My esoteric uncle Jules

Chapter 134 Ram's "Corpse"

bang——

Jules carefully hung the mirror, making sure it received the moonlight streaming in from the church spire without any obstruction.

"This should be the last mirror..." He looked down at the corner of the wall and saw that the place where the mirror used to be was empty, and felt a little relieved.

This also explains one of his questions.

In his previous reality, he often saw broken mirrors appearing in strange places.

Because the mirrors themselves were made of cheap materials and were quite broken, no one bothered to remove them; they were simply left hanging there, forming a unique feature of the monastery.

Logically speaking, even believers in the crescent moon wouldn't have the custom of hanging so many strange mirrors as decorations—but it makes sense if it's explained as a remnant of a ritual.

He tiptoed down the scaffolding and stood on the ground again.

Although he was able to jump down unharmed, it was still a bit too conspicuous. Right now, he just wanted to carefully observe what would happen next.

Although he couldn't see the moon, he could tell from the reactions of the people around him that, from their perspective, the moon was already high in the sky.

"Are all the mirrors set up?" the manager asked as he approached.

Jules stood among several believers, nodding along with those around him:
"It's all set up."

“Very good,” the person in charge nodded and methodically issued new tasks, “You group will come with me to continue polishing the mirror, while the rest of you will deal with the ghoul corpses and bring them to the ritual point.”

After he finished speaking, he closed his eyes and devoutly performed the same prayer gesture that Father Arc Moon had done before.

"In the name of the Queen in the Mirror".

The believers bowed their heads slightly and chanted in unison:

"In the name of the Queen in the Mirror".

They all drew a crescent moon on their chests with devout expressions.

Jules followed suit, adopting a devout expression.

However, his mind was completely focused on the "ghouls".

According to the person in charge, his side was responsible for the corpses of ghouls.

"Am I going to be in charge of disposing of the ghoul corpses later...?"

He recalled that not long ago, when he was with Father Arcmoon, someone from the other side said that the mirrors they made "could not perfectly reflect ghouls."

It seems that reflecting the ghoul's image in the mirror is an important part of this ritual?
Jules followed the others without making a sound, heading towards the direction where the ghoul corpses were stored.

It seems that the ceremony was functioning normally, but it's unclear which part went wrong, leading to its ultimate failure and potentially causing terrible consequences.

Speaking of which... where did Ram go?

He has yet to see any trace of Ram.

He had searched almost the entire Holy Protection Monastery, but hadn't seen a trace of Ram, which gave him a bad feeling.

Although he and the other party were just casual acquaintances and not very familiar with each other, he did not want to see anything happen to the other party.

……

The group slowly descended the narrow stone steps, the dim light filled with a damp, decaying smell; with each breath, they could taste the patina of time.

A faint phosphorescent glow flickered on the wall, illuminating everyone's faces and making the scene appear particularly eerie.

Walking in the middle of the group, Jules could hear not only the slightly heavy footsteps of the crowd, but also the faint growls of an unknown creature.

Judging from the direction, the sound is coming from ahead.

"There's an underground area here? It seems none of the adventurers discovered it..."

Jules looked around, his eyes filled with undisguised curiosity.

He never expected that the Holy Protection Monastery would have an underground area—something that none of the adventurers, even the legendary adventurer Ram, had ever heard of.

Could it have been completely collapsed and buried over the long years?

The surrounding believers remained silent and calm, clearly accustomed to being here.

Gradually, Jules saw a stone door looming in the darkness in the distance.

When he saw the image of the stone gate, he was instinctively stunned.

"Why does it feel so similar to the stone door beneath the abandoned monastery where the priests currently reside?"

Even the patterns and directions of the symbols on them are so similar.

However, the stone gate here did not give him the same sense of awe as the ones he had seen before; at least in terms of imposing presence, the former was much weaker than the latter.

The lead believer stepped forward, placed his hand on the stone door, and muttered incantations.

As he chanted, the stone gate trembled slowly, emitting a dull sound, and slowly opened to both sides.

A strong, putrid stench assaulted their senses, causing even the most experienced people to frown.

Jules merely narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed intently on the doorway.

