EDEN — Chapter 2 (Part 3)

As soon as the award ended, the GMs rushed through the closing remarks and vanished. The quiz event, scheduled for thirty minutes, had taken a full hour on the very first day, so they’d be scrambling to adjust it.

He was mentally drained after being carried in that mortifying pose for ten minutes, but the prize in his hand washed away some of the exhaustion. I-eon tore open the gold-embossed envelope.

[Lovely Cat Summon Ticket
Survival Quiz Quiz champion reward from the 4th Anniversary Summer Festival.
Can be used by tearing the ticket. Becomes soulbound immediately upon use.]

Without hesitation, he used the ticket. A window appeared in the air: the pet appearance selection. The thirty-some wild choices made him pause, but he didn’t agonize long. His eyes naturally went to the one he’d wanted from the start: the Korean Shorthair cheese tabby. Since it was such a familiar stray-cat look, he already felt attached.

When the warning popped up saying that once chosen, the appearance could not be changed, I-eon hit confirm and began generating the pet.

—You have selected a breed.

—The pet’s temperament has been set to “Lazy.”

—Please name your pet.

He had already been thinking about the name ever since the five humiliating minutes of being carried by Raham. He considered naming it something silly, but since it was a precious cat, he chose a name wishing for it to grow strong and splendid.

“Horangi.”

-Resetting the name will consume currency. Will you finalize the name “Horangi”?

“Yes.”

—The Lovely Cat “Lazy Horangi” has been bound to you.

Excited, I-eon opened the pet information window and saw a new tab below Black Dragon Kka-mae-yong. He couldn’t help grinning as he reached out to summon the pet. Just then, a few users who had lingered even after the awards ceremony noticed the pet creation was complete and rushed toward him. They came at him like animals fighting over food.

“Please summon your pet!”

“What are its stats? Does it have combat skills?”

“Does it cost anything to maintain?”

“Sell it to me!”

It made sense, they were desperate for information about the first functional pet ever released, but being surrounded by dozens of people left I-eon overwhelmed. The barrage of questions made his mind spin. He raised his arms awkwardly to try and hold them off, but a hand shot out from behind and grabbed his wrist firmly. In that moment of surprise, his surroundings shifted, and the approaching crowd vanished.

I-eon let out a relieved breath as he recognized the familiar interior of the guild hall. Raham released his grip on his arm.

“Thanks. That was getting rough.”

A guild master’s privilege: the ability to return to the guild hall anytime, anywhere without a portal. He didn’t need anything else, but he really envied that one feature. It was valuable enough that many players created one-person guilds and paid the hefty establishment fee just for that function. Raham, without comment, changed out of his swimsuit and back into his combat robe.

Now that no one would be rushing in, I-eon finally summoned his cat. Lazy Horangi appeared with a cute little flip.

“Wow…”

Barely the size of I-eon’s hand, the kitten blinked up at its owner. Still young and small, a bit skinny, but its eyes sparkled so brightly they could stop a heart. Speechless, I-eon quietly took a mountain of screenshots. The kitten sniffed around his feet, then stepped on top of them, curled up, and settled right there. The soft fur made I-eon’s heart pound wildly.

Worried the kitten might run off, I-eon held his feet perfectly still and only managed to lift his head a little. It was unbelievably cute, yet Raham simply stood there blankly.

“Are you not going to make a pet?”

If one was this cute, imagine having two. The question was full of selfish desire. Apparently deciding he should make one, Raham pulled out his ticket. But instead of using it, he handed it to I-eon.

“I don’t need it, so take it.”

“……?”

I-eon looked between the ticket held out to him and Raham’s expressionless face. Judging by his face, he really meant he didn’t need it, but accepting it still felt wrong. He would never have been able to win on his own, this victory was entirely thanks to Raham. How could he hog the reward when all he did was watch?

“How could I take that? Just sell it. You could name any price right now.”

“Too much hassle. Just use it.”

“No, but still…”

“Take it.”

“…….”

So the ticket ended up in I-eon’s hands. He pretended to take it reluctantly, but his lips twitched upward in spite of himself. Seeing I-eon try to hide his smile, Raham let out a faint, almost invisible laugh and asked:

“How far are you in your quests?”

“Quests?”

After recovering the reputation he’d lost because of Raham, the main storyline had been abandoned again. He hadn’t even checked past the first update after receiving approval at the Temple of the Holy One. For the first time in a while, he opened the main quest window and skimmed through the long write-up before summarizing:

“Going to an abandoned mansion in the Karvola region to find traces of the past Divine-Demon War.”

His high contribution ranking supposedly pushed his quest progression ahead, but he had no sense of how far that applied. They gave him special treatment too, so he really should finish it, but since he’d started so late, placing first was impossible, and he had no motivation. I-eon always preferred short, miscellaneous side quests that gave quick rewards and gratification.

But unlike I-eon’s reluctance, Raham smiled strangely at his words. Earlier he had answered quiz questions like a ghost with the most emotionless face, but now he looked extremely satisfied for some reason. I-eon felt uneasy.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Hmm… just thinking I was right about you.”

“……?”

