I Became the Martial God's Youngest Disciple

Episode 289

"That's right. That should be enough for a legion commander." I responded to Ramon's words in a half-impulsive manner.

However, the goblin said with a smile, "That isn't correct, Young Master."

"What?"

"Our goal isn't to defeat just the legion commander, right?" Ramon looked around and continued speaking. "Our goal is to stop the demon king from descending. Defeating the legion commander is just an intermediate step."

"Senior Ramon, aren't you the one saying something strange right now?" Mir was unable to hold back and interjected, "You will die if we don't defeat the legion commander within seventeen hours!"

"A few hours after that, the demon king will descend." Ramon looked at Araxad. "Brother Araxad, we need to be clear about our priorities now. Don't you agree?"

Araxad was about to say something, but we all immediately stopped talking and drew our weapons.

We heard a familiar scream. It echoed from somewhere within the ice cave and was unusually clear in my ears.

I looked up and saw demons with blue skin falling along with shards of ice. Their entire bodies radiated a chill as if they were breathing out cold air. However, their eyes were as red as blood.

There are three.

I decided to take care of one of them. As the demons fell toward us, I clenched my fist, wrapped it in internal energy, and threw it upward without hesitation.

It seemed to be a low-grade demon. Its head snapped back from a single blow and its jaw shattered, but there was no indication that the demon's strength had decreased at all. Despite the splattering blood, it reached for me with claw-like fingers. I drew the Yin-Yang Dao with my left hand and slashed its wrist.

Kyaaaaack!

Shut up, you bastard, I thought. I was already in a bad mood, so I gripped the Yin-Yang Dao with both hands. I added more strength and cut off the demon's head.

After a short exchange, it was killed instantly. So far, so good.

I wondered why I was so tired, though. I hadn't used much physical strength or internal energy, but my breathing was slightly off.

I thought about it for a moment before realizing the reason. It was due to the time acceleration again. The skirmish had lasted only thirty seconds, but when calculating it tenfold, it would be three hundred seconds. In other words, I'd been in the battle for five minutes.

The rest of the group took care of the other two demons. I felt fortunate that I wasn't by myself. If I had fought this battle alone, it would've been five times harder than it was now.

"Are you hurt?" Araxad asked.

"It is just a slight scratch," Verita replied.

Blood was coming from Verita's shoulder. It didn't seem like a small wound, but there was no need to worry about her with her recovery.

"Gasp, gasp..." Ramon was breathing unusually heavily. He swallowed hard before managing to speak. "It seems that time acceleration interferes with all physical actions. Just like how we got hungry quickly, the fatigue from battle is also tenfold."

"Yes. Yet our physical strength recovery is normal. It looks like the acceleration doesn't apply to the body's positive functions," Verita remarked.

Ramon managed to steady his breathing and said, "Even taking down three low-grade demons wasn't easy. Can we really defeat a legion commander and stop the demon king's descent ritual?

"We could just barely defeat the legion commander before escaping through the stone door. Of course, the north will be on the verge of destruction due to the descended demon king," Verita said.

Ramon replied, "I'm not saying that I'm planning to sacrifice myself. I'm not that noble. According to Sister's words, it is merely a matter of whose turn it is. Everyone here will eventually have to risk their lives. Isn't that right?"

At the very least, Ramon seemed to understand his role perfectly. If it was someone like me or Verita who said these words, even though we were last in the death order, would the others have listened? Would it have touched their hearts so deeply?

Probably not. It held weight because it came from Ramon, who was the first in line and the one expected to die first.

"Of course, I don't want to die either. I will do everything I can to survive. We should stop the demon king's descent ritual, then consider defeating the legion commander too. Until then, shouldn't our top priority be stopping the ritual?"

"Ramon is right," Araxad said. He sounded like he was suppressing a heavy sigh. "We will follow that plan. Our top priority is stopping the demon king's descent. Even if it means every one of us here dies in the process."

***

The ice cave seemed to be structured like an anthill. There were at least dozens of large and small tunnels, if not more.

We temporarily labeled the place where we had just seen various duels take place as the dueling ground, and it was likely one of the largest and most spacious chambers within this cave network. That made sense, since it was meant for fighting. However, it was unlikely to be the place where the church's members were concentrated.

I recalled what Verita had said.

"There must be a place that is the core of the ritual. It is a proper altar for the descent of the Golden Horn. I call it an altar, but this doesn't necessarily mean that it is in the shape of a traditional platform.

"The altar will be engulfed in particularly thick miasma, and it will be the place where numerous church members and a priest have gathered. The legion commander may even be waiting. Finding the location is the first priority."

Thus, we decided to scatter into three groups to search the surroundings. Ramon was with me, Araxad was with Mir, and Verita was alone. It was a reasonable arrangement, based on an even distribution of our strength.

"I'm sorry, Young Master. The search is slowing down due to me," Ramon apologized.

"It's okay. The path is complicated. If I don't memorize it while going slowly, I will forget the way back."

