Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint
Chapter 312: (Side Story) Unobserved Story, What Happened in the Abyss - (1)

Author note: This chapter contains the past timelines where Shei did not enter the Abyss. There are a lot of extras who were supposed to die in the Abyss in this chapter. Along with it, many events also got altered.

***

The best way to avoid danger is to maintain physical distance from it.

However, sometimes, to gain something valuable, a person must take risks.

And when that time comes, the approach is simple: meticulously investigate the threat, eliminate every possible danger, and then proceed with caution.

I prided myself on having followed this dogma to the letter.

That’s why the Abyss had been relatively peaceful and quiet for me.

But, as it turns out, I may have overlooked a few minor details.

The Abyss is an endless pit, where those who have reached rock bottom come to test themselves one last time.

No matter how carefully I removed threats, I couldn’t prevent the countless moths willingly flinging themselves into the Abyss.

I’m not a prophet, after all.

To put it simply…

“Ebon is trying to kill us all. Azzy is holding him off for now, but she won’t last long. So, what do we do?”

In other words, we’re screwed.

Big time.

“Dammit, I should’ve known better. There was no way a general from the Military State would let us live,” Kanysen Riverwood muttered, his voice heavy.

Once a man who had burned with hatred for the Military State, he had long since buried those feelings in the depths of the Abyss, but now he was tense, facing a new threat.

This group—these were the members of the Resistance who had infiltrated Tantalus to destroy it.

However, Tantalus was far too large to be blown up by the explosives they had brought.

Expecting a mere pit, the Resistance was shocked and disheartened by the reality.

I had convinced them to settle down and live here in the depths.

We had been living fairly comfortably at the bottom of the Abyss.

But clearly, it wasn’t only the Resistance that fell into this void.

I spoke up.

“I did warn you about him since we first met. I signaled that he was dangerous and that we needed to get rid of him while we had the chance.”

Delta stammered, “S-signal? When?”

“I gave a hand signal behind my back.”

“Oh… so when you were folding and unfolding your fingers, that was…?”

I clicked my tongue.

“You were trained in hand signals with the Resistance, right? How could you forget something so basic? And you, of all people, Delta, were the only one who remembered a little. Even you forgot?”

Being a Mind Reader among people with poor memory is a curse.

They’re making me feel like I’m becoming as dumb as they are.

“I-it did seem familiar, but I didn’t realize it was a signal. I thought you were just showing off some hand trick….”

“As if I’d waste time showing off in a life-or-death situation.”

“I’m sorry…”

Delta apologized in a small voice, and Beta, the only woman in the Resistance group and now Delta’s lover, hugged him gently.

Ever since they settled in the Abyss, their relationship had blossomed.

A bit annoying, to be honest—they coddled each other over everything.

Just like now.

“Don’t worry, Delta—I mean, Elsie. None of us caught on either.”

Show-offs, the both of them.

Great. I hadn’t expected much from her anyway.

Beta was always busy praying to the Sky God even while we lived next to the Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka.

What was I supposed to expect from someone so dense?

“We were all distracted by Ebon’s appearance, it was hard to notice your signal at that moment.”

Ah, of course.

Shift the blame to me for bad timing while pretending to comfort your boyfriend.

Smooth.

“In any case, Ebon’s the real enemy here. Instead of blaming each other, we should focus on finding a solution!”

Really now?

We should’ve been looking for a solution before comforting your boyfriend.

What you’re doing now isn’t problem-solving; it’s just playing politics.

“Y-yeah, you’re right, Cindy! We need to come up with a plan! Does anyone have any ideas?”

The fact that Delta could be so easily reassured was amazing in its own right.

And now we were back to square one.

Looking at these so-called comrades of mine made my heart sink.

Alpha was nothing more than a strong but simple brute, Beta was a different kind of idiot, and Delta was a bookworm with low self-esteem—hardly reliable.

The only competent one, Kanysen, who had once aspired to be a knight, was smart and skilled, but as a knight, his rigid thinking made our compatibility awkward.

That left only one option among the Resistance that I could count on.

“Gamma, grab the explosives and plant them at the point.”

Gamma, the engineer of the Resistance, gasped at my command.

“T-the point? But that’s…!”

