Became the Patron of Villains Chapter 594: Peach Blossom Spring (1)

Inside the temple, where the sunset once again shone down as it had before after Alon departed.

The Karma seat of Salvation was meeting a woman.

The woman looked completely out of place beside the Karma seat of Salvation.

At the appearance of a woman dressed in long flowing garments that did not suit the fashion of this era at all—clothes that looked as though they could only be seen in the East.

[Why are you here?]

The Karma seat of Salvation spoke as though puzzled.

At least, as far as it knew, she was not someone who should have appeared here.

[Looks like a problem came up over there.]

[A problem?]

[Yeah, a problem. So I came over here. More importantly, why are you suddenly asking something like that?]

[Am I not allowed to ask?]

At that, she slowly smiled.

[Not that you can't—]

Then she walked up to the Karma seat and looked into the eyes behind the mask.

[You never cared about things like that, did you? Not when you received the proposal, and not now.]

Tap—

She touched the mask of the Karma seat.

Crush—!

At the same time, her body exploded apart.

In an instant, as though it had been crushed inside a compressor.

However, only for a moment.

[Don't touch me.]

The Karma seat spoke while looking at the woman who had appeared once again before it as though nothing had happened.

[You're sensitive.]

[.......]

[Is it because you met the Star Eater? Well, I suppose that could happen. You and he are complete opposites, aren't you? No, maybe you're simply the only one who feels that way.]

[......Are you trying to start a fight?]

[Not at all. There's no meaning in us fighting each other anyway, is there? I just came to make a proposal.]

[A proposal......?]

[There may have been a problem over there, but the fact that we descended hasn't changed, right? In other words, even if the original plan went off track, we still need to maintain our alliance.]

[I know.]

[That's good. Then this won't take long.]

After saying that, the woman turned around without hesitation.

[Then I'm counting on you? Until he's raised. Ah, though maybe I don't even need to say that?]

She said.

[Even if I don't say it, you want to save him anyway, don't you?]

And just as the woman was about to leave completely.

[The Star Eater.]

The Karma seat of Salvation spoke.

[......What about you?]

[Me?]

[You were planning to come here from the beginning, weren't you? What you want is also with the Star Eater.]

A reply so calm it was almost unsettling.

At that, the woman paused for a moment.

[Yeah.]

Soon she smiled.

[Maybe that's true.]

She said.

And at the same time—

Craaack—

Cracks began forming across the woman's face.

It was not only her face.

Straight cracks began spreading across her entire body, and soon pale white hands began appearing beneath the surface.

Thud—

The hands that had been forming the woman's shape began falling to the ground one after another.

Watching that sight.

[.......]

The Karma seat of Salvation remained silently indifferent.

####

Alon only stood with his mouth slightly open for a moment at the sight of the Monster Paradise spread across what appeared to be the ground below.

Boom—!

Then, after crashing down to the ground with a tremendous noise, Alon hurriedly shouted.

“Basiliora! Are you alright!?”

[This much is nothing. More importantly, what in the world is this—]

Basiliora spoke with a frown.

At Basiliora's pained muttering, Alon slightly furrowed his brows.

Not because he needed to understand the situation.

In the first place, there was only one thing that could explain a barren wasteland suddenly changing like this.

'There should have only been one Karma seat—'

A short sigh.

But before he could even continue that brief sigh, Alon's mind began racing relentlessly.

'Were we transferred into a new space? If so, where is the Karma seat that summoned us into this space? Is it watching somewhere, waiting for an opportunity? What is this Karma seat's ability? Was it an accidental incident?'

'No, the Karma seat of Salvation said it was alone. There was no falsehood in the meaning behind those words. It was even absolutely convinced it would win. This couldn't have been something it planned either—'

Alon continued thinking without pause.

“It seems there may be another Karma seat, Lord Alon.”

“So it seems.”

Penia also voiced her thoughts while looking at the altered landscape.

However.

“......I don't think that's the case.”

Immediately afterward, at the sound of Deus's voice, Alon and Penia turned toward him.

And the moment they followed the direction he silently pointed.

“......”

“......Huh?”

Alon and Penia could only stare blankly.

Because in the place they were looking.

“......An imperial checkpoint......”

Though distant, an imperial checkpoint was clearly visible.

“Then that means......”

Alon turned his gaze again.

What he saw was still no different.

A beautiful paradise.

...And monsters wandering through that paradise.

Then when [N O V E L I G H T] he turned his gaze again, the imperial checkpoint was still there.

“Penia.”

At Alon's words.

Penia shook her head.

“......It's different from the Karma seat of War, Lord Alon. This isn't a split space.”

“And different from the one we just met?”

“Different from that too. This is—”

[That's right. Since it's based on the Root at the center, no matter what you do, you can't leave.]

A voice interrupted Penia's words.

At that, Alon's group, momentarily stunned, turned around.

There stood a woman.

A woman wearing Eastern clothing and looking at Alon's group.

