The Berserker’s Second Playthrough in the Game - Chapter 215



Only Krnovel

Episode 215. Star Crusher (4)

Delutana’s nickname is ‘City of Gold’.

As the name suggests, Delutana is the most prosperous metropolis in the alliance, a place of commerce, trade, and gold where wealth as vast as Mt. Tai is concentrated. This has been an unchanging fact ever since the golden lord, Remillion, made this place the center of the alliance 250 years ago.

The villagers living in the backwaters are filled with awe just hearing the name. They imagine the rich and noble ladies getting out of carriages in silk clothes with gold threads, in streets covered with golden spires and gold ingots, and they fall into golden dreams.

Although not to that extent, Delutana was certainly a magnificent city in peacetime. Buildings decorated with colorful decorative stones, streets lined with artistic sculptures, a council hall of a jaw-dropping scale… … Above all, the central square with its golden statue of Remillion as big as a house was proof at a glance why the city was nicknamed the ‘City of Gold.’

However, in the current Delutana, there was no room to feel that fact.

Because the entire city has been taken over by God’s followers, who are more persistent than the devil.

“[Listen, servants of the majestic Lightbringer! The Holy War has begun! We will spread Elgar’s ‘gospel’ from here to the ends of the earth, for all ages!]”

““[We will spread Elgar’s ‘Gospel’ from here to the ends of the earth, for all eternity!]””

– Krrrr, krrrrr… … .

– Khuung, woof! Woof, woof, woof!!

The shining fabric fluttered like a celestial bush, and a bloody howl rang out like a military song. Countless evangelists and pure white vicious dogs rose up with the sole intention of spreading the ‘gospel’.

The ominous army had already covered the entire city. Even the guards who had been protecting the city had long since retreated to one place. The beautiful streets had become a battlefield, and instead of lively voices, only the sounds of threats and screams forcing the gospel were heard.

“[Read this ‘gospel’ with all your heart, unbeliever. Then you will be saved from the valley of death and wear the ‘robe of light’ like me… … .]”

“Aaaaaaaaaah!”

“Ugh, ugh!!”

And the visitors who broke through the castle gate were able to confirm the identity of the noise they were hearing.

A tragedy even more dizzying than I could have imagined. Duncan just stood there and trembled.

“Hhhh… … Yu, Julia… … Duncan… … .”

But his companion, Kadim, calmly did what had to be done.

“Hey, let me ask you something. Is there anyone by the name of Goltarran or a family with the last name Wheeled… ?”

“[You, judging by your appearance, you are a pagan who worships false gods! If you don’t want to die, memorize this ‘gospel’ right now! Then your spirit and body… … .]”

“It’s okay if you don’t know.”

Pur – Wow!

A light punch pierced the face of the gospel body. The skull was shattered and scattered like a bloody firecracker, and the light drapery hung limply and disappeared without being able to swing.

Kadim clicked his tongue and shook his fist. Because it was so cold, her brain and blood quickly froze and clotted. All of Elgar’s followers around him turned their attention to Khadim at once.

“[This blasphemous pagan has arbitrarily murdered a servant of the gospel!]”

“[It is blasphemy! Everyone, bring down Elgar’s judgment on those heretics who deserve to be punished!]”

– Crawl, woof! Woof, woof!

Dozens of evangelists and packs of fierce dogs rushed at him. It was inefficient to destroy them all with just his bare body. Kadim grabbed the dark axe handle and mercilessly threw it.

Wreck, wrck, wrck – !!

A band of vapor was drawn around the ax blade of the lightning strike. A blood-red color quickly mixed into the white compressed air. Beings touched by the wave-shaped whirlwind were unable to leave even a cry of death and became living scavenger hunts made of blood and skin.

――――― Quajeojeojeojeojeop – !

– Damn it… … .

“[Geuaaaa… … ].”

Fifteen when flying away, ten when returning.

Pararararararaak, chin – !

The huddled mass was slaughtered in a straight line. The gospel figures, whose lungs and hearts were burst, whose peritoneums were turned into rags, whose skulls were crushed, fell to the ground, struggling. A red frost formed in the pools of flesh and blood.

Kadim approached the guy who was still conscious with only his shoulder broken.

“Please ask me something. “Do you know where a guy named Goltaran or a family with the last name Wheeled is?”

“[Ugh… … Pagan… … Recite the gospel, recite the gospel… … .]”

“I guess you don’t know either.”

Pur – Wow!

The head was crushed by the crushing footsteps, and the white-shining eyes were crushed and flowed out. The remaining evangelists were so shocked by the overwhelming violence that they could not dare to approach for a moment.

They weren’t the only ones who were overwhelmed. Duncan asked with a pale face.

“I, I, I will get better…” … What on earth just happened… … .”

“I’m a little pissed off. I asked about your family’s whereabouts, and these guys are talking nonsense.”

“Oh, no, that’s not it… … These, these… … I was just brainwashed by Elgar in some strange way… … Straighten your body, aren’t you just ordinary citizens?”

“I see. But what does that have to do with anything?”

