Lilith (4)
Just before forming the contract, Lilith had to try her utmost to suppress the laughter bubbling up from within.
'Is this guy a total idiot or what?'
He knew far too little for the power he possessed.
It seemed he had only recently attained divinity—a complete rookie. And beings like that were nothing more than plump, juicy prey.
A contract meant a binding agreement.
Contracts between those who had attained divinity were indeed binding.
However, the binding force was determined by the higher-ranked party.
In practice, that meant the higher-ranked individual could manipulate the contract at will.
A rookie who just obtained divinity? What a pumpkin rolling straight into my lap.
Lilith. Even if she had grown her divinity like a parasite, leeching off the power of the World Tree, her level was by no means inferior.
This very dimension was the one she had cultivated by siphoning energy from the roots of the World Tree, which extended across countless dimensions.
Even if it was a low-grade dimension where life couldn't be conceived, she was still the reigning ruler of it.
I'll savor you thoroughly.
If she could properly digest the power this rookie possessed, her rank would undoubtedly soar to a whole new level.
'And in return, you'll have the happiest dream in the world.'
Before officially signing the contract, she planned to do a little prep work.
For a contract to be formed, their powers had to intermingle-and that meant inevitably revealing parts of themselves.
'That's the gap I'll exploit.'
Having climbed up from being nothing more than a mere succubus, weaving dreams and illusions was her specialty.
'All you need to do is live happily ever after in your dream.'
She could exploit the difference in rank to twist the contract however she wanted, but that would result in more loss than gain.
To fully absorb the rookie's power, she first needed to make him submissive.
"I'll begin."
"Understood."
And under Lilith's lead, their powers began to intertwine.
'Now?'
Her power slipped into the gap.
And then-
Crackle-
With a sharp sting, she felt her power evaporating.
"Huh...?"
She instantly sensed that something had gone terribly wrong.
And then-
Whoooosh-
An explosive surge of energy burst forth from the rookie, engulfing Lilith.
"KYAAAAAA!"
It was a pain like being roasted alive.
'What... what is this?'
The incomprehensible agony robbed her of all focus.
Then-
Shiver
Terror manifested before her very eyes.
Even the overwhelming pain that consumed her entire being was momentarily forgotten, overtaken by sheer fear.
By the time she realized it was slowly devouring her, half of her had already been eaten away.
Slowly, steadily—
It was chewing through Lilith's very existence.
'N-no-!'
Her voiceless scream, drenched in despair, sank into oblivion along with her unfulfilled desire.
And in that moment, Lilith cursed her own foolishness.
The fact that someone who could waltz right into this dreamlike forest—a place wholly under her domain-couldn't possibly be of lower rank than her.
Failing to realize that simple truth.....
She cursed her ignorance as she sank deeply into silence.
***
["Mirror-Smooth Water" activates.]
As I absorbed Lilith's divinity, a massive surge of energy flowed into me.
And combined with the level-up effect that had just occurred, the pain began as if it were only natural.
However—
'Is this the effect of Mirror-Smooth Water?'
It hurt-painfully, excruciatingly so.
But the pain felt... distant. As if it were happening to someone else.
My body was writhing in pain, yet my consciousness felt detached, watching that suffering body from the outside.
Being able to keep a clear mind in the midst of such agony was surprisingly useful.
'The Eye of the Absolute.'
Separate from the pain, I could use the Eye of the Absolute to observe situations elsewhere.
'Open shop. Buy water.'
I could also supply my retainers with the items they needed.
'With this, I won't lose precious time to a level-up blackout anymore.'
It wasn't as if he could completely ignore the pain.
The growing pains from leveling up were certainly excruciating, and it didn't seem like they had lessened at all.
However, the ability to maintain composure and use skills while enduring all that pain was a major advantage.
On top of that-
[Mr. Davin, can you hear me?]
[Yes, Jaehyun. I hear you clearly.]
The Ring of Communication was working without any issues.
[How did the task I requested go?]
[As instructed, we've blocked all passage toward Nampo-dong, and we've prepared personnel who can be deployed at any moment if necessary.]
[Good. Maintain that state for now.]
[Understood.]
Despite having absorbed Lilith's power, a rescue team hadn't been dispatched yet-because nothing was certain at that point.
"If I send in the rescue team prematurely, they might end up getting trapped here too."
For now, caution was the best approach.
"The territory is expanding."
This wasn't about the real world.
It was the territory in this world-his domain-that was expanding in real time.
No, rather than saying it was expanding, it would be more accurate to say that the area that originally belonged to Lilith was now being assimilated into his domain.
While he was scanning the expanded area through the Eyes of the Absolute, he spotted Kim Gun, collapsed and unconscious deep within the cave.
[Mr. Kim Gun. Wake up.]
"...Ugh."
[Mr. Kim Gun.]
After repeated calls, Kim Gun slowly opened his eyes.
And then-
"Ja-Jaehyun!"
As soon as he regained consciousness, he called out his name loudly.
[What's wrong?]
