Chapter 197 - 197. The Sunken Church and the Church of Light (Part 1)
The fortress was surrounded by high stone walls, with a large building containing turrets, stables, and a church within. It was similar in construction to the fortress north of Flucht.
Marmie and I were treated to a grand feast.
The fortress housed fourteen stationed soldiers, though it was said that three soldiers had gone missing over the past few days. Each had vanished separately, all during the night.
I had dismissed Marmie's tales as mere ghost stories, but when I learned they were true, I felt an inexplicable chill.
After finishing the interviews with the station commander and the priest, we were led to a luxurious room.
The space, large enough to hold dozens, contained a king-size bed, a dining table for several people, a writing desk, and a vanity. All were made of wood and gleamed with a costly sheen. A soft carpet covered the floor, velvet wallpaper lined the walls, and there was even a full-length mirror.
The room was higher than the ramparts, and from the window, I could see the lakeshore I had observed during the day.
The world was bathed in the soft light of a gibbous moon. The lake surface was dark blue, while the moonlit sections shimmered white, reflecting the moonlight.
There were no cicadas, only the faint sounds of night insects. It was a quiet night. Under normal circumstances, it would have been a surreal and beautiful sight, but after hearing Marmie’s ghost stories, I found myself drawn to the darkness of the lake, feeling an eerie drop in temperature.
Standing by the window, lost in thought, I pondered Marmie's tales of hauntings and the missing soldiers.
Then, I noticed Marmie retrieving a negligee from the storage compartment, about to change.
"Hey, planning on sleeping already? What about the disappeared soldiers?"
"...I'm not interested."
"Are you scared?"
"...I'm not scared."
She turned away, her gesture reminiscent of Aira's. I knew better than to comment, fearing her anger.
She stopped changing and approached the window where I stood, leaning against me and gazing out the window alongside me. I wrapped my arms around her slender waist, pulling her close, and she placed her hand on mine.
"Could the lingering resentment of those who died with regrets really cause hauntings?"
"...No. But there are monster corpses that imitate ghosts."
"That doesn't make sense. Those monsters wouldn't be the genuine spirits, right?"
"...Yes, imitations of resentment. Not the real thing."
"That's even more baffling. If ghosts don't exist, how could anything imitate them?"
"...Sometimes, dungeons create monsters from human imaginations."
"So, psychic phenomena don't exist. But they can occur because people imagine them..."
The Hecatonchires, Cyclopes, and Giants we fought in the dungeon were figures from myths in my original world. Of course, they didn’t exist in reality. But dungeons could create monsters by interpreting people's thoughts. They detect the threats that surface in the minds of explorers. That included transfer students. That's why I encountered child gods and giants from myths I knew.
"If monsters are born from the fears and terrors of people, they're no different from ghosts. Then, the deeper one goes into the dungeon, wouldn't there be monsters imitating gods as well?"
"...I've never heard of that."
I caught Marmie looking at me. Moonlight streamed through the window, illuminating her. Her translucent skin appeared even whiter, and her silver hair sparkled with each small breath.
She tightened her grip on my hand. She swayed slightly onto her tiptoes, and her eyelids fluttered shut.
"...Mash..."
I gently pressed my lips to hers. They were cool and soft, that touch wrapping around my heart like a gentle breeze.
As I pulled away, she opened her eyes.
"...I still don't understand how love is confirmed through something like this."
"Want to try again?"
"...Yes."
As she lowered her long eyelashes for the second time, I noticed the bluish-white light streaming through the window had intensified.
"...The lake..."
The entire lake surface was glowing with a faint blue light. It wasn't from the moon. It felt like the room temperature had dropped.
Marmie and I left the fortress and walked toward the lakeshore we had seen during the day.
"...Mash. There's no such thing as ghosts. Let's go back to the fortress."
Marmie said.
"No, I can't just leave that unattended."
What if countless hands stretched from the lake into the fortress? I had heard the ghost stories from Marmie and learned about the missing soldiers. Leaving it unattended was terrifying. If it was all an elaborate setup to exploit the Baile concept, then I wanted proof. I couldn't sleep until I knew my safety was guaranteed. Going alone was too frightening, but luckily, Marmie was by my side.
Suddenly, I lost track of what I was thinking. I wasn't scared. I insisted again, I wasn't scared. This was a natural phenomenon caused by a series of coincidences. I just wanted to unravel the truth behind this strange event.
"Hey, if you're scared, you can go back to the room."
"...I told you, I'm not scared. We had our first kiss just now, you know. Don't treat me like a kid."
