309th Episode
“…Why a Dragon?”
“I’ll explain, so stop rushing me. Let’s go back to the beginning…”
Ramenta continued while conjuring a hologram in the air.
“The vision you experienced is the most probable future.”
Ramenta elaborated on what Ray had heard from Luna within the vision.
Ray nodded thoughtfully before asking, “What was the purpose of showing me this vision—a future or an illusion that I can’t discern?”
“It was to persuade you. Are you curious why we chose you among so many humans?”
“…”
“We needed to convince someone with strong influence in human society, and among the candidates, you were judged to have the strongest spirit of sacrifice for your kin and nation.”
There were other factors as well, but ultimately, the aforementioned reason played the largest role. Ramenta then erased the floating hologram.
“This battle over realms has been ongoing since ancient times, long before any records were passed down to humanity.”
Even during periods that appeared peaceful on the surface, their ‘tug-of-war’ never ceased—not even for a moment.
In the early stages of the tug-of-war, the boundaries between realms flipped daily.
“Over such a long time of pushing and pulling, points of equilibrium multiplied, eventually converging into the current state.”
The non-demonic forces occupied most of the continent, while the Demonic Realm emerged.
Although the Demonic Realm wasn’t vast in area, the Blessing of the Dark God concentrated in the small space caused extreme distortion.
Now, the Demonic Realm was nearly half-detached from the rest of the continent’s space.
“The Demonic Realm became an invincible fortress for Devil Worshippers, who, over thousands of years, attempted to expand its territory across the continent but ultimately failed every time.”
This was because the absolute numbers of resources and manpower available to the non-demonic forces far exceeded those of the Devil Worshippers.
Whenever total forces were amassed, the non-demonic forces always held the upper hand over the demonic forces.
Even when measured by combat inside the Demonic Realm, there were several historical instances where the non-demonic forces held the advantage.
However, despite their numerical inferiority, the Devil Worshippers remained a significant threat to the world.
Their possession of the Blessing of the Dark God allowed them to easily manipulate the natural order of mortals, causing great chaos across the continent whenever they found an opening.
“For a long time, Mother worked with El-Lam to prevent the expansion of the Demonic Realm, repeating a similar history.”
Devil Worshippers would lie dormant within the Demonic Realm, then orchestrate schemes at opportune moments, plunging the continent into chaos, which would eventually be resolved, restoring peace.
This too was a kind of balance.
“But around 600 years ago, a problem arose.”
“600 years? Exactly when?”
“Probably not long after the news spread that Harshia, the hero of the Empire, had passed away. Around that time, the Demonic Realm began expanding.”
“…Has the influence of the Dark God grown stronger?”
“No. On the contrary, their power weakened.”
“What?”
“Yet the energy of the Dark God began eroding El-Lam’s blessing, expanding its territory. The balance was broken.”
“…”
“Mother sought to restore the balance.”
To restore the disrupted balance, the World Tree exerted all its sincerity.
During this process, the region once known for its lush forests transformed into a desert.
High Elf Resina could no longer return to Mother’s embrace and had to sacrifice her existence alongside Genesis.
Even with such sacrifices, they couldn’t fully halt the expansion of the Demonic Realm.
“When Mother suppressed the erosion spreading onto the continent, it spread sideways instead.”
“You’re talking about Alimo?”
“Yes.”
Alimo’s Forbidden Forest was once a safe, unpolluted area in the distant past.
Due to its proximity to the Demonic Realm, some contamination was unavoidable over time. However, over the last 600 years, the contaminated area expanded significantly, and the concentration of pollution increased sharply.
“We assumed there must be a cause behind these phenomena and have been investigating continuously.”
Ulte also mentioned to Ray the unknown factor causing the expansion of the Demonic Realm.
As Ray listened intently to Ramenta’s explanation, Ramenta suddenly frowned.
“Hmm…”
“What’s wrong?”
“Mother is angry with you.”
“Ouch, why now?”
Ray blinked innocently.
Ramenta, feeling the strong emotions from the World Tree in her mind, expressed her confusion.
“It’s rare for Mother to display her emotions so clearly.”
“Could… Could she be planning to attack me right now?”
“She won’t act so recklessly. Just avoid unnecessary provocations.”
“Got it. I’ll be more cautious.”
“Alright… Returning to the main point, for hundreds of years, we’ve tried to find the ‘core’ of this phenomenon but failed.”
It was impossible to find answers without tearing apart the Demonic Realm, sacrificing high-level forces.
And it was impractical to expend such valuable forces on a problem whose solution wasn’t even guaranteed.
