Chương 191: Chapter One-Hundred-and-Ninety-One

< < Demon Relic > > < Flawless Emerald Ring (Rare) — Stats are raised by 1% for every 2% of Health that is missing | All conventional forms of healing damage you > Once Heiner equipped it, the ring turned into a band of silver with a square emerald gem facetted into it. The negative effect and the choice of gem seemed to match, since emerald's were notoriously brittle. It's quite strong, especially if it applies in the same way as the glass sapling.

It would at maximum give 49%, since you'd die before it could hit 50%. If it's multiplicative with the sapling, I would be able to get quite a big boost. Together they would increase my stats by something like 78% if I put my health to 2%. After this stage it would go up to 86%. It would be quite easy to lower my own health safely, I think, and I could rely on the kingly raiment for protection.

"What counts as conventional healing?" Seo-Yoon asked her cube. [Potions, spells, skills, boons, and most forms of relics.] So Beckoning Crimson wouldn't work. Damn.

"Would the gorget of the connoisseur work?" Heiner asked. [Yes. It is a non-conventional form of healing and already includes its own limitation on healing effects.]"It's suddenly much less interesting," Natalia muttered. Clearly everyone had thought it was a worthwhile trade-off at first, even Chien, but the weakness was much harder to circumvent than they'd all assumed. Maybe most types of atypical healing revolve around weird relics that fundamentally limit you in one way or another.

After all, the gorget only allows you to heal by drinking humanoid blood and prevents any other types of healing from working. Not all stages will allow you to drink blood, and you'd need to drink a lot to heal even just fifty health. Kat would be able to use this relic though. The corner of Chien's mouth twitched as he looked at Heiner, but he did well to hide his disgust.

"How did the demon come to possess you?" Heiner sighed.

"I realised I'd made a mistake once I reached the city, but then you were all just there. You said you forgave me and showed me to the tavern, saying it was an interesting place. I didn't even question it until suddenly all of your clones melted into the floor, leaving behind that monster, which bound and gagged me, draining my power, I guess in some attempt to become me.

Once I lost my charming boon from the Masked Courtesan, I was automatically afflicted with scorn, becoming Godless just like that queen of the elves before the altar stage." As he spoke, Adam realised that the telltale glow of the Siren's power had fully vanished from his eyes. Wow, it's really that easy to be forsaken by our patrons.

"My friend refused to do the Flayed Lady's quest for Alepheria's Tower," Heiner continued.

"He was scorned as a result. I found out that he had survived the stage because of one of his team members, but he must've died after returning to the island. I think death is instantaneous if you're Godless and touch the altar in the centre of Interim. So, I'm basically done for." No one offered any words of advice or tried to console him. Adam thought to try, but he was so physically repulsed by the sight of the guy that he literally couldn't muster up the words. No one here would bat an eye if he died.

Even though I can internalise that, I don't know how I could feel any different. At their core, everyone had a base level of attraction towards other people. It wasn't specifically sexual attraction, but just some human connection that made you want to talk to someone you didn't know. Heiner's scorn made him seem subhuman, something beneath literally every other person Adam had met. Beneath even creatures like the goblins they'd fought. And everyone else felt the same way, based on their melodies.

"Let's go to the church," Chien said and everyone followed him, not sparing Heiner a second look. Adam could tell they had the same conflicted feelings about Heiner, but that the sense of repulsion was so strong that just allowing him in their vicinity was already pushing them to their limits. They left the dark moss and lichen infested part of Old Town and headed for the church, with Heiner lagging behind, since he knew they didn't want him to stay close.

His build was clearly quite powerful, and Adam wanted to know what the hell kind of skill he'd used to combine his spears into one lightning bolt, but asking him about it seemed so far out of the realm of possibility right now. Maybe I can hack my own emotions to override this repulsion. Unfortunately, it didn't seem that simple, as the longer they were all around him, the worse their feelings towards him got. Eventually, Natalia snapped and told him to get lost.

No one else talked her down either, even though they knew it wasn't right. Somehow, a scorn that nearly kills you seems way less severe than this. Heiner was all but guaranteed he would die if the others didn't want to help him or even be near him. And while he was to blame for leaving on his own, no one could've predicted that he would get scorned. He ended up just going to the rooftops nearby and following them from afar, which seemed enough to get everyone to relax.

"What the hell do we do about him?" Natalia asked.

"We cannot let him near the NPCs," Chien remarked.

"His presence will make it hard for us." Adam suddenly realised he carried something that might work.

