Chapter 127: Chapter 127

Chandler’s gaze held a peculiar mix of suspicion and certainty. He wasn’t wavering between the two emotions, both existed distinctly within him.

I feigned indifference. No matter how I answered, this was a crucial moment. Behind him, Christina stood tense, gripping the hilt of her sword.

It felt like Baron Chandler already knew my identity. Had he investigated me? If so, why was he asking now? What was his goal?

A flicker of curiosity stirred within me.

"Do I absolutely need to answer?”

"Yes. It concerns the fate of my family... and this city."

He suddenly escalated the conversation to a grand scale. He wasn’t preparing for battle. Whether I was human or not, he didn’t seem intent on attacking me.

I stood from my seat and walked toward Chandler. This was a gamble—one I could ask no one else. I had to read the situation and decide my response.

I removed the mask. Christina’s eyes widened in shock, but she didn’t scream or stumble. She was too focused on protecting Chandler. Meanwhile, Rena had swiftly shut the windows, drawn the curtains, and locked the door. Then, she stood in front of it like a sentry.

I was completely unprepared for Chandler’s reaction.

"...So it was you! It was you!"

The young lord of Grassmere dropped to his knees before me.

"L-Lord! You are drunk!"

Christina was alarmed, rushing to support him. Even in this confusing situation, she maintained her composure like a true knight.

"No. Hold him." I spoke firmly, drowning out Chandler’s voice.

Christina hesitated but remained still, continuing to restrain Chandler. The young baron struggled slightly, but Christina completely overpowered him. He couldn’t move at all.

I decided not to put Christina in a more difficult position.

Chandler said in a trembling tone, “I have... a request."

He sounded desperate and earnest. He knelt before me without hesitation, abandoning his own dignity.

I looked down at him and spoke, "If it’s about swordsmanship, you don’t need to go this far. I would have taught you anyway."

That had been my intention. Chandler had been the first victim of my essence absorption experiments in my past life. Even without that history, I had already absorbed the Swordsmanship Instruction skill. I was more than willing to train him to improve the skill’s proficiency. However, Chandler shook his head.

"No. I-I have been dreaming of you every night for the past two months..."

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

His expression was serious, but his words made no sense.

"It was the first time... I had a different dream."

Acorn peeked out from the sack out of the blue. The little skeleton cub looked around, then suddenly leaped out.

It climbed onto my foot. The heavy atmosphere lightened slightly at its sudden appearance. Chandler and Christina seemed startled, but the impact was way less than when I’d revealed my identity.

One or two skeletons won’t change anything now.

Acorn nudged my hand, seeking attention.

I slowly stroked its head, then I looked at Chandler.

"What were you saying?"

Chandler blinked and swallowed hard before continuing, "For twenty-five years, I had the same dream—a dream where the world was turned upside down."

The world would be turned upside down. Twice. I helped him up to his feet and guided him to a chair.

"In my dreams, humans were devoured by insects and beasts. And then, a massive raven descended upon Grassmere, covered in glistening jewels all over."

A jewel-clad raven. I knew exactly what that was—the Demon King Malphas.

"When the human world was being slaughtered, that raven alone protected me and this city. That’s when I realized... It was a Demon King. And I had that same dream for over twenty years.”

Chandler’s voice trembled as he spoke. His family’s ancestor had once been a servant to the great sorcerer who ruled the South. That sorcerer had worshipped Malphas. Before passing away, the sorcerer cursed Chandler’s bloodline, enslaving and linking their lives and fate.

I asked, "A life-linking curse?"

"Are you saying that sorcerer is still alive?"

"Before dying, he sealed himself away in a self-induced coma, waiting for the Demon King to descend."

Chandler went on to explain that every firstborn heir of his family was sent underground upon turning twenty-five. There, the ancient, near-corpse sorcerer would awaken and embrace them, draining their life force to survive. Such a hellish cycle it was.

"For generations, we have lived as slaves. Not even slaves of the Demon King, but of a mere sorcerer."

"Wait..." Rena suddenly interjected. "Is the sorcerer’s name Bel’Homec Isaac?"

Chandler’s eyes widened in shock. "...How did you know?!”

"Sorry. I did some research. And..."

Rena admitted that she had investigated Chandler’s background. I half-listened, deep in thought.

Chandler’s family and their direct heirs all had the same recurring dream. A dream of the Demon King’s descent. A dream where only their family and city were saved. A dream where the city flourished under the Demon King’s blessing.

In truth, that was all a lie. Chandler wasn’t lying—his dreams were. Grassmere wouldn’t be saved. That sorcerer, Bel’Homec Isaac, was likely being deceived and received false prophecies.

Grassmere was meant to be a sacrificial offering. Yet despite this, Chandler family kept the sorcerer alive.

The answer was simple: when one dreamed of the same thing every day, they started to believe it was real. It was brainwashing.

The Chandler family truly believed the Demon King’s descent would bring salvation and blessings, so they saw draining their firstborn’s life force for the city ruler as a necessary sacrifice. A trap of apocalyptic fear and worldly gain.

He probably couldn’t even ask anyone for help.

This wasn’t a story he could share just anywhere. The tale of a noble house connected to a demonic servant for generations, all while receiving the Demon King’s blessings. If the Order of the Ashen Church caught wind of it, they could storm the castle gates with flaming hammers. Fanatic priests who worshipped Bifrons or Yemera could even put the entire family through an inquisition.