Ray raised his hand slightly as he listened to Ramenta’s detailed explanation.
“I understand how hard you’ve worked, but did you find any clues?”
“We identified the core.”
“You found it? That’s good news. How did you discover it?”
“It wasn’t us.”
“What…?”
“It revealed itself. Not its true form, but it exposed its existence.”
“…”
“Preches. That’s the name of the Dragon whose body you destroyed in the Imperial Capital.”
“The core is Preches…?”
“Dragons were a species destined for extinction from the start. Their allotted time ended 600 years ago.”
“…”
“Nevertheless, the last Dragon defied its predetermined fate. Having received the powers of its departed kin, the final Dragon headed toward the Demonic Realm.”
Ramenta paused briefly, her gaze unfocused, before looking back at Ray.
“The following story is derived from information obtained at the cost of one Guardian elf’s sacrifice.”
It was widely known that only four elves of Guardian rank existed.
The loss of one of them was an enormous blow to the elves, yet Ramenta spoke calmly.
“Preches rejected its fate and accepted the power of the Dark God, but it seems the collapse of its physical body was unavoidable.”
“…”
“The overwhelming power of El-Lam corrupted Preches’ body according to its destined fate, but since the very essence of Dragons originated from El-Lam’s power, abandoning it was impossible.”
“…”
“Preches buried its body deep within the Demonic Realm, rich with the Blessing of the Dark God, and began altering El-Lam’s power.”
Filled with hatred, Preches slowly rotted in the ground, gradually corrupting the flow of El-Lam’s power within its body.
“The altered power was problematic. It acted as a powerful medium capable of eroding the normal blessings of El-Lam that protected the land.”
“So, the corruption of Preches’ power was the cause of the Demonic Realm’s expansion?”
“That’s correct.”
As Ray felt a sinking sensation in his chest, Ramenta started drawing a map of the continent in the air.
“The real issue is that the corrupted power emanating from Preches is merely a byproduct.”
“A byproduct…?”
“Yes.”
For hundreds of years, Preches endured the pain of its body rotting away, filled with intense hatred.
By fusing the Blessing of the Dark God with the corrupted power of El-Lam, Preches aimed to transform into an entirely new being.
“Preches is trying to be reborn. Into a hybrid that has never existed before.”
Ramenta turned her eyes back to the map she had drawn in the air.
“After its rebirth, Preches will become a moving source of corruption, rapidly eroding the influence of El-Lam that protects the land.”
On the map, the distinct red hue covering the Demonic Realm began to spread outward.
Soon, the red color engulfed parts of Alimo, some eastern regions of the Empire, and most of the southern Empire.
“Five years. If Preches resurrects, this is what will happen within five years.”
“…”
“In these red zones, life will no longer be possible. Even dozens of Lord-level beings wouldn’t be able to change this outcome.”
Because even Lord-level beings couldn’t permanently erase the transcendent power of the Dark God.
Dropping meteors wouldn’t eliminate the eroded influence of the Dark God on the land.
“…”
Ray quietly gazed at the map Ramenta had drawn.
Now, many things began to make sense.
In the vision shown by the World Tree, the world was constantly suffering from a shortage of resources.
It made perfect sense. If the southern plains were swallowed up like this, grain production would take a massive hit.
With an unimaginable number of refugees to handle, there would be no surplus of resources.
Ray also understood the circumstances of certain events from the ‘novel’ fragments he remembered.
If the south becomes demonified, the Papacy would need to relocate.
And this relocation would directly lead to the expulsion of Anthonyus.
Ulte’s ability to burn the World Tree was likely made possible because the energy of the Dark God had consumed the south and reached the World Tree’s domain.
As Ray mulled over the mysteries that had once eluded him, he asked in a cracked voice:
“…How much time remains until Preches’ resurrection?”
“Dimension Alignment. Have you heard of it?”
Yes, Ray had. It was a term he first encountered when meeting Aptel at the Royal Magic Tower.
Nodding, Ray watched as Ramenta aligned dozens of semi-transparent mana windows in a row.
“That’s what we call the period when disparate dimensions align in sequence. A time when beings beyond starlight can exert greater influence on this world. Especially the influence of the Dark God grows immensely.”
“Isn’t this the period right now?”
When dimensions align, Apostles of the Dark God can unleash their full power outside the Demonic Realm.
High-ranking demons can also utilize almost half their strength, a situation that was already close to reality.
Ramenta answered Ray’s question:
“Not yet perfectly aligned, but soon it will be. And Preches will resurrect.”
“How much time do we have left?”
