Chapter 20: Mission [2]
[A New Quest has been generated!
Uncover the truth about the slave traders.
Quest Rank: ????
Time Limit: ????
Rewards: ????]
’Why the fuck is everything a question mark?’
Eden couldn’t help but frown as he looked at the quest screen in confusion.
This was the first time he was seeing something like this.
[<It’s because the difficulty of the quest depends on you.>]
Sana gave him an answer, but Eden didn’t quite understand.
’Do you mean I will affect the quest rank if I do certain things?’
[<Yes.>]
’Well, that doesn’t sound very good.’
Eden let out a sigh as he pushed the screen away.
The back of a knight leading him somewhere came into view.
It had already been half an hour since he requested to see Tosin’s body.
Though the king and the others had too many questions, Eden didn’t respond to any of them.
He just kept a straight face and made the same request again and again.
’...I am never going to take the quest if it’s too dangerous.’
Eeden wanted to play it safe for now, not because he was scared, but because he was new.
There were so many things Eden didn’t know about this world.
So many things that could kill him without any consequences.
He was well aware of his strength and limits.
’...I just hope I can find an easy way out if it’s too difficult.’
The knight ahead of him kept walking in silence, armor clinking with each step.
Eden followed quietly, hands in his pockets, mind running laps.
The air got colder.
The knight finally stopped in front of a heavy door.
He glanced back at Eden. "Are you sure about this, young lord?"
"Yes."
The knight nodded, pushed the door open... and the smell hit instantly.
Eden quickly covered his nose as the pungent smell assaulted him.
Inside, the room was dim, lit by a single lantern.
And on the stone table...Lay Tosin’s corpse.
Eden stepped in slowly.
The man who was once the strongest knight in the kingdom... was now pale, lifeless, and covered in scars.
The door behind him shut closed just as he had requested.
Eden felt his jaw clench. ’...He didn’t die quickly.’
The marks covering his entire body were proof of it.
The man had suffered unimaginable things.
Eden walked closer and his gaze fell on the man’s hand.
...The hand that was covered fully with scratches.
’....Who did this?’
He couldn’t help but wonder as he felt uneasiness.
’...No way, it’s his own daughter.’
Eden drew in a deep breath, suppressing his feelings.
He slowly raised his hand and remained still.
[<Just say the name and the ability will work.>]
Eden nodded, drawing in a deep breath.
"...I need your help," Eden spoke softly. "Dead Friend."
The ability related to death worked instantly and Eden felt it clearly.
His mana reserves drained in an instant as a shadow covered the entire body of Tosin.
It slowly began to take the shape of a man below him.
A cold wind passed through the room even though nothing was open.
Eden watched silently as the dark figure solidified just enough to resemble a silhouette of a man kneeling on the floor.
Then... it moved.
Slowly, the shadow lifted its head.
Its voice came out like dry air scraping against stone. "....Lyria."
Eden immediately flinched as the shadow began to cry. "...My child."
’What is happening?’
[<He has all his previous memories. Right now, he is grieving.>]
’....’
Eden turned silent as he looked at the shadow crying.
Taking in a deep breath, Eden used another ability. "Memory Seal."
In an instant, the shadow flinched before it calmed down.
The shadow of Tosin finally looked up at Eden.
His black lips parted. "...Am I dead?"
Eden nodded his head. "I brought you back with my talent."
The shadow stared at Eden for a long moment... then slowly lowered its head, accepting the answer.
"...I see."
His voice was calmer now—emptied of grief, emptied of emotion.
The Memory Seal had done its job.
Eden folded his arms. "I have questions. I need answers. That’s the only reason I brought you back."
The shadow nodded. "Ask."
"Why did you attack the king?"
He remained silent for a long while before replying. "...Because he forced me."
"Who?"
"The one controlling the slave network."
Eden narrowed his eyes. "...How did they force you?"
The shadow looked down at its own hands, as if remembering something it could no longer feel.
"He took my daughter."
Eden said nothing.
"He broke her mind... turned her into a slave."
Eden’s uneasiness grew even more as he looked at him.
Even though his ability was working, Tosin was too broken.
He began crying though his face was still empty.
"He told me... if I wanted her back... I had to kill the king."
"...And you believed him?" Eden asked.
"I had no choice," Tosin said quietly.
Eden slowly nodded. "Who exactly forced you into this state?" he asked. "Who was it?"
"....He is a monster," Tosin spoke, his voice trembling. "One day I was with my daughter when we met him."
The shadow lowered his head. "He acted like a really good man who was interested in being a knight."
Tears once again trickled down his eyes. "Before we knew it, he fed my daughter something and she immediately changed."
Tosin’s shadow trembled.
"He smiled," the ghost whispered. "The whole time. Even when she screamed. Even when I begged."
Eden said nothing, but his jaw tightened.
"What was his name?" Eden asked.
The shadow hesitated.
"...They called him Mirth."
Eden frowned. "Mirth?"
"Yes..." Tosin said, voice cracking. "Because he never stopped smiling... not even while breaking a child in front of her father."
Eden rubbed his chest; he didn’t like seeing him cry like a child.
"....Is there something, anything I can use against him?" Eden asked, looking at him. "Anything noteworthy will work."
Sadly, the shadow shook his head.
"There was nothing," he spoke. "Once he gets his victims, he hides behind hundreds of innocent girls and never shows up again."
Tosin’s shadow stayed still for a long moment, like a man listening to a distant storm.
"There was one thing," he whispered finally. "Not much... but it stuck with me."
Eden leaned in.
Tosin forced the memory out, voice thin. "He uses hand signs after giving my daughter food."
Eden stared at him as he thought about the information.
’...A way of consolidating his powers? Maybe he is doing a ritual or something along the line.’
Eden bit his lip as he tapped his leg on the ground.
’....This is dangerous, this is fucking dangerous.’
Even though Eden got to know more about the one behind it...
He was still not sure if he should accept the request.
There were so many things that were against him here.
But before he could make any decision—
Bam!
....Tosin fell down on his knees.
He slowly placed his nose on the tip of Eden’s shoe.
Eden remained still, too shocked to move.
"....I beg you," Tosin spoke, his voice cracking. "Please save my child from that hellhole."
Eden froze.
Tosin, once the strongest knight in the kingdom...
now knelt like a broken servant, forehead touching Eden’s shoe.
"Please..."
"I don’t care what happens to me...make me your slave... but my daughter..."
"Please save her..."
Eeden clenched his jaw.
He wasn’t the type to be moved by dramatic speeches, but this wasn’t a speech.
This was a father begging.
A man who had lost everything except the hope that someone... anyone... might do what he couldn’t.
Sana’s voice echoed in his mind, unusually quiet.
[<So... what will you do?>]
Eeden didn’t answer her.
He just stared at Tosin’s shadow, shoulders trembling slightly.
For once, the selfish part of him wanted to be selfless.