Chapter 56

The moment I heard those confirming words, countless thoughts flashed through my mind.

I swallowed a curse.

Then, using every ounce of calm I could muster, I spoke.

“Even if I clear it, there’s a chance I might not be able to leave.”

—That is correct. We cannot even be certain that the space you are in is a trial.

“The trial… I think it is. There are quests, and it is a game created by the developer whose games I have played.”

—Could you explain what kind of trial CallOVo is?

I briefly explained CallOVo to Samra, and after hearing my explanation, he immediately began searching for information in real time.

—As you know, Han Goyo-nim, the location where a trial hatches is related to the content of the trial. If it had hatched normally, it most likely would have been a trial under the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom. However, at this point, I cannot find any information regarding this trial anywhere.

After saying that, neither of us spoke for a while.

Even Samra was at a loss.

However, Samra immediately began asking questions to resolve the situation.

—How did you use the badge?

“I got a little blood on it.”

—I have tested similar items numerous times, but this is the first time one has successfully activated.

There was a slight hint of surprise in Samra’s voice.

Then his next words surprised me.

—I will operate.

He was offering to act as my operator.

It seemed that my value to Samra had not yet run out.

The sense of security from being connected to the outside world helped keep my mind from collapsing.

It felt like I had been drowning and had luckily managed to grab onto a tube.

I attached the badge back inside my clothes and asked,

“Thank you. Can you hear the sounds around me too, or only my voice?”

—I can only hear Han Goyo-nim’s voice.

Even without holding it near my ear, Samra’s voice came through clearly.

Perhaps because it was an item, its performance was far superior to ordinary communication equipment.

I quickly searched through the mayor’s office while continuing the conversation I had not finished.

“There’s something… strange happening in CallOVo right now.”

—What kind of abnormality?

“I promised an NPC butler from Clean3 that I would find their master, but that master is here in CallOVo.”

I could not be completely certain since we were only communicating through the device, but I felt that Samra was greatly shaken by my words.

His response came much later than usual.

—…I have received the report regarding the forced transfer caused by the butler NPC.

I took out the wire and opened a locked drawer while asking,

“Are my lieutenant colonel and Captain Mo safe?”

—They are safe. For now, focus on Han Goyo-nim’s safety. Please explain the NPC called the master.

“Yes…”

When I opened the locked drawer, it was filled only with miscellaneous items.

However, the depth of the drawer was shallower than it appeared from the outside.

While pressing various places to remove the bottom panel, I explained Dominic.

His height was 3 meters, he had lost his memories and did not know what kind of existence he was, he could interfere with the system, influence NPCs, transform objects, and so on.

By the time I finished explaining my plan to use his favorability to clear the trial and escape, I finally separated the bottom of the drawer.

“…So right now, we are moving separately.”

Come to think of it, I had been talking by myself for quite a while.

Worried that the communication might have been cut off, I quickly called his name.

“Samra?”

Only then did Samra’s voice come through.

—Han Goyo-ssi.

“Yes?”

—I am well aware that Han Goyo-ssi creates new results because you do not follow general common sense. However, this situation is far too dangerous.

His calm, emotionless voice was more frightening because of how composed it was.

I immediately apologized.

“I’m sorry. But there was no other way to get out…”

—Is it impossible to cancel the companion relationship?

“It is possible, but if I cancel it unilaterally, we will immediately become enemies.”

—I will search for similar cases. Please wait a moment.

I used the brief pause to quickly photograph the documents.

Despite saying “a moment,” Samra returned quickly.

—It would be better not to cancel the companion relationship.

I expected that.

I nodded inwardly and placed my hand on the windowsill to leave the mayor’s office when Samra spoke again.

—The hologram badge has one additional function besides communication.

“What function?”

—Escape.

“…Escape?”

—It is a function created by utilizing the fact that the trial is based on a game.

The moment I heard Samra’s explanation, I understood.

In games, there was an escape function that could be used when a character was placed in an abnormal location, movement became impossible, or progression was blocked due to an error.

‘Can I leave right now?’

But before hope could swell within me, Samra immediately poured cold water over it.

—Escape can only be used when the trial causes a system-level error.

That made sense.

Using something as powerful as an escape function without restrictions would be unreasonable.

Even in games, escape was a function meant only for errors.

“If it’s a system-level error, does that mean something like the letters in the system window becoming corrupted?”

—That is correct.

It meant I had to wait until the system window displayed a new error.

—Also, in order to use this function, the communication must be terminated for stability.

The connection to the outside world that had barely been restored would have to be cut again.

But there was no need to mention which was more important.

“Understood.”

After giving a short reply, I asked the question I had wanted to ask from the very beginning but had hesitated to bring up.

“Clean3…”

—It has been closed.

Samra gave me the answer I wanted before I even finished my sentence.

I felt relief mixed with a small sense of loneliness.

Samra’s voice brought me back to reality.

—Han Goyo-ssi. I believe you will return safely.

I wasn’t sure if this kind of expression was appropriate for an android, but it felt like Samra was worried about me.

I smiled slightly at the thought and replied,

“Yes. I’ll see you outside, Samra.”

No further voice came.

The communication had ended.

I was alone again.

For a while, I sat on the windowsill and sank into thought.

‘First, I should proceed with clearing the trial while looking for a chance to escape.’

