Chapter 361

Maria opened her mouth.

[You are going to the world ruled by the Apostle of the God of Discipline, Horai. It’s called Arbosea. There, beside the one who has received the divine blood, you will make your choice. That is your task.]

“Is there a chance a Transcendent might intervene?”

A world where the Apostle of the God of Discipline resided. That meant there was a possibility that a Transcendent could intervene directly. Maria denied it.

[They won’t intervene. Horai’s discipline even binds himself. That’s why he hasn’t entered the Labyrinth.]

There was a hint of mockery in Maria’s voice.

[I respect the choices of all beings. Even if it’s a path leading to death, if that path is taken by one’s own will, then that is enough. But sometimes, there isn’t even a choice to make. I truly hate to see such things.]

Maria smiled as she swung her power. Taesan’s body was forcibly transported.

Taesan closed his eyes in preparation for the transfer.

The sensation of the world turning over enveloped him.

When it stabilized, Taesan opened his eyes.

A vast forest spread before him. The rustling bushes tickled his ankles. The scent of grass sharply pierced his nose.

The world ruled by the Apostle of Horai, the God of Discipline. Arbosea.

He was there now.

First, he needed to assess. Taesan gathered [Magi] and activated [Leraje’s Domain Detection]. Information from all directions flooded into him.

What he sensed was the presence of countless small lives. And nature.

“It’s not a particularly special world.”

A plain, ordinary world found anywhere. That was what Arbosea seemed to be.

The first objective of the quest was to find the owner of the divine blood.

[Sent you right next to them.]

Next to a tree, a small child was curled up and sleeping.

He looked to be around twelve years old. He seemed extremely exhausted, but there were no visible injuries.

The child was sleeping directly on the forest floor without any kind of tent or cover. Perhaps because the campfire was dying, he occasionally shivered from the cold.

Taesan fiddled with the campfire and rekindled the embers.

There wasn’t much information provided for this quest. The state of the divine blood’s owner, what the trial entailed, who the emperor was—Taesan had to uncover everything himself.

Instead of waking the child, Taesan asked the ghost.

“What exactly is divine blood?”

The first thing he needed to know was what divine blood actually was.

The only one he had seen use divine blood was Hellia. He had forcibly activated it to gain enough power and speed to pressure Taesan.

It wasn’t a normal kind of power. The ghost replied with an uncertain tone.

[Even I don’t know much about divine blood. There are so few of them, and they usually get persecuted and killed.]

“They get persecuted?”

[From what I know, there are rare cases where someone is born with blue blood instead of red. That’s called divine blood. Those born with it are referred to as bastards of the gods.]

“Do they really carry the blood of a god?”

[Probably not.]

The ghost didn’t sound convinced.

[I can’t say for sure. Because bastards of the gods can’t pass their powers down. On the flip side, there are cases where two normal humans suddenly give birth to a child with blue blood.]

“So, there’s no way to know?”

[What’s certain is that there’s no consistent rule for when a bastard of the gods is born.]

In short, there was no way to tell if they really carried divine blood.

Taesan asked the ghost,

“Then why are they persecuted? Don’t those with divine blood have powerful abilities?”

[That’s not it. Divine blood isn’t such a convenient power.]

The ghost rejected Taesan’s assumption.

[Of course, they’re exceptional. They’re born with talent that defies comparison. But that’s all. There’s nothing more extraordinary than that. In the end, they’re still just ordinary humans. That’s why they get killed as demon children or driven out of villages for being ominous. Only a rare few who understand their abilities live revered as nobles.]

“Hellia must have been the latter.”

Now that he thought about it, Hellia’s skill was also a [Forced Divine Blood Activation]. She forcibly drew out the power of her blood to become stronger. A power so intense that even deep-tier adventurers couldn’t wield it properly.

Taesan looked at the child sleeping restlessly.

“Then this kid must’ve been persecuted too.”

[Most likely. It’s a sad tale. Just being born that way leads one to choose death.]

After suffering from people, the boy had fallen into despair and given up on living. That’s how it seemed.

But something didn’t sit right with Taesan.

It was hard to put into words, but he had a hunch that wasn’t the case.

Taesan stirred the campfire.

Several hours later, the child awoke.

“Mmm…”

– Slight shiver.

The boy rubbed his sleepy eyes. As he brushed off the dirt on his body and stood up, he belatedly noticed Taesan sitting by the fire.

“……Who are you?”

Still half-asleep, the child asked in a dazed voice.

Taesan answered.

“An adventurer.”

“……Ah. Are you a mercenary?”

The child glanced between the campfire and Taesan, then bowed his head politely. Clearly, he’d been taught manners by someone.

“Thank you for tending the fire. But please leave.”

“Why?”

Taesan asked. The boy replied with a gloomy face.

“Because I’m a cursed child.”