"As expected, it smells like ghouls..."

He had smelled this scent more than once; he was very familiar with it.

That scent, belonging to those who hadn't yet died of winter, was so unique that it left a deep impression on him.

He looked up and saw a huge stone chamber inside the door, with stone coffins placed around it. The coffin lids were carved with ferocious faces, but they did not look fierce; instead, they gave people a sense of security.

In the center of the stone chamber lay rows of cold corpses, the very targets of Jules's journey—ghouls.

The corpses were twisted and deformed, their skin was bluish-gray, and they emitted a nauseating odor.

Jules approached one of the corpses and examined it closely, discovering that the body was covered in strange wounds, as if it had been repeatedly cut by something sharp.

"Be careful, these ghouls were extremely evil beings in life, and they may retain strange powers even after death."

A believer nearby reminded him, his voice echoing in the stone chamber.

Jules nodded, but his gaze remained fixed on the corpse.

He had a vague feeling that the corpses of these ghouls might be the key to unraveling the mystery of this ritual.

Since they are sealing a ghoul curse, these corpses must be inextricably linked to the ritual.

Just as he was observing, the leader's shout rang out:
"Jules, move this body!"

He pointed to a ghoul corpse beside him, half of its face covered, covered in horrific wounds.

Jules could even sense the remnants of Enlightenment in the traces of these wounds being opened.

"Where should we move this body?" Jules asked as he walked up to him.

The leader pondered for a long time before saying:

"The chapel, perhaps."

Chapel? Jules was slightly taken aback, but didn't ask any further questions. He nodded, casually stuffed the body into a sack next to him, and walked out.

What a coincidence! Their first and last encounter with the eerie mirror outside was at the chapel...

As Jules pondered this, he left the underground morgue.

He only glanced at the ghoul's corpse briefly, without even looking at its face.

Even a brief contact with his skin left a deep impression on him.

"Cold" and "dried up." It's hard to say whether this thing can be considered alive—perhaps from a mystical perspective, it is alive and well, and the only difference compared to its previous life is in its memories and behavioral habits.

On the way, he noticed that the mirrors he and others had placed earlier seemed to be working.

The silvery moonlight was repeatedly refracted by the mirror, eventually converging into the courtyard in the center of the monastery.

There, a thick, silvery-white beam of light shot into the sky.

Seeing this, Jules nodded thoughtfully.

"That 'mithril' mirror?"

During the installation of these mirrors, he did not see any that appeared to be related to mithril.

If we're talking about the most likely place, then that's probably the only one.

Jules carried the sack containing the corpses of ghouls and hurried toward the chapel.

The silvery moonlight danced and refracted between the mirrors, illuminating the monastery as if it were daytime, yet it also exuded an indescribable eeriness.

The surrounding air seemed to be frozen by this strange light, and with each step Jules could feel the "rustling" sound of his shoes rubbing against the ground with exceptional clarity.

It was only then that he noticed the monastery had become unusually quiet.

It was as if it had suddenly lost its vitality.

However, seeing that the believers were still there, just not saying anything, he felt a little more at ease.

Perhaps it's just a requirement for the ceremony to take place beforehand? Or maybe it's simply because the atmosphere is too oppressive and no one wants to talk.

Jules arrived at the chapel shortly afterward.

The familiar stained glass appeared before his eyes, even giving him a sense of familiarity.

But what he felt most "close" to was the perfectly intact statue.

Even with the barrier between reality and the mirror separating them, he was already somewhat shocked. Now, seeing it up close, he was even more amazed.

Upon closer inspection, under the moonlight, the marble statue truly radiates a mirror-like luster.

Jules took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and dragged the sack to the mirror.

He untied the bag, grabbed the ghoul corpse by the shoulders with both hands, and pulled it out forcefully.

When the corpse's head was fully exposed to the moonlight, Jules froze, as if struck by lightning.

"How can it be?!"

Jules' voice rose involuntarily, his face showing undisguised shock.

The face of the ghoul in front of me is clearly that of Ram!
His bluish-gray skin clung tightly to his cheekbones, his lips were chapped, and his eyes were hollow yet exuded a strange sense of familiarity.

