. Strictly speaking, I’m just looking for a good incantation here—and this part seems useful.”

Penia pointed to the margins of the scripture.

Various activation symbols were written there.

As the two of them continued to talk—

Exactly one week after marching in step with the advancing army,

Alon arrived at Ashtalon.

Or rather—what used to be Ashtalon.

“Ugh—”

The knight beside him grimaced openly.

Just like that reaction, the first thing that hit Alon was the stench of blood.

Then came the sight of mountains of corpses.

And finally—

In the distance.

At the center of the ruined capital, one red knight stood silently.

That knight’s condition was far from good.

The helmet looked ancient and battered, and the armor, bulging like swollen veins, was grotesque to behold.

Still—no one mocked or sneered at the sight before them.

Among the soldiers and knights, there was only tension and fear.

The crimson knight did nothing.

He simply stood there.

Yet everyone present felt the same instinctive emotion— a primal sense of dread shared by all living beings when faced with danger.

In that heavy silence, Alon stared fixedly at the Sin of Wrath— or rather, what had once been Eliban.

He still didn’t know anything.

He couldn’t understand why Eliban had tried so hard to spread his achievements.

He couldn’t understand why he’d seemed so restless about dealing with the anomalies.

He couldn’t even understand why he’d gazed blankly at a night sky he never liked.

He knew nothing.

But now—

He knew what he had to do.

So—

“...Blackie.”

He whispered softly.

And as crimson light filled the sky like blood, a star rose above it.

***

[You’ve come—]

From somewhere far away, inaudible to all.

In the heart of the shattered capital—

[Closed-Eyed One.]

Sin whispered quietly.