The 31st Piece Turns the Tables
chapter-146

After the dust had settled, the Black Knight had completely vanished.

‘Where… Where did he go?!’

Everyone instinctively knew that the Black Knight was on his last legs. All that remained was to land one final blow on him.

But then, someone began to shout while looking at the sky.

“He’s…”

“Up there! Over there! Look at how battered he is…”

“He’s going up over there!”

“Flagellant!”

The massive Black Knight had returned to his original size and was scaling the clock tower nearby, the tallest point in the western district of Illia.

“Why…”

“The wall! He’s doing that… to climb over the wall!” shouted Filia in shock.

The clock tower wasn’t too far from the walls dividing the city’s districts.

Any average individual would consider that distance far, but to a monster like the Black Knight, it could even be considered close.

‘If he climbs to the top of the clock tower and leaps toward the walls…’

The western district lockdown would have been for nothing, and he would be able to slaughter as many innocent civilians as he wants.

Agony, the being controlling the Black Knight, had already climbed halfway up the tower.

[We have to run! Run away! They’re way too tough to eat! Let’s eat the humans beyond the walls!]

Seol wasn’t sure whether Agony had no intention of concealing his own intent or if he was simply pushed into a corner, but Agony's voice reverberated throughout the entirety of Illia.

The citizens beyond the wall trembled at the sound of Agony’s frightening voice.

Seol quickly realized that following the Black Knight up the clock tower would be too slow. He wouldn’t make it there to stop him before the Black Knight made it to the top.

‘I need to stop him… But how…’

Seol caught Karuna looking up at the clock tower.

Karuna then looked at himself, before meeting Seol's eyes. Two resolute gazes locked onto each other.

“Karuna.”

“...Please send me there.”

“...Yeah, I think we’re thinking the same thing.”

Woosh!

Seol leaped onto the roof of a three-story building before stretching his right arm.

“What is he…”

Crack… Snap… Crackkkk!

“Wh-what the…”

“How does that… make any sense?”

“His arm is…”

Seol's arm gigantified in an instant as he got into a stance to throw Karuna.

Grab!

“Go!”

Fwoooooosh!

Ffffffft!

[Your mana is currently below 5%]

[You have mana deficiency.]

[Your mana recovery rate is reduced by 50% for 5 minutes.]

[You have overused your mana all at once.]

[You are afflicted by Abnormal Status: Dizziness for a day.]

[The cooldowns for your skills are increased by 10%.]

Seol launched Karuna with all his strength, aiming for the clock tower’s bell.

However, he was slightly short.

“Ahhhh!”

“Urgh…”

In an instant, Karen's deep shade of red lightened, while Karuna's blue grew as deep as Karen's had become lighter.

[Twin Knights' Equilibrium collapses.]

[The summed stats heavily favor one side.]

Karuna swiftly took two steps after landing on the clock tower's wall, propelling himself to its peak.

As he soared upward, he pulled back his arms, preparing his attack.

Sensing Karuna's presence, the Black Knight turned back around.

[No! Don’t!]

Agony cried out.

With determination, Karuna poured every last ounce of his strength into his sword for his next attack.

FWOOOOSH!

Karuna hurled Breath, piercing perfectly through the Black Knight's heart.

“Krgh…”

Thud.

The Black Knight was sent flying, Breath lodged in his chest, until he collided with the clock tower's bell.

The impact caused the bell to ring, filling the district with its sounds.

Ring… Riiiing…

“K-Krgh…”

“...It’s over.”

Agony’s blade was dulled and broken. The damage it endured while materializing into the Black Knight's body seemed to have caused this.

Even after reverting back into a sword, Agony continued to cry.

[You idiot! We have to run! Run! Now!]

“Shut… up…” said the Black Knight, lying on the ground.

His pierced chest gurgled with blue and black energy. It was likely not only his powers, but also his memories.

“Haah… Krgh… C-Could I… ask you something?”

“......”

“The fragments I’ve killed… All had different anomalies…”

“What?”

The Black Knight continued.

“There were those who didn’t remember Montra… and even one who forgot Karen. And it was for those reasons… that each and every one of us sought a different future… so… krgh… what… what do you think? Once you receive this power… what will you…”

“I plan to…”

“......”

“...show Karen the sea.”

Karuna looked down at the Black Knight with unattached eyes, the moon behind his back.

“That is what I’ll live for in this life.”

A modest ambition for such prideful eyes. However, the Black Knight was visibly moved by this.

“Ha… Haha… Hahaha… the sea… How… Why…”

“What is it?”

The Black Knight took off his helmet.

The helmet must have felt increasingly suffocating as death grew closer.

He slowly revealed his face, wet with tears.

But it wasn’t just tears. He was also covered with snot and blood.

“I… can’t remember the sea… fuck… that was what I was missing…”

“......”

"Is the sea... more incredible than Montra... or our desire for revenge?"

Karuna gently described to the Black Knight the beauty of the sea, his words flowing like a fairy tale.

