19 Swallowed by the Curse

"Wait, it smells exactly like those frogs. Don't tell me there's a plot twist..."

Gris reflexively moved away from the corpses. His forehead winced in disgust when a group of frog monsters arrived and opened their mouths wide.

For the first time, Gris saw the frogs' teeth mystically appear and tear into the corpses. But it did not seem like the frogs killed the humans. They were eating what was served.

"Who the hell killed these humans?"

Gris looked at the corpses and realized some of them were children. Their skin was peeling off, a sickening sight.

For some time, he analyzed the corpses to guard against threats that could befall him. But he was certain that the corpses were victims of the crab monsters.

His conclusion was based on Declan's words. The guard said crab monsters could grab and tear targets' skin.

Those targeted and dead people must have come for a purpose. They were weak because they could not face the crab monsters, so they were most likely not knights.

"I think you're in trouble for keeping quiet." 

Declan suddenly appeared beside Gris. He joined in watching the frogs eating the corpses.

"They are ordinary people desperate to enter the doomkeep to hunt down the crab monster's skin to sell. It can be used as a medicinal ingredient."

Gris no longer needed to think about why people were desperate to hunt monsters here because Declan had already explained it.

After the Doomsday Wave, ordinary people suffered from job losses and could not continue to rely on aid from the empire. The rich could still survive, while the poor had more difficulties.

Anyone could enter the doomkeep if they paid and agreed to the rules. Whatever happened inside the doomkeep was not the responsibility of the empire. As a result, many people bet on making a lot of money from hunting low-class monsters.

"I'll stand guard near you to ensure your safety," Declan spoke again.

Gris nodded. "Only help me if I'm in a life-threatening situation."

He refused to be helped all the time because it hindered his development. Stopping to watch the frogs and corpses, he hurried toward the river.

The flow of the river reduced his step's speed. It felt like he was climbing a hill. His two legs held firmly in place so as not to be overtaken by the river's flow.

The crab monsters came into view. Their shells, covered in strange spines, glistened in the sunlight. They wandered around the river, not attacking Gris when he approached them.

"It's true. They're monsters who only fight back if I attack first."

Gris gripped his Soulshard Axe tightly. Unlike when attacking the frogs, he had to strengthen his footing this time.

He stepped up, bracing himself as he swung his axe at the crab monster. It took a while for it to retaliate, so he quickly struck three other crabs in the meantime. 

[You killed four Marshclaws, the Ruler of Swamps!

[6 (+3)

6 (+3)

6 (+3)

6 (+3)...]

Gris slashed at another crab while throwing away the crabs that clipped his boot greaves. It was good that Alberic had given him strong enough greaves, but he was having trouble due to the weight.

Moreover, the claws of the crab were very strong. Gris did not last long in this position. His greaves were ripped off when he hit two crabs.

[6 (+3)

6 (+3)...]

"Oh, shit..."

Gris was not pleased with the notification about the addition of dark energy. He cursed as his legs were exposed, giving the crabs a chance to grab him. A scream escaped his mouth as they tore the skin off his legs.

Had they been bigger than his fist, he would have been skinned. The river current flowed over his leg wounds, causing him to grimace in pain.

The crab monsters did not let him go. They crawled to the rest of his body after finishing with his leg.

"They're so vengeful," he muttered, trying to shake them off with his hands.

But that was not a good move as the crabs switched to clutching his hands. He quickly hit them with the axe handle.

It worked. The axe handle worked better than he expected. He hit every crab that crawled onto him, knocking them into the river.

As he glanced down, he noticed a growing black spot. Instantly, the crabs scattered away from him.

"Is this the curse Alberic told me?"

The small black spot expanded beyond Gris's feet. In that instant, the surroundings gradually darkened, the obscurity deepening as the spot grew larger.

The darkness kept pace with the expanding spot as it continued to grow above the ground. Gris looked back; he could still see Declan and Leander running towards him with panicked expressions.

"Young Master, let go of that cursed axe!"

Declan arrived at the river but could not find Gris. A few minutes ago, the boy suddenly disappeared, and the crab monsters moved away from the river.

But Gris's spilled blood was still visible in the river. That proved that he was still in the doomkeep. It was just that Declan and Leander could not see him because of the darkness created by the Soulshard Axe.

"Sir Blayz will sentence us to death if Young Master is trapped in that darkness," Leander spoke breathlessly after sprinting in panic.

Declan nodded. "You're right. We can't die alone. Let's take Alberic with us to hell since he's the one who brought the axe!"

"Is that all you can think about right now?"

"I can't enter the darkness. If Young Master is trapped there, I don't want to die with just you."

Leander exhaled a rough breath. Like Declan, he could not pull Gris from the darkness.

Every curse had different characteristics. Some allowed others to interfere, and some refused to.

Soulshard Axe clearly wanted to swallow Gris alone. This curse was usually favored because it only harmed the wielder, not affecting others.

"Look, there's no more blood flow!" Declan pointed at the clean river.

Leander scanned around the doomkeep. He narrowed his eyes when he saw the frog monsters jumping to avoid something.

"Looks like the Young Master is still here. Did the curse of the Soulshard Axe tempt its user to cling onto it?"

No response from Declan. As someone who acquired the Spellblade class, he had a penchant for collecting magic weapons. However, some of the weapons he tested harbored curses.

He was aware of cursed weapons that lured the wielder to hold onto them, further entangling themselves in the curse.

Pandemonium Academy taught how to escape the curse. But the problem was Gris did not know that.

"Does Sir Blayz know Alberic gave the Soulshard Axe to Young Master?" he asked, not hiding his suspicious tone.

Leander shrugged. "I don't know. But if Alberic gave it to Young Master without Sir Blayz's knowledge, he clearly intended to kill him."

"Let's inform Sir Blayz about this so our punishment might be lenient."

"Is that what you learned at the academy to deal with situations like this?"

"You're right. I have to be as selfish as possible to protect myself. Young Master Griswalden is new to me. Why should I consider his safety over mine, whom I've lived with for twenty years?"

Leander did not attend the academy, so he did not know what was studied there. He was just a knight who chose the villain role and followed Blayz without being directly tied to the Doomsday Committee.

"I hope Young Master is safe," he whispered, looking far ahead even though he was not sure Gris was there.