Chapter 754: Reason and Instinct

{It hurts....... It hurts so much.}

At first, I thought I was seeing something wrong.

I wondered if I was seeing things, since I had been through quite a lot lately.

But that was not it.

{Please, listen to me.}

{......Do not listen to that one.}

Another figure that had appeared beside the old man who had been speaking to me.

A woman wrapped in a beautiful palace dress.

Two Mirinaes were speaking to me at the same time.

{You can help me. So, please.}

{Go back. There is nothing you can do here.}

And...... they were saying completely opposite things.

I stared blankly at that sight.

{I, have I not helped you greatly. No matter how exceptional your ability may be, there must have been crises you escaped thanks to my help. So please.......}

The palace-dressed woman.......

The body of Mirinae, who had appeared belatedly, was surrounded by dark energy.

The voice ringing through that deep darkness was strangely hoarse.

‘A wound.......’

That energy.

Was flowing out from the wound carved into the woman’s body.

{Are you not in a situation where you should be busy simply resolving your own problem. You should have no leisure to listen to such nonsense. Why have you still not left.}

On the other hand.

The old man’s body was clean, without a single wound.

He tried to stop me in a rational voice that even made me feel dizzy.

‘......I do not really understand the situation well, but.’

Even so.

Instinctively, I could tell one thing.

It was nothing but intuition, without any basis whatsoever.......

‘Neither of the two is fake.’

Even though the two of them were saying opposite things.

There was no fake among them.

‘Both of them are the real Mirinae.’

If that was the case.

“I do not...... have absolutely no time.”

{What?}

“Well, it is not as though I have plenty, but I do have enough time to listen to a little nonsense.”

Ignoring the old man telling me to leave, I turned my head.

Because.

Rather than that blunt old man who was only telling me to go back.

“Then...... please answer me, Mirinae.”

The one who seemed to have something to say.

I thought it would be better to speak with that palace-dressed woman.

“What happened?”

{An old wound is festering.......}

“An old wound?”

The palace-dressed woman began to answer with a pained face.

And the old man clicked his tongue as he watched that sight.

{A very, very old wound....... A wound I had before I came to this land.}

The palace-dressed woman continued speaking with an exhausted face.

{When I first drifted into this land, the power of this world tried to put me to sleep. I did not resist that power. While asleep, I could feel no pain, so it was not such a bad bed.}

The power that protects this world.

The System places a seal upon beings who possess power above a certain level.

It puts their minds to sleep and suppresses them so they cannot rampage.

{Then, at some point...... my eyes began to open just a little.}

But.

That seal was not eternal, nor was it something that would never weaken.

‘When the first barrier opened.’

The barriers blocking off each region.

The more those barriers opened.

The more the System’s protection over this world also weakened.

When the level of the awakened reached a certain point and the need for protection decreased.

The power that had been used to protect the world was retrieved and invested into the growth of the awakened.

{As the pain of the wound was felt, I had no choice but to open my eyes while writhing in agony.}

In other words.

The seal placed upon the powerful beings of [Otherworld] had also weakened.

{Even so, at that time, it was bearable. That seal was suppressing my wound to some extent as well.}

When that first barrier opened.

I recalled what had happened to me for the first time.

Immediately after the first barrier opened.

I was summoned to an unknown pure-white space.

And there, I met Mirinae.

I heard about the beings outside.

I received help to avoid their gaze, and various pieces of advice.

‘Mirinae back then must have had enough composure to help me.’

......But, not long ago.

{The power that was suppressing the wound...... weakened.}

The second barrier opened.

I had already experienced the changes caused by that.

What happened in the north.

Had an existence from another world, which I had thought would absolutely never be able to cross over here, not personally led its army into this land.

{The wound...... is rampaging.}

If it had been when the first barrier opened, something like that would have been impossible.

By the opening of the second barrier.

The power protecting this world had weakened even more greatly.

And as a result.

{It hurts, it hurts. It hurts so very much.......}

The seal on the powerful beings weakened.

And the power that had been suppressing Mirinae’s wound was also greatly reduced.

{Aaah...... What, what did I do wrong to deserve such pain.......}

“.......”

{Please...... reduce this pain.}

Perhaps the pain was severe.

Mirinae, submerged in dark energy, was even shedding tears.

Looking at her, I asked.

“What do you want me to do?”

{Aaah...... that is.}

And.

