The King of Mercenaries—The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations (380+)

Sister Sarah, residing in the monastery, had been plagued by unsettling sounds every night as she tried to sleep.

The whispers came from her fellow novice, sleeping in the adjacent bed.

'What's going on with her all of a sudden?'

Initially, Sarah dismissed it as mere sleep-talking. But after several consecutive nights, the strange murmuring grated on her nerves.

'I need to confront her about this.'

Groggy from another restless night, Sarah decided to talk to her roommate first thing in the morning.

"Ah, she's already gone?"

Sarah had overslept. Her roommate had already left their quarters.

"I'll catch her later," she muttered, frustrated.

But the opportunity never came. The monastery's demanding schedule kept Sarah busy, and by the end of the day, she hadn't even caught a glimpse of her companion.

'Come to think of it, I haven't seen her outside of bedtime for a while now,' Sarah mused, a tinge of unease creeping in.

That night, as Sarah returned to their shared quarters, her roommate was already fast asleep, lying utterly still.

'She's so quiet. I hope tonight she doesn't start up again. I really need some rest.'

Sarah climbed into bed, her irritation giving way to exhaustion. Just as she began to drift off, the sound started again.

[$%&*#@$%!%^$$#]

A rapid, incomprehensible whisper filled her ears.

'Oh, come on…'

She pressed her hands over her ears, but the sound persisted, as if the whispers were emanating from within her very head.

Chills.

A dreadful thought struck Sarah, sending goosebumps up her spine. She bolted upright, scanning the room.

But there was no one else there.

'What's happening?'

Grinding her teeth in frustration, Sarah crept over to her roommate's bed.

Slowly, she leaned in.

Her roommate was motionless, lying exactly as she had earlier.

'What…?'

Was Sarah imagining things? How could she hear whispers when the person beside her was utterly still?

She decided to stay awake, her resolve firm.

By the time dawn approached, exhaustion got the better of her.

[$%&*#@$%!%^$$#]

"Ahhh!"

Sarah jolted awake, screaming.

"Please, stop it already!"

Her cries echoed through the empty room. She looked around, disoriented.

It was night again.

'How is it nighttime? Did I sleep the whole day? That's impossible! Someone would've woken me for chores!'

But her confusion was soon overtaken by anger. She turned to her roommate's bed in fury.

"Why are you doing this?!"

With trembling hands, Sarah tore away the blanket.

"Ahhhhh!"

Her scream pierced the silence as she stumbled backward.

Her roommate lay there, a bloodied corpse.

The realization hit her like a brick: her roommate had been dead all along, likely even on the first night she had checked. The body's stiff, unchanging position made perfect sense now.

"Wh-what is this…"

Who would dare commit murder within the sanctity of a monastery?

"I-I need to alert someone…"

Sarah tried to move, but the moment she stood, the world around her warped and twisted.

Zzzzzt—

It was as though reality itself was tearing apart.

Suddenly, everything turned crimson. No natural colors remained in her surroundings.

"Why… why is this happening?"

Terrified, Sarah stumbled toward the door.

Creak.

The door opened on its own.

"W-who's there?"

She stepped back, her breath hitching. Through the small crack, she saw nothing but darkness—except for one detail: a single, bloodshot eye stared at her from within the void.

It blinked, slowly, unyieldingly.

A demon.

Sarah's legs gave out beneath her, and she sank to the floor.

"L-Lord… please…"

Clutching her rosary tightly, she began to pray, her lips quivering as she recited her invocations.

The prayer steadied her nerves somewhat, offering fleeting solace.

But soon, the whispers returned, creeping into her prayers.

[$%&*#@$%!%^$$#]

'That voice… It's not hers. She's dead.'

The realization only heightened her terror.

[$%&*#Kill…%^$$#]

The whispers grew sharper, their meaning becoming clearer.

[$%&*#Kill… escape…%^$$#]

'Kill? Escape from what?'

[$%Survive… Kill… Escape this world…!%^$$#]

'Leave me alone, demon! Begone from me!'

She prayed harder, louder.

'Heavenly Father, save my wretched soul…'

But her pleas were drowned out by the whispers' insistent message.

[Kill… Kill… Only killing will save you…]

A chill ran through Sarah's hand. She looked down and froze.

Somehow, she was clutching a butcher's knife, slick with fresh blood.

Drip. Drip.

Blood trickled from the blade onto the floor, pooling at her feet.

Her hands and arms were coated with crimson, though she couldn't remember how or why.

"What… is this?"

The world around her remained bathed in oppressive red. No sound filled the air but the whispers and her own ragged breathing.

The monastery was eerily silent.

The bloodshot eye was gone from the door.

Swallowing hard, Sarah opened the door and stepped into the corridor.

Dim candlelight flickered along the walls, casting sinister shadows.

Normally, the monastery at night was serene, comforting even. Tonight, it was a place of nightmares.

Creak… Creak…

Every step echoed unnaturally loud.

The walls were streaked with blood, the metallic stench thick in the air.

Dead bodies lay sprawled across the floor, their faces frozen in expressions of horror.

"A-ah…"

Sarah's voice trembled as she took in the carnage.

Had a demon truly come and slaughtered everyone?

'I have to get out of here.'

Her grip tightened on the knife.

