Chapter 530

530 In Search of New Armor

Did something happen?

No, nothing. The ceremony ended without a hitch.

While subtly averting my gaze, I told Fiona that it ended safely. Afterwards, the Sparda Knights who accompanied us to Pandora Temple went back to the castle to give their report, and we had nothing else to do.

In other words, wed part way here.

However, since wed come all the way to the Pandora Temple, I decided to try and see what I can do for Sariel. After all, she required regenerative treatment for missing limbs. In addition to being in charge of divine protection, Pandora Temple also served as a medical inst.i.tution. Their building wasnt huge for no reason. By the way, there were several wards in the lower section of Sparda, along with an isolation ward some distance away from the outer wall.

For that reason, I tried to find out how long would Sariel treatment take, and how much itd cost.

Kurono, what is your plan?

Since wed obtained the bounty for the Galahad War, itd be better to start the treatment right away.

Thus, we discovered that her treatment would take roughly three months, and that itd cost 50 million Cran. While the three months recovery sounded nice, the cost was wild. Hearing it made me want to start a donation campaign where Id stand in front of the station, begging for everyone to pity our poor Sariel, who was suffering from a chronic illness.

Although, considering that the treatment would result in full recovery of all her missing limbs, the cost was understandable. In fact, it was extraordinarily cheap. I heard that for an ordinary person, theyd have to fork up 50 million for a single limb. Furthermore, the treatment period would require more than a year.

Why was Sariels treatment cheap and took less time? It was due to none other than her superhuman remodeled body.

Despite unable to regenerate her missing limbs, her healing rate was incomparable to that of an ordinary person. Meanwhile, her inherent resilience surpa.s.sed that of wild monsters. As such, she could easily receive physically demanding treatments. Hence why they could perform regenerative treatment at a tremendous speedsomething that was otherwise impossible for ordinary people.

Therefore, because itd consume less time, the treatment cost was significantly cheaper. Besides, the treatment itself wouldnt require that much effort due to her strong body and resilience.

Upon hearing that, I wasnt that surprised, but the same couldnt be said about the priest who examined her. Understandable, it wasnt that often you got to meet a remodeled homunculus from the White Sacrament.

Anyway, I thought itd be better to start treatment as soon as possible because of the low cost and the short period of hospital visits. Besides, it wasnt like we couldnt pay.

Well, its not like were going to nurse her forever. If she doesnt start working as a slave soon, itd be problematic.

Quite a natural statement from Fiona, but maybe I felt stung because I had become fond of Sariel.

But I dont need nursing. Until I recover, I can use prosthetic arms and legs instead.

Sariel could use a black magic called [Violet Flash Blackening]. By the way, I hadnt looked into said magic yet. With that power, she could freely manipulate gauntlets and armor as if they were her own limbseven ill-fitting ones. As such, there was no hindrance to daily life.

Certainly, when we fought Gluttony Octo, immediately after awakening to her divine protection, her special martial arts, [Demonic Spear Brionac], was forcibly cancelled after her magic hit rock bottom. Nevertheless, we were no longer in battle, so there was no need to worry.

As expected, her current power couldnt be compared to an apostle, but it was still amazing.

Most likely, Sariels mana pool hadnt changed from before she received divine protection.

If you have something suitable thatd fit me, itd suffice.

Then, shall we go shopping while youre receiving treatment?

Incidentally, I also have to look for new armor.

After all, [Diabolos Embrace] was completely destroyed in the battle against Sariel, that Lily gave up on retrieving it. Or them, because itd been torn to pieces. Even if she managed to collect all of them, I didnt think anyone would be able to salvage it. In the end, I had no choice but to give up.

It was somewhat sad to think that the second generation only amounted to this, but in the fiercest battle, it had protected me until the end. Just like the first generation, lets praise it for its splendid defense.

Then, shall we go to Mordred Weapons Firm? It shouldnt be that far from here.

