Chapter 22: The Luminous Stone

Bang!

The heavy wooden door slammed shut.

After enduring countless hardships, Colin and his companions finally made it back inside the house before nightfall.

In the instant the door closed, Colin leaned against it, overcome by a powerful sense of security.

With the “Hunting Hour” lifted, his temperament returned to its usual gentle nature.

The exploration had taken four hours; they’d skirted the edge of disaster more than once, but in the end, they’d come through unscathed.

Of course, though danger lurked at every turn, the spoils from this journey were truly abundant. Colin had acquired a wealth of resources and vital items, and even his two subordinates had grown stronger—enough to put him ahead of most people.

But before anything else, Colin flung himself onto the wooden bed, finally able to relax his taut nerves.

Yet exhaustion and hunger gnawed at him.

Now was not the time to rest.

Meanwhile, the two servants who had dashed inside and were still panting finally caught their breath.

Simply keeping up with Colin during their escape had forced them to draw on every ounce of strength they had, and even then, they’d almost been left behind several times.

Their lord was simply too formidable; the two of them could barely keep up!

Just then, all three inside the house felt a jolt of unease in their hearts. Together, they turned toward the window and saw that the world of gray mist, which had retained a hint of light, was suddenly plunged into darkness.

The fog outside writhed as if alive, and from within its depths came low growls and faint, piercing screams.

Inside the wooden hut, a dim yellow glow flared up from some unknown source.

[The night has fallen. You estimate it will last at least twelve hours.]

Twelve hours… The day is also twelve hours, which means this world likely runs on a twenty-four-hour cycle. We must have been transported here in the afternoon…

Colin’s thoughts wandered, but suddenly an intense sense of dread made him snap his gaze away.

“Don’t look. Eat your porridge.”

He kicked aside a pile of rotten wood by the bed and brought out the table and chair he had “rescued” from the church today.

“It’s rather large…” Colin eyed the table, which took up nearly a fifth of the room, and shook his head. “Oh well.”

He also took out a bench, though there was hardly space for it in the cramped house.

He brought out a stone pot and stone bowls, then some bread and water, and combined them directly into a porridge.

Then, Colin began taking inventory.

Grade-three water, twenty liters.

Twelve pieces of lightly and moderately spoiled meat from various animals.

Three treasure map fragments.

A hunter’s title.

A set of axe and lantern.

Four benches.

Eight loaves of black bread.

Four Thorns of Suffering.

The wooden wheel of Cadis.

Two Luminous Stones.

107ml of dull tainted blood.

71ml of ordinary tainted blood.

Bones, wood, stone…

All sorts of materials nearly filled his [Backpack]. Colin took out the wood, stone, and other basic materials and instructed his two subordinates to stack them neatly at the foot of the bed.

Then his eyes fell upon two items in his pack, and he lapsed into thought.

One was a Luminous Stone obtained from the female survivor, the other, a wheel taken from Father Cadis.

“Luminous Stone: a special mineral emitting a faint white glow.”

“Note: Using it can dispel fear, confusion, and other negative effects. It can harm undead creatures, and also accelerates healing in ordinary beings.”

[Hint: You feel a sense of familiarity. You recall witnessing a similar power in Father Cadis’s wooden wheel. You sense that if you absorb this power, you might gain a unique ability.]

“Gain a unique ability…”

Colin’s heart quickened. “This thing is definitely a treasure…”

He had little doubt it was connected to the church’s underground passage.

This suspicion was confirmed when he inspected the wooden wheel.

After the little girl used it to end her life, its name changed from “Bloodstained Broken Wheel” to “Cadis’s Wheel.”

At the same time, its description changed.

“‘Cadis’s Wheel’: If the possessor enters a state of rage while holding it, the remaining power within the wheel can be triggered, causing it to emit a holy light.”

“Uses remaining: 3.”

[Hint: Father Cadis, one of the Thirteen Saints of the Church of Suffering, was known as the Saint of Light. Yet within the church, he was shunned and isolated by the other saints, seemingly because of the power he wielded.]

[The church believed the ‘light’ used by Father Cadis was not a ‘miracle’ bestowed by the Mother of Suffering and Thorns, but a wicked power traded from demons for his soul, one that could corrupt the hearts of others.]

[During an incident that turned against him, the church used this pretext to execute all of Father Cadis’s devoted followers, stripped him of his title, and exiled him back to the place where his first ‘miracle’ had appeared, forbidding anyone from following him.]

“…This church is the real villain.”

Colin remembered the twisted monster crawling on the floor and found it impossible to reconcile with the “Saint of Light” described in the hints.

Thinking back on the church’s actions and those of the priest, the difference between good and evil was clear as day.

Without further dwelling on it, Colin shifted his attention to the last part of the hint: Father Cadis had been exiled to the place where his first miracle had manifested.

That place… it must be behind the church’s underground passage.

No, there must be more than one entrance to the church…

The Luminous Stone from the female survivor strongly suggested she had explored an area suffused with special power…

This area should be in the same direction as the church’s passage.

“There’s something incredible there, but that monster is simply unbeatable…”

Colin hesitated. A lord-class abomination had already undergone a certain transformation—he truly couldn’t defeat it, not even in “Hunting Hour.”

“Sigh, to play it safe, I’d better grow stronger before heading there…”

He shook his head, dismissed the thought, and unrolled the parchment.

A new blood-red quest had appeared on the task list:

“Quest Name: ‘The Arbiter’s Majesty.’”

“Requirement: Survive until the eighth day.”

“Description: Your actions have disturbed the stability of the game environment. You will face a penalty from the system.”

“Reward: Three loaves of hard black bread.”

“Note: There’s still time to end it all yourself.”

[With your current strength and progress, you’re doomed.]

Seeing the blood-red font, as if dripping with blood, and the blunt prompt, Colin felt the pressure mount.

For the first time, Colin truly craved more power.

His thoughts drifted back to the church…

Only by mastering unique powers could Colin hope to withstand the punishment awaiting him in seven days.

But the problem was, that abomination was blocking the way…

“My head hurts…” Colin pressed his brow, and in the heavy grip of exhaustion, drifted off to sleep…

Thus the night passed.

At dawn, Colin was jolted awake by a message that appeared directly in his mind.

The parchment had gained a new function.