Chapter 131

Chapter 131
## Chapter 131: Desert City Paysalmer

—

The warp gate of the desert city, isolated from any external access points, surged with a resonant hum.

*Weeeeng—!*

Two individuals materialized within the shimmering light of the portal.

One was Aria. Standing beside her was the other traveler…

“Is it… truly essential for me to travel all this way?”

Aria didn’t hide her internal conflict, directing her question straight at Randolph, the Fifth Commander. She found it impossible to grasp why her presence was required for the subjugation of Paysalmer.

“The ‘North Sky Ice Sword’ has established a binding contract with you, so there is no alternative, caw.”

Randolph’s desire for the North Sky Ice Sword had been sparked by the previous failures of the mother and daughter duo. He was determined to unravel the enigmas surrounding this sentient ego sword. However, the weapon had already anchored itself to Aria through a formal contract. If the distance between Aria and the blade grew too vast, her life would be forfeit.

Consequently, Randolph had personally taken charge of the Paysalmer campaign, bringing Aria along as a mandatory companion.

“Stop fretting, caw. Your role is simply to be a sword stand, caw.”

“……”

The label stung. Being called a mere piece of furniture to hold a weapon—not even the wielder or the scabbard—was a profound insult to her pride.

—

### The Atmosphere in Kramdel

Since ‘the incident,’ the White King had remained secluded within the White King’s Palace, refusing to venture out. The citizenry of Kramdel and the various commanders maintained a heavy silence. What they had recently witnessed surpassed the wildest legends they had ever heard. Yet, even in the stillness, hushed conversations flickered through the shadows.

“The stories regarding the Fifth Commander…”

“They are all accurate.”

“Hmm. It’s still hard to process what I saw with my own eyes.”

Until recently, no one had actually observed the Fifth Commander’s true capabilities in battle. They only knew of his legendary feats: achieving what the White King could not in the Shrine of Mysteries, slaying the Wraith King Ahram, and seizing control of the Abyss Labyrinth. Many had brushed these tales aside as exaggerations or credited them to unknown accomplices.

But perceptions had shifted.

“……He stood his ground against the White King’s strike.”

“It wasn’t just defense. He managed to ‘bind’ him, even if it was only for a split second.”

The witnesses couldn’t deny it. He had parried the White King, restrained him, and then casually offered ‘guidance.’ Who else possessed such iron-clad composure in the face of the supreme ruler? Did such a person even exist in this world?

Furthermore, there was the most shocking detail of all.

“The White King actually offered an apology.”

“……Has such a thing ever happened before?”

It was a total anomaly. The White King was the undisputed sovereign of Kramdel. For such a monarch to lower his head within his own realm, under the gaze of his subjects, was a monumental shift in the power dynamic. The monsters of Kramdel were beginning to view the Fifth Commander with a new, serious reverence.

“Perhaps it is time to swear fealty to the Fifth Commander.”

“I should have sought his favor much sooner.”

“The opportunity hasn’t passed. The other commanders are mobilizing for conflict. Choosing the right leader could be the key to earning immense ‘merit.'”

The political landscape was shifting. The Death King had disappeared, and the remaining leaders were preparing for war. In Kramdel, rising to the rank of a manager brought significant perks; reaching the status of a commander was akin to joining the highest tier of royalty.

“If a Fifth Commander could rise, there is room for a Sixth or Seventh.”

Since the existing factions of the other commanders were already bloated and impenetrable, ambitious monsters saw a fresh path.

*‘The first ones to align with the Fifth Commander will reap the greatest rewards.’*

*‘I won’t let anyone beat me to it!’*

The logic was simple: if war was inevitable, the Fifth Commander—the man who had stood toe-to-toe with the White King—was the safest bet for victory and social advancement. Countless monsters began a desperate search for him.

However…

“……He’s gone?”

“He left already?”

Randolph was nowhere to be found. He had departed Kramdel with surprising speed, bypassing lengthy preparations and taking only Aria with him.

—

### Reflections of the King

Deep within the White King’s Palace, the sovereign sat upon the frigid marble floor, immersed in his thoughts.

*-I desire this blade, caw.*

When given a choice of rewards, the Fifth Commander had instantly requested the ‘North Sky Ice Sword.’ It was a weapon of immense peril, long sealed in the frozen north under the White King’s personal supervision. Even the King didn’t know the full history of the blade—when it was forged or why it had been entombed. He only knew that it, like others of its kind, held secrets that defied the laws of the mortal realm.

‘Those armaments even forced an evolution in the commanders.’

When the King realized the Black King was hunting him, he had opened the forbidden treasury. The weapons he distributed had elevated the tiers of his commanders. The fact that mere objects could fundamentally alter a being’s ‘tier’ was a testament to their absurdity.

