Chapter 28: I will trust you this time too

During my time in the other world,
Even amidst countless achievements, there were things I regretted, things that made me long to return to the past.

Mobidik’s death was one such regret.

And so was Anastasia’s blindness.

I hadn’t noticed the despair of those precious to me. And so, I brought about irreversible consequences.

And
Keliata was also among them. Of course, when it revealed its true form, very few knew its name.

It was during the war against the waves of evil, when everyone was focused on the constantly appearing Demon Kings.

Keliata disturbed the rest of those ravaged by the war.

Harvesting and controlling their souls, Keliata brought immense chaos to the continent.

The most horrific memory,
A battle that still woke me from my sleep, not as a nightmare, but from sheer distress,

Was the Battle of Hynel Plains.
The immortal sorcerer, gradually gaining power within a single cemetery, had taken control of former comrades, minions of evil,

Even the souls of fallen Demon Kings, plunging the continent into chaos.

I regretted it deeply.
When I first entered that cemetery, why had the Graveyard Keeper wandering within become like that?

What did the cross it clutched signify?
What was the meaning of its act of slamming the cross into the ground?

If only I’d realized sooner.

A futile regret.
And because it was futile, I couldn’t let go of my obsession.

It felt like I was belittling their suffering.

The [Cemetery of Rest], contrary to its name, offered no rest. Only restless souls wandering in search of it.

Because this place was,

[Hmm. How strange?]

The domain of the flickering wraith before me.
The one who controlled and commanded souls, who cursed the living and mocked the dead, the epitome of evil.

Keliata.

Keliata had claimed this vast cemetery as its lair, disturbing the rest of others.

That was why countless undead wandered endlessly, seeking a place to rest.

[Tellurak… you killed him?]

Keliata asked.
At first glance, it sounded as if it cared for Tellurak, the guardian of the cemetery.

“Yes.”

I nodded.
Keliata bowed its head, as if hiding tears, then let out a mocking laugh.

[Hehehe… He couldn’t even do his job properly. I was planning to grant him rest if he held out a little longer.]

–For another hundred years or so?

Keliata casually insulted the wraith. To it, Tellurak was nothing more than a tool, a plaything.

The Graveyard Keeper of Madness,
Tellurak, was a pitiful being bound to the cemetery by Keliata.

Its act of slamming the cross into the ground was a desperate attempt to summon Keliata, the source of its imprisonment.

However,

“You dare prioritize your own comfort while disturbing the rest of others?”

[Let’s see about that.]

“Disgusting.”

With those words,
I swung the radiant beam of light in my right hand, scattering its brilliance towards Keliata’s shadow.

A burst of laughter rained down from the sky. A light voice laced with a chilling pressure approached.

I stepped back,
Tearing through a Reaper that had been aiming for my neck, and exhaled softly.

[That’s…! To think I’d see that fragment again! Don’t tell me, that stubborn fool acknowledged you?]

It felt like it was whispering right next to me.
I swung my right arm wide, tearing through the fragment of Keliata’s consciousness that had clung to me.

Keliata clicked its tongue, calling me violent, but a wide smile spread across its face.

[How surprising.]

“What is so surprising?”

[Everything about you surprises me.]

Keliata hummed.

[You’re still unharmed after entering this cemetery. Tellurak wasn’t that easy to defeat.]

“Hmm.”

[Not only are you wielding that fragment without lighting the Holy Fire, but you summoned me and even know my true name… You!]

—Are no ordinary mortal?

With that whisper,

[It was worth revealing myself!]

An overwhelming aura of malice, a warning to the instincts of the living, sharpened my senses.

[Necromancer Who Mocks Life and Death]

[Keliata]

Its name appeared and vanished.
I tightened my grip on the Holy Sword fragment in my right hand, scattering a brighter light than ever before, pushing back the darkness.

A message appeared.

[The true master of the Cemetery of Rest, the true boss Keliata, has appeared!]

There were no dialogue options.
I only had one thing to do. I swung the Holy Sword fragment at the encroaching darkness.

-There was a gimmick like this?
-This is insane lol
-How did you even know this, sensei;
-Dialogue options didn’t even appear, and the conversation just continued lol Did you write a script or something?
-It’s like the boss is talking to itself, but when the Hero answers, it flows so naturally lol
-79830th rigged stream incoming lol
-Forced boss battle
-Fact) The Hero woke up the sleeping boss lol

The battle began.
Even the viewers who had been flooding the chat with speculation couldn’t predict what would happen next.

[Incredible! You can resist my curse without lighting the Holy Fire!]

Keliata, the hidden boss of the Cemetery of Rest, appeared for the first time since the release of Eftarel Verden, conjuring dark flames in the air to restrict Yujin’s movements.

Spending time in the cemetery, which offered no worthwhile rewards aside from a simple but annoying field boss, was considered pointless.

Even veteran players who relentlessly explored every area, boss, and storyline couldn’t find a trace of it.

The Cemetery of Rest was ultimately relegated to a place to clear for Anastasia’s meager praise.

Until Yujin summoned Keliata.

[You must have immense mental fortitude to be unharmed in my presence! I will capture you alive and savor every inch of you!]

The ground was completely overturned,
The aftermath of Keliata’s summoning.

Yujin cut down the corpses rising from the cracks, resisting the crushing weight pressing down on her.

[A mere fragment of the Eight Radiances, without even lighting the Holy Fire, dares to oppose me! Fool!]

Keliata cackled spitefully.
Yujin, unfazed, continued to move.

She calmly ignored the intensified Banshees’ screams, deflecting the axes and helmets thrown by the Dullahans with the fragment.