The moment Dominic caused the system window to malfunction would be the most certain opportunity.

The system seemed to have accepted me dying and reviving in front of Dominic as normal already…

After roughly organizing my plan, I suddenly looked out the window.

A bell rang.

Dong, daeng….

It was definitely not a bell announcing the time.

It was not the hour, and the way the bell rang felt unnatural.

The loud sound seemed more like an emergency intrusion alarm.

‘There was nothing in CallOVo about enemies invading.’

I waited for the bell to stop, but then the door of the building across from me suddenly flew open.

Starting with that building, every door on the street opened.

People with hazy expressions poured outside.

Then they all began moving somewhere in a line.

I leaned farther out the window to check where the crowd was going.

They were heading toward the building of the Apostles of the Void.

Something was going terribly wrong.

A choice appeared.

Unfortunately, only the contents were strange. The shape of the letters was completely normal.

I chose the first option and stepped outside through the open door.

The building was empty.

I did not encounter a single person while descending to the first floor.

It seemed everyone from the TRA had also followed the bell toward the cult building.

I had experienced several abnormal events caused by NPCs or bosses during trials.

But this was the first time I had seen such a large number of NPCs experience abnormalities at once.

Although suspicious, I blended into the crowd for now.

It was a perfect opportunity to naturally enter the cult.

Everyone heading toward the cult was smiling.

As if they were going on a pleasant vacation.

I was the only person here who was not smiling.

Before long, the cult building came into view.

Music filled my ears.

I had never heard it in CallOVo, but I knew the song.

Ode to Joy.

A grand symphony of men and women singing together echoed loudly.

A festival was taking place in front of the cult building.

Two apostles holding enormous black swords stood on either side of the entrance, beckoning people forward.

Young men and women approached while smiling brightly.

The black blades swung.

Two round heads flew through the air.

Then they rolled across the ground.

They came to a stop where countless other heads had already piled up.

I saw countless heads.

Every single one wore a happy expression.

As I stood frozen, staring at the scene, the beheadings continued.

There were no screams.

No painful groans, no pleas for mercy.

Only occasional cheerful laughter could be heard amid the chorus of joy.

The overflowing blood seemed as if it would reach my feet.

“I will prepare a grand ritual, Doctor.”

If Dominic’s words were followed and the ceremony was carried out, it should have been against the cult members…

The moment that thought reached me, an unbelievable conclusion surfaced.

‘Could it be that every citizen of Morneveil is a cult member?’

There was no other way to explain this scene.

But Edel should not have had that kind of power.

I knew because I had played the priest route.

The power of the cult depended on the outer god they summoned.

They started by contracting with lower-ranked outer gods and gradually grew stronger by making contracts with more powerful ones.

If the current priestess Edel had made a contract with an outer god powerful enough to use this kind of strength, there was no way I would not have known.

‘Those who contract with outer gods have their bodies altered.’

In the priest route, Edel made contracts with multiple outer gods, causing her body to become distorted and mixed together.

By the late game, she became something close to a chimera.

When I played CallOVo, I promised Edel that I would release her contracts by making a pact with the highest being, and I inherited the position of priest.

Then the summon failed because of a game error.

Where had everything become tangled?

Blood seeped beneath my shoes.

I looked down at the ground.

My reflection appeared in the red pool of blood.

I had a rather foolish expression on my face.

“……”

Fragments of thoughts poured through my mind.

I pieced the puzzles together one by one.

Everything strange from the moment I entered CallOVo until now…

And soon, I realized.

From the very beginning, this world of CallOVo had been clearly telling me what it wanted.

The moment I realized it, I kicked off the ground and ran forward.

The realization had come far too late.

The apostles noticed me and shouted happily.

“Little Lamb-nim!”

Their pure white apostle robes had been completely dyed red.

The two apostles smiled brightly while holding their swords.

“We have been desperately searching for you. The priestess is waiting for Little Lamb-nim.”

As expected, they did not block my way.

I ran into the cult building.

The hymn about everyone becoming one through the power of God endlessly drilled into my ears.

My breathing grew ragged, but I did not slow down.

I rushed all the way to the underground ritual chamber of the cult building.

The underground chamber was brightly lit by hundreds of candles.

Wax had melted and hardened messily across the floor, and enormous shadows danced across the walls following the flickering flames.

On the white marble altar stood Edel, wearing more extravagant clothing than ever before.

She looked up at the ceiling, where not even a ray of sunlight could enter, with an ecstatic expression.

“Edel!”

Edel turned toward me with her thin veil covering her eyes.

“Little Lamb-nim!”

Even though the lights made it impossible to see ahead, she recognized me only by my voice.

Her lips, smiling brightly, were bright red.

“Thank goodness. Truly, thank goodness. You arrived before it was too late. I was just about to begin the ritual.”

I asked her while gasping for breath.

“A ritual for the God of the Void?”

It was a meaningless question.

I already knew the answer that would come.

And she knew that I had realized it as well.

“Yes, Little Lamb-nim!”

Edel held an obsidian dagger and moved as if dancing lightly.

“The eternal abyss, the source of chaos, the absolute void! The terror that creates and destroys, the Lord of All Things!”

She looked at me and shouted.

“It is a ritual for Doctor Dominic!”