Chapter 22. Kalmash (2)

The Forgotten Era refers to a time when the source of light, Sephirot, and the source of chaos, Qliphoth, were balanced within the Primordial World Tree.

During that time, when the Elves ruled the land under the protection of Sephirot.

Kalmash was the border connected to the chaos of Qliphoth and the territory of the beings who descended from the Outer Sea… in other words, the Outer Gods.

The beings from the Outer Sea, crazed with blood and madness, urged slaughter upon mortals and left Remnants of Chaos throughout Kalmash. To stop this, the Elves created the Chains of Order, which was the Passage we just came through.

‘…Or so the story goes.’

Having read the original novel, I couldn’t *not* know this setting.

Kalmash was a significant stage in the original story and, more importantly, the home of the Outer Gods, who could be considered the final bosses.

‘It truly deserves to be called a true Magical Boundary.’

Kalmash had one distinct characteristic.

This place, where primordial chaos was concentrated, was unstable in its very space.

Due to the thick Death Energy, it was impossible to get one’s bearings, and no machinery would function.

That’s why I needed Adina.

Kalmash was incredibly vast, and we had to find traces of Sephirot within that vastness to create a path, which only her Spirit Eye could detect.

Of course, Adina insisted that she didn't want to go to such a horrible place, but I easily broke her will with my authority as the homeowner.

“…The edge of the cliff. To the right from there.”

Black clouds filled the sky.

Adina pointed in a direction within the thick darkness.

Every time she blinked, a purple light briefly pierced the darkness and then disappeared.

Flash, flash!

As I was lost in thought, gazing at her eyes that illuminated the darkness for fleeting moments.

A monotonous female voice came from behind me.

“Spirit Eye… so that’s the unique trait of the White-Haired Clan I’ve only heard rumors about.”

Arkan was staring intently at Adina, as if intrigued.

“I told you it would be interesting.”

“Hmm? Well, it’s interesting, but she’s still got a long way to go. Spirit Eye is a rare trait, but it’s not *that* special.”

…That’s true.

Spirit Eye was a unique trait of the White-Haired Clan, a Supernatural Power that ordinary people might see once in a lifetime. But considering how long Arkan had lived to achieve her current fame, she must have encountered such traits numerous times.

A long time passed as we walked, following Adina's guidance.

The surrounding environment and terrain changed the deeper we went.

The sky, covered in black clouds, allowed no light to pass through, and the blackened bushes below were shrouded in darkness, their shapes barely discernible.

The land was desolate.

Only blackish-red rocks were scattered about in bizarre formations.

The air was so thick that the smell of iron stung my nose with every breath, and the stench rising from the space itself was even worse.

It was the kind of environment that would naturally come to mind when one thought of the apocalypse.

Fortunately, we were still at the Entrance of Kalmash… where the environment and terrain were relatively normal.

That’s why I, a human, could still walk around fine even though we had crossed the Border.

“It’s strange. Sometimes you seem like an ordinary human.”

“I *am* an ordinary human.”

“Sure, sure. Whatever you say.”

“…”

I stopped talking, too lazy to respond.

I looked around, thinking about the content of the original story.

‘A giant, spiraling black iron Spire located at the entrance of Kalmash.’

Just one sentence.

t was the place described in the original story through ‘her’ recollections.

Anyway, we had successfully entered the entrance of Kalmash, so all that remained was to move inwards, following Adina’s guidance.

Adina, who had no way of knowing this, naturally had questions.

“What are you looking for in a place like this?”

I stared intently at her face.

She wasn't simply scared.

It was an expression of genuine doubt.

I answered in a monotonous voice.

“The Seeds of the End.”

“Seeds of the End? What are those?”

“Something like that. You wouldn’t know about the Remnants of Chaos left behind from the Forgotten Era.”

“…”

Adina gritted her teeth at my indifferent reply.

I didn’t care.

No one here would realize the true meaning of my words.

Except for one person.

“…Did you just say Remnants of Chaos?”

Great Lord Arcan.

Her eyes lit up.

“How does a human like you know about that?”

Ah, damn it.

This was troublesome.

I couldn’t lie because of her Insight Eye.

“…I’ve seen it.”

“Seen it? That primordial era?”

“Yes.”

…I had roughly seen it.

In the novel.

“…How?”

“Am I obligated to answer that?”

She chuckled at my prickly response.

“Let’s get moving.”

I stood up before the conversation dragged on.

As I started walking again, Adina’s voice came from behind.

“Hey.”

“What?”

“Don’t you see that?”

I stared straight ahead.

But I couldn’t see anything in the thick darkness.

“Where?”

“There.”

There was still nothing where Adina was pointing.

It was at that moment.

Swooooosh—

The thick darkness swirled like a vortex, and a figure emerged from its center.

Undoubtedly human.

And quite a beautiful woman.

The woman’s identity was.

“…Found you.”

Elfriede Trivia.

The Seed of the End I had been searching for.

“Wait here.”

Thud, thud.

I walked forward.

