Light of Arad: Forerunner

Chapter 34

Jinseong hid, dragging the two corpses on the ground.

Through the mask of the GBL Church, he could see Lenny collapsing and Fiona, along with Den, supporting her.

When he caught a glimpse of the ‘current’ female archer user’s expression briefly flinching, Jinseong was sure.

The quest screen triggered by Lotus’s illusion had now ended for that user as well. What appeared before them must have been the sight of Lenny falling and Fiona and Den standing by her side.

“Lenny! Lenny!”

While Fiona frantically called out Lenny’s name, Den was looking at the archer user.

“Have you… come to your senses?”

Naturally, the user didn’t answer.

Fiona spoke.

“The adventurer suddenly dashed out… The others went to stop Lotus. Our role was to stop you, but—.”

“Ugh….”

“Lenny? Are you okay?”

Fiona asked.

Jinseong also saw it.

It was a scene he hadn’t witnessed while playing *Dungeon & Fighter*.

‘She’s crying. Fiona… I never saw this in the in-game illustrations.’

Tears streamed down Fiona’s face as she supported Lenny, whose head trembled weakly, barely held up by Fiona’s arms.

The trickle of blood at the corner of Lenny’s mouth was also something that players couldn’t see from their perspective in the game.

“Really, I… I never liked adventurers from the start….”

Lenny’s neck seemed to have lost all strength, and her head fell limp.

Her lips moved faintly, as if she were trying to say something.

But she never managed to utter a single word.

Only after taking her last breath did she let out a faint mumble as she exhaled her life.

“…Mom….”

“Lenny! Lenny!”

Lenny, the lower knight of the Iron Wolf Knights, who, even while wandering around Hendon Myre, had always expressed her desire to show her mother her achievements.

‘Lenny….’

A tear rolled down Jinseong’s cheek as well.

However, there wasn’t time to dwell on sorrow.

────────────……!!!!

The light that burst from the female archer user’s arm was another kind of signal.

“What’s that bracelet? No, that’s not the issue right now… If you’ve regained your senses, go help the others.”

Jinseong knew what it was.

The , an item that could temporarily block Apostle Lotus’s mental influence.

It was the same item Iris Fortune Singer had handed to the female archer user just before she re-boarded Behemoth.

‘But the timing of its activation was delayed. At the time, I thought it was just a calculation error, but considering Iris at this point, she might have done it on purpose. Regardless, that’s not important now. The user will leave soon.’

Watching the hesitant user, Fiona continued.

“The reason you’ve come to your senses now… it’s thanks to Lenny, who called out to you so earnestly. Go. The one who killed Lenny was not you, but Lotus.”

The user, now free from Apostle Lotus’s illusion, would soon join forces with Ban and Aganzo, who were already fighting Lotus, to defeat him.

And Jinseong knew he, too, had to follow them.

‘…Illusion. The GBL Church’s brainwashed high priests. They appeared to me as ‘NPCs and users from future quests.’ It was definitely an illusion. And there’s only one being at this point capable of showing me such hallucinations.’

The Eighth Apostle, the Long-Legged Lotus.

The Apostle with whom Jinseong had exchanged information through a deal.

Did Lotus really need to show Jinseong hallucinations?

Losing power outside of water, just dealing with Ban and Aganzo should be challenging enough. Why would Lotus waste energy on Jinseong?

‘There’s no reason. Which makes it clear. Whether it was from the time we spoke or sometime after, I don’t know!’

Apostle Lotus had become .

If that’s why the corrupted card hadn’t appeared yet, then?!

“You need to stop Lotus… Only then… Lenny’s sacrifice won’t be in vain.”

Fiona said.

The user began running at full speed.

Jinseong simply watched the user. He knew there was no need to follow immediately.

Instead, he hid himself more thoroughly.

Den spoke.

“But where did Jinseong go? I haven’t seen him for a while.”

“…Exactly. The person Lenny wanted to see for the last time, the one her lips moved to call out to with her final breath, and yet….”

As Fiona tended to Lenny’s corpse, she muttered.

The word Lenny had tried to say before calling out for her mother.

That breathless sound, the syllable that her lips formed—if only her breath had carried a little further.

Fiona’s voice trailed off, bitter with regret.

But Jinseong knew. He knew that Lenny had tried to call out to him in her last moments. He knew the pain of having to watch, fully aware of her death. That’s why Jinseong was moving, pressing forward.

‘…Just as Fiona said. To make sure Lenny’s death isn’t in vain….’

He had to stop the corruption.

There was only one thing he needed to do right now.

Rustle, rustle.

Jinseong stripped the robes from the corpse of the GBL Church high priest he had dragged along.

Then, rummaging through his [Inventory], he pulled something out.

* * *

The path leading to Behemoth’s second spine was nothing for Jinseong.

More than anything, Lotus’s power seemed to be weakening, as no brainwashed monsters appeared to block his way.

‘The user must’ve arrived before me. And if it’s the Lotus from the scenario quest, then for the user, dealing with him would be a piece of cake. Even though she’s a buffer like the Muse, it shouldn’t take long.’