“How could the world be completely filled with water… haha… don’t lie to me…”

The Black Knight couldn’t stop crying.

“...Why are you crying?” asked Karuna.

“Because of regret…”

“Regret? If you’re regretful of your mistakes, then—”

"No, it's not that. It's just... realizing that the only thing I can leave for your futures is this disgusting hatred... I regret it deeply."

Step… Step…

Seol and Karen arrived at the clock tower.

With Breath lodged in his heart, the Black Knight continued to speak, gradually voicing his final words—echoing those of the defeated fragments who had come before him.

"I-I accept my defeat. I offer you my strength and memories. Oh... Oh, Karuna... I pray that one day you will become the mirror that reflects the truth."

Fwoooosh…

With those words, the Black Knight started to disperse into the wind, vanishing like smoke, starting from his feet.

[No! No!]

Faaaade…

Agony trembled for a moment before climbing into the smoke as well.

However, something prevented Agony from going further.

Fwirl!

[Let go! Let go of me!]

“However, you must not take everything. You must take neither my hatred nor this demon… Please, do not be tainted by the same hatred that I was… Agony, they do not need the color black where they are headed. You will remain here with me…”

The black light, which could be considered the root of the Black Knight’s powers, held a firm grip onto Agony’s dark energy. The Black Knight planned to die with Agony there.

“There’s no need for that.”

Grab.

Seol grabbed onto Agony’s energy, despite the Black Knight’s warnings.

“Where I’m headed… I’ll need black as well.”

The black light looked at Karuna this time. Karuna nodded back.

“We go together.”

The black light, having yearned to hear those words, scattered entirely into the wind.

Fwoooooosh…

And then, it started to be drawn into Karuna's Breath.

A deep blue light radiated from Karuna's eyes, and, strangely, his old memories began to rush back to him.

* * *

Translator - goguma

Proofreader - Karane

* * *

Karuna’s memories returned to him piece by piece.

While some of the memories flooding back to him were undoubtedly his own, others were strangely vivid recollections belonging to the Black Knight.

Swish… Swish…

Crash…

After being knocked off a cliff and into the river, Karuna found himself pulled back onto a small boat by someone.

“I got him!”

“...Good work. Let us leave immediately.”

In the boat were two individuals, a young man, and an elderly gentleman.

After that, time passed.

Karuna found himself later placed on a rock with intricate geometric patterns engraved on it, his mind in a blur as they performed a ceremony.

The old man and the young man would intermittently reappear, as well as devotees of a temple.

“What I was trying to say is—”

“Quiet! How could the guardian…”

The two fought.

Mostly, it was the old man scolding the young man, who quietly listened. However, as time went on, the frequency of their arguments diminished.

It took a long time for the sounds of their fighting to turn into screams.

“Kyaaaa!”

“Ahhhh!”

The surge of mana and the scent of blood played a vital role in waking Karuna from his sleep.

“Haah… Haah…”

The young man returned once more, his hair disheveled and partially deranged, as he approached Karuna's resting place.

His body was drenched in fresh blood, and he appeared to have aged significantly, now resembling a middle-aged man.

"Did you... Did you truly believe I'd uphold that worthless oath until my dying breath? Of course not... Your assessment of me was wrong..."

Oath.

The word that the man mentioned was unfamiliar, yet nostalgic.

"Hahaha... You foolish knight... Why did you choose to serve Jin? Why... Why did you choose to restrain yourself when you possess such power?"

There was something off about the man.

“I… am different from Jin. He failed to recognize the value of the treasure that fell onto his lap. But I’m different! I’ll… I’ll use you to be born again!”

Grab!

The man growled while grabbing a handful of Karuna’s hair.

“I will cut you into fragments and raise an army! Hahaha... No one... No one will be able to stop me. Just protecting things with all this power is too dull, isn't it? Right?"

Karuna felt something sprout in his heart.

It was a moment he had experienced countless times.

Hatred—hatred was sown in Karuna's heart toward that man.

“Haha… Soon…”

It didn’t take long for that sprout to grow into a tree and bear fruit.

Splaaaatter!

The man tried his best to stem the bleeding from his neck, but it was too late.

“Gr… Grgrggl…”

His eyes, filled with hatred, were fixed on Karuna.

However, the Karuna he gazed upon was incomplete. Karuna had already fragmented, and this lone shard remained to exact revenge upon those in the temple who had wronged him.

It was the fragment of hatred, the Black Knight.

And like that, only after killing everyone, did the Black Knight leave the temple.

He then searched exhaustively for his other fragments. He recognized each fragment he encountered as a part of himself, and in turn, they recognized him as one of their own. However, they also instinctively understood that they were destined to fight.

The fragment of hatred was powerful.

- I have been bested. I leave everything to…

- I lost. You are…

Strangely enough, each defeated fragment left behind their desires as they were absorbed.

- Please protect the innocent.

- Do not let darkness… take over the world.