“Up to a year at most, six months at least. Once resurrected, if Preches doesn’t leave the Demonic Realm voluntarily, there will be no way to capture it.”
How could one possibly capture a mass of hybrid corruption—a dragon—flying freely within the Demonic Realm?
It was practically impossible.
Shocked by Ramenta’s tale, Ray struggled to find a response, his lips trembling…
Then, a sudden doubt struck him.
“Just a moment, hold on. Why… Why would a dragon that has patiently waited for hundreds of years reveal its existence just a year before its resurrection…?”
If Preches hadn’t exposed itself, the elves might never have discovered its resurrection until it was complete.
“Why risk exposure and danger with just a year left, when waiting would allow Preches to surely corrode nearly half the continent?”
That didn’t make sense. Waiting quietly for a year would inflict far greater damage on humanity.
So why?
Confused, Ray stared into Ramenta’s eyes and then suddenly realized the answer.
“Haha…!”
Relaxing his stiffened lips, Ray burst into laughter.
“Hahahaha! Haha…!”
Startled, both Luna and Ramenta showed signs of unease.
But Ray kept laughing, muttering incomprehensible words.
“I see, I see, I get it now. Now I really get it.”
Why would Preches, who seemed so foolish, act this way? Because things weren’t going according to plan.
And the reason things weren’t going according to plan was due to Ray.
“Hahaha! I succeeded! I actually succeeded!”
Ray shook uncontrollably, covering his face with his hands.
“Yes, I… I succeeded.”
If nearly half the continent were to become demonified, it was an already determined future. An unchanging default value.
The war later referred to as the Hundred Years War was inevitable.
The future where humanity would engage in a century-long total war was already set.
The key question was whether humanity had enough strength to endure the Hundred Years War.
“I…! I did it!”
Ray did it.
He prevented the massive conflict that would have caused a great schism in humanity.
He thwarted the Devil Worshippers’ schemes that could have overturned nations.
Perhaps he even saved talented children who might have succumbed to despair due to overwhelming suffering.
Thanks to Ray changing the future…
The current humanity now possessed the resilience to survive and overcome the Hundred Years War.
Thus,
From the perspective of preventing destruction, Ray had undoubtedly succeeded.
“Hahahaha…!”
Preches was a mass of hatred.
Preches desired the complete annihilation of all who worshipped El-Lam.
But thanks to Ray’s efforts, Preches realized that even enduring a hundred years of war wouldn’t achieve its goals.
Therefore, Preches deliberately exposed its existence.
Preches placed itself as bait in a reckless gamble.
It openly declared: “Eliminate me now, and you can end the hundred-year war immediately.”
Recalling what Preches had said to him, Ray laughed even harder.
We will meet again.
That’s what Preches had muttered.
Trying to appear dignified but ultimately, Preches was pleading:
Please, please fall for my clumsy gambit, waaaah!
To strike at Preches deep within the Demonic Realm, humanity would need to launch a short-term total war.
Moreover, preparations for the total war had to be completed within six months—an almost impossible task.
Even leveraging the Emperor’s authority, persuading the power brokers, gathering armies, and formulating strategies required a minimum of years.
Still, Preches hoped humanity would somehow muster forces and charge into the Demonic Realm.
Because if the non-demonic forces fell for the tempting bait and expended their strength, surviving the Hundred Years War would become far more difficult.
That’s why Preches pulled off this absurd scheme.
“Haa…!! Haha, ha…”
Laughing as if losing his mind, Ray clenched his jaw tightly, fighting back tears.
The story Luna had told him within the vision finally made complete sense.
Luna had told Ray to stop doing anything and return home.
Having fulfilled all his duties, Ray should no longer wander and should spend his remaining time cherishing those he loved.
Luna wasn’t passively observing the impending war.
When the Hundred Years War began, ending it even slightly earlier required destroying the power of the Dark God.
Thus, despite the delay, Luna strove alone to obtain the necessary power to grant Ray the happy ending he desired.
Even if it took decades, it was the only path to salvation.
If the day came when the crimson skies would clear,
Johanna, Delun, Karen, and everyone suffering in the war would see the blue sky and find rest, finally reflecting on their wounded hearts.
So, Luna wasn’t passively observing.
“Luna…”
With reddened eyes, Ray caressed Luna’s cheek.
Startled, Luna called out his name.
“Ray…?”
Ray knew the choice Luna offered was the right one.
He understood it was the safest option leading to the best possible outcome.
But… But Luna, such an ending…
“Ramenta. Knowing we’d be playing into the enemy’s scheme…”
Isn’t a happy ending.
“Are we still attacking the Demonic Realm?”
“Yes.”