"I have an illusionist's mask from Moonport. I'll tell him to transform into someone else, but no one can call him by his name."

"That could work!" Seo-Yoon said excitedly.

"I was thinking we should just tie him to a tree somewhere and leave him." Diwa gave her a disturbed glare.

"I think he would leave us alone if we asked." Adam turned around and waved to Heiner in the distance, pulling out the mask from his backpack and lifting it into the air. He didn't seem to understand what Adam was suggesting at first, but then he cautiously approached. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Will that work?" Heiner asked. Adam physically couldn't answer until he turned around. It felt so stupid, and yet he was entirely at the mercy of his body's powerful reaction to Heiner's scorn.

"It may work, but there's no guarantee. You have to tell us what to call you, since calling you by your real name will break the spell."

"I'll give it a try," Heiner said.

"You can all call me Horst going forward." Adam turned back around to look at him as he put on the mask. Heiner's face transformed, his hair turning black, his sunken eyes and hollow cheeks puffing out slightly, and his sharp chin becoming rounder and more defined. They all collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank God, it's working," Diwa muttered.

"I feel ashamed of my own thoughts," Chien admitted.

"Your face is glowing orange now," Seo-Yoon said. That must be the illusion magic she's seeing.

"I am borrowing my friend's appearance," Heiner told them, his voice now deeper and with a slight smoker's rasp to it. Natalia looked like she wanted to apologise for her outburst earlier, but then she must've remembered how he started off trying to charm them all. In the end, all she said was, "It's working, let's keep going." No one could argue with that, and though Heiner stuck to the back of their group like before, nobody was actively wishing for his death. I don't know how many limits there are on this mask.

Perhaps the name thing is the only potential weakness. I suppose that since it doesn't do anything except seemingly change a person's head, it might not have other ways for the magic to break, besides someone absorbing the illusion magic directly off his body. They finally reached the church and Seo-Yoon immediately looked back at Adam and Diwa.

"There is a lot of holy mana here. Will you be okay?" Adam could feel it, because even from several metres away from its entrance, it was like the hot air of an oven blowing towards him.

"I will wait outside," Diwa said.

"I'll see how far inside I can go," Adam decided. Chien predictably led the way through the large wooden doors, and Adam brought up the rear. Heiner stayed outside with Diwa. Although he was fairly sure Heiner wouldn't try anything, now that he'd been abandoned by his patron, Adam also couldn't entirely dismiss his first impression. He would keep an eye on his melody for any signs of trouble. Other than Heiner, I think our group has the chance of working well together.

Although Diwa is clearly scared of Chien after his holy nova nearly killed her. It's hard to say if she would be able to fight up front with him again. Inside the large church, which was made of grey stone bricks, were wooden pews, old chandeliers and braziers, upper seats on a wooden balcony, a central dais much like the one in Father Mathias' church, and a high-backed stone chair.

In the very centre of the stone floor was a large brazier, engraved in the same way as the one Emelia had helped Adam find on Interim Island. It was silver instead of bronze, and pale-beige chopped wood was stacked inside it, waiting to be set alight by a fire. Adam's body was assaulted by the presence of many holy relics.

Most notable were a large golden reliquary on the dais, silver statues each as tall as a child that depicted the First Light's angel, and what appeared to be a suit of silver armour that was nearly identical to Chien's cuirass with its engravings and design. A wizened old figure in untainted white robes got up from the stone chair behind the dais and shuffled across the floor to greet them. He wore a silver ring on his right thumb.

Adam realised the ring looked similar to the one that Lady Cassandra had given him in Moonport, the mysterious Old Seal ring. Beck had had no idea what it was for, so Adam was pretty stumped. Maybe he can give me a clue.

"Welcome," said the old man.

"You may call me Father Adam. I am the caretaker of this church." Seo-Yoon glanced at Adam.

"This will be awkward." Adam just shrugged. Not like it's a rare name. The priest went on, "I am afraid you have come at an inopportune time. Were it not for the sickly shadow blanketing our lands, then perhaps the brazier might have already been lit. The Centennial Oak has been awaiting a flame for too long." Is that what those strange wooden logs are?

"We have come here to help you rekindle the true flame," Chien said. The priest put a hand on Chien's shoulder.

"It is good to see a chosen of the First Light amongst us. It shall bring much hope to the people."