‘And the North Sky Ice Sword sat at the very heart of that darkness.’

It had been kept isolated, further than any other weapon. The Fifth Commander’s ability to pick it out without a second thought was chilling.

“Are you… truly comfortable with this arrangement?”

The voice of Gungki broke the silence. The White King opened his eyes slowly.

“Why should I not be?”

“The Fifth Commander. Is it wise to simply let him wander off?”

The King let out a soft laugh. “What is this? You are starting to sound like the Great Earth Dragon.”

Gungki and the Great Earth Dragon were polar opposites—one cautious, the other impulsive—yet today they shared the same concern. Gungki remained solemn.

“He is a threat.”

“A threat, indeed. A dark, looming one.”

The White King conceded the point. To him, Randolph was an ‘infinitely ominous entity’ that was rapidly transforming into a genuine ‘peril.’

“Even though I wasn’t utilizing my ‘true form,’ my ‘Dragon Rise’ was ineffective. He appears capable of neutralizing any strike that doesn’t carry a very specific attribute.”

Their brief exchange had proven it. His attacks hadn’t just been blocked; they had been ‘nullified.’

Gungki was stunned. “…But does Your Majesty’s tier not bypass all ‘attributes’?”

It was a fundamental truth: the White King’s power ignored all known resistances and defenses.

“In a ‘standard’ scenario, yes,” the King replied.

“Then… the Fifth Commander’s nature is not standard?”

“Consider this: if the light attribute reaches transcendence, it becomes ‘Radiance.’ What does darkness become when it transcends? Do you know?”

“……I do not.”

The White King offered a faint, knowing smile. “It becomes the deepest shadow. The Fifth Commander is a creature of the Abyss.”

“……!!!”

Gungki’s eyes widened in shock. The Abyss—the primordial void that existed beneath the world. While Kramdel housed many monsters with Abyssal origins, they were merely surface-dwellers compared to this.

“I used to wonder about his origins. Now I am certain,” the King continued, looking almost relieved. “He undoubtedly hails from ‘inside the gate.'”

“What does ‘inside the gate’ imply?”

The King merely shrugged, refusing to elaborate.

‘If he is from inside the gate, then this situation is actually fortunate.’

If his intuition was right, this disaster was a blessing in disguise. By keeping Aria and the North Sky Ice Sword together, their bond would inevitably deepen. He recalled the moment his hand had pierced the Fifth Commander’s form—the shudder of recognition.

‘A carrier of the sacred blood. An heir to the holy lineage.’

—

### The Corrupted Sands

“What are you waiting for, stand? Caw.”

“Don’t call me… that… *gasp*!”

Aria struggled for air, her chest heaving with exhaustion.

Desert City Paysalmer. Once a stronghold of nomads under the rule of the Desert Queen, the city they returned to was unrecognizable.

“Infidels!”

“Slay them! Rip them apart!”

The local barbarians were in a state of collective insanity. They charged with eyes clouded by bloodlust. Their sheer numbers were overwhelming, and their strength far exceeded normal limits.

‘They have been tainted.’

I recognized the symptoms immediately. The land, the city, the very air was saturated with corruption. Those living on such soil were driven into a suicidal frenzy, burning through their life force to achieve temporary, explosive power.

‘Isabella.’

After the fall of the Desert Queen, Isabella had intended to seize control here. Her long silence had worried me, and now I saw the grim reality of what had transpired. Where was she now?

As I pondered this, a notification flickered into existence.

> **《‘Main Quest 8: Purify the Polluted City’ has been activated.》**
> **《Locate and destroy all sources of corruption within the city walls!》**
> **《Reward: Variable based on performance.》**
> **《Failure: Permanent death—both your avatar and your physical body in the real world will perish.》**

Main Quest 8 was underway.

Pollution sources were a known mechanic—entities that corrupted their surroundings. Purifying the city required hunting down these anchors, usually numbering between five and ten. While the lore suggested theories ranging from ancient curses to the world’s ascent into the sky, no one truly knew why they appeared.

“Kill them!”

“Purge the outsiders!”

The crazed nomads threw themselves at Aria with reckless abandon. She fought back with desperate intensity. I watched the chaos from the sidelines, deep in thought.

‘The timing is suspicious. Why now?’

Usually, these sources appeared when a city’s leadership failed. The Desert Queen had died in the Abyss Labyrinth, leaving a power vacuum. It was likely the corruption had been allowed to fester in her absence.

“‘For the Queen!’”

“Cleanse the heretics for our Lady!”

The screams of the barbarians caught my attention. *For the Queen?* I had personally ended the Desert Queen’s life. Had a successor claimed the title in the chaos? A ruler of the corrupted?

‘It couldn’t be.’

A cold wave of dread washed over me. That ‘Queen’ they were shouting for… surely it wasn’t Isabella?