Chapter 194: Chapter 190: The Ark Of Meter

Typically, a refuge is expected to be surrounded by walls or built underground like a bunker.

However, the refuge we had entered was designed to move across bodies of water like a lake or river, befitting its name as an ark.

In addition to traversing land using the legs attached underneath, it could also submerge underwater, avoiding detection by outsiders.

But there was something even more surprising than the fact that it was a mobile fortress.

“What is this?”

“It’s a tree called the World Tree, once nurtured by the elves. We only managed to get a sapling, so it’s not very large.”

After Tashian, Flang, and the refugees were guided to a resting area, I was shown around the refuge separately.

Following Ga-ram, I was shocked by what I saw.

It was no wonder; not only were there crops growing inside the refuge, but the leaves of the tree at the center were even emitting light.

“The World Tree holds a mystical power, and plants that grow in the soil influenced by this power grow faster and stronger. The elves once revered the power of this tree and settled on the land where it grew, excluding outsiders.”

“…So elves really do exist.”

In fantasy, they were considered a common race, but since I hadn’t seen any trace of them, I thought fiction and reality were different.

“I’ve never seen elves myself either. The World Tree sapling was brought by Lord Plandor and planted here in the refuge.”

Oh, so Plang was the one who provided the foundation?

Considering she had hunted various foreign beings, she must have had opportunities to collect rare items from different races.

“Well, the important thing is that as long as we have soil and seeds, we can safely and abundantly grow crops within the refuge.”

As I was beginning to understand, Ga-ram plucked a tomato from the field and brought it to her mouth.

After taking a bite and swallowing, she offered the half-eaten tomato to me and asked,

“Oppa, would you like some?”

“You’re really offering me something you’ve already bitten?”

“Oh my, why are you like this? We used to share meals, yet you’re embarrassed by something like this?”

“You should be a little embarrassed.”

No matter how comfortable I was, this felt a bit too close for comfort.

But since I was taught to accept kindness, I took a bite, and the unique tangy and sweet flavor filled my mouth.

Not only did it taste good, but it was also packed with flesh, making it seem nutritious.

I was worried about whether the refuge could sustain us with food, but it seemed like there wouldn’t be any issues.

“The next place I’ll show you is the control room. It’s where the fortress’s movements and facility management are handled…”

After that, Ga-ram continued to guide me around the fortress.

She showed me the control room, where devices powered by magical stone slabs operated the fortress’s movements like a ship, the power room that supplied the necessary energy, storage areas for supplies, and even a factory for processing materials.

Everything was something I had never seen outside, and it was all designed to make the refuge self-sufficient.

So, Plang was the one who provided all this foundation.

When she first joined the expedition, she said she was short on money and had to do things herself, but she sure knew how to prepare for things like this.

“Oh, look who it is!! Woo Hyo-sung!”

I encountered a familiar face when I entered a construction site within one of these areas.

The familiar presence of a shovel slung over his shoulder told me that the person in front of me was another old acquaintance, like Ga-ram.

“Ja-seong brother?”

The paladin, Nam Ja-seong, with a shovel handle.

He was another acquaintance I had parted ways with a year ago at the excavation site, just like Ga-ram.

“Yeah, it’s me, Ja-seong brother! How have you been?! From what I read in the papers, you’ve been flying all over the place, huh?”

“Yeah, I’m glad to see you’re doing well too, brother… But what are you doing here?”

“What do you mean, why? This ark was built by our order. Don’t tell me you forgot the name of the order I’m part of?”

The name of the order… Oh, now that I think about it, wasn’t his order called Meter?

As I subtly hinted that I needed an explanation, Ga-ram, who was standing beside me, quickly filled me in.

“The foundation Lord Plandor provided was great, but given the scale, it required a lot of funding. That’s when Uncle Ja-seong came along and offered to do the construction at a lower cost in exchange for naming the refuge after their order.”

“It was a perfect deal. What our order needs more than money is influence.”

So they substituted part of the construction cost with the name of the refuge.

