[Noah. If Laila dies here and now, the Advent of the False Paradise begins.]
“F-False Paradise…?”
[In exchange for the lives of Rubia and Serr, a gate to the higher world will open.]
I turned my gaze toward Laila.
Despite Kartia’s words and my stare, she maintained the sa smile, slowly nodding in agreent.
[I wish I could deny it… but it’s true.]
“That’s impossible… Rubia. Rubia is…”
Even after hearing this—
Even after learning she would die—
Rubia showed no reaction, responding to my gaze with silence.
Resignation? Shock?
No, that wasn’t it.
That expression…
“Rubia, don’t tell
you… knew?”
It was the face of soone who had known from the beginning.
The expression of soone whose lie had been exposed.
“…I’m sorry.”
“What about Serr? Did Serr know too…?”
“I knew.”
“Why… why didn’t you tell ? Why is everything so…”
According to what I knew, all the Beasts of the End should have been subjugated and the Ancient Dragon slain before Lilith’s awakening would begin.
Of course, I had long accepted that this world wouldn’t follow the ga exactly.
I definitely knew that… but I never expected the main storyline to change so drastically.
I never imagined things would unfold so differently.
Why? What caused everything to change like this?
Why did Rubia know this truth?
Why did she hide it from ?
Why didn’t even Serr tell
anything?
A voice thick with resentnt rose to my throat.
My chest felt like it would burst.
My throat tightened painfully.
But… I couldn’t open my mouth.
I couldn’t express my frustration.
I couldn’t release my anger.
Because I too had hidden things.
From Rubia, from Serr, from Hermilla.
From Kartia and everyone else.
I had committed the sa mistake as Rubia.
I had thought the sa way.
I couldn’t condemn her.
I didn’t want to bla Rubia, who had cared so deeply for .
“Sniff… hic…”
Instead of blaming her, I wanted to tell her like always to trust .
To tell her I would fix everything.
I wanted to comfort her, to reassure her as she trembled in fear.
I wanted to hold her cold, shaking hands and embrace her, sharing my warmth.
But why?
“Hic… sniff…”
Why was this pathetic body trying to release all these emotions?
Why was I showing such a pitiful side of myself?
[Hey.]
Kartia’s hand touched my downturned face.
She pinched my cheek.
[Are you crying?]
“K-Kar… sniff… Kartia…”
[Sigh… you pathetic kid.]
“Sniff…”
[I haven’t finished talking, so stop crying and listen to the end.]
Rub rub — After a brief touch that left a faint sting, Kartia withdrew her hand as her voice lowered.
[Rubia, Serr. You two as well. Stop overthinking and listen carefully.]
[You’ve changed a great deal, Kartia.]
[Maybe you long-eared folk wouldn’t understand, but spending over a thousand years alone changes anyone.]
Crack — Kartia reversed her grip on Frey and stabbed it into Yggdrasil’s roots, smirking.
[Indeed. I suppose that’s true. Very well then. Tell . Do you have a better solution that I haven’t considered?]
[Don’t order
around.]
Raising her middle finger at Laila, Kartia turned to us and spoke.
[Before explaining the Higher World, I should explain the False Paradise.]
Creak, Crack
As Frey moved, deep scars ford in Yggdrasil’s roots.
Nurous small circles and one large circle.
Between them, an awkwardly inserted rectangle.
[These small circles represent the Lower Worlds where we live. The large circle is the Higher World where the great bastards reside. And here, between the Lower and Higher Worlds,]
Tap — Frey’s tip pointed at the rectangle.
[This is the endless battlefield that naless bastard in the sky wants to reach. The place called the False Paradise.]
“I-I know about the Higher World… but what is the False Paradise…?”
[Hmm, the False Paradise is… How should I explain this…]
Tapping her foot while lost in thought, Kartia eventually nodded as if she’d found the right words.
[A cauldron brewing deadly poison. Simply a world where only the strongest survive. It’s a battlefield where qualified beings from various Lower Worlds enter and fight endlessly to reach the Higher World. Well, it’s similar to the era I once lived in.]
“W-what does that even…?”
