Chapter 378: The Rift (10)

Crackle! Crackle! Crackle!

As the air itself screamed, the portions swallowed by the spheres dissolved into transparent foam.

“Silence.”

Amid the thunderous roar, a will echoed. It didn’t resonate from outside, but reverberated inside my skull. At the same time, every "sound" in the dimension White Hood had opened vanished.

The moon still shone. The spheres still rotated. I could still feel one foot pressed firmly onto the land beyond the rift. Yet all vibration, movement, and sound had frozen to a stop.

Is this the power of a Demon King?

And this wasn’t even a true descent of the main body, just a fragment of authority. Yet even that fragment erased "sound" from an entire dimension.

In the enforced silence, the Lord of Dissociation, Moloch, dragged laughter up from the void with almost playful arrogance. Within the scorpion’s arena, vibration and sound remained intact.

From the scorpion’s agitated maw, the spiral storm around the arena trembled like hot breath. His power radiated. "So the Third Seat manifests indirectly. So what? I can say whatever I want! This is neutral territory guaranteed by all the Kings! Even the Third Seat cannot personally trespass!"

He’s this strong?

Black energy churned beneath his feet, boiling upward. He was striking the boundary of the dimension, holding back the sphere’s influence to protect his world.

"Do you hear me?" asked the scorpion.

I shouted toward the half-split world, "I hear you!"

"You must hurry. The Third Seat is focusing far more attention here than I expected."

Despite the content of his words, the scorpion’s tone was almost relaxed.

"Then tell me quickly! The pressure is insane! How do I undo the curse of reversed engraving?!"

Crackle! Crack!

Even then, the spheres chewed away sections of space, creeping outward like famished mouths. I didn’t have the luxury of sitting and waiting for an answer.

"Then kill the Demon King," the Lord of Dissociation answered as if cracking a small joke.

"What?"

That wasn’t an answer anyone could accept. Was that truly what he was offering me right now? Kill a Demon King? Even a glimpse of their indirect presence was enough to crush my entire self.

"What nonsense—"

The scorpion’s voice tightened slightly, as if pressed under a weight. "The Lord of Dissociation does not speak nonsense about Demon Kings. Avoiding reversed engraving is only possible through their death."

"Fine. How?"

Moloch shrugged his shoulders casually. "I don’t know."

Murderous heat rose inside me, and my fist clenched hard. "You don’t KNOW?!"

If I couldn’t kill a Demon King, maybe I should at least kill him.

Nevertheless, Moloch explained calmly, "However, I do know the method for forcing a Demon King to fight one-on-one. There won’t be Realm’s protections, outside help, and even penalties."

"Then explain!"

"It is an ancient, forgotten ritual. Any Demon King must accept a one-on-one challenge their bearer invokes the Yashuruk Expulsion Rite. On one condition, of course."

Crackle! Crackle!

"We’re running out of time! Just tell me!"

"Come here, and I will tell you."

My urge to kill had never been higher, but now wasn’t the time to be reckless. I had to act reasonably.

I can’t get dragged in any deeper.

I had obtained the minimum information. If I had crossed over to hear the rest, the same manipulative pattern would have repeated.

And White Hood isn’t here.

Leaving was the better choice.

Thud!

I grabbed the crow’s wing that circled endlessly around me, which fit neatly into one hand. Instantly, the coordinates Malphas had imprinted poured clearly into my mind. The wing spread open in a transparent arc. Through it, I felt a soundless, expansive flutter. If I allowed it to carry me, I would shoot upward instantly and be delivered safely to the surface.

To the surface…

However, the moment I pictured it, I recalled there was something I still hadn’t done. Something I would be abandoning if I were to leave now.

Should I really leave it behind?

If I went up, I still had to meet Red Flake, starting with the Starlight Blue Fox. I had to tell them about Gith-Za-Rai’s death.

If that’s the case, leaving without her would be…

I released the crow’s wing and looked at Moloch. "If you want me to hold even a minimum amount of goodwill toward you, then give me her corpse. Right here. Right now."

It was obvious. The body I buried in the illusory Erast had to be in the hands of the one who controlled that illusion. I would at least take that much with me. He could mock me, refuse me, sneer at goodwill—it didn’t matter. I couldn’t leave without asking.