Come to think of it It was the first time Id ever been to the main store in the upper section. Usually, if my cured weapon needed fixing, Id just go to the Stratos Blacksmith, and if I wanted to buy a long sword for [Sword Arts], the branch near the seminary would suffice.

In such an occasion, it might be a good idea to look for a new cursed weapon.

Sure, we can do that.

Finally, after a long time, we get to go on a date.

Y-yeah

I only got the hint after Fiona spelled it out for me.

Am I that dense?

The last time we did it was after we got back from fighting Laspen.

Although, I didnt consider that one a date, but Fiona mightve fallen in love with me since then. But in the battle against Laspen, didnt she become a sacrifice for evolving the [Cursed Hatchet]? I even slashed her back Whyd she fall in love with a man who caused her so much pain?

I also wear the ring.

Right, Ive seen you wearing it before.

I usually remove it when I go on quests. After all, itd be troublesome if it breaks again.

Is she anxious?

The first one I gave as a present had a warding effect. I never thought that itd be activated and destroyed on the same day.

Im glad youre taking care of it.

Of course, its a gift from Kurono.

When she said that with a straight expression, it was difficult to tell whether she was serious or just joking. But since it was Fiona, I was sure she was being sincere. Thinking about it made me somewhat embarra.s.sed.

Now that we are going out, I should be more thoughtful about my next gift choice.

Uhm, well then, uh lets go.

I hesitated when I thought of holding her hands. What should I say to her? Or should I just do it? It was our first date as lovers. As a man, I should initiate it.

In my defense, I also wished to hold her hand and take her on a date. Thus, I removed the gray sheep glove from my left hand and offered it to Fiona.

C-can we?

Why would I ask that?

Fiona awkwardly averted her gaze and didnt immediately take my hand.

Its okay. No, if anything, please.

Is that so? Then

Her cheeks were flushed. I could tell that Fiona was embarra.s.sed. Maybe, I had a similar expression.

Ah, d.a.m.n

Just the other day, I slept with Fiona, who wore a transparent negligee. Why would I be embarra.s.sed when we were only holding hands?

Gently, Fionas s.h.i.+vering white hand overlapped with my left hand. It felt as if I was handling an expensive and delicate object.

Okay, lets go.

Alright, Ill be in your care.

Even though I suddenly felt awkward, I still took her hand and strolled around the city of Sparda.

After I felt accustomed to holding hands, we arrived at Mordred Weapon Firms main store. As expected, it was much more splendid compared to the branch. Instead of a temple-like structure like the guild, the huge, solid stone architecture made it seem like a concrete building.

However, on the front door and in the corners of the compartments, there was a signboard with a skull symbol that said Deka Deka and Mordred Weapons Firm. Anyone could tell at a glance that it was a weapon shop.

Its bustling with crowds Well, somewhat.

There are more people than usual Rather, it feels like everyones gathering in front of the store

Just as Fiona said, the front of the Mordred Weapons Firm main store was full of people. It was as if a world-famous superstar was about to exit the store.

Is there some kind of event being held?

I was kind of interested. Well, I guess it didnt really matter. I had some unfinished business, so Id have to enter the store. There was no reason to hesitate.

Thus, I took Fionas hand and approached the store.

Excuse me, are you in the middle of an event?

Coincidentally, we spotted an employee wearing a skull-shaped ap.r.o.n, and called out to him.

Why, if it isnt Sir Kurono, the hero of the Galahad War?

Instead of the young male employee, someone behind him answered my question. He quietly emerged from the large, black shadow.

Well, if it isnt Chairman Mordred himself.

Its been a long time since we last met, Kurono. Its an honor that you still remember my face.

All skeletons are skulls, so theres no telling them apart

That said, I certainly recognized the lich-like, nouveau riche skeleton who was ostentatiously followed by his employees in front of me.

Id never forget how, when I first visited Spardas weapon shop, I was almost forced to grab a Mithril Sword, or the random intrusion event that was staged during the [Cursed Carnival].