What was that supposed to mean? I-eon watched him suspiciously, but, as always, he couldn’t read a thing. Still smiling faintly, Raham repeated what he’d said before:

“I’ll help you with the quest.”

I-eon’s suspicion deepened. What would a demon get out of helping a paladin with his main storyline? He ignored Raham’s innocent, supposedly “no ulterior motives” expression and weighed what advantage Raham might gain from helping him. Then, suddenly realizing it, he reached a conclusion—

When I-eon snapped his head up, Raham’s smile widened.

“You like quests too.”

“…….”

For the first time, a crack appeared in Raham’s perfectly sculpted expression. But I-eon, too pleased with his own correct deduction, didn’t notice. Of course—Raham must’ve wanted to experience all racial main storylines but had no friends, so he had only been reading guides. That explained why he stuck around others’ quests so persistently.

“You should’ve just said so honestly. I like clearing side quests too.”

Compared to main storylines, I-eon’s preference for trivial quests made him sound like someone wasting time, but this newfound shared interest gave him a sense of kinship. As he admitted his hobby, Raham made a faintly smiling expression and nodded.

“Yeah.”

So that was it. Then there was no reason to push him away.

“Okay, let’s do quests together from now on. As long as you don’t pull weird stuff, honestly, it’s easier for me too.”

This was probably exactly what Raham had been wanting. Thinking he was being considerate, I-eon offered to partner up. But instead of cheering, Raham simply stared at him, prompting I-eon to ask:

“What?”

“You’re kind of cute.”

“…….”

The satisfaction I-eon had felt moments earlier evaporated instantly. If only Raham would restrain those irritating comments and gestures…

Still, they had agreed to work together, so I-eon reluctantly sent Horangi back and changed into combat armor. Immediately after, Raham sent a party invite.

-‘Raham’ has invited you to a party. Accept?

Anyone else might not know the feeling, but I-eon understood perfectly, that flutter of excitement from starting a quest. Even if he pretended otherwise, Raham was clearly looking forward to it. For the first time, I-eon found him a tiny bit cute. As tiny as the width of a single whisker, but still.

“Where is Karvola again?”

“South. There’s no warp point. Walking there takes forever.”

Cities and towns with a certain scale have warp points from the capital, but tiny villages without them have to be reached by foot from the closest warp location. I-eon brought up the empire’s world map to find the nearest route. But just as he was about to search for Karvola, he met Raham’s eyes, Raham was holding out an all-too-familiar village teleport scroll. I-eon froze.

“You collect scrolls too?”

“VIP perk.”

“They give that kind of perk…?”

Even though some of his acquaintances were VIP wallet warriors, he had no idea what benefits they received. It must’ve been rare, and here Raham was using it casually… Well, good was good. I-eon decided the best repayment was simply inviting Raham every time he ran quests.

Karvola had suffered enormous damage during the Divine-Demon War, where the Tiog and Demon factions had clashed. Ever since, no civilians lived there. The two walked past the remains of homes overtaken by flowers and grass, climbing up the sloping path. With no specific instructions on where to go, reaching Karvola made it obvious anyway, the massive mansion looming in the distance emanated an ominous presence unmatched by anything else in the ruins.

The three-story mansion perched on Karvola’s highest hill looked even more sinister and imposing up close. Overgrown grass covered the path to the entrance, making it look like a haunted house movie set.

I-eon took the lead and pushed open the door. Nearly three meters tall, the massive door opened surprisingly smoothly.

-You have discovered the mansion of Archduke of the Demon Realm, Laxella!

There was no special buff or effect granted for being the first to discover the place. The interior, compared to the gloomy exterior, still held its old elegance, but every window was covered with curtains, so the only light that entered was whatever slipped through the open doorway.

I-eon stepped onto the red carpet and stopped under the ornate chandelier, its lights extinguished, right at the center of the first-floor hall. Raham followed behind him.

“Do we have to search this whole place…?”

It was daunting. A three-story mansion was rare even in bigger towns, and this one was so wide you couldn’t grasp its size at a glance. Who knew how many rooms were on a single floor alone. Worried he might have overlooked some hidden clue, I-eon checked the quest window, when Raham approached him.

“Demons like deep, dark places. Start with the basement.”

“Really?”

I-eon’s expression brightened. Already useful. Thinking about it, demons and holy-class humans were mortal enemies, meaning they were deeply intertwined. As long as they didn’t get caught by temple priests, Raham could actually be an ideal ally.

Re-evaluating Raham in the best way, I-eon searched for stairs leading down. Sure enough, there was a staircase crafted just as intricately as the one leading upward. The path to the basement was so dark he couldn’t see a hand in front of his face. With nothing available to make a torch, he reluctantly pulled out his Flame Sword and used it as one. Flames engulfed the broad blade, illuminating the path.

At the bottom of the stairs was a dead end, with a single door. It wasn’t as big as the mansion’s main door, but the unknown patterns and symbols carved into it made it look ominous. I-eon pushed against it. It rattled, but only budged slightly.

“It won’t open.”

“Look up.”

“Up?”