“Hmph!”

-Holy sh*t lol
-Dullahan ranged attack lol
-Throwing its own head is so funny lol
-And she dodged that too;
-Her reaction time is insane, at that level it’s practically prediction, right?

Kicking a fallen helmet aside, Yujin charged towards Keliata. The force of her dash drowned out the Banshees’ screams.

Dodging the grasping hands of the dead,
Yujin reached Keliata and thrust the light towards the hazy figure.

But it was just an illusion. The real Keliata, appearing elsewhere, burst into laughter at Yujin’s futile attempt and extended its hand towards the night sky.

[Witness a glimpse of despair!]

It drew in the darkness of the night sky.
It looked as if the night sky itself originated from Keliata’s palm.

A rumbling tremor shook the air.
As the screams of tormented souls echoed around her, Yujin narrowed her eyes, surveying her surroundings with the sharp focus of a honed blade.

‘…What can I do?’

Her opponent was a sorcerer.
Unknown in Eftarel Verden, but a sorcerer whose name alone had made her grit her teeth in her past life.

Simply approaching and attacking
Wouldn’t be enough to overcome this situation. But she didn’t think there was no way.

‘There’s always a way.’

Never give up hope.

“Because that’s what a Hero does.”

The words had become a habit.
A murmur that clung to her lips, words she repeated to herself whenever she felt like giving up, escaped her mouth.

And simultaneously, it was the trigger for the viewers’ frenzy.

-What is a Hero, anyway…
-What kind of ‘life’ has she lived…
-Unnie… bad thoughts are filling my mind… Do you want to see me go crazy?
-Lee Hae-min’s already influenced after watching for a short time lol
-More importantly, what is that? How is she supposed to win lol?
-At least with Mobidik, we knew something ㅋㅋ;

[Do you wish to bear the weight of despair! Then, take this!]

The night sky descended.
No matter how much she moved, the darkness spread wider than the cemetery, suffocating her.

And at the same time,
The enemies she had defeated rose again, becoming Keliata’s slaves and charging towards her.

The curse also intensified.
From the moment Keliata appeared, Yujin had only the Holy Sword fragment and her own abilities to rely on, and the situation was turning drastically against her.

The blade of light grazed an undead arm, severing its head. She crushed a Dullahan’s armor, silencing a Banshee’s scream, constantly moving.

Then, something caught her eye.

‘…The cross.’

She hadn’t realized it in the other world until it was too late, but the cross Tellurak carried belonged to Keliata.

The realization tightened Yujin’s nerves like a taut string pulled from both ends.

‘But Tellurak wielded it.’

If the cross was Keliata’s weakness, giving it to Tellurak would have been foolish.

So, what should she do?
Keliata wasn’t afraid of the Holy Sword fragment, a shard of the blade forged by the Goddess to vanquish all evil.

Was it not a weakness at all?
Or was a mere fragment insufficient?

‘…I don’t know.’

-So how do you beat it?
-I think she needs the Holy Fire state; but that’s impossible in the early game, isn’t it?
-Yeah, that’s why learning skills from the witch and getting blessed by the saintess is the standard cemetery strategy;
-Honestly, making it this far is already amazing lol
-But I believe in our Hero noona…
-Is the symbol of hope going to be defeated so easily?
-Is the Hero going to kneel before this?

It was a rare moment of agreement between Yujin’s thoughts and the viewers’ opinions. Yujin’s contemplation was brief.

‘…I will cut it down.’

A Hero achieves the impossible.
And by doing so, reminds everyone that hope remains.

‘Even if I fall, I will not give up.’

Endure,
And never lose hope. Eventually, the hope you grasp will become greater than the despair that blocks your path.

‘Then.’

That was what drove Yujin.

‘Keliata is ultimately intangible. If I could, I would bind its soul to the cross and shatter it.’

But she didn’t have the strength.
Then, all she could rely on was the Holy Sword fragment.

“…I will trust you again.”

Yujin gripped the Holy Sword fragment tightly, pressed the broken blade against her forehead, and murmured softly.

-Ugh, cringe;
-Just how much lore is there lol?
-Raise your head, nerds! Your hope is here!
-So that’s what the symbol of hope meant lol
-Is she seriously going to clear this in one try?
-We don’t even know how many phases there are;
-She didn’t prepare anything, how can she clear this lol
-Seriously lol; This isn’t blind faith, it’s a fact

As the viewers expressed their opinions, Yujin charged into the surging darkness, scattering light.

Despite Keliata’s curse draining her health, she moved with speed that drew gasps of admiration, her white hair trailing behind her.

Like a bolt of lightning,
She reached Keliata and unleashed a torrent of light at its hazy form.

[That tickles!]

Bwahaha—!

Ignoring Keliata’s boisterous laughter, Yujin silently swung her sword.

Keliata, lamenting that its power hadn’t fully recovered, watched Yujin’s struggle with amusement.

That’s when,
From Yujin’s eyes,

[Hmm?]

-What?
-Am I seeing things?
-Why is that suddenly…?
-The direction is insane lol What is this?
-The buildup is amazing;

Azure flames erupted.

Keliata, momentarily puzzled, let out a groan.

[What… Guh?!]

Blue flames blooming from her eyes.
Something the players of Eftarel Verden,
And the master of the cemetery, Keliata,

Knew all too well.

The flames, called [Holy Fire], blazed in the air, enveloping Yujin. Azure afterimages trailed the constantly moving white light.

Keliata’s eyes widened as it stared at the afterimages, and then a scream that tore through the air escaped its lips.