Chapter 155 : Chapter 155
Chapter 155 - Let There Be Light (2)
The forest, where even light barely entered, had become a gray world in the blink of an eye.
But that didn't surprise me or cause any confusion as to what was happening.
That was because a being who could make such a world-scale revision possible with a flick of a finger had appeared before my eyes.
‘The One.’
In a colorless world, a boy emitting a pure white and bright light.
And, the mastermind behind all the events in <Arche>.
“Hello.”
The boy, The One, greeted me with a benevolent smile. Since I couldn't feel when he had been here, the greeting only amplified my displeasure.
“⋯⋯.”
Chuck.
I didn't respond to his greeting and slowly raised my sword, aiming it at The One.
Of course, I didn't truly think this act would have any meaning to The One.
Ssk.
The One, with an unchangingly benevolent expression, slowly raised both hands. As if he had no intention of harming me at all.
He was probably being sincere. At least, The One I knew from <Arche> was that kind of person.
Even though he was the leader of the guys who were trying to kill me just a moment ago.
Thud.
Thud.
He was approaching.
My train of thought had been slowly coming to a halt as if drowning under water through the events so far, but with the sudden turning point, I was reflexively having countless thoughts.
-Why did he suddenly appear? Why at this particular moment?
-How much does he know about my abilities? Is his reason for being here related to that?
-As the person closest to the Origin in this world, there's a possibility he already knows. If so⋯⋯.
Such routine thoughts like how to overcome this situation.
But suddenly, another question arose within me.
‘⋯⋯What does any of this even mean?’
Is there any meaning in wracking my brains any further here?
In front of him, my abilities were worth less than a pebble on the side of the road.
But, let's say I manage to deceive such a being somehow, what then?
Only a return to that hellish loop remained.
Ssk.
What is the meaning of this act? With that thought, I slowly lowered my sword from the approaching figure.
Perhaps the thought of begging and crying to get out of this situation had crossed my mind.
“You look like you're in a lot of pain. Poor thing.”
⋯⋯Until the pure white boy in front of me opened his mouth.
“Shall I make it easy for you?”
The One was, at least within this world, the being closest to a god.
He was omniscient, he is omniscient, and he must be omniscient in the future. That was a prerequisite for reigning as a god.
Until the story began, everything was in his hands. The world would slowly die without any noise.
However, a noise had occurred.
Rain Enlight.
He was shaking his world, and he was proving his imperfection.
It was true that The One was still incomplete. Although he could know everything in the world, that was limited to what was within his sight.
It was the aftermath of not having yet descended to the material plane, so it was natural that he was vulnerable to machinations in 'unseen places'.
That's why The One decided to eliminate Rain, who was working in the unseen places. It was just that, but⋯⋯.
‘Since when?’
Another strange event occurred.
Even though he had been continuously 'watching', even though it was within his field of vision… he couldn't figure out Rain Enlight.
‘His magic power… since when has it been increasing?’
At some point, at some juncture, his ability had subtly changed. Catching that sense of unease was the reason he felt it.
“⋯⋯How embarrassing. For the one who will become the god of this world to make such a mistake.”
The One muttered so. Considering that no one had ever even felt a sense of unease, let alone noticed the discrepancy of Rain's growth through 『Overcoming Ten Thousand Deaths』, it was an astonishing feat in itself.
‘Perhaps it’s a world-scale perception dampening, if even I couldn't realize it.’
Realizing that fact, The One felt two main sensations towards Rain Enlight.
Dangerous, and interesting.
The former was a wariness towards the only being that threatened his integrity, and the latter was a curiosity about the man who was like his only flaw.
That's why the boy descended directly to the material plane as an avatar.
This was temporary, and it cost an enormous amount of magic, but… it was trivial compared to the question he was feeling now.
‘The One’ descended into the world, and the world stopped moving so that causality would not be altered by his descent.
Thud.
The boy slowly approached Rain, and at the same time, he did not forget to examine the color of his heart.
‘As expected… it’s too dark.’
The color of Rain's heart was excessively turbid. The expression 'rotten' would be fitting, it was dark and dark.
It was not something a boy of his age should have, and even if the scope was widened to the entire history of the world, it seemed difficult to find such a color.