Doing as Raham, speaking softly behind him, suggested, I-eon raised his head. On the upper portion of the door was a smooth U-shaped groove whose meaning he didn’t know. Why…? He was about to ask when the groove split apart, revealing a huge hidden eyeball. Startled, I-eon reflexively spat, “Shit!”

The giant eyeball rotated lazily before its red iris and monstrous pupil locked onto him.

[Only to one who is worthy… will the door open… Offer blood equal to that of the Archduke… the blood of a demon.]

When it finished speaking, the eyelid slid shut. I-eon let out an irritated sigh, pressing down the pounding in his chest. Mouthless thing…

—He hadn’t even finished the thought when a groove opened in the center of the door, and a massive tongue the size of I-eon’s torso slid out. Rigid and level to the ground. Gripping his sword tightly, I-eon fought the urge to slice the disgusting thing off. If he messed up and it bled all over the place, the memory alone would haunt his dreams.

So much for thinking it would be a decent courage-test attraction. This was a full-fledged haunted house. I-eon straightened his expression as if he hadn’t been scared and turned away.

“Look at this quest. Even if you search the Demon Realm for days, you’d never find a noble-class demon like this, but they want us to kill one…?”

Wait, demon blood?

I-eon stopped mid-sentence and looked at Raham. Raham subtly avoided his eyes, pretending to be distracted. That behavior only confirmed I-eon’s suspicion, so he leaned in.

“You don’t have a title?”

“What title?”

What a bad liar. Raham’s awkwardness actually made I-eon laugh. Once a player reached a certain level of fame, they received honorary titles from their race’s king or leader. They didn’t affect gameplay, but I-eon himself had been made a Count not long ago. There was no way Raham didn’t have one.

“Give me some of your blood.”

“…Are you serious?”

“You said you’d help.”

Raham stared at I-eon’s outstretched hand, then let out the faintest sigh.

“Ruthless.”

…Look who’s talking.

Still, even if it didn’t hurt much, it was hard to willingly injure your own body. I-eon saw that hesitation and asked softly:

“Want me to do it?”

He had actually thought that through somewhat, but Raham just short-laughed and pulled a sharp dagger from his inventory.

“No need.”

Then, without hesitation, he sliced his own arm open in one clean motion. The cut was so deep that blood poured out freely. Even I-eon, who had asked for it, was taken aback by the severity of the wound.

“Hey, you didn’t have to cut it that deep…”

“Since I’m doing it anyway, I should finish quickly.”

For someone who had just avoided eye contact a moment ago, Raham sliced his arm with shocking brutality. Blood streamed down his arm and drenched the tongue. Gluttonous despite having only one eyeball, the tongue lapped up enough blood to make I-eon anxious before finally seeming satisfied and retreating into the door. If this were reality and not a game, he would’ve had to worry about blood loss.

-‘Raham’ has entered a Bleeding state.

Because Raham offered his blood, he ended up with a status effect that steadily drained his HP. Feeling oddly awkward, I-eon grabbed Raham’s blood-soaked arm.

“Hurry up and heal that.”

Leaving it alone would cause his HP to drop further and pile on debuffs. A healer could easily fix a wound of this level with beginner skills, so it shouldn’t have been a big deal.

But Raham shook his head calmly.

“Demons can’t heal themselves.”

“……”

I-eon had no idea. He had practically forced someone who couldn’t even heal to offer his blood. Feeling guilty, he panicked.

“I didn’t know… damn it. Would a potion work?”

Potions were intentionally nerfed to encourage party play, so he wasn’t sure how effective one would be against bleeding. He rummaged through his inventory, planning to dump a potion on the wound and wrap it with bandages for emergency treatment. He was so flustered he couldn’t even spot anything suitable as a bandage.

Just then…

-Recovery! HP status ailments have been healed.

“…?”

Startled by the alert ringing in his ears, I-eon slowly lifted his head. Raham’s arm was clean, and the party window showed his HP completely full, no sign it had ever dropped at all.

“…?”

“Let’s go.”

While I-eon stared at the party window trying to make sense of it, Raham casually walked through the now open door. I-eon remained frozen until his face twisted in realization.

That bastard had been messing with him.

“Hey!”

I-eon rushed after him and saw the faint smirk on Raham’s face. Furious, he glared.

“You scammer. Is this fun for you? Huh? You having fun?”

“Pretty much.”

It was an answer worthy of a punch. I-eon had actually been ready to tear up his own clothes for bandages, fooled into worrying. He couldn’t believe he’d wasted concern on someone like Raham. For all he knew, the hesitation earlier had been fake too.

“Ha…”

Blowing up alone at someone who didn’t care was pointless. He was just an NPC. An NPC.

Forcing himself to calm down with sheer willpower, I-eon strode ahead. He heard a faint laugh behind him, but NPC mockery was easy to ignore. Of course it was.

He didn’t stop because of Raham’s laugh. He stopped because a woman’s voice abruptly cut through the silence.

“Who are you?”

Both of them turned toward the voice. In one corner of the large room stood a woman in a plain dress, watching them warily. I-eon was startled by an NPC appearing without a hint of presence, but he raised both hands to show he meant no harm. Not that he looked harmless with a flaming sword.

