chapter_0171

“What… Who is this…?”

I tried to speak, but the words kept swirling in my mouth and dissipating. I couldn’t get my lips to form the words. My head was so full of thoughts that it felt like it was about to burst.

The woman, who looked exactly like the goddess but exuded an even stronger divine power, was a complete mystery to me. I didn’t know who she was, where this place was, or who the goddess outside was.

Not to mention why this woman was chained up.

The woman leaned against the wall, her arms spread wide, and the chains that wrapped around her like snakes bound her entire body to the walls, floor, and ceiling of the temple.

Upon closer inspection, her body was also a mess. Her hair was disheveled and had lost its color, and her once pure white dress was now stained with red and black.

“You are feeling confused.”

A haggard smile appeared on her face. She seemed to have given up on escaping the chains.

“I understand your confusion, but we don’t have much time, so please snap out of it. Please listen to what I have to say. The fact that you found me here means… that it was destined to end up like this. The ‘me’ outside would have tried to stop you at all costs.”

“Wait a minute. What do you mean by ‘me’ outside?”

The woman looked at a certain spot, and the goddess appeared where her gaze landed. She still looked uncomfortable, glancing back and forth between the chained woman and me.

“It’s just as you see.”

“What is this…?”

“My appearance is like this, isn’t it? In order to act outside, I had to create another version of myself. To be precise, think of it as me giving up all my emotions so that I can maintain myself. This body is also feeling fear, and it seems that even that is reaching its limit, but it’s not because of you, so rest assured—”

A piercing moan cut off her words. The goddess’s body twisted, and her face contorted in pain. The chains that wrapped around her entire body tightened as if they were devouring her, biting into her flesh.

After writhing in pain for a while, the goddess finally calmed down and managed a pained smile.

“……I’ve shown you an unsightly sight.”

“What just happened…?”

“It’s because of the restrictions placed on me. The fact that we can have this conversation now is because she is allowing it. Don’t forget that.”

Her emaciated fingers reached for the chains around her wrist and pulled them upwards. Clang! The cold sound of metal rang out.

“I’m beyond saving. The restrictions placed on me are gradually consuming my body and soul, and even suppressing them with divine power and trying to speak the truth as much as possible has its limits. So, I will tell you the last truth I can.”

Her eyes, still shining despite being half-broken, turned to me.

“The origin of the magic you mentioned, which felt a little different from the Demon Sword, is indeed what you’re thinking.”

“But the source is different from what you think. A world has been absorbed by a human, and it no longer exists. The source of the magic is no longer a world but a human.”

It was probably an expression she used to avoid the restrictions placed on her, but it was a very cryptic explanation.

I wondered who could have absorbed a world, and if there was anything left to absorb in a place where nothing existed but me.

“You being brought here is also that human’s doing—”

-Kwaak!

The goddess’s lips stopped moving before she could finish her sentence. At the same time, the other goddess’s form shattered and disappeared. Her eyes widened, and red blood trickled from her half-open lips.

Something was torn away, and the goddess’s chest began to shake.

“Don’t… ever… trust… that… woman…”

The goddess tried to say something even in that situation, but her waist bent backwards, and something pierced her chest, causing her to collapse against the wall.

Her eyes, which hadn’t even had time to close, slowly fell downwards. The blood that flowed from the hole stained her pure white dress red, creating a large puddle around her body.

And from the hole in her chest, something slimy, like a small slime, emerged. It poked at the goddess’s corpse with a tentacle, then suddenly expanded its body. In an instant, it took on a human form.

A head appeared, and the hair that hung down from the back of its head turned golden, its blue skin turned peach, and its naked body was covered in a dress, even the bloody one.

It was the goddess’s form.

Even the blood-stained dress was perfectly replicated.

“……”

The monster, now in the perfect form of the goddess, with a gaping hole in its chest, awkwardly moved its limbs as if the concept of arms and legs was foreign to it. It turned to face me, and its grotesque, twisted smile was just like the one the goddess had forced out.

The bizarre behavior didn’t stop there. It seemed to be imitating me, as it stared at my right hand, which held Eternity, and then created an exact copy of Eternity in its left hand.

