Chapter 168
The entire backdrop vanished—replaced by a void filled with nothing but darkness.
Then, far above, the darkness split open, and an enormous eye appeared.
A chilling gaze, as if looking down upon the entire world.
[I… shall answer your call…]
“!!”
Christian’s entire body trembled violently.
A reaction completely beyond his will—his soul was being crushed by sheer pressure from the overwhelming disparity in rank.
Had it been anyone else standing there instead of Christian, they would’ve lost consciousness the moment they met that gaze.
‘Focus!’
Christian’s mind wavered for a moment, but he clenched his fist tightly.
‘There has to be a way.’
If this had been the real world, there’d be no countermeasure against a devil like that—not even for Christian.
But this place was different.
This was a dream world.
‘The only reason a devil of such high rank could even descend like that is because this is inside a dream. There must be an opening—some flaw I can exploit.’
As he was trying to find a way out, the 4th-rank devil’s eye examined Christian closely… and then said something unexpected:
[You possess… a soul worth coveting.]
“!!”
[Will you… offer your soul to me?]
The devil that had summoned the 4th-rank being shouted out in shock.
[G-Great One! But that human is—?!]
But he couldn’t finish his sentence.
The eye turned toward the lesser devil.
[How… noisy.]
[M-My Lord…?]
And then—
Something horrifying happened.
Rrrrip.
A massive hand tore through the darkness and pressed down upon the lesser devil.
Crushing it—like a bug underfoot.
[GRAAAAAAGH!! P-PLEASE FORGIVE ME…!! H-HAVE MERCY…!! AAAAAAAARRRGGHHH!!!]
Squelch.
The devil’s soul, caught in the grip of the hand, was pulverized—like clay forced through a press.
What made it truly horrific… was that the entire process unfolded agonizingly slowly.
As if the torment was deliberate.
And it wasn’t a misunderstanding.
This was the true nature of a devil.
Eventually, the devil was utterly annihilated.
And yet, the eye—after destroying its own servant—showed not the slightest hint of emotion as it turned back to Christian.
[I… like you. Offer me… your soul.]
“……”
Christian frowned.
‘Utter bullshit.’
Of course, Christian had no intention of agreeing.
‘There has to be a way out of this.’
But then—something entirely unexpected happened again.
[A mere… 4th-rank devil… How dare you lay claim to something you have no right to covet?]
Christian’s eyes widened.
It was a familiar voice.
‘Mefina!’
She didn’t reveal her form.
But an overwhelming presence—just as immense as the one radiating from the eye—descended upon the dreamworld.
Unlike the oppressive force of the eye, however, her power didn’t weigh down on Christian’s soul.
Almost as if she were being considerate of him.
[Surely you know by now—he’s already marked as mine.]
The darkness surrounding the eye quivered, as if shaken by her sudden appearance.
But then—
[I… do not care… about something like you.]
[!!]
[A mere… fallen, mutated wretch…]
Those words carried significant weight.
‘…Mefina is ranked above that eye?’
Christian had always suspected Mefina’s original standing was unusually high.
But for her to speak down even to a 4th-rank devil?
‘She’s either among the very highest of the 4th rank… or perhaps even a true 3rd-rank devil.’
But what struck him most was the phrase “fallen, mutated wretch.”
That was likely the reason Mefina had ended up demoted to the 7th rank—a fallen state, no longer fitting her original status.
Christian filed that thought away. It wasn’t the most pressing concern right now.
Mefina and the eye clashed, with Christian caught between their menacing standoff.
[This is your final warning. Leave—now.]
[How amusing… Then I shall issue a warning of my own. If you don’t wish to sink into an even more pitiful state… crawl back to the depths of the 7th rank where you belong.]
The dreamworld shook as though it would shatter—torn between the presence of two transcendent devils.
And then—
A voice echoed in Christian’s mind.
Mefina’s voice—spoken privately, directed only at him.
[Become… my vassal.]