“We came here looking for something. And you…?”

Clutching her collar, trembling softly, the woman saw I-eon’s paladin uniform and her expression brightened. She took a step forward and began speaking as if she had been waiting forever.

“When I was a child, I was offered to the Demon Archduke Raxella. But the Divine-Demon War broke out right after, so… I never even saw a single strand of Raxella’s hair. Since I was offered as a tribute, I couldn’t leave on my own, and I’ve been trapped here for fifteen years! In this horrible place, stuck at nineteen, the age I was sacrificed, unable to age, unable to die…”

Her trembling voice broke as she began to cry. To avoid alarming her, I-eon approached carefully and patted her shoulder. The woman seemed relieved by his quiet comfort, biting her lip to hold back tears before suddenly clinging to him.

And shouted:

“Please sleep with me!”

“…What?”

I-eon wondered if he misheard, but the woman clung to his chest with a desperate expression.

“Raxella only accepts pure tributes. If I share affection with another man, the contract will break!”

An alert window appeared.

[Sudden Quest!
A pitiful woman, trapped as Raxella’s tribute, begs for your help.
Will you accept her request?
Yes / No]

“What the hell is this…”

It was an adults-only game, sure, but he never expected this to show up as a quest. Dumbfounded, I-eon stared at the quest window, unable to believe what he was seeing. Meanwhile, the woman urged him again through tear-filled eyes.

“Please, help me.”

I-eon forced an awkward smile. He glanced at Raham as if pleading for help, but Raham only watched with interest. Definitely not an ally.

The woman’s pale hand crept up I-eon’s chest. Thick tears dripped from her lashes.

“Even if it’s just a moment of pleasure for you, please save me. I just want to live or die somewhere other than here.”

The quest window flashed insistently. I-eon, thoroughly troubled, finally opened his mouth, at the same moment the woman slyly licked her lips.

“No.”

“Ah, thank you so m… what?”

“I said no. And please step back.”

Because I-eon gently pushed her away, the woman was shoved back quite a distance. Cleanly rejected, she stood there with a hollow look, unable to speak for a long time.

“Why…?”

Instead of comforting her like before, I-eon rubbed his chin as if thinking of something, then asked Raham:

“What if we just find the archduke and take him down? Would it be too hard for the two of us?”

The moment I-eon proposed a second plan, the trembling woman suddenly burst out:

“Are you impotent?”

It was a question that made anyone frown.

“I’m not.”

“Then how can you reject me? Or are you into men?!”

“I just…”

He was going to explain he simply didn’t want a relationship without meaning, an excuse some would mock as boring, but the moment the words reached his throat, he glanced behind him. As expected, Raham was listening intently, face saying go on, keep talking.

The words slipped right back down.

“Anyway, I’ll help you.”

Seeing she was here alone, she was most likely a quest NPC. Tracking down a Demon Archduke who once owned a mansion in Imperial territory would be a hassle, but there wasn’t really another method. Gathering reports from other players should make it easier.

After deciding, I-eon casually glanced around, then noticed something faintly outlined by the light of his Flame Sword. He approached it. Near where he first found the woman, a door was wrapped tightly with chains and padlocks.

As he moved closer, possibly to another clue, he suddenly felt a chilling killing intent behind him. I-eon swung his sword up as he whipped around.

Crack!

The brutal sound of bone and flesh being pierced filled the room. Raham had driven the sharp tip of his staff straight through the woman’s heart.

He didn’t stop there. He pushed forward, pinning the impaled woman against the wall until she was stuck like an insect specimen skewered on a pin. Miraculously not dead, she reached up with trembling hands to grab the staff, but Raham pressed harder. All she could do was choke out a strangled “Kuk…!” as blood dripped from her shaking lips.

Just this afternoon he’d PKed Solacif. And now he was killing NPCs? How was I-eon supposed to deal with this maniac? It was so absurd he couldn’t even form proper words.

Raham finally let go of the staff, which was stuck so deep in the wall it was hard for even him to pull out. He turned and, upon seeing I-eon’s expression, even let out a short laugh. He really looked like a psycho.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Do you really have to ask? I-eon’s eyes said everything.

“I mean… NPC or not, she’s still a person. How could you just…”

“This is Raxella.”

“Huh?”

“Raxella. One of the thirteen Demon Archdukes. The Demon of Lust.”

The moment Raham said it, the woman’s appearance began to change. Her skin flushed red, her ears sharpened slightly, and her eyes turned a demonic crimson. Raxella glared at I-eon so fiercely she looked ready to die of frustration, not from the staff in her heart, but because of him.

“Damn it, of all the idiots I could run into, I get stuck with some limp-dicked…!”

Having dropped her act, Raxella shouted at full volume. That killing intent from earlier had indeed come from her.

…So it was a trap? Feeling weak, I-eon looked at Raham. Raham nodded.

“If you accepted, you’d be dead.”

“……”

Thanks for the early warning, you saint. Raham stood in front of Raxella, staring directly into her eyes.

“Where did you hide it?”

“Hide what?”

