Chapter 303

The owner had entrusted the tavern to Clamshell and had already gone home. Jin and his companions were the only customers.

Swish-swish, crunch-crunch...!

The sound of Olmango chewing on cookies echoed loudly. He seemed to be devouring the cookies as if he had found water in the desert oasis.

'What kind of god is this?'

Jin couldn't help but feel somewhat baffled. On the other hand, he thought he should have prepared more cookies.

Jin's companions naturally gathered around to watch the spectacle.

It was a strange experience for them to watch a god stick his head into a basket and devour cookies.

[Is there... more!?]

Olmango raised his head and asked when about 70% of the cookies in the basket had disappeared.

"That's all I have."

[Please tell me there's more.]

He truly looked desperate.

"There is more, but only in the bakery on the third floor of the Free City of Tikan, across the sea."

[Oh... I guess I'll have to save some then. My contractor will also want a taste as well.]

Olmango closed the basket with trembling hands.

"He is so cute!" Enya exclaimed without realizing it, while the others just shrugged their shoulders.

[Ahem.]

Olmango cleared his throat, feeling embarrassed by the suddenly attentive gazes on him.

"I acted very low even though I am a god... if possible, please convey this to the owner of Tikan's bakery that these were the best cookies Olmango has ever tasted. This is beyond human skills."

The owner wasn't really human, but there seemed to be no need to disclose that.

"I'll make sure to pass on the message."

[Alright, alright. By the way, you're Jin Runcandel, right? The so-called Thousand-Year Contractor that Solderet mentioned?]

"That's correct."

[Prove it.]

Jin formed a fist-sized shadow force sphere in his palm, to which Olmango nodded.

[You are real then. In truth, I didn't think you'd survive and come to me. You caused quite a commotion against Zipfel before becoming a flagbearer, and there was even a bounty on your head... I was almost certain that you were going to die.]

Like everyone in Huphester, both Clamshell and Olmango knew the full story of the Holy Kingdom incident.

[Solderet, my friend. You correctly guessed what was going to happen a thousand years later.]

"Hey, mister god of clams. We are busy, you know? So, why don't you just show the key?" Murakan said bluntly.

He was rather upset that Olmango called Solderet his "friend."

Murakan had never seen Solderet and Olmango together even once before he fell into a long slumber.

In reality, the only powers of Olmango known to the public were his abilities to keep the contractor's skin moisturized and easily luring seafood creatures. And he could bless any clam dish to taste delicious, regardless of the ingredients or circumstances.

That's why Murakan always regarded Olmango as nothing more than a useless god. It was not because Murakan was particularly rude. In fact, most people in the world thought of Olmango that way.

The reason why Clamshell, Olmango's contractor, worked as a waiter in such a remote tavern was precisely for that reason.

[Judging by your speech, you must be Murakan, the Black Dragon. Solderet was quite worried about you.]

"He left keys of Temar's tomb to people like you and Picon Minche, and you're saying he was worried about me?"

[Well, Solderet must have had reasons, right?]

"Hmph! Do you know anything about those reasons?"

Olmango shook his head.

Murakan found Olmango's sparkling eyes annoying, but he didn't want to argue with him.

But the rest of the companions felt that Murakan was very upset as he spoke bluntly.

In the case of Picon, Murakan had known him for a thousand years, but Olmango was an entirely unexpected acquaintance from Murakan's perspective.

[Anyway, now that I have finished the cookies, let's open the second tomb of Runcandel's first patriarch. But, Jin Runcandel.]

"Yes?"

[Do you all intend to enter the tomb?]

Jin exchanged a puzzled glance with Olmango.

"Is that even possible?"

[Nothing is impossible. It's just a tomb to commemorate a person, after all.]

Jin had never thought of visiting Temar's tomb with someone else other than Murakan and Misha.

[However, since it's a special tomb, you should be prepared for the dangers.]

Dangers.

Jin immediately understood this as he remembered what had happened in the first tomb. If there were guardians modeled after the Ten Great Knights, like Sylderay Runcandel, it wouldn't just be a simple level of danger.

Jin didn't want to put his companions in such danger if he could avoid it.

But he also knew that sometimes, respecting his companions meant relying on their strength.

'It seems like everyone is determined to go together.'

Jin's companions had already made their choice. They felt sorry that they couldn't assist him as actively as they used to lately.

"Mr. Olmango, do you know who the guardian of the second tomb is?"

[I can't answer that.]

"Why not?"

[All my memories related to that have disappeared. No matter how hard I try to recall, I can only remember a very faint image.]

There was not a single figure among the Ten Great Knights who hadn't been erased from history.

[However, one thing is certain. They must be exhausted. There have been several large battles and Zipfel has vandalized the tomb.]

The guardian of the first tomb, Sylderay, appeared after Zipfel had vandalized the tomb. Sylderay was a guardian that would only manifest once the condition of "the arrival of the thousand-year contractor" was met.

