Chapter 293

The night grows deeper.


Midnight approaches.

The three days granted to him are swiftly passing, and the day when it all becomes a thing of the past is not far off. So, before that happens, he must finish everything without missing a single thing.

“Things you only realize after they’ve passed… they really do exist, huh?”

Is this what the living hell of the mortal world is like? The Priest looked around from where he stood. The sky, as black as the darkest night, had no stars or moon. It wasn’t a sky at all—it was just a river of pitch-black darkness.

The river flowed, occupying a corner of the sky, blocking out both sunlight and moonlight. In this eerie and chilling space, the only source of light was himself. It was as if the space itself swallowed all light, painted entirely in ink.

The sky, the ground, even the soil and sand had lost their forms, turning into black, rock-like shapes scattered across the surface. It was worse than a battlefield where armies clashed with swords and spears.

This wasn’t a sight humans could create, nor a phenomenon that could be found in the outside world.

White bones were scattered everywhere, and instead of blood flowing like a river, an unknown black, sticky liquid quietly trickled across the ground. By the streams of this liquid, black trees stood tall, bearing black fruit. Everything was black.

This place, devoid of light and color, was abandoned even by its owner, left to rot. The fruits of the trees had ripened halfway before shriveling, barely hanging on. The roots were withered, the branches drooped. Everywhere, there were giant trees dying.

“The Death God accepted death without reclaiming his power…”

This space itself was weakening. Even without anyone sealing or purifying it, it would gradually fade over time.

In a hundred years, it would become just a slightly eerie forest, and eventually, it would turn into ordinary terrain.

All of this was largely due to the self-destruction of Modrig, the Death God created by the Demon King. If he had fought and died in battle, he would have surely reclaimed all the power he used to create his sanctuary and used it in his final struggle.

But he didn’t even have the courage to do that. The being that could have become a calamity of the era destroyed itself and vanished. Now, all that remained here were corrupted entities.

With Modrig, the source of their power, gone, these corrupted entities were already dying. Each tree was a collective of countless people.

Originally, these giant trees were supposed to take root in the corrupted land, bear fruit, and produce the Death God’s soldiers. But in reality, they were used for a different purpose. The people, corrupted and transformed into resilient forms, survived the calamity brought by the Primal Body.

Now that their lives were saved, there was no need for them to remain in that form. And this space, too, had to return to nature.

So, he simply took a step forward.

Wherever his footsteps landed, the divine power of the Death God screamed and retreated, unable to maintain its form. As the darkness covering the ground scattered, the black veil over the sky gradually lifted.

By the time he finished his short walk, the surreal scenery around him had already disappeared. All that remained was a night sky filled with stars, the same sky that had always been visible to people throughout countless ages.

Looking at the people scattered across the now-colorful land, still unable to regain their senses, he quietly left. There was still much to do, and the day was almost over.

There wasn’t much time left, and there were many people he had to meet.

There were people he had to see before leaving this world.

Even if those people had driven him away.

Was it pure coincidence that those people became entangled with the little Death God? Or was there some kind of fate at play? He wondered for a moment. In any case, he needed to visit the Capital at least once. He had a request to fulfill and old connections to reunite with.

Above all, he had to bid a proper farewell to one person there.

What should he do first, and what should come later? As he considered the connections tied to the Capital, he managed to set his priorities without being too late.

So, enough stargazing. It was time to move again.

*****

Just as accepting death requires a process, so does accepting salvation. Though, it’s much easier than accepting death. And incomparably more joyful. All it takes is a little time.

Amid the cheerful singing, the woman looked up at the bustling Capital. Every house was adorned with colorful lanterns, people sang at the top of their lungs, and despite the lack of food, they prepared a splendid feast. The lively singing could be heard even from here.

“Sigh, was it all just my imagination…?”

She glanced at the now completely still mountain of flesh. Even if she hadn’t struggled so hard against it, nothing would have changed. Still, it turned out well in the end, so the swollen eyes were something she could laugh off. Yes, just laugh it off.

The world was saved—no, not the world, but at least the Capital was saved.

For her, the Princess of the Imperial Family, the Capital was her home and homeland. The imperial tombs of her ancestors were here, and so were the people she was meant to protect. Now that it was saved, she should be rejoicing.

Yes, let the past flow away.

She should just join in the laughter, chatter, and fun with everyone else.

She knew that. She knew it well.

But she just couldn’t.

Was it because losing a staring contest was so unbearably frustrating?

Even she wasn’t that childish.

It was just that the incident brought back the doubts she had always harbored. When she thought about it, she was always full of enthusiasm but never accomplished anything properly.

When her younger sibling rebelled against their father, what was she doing? Nothing! She was just training underground when Yanid suddenly appeared and subdued her.

By the time she regained her senses, everything outside was already over, and her sibling had drunk poison and committed suicide. There was no room for her to intervene. In this grand conspiracy, she had done nothing.

And before that, was there any achievement she could proudly boast about? And after that, did she accomplish anything properly? It seemed like her heart was always ahead, but she never actually did anything. Was that just her imagination? At least in her own eyes, it wasn’t imagination or coincidence.

“Frustrating…”

What happened back then was just on a larger scale, but this time it was the same. In the face of a crisis that threatened the entire continent, she, the Imperial Princess, had done nothing. Ordinary people might be excused, but not her.

Even if she wanted to muster her strength, she couldn’t. When she was very young, she once attended the deathbed of an old man. Back then, the young girl was arrogant to the bone and found the whole situation distasteful, even if the man was a renowned scholar still talked about to this day.

“Master, why are you crying? You always studied hard, taught us the right things, and were kind to everyone. You were respected by all. Why are you crying like this?”

Seeing him cry on his deathbed, the young girl thought it was pitiful. But looking back, the scholar’s final words to his disciple were flawless.

“That’s why I’m crying. As I face my final moments, I’ve been reflecting on what I’ve done in my life. If someone asked me if I achieved great things as a scholar, I would gladly say yes. If they asked if I lived morally and kindly as a person, I would also gladly say yes. But if they asked if I lived among ordinary people and shared their lives, I could only say no. That’s why I’m crying.”

Even long after that day, she didn’t understand the scholar’s final words. In fact, she had half-forgotten them.

So, the reason they suddenly came back to her now might be because she finally understood what he meant.

It wasn’t just something he said for show.

It wasn’t a forced statement to leave behind a good reputation after death.

Only after experiencing it herself, only after such a situation arose, did she realize how foolish and petty she had been.

When the citizens of the Empire trembled in fear,


When they suffered through hardships,


She, as the Imperial Princess, had done nothing for them.

As a member of the Imperial Family, as a swordsman, she had ultimately done nothing.

She was angry at herself.

Her palm hurt from how tightly she clenched her fist. And she held it like that for a while.

Since she wasn’t there for them in their time of need, it was only natural that she had no place in the joyous party now that all the dangers were over. She couldn’t bring herself to join the cheerful singing. So, she just wandered aimlessly.

At least for today, she wanted to be alone.

But in truth,


It wasn’t just that.