Astral Online: Cursed by the Demon Lord to Become the Strongest Beautiful Girl, I Rapidly Grow and Dominate with Cheat Skills Despite Being the Weakest Profession - Chapter 236
Chapter 236: Rasetsu’s Message
We safely arrived at the fourth village.
As usual, we split into two groups and completed all the information-gathering events. However, as expected, Rasetsu had already departed, and we were unable to meet her here either.
The only remaining villages were the fifth and sixth.
So far, all we’d done was go from village to village with no significant progress. But just as I started to think something might finally happen, my prediction hit the mark.
“I have something here from Princess Rasetsu for Princess Setsuna.”
“Really!?”
To our surprise, the village elder, an old woman we spoke to last, handed us an item she had been keeping on Rasetsu’s behalf: an ?Orb Record?.
The ?Orb Record? is a type of magical artifact in this world, capable of recording and displaying video, essentially a fantasy version of a camcorder.
Since viewing it in public could risk exposure to the villagers or, worse, the Dark Believer, we rented a private room at the inn to watch it safely.
This high-class inn offered unmatched privacy, with security so robust that even those with the Ninja profession would find it difficult to infiltrate.
Once inside, I locked the door securely and turned to Setsuna, who held the palm-sized orb in her hands.
“Setsuna, it’s up to you.”
“O-okay.”
She nodded nervously, her expression tense. With everyone watching, she touched the orb delicately with her graceful fingers.
The blue crystal floated in mid-air, emitting a soft glow before projecting a recorded image into the empty space before us.
The first thing to appear was the person who had recorded the message: a black-haired girl dressed in traditional Japanese-style armor.
Her appearance matched the pictures we’d seen. She was a very beautiful girl in traditional Japanese attire.
Unlike her bold and fiery sister, her expression was calm and composed, radiating a gentle demeanor even through the recording.
She didn’t seem like someone who could ever harm another person. It was hard to imagine this girl severely injuring her father, no matter how you looked at it.
As I silently reflected on this, I noticed something odd that made me furrow my brow.
On her otherwise pale, flawless skin, dark markings were visible.
At first glance, they looked like tattoos, but upon closer inspection, my ?Insight? skill revealed that these were no ordinary patterns.
They were the Curse Marks of Gluttony.
The marks indicated that the Great Calamity of Gluttony, a disembodied entity, was attempting to possess the priestess’s body.
Based on the progression, it was clear she would be completely overtaken in about a week.
While that timeline seemed generous, something about it felt off, as though the situation was bound to escalate before then.
This wasn’t just intuition. It was the kind of reasoning you develop through meta-awareness.
For example, in horror games, when a chase sequence begins, there’s usually a conveniently placed hiding spot or a maze-like corridor. It’s easy to predict what’s coming.
Applying that logic here, with the Dark Believer already clashing with our master, it seemed highly likely that Rasetsu might be captured soon.
(Just to be sure, Lucifel, what happens if she’s completely possessed?)
?My guess is that this type of curse likely traps the target’s personality and then dominates it, taking control as the main personality.?
(It’s fortunate that it’s not the worst-case scenario where the personality is completely erased, but we don’t know how much her body and mind can endure. Either way, we need to hurry.)
While I was thinking this, Rasetsu in the video opened her mouth.
“Thank you for chasing me all the way here, Sister.”
“Rasetsu…”
“As you can see, my body is gradually being taken over by the Calamity of Gluttony. I had actually planned to take my own life and return both my life and the monster’s to the heavens, but Father stopped me with his own body…”
“I see, so that’s why there was a dagger stuck in Father’s back.”
“Father used his own blood to cast a temporary spell to halt the progress of the calamity and wished for me to live. So, I decided to fight with all my strength.”
“Then why didn’t you ask for our help!? Why did you choose to fight alone?”
“…To be honest, I wanted to rely on you. I know that would make you very angry, but if I let my guard down now…”
A large static noise filled the video.
Rasetsu, her face contorted in pain, began to sprout what appeared to be sinister fly wings from her back.
Her figure, resembling a mythical fairy from legends, made me widen my eyes in shock.
From the six wings, dark scales were being scattered, and the protective barrier around her was being dyed black.
I used my ?Insight? skill to analyze the situation, quickly realizing that this was a boss-specific skill called Poison of Gluttony.
Once the poison is applied, it seems the only way to lift it is through a prayer from an awakened priestess.
I glanced at Setsuna beside me; unfortunately, it appeared that her powers as a priestess had not yet awakened.
Recalling our past battles, the priestess assigned to defeat the Calamity had always been awakened.
This meant that while the White Knight had come and defeated it, it’s very likely that they didn’t meet the full requirements for a complete eradication.
I bitterly thought to myself that unnecessary actions had been taken, but in the end, this was just hindsight.
Besides, in the context of a VRMMO, interfering with someone else’s strategy is generally considered bad manners.
So, I kept these thoughts to myself and refocused on Rasetsu, hoping she would regain her composure.
“Huff, huff… As you can see, the Calamity of Gluttony is starting to affect parts of my body. That’s why, in order to avoid causing harm to you, I couldn’t rely on anyone…”
“Rasetsu…”
“If we collect all the jewels from each village, we can break the seal of the angel who will banish the evil. With the help of ?Uriel?, we should be able to overcome this situation.”
The girl in the screen smiled and spoke her final words to her sister, who was watching.
“So don’t worry, sister… I will definitely come back.”
— We must hurry and save her.
As the video cut off, a heavy silence fell over the room, and everyone present fell silent.
When I looked at my companions, they too seemed to share the same resolve, their faces filled with determination.
We had taken it slow in the morning, and Setsuna had rested well, so now it was time to act. As gamers, isn’t it our job to save a suffering sister as quickly as possible?
Once I steeled myself, Setsuna, who had been quietly sitting with her head lowered, finally spoke up.
“Everyone, may I ask one thing…?”
I knew exactly what she was going to say, but we all waited for her to speak.
As everyone else stayed silent, Setsuna, with the strong desire to save her suffering sister, wiped away her tears and stood up, looking around at us.
“I’ll do whatever I can! I want you to help me save my sister, Rasetsu!”
“I understand, leave it to me!”
After I spoke, everyone else nodded.
It was clear that the video had ignited their spirits even further, their eyes burning with a fiery determination.
“We’ll cut down every enemy that stands in our way.”
“I’ll contact the members of the clan. At this rate, the decisive battle will likely be at the Fifth Village.”
“I’ll handle the supply of items! I’ll release the enhancement potions I’ve made through alchemy!”
Kuro, Shio, and Inori gathered around Setsuna, each gripping her hand tightly.
“I’ll be the shield for everyone, as a knight.”
“If it’s firepower support, that’s my role. I’ll slam a massive spell on those giant flies!”
“Alright then, let’s head to the Fifth Village and make our way to the Sixth Village after that!”
As I nodded to Rou and Shin’s words, I spoke up with our plan.
“We’ll save Rasetsu today. Any objections?”
None of them had any objections. It had already been decided from the start.