[Normally, there’d be no reason to enter the False Paradise, but as Laila said, this world has no god. That’s why entering the False Paradise is necessary. To put it simply, it’s like showcasing your strength to find a ‘perfect god’ to protect this world. Well… even without strength, you could ascend to the Higher World if you catch another god’s eye. But the most straightforward thod is to kill everyone else and survive. Complete victory. That’s the easiest path.]
I couldn’t understand.
What kind of beings are these gods that they treat living creatures like ga pieces?
What kind of entities are they,
To command such things, to observe them,
To make such choices?
[It sounds like a brutal place, but it’s not as bad as you might think. The biggest difference from this world is… you’ll just have to fight more battles. It might actually be easier to live there. It’s a world where the strong hold power. It’s filled with that ‘romance’ you’re always talking about. Wouldn’t that be fun?]
Releasing Frey from her hand, Kartia bent her arm at a right angle.
[Noah, soone like you could wipe out everyone there. I guarantee it.]
Snicker — After laughing playfully, Kartia fixed her gaze on Yggdrasil.
[That’s enough about the Paradise. The way to get there is simple. Just gather all the key fragnts infused with Lilith’s divinity scattered throughout this world, and open the door.]
“Lilith’s divinity…?”
[Yes. You and Rubia must have felt it too. The faint divine essence residing within the Masters. Those are fragnts of the key needed to open the door. The divinity of deceased Masters has already been collected. The divinity of the remaining Masters will eventually gather in one place to complete the key.]
Kartia’s gaze, which had been lingering on Yggdrasil, shifted to Rubia.
[With that completed key, they’ll awaken Yggdrasil and open the door.]
Then her gaze turned to Serr.
[So, I bet you have another question now?]
“The key fragnts… are the Masters? But the key fragnts I know of are—”
[Right. The five heroes from the forgotten era. The Beasts of the End are also fragnts of the key.]
Whoosh — A faint fla rose around my body.
Through the heat haze, feathers and ice ford. Soft ears and a tail sprouted.
Turning away from Serr to look at what had ford around , Kartia reached out and firmly grasped the ice.
[The real Yggdrasil standing before us is also a door to the False Paradise.]
My head was spinning.
So… Rubia is a key to open the door.
And Serr is the door itself.
But at the sa ti, the beings connected to my soul are also key fragnts.
And the Yggdrasil before
is yet another door.
But…
“If Laila dies… that ans we can’t let it happen, right…?”
[Exactly. If that woman dies, the Advent of the False Paradise begins imdiately.]
“Then how do we collect the key fragnts…?”
[The forgotten heroes who beca Beasts of the End are incredibly powerful. Unlike those pathetic Masters who need nine pieces, we only need five. Exactly five is enough.]
“Five…?”
Beings who reached the realm of divinity, capable of containing divine essence.
Carpeng, Tylant, Valoran, Brunhilde, Laila.
If Laila is excluded, that leaves only four.
Five… fragnts?
The flickering fla touched my forehead.
And with that touch,
The conversation with Brunhilde during our battle,
Her words,
Flooded into my mind.
Soone who voluntarily beca a key fragnt.
Not a being from the Higher World, but a native inhabitant of this world.
Stronger than anyone, having reached higher than anything else.
A human.
A forgotten hero.
The Sword of Victory.
Like a broken doll, my head creaked as it turned toward Kartia.
And her lips curled up into a smirk.
The sa smile as always.
That arrogant, irritating smile.
A smile that seed to declare she was the strongest,
The best,
That confident, self-assured grin.
“Kar… tia.”
[Wow, I was being indirect, but you understood imdiately?]
Behind her snickering, Rubia and Serr gasped as they realized a mont later.
[Kartia.]
[What.]
[This is not a wise choice. Your strength will be essential in Paradise.]
[No, this is the right answer.]
Pulling Frey from the roots where it was embedded, Kartia pointed it toward Yggdrasil and smiled.
[My wish, carried through over a thousand years of chaos. The overwhelming, absolute, and perfect path to victory is…]
Thump — Kartia’s hand rested on top of my head.
Not the usual rough touch,
Not a playful one either,
But a touch filled with trust,
A touch ant to instill courage in ,
A gentle, soft hand,
That patted my head.
[You. Shin Noah.]
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