But, conversely, this also meant… that although it was rare, The One had seen a person with such a color before.
‘An immortal.’
The One recalled a man who had lived in this land long ago, before the existence of the Empire.
Death was not permitted in his life. Even if he was stabbed with swords and spears, the man's body would repair itself, and this applied to magic and even his lifespan.
In that process, the man's soul never left his body, and thus the man came to live an eternal life.
One sad point was that his life was always accompanied by battles, and thus he went on to receive pain with no end in sight.
At that time, The One thought.
What a sad creature, he thought.
Even though that man at that time was his enemy, he sincerely thought so.
And now, back to the present…….
‘They’re similar.’
The One was able to find a similarity between the color of Rain's soul and that of the immortal.
One who cannot die even if they want to.
One who must live in eternal pain.
Rain was clearly that kind of person. Although he couldn't grasp all of his abilities, a rough analysis was so.
He could instinctively know, without having to say it out loud, that he was shouldering a fate that he had seen somewhere before.
Even what such people generally want.
That's why The One opened his mouth and asked.
“Shall I make it easy for you?”
“⋯⋯What?”
Hearing that one phrase, my rapidly spinning thoughts suddenly came to a halt.
Make it easy for you.
It was as if he understood the situation I was in…….
“I want to help. You look like you're in too much pain.”
Before my suddenly braked thoughts could start again, The One continued to speak.
From my perspective, it was a truly ridiculous story.
‘Wants to help? Who do you think is the reason I’m going through all this crap?’
Grit.
I gnashed my teeth in anger.
But what angered me more than his shamelessness was perhaps the fact that I was feeling comfort from his voice.
A voice filled with pure compassion, with no hint of ulterior motives. The story was that I was being unconsciously persuaded by that voice.
“⋯⋯There must have been an immeasurable amount of pain.”
The boy's voice continued.
“You probably couldn't tell anyone, and even if you did, you wouldn't have been understood. The burden that people like you carry is probably like that.”
“Stop it.”
Don't talk as if you know everything.
“It must have been… a great pain. I know you want to be at ease. This too might sound hollow since I haven't felt it myself.”
“⋯⋯Stop.”
Don't talk as if you understand.
“⋯⋯Really, you've been through a lot.”
“Stop!!”
Bang-!
Despite my attempts to stop him, The One continued to speak, so I raised 『Outlaw』 and fired.
Blur-
The hole that was pierced in The One did not leave a wound and just blurred back together, maintaining its form.
“⋯⋯.”
I know. This is an overreaction.
I know I don't need to get this angry at what he's saying.
And that it's not like me, who has never been greatly swayed by emotions in any matter until now.
But, but⋯⋯.
‘Damn it⋯⋯.’
I had momentarily thought.
I want to be understood.
I want to confess everything.
And… I want to be comforted by the mastermind who orchestrated everything, right in front of me.
That violent reaction might have been anger at myself for harboring such thoughts.
“I understand your anger too. For some reason, you hold a great hostility towards me, and you've seen through all my plans and are interfering.”
The One continued to speak, looking me straight in the eye again.
“But, I can help you. I can end your endless pain.”
“⋯⋯.”
“And I sincerely want to help you. This is my true feeling.”
It’s not a big deal.
If I had heard it from someone else, I might have dismissed it at once and ended the conversation.
The way he spoke as if he generally understood my abilities. I should probably try to get some information out of that.
However, I was silent.
Why?
There were many reasons.
If I refuse his hand now, what then? What will I do?
If The One attacks me right now… I would turn to dust without even being able to resist.
No, that wasn't actually important.
What was important was that if he left me alone, I would fall back into this loop.
I would have to endure an endless death at the hands of Akmandar, Salvatio, and Grændal again.
Perhaps it's a waste of time. Now that he has come to me after vaguely grasping my abilities, there's no reason why he wouldn't come looking for me in other rounds.
Will I take his hand only after tasting greater pain?
“⋯⋯.”
The time for a choice is here.
The being who appeared in the warmest form at the most miserable time of my life.
“It’s okay to let go of what you’re holding onto and rest now.”
‘The One’ whispered so to me.