I looked down at the snake coiled around my wrist. “Snakey.”
“Kieee?”
“You know the coordinates to the Constellation Murderer’s holy ground, don’t you?”
Snakey flickered their tongue.
[The Labyrinth-Dwelling Eye is confident that they know the coordinates to every existing holy ground!]
The cats on the table perked their ears.
“Ah, yes. Hishimit Kritz would know the coordinates. Oblivion is not knowing the truth, and secrets are all about hiding the truth. In both ways, the truth is neglected, so the two concepts share similarities. Woof. And Hishimit Kritz is the Constellation that exposes the truth…”
[The Goldcoin-Biting Cat has a higher opinion of you now.]
“It’s safe to say that there’s hardly a world you can’t reach with Hishimit Kritz. With us, there’s nothing you can’t buy. Woof. You have gathered the most valuable Constellations, Lord Scream Sky. That’s called cheating.”
“Are the coordinates enough to get us there?” I asked, ignoring the cats’ sighs.
Snakey, who had been confidently flicking their tongue, slightly lowered their head.
[The Labyrinth-Dwelling Eye shakes their head.]
[The Labyrinth-Dwelling Eye says that seeing a military base and infiltrating the base are two very different matters.]
[The Labyrinth-Dwelling Eye confesses that they only know its existence but not how to get there.]
I assumed as much. The Constellation Murderer didn’t hide secrets; he erased his memories that could become secrets. Snakey could sense something had been there, but not what the something was.
But I have what the Constellation Murderer abandoned and lost.
The vassals who had gathered after being summoned sat across the table. I called the name of the man who would play a central role in this mission.
“Mr. Kim Yul, you probably have the authorization to enter the Constellation Murderer’s holy ground.”
Kim Yul, the origin of the Constellation Murderer, stared at me. Yes, no one knew how strong the holy ground’s security system was. Even if we did, we could still fail to breach it, but it was crystal clear who the security would let through automatically.
“Our plan is simple. Hishimit Kritz will show us the coordinates and Mr. Kim Yul will head there. He’ll be our bridge. Right after he arrives, the assault team, including me, will go in immediately."
“Understood, Patriarch,” Kim Yul answered.
“If the enemy uses thirteen puppets, then we’ll overwhelm him with our numbers. You won’t have to hold out for a long time. Just one moment is enough until we get there.”
One of the cats chimed in. “W-wait a moment. Please wait, Lord Scream Sky. First… I get that he has the authorization to reach the place, but the Constellation Murderer’s holy ground is on the ninetieth floor!”
“Ah… Yes, and?”
“Woof! To enter, the places have to meet some conditions.” The cat showed their pink paw pads and spread their toes wide. “The first case is when a Constellation provides their holy ground to the Tower. It’s like how Delicious Tail linked his holy ground to your Tower’s twentieth floor and how we linked ours to the seventy-second floor.”
“Who is this Delicious Tail?”
“He’s also known as Hamustra.”
“... Why is that his nickname?”
“Why are you focused on that right now? That’s not important! Please focus on the main topic!”
It felt very important, so important that nothing else seemed to matter. Everyone also seemed very curious, but the cat ignored us and went on.
“The second case is when they connect their holy ground to the Tower on their own. The Constellations from the sixtieth to the sixty-ninth floors do that. Usually, they link their subordinate realm, but there are some Constellations that link their own holy ground. Delicious Knee Cartilage is one of them.”
“Who is that again?”
“She’s also known as Mutia.”
So Mutia’s knee cartilage[1] is delicious?
“If the first case is like serving the Tower, the second case is like a way to gain power as a Constellation.”
“They seem similar, though.”
“Well, they actually are similar. You’ll learn more about this when you reach the ninetieth floor. Also, these two ways do have one thing in common. Both types of holy grounds can set their own authorization system.”
I nodded. “What are the other conditions?”
“The head managers of the Tower—the Pillars—providing you with access would be the third case. Delicious Liquor got caught through this method.”
Hishimit Kritz let out a sharp hiss. The cat stared at them but once again went on. “Other than that, you have to become as strong as the owner of the holy ground you want to access. You, Lord Scream Sky, would be able to gather access like that, but not that human.”
I laughed. Basically, Kim Yul had the right to enter the Constellation Murderer’s holy ground but lacked the qualification to head to the ninetieth floor and beyond. On the other hand, I could go to the floor but lacked the authorization to enter the holy ground. Each of us was missing one condition.
“It’s fine.”
However, this also meant that we could make up for each other’s flaws. Kim Yul and I were already linked. We were close enough to call for one another.
“Mr. Kim Yul is my apostle and my subordinate. He can go visit the floor as the Scream-Gathering Sky’s apostle, not as a Hunter,” I said.
“Huh? Ah, aha! I see!” The calico cat looked between me and Kim Yul, their mouth wide open. “Then it’s possible if he’s an apostle! When the Constellation gives his permit, his apostle gains the same rights as the Constellation himself.”
Because of me, Kim Yul had gotten his memories and body back. Now that I was a complete Constellation, he would undeniably be called my apostle. It wasn’t just him. Estelle, Sylvia, the Four Demon King, the Heavenly Demon Cult followers—everyone who had regained their life from me was now my apostle. That was how this plan was possible.
“Mr. Kim Yul will get there first as my apostle and our vanguard,” I said.
It was like how the Ruin-Harvesting Cow had first sent her apostle—Goldencup—when she invaded Raviel’s world. Now, I was going to invade the Constellation Murderer’s holy ground with Kim Yul in the frontline.
“The moment you arrive, call for me so I can descend. I’ll immediately get there with all the other apostles and followers.”
All the pieces were in place. Thanks to the Labyrinth-Dwelling Eye, we had the coordinates. Kim Yul was on our side, so we could enter the holy ground. As his Constellation, I could answer his call. The others, my apostles and followers, could cross with me. Everything we had achieved while climbing from the tenth to the eightieth floors made this plan possible.
“Woof. Understood. At least from our perspective, there’s no issue!”
The Goldcoin-Biting Cat also guaranteed the operation’s success, so all that remained was to carry out the plan—or so it seemed.
“Apostle? Followers?” the Black Witch asked. “Wait a moment. I wasn’t summoned when Gong-Ja was going through the heaven floors! I’m neither apostle nor follower! I’m nothing!”
The Countess fanned herself. “Then you can guard our home. For your information, although you should probably be able to deduce it already, I have Gong-Ja’s follower license. You see, giving him a pass made me one of his followers.”
The Paladin leisurely fanned the Countess, not herself. “Hm, I’m the first follower. Now that I think of it, yes, Anastasha wasn’t summoned to be an examiner. I see. You don’t meet the requirement to join this operation… What a tragedy.”
“Ah, she sometimes boasts about how she was the first to be Gong-Ja’s friend, but real camaraderie is proven in times like this, isn’t it?” the Viper asked.
“Hahaha, I’m also Master’s follower!”
The Black Witch, who had been looking around the room, suddenly shot me a burning gaze.
“I’ll convert!” she shouted as if I had betrayed her in some way.
“You’re an atheist,” I mumbled.
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1. He’s making a joke about Korean ox knee soup, also known as doganitang. ☜
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Translator's Thoughts