- Please… Karen…

The fragment of hatred could not understand them.

‘Fools.’

Why did they believe the strong would listen to the requests of the defeated? For what reason?

The Black Knight could not understand the defeated fragments. And for that reason, he thought of their requests as burdens.

He believed he was the most powerful of the remaining fragments, the one closest to embodying the original Karuna.

However, he could not be further from the truth.

It was only after encountering a special fragment that he realized his mistake.

Claaang!

“Urgh…”

“You are vile and disgusting.”

“Sh-shut up…”

“...Leave.”

The fragment of hatred fell unconscious, blood spewing as he did so.

The other Karuna stomped on his hand before vanishing.

‘...Who was he?’

Bathump.

For some reason... it felt as if a pair of eyes were watching them right now.

Karuna sensed an insidious energy from those eyes.

Bzzzt!

The Black Knight’s memories ended there.

The light faded as if someone had closed the curtains on him.

And then… a black light approached him.

It was the fragment of hatred.

“I think I… understand it now.”

“......”

“I understand why… they left behind their desires.”

The black light wavered.

"Karuna, do not forget Montra. Seek out our sister, flourish alongside her, and forge a benevolent world. These... were the wishes bestowed upon me by those who came before."

Karuna slowly responded to the dark light while staring into the horizon.

“...What about your wishes?”

The black light was stunned.

“......”

“What are your wishes?”

“How could someone like me…”

“Your. Wishes.”

The black light wavered.

It almost appeared as if it was crying.

As if it was regretful.

“...Do not make the same mistakes I made. Do not… hate the world…”

“That’s impossible. The world is still filled with so much evil.”

“...Hatred and anger are two different things.”

“Anger, huh…”

“Also, please... Please find happiness with our sister. That is my wish.”

Karuna nodded to the black light.

“I won’t forget them.”

Faaaaade…

After Karuna’s final words, the black light slowly seeped into Karuna’s chest.

* * *

Upon recovering the Black Knight's memories, the blue light emanating from Karuna's body intensified, marking yet another change.

Craaackle…

There was another change as well.

‘There’s a pattern… being engraved onto the sword.’

Breath, crafted from Karuna's Moonlight Sword, now bore a peculiar and enigmatic pattern.

Countless messages related to it continued to show up, obscuring his sight.

However, that wasn’t the end of the change.

Writhe…

As Karuna opened his eyes, a black energy thrashed in his eyes.

‘What is this now…’

Despite Seol's desire to investigate every detail of the situation, the circumstances did not permit it.

Seol quickly glanced at the small ball in his hands.

It was the remnants of Agony.

[Yeah! Yeah! You want power, right?]

“Of course.”

[That idiot only lost because he was dumb! I won’t lose!]

“Oh really?”

[I’ll fulfill any wish! What do you want?! To become king? Do you want to be king? Or is there something else that you want? I’ll fulfill whatever wish you desire!]

“Really? Then I want you to…”

Agony continued spewing sweet, candied words, tempting Seol with promises beyond belief.

Yet, with each uttered syllable, it also exuded a sinister, demonic energy.

All to taint Seol’s mind, so that he would be corrupted like his previous master.

Agony was confident.

Until Seol finally gave his answer.

“...shut up for me, alright?”

[...Huh?]

“That’s the only way you’ll live, so keep your mouth closed.”

“Hold—”

Plop.

Seol contained Agony, now a swirling mass of energy, within a bottle and sealed it shut with a cork. Even though Agony was capable of breaking the bottle whenever it pleased, it hesitated, recalling Seol’s words.

As that happened, Earl Brispin asked Seol a question from beyond the wall.

“What happened?!”

“Hm…”

“Hurry up and explain the situation!”

Seol paused for a second before ringing the bell next to him.

Ring…

Earl Brispin was confused after hearing the bell.

“What the…”

Riiiing…

As the bell rang once more, Earl Brisprin finally understood. It was Seol's answer to him.

“...Ah.”

The earl turned back to his subordinates.

“Ring every bell in Illia.”

“...What?”

“Quickly!”

A few minutes after the earl’s command, the bells of every clock tower in each district began to ring.

Riiing…

Riiiiing…

Riiiiiing…

Bells continued to echo across Illia as the nightmarish night drew to a close.

It was an unforgettable evening, one that would be etched into their memories for a lifetime.

[You have defeated the Black Knight.]

[The Black Knight’s Memento has been generated.]

[You have satisfied the Adventure Objective.]

[If the Remaining Time runs out or if you choose to take your reward, you may choose to finish your Adventure here.]

“Woahhhhhh!”

“The flagellant won!”

“Open the gates, you assholes!”

As the city erupted into celebration, Seol glanced at the chest that lay at his feet.

Since carrying it down the clock tower would be annoying, he decided to open the chest there.

Kick!

The chest opened after a light kick from Seol.

Creaaaak…

‘Please… Please be in there…’

[You open the Black Knight’s Memento.]

……