Whats with the change in att.i.tude?

Isnt it natural. Now youre a famous figure in Sparda

No, please dont mention it. Besides, it feels disturbing when you humble yourself like that

It was an outrageous way to deal with the representative of the largest arms dealer in Sparda, but I didnt remember ever opening up to him. Moreover, there was no real damage so far so that was good.

Hahaha, then let me take your word for it. For some reason, Ive always been clumsy with the use of honorifics. Furthermore, Im an advocate of friendly customer service.

Friendly? More like shady.

After all, he always seemed about to reap my soul. Then again, it wasnt like I could comment on his face

Well, well, no need to be so wary. Since youre a collector of cursed weapons, I can already guess why youre here. Hahaha, recently, a first-cla.s.s gem has been added to my collection. Take a closer look!

Mordred, who was in a ridiculously good mood, laughed almost exactly like Will. Id like to apologize, though. Being utterly honest, I had no idea what he was talking about.

No, today, I just came to check the store Well, it doesnt matter. Did you chance upon a powerful cursed weapon?

Hm, despite being unfamiliar with it, your guess is almost correct. Theres indeed something new. However, it isnt a cursed weapon.

It isnt?

Yes, its armor.

A-a cursed armor!

I see, that kind of thing exists

Although, it might be unsurprising? After all, both armor and other equipment could also be cursed. Rather, because armor was often worn for combat, itd easily be possessed by a curse, just like a weapon.

But it isnt just your ordinary armor. The construction and the lore of the armor are all first-cla.s.s. If not for the fact that its cursed, itd have become a national treasure.

T-thats amazing

Mordreds pa.s.sionate explanation piqued my interest.

Its the [Tyrants Armor: Maximillian]. In the ancient times, the armor was donned by a tyrant who ma.s.sacred many peopleranging from the enemy soldiers to his own people, and single-handedly built a mountain of corpses. In the end, he led his own country to ruin. As such, the curse is by no means weak.

S-seriously?

Since it isnt just a simple antique, it cant be appraised using conventional methods. Therefore, it was unclear whether the legend is true or not. But once you feel the terrible curse it emits, Im sure you will understand.

Of course, of course

Oh no, Im getting too excited

Whats more, the armor has fallen into my hands! I spent about 300 million Cran at the auction! But it doesnt matter! If anything, the fact that it was put up for sale is a miracle in and on itself! No matter what you do, I wont let go of it! Hence why, youre only allowed to take a look!

I didnt like his att.i.tude at all. Still, it wasnt like I had any intention of stealing it from its rightful owner. For the time being, lets just admire the infamous tyrants armor

When will that armor arrive?

Hm, its almost time to arrive, but

Mordred fished out his golden pocket watch, and in the next moment

!?

A chill ran down my spine. Reflexivelyor rather, I was made to look in the direction where I felt the presence. It truly felt as if an invisible force had grabbed my head.

Kurono, this is just

Yeah, this guys bad news.

Fiona and I stared at each other. However, there was nothing beyond our field of vision except for the bustling everyday scenery of the main street of Sparda.

In a split second, it was as if the s.p.a.ce had distortedno, it was just an optical illusion. Nevertheless, it was caused by an abominably dense curse.

Ah, aah, finally, its here!

From the corner of the main street, a cargo emerged. It was pulled by two herbivorous yet enormous dragons that couldnt be compared to ordinary land dragons. With a loud creak, the two dragons pulled a wagon containing a huge steel box.

The size was around 3 cubic meters. The color was a disturbing mix of familiar jet-black, metallic l.u.s.ter with a dim, whitish glow.

Blackening Its been eroded by the curse. But isnt that box originally made of holy silver mithril?

Thats correct. If its an ordinary cursed item, itd have long been purified. But as you can see, it can barely contain [Maximillian]. In fact, I had to switch the container three times on the way.

How ridiculous.

While the [Cursed Hatchet] was submerged in lead, it at least waited for me to return.