Just as the mouth of that palace-dressed woman was about to open...... at that very moment.

{What should you do?}

PAK!

The old man who had been frowning beside her.

His hand stretched out, and covered the palace-dressed woman’s mouth.

{You can go back.}

{Mmph.......}

{Stop concerning yourself with other people’s affairs any further!}

The mouth of the woman who had been trying to say something was blocked like that.

{......This seal.}

But.

Despite the old man’s efforts.

{Is suppressing me.}

{......!}

Another voice heard from somewhere.

Not only I.

The old man too turned his gaze that way in surprise.

{While it cannot even suppress the wound, it is obstructing my movement.......}

{You bastard......!}

{Destroy this seal, and free me.......}

A middle-aged man with a prickly impression.

Like the palace-dressed woman.

{If you do.}

He, whose black energy was rising from the wounds on his body, looked at me and said.

{I will devour the things tormenting me, and this wound......!}

For some reason.

From his mouth, hungry-looking drool was flowing down.

At that moment.

{Shut up!}

Another voice cut in.

What I heard this time was a beautiful male voice that sounded sweet just by listening to it.

{Brother Shin! You must not listen to ‘me.’}

A beautiful young man who looked as though he had been drawn in a painting appeared.

And pressed down the body of the middle-aged man as he spoke.

{This wound is different from the ordinary wounds Brother Shin knows.}

“Different?”

{Not only the body, but the mind...... and even deep into the soul, it is a wound carved there. Brother Shin must be feeling it as well, but the current I am not normal. If such a me is released.......}

BOOM!

Cutting off the beautiful young man’s following words.

Something violently shoved his body away.

{I don’t want to!}

A small child that had appeared from somewhere.

Shoved the beautiful young man’s body aside and shouted tearfully.

{It hurts, I said it hurts.......}

{You......!}

{Whether I should not be released, or something will happen...... I don’t know about things like that.}

A large wound was carved into the child’s body as well.

And it was turning that body black.

{It hurts so much I feel like I’m going to die....... I just, I just want you to save me...... so why do you keep talking about other things?}

And.

The Mirinaes that appeared like that began to increase more and more.

{Help me.}

{Shut up!}

{Come find me. Come to me, and give me freedom.......}

{Go back. Go back and focus on your own work. Hurry!}

Men and women.

Old people and middle-aged people, youths and children.

Prickly impressions and kind impressions, blunt faces and affectionate faces.......

The beautiful pavilion built in the garden near the lake.

At that pavilion.

Countless Mirinaes appeared and argued.

‘.......’

I merely watched that sight.

The Mirinaes asking for help.

And, for some reason, the Mirinaes saying I should not help them.

If there was a difference.

{What are you doing. Hurry up and come help me......!}

{I helped you that much, and surely you will not repay that grace......!}

{You too, are you planning to betray me too.}

The Mirinaes asking for help.

Were shouting as they suffered because of the black wounds on their bodies.

{The reason I helped you was for the disciples who entrusted themselves to you. There is no need to feel responsible for that matter.}

{Take the disciples and head to the Legion.}

{That will be the way to repay that grace.}

The Mirinaes saying not to help them.

In comparison, felt far more rational.

‘There must...... surely be a reason worth enough for them to tell me not to help themselves to that extent.’

The Mirinaes telling me to go back.

From that side, I could instead feel a hint that they were worried about me.

{Even though I helped you that much. To think even you would try to betray me.}

{I cannot forgive you. I must devour everyone, everyone.......}

On the other hand.

The Mirinaes bearing those black wounds, perhaps because of the pain, could not even speak properly.

{If I devour everyone, surely this pain will lessen too.......}

From the gaze looking at me.

A strange killing intent...... no.

‘Appetite.’

Endlessly deep.

I could even feel that sort of hunger.

“.......”

And.

With my eyes closed.

I continued to listen to the voices of those two Mirinaes shouting like that.

‘A sticky and dark voice.’

A voice with some sort of dark energy tangled into it.

The Mirinae asking for help.

‘A rational and clear voice.’

Compared to that, rational.

And a little more similar to the Mirinae I had spoken with until now.

The Mirinae whose voice told me to go back.

‘Mmm...... Normally, it would have been clear which voice I should listen to here, though.’

But.

As I closed my eyes and focused on those two voices.......

Soon, I was able to notice one thing.

