Chapter 106

───────────

Episode 24 - Isabella [1]

─────────────────────────────────

Charlotte’s final words caused a screen to appear in my mind.

The progress of Chapter One went from 99% to finally reaching 100%.

Chapter One of the Fallen Maiden had ended.

〖You have succeeded in bringing back Luminus Arcantel Valentina〗

〖Story Progress of Luminus Arcantel Valentina: 78%〗

〖You have cleared Chapter One of the Fallen Maiden〗

〖Story of Luminus Arcantel Valentina, Chapter Two, Final〗

〖Scene of "Dream, purpose, and Objective"〗

〖The player’s consciousness will be sent to Chapter Two, Final〗

As my body began to disappear, I slowly approached Luminus and Charlotte.

Charlotte was also starting to disappear, but Luminus, just like in the prologue, did not notice it.

I lowered my head and "looked" at Luminus. I formed one of my usual fake smiles, but this time it was not completely fake.

"Don’t lose your way. You know Kyle wouldn’t want that to happen to you, right?"

Luminus nodded unconsciously.

"I-I know..."

Her voice was completely broken. She had not stopped crying.

She probably still remembered Kyle’s final words before he completely disappeared from this world.

"The world is cruel. You know that better than anyone, but a loss does not mean the end of your life. You have a dream, a purpose, and... a goal you must fulfill."

I was certain that Luminus’s goal had now intensified.

She knew who the Puppeteer Angel was. He was the leader of the Black Dawn Church of this era.

He was an extremely powerful Class 10 villain.

His Traits were undoubtedly among the strongest ever recorded among villains.

’But Luminus is not just anyone.’

Her Trait allowed her to completely annihilate the Power of Chaos for a brief period of time, enough to decide between life and death.

Luminus looked at me. A smile formed on her face as the tears slowly stopped falling.

"I know. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine, and... you’re right. My goal is more important now."

Luminus returned Charlotte’s embrace, then gestured to me and said:

"Come here."

"..."

Perhaps because I had Luminus’s emotions at that moment, my body moved unconsciously.

I let her hug both Charlotte and me.

As my body slowly disappeared, Luminus’s body froze at some point.

And in the very next second, my consciousness became completely dark. My senses shut down, and I stopped feeling everything around me.

***

I did not know how much time had passed.

Suddenly, I could feel my surroundings again. My senses returned, and within my dark vision, white lines appeared, outlining everything around me.

My consciousness returned, and I was once again able to sense my surroundings.

’So the story of the Fallen Maiden only has two Chapters.’

Maybe it has an epilogue, but if this was the final Chapter, then I would not complain.

Actually, in some way, I wanted to keep "reading," "watching," or "experiencing" the story of the Fallen Maiden a little longer.

But at the same time, I did not want to, because every time Luminus’s emotions entered me, I felt like I was no longer myself.

If it were not for my Trait, which frees me from emotions, I would probably be just like Charlotte.

She was consumed by Luminus’s emotions in Chapter One.

We literally spent an entire month there, and the more time we spend inside a Chapter, the faster foreign emotions flood the minds of the Invaders.

’Phew... anyway, I think that was the first time someone ever hugged me affectionately, wasn’t it?’

My emotions had almost overwhelmed my Trait in that final moment.

If I had not left Chapter One, it probably would have been the first time in this life that I truly experienced emotions.

’I don’t remember anyone ever doing that in my previous life.’

I unconsciously clenched my fists.

I would be lying if I said that feeling did not make me think about many things.

It was like the embrace of someone who genuinely wants to protect you, love you, or simply make you feel cherished.

I did not know exactly what that feeling was. I could only think it was because of Luminus’s emotions, which had slowly been consuming me the entire time.

But I shook my head.

Perhaps, deep down, I had wished for some kind of affection similar to what I had just experienced.

Maybe I was finally realizing that I felt empty in a world where I have absolutely nothing and no one waiting for me.

’Not even in my previous life do I remember having family or friends...’

Then, the image of my assistant appeared for a fleeting moment.