She obviously knew, but had no reason to tell him. Raxella smirked. Instead of interrogating her with words, Raham leaned down, closing the distance. The two demons locked eyes at close range.

The bold glare Raxella held at first slowly crumbled. Sweat ran down her temples. She grit her teeth and shook, as though resisting something invisible.

Did he put a debuff on her…?
While watching them, I-eon decided to head back toward the chained door he found earlier. He wanted to move quietly while no one was paying attention, but the Flame Sword made stealth impossible. Even in the middle of a psychic struggle, Raxella’s eyes snapped toward him the moment he moved. Her agitation made Raham straighten up.

“So it’s there.”

The door, large enough for a person to stand inside, was wrapped in chains engraved with complicated symbols. I-eon studied the unfamiliar yet strangely recognizable markings, then reached for the central padlock.

The moment skin touched metal…

Crackle!

A jolt like an electric shock shot through his hand. I-eon rubbed his stinging fingers and examined the lock more carefully.

Raxella, who had been anxiously biting her lip, sneered triumphantly once he pulled his hand back.

“What’s a measly paladin doing, touching that? Know your place and back off!”

“Hmm… Can’t we just break the door or the wall?”

“You think that’s an ordinary door? If you force open a portal linked to a subspace, who knows what’ll happen to the creature inside!”

Creature?

So whatever was inside wasn’t an object but a living being. She offered more information than I-eon asked for, her fear peeked through the mockery. Almost like she’d be harmed if the door was forced open.

I-eon ignored her and stared again at the lock’s emblem, which felt increasingly familiar. Meanwhile Raham patiently waited, glancing along the room’s walls.

“…Ah.”

He remembered.

I-eon quickly cast Return and shouted to Raham from afar:

“I’m going home real quick, so when I tell you, use Guild Member Summon!”

“Yeah.”

Before he could even answer, the return spell activated and I-eon vanished from the spot. With the owner of the Flame Sword gone, the room became so dark that even a step ahead was hard to see.

Raham lightly tapped the staff still impaled in Raxella’s body. The faint purple aura surrounding it flared brightly, enough to rival a torch. It was the demonic power he had drawn out of her. Thanks to that, the weakening Raxella forced her limp body upright and glared at Raham.

“Why are you with a mere paladin of Tiog? No matter how the Demon God may have ma…”

“Raxella.”

His quiet voice cut her words short. Calm, but not at all gentle. Raxella flinched, unable to hide her tension as she studied his expression. As always, he wore a blank, emotionless face.

“Be quiet.”

“……”

With the glow of magic, they could at least distinguish shapes. Raham left the staff as it was and began to walk slowly around the room. Though furnished with the essentials, the room still felt barren for its size. His unhurried steps passed by a small table and bed before he approached the wall. Something had been bothering him, a subtle sense of wrongness.

He traced his fingers along the wall, then stopped and pressed his whole palm against it. Magic flowed from his hand into the surface. Like flipping on a switch, white light burst across the letters covering the four walls, illuminating the entire room so brightly that the staff’s glow seemed faint. At the same time, the holy script repelled him and pushed his hand away.

“Hm…”

As he stepped back, having roughly grasped the situation from the revealed text, I-eon’s voice rang out, apparently he had finished his errand quickly.

[Summon me.]

Raham complied without hesitation. Using the guild summon skill, I-eon appeared and held up an item he had fetched from home. It was an amulet, attached to a thin chain to wear around the neck. Seeing it from afar, Raxella’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“How is that…!”

It looked plain at first glance, but the emblem engraved on it was the same as the one on the chained lock. I-eon had received it long ago as a reward from a retired paladin. Because the symbol was a slightly altered version of Tiog’s crest, he remembered it.

I-eon stood before the door holding the amulet. He had brought something that might be related, but the question was how to use it. Touching the amulet to the lock produced no reaction. The item description said nothing helpful, and turning it around revealed no hidden mechanisms. He shook the palm-sized object lightly, thinking he heard a faint rattle.

“Should I break it open? Maybe there’s a key inside?”

“Give it to me.”

Raham, who had silently approached, took the amulet and pressed it to the lock just as I-eon had done. Again, no reaction. But he didn’t stop there, he infused it with magic. Black aura flowed out, coating the amulet. And then…

Crack…!

Something shattered. Light leaked through the cracks of the engraved symbol and began filling the same emblem on the lock. As the light completed the symbol, the chains binding the door grew faint. It was the same effect seen before when Raham unbound Ouroboros, chains not physical, but manifested from power.

Once the symbol fully activated, the chains dissolved into thin air. Only the now-useless lock fell to the floor with a metallic clatter. I-eon let out a small sound of amazement.

“How did you do that?”

“I tried putting magic into it.”

“That’s impressive.”

Paladins used spiritual energy, not magic, so the idea to try magic never crossed his mind. Odd as it was, the combination of a healer and a tanker, of demon and human, worked surprisingly well.

“I’m opening it.”

I-eon grabbed the small handle and turned it. With the obstruction gone, the door opened smoothly. Just one step through revealed an entirely different space, proving it really was connected to a subspace.