The monster observed the sword in its left hand, then raised its head.

-Kwaang!

It slammed its foot into the ground. My body reacted before my mind could catch up, and I swung my sword to block the blow. Clang! The sharp sound of metal rang out, and my mind finally caught up to the situation.

I didn’t know what was going on, but one thing was clear: the monster in front of me was trying to kill me.

Mana flowed into Eternity. My body accelerated. The world slowed to an extreme, and the monster’s movements froze. Opposing forces swirled around the blade of Eternity.

As the Polar Distortion aimed for its neck, its eyes shifted sideways.

“……!!!!!!”

Its eyes moved, and its body began to move in real-time, catching up to my speed-up speed.

And as mana flowed into the sword in its hand, opposing forces swirled around it as well.

“What the…!”

The replicated Eternity in its hand interfered with the trajectory that was about to tear through its neck. The two Polar Distortions collided, causing a massive explosion. The ground cracked, and the impact wave knocked my body away.

My back hit the wall of the temple, but instead of stopping me, the already half-destroyed temple crumbled under the impact. I quickly regained my balance before I could hit the dirt floor.

-Kurururur…

I saw part of the temple collapse. Dust rose everywhere. I thought of the goddess’s corpse inside, but there were more important things to worry about.

That thing wouldn’t have died anyway.

“……!!!!!!”

As expected, the monster jumped out of the half-destroyed temple, its grotesque smile still fixed on its face as it waved its hand, which didn’t hold Eternity, at me.

I stared at it, then raised my left hand. I had something to confirm. Sure enough, the monster focused on my left hand.

I created a simple fire spell in my hand, and soon, the same fire appeared in the monster’s hand. It curiously observed the flames, playing with them.

‘I don’t know what kind of creature you are, but…’

I extinguished the magic. I sheathed Eternity. There was no point in showing it more flashy techniques. If I use other skills , it would probably be able to replicate them as well. I didn’t want to do it any favors.

Instead, I clenched my fists.

.

.

.

I opened my eyes to find myself in Laura’s room. The room was empty and unusually quiet.

I looked around. The sun outside the window didn’t seem much different from when I had ascended to the heavenly realm, so not much time had passed.

‘Hoo.’

I clenched and unclenched my fists as I sat on the sofa. I still felt the sensation of burying the goddess’s corpse in the pit.

The heavenly realm itself had collapsed due to a lack of power to maintain it, rendering it useless.

I didn’t feel good. The goddess was dead, and I still hadn’t discovered the true identity of that strange creature or found a clear answer.

I was still frustrated, and my questions remained unanswered. I had gone to the heavenly realm expecting to find answers, but instead, I had only ended up with more questions.

‘You said the woman who brought me here was the same person who absorbed my previous world…’

At the end, she had told me not to trust that woman, but I had no intention of doing so anyway. How could I trust such a human?

-Bang, bang, bang!

My thoughts were interrupted by urgent footsteps outside the door, followed by knocking and someone bursting in without waiting for a response.

“Mira! Are you in here?!”

It was Leona.

Panting, she rushed in and, upon seeing me sitting on the sofa, ran towards me as if she had a heat-seeking device. Her face was half-panicked as she spoke in a rushed voice.

“You’re here! Thank goodness! Something terrible has happened! It’s a real emergency!”

“How terrible… Before I could finish asking—”

I stopped mid-sentence as I noticed the Holy Sword in her hand. It was completely dark, devoid of any light or trace of divine power. Leona continued in a sobbing voice.

“It just happened a while ago… You went to meet the Goddess, right? Do you know what happened?”

I knew. I didn’t know the exact reason, but I could guess. I had just buried the goddess’s corpse myself.

With the goddess gone, it was only natural that the Holy Sword would lose its power.

‘Wait… Does that mean Rosalia too?’

Rozaria’s divine power also came from the Goddess. In this situation, if Rosalia lost her identity as a saint, the consequences were obvious.

“Mira! It’s a big deal—oh, oh? Hero?”

And as if to confirm my suspicions, Rosalia burst into the room, her voice indicating that my thoughts were correct.