episode_0053

Shooooo…

Rain poured down from the sky like a waterfall, relentless and unstoppable. There was no way to escape or shield oneself from the rainy season. It felt as though the tears of sadness shed by Roderick and Esthiel from the sky were consuming the world.

I decided to stop meddling with the aftermath. Even the successor of the Lua’te, along with their followers, gazed at the world with despair. There was no point in trying to threaten them further. After all, the world was heading towards destruction.

In ancient times, the shape of the flood caused reverence as it resembled a dragon. If the same sentiment prevailed in this era, the endless rain would surely become a symbol of a catastrophic end.

“So cold…”

Expressing my honest feelings as the rain soaked me to the bone.

Even in the chilling rain, how desperate must the two figures sleeping under a cold pile of snow have been?

I despised the world.

I despised the countless people who cursed us.

The last debt we found was an endless abyss of darkness.

At this point, the vast sky felt suffocating, as layers of malice and misfortune felt artificially imposed. Fate seemed to be poking me with a sharp blade.

“Now… I wish everything would just disappear.”

I hoped that the world that hated me, the artificial fate, and everything would be washed away and disappear in the deep and clear water.

The rain, carrying such wishes, fell even more fiercely.

I thought that everything would end within a night.

As I gazed at the horizon with a sense of resignation.

In the crumbling world, the last protector stood in my way.

◇

A middle-aged man carried a massive sword on his shoulder. The sword was so huge that it seemed unbelievable that a person could wield it.

Despite his age, his body was robust and sturdy, with a blend of sharpness and vitality in his eyes.

He was my father.

The fallen hero of the current continent. And the man of the Velonin Empire.

The male protagonist of the previous work, Harum Litherion, appeared before Rahilt.

“Stop.”

It was the first time my father spoke, a brief admonition.

“The common people are suffering. This artificial rain must have originated from your dragon’s power.”

“…”

“Please stop. If you change your mind now, not only will you spare the author, but you will also overlook the current upheaval.”

“I will not stop.”

Rahilt turned to his father with a hollow expression.

“That’s not possible.”

“No, you must.”

The next statement from his father was a threat with a subtle undertone.

“If the rain doesn’t stop, I will have no choice but to kill you.”

“I wouldn’t mind that.”

Rahilt conjured dark clouds above his palm.

Despite his small stature, he was a wielder of true dragon’s power.

“If my death brings liberation, then so be it.”

“There is no room for compromise.”

Rahilt replied with a resolute tone. In response, his father looked at him with a calculating gaze and raised his massive sword with one hand.

“After driving out the pestilence, this will be our first direct confrontation. My knees ache even in this rain. I had hoped to release my grip on the sword completely… but it seems unavoidable.”

The aged Emperor of the Empire exuded a mountain-like aura as he took his stance.

“From now on, I will exterminate the last remaining dragon in the world.”

As I watched my father, fully prepared, I could only bow my head to the ground, hiding my face.

‘No… this can’t be happening…’

Rahilt was said to have ultimately brought about the destruction of the world. If that was the case, the outcome of this battle was already decided.

It was my father’s defeat.

The confrontation with the Dragon’s Child was taking a toll on his body, eroded by the passage of time, which continued to gnaw at him even in this moment.

“This is… too cruel.”

Rahilt, who sought to destroy the world and even himself, faced off against his father, who risked his life to stop him.

They were locked in a confrontation that seemed destined to unfold, two individuals who were none other than the emperor and empress of their era.

Thump. Thump.

Father casually pivoted his foot in a strange posture, causing the greatsword to tilt heavily behind him as it leaped lightly off the ground.

Whoosh!

In an instant, like a bullet, father hurled his body forward, his speed reaching the realm of sound.

Carrying a greatsword of a size that defied common sense, he did not resemble a mere mortal.

Before a single raindrop could touch the ground, father had already closed the distance, his greatsword drawing an artistic straight line as it bent Rahilt vertically.

“Hmm?”

Swoosh.

Black clouds rose, exerting a force of physics. Like a shield, they gathered and just managed to block the greatsword at the last moment.

“Impressive.”

Or so he thought he had blocked it.

Crack!

Rahilt’s black cloud – the power of the dragon – was a force that humans could not comprehend. But even for the loser of the continent who transcended human nature and understanding, it was all the same.

Before the overwhelming force, the black cloud crumbled. The greatsword, which had been blocked, surged forward as father’s force broke through like a dam bursting.

Kwaaaah!

The earth split.

The ground sank deeply from the impact, and the aftermath of the straight-line attack filled the void left by the destruction of the Luathe fortress.

“…Ah.”

Rahilt let out a faint groan.

Thud, thud, thud!

