episode_0046

The floor that resembled the gates of hell narrowed its mouth. As soon as the floor closed completely, Serin hurriedly jumped out and frantically rolled her feet on the ground.

Thud. Thud. Thud!

Splat!

“Ah…!”

As the area of the floor widened, Serin brightened up with a smile. However, as the floor crumbled down according to her wishes, the view below was just the scenery of the lower floor she had passed through long ago. The unknown space where Rahilt had disappeared was nowhere to be seen.

“Rian…?”

Unable to accept reality, Serin kept looking around restlessly. But there was no sign of Rahilt’s shadow to be found. Eventually, Serin, who barely accepted the situation, had tears welling up in her eyes.

“Haha…”

Rastali laughed.

At that disgusting provocation, Serin’s hatred towards Rastali flared up.

The split hatred exploded like a volcano reaching its limit.

“You, you bastard!!!”

Serin’s composure vanished. The rough dust rose with her explosive movements.

As Serin reached Rastali, she grabbed her by the neck and struck down.

Crash!

“Cough… Gasp, cough. Hey, this isn’t a joke. Are you even the same woman?”

“Shut up, you face-eating bitch.”

Rastali’s attitude was so relaxed that it made her forget she was at a disadvantage.

On the other hand, Serin wanted her heart, beating as if it would burst, to stop even if it meant breaking it.

“Where is Rian?”

“Curious?”

“I’m asking where my person went… you bitch.”

“You’ll find out soon enough…”

Avoiding Serin’s intense gaze, Rastali shrugged.

Whether her words were simply mocking or not, fog began to form around them. Luca tried to suppress it with magical means, but it was in vain.

“Was that man named Rian? Looks like it’s already begun.”

“What did you say?”

“What else, it means he’s starting to be consumed by contamination.”

Rastali tapped the ground lightly. More accurately, she pointed to her shadow.

“You’ve worked hard to find the contamination. While your subordinates were stalling for time, the magic ritual to put the contamination in the shadow is complete.”

“…”

“So congratulations. You have the opportunity to witness all the flaws of your lover.”

To summarize the contamination engraved in the contamination: amplification of corruption.

Forcing the wrong parts of a person to stimulate and bring out their contaminated nature.

“If corruption is amplified, the person’s mental world becomes concrete, dragging everyone around them into it.”

While her heart was burning, Serin’s head turned cold.

It was difficult to understand, but in summary.

The fog swirling around us right now is the process of Rahilt’s mental world becoming concrete.

“Must be nice. You’ll get to know everything about your lover.”

Lastly, she spat out.

“Of course, I’ll pass though.”

Kching!

Suddenly, a spell was cast.

Rastali’s body was engulfed in a bright light, losing its form.

Luca quickly deduced the nature of the strange phenomenon.

“Short Warp!”

It was the pinnacle of spatial magic that freely traversed short distances.

Surprisingly, Serin, who had carelessly let Rastali slip away in front of her eyes, showed no reaction. Finding it strange, Kanarin, who was observing closely, soon turned her gaze away.

Blood was seeping from her mouth. Trying to control her anger, she seemed to be biting her own flesh and tongue. Kanarin couldn’t even offer comfort to her ignorant behavior.

“Open status window.”

Kanarin skillfully touched the air as if miming.

“Open the point shop. Arrange the parallel ability list.”

[Retrieve information from parallel worlds.]

…

……

Ding!

“뭣…!”

Kanarin tried to escape from this unpleasant misty area using her one-time portal creation ability, just like she did at the magician’s mansion.

But her plan was quickly thwarted.

[In a closed world, parallel worlds cannot be observed.]

A closed world.

In this context, it would be safe to assume it refers to Rahilt’s mental world. A phenomenon that was difficult for humans to comprehend was occurring.

“Kanarin! Where are you? Kanarin!”

“I’m here, Luca!”

“Damn it, the space is getting narrower!”

“What on earth is happening!?”

In the thick mist, Kanarin and Luca stumbled around. And behind them, Serin watched the situation blankly, blaming herself.

“If only I hadn’t rushed in…”

Kanarin had clearly warned them.

Even if it wasn’t Rahilt himself, one should be cautious of surprises and traps.

Ignoring that warning and rushing in blindly led to this situation.

Rahilt may be the strongest in the world, but that didn’t mean he had no weaknesses. In fact, he was so confident in his ability to suppress his father that he was practically powerless.

But what about mentally?

Rahilt claimed that the effect of the contamination source was the amplification of negativity.

To an ordinary human, it might just be a change in character.

But the problem was that Rahilt was not in a mentally stable state.

As a dragon’s child, Rahilt had lost his normalcy once. As time passed, he deteriorated and became more worn out.