In contrast, the guardian of the second tomb had been guarding it from the beginning.

Once again, Olmango tried to recall a face that wouldn't come to mind, and a bitter smile appeared on his lips.

[Let's go.]

Jin and his companions followed Olmango out of the tavern.

It was an unusually starry night outside. Somehow, it felt like the starlight was guiding them along the way.

Olmango stopped by the beach where they had been swimming all day.

"...Is the second tomb really here?"

[Yes.]

Splash!

Olmango stepped into the sea, motioning for the others to follow.

[Follow me in a straight line.]

A little later, something amazing happened.

A 'path' appeared on the water, following Olmango's slow and deliberate steps. He was walking on the sea as if it were flat ground. It was truly a mysterious sight, one that could be described as divine.

Of course, none of them had ever walked on water before.

"Wow... He really seems like a god, Lord Jin."

"Yes, I am experiencing another wonder again thanks to you, my lord. Even the gently rolling waves around us add to the beauty. It's the most magnificent sight I've ever seen."

"It truly is a delightful vacation, young master."

Even Cuicantelle was quite impressed by Olmango's powers. Murakan, on the other hand, only grumbled about walking on water.

They walked for an hour. The sea bathed in starlight was all they could see around them, and the land was hardly visible.

[I think it would be safe to open it now.]

"What do you mean, 'open'? Weren't you supposed to give us keys?"

Olmango showed his palms in response to Murakan's question.

[My authority is the key, Murakan.]

In the next moment...

Swoooosh!

The sea in front of Olmango suddenly began to split, as if a cloth was being torn in two pieces.

"Woah. This is Insane! What is this?"

Even Murakan, who was trying his best not to impressed, couldn't help but be amazed. His companions were no different.

Even Jin found himself gaping in awe.

Kwaaaah, Lurrrrrsh, Shyaaaa! The sea followed Olamngo's hands and formed waterfalls on both sides of the gap.

The fact that the god of clams was creating this miraculous sight was something no one would believe, no matter how hard they tried to explain it. Even more surprising was that this spectacle was not the end.

'What in the world is that?'

Jin and his companions looked down at the gap in the sea.

There, they saw a giant clam.

It was incredibly large and smooth... undoubtedly one-of-a-kind in the world, with its massive shell wide open.

It was the size of an entire castle.

[Whoa, it's exhausting. It has been a while since I used my power. Murakan, the reason Solderet chose me is precisely because of this. Not many beings in the world are capable of handling a seal of such scales.]

His previous obsession with cookies seemed like a distant memory. The whole group, including Murakan, couldn't help but show their utmost respects to Olmango.

This was the reason why the god of clams, Olmango, was rumored to be a useless god to the rest of the world.

He always had to conserve his power. Olmango's duty as a god was to use that power to hide and protect stories within the enormous clam, and display them to those who needed them at the required time.

Huuuuung, Hooong...!

It almost looks like a black pearl.

A massive seal of shadow force was writhing Inside the clam. This seal was the entrance to Temar's second tomb.

[So, I hope you won't be too upset with Solderet. Everyone, please go inside.]

"Thank you, Mr. Olmango."

[I've just done what needed to be done. Oh, and one more thing.]

Olmango made eye contact with Jin and added a parting word.

[I may not remember who's inside, but please pass on this message to the friend within that they've worked hard all this time.]

"I won't forget, and deliver the message."

The group threw themselves into the seal of shadow force inside the clam one by one. 

Olmango's giant clam closed its mouth as all of them were sucked into the seal.

***

Once again, they found themselves in a subspace made of shadow force. 

However, unlike the endlessly dark and desolate first tomb they had entered,

The second tomb was filled with signs of fierce battles scattered all around.

The remains of what seemed to be mages of ancient Zipfel writhed on the ground, reduced to dust when touched.

"Whoa, it was so mysterious just a moment ago. Now it's incredibly eerie and desolate here, my lord."

"How many of these skeletons are there? I can't even guess how many foes the guardian of this place had to face alone, Lord Jin."

Jet and Kashmir commented while surveying their surroundings.

The group briefly contemplated which direction to walk in when they heard a voice of a woman from afar.

[I had a feeling I sensed a commotion from far away. Yes, I knew you'd come…]

The group immediately tensed up, and turned their heads towards the source of the voice.

And Murakan immediately recognized whose voice it was.

"Sarah? Sarah Runcandel, is that you?"

[Murakan…]

Eventually, the guardian's figure became visible. She wore armor similar to the Runcandel Guardian Knights, like Sylderay, but her armor was torn and riddled with holes.

Not only her armor, but her body was in a similar state. She had only one remaining arm, and her body was covered in countless wounds that ooze shadow force like blood.

[Why are you so late, you bastard?]

The guardian spoke to Murakan as she met eyes with him.