She gripped my hand tightly. Seeing that, I felt relieved. It seemed she would stay with me until the end. My hand was slick with sweat, but I couldn't help it. I squeezed her hand just as hard.
We continued walking. In the worst-case scenario, there was always the option of summoning a goddess, as her mother had said. Racshell might fail to resolve the situation and depart. But that would be fine. By then, I'd be unconscious and asleep, blissfully unaware of the horrors that followed.
We walked down the moonlit path.
At the lakeshore, we gasped.
Countless specks of light drifted across the lake surface, each flickering in succession. Small and fragile, yet somehow warm, these lights reflected onto the water, transforming into a cold, azure glow.
"Fireflies... there are so many."
I reached out, and the light momentarily clustered before scattering again.
"...I guess there really aren't any ghosts."
Marmie's words relieved the tension in my shoulders. The firefly light illuminated her cheeks, turning her soft expression slightly darker but warmer. Her mother must have told the ghost stories because she wanted us to witness this sight. The missing soldiers were probably a lie as well. Everyone was trying to trick us.
Hand in hand, we were mesmerized by the fantastical lightscape for a while. A lone firefly soared high into the sky, fading into the starry night. I wished I could watch it forever with her by my side.
Then, a cool breeze, devoid of the daytime heat, blew through.
"Should we head back?"
I tried to pull Marmie's hand, but she wouldn't move. I thought she just wanted to keep watching, but she was staring intensely at a single spot on the water's surface.
There, a cluster of fireflies was swirling. The light from these swarming fireflies reached deep into the water, illuminating what lay beneath.
"...Mash."
The falling rain of light illuminated the church.
A change was occurring in the fireflies dancing on the lake's surface as well. The scattered grains of light converged, forming the shape of a church beneath the water. It looked as if a decaying church within the lake had transformed into a "Church of Light," emerging above the water.
Lost in the view, breathing momentarily forgotten, I noticed light from the entrance of the light church stretching toward us, forming a bridge of light.
Tentatively, I stretched out my foot and stepped onto the bridge of light. It felt solid, not like an illusion. It was like walking on glass, as if it could shatter at any moment, but I could reach the light church.
Wanting to take a second step, I felt my hand pulled sharply.
"...Mash! Focus on the magic in your body and spread it throughout to resist!"
A voice sounded faintly in the distance, but I couldn't make out what it was saying entirely.
As I tried to shake off the grasp on my hand, I heard the click of the sword hanging from my waist. That sound reminded me of Marianne's words.
I closed my eyes and focused my awareness inward, toward my body. The magic within me was scattered, unformed.
Taking a slow breath, I coaxed the magic in my Dantian toward my core, then felt it coursing through my veins.
Opening my eyes, I focused my awareness outward.
I was now halfway between the shore and the church, standing on the bridge of light.
Marmie gripped my hand tightly, trying to stop me from heading toward the church.
"I was being possessed..."
It was unbelievable. I had only moved two steps, or so it had felt.
Looking down from the seemingly transparent bridge, I saw not land, but the lake surface.
"Is everything alright, Mo?"
Marmie nodded at my words, then released the hand she had been holding.
I didn't know whose sweat it was, but it was soaked.
I had been so captivated by the light church that I had forgotten her presence.
So as not to forget that she was beside me, I clutched her empty hand tightly.
"...Mash, there is a strong mental magic deployed here."
"Yes, this place is dangerous."
I couldn't even discern the hostilities of the being that created this illusion.
We needed to retreat while we still had our sanity. It was still possible to return now.
As I thought this, she took a step toward the church.
"Hey, do you seriously want to go? We should turn back."
Had Marmie finally lost her mind? I grabbed her shoulder and turned her around.
Marmie's lips curled slightly into a smile.
"...I had thought that the disappearances, including the ghost stories, were just fabrications of Mother. But the three missing soldiers must be in there. They'd be willing to fight to the death if I ordered them to. So, when I don't order them, I must protect them."
Even if they were already dead, the stationed soldiers were defending the fortress. She thought she needed to ensure their well-being.
"That's what the stationed soldiers are for, isn't it? Besides, you're no longer part of the Starunion family."
"...I know. But someone without magic can't resolve this. Mash, I want you to come with me."
Her shoulder trembled. Her words and smile seemed like a desperate attempt at bravery.
But even if I tried to stop her, she had apparently decided to go alone.
"Alright. But if things get dangerous, I'm running."
Of course, no matter what happened, I would take Marmie back with me. I vowed in my heart.
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