No.

A Karma seat.

At that, Alon immediately tried to draw up his magic power, but.

“......Not the real body.”

At Alon's words, the Karma seat seemed slightly surprised.

[You figured it out right away? As expected of the Star Eater. You're exactly the same as last time and now. Hmm—though right now you're a bit... stiff, aren't you?]

The Karma seat grinned and tapped the corner of its mouth.

“......”

Alon's expression stiffened further.

Because he understood what she had just said.

“......It seems you know me.”

[Hmm—of course.]

Unlike the Karma seat of Salvation, this Karma seat acknowledged it with astonishing ease.

[But that's not what we're talking about right now. We're talking about the rules.]

“Rules......?”

Deus asked back.

However, the Karma seat continued without bothering to answer.

[First. This place is called Peach Blossom Spring.]

[Second. This space will disappear if the Root at the center of Peach Blossom Spring is dealt with.]

[Third. If you wish to deal with that Root, you must practice immortal cultivation. By eating and fighting.]

[And fourth. As time passes, this space will gradually shrink until it is completely consumed by the Root. Eventually, you will become spirit pills and be absorbed by me. In other words, death.]

The Karma seat casually smiled while speaking those chilling words.

Then, as though remembering something.

[Ah—just in case, don't rush straight toward it. It would be better to accumulate as much power as possible before reaching the center.]

It lightly waved a hand.

And the next moment.

“......What?”

Alon's group saw it.

The upper half of the stone mountain that had been forming the beautiful landscape moments earlier vanished as though it had never existed.

No.

It turned to dust and disappeared.

[Even if this isn't my real body, I can still do at least this much.]

The Karma seat spoke with a smile.

At that.

“......I don't understand.”

Deus spoke.

[What?]

“Why are you deliberately telling us about something that's to your disadvantage?”

A reasonable question.

Yet even at that question, the Karma seat seemed completely unconcerned.

[There are two reasons. And even if you don't understand the first one, the Star Eater certainly will.]

She smiled while looking at Alon.

[You know, don't you, Star Eater? The stronger our authorities become, the greater the backlash they carry.]

“......”

Alon did not answer.

But he knew her words were not wrong.

[It's simple. To obtain the authority I wanted, even this kind of restriction became necessary. And the second reason—]

She smiled faintly and turned around.

As though she had nothing more to say.

[Because this itself is immortal cultivation.]

She began walking away.

[Well then, see you next time.]

Afterward, her body slowly collapsed into white hands.

And with that.

[Star Eater.]

She disappeared completely.

####

Immediately after the Karma seat of Immortal Cultivation vanished.

“......As expected, it doesn't seem possible to leave to the outside.”

“So it is like that?”

“Yes.”

“What are the chances that someone outside can break through this barrier?”

“To be honest, I don't know. If it's a power from a completely different dimension... or rather, a power capable of simply ignoring this entire concept itself, then theoretically it might be able to make a hole, but......”

“......In practical terms, that's impossible.”

“I'm sorry.”

“No. That's not something you need to apologize for.”

“......The only real possibility is from the inside. From the inside, a weaker force than that might still be enough to break through, but from the outside......”

At Penia's words, Alon let out a long sigh and looked toward the Monster Paradise.

No.

Toward Peach Blossom Spring.

The monsters throughout Peach Blossom Spring were still moving in their own horrifying ways.

After some time passed.

“For now, let's gather information.”

That was Alon's decision.

They couldn't leave, but they also couldn't simply sit here doing nothing without any plan.

“......Information?”

“Yes. We can't afford to do nothing. More importantly, there are things we need to verify.”

At Alon's words, Deus nodded.

“Even if those restrictions truly are necessary for that authority, we still need to determine whether what it said is actually true.”

“Right. To be honest, if it's really capable of displaying authority on this scale, then restrictions of that level wouldn't be strange. Even so, we need to confirm it.”

“I think we should also learn more about immortal cultivation.”

“......I agree. It definitely told us to practice immortal cultivation as much as possible before going there, didn't it? If it's immortal cultivation... does that mean training?”

Penia tilted her head.

Alon nodded.

“Most likely.”

Of course, Alon himself did not clearly remember the precise meaning of immortal cultivation.

The only reason he could answer Penia at all was because, in a previous world he could no longer even remember, he had once read a book that contained the term.

“......Hmm. How exactly are we supposed to practice immortal cultivation?”

Penia pondered.

But only briefly.

“For now, it would be best to move.”

At Deus's words, Alon and Penia nodded as well.

Since they couldn't cross the boundary anyway, there was no reason to waste time staying here.

“Then let's go.”

After making that decision, Alon's group began properly entering Peach Blossom Spring.

Watching Penia and Deus walking slightly ahead, Alon thought about the Karma seat.

More precisely, about the words only he had heard at the final moment, words that Penia and Deus seemed not to have heard.

'That's fortunate. This time, there isn't anything you need to sacrifice.'

That small whisper.