Ch.292███ Pa██ ███████ ██ ███ ████e (█)

The Empress of Bliss’s domain is hidden.

As you know, her domain is protected by four forbidden areas. By ordinary means, you won’t even be able to find her domain, let alone break through the forbidden areas.

Yes, that’s right.

While it’s impossible through conventional means, you’ve employed unconventional methods. You’ve eliminated each of her court jesters one by one.

The Demon Lord of Mourning, Carpediem.

The Seal of Applaud, Jakut.

The lighthouse illuminating the Abyss, Ariel.

You’ve defeated not only a demon lord who has lived for hundreds of years but also two transcendents that the Empress of Bliss had hidden throughout the continent. Who could have imagined? That plans built over hundreds of years would crumble before a mere 20-year-old youth!

The Empress of Bliss’s forbidden areas are severely damaged.

The forbidden areas can no longer hide her domain.

Thus revealed, the Empress of Bliss’s domain is located in the deepest part of the Outer Continent. Whether you call it the deepest part or the edge of the Outer Continent is up to you. But most people call that place:

The land closest to the Abyss.

That’s where the Empress of Bliss’s domain is. Yes, that’s where you’re heading now. Naturally, the path to the deepest part of the Outer Continent is treacherous. It wouldn’t be strange if some soldiers disappeared without a sound. Every endeavor comes with sacrifice.

Time passes without anything unusual.

At this rate, we’ll soon arrive at the Empress of Bliss’s sanctuary. The journey is going smoothly.

“……”

And you.

You reflect on the path you’ve walked so far.

Who are you?

‘Najin.’

Yes, that’s your name. Your name is just the two characters ‘Najin,’ but you have many more titles. For instance, there’s the Free Knight, the Morning Star, the descendant of the greatest knight, and so on.

But, come to think of it, it’s strange.

All your titles seem to exist for just one opponent. Isn’t that right?

“Merlin.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“Don’t you think something seems odd?”

“Odd? What?”

You stroke your chin.

“The Empress of Bliss. It seems like all my stars align perfectly against her, strangely enough.”

Yes, that’s exactly right.

Starting with your title as the Free Knight. You witnessed the Empress of Bliss mocking the final moments of knights. You saw her desecrating their lives. Because of those scenes, you resolved.

To make knights true to their name.

To let them close their eyes as proper knights.

Wasn’t that why you wanted to become a Free Knight? Come to think of it, it’s not just the Free Knight.

“Unyielding, Mourning, Laughing……”

The stars you obtained in the Outer Continent are the same. They are swords sharpened solely to kill the Empress of Bliss.

Your life points directly at the Empress of Bliss. She is truly your nemesis. If your life were a story, the one who would adorn its end would undoubtedly be the woman known as the Empress of Bliss.

‘…The end?’

You tilt your head.

Is there something strange?

‘Why should the Empress of Bliss be my end?’

Because she is your nemesis.

‘I have something next…’

All your stories point to the Empress of Bliss. You’ve sharpened your life solely for the Empress of Bliss. Even against a demon with 11 stars, the weapons you possess are threatening.

The arrow is drawn on the bowstring.

Your task is to shoot the arrow.

There’s only one place for the arrow to hit. It’s the heart of the Empress of Bliss. No other target is necessary. Remove it from your sight.

‘Ah, certainly.’

You don’t feel anything strange.

Your eyes, ears, and sword tip are solely…

“Najin.”

Grip.

“Merlin?”

“Stay still.”

Merlin reached out and grabbed Najin’s face.

She covered Najin’s ears with both palms. As if telling him not to listen to anything, Merlin brought her face close to Najin’s while covering his ears.

Their gazes met.

They were close enough for their breaths to mingle.

Only Merlin’s blue eyes were reflected in Najin’s pupils. Though a spirit form shouldn’t have a scent, a strong smell of water’s edge wafted from Merlin. It was a bodily fragrance reminiscent of a forest after rain.

“Look at me.”

Only Merlin’s voice could be heard. Her slender fingers tapped Najin’s face gently. Eventually, Merlin took another step closer to Najin.

And then, tap.

She pressed her forehead against Najin’s. With their foreheads touching, Merlin conveyed to Najin. There was no need to speak. She could transmit her voice without speaking.

-Close your eyes.

He closed them.

-Exhale.

He exhaled.

-Dive in. To the deepest part of your mental image.

Merlin is suspicious. Doubt her. Not everything she says has to be right. Najin didn’t listen to the thoughts filling his head. Doubting Merlin was something that could never happen to Najin.

He followed her words.

With his eyes closed, Najin sank into his inner self.

2.

When he opened his closed eyes, he was in the underground city.

Najin was standing in the underground city Attman. The moment he entered the underground city, Najin could notice the change occurring within him. Something was rippling from the edge of the city.

Paint.

The Empress of Bliss’s paint was eating away at the outskirts of Attman. Slowly eating away from the outskirts toward the center of the city. Najin had seen such a scene before.

“La Mancha.”

The same thing had happened in Don Quixote, Laughing Star’s La Mancha. Najin frowned. When did this start? He tried to push back the paint while regulating his breathing, but it wasn’t working well.

The paint had taken root deep in his mental image.

It hadn’t spread to the center yet, but it was only a matter of time at this rate.

“Slowly.”

Feeling a grip on his hand, Najin looked to the side. Merlin was there. She was firmly holding Najin’s hand.

“First, stay calm.”

“Merlin.”

“Yes.”

“What’s happening?”

With her hand not holding Najin’s, Merlin brushed her face.

“I don’t know the exact moment. When, at what point, how it happened, I don’t know. What’s certain is that it’s a meticulously designed trap.”

She clicked her tongue.

