Gambling (1)
Chapter 308
Ray collapsed where he stood, gazing ahead.
Shards of dimension, like broken glass, stretched and fluttered endlessly.
The sparkling fragments of the dimension decorating the dark space overlapped with starlight.
The armor encasing Ray was also deeply pierced by dimensional shards, nearly collapsing.
Had there been any more mistakes in controlling the technique, Ray’s body would have been shredded.
Somehow, the meager experience Ray had accumulated up until now barely succeeded in recreating the skill.
“…”
Ray shifted his gaze to the end of the trajectory extending beyond the veil.
Flashes of light were sparking from the existence beyond the veil.
With human vision evolved to recognize only three-dimensional space, it was impossible to perceive the exact form of the being beyond.
Still, it seemed to be in some pain.
“That feels good.”
Ray chuckled with a grin.
Of course, the existence beyond wouldn’t perish just from taking a single blow.
The things over there weren’t that simple.
Moreover, compared to the “original,” Ray’s sword strike was somewhat immature, its power halved.
To the World Tree, today’s incident might amount to nothing more than an accident where one of its fingers was deeply cut.
If Harshia had been standing here, it might have led to a different outcome, but this was Ray’s limit.
Even so…
Didn’t he manage to land a proper hit?
Ray laughed louder, openly displaying his cheerful emotions.
Ray intensely disliked the beings beyond.
Most of all, he despised the one who had arbitrarily dragged people into this world, but the ones playing games while meddling with the situation beyond were equally detestable.
It wasn’t about right or wrong—it was the unpleasantness of an individual with agency.
A significant reason Ray resonated with the remnants of Harshia was due to the unresolved hatred stacked within his chest.
Though his relentless efforts to recreate a single technique until the very end seemed heavily influenced by mental corruption…
Now, at least, the impulse has subsided somewhat.
“Harshia, you should have completed the nonagram.”
Ray muttered quite seriously.
“Then I wouldn’t have been dragged here, would I?”
Ray glanced to the side.
The remnant of Harshia had taken on a human form and was looking at Ray.
No matter how much Ray grumbled, no response came.
The remnant of Harshia quietly looked at Ray before gradually fading away.
“…”
For a moment, Ray felt a complex mix of emotions, clenching his fists.
The remnant hadn’t completely disappeared; it was undoubtedly passed down to Ray.
Feeling as though he’d taken on an excessive burden, Ray shook his head with a troubled expression.
Harshia was Harshia, and Ray was Ray. It wouldn’t be positive to remain further submerged in the remnants of another.
At that moment, a beam of light erupted from beyond the veil.
Clapping his hands, Ray marveled.
“Wow, you’re really angry. Our World Tree is pretty upset, huh?”
The wounded World Tree, ignoring the flashes erupting everywhere, was attempting to exert its strength again.
It must have been quite humiliating. Getting slashed by a mere mortal—there’s no greater disgrace. They’d probably want to rush over and tear him apart immediately.
However, Ray wasn’t a being destined to live forever in this darkened space.
Finally, the miraculous time was ending, and the darkened space began to split open.
Even if Ray flailed his arms and legs, trying desperately to stay longer, expulsion was unavoidable.
“Well, then, I’ll be going. You there, with your explosive anger…”
Smiling broadly, Ray flipped the World Tree off.
“Enjoy your candy.”
The last part was in Korean.
*
The miraculous time ended.
Three entities that had briefly drifted beyond dimensions returned to reality.
As soon as Ramenta returned to reality, they quickly approached Luna.
There was something immediate that needed confirmation from Luna.
However, before Ramenta could reach out to Luna, a sword was drawn from the side.
“Hey.”
Ray placed the blade against Ramenta’s throat, steadying his breathing.
“You and I… seem to have a lot to talk about. Why are you going after her first?”
“…”
Ramenta moved only their eyes toward Ray.
Ray, pointing the sword, looked incredibly exhausted.
Though only a brief moment had passed in real time since peering beyond the stars and returning, Ray’s face appeared as though he had pulled several all-nighters, dried and weary.