I looked at Chandler and asked, "But why me?"

That was the real question. I had no idea why he was suddenly confiding in me and asking for help.

Chandler, looking flushed, answered, "After meeting you, the dreams stopped. I no longer receive those prophecies."

"You mean you no longer dream of the Demon King’s descent?"

Chandler nodded. "Instead, I received a new prophecy. A vision of you—without your helmet—destroying the golems beneath the inner castle and splitting apart a world filled with wraiths."

“I appeared like that?"

It didn’t seem like a lie.

"My father, bedridden as he is, had the same dream."

The dreams he saw were the result of a deliberate curse.

And if I appeared in them...

That meant I had somehow become entangled in the spell. But how? In what way? Why? I had more questions than I could count.

Then, his voice, filled with rage, rang out before me.

"If the prophecy was false, then the sorcerer Isaac, who deceived us for generations, must die!!”

Chandler’s tone was fierce as he continued, "But if the prophecy is real... then I beg you—please make it happen. If you can free us from this fate of slavery, my father and I will offer everything our family has."

[The Sorcerer in the Ancient Tomb – The Curse of Chandler Family]

[For centuries, the great sorcerer Bel’Homec Isaac ruled the South and enslaved the Chandler family.

Sealing himself within a powerful barrier, Isaac lingered in a half-dead state, feeding off the life force of each generation’s head of the family.

Defeat the wicked sorcerer Bel’Homec Isaac!

After meeting you, those who have lived under his prophecy for decades have fully trusted you.]

[Accepting the quest will: Greatly increase Chandler family’s Affection toward you.]

[Successfully completing the quest will: Boost your reputation significantly in the Empire’s southern region.

Most importantly, the Chandler family may offer you a very special reward.

What could be the most prized reward from the City of Weapons? Aren’t you curious?]

[Declining the quest will: Likely send Chandler into depression.

Cause him to recklessly seek out another absurdly strong warrior to aid him.]

[Do you accept the quest?]

It’d been a while since a quest window popped up. I could never make sense of the criteria for quest appearances—they either showed up or they didn’t. Even when I worked with Rena, quest rarely activated. This world’s framework had no consistency.

Not like I can refuse this quest, anyway.

Not only did I have to learn more about magical essence, I also had to make Rena a guildmaster. And now, Chandler was personally requesting it. I’d even receive a reward on top of it.

The only problem is...

I had no idea how strong the iron golems guarding the dungeon were. A sorcerer renowned even centuries later had built them to guard his tomb. Even though I had grown much stronger than before, there was no guarantee of victory.

However, at this point, I had some faith in how my life repeated itself.

If I die, I’ll just return to the cave again.

I’d start over with Rena. If I had decided to make her a guild master of T&T and committed to clearing this scenario, then this was the fastest route. Even if I died, I’d at least gain firsthand experience fighting the golems.

I was about to accept when I caught Rena’s gaze.

"That’s quite the story," she said, squinting at me before deliberately taking on a serious tone. "Of course, since my master is incredibly strong, clearing a golem dungeon wouldn’t be an issue at all, but we actually had plans to go elsewhere tomorrow."

Chandler’s face twisted in disappointment. "But... but!"

"Ah, such unfortunate circumstances... Well, my master will think it over and give you an answer."

Chandler bowed his head repeatedly before stepping away.

I turned to Rena. "Why didn’t you just accept it? Didn’t you say we need to extract the magical essence from the golems?"

"We had to play hard to get. My master isn’t a pushover, is he?”

"Hah. Impressive." I shook my head.

"How about we let him stew for a bit and visit him after lunchtime tomorrow?"

I smirked and nodded.

The next day, we went to see Chandler. Clearly, he hadn’t slept well—he greeted me with red-rimmed eyes.

Looking slightly amused, Rena sighed and said, "I had suggested we stick to our original plan, but my master seems to care deeply for you, Lord Chandler. This really isn’t how things should have gone, but..."

Her acting was flawless. Even I found myself momentarily questioning whether we actually had other plans.

"Thank you. Truly, thank you!"

Chandler looked like he’d burst into tears. A series of notifications flashed in my vision, indicating that his Affection had skyrocketed.

Poor guy... Delaying for a day really made this more dramatic.

"Alright. Then let’s head to the inner castle."

"I shall lead the way!"

[The Curse of Chandler Family]

The gray quest window turned blue, signaling activation. Walking side by side with me, Chandler led us toward the castle.

The young baron was clearly trying not to break into a run. His excitement was obvious.

"Thank you! Truly, thank you!"

"...Let’s just walk quietly."

I had to calm him down. Many citizens greeted Chandler as we passed, their expressions mostly warm. It was different from the rumors I had heard before—the supposed cursed son of the lord was neither avoided nor feared. Some merchants, yawning from post-meal drowsiness, brightened and waved when they saw him.

We passed through the winding roads, climbed up the defensive spiral staircases, and finally reached the inner castle.

A burly guard opened the castle gates. I took a glance inside and was surprised.

The inner castle wasn’t extravagant. Though the space was vast, handed down for generations, it felt almost austere, without any traces of luxury anywhere.

A frail man, assisted by attendants, let out a pained cough. He looked at least eighty years old. The maid beside him, tall and sturdy, held up a handkerchief stained with blood.

"Father! You shouldn’t be up...!" Chandler cried out.

Wait... did he just say, “Father”?