"Earlier, monsters were pouring out from inside the cave! Are you alright?"
He was clearly flustered and worried for Jaehyun's safety. Jaehyun responded to reassure him.
[Don't worry. I'm fine.]
"Really?"
[Yes. No need to worry about me. Could you please go outside and assist the others?]
'...Understood."
Judging by his resolute expression, he seemed ready to face the shadow monsters again, but ever since Lilith had been subdued, the production of shadow monsters had completely stopped.
Now, the retainers were busy rescuing people.
A few hours passed as Jaehyun confirmed Kim Gun joining the others in rescuing people alongside the elder and the retainers.
"It's over."
Finally, the time of pain had ended.
"Phew."
At that moment, the effect of the "Still Water Mirror" skill faded, and sensation returned to his entire body.
While flexing and checking his limbs, he noticed a small creature wriggling before his eyes.
"Urrgh..."
Despite wearing a revealing outfit that didn't suit her tiny body, her stubby arms and legs only made her look cute rather than seductive.
There was no need to think deeply.
The Eyes of the Absolute revealed her identity.
"Succubus Lilith (Lv. 1)"
A demon of dreams.
At the same time-
[A new familiar has been registered.]
With a cheerful chime, a notification appeared, confirming that Lilith had been added to his list of familiars.
And right then, a realization struck his mind.
"This is..."
It was the structure of this dimension.
This forest was a flawed world, entirely parasitic upon the power of the World Tree.
In order to reach the true body of the World Tree, it used sentient beings near it across dimensions as mediums.
To do so, it would dominate their minds and summon them into this world through dreams.
That was the true nature of what Lilith had called "the invitation."
Those invited would be paralyzed and unable to move, turned into mere catalysts for drawing on the power of the World Tree.
"Disgusting."
This entire forest was no different from a massive tomb built atop the sacrifices of countless lives.
And it wasn't just happening on Earth.
Across countless dimensions where the World Tree existed, innocent beings were being dragged into this place, buried alive, and the world sustained itself on their suffering.
Even now, thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, were being exploited.
"A place like this has to disappear."
He didn't hesitate for even a second.
He began forcibly returning all those who had been summoned here through the invitation back to their original worlds. He anticipated a massive loss of power from this, but he didn't care.
And then-
"W-What are you doing?!"
A small, shrill voice cried out from beside him.
"If you do that, this world will collapse!"
As expected, the voice belonged to Lilith.
Since she once ruled over this place, she seemed to be sensing what Jaehyun was doing.
"That's the point."
"W-What...! Why would you...!"
Ignoring Lilith, who kept whining beside me, I continued working without
pause.
My grandfather and father, who had been carrying out the rescue mission with the retainers, as well as my grandmother and mother who were still trapped in the cocoons-everyone was finally able to return to their original world.
And at that very moment-
RUMBLE !!
A massive crack appeared in the world, and it began to collapse in real time.
It had been an abnormally structured world, barely sustained by the life force of its inhabitants. The moment that life force disappeared, the world began to crumble like a sandcastle.
There was no need to worry about the retainers.
"Retainer Summon."
All I had to do was reverse-summon them back to the real world.
CRAAASH—
The forest was falling apart.
The furthest reaches were the first to go-the ground, the trees that had grown upon it, and even the sky that stretched out above, all collapsing at
once.
Seen through the Absolute One's eyes, it looked as if the end of the world had
come.
CRACK-
Eventually, the shockwave reached the massive tree at the center.
Through the widening cracks, the destruction of the entire forest could be seen in all its raw intensity.
"Noooooo!"
Lilith screamed.
Watching the world she had poured her everything into crumble before her eyes, she wailed like a madwoman.
I spoke to her:
"Remember this feeling well. It's the same feeling that all the people you summoned here, who were sacrificed for your petty greed, must have felt."
The despair of those who were forcibly brought to this world, unable to move inside their cocoons, must have been far more horrifying.
Not only did they witness their own world fall apart, but they also had to give up their lives.
RUMBLE RUMBLE
The apocalyptic wave that seemed like it would destroy every last fragment of this world suddenly stopped, as if it had all been a lie.
But the once-grand forest no longer existed.
The blue sky was gone. The enormous tree that had stood at the center was reduced to a barely recognizable remnant.
What remained now was a shrunken space, only a few hundred meters in radius.
Lilith stood in a daze, tears streaming down her face, trying to take in what was left of her world with her eyes.
I hope you shrivel up and die in agony along with this world.
I prayed that she would meet a more miserable end than anyone else who had been summoned here.
"East Gate Open."
Leaving Lilith behind in the diminished world, I crossed through the East Gate and returned to the real one.
And there-
"Sob... Mom... I'm so glad you woke up. I'm really, really glad."
"You're a grown kid, why you crying like that."
"Ahem."
Grandfather, grandmother, mom, dad-
And me.
After such a long time, our whole family was finally together again.
[T/L: Read extra chapters on my ko-fi page "Pokemon1920" : https://ko-fi.com/pokemon1920 ]