Chapter 148

Haha, this is something. I looked around with a bewildered expression. I was left alone in this bizarre world that seemed to have inverted colors.

What the hell, to be left all alone in a place like this.

“Ugh.”

I need to find a way out.

The room with the holy relics wasn’t particularly large. From the door that looked like the entrance to the room where the holy relics were kept, it seemed that the darkness had encroached even to the entrance as it swallowed me.

I slowly surveyed my surroundings. Then I discovered faintly glowing objects. Oh, I widened my eyes.

“Aren’t those the holy relics?”

The faintly glowing items were the holy relics stored inside glass boxes. They emitted a light similar to the one radiating from my body. And as soon as I saw that, I realized.

“Could it be that I haven’t shattered because I swallowed a holy relic?”

Holy relics that maintained their form even in darkness. And I, who had one of those holy relics inside me.

It was easier to think that way.

I began to gather the holy relics one by one. Even though I couldn’t leave right now, I believed there would surely be a way out.

“But really, how do I get out of here?”

I turned around once. The parts the dome hadn’t swallowed were just charred black, as if they had been scorched.

Looking around, I couldn’t think of any particular way out. I gazed at the gathered holy relics for a moment, then suddenly remembered what might have been among them.

The cursed object. Yes, that should be here too.

Although everything was so dark that it was hard to see. I opened the glass box where the cursed object should be and reached in.

And then, click, I touched something.

The dagger known as the cursed object lay among the holy relics, having turned pitch black.

If it weren’t for the light of the holy relics, I wouldn’t have even noticed it was there; the cursed object had turned so black that it exuded a sinister aura.

“…If the center of this dome is the cursed object.”

Could I find a way out using this cursed object?

I decided to think simply. Since there was nothing I could do right now, I sat down with the cursed object in hand.

Then, I slowly began to move the divine power within me and started to hum a song.

A dull pain arose in my throat. Ah, it seemed the effect of the painkillers I took in the morning was starting to wear off.

It was bearable for now, so I continued singing. The sound of my song caused the divine power to seep into the cursed object.

However, despite the continuation of the song and the divine power seeping into the cursed object, nothing changed.

It was only natural that there would be no change, given that the purification ritual had already been performed by the high priest and other priests in the temple.

As the dull pain intensified, I paused my singing for a moment and let out a deep sigh.

‘What should I do?’

I lightly stroked the part that felt like a blade. Since there was no change even after pouring in divine power, I felt completely at a loss about what to do next.

Ouch.

Oh no, while stroking the blade, I lightly cut the inside of my palm. I pulled my hand away from the sharp pain and looked at my palm. Red blood glistened. How careless of me, even at a time like this.

Feeling pathetic, I momentarily set the cursed object down. No, I tried to set it down.

“Hmm?”

If the spot stained with blood hadn’t faintly glowed, I would have turned away. I brought the cursed object closer to my eyes.

“The spot stained with blood…”

It was faintly shimmering. To be precise, the black darkness receded, revealing a white blade.

The small amount of my blood staining it was not the problem. Suddenly, an idea struck me, and I opened my wounded palm.

Without hesitation, I cut the inside of my palm. With a rasping sound, thick blood flowed down from my palm and touched the blade of the cursed object.

From the moment my blood made contact with the blade, I could see the darkness of the cursed object gradually dissipating.

“Is it being purified by my blood?”

I wasn’t sure if it was being purified specifically by my blood or by the blood of someone with divine power, but it seemed that my blood was effective in driving away the darkness of the cursed object.

I set the cursed object down on the ground and clenched my palm tightly to squeeze out the blood. The blood that flowed from my palm soaked the cursed object.

With each drop of my blood that spread over the cursed object, the blackened areas transformed into red and white. I widened my eyes in surprise.

There was a way. A way to purify the cursed object!

After bleeding for a while, when the last drop fell onto the cursed object with a plop, I heard a sound from somewhere.

Splat-.

I looked up at the ceiling where the sound came from. The cursed object lying on the ground now resembled a regular dagger, and as soon as it was purified, the black dome began to—

Crack.

It started to crumble helplessly. Like shards of glass, the cracked dome soon shattered with a sharp sound in the air.

My vision, which had seemed inverted, returned to normal. I sat quietly inside and turned around. I saw Carlothian with his eyes wide open.

“Ah, Carlothian!”

Although we hadn’t been apart for long, the anxiety I felt during that brief time made me feel reassured seeing his face.

He rushed toward me in an instant and pulled me into his embrace. Concerned for him, I placed my hand on his back and gently patted him.

“I’m sorry. You were really worried, right? There wasn’t anything wrong inside, ow.”

As I patted his back, the deep cut on my palm stung, and I let out a short groan.

Carlothian reacted sensitively to the sound, pulling away from me and asking, “Did you hurt somewhere?”

“Ah, um, I got a little cut.”

I extended my palm, and as soon as Carlothian saw it, he frowned deeply. I scratched my cheek with my uninjured hand and hummed a short tune.

A dull pain naturally followed. The wound on my hand wasn’t too severe, so after humming a few lines of the song, it felt as if it had been washed away.

“Okay, it’s fine now.”

“……”

“More importantly, Carlothian.”

I sparkled my eyes and grasped his hands.

“I think I’ve found a way to purify the cursed object.”

Carlothian looked at me with a peculiar expression for a moment. Did he seem very displeased? He sighed as if he wanted to say something but held back, then replied.

“What method?”

“My blood purified the cursed object.”

“……Your blood?”

“Yes. I’m not sure if it’s just my blood or if it’s only the blood of someone with divine power, but definitely…!”

“Shh.”

Carlothian suddenly made me close my mouth. The temple knight and the high priest rushed over to me and asked.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Ah, I’m not seriously hurt. More importantly, I have something to say…”

“High priest.”

Carlothian interrupted me once again.

“Ariadeline needs a place to rest for a while.”

“Oh, I didn’t think of that. I’ll arrange a room for her to rest in.”

“Thank you.”

Carlothian gestured for me to follow him. Why does he keep cutting me off? I just found a way to purify the cursed object.

For now, since he looked upset, I decided to keep quiet and walked alongside him. I could feel him adjusting his pace to match my slow steps.

‘Why doesn’t he just hold my hand if he’s going to be like this?’

Normally, he would have taken my hand and gently pulled me along. Since I had my episode, he had definitely been avoiding contact with me.

But that day, when we had embraced and cried for a long time, hadn’t everything been resolved? I momentarily forgot about the cursed object and stared at his profile.

Why is he acting like this?

“Ariadeline.”

I’m not having episodes anymore.

“……Ariadeline.”

Honestly, I felt a bit hurt.

“Ariadeline.”

Suddenly, Carlothian’s hand shot out in front of me. I looked up, surprised, and saw a temple pillar right in front of me. I almost bumped into it.

“Why are you walking around lost in thought?”

“…Because I have worries because of someone.”

As I pouted my lips and spoke, he raised an eyebrow, looking confused. However, I didn’t want to argue about that in this situation, so I naturally changed the subject.

“More importantly, why did you stop me from talking to the high priest?”

Carlothian crossed his arms as if to say he didn’t know. I looked at him with a genuinely puzzled expression.

“…..It means you have to get hurt.”