Chapter 76
The Count’s Domain (6)
The underground complex spiraled around the city of Beldana and extended deep beneath the earth.
The farther down one went, the smaller each level became.
Naturally, the third underground level was somewhat confined.
Of course, that was only in comparison to the other levels.
Taken on its own, the third level still boasted an overwhelmingly vast area.
An enormous sealed chamber stretched out before Mapheltan.
There were no structures whatsoever—no pillars, no doors, nothing.
Only an ash-gray ceiling and floor extended endlessly into the distance.
An inexplicable sense of emptiness washed over him. It felt like gazing upon a boundless ocean.
The sheer emptiness of the space filled anyone who saw it with a vague sense of helplessness.
Mapheltan spoke.
“The Celestial Womb Palace is here?”
One of the cultists serving as their guide replied.
“That is correct. The Celestial Womb Palace is located somewhere within this place.”
Ilea looked at him.
“Then hurry up and show us where it is.”
The cultist glanced nervously at Mapheltan.
“Someone like me would never dare set foot on the third level. The instant I step onto that floor, Belzarak will claim my life.”
The ancient demon Belzarak.
He was a high-ranking demon who delighted in mocking and humiliating humans.
Belzarak burrowed into the emotions and memories of others. He would then piece together their deepest thoughts and use them to lead his victims to ruin.
Any human targeted by him would gradually lose their mind and eventually die.
The instant someone entered this chamber, every intelligent being other than the count would become Belzarak’s prey.
The cultists of the Wicked God Society were no exception.
No one in this place could escape Belzarak’s gaze.
When the cultist showed reluctance to enter the third level, the corners of Mapheltan’s mouth rose.
“He will claim your life, you say? I am extremely curious to see how.”
He seized the back of the cultist’s head.
“W-wait! O End!”
“Let us find out.”
Mapheltan hurled him into the sealed chamber.
The remaining cultists recoiled in alarm.
The cultist who had landed on the third level cried out in terror.
“I-I have to get out! Quickly!”
He frantically began crawling back toward Mapheltan.
“Please help me! Please…”
At that moment, his movements abruptly stopped.
His eyes, which had been filled with fear, turned pitch-black.
Mapheltan watched with an intrigued expression.
Ilea murmured,
“He’s already been possessed by Belzarak.”
The cultist sprang to his feet and began muttering incomprehensible words to himself.
Mapheltan spoke.
“Watch closely. This is how Belzarak controls humans.”
Ilea’s eyes turned blue.
She was closely observing the workings of Belzarak’s authority.
Since they would have to confront him shortly, she intended to identify his weaknesses in advance.
Ilea nodded.
“He interferes with the mind and eventually drives his victim insane.”
Just as she said, the cultist was now sprinting around like a madman. He screamed wildly while clawing incessantly at his own throat.
Even after his skin peeled away and crimson blood began to flow, he did not stop.
Mapheltan said,
“Precisely. Belzarak combines our memories to show us the worst possible future we could face.”
Mental abilities of this kind generally became significantly less effective once the target understood how they worked.
That was why Mapheltan had thrown in a cultist for them to observe.
Ilea should now have a rough understanding of Belzarak’s ability as well.
She spoke.
“If someone cannot escape the hallucination, they will eventually take their own life. Just like that man.”
The cultist continued mutilating himself as he ran through the chamber.
A long trail of crimson blood followed his path.
By now, the cultist was no longer visible.
He had probably collapsed somewhere within the vast chamber and was slowly dying.
Mapheltan said,
“It is our turn now. Before that, would you like to observe it one more time?”
As he spoke, he looked toward the remaining cultists.
They backed away before turning and fleeing as fast as they could.
Only then did Ilea lower her hood and remove her mask.
Her doll-like face was revealed.
“I would have liked to watch it once more, but they all ran away.”
“If necessary, I can go and bring one back.”
Ilea silently stared at Mapheltan before speaking.
“Mapheltan, you’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
Mapheltan had already taken dozens of lives within the underground complex.
Only moments ago, he had casually driven another human to his death.
The man who had once been tormented by guilt was nowhere to be found.
Mapheltan shrugged.
“Well, I won’t deny it.”
He was undeniably deriving pleasure from killing.
Since those who died were wicked people, he felt not the slightest trace of guilt.
Ilea said,
“There’s nothing wrong with a little amusement, but don’t become too absorbed in it. You might cross the line one day.”
Mapheltan nodded.
“I am aware of that, so do not worry.”
Ilea gave him a gentle smile.
“Good. Shall we get going, then?”
By now, the count had probably learned about the disturbance within the underground complex.
He was likely rushing straight back.
Mapheltan had no more time to waste.
He needed to seize the Celestial Womb Palace as quickly as possible.
He stepped forward.
Into the ash-gray chamber.
***
Kim Johan, thirty-one years old.
He was a man who had lived through one of the most turbulent eras in Earth’s long history.
In the year Johan was born, sinkholes known as “Labyrinths” appeared across the Earth.
The Labyrinths overflowed with resources that had never existed on Earth and mysteries no one had ever encountered. Through those new discoveries, Earth’s civilization advanced to an entirely new level.
Science was combined with magical engineering.
Life became far more abundant than before, and the human lifespan increased exponentially.
With every floor of the Labyrinth that humanity conquered, civilization underwent another dramatic leap forward.
Everything within sight became dazzlingly brilliant.
But matters were different in the places no one cared to look.
The brighter the world became, the farther its shadows stretched.
