230. Tangled Thread

Running for three days to escape 20 pursuing Demon Kings is absolute madness.

Even getting out of the Forest Giant’s Nest in the first place is no easy task.

That’s why another approach was necessary. Physically running away was impossible, so they had to use teleportation magic to evade the Demon Kings’ eyes.

‘And I have to stay behind to buy time.’

For this insane plan to succeed, staking one’s life wasn’t enough.

It was a miracle that required wagering something even greater than one’s own life.

In the end, Mabel staked her future. She burned her soul like kindling, giving up resurrection as a condition, and offered her abilities as a sacrifice to gain power.

The abilities engraved in her soul began to burn. As they burned alongside her soul, they momentarily elevated Mabel to a realm close to that of a god.

“Kuaaaaah-!!!”

Her mana surged infinitely, and Mabel forcibly suppressed the rampaging energy, gripping it tightly in her hands.

It felt like holding molten lava. A bomb that could explode at any moment-but now was the time to use even such a bomb.

Soon, an ecstatic high, enough to blur her mind, and the agony of her mana circuits tearing apart surged through her hands and struck her heart.

“Kuh-hk!”

Even as she coughed up blood, Mabel unleashed her mana toward the charging Demon Kings. There was no time to weave a proper spell. Now was the moment to wield the power in her hands mercilessly.

KWA-BOOM-!

The space around Mabel exploded outward, and even the Demon Kings rushing toward the two were swept away by the shockwave.

“Hoh.”

Only one remained, floating motionless in the air.

“Not bad for a human.”

A man with gnarled tree roots sprouting from his entire body-Jeremy-stood completely unharmed.

‘That one…’

The moment Mabel saw Jeremy, she could tell. He seemed to be on an entirely different level compared to the mindless Demon Kings.

‘We have to run.’

The instant she sensed his power, Mabel quickly realized they had to flee.

The gap in strength was already insurmountable with just the Demon Kings-now, a monster beyond even them had arrived.

In their current state, even if she and Jason died and came back to life, they’d never be able to defeat that abomination.

“Jason…! Grab my hand!!”

Mabel seized Jason’s hand and teleported them far enough that the Demon Kings wouldn’t find them immediately.

‘He’s not interfering?’

Even as she teleported, Jeremy didn’t personally attack her. He merely smiled, like a child amused by an insect’s futile struggles.

Mabel shuddered at his relaxed demeanor. The fact that he was letting them escape spoke volumes about how much of an advantage he held.

‘An attitude that says nothing we do matters…’

Mabel was forced to swallow both crushing defeat and terror.

Even now, after burning her abilities to gain near-omnipotent mana, she knew fighting that monster would mean certain death.

It was humiliating, but at the same time, she felt relief at having survived.

“Kkh…”

“Mabel! Are you okay?!”

“No time to stop… We teleport again… Hold on…”

“Wait, your face-!”

“Who cares about my face?! We have to run-now!!”

Mabel knew she didn’t have much time left. Her lifespan wasn’t the only thing at stake-her very soul was under strain.

Had the Druid Association President not taken precautions beforehand, Mabel’s soul would have shattered long ago.

Spatial magic is nearly impossible to use without the right affinity. The mana consumption is so immense that a mage without spatial aptitude would die from mana backlash if they tried casting it alone.

But Mabel made it possible through sheer magical prowess and superhuman willpower.

“Mabel! You’ll die at this rate!”

“Kuh… hk…”

Mabel didn’t respond to Jason’s shout.

Coughing blood, she cast the spell again, teleporting herself and Jason to a distant location.

Simultaneously teleporting two people to a place where Shion might be while adjusting coordinates in real-time to avoid getting stuck somewhere-only Mabel could have pulled that off.

Thud.

After five teleportations, Mabel collapsed.

Her mouth was already drenched in blood, and her shattered mana circuits burned, wracking her body with pain.

“Mabel! Here-drink this first!”

Jason poured the highest-grade recovery potion he had received from Rafnel down Mabel’s throat.

Seeing the potion trickle from her lips, Jason realized she was on the verge of breaking.

“Hey… Jason… Can you… hear me?”

“I hear you. I’m listening, Mabel.”

“I… can’t… see well anymore… So take this… and run.”

“You? You’re staying here? Why?! Just come with me in the sealing artifact. I’ll run from now on. Or I’ll carry you!”

“With that soft heart… you won’t make it… I’ll… draw their attention… Go.”

Not even a full day had passed yet.

Though teleportation had shortened the distance to Shion, they still needed to hold out for at least two more days.

“Jason. You know this isn’t easy… Don’t forget our roles. We agreed to sacrifice ourselves. So sacrifice… to the end.”

“You’re insane.”

“I was always insane.”

Jason took the sealing artifact containing the remains of the conquest team from Mabel.

She had already resolved to die here. Realizing he couldn’t overpower her will, Jason accepted her decision.

