The Price of Return

After a week of arduous travel from the Royal Capital, Gawain had finally returned to his homeland.

Just beyond the forest lay Kabi Village. It was finally within his grasp.

“This… this…”

“Yas! Lulu! Kas!”

Upon emerging from the treeline and reaching the outskirts of Kabi Village, Gawain witnessed a sight he would never forget.

The dirt road leading to the entrance of the village was piled high with the corpses of its inhabitants. Gawain recognized every single one of them. He could call each villager by name.

Realizing that something catastrophic had befallen his home, Gawain immediately dashed into the village. The deeper he ventured, the more dread tightened its grip on his heart.

As he gazed upon the fallen bodies, a powerful sense of unease surged within him. Driven by this unsettling premonition, Gawain ran toward Angela’s house with the fastest speed he had ever mustered.

“You… you… what have you done?!”

The joy of returning home vanished the moment he saw his beloved Angela lying dead at the feet of a monstrous creature.

Gawain’s fury erupted, and he roared at the beast—a woman whose arm had transformed into a sharp, black dragon claw, currently dripping with fresh blood.

“A Disaster Purger?”

As Gawain’s enraged shouts echoed, the monster seemed to notice his presence. When her gaze fell upon his uniform, her face clearly registered extreme displeasure. A flicker of intense anger crossed her eyes, as if she harbored an inherent, burning hatred for his kind.

“I, Gawain, a Second-Class Purger of the Light of Holy Flame, swear to eradicate you today, you blight upon Kabi Village!”

Gawain’s eyes burned with the fire of hatred; he had no intention of listening to the creature’s explanations. He declared his identity, drew his Holy Sword, and launched a fierce assault.

Because Gawain and Phini were so close, his blade struck Phini’s raised right hand in the blink of an eye.

“So, it’s true then. I killed everyone here.”

Phini, having been immediately accused, maintained her expressionless, icy demeanor as she blocked his sword with her bare claw.

“You… vile creature! I’ll risk my life to slay you, monster! For Angela! For all my fellow villagers!”

Listening to Phini’s words, Gawain’s eyes seemed to spew flames. He seemed to believe that this monster understood nothing of human emotion or regret. Then, throwing caution to the wind, he desperately hacked at Phini’s arm again and again.

Alas, no matter how Gawain attacked, Phini’s black, scaly claws remained unyielding, like solid armor. They were neither shaken nor scratched; only sparks flew from their collision.

“……”

Faced with Gawain’s weak and frantic attacks, it took only a few rounds before Phini disarmed him and pinned him to the dirt.

“Is this what you meant by ‘risking your life’ against me?” Phini sneered, her voice cold, as she pressed her boot into his back, holding him down.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

Gawain, unable to move beneath her weight, felt the flames in his heart ignite into impotent rage.

“So, do you have any last words?”

A fierce glint flashed in Phini’s eyes; she clearly had no intention of sparing the Purger she had so easily subdued. After all, if the Disaster Purgers hadn’t destroyed the temple, the village wouldn’t have been engulfed by the curse, permanently turning everyone into Calamity Scars. Kabi Village’s tragic fate was entirely the fault of Gawain’s order!

“I will never forgive you! Even if you kill me, the Holy Flame will not let you go!”

“Oh? The Holy Flame won’t let me go?”

“Absolutely! It will never let you go!”

“Perfect. I’ve been meaning to settle old scores with Altorias anyway. I’ve already killed many Purgers; one more won’t make a difference.”

As she spoke, Phini increased the pressure of her foot on Gawain’s back, intending to crush his internal organs.

“Damn it… Angela…”

Gawain, brutally pinned, was utterly powerless to resist. His face contorted in agony, and he gritted his teeth, enduring inhumane pain as he looked toward his dead fiancée.

“Second-Class Disaster Purger Gawain?”

Phini’s lips curved into another icy arc as she looked down at the disheveled youth.

However, a few seconds later…

“Gawain?” “Gawain…”

After repeating the name he had declared, Phini seemed to recall something. Her foot slowly eased its pressure.

“Cough…”

Enduring the pain, Gawain seemed oblivious to Phini’s sudden change. The moment she released her hold, he uncontrollably let out a pained cough.

“Hmph. Bullying someone completely defenseless is truly meaningless.”

Phini fully withdrew her foot, casting a cold glance at the man on the ground. Then, she lifted her boot and kicked Gawain in the side, sending him tumbling several feet.

Afterward, Phini turned away, as if she had lost all interest in killing him.

“You… you’re trying to escape?!”

Gawain, who lay prone in the dirt, struggled for a moment before scrambling to his feet. When he looked up and saw Phini turning her back, he shouted at her, his voice laced with pain and his face filled with hatred. He truly believed she was attempting to flee.

