|Thanks to your devotion, you’ve managed to capture a great evil spirit!|
“Not at all. I just did what was necessary.”
Just a moment ago.
Maybe it’s because I saw Kali’s soul getting sucked into the deep abyss, but my body is trembling.
The fear of death, which I never thought much of, suddenly overwhelms me.
It’s not a fear of ‘the end’.
It’s a fear born from the thought that it might not end.
Even if I die, my life won’t end if I’m dragged into the Underworld.
That means I’ll have to suffer for an eternity.
‘Then what kind of punishment am I receiving?’
The fear of what comes after death is creeping in.
I have committed many sins.
Just in one cycle alone, I’ve committed numerous sins, and I repeated that 12 times…
The weight of the sins etched into my soul must be enormous.
If I go up in the flames of purgatory, won’t I be engulfed in flames like dry firewood?
|You’re afraid. Am I frightening?|
“Yes. I’m afraid of you and the Underworld…”
|Why is that?|
“Death is something unavoidable, even for a god. Therefore, I, too, will eventually die and go to the Underworld.”
|Do you want to go to the Underworld?|
“Uh? No, that’s not it…”
|If that’s not the case, you have no reason to go to the Underworld. Unless, of course, you commit sins in your future life.|
“….?”
Feeling puzzled, I raised my head for a moment.
But when the dizzying darkness loomed in my vision, I quickly looked down again.
What on earth does that mean?
You say I won’t go to the Underworld?
“If it’s not rude, may I ask for the reason? There are many sins piled up in my history after all…”
|True, they are sins. You’ve deceived many people and inflicted wounds that can’t be healed.|
You…?
Something about that sounded strange, but since they said they weren’t used to human language, I let it slide.
“Is that to say my sins are not worthy of judgment in the Underworld?”
|No. Under normal circumstances, the wounds you inflicted would have made you suffer for decades straight in a heartbreakingly painful way.|
“….”
I think that’s right.
Since I used the God of the Underworld to deal with the Four Heavenly Kings, it would only be fair for me to face judgment in the Underworld, too.
However, what followed from the God of the Underworld was unexpected.
|However, that story does not apply to you, but to them. Isn’t that what we call an exception?|
“What do you mean by that?”
|Isn’t your history broken? History is something that flows continuously without stopping. I, the King of Hell, am just a mere mortal unable to escape that grand flow. Thus, I have no means to intervene concerning those who have their histories broken. But in your case, it’s a different story.|
“….?”
This explanation was beyond my comprehension.
Who are ‘them’ and who am I?
Based on the context, ‘you’ seems to refer to me, but…
I decided to stop trying to understand.
I would just listen.
|What do you believe the conditions for redemption of sins are?|
“Redemption is also a thing?”
|If there’s no redemption, wouldn’t those who commit sins continue to do so endlessly? That’s not what I want.|
“I’m sorry, but I can’t grasp it at all… May I ask what the conditions for the redemption of sins are?”
|You are clever yet somewhat foolish. There are two conditions: the sinner’s repentance and forgiveness from the harmed party. Fortunately for you, you satisfied both conditions right before I arrived. So, rest assured, your sins carried over from your broken history have been redeemed. I don’t wish for an innocent person to live in fear anymore since I’ve been too involved with the Underworld.|
Sins have been redeemed…
Those sins surely refer to when I deceived and betrayed Jill, Yulia, and Yerina.
But I have reflected on that (though it still doesn’t feel like enough).
I faced all three and received their forgiveness.
The result of facing my karmic debt has led me here.
Now, when I die, I can rest peacefully without being dragged into the Underworld.
“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you…”
|Oh dear. You’re starting to break down.|
“Ah, uh? Huh…?”
I realized it only after hearing the God of the Underworld’s clicking tongue.
That blood is dripping from my eyes, ears, and mouth.
A sudden wave of lethargy hit my entire body, and my legs buckled.
I crumpled down, continuously pouring blood.
