Cale was heading for the very bottom of the pool.

Deeper than I thought.

It was far too small to be called a lake.

And yet it was much deeper than he had expected.

Sshhhh—

But Cale’s descent was fast.

Why the hell is that bastard so fast?

The saint chasing after him was also incredibly fast.

Whiiii—

Both of them, wrapped in wind, moved rapidly downward.

Of course, no matter how fast the saint was—

He’s still slower than me!

Cale could already see the gray whirlwind rising at the very bottom.

Strange.

A dark-moon night.

And underwater too.

But I can see it clearly.

The gray whirlwind was startlingly clear.

As if it were telling him to come find it.

Works for me.

And for Cale, that was a good thing.

—I can push away a whirlwind of that size.

At the Sound of the Wind’s words, Cale moved at once.

“—!”

He heard something from above.

Probably the saint, in a hurry.

But he did not even glance that way.

There was no point dragging this out.

Sshhk—

Cale’s hand cut through the water and reached for the whirlwind.

The whirlwind was as tall as Cale himself.

And at its center—

A knife?

It was a small knife.

He had expected something like a bead.

Instead, it was a knife about as long as Cale’s forearm.

Whiiii—

Cale’s wind drilled into the whirlwind.

His hand moved with it.

...!

And Cale faltered.

—Wait!

The dominating aura shouted urgently.

A moment ago, Cale had felt it.

This—

This knife—

Something’s wrong with it.

The whirlwind had hidden it, so he had not realized before, but the knife was not normal.

He could feel that it was not just some ordinary object.

Up to now, Cale had held quite a few divine relics in his hands.

But—

Bad news.

That knife was unmistakably different from any divine relic he had touched before.

Was it because it belonged to an ancient god, one of the strongest among the gods?

Or was this divine relic particularly exceptional even among them?

Damn it.

A chill ran down the back of his neck.

His instincts were warning him not to touch it.

But it’s not like I can just leave it here.

That was the problem.

That knife is the result of all the rituals they’ve performed until now.

As long as that knife existed, the Order of the God of Chaos could try to bring the God of Chaos down into this world whenever they pleased.

Destroying the holy land.

Smashing any number of other buildings meant nothing. Only when that knife was gone would the holy land truly fall.

Sshhh—

Above.

Cale’s gaze lifted upward.

Damn it!

The saint was almost on top of him.

The corners of his mouth were twisted up.

As if to say, You can’t touch it, can you? That kind of composure was showing on his face.

Right. That bastard knew the relic was dangerous too.

—Cale.

At that moment, the dominating aura spoke gravely.

—Let’s use our power.

What?

He and the Water that Devours the Sky had decided not to use those two powers here.

That was why, even underwater, Cale was breathing through the pocket of air the Sound of the Wind had given him.

—Wrap the aura around your whole body.

More serious than ever before, the overblown bastard continued.

—At least then you won’t die.

Something flashed in Cale’s eyes.

Thump. Thump.

He could still feel his heart pounding.

As long as he had the vitality of his heart and the power of regeneration, Cale could endure most severe wounds.

—I’ll endure that force somehow. I won’t lose to some divine relic.

He meant it.

Then the Water that Devours the Sky spoke.

—I’m here too. And this is underwater.

Chaos.

The two ancient powers that carried that force, and were at least somewhat familiar with it, were both telling him to try.

Honestly—

There’s no other choice.

In Cale’s current situation, he only had two options: run away without the divine relic, or run away with it.

And with his temperament, the first option had never existed in the first place.

Cale lifted his head.

The saint was so close now that if he simply stretched out a hand, he could touch Cale.

Grin.

Cale smiled at him.

“!”

The saint’s eyes widened just as he had started to look relieved.

Whiiii—

The wind wrapped around Cale shrank.

Sshhh—

Instead, currents rose in the water and wrapped around him.

And then—

“!”

The saint stopped advancing.

No—his body froze for a moment.