A perfectly white world spread out, so bright it didn’t feel three-dimensional. Filled with sacred energy, the space held a man floating silently in midair with his eyes closed. His armor resembled I-eon’s but was clearly different.

—You have discovered ‘Esteban.’

…Esteban?

Hearing the name from the system, I-eon froze and quickly opened the Tiog contribution rankings. It was the name at the very top, the hero whose statues filled the temple, whose tales were required reading for every paladin.

Esteban. The one and only.

The divine power filling the space confirmed it beyond doubt.

—Quest information has been updated.
—Esteban is calling for you.

I-eon remembered that Esteban had fought four Demon Archdukes alone during the Holy-Demonic War and won. His victory had shifted the tides, allowing humanity to drive the demons out of their lands.

What was strange was this, Esteban was said to have sacrificed both body and soul in the final battle and died. Yet here he was, alive in a place like this. I-eon approached cautiously. The system spoke again.

—Call his name to awaken Esteban.

The quest had offered no guidance when opening the door, yet now it was suddenly helpful. Well, waking the temple’s greatest paladin couldn’t be a bad idea. I-eon followed the instruction.

“Esteban.”

“……”

The man’s tightly shut eyes opened. His body, previously floating, slowly descended to the floor. He stared at his own hands in confusion, then looked to I-eon. Their heights were similar. His gentle, puppy-like face hardly matched the image of someone who had slain four Demon Archdukes alone.

“Are you the one who awakened me?”

“Yes.”

“Why… is someone who is not Quanther here? And how did you break the seal, ah, apologies. My mind is unclear.”

He covered his face, breathing deeply, then continued.

“First, may I ask your identity? Judging from your armor, you appear to be a paladin of the temple…”

“Yes, I am a paladin of Tiog.”

“…Though your armor is unlike any design I have seen.”

Suspicion flickered across Esteban’s face. Well, after fifteen years, armor styles change. Since he was an NPC, I-eon didn’t bother explaining everything in detail. He simply gave the most important truth.

“The Holy-Demonic War ended fifteen years ago.”

“…What?”

“It ended fifteen years ago.”

Esteban looked stunned, unable to speak. Explaining verbally would take forever, going outside to see it firsthand would be faster. Plus, they needed to report to the High Priest. I-eon was just about to suggest leaving when Esteban began speaking again, face shadowed.

“I fought four Demon Archdukes here in Karvola. I managed to slay three, but with the last one, Raxella, I exhausted nearly all my strength. With my final remaining power, I sealed her and asked the companion fighting beside me to go to the temple… to fetch paladins strong enough to undo the seal.”

Esteban’s lowered eyes shifted to I-eon.

“What did you use to break my seal?”

The amulet was still in Raham’s hand. I-eon had assumed Raham would follow them inside, but apparently a demon couldn’t enter a place filled with Tiog’s divine power, he was nowhere to be seen. I-eon guided Esteban out through the doorway.

“An amulet with a crest similar to Tiog’s seal. Let’s go outside first.”

“…Very well.”

The two stepped through the doorway where the outside had been hidden as if covered by a white veil. As soon as Esteban crossed out, the white sacred space vanished as though it had never existed, leaving only an ordinary study beyond the wooden door.

Raham, who had been waiting nearby, watched them with interest. Raxella, still pinned to the wall, glared at Esteban with murderous hostility, as if she would lunge at him the moment she was free. Esteban spared her only a brief glance before turning away.

I-eon accepted the amulet back from Raham. Esteban’s gaze shifted from Raham’s red eyes down to the item in I-eon’s hand.

“This.”

“…Yes, this is indeed the item I entrusted to my companion.”

His gentle face hardened. Death, or betrayal, he clearly understood what the possibilities were. Even so, he stared at the amulet with the faintest trace of hope.

“Where did you obtain it?”

“Uh… from a retired knight.”

He had done so many quests, and it had been long enough that he didn’t recall the name.

“Could you take me to him?”

“Sure.”

“Thank you.”

Esteban bowed deeply, then finally turned to face Raxella. Her eyes were bloodshot with murderous rage despite her exhaustion. Esteban gave a bitter smile and stepped toward her.

“It has been a while, Raxella. At least, by my memory it was only moments ago.”

“Esteban… because of you, I…!”

“The war is over.”

“……”

“Isn’t further conflict pointless now?”

At his words, Raxella’s aura flared violently. Where the strength came from in her battered body was a mystery. But pinned to the wall as she was, she couldn’t harm Esteban even if she wanted to. She knew it too, yet her anger raged unchecked.

“I rotted in that prison for fifteen years because of you! You disgusting dog of the gods! I’ll kill you! I swear I’ll kill you!”

The more she thrashed, the more magic the staff drained from her. At this rate, she would probably die soon even without interference. But suddenly, Raham moved.

Raxella flinched. Esteban tensed. I-eon looked confused. Raham walked up to her under everyone’s stare and casually pulled his staff free. Raxella groaned in pain and collapsed to the floor. Yet almost immediately she regained her ferocity and launched herself at Esteban with beastlike speed. Esteban’s reflexes were razor-sharp; he drew his sword and met her attack. A battle erupted in an instant.

