Chapter 401
[Gasp, gurgle.]
The Pope let out a groan as if he could not believe it.
[H-how can this be…?]
He raised a trembling hand, but that was his last.
The evil energy of Gehenna leaked from his split body and swallowed the Pope as it was.
[Guaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!]
Hwarereureureuk.
The leaked evil energy turned into the karma flame of hell and burned the Pope’s body.
It was the end of a devil contractor.
What was more gruesome was the reaction of the great devils who had been manifested.
They were enjoying it.
The Pope had clearly been their faithful slave, but they did not care and were enjoying the Pope’s suffering.
‘Even after falling into Gehenna, he will suffer a gruesome eternity of pain. What foolish devil worshippers.’
Chris clicked his tongue.
‘…In any case, is this the end of it?’
For some reason, he had an ominous feeling.
As if this was not the end.
The great devils, who still had not returned to Gehenna, were proof of that.
‘Why aren’t they returning?’
Chris furrowed his brows deeply.
Normally, the moment the summoner, the Pope, was extinguished, those great devils should have disappeared as well.
But they were still looking down on the surface with their gruesome eyes.
As if they were waiting for something.
Before long, an unexpected event occurred.
Paaaat.
The sky split apart, and a sacred mist began to spread.
‘…A nebula of the Celestial Realm?’
Chris wore a bewildered expression.
It was the encroachment phenomenon of the Celestial Realm.
Why, all of a sudden?
Within the sublime mist, brilliant stars flashed.
They were the giant stars, beings of a status equivalent to the great devils.
What was even more bizarre was that the great devils were still in a state of manifestation.
For the giant stars of the Celestial Realm and the great devils to gather in one place?
-All conditions have been met.
Was it a giant star, or was it a great devil?
A grand spiritual voice that crushed both body and soul echoed.
-The sacrifice, which has continued from the previous cycle, has been completed, so the time has come.
“!!”
Chris flinched.
The gazes of all the giant stars and great devils were directed at him.
‘What does that mean? A sacrifice that has continued from the previous cycle?’
He intuitively noticed that the previous cycle was referring to his previous life.
“What are you talking about?”
A voice that only Chris could hear echoed.
-It means you are a prepared sacrifice. From the previous cycle. The reason you were made to regress was all for this.
Chris wore a dumbfounded expression.
‘Don’t be ridiculous.’
The boundaries of the three realms had not crumbled.
In any case, even if they were giant stars and great devils, they could not easily harm him.
It was the moment he was about to let out a snort and give them the finger.
His complexion hardened to a deathly white.
He did not move. Not even a finger.
This time, he tried to draw up his energy, but it was the same.
‘…Why?’
It was not that he had been caught in a trick.
He just could not move.
Without knowing any reason why.
-It is useless. The reason you were chosen as a sacrifice was not just from the previous cycle, but from the distant past, when the Star Blood settled in Arhen.
Arhen.
It was the royal family of the Theocracy, Chris’s family in his previous life.
A family of the Star Blood, where the blood of the constellations was passed down, and thanks to that, Chris and Olivia could use a part of the constellations’ authority.
-Have you never thought that your own existence was unnatural?
“…What kind of nonsense are you spouting?”
Though he growled in retort, he had a hunch.
He was excessively talented. Too talented to be considered human.
—The reason we Great Stars shared the Holy Blood with humanity was to bring about the birth of a being who, by reacting to it, would transcend human potential. The probability was slim, but after countless eons, you were finally born.
!!
—We have waited for you for a very long time. For you, the perfect sacrifice.
Chris’s fingertips trembled.
“...Then what about the Demon King of Bloodshed from my past life?”
—The Demon King of Bloodshed was merely a trial for your growth. But in the previous cycle, contrary to our expectations, you failed to become perfect.
“...Then my regression?”
—Yes. It was to make you a perfect sacrifice.
Only then did Chris grasp the full picture.
The chaos in the world, both in his past life and this one, was all a scheme to awaken him.
It was a grand conspiracy involving the Celestial Realm, Gehenna, and even the Demon Emperor.
“...What is your purpose? Ascension?”
—Yes, I suppose I can tell you now. We will open a new world and ascend to the truly great planes: the 1st and 2nd Realms.
The 1st and 2nd Realms.
Beings tantamount to the world itself.
—Now that you have been reborn as a complete sacrifice, all preparations for the world's ruin are finished.
Paaaaaaaaat.
The sky split open, revealing the vistas of the Celestial Realm and Gehenna beyond.
Horrific evil and light merged into one, then shone down upon Chris.
They intended to make him a sacrifice.
‘Damn it! I won’t let them take me!!’
He tried to break free, but it was impossible.
—Your fate as a sacrifice was sealed the moment you were born. You cannot defy it.
It was just as they said.
A desperate situation.
—Resign yourself to your fate.
His consciousness began to fade helplessly.
In the distance, he could faintly hear Nordian, Idrinne, and the others calling his name, but even that soon grew distant.
‘...Is this... the end? Don't make me laugh!’
His eyes shot open.
‘What preordained fate? To hell with that!’
They claimed to have perfected Chris, yet they had overlooked what kind of monster he truly was.
‘I never agreed to become a sacrifice in the first place. No matter how it was engraved in my blood, a contract like this is null and void.’
As long as they were not beings of the 1st and 2nd Realms, they could not be free from the law of causality.
