....Her gaze slowly turned from confusion to horror.


    "....."


    As Nadya''s mother trembled, staring at me, a weird sense of anxiety creeped within me.


    I don''t know how to exin it, but I feel like I have wronged Nadya somehow or in someway.


    "Y-you are—?"


    "Whoever you are thinking about," I firmly said, staring into her trembling eyes. "I am not him."


    I could feel Nadya''s gaze boring into me, but I tried my best to ignore her.


    Her mother—


    What was her name again?


    [Raima.]


    ''...Right, thanks.''


    She kept on staring at me, her expression changing from fear to distress before settling on confusion.


    "T-those e-eyes," she whispered weakly, trying to hide her fear.


    ''My eyes?''


    I wondered, cing my finger just below my eyes.


    "Mother."


    Elysia whispered, shaking her vigorously to snap her out of her trance.


    "H-huh?"


    She finally turned her gaze towards Elysia and Nadya.


    Fogginess cleared from her eyes as she knitted her brows together.


    "W-who are you guys?" she stammered, staring at her daughters.


    And even though they knew this could happen, both of them couldn''t hide their disappointment and sadness.


    "I am your daughter," Nadya replied, her voice soft as if she were exining to a child. "You don''t remember your lovely daughter?"


    Confusion filled her eyes as she mumbled uncertainly, "But my daughter is a child...."


    Her words trailed off as something clicked in her mind.


    "N-no w-way," she whispered softly, her trembling hand reaching out to cover her mouth. "No, t-this can''t be happening."


    Tears trickled down her cheeks as she broke down.


    Nadya, kneeling beside her, slowly crawled forward before hugging her tightly.


    And Elysia did the same, albeit more awkwardly.


    "I a-am s-sorry," she whispered through her trembling lips as she hugged both of them. "I a-am such a b-bad mother."


    "Stop crying," Elysia whispered back, even though she couldn''t hold back her own tears.


    And finally, Nadya, who was keeping a strong front, broke down in tears.


    I slowly stepped away from them.


    It''s been so long since I have seen Nadya cry, and the absurd feeling of being the one who made her cry was eating me from within.


    Was I really the one who kidnapped their mother?


    Am I the one who caused her this much misery and pain?


    ''I need to ask her about this.''


    I mentally noted as I looked at their crying mother.


    I do have one clue, though...


    ...my eyes.


    "...."


    I nkly looked at them as my thoughts trailed off.


    Even though I didn''t want it, uneasiness crawled into my mind.


    [Is your sadism waking up looking at them crying—?]


    ''I am in no mood for jokes, Edda.''


    I cut her words, snapping out of my negative thoughts.


    [Fine, anyway, look around. You might find something.]


    ''....''


    I quietly looked around the ce before my gaze shifted towards the book that was still encapsted.


    The cube around it vanished as soon as I ced my hand below it.


    ''A grimoire.''


    I thought as I noticed the old book, which had the texture of human skin.


    I tried to open it, but just as I expected, it didn''t budge.


    Well, that''s how they work.


    They find their own master they want to have a contract with.


    ''It mighte in handy someday.''


    I mused as I ced it in my inventory.


    ''For once, you aren''t useless, Edda.''


    [For once, you aren''t shy to acknowledge it.]


    ''Yeah, whatever.''


    I replied, too tired to argue as I turned towards the mother-daughter pair.


    [Are you going to leave now?]


    ''Yeah.''


    [Check this ce thoroughly.]


    I halted my steps as I noticed something.


    It was hard to catch it because of her monotonous voice, but...


    ...I felt anxiety.


    ''What are you hiding, Edda?''


    [.....]


    Of course, she won''t reply.


    ''Stupid system.''


    I sighed in defeat as I closed my eyes, star energy leaking out from my body, making a 3D map of the entire ce.


    Everything became transparent about this ce in my eyes.


    Every nook and corner.


    "...."n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    ....And the hidden pathway behind the throne as well.


    "Tch."


    I clicked my tongue in annoyance as I turned to walk towards the door.


    And the moment I reached the throne, I forcefully pushed it aside, the screeching sound echoing in the ce.


    A dark pathway that led to the floor below came into view.


    I nced back at them, noticing Nadya staring at me.


    I nodded once before I walked down the staircase.


    "Fire."


    I whispered softly, and the next instant, a crimson fire burned over my finger. Your next chapter is on empire


    I slowly descended, cautious of the surroundings that kept expanding.