I-eon watched Raham pick up his staff and return to him, utterly baffled.

“…What are you doing?”

“What?”

“They’re fighting.”

“They were fighting before anyway.”

Well… true.

The updated quest completion requirement said, “Receive Esteban’s vow.” Whatever kind of vow it was, they needed Esteban alive. I-eon almost joined the fight, but seeing how overwhelmingly Esteban was overpowering Raxella, he reconsidered. It looked like the duel would end soon without help.

As he watched their clash, I-eon finally noticed how bright the room had become and glanced around.

“Hey, what are those letters? They look like holy script.”

“Yeah. Probably the sealing formation.”

A Demon Archduke was essentially a field-boss-class monster, so sealing one would naturally require holy power of that scale. I-eon wasn’t surprised Raham understood holy script better than he did; he simply brushed his hand across the symbols. The same pure energy he had felt in the white space flowed through his fingertips, clean and bright, just like Tiog favored.

“Ghh…!”

Hearing the sound of a fight ending, I-eon turned back. Raxella was on her knees, gasping, covered in wounds. Esteban, still in far better shape, pointed his sword at her with a firm expression.

“What confidence, in that broken body of yours.”

“Hah… hah…”

Raxella shot a venomous glare at Raham, as if believing she would have won easily had he not stabbed her with that damned staff earlier. Raham didn’t so much as glance at her.

“Let us end this at last.”

Esteban raised his sword to finish the battle begun fifteen years ago. Raxella’s eyes widened, but she was too exhausted to dodge; she could only pant out ragged, metallic breaths. Esteban’s grip tightened. Her life was moments away from ending.

But his sword never fell.

“Khah…!”

Esteban suddenly coughed up a spray of bright red blood and collapsed. As he fell, the holy letters illuminating the room dimmed instantly, then vanished without a trace.

No, he can’t die!

Alarmed, I-eon rushed to him with the Flame Sword in hand. He lifted Esteban’s head and checked his condition. The man kept coughing blood, yet he let out a faintly self-mocking laugh. Fortunately, the hemoptysis stopped after a short time.

“What’s wrong?”

“It seems… maintaining the seal alone for so long has taken its toll on my body.”

Sure enough, fifteen years was not a short time. Esteban squeezed his eyes shut and steadied himself through the dizziness, but by then Raxella had already taken the chance to escape. She had fled using the last of her strength, she wouldn’t be unscathed, but they had no idea where she had gone.

Esteban let out a hollow laugh as though disgusted with his own helplessness, his shoulders sinking. Then he turned back toward I-eon.

“Please… take me to that retired knight.”

“…Let’s go.”

– ‘Esteban (NPC)’ has joined the party.

I-eon searched through his quest history and found the request where he had received the amulet. It had begun in a small village on the outskirts of the capital.

They escaped the gloomy mansion with ease thanks to Raham burning through another teleport scroll. Soon, they arrived at the village. Following the address recorded in the quest log, I-eon pointed at a neat brick house.

“There it is.”

“Thank you.”

Esteban stood still, staring at the house with a complicated expression, then stepped forward as though making up his mind. At that moment, a middle-aged woman opened the door and stepped outside. Esteban froze in place. In a trembling voice, he whispered a name.

“…Elena?”

The woman didn’t notice the man standing motionless a block away. She simply watered the flowers. Confusion swept across Esteban’s face.

This looks… bad.

I-eon glanced from Esteban’s stiff profile to the woman he was staring at. Just from her expression alone, the whole scenario unfolded in I-eon’s mind like a predictable drama.

A middle-aged man appeared from the opposite direction, carrying a paper bag full of groceries. Holding his other hand was a boy around ten years old. The woman waved warmly. The boy let go of his father’s hand and ran into his mother’s arms. As she nodded attentively at the boy’s cheerful chatter, the man wrapped an affectionate arm around her shoulders. The three entered the house with bright smiles, the picture of a happy family.

Esteban stretched out a hand as if to call out to them, but as the door closed, his arm fell limply. I-eon asked, even though the answer was obvious.

“That wasn’t her?”

“No… it was. Quanther, he was my companion.”

Past tense. Seeing his friend aged while he remained unchanged must have driven the point home. Or perhaps it was the emotional distance created by betrayal.

Esteban blinked vacantly for a long moment, then suddenly turned away. I-eon asked again despite knowing the answer.

“You don’t want to see her?”

“…Elena was my fiancée.”

“……”

Of course she was.

While I-eon merely felt unimpressed by the overly dramatic development, Esteban shook his head with a pained expression.

“I don’t know why he entrusted you with the amulet now, but it doesn’t matter. I have no desire to stand before them.”

I-eon stared at him as if thinking, “There really are people this foolish.” Betrayed by a friend, written off as dead, fiancée stolen, and yet instead of confronting them, he turned away quietly. If it had been I-eon, he would have barged in, terrified them, and run straight to the temple afterward.

But Esteban truly meant it. He turned his back on the house without hesitation and strode away. I-eon grabbed Raham, who was standing around like an outsider, and followed. He still needed Esteban’s vow to complete the quest, but demanding it from a man who’d just lost both friend and fiancée felt risky. With Esteban’s sword in the picture, it might even end badly.