Besides that, one of Ray’s pupils had turned red.
That was all.
However, Ramenta clearly perceived that Ray’s aura had entirely changed from before entering the boundary.
In the embrace of their mother, Ramenta could still overwhelm every existence.
That fact remained unchanged, yet Ramenta now distinctly realized that Ray’s sword could potentially reach them once.
“…”
Ramenta shifted their gaze back to Luna.
Ramenta had considered the possibility that Luna had come into contact with an evil deity.
Even without an evil deity, if a transcendent being had summoned her, Luna could have crossed the threshold.
However, there was no trace of any transcendent entity lingering on Luna.
Neither the World Tree, El-Lam, nor the evil deities… None of their marks remained on Luna.
Without evidence of contact with an evil deity, immediate additional measures were unnecessary.
As Ramenta stepped back, Ray retracted the sword.
“Huh, Luna, are you okay? Nothing happened inside the boundary?”
“…Nothing happened. I stayed on the edge and returned alone. But… Is Ray… okay?”
Luna also sensed the change in Ray.
During that brief time, Ray had become gaunt.
“Ray, are you hurt?”
“No, no, I’m just mentally tired. I just met your mom. Her way of communicating is a bit rough. She kept cramming information into my head.”
Ray waved his hand dismissively as if it were nothing and approached Ramenta.
“Don’t we have a lot to talk about?”
“Yeah, follow me.”
“Ah, but Ramenta, please stop speaking in riddles from now on.”
“…”
“I mean, use words that someone as simple as me can understand immediately. Thanks to your mom, I’m not in the best mood. My patience is thin. So, it’d be nice if you could show some consideration.”
“…”
Zzzt!
Without warning, Ramenta drew a magic circle in the air.
Tensing momentarily, Ray brought his hand to his waist, but Ramenta covered themselves with the magic circle.
Zzzzt!!
Ramenta’s appearance transformed into a younger version, unmistakably childlike.
Looking at this younger form of Ramenta, Ray asked awkwardly,
“What… did you just do?”
“I temporarily added the personality and form from my past.”
“…You magicians can do anything, huh. Makes me feel like bowing a little.”
“It’ll be easier to converse this way, from your perspective. Now, shall we go?”
“Hold on a sec.”
Furrowing his brows, Ray tapped his clothing.
“It’s a bit uncomfortable to keep looking at you like this. Can you put some clothes on?”
“If you wish.”
Ramenta extended their hand into the air, pulling out a large robe and roughly covering their body.
Due to their smaller frame, the robe trailed behind them.
Ray decided not to comment further and approached Ramenta with Luna.
After the scenery flickered a few times, Ray and Luna emerged onto the ground with Ramenta.
“…”
The sky was dark.
The dark sky split in half, spilling sunlight through the gap.
Turning their gaze toward the horizon, they saw the sky gradually returning to its original color and form.
Though it would take some time, restoration seemed to be underway.
While Ray and Luna looked up at the sky, Ramenta muttered to themselves.
It seemed they were issuing commands to distant elves regarding the current situation.
Since the blessings of their mother had weakened, Ramenta was requesting reinforcements to strengthen the boundary.
“There will likely be sandstorms for a day or two.”
Listening to Ramenta mutter, Ray bluntly asked,
“You don’t seem too concerned. Are you letting this slide too easily?”
“The servant of El-Lam, I know you’re involved. However, the events happening near that domain aren’t something I should interfere with. Nor can I interfere.”
Ramenta didn’t think Ray had directly caused this phenomenon.
No one in the world would entertain such an assumption.
They were merely speculating that the World Tree had contacted the servant of El-Lam, leading to some issue causing indirect or direct conflict with El-Lam.
And beyond that point, it wasn’t territory where mortals should intervene.
Hearing this, Ray briefly pondered what Ramenta truly knew.
Did Ramenta know the World Tree might act against Ray?
Ray naturally assumed Ramenta would know, but listening now, it seemed plausible they didn’t.
