World Online

"What are you talking about? The saint died, right?" Jake asked, his voice trembling and hesitant. Just thinking about the possibility that was being insinuated was frightening enough.

"That doesn't matter. We will have to take a look at the coffin anyways. We have to disturb his peace." Ganshin said, shaking his head.

"Yes. We will have to move the coffin's cover anyways since we have to take out the rock." Jake sighed and nodded.

"I will be the one to do it. It is best if I do it. Even if I do, I am blessed to come back to life." Jake said.

"That is up to you." Ganshin nodded and said.

"Thank you." Jake smiled as he nodded. This was something of an obligation. His life was something that could come back.

If Ganshin lost his life here, then it would definitely not come back. And Ganshin was too good a helper to let die.

Jake slowly walked over to the coffin.

The stone coffin was made of a rough and coarse sand stone, and its gray tint made it feel like concrete. It was raised up in the air by a platform made of the same sand stone.

Jake ran his hands through the concrete lid. It was heavy, that was for sure. But that was to be expected for something so big made of stone.

Jake's arms bulged slightly as he pushed against the coffin.

It screeched with a high pitched voice as it slowly skid across the coffin to reveal what was inside.

​ The moment that the cover made even a slight gap, a purple gas release from the coffin.

As Jake inadvertently let a little of it into his nose, he gagged. He stopped pushing and started coughing, trying to get rid of whatever the pungent smell was.

"The corpse. It is totally rotten." Jake said as he stepped away form the coffin, trying to get some fresh air.

The purple gas slowly diffused to the surroundings, and Jake could recover after a few deep breaths.

Then, he fearfully looked at the coffin, as if expecting something.

But that something did not arrive.

Jake stepped back to the coffin and tried pushing a little more before what was inside could be completely shown.

There was no corpse inside though. What remained was a perfectly preserved skeleton. All of the flesh must have decomposed and eventually became air.

"So the game allows for remains to stay as long as it benefits the story." Jake thought to himself as his eyes stayed fixed on what the skeleton's hands were holding.

It was a purple colored crystal. There was a black vortex within the crystal, perfectly visible to Jake. This black vortex was terrifying to even look at.

As his eyes made contact with the vortex, he felt a chill along his back and he was about to go a little closer toward the crystal when he felt something pull him away.

"That is not for unprotected eyes. You are too weak to handle that. Calm down." Ganshin said as he stepped up.

Without saying anything else and without waiting, he put his hands in the coffin and grabbed the crystal.

Without much effort, he was able to retrieve the crystal, and he immediately put the crystal in a wooden box that he seemed to have prepared before.

After he closed the box and put it inside, he waved his hand around, like it was in pain.

And that was when Jake saw it. Ganshin's left hand was a little scarred. There were series of red scars in a line, like creases.

This was the sign of a burn.

"Just touching the crystal for a little time caused him to burn his hand? Just what is that thing?" Jake wondered.

"You should not think about this any further. If you have even the slightest bit of desire toward it, the stone will sense it, and it will force it to fester. Even allies can turn enemies in a mere moment." Ganshin warned Jake.

"Do not worry, Sword Master. I have no intention of coveting something that does not belong in the mortal plane. I have more than enough treasure to keep myself going for the next few months." Jake chuckled and shook his head.

Ganshin nodded as he finally looked down at the coffin.

His eyes were fixated on the skeleton, his eyes filled with melancholy. Jake could see it. The pain and sorrow in Ganshin's eyes. He stepped back, not wanting to disturb the sword master in this delicate situation.

"Ah. You are gone now." Ganshin finally spoke.

"Why did you have to leave so early? You could have just let me die. You could have stayed and given hope to just a few more children like me. Why did you have to leave me alone?" He said, his eyes tearing up.

"Fine. This is a final good bye. This is my final gift to you. A good resting place." Ganshin sighed and said.

He grabbed the stone cover with one hand, and brought it back to close the coffin effortlessly.

Jake looked at this with a gaping mouth.

"How is he so powerful even after the nerf? If he is so strong with his stats restricted, just what kind of a beast am I dealing with when he is in his full strength?" Jake thought to himself.

The coffin was closed, and Jake could see that they had taken ahold of the stone. They were half down with this part of the mission.

"Do not relax for even one second, young noble. The fight is not even close to conceding." Ganshin burst Jake's bubble before it even settled.

"There are enemies all around us. The only moment you can relax is when we return to Diffast with the stone in hand."

"Wait, what is that feeling? Who is there?" Ganshin turned around and looked at one corner.

This corner, suddenly, had an opening. There was another entrance.

"Zezeze, someone finally took it out, huh? Someone finally took out the stone. I can't wait to get my hands on this delicious thing." A sinister voice froze Jake's blood ten times over.

"The Ninth is here." Ganshin said with a foreboding tone.

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