Although I don’t remember what her face looked like, I only know that she was the only person in my memories who still existed.

I don’t even remember her name, much less my own.

I knew I had no memories of who I am, who I was, or how many lives I’ve lived that I’m not even aware of.

’Phew, let’s put all that aside. It’s better to focus my attention on the Final Chapter.’

I shook my head inwardly. It was better to focus on the present than on a past or an emotion I might wish to understand.

Finally, I extended my senses toward the surroundings.

I noticed that I was in some kind of village in the middle of a forest that stretched endlessly.

The village was moderately large. It had a church, inns, houses, merchants, and so on.

Charlotte and I were standing in the middle of a dirt road, not too far from the entrance to the village.

The trees around us gently swayed their leaves in the cool breeze.

It was strange that the air felt so refreshing.

Everything in this world should have already lost its life.

Even this forest was unsettling, since everything in nature that possessed life had withered away decades ago.

Some trees, like the pines of the Mountains of the End, absorbed mana and survived.

But the trees in this forest had no mana.

’Unless this isn’t a natural forest.’

I turned my head toward Charlotte, who silently observed the surroundings. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"What color are the leaves on the trees?"

Charlotte looked around, then at the nearby village, and finally at the leaves on the trees before saying:

"They’re gray..."

I frowned slightly and murmured.

’Trees of Misfortune.’

That was the name given to them when you saw gray trees.

It was said that they were trees planted by the bizarre beings that emerged from the portal at the beginning of the First Calamity.

I didn’t know if that was true, but regardless, they only brought bad luck.

No matter where you went, if there were gray trees around you, misfortune would follow unless you got away from that place.

’If Luminus is here, then there must be a reason. Besides, since this is the Final Chapter...’

There was only one answer.

’The main headquarters of the Church of the Black Dawn is here.’

***

Entering the village was not complicated at all; on the contrary, the guards were very friendly.

They did not even ask for any identification or a merchant card.

In any case, as Charlotte and I walked through the streets, we noticed how peaceful the village itself was.

I used my senses to listen to some of the passersby’s conversations, and I was able to gather information about the village.

For the past three years, they had been protected by Luminus.

No monsters or Wild Beasts had reached the village, at least not within a radius of thirty kilometers.

Beyond that limit, the bodies of monsters and other creatures would always appear.

At first, the villagers wondered what was happening, but then, one day, on a hill not too far from the village...

A cabin appeared.

The village chief went there and met Luminus alongside a young girl.

The villager asked about her, and Luminus said that the girl was responsible, and that as long as she remained in that place, no monster or any other danger would reach the village.

So the village chief informed all the villagers, and afterward, they sent gifts to Luminus as a sign of gratitude.

But setting aside the story I heard along the way, there was one thing I still could not fully process.

’They said she was with a young girl... don’t tell me that’s her daughter.’

The thought crossed my mind jokingly.

Most likely, the girl who was with Luminus was Luminus’s mysterious disciple.

According to the records, the Fallen Maiden had a disciple for only a very short time, although she never managed to pass down her sword art to her.

Because the girl was probably not even an Awakened, it was impossible for her to learn a sword art.

’Perhaps that disciple only trained physically more than anything else.’

In any case, the reason she was a disciple for such a short time was because she died.

Or at least, that was what people believed.

They were only records found somewhere on a map that had been erased.

’Could this be that village?’

If my guess was correct, this was where the battle between the leader of the Church of the Black Dawn and Luminus took place.

Most likely, during that confrontation, this entire place was erased.

’Overcoming the Final Chapter... perhaps it means saving Luminus’s disciple or saving the villagers.’

But whatever the reason was, I first had to go and find Luminus.

Charlotte asked about Luminus, and the villagers gave her directions to the hill.

The hill was small and surrounded by enormous trees; it was located on the other side of the village.

Along the way, a path decorated with plants, flowers, and other things had been built.

Finally, within my vision, the white lines outlined a cabin.

The cabin had a large tree nearby with a swing hanging from it, and there was a young girl calmly swaying back and forth.