Just in case.

Moloch’s reaction was entirely unexpected. "What in the world are you saying? A corpse? Why would such a thing be with me?"

"…?"

I wasn’t particularly perceptive. But even I could catch something this blatant.

He’s hiding it.

His voice only carried within the arena, but my words were echoing through the boundary, and the Third Seat could hear them clearly. Which meant Moloch was desperate to hide the fact from Bassago.

If I press him here, he might reveal more.

"I…"

A simple gesture from me was enough to make him snap.

"Quiet! I’ll tell you everything, without concealing a thing!"

Crackle…! Crackle…!

The rotating sphere grew larger. By now, it was opening a gaping maw, drooling toward the bubbling, viscous black boundary surrounding Moloch’s world.

Flutter…

The crow’s wing circling me weakened little by little. A growing sense of danger tugged at my nerves, but I couldn’t leave without hearing what Moloch had to say.

"I had coveted Gith-Za-Rai’s remains, relics, and anything that might contain Lindbrum’s power," Moloch confessed.

"So you targeted me?" I asked.

"That’s correct. I intended to trap you in a dimension… or let you die in the arena under pretense."

His rotten intentions were basically confirmed, not that I expected much better.

"Of course, I had no idea you were someone who could tear open dimensional paths. Please, forgive me."

"You’re shameless."

Perhaps this was simply how demons thought. Their treatment of the strong and the weak carried neither disguise nor etiquette, as if it was a given.

"A fragment of power that could oppose the Kings… even a clue toward it, I wanted that. Bassago is the same! The moment you step into his domain out of curiosity, he’ll suck the relics from you and imprison you for eternity. He’ll hide behind rules as an excuse. You’re safer in my domain. Stay here. Grow stronger with me."

I glanced nervously at the growing sphere and asked quickly, "And why would I trust you?"

"You don’t need to trust me. You can leave my domain whenever you wish, can you not?"

If I truly was what he believed, a being capable of piercing dimensions, his offer would have sounded convincing. The Demon King’s descent was approaching soon anyway. Even if I fled to the surface, Bassago could catch up in an instant.

This might actually be my only option here.

"I can refine the Lindbrum power sealed in the dagger. Only I know how to do that in the Demon Realm…"

The words reeked of manipulation. If I listened too long, I’d start believing him. I steeled myself and started to leave. Suddenly, a collision of tremendous force rippled in a world where sound and vibration had been devoured. The crow’s wing circled me. The once pitch-black wing bleached into pure white in an instant.

“A prey caught in nets and snares.”

The white wing no longer held a single trace of Malphas’s presence.

Damn it…!

"Haha! Ahahaha! Now one of your choices has vanished!" Moloch cackled from the opposite domain. "Come now! Only one proper choice remains! That other one is obviously, disastrously wrong!"

Even though Bassago’s power had intensified to overwhelming levels, Moloch seemed more relaxed than before. He clearly believed choosing Bassago was the worst possible option. He wasn’t wrong.

A sinking feeling washed over me.

Am I trapped?

The certainty settled cold in my chest. If I stepped toward the arena, I would never escape again. Once Moloch confirmed I couldn’t pierce dimensions, he would likely torment me ruthlessly.

If he managed to manipulate me and steal the dagger, I couldn’t guarantee I could withstand his illusions. Still, going to Bassago would be…

Crunch!

A massive rotating sphere tore open, and a hand made of stark-white bone shot out. Its fingers twitched once, and a transparent membrane pulled tight around me, dragging from every direction. I went rigid.

"I have become heavy, and I cannot escape."

Invisible walls formed from three directions at once, advancing toward me. They crushed the edges of my domain, pressing it down as if kneading it flat. I was wedged into a crack of unseen space, unable to sit, stand, or lie down. I was trapped. I glared at the enormous sphere.

Glaring at the enormous sphere, I shouted, "You said you’d make me your priest! What the hell are you doing?!"

Still, a sinking unease crawled through me. This was far more blatant than I expected. Maybe the scorpion had been the polite one.

Rumble…

"I am the one who fishes with hook and gathers with net, and rejoices."