And the dominating aura said:

—Full power.

Formless energy wrapped around Cale.

It was the dominating aura.

It did not move toward anyone.

This time, its target was not a person.

It was the divine relic.

Its purpose was to protect Cale from that knife.

For the first time, the dominating aura poured out its full strength to protect Cale.

“—!”

The saint could not move.

Could not think.

Could not act.

Could do nothing.

The enormous force filled the entire cramped pool.

Even though it was focused on Cale, that energy was trying to dominate everything.

So for a moment, the saint had no choice but to freeze.

There was nothing else he could do.

Ah!

And when he was finally able to move again—

Sshhh—

The gray whirlwind had been pushed back.

Into that gap, Cale’s hand moved.

And at last, Cale grabbed the knife.

No!

The saint’s face twisted.

At the same time—

Urgh!

Cale let out a groan.

What the hell!

What the hell.

God damn it.

No thought, no word came fully together.

It was all rushing in.

Countless deaths, hideous pain, screaming sorrow, anger, resentment, grief—

All of it surged into Cale.

—Cale, Cale!

The Ancient Tree called to him urgently, but he could not hear it.

It came again.

The laughter of those who delighted in someone else’s death, the joy of those who cheered through the night, the sounds of excited footsteps dancing over blood-soaked ground—

All of it crashed over him.

Hah—

He drew in a breath.

Even with his eyes open, Cale felt as though he could see nothing at all.

—!

Then suddenly, he felt something cold.

Like death arriving without warning.

A chill that fell over him in an instant.

Cale raised his head.

“!”

And he saw them.

Beyond the gray mist, eyes staring at him.

The sorrow and joy that endlessly filled his mind and shook his whole body.

Wailing voices and cries swollen with delight.

Everything twisted together and tightened around his entire body.

And those eyes watching him—

They were coming closer.

The eyes beyond the gray mist were getting closer and closer.

Becoming clearer.

They were approaching.

He could not breathe.

No, it felt as though his entire body were shaking, wrapped in pleasure and sorrow.

As though he himself were disappearing, and in his place would remain only someone’s grief, or someone’s pleasure.

Ah.

The eyes came closer.

And then he heard it.

Ah.

At last, Cale could hear what those cries and those cheers truly were.

Chief! Chief Lee can’t go out like this!

Jung Soo! Jung Soo!

Hngh, Father, because of the monsters, because of the monsters! Father too, Mother too! ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) Aaaah—!

P-please save us. No, at least save my child. Please, please—

The cries Cale—and Kim Rok Soo—had lived through.

Heh, Team Leader Kim. Why are you acting so stiff? Want to end up like Team Leader Lee Soo Hyuk?

Puhahaha! No, if they die because they’re weak, why should our guild send support?

Ha, haha—. Mr. Rok Soo. This world belongs to the strong now. Try enjoying it.

And the laughter he did not want to hear.

Memories—records he never wanted to dig up—came flooding back.

Ah.

And the eyes.

Those eyes had come closer still.

It felt as though he would soon see himself reflected in them.

Right.

Now he could not even see the gray mist anymore.

All he could see were those eyes.

Gray eyes—

And in them—

Reflected there, Cale—his own figure—

Huh...?

Right. That figure.

Cale—

—Cale!

He saw it.

His own figure reflected in those gray eyes.

His own eyes.

Dark brown eyes.

The moment his gaze met those eyes—

—Cale!

The desperate voice of the dominating aura—that pompous bastard—rang out.

Its voice shaking, trembling, and still calling him over and over.

—Cale!

Only then could Cale properly see himself.

Dark brown eyes.

Everything except those eyes, which were pouring out formless aura, had been covered in gray.

No—it was being dyed gray.

Like Choi Jung Gun’s body after being struck by corruption of chaos.

But it was different from that corruption.

This was not mere corruption.

It was something more fundamental.

Something that broke a person down from the root.

—Cale!