They followed Esteban’s swift steps until they reached a secluded area near the village wall. Finally, his feet stopped. After staring at the ground in silence, he lifted his head. Then he turned, approached I-eon with resolute eyes, and knelt without hesitation.

“With the end of the Divine-Demonic War, my duty has ended. A knight does not forget his debts. You awakened me, and that is no different from saving my life. I pledge my loyalty to you.”

A vow! I-eon held back his satisfaction, waiting for him to finish.

“If you will accept me, grant me your name. If not, leave me as I am.”

“I-eon.”

– You have become the master of ‘Forgotten Glory Esteban’!

– Quest complete!

– A new quest has been generated.

The moment I-eon answered, several notifications appeared along with a new window displaying Esteban’s profile and stats. The surprisingly low stats puzzled him, but then more messages followed.

– Esteban can now be summoned to your side at any time.

– Combat functions will remain disabled until his body recovers.

It seemed likely his stats would improve once he recovered. What caught I-eon’s attention most was the mention of “combat functions.”

Mercenaries could be hired with money, but their abilities were nowhere near a player’s. Yet here he was with the number-one-contribution NPC, a former war hero, with built-in combat functions? Based on past experience, though, Esteban would probably only be usable during related quests.

I-eon briefly left Esteban idle and searched the official homepage for information about him. But aside from the famous name, there was no detailed information, not even a quest similar to “Finding traces of the Divine-Demonic War in Carvola.”

Mainstream quests were supposed to be identical across races. There was no way this much information could be missing… unless it was related to contribution ranking.

Finding no clues, I-eon frowned. At that moment, Esteban suddenly held something out, the amulet Raham had returned.

“As an adventurer, aren’t you seeking your ideal place? If you bring this to the Imperial Palace, you will find clues.”

– Quest information updated.

As he said, a new condition appeared: “Show the Emperor the traces of the Divine-Demonic War.” Progressing the quest was good, but a new problem arose.

Where would Esteban stay?

Pets could be summoned or dismissed freely, but Esteban, who looked like a grown man, obviously wasn’t a pet. Did he even have a dismissal function? I-eon tried, just in case.

“Dismiss Esteban.”

“…Pardon?”

“…….”

Nope. Doesn’t work.

Esteban stared wide-eyed at the command, forcing I-eon to cough awkwardly. He didn’t dwell on it long. If he left Esteban in his housing, the NPC would either wait quietly or do whatever the game dictated. He wasn’t an animal, just leave him there.

Now for the remaining task…

I-eon approached Raham, who was silently watching him, and abruptly held out the ticket.

“I’m going to make a cat.”

“Do it.”

“It’s your ticket though. Shouldn’t I consider your opinion?”

“Just do whatever you want.”

“Fine. Pick a number then. One to thirty.”

“……”

I-eon had already opened the appearance selection screen and offered Raham an easy choice. Raham seemed briefly baffled by being interrupted, but then chuckled and played along.

“Number one.”

“Okay, same breed as Ho-rang, just a different color… says the temperament is aggressive.”

Now he needed a name, but he didn’t expect much from Raham. Once again, he offered simplified options.

“Pick a name. Number one: Beom-i. Number two: Beom-i. Number three: Beom-i.”

“…Number one.”

“Okay.”

– Lovely Cat ‘Aggressive Beom-i’ has been bound to you.

Since he was Ho-rang’s sibling, Beom-i was fitting. Come to think of it, I-eon had been a little surprised when he’d first learned that “horang” was a Sino-Korean word while “beom-i” was pure Korean. Anyway, he opened housing to release Ho-rang and Beom-i, admire them to his heart’s content, and bring Esteban over as well. After happily checking the pet information window, he lifted his head, only to see Raham’s mouth faintly twisted in a half-smile. I-eon wondered why he was making that face, but Raham was always strange, so he didn’t give it much thought.

“I’m heading home now. You?”

“I have something to do.”

“Alright. I’ll call you next time we do a quest.”

“Yeah.”

After a short exchange, they parted ways. When I-eon used Return and arrived home, thankfully Esteban came along on his own. I-eon told him this was his house and he could rest comfortably, then plopped onto the floor and summoned the two cats he had long awaited.

Korean Shorthair cheese tabby Ho-rang appeared with a perfect ten-point flip and landing. Following behind, the mackerel tabby Beom-i materialized without any flourish and immediately punched I-eon’s leg. Just as aggressive as his temperament, the fierce little paw attack landed.

“Ha….”

I-eon used his mouth only when necessary, for endless gasps of admiration, as he took screenshot after screenshot. He even managed to capture the precious moment of aggressive Beom-i throwing jabs at Esteban’s feet where the man sat politely on the sofa, then biting and nibbling him. Esteban simply watched, slightly troubled, as the tiny kitten went wild without knowing its place. Meanwhile, lazy Ho-rang had already crawled between I-eon’s legs, purring as he fell fast asleep.

Click, click… the camera shutter never stopped.

That day, I-eon’s screenshot folder filled with hundreds of cat pictures.