Regardless of the truth, Ramenta was one of the limbs controlled by the World Tree.
So Ray snidely remarked,
“Must be painful for your mom to be injured.”
“While I’m only imitating a past persona, I advise you to refrain from unnecessary provocations while in this form.”
“And humans should pray that your mom remains unharmed, right?”
“…”
“If your mom withdraws the blessings bestowed upon the earth, humans will suffer the most severe consequences first.”
“…Alright, let’s pray together then.”
“Fortunately, it doesn’t seem she’s been injured enough to withdraw those blessings entirely. Let’s rejoice.”
“Oh, great. Oh, how happy.”
Ray shrugged his shoulders with a blank expression.
Afterward, Ray was guided inside a building on the ground, sitting across a large table from Ramenta.
Luna quietly took her seat beside Ray, guarding his position.
The room was still shadowy due to the darkened sky.
Raising a bright orb to the ceiling, Ramenta began,
“You’re protecting Resina, right?”
Caught off guard by the unexpected opening, Ray frowned.
“Why bring up Resina suddenly?”
“This form makes me nostalgic.”
“…”
“Resina was adorable. To use a human expression, she hadn’t matured yet…”
“To me, that’s not a very pleasant story to hear.”
Ray’s stern expression made Ramenta appear regretful.
“Hmm, alright. Let’s talk about something else. Do you know about the servants of El-Lam? El-Lam has always enjoyed taking rather risky moves since ancient times.”
“What?”
“Moves that seem favorable at first, but always require cleanup afterward. Each time, massive sacrifices followed.”
“Is this related to the main topic we need to discuss?”
“Very much so. Did you see the future?”
“Yeah. I saw a blob of illusions.”
“Our mother pushed herself too hard.”
“Were you just showing me that illusionary blob from the start?”
“No. When I initially invited you, it wasn’t part of the plan. But circumstances changed. Your symbolic significance within human society has greatly evolved. That’s why I sent one of my kin to expedite your arrival.”
“Stop talking in riddles and explain in terms I can understand.”
“For a long time, numerous forces have existed in this world, but they’ve been largely divided into demon and non-demon factions, engaging in war.”
“So?”
“If you achieve overwhelming victory in a major battle and orchestrate the elimination of the opposing faction’s key forces, wouldn’t that give you an advantageous position in this war?”
“…”
“But that’s not the essence of this war. Servant of El-Lam, what’s the true nature of this war?”
“…Land grab.”
Ramenta chuckled softly at Ray’s answer.
“A novel expression, but it seems to aptly represent the essence of this war. Yes, this is a territorial dispute.”
As long as non-demonic forces couldn’t purify the Demonic Realm, invading it would only result in wasted manpower.
The same applied vice versa; even if demonic worshippers temporarily conquered human territories, they’d have to retreat quickly if they failed to transform the area into the Demonic Realm.
Occasionally, there were periods when demonic worshippers could wield considerable power outside the Demonic Realm, but there were limits.
“…”
The essence of this war is indeed a land grab.
To Ray, that seemed obvious.
Imagine giving thirty well-trained elite soldiers, whose bodies are strengthened by mana, each a sword, and pitting them against an Expert Knight wielding just one sword. Who would win?
If the Expert Knight could strike and evade effectively, they could slaughter all thirty elites alone.
Of course, if the elite soldiers were properly armed and coordinated, the situation might not unfold that way, but the disparity in power between the two entities was undeniable.
However, externally, a demon capable of Expert-level power within the Demonic Realm would struggle to match Graduate-level opponents outside.
Simplifying it, that’s how it generally worked, and diving deeper into the conditions widened the power gap between the realms.
After observing Ray lost in thought, Ramenta spoke again.
“Since you asked me to stop speaking in riddles, let me get straight to the point: soon, half the continent will turn into the Demonic Realm.”
“Wait, what kind of nonsense…”
Ray stopped mid-sentence, biting his lip before asking again.
“Cause?”
“Dragon.”
Gambling (2)