Moloch’s voice rang faintly across the black paint of distorted space. "Of course it was a lie! Did you really believe any of that?"

He sounded distant, barely audible.

"Then why do you want me?"

"Not you. Do not hide my prey. It was prepared for me. Hand over my slave’s corpse."

So he wanted the body too.

Priest? As if. He only wanted to lure me out since he couldn’t enter the scorpion’s domain…

Disgust twisted through me. And no matter who asked, I would never give up a necromancer’s corpse.

Even though I don’t have it…

Still, I shouted to extract more information, "Release me first! Let me go, and answer my questions!"

Of course, negotiation meant nothing to this type of monster.

"Know your place. My resolve has already changed. I will confine you in an eternity of despair."

"What?"

Moloch’s voice reached Bassago’s sphere directly, unlike before. "Heh… Go on, try as you like. It won’t work. It’s pointless. He’s someone who pierces dimensions, after all."

Damn it…

He sounded far too relaxed. There wasn’t a hint he intended to save me.

"Hmm… three rooms, and a room inside each. Six in all."

Crunch!

The pressure doubled, crushing down on me.

"Works just fine. What nonsense."

"W-wait… what are you doing? Why aren’t you breaking through? You could pierce my dimension! Why are you letting him catch you?" Moloch forced the message through the suffocating boundary. "You just break out the same way you broke through mine!"

"That… It worked then, but now it won’t…"

"What nonsense is that?! The path originated from inside! The chance of that being a coincidence is zero!"

Panic churned inside of me.

What am I supposed to do when it won’t work?!

"If you stay calm like that, it may soon be too late!"

Damn it…

"Time thickens… 1.1… 1.2…"

It was dangerous.

"1.3… 1.4… 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.9, 2.1, 2.4, 2.8…"

Everything was becoming slower and slower. My thoughts, my emotions, my memories, everything inside this space was decelerating. Time inside flowed three, four, five times slower than outside.

"6, 7, 8, 9…"

No, was it actually faster? Moloch barely moved at all on the other side of the dimension, as if frozen in place.

"You will experience eternity, trapped with no recourse until you forget yourself and cough up everything you hide…"

One sentence took nearly ten minutes to hear. At this rate, the danger would be immeasurable. I had to do something.

"No! I don’t have the corpse! This is pointless!"

"Do not… lie… to me…"

The walls didn’t budge. It felt like I required an offering.

"I only have a used dagger left! The rest, all the daggers imbued with dragon power, were buried in illusionary funerals!"

"Then show me the used dagger."

The crushing pressure loosened slightly.

I pulled out the red dagger from the Inventory and flung it into the air. "Here!"

"Truly?"

A newly formed eye in the void turned toward Moloch.

"If that was your intention, then I cannot overlook it."

The boundary weakened further.

Now or never…!

I pulled out Gith-Za-Rai’s daggers with both hands. It was all according to plan. The goal was suicide. It happened just as I held the two pale blades.

"Urrgh!"

I didn’t need to shout. I didn’t need to consciously channel magic. Power surged uncontrollably, violently devouring its way through my whole being.

It wasn’t something I could restrain. There was no room for hesitation. The energies spilled from both blades at once. From the black knife, blinding white script. From the pale knife, pitch-black script. They tore toward each other like sworn enemies. As if no shade of gray could ever exist between them, they clashed, ripped, and devoured one another.

They fought and fought. Light did not fade. Darkness did not recede. Only space itself shrieked as it began to tear.

"H-how… how is this…?! Kuaaa!"

Bassago’s hand—that sphere—was nowhere near white enough.

Gray.

The outstretched hand fractured. Perhaps the entire world was gray from the start. Violent tremors pulsed from every direction.

I couldn’t hear him anymore. I couldn’t see anything. Nothing existed but the pure magical liquid coursing through my bones. My hands, my arms, my spine, my entire body shattered, rejected by the clashing forces. My skull was already gone.

Gith-Za-Rai…

For the first time, I understood why she never used these daggers. The Status Window flooded my vision, but I couldn’t read any of it.

The opposing powers… Two dragons… going berserk…?

I turned to dust, scattering in every direction. That was the final sensation I felt.