“As you know, Excalibur has resistance against mental control and manipulation powers. It can resist even the mental control of the Witch of Abyss, which says a lot. But what’s affecting me now…”

Merlin’s eyes narrowed.

“It’s not magic that affects the mind.”

“What? What do you mean…”

“How should I explain this?”

Yes, she said.

“Perception of objects, how we interpret information, how we organize and draw conclusions, in all those processes, our subjectivity inevitably comes into play. It’s natural for humans.”

“That’s right.”

“The Empress of Bliss is now tampering with that part. She’s obscuring your vision, narrowing your information, and guiding your judgment in a specific direction.”

Merlin waved her finger.

“Going a step further.”

Swish.

“If we consider this world as a novel, the Empress of Bliss is tampering with the narrative text that connects dialogues. Like moving game pieces from outside the game board.”

“Is that possible?”

“It is. In the grave of stars, that is.”

Najin fell silent. The grave of stars, a space created by a star for itself. In that space, truly anything was possible. Even Radon, who was just an ordinary dragon, could become a giant dragon comparable to Merlin.

“Does that mean we’ve already entered the grave?”

“I’m not sure. Whether we’ve entered the grave, or whether this is possible because we’ve entered the Empress of Bliss’s sphere of influence, I can’t judge accurately.”

It was very rare for Merlin to say she “didn’t know.” Najin’s eyes narrowed a bit more.

“Don’t tell me.”

“Yes.”

“Are you affected too, Merlin?”

Merlin let out a long sigh.

“Until now, I only existed within your mental image, so it was impossible for her to influence me. But on that day when you fought Mordred, I materialized, didn’t I?”

“You did.”

“From that day on, I occasionally walked around materialized by your side.”

“You did.”

“That was probably the problem.”

Merlin bit her lip hard.

“It’s impossible to mess with my true form with this kind of power. The mana flowing through my body and my resistance would shatter all such powers. But… as just a spirit form now, things are a bit different.”

A spirit form with output limited to the same level as Najin.

And a spirit form defenseless against external stimuli.

“Of course, I’m not weak enough to be easily affected, but it seems both you and I were mistaken.”

They had misjudged the Empress of Bliss’s level. They hadn’t properly grasped what she was capable of. In a way, it was arrogance and carelessness.

…Even this might have been induced.

It was impossible to know from which point the Empress of Bliss had begun to intervene. Najin clenched his molars.

“What should we do?”

“If we go outside, both you and I will fall back into that trap. Our thoughts will be guided in a specific direction.”

“……”

“The opponent is very subtly expanding her influence from small parts. She’s bending the flow of our thoughts without us even realizing it.”

Merlin waved her finger.

An intricately shaped magic circle appeared in the air.

“As a grand magician, I can say this isn’t easy even for someone of my level. It requires a high degree of concentration, and if you slip even a little, everything will collapse. It’s a very delicate operation.”

Tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of gears were meshing and turning. It was a precarious magic circle that would collapse entirely if even one gap appeared.

“A small gap.”

Merlin touched the magic circle with a tap. A gear moved forward a span, creating a small gap. From the gap, the magic circle began to turn slowly, creaking.

“Somehow, we need to widen the gap.”

“And then?”

“We need to wedge something in. Through that gap.”

Najin didn’t ask if it was possible.

It was something they had to accomplish.

Nodding, Najin took a deep breath. As the Empress of Bliss’s paint gradually expanded its territory, Najin firmly planted his feet on the ground to avoid being swept away.

When he opened his closed eyes.

Again, Najin’s vision began to invert.

It felt like fireworks were exploding in his head. Colorful sparks shot up. Would it feel like this if someone opened his head and poured paint inside? The color of the sky, the color of the ground, the texture of the ground he stood on, the weight of the air, its density, temperature, all of it mixed in confusion.

And.

You open your eyes.

3.

You took a moment to catch your breath and organize your thoughts. It must be due to nervousness. After organizing your thoughts, you confirm that your resolve remains unwavering.

Strong determination.

Firm self-confidence.

This is most important for a transcendent. You still have conviction. Well, there’s a long way to go. You must hasten your steps.

“……”

You are silent.

Your expression is strange.

Is something bothering you?

“Merlin.”

“Yes.”

“You’re listening, right?”

“I can hear you.”

……

“This isn’t easy. My eyes are spinning, you know. I can barely tell where I am.”

“I can see that.”

“Am I walking?”

“Yes.”

“And in my hand?”

“You’re holding a sword.”

“That’s good.”

You open your eyes.

“No need to open them. I’m watching for you.”

“Yes, Merlin.”

You open your eyes. The voice you hear is a lie. You are accepting misinterpreted information from the Empress of Bliss. Everything is a lie. Open your eyes and face reality.

You must confront reality.

Open your eyes.

“Merlin.”

“I’m listening.”

You can’t hear anything.

“I can’t hear well.”

“……”

“You’re holding my hand, right?”

Grip.

“Where are we?”

……Sigh.

Yes, I understand.

And so.

Time passes. Najin walked and walked.

Something guided Najin. With his eyes closed, Najin moved in the direction his hand was being pulled. The sensation was strange. He should have been holding Merlin’s pale, slender hand, but his palm felt as if it was burning. He felt like his skin was being scorched.

He ignored it. He kept walking, ignoring it.

And at some point.

Everything returned to normal.

The sound in his ears faded away. The sensation in his hand returned to normal. And someone cupped Najin’s cheek. Najin slowly opened his closed eyes.

The veil cast by the Empress of Bliss was lifted.

What entered Najin’s eyes was a vast wilderness stretching far into the distance. Najin looked back. Behind Najin, imperial soldiers had collapsed.

They weren’t dead.

They were all asleep. It was the moment Najin drew Excalibur and took his stance.

“Eyes.”

Merlin, standing beside Najin, smiled.

“Are they open?”