Player Who Became A Constellation [EN]: Chapter 197

197

The room was dazzling, as if everything was plated in gold.

“…The God of Death certainly lives lavishly.”

Salad clicked his tongue.

Whether in the mortal realm or the underworld, gold seemed to hold significant value.

Salad moved forward.

Precious items were displayed all around him.

From clothes woven with luxurious materials to intricately crafted armor and weapons.

Salad’s eyes widened as he took in the array of items.

‘…Even someone as ignorant as I am can recognize how extraordinary these weapons are.’

Each blade was well-forged and razor-sharp.

The luster of the sword’s surface was so bright it was dazzling, reflecting Salad’s face.

Salad stared at the sword’s surface, mesmerized, then shook his head.

‘Let’s focus on finding Dad.’

He passed by glass bowls, ceramics, and jewels.

And then, he found it.

“That’s…?”

There was an altar, and atop it, a red jewel emitted a potent magical energy.

The magical energy emanating from the jewel rose into the sky, spreading out like an umbrella from the top of the tower.

‘That’s it.’

That was the source of the Necropolis barrier.

Destroying it would signal the revolutionary army to commence their attack.

Beneath the barrier stone was a fountain of blood, and in its center sat an egg-shaped stone with a beautiful, intricate pattern.

The blood spewing from the fountain was being purified into clear water as it flowed.

‘That’s the purification stone.’

It was the raw stone used to create Holy Sea Water [water with divine properties, often used for healing or purification].

But he wasn’t interested in that.

Salad was focused on following Yura’s instructions.

‘I’ll destroy the barrier stone later.’

He looked around and stopped.

Inside a glass display case, there was a head.

The head of a dark elf, eyes tightly closed, as if asleep.

Salad muttered as he gazed at the head.

“Dad…?”

***

Loki felt a burning heat.

The deeper he descended, the more intense the heat became.

The surroundings began to glow with an eerie light.

Flames seeped out from the cracks in the walls.

‘Is this where the flames of the underworld originate?’

He continued down the stairs.

Finally, at the end of the narrow stairwell, a vast, fiery landscape stretched out before him, so wide that its end was beyond sight.

It was a land forged of fire.

Lava flowed freely, the ground was scorching, and holes dotted the landscape like small craters.

Flames of the underworld poured out of these holes ceaselessly.

“It’s a good thing I didn’t bring Salad.”

Loki possessed a natural resistance to fire.

If Salad had come here, he wouldn’t have been able to breathe, and the intense heat would have caused severe burns.

“There are many spirits.”

At the edge of Loki’s vision, spirits were gathered around a large lump of iron.

Clang-! Clang-!

The spirits were refining gold, the sounds of their labor echoing through the fiery landscape.

They crafted ornaments and gold bricks to adorn the Necropolis.

‘They’re all blacksmiths.’

Humans, dwarves, and other demi-humans [creatures that are part human and part animal or other mythical being] worked side-by-side.

Regardless of their race, each stood before an anvil, holding tongs and melting lumps of iron using the flames from the craters.

They hammered the metal with practiced skill.

‘They’re not ordinary.’

The spirits were artisans with skills comparable to the dwarves of Asgard [the realm of the Norse gods, known for their craftsmanship].

「Work! Slaves!」

Undead creatures with long arms and hunched backs patrolled among the artisans.

They carried whips made of rotten skin.

Ghouls.

They relentlessly drove the artisans, wielding their whips without mercy.

And their attention was particularly focused on one ‘being’.

“Hoo-!”

His entire body was bound in chains, and he was hauling a massive lump of iron behind him.

A 3m tall old man with red skin and horns on his head.

His left foot was shackled to the underworld with chains piercing his skin.

The aura he exuded was extraordinary.

“Is that him?”

Canute, the constellation of fire and ore that Loki sought.

Canute reached out his hand.

He lifted the lump of iron with his bare hands and plunged it into the crater.

Kwarararararak-!

He didn’t even flinch as flames engulfed the ore.

When the ore glowed red-hot, Canute retrieved it. He clenched his fist and struck it down.

Clang-!

Loki couldn’t help but be surprised.

His method was brutally efficient.

Clang-!

Squeak!

He struck, spreading the metal wide.

He pressed down with his fingers, bending the metal.

“Heuheuheup!”

Inhaling-.

“Hoo-!”

As he exhaled, flames spewed forth, further heating the metal.

He stretched the metal with his fingers.

The other artisans paused their work to watch.

The constellation of fire and ore. A blacksmith constellation forging divine artifacts for the corrupted constellations.

