The Prince Wants to Retire

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The Crown Prince Wishes to Retire

60. Trial of Garum (3)

The illusion I saw while absorbing the last Soul Fragment of Garum.

The Landscape of Hell was a mess, just like I had seen then.

A Gray Sky and a Crimson Land.

And twisted Wraiths scattered everywhere.

“Is this place always like this?”

– No way.

Surth shook his head at Kariel’s words.

Originally, Hell was a very stable place during the time of Hell.

Even after her death, it was somewhat managed by the goddess who took over for Hell.

Originally, Hell was a resting place for souls that couldn’t immediately merge into the great flow until they vanished on their own.

But the current Hell became like Nastrond, where those who committed great sins in life suffer until they cleanse their misdeeds.

– The Soul Fragments of the Ancient Gods are turning the dead into Evil Spirits to regain their powers from life.

The Gods, absorbing the power emitted by the Evil Spirits, trying to build their ranks through negative energy.

And because of that negative resonance, fragments of other gods were also trying to awaken.

At this point, I couldn’t help but understand the Demon King’s intent.

– The Demon King probably… wants to reopen the Age of Gods.

“……The Age of Gods.”

Kariel made a face of confusion.

Although the Demons serve the God of Demons, it is purely a recognition from raw strength.

Essentially, Demons are inclined to pursue strength, growing stronger themselves to overcome those even more powerful.

– It’s not hard to understand. Facing stronger beings is a Dangerous Task, but if you can defeat them, you can break through the walls blocking you.

The Demon King’s prowess had already reached a legendary level comparable to the great Sigurd.

But he was still lost, unable to step into the next stage.

In such a situation, if an incomplete existence like a god stood before them, they could envision the next step.

Even if they couldn’t defeat the god, merely having that existence allowed them to dream of the next stage. If they moved forward towards that dream, they might one day reach divine levels.

“Are they longing for the rebirth of the Mythical Era?”

The past Mythical Era was the time of gods and giants, but now it’s about humans and Demons trying to ascend to divine ranks and creating an era of ruling the world.

The incomplete gods of Hell would serve merely as sacrifices to open the Mythical Era.

In a way, it would become a perfect world for the Demons who endlessly pursue power. I understood the Demon King’s intent thoroughly, but the problem was Kariel.

“……Will I be able to survive?”

Surth, floating beside her, silently gazed at Hell.

To put it bluntly, with her current skills, it was highly unlikely she would survive.

At least the Power of Fire had an advantage over the energies in Hell, but that alone would make surviving this Hell very difficult.

– A human!

– A living human!

The Maw rushed toward the human full of life like a pack of dogs.

Seeing them, Surth quickly spoke.

– Conserve your strength as much as possible. And think.

“……Think about what?”

Kariel tilted her head, puzzled by Surth’s words.

– Think about Garum’s intent.

When Garum initially sent Kariel off, he had a playful demeanor.

– Garum doesn’t like the current Hell either.

The gatekeeper of Hell, Garum, was known as Hell’s faithful dog.

Would he really favor the Hell that it had become today?

As I considered this, Kariel’s cluttered thoughts began to clear up a bit.

“Right. If it’s a trial, he won’t just let me die.”

The First Emperor must have undergone Garum’s Trial as well.

The problem was that she wasn’t a genius like the First Emperor.

In a situation where she didn’t know how long she had to endure, she wore a troubled expression.

[Trial of Garum: Destroy ??? trace.]

Suddenly, she noticed the Translucent Window that appeared before her.

Right then, Surth manifested his power toward the approaching Wraiths. At the same time, Skoll and Agni joined in, launching fireballs.

As the fight against the Wraiths commenced, Kariel burned and purified the Evil Spirits rushing in like a pack of dogs one by one.

[??? trace is weakening.]

[??? trace is weakening.]

[??? trace is weakening.]

…The Translucent Window appeared when Evil Spirits died.

Simultaneously being purified, the ordinary Wraiths turned to ash, with gray powder floating upward to some destination.

“That must be the place?”

– Yeah.

Surth nodded at Kariel’s question.

The reason why Garum had sent her to Hell.

Believing it to be there, they began to harness their powers seriously and pushed through the oncoming Evil Spirits.

Through the path created by the enlarged Surth, Kariel sprinted toward where the gray powder was gathering, protected by Skoll and Agni.

With the overwhelming advantage of elemental affinity creating a sea of flames, the horde of Evil Spirits was being purified in real-time, clearing the way as the unclean energies that would usually arise from Evil Spirits vanished.

Finally, an existence revealed itself.

Thud!

“……Is that it?”

With a murmur from Kariel, a huge being appeared, shaking the ground of Hell.

Once one of the great giants and warriors, he manifested with a roar, regaining part of his strength from his past.

An unnamed giant warrior, whose name could no longer be recalled, showcased a display of might from life.

– …A giant warrior?

Surth looked at the nameless giant warrior with a pitying expression.

The poor giant, gathering the unclean energies of the Evil Spirits to reclaim his name.