I understood the reasoning, but personally, it seemed like a risky gamble.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Joining the establishment of a refuge during the middle of a colonization effort was practically admitting that the empire’s survival was in jeopardy.

Of course, the situation had become so dire that even people from the capital were fleeing… Truly, no one knows what fate has in store for them.

“Well, Lord Plang didn’t mind what the refuge was called… In fact, he even said it would be good to have an order like ours in a place like this, so it wasn’t hard to get permission to use our name.”

“A lot of the refugees have found comfort in Uncle Ja-seong’s order. There’s actually a gathering happening now. Would you like to check it out?”

“Oh, well, if it’s just a quick look.”

I suppose most refugees need something to lean on.

In that sense, there’s nothing better for mental stability than religion, but for some reason, a chill crept over me as I followed them.

The reason became clear the moment we arrived at the site.

“Touch and you die! Roll call in hell!”

“Until the day we eradicate all pedophiles from this world!!!”

“Saint Yui will lead us! Shout louder, everyone!!!”

Ah, I had forgotten.

This was the kind of order that Ja-seong had established.

“Yes, yes. I am the saint. I am the saint! Away with the evil ones, away with the demons… Heehee!”

And at the center of this scene of madness was a girl, laughing hysterically.

When I first met her, she was a young demon who couldn’t accept her situation, but now she seemed completely resigned, playing along with their tune.

Demons were usually considered selfish and unmanageable beings, but I had to admit it was impressive they managed to train her to this extent.

“Anyway, with so many people seeking salvation like this, what the hell are the Friga guys doing?”

As I was feeling sorry for the demon girl who had suddenly become a saint, Ja-seong muttered in frustration.

What he said wasn’t something I could just brush off.

The events I experienced before coming here were directly related to the Friga Order.

“They’re supposed to be the empire’s national religion, helping people in times of trouble, but instead, they collect massive donations, lock themselves up in their sanctuary, and we haven’t heard a word from them since…”

“Oh, about that.”

Of course, the events that took place there hadn’t been shared with the outside world.

Thinking it was something more people needed to know, I explained it to them, and they looked at me in shock.

“Friga is destroyed?”

“Yes, I was planning to report it directly to the Imperial family, but as you know, the situation in the capital is a mess, so I haven’t been able to go.”

“Come to think of it, a lot of the refugees here are from the capital… I heard they’re even arresting and imprisoning innocent people as rebels…”

“Good grief. People are getting angry, and those in power are punishing innocent folks. And now, the place that was supposed to be like Christianity in this world has completely fallen apart… It’s like we’re in the end times.”

Ga-ram’s expression hardened seriously, while Ja-seong sighed in frustration.

But suddenly, as if something had come to mind, Ja-seong propped his chin on his hand and slowly lifted his head.

“Huh? Wait a minute. If Friga is gone, doesn’t that make our order the largest in the empire?”

“What?”

Wait a minute.

Ja-seong’s Meter Order was indeed the second largest after Friga… If Friga is gone, does that mean Meter will become humanity’s main order?

“I love you, Saint Yuiiii!”

“Stop right there! You there, did you dare whisper love to the Saint?!”

“Feed this scoundrel kimchi with a Scoville rating of 15,000!!”

As the realization hit me, I turned to see someone tied to a cross being force-fed kimchi.

I stared blankly at the scene when Ja-seong, who was watching beside me, suddenly clapped his hands in admiration.

“Oh.”

“Why are you saying ‘oh’ in this situation?”

Oh, this is crazy.

No matter how messed up the world is, how can a crazy order like this become the mainstream?

Well, Ja-seong’s order might be bizarre, but in a harsh world like this, having some kind of hope might be better than none at all.

As we left the assembly hall, he patted me on the shoulder and spoke in a hearty voice.

“Anyway, thanks to you showing up, I can finally relax a bit. Can you stay here for a while and help out?”

“If you need me, of course, I will.”

I, too, needed a safe place until I could return to the Imperial family.

Being in a place with old friends was an excellent opportunity.