“So?”

“Huh?”

The boy was confused by Taesan’s response. His face showed he hadn’t expected that reaction at all.

“……I’m a cursed child.”

“And?”

Taesan looked at the boy as if asking what that was supposed to mean. The boy became even more flustered.

“Uh… I’m a cursed… child…”

“I don’t care.”

Taesan had to stay near the boy anyway.

The boy’s face was utterly bewildered. He tried to say something, but no words came out.

＊＊＊

The boy walked along the path.

His shoes were completely worn out—he was practically barefoot. Watching him for a moment, Taesan raised his hand.

Creak!

A tree by the roadside twisted.

It began to shave itself down, reshaping into a smaller form. The sudden change made the boy’s eyes widen in surprise.

Soon, the tree transformed into shoes that fit the boy’s feet.

Taesan handed the shoes to the boy. The boy blankly accepted them.

“……Are you a wizard? I didn’t hear any incantation…”

“Something like that.”

Of course, it wasn’t magic. After completing the Spirit God’s quest and forming a contract with the Spirit King, Taesan could exert strong influence over nature.

If it was a mindless storm, he could calm it with just a wave of his hand. Shaping wood into shoes was simple.

But the boy couldn’t imagine such a thing. He simply assumed Taesan was a powerful wizard.

“Thank you. But even so, you still need to leave. I am a cursed child.”

“I said I don’t care.”

Taesan replied indifferently.

The boy hesitated as he put on the shoes.

His steps looked much more comfortable now.

‘This isn’t going to be an easy quest.’

Even when the God of Choice gave him a trial, it was always in a form that challenged him most. Though he favored Taesan, he wasn’t the doting type like a Demon God.

The condition of the quest was that the owner of the divine blood would make a choice.

What that choice was, Taesan didn’t know.

More than anything, there were no visible injuries on the boy. He was dirty, but his body was clean without a single wound.

If he’d truly been persecuted like the ghost said, that wouldn’t be possible.

‘First…’

Gather information.

Taesan followed behind the boy. The boy kept walking while occasionally glancing back at him.

“Stop!”

Then, a group of bandits blocked their path.

Grinning, they shouted,

“You’re in the territory of the Cleiden Bandits! If you want to pass, pay the toll!”

The bandits drew their swords. The boy cautiously stepped forward.

“Sorry, but I don’t have anything. May I please pass?”

“If you don’t have anything, offer up your body! Where do you think—”

The man who appeared to be the bandit leader scowled and shouted angrily. But then a burly bald man behind him whispered cautiously.

“Hey, that kid… isn’t that him?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know… the one said to be cursed by all things…”

The bald man whispered something to him. The leader, who had gone silent, quietly repeated the words.

“A cursed child?”

“He looks exactly like the rumors say…”

“Holy sh—!”

The man recoiled and frantically waved his hands.

“Everyone, move aside! Let him pass! Don’t touch him!”

“Yes, sir!”

The bandits immediately obeyed. Their movements were filled with fear, as if even brushing against him would bring a curse.

They hurried off the road to make way for the boy.

The boy passed them with a bitter expression but as if it were a familiar scene.

“You saw that, right? You shouldn’t follow me. You’ll be cursed.”

The boy spoke softly to Taesan.

Taesan didn’t follow him. The boy looked relieved and continued walking unsteadily down the path.

Only after the boy disappeared from sight did the leader sigh in relief.

“Phew. That was close. I’m not cursed just from that, right?”

“I heard a brief contact is okay… but it still feels unsettling.”

“Damn it. Maybe I should visit the temple and get a blessing.”

“They’d probably refuse too if he’s a cursed child.”

“If I bribe them, maybe they’ll do something. But still…”

The man looked at Taesan with a bitter face.

“What about you? Who the hell are you?”

Taesan didn’t answer his question. Instead, he muttered while staring in the direction the boy had gone.

“Do divine bloods have traits like that?”

[Hmm… I don’t know either. There’s so little information on divine bloods. It wouldn’t be surprising if there were traits I don’t know about.]

“I need to figure out exactly what it is.”

“That guy isn’t cursed too, is he?”

“They said there’s only one cursed child. He probably just happened to be on the same road.”

“In that case, perfect.”

The man drew his sword again. His eyes gleamed with greed as he scanned Taesan’s outfit.

“You look like you’ve got money. Hand over the toll. Or I’ll take your arm.”

“That’s what I should be saying.”

There was no need to use magic. No need to express intent.

A power that didn’t even amount to a speck was more than enough.

Taesan snapped his fingers.

At that moment, an immense pressure crushed the bandits.

“Gah—! Gurgh!”

They couldn’t even scream.

They couldn’t exhale the breath they had drawn in, and their entire bodies began to tremble.

Taesan spoke leisurely.

“Answer my question, and I’ll let you live.”