World's Last Hope

Entering the corrupted zone felt like stepping into another world. Far from the cathedral, the gods' influence was nonexistent here.

The air was thick and harsh on the lungs, the sky was much darker, and the sun seemed to have dimmed slightly. The ground was barren and lifeless, its dark expanse stretching out endlessly.

Suddenly, Eric realized why Olivia was dressed in all black—it was camouflage, blending her into the desolate surroundings.

Tapping the gem Aria had gifted him, a hologram map flickered to life before him. Two points were marked on it: their current location and the cathedral. The distance they needed to cover was about fifty kilometers.

Normally, traversing the death zone required extreme caution, but Eric glanced at the corner of his vision and grimaced.

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[Current Essence: 260]

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His time was running out. He had discovered that summoning his armor and sword also depleted his essence. Even if he avoided interacting with the system, the clock was ticking relentlessly.

'I need to hurry.' he thought.

"A week," Eric muttered unexpectedly, drawing the attention of both Aria and Olivia.

"We'll reach our target in a week."

Olivia burst out laughing. "Oh gods, are you insane? A journey like this would usually take no less than a month, and that's if you managed to avoid the dangerous creatures out here."

"Well, we'll have to do it in a week."

"Why? Got some other plans you can't miss?" Olivia asked mockingly.

"No. If I don't reach the cathedral in a week, it'll be the end for me."

"What?" Olivia raised an eyebrow, clearly having a hard time believing him. "Why?"

"In short, my system feeds on my soul. If I don't replenish its strength, it'll consume me completely."

"Hmm." Olivia paused thoughtfully. "I guess that's one way to motivate the chosen one to do his job. Oh! That's why you were so eager to pick fights with the elders—if it meant liberating a cathedral faster."

"Yeah, pretty much."

Olivia turned to Aria. "And what's your reason for coming here, princess?"

Eric decided not to ask why Olivia referred to Aria as 'princess.'

"Simple," Aria said. "If I want to bring real change, I'll need authority. The only way to get it is to become a Grandmaster."

"Hmm. Then sure, I'll try to help you, but I want something in return. I didn't agree to come along just because my uncle told me to, you know?"

"Sure, what is it?" Eric asked.

"When we reclaim the Cathedral of Life, I want to make a small detour to conquer another one—a Cathedral of the Underworld." She paused. "You're not the only master here who wants to evolve, princess."

"Alright. We have a deal," Eric agreed.

'Not to mention, liberating two cathedrals should give me a lot of soul essence.'

"Nice. I know Aria's abilities pretty well, but I don't know much about you," Olivia said, addressing Eric. "How about you share?"

Eric didn't like the idea of revealing information about his miracle, but he realized he would have to rely on Olivia from now on. He had little choice.

"That's some nasty side effects," Olivia remarked after hearing his explanation. "But that thing—Soul Flame? I see why you were so confident you could kill the guardian."

"Yeah, the problem is, I have to reach it and make a scratch for the miracle to take effect," Eric said.

"Don't worry about it," Aria interjected. "We'll make sure you reach the guardian; you just focus on making it bleed."

The greatest danger when traversing the death zone was its barren openness. With all the vegetation and nature long dead, the terrain was mostly open fields. If an enemy appeared, hiding would be nearly impossible.

"Stop," Olivia's sharp warning made Eric freeze in place. Aria didn't seem surprised.

"Look ahead," Olivia instructed.

Following her advice, Eric squinted into the distance, and his expression darkened.

Far ahead, there was some kind of giant figure. It stood about four meters tall, with a humanoid body. Its face lacked any discernible features, save for a mouth that was grotesquely sewn shut.

"Grade-3" Aria muttered.

Although the ranking system had been explained to him before, Eric still hadn't fully grasped how creature strength was categorized.

What he understood was that Grade-2 was equivalent to an average human's power, and each increase in grade made the creature ten times more dangerous than the previous.

So this monstrosity was supposed to be ten times stronger than a normal human.

"I want you to take care of it," Aria said, turning to Eric.

"I agree," Olivia chimed in. "You have no experience fighting with a sword, and the best way to learn is through actual combat."

"But isn't a Grade-3 too strong for a first-time opponent?" Eric asked.

Olivia's smile turned dark. "Oh, you're lucky, you know? You probably won't find a weaker enemy in the death zone."

"And you've already faced one before," Aria added with a smirk. "Remember that flying thing you fought to save that little girl?"

Eric sighed. "All right."

He summoned his cursed sword. As soon as it appeared in his hand, he felt his desires intensify. Carefully, he distanced himself from his companions, unwilling to let intrusive thoughts affect his judgment.

"Oh?" Olivia noticed his reaction. "What's this? Did I become even more beautiful now that your desires are amplified?"

"Once he summons his sword, his eyes change, you know?" Aria teased with a smirk. "You won't believe how he looked at me the first time he kept it summoned for extend period of time!"

Eric ignored their banter, took a deep breath as he focused on the giant ahead. The creature seemed to sense him approaching and turned its attention in his direction.

'How did it sense me that fast? Is it because it can feel my cursed soul?'

Suddenly, the ground beneath the giant's feet exploded as it sprinted at full force toward Eric.

'Okay let the training begin!'

The giant was already upon him, attacking with its right hand.

Eric managed to dodge to the side and made a horizontal slash, wounding the creature.

The feeling of cutting through the monster's skin and tendons was surprisingly pleasant. Eric didn't know if it was because he was a lunatic who loved combat or if it was a side effect of his desires being amplified.

The grey flames that appeared on the giant's leg didn't seem to faze it as it kicked Eric with its other leg.

Eric didn't have enough time to dodge, so all he could do was block with his sword.

The impact of the kick made Eric dizzy for a second, but he managed to stay on his feet.

The next moment, he was already slashing again at the giant.

*****

Watching with serious expressions, Aria and Olivia observed the fight, ready to intervene if necessary.

"What do you think?" Asked Aria.

"He's insane," Olivia answered without hesitation.

Raising an eyebrow slightly, Aria asked, "How so?"

"He was summoned from Earth, wasn't he? From what we know, Earth is a peaceful place… So, everyone who got summoned here—even if they were powerful—was usually scared when they faced a monster born of corruption. All of them got cold feet, no matter how confident they were… And yet look at him…

He is smiling."

"Maybe it's the side effect of his sword?" Aria suggested.

"No," Olivia said firmly. "He has risked his life for a stranger, made enemies with some of the strongest people in the city by outsmarting them, entered a corruption zone with the intention of liberating a cathedral—a task that usually requires a team of dozens of masters—all within two days.

And from what you've told me, he took off his armor once, right? Felt the same pain as peeling his own skin… and you're telling me you didn't hear him scream once during the whole process?"

"Yes," Aria replied. "The walls in the room he was staying were purposely thin, and yet none of the servants heard him scream once."

Suddenly, the ground shook as the giant collapsed to the ground. Eric, despite being drenched in both the monster's and his own blood, had a childlike grin on his face.

Straightening his back, he saw the two breathtakingly beautiful women observing him from a safe distance, ready to intervene at a moment's notice.

Raising his hand to wave, he shouted, "I did it! Tell me, wasn't that cool?!"

Upon seeing that, Olivia smiled darkly.

"Ah… he truly is insane."

Aria stared at Eric with an unreadable expression.

"Maybe this is what we need to prevail against this corruption… his insanity."