As soon as the word “Challenger” left Sirin’s mouth, Charlotte and Yuria’s expressions froze stiffly.
Well, they were already stiff, but now… it was a stiffness tainted by horror.
“How… how does a deity know that name?”
“Life is solely governed by the gods. The Elixir is also a divine object. For a mortal to dare reach for such things is decidedly an arrogant challenge.”
A gentle smile spread across Sirin’s deeply sunken face.
“However, I find it to be truly a beautiful challenge. Because it is mortal and human to even attempt it.”
Her eyes sparkled.
“I respect your endeavor. You who try to break the shell and step into a new world… It is dazzling. But do be careful. The Apostle of the Gods will not let that light go unchallenged.”
And then, just like that.
She returned to her original expression.
“Ahem, and I don’t know when that Noah will wake up, but do tell him this one thing.”
Sirin’s gaze swept over us.
Charlotte’s mouth hung open, and she didn’t respond.
Yuria was pouring sweat… and similarly couldn’t find her voice.
I was the same as them.
Eventually, the awkwardly standing Sirin cleared her throat and spoke next.
“Kalt is someone I couldn’t even catch… So you should feel even prouder for having killed him. But, well… even saying this will likely only elicit awkward reactions. Hehe! Now, I’ll be taking my leave!”
She then swung the door wide open and vanished outside.
Not just outside.
She truly, literally disappeared.
Charlotte and Yuria hurriedly jumped from their seats and chased after Sirin, but they couldn’t catch her.
As a result, Charlotte’s office was engulfed in an enormous silence, as if a storm had just passed.
In contrast, my insides were quite turbulent.
My head felt like it was about to explode; everything was chaotic.
Sirin’s words floated around in my head, disconnected and swirling, causing a ruckus.
From resembling Noah, to miraculous magic, her tone and actions suggested she knew everything about us, and her words had a foretelling quality.
And… the Challenger.
Slowly turning my gaze, I looked at Yuria, the one Sirin had called Challenger.
She was still staring blankly at the spot where Sirin had exited, her eyes trembling.
In that moment.
“Hey, guys. I’ve been reading this novel lately, you know…?”
“A sudden topic change… what—”
“No, um, I think that kiddo might have regressed from the future to the present… what do you think?”
Charlotte’s random comment jolted me back to reality.
“I’m already dying of confusion; please just shut up.”
“Ah… right.”
Receiving Yuria’s fierce glare, Charlotte awkwardly scratched her head and plopped down into her seat.
Then she quietly took out a magic stick, lit it, and glanced at me.
“I know what you’re thinking, but…”
“Well then, please answer this. What does the ‘Challenger’ that Sirin mentioned mean?”
“Hey, that crazy kid… why is she spreading that around…”
Charlotte, anxiously pushing her hair back, took a deep drag from the magic stick and let out a sigh.
No, if I’m going to ask, it’s better to ask the person in question.
I turned to look at Yuria.
She was looking at me as if she had expected this.
“First… can we sit down for a moment?”
“Of course…”
“Thank you.”
Weakly walking over, Yuria plopped down on the sofa and slowly chose her words before speaking.
“What does Lady Rubia… no, Shaman think of Erden?”
Her eyes held an unknown hostility.
Not just hostility, but a gaze that seemed to question what I knew.
“I recognize that this is a very rude question. I know it’s an audacious act. I can endure it if you’re angry. So, please… speak honestly.”
Yuria bowed her head slowly, then lifted it.
Her eyes held even deeper hostility.
I couldn’t tell if that hostility was directed at me or Erden.
I didn’t know.
But I was annoyed.
I was frustrated, and my anger was boiling over.
The stress that had been slowly building inside me began to disturb the top of my head.
The heat that was exploding inside me spread to my fingertips, making my facial muscles tingle.
I was no saint.
I didn’t have a generous heart.
I was petty, jealousy was ugly, and my personality was gloomy.
What I wanted was something I had to have.
I was a pathetic human who hated it when others looked at what was mine.
So, this situation right now.
This situation where it seemed to be revolving around everyone but me.
This gaze that felt like it was ignoring me.
It made me furious.
“Haha…”
I had managed to hold it in well.
I had bottled it up tightly.
But now it was trying to burst out.
This wasn’t the right time.
Why couldn’t I control myself?
No. It wasn’t that I couldn’t.
I just didn’t want to.
Was it because unreasonable things were piling up all at once?
Or perhaps, was it because I thought I knew this world, but it turned out I didn’t at all?
“About Erden, honestly…”
It could be because I felt a faint divine power from the vanished Kalt’s sword.
Or perhaps it was because, after fighting a great battle, I still hadn’t calmed down.
“I… I mean…”
If that wasn’t it, then maybe it was because I, who felt like I’d never die, now felt like I could.
Might it be because I had been like a pathetic insect, squirming after having my limbs torn apart by Kalt?
No.
It was just.
The Noah beside me.
Seeing the person I loved struggle.
And yet, I couldn’t do anything for them.