"How can we bring back the true flame?" Adam asked, keeping his distance from the priest since the guy radiated almost as much holy magic as the relics scattered around the church interior. There were supposed to be a few different spots that the last remaining ember of the holy fire could appear in, some more complicated than others.

"I have heard tell that it burned within the old church to the east not many years ago, but it has been impossible to venture that close to the Forlorn Castle for a while now. Two separate expeditions were sent to ascertain the truth of the rumours, but neither returned. While it would be deeply irresponsible of me to ask you to follow their trail, it is the only hope we have of seeing the true flame burn bright once more." The old church spot. That's better than the castle catacombs at least.

There was one place that would've been better, which was a chapel near the summit of the Oath Spire mountain. Other than a troubling hike, it was supposed to be a safe journey. Given that Adam and Heiner could both fly, it would've been quite easy for them to pick up.

"We will find it and return it to you," Chien promised.

"May the First Light guide you well," Father Adam remarked. Chien and the others started filtering out through the large wooden doors, but Adam stayed behind and pulled out the old seal ring.

"Do you know what this is for?" he asked the priest. The man nodded.

"It is an old tradition in our kingdom, from before the ruinous prince became a forlorn king and smothered our culture beneath his black boot." He lifted his thumb to show his own ring.

"I received this from the previous caretaker of this church, and he received it from his forebear. It signifies the passing on of a tradition, whether it be an occupation like mine, a promise to uphold something sacred, or the ascension to some family role. It always signifies the continuation. The ring itself is a loop because the tradition is never-ending."

"A woman named Lady Cassandra gave it to me in Moonport," Adam said.

"I see. You may have difficulties discovering what tradition it marks then, for her town was overrun by the bandit gang that hides in the shadow of the Oath Spire mountain." I think I know where that is, Adam realised. Both Beck and Emelia had described a minor faction in the stage, which were referred to as both Red Rian's Gang and the Red Scarves. They had their camp on the eastern side of the lone mountain, and they generally terrorised anyone trying to travel between the settlements.

Emelia had also mentioned that the scarves their members wore could be sold as trophies, both within the stage and on Interim Island.

"Thank you," Adam told the priest and went to join the others outside. Seo-Yoon watched him curiously from the doorway.

"What were you talking about?"

"A relic of mine," he replied, showing her the ring.

"Fascinating. What does it do?"

"I don't know yet," he admitted. As they came outside into the sun, the others were talking with Heiner. It sounded like he was explaining what the orb of insight had shown him. It was surprising just how well the mask worked to combat the scorn effect, and Adam wondered if his erstwhile patron would find a way to punish him further. Or perhaps the Courtesan was allowing Heiner to circumvent her punishment, since it hadn't been his fault. No. I don't think any of the Absolutes would be that lenient.

"We should hear what Adam thinks," Natalia said as she spotted him.

"About what?" he asked.

"It's about where we go next," Heiner said.

"Hei— Horst suggested we go to a city to the northeast. There is a tournament there," Chien said, nearly calling him by his real name and breaking the illusion.

"We need to get the true flame today," Adam told them.

"If we bring the ember from the old church back today, then we will have our first true flame tomorrow. We need those to permanently defeat the forlorn knights, and we also need to bring one to Gothershall, the city with the tournament."

"And you know this because you met a time-looper?" Diwa asked sceptically.

"That's right," Adam replied.

"The church is far," Heiner said.

"Did the orb of insight show you what the stage layout is like?" Adam asked.

"It did," he replied, crouching down and using the tip of one of his spears to make a very crude rectangular map. Adam already knew that the Forlorn Castle was at the opposite end from Old Town, but there was no way to know for sure where places like Moonwell Village, the old church, and other landmarks would be, since those changed all the time.

According to Heiner's crude map, Moonwell was directly south of the Oath Spire mountain, and the fishing village of silt was northwest of that, directly between Old Town and Gothershall. The old church was nestled up against a river referred to as the Blue Vein, which sliced through the map at around the two-thirds mark.

On the other side of the water was the Forlorn Castle and the domain of the Shadow, and it was this domain which would slowly spread across the water, though the forlorn army would already have established a foothold past that, hence why going to the church wasn't entirely safe.

"If you promise me to not freak out, then I have a way for us to get to the church quickly," Adam told them.

"The sooner we kindle the true flame, the better off we'll be for the coming days." Heiner shrugged.

"I am up for anything at this point."

"Don't say that until you've seen what I'm talking about," Adam told him. The others seemed tentatively on board, so Adam started pulling the material out of his kingly raiment, sculpting their transport vessel.