    Drip. Drip.


    The ce soon turned into a huge basement as my feet touched the ground.


    I inhaled deeply and urged the mes to burn brighter.


    Their searing light spilled outward, illuminating the ce with a crimson hue.


    And then, I saw it.


    A serpent''s massive head dominated my vision.


    Its face was covered in ovepping, textured scales that seemed to shimmer with an eerie glow.


    The horns on its head fanned outward like a crown, its small, piercing eyes staring at me... lifelessly.


    Pinned through its skull was a colossal broadsword, its edge driven deep into the creature''s flesh.


    Blood, thick and dark, dripped steadily from the de, pooling onto the floor below.


    "...."


    My gaze dropped, drawn to the ground beneath the serpent''s head.


    Something was written from the blood of the dead j?rmungandr.


    Something in ancient phoenixnguage.


    I will see you soon <3


    "...."


    The hair on my entire body stood up in fright as I read those words, a single thought mming into my mind.


    ...The fuck does that mean?


    And who the fuck—


    ''I am getting out of here.''


    I thought, following my instinct as I turned on my heels.


    But just to be sure, I checked the ce once with star sense to make sure there wasn''t anything else hidden.


    Thankfully, there wasn''t.


    [You were going to blow up the ce.]


    ''Right.''


    I thought as I quickly took out the orb that I found some time ago.


    Even though its main use was to store star energy, that didn''t mean it couldn''t be used another way.


    I drew in a deep breath before I started to fill it with star energy.


    The orb burned in a whitish hue as the star energy started to fill itpletely.


    And just as it started to crack, I ced it down and made a connection with it through a star thread.


    ''Edda!''


    [Y-yes?]


    ''What was that!?''


    I yelled at her as I skipped the steps to move out.


    Wait, did she stutter?


    [I genuinely have no idea about this.]


    She replied, and for once, it didn''t sound like a lie.


    ''Fuck.''


    I bit my lip to alleviate my attention from my ever-increasing heartbeat as I reached them.


    "We need to move."


    I urged as soon as I was closer to them.


    They all looked at me in confusion, and only Nadya noticed my distress.


    "What happened?" she asked, looking at me with concern.


    "There is no time to exin," I replied as I moved closer. "Grab my hand."


    Though still confused, she did as I told her, while I turned to look at Elysia.


    "Do you need a separate invitation?" I asked sarcastically as I extended my hand toward her, urging her to grab it.


    And finally, my gazended on their mother, who was staring at me.


    "Mother-inw can hug me—."


    ""No.""


    Both Nadya and Elysia eximed at the same time, ring at me.


    They extended their hands toward their mother.


    Still too confused about what the fuck was happening, their mother just grabbed their hands.


    "Hah."


    I drew in a deep breath, closed my eyes, and in the next instant, a 3D map of the world around me emerged in my mind.


    This time I didn''t look at the "space nodes" around me but at the farthest ce.


    It was barely over a few hundred meters, but I didn''t stop there.


    Slowly, my brain started to melt down as I tried to find a space node a bit further, pushing my limits.


    Blood dripped down from my nose and ears as I finally found a passable space node.


    Without thinking, I made a connection with the help of a star thread.


    The world around us warped, turning blurry before everything shifted.


    "Cough, cough."


    I coughed violently as I opened my eyes, then looked around the ce.


    It was a jungle thick with trees, far away from the broken civilization.


    "Neil!"


    Nadya rushed to my aid as soon as she got a grip of herself.


    "I am fine," I mumbled before I looked back at the ce.


    Closing my eyes, I concentrated on the star thread I was still connected with.


    "Hah.."


    I exhaled softly, allowing a single spark to ignite along the thread''s length.


    A brief sh of light shimmered in my mind before I severed the connection entirely.


    A heartbeatter, my eyes snapped open.


    BOOOOOM!!!!


    A deafening roar tore through the forest as the hidden city, shrouded from all eyes, detonated in an explosive burst.


    The white-hot hue of star energy consumed my vision, blinding me.


    My breath caught, but I didn''t look away. I couldn''t.


    The explosion twisted in upon itself, its brilliant light copsing in an instant.


    And then, I felt it.


    A monstrous gravitational force yanked at the air, dragging everything toward its epicenter mercilessly.


    But just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished—gone in an instant, leaving behind an eerie, unnatural stillness.


    "...."


    I made a ck hole churn into existence, even if just for a split second.