That was…
“Absolutely infuriating.”
It was infuriating.
I was angry.
Frustrated, I had no choice but to swallow down my feelings.
And the world that looked like this.
Erden.
The sun.
Lilith.
Using that power of mine.
“It’s despicable, hateful. I just want to gather up those bastardos and put them down.”
“Yes, yes…?”
“Lu…bia?”
Two pairs of eyes filled with horror turned to me.
I checked once more to see if Noah was asleep.
I looked closely, checking for breath.
Then I spoke again.
“There might be innocent people among them. Maybe… But I still want to kill them all. End or not, whether the world crumbles or not, I just want to hunt down and kill all those bastards.”
Images of pleasure-drunk humans flickered in my mind.
Images of men and women, expressing carnal desires.
Images of those who took suspicious drugs, claiming it was the blessing of the goddess.
Images of those who wanted to offer their own children as sacrifices.
Those sticky gazes that looked at me.
People who insisted that the shaman had to leave a seed behind.
Cult leaders.
Believers.
Humans.
All of them.
I wanted to kill them all.
“Charlotte, Yuria. I don’t know how you think of Erden. You might like it, or you might hate it. Perhaps this is a question meant to test me. I don’t think you see yourselves as apostles of Erden. But there are still many worries. Still, I will speak honestly.”
Charlotte’s magic stick fell with a plop-.
Yuria’s mouth dropped open in shock.
Carefully, I reached out to Noah’s body.
He was fast asleep.
I spoke.
“It’s disgusting and despicable. They are worthless bastards. Yes, when I just came out of Erden, my heart was soft. I couldn’t kill the knights who were chasing me. I thought they were all innocent people. I thought they were beings who just followed orders from above. But…”
The knights who came to the ruins popped into my mind.
And they had continued sending countless pursuers after that.
“They were all the same kind of people. Their conversations were vile. They didn’t see me as a shaman. They called me a dog of Erden. Sometimes, they tried to peer into our room from the building across.”
So each time,
“I put Noah to bed and went out myself. I smashed those bastards’ heads in. They would lower their weapons as I approached with a friendly smile. It was very easy. Yet I always left at least one alive. Alive, to send back to Erden. With all their fingers cut off, their teeth pulled, and completely healed afterwards. I sent them back. Repeatedly.”
I killed them.
I killed them all.
“Now they no longer send pursuers. Hehehe… Maybe now they think I’ve gone mad, or maybe it’s exactly what they wanted. But what can I do? I’ve already become this way.”
“Wow, no… Lu…bia…”
“Is that clear? Yuria, I don’t know if your gaze is toward me or toward Erden. But one thing I want you to understand clearly.”
Clutching Noah’s hand.
“As a shaman, I believe Erden…”
I steadied my trembling breath.
“Goddess Lilith…”
Each letter was pronounced carefully.
“Is very, very despicable.”
And then, I laughed.
I took a swig of coffee.
It was bitter and lukewarm but refreshing.
It felt invigorating.
The divine power swirling inside me seems to buoy my emotions, lifting me up.
Naturally, my mood rose too.
A broad smile crossed my lips.
“Are you satisfied?”
I took another sip of coffee.
It was sweet.
Clap, clap, clap—
Soft clapping could be heard from my left.
Charlotte was watching in awe, clapping her hands.
“Damn… damn cool.”
“What?”
“F*cking… whoa… this is it… this is Rubia. This is what I fell for… Just look at that. A halo is amazing!”
Looking in the direction Charlotte was pointing, behind me, the divine power pouring out was brightly illuminating the room.
“What, what the…”
I hurriedly tried to control it and disperse it.
But it annoyingly flickered and wouldn’t disperse, only becoming brighter.
“Um, uh… Yes. I’m… sorry, Lady Rubia.”
Finally, even Yuria was gazing with admiration and lowered her head.
“I… I’m just… sorry. I didn’t know you’d hate it this much…”
The hostility vanished.
The disregard also disappeared.
Yet my divine power did not disappear.
“Yes, so please tell me. What exactly is the Challenger?”
I simply gave up and stretched my divine power wider.
I soundproofed the entire building.
Only then did the divine power disperse back into my body.
“…Hmm… The soundproofing is finished. Now, please, do tell.”
“Right… With this level of hatred, it should be fine to tell… Haha…”
Yuria swallowed hard and slowly opened her mouth.
“A Challenger… refers to those who dare to challenge the sun.”
“The sun…?”
Lilith.
“To challenge it and ultimately shatter it. Those… are the ones.”
Yuria tilted the teacup in front of her to her lips and continued speaking.
“So, those whom Goddess Lilith defined as individuals capable of twisting the very foundation of this world are called Challengers.”
“The foundation of the world?”
Outside the window, the procession of countless carriages could be heard.
The bustling sounds of traders filled the air.
The noises of a peaceful city echoed around us.
“Our world we live in—”
The next thing I heard from Yuria was—
“■is a place full of■ ■hidden■ ■ends and■ ■beginnings■.”
It didn’t get through my head.