There had to be a loophole in the contract’s flaw that he could exploit.
‘A contract engraved in the Holy Blood since my birth. But the justification is lacking. I, the party concerned, never consented.’
The Great Stars and Great Devils were using their power to forcibly impose the lacking justification.
‘Damn it, but I lack the power to overturn this contract.’
The justification was on his side. Therefore, the world's law of causality would also be on his side.
The problem was that their power was far too overwhelming.
Now a 9-Star (mid), he could barely muster the power of a 9-Star (high), but compared to those Great Devils and Great Stars, he was nothing more than a worthless insect.
‘Overcoming this with power is impossible. Unless I can find something else to weaken the justification of this contract.’
Just then, a low voice was heard.
—*I... will help you. Offer me your soul.*
It was Mefina!
‘...You, even in a situation like this?’
—*No... it is not... because of my greed. Offer me your soul, and with that justification... I will nullify... the contract engraved... in your bloodline.*
Mefina urged him on, a sense of urgency in her voice.
—*Hurry... there is no time. This is not the time... to be stubborn.*
Chris fell silent.
‘Damn it. What do I do?’
He could not trust Mefina.
But right now, there was no other way.
‘Why are you trying to make me your kin?’
—*Because you... are the only... hope to stop the world's ruin.*
‘Enough with the vague talk. What is it you truly desire?’
Mefina was silent for a moment.
—*To escape from this place of exile, the 7th Realm, and reclaim my original... station in the 3rd Realm.*
‘...In that place, the 7th Realm, are there many other great devils in the same situation as you?’
—*There are... not a few. Even Great Stars from the Celestial Realm. They all opposed this plan for the world's ruin... and fell, caught in the schemes of those vile bastards.*
‘Can’t you all just pool your strength to stop the plan for the world’s ruin?’
Chris asked about something that had puzzled him. As he had learned from the case of the 4th-realm being, the ‘One Who Swallows the Light’, whom he had conned, there was a surprising number of great beings who opposed the ruin.
—*Our power... is sealed, so we cannot act.*
‘Is there no way to unseal it?’
—*Not right now. In the future... if you... were to reach 10-Star... it might be possible.*
Chris fell silent. An idea was forming.
‘If I use this information well, I might be able to stop the Celestial Realm and Gehenna.’
But that was a distant prospect. Right now, he had to overcome the immediate crisis of death.
—*Hurry... Offer me your soul. There is... no time!*
It was the moment Chris grit his teeth, about to make his choice.
An unexpected voice was heard.
“Wait. Stop.”
A distant.
And yet, an unforgettable voice.
“I will bear this contract in your place.”
Chris’s eyes widened as if they would tear.
“...Lena?”
When had she appeared?
It was the Dark Chatterbox!
Lena looked at him with misty eyes.
“...It’s been a while. Hehe, have you been well?”
The same voice and way of speaking as in his past life.
He wanted to grab her hand right away, but Chris was currently bound and could not move an inch.
“Lena, how are you here?”
“There’s no time for a long story. I will take on the debt of your unjust contract.”
“...What?”
“Because this is the reason I returned from my past life.”
Lena gave a faint smile.
“You remember my past life, don't you? As the price for using the art of demonization, I fell to Gehenna, and there I learned of your fate. Later, I happened to meet the Magus Chancellor who had come to Gehenna, and I asked him to make a contract so that I could take on the unjust fate you carried. Since it was an unjust contract from the start, it was possible to intervene using the Magus Chancellor’s authority.”
Finally, Lena’s story was revealed.
But it was a story he could never accept.
“What?! I’ll never accept this!”
Lena was saying she would become a sacrifice in Chris’s place.
She would be annihilated, an eternal and irreversible extinction.
“I’m sorry, but all the arrangements are already finished. Not even you can stop it.”
Lena’s hand touched Chris’s face.
“It's such a... shame. I wanted to chat all night like we did in our past life. Still, it was good... to see you again. I’ve missed you so much.”
“Lena!! Stop!!!”
But Lena turned her back to him.
“I have one last thing to warn you about. Be careful of the Magus Chancellor. The true mastermind behind all of this isn’t Gehenna, the Celestial Realm, or the Demon Emperor. It’s the Magus Chancellor.”
A story heavy with meaning.
But there was no time to leisurely ponder it.
Paaaat!!
A light burst forth from Lena’s body.
At the same time, Chris felt his body being released from its bindings.
The contract engraved in his bloodline was weakening.
In return, the backlash was being directed entirely at Lena.
“Gahk!!”
Lena suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.
“No!”
Chris caught Lena’s body.
Her body was growing cold.
She would soon be annihilated, soul and all.
‘I won’t let you die! Never!’
But there was absolutely nothing he could do.
Chris’s eyes became bloodshot.
‘Damn it, those bastards from the Celestial Realm and Gehenna. I will never forgive you.’
It was then.
An idea flashed in his mind.
A way to save Lena and also bring down those damned bastards from the Celestial Realm and Gehenna.
It was an impossibly reckless gamble, but that did not matter.
‘Mefina, let's make a deal.’
—*...A deal?*
‘Don't get the wrong idea. I'm not saying I'll become your kin. This is strictly a deal.’
—*...Speak… your mind.*
‘With your authority, stop Lena's annihilation.’
—*That… I cannot do. My power alone is not enough.*
‘I have a way.’
Chris said something completely unexpected.