Johan’s parents lost their lives during the Great Upheaval.
He had been an orphan from the moment he was born.
To Johan, the Labyrinth that others called a blessing from God was nothing more than a curse.
Johan received none of the benefits the Labyrinth provided. Even awakening—something most modern people experienced—was little more than a dream to him.
Contempt and mockery constantly followed him.
An unawakened orphan.
It was an unfortunate life, but Johan did not care.
He possessed one great strength.
Unshakable perseverance and determination.
He lived each day for the younger children at the orphanage.
He found meaning in life by taking care of them.
Although his circumstances were difficult, Johan’s heart was always fulfilled.
Raising even one of his younger siblings well was worth more to him than untold riches.
Some of them eventually awakened and repaid Johan for everything he had done.
His life gradually became more prosperous, and before he knew it, he had found a place beneath the dazzling light of society.
In his own way, he had lived a successful life.
Amid all the absurdity of the world, he had carved out a path for himself.
Johan loved Earth.
He wanted to return.
He missed his younger siblings.
He had believed those feelings were sincere.
Yet the scene unfolding before his eyes denied everything he had believed.
Beneath the shadow cast across the sky, the world screamed.
Skyscrapers burned, and people shrieked in agony.
Rivers and oceans ran red with blood. Entrails and chunks of flesh were hung throughout the cities.
Civilization was being destroyed.
The sound of wailing filled the world.
Countless demons ravaged the surface.
At the center of it all stood Mapheltan.
High in the distant sky, he burst into maniacal laughter.
“Cry louder! Tell me through your tears how it feels to be trampled beneath my feet! The mouths that once held nothing but contempt and ridicule now beg for their lives!”
Terrible resentment and malice echoed across the entire planet.
Mapheltan reveled in ecstasy.
No one on Earth could stop the apocalypse.
Just as he was intoxicated by his overwhelming power, a streak of blue light rapidly approached him.
Mapheltan clicked his tongue.
“What a pathetic attempt.”
He snapped his fingers, and pitch-black chains descended from the sky, ensnaring the approaching light.
A man struggled in midair, bound by the chains.
“You filthy demon bastard! Let me go! Right now!”
He glared straight at Mapheltan.
He was resisting the overwhelming presence of a transcendent being.
Mapheltan found it displeasing.
He spoke in a chilling voice.
“You irreverent mortal. I shall grant you suffering worse than death.”
Mapheltan swept his arm through the air. The man’s clothing disintegrated like dust.
Just as Mapheltan was about to begin torturing him, he froze stiff.
He had seen the tattoos covering the man’s body.
Countless names had been etched into his skin in crooked, uneven lettering.
—Blue Sprout Orphanage—
Kim Johan, Kim David, Kim Daon, Kim Samuel, Kim Enoch, Kim Elijah… The list of Christian-style names went on and on.
Old memories suddenly began rising to the surface.
‘Joseph, I told you not to get tattoos. You’re going to regret it one day.’
‘Why? They’re the names of our family. Yours is the first one, Johan. Once I become successful, you’ll be the first person I take care of. Look forward to it.’
‘Good grief, you idiot. When are you going to grow up?’
‘Pfft. You like it, but you always pretend you don’t. I still have to get the others’ names tattooed, so you can do the dishes today.’
The image of his younger brother cheerfully walking away after saying that flickered before his eyes.
Mapheltan stared blankly at the man.
“Could it really be you, Blockhead?”
The man struggling against the chains went still.
“…What did you say?”
There was only one person in the world who called him Blockhead, despite his status as an elite awakened warrior.
Kim Johan.
His older brother was the only one.
Mapheltan suddenly clutched his head.
“Why… Why am I…?”
Everything he was seeing was a hallucination.
Yes, he had already known that.
There was only one thing he could not understand.
Why was he being shown a future like this?
The hallucinations created by Belzarak were the result of combining an intelligent being’s memories and psychology.
They were patchworks created by dragging out the ugliest parts hidden in the deepest recesses of the heart.
In other words, the scene before him was connected, at least to some extent, to the target’s desires.
Deep down, Johan had secretly hated the world.
He had found his own reason to live, but there had always been an emptiness within him that could never be filled.
Ultimately, he had been nothing more than a superfluous human being.
To keep himself from falling apart, he had needed something into which he could pour his entire being.
His devotion to his younger siblings had ultimately been nothing more than a means of protecting himself.
A terrible sense of self-loathing washed over him.
‘So I was nothing but vermin in the end.’
When humans were forced to confront their own ugliness, they often broke.
The current situation would not have such a profound effect on Mapheltan.
Still, it would leave a scratch upon his heart.
If enough similar wounds accumulated over time, one day they would fester and burst.
For now, all he could do was resolve to remain vigilant.
Mapheltan composed himself and spoke.
“Blockhead, it was good to see you again. I should be going now.”
To escape the hallucination, he had to find Belzarak.
“Who the hell are you?! Who are you to keep calling me that?!”
Just as the man finished speaking, a familiar voice came from above.
“Mapheltan, what is all this?”
Mapheltan looked higher into the sky.
Ilea was silently gazing down at the world below.
Slightly flustered, Mapheltan said,
“How are you here?”
“I don’t know either. When I came to my senses, I was already here. More importantly, what in the world is this place?”
Everything beneath her feet was unfamiliar to her.
It was a civilization unlike anything she had ever seen.
Mapheltan had no idea how he was supposed to explain it.