Blood gushed from his body.

He turned his gaze to where the blood was flowing. At the end of his numb gaze, his left arm, severed from the shoulder down, lay sprawled on the ground.

“Lian…!”

Why?

Wasn’t the ending supposed to be Rahilt winning and the world ending in destruction? So why did he so easily give up his left arm to his father?

What was even more incomprehensible was Rahilt’s indifferent attitude even after losing his arm.

Perhaps because he was the Dragon’s Child, the hemostasis was abnormally fast. Despite his arm being severed, the bleeding time was extremely short. Father seemed particularly flustered by this.

“It’s not too late now. Please stop the disaster.”

“…”

“Until now, there hasn’t been a living being that could withstand you. Without a fight, there was no need for training.”

“…”

“Above all, you are just a human with dragon’s blood, not a dragon. Yet you dare to face me with such a disaster, claiming it’s impossible.”

Now he understood.

The reason father was so confident he could handle Rahilt.

Murder and destruction were fundamentally different categories.

Murder inflicts fatal wounds and ends lives.

Even if Rahilt had the power to destroy the world, ultimately, if his throat was cut and he bled out, he would die. And in that regard, father was the best in the world.

Even if he couldn’t destroy the world, he could at least kill one powerful human. With that premise, father had orchestrated the story.

With overwhelming superiority, Rahilt said to his father,

“I understand.”

He nodded his head.

“From the beginning, this was a gamble. A bet on whether you would kill me faster, or I would destroy the world faster.”

“You…!?”

“As my arm has been severed… I must catch up as well.”

Rahilt slowly raised his right hand. Then, he clenched his fist very slowly.

Even his father couldn’t understand the meaning and couldn’t act rashly.

It was a fatal misjudgment.

Crackle, crack!

Sparks flew from the dark sky where the rain was falling.

Once the sparks flew, they spread rapidly like a geometric progression, coloring the entire sky as if multiplying like fish swimming through the clouds.

When the sky of the island was covered with sparks in an instant, it was already too late.

Flash!

A thousand lightning bolts illuminated the sky.

Before anyone could even blink, the island lost its function and burst into flames. Countless lives perished without even knowing what had happened.

Disaster.

It was a concept that truly fit.

Kwung! Kurrurur…

The thunder rumbled in the ears.

Father continued to gaze at the island swept away by lightning with a bewildered expression.

It was insane.

Perhaps, that was the thought that both my father and I shared at the same time.

I know how much kindness Rahilt possessed. I also remember the affection he consistently showed towards me and Estiel.

I never imagined becoming a reaper who harvests lives in an instant.

On the other hand, my father also understood Rahilt’s true nature.

Even though he had the power to sweep the world away, it was not easy to fight within the confines of society. Even if he harbored malice, it was likely an inefficiency stemming from Rahilt’s inherent kindness.

Therefore, it was only appropriate to consider the current Rahilt as having lost his mind.

He had sacrificed his humanity in the face of overwhelming betrayal and loss.

It turned him from a human living into a dragon.

“Ah…!”

I reached out to them. But my struggling hand was immediately blocked by a barrier created by the mist, losing its way.

“The mist is already…? Why!?”

I frantically searched for the black dragon inside Rahilt, controlling the negative emotions.

It was when I hesitated for a moment.

A woman’s voice faintly reached my ears.

[It seems like the child is waking up.]

“So, you’re saying that Lian has been in a coma all this time?”

[How else could this be possible without losing consciousness?]

“…”

Although I didn’t fully understand, it seemed somewhat plausible. Could it be that she materialized her dreams in some way?

[Be careful.]

“What?”

[Don’t focus on bringing her down. If you can weaken her somehow, then I…]

…

……

“Excuse me? Madam? Hey…!!!”

There was no response.

In the end, I had to wait for the dense mist to dissipate and reveal the surrounding scenery.

◇

“Kanarin!”

“Luca, Serina!”

“You two… are safe.”

As the mist cleared and we returned to the royal palace of Karina Kingdom, we were able to find each other quickly. In fact, we had wandered a few steps away from each other.

Serina asked directly.

“Have you seen the 2 princes and Nalin? It’s about Lian’s past.”

“Yes, we have.”

“…Yes. Clearly.”

Luca teased her.

“So, what we saw was the future that Reihard… no, Rahilt was supposed to experience originally, right?”

“That’s right.”

Luca was quick to accept Kanarin’s possession situation as he knew about it.

“Meanwhile, there was a person named Rasherara… no, who was in cahoots with the eldest prince.”

‘Come to think of it, she was leaning towards the 1st prince of Karina Kingdom.’

No matter how I looked back on it, Rasherara’s actions were disgusting. Serina had to invest a long time in finding peace of mind.