‘What? Again with this nonsense—’
[This isn’t just empty talk. In my current state… I can’t defeat him.]
She continued.
[There’s only one way… You must become my vassal… and bind our causality. That way, you’ll be able to stand against him.]
“……”
[I won’t ask for your soul. Just a vow—swear to become my vassal. That alone will be enough.]
Christian furrowed his brow.
He couldn’t tell if she was really doing this for his sake—or just using him for her own ends.
‘No… that can’t be it. That eye monster and Mefina—they’re both the same kind of devil in the end.’
He couldn’t afford to forget that.
Even if she pretended to be on his side—what Mefina ultimately wanted was his soul.
Even if she said he didn’t need to offer his soul yet, once he became her vassal, there was no telling what kind of schemes she’d pull afterward.
[I know… you don’t trust me. But… there is no other way. Quickly—swear yourself as my vassal…]
“Shut up.”
[Even in a moment like this… you cling to such reckless stubbornness? Foolish—]
“Not at all.”
Christian answered curtly.
“I don’t need your help. I’ll deal with that eyeball freak myself.”
[What… absurd pride…!]
Mefina raised her voice in frustration.
But Christian was serious.
In the midst of talking with Mefina, an idea had come to him.
‘I don’t necessarily have to fight that eyeball directly.’
He reminded himself again—this place was a dream world.
That kind of transcendent devil could never have descended if this weren’t a dream.
So the answer… lay within the dream itself.
‘That eyeball bastard won’t move easily while Mefina’s still watching him. That gives me enough time to try this.’
Mefina asked sharply:
[What… are you planning to do?]
Christian didn’t answer.
He acted instead.
He spoke aloud, into the air.
“Hey. Can you hear me?”
It wasn’t directed at Mefina or the giant eye.
“I don’t know your name. But I know you’re watching all of this. Will you show yourself for a moment?”
A brief silence passed.
Then—
something unexpected happened.
From within the darkness… a figure emerged.
A young girl with a gentle, unassuming expression—completely out of place in this terrifying world.
It was a face Christian had never seen before.
And yet, he instantly recognized who she was.
Christian looked at her and asked:
“What’s your name?”
“…Patera.”
That’s right.
What Christian had summoned—was Patera’s consciousness, the true owner of this dream.
The girl’s form was what Patera had looked like back when she was still a normal human being.
‘To think someone like that was twisted into such a monstrous form…’
Rage bubbled up again in Christian’s chest as he thought of the vile acts committed by the Mystic Demonic House. He bit his lip hard in frustration.
“No, what I meant to ask… is your real name.”
“…Why do you want to know my name?”
The girl asked, eyes filled with fear.
“Because I want to save you.”
“Save… me?”
“Don’t you want to be free of this nightmare? To finally escape this hell?”
The girl’s eyes widened in shock.
“I… I can really escape…?”
“Yeah.”
“Y-You’re lying…”
“I’m not. You really can. But you have to give me everything.”
“Everything…?”
“Yeah. Your everything—including your soul. Give it all to me. And I’ll pull you out of this hell.”
The girl’s face tightened with wariness.
She was someone who had suffered brutal human experimentation under the Mystic Demonic House.
So she couldn’t possibly be unaware of what it meant—how dangerous it was—to give away everything, including her soul.
But—
Christian’s gaze locked directly with hers.
“Trust me.”
“!!”
“I swear—on my life—I’ll get you out of this nightmare, no matter what.”
Maybe she felt the sincerity in his voice—deep in his heart.
Tears began to fall, drip by drip, from the girl’s eyes.
She reached out her hand toward Christian.
“…I—I’ll give you everything… so please… please… save me…”
Christian took her hand firmly.
“What’s your name?”
“…E-Emily.”
“Right. Emily.”
Christian nodded solemnly.
His eyes lowered, and without him even realizing it, a black crescent moon mark appeared at his temple.
The same symbol that had been engraved onto his soul when he once ascended to the rank of Half-Demon.