“It’s the only place. Without that, the explosives are useless. At the very least, we need to use it as leverage.”

“But if we blow it up at the point, Tantalus could collapse completely…!”

“I’ll take responsibility. Go.”

Urged by my command, Gamma ran off, looking panicked.

The explosives the Resistance brought were barely adequate.

They had to be placed precisely at the center to have any effect.

It was unlikely to destroy Tantalus entirely, but if we got lucky, something might happen.

Kanysen, still wary, asked, “Didn’t you say Tantalus can’t collapse? And even if it could, wouldn’t bringing it down put us in danger?”

“We have no choice. Sometimes, you have to play your riskiest cards. If you’re too afraid of the risks, what’s the point?”

“…I see your logic, but still…”

｢Impressive. Even knowing the consequences, you can make a call like that…｣

Kanysen was capable, but not quite flexible enough in his thinking.

Decisions like this should’ve been his to make as the de facto leader.

Why are all my comrades so incompetent?

At that moment, someone who had been silent spoke up.

“We should awaken the Progenitor!”

…Here we go again.

“Shut up, Finlay!”

Alpha yanked on the stakes pinning Finlay to the ground.

Blood droplets formed from the wounds, and Finlay panicked before he quickly pulled the blood back into his body.

The blood that escaped rolled away toward somewhere unseen.

“Be careful you bastard! If I lose too much blood, the Progenitor will take my very existence!”

Finlay shrieked.

Yeah, I know.

That’s why I staked you in the limbs like this in the first place.

Finlay stretched the chains as much as possible and said.

“You cannot win with your meager strength. Have you forgotten? We face the King of Cats! The Dog King can barely hold them off and she cannot attack humans. She’ll fall soon enough! When she does, you are nothing more than worthless insects, doomed to die like trash! If the Progenitor does not awaken, you’ll perish like the vermin you are!”

Hmm.

Should I twist the stake a little harder?

Just as I considered it, Kanysen muttered quietly.

“The strength of a vampire? It doesn’t seem promising. After all, we managed to subdue you, did we not?”

“That’s because the Progenitor is in a deep slumber, absorbing all the blood in this area! If I could just draw a proper blood magic circle, you’d all be no more than a light snack!”

｢Is that so? I’ve never fought a vampire before.｣

Kanysen looked at me for confirmation, and I shook my head.

“Not quite. A low-tier vampire like him is no problem. As long as you know the countermeasures, you can dispose of one like burnt food scraps.”

“YOU INSOLENT WORMMMMM–! GAHHHHHHHH…! Okay, okay! I get it! Don’t twist the stake again! Compared to the mighty Progenitor, The Great Elder, and the Noble Ancilla, I am no more than a lowly insect!”

“Good. Say anything else, and I’ll turn the stake the other way next time.”

“Y-you… fine! I’ll stop!”

In all honesty, a Neonate like Finlay was weak.

Even I could take him down without my cards.

All I needed was some fire or soaking him in electrolytes to disrupt his control over blood, rendering him powerless.

A vampire’s immortality was an advantage, but their weaknesses were fatal.

And besides, I already had the right arm of an undying.

Finlay could thrash all he wanted, but I could easily kill him.

Considering all the trouble he caused, that’d be a lot better actually.

“But the Progenitor, Tyrkanzyaka, the Oldest Night and Queen of the Night, the source of all vampires! With her power, not only that arrogant human but even the King of Beasts could be subdued!”

However, there was one reason I hadn’t killed him yet: the idea of awakening Tyrkanzyaka, the Progenitor, was highly tempting.

Delta mumbled nervously, “Would the Progenitor really help us?”

“Hah! After you humans dared to mock the nobility of the night?! Your lives hang by a thread only because I’ve been pleading with her on your behalf!”

Finlay shouted as I twisted the stake counterclockwise.

Finlay’s cries filled the air, and Kanysen clenched his fist.

As a former squire and a nominal believer in the Sky God, Kanysen naturally harbored some reservations about vampires.

But he wasn’t foolish enough to let his beliefs lead him to an early grave.

He knew there was no other choice.

“Th-That’s ridiculous! How could you even think about awakening the Progenitor? Do you really think a disgusting vampire, who only craves other people’s blood, would help us? She’ll just drain all our blood instead!”