If Mi Jeong were next to me, she might have gulped at this feast.
Suddenly, I felt a void in my right hand.
My hand just swept through the darkness.
|Did you say there was another evil spirit?|
“Y-Yes…”
I thought I had gotten a bit familiar with the voice of the God of the Underworld.
But it seems I’ve just grown numb to the pain, while the damage was building up.
I coughed out blood and struggled to answer.
|It seems it will be difficult to continue talking with you after this.|
“That’s alright… Even if I die, please… finish off the last evil spirit…”
|Do you truly wish to die this way? If you desperately wish for such a death, I can grant it.|
“….”
|It doesn’t seem like that. While a mortal cannot choose how to live, they should at least be allowed to choose how they die. You will choose your own manner of death. I will leave a pathway open; for now, I will return. I’ve entrusted part of the Underworld to you, so it would be wise to seek its power from now on. With that, I hope luck follows you in your future. |
As those words came to an end.
The darkness that loomed over me started to disperse, and the crushing pressure on my body also vanished.
At that moment, a system window appeared before my eyes.
[Achievement Unlocked]
[Survive Encounter with the First Judge of the Underworld, King of Hell!]
The conditions for this achievement are very ridiculous.
It’s not just ‘face the King of Hell’, but ‘survive after facing him’!
I think I would have definitely died if it weren’t for the ‘Mental Strength Enhancement’ trait, and that sends a little chill down my spine.
“Ah…”
Maybe I still can’t escape death even now.
As the darkness lifted and the surrounding scenery came into view, I was overwhelmed with concern at the sight of Mi Jeong rushing toward me, and I lost consciousness.
[Reward: ‘Familiar with Death…’]
At that point, the system window popped up, but I wasn’t able to read all of it since I passed out.
“Where is this…?”
This is definitely Elvenguard.
I was trapped in the darkness for quite a while, so my perception of time and space is pretty warped.
But at the very least, I remember what I was doing and why.
However, I was quite flustered by the scene laid out before me.
“A snowfield?”
Looking around, no matter where I look, it’s just a field covered in snow.
A cold blizzard seems like it could knock me down at any moment, and the sky is covered with dark clouds, making it look gloomy.
One thing is for sure.
This is not a landscape I remember at all.
Have I lost my memories?
Did staring directly at the God of the Underworld cause me to forget everything leading up to getting here?
Just as all kinds of thoughts raced through my mind.
While I scanned the area 360 degrees, I noticed the only place with light.
Huff… Huff…
Drawn like a moth to a flame, I trudged through the snowfield.
For some reason, my outfit is still the same as when I was in Elvenguard, so the cold snow touches my bare skin, making it feel chill and icy.
But right now, I had to reach the light; I couldn’t think of anything else.
“A flower?”
In the spot where sunlight filters through the dark clouds.
There, amidst the white snowfield, is a single flower appearing.
When I brushed the snow off its petals, I found it was a red camellia.
But isn’t a camellia a flower that grows on a tree, not in a field?
Caught up in such a question for a moment, I then noticed there were other flowers nearby.
One was a blue cyclamen.
“Huh? Cyclamen?”
That’s strange.
How do I know the name of that flower?
I never had a hobby for flowers.
It felt odd, but since my mind was clouded, I decided to ignore it as if some voice was telling me it wasn’t that important.
Another one was a black rose.
This flower had harsh thorns, and I had to give up touching it after injuring my hand.
And the last one was a yellow jasmine.
Four flowers stood there blooming out of nowhere on this vacant snowfield, drenched in sunlight.
I stared at them for a moment until I sensed a presence and quickly turned around.
“Who…!”
“It’s me. The God of the Underworld.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t make that stupid face. Did I not say before? I would leave part of my essence and the Underworld with you. That’s who I am.”
A long-bearded old man in a black robe stood before me, causing my body to freeze.
However, I was only surprised by the fact that a person appeared so suddenly in this snowfield.