Normally, he should have completely disappeared in the flow of time while resting in peace.

Now, this unfortunate giant had no will left other than to reclaim his name.

Surth, who was once a giant himself, felt sympathy for the forcefully revived unfortunate being.

He might have been a giant who fought against him in life.

His death may have been partly caused by him.

But that was all in the past. There was no reason for him to be revived like this, interrupted even after death.

– Help him find peace again.

At Surth’s request, Kariel silently gazed at the giant.

The being had become a monster, mixed with all sorts of unclean elements to such an extent that it was unclear if she could purify it with her power.

With all her might, Kariel summoned her Fire Energy.

Responding quietly with her power, Surth charged at the giant, followed by his two summoned beings.

Watching them, Kariel created a wall of fire to prevent other Evil Spirits from approaching.

– GRAAAAH!

Hearing the giant’s anguished cry as Kariel’s flames engulfed him.

As the giant’s body turned into gray powder in real time, his damaged form continuously reconstructed itself like oily liquid.

Once again, his form was crushed under Surth’s punch and ignited by Kariel’s flames.

Even in endless pain, the giant kept charging at Surth and the two summoned beings.

“Hah… Hah…”

Kariel, drenched in cold sweat, couldn’t stop.

Compared to the giant who was suffering endlessly, her own situation felt manageable.

How long had they fought?

Time had passed, and it wouldn’t have been strange for her to collapse by now, yet Kariel continued to stand firm.

In a strange phenomenon where she neither felt sleepy nor hungry, she squeezed out all her power, purifying the giant into a black liquid monster.

Creating a massive storm of flames, Kariel completely purified the fallen giant’s body, then looked on with a tired expression.

Crackle!

As whatever object it might have been belonging to the giant turned to ash and vanished, a part of Hell began to revert to its original shape.

In that moment, the Translucent Window appeared.

[You have partially passed the Trial of Garum.]

[Destroy the traces of ????]

[Destroy the traces of ?????.]

…Only after completely purifying the nameless giant did I finally grasp what the Trial of Garum entailed.

It was about dealing with the main culprits that caused chaos in Hell and restoring stability.

The problem was that if the nameless giant was so troublesome to purify, how could the beings revered as gods be handled?

– Garum wouldn’t expect that much either.

Surth spoke while glancing at the arrows.

Arrows crafted from the gathered gray powder.

In the direction those arrows pointed to, Evil Spirits were seen huddled together just like the nameless giant.

– He wouldn’t wish for you to face the gods.

Surth spoke with certainty.

Deep in the distance, feelings emanating from a volcano that pierced the Gray Sky felt of a power entirely different from the nameless giant.

In contrast, the arrows indicating Garum’s Trial led to the pathetic Remnants of the Past.

– I think he wants to confirm if you truly have the qualifications to stop Hell… if he can believe in you and your resolve to walk forward.

He didn’t expect that a mere human could calm the chaos of Hell.

He merely wanted to test if Kariel could withstand the power flowing out from Hell into the world, to see if he could trust her.

“Then I have to show it.”

If she didn’t earn Garum’s recognition, the world would perish.

So she needed to endure with everything she had.

“Ha… If I can just finish this up, I’ll rest.”

Muttering that, Kariel moved her steps toward the nearest point.

Like she awaited the arrival of Evil Spirits, she summoned tidal waves of fire and advanced forward.

Watching her from behind, Surth smiled.

In truth, Kariel didn’t realize yet, but her power had significantly increased since entering Hell.

At the same time, both he and the two summoned beings were growing stronger rapidly.

– Was some of the power I had, the one that once destroyed worlds, left in Hell? I felt it as soon as I entered.

Even from a great distance away, just being in Hell made their souls grow larger.

And Skoll seemed to be influenced in the same way.

Once at his limits, Skoll was quickly regaining his essence, likely thanks to the remnants of soul fragments left in Hell.

Agni was also becoming more powerful, influenced by the great flames of the past.

– If we complete the trial and return, perhaps we’ll become quite useful.

If Kariel improved through this, she would meet the minimum requirements Surth had for recognizing her.

Then, Garum would have no choice but to acknowledge her.

“Why are you just standing there!”

At Kariel’s call, the smiling Surth moved his gigantic body.

Tearing away the gnarled remnants of the giant Wraith clinging all over, Surth blocked any threatening attacks toward Kariel.

Using all his strength like when he dealt with the nameless giant, he purged another Remnant of the Past and immediately headed for the next area.

As they purified one by one following the arrows, a portion of Hell’s landscape began to return to its former pristine state.

Then a rumor began to circulate within Hell.

“A ‘Purifier’ has appeared in a corner of Hell!”

While all areas of Hell were in chaos, the presence of a Purifier restoring past stability gradually started to take effect, while the continent gradually fell into greater turmoil.

The great armies of Roman and Sandria had nearly completed their huge temple that would house their goddesses.

But Ignit was unable to assist.

The Demons who had fled to the northern Snowfield had finally completed their preparations to summon the Demon King back.