But now the sounds that had overwhelmed him were fading.

Instead, the dominating aura’s voice grew louder and louder.

Cale raised his head.

He looked straight into the gray eyes.

More precisely, he looked at his own eyes reflected in them.

—Cale!

When the dominating aura called him again—

“I hear you.”

Cale opened his mouth and spoke.

And the instant he heard his own voice—

—!

Every sound inside those memories vanished.

Then—

“Khk!”

A groan tore out of him.

“Ghh!”

Cale bowed his head.

He did not look at the gray eyes again.

He could not.

Damn it!

At some point, both his hands were still gripping the knife.

Those hands stuck to the hilt were turning gray.

His arms too, all the visible skin he could see was slowly turning gray.

Sssshhhhh—

Whiiii—

And Cale saw the gray whirlwind wrapped around him as well.

No, it was not wrapping him.

It was trying to swallow him.

It was an insanely violent wind.

—Damn it!

The Water that Devours the Sky tried somehow to protect Cale from that wind.

Its water tried somehow to push the wind back.

But every time it did, the gray wind slashed into the water like sharp claws.

—Damn it!

Each time, the Water that Devours the Sky let out a groan.

—I’m... still holding...!

The dominating aura said that in a trembling voice full of fierce resolve.

And it truly was holding on.

Eyes.

Cale realized that everything except his dark brown eyes was being consumed by the gray force pouring out of this divine relic, the knife.

Wooo—

The formless energy was somehow protecting only Cale’s eyes.

Drip.

Blood ran from the corner of his mouth.

Cale ignored it.

His eyes—the only part of him not submerged in chaos—could still see clearly.

And if he could see,

if he could observe,

then Cale had always been able to find an answer.

“Kahahaha—!”

Beyond the whirlwind, he could see the saint laughing faintly.

Even underwater, the saint was speaking and laughing freely.

The entire pool had already turned gray, dyed by the chaos spilling out from the knife.

Inside it, the saint was completely free.

“As expected, you’re being devoured! Yes, you’re perfect as the first sacrifice of tonight!”

He had seen Cale’s body turning gray before the gray wind raised by the divine relic fully swallowed him.

That human seemed to be holding on somehow, but in the end he would be devoured.

That is one of the original divine relics.

It was no ordinary relic.

It would not be an exaggeration to say it contained the very essence of chaos.

That was why they had chosen it as the vessel capable of enduring even the descent of the God of Chaos.

“You’re finished soon!”

The saint had jumped into this pool because he had worried that this man might be a god—

and might flee carrying off the divine relic.

But—

This turned out well.

This was better.

The final, forty-fourth Night of Pleasure.

That human seemed a perfect fit for the first sacrifice of that magnificent ritual.

It’s delighted!

Inside these waters filled completely with gray, inside chaos itself, the saint could feel it perfectly.

The divine relic, the Knife of Chaos, was welcoming that human with overwhelming joy and trying to devour him no matter what.

He did not know why.

He had not yet examined what that human carried inside him.

But perhaps the man contained countless kinds of chaos—enough that chaos itself would welcome him.

It’s a pity I won’t learn what he is.

It would have been nice to learn his identity, but that human would soon be devoured by chaos.

As a sacrifice for the god, his life would end here, so there would be no time to learn more.

It doesn’t matter.

The identity of that man, and whoever was behind him, could be figured out from his companions still up above.

The ritual cannot be avoided.

The knife had started moving.

This pool, full of chaos.

If that human alone is devoured—

Then naturally Primordial Night itself would be covered in chaos, and the ritual that offered up everything would unfold.

“Kahahaha!”

The saint burst into laughter.

The hands gripping the two knives he had brought as his final measure relaxed slightly.

In high spirits, he watched the whirlwind.

He waited for the moment the human inside it died.

And then for the death of chaos that would unfold over this holy land immediately after.

He waited for it eagerly.

His eyes gleamed as his tongue licked over his lips.