I felt no pressure or any other kind of force.
“Rest assured. With such a small amount of power, it won’t harm someone like you, who has well-trained mental strength.”
“Y-Yes… But since the God of the Underworld has appeared, does that mean this is my mental space?”
“You can interpret it as such. Mages call this the soul, while curse casters refer to it as the mental landscape, but neither term is completely accurate. As this place exists as a world of its own, it becomes quite challenging to find the right term in human language… If I had to name it, let’s call it ‘Your Inner World’.”
“My Inner World?”
“Right. Every being with intellect possesses a world within their heart. Most mortals die without knowing of its existence… but once in a while, one person out of tens of thousands notices it and even steps into their inner world. In your case, you were more than ready to step into this world, yet you have yet to do so. I was simply frustrated and brought you here myself.”
Upon hearing that, my mind cleared up.
The fog in my head lifted, and the scenery before me became vivid.
Only now did I understand the bizarre scene unfolding.
The endlessly stretching snowfield.
And the flowers blooming here, which should never exist.
Until just a moment ago, I had accepted everything in a daze, thinking it was like a dream.
But this was my Inner World, a world I created, which allowed for such strange phenomena to occur.
“Thank you.”
“Stop thanking me. It’s truly nothing special. Anyway, if left alone, you would have eventually reached this level within 100 years.”
“….”
The old man in black robes waved his hand dismissively as if 100 years was nothing.
It seems gods have a very different sense of time than I do.
“So… what should I do here?”
“I did not bring you here for anything specific. You fainted, and this is the only place where we can talk.”
“Ah…”
“My essence began to return, knowing that remaining here any longer would likely kill you. However, I’ve left the pathway open. Right now, I’m receiving an immense attraction from the God of the Underworld through that pathway. So, before that pathway closes, you need to connect with the last remaining evil spirit. Once you do, I will accompany that evil spirit back to the Underworld along the pathway. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
So, if I take this old man to Luna, he will embrace Luna’s soul and return to the Underworld.
I completely understood.
When leaving me behind, I thought he was going to give up on Luna after only dealing with Kali. I was astonished by such irresponsibility from a god.
Surprisingly, he’s providing solid aftercare.
“One thing you must not forget is that I am now within you. So, I can hear all your inner thoughts.”
“Ah.”
“You’re the first mortal to think of me like this. How amusing. It’s as if you treat me like a mere character in a story.”
“….!”
A shiver ran down my spine.
The old man in black robes stared at me—or rather, my inside—for a moment.
Then he chuckled and turned away.
“It’s about time to leave this place. You’re about to wake up. It seems there’s someone urgent to save you.”
“Uh, God of the Underworld! Just one more thing! You said this is ‘My Inner World’, right? What purpose does this place serve? And what do these flowers mean?”
“That’s something you should gradually discover for yourself. Offering more help may only do you harm… I… ”
As the old man’s words began to trail off.
The snowy landscape slowly turned white.
My vision became entirely filled with a bright light.
And as the light gradually faded, I felt my vision clearing.
“….Yoo Jin!”
“Cough!”
Mi Jeong, looking worried as she gazes down at me.
I turned my head and coughed up blood, barely managing to rise to my feet with my shaky legs.
Judging by my sense of time, I probably lost consciousness for about 5 minutes…
I feel a bit dizzy from the heavy blood loss, and my visceral functions, including my heart, feel somewhat weak, but I’m still alive.
I rubbed Mi Jeong’s head with my blood-soaked hand and stood up on both legs.
“Am I… dying. No, right?”
“You’re not dead yet.”
“Ugh…”
With a frown, Mi Jeong clung to me.
As I comforted her back and lifted my head, I saw…
“I… I was worried. It’s a mess right now.”
“Huh?”
My eyes were greeted by a forest engulfed in flames.
It was a massive inferno that could turn the Great Fire of Elvenguard into a mere anecdote.
What on earth happened in those 5 minutes while I was unconscious?
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