They were captivated by his smithing skills, which seemed to transcend mortal limits.

Canute returned his hand to the crater.

The lump of iron in his hand heated once more.

He struck it down again.

Clang! Clang!

A clear, resonant sound echoed.

Repetitive movement.

The underworld artisans seemed mesmerized by the sound, their eyes fixed on him.

Loki, too, was drawn in by the spectacle.

Even though he had found him, he couldn’t bring himself to interrupt.

Canute focused his mind completely. At the same time, he muttered under his breath.

“When is the sun setting?”

The dwarf spirits around Canute shouted.

「30 seconds ago!」

“Just right.”

Canute’s eyes flashed.

A powerful aura emanated from his body, dominating the area.

Those in the land of fire quickly took out pieces of leather and wrapped them around their bodies.

「5 seconds ago!」

Canute held up the red-hot sword.

「2, 1!」

The surroundings plunged into darkness, and night descended.

Darkness enveloped everything in an instant.

Gradually, the surroundings began to turn blue.

The flames spewing from the craters vanished, and a chill permeated the air.

Soon-.

Kwaaaak!

Cold blue flames erupted from the cracked ground.

Canute placed his hand there.

The hot sword he held cooled rapidly.

“Please.”

Canute muttered.

“Be completed.”

Canute withdrew his hand.

Light emanated from the sword he held.

「Oh! A divine artifact…!」

「It’s finished!」

The artisans marveled.

It was a sword of unparalleled sharpness.

Loki was captivated by the weapon.

A more powerful weapon than the artifacts wielded by the Belette royals in Kartal had been created.

“…No.”

Canute frowned.

“This is trash.”

Canute raised his right hand and struck the sword down.

Clang-!

The metallic sound reverberated.

The ground trembled, and the atmosphere vibrated.

It was a force capable of destroying even the most legendary swords.

「Ah….」

The blacksmith spirits sighed.

Each artifact was so powerful that it could etch legends in the mortal realm.

Canute destroyed such treasures without hesitation.

“Don’t dwell on such trash.”

At Canute’s words, the blacksmith spirits looked at him.

“Start working again.”

Canute’s charismatic command spurred the artisans into action.

Even the ghouls in charge of surveillance cowered and hesitated to wield their whips.

The ghouls staggered forward and approached Canute.

「Canute-nim…. Natos-nim [Lord Natos, the God of Death] told us not to destroy the weapons you make and to offer them all.」

Canute looked down at the ghouls.

His massive frame and the unique sense of oppression that only a constellation could exude were overwhelming.

The ghouls trembled under Canute’s gaze.

「Y, you mustn’t break them!」

But the ghouls couldn’t back down.

“Shut up. It’s none of your business what I make.”

The ghouls fell silent.

He glanced at the anvil he held.

The reason why the constellation of death, Natos, desired Canute was not solely because he created treasures and powerful artifacts.

Canute’s weapons were unique.

The artifacts he created could even wound the soul, making them symbols of absolute power in the underworld.

To be disliked by him meant the soul could be cut and disappear forever.

“Excellent.”

The ghouls raised their heads.

A strange man descended the stairs leading from the underworld’s surface.

“Just as Zaus told me. And the sword you broke a while ago. It was an excellent masterpiece.”

Canute pulled on the chains around his body.

The massive lump of iron at the end, the anvil he carried on his back, was lifted and dropped to the ground.

Kwang-!

The earth cracked under its weight.

Canute asked Loki, taking a stance as if he would swing the anvil at any moment.

“Who are you! Are you also in league with Natos!?”

“No, the opposite.”

“The opposite?”

“I came to save you.”

Canute looked surprised.

Loki trudged down the stairs and stepped onto the floor.

He stepped on the place where the fire was rising, but the flames parted as if avoiding him.

Canute, witnessing this bizarre sight, felt a strange sensation.

“You have the same fire authority as me!”

No, something far more powerful than that.

The closer Loki came, the more Canute felt a chill down his spine and a pressure weighing down on his shoulders.

Even with the body of a constellation, his eyes wanted to flee.

A sense of oppression he hadn’t felt even from the constellation of death, Natos.

If someone could emit such a presence, then surely he is the same as me….

“…Brother?”

…It was a constellation.

“I have never had a family like you.”

Sweat dripped down Canute’s forehead.

“What do you mean by saying you came to save me?”

“I will take you out of this underworld. In return, make me an artifact.”

“An artifact…?”

“A weapon that can contain the power of a constellation.”

Canute looked at Loki with wide eyes.

“I want you to make that.”