I Became a Ruined Character in a Dark Fantasy-Chapter 629

Swoosh—

A cool, dry wind swept over Lucia, seated on Moro’s saddle. On either side of the deserted road, brittle bushes and bare branches swayed ominously.

"Such boring reactions."

Yet the voice that came from the carriage beside her, pulled by two white horses, held no tension whatsoever.

"The corruption of the isles' fleet is hardly surprising news."

The voice from the driver's seat was just as relaxed. It wasn't just calm; it was almost smug.

"Aren’t they just a bunch of pirates and barbarians who worship superstition? If they weren't committing blasphemous acts across the sea, that would be more surprising."

"You really have a knack for killing the mood, Half-Ear."

Hearing Thesaya click her tongue, Lucia glanced over.

She looked at the brown-skinned driver, who laughed awkwardly. Beneath his closely cropped hair, one of his ears was missing its upper half.

It was Nasser, once one of the order's elite Purifiers, now a sinner abandoned by the goddess and walking the path of atonement.

"There’s no point in talking. Is anyone even listening?" said Thesaya. She leaned back in her seat so far she was almost lying down, raising a cigarette holder to her lips.

"Of course we are," Nasser replied immediately.

Yet it was obvious she hadn’t been addressing him. With the cigarette holder still between her lips, Thesaya narrowed her eyes slightly and turned to the window across from Lucia.

Lucia lifted her eyes, glancing past the carriage roof. Beyond it rode a knight keeping pace with them, her red hair matching Lucia’s own. It was Mev—her last surviving blood relative in this world, and an Apostle of the Stern Goddess.

"You really weren’t listening, were you, Redhead?"

At Thesaya’s cold voice, Mev blinked and looked back at the carriage.

"Sorry. I was distracted for a moment."

"There’s nothing around us. What else would it be—you were worrying about Ian again, weren’t you?" Thesaya said, exhaling smoke through her nose.

Mev quickly cleared her throat. "That’s not it. I was just wondering if it was really the right decision to travel on our own like this."

"Ian told us to, didn’t he? And besides, the Great One summoned him. What could possibly go wrong?"

Grinning, Thesaya tapped the ash from her cigarette holder out the window toward Mev’s side.

"Honestly, you seem to be looking for things to worry about."

"It’s just... he hasn't returned, and it's been days..."

Watching Mev stumble over her words, Lucia quietly held back a smile.

Mev and Nasser had arrived in Orendel a day after Mukapa and Simon's group left with the Ark Caravan. They had even met them on the way and heard their news firsthand. And now, just as Ian had planned, they were traveling North.

"Well, fine. Let’s say that’s true. But isn’t the treatment a bit unfair? When your little sister was talking about things beyond the Wall, you all listened with shining eyes." Thesaya placed the cigarette holder back in her mouth and grumbled, leaning back against the seat.

"No... that’s... apologize, Thesa. It's not that I'm not interested in your story," Mev said, scratching her cheek in embarrassment. Nasser spoke up next.

"She’s right. You may speak a bit out of order at times, but the story itself is very interesting," said Nasser.

"And that’s supposed to be a compliment?"

As Thesaya glared out the window, eyes narrowed, Lucia finally burst into laughter. It was a sight she had longed to see again. It was a shame Ian and Miguel weren't there. But they would all be together again soon.

Grrr...

It was then that Moro suddenly lifted its head and came to a halt.

Thesaya, who had been about to start her story again, frowned, and Lucia tilted her head. Moro had turned around after glancing back.

"Is Sir Ian back?" Lucia asked.

As Nasser pulled on the reins a beat later, Lucia placed her hand on the beast's neck. In response, Moro snorted and moved forward. Lucia quickly patted its neck.

"Wait, Moro. Just wait a moment."

Even as it snorted, Moro obediently stopped, shifting its weight impatiently as if urging her to hurry.

Meanwhile, Thesaya opened the door of the stopped carriage and leaned out.

"Don’t tell me that thing’s trying to go to Ian right now?"

"Yes. I think so," Lucia replied, looking back at the carriage.

Nasser poked his head up from the driver's seat, and Mev, who had been stopping Selim in confusion, glanced back.

"See? He’s back, safe and sound." Thesaya smiled, glancing at Mev.

"Sir Ian didn’t give any specific command, so there’s no way to stop Moro," said Lucia.

"Really? Well. I suppose Ian might not follow us right away," Thesaya murmured, nodding.

Nasser and Mev looked back at her, their expressions asking what she meant by that.

"Looks like you're finally interested in my story, huh?"

Thesaya put the cigarette holder in her mouth with a somewhat arrogant expression and jutted her chin.

"He said he had business in the swamp. If he knows we left as planned, he'll probably stop there before joining us."

"Alone? But the swamp is a dangerous, long-abandoned area," Nasser said, frowning.

Thesaya shrugged. "We know. But Ian doesn't care about things like that, does he? Anyway, if that beast is going..."

She exhaled a puff of smoke and looked at Moro. "Then this Elder Fairy will have to go along and help. That’s fine with you, right, Moro?"

Moro snorted grudgingly, and Lucia’s eyes narrowed slightly at the same moment.

