Game of Divine Thrones

Chapter 140: Devil's Plague 1

Before leaving for the Lydia Kingdom, Woohyuk cleansed the Dane Kingdom by removing any and every problematic element as much as possible.

After the incident with Eteria Rodinus and Rosenkreuz, the capital Tenas was visited by priests of the Holy See.

They constantly purged the pagans in search of the whereabouts of Eteria Rodinus, while they spied on the local situation through their believers.

It would’ve been an unacceptable and unsightly behavior in foreign countries, but Woohyuk couldn’t intervene as he had claimed to be a minister of the God of Light.

In order not to keep his future plans and his identity a secret, he had to be careful not to get caught by them as much as possible.

'I only need to cooperate with them for a short while.'

He was a busy man with a lot of plans to work on.

He decided not to make a move against them for now, but the Holy Aperian Empire would definitely be conquered by him one day.

Not only did the empire have a temperate climate compared to other nations in the western continent, but it would be a good base of operations when Woohyuk would confront the Theresian Empire on the eastern continent.

Subjugating all the small kingdoms on the western continent like he had done for the Dane Kingdom would take far too long, so it would be beneficial to conquer the empire first.

In addition, it would be better to maintain friendly relations with the Lydia Kingdom and the Izuna Kingdom, and gradually incorporate them into his reign.

In terms of the overlords from the past who created a lot of trouble for him, Woohyuk would deal with them before their rise to power and the beginning of the inter-overlord warfares.

“What are you thinking about so seriously?”

Helena, who was looking at the outside scenery in the carriage, asked him as she was bored.

Woohyuk looked at her, realizing she had approached him and was sitting next to him.

“My plans for the future.”

“Ah, will you raise pupils after you conquer the Eeth Continent? Hmm… Certainly, the former is not very different from our purpose, but some of us may disagree with the latter plan.”

Helena had read the prophetic book in the Ark of Knowledge and knew what Woohyuk’s plans were about.

“Why? Don't you guys want to take the Holy Aperian Empire back from the fanatics?”

“Of course, I also want to enjoy a wealthy life like Emperor Tiberius and Princess Eleonora. But rebuilding the Ark of Knowledge and preparing for the chaos of the End is far more important than that.”

The Ark of Knowledge was also closely related to the Holy Grail.

The Holy Grail would not regain its function unless the Ark was repaired.

It would be impossible to seal Lilith and protect the divine lineage from the demons.

Woohyuk showed great interest at Helena’s explanation.

“If I obtain the Grail, Lilith and Aleister won't be able to do anything to me.”

“You cannot obtain the Holy Grail in its perfect condition. The moment you touch it, it will disappear along with this world.”

“Disappear?”

“Yes, you can assume that it functions like the Verserios you have.”

Initialization system.

It was said that the world where the Demon King Asura was located had been created and destroyed at regular intervals.

That could happen on the Eeth Continent as well.

Helena burst into laughter at Woohyuk’s surprise

“How interesting. I didn’t know that the Demon God candidate who could one day destroy the world could make such an expression.”

“Could one day destroy the world? Why do you keep using ambiguous expressions? Isn’t everything related to my future written in the prophetic book?”

“Of course. But that will happen under the premise that no external intervention will occur, so I can never be too certain.”

That was why Eteria Rodinus didn't tell Woohyuk the contents in detail.

Woohyuk was a very important existence to those who wanted to change the future by avoiding the conclusion within the prophetic book.

Therefore, Helena decided to provide only the necessary information as she helped Woohyuk instead of taking the initiative.

“Then you can’t tell me where the Holy Grail is, can you? Since that might change the future.”

"Yes, that is correct. You seem to understand my position now.”

Helena whipped her blonde hair back and showed an innocent smile.

Afterwards, she leaned on Woohyuk's shoulder, until he spoke to her again.

"Don't think you can tame me so easily, Helena."

“I can sense your confusion. Is it because of the knight you left behind in the Dane Kingdom? What was her name… Oh right. Isn’t it Leifina?”

Leifina was taking care of her territory with the butler Gustav, holding onto the Informant’s Messages instead of Woohyuk.

Her task was to bring the public’s opinion on their side, since the imperial clergy was slowly making their advances in the country.

She was also there to hide Woohyuk’s location, that could be tracked with the informant’s messages, from Rosenkreuz

Moreover, to prepare for the worst case scenario, Choi Kayoon was living in Leifina's house, pretending to be Woohyuk as she wore the Jester’s Mask.

Because of this, all the monsters Choi Kayoon was training in Floren were being managed by Tinia.

“Are you being jealous of her right now?”

“Honestly, a little. I know how obsessed you are with that knight due to the prophetic book.”

"Obsessed?"

“I can't tell you the details, but that was what it looked like. Be truthful. You can’t deny it, right? A beautiful woman like me is seducing you with all my might, but aren’t reacting a single bit. Maybe your first intimate relationship in this life was also with… Mmmmmh!”

When Woohyuk clocked Helena's mouth with his hand, she struggled rebelliously.

Bailey, who was the coachman, noticed the turmoil and turned to Woohyuk.

[Do you need any help?]

[No, don't mind us. This sadistic saint is just acting up again.]