Will you remain nothing more than a serial killer?

He heard the Pope’s voice.

Or will you become a great figure who remains in history? Your life from here on will be decided by your choice.

The boy who had found no interest in anything except killing had chosen to become a great figure.

Because that seemed like it would produce more deaths.

“Ha ha!”

A fresh laugh flowed from the saint’s mouth like music.

Whiiii—

Through the violent movements of the gray wind, Cale heard the saint’s bright laughter.

Damn it! 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Why was that bastard laughing so damn irritatingly?

But Cale had no room to care about that.

Drip.

His mind was still clear.

But the blood flowing from the corner of his mouth was steadily increasing.

He could feel it without even looking.

Because his body hurt more and more.

It really hurt.

It had been a long time since he had felt this kind of pain.

What do I do?

Cale could not even let go of the divine relic knife.

It won’t come off!

The knife would not separate from him.

Most likely, the hands already dyed gray would no longer move according to his will.

—Huff. Huff.

The Water that Devours the Sky was breathing raggedly.

It was barely holding the gray wind back.

Only the water wrapped around Cale remained fully transparent instead of gray.

Everything else was gray.

A pool covered in gray.

Cale raised his head.

The world was gray.

Nothing but chaos.

At this point, Cale could no longer even tell where he was.

Was he still at the bottom of the pool? In the middle? Near the surface?

No matter how hard he looked, he could not tell.

He could not judge it.

Ghh!

Pain surged over him.

Even so, Cale kept his eyes wide open.

He searched his surroundings.

—...I’m holding...!

Hearing the dominating aura muttering that vow to itself, Cale found it.

The answer.

“!”

And then he saw it.

When he lifted his head again, something came into view.

Far away.

Faintly.

Within the endless-looking gray, something appeared and vanished over and over.

Something trying to punch through the gray somehow.

It was light.

“H-haha—”

A laugh slipped out of Cale before he knew it.

Blood streamed down, but he did not care.

His entire body felt as though it were breaking apart, but he did not care.

He could see light.

That light was familiar.

He had seen that kind of light before.

The sun.

And he knew very well whose sun it was.

Your Highness—!

Alberu Crossman.

Without a doubt, he was the one sending light down beneath the chaos-stained water.

No—he was trying to break through the chaos.

Just as I thought—

Just as he had thought, Alberu was someone Cale could trust to find an answer when Cale himself was absent.

And watching that light, Cale found his answer.

If this place is chaos—

Then above it is not chaos.

So he had to go upward.

This was different from not knowing where to go.

That light.

He just had to follow that light.

The sun—Alberu Crossman—was making a gap through which he could escape the chaos.

If that tiny gap existed, Cale could get out.

He felt not just instinct, but certainty.

Drip.

His whole body was trembling, and he was still dyed gray.

Only his eyes remained intact.

Even moving his body was difficult.

And yet—

—Cale.

Cale remembered what he had seen.

The Ancient Tree spoke quietly.

—This place is no more than a small pool.

He knew.

He had seen the shape of this place, the terrain.

The eyes that had found the answer shone even more clearly.

—And I am earth.

At those words, the Water that Devours the Sky reacted.

—When we first met!

Right.

When he had first met the Water that Devours the Sky, the power Cale had used had not been water.

At that time, there had been no water.

So how had he fought underwater then?

The answer was earth, rock.

A wide basin covered only in blue grass.

That whole place was earth.

Even now, as everything was being smashed apart and collapsing, the earth remained.

—Even if this tiny pool fills with chaos—

The Ancient Tree said:

—What contains that chaos is still earth.

And it urged Cale:

—Let’s go up.

And Cale answered.

“Yeah.”

Where he had to go up to was obvious.

Toward that light reflected on the surface.

Toward that sun that was somehow lighting a path through the chaos.

That was where he had to go.

Kooong—

At the bottom of the lake,

the earth,

the rock beneath the earth,

began to tremble.