After a moment, Lucia nodded slightly as if she had decided, and said, "Just a moment."

"Hmm?" Thesaya, who was about to get out of the carriage, paused.

Lucia looked at her and added, "It would be a great help if you went, but why don't you let someone else go this time?"

"Let someone else?" Thesaya repeated, then turned her head in the direction Lucia was looking.

"Aha... Right. So that's what you're thinking." Thesaya looked at Mev, who was clutching her helmet at her side.

A smile slowly spread across her face. "All right, I’ll yield. She has indeed been worried sick this whole time."

"And you have something you need to give Sir Ian, don't you?" said Lucia. Her grin was just as mischievous as Thesaya’s.

Mev avoided their gaze and spoke.

"But I should make sure Lucy reaches the North safely—"

"What are you worried about, Redhead?" Thesaya scoffed.

As Mev paused and looked at her, she leisurely put the cigarette holder to her lips. "You have me, an Elder Fairy, and a high-ranking mage. What monster would dare threaten our little sister?"

"And I'm here too," Nasser added.

"I can take care of myself just fine. So go on—before Moro loses its patience," said Lucia.

"If you all insist...." murmuring awkwardly, Mev quickly dismounted from Selim. She fumbled for a moment as she put on the helmet she had been carrying at her side.

Lucia exchanged a quick glance with Thesaya and stood up in her stirrups.

"Don’t be too mean to my sister, all right?" She whispered to Moro as she dismounted.

The beast snorted gruffly in reply.

Holding the reins, Lucia turned to face Mev as she approached. "It’s rough, but manageable. Just be careful when using your divinity—it’s a demonic beast, after all."

"Right. Understood," Mev said, taking the reins and mounting the disguised demonic beast in one fluid motion.

Moro just snorted once, not rejecting her.

"Wait for me at the temple. And be careful. Alright?" From the saddle, Mev looked down at Lucia, who stroked Moro’s neck.

Lucia stepped back toward the carriage and nodded. "Don't worry. You know what I've been through to get here."

"Right... Well, I'll see you in the North," Mev replied softly and lowered her visor.

Immediately after, Moro reared up with a roar. As Mev tightly gripped the reins, Moro spun around and shot off like an arrow.

Clip-clop, clip-clop. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Lucia watched them disappear into the distance.

"Moro really has quite a temper, doesn’t it? Must be because it’s a beast. Then again, Ian doesn't have the best personality either, so maybe it just takes after his master," Thesaya said with a chuckle.

Lucia and Nasser both turned to look at her.

Thesaya shrugged. "Why are you two looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong?"

"Well... no." Lucia let out a small laugh, shaking her head as she walked toward the carriage. Now she had to ride Mev’s white horse, Selim.

"Still, it worries me. Even at full speed, it’ll take her at least a week to reach the swamp," Nasser muttered, eyes fixed on Mev’s receding silhouette in the dark.

"They'll probably make it in five days. That's no ordinary horse. ...Thinking about it, I'm glad I didn't go," Thesaya said with a snort, taking a drag from her cigarette.

She grinned, looking back at Lucia, who was now mounted on Selim. "I would've had to ride for days without any real sleep, right? I'm sure Redhead can sleep just fine in a saddle, though."

"Moro won’t run the whole way either... probably," Lucia replied, looping the reins around one hand before glancing back.

Just then, Thesaya flicked the ash from her cigarette and looked toward Nasser.

"What are you staring at? Get moving, Half-Ear. You know I'm your superior now, right?"

"To be serving an Elder. It is an honor for my family," Nasser replied in a tone that was hard to distinguish from sarcasm and quickly sat down.

As Thesaya stepped back into the carriage, he snapped the reins without hesitation.

Clip-clop, clip-clop-

The carriage began to move.

Lucia’s eyes lingered on the faintly fading shape in the darkness, a quiet longing glimmering within them.

"Please," she whispered softly, then turned her gaze forward and flicked Selim’s reins.

Selim began following the carriage. It was still a long way to the North.

***

Crack—

A slanted streak of violet light sliced diagonally through the undead, which was overgrown with moss and water plants.

Splat— Thud—

Dark green vapor burst out as the bisected undead collapsed. Between the spilled mucus, severed roots twitched faintly.

"Guh... rrrrk..." A gasp escaped the moss-covered head, its eye sockets sprouting leaves.

Crunch.

Ian stepped down onto the skull without hesitation and strode through the poisonous mist as though it were nothing.

His cold gaze was already sweeping over the other undead lurching toward him. They were creatures that had been wandering around the swamp, which looked like a series of rotten puddles.

Crack! Crunch—

Without breaking stride, Ian cut them down with mechanical precision.

The fluids they spewed didn’t even touch him. The clouds of toxic gas bursting with every strike had no effect on him at all.

Thwack...

In the blink of an eye, the last undead collapsed.

Behind him lay a field of twitching pieces, but Ian didn’t so much as glance back. He kept walking, eager to get away from the stench. It was, in truth, the most unbearable part of all this.

The violet haze radiating from his Black Sword faded.

I think it was around here that I took that crazy old man's head.

He glanced around at the swamp stretching out beside him.

It had already been three days since he had entered the swamp.