“......Huh.”

And.

After noticing that fact, I had no choice but to let out a small hollow laugh.

Because.

“......Mirinae. You.”

It was extremely absurd, but.

Between those two.

The one truly speaking with sincerity was none other than.

“You want help, don’t you.”

The side of the wounded Mirinaes.

Who were seized by those sticky emotions.

***

“......Mirinae. You.”

The Mirinaes who had been fighting each other.

Their gazes fixed on me.

“You want help, don’t you.”

At those words.

The faces looked at me in great shock.

{What nonsense.......}

Mirinae in the form of an old man shouted in anger.

{Did you not hear what I said. The current I am not whole. Not only my body, but my mind and soul too!}

Right.

Mirinae had said its wound affected the soul.

{The seal of your world has already weakened. It is still a strong seal, but not to me. If I struggle violently, it may break, I am saying.}

The bodies of the Mirinaes that had been stopping me since earlier had no wounds.

Probably.

They were the pure soul of Mirinae, the part that had not been eroded by the wound.

{The wounded me is trying to rampage from pain. It is struggling to break free from this seal suppressing the body. Even now, I am only barely suppressing that struggle, I am saying......!}

Thanks to that.

It seemed that the current Mirinae could at least stay here quietly, but.

{What do you think will happen if the current I am released into this world.}

At that moment.

FWAAAAASH!!!

A certain illusion rose in my head.

The pavilion located at the summit of the mountain.

A hole leading underground, opened inside that pavilion.

The sticky energy staying inside it gushed out.

The thing that leapt out with tremendous force was enraged.

Having lost reason because of the wound in its soul.

It wanted to devour and destroy everything that had made it suffer.

The lives on the surface tried somehow to stop it, but failed.

The threat in the north too, and the threat beyond the southern sea too.

And every other existence on the continent could not withstand its rage.

And this world burned pitch-black.

{I do not know what has happened outside that you need me. But, whatever that may be!}

When I woke from the illusion.

Before my eyes was an enraged old man, risen to his feet.

{It will be nothing compared to what will happen when I am released.}

“.......”

{Withdraw. Leave me here and go. And.......}

Countless Mirinaes.

They spoke with one voice.

{Let me sleep forever in my homeland.}

At those words.

I nodded faintly.

Perhaps thinking its persuasion had worked, the Mirinaes showed a little brightness in their expressions, but.

“I wondered if that might be the case, and as expected.”

{......?}

Unfortunately.

That was not why I had nodded.

I looked at the countless Mirinaes.

Judging by their current appearances.

There seemed to be slightly more unwounded Mirinaes than wounded Mirinaes.

In the first place, the one who first spoke to me had also been on the unwounded side.

For the moment, at least, the moderate mind must still have the advantage.

But.......

If such a state could be maintained.

There would have been no need to say things like sleeping here forever.

The fact that it was saying such things meant.

““Mirinae’s wound is getting worse and worse, isn’t it.”

{......!}

As the seal weakened.

The wound and Mirinae’s power must have begun to be released at the same time.

But.

Unlike Mirinae, who was cooperating with that seal to some extent.

The wound must simply be rampaging indiscriminately while tearing its body and soul apart even more.

It meant that wound was not healing, but instead growing worse and worse as time passed.

That was why Mirinae chose to be sealed here.

If it were released from the seal, it would become a disaster to the world outside.

But, by mobilizing what reason remained.

If it endured as long as possible within the seal.

If, beyond the level its body could barely withstand, that wound grew far larger.

“To the point where, one day, you might disappear entirely.”

{.......}

That was the ending Mirinae wanted.

Rather than rampage outside with an ambiguous wound.

It would meet its end in its own homeland.

“You asked me earlier why I came here, didn’t you?”

And

Having noticed that intention, I shrugged and spoke.

“I did not know earlier, but now I do.”

In the past.

Seohwan had said that his master had suffered a grave wound.

Mirinae said it had been bearable until not long ago, but.

Perhaps from that time...... perhaps even while it had been asleep, it had been suffering tremendous pain.

“There are two reasons I came here.”

A wound that eroded the body and soul.

And would, in the end, make it disappear.

“One is, because I need your help.”

Amid that pain.

Mirinae had chosen its own disappearance, but.

“And the other is.”

I set down the tea I had been drinking.

Then rose to my feet and said.

“Because I thought you might need my help.”