episode_0044

… darkness.

Darkness had truly arrived.

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‘Is this a hallucination magic circle?’

I already knew.

A trial of will.

This was an ordeal that showed him what it would be like if he failed. An ordeal that means knowing about failure first and preventing it.

I remained silent and watched the illusion shown by the magic circle.

Still dark.

There was nothing… .

A flower field began to unfold.

‘Is it a garden?’

no.

It was too large to be a garden.

Yes, hills.

It was a gentle hill. Numerous colorful flowers were blooming on the hill.

And soon-.

Flames began to rise among the flowers.

Honestly, I was confused.

‘… ‘Is this the scene I’m afraid of when I fail?’

It was a hill I felt like I had seen somewhere, but I couldn’t remember.

That means -.

‘Could it be a memory of the past that I lost?’

Me in the past-.

I guess he didn’t want to lose that place.

Moment-.

‘What about that?’

Burning Hill.

A large tree in the center of the place. Someone was standing underneath it.

Pure white dress.

The face was not visible, but only the blue eyes were clearly visible. I couldn’t even see the hair color, but it was truly amazing.

‘That…’ Could it be that he is the person I wanted to protect?’

Deep in my heart.

There was someone I wanted to protect.

Although I don’t know who it is.

There was a high probability that it was that girl.

‘… I want to see it a little closer.’

I wanted to check the face.

One step. One step.

I walked towards the girl.

The closer I got, the further away the girl got, and then-.

Black darkness came again.

And then the next scene.

‘That’s unpleasant.’

I knew it was a hallucination, but it was unpleasant.

The newly seen sight was Master Erikson’s residence.

This time, this place was a burning hallucination.

It wasn’t just the burning mansion that displeased me.

Master Erickson and Captain Esther.

These two people were lying in the front yard, bleeding.

‘… ‘I need to finish it soon.’

I know it’s a hallucination.

I quickly focused my mind to erase the hallucinations.

But at that moment-.

The next hallucination unfolded.

Saint.

she was standing A saint shedding tears too.

‘Why a saint?’

It was an incomprehensible phenomenon.

Am I afraid of a saint crying?

why me?

why?

however-.

The saint, thought to be a hallucination, did not disappear over time.

It was definitely strange.

And not long after-.

I realized that the saint was not a hallucination.

It wasn’t a hallucination, it was real.

“Seo, why is the saint here?”

I couldn’t understand.

Didn’t you go into the second passage?

“Uh… ? Are you Eren?”

“Yes.”

“Ah… , sorry. I guess I came to the wrong place.”

The saint was silent for a moment.

Quiet stillness.

Now that the ordeal was over, I decided to go back for now.

however-.

Just before that, the saintess’s mouth opened.

“Perhaps Eren… , Did the trial work properly?”

“Yes? Yes.”

Why did I suddenly ask this?

And why-.

The saintess is about to cry again, and why does it make my heart ache for some reason when I see that sight?

***

Warrior Randall.

She too began to hallucinate.

The hero saw a person who looked exactly like him confront a monster with a blurry appearance.

“… You’ve finally come this far. Hero… .”

Randall noticed right away.

‘Could it be my fear of confronting the devil?’

I couldn’t understand.

This is all I’m afraid of.

‘Anyway, even if it’s a hallucination, they’re not there.’

In the hallucination, Randall held a brilliant sword in his hand and rushed towards the Demon King. A clash between a hero and a demon lord. It could be said that it was the match of the century.

however-.

Unlike Randle, who was having a hard time, the Demon King looked very relaxed.

“So much… It’s weak.”

At the Demon King’s gesture, the hero Randall flew away.

An overwhelming difference in power.

Had I been consumed by hallucinations before I knew it?

‘wake up!’

Randall shouted at himself in his hallucination.

At that shout, Randall stood up from his hallucination. And then I rushed in again.

The Demon King’s sword pierced Randle.

Randall hallucinates and collapses, vomiting blood when a sword is inserted into his abdomen.

Real-life Rando, who was watching this, also had his pupils shake.

‘He’s dead… .’

This wasn’t the end.

The Demon King looks like a monster-.

Randall was swallowed up in a hallucination. And that too in one bite.

Randall wanted to scream, but held it back.

‘Am I going to die like this?’

I was scared.

How can you overcome such a monster? I wanted to run away even now.

And the scenery changed in an instant.

Familiar mountain scenery.

‘This place… !’

It was a mountain village where Randall lived. The mountain village began to burn.

The village was being attacked by monsters.

They are probably the ones responsible for the fire.

People ran away from the monster.

however-.

Among the people running away, a familiar light came into Randall’s field of vision.

‘Ha, grandpa!’

grandfather.

An old man struggling to run away due to uncomfortable movements.