“If you lack the ability, don’t try to mock others.” Phini’s steps halted. She stood still and replied in a voice devoid of any emotion.

Then, having delivered her reply, Phini simply resumed walking away without a backward glance.

“You…!”

“I’ve already told you, if you lack the ability, don’t make promises you can’t keep,” she called over her shoulder. “If you truly wish to kill me, then, Sir Gawain, Second-Class Disaster Purger, you should hone your skills well! Once you have the strength to fight me, I won’t back down.”

Phini waved a hand dismissively, leaving a bewildered and broken Gawain behind.

Originally, Phini hadn’t intended to leave any survivors among the Purgers. After all, they had committed heinous acts that doomed this place. However, she remembered Angela mentioning she had a childhood friend and fiancé named Gawain.

That was why Phini decided to hold back. She deeply understood the feeling of watching her beloved die before her eyes. That despair for the world, that pain as if a thousand nails were piercing her heart—Phini understood it completely. She would not take that grief away from him.

A glistening tear fell from her eye as Phini’s figure faded into the distance.

“Angela…”

Not long after Phini left, Gawain felt a surge of conflicting emotions.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t considered rushing after her. But Gawain knew that if he did, he would undoubtedly die. Even if he launched a sneak attack from behind, Gawain believed his opponent would surely anticipate it. The strength disparity was simply too vast—like a small pebble thrown against a towering mountain.

Understanding the immense gap between them, Gawain’s legs felt heavy as lead. Even taking a single step was difficult.

He turned and knelt on the ground, cradling Angela’s lifeless body in his arms. He cried out to the sky in profound grief. He lacked the power to avenge Angela, and had even been mercifully spared by his enemy. Faced with such humiliating disgrace, his pride surely could not accept it.

But what could he do? If his opponent hadn’t shown mercy, he would be joining Angela in the underworld right now.

At this thought, Gawain furiously pounded the dirt with his fists, his face twisted in bitter resentment. He pounded and pounded, completely oblivious to the pain or his knuckles becoming stained with blood.

Perhaps heaven took pity on Gawain.

As he struck the ground, the sky quietly became overcast with dark clouds. Seconds later, large raindrops slowly began to fall, landing on his sorrowful face. As the rain intensified, Gawain showed no inclination to seek shelter. He remained kneeling in the mud, clutching Angela’s body.

However, something peculiar struck him.

Despite the gaping, horrifying hole through her chest, Angela’s face bore a serene smile, completely devoid of any pain or surprise. It was precisely this detail that left Gawain holding her blankly, lost in thought.

After being drenched by the rain for about ten minutes, Gawain slowly rose, lifting her into his arms. Angela’s dying expression couldn’t change anything; the fact of her death remained. Gawain didn’t delve deeper into the mystery but simply carried her away to be buried.

Kabi Village had a designated burial ground, and that place was…

“……”

The location he should have instantly recalled now inexplicably eluded him. Not only that, but he had even forgotten its exact direction. Realizing this, Gawain was utterly bewildered. He wandered through the village for a very long time, carrying his love.

Ultimately, Gawain could not find the designated graveyard, perhaps due to the strange curse that made the villagers forget the dead. He had to find a suitable spot behind her house to lay Angela to rest.

“Angela! I will definitely avenge you!”

After erecting a wooden marker for her resting place, Gawain solemnly swore an oath. Though he couldn’t defeat Phini now, no one could predict the future. He would make the monster regret not eradicating him completely at that moment.

With this resolve, Gawain turned, tears welling in his eyes. He then proceeded to bury the remaining villagers, one by one. After the last villager was laid to rest and their marker erected, Gawain bowed to the graves.

He then turned and left Kabi Village. Following the path that led directly into the forest, he unconsciously reached the edge of the forbidden swamp.

“This…”

As he arrived at the boundary, his peripheral vision caught sight of a corpse lying just outside the muck. It was a body Gawain recognized—one of the missing Purgers from his order.

After seeing the body, Gawain’s gaze immediately shifted to what lay behind it. Black mist was spewing forth from the depths of the mire!

“……”

Noticing the dense defilement, Gawain was strongly tempted to go investigate. However, he remembered his village’s strict warnings against crossing into the swamp. He hesitated at the edge, debating whether to break the old rules.

After pondering for a long time, Gawain finally decided to defy the taboo and quickly stepped past the boundary, heading deeper into the swamp.

Because the path was littered with the corpses of monsters and Purgers alike, the usually treacherous swamp was easy to navigate. Following the trail of bodies, Gawain finally reached the source of the black mist.

It was a freshly pulverized ruin—the remains of an ancient temple.