Ch.210210. Identity

When I saw the appearance of the god Romulus, whom Mul served, directly in the Dreamscape.

It was not holy enough to be considered a god, nor cunning enough to be called a demon.

However, considering its overwhelming presence and power that could devour even the Dreamscape, the word “magical beast” seemed insufficient to describe it.

In the end.

Something that was neither god, demon, nor magical beast.

If I were to use a term from the previous world to describe it, I thought it might be something Cthulhu-like.

Massive yet vicious teeth chaotically embedded in its mouth, numerous tentacles, an unidentifiable outer form, and so on.

I thought that Mul was serving something bizarre yet fascinating.

But would there really be a being of a completely different category that I knew nothing about on this continent?

I couldn’t help but wonder.

Aria was undoubtedly a hero born with the destiny to save the continent.

While playing as her, I traveled to numerous places and uncovered all sorts of secrets.

No matter how secretive a being might be, I couldn’t imagine not knowing about such a massive monster.

Also.

What Mul said to me in the Dreamscape.

– “Because of you we exist, but we truly hate you.”

If they exist because of my existence, it means something disapproves of my actions.

Entities that send irregulars like Mul and Romulus, and wish to make Aria a hero again.

Quite amusingly.

My thoughts returned to their original track.

Could it be a god after all?

“The god of this land is not particularly omnipotent.”

Mul’s eyes trembled with the thought of being insulted, but he didn’t interrupt my words.

“Do you know what the end of Aria’s destiny that you speak of actually is?”

In the first playthrough, you can never see a happy ending. Only after witnessing the definite conclusion of destruction can you see a happy ending in the second playthrough.

But even the second playthrough’s ending could only be called a happy ending in name.

Because peace and safety come to the continent through the sacrifice of the protagonist, Aria Rius.

“I won’t stand by and watch as you carelessly burden this child.”

I stretched out my hand to stand between Aria and Mul. It was my own declaration of intent.

“Professor…”

“Sigh.”

Aria firmly gripped the hem of my jacket, indicating she wouldn’t let go of me, while Mul exhaled with an expression of utter exasperation.

“Deus Verdi, indeed you and I are incompatible.”

“…”

“This is a fight that will only end when one of us dies.”

“Think whatever you want.”

I’m sorry, but I had no intention of agreeing to be fatefully entangled with a crazy cultist.

Whether Mul existed or not, I would live my life as I saw fit.

Rather, I had one question.

“When did you enter and leave the Dreamscape?”

“I have no reason to answer that.”

Mul firmly refused to answer. But even though he refused, I continued my questioning.

“Learic told me that I was the only human who escaped the Dreamscape by my own power.”

-Congratulations, Deus Verdi. You are the only human who has escaped the Dreamscape by your own power.

I thought the important part here might be “by your own power.” Learic probably thought he had passed it off naturally, but I wondered if there was any need to include that specific phrase.

“Did you escape the Dreamscape?”

At my words, Mul let out a scornful laugh and replied.

“As if I would get lost in a maze created by a mere archdemon.”

Though he was declaring it as if it were obvious, it seemed like he was misunderstanding something.

“Yes, but your past self remains in the Dreamscape.”

The fact that a false image remains means that ultimately, one’s memories were taken by the Dreamscape. But the man before me showed no sign of this.

“Don’t blame me for what you fail to realize.”

He had no intention of explaining how he escaped. But how he escaped was irrelevant to me. I wasn’t even curious.

In my opinion.

Mul never escaped.

“Do you know something?”

A sneer escaped me.

The foolish being before me still hadn’t realized that through our conversation, I was following the trail to his true identity.

“In the Dreamscape, Mul spoke formally to me. His manner of speech was completely different.”

-Haha, everyone. It seems you don’t yet understand Lord Romulus’s mercy. Please come to the dining hall and have a chat with me.

-Who would have understood the truth from the beginning? Come with me. I will tell you more about Him in detail.

-Ah, I cannot help but know. To us, you are an object of both love and hatred.

Contrary to when he first saw me and immediately threw insults and sneered.

In the Dreamscape, Mul was rather intent on making me a believer of Romulus.

“…”

“Now you’re finally silent.”

Again, I suspect Mul never escaped the Dreamscape.