“… … .”

Kadim gently pointed at the corpses on the street that had been torn apart by monsters and vicious dogs. Whether he was possessed by the devil or by God, there was no reason not to kill him when he did something like that and threatened this side.

However, it was clear what he was worried about. If your family had ended up like this, he would at least spare their lives and subdue them, Kadim assured them. However, Duncan could not calm his agitation.

“Ah, no, that, but… … H, could you possibly subdue these people as well? They are someone’s family too, and there might be a way to return them to how they were… … .”

“… … That would be quite a waste of time. “Are you saying it doesn’t matter if your family dies or something like that happens in the meantime?”

“… … .”

It wasn’t a wrong statement. How could I worry about others when I couldn’t even find my own family… Duncan closed his eyes tightly, reproaching himself for his own stupidity and helplessness.

However, Kadim left room for the human side of the peddler to be respected.

“Take out the ‘World Tree Dagger’, Duncan.”

“… … !”

“They said that if you stab it, it has the effect of putting you to sleep instead of killing it. So, I won’t touch the guys you defeated with that. “If you want to find your wife and children and save innocent citizens, you will have to move faster than me.”

“… … .”

The worries didn’t last long. The disappointed peddler’s eyes changed. Duncan nods solemnly and holds up a wooden dagger.

Soon, a strong backlash began to blow in Delutana, which had been covered with waves of the ‘gospel’.

Duncan chose a strategy of hiding in the shadows wearing a cloak and surprising the enemies. An attacker with no presence or shape suddenly jumped out, so even the Gospel body covered in light was helpless.

“Come on, go to sleep, damn it!”

Goooooong – ! Gooung-!

“[Ugh… … .]”

“[Father, unbeliever… … what are you doing… … .]”

“Hey, stay asleep! If you don’t want to get caught!”

The dagger’s effect was also certain. The World Tree’s dagger did not tear the stabbed part, but penetrated like an illusion, putting the target to sleep. Soon, the streets were filled with fainting gospel figures.

Meanwhile, Kadim was dealing with enemies mainly with his fierce dogs.

Crackle, crackle, crackle!

– Kahaeng, kahaeae… … .

– Kek – !

Even Elgar’s fierce familiar was nothing more than a piece of meat in front of him. Dogs cut by axes flew away like butcher carcasses, and dogs that were kicked exploded and scattered like blood.

Sometimes, the gospel that rushed in together would tear off the skin and throw it in front of Duncan. The skin of light that could easily cut through even lumps of iron, could not avoid being torn off like a dragonfly’s wing when caught in that vicious grip.

Blah blah blah -!!

“[Ghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!! You!!! You, you, what are you doing!!]”

Meanwhile, Kadim discovered something on the back of the struggling gospel body.

A brand that looks exactly like the ten-pointed star symbol and the ‘stigmata’ of Decagram.

“… … !”

Suddenly, the effects and restrictions of ‘Stigmata’ that I had heard about from Archpaladin and Hendark flashed through my mind. Then, in an instant, a picture formed in my mind as to what caused this tragedy in Delutana and what the solution to suppressing it was.

However, I had no intention of solving the problem right away. There was something more urgent to do right now.

Since no significant gains were obtained from the evangelists, the direction of the investigation was changed to asking the survivors remaining on the streets about their whereabouts. And she finally got some useful information from a woman who saved her from a vicious dog.

“Oh, the Goltaran and Wheeled family… …? Are you talking about the Goltaran chief… … Oh, no, General Goltaran and Madame Wheeled?”

“… … Yeah, I guess that’s probably right.”

“Well, I heard that General Goltarahn was dispatched near the border… … I’m not sure about Madame Wheeled… … . However, all the survivors have now gone to the evacuation zone near the East Gate. If she was in Delutana, she must have gone there too… … .”

“Is that story really true!!”

Duncan takes off his cloak and hurries out from the shadows. The woman opened her wide rabbit eyes in surprise, then tilted her head in confusion. Soon, one stern fell from her blood-covered savage.

“Then lead us there. “We will clear the way.”

“yes? Ha, ha, but… … To get there from here, you have to pass through the central square… … . Oh, there’s a monster there… … There are so many people gathered together… … It’s so, so dangerous… … .”

“… … .”

Cadim narrowed his eyes for a moment, then glanced at the tattoo on his back and muttered.

“These monsters were probably created by God’s ‘miracle’ anyway… … .”

“……yes?”

“If we’re all gathered together, that’s better. Let’s leave right away.”

*

The soldiers of Delutana’s disaster force were currently suffering from various hardships.

One of them is the citizens screaming in front of this makeshift barrier.

“Please, please! Let me pass just this once, soldiers!”

“Isn’t it too much to suddenly block the road like this?”

“My father is still outside! I’ll just bring him back right away! I’ll be back really soon… … .”

““… … .””

As soon as the disaster victims established the evacuation zone, they built a barrier with sandbags and wooden barriers. Then, after admitting citizens for a certain period of time, entry and exit were completely controlled according to the instructions of the council. It was a natural measure that had to be taken to prevent the invasion of monsters.