Jinseong moved quickly, though he didn’t rush.

Arriving early didn’t matter. He couldn’t just barge in where Lotus was anyway. Jinseong observed.

In the distance, he saw a massive altar, with the Iron Wolf Knights maintaining a defensive formation, standing vigilantly.

“I’m in your debt, Vice-Captain Hartz.”

“Even though I currently serve the Duchy, I once worked for the Empire’s knights. No need to mention debts when we’re facing a common enemy.”

“…Thank you.”

The scene of Robato, the female knight of Bell Meyer Duchy, receiving treatment from Hartz, the vice-captain of the Iron Wolf Knights, was familiar to Jinseong, even though he had never seen it in person.

‘It’s a scene from the script. Robato was injured while fighting Lotus with Ban and Aganzo. Hartz and the Iron Wolf Knights are treating her while handling the aftermath of Lotus. In other words, Ban, Aganzo, and the user are the ones currently dealing with Lotus—.’

It was safe to assume that Lotus was still alive.

Of course, as Jinseong had predicted, Lotus wouldn’t survive much longer.

“Ugh—My head, all of a sudden….”

“…What is this?”

As Robato and Hartz felt the strange sensation, the Iron Wolf Knights also frowned.

“Where… is this?”

“Mom? Is that you? Mom?”

They mumbled as if they were seeing something lost to them.

As soon as Jinseong confirmed this, he stepped forward.

There wasn’t the slightest hesitation in his movement, no concern that they might recognize him.

‘This is… Lotus’s final mental attack, triggered when the user realizes they’ve killed the Lotus trapped in the altar.’

Even Ban and Aganzo would be swayed by Lotus’s mental manipulation.

In that illusion, the user would engage in one last battle against the seemingly resurrected Lotus, now free from the altar and displaying his true strength. The quest would finally end with the user’s victory.

“And when the battle ends and they come to their senses, none of them remember anything. Not even Ban or Aganzo. So, of course, Hartz and Robato won’t be able to endure it either!”

Tap, tap-tap, tap-tap-tap-tap—!

Jinseong picked up speed.

The first thing he saw was the female archer user standing frozen.

And beside her, Ban and Aganzo, both visibly disoriented.

“Emily… Emily, no!”

“This memory… I mustn’t forget— Who are—?”

Even those who had endured until now through sheer willpower were unable to resist any longer, as Lotus’s final mental resonance, unleashed with the last of his life force, proved too powerful.

‘Yeah, this should have ended. Normally… the real body is already dead! Lotus should have bet everything in the mental world as a last act of desperation—.’

Jinseong saw it.

The collapsed GBL Church altar and the massive tentacles that drooped outside it.

The tentacles, once bright red, were now coated in dust from the crumbling altar, turned an ashen gray.

They should no longer be moving. The final battle with Apostle Lotus should have taken place in the mental world, as per the main scenario.

“-But it’s not dead, is it! Because it’s corrupted!”

Not yet.

Just as one of the drooping tentacles suddenly sharpened at the tip and shot toward the user!

Jinseong raised his beam saber and charged forward.

“!”

With such speed that even Jinseong could barely control it.

It was a skill learned at level 25, one of the primary movement skills of the Dark Knight class. Closing the distance in an instant, Jinseong’s eyes widened as he swung his saber to deflect

Lotus’s tentacle.

KA-AAAAAANG───────!

The loud clashing sound echoed like metal striking metal.

It was a barely successful defense, with Jinseong standing in front of the archer user, his back chilled from the close call, but it was Lotus who was more shocked.

“…You… How…?!”

Lotus’s voice boomed.

Jinseong dropped something from his inventory, speaking as he did so.

“This.”

The reason Jinseong had sought out Lenny in Hendon Myre wasn’t just to offer a final act of mercy, knowing her fate.

It was for the things he had bought at Kanna’s general store: , , , and even a , just in case.

“What… is that?”

“Let’s just say… it’s a gift I bought with Lenny.”

His original plan had been to rely on the Iris had given to the user. But Jinseong couldn’t trust only that, so he had to prepare a plan B.

Though he couldn’t fully break free from Lotus’s mental control or completely liberate himself, Jinseong needed something that could temporarily resist and recover from it.

‘I’m not sure how effective the is, but I know what it counters. Stun, confusion, sleep. At least three of them are certain.’

So, Jinseong had used potions to mimic the effects of the ’s option to “reduce stun, confusion, and sleep duration by 15%.”

Still shocked, Lotus barely found his voice.

“What is important is not that! Lotus! Are you aware that you’re corrupted?”

“Corrupted? Do you think I, who commands such power, would suffer such a condition?”

Lotus’s voice was a harsh rasp, like something scraping against his vocal cords.

Though defiant, Jinseong was more certain than ever.

“As expected… Even intelligent beings can’t realize they’re corrupted.”

“What did you say?”

Jinseong gripped his sword tightly.

There was only one thing left to do.

“It doesn’t matter, squid. If you’re corrupted, I just have to cut you down. With the Bucipke’s authority.”