KFBRV Pt 2 Ch 69

Zion didn't look back, even as the voices of Johan and Viktor echoed behind him. He already expected them.

No matter how much power he unleashed, the Calamity had refused to vanish. Once they found the opening that had swallowed Odette, Viktor and Johan would have jumped in without hesitation.

However, their arrival wasn't the most important thing right now.

What on earth is this?

Zion looked down at his right hand while holding Odette. After he shattered the barrier, a strange sense of elation surged through his arm. His vision shifted, making him feel as though he had ascended to a higher dimension.

He was already an S-class Transcendent, a being who existed outside normal limits. Yet, he felt his status rising even further. His nerves and instincts grew sharp, like a blade. It felt as though someone had forcibly expanded the vessel that held his power. He felt less like a beast of god and more like a god himself.

He had simply broken a wall. Why did such a small act spark this intense thrill?

Despite the confusion, this higher state allowed him to notice something crucial.

Her eyes are different.

A divine presence occupied her gaze. She wasn't looking at a hallucination. She was witnessing a revelation sent by God, looking through God's own eyes.

I can't interfere yet.

Zion realized this instinctively and pulled her closer to protect her.

A Purifier didn't possess the hardy body of a Transcendent. Direct contact with a god could strain her.

If necessary, he intended to use his power to forcibly sever the connection. Of course, he couldn't use his power on Odette, so he would have to aim it at the divine force itself.

He studied her pale face, his brow furrowing.

This is strange. Why does it feel like I have seen these eyes somewhere before?

Déjà vu brushed past him, followed by a chilling realization that crawled up his spine. Following his gut, he whipped around.

He saw Johan and Viktor, their clothes reduced to rags after passing through the Calamity. But Zion's urgent gaze skipped past them to the unconscious Karl, whom they were holding down.

Karl lay there, bound tightly by conjured ropes of fire and electricity.

They look unpleasantly similar to that bastard's eyes.

It was ridiculous. He didn't want to admit it. But as his status rose, his intuition and sense of recognition became sharper. No matter how he looked at it, the divine eyes gifted to Odette felt too much like Karl's.

[Viktor] "Damn it. What is this rotting smell?"

Viktor's foul-mouthed complaint broke Zion's train of thought. Zion snapped back to reality.

Now wasn't the time to be distracted by elation or unconfirmed doubts. He had to protect Odette from the hideous World Tree, the interior of the Calamity, and the mysterious sphere.

[Viktor] "Watchdog. Does the World Tree actually exist? Isn't that just something from myths?"

Viktor asked, sounding as if he wanted to start a fight.

Zion couldn't even scold him. He also believed the World Tree was nothing more than a fairy tale. He felt a brief flash of self-pity knowing he and that idiot shared the same level of knowledge.

Very few records of the World Tree remained. The only accounts were hidden in the ancient imperial library, and even those were absurd. They described it as a 'tree connected to all worlds' and a 'manager of the earth sent by God.' It sounded like pure mythology.

Yet, here it was, at the bottom of a forgotten, sunless sea. It looked less like a myth and more like a terrifying horror story.

[Johan] "Hah……"

Even the composed Johan frowned, looking sickened.

The tree's trunks stretched through the deep sea like an axis piercing the ocean. On branches devoid of leaves, rotting fruits hung in clusters. These fruits had eyes, noses, and mouths, making them look like the faces of infants. Their shriveled appearance made them look like drowned newborns, making the sight even more grotesque.

The fruits wailed without rest, their cries sounding like the high-pitched screams of babies. Zion was grateful the sphere acted as a barrier, muffling the sound.

[Johan] "So that…… is the true form of the Calamity?"

Since he had fought Calamities his entire life, Johan recognized it immediately despite the appearance.

A sense of emptiness filled his voice as he realized the Calamities were actually the polluted fruits of the World Tree.

This must be why recovery is so slow.

This ocean was completely 'polluted.' It held a power that was the exact opposite of a Purifier's—a force that corrupted the holy. The pollution levels, which usually only rose when using supernatural powers, were soaring just by being in this water. It was enough to slow down the regeneration of an S-class Transcendent.

At that moment, a woman's cheerful voice echoed from outside the sphere.

[Charlotte] "I knew it would end up like this. You all followed her in the end."

Viktor's face twisted.

[Viktor] "What? Isn't that the voice of that Sherbet woman, or whatever her name is? Why can we hear her here?"

As Zion and Johan wondered the same thing, a loud thud echoed.

An old woman pressed her face against the transparent sphere. Her pale blue eyes rolled around as she tried to peer inside.

[Charlotte] "Nothing goes according to plan. I only needed Odette."

Despite the age difference, the old woman's features and voice were identical to Charlotte's.

Realizing she was the mastermind behind the Calamity, the Transcendents tensed, ready to shield Odette.

It was then that Zion spotted something on the old woman's neck.

Kraken's gills.

His eyes narrowed as he recognized them.

The Kraken was a sea beast. Like the Cerberus inside Zion or the Phoenix inside Viktor, it was an S-class beast that had lived inside a Transcendent long ago.

The Transcendent who hosted the Kraken was the one from the scriptures.

The S-class Transcendent who rose from his deathbed thanks to the miracle of Rosaline, the first Purifier. A historical figure who brought the first victory against the Calamity.

The Kraken's gills, which should have disappeared with the Transcendent's death, were now attached to Charlotte's neck.

---

A month had passed since Rosaline lied to the priests.

After Rosaline fed her the herb, Hannah withered away. She lost weight at a terrifying speed, and her face turned dark, making her look like a dying tree.

The hornets quickly devoured Hannah's purification power. As they did, the water in Rosaline's awakening dream rose. It reached a volume that rivaled a city square's fountain.

However, while she could steal the liquid, she couldn't steal the power of purification. Her water was deep red and thick. Instead of the light of purification, corruption and darkness always settled at the bottom.

I'm worried this lie won't be enough.

The World Tree could send a revelation to the High Priest or other priests at any time. She didn't know when her lie would be exposed.

Since she had started this path, she had to see it through. She couldn't stop until she became perfect. Therefore, she decided to head to the basement of the Grand Temple.

They said the temple is protected by a branch of the World Tree. The branch is how the High Priest receives revelations……

It was the tool that protected the temple from all evil and served as the strongest link between the temple and the World Tree. She intended to steal that strictly guarded branch.

But the moment she crossed the forbidden line and grabbed it—

[Rosaline] "Aaaaagh!"

The branch emitted a brilliant light and burned her palm as if rejecting her. Despite the searing pain, she didn't let go.

Do you think I'll back down from this? If I were going to quit, I wouldn't have started. I will be reborn as a real S-class!

She poured out the liquid she had stolen from Hannah. The thick, dark liquid flowed toward her burning palm in waves. As the branch soaked in the red fluid, it lost its light. The vibrant wood began to rot instantly.

Once she poured out all the water stolen from Hannah, a shriveled fruit formed at the end of the branch, which was now drenched in the scent of roses. At that moment, a flash of insight struck her like lightning, as if she were communicating with the branch.

The World Tree was God's representative, connected to all worlds. To prove it, the truths of every world unfolded before her.

Rosaline realized her past life as Han Songyi and the distant future where Han Suwan would appear. The truth before her eyes could be summarized in a single sentence:

She can enjoy eternal life as a Purifier. As long as she gets rid of Han Suwan.

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