Woohyuk brought Bailey on this journey in order to avoid suspicion from the priests of the Holy See in the Dane Kingdom.

If rumors spread that the lord of the Schwarz County was a demon, they wouldn't stand still.

For similar reasons, Hong Yuri, who was working as Maximus’ assistant right now, was refraining from appearing in official meetings.

Woohyuk released Helena after checking the remaining distance to their destination with Bailey.

“Don’t you think the future would change badly if you keep stimulating me like this?”

“I'm just trying to be your companion. That role can't be played by anyone else around you right now.”

“I don't need a companion. Rather, it will only interfere whenever I put my plans into action.”

“No, that's a wrong way to think. Desire does not disappear just because it is suppressed.”

If he tried to carry all his burden by himself, he would inevitably reach his limit someday.

And the moment he would lose control over his mind, the Abyss would start to consume Woohyuk.

Helena did not want such a thing to happen, so she kept trying to bring out Woohyuk's true thoughts and feelings.

“You really are a strange saint. Saints usually stay away from worldly desires and pursue high values.”

“Yes, I usually do that as well. However, your values are so extremely biased that I am just trying to balance them.”

“Is that why you enjoy provoking and mocking people so much? Well, you do seem to enjoy doing it to your brother.”

“I am not provoking or mocking people. I am just saying what must be said as a saint.”

The argument showed no sign to an end.

After a deep sigh, Woohyuk turned around and stared at the scenery.

It has been a long time since they had crossed the national borders, and exotic buildings were starting showing up over the horizon.

“This is the first village in a while.”

“Will we stop by it? It seems like a good place to start asking for information about the epidemic.”

“Let's do that.”

There was still no certainty that the plague that was spreading in the Lydia Kingdom was the notorious Ghost Disease of the past.

Therefore, they couldn’t head to the Devil's Crystal Cave right away to find the ingredients for the cure.

He was no medical expert, but he needed to look at the symptoms himself.

When they arrived at the village, Woohyuk and Helena blocked their noses and frowned.

The smell of rotting flesh.

A thin veil of death covered the entire town.

“This is pretty serious. King Philip II was right.”

"Indeed. It looks like Aleister is decorating something again.”

Aleister was currently hiding in the Lydia Kingdom.

Eteria Rodinus couldn’t predict where he would appear next either.

The contents related to the Golden Rose Society within the prophetic book was less than they had expected.

As an anxious look took over Helena’s face, a low groan resounded from somewhere.

“Looks like there are survivors.”

Woohyuk's gaze turned to a shabby house.

Afterwards, the two of them walked inside and saw a young man with brown hair laying on the floor like a corpse, gasping for breath.

‘It must be the Ghost Disease.’

A pale face and shortness of breath were typical symptoms of hypotension.

While those symptoms alone could obviously not confirm the name of the disease, the possibility of him being correct was high due to the circumstances.

As Helena cast a recovery spell on the young man, Woohyuk looked to see if there were any noticeable oddities around them.

'There are traces of an attempted incantation.'

He couldn’t sense any demonic energy, so it was probably one of the civilians attempting to fight back against the disease.

In other words, there was someone here other than a young man.

Helena stood up while Woohyuk pulled out the archaeologist's golden magnifying glass and examined footprints.

“I did some first aid for now. But I think that tonight will be the biggest hurdle, since the disease has already progressed considerably...”

“Then, let's find a way before it's too late.”

If they found a conscious person, they would be able to hear the details of what had happened in this village.

As Woohyuk tried to leave the house with Helena, a sinister laughter resounded from behind.

“Keke… Kekekek...”

The young man Helena had taken care of just now opened his eyes.

However, only the whites of his eyes were visible and his expression was distorted, as if he was in pain.

'I’m sure of it.'

The Ghost Disease would intensify when the moon rose, as an evil spirit would seep into the body of the sleeping person.

However, it was obviously impossible to do so at any moment. The spirit would need to use something as a medium.

Only potions made from the plant-type monster, Mandragoras, could erase this medium.

However, in the current situation, the evil spirit could have some useful information.

Feeling the need to interrogate it, Woohyuk walked to the young man and unsheathed Grandia.

“Where is Aleister? Tell me everything about his plans.”

“Keke... Don’t want to. I won't listen to your orders.”

The evil spirit merely mocked Woohyuk and did not speak any further.

Woohyuk nodded as if he had expected it, and turned to Helena.

“Seems like I will need an exorcist, Ms. Saint.”

Helena took a clear glass bottle out of her pocket.

Afterwards, the young man screamed painfully as holy water was poured on his body.

“Arrgh! A bitch like you dares to pour poison on me?!”

“Poison, you say? This is refreshing first-class water from the sanctuary of the Earth God.”

Helena’s mood worsened and this time she sprinkled the holy water on the young man's face.

Then a black smoke grew and the young man had a seizure.

“Arrrgh! Urrrgh! I will definitely kill you, you bitch!”

“Do your best. Though I don’t think it’ll be possible.”

For Saint Helena, ordinary evil spirits were weak, forgettable beings.

As she snorted, the door rattled open and a girl with brown hair ran inside.

“Please don’t hurt my brother! Please!”

She appeared to be the young man’s little sister

Woohyuk and Helena’s gazes slowly turned to the little girl.