Are those around it priests? They have to go out of their way to put up barriers around the thing

As the cargo slowly advanced, horse-riding priests in white vestments were circling it. Each of them was raising a simple wooden wand that emitted a faint white glow, forming a s.h.i.+ning film which encompa.s.sed the container.

A light-element barrier conjured by four people, coupled with a mithril container And yet, despite that, they still couldnt suppress the curse

How much did the transport cost?

Well, its nothing more than a small labor fee.

When it came to their hobbies, some people suddenly lost their self-control. Well, since Mordred was the so-called filthy rich, I guess it didnt matter

While pondering about such things, I looked at the approaching container. The sense of resentment was growing. I didnt know what kind of rumors the employees of the weapon firm spread, but the spectators buzzed as the curse made itself known.

However, even if they stayed around this part, I doubted theyd get the chance to witness the thing. Surely, itd be delivered to the storage. Itd be beyond stupid to just reveal the extremely cursed armor to the ma.s.ses, unless a fairly formidable seal had been placed beforehand.

If, by some accident, [Maximillian] were to be released

Was it my fault for imagining such a disturbing situation?

Uwaaaah!!

Someones furious scream echoed through the sunny main street. No way, did the faint presence of the curse drive him insane? But it seemed that wasnt the case

N-no! Someone, stop that imbecile! How dare he lay his finger on my armor!

Mordred swiftly issued some instructions.

Ahead of his gaze was a cargo thatd already advanced to the store, and a white-robed figure who ran towards it.

To suppress the curse, four priests were hired to guard the cargo. However, since they had to maintain the barrier, they couldnt move. Therefore, instead of the priests, the adventurers who were stationed around the cargo were the ones who intercepted.

One of the hired adventurers unsheathed his weapon while calling out to that figure. The tension rose. The once cursed atmosphere was filled with hostility emitted by the surrounding people.

Hey, Im telling you to stop! If you get any closer, Ill cut you down!

Wicked existence, disappear from this world!

The adventurer clicked his tongue, before ruthlessly cutting down the man in white. The man, who didnt show the slightest resistance, suffered a deep cut from his shoulder.

With spattering of blood, the mans corpse tumbled across the street. At the same time, the bottle that he was holding fell and shattered on the ground with a bang.

What is that? Water?

Hmph, how foolish. As if you can purify [Maximillian] with holy water.

No, thats not it

Amidst the presence of curse drifting around, I sensed some hostility. Since it wasnt directed at me, it was difficult to notice.

By the time I found out who it was, all the people who were hiding emerged all at once.

Destroy the wicked existence!

Return the light to the world!

May the untarnished brilliance guide us!

While shouting such incomprehensible lines, from the shadow of the building, across the street, and even amidst the crowd, several people rushed towards the cargo.

W-who are these people!?

Theyre a bunch of fanatics! Theyre going to kill us all!

The hired adventurers readied their weapons to intercept the a.s.sailants, who were dressed like ordinary citizens.

The sudden turn of events caused an uproar as the crowd began to scamper away. Despite the commotion, I didnt feel like I was in any real danger, so I didnt escape.

The raiders seemed to be amateurs with no combat experience. They were defeated by the hired adventurers one after another. In the first place, they were unarmed, and all they had was holy water for purification. At this rate, we should be able to quell down the suicide attack without any trouble.

Kurono, up there.

Fiona suddenly tugged at my sleeve to get my attention. When I turned upwards, I saw a silhouette of a man on the roof of a four-story building next to the Mordred Weapon Firm. As if he was about to end himself, he put his roof on the edge of the roof.

Did he really jump down!?

It didnt take long for gravity to claim him, and the man fell towards the cobblestone road a few dozen meters far below

I was mistaken.

Instead, the man fell on the cargo which had just stopped due to the clash against the raiders.

The man was aiming for the cargo from the beginning. Why did he choose such a reckless method that may result in his demise? Why did he make such a decision in the first place? I didnt knowI didnt want to know.