Jules staggered back a few steps, staring intently at the corpse.

The surrounding air seemed to freeze instantly, and the silvery moonlight that had been dancing between the mirrors now seemed to become icy cold.

The statue stood quietly to one side, radiating a cold, eerie light under the silver moonlight, seemingly watching everything silently.

Jules's mind was in a state of confusion.

He couldn't understand how Ram had become like this.
He and Ram went in one after the other, so how did the other inexplicably turn into the ghoul corpse in the mirror?
His gaze shifted back and forth between the idol, the mirror, and Ram's corpse, his brow furrowed.

Suddenly, a strange ripple appeared in the mirror, as if a stone had been thrown into a calm lake.

Immediately afterwards, blurry images began to appear in the mirror.

It seemed as if countless figures were twisting and struggling within it, and Ram's figure was among them.

He looked at Jules through the mirror, letting out a silent scream, his face contorted in pain.

Seeing this, Jules stared intently at the mirror, afraid of missing the slightest abnormality.

However, the image only flashed for a moment before returning to normal, as if it had never happened.

"……interesting."

Jules smirked, acting as if nothing had happened, and adjusted the position of the ghoul's corpse so that it was fully reflected in the mirror.

Then he turned and left.

The direction he was heading was the center of the monastery.

……

The Sanctuary of Holy Grace is exceptionally lively today.

Normally, given its notorious reputation, even adventurers known for their recklessness wouldn't dare to challenge this place.

But today was different; a large crowd had gathered outside the monastery, numbering at least several dozen.

Although it still appears incredibly small compared to the monastery hidden in the dense forest, it is now quite crowded compared to its previous desolate state.

Uriel stood before the monastery gate, hands behind his back, gazing at the monastery he had never entered, a sense of melancholy washing over him.

Some time ago, the master learned from somewhere that there was a dilapidated monastery in Blancco that contained the treasure that the master needed.

Therefore, as the master's most loyal and reliable subordinate, he was naturally and logically sent here.

Although some people often scornfully refer to him as their master's dog, he only laughs at it—so what if you're a dog? Countless people want to be dogs, but they don't even have the connections.

Originally, he planned to go in and look for it himself.

However, his master specifically warned him not to take action unless absolutely necessary, to prevent being tracked down by outsiders.

As for what it was, the master didn't say, but he still remembered the serious expression on the master's face when he said it, so he kept the master's words firmly in his heart.

Looking at the group of beggars and outlaws surrounding him, Uriel felt a headache coming on.

Fine, we've gone to great lengths to coerce and bribe so many people together, let them go in and give it a try.

He turned his head, looked at the crowd behind him, cleared his throat, and said:
"Everyone probably knew beforehand that this monastery was haunted, right?"

Everyone remained silent, but some people's eyes gleamed with an ambiguous light, even carrying a hint of resentment, clearly indicating that they had been "coerced" into coming under duress.

Uriel ignored the discordant gazes and shouted:
"Now that everyone understands, remember, run immediately if you encounter danger! There's a lantern I left at the monastery entrance that can help drive away all ghosts!"

At this moment, Rogo and Cliff were also standing beside Uriel, but the lanterns they were carrying were hung at the entrance of the monastery.

They remained silent, watching Uriel issue commands, occasionally glancing at the monastery with deep fear in their eyes.

No matter what Uriel said, they refused to leave first, which almost made Uriel furious.

"We're just asking you to scout ahead, what are you chickening out for?"

Seeing that the two of them acted as if they were completely unfazed, Uriel was speechless and could only say:
"Alright, then you guys stay at the door and guard it in case of any unexpected situations."

By this time, the advance team had already been deep inside the monastery for some time.

Just as Uriel was about to relax, he heard a shrill scream coming from afar.

"It's chasing me!!!"

He suddenly opened his eyes and looked in the direction of the sound.

A beggar frantically ran towards the door, but it was too late.

The beggar's body was torn apart as if it were paper; in just a moment, only a pile of parts remained.

Blood flowed, reflecting on Uriel's somewhat gloomy face.

(End of this chapter)