Chapter 37

The reason Oto suddenly opened the <Sanctuary> was simple.

‘This way, no one can stop me. Hehehe.’

Oto knew all too well that Javier and Kuzo would attempt to assassinate him.

Rather than stand idly by and be a victim, he decided to open the <Sanctuary> and escape.

“Camille~ I’m going out~”

Oto left those words and slipped into the <Sanctuary>.

“…….”

Camille was so taken aback by Oto’s sudden action that she was left speechless.

He had said he would open the <Sanctuary> in three days…

“What is going on here?”

The captain of the knights asked Camille.

“Well… that is…”

“How can you just open the Sanctuary like this!”

“I’m sorry.”

Camille apologized to the captain of the knights.

“It seems His Highness was feeling a bit feverish.”

“Huh!”

“I hope you can understand… His Highness sometimes acts impulsively.”

Camille bowed her head to the captain of the knights.

“Do I even have a choice to understand or not? I will report this to His Highness the Duke first. You must guard the Sanctuary thoroughly from this moment on! No one is to approach this area until His Highness arrives! Understand?”

“Yes! Captain of the Knights!”

The captain of the knights left hurriedly to make his report.

“The Sanctuary… is open.”

At that moment, a knight, unable to contain his curiosity and greed, approached the wide-open entrance.

“Wait….”

Before Camille could stop him,

Zzzz!

A flash of light burst from the open <Sanctuary> entrance, and an enormous current of electricity surged out, enveloping the approaching knight.

“……!”

“……!”

“……!”

Camille and the knights of the Kuntachi family were shocked to witness the fate of the reckless knight.

Sssss!

The knight who had approached the <Sanctuary> entrance had turned into a blackened lump of charcoal.

‘Only the one who opens the Sanctuary can enter. The one who opens it gains the right to enter. So even if the Sanctuary is opened, the only person who can go inside is me. The only person who can obtain the power is me.’

Camille recalled Oto’s words and felt a wave of relief.

“Be careful! Absolutely do not get close!”

“Move the body!”

While the Kuntachi family knights hurried to remove the body, Conrad arrived at the <Sanctuary>.

“What is this….”

Conrad was astonished to see the <Sanctuary> entrance wide open.

“The Sanctuary is really open… Is the 1,000-year-old secret finally being revealed?”

Conrad approached the <Sanctuary> entrance as if entranced.

“No!”

“Lord! Stop!”

The knights blocked Conrad’s path and told him about the terrible tragedy that had just occurred.

“The barrier can be broken with a single strike.”

Conrad drew his sword.

Conrad’s sword, as red as blood, was a terrifying magic sword that drank the blood of enemies.

Whoosh!

Conrad swung his sword, which was swirling with a red current, to break the barrier.

But that was not a wise choice.

Whoosh!

As soon as Conrad swung his sword, the red current was deflected and swept across the <Sanctuary> entrance.

“Aaaaaah!”

“Gaaaah!”

The deflected red current enveloped the Kuntachi family knights near the <Sanctuary> entrance, causing massive damage.

“What a disaster!”

Conrad hurried to deal with the situation, but nearly a dozen knights were left bloodied and fallen.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know.”

Camille simply played dumb in response to Conrad’s question, as she feared his anger if he knew Oto had lied.

“Perhaps the Sanctuary is rejecting those who do not have the key?”

“Hmm.”

“Perhaps it’s best to wait and see.”

Conrad, though displeased with Camille’s answer, decided to exercise patience.

He didn’t want to risk a bigger accident by tampering with the <Sanctuary> and decided to wait for Oto to come out.

* * *

The news that Oto had opened the <Sanctuary> spread in the blink of an eye.

“My goodness!”

“It’s really open!”

The Kuntachi family’s leadership, upon hearing the news, rushed to the <Sanctuary> and were amazed to see the entrance wide open.

But no one was as shocked as Javier and Kuzo.

“No way!!!”

“My goodness… The Sanctuary is open… The Sanctuary….”

Javier and Kuzo were almost fainting at the sight of the open <Sanctuary> entrance.

Just a few hours earlier, they had been planning to assassinate Oto, never dreaming that the <Sanctuary> would actually open.

“We must break the barrier and enter immediately! We don’t know what’s happening inside!”

Javier, gnashing his teeth, insisted on breaking the barrier and entering the <Sanctuary>.

If Oto emerged from the <Sanctuary> with the power of the Invincible Emperor, his ambition to become the successor would be shattered.

“Break the barrier….”

Conrad, seeing through Javier’s intentions, smiled sardonically.

“How do you plan to break a barrier that even I couldn’t break? The Sanctuary has remained unopened for 1,000 years. Breaking the barrier is no easy task.”

“If we don’t care about the means….”

“Then you break it yourself. But you will be responsible for the backlash that follows.”

“…….”

“I’ve given you permission, so I hope it turns out well.”

Conrad turned away from the <Sanctuary>.

“Report immediately if anything unusual happens. And if that brat comes out of the Sanctuary, protect him thoroughly so that no one can harm him. Not a single hair on his head must be harmed until I return. Understand?”

“Yes! Your Highness!”

Conrad was wise.

Rather than waste time at the <Sanctuary> entrance, which he couldn’t enter due to the barrier, he decided to leave.

“What do we do?”

Kuzo whispered to Javier.

“With the Sanctuary open, our position within the family will be greatly shaken.”

“For now, we can only hope that the little rat dies inside the Sanctuary.”

Since they had no other options, Javier and Kuzo decided to pray.

At this point, the only best scenario was for Oto to die in an accident.

* * *

Meanwhile, Oto stood in front of a circular bath inside the <Sanctuary>.

The bath was empty, with a faucet-like device in the center.

In front of it, ancient text was inscribed.

Oto didn’t know the ancient script, but he knew what it said.

‘O traveler who has entered the Sanctuary… You cannot obtain the power of the gods in your human form… Immerse yourself in this bath… By doing so, you will gain a body capable of wielding the power of the gods…’

Recalling the inscription he had seen in the game, Oto turned the faucet.

Creak, creak!

Gush, gush, gush!

Golden liquid spurted from the faucet, filling the bath.

[Notice: The <Body Modification> quest has been triggered!]

The quest details were as follows:

[Body Modification]

Objective: Enter the bath and achieve the reconstruction of your body!

Type: Hidden Quest

Level Requirement: 70

Progress: 0% (0/1)

Reward: Divine Body

Note:

- The <Divine Body> allows you to freely wield magic and swordsmanship.

- There is a risk of death during the body reconstruction process.