But the being who knows the truth of the Dreamscape, or more precisely, the monster who noticed the existence of the Dreamscape through Mul and went to devour it.

Romulus is different.

“Your act as a fanatic was decent. But you couldn’t put aside your pride.”

Pointing with my chin at his lower body, which was not human legs but tentacles, I asked.

“Did you take over that body while leaving Mul’s memories in the Dreamscape, parasite?”

Finally, Mul.

No, Romulus, struggling to hide the truth, burst out in rage.

“Mere human!”

His voice changed.

The soft voice of Mul that had been heard until just now had transformed into a monster’s voice with a twisted and bizarre echo, as if hundreds of people were speaking simultaneously.

Thick blue veins bulged on his face. His eyes distorted grotesquely, looking like shattered glass.

“You dare defy our will! Outsider! Just kneel and thank us! Chosen girl, fulfill your mission!”

As Romulus truly revealed his presence, all of my blue flames that had been faintly spread around disappeared.

With a fierce gale, I felt the sensation that the world itself was hating and pressing down on us.

“P-Professor!”

Aria, startled, summoned her greatsword Duatein. I restrained her and held her tightly with one arm.

“Don’t waver.”

Even if Romulus was truly a god I didn’t know about, he was ultimately an entity I would have to fight.

As I said earlier, gods in this world weren’t that omnipotent.

“Have you descended to this land?”

If he was treading on the continent’s soil rather than the place where they lived, it would be more manageable.

My words seemed to be something Romulus couldn’t let pass, as he roared like he was having a seizure.

“Yes! Because of you, mere outsider! Because of you who crawled into the body of a broken man and ruined the flow of the continent!”

“…”

“Tearing off wings, casting away light, setting aside greatness, I fell to this land.”

So in other words.

“You’re a fallen god.”

Having shed all the names of a god, you’ve become so ugly.

Now I understood a little.

Insufficient to be called a god, too bizarre to be called a demon, too great to be called a magical beast.

To return the distorted flow of this continent back to its original state because of me.

More precisely, to make Aria Rius a hero once again.

A god had directly descended to this land.

“Do not forget that this too is our mercy. For your sake, for the salvation of the continent, a god has become an apostle and come to you.”

“…”

“You’ll save this land in place of Aria Rius? Sorry, but we don’t allow such things from an outsider like you.”

“I wasn’t asking for permission.”

I’ve heard everything I needed to hear.

I now knew that Romulus’s identity was that of a fallen god, and I confirmed why he was doing all this.

“Get lost.”

I snatched Duatein that Aria was holding awkwardly. As I filled it with mana, Duatein floated in the air and then rushed toward Romulus.

Crack!

Duatein pierced precisely into his head.

Though he was gradually turning to dust from the impact, he still didn’t take his eyes off us.

“Are you going to abandon the continent, Aria Rius? The lives of all people rest on your shoulders.”

Thud!

With those final words, Romulus disappeared into black dust, and Duatein was stuck in the ground.

I slowly walked to where he had been and pulled out Duatein. The blade of Duatein, which had been emitting a black light after devouring the souls of Dante’s Black Mages, was slightly distorted.

“Professor.”

Aria approached cautiously with an uncharacteristically frightened expression.

The fact that one of the gods had directly descended to the continent to return her to her original destiny was indeed a shocking event for a 17-year-old girl.

Even in the second playthrough, she didn’t possess flawless mental strength or the ability to deal with everything calmly.

“W-Will it be okay?”

The eyes of the 17-year-old girl trembled.

The girl who had decided to put down all her burdens and live a normal life was now terrified of the destiny being forcibly thrust upon her.

“You don’t need to worry.”

Aria wasn’t afraid because she had to fight as a hero again.

She was worried that others might be harmed because of her choice, that the continent might face destruction again as she had already witnessed once.

She was worried about such things.

“There’s no reason for you to fight as a hero.”

If this were a game, I would have accepted it. After all, Aria was a created entity, and the reason for her existence was to progress the game’s story.

But not anymore.

This is not a game but reality.

The reason Aria Rius exists is not to follow a predetermined storyline, save the continent, and ultimately be sacrificed.

Like everyone else.

It’s to be happy.

That’s why I carefully embraced her as she trembled and whispered.

“I am here.”