However, by taking advantage of the fight that broke out, he managed to reach the mithril container.

His body fell with a thud. At the same time, the sound of gla.s.s shattering could be heard. Unlike the others, the fallen man equipped himself with a lot of holy water.

N-no! With such a large amount of holy water, the container will

In the next moment, I heard a sound of melting metal, which sounded eerily similar to Gluttony Octos acid breath.

Then, a loud, shrill scream echoed.

Crack!

A large crack could be seen on the top of the mithril container, which shouldve been durable.

The copious amount of holy water mustve caused a sudden reaction on the part that was corroded by the curse. It was almost akin to splas.h.i.+ng liquid nitrogen onto a steel plate thatd been heated to the melting point.

The container isnt going to last!

Evacuate! We have to evacuate!

The screams came from the priests whod rise a barrier to contain the curse.

Why are they afraid of a mere piece of equipment?

I naively thought so for a moment.

Certainly, the curse was enough to drive people insane, but if the priests continued to maintain the barrier, nothing shouldve happened.

However, the priests and the escorting adventurers frantically left the truck along with the panicked crowd. They even abandoned the captured raiders.

They acted as if the cursed armor went on a rampage.

What is that?

Briefly, I could glimpse a black something from the crack in the container. Ordinary people might gloss over it, thinking it was just their imaginationbut I definitely saw it.

It was a chaina black one. A chain woven with black magic that looked almost similar as my [Bind Arts].

As I arrived to that conclusion, the black chains gushed out of the crack. The chain, which was two times thicker than my [Bind Arts], wriggled like a bloodthirsty hydra.

Yes, the chain definitely has a target.

It ran through the air, before wrapping itself around one of the captured a.s.sailants.

U-uooorgh! Divine protection of the untarnished light, protect me!

Just in case, are you asking for help?

From that man, a scream that resembled the chant of a crusader was emitted.

L-light, lend me

With that as his final words, the man was dragged into the container by the chain.

I didnt even have to think about what happened to him.

T-the [Tyrants Armor: Maximillian] has obtained a wearer

The crack that ran through the ceiling of the container suddenly expanded. In the blink of an eye, it ran through the wall as if torn apart by force from the inside. The entrance to the container, which shouldve been sealed shut, was opened with a harsh, high-pitched metallic sound.

Once again, the ancient tyrant stepped his foot on this world.

Thats

Slowly, just like the steps of a king, he calmly stepped out of the container. Even under the clear blue sky, the place where he stood was colored in darknessgiving me the illusion of the night sky where the new moon shone. Overwhelmingly dense dark magic pooled there.

However, I could see it clearlythe shape of the armor.

To put it simply, it was a jet-black full-plate mail. However, it wasnt anything like the blackened heavy mail I donned during my battle against the Gluttony Octo. At the very least, the basic idea of the design was different from the heavy knights, which was made with the servant of the White G.o.d in mind.

However, it was neither luxurious, dignified, nor befitting for a king. Rather than awe, it incited pure terror. The jet-black armor boasted a terrifying shape that could be called the armor of the Demon King rather than that of a mere king.

Two large hornsakin to the demon Baphometsgrew from the helmet. Instead of a goat, the face guard was shaped like a skull, whose face was distorted into a wrathful look.

The chest, which boasted the most defense, had a shape reminiscent of ribs. Even when viewed as a whole, the motif of a human skeleton could be seen everywhere. However, the tips of the gauntlets and the feet were akin to the claw of a dragon. All five fingertips were adorned with sharp claws, but they were neither too long nor too big to hinder the use of the weapon. At the same time, it was probably sharp enough to puncture the human body with a mere punch.

The more I paid attention to details, the more I could read the hidden aggressiveness and ferocity.

Instead of admiring it with a watchful gaze like a critic, I was overwhelmed with emotions.

Yes, from the moment I saw that armor

Its so cool! I want it!