“I’m fine, but take good care of Ga-ram. She hasn’t been sleeping and has been pushing herself too hard lately…”

“Ahem!”

Ga-ram quickly covered Ja-seong’s complaint with a cough.

Ga-ram, with her half-lidded eyes, glanced at Ja-seong and subtly hinted,

“Come to think of it, don’t you have a lot of work piled up? Leave guiding oppa to me and go finish it.”

“Oh, well, that’s true. There’s still a lot of construction to do… Hey, wait, it’s been bothering me—why does she always call you oppa, but always calls me ‘uncle’?”

“Because you’re an uncle, so I call you uncle. Now hurry up and go, okay?”

“Oh, fine. If you say so. Have a good time, you two.”

After Ja-seong left, the two of us were left alone at the site.

However, Ga-ram’s expression as she looked at the spot where he had been was far from relieved.

“Honestly, why is that guy always so loud and fussy…?”

“Well, that’s just how Ja-seong brother is.”

In such a dark world, isn’t it good to have someone like him who can lift the mood?

I hoped the atmosphere would lighten up, but instead, Ga-ram’s face showed considerable concern after he left.

The same worried expression I’d seen from her a few times while we were traveling together.

“If something’s bothering you, just tell me.”

Unable to ignore that look, I spoke up, and Ga-ram, as if just realizing something, looked up at me.

“…Oppa.”

“I don’t know the details, but in a world like this, it’s natural to feel overwhelmed. You’re carrying too much at a young age, and it’s okay to ask others for help if you’re struggling.”

Even though she had matured over the past year, she still looked like a fragile child to me.

At my words, Ga-ram smiled bitterly and patted my back in return.

“Problems are always there, you know. Like your love life, oppa.”

“…Hey, why are you bringing me into this?”

“Oh, come to think of it, I heard a rumor that you have a wife who’s about to give birth… Is it Airi unnie?”

“You’re getting cheeky, aren’t you?”

Even when I try to be serious, she always pulls something like this. I was about to give her a light smack on the head when—

“…Oppa.”

Before I knew it, Ga-ram had leaned her head against my back and began to speak in a bitter tone.

“Do you remember the promise you made with me?”

“Promise?”

“The promise that if there’s no reason for you to leave, you’ll stay with me from now on.”

She was referring to the promise we made when we were isolated together in that dungeon.

Even though that promise seemed meaningless after we parted ways following the excavation, here we were, reunited.

“…Oppa, please don’t leave.”

For a moment, I realized that this promise still held meaning.

But as her bittersweet voice continued, I found myself turning to look at Ga-ram, my expression blank.

“What do you mean…?”

Don’t leave, she said.

What does she mean by that?

-Rumble!

At that moment, a violent tremor shook the area.

As I instinctively tensed up, a crew member came running toward us from the path ahead, shouting.

“Hero! There’s a pirate ship blocking our course!”

“…Why are there pirates? Isn’t this a lake we’re on?”

“They’re not ordinary pirates. The only connection is that this lake was once part of the sea… If we don’t wipe them out, we’ll keep running into them.”

Whatever the case, it’s a dangerous situation.

Thinking it was a good chance to find something to do, I immediately responded to the call and headed to the top of the ark with Ga-ram.

From the submerged depths to the surface.

Soon, I reached the flat ground serving as the deck, and before me, I saw a massive shadow looming through the fog.

-Shhhhrk!

And then, harpoons shot out from that shadow, embedding themselves in the surface of the ark.

Figures began crossing over to the ark via the ropes connected to the harpoons, drawing their weapons one by one as they approached.

“Hey… trespassers… This is the territory of the Black Anchor Pirates…”

As they drew closer, their true nature became clear.

Dried-up, withered bodies, hollow eye sockets, and old, worn-out weapons.

They looked like corpses, and their voices were raspy, as if forcing sound through dry throats.

“Invaders… in our territory… Start the looting… now…!”

The undead.

These were the corpses once buried in the sea that this lake used to be, now appearing before us to repeat the actions of their past lives.