Chapter 218 : Chapter 218
Chapter : 218
A subtle sense of incongruity crept in.
It was so faint that it would have been impossible to notice—something Iris could only perceive because she possessed the near-divine power of Ouroboros.
“…Time?”
Before she could fully grasp it, a strange sensation seized her.
It felt as though something had been severed.
A sense of loss—not one she consciously felt, but something her instincts recognized.
The cause was not here, but beyond.
Slowly blinking, Iris turned her gaze toward the sealed door beyond which the ten had entered.
Her contract with Ouroboros had been broken.
“…Ha.”
“I did not expect Ouroboros to die so easily.”
So Evan had awakened.
There was no one else capable of pushing Ouroboros to death so swiftly.
The Inquisitors?
They had wandered like stray dogs for two years without a proper leader. There was no way they could mount a meaningful attack against a being that evoked such primal fear. At best, they would have stalled for time, preventing it from harming civilians.
Beatrice? The new Doctrine Blade?
Even less likely.
Freya had only become the Doctrine Blade by chance—her strength was lacking, elevated merely by the arbitrary succession system.
Beatrice, meanwhile, would be occupied simply maintaining the integrity of this space.
Which meant Ouroboros should have been able to kill Evan without difficulty.
If even half the Inquisitors had died, fear alone would have driven the rest to abandon Freya’s orders and offer the unconscious Evan as a living sacrifice.
So where had things gone wrong?
“…How boring.”
At the very least, she had expected it to kill Evan. Perhaps she had expected too much.
She did not even feel disappointment.
After all, it had only been given the power of a mere human—Iris Viden.
In the brief moment Iris’s attention drifted outward, Theo’s magic bound her wrist.
Yet she did not even blink.
“I suppose I should hurry.”
Breaking the chains with ease, Iris glanced over the ten who surrounded her.
All of them had come here to kill her.
The thought did not bother her.
If anything, the fact that her son was among them pleased her all the more.
If she were to be killed, she wanted it to be by Lewen—the one she had personally shaped.
“I would rather not be interrupted.”
Like a beast lunging at prey, Iris closed the distance to Zephyros in an instant.
A violent gale pushed her back.
She reached out to grasp the wind.
It was something she could do as naturally as breathing—something she had been capable of even before acquiring Ouroboros’s power.
But she could not grasp it.
What had changed?
The wind surrounding Zephyros felt different.
It was no longer borrowed—it was being wielded.
“…Ha!”
So that was it.
No wonder that man, consumed by inferiority, had even tried to kill his own son out of jealousy.
Did this child even realize that reaching a new realm of power would only provoke his father’s resentment?
“It does not matter.”
None of it mattered to Iris.
Breaking through this level of wind was trivial.
She could have torn out his heart and killed him instantly—but she chose not to.
She refused to fulfill Borea Nebera’s will.
Instead, she closed in on Zephyros and snatched the golden vial from his possession in one swift motion.
“So this is the Golden Elixir.”
The liquid gleamed brilliantly, mesmerizing to behold.
Within it floated tiny particles of white light.
Iris blinked slowly before opening the vial and pouring the contents into her mouth.
“The taste is not bad.”
It was almost like drinking juice.
But then—
“…Kuh—!”
A crack appeared in her expression.
“KEGH—Khh!”
As Iris let out a distorted gasp, Theo shouted:
“Now!”
At his command, all attacks converged on her at once.
Laurel activated her magical-girl technique and seized Iris’s shoulders firmly.
Sizzle—
Her flesh burned from the poison, yet Laurel clenched her teeth and held on.
“Damn it!!!”
Lilia’s enhanced strike landed squarely, forcing Iris to spit blood.
The blood splattered onto Lilia’s skin—
—and instantly, her legs gave out.
“?”
Before her transformation could fully collapse, Theo hastily pulled her back.
“Do not touch the blood! Be careful!”
Theo’s voice rang out sharply.
Iris smirked mockingly.
“You still do not understand, even after seeing it?”
Theo bound her arms and legs with chains to support Laurel.
Seizing the opening, Hartaine and Pell struck.
But Iris grabbed Hartaine’s head and flung him away, then slammed her leg down on Pell.
The counterattack did not stop there.
Lucian, riding Zephyros’s wind, lunged in with the Holy Sword, aiming for her side.
This one she could not ignore.
Blood splattered as the blade struck.
The blood that touched the Holy Sword evaporated instantly, like water meeting molten lava.
“Kuh—!”
The pain from the divine blade was far worse than expected.
But even that pain, Iris twisted into power.
With a flick of her finger, she struck Lucian.
It was a mere gesture—yet the resulting shockwave sent him flying.
“!”
Zephyros tried to catch him with wind, but his power was not yet sufficient.
He leapt forward himself, catching Lucian—but the impact still made him cough up blood.
“…Ha… ha…”
Watching them, Iris breathed heavily.
Her crimson eyes showed a faint trace of fatigue.
Her strength was beginning to wane.
She needed to escape this situation—but Laurel still held her tightly.
Then she would use the vial—
As she reached for it, someone blocked her.
Lewen.
Grabbing her wrist, he spoke.
“Please… just stop now.”
“Stop what?”
Her nails dug into his flesh.
“What exactly do you want me to stop?!”
She was so close.
She had finally obtained power nearing that of a god.
She had the Golden Elixir.
Never before had her wish felt so within reach.
How could she possibly give up now?
Madness filled her eyes once more.
“I need more power.”
Even eighty percent was not enough.
She needed the remaining twenty.
「If you fully take in Ouroboros’s power, you will no longer be able to control it.」
Why did that man’s warning come to mind now?
He had smiled as he said it—almost as though he had known this would happen.
If so, how utterly infuriating.
“You think this ends here?”
If she could not suppress it with will alone, then she would use every means available to devour it.
She would not be the one consumed.
She would consume Ouroboros.
At that moment—
Morodin, who had been waiting for his chance, charged in from behind.
He slammed his head into Iris’s, forcing her to stagger—and in that instant, Laurel’s grip loosened.
Something flew from Iris’s mouth.
A small capsule.
《She must not swallow that!》
“I know! Someone grab it!”
Theo shouted urgently.
“That thing is dangerous!”
Inside the capsule was a red liquid—concentrated malice.
“Damn it!”
Laurel threw Iris away and caught the capsule.
The moment it touched her hand, her instincts screamed:
Do not hold it. You will die. It is dangerous.
No—swallow it. Devour everything. Devour the world. For the sake of ■■■’s love!!!
“Gasp!”
Startled, she regained her senses—just as the capsule slipped from her hand.
Iris rushed toward it like a madwoman.
Laurel hesitated.
What should she do?
Then—
Lewen caught it.
“…I see.”
Even holding it, he could feel the curse of Ouroboros.
He had experienced it once before.
If Iris swallowed this, she would become a complete Ouroboros.
“Mother.”
“No.”
For the first time, fear filled Iris’s eyes.
Not fear of failure.
But fear—for him.
If Lewen swallowed it, two outcomes were possible.
Either he would survive due to partial immunity…
Or he would be completely consumed, becoming the next vessel of the curse.
And if that happened—
He would never return to being human.
Her entire purpose—her very reason for living—would be destroyed.
“…So you are afraid.”
Lewen murmured softly.
You, who feared nothing—now look like you might shatter at any moment.
That alone was enough.
With a strange, indescribable smile—
He swallowed the capsule without hesitation.