It was impossible to know how the contamination source would affect Rahilt. Especially on a day like today, when his condition was extremely poor.

“Please… spare me… Lian…”

Serin begged desperately.

Step, step.

A very soft sound of footsteps could be heard. It was like the sound of lightly stepping on piled snow.

Step, step.

In the hazy mist, a human figure appeared. Judging by the flowing hair, it seemed to be a woman’s figure.

“Narin unnie…?”

Step.

There was no answer.

Serin turned away from her self-loathing and took a defensive stance. She had to focus on building a dark magician defense now, without letting her guard down.

She was getting closer. She was.

In a few more steps, she would be completely visible.

Step.

Step, step.

…

……

Step.

“… Huh?”

Unexpectedly, a question mark slipped out of Serin’s lips.

The person she saw was neither Kanarin nor Rahilt, but a completely different third party.

And that person had an already familiar face.

“You are…”

The jet-black hair that cascaded down, exuding a sheen.

Similarly, the deep darkness of the black pupils, as if densely packed with the darkness of the deep sea.

A woman whose very elegant dress suited her body like a painting.

‘The person I saw in Narin unnie’s memory link…’

The culprit who had shattered the status window with a single blow was there.

The mysterious woman smiled gently.

[Pleased to meet you.]

“Who are you…?”

[Well, I’m not sure what to call myself…]

She chuckled.

[Would you like to call me unnie?]

“…”

[You seem like a tough kid.]

It seemed like a joke to her.

Unable to delay any longer, Serin demanded straightforwardly.

“Please tell me properly. Who you are. If you’re not my enemy.”

[Let’s see.]

She stroked her chin as if rummaging through the past.

[To the people, I am the black dragon that circulates the world. My name given by him is Mir. And to some, I am the former empress of the empire and a mother.]

As the truth was revealed like flowing water, Serin’s mouth fell open.

“You’re the dragon from the founding myth…?”

[That’s right.]

“You’re Lian’s distant ancestor, right?”

[That’s the story.]

“So… you gave me the wrong title…”

[Hm?]

Serin neatly gathered her knees. The elegant greeting and straightforward behavior left the woman speechless.

“Nice to meet you, mother-in-law. I am Seriniel Riterion, who is in a serious relationship with Lian with the premise of marriage.”

[…]

In a relationship? Since when? Weren’t they still at a stage closer to building a friendship?

“My other name is Han Serin.”

[…Oh. Um. I see, I see.]

The woman recalled a hazy past. Perhaps there were memories as bewildering as the present. It seemed that apart from the experience of being more painful than expected, there was nothing else.

[…I have to hurry. Since there’s no time, I have to shorten the story.]

“Please go ahead.”

Serin regained her composure. As various preparations were made, the woman revealed the secret that had been hidden behind her lips.

“I am a being close to the concept of flowing with the blood of a dragon.”

Rahilt’s blood was particularly thick with dragon’s blood. It was probably due to the influence of ancestral regression that her mother had mentioned.

Therefore, as the woman’s inner world materialized, she could now have a direct conversation like this.

“Originally, I had to suppress all the negativity of the child. Debauchery, hatred, sadness, all emotions… all of it.”

She knew that the direction of the world changed depending on how the dragon’s child grew up.

Hence, Rahilt, who was hated by the world, should never harbor negativity. If she did, it was clear what kind of disaster would befall.

“How despicable. To think that because of a human mistake, that child would be in danger of losing her place in the world twice.”

“…Twice?”

[Yes.]

The woman moved her feet.

Serin followed her as she walked confidently through the mist. Continuing to move forward, the woman spoke.

“As I stepped into the palace, evil energy invaded the child’s inner world. As a being only in thought, it was difficult for me to suppress the child’s negativity…”

“…Ah.”

Serin had many things to ponder.

How common was it for Rahilt to not be able to show her condition? If it was due to the influence of dark magic, it explained why her mental contamination was accelerating.

“…I see.”

[Say it.]

“Earlier, you mentioned that Rahilt would lose her place in the world twice…”

She asked for confirmation.

“Is that a story of world destruction?”

The woman did not immediately answer her question.

Instead, she led Serin to a place where the mist cleared, revealing a clear view.

“Judge everything for yourself.”

Ding!

[Entering the hidden dungeon.]

[Dungeon: Behind the Ending]

[Causality is being adjusted.]

Ding!

[Main quest changed.]

[Entering the semi-final quest.]

[Main quest record deleted.]

[Rewarded with 500,000 points.]

.

.

[Main quest: Palace Battle -> Semi-final quest: Survive in the original work]

Suddenly, the world darkened.