At that moment, a familiar voice brushed against Kanarin’s ear.

Ding!

[Semi-Final Quest: Survive in the Original has ended prematurely.]

Ding!

[Entering the Final Quest.]

.

.

.

[Final Quest: Kingdom’s Purification]

[Overview: The summit is in sight. Defeat the final boss – the dark sorcerer Rastali who devours grudges and save the kingdom.]

[Dungeon: Requirements met to enter the Corrupted Main Hall.]

“The main hall…!”

Kanarin exclaimed in surprise. Luca noticed that Kanarin’s status bar had been updated.

“Rastali is in the main hall?”

“Yeah, looks like it.”

“… Let’s go quickly.”

Serin whispered coldly.

Her heart raced as she scrutinized Rahlit’s past with her own eyes. The cryptic words left by the black dragon’s woman also weighed on her mind.

Strangely, there were no dark sorcerers on the way.

They hadn’t even shown a hint of their presence, let alone being wiped out.

Regardless, they considered it a stroke of luck. A petty dark sorcerer like Rastali would surely kneel once Rastali was defeated.

And so, the three of them were able to reach the main hall quickly without any hindrance.

Ding!

[Dungeon: Enter the Corrupted Main Hall?]

[Yes/No]

[Warning: Once entered, you cannot turn back.]

Kanarin, Serin, and Luca exchanged glances.

There was no turning back now.

With unanimous agreement, the three of them finally pushed open the massive doors of the main hall.

Creak…!

“Is this the main hall… where Lian is…?”

More accurately, it was the space where Rastali, who had been holding Rahlit, resided. Therefore, Kanarin and Luca did not refute Serin’s words.

“… It’s quiet.”

“Rastali is not here.”

Luca and Kanarin pointed out the oddities one after another.

If it was Rastali’s immense dark magic, they should have felt a warning as soon as they opened the main hall’s doors.

Starting from the absence of the dark sorcerer on the way, it was full of strange occurrences.

And then, it happened.

Ding!

[Causality is being adjusted.]

[Causality is being adjusted.]

[Cau. sal. i. ty. is. be. ing. ad. just. ed.]

Ding!

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

[Final Quest is being deleted.]

“… What?”

Kanarin exclaimed in shock.

Before she could deduce the situation, the surrounding landscape suddenly changed.

The surroundings were painted in a sinister shade of red, as if soaked in thick blood, causing a visceral discomfort that almost made Kanarin vomit.

But the upheaval didn’t end there.

Thud.

Thud.

Footsteps could be heard.

A woman emerged from a hidden chamber behind the throne.

“Cough…”

The woman coughed up blood. Half of her body spilled over the throne, drenching it in crimson.

The three of them carefully examined the woman’s disheveled appearance and finally recognized her.

“Rastali…?”

Kanarin, who had been restraining her all along since her reincarnation, was the first to realize Rastali’s true identity.

As Rastali, barely focusing on Kanarin and her companions, struggled to speak.

“These… crazy bastards… what… have you brought…!!!”

At that moment Rastali expressed her anger.

Thwack!

A pitch-black sword pierced her chest.

Her essence evaporated from her face, hanging like a specter.

Rastali met her end without even being able to properly close her eyes. Her lifeless body tumbled down the stairs below.

It was a futile death.

The vast dark magic that Rastali had displayed seemed almost illusory.

The woman who was supposed to be the final boss of the story had her life extinguished. So, who was the one who killed the powerful woman?

Thud.

Thud.

The sound of footsteps echoed once again.

At first, everyone thought it was the sound of Lastali’s footsteps, but that was a mistake.

Thud.

Thud.

He appeared from the secret passage behind the throne.

“Ah…!”

Serin gasped.

His dazzling golden hair, as if adorned with power. Aqua marine eyes that seemed to reflect the clear sky and shining sea. And up to the mask covering the front of his face.

Unmistakable features that asserted his identity.

“Rian!”

As Serin tried to run towards him with a shocked expression.

“Serin, wait…!!!”

Kanarin restrained Serin with a face pale with cold.

It was inevitable, as phenomena occurred beyond what the body could handle.

Ring!

[Causality. Adjustment. In. Progress.]

[Causality. Adjusted.]

Ring!

[Summoning deleted Final Quest.]

[Final Quest changed.]

[Final Quest: Kingdom’s Purification -> Final Quest: Salvation of the World]

Ring!

[Prepare for the final trial.]

[Boss: Raihlt, the Child of Ruin]

[Objective: Survive.]

…!!!

As Kanarin grabbed Serin’s wrist.

Thud.

Thud.

The rain began to fall, chilling to the bone.