Chapter 170

Chapter 170

Ian was momentarily taken aback.

The darkness that had enveloped his vision brightened.

From the flickering light of a torch, he saw a pristine golden bathtub placed atop an altar. People were lining up the stairs on either side. They stood at the edge of the bathtub, shedding tears, and slashed their throats with the daggers in their hands before plunging into the tub. A splashing sound followed.

Those who couldn’t muster the courage were attacked by those behind them, who slit their throats and threw them into the tub.

The golden bathtub endlessly accepted their blood and bodies.

A whisper urging haste, and the distant sounds of commotion brushed his ears. It was a language he had never heard before, yet he could understand it naturally.

Ah, I see. This is the memory of true blood.

Ian finally let out a dry laugh, though it was only an internal laugh. There was nothing he could do at this moment.

All he could do was stay attached to the consciousness of an unknown existence, passively accepting knowledge he wasn’t particularly curious about.

Ian realized that these people were the royal family of a kingdom that had once existed in the eastern part of the continent and that they were about to be killed by the Imperial army.

The reason was that they were heretics worshiping demons. From Ian’s perspective, it was something they deserved. It was only natural for a God who demanded sacrifices of blood to be treated as a demon.

Of course, they didn’t think that way.

"As long as the blood of the royal family flows within you, the dynasty is not extinct, and as long as you hold the essence of Divine Blood, our Lord will not abandon us. Survive, princess. My daughter. Rebuild your lineage and restore the kingdom. This is your mission."

The middle-aged man, who spoke with a solemn expression, died as he spilled his blood into the tub one last time.

The girl Ian was observing stood up for the final time. She looked back with tear-filled eyes. The commotion behind the firmly closed door was getting closer.

Eventually, she climbed the stairs and stood by the tub. Unlike the others, she jumped into the blood- and corpse-filled tub.

A sticky warmth enveloped her entire body. The next moment, Ian saw the terrified faces of the Imperial soldiers pass before his eyes. Cold death and senseless killing followed after. Only the sticky warmth of the blood they shed remained, tinting his vision red.

From that moment on, scenes flashed before his eyes, as if in fast-forward. Each was a fleeting moment, yet the emotions and thoughts of those moments pierced his mind vividly.

The longing for survival and loneliness, the joy of creating a first family, the excitement felt during the war, and the hatred toward other demons and the conflict of betraying them.

Vain dreams and desires only bred hollow joy and unquenchable thirst. The longing for the past never faded no matter how much time passed. And the hatred toward those who only used them never diminished, growing ever larger. In the end, they wished for everything to collapse.

The princess of the fallen kingdom had become a demon.

All those moments led to the present. There was no longer any regret in destroying the nation they had painstakingly built. She simply pretended to care.

Killing her kin with her own hands no longer brought any sadness. The certain approach to death was, of course, terrifying, but it also stirred a futile longing.

Maybe, just maybe, this time, with him...

In the next moment, the vision was filled with a man, battered and bruised, raising a greatsword with a blank expression.

"How do you feel, seeing yourself through another’s eyes?" A girl’s voice continued beside him.

Ian instinctively turned his head and then realized, belatedly, that he could move his head.

A girl was sitting there. She had blond hair, and red eyes, and was wearing unfamiliar clothing.

Ian responded calmly. "This is not my true self."

The girl, the Empress, smiled. "Do you mean you have many other appearances that I don’t know of? I didn’t know you enjoyed philosophical talk. That’s unexpected."

"I don’t enjoy it. I mean this truly isn’t my real self."

"...?" The Empress tilted her head in confusion.

Ian added, "I came from another world."

"Another... world?"

The Empress’s eyes widened as if she had heard something entirely unexpected.

But Ian’s words weren’t finished yet. “This world was created by someone for amusement. I was dragged here while enjoying that, without any intention of my own.”

“Do you mean this world was created for the sake of amusement?”

“Yes. At least, to my knowledge.”

“Then the creator of this world must be a terribly cruel person, making everyone suffer and laughing at it.” Instead of probing further, the Empress merely nodded as if she understood, murmuring to herself.

Ian did not deny it. He often had similar thoughts.

The vision he had just seen, which he wasn’t particularly curious about, also depicted the process of someone’s soul being completely corrupted and destroyed.

The young Empress, lost in thought and nodding to herself, finally spoke as if she had come to an understanding.

“That’s why the true blood couldn’t taint your soul. The fact that you hold both divinity and chaos in you. Even mastering various magics—all of this was possible because your soul wasn’t created by the rules of this world.”

“I never thought about it that way... but maybe you’re right.”

“Really... It’s astonishing. Then what about this world? Do you know what will happen to it in the future?”

“Somewhat.” Though he answered casually, Ian felt strangely relieved. These were words he had never spoken to anyone before.