'This… this must be God's will. A weapon to protect myself.'

Even the narrow monastery halls, once familiar, now felt like an endless labyrinth.

[Kill… Kill… Only killing will save you…]

Ignoring the whispers, the bloodied walls, the corpses, she pressed forward.

Finally, she reached the garden.

And there, her courage shattered.

The crimson sky above churned and twisted unnaturally. The moon itself seemed to ripple, emanating an ominous hum.

"Ah… ahhh…"

A chilling wind howled through the dead trees.

SCREEEEECH!

Despair clung to the air as unsettling screams echoed from every direction.

Sister Sarah wept helplessly, her face etched with dread.

Is this what the end of the world looks like?

Beyond the iron gate, the landscape was shrouded in a crimson darkness, an apocalyptic void that consumed all light.

Only now did the whispers' cryptic message begin to make sense.

[Escape this world…!]

Sarah couldn't comprehend the exact meaning, but something was fundamentally wrong with reality itself. Yet, she had no idea how to escape.

Staying inside the monastery wasn't an option, either.

Despite her terror, Sarah knew she had to understand what had happened to the world. She needed to find survivors.

Summoning every ounce of courage, she flung the iron gate open.

Screeeech.

Blinding light poured through the opening, forcing her to shield her eyes.

This makes no sense, she thought. The gate was just a barrier separating the monastery from the outside world.

It was night—there was no reason for such brilliant light to burst through. Sarah distinctly remembered the outside appearing no different than the monastery itself.

Blinking against the light, her vision adjusted, revealing figures beyond the gate.

"A-Ah…"

Standing at the forefront was a young man with golden hair, dressed in aristocratic finery. Behind him, a row of knights stood, their faces grim.

Their armor and attire were unlike anything Sarah had ever seen.

Relief washed over her. Humans—at last! She fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face.

"Help me! A demon has appeared! Everyone in the monastery has been slaughtered!"

Her cries echoed in the tense silence, but the young man remained silent, his expression unreadable.

The knights, too, said nothing, merely regarding her with solemn gazes.

"Please! Check the monastery! I am Sister Sarah! Surely, you've been sent by the lord to investigate this madness!"

Despite her pleas, the man refused to answer. Instead, he drew his sword, its blade gleaming ominously, and pointed it at her.

"W-What are you doing?! Please, check the monastery!"

The man ignored her protests, speaking in a detached tone.

"You've already been consumed."

"W-What? Consumed? What are you talking about?"

"You're no sister of faith."

"What are you saying?!"

She was appalled. She had devoted her entire life to the monastery, serving the divine with unwavering faith. How dare he deny her identity?

But before she could argue further, the man interrupted again.

"This isn't a monastery. And you are no sister. A man cannot be a sister."

"What… what are you talking about?!"

Her voice, once light and feminine, now sounded deep and gravelly.

Startled, she clutched at her throat.

"No… no… this can't be…"

Her hands, once delicate, were now rough and calloused, stained with blood. Her muscular arms were covered in coarse hair.

Her vision blurred as confusion gripped her. The stench of blood and decay assaulted her senses. Slowly, she turned to look behind her.

The monastery's garden was gone, replaced by a slaughterhouse.

"Ah… ah…"

The walls were drenched in blood. Severed human limbs hung from meat hooks alongside chunks of animal carcasses, blood dripping steadily to the floor.

Corpses littered the ground, their lifeless eyes wide with terror.

"No… no… no…"

The butcher's knife slipped from her trembling fingers, clattering to the floor.

Her memories clashed violently. She remembered herself as a devout sister, but also as a man—a butcher who had lived an ordinary life, selling meat to support his family.

These two lives collided in her mind, leaving her unsure of what was real.

[$%Survive…!%^Escape this world…!#]

The whispers returned, their meaning clearer than ever.

The voice spoke a language she recognized instinctively, though it didn't belong to this world.

[Kill… to survive.]

Tears of blood streaked down the man's face.

With trembling hands, he clutched at his head. He—no longer Sarah, but a butcher—realized the horrifying truth: he had slaughtered his family and everyone around him with his own hands.

"I just… wanted to live…"

Crack. Crack. CRACK.

Suddenly, his bones twisted and contorted unnaturally. His body convulsed, limbs bending at impossible angles.

A sickening sound filled the air as his skull split open from the crown.

Zzzzzzt.

The human shell peeled away like a shedding cocoon. Beneath the flesh emerged a grotesque creature—a mutant with a pulsating brain and writhing tentacles.

Thrum.

Embedded in the creature's head, a glowing red crystal began to emit an eerie light.

The mutant's presence exuded an overwhelming sense of dread, its form radiating a vile, unholy energy.

The golden-haired man, Ghislain, observed the transformation with cold, calculating eyes. His voice was steady as he gave orders.

"Gordon, locate the city's mayor. Assemble the guards, evacuate the citizens, and surround the city."

"Yes, my lord!"

"The rest of you, prepare for battle."

While Ghislain could easily handle mutants alone, this was no ordinary transformation.

RUMBLE.

A massive surge of mana erupted from beneath the ground, shaking the very earth.

Ghislain's expression darkened as he recognized the phenomenon.

"The door has opened."

His face was grim as he stared into the glowing depths of the city, steeling himself for the chaos to come.