"Haha."

I knew from the journey north that Ramon's stamina wasn't lacking. However, it was inevitable that he would tire quickly in a place where time flowed ten times faster.

It had already been three hours since we entered the ice cave. Well, it felt like only three hours, but the fatigue accumulated in our body was thirty hours' worth. That meant it wasn't strange for us to start feeling sleepy.

I suggested, "Let's take a break."

"I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize for everything."

Ramon sat down slightly, breathing heavily. He was sweating profusely even in this cold temperature. He wiped the sweat away with a handkerchief.

"Speaking of Corrupted, who are the rest of the members?" I asked, forcibly changing the subject. I wanted to prolong the conversation so that Ramon could rest more. If I didn't use a trick like this, Ramon would stubbornly push himself.

Ramon blinked for a moment before saying, "Of course, there are many different and unique members."

"What kinds specifically?"

"Hmm, first of all, there is Daedalus. He is a minotaur."

"Really?"

"Yes. Brother Lanfero found him in the Cretan Labyrinth, one of the four forbidden areas of the empire. He has tremendous brute strength. It was probably Daedalus who carried Noren down into the basement."

"Ah."

"However, he talks a lot. He is a natural chatterbox. He doesn't look like it, but he likes to talk so much that I'm never bored when I'm with him."

"Anyone else?"

"Hmm, there is someone called Sister Lukuluku. You have to meet her yourself to judge. She doesn't like talking about herself very much."

Ramon's expression brightened noticeably when he talked about Corrupted. I saw myself in his appearance. I probably had the same kind of expression when talking about my seniors.

"I have rested enough, so let's go," Ramon suddenly said.

"You haven't even rested for two minutes," I replied.

"I have rested for twenty minutes." Ramon adjusted his pack and strode forward again.

I stared at the back of his head for a moment. I had seen many people who were prepared to die.

A mercenary's life was always close to death. There were times when dangerous missions couldn't be avoided. At those times, mercenaries would drown their bodies and minds in alcohol while loudly declaring, "I will risk my life!"

I also knew what they looked like in their final moments. I had rarely seen anyone who truly remained composed in the face of death. Those who boasted about risking their lives and being ready to die often forgot their vow the moment the reaper's scythe touched their throat. They mourned, felt regret, raged and despaired. In short, they lost their sense of reason.

As for Ramon, however, the eyes of this goblin burned even more fiercely the moment he was sentenced to death. He was like a candle with only a short wick left.

Perhaps due to the First Fire Technique, I felt drawn to the strange heat that Ramon exuded. I began, "By the way, Senior."

"Huh?"

"You sweat too much."

"Yes."

I watched Ramon wipe his sweat with a handkerchief and suddenly realized something strange. "No, maybe it isn't Senior's fault."

"Huh?"

"Isn't it getting a bit hot?"

"Is that so?"

Ramon seemed unaware and tilted his head in confusion, but I was half-certain, perhaps because I was particularly sensitive about heat. The temperature had definitely risen. To be more precise, I felt heat from somewhere.

I took the lead and headed toward the source of the heat. The hot air against my skin felt like a signpost. Of course, I had to remain on guard since I didn't know when or where a demon could emerge.

Ba-dum.

The sound of my heartbeat grew loud and clear. I wondered if it was because I was feeling nervous.

Ba-dum.

I became certain that the temperature was gradually rising as we moved forward. The clothes I was wearing felt suffocating.

Ba-dum!

The ice also melted away and became invisible at some point. Naturally, the inside of the cave was revealed. It was a disturbing pink color, as if it was tainted by whatever the church was doing. Soon, however, the pink turned darker as if it had been scorched by fire.

Ba-dum!

The heartbeat seemed to be too loud, however.

I don't think it's my heartbeat.

I could feel the pounding heartbeat all over my skin, and tremors rippling through the ground I was walking on.

"Young Master."

At last, we reached the end of the path. Below us was a fairly large space, although it wasn't as large as the dueling ground. I frowned at the terrible amount of Dark Qi I felt.

There were dozens of church members and hundreds of corpses. The heads of the neatly arranged corpses pointed toward a certain direction like an arrow.

The place that the gruesome corpses pointed at contained a figure with outstretched arms.

A priest.

There was no doubt about it. This bastard was dressed like a priest and had a hood covering their face, but I was sure. The priest was looking at a strange, grotesque mass of flesh.

Ba-dum!

I knew that the beating came from there. Did that mean this big thing was a heart? Even a whale's heart would be smaller than this.

A huge heart, huh.

At that moment, I was reminded of the complex structure of this ice cave. Countless tunnels were intricately intertwined like an anthill, tinged with pink and blue hues, forming the familiar shape of blood vessels.

Seeing a giant heart at the end of a blood vessel could only mean one thing.

Ah.

I got goosebumps. I finally realized what this ice cave, no, what I'd thought was an ice cave, actually was: Frost Giant Ymir. We were inside the body of that huge being.