He never imagined he would share such thoughts with a demon he had killed, and that too within the demon’s fading memories.

Thunder flashed through the gathering storm clouds. A quest completion window appeared in front of his eyes. It was then that Ian realized he had returned to reality.

The overwhelming presence of the true blood had vanished without a trace. The shards of chaos lay almost empty and silent. Only the ashes he lay upon served as a reminder that what he had just experienced was not a mere daydream.

Rumbling began to spread from all directions shortly afterward. Not just the audience chamber but all the underground spaces were collapsing.

The collapse seemed strangely close. He realized that the audience chamber’s expanse was now less than half of what it had been. The depth was the same.

"So, the barrier has collapsed...."

The space that had stretched and warped had returned to its original form.

Muttering, Ian tried to lift his upper body but wobbled. Severe dizziness and headache. And a pain so intense it made his vision blur and swept through his entire body.

Ian realized then that his physical condition was worse than he had thought. His consciousness tried to slip away again.

But it wasn’t the time to faint yet. Ian leaned against the Legion Commander’s Greatsword, embedded in the ashes like a tombstone, to lift his upper body.

He then pulled a cigarette box out of his pocket dimension and managed to put one in his mouth.

A small spark flew from his trembling grip. Ian realized he had almost no magic power left. If he closed his eyes now, he would suffer from severe magic exhaustion when he woke up.

Fwoosh—

A small flame flickered. Ian lit the end of his cigarette, leaning his head against the blade of the greatsword as he inhaled the smoke.

The scent of the herbs filled his lungs and then spread outside with his exhale. His vision, which had seemed on the verge of extinguishing, brightened a little. As he exhaled the smoke, Ian finally reached a conclusion to the thought that had crossed his mind earlier.

Not all the situations he experienced here were in the game.

At least, it wouldn’t have been this difficult. It must have been a butterfly effect, created by adding several new situations that weren’t in the game.

"Sigh..."

Ian exhaled another puff of smoke and stood up with a determined look. His ankle, buried in the ashes, creaked, and dizziness washed over him. Although the bleeding in his left thigh had stopped, he still had no strength. Yet he stood up anyway.

"Phew..."

Stretching out his right arm, Ian gripped the hilt of the greatsword. Pulling it from the ground was difficult now. He barely managed to tilt the blade and put it into his pocket dimension. Then, he turned and searched the ashes for the Broken Sword of Judgment.

The scabbard lay far off. Limping, he barely managed to retrieve the scabbard and return it to his pocket dimension as well. Finally, he took another drag on his cigarette and looked around.

The Labyrinth Mansion had completely collapsed, leaving no trace. The debris had formed a few slopes that seemed to lead to the surface.

It’s not a path I could take in my current condition...

As he exhaled the cigarette smoke and prepared to take a step, he heard a familiar voice.

"Ian...!"

Silhouettes he recognized appeared beyond the slope. It was his comrades.

"My lord! You’re safe! Thank goodness! But what on earth happened...?"

As Phillip shouted, Mev urgently pulled up her visor. She looked at Ian with anxious eyes, hesitating as she tried to help Phillip descend the slope. Phillip had his left arm fixed with a splint and bandages.

Mev, supporting Phillip, hesitantly stepped onto the slope.

She looks like she’s about to fall at any moment.

Ian thought, watching the two run ahead.

Charlotte ran effortlessly over the debris. And overtaking her was Thesaya, draped in a snow leopard hide cloak. Her eyes, once red, were no longer crimson.

Now a much deeper green, her hair had transitioned from silver to almost pure white. The physical changes seemed to stop there. There were no longer any signs of the writhing roots beneath her skin.

"...." Ian quietly watched Thesaya approaching with her arms swinging. He furrowed his brows and reached out to the side. The sealed box emerged from the pocket dimension and barely touched the ground, making him furrow his brows even more.

Despite being close enough, Thesaya’s pace didn’t slow down at all. Instead, she spread her arms even wider.

Ian exhaled smoke as he spoke. "As you can see, I’m injured."

"I know! It looks really bad!" Thesaya shouted and threw herself at him.

In his current state, Ian couldn’t dodge or withstand the charge. Ian fell backward. Thesaya, who cushioned his head to prevent it from hitting the ground, screamed thanks as she held him.

I told you, I’m injured...

Even as pain washed over his body, Ian muttered. "Put on some clothes. Don’t just wear a cloak."

"As expected, you’re the only one who cares about my clothes, Ian. Alright." Thesaya stood up without complaint.

From behind her, Ian’s voice continued.

"Thesa."

"Yes?"

"Your quest is complete."

"...!" Thesaya’s eyes widened as she looked back at Ian. She blinked for a moment, then shouted thanks once more and hugged him tightly.

Ian gave no response. He had already lost consciousness.