Randall continued to shout. Run away. Hurry up and run away.

but-.

Randall’s cries did not have any effect on the hallucinations.

at last-.

The grandfather who was being chased was caught and eaten by monsters.

And then the hallucination ended.

“I feel bad.”

I felt so bad that cold sweat broke out down my back.

Really.

It was an unpleasant hallucination.

I hated it even more because it seemed like something that would really happen.

Naturally, fear arose.

Randle held back.

“You have to be more serious.”

I had to become stronger.

If this shows the future.

In the end, it was because of what happened because he was defeated by the Demon King.

Warrior Randall.

She thought that she had to become stronger than she is now.

In order to do that -.

“I have to end the ordeal as soon as possible.”

I resolved to quickly complete the ordeal and obtain the qualifications of a holy sword.

*

Fourth passage.

The saint walked, tapping the floor.

“As expected… It’s strange.”

It was a place where energy was fluctuating.

however.

Even though I was standing in the center, nothing happened.

Just darkness.

It was dark as usual.

Moment-.

The saint guessed one thing.

‘… Could it be that there is no more pain than now?’

Is living now like hell?

Is that why no trials are given?

My mind was complicated.

For a moment, the saint-.

I started to catch my breath.

however-.

As I kept thinking about my situation, negative thoughts began to fill my head. And those negative thoughts eventually -.

It brought tears to the saint’s eyes.

I feel so miserable…

The moment when the saint was about to cry.

“Seo, why is the saint here?”

A familiar voice.

Divine power that cannot be detected.

It was the warrior Eren.

Why is he here?

Didn’t you go into the third passage?

Although the saint was embarrassed, she asked back.

“Uh… ? Are you Eren?”

“Yes.”

“Ah… , sorry. I guess I came to the wrong place.”

The saint realized.

I guess I came in wrong.

and-.

A quiet silence came.

In that silence, there was something the saint wanted to ask over and over again.

Was it just me?

I was very curious about that.

In fact, the magic circle in the second passage was broken, and maybe this place was broken as well.

Finish-.

Isn’t there someone in front of you who can hear your questions?

The saint asked Eren.

“Perhaps Eren… , Did the trial work properly?”

“Yes? Yes.”

An answer that doesn’t show even a moment’s hesitation.

It was clear that it was true.

at the same time-.

The saint’s mood began to sink to the bottom.

Just as you guessed.

‘If living is hell, why can’t you see it?’

Tears kept flowing.

Although I know that Eren is in front of me.

Anymore.

It seemed unstoppable.

and-.

A single tear flowed from the corner of the saint’s eyes.

***

I was embarrassed.

The fact that there is a saint here, and the fact that the saint suddenly sheds tears.

but-.

There was something else that embarrassed me the most.

My heart feels for the saint’s tears.

When I see the saintly woman’s tears, why does a part of my heart keep hurting like crazy? Could it be that, as the part said, I was taken over by the beauty world?

It seems like my body moved first.

“Ugh… !”

Without realizing it, I reached out to the saint. And wiped away the flowing tears.

A perplexed saint.

No matter how embarrassed she was, the saint’s eyes, which had always been closed, opened.

However, it closed quickly.

Thanks to him, I was able to see.

The empty eyes of a saint.

Rather than feeling disgusted, sadness came first.

“I’m sorry!”

What am I sorry for?

The saint bowed her head and apologized to me. Unlike before, he had a frown on his face.

It wasn’t that he seemed in a bad mood.

just-.

Because I close my eyes tightly.

So it seemed like he was frowning.

In that case, the apology I just made is-.

“… Is it because of the snow?”

Empty eyes.

Was it a reaction that came about because you showed it to me?

The saintess nodded slowly.

“… yes. Because I showed you what you can’t see.”

Something.

She was a nervous-looking saint. And now I realized something.

A woman called a saint.

She was very small. More than an ordinary woman.

It would be correct to say that he was thin.

When I thought about it, she was a saint who always ate little. So, my current size is probably a natural result.

But why?

Why did the saint not eat well and was like this?

Was it because I once lost interest?

I continued to become curious about the saint.

I was curious about what kind of woman a saint was.

My head is full,

It started to fill up with saints.

For a long time-.

“Eren?”

The saint broke the silence that followed.

Only then did I remember my mistake and quickly apologize.

“I am truly sorry. I carelessly touched the saint’s face.”

“No.”

In a delicate mood, I quickly changed the topic.

“I think I should go back now. If it’s too late… Because it can be misunderstood.”

“Yes.”

So I-.

He stood in front of the saint and led the way.

and-.

I was fortunate about one thing.

It was very fortunate that the saint’s eyes were not visible. Even I couldn’t tell what kind of expression I was making right now.