Chapter 108

Since Erica had no authority to control her body, she was driven out during the unfolding of events against her will. The girl found herself back in the place that was originally her room, the location where Erica had first awakened as Erica, and there she pondered the reason for her expulsion.

“I understand that the ‘Wall’ blocked further interference with Erica, but I never imagined it would prevent even a goodbye and stop me from speaking to Erica.”

Instead of a farewell, the girl had intended to share the essence of protection with Erica, specifically the warning not to recklessly ab*se her power. Had the Wall truly intended to protect Erica, it would have allowed her at least to convey that final message—along with the fact that protection isn’t as simplistic as just attack or defense.

Had Erica been able to hear that, she might have grown stronger than she is now, with her current ambiguous strength. All supernatural abilities strengthen when one becomes aware of their true name. There’s a reason why “protection” carries the name it does.

The girl understood this concept so profoundly that she had once gained the strength to face a nightmare she thought she could never defeat.

Yet, why didn’t the Wall allow the girl to deliver that final message to Erica?

She had intended to impart that deep understanding, confident that the Wall, appearing to care for Erica, would let her speak. But this didn’t happen, and the message remained unspoken.

From Erica’s perspective, the Wall’s refusal to let the message pass had one reason: it had will. Despite seeming to protect Erica, it didn’t truly have her best interests at heart.

Grasping the doorknob of the door leading to the hallway, the girl reflected. Though this door ostensibly led to a corridor, since this world wasn’t the real one, neither was the space outside the door a genuine corridor.

The girl hypothesized that outside the door lay the “outside,” the region where Erica’s body was occupied or where her voice could reach, all blocked by the Wall.

“Perhaps this Wall doesn’t want Erica to grow stronger. More precisely, given her relationship with Sera, though she will inevitably master her power without my intervention, the Wall seems to prefer that this mastery takes longer.”

No matter how hard she twisted the doorknob, the door wouldn’t open, remaining stubbornly still, as if refusing her exit. The girl, who had already resolved to d*e, decided not to care anymore about what happened beyond the room. She was a soul that had ceased worrying about external matters.

Instead of leaving, she could simply give up, lie down on the bed, and remain there. Yet, as she resigned herself to staying, her fists tightened, and she began pounding on the door.

Her physical strength wasn’t enough to break the door, nor was the door weak enough to give way under assault. The Wall might open the door if her strength was truly needed for Erica, rendering this action unnecessary.

The girl also knew reaching beyond the door wouldn’t lead to a happy ending. Her life had already ended before facing any conclusion. Even if the door magically opened for her, it wouldn’t lead to a better outcome since her life had ended long before.

Then why did she continue to pound the door, knowing no happy ending awaited her beyond it? The girl already knew the answer: because there was someone else bearing the burden of her life, someone who agreed to carry the grudges she once had and couldn’t manage on her own.

If that person respected her enough to carry her burden, she, too, had an obligation to help that person, a matter of proper etiquette between people.

In the midst of knocking on the door, the girl realized another reason for her desire to help this person. She felt as if this person was like a younger sister.

“I don’t have a younger sister, but… well, maybe I almost did.”

As the girl reflected, she remembered an event. The time she was nearly to have a younger sibling, but her unborn sister passed away due to unforeseen circumstances.

Erica, who believed she was older than students, might react angrily if told she reminded someone of a nonexistent younger sister. But here, in Erica’s mind, was a place even Erica couldn’t access at will. No matter how Erica thought of herself, without her presence, there was no way to discern the girl’s feelings.

“Indeed, I…”

Watching Erica’s situation transfer to the former queen, the girl realized why she was helping Erica, even if slightly, with good intentions. A young human too immature to avoid sleeping in the street and needing to be brought to a lodging, Erica claimed to be older than the students but never truly appeared so.

Despite her assertions, Erica’s behavior resembled someone far younger, reminding the girl of the sister she nearly had. This stirred in her a desire to help.

“If she hears this, she’ll be shocked, but what does it matter? As long as I don’t say it, Erica won’t know what I think of her…”

She laughed softly, realizing something ironic. Technically, the current Erica was a plunderer, someone who controlled her body and disrupted her preferences.

Instead of disliking Erica, the girl found no repulsion, likely because she saw similarities between them—neither could tell their loved ones how they truly felt. The reason was simple.

Protection required her to endure injury, growing stronger as she faced global hostility. Thus, she couldn’t promise lifelong devotion to the one she called sister, and it was naturally impossible to declare her eternal affection to Sera.

Now, she understood that it wasn’t due to any lack on her part but rather because there were secrets to be revealed. She knew that Sera had left temporarily and would return, as they had informed her.

But at the time of separation, she had assumed otherwise, believing herself incapable of offering eternal devotion and therefore that Sera had left her. This thought brought her to the edge of despair.

She had felt incapable of capturing the heart of the person she loved. However, when pondering her feelings for the one currently called Erica, her perspective shifted. If someone asked whether she was fond of Erica, she could naturally say yes, though she couldn’t admit love—she wasn’t that crazy, like the battered woman clinging to life.

“Why are you like that? Because I like you.”

She wondered if someone, capable of eating the family of the person they obsessively loved, might naturally feel affection for their forcibly appointed younger sister. But she wasn’t bold enough to admit such an affinity herself.

Rather, her affection stemmed from viewing Erica’s mental age as genuinely younger, which evoked the protective feelings of an older sister, not because their situations aligned.

As the girl struck the door again, her hands emitted a different, radiant light than the lightning Erica wielded. It was the light associated with Radiance.

The force a certain boy once wielded now enveloped her hands as she hit the door once more—loud and forceful. The door trembled this time, but it didn’t break or develop a hole.

Thus, the girl vowed to keep striking the door, even if meaningless now. Over months, she might succeed, and her effort might matter.

“Keep enduring. I’ll help when I can.”

This action’s success or failure depended entirely on the current Erica’s resolve. Whether Erica could persist until the girl broke the door and emerged depended solely on Erica’s will.

Would the girl’s light have meaning or would it fade without purpose? That was up to Erica’s resolve alone.