And then, a voice—deep and resonant, one that stirred the soul—flowed from his lips.
“I, Christian, accept all that you are—and in return, I shall grant your wish.”
And in that moment—a miracle happened.
The darkness that had engulfed everything since the descent of the Eye began to rip apart.
A single beam of light pierced through.
And from there, the light rapidly spread, as if driving the darkness away—revealing once again the snowy mountain landscape that had once been the original backdrop.
[W-What…?]
[H-How is this… possible?!]
Both the Eye and Mefina voiced their shock.
But this was more than just the scenery changing.
Christian had seized control of the dreamworld from the devils!
‘Since the true owner of the dream gave me her everything… it’s only natural this dream now belongs to me.’
Christian smirked.
He looked at the Eye—and at Mefina—two devils of terrifying rank.
And declared, without fear:
“Get the hell out of my vassal’s dream, you disgusting worms.”
[!!]
And with that declaration—something astonishing began to happen.
The world warped and twisted—then began to forcibly expel the Eye and Mefina, the two devils.
[Y-You bastard…!!]
The Eye let out a furious roar—but it was useless.
This dream now belonged entirely to Christian.
An overwhelming force manifested and erased the Eye as if wiping it away with a rubber—leaving not a single trace behind.
It was a sight too surreal to believe.
“Now it’s your turn.”
Christian turned to Mefina.
[You…]
But Mefina reacted differently from the Eye.
[…You really… always go beyond anything I expect.]
There was no anger in her tone—only something like admiration.
But Christian remained impassive.
He didn’t care for a devil’s compliments.
‘In the end, she just wants my soul.’
Mefina looked like she was about to say something more—but Christian cut her off coldly.
“I don’t want to hear it. Shut up and get lost.”
And just like that, Mefina vanished without a trace as well.
Silence fell over the world.
“Hoo…”
Christian exhaled deeply.
He had barely managed to make it through the crisis.
Finally, it was really over.
‘No… not quite yet.’
He turned his gaze.
There stood Patera—Emily.
“…Can you really… save me?”
Emily asked, her voice trembling.
“Yeah. With my power, I can lift all the bindings carved into your soul.”
“Ah…!!”
The spells binding Emily’s soul were cast by none other than the Mystic Demonic House. Under normal circumstances, even for Christian, it would have been nearly impossible.
But now, Emily had entrusted everything to him.
It was more than possible.
However, there was one issue.
“…You do know what’s going to happen to you, right?”
Emily paused.
Then, slowly, she nodded.
“…Yes. I’ll die, won’t I?”
Her body had already been ruined beyond repair.
In truth, calling it ‘alive’ at all was a stretch.
Once the Mystic Demonic House’s sorcery was lifted—death would come swiftly.
But the girl spoke with calm resolve.
“…Even if I lived, I’d just suffer more under those devils. I… I just want peace now.”
Tears streamed quietly down from her eyes.
Christian let out a quiet sigh.
“…Yeah. Do you have anything you wish for, before the end?”
“…A wish?”
“Yes. If there’s something you want—I’ll give you a parting gift.”
The girl hesitated, then spoke softly, her words faltering.
“…I want to see my parents… one last time.”
It was an impossible request.
After skimming through her memories, Christian already knew—her parents had been killed by the Mystic Demonic House.
Even so, he gave a silent nod.
“I’ll grant your wish.”
Fwoosh—
His hand darkened with shadow.
“Even if just for a moment… may it bring comfort to your soul.”
And then—an illusion bloomed in the girl’s eyes.
A vision Christian poured all his power and talent into, constructed with painstaking care.
So vivid it couldn’t be told apart from reality.
Snow fluttered down gently.
Smoke curled up from a chimney.
A tear rolled down the girl’s cheek.
She saw them—her long-lost family.
They held her tightly.
Warmly, tenderly.
Christian watched in silence as the girl reunited with her family, even if only within a dreamlike illusion.
His expression twisted with bitterness.
‘Damn those bastards from the Mystic Demonic House.’