Published at 4th of April 2023 8:32 pm

Chapter 226 "Victory" And Its Rewards

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-(Present || Nathan is with Administrator to take his reward; Location: ???)-

After my evolution, my mind cleared up. I was able to recall the words Eth spoke while I was half-conscious.

His words were strangely melancholic, as if it was the last time we would talk.

'No, he wouldn't do something stupid.'

I reassured myself repeatedly.

'He has his family, his goals, and his ambitions in this world. He wouldn't give up on them.'

Why was feeling this sadness then?

Of course, Eth would return after the Resonance ends, just like how he returned last time.

But why wasn't the Resonance ending?

And why did he say 'Take Care' at the end?

"Are you sure about these rewards?"

Administrator words shook me out of my thoughts. After saying that the other half of [Miracle] to save Leon was me, she had refused to elaborate further and proceeded to talk about my reward.

For defeating the D-grade Abomination, I was allowed to ask for any 3 rewards. Abominations are ranked by their grades, that is, G, F, E, D, C, B, and so on.

Although the Abomination I defeated was a D-grade, it was an impossible task, nonetheless. After all, Abomination can be killed only by using weapons made with [Fragment of Eternity] or using [Authority].

For reference, [Authority] is an exclusive ability solely belonging to a Monarch. The only exceptions were the System and powerful entities outside the Universe, while there were only 13 [Fragment of Eternity].

This was enough to explain the degree of achievement I completed.

"Yeah, but before that, can you help with my last choice?"

The condition for choosing my reward was that it must be a material reward, meaning that I cannot ask Administrator to complete a task for myself or ask for knowledge. Also, Administrator would give advice based on the specifications I laid out as my reward requirement.

"What do you want?"

"A new human body with the highest talent and potential."

It was time I fulfilled my promise with Eth. With this Eth will be able to live the life that he wished for and I would leave Ward.

Administrator pondered for a bit before speaking.

"It's possible, but before that, for whom do you want the new vessel? The demon soul inside you or the human soul?"

Her hand moved as if she was touching a screen in the air and scrolling through it.

"The human soul inside me."

"Then I'm afraid it's not possible." She sighed. "Before you argue, my job here is to advise you so that you can choose a reward best suited to your needs. I'm refusing you because of this."

I felt an ominous premonition crawling up to me.

"...Why is it not possible?"

"Because the soul is no longer there, you have devoured it." She didn't let me speak, and her words stung like nails in my heart. "The reason you regained consciousness after dying was thanks to that soul. It acted as a fertilizer by nourishing and temporarily stabilizing your soul."

I felt my world spinning. This shouldn't be possible, no, please.

"After you evolved, your soul was strengthened, and you consumed whatever was left of that soul."

"Dammit…"

Unconsciously, I bit my lips hard enough that they started bleeding.

Although I was trying to be optimistic till now, Administrator's words left no room for doubt.

"Dammit, dammit, damm..it…."

To me, he was a younger brother whom I watched grow, yet I couldn't let him live the life he deserved. Instead, I snatched that from him. I took from him what he rightfully deserved.

"What did he do to deserve this…?"

He lost things close to him in his childhood. Even then, he didn't cower and continued to move forward, and just as he was about to achieve his dreams, his body was stolen from him.

Still, he never resented me. He only ever asked me to help his family in return for giving me his identity.

I felt like an entitled piece of shit. Not only did I refuse to help his family, but I couldn't also fulfill my promise of letting him live his life.

The reason I was alive was because that child sacrificed himself for me.

"So, what are you going to choose for your third reward?"

Mercilessly cutting through my inner turmoil was Administrator's detached voice. As a transcendent, matters of mortals were of no regard to her.

"Speak, I don't have all the time in the world to waste on you."

Forcefully suppressing my emotions, I nodded my head.

"Is there a way to revive the human soul inside me?"

"There isn't. As I told you, it's similar to giving nutrients to a plant to grow. That soul has been consumed and assimilated into you."

"…Okay, then, for my third reward..."

I knew what I had to do, but words wouldn't come out of my throat. A muddy feeling enveloped my heart. This was the right thing to do, yet knowing that I could only give up and ask for another reward for myself was the worst feeling ever.

"I want a resurrection elixir."

This should have been an auspicious moment. I secured a backup for myself.

However, I only felt bitter.

***

"Huu…."

Inhaling the cold air of the forest, I sat under the shade of the tree.

After taking the three rewards from Administrator, I was sent to Floor 15. The rewards I choose were, [Mother's Embrace], [Mark of Return], and [Phoenix Tears].

[Phoenix Tears], the name spoke for itself. It was a one-time use resurrection elixir. I could've asked for a resurrection skill, but those skills have strict restrictions. Rather an elixir, although a single-use item, has no such thing.

[Mark of Return] was the red plus sign etched on my left palm. It allowed me to return to any Dungeon I would visit from here on. This was a great item, as dungeons were generally dangerous, and had a high death ratio. But with this, I could escape from a dungeon by teleporting to another dungeon if things get rough. It had more functions, but these were the basics.

[Mother's Embrace] was a Stage-0 Ruin and a pocket dimension. It could be collected as the 4th [Singularity] Trial reward, but I decided to take it now.

For one, Leon was on a higher-numbered floor than me and could thus clear the trial before me. Moreover, given the extra difficulty of my trials, there was a chance I might fail.

The main reason, however, was different.

"Almost everyone died today. The families of cadets would know that their children died and would be waiting outside. I need to leave Ward before things take a turn for worse."

Every family makes an Oath with their members. This way, when someone dies, they know about their death immediately.

"Goliaths are already suspecting me. Although it was earlier than planned, it shouldn't have been a problem, at least if the Abomination didn't interfere."

Leon knew that I was Mr. Pepe, and I had to escape before he leaves the Tower.

"I should look for Susan first."

According to Administrator Susan had woken up and was present on Floor 15.

I was about to go search for her but stopped. Clenching my fists and relaxing them a few times, I sighed heavily.

"It's time I stop running away from things I don't want to acknowledge."

Closing my eyes, I entered my soul.

*

As soon as I entered my soul, a piercing chill permeated my body. The scene before me was vastly different from before.

The lightless veil was as daunting as ever. There was the God-Killing Spear constellation in the sky, it was larger than before and surrounded by a few other smaller constellations. There was also a constellation that resembled me.

The changes didn't stop here, however.

Far from my location, my soul was no longer the dark abyss it was before. At some point, everything was grey. The abyss was stopped by a grey line, after which only greyness extended.

I moved there and the only difference I felt was its appearance. The cold piercing chills were coming from here, but nothing else was different from before.

It was like a part of my soul had been eroded.

Shaking my head, I moved toward the veil. As I continued to move everywhere, I failed to sense the presence of Eth.

If possible, I didn't want to come here. After all, if I didn't find Eth, it would prove Administrator's words.

I called out to him many times but with no success. It only proved the words for the Administrator to be true. Eth was no longer alive.

As I was absentmindedly looking at the surroundings, I muttered to myself in a daze.

"Where are the chains binding Caim?"

Slowly, my eyes widened. I spoke those words to distract my hazy mind, but it cleared my mind in an instant.

Those chains were the [Authority] of the one who brought me here, they shouldn't disappear unless the reason was very much important.

I cleared my mind and focused to sense the location of Caim inside my soul.

-Hero, is that you?

At that moment, a shadow appeared behind me.

-------

[Author's note- The last chapter cannot be edited even after many tries. Since I've edited a written chapter quite a few times before this, I didn't know this was possible. I've contacted the support regarding the issue, but I don't know when it will be fixed. Sorry for the inconvenience.]

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