…Unlike you, Beta, who clutches a cross every time you walk past the progenitor.

What’s the deal with you?

“Even if we die, we can’t let the Progenitor awaken! For the peace and safety of the world, she must remain buried here in the Abyss forever…!”

“Calm down, Cindy.”

Beta was silenced by Delta, but the first blow was already done.

Look at the sparks flying in Finlay’s eyes. If it weren’t for the others, Beta would have died already.

“Alright, alright. There’s no point in worrying about it now. Let me simplify things.”

…Well, there’s no helping it.

I can’t protect the life of someone who values their faith more than their own life.

I clapped my hands loudly and summed up the situation.

“Kanysen, go with Alpha and assist Azzy. If Azzy fights Nabi one-on-one, Azzy will win. The two of you should take care of Ebon and his lackeys.”

“…I hate to admit it, but my skills can’t compare to Ebon’s. Alpha won’t be able to match the Colonel either.”

As Kanysen hesitated, Alpha flared up in response.

“Captain! What do you mean by that? Don’t we have the combat-type packet and our military gear?”

“That includes all of it. Ebon, the Knight Tracker, was strong enough to relentlessly pursue and kill three regular knights even when he was a soldier. I’ve trained hard, but… I just can’t match him.”

At least Kanysen knows his limits, which makes him the most reliable among these bunch.

I encouraged him while giving advice.

“You just need to buy time. If necessary, use explosives as hostages and hold out as long as you can. With Azzy on our side, we have the overall advantage. If you can read the battlefield well, you should be able to hold them off long enough.”

That’s what I said, but my actual thoughts were the complete opposite.

Dragging out time requires quick adaptation to changing situations.

Unfortunately, Kanysen lacks that ability.

He probably won’t be able to stall for long.

…But there’s no other choice.

If they only knew Geon Geon Qi Art and Gon Qi Art, I could still take them down by using various means, poison, ambushes, tactics, etc.

If only the Colonel were involved, I might somehow manage to kill him.

However, Gam Qi Art—the level of strengthening one’s body with Qi—renders poison, ambushes, and tactics meaningless.

When the enemy’s bones and flesh are hardened, how can you pierce through them?

Strangling them?

Even a little knowledge of Gam Qi would allow them to open their own throat.

Unfortunately, Kanysen hasn’t reached the level of Gam Qi.

He knows Qi Deflection, but that’s just a means to protect one’s body when they haven’t mastered Gam Qi.

In terms of pure physical ability, Ebon has the upper hand.

And that’s exactly why Kanysen has to take on Ebon.

There’s no other role for Kanysen.

“Understood. Leave it to me.”

Kanysen nodded firmly with the resolve to die.

I nodded back at him.

Once, with foolish ambition, he pushed his whole group towards death.

Not only the Resistance members but also deceiving even himself, all in pursuit of posthumous glory.

That, too, was through the pointless act of terrorizing Tantalus, a place where prisoners had already disappeared.

For a moment, I considered just killing him, but fortunately, he came to his senses.

Thanks to that, he found a small but genuine honor in risking his life to fight for the few comrades he had left.

…Though, in the end, death is still death.

I turned away from Kanysen as he gathered his military gear and spoke.

“The rest of us will head to the Progenitor. We’re going to wake her up. Until now, the Progenitor hadn’t responded to any of Finlay’s calls, but we still have a method we haven’t tried.”

Delta, who was about to nod, suddenly paused.

“W-Wait a minute. Is Cindy—no, Beta coming too?”

“If you want to leave her here alone, go ahead.”

“N-No… right. If the Progenitor doesn’t help us, we’re as good as dead anyway, so we just need to be as careful as possible.”

Delta reluctantly agreed and tried to reassure Beta, who was clearly hesitant.

Without much suspicion, they all followed my orders and headed to their assigned locations.

None of them had the slightest idea of my true intentions.

Except for one person.

｢Hughes… is it? He’s the most annoying human here, but… I can’t deny he’s the most capable among them.｣

Only Finlay. impaled on a stake, saw through me.

A bloodstained smile spread across his pale face.

｢Yes. You must use that woman as a sacrifice. That insolent woman, daring to utter a prayer to that sky bastard in front of the Progenitor, shall be judged!｣

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