“Hold on.”

“You too…”

Mabel teleported Jason one last time.

That made six spatial spells cast-her abilities had almost entirely burned away.

All that remained was her half-ruined body, a soul on the verge of exploding, and a mind slowly succumbing to labyrinth assimilation.

“I’ve done… all I can…”

Mabel erected a simple barrier and tried to soothe her ravaged insides.

She also planned to leak mana little by little to lure the Demon Kings.

She had chosen death. Yet she felt neither sorrow nor resentment. If anything, Mabel felt exhilaration.

“I… surpassed… your achievements… Moira.”

She had always been overshadowed by Moira. That’s why she lived drowning in inferiority.

It was the same when they slew the Rampaging Dragon.

Moira always stood ahead, cutting down everything in her path, and each time, Mabel despised herself for not even coming close to Moira’s heels.

But now, things were different. She had achieved feats comparable to Moira’s, created successors Moira never could, and produced magical accomplishments that could surpass Moira’s legacy.

Moreover, she and Shion had conquered the labyrinth together, successfully bringing the 5th and 6th floors under humanity’s domain.

She had wanted to live long enough to see the 7th floor subdued, but knowing that was impossible, Mabel let out a bitter laugh.

“No regrets… If humanity survives… my name will be remembered for generations… This is my victory, Moira. I’ll be remembered as greater than you…”

A self-sacrificing hero.

If humanity survived thanks to her sacrifice, her name would be immortalized.

That was enough for Mabel. After all, what she had always desired most wasn’t a husband or children-it was fame and glory.

---

‘How long has it been…?’

She kept passing out and waking up.

Mabel had no idea how much time had passed.

She was still alone, and nothing had come for her in the cave where she hid.

‘My body still won’t listen.’

Her flesh was already half-dead.

She was barely clinging to life, her thoughts barely coherent.

‘Maybe it’d be better to just die…’

Just as that thought crossed her mind, someone entered the cave.

“So this is where you were hiding?”

“……”

“You don’t even have the strength to answer, I see.”

It was the man who commanded the twenty Demon Kings-Jeremy.

Jeremy extended a root toward Mabel, who lay half-collapsed on the ground, glaring at him. The root pierced the back of her neck and forcibly lifted her up.

“What… are you… doing…?”

“Now we can talk properly. Pleasure to meet you, human witch. I am Jeremy. A loyal servant of Her Majesty.”

“What… do you want… with me…?”

“Who knows? I could eat you here. Or drag you to the flower garden and turn you into a mindless fool. Plenty of options.”

Jeremy grinned. Just imagining how to break and torment this woman seemed to delight him.

Mabel knew their kind all too well. If she begged for death, they’d refuse just to prolong her suffering.

She decided to exploit that.

“…Just kill me.”

“Now, why waste such a precious opportunity? Finding a human with mental fortitude like yours is rare. I could never kill you so easily!”

“Gah-!”

Jeremy’s roots burrowed deep into Mabel’s body. By asking for death, she had secured her survival. Mabel laughed inwardly. An opportunity had arisen. All she had to do was resist just enough and wait for the perfect moment.

“I’ll need to take control of your body for peace of mind. Humans think too fast-give them an inch, and they’ll counterattack.”

“S-Stop…!”

Mabel writhed in pain. Though she was playing along to seize an opportunity, the agony was real.

Jeremy’s roots slowly took over her body. Regardless of her will, her flesh mended itself.

“Now, you’ll move as I command. Do you know how impressive it is to take only the body while leaving the mind intact?”

“You bastard…!!”

“Tsk, tsk. Mind your language. From now on, you belong to me.”

Jeremy stroked Mabel’s chin, relishing her helplessness.

The fact that he had left her mind untouched made Mabel inwardly cheer. His arrogance had handed her an incredible opportunity.

“Let’s go to the World Tree. I’ll restore the abilities and strength you lost. Then you can slaughter your comrades with renewed vigor.”

“Kill… my comrades…?”

“Shion and his party. You’ll kill them with your own hands.”

“No… No!!”

Mabel pretended to resist. As she acted out her defiance with tears and snot, Jeremy grew even more excited, now considering taking her to the World Tree to toy with her further.

“Come quietly, my new plaything.”

Jeremy dragged Mabel out of the cave.

‘This… might just be…’

As she was led away, Mabel inwardly rejoiced.

Somehow, the tangled threads of fate had given her an unexpected chance to reach the World Tree.

Things had taken an unforeseen turn, but it wasn’t a bad one.

‘If I can just reach the World Tree…’

She could summon the Spirit God trapped within, its power being siphoned away.

Before the Druid Association President entered the sealing artifact, he had told her:

If you ever get a chance to reach the World Tree, you must awaken it.

‘I know how to forcibly summon the Spirit God… If this bastard takes me all the way there…’

Perhaps an opportunity to strike back would come.