But needless to say, not all citizens could evacuate in time.

It would have been better if the entire family had not come in… … The problem was that the family was outside and had to suddenly be separated. All they could do was come to the front of the wall and beg the soldiers.

“Well, my grandfather went out! My grandfather can’t move his legs properly, but he goes all the way to the North Gate alone… … Ugh, I have to go and help quickly… … .”

“My son, he’s right here in front of you!! He’s probably hiding right in front of the wall!! Please, please save my son… … Hehehe… … .”

“I will kneel down and pray like this, soldiers… … . yes? uh? If it’s empty like this and you don’t get out of the way, you’ll kill all the people outside! “You are going to kill them!”

““… … .””

Soldiers are also people with warm blood flowing through their hearts. How could you not be moved when you see citizens crying to save their families?

But I couldn’t help it. If we open the wall now and clear the way, even the people who took refuge may be exterminated. I gritted my molars, grasped the handle of my spear tightly, and steadfastly stood in front of the barrier to prevent anyone from passing by.

Still, the hardships of the soldiers inside the wall were relatively mild compared to those of the soldiers fighting for their lives outside the wall.

‘… … Ahhh… … .’

‘… … Ugh, aaaaaaah… … .’

A chilling scream echoed beyond the top of the wall. The civilians’ faces turned ashen, and the soldiers shut their eyes tightly in fear.

They were truly monsters that were impossible to deal with.

I could still see the limbs of my comrades being torn apart by the teeth of vicious dogs, and the heads of citizens being cut off by the blades of light. Not just one, but hundreds or thousands of monsters as powerful as giant horned devils appeared in the city… … It was planned that Delutana would fall like this.

In fact, even this barrier was just a flimsy temporary measure. Everyone clearly heard the soldier from the central square giving testimony in panic. There are countless monsters there now, like a swarm of ants.

If they all come here… … From then on, those screams will come out of their own throats.

However, the soldiers’ predictions did not come true.

“……uh?”

“What is that…” … ?”

““… … ?””

Citizens were looking somewhere and letting out a questioning exclamation. The soldiers who turned their heads to follow them saw a huge head that looked like a graft of a mountain goat and a lion’s head rising from a distance toward the central square.

The strange monster opened its mouth wide and attacked the ground… …

Teo – Huh! Kufuuuuuu… … .

… … It crushed the entire square and disappeared like a ghost.

A surreal sight that leaves you speechless. The mouths of everyone watching were wide open. What’s even more strange is that after the monster disappeared, the monsters’ screams and the soldiers’ screams quieted down as if it were a lie.

“… … .”

“… … .”

Silence came. It was a silence that felt especially quiet because of the commotion just before.

But it didn’t last long. The citizens suddenly came to their senses and began to grind their teeth breathlessly.

“Well, what is that? Could it be that the Empire’s Elgaids have summoned another monster?”

“No! If that were the case, it wouldn’t have disappeared like that! Isn’t it the magic used by the wizards from the Magic Tower?”

“Well, let’s come…” … . I’ve never heard of a wizard in Delutana who can use magic on that scale… … .”

But before the confusion could be resolved, another unexpected event occurred right before our eyes.

―――― Phew – Ugh!

“Ugh!”

“Gyaaaahh …

“Huh, huh, huh, huh!!”

The earthen wall blocking the entrance collapsed in an instant. The soldiers and civilians nearby fled in panic. As the thick cloud of dust settled, the spirit of the one who had collapsed the earthen wall was revealed.

Boasting a physique so ferocious that one wonders if it is actually a human being… … Which Atala.

“Let me ask you something.”

““… … .””

“Is there anyone here who knows about the whereabouts of the Wheeled family?”

Although the words were clearly understandable, no one responded. Because my whole body froze, tired of the extraordinary situation and the pressure contained in the overwhelming presence and voice.

But just one person was different.

A girl of about fifteen years old who had just been begging to go save her grandfather. She approached the giant hesitantly. Her appearance was very similar to the appearance of the ‘benefactor’ that her grandfather had told her about.

“Hey, hey, I’m sorry! Teacher, are you a warrior from the ‘Indomitable Army’ under General Goltaran… … Are you excited?”

“… … No, that’s not true.”

“Well, then maybe… … Do you know about a person named Gulak? He has trouble with one leg, his front tooth is broken, and his nickname is ‘Old Man Sledgehammer’… … .”

A name he heard at an unexpected moment. Geohan twisted his gaze slightly and asked back.

“… … “That dog’s milk?”

After hearing those words, the girl gained confidence and clung urgently.

“Yes, yes, yes, that’s right! Mercenary, you helped my grandfather in the past, right? Please, please help my grandfather one more time! My grandfather’s workshop is near the north gate… … Ugh, the mercenary said he was going to create a masterpiece, huh, ugh, in the meantime, he went out alone… … .”

“… … .”

Kadim’s face hardened as he looked down at Gulag’s granddaughter, who was sobbing and holding onto her trouser hem.