The closer I got, the heavier my body felt, as if pressed down by an immense pressure, but I gritted my teeth and endured.

After walking for a while, the woman’s figure, which had appeared as a dark silhouette, came clearly into view.

“……”

I stood still and looked down at her, crouching on the ground.

She was wearing a white Clerical Robe, but the pure white fabric was stained crimson in several places.

Her exposed skin was necrotizing as if cursed, but golden Holy Light would bloom and regenerate the decaying flesh in an endless cycle.

As if trapped in an eternal cycle of pain.

‘This is serious.’

It was the price of sealing the Demon King within a mortal body.

The Fragment of Chaos sealed within her would gradually erode her sanity over eons.

‘…Saintess.’

She was enduring with Divine Power, but even that seemed to be at its limit.

The forcibly sealed Fragment of the End would soon sprout and bear fruit.

And she would be reborn as a new being.

Having lost all faith and sense of self, becoming a puppet of chaos.

‘That can’t happen.’

Although she was currently consumed by chaos, her true nature wasn’t evil.

The true Saintess who had been replaced. That was Elfriede's true identity.

She was suffering here due to the Holy Order's scheme, but this wasn't her original fate.

If I could just remove the Fragment of Chaos dwelling within her body, I could extinguish the immediate crisis.

‘Her energy is intense.’

I stared at her, emanating an ominous aura.

She looked exactly as described in the original story.

I slowly reached out my hand towards her.

The moment my hand touched her forehead, an overwhelming presence pierced my soul.

Whoosh!

A black energy burst forth from her like an explosion.

Normally, one would lose consciousness, consumed by this terrifying Death Energy. But I was different.

‘This is amazing.’

All the energy she was emitting was being absorbed into the ring on my index finger.

The Precious Artifact that absorbed Fragments of Chaos, the Ring of Yphrasia.

The overflowing Fragments of Chaos were purified into infinite Mind's Eye, filling my soul.

The tattoo under my right eye glowed blue.

At the same time, a radiance containing supreme essence devoured the darkness.

The fundamental Mind’s Eye, residing deep within my heart, surged.

The Rune's Five Stars, engraved on my soul, finally bloomed.

It was proof and a sign that I had overcome one of the countless branching paths.

And then.

Something approached.

Rumble!

It was a snake.

Its massive body was worthy of being called a serpent.

I recognized its identity as soon as I saw it.

“…Jörmungandr.”

The World Serpent.

The monster born between destruction and creation.

Jörmungandr.

It was a Catastrophe-Class Monster.

****

Great Lord Arcan.

She stared straight ahead, lost in thought.

“…A Monstrous Beast.”

A Monstrous Beast.

And a Catastrophe-Class Monster at that, a primordial monster that only appeared in myths.

Even she, who had lived for hundreds of years, was seeing a Catastrophe-Class Monster in person for the first time.

No, she hadn’t even imagined it.

That she would encounter such a monster beyond the Border.

“Tsk, this is a disaster.”

That wasn’t a monster to be fought.

Of course, it wasn't impossible, but even she would have to make some sacrifices.

There was no need to confront it. T

hat’s what a Catastrophe-Class Monster was.

She turned her head.

The two girls who had followed Luke couldn’t even move properly, overwhelmed by the Intimidation emitted by the Catastrophe-Class Monster.

Ah, this was troublesome.

The Demon King being sealed within a human body was certainly interesting, but she deeply regretted opening the Passage if she had known she would encounter such a monster.

Step.

Footsteps echoed, breaking the chilling silence.

Her eyes widened.

Luke Richter, the man who had promised to show her something interesting, was slowly approaching the monster.

It was commendable that he could maintain his sanity within the Intimidation, but she couldn't just stand by and watch.

That was no different from walking to his death.

But his expression was strangely calm.

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

It was a smile as if his whole body was itching for a fight.

A deep blue light emanated from his right eye, staring at the enemy before him.

Then.

“Acceleration.”

A highly compressed bluish haze bloomed from his entire body.

It branched out in dozens of strands, colliding and converging at a single point, creating a huge ripple.

Waves originating from countless frictions.

It was a wave of Mind’s Eye, a Territory of its own.

“Time Gate.”

From the center of the wave, a highly compressed beam of light shot up into the sky.

A radiance illuminating the darkness traced a shape in the void. It was a gate.

“Open.”

Screech—!

The gate opened with a deafening roar.

An immense amount of heat surged from beyond the gate.

A chilling, viscous, and ominous wave dominated the space.

And.

“Reverse.”

The world froze.

As if time had stopped, even a single speck of dust floating in the air came to a complete standstill.

The pressure of time bonded space.

Immediately after.

Rumble!

The wide-open Time Gate began to absorb everything bonded by the pressure of time.

Space itself was torn apart.

Bushes, pebbles, rocks, everything was torn away.

The same was true for the giant snake before him.

The Time Gate finished its feast and calmly vanished.

And.

The world, stripped bare…

“Void.”

…exploded.

Void consumed the world.