Marey Dim.
That is the name of this mirror.
It also has another name, the Mirror Demon.
In the Empire's distant horror tales, there was an ancient noble known as Marey Dim.
As a famously handsome man known far and wide, Marey Dim had always wanted to find a perfect partner, one worthy of him.
But after searching painfully for many, many years, he found nothing.
Until one day, someone sought him out in the corner of a brothel.
"I know you, Marey Dim. I know what you are looking for."
"You only need to look at him once, and you'll understand what it is you truly want."
The man in black pulled down the enormous black curtain behind him, and a huge mirror shimmering with silvery light appeared before Marey Dim.
With just one glance, he fell completely and utterly in love with the mirror.
Or rather, he fell in love with the version of himself inside the mirror.
At that moment, Marey Dim was so overcome with emotion that tears filled his eyes.
He finally understood who it was that he truly loved.
Trembling, he asked the man in black, "How much do you want? I have any amount you ask for, as long as you sell me this mirror!"
"I don't want money. I don't want money…"
After leaving behind those words, the man in black faded into the darkness.
Only the enormous mirror remained, along with Marey Dim, standing there.
Overjoyed, he carried the mirror back to his home.
As he looked at himself in the mirror, Marey Dim felt more and more dazzled.
At night, he lay pressed against the mirror, imagining himself embracing the version of himself inside it, and slowly fell into a deep sleep.
Until one day, after Marey Dim had not been seen at the brothel for several days, the owner personally brought people to break down the door of his house.
However, inside the crude room, all they could see was a strange mirror glinting with cold light, and familiar clothes scattered all over the floor.
No one knew where Marey Dim had gone, and no one knew how this mirror had ended up in his home.
———
In the game, players can uncover the story of the Mirror Demon, that is, Marey Dim.
Viktor still remembered it.
Thinking of the rumors, he began to recall.
The Mirror Demon had always been sealed within the territory of Clavenna.
When players explored Clavenna to their hearts' content, they discovered this mirror in the basement of the estate.
The Mirror Demon was classified as a hostile character. Players could attack it, but they could not kill it.
As long as the mirror could still reflect anything at all, it would not die.
So, after repeated attempts and strategies, the players finally found a solution.
When the light was completely blocked, and nothing could be reflected, the mirror could be destroyed.
In the end, the mirror shattered into experience points that the players could divide among themselves, but, the Marey Dim of legend was also released from the mirror.
But at this very moment, the Mirror Demon looked completely dumbfounded.
It could not imagine that Viktor actually knew its name.
What shocked it even more was the power erupting from Viktor's body.
This enormous mirror fully reflected the natural colossi standing behind Viktor.
Three colors of magic interwove together, like countless fine threads of aura entangling and overlapping.
The colossal beasts towered over the land, their terrifying presence bursting forth from their bodies.
A three-colored ocean poured down, completely drowning all things.
Before them, any living being was no more than an ant, terrifying and awe-inspiring beyond belief.
The Mirror Demon was no exception. It felt itself shrouded in danger, its body trembling slightly.
This was one of the Mirror Demon's abilities.
Within the mirror, it could reflect a person's soul.
By peering into what was hidden deep within that soul, it could glimpse what the person before it had experienced.
But when it looked at Viktor, it was confused.
The person before it seemed as if he had no soul at all.
Or perhaps his soul was wrapped in some bizarre power, making it impossible to spy.
Only a single pupil flickered endlessly beneath the darkness.
Behind him, black wings suddenly spread wide, countless scattered black feathers echoing through the void.
It could not see through Viktor's soul, nor could it see his past experiences.
At that moment, three streams of natural energy transformed into three masses of differently colored mist, coiling around Viktor's body.
A catastrophe-like terror instantly swept over the Mirror Demon's soul, making it shudder uncontrollably.
The Mirror Demon stared blankly at Viktor, doubt rising in its heart.
'Is he… really human?'
The next second, a red light flickered at Viktor's fingertips.
Three magic arrays climbed into place around his fingers at the same time.
Hexagram formations flashed as terrifying magic power turned into thread-like patterns, linking the three arrays together.
Very quickly, waves of scorching heat burst forth from them, dreadful heat waves that seemed capable of burning everything to ash.
The three arrays suddenly expanded, spinning rapidly above Viktor's head.
A red god stretched out a massive bird-like head, struggling its way out of the array, tearing a shrill cry toward the sky.
[Fourth-Tier Magic: Roar of the Evil God]
Viktor raised the staff in his hand toward the lofty deity.
Terrifying heat swept across the space.
Reddish-yellow flames began to erupt from the three arrays. Clumps of fire seemed almost sentient as they slowly descended from the air toward the ground.
Scorching heat burst violently from the earth, transforming into flaming birds that surged up around the mirror.
Their slender tails carried red magma, fully merging with the masses of flame.
Amid the god's piercing roar, several firebirds dragged the fireballs with them and smashed viciously into the ground of space itself.
The surging heat, in the blink of an eye, completely engulfed the mirror.
Red flame energy shot forward like a long spear, stabbing fiercely into the fragile, trembling mirror surface.
Bang!
The mirror was completely unable to withstand such a terrifying attack and shattered into pieces in an instant.
And this time, the surroundings did not fall into emptiness.
As the mirror-like surroundings shattered, the heat and scorching sensation intensified once again.
Viktor raised his head, feeling the temperature around him.
Beneath the sky, smoke and dust carrying red sparks drifted through the air. The mountain beneath his feet was covered in magma, flowing endlessly.
Rocks continuously slid down into the central fissure of the mountain.
Plop! Plop!
Streams of magma burst upward with tremendous force, soaring dozens of meters into the air.
The scorching mountain seemed capable of melting any living being, and the heavy air oppressed everyone's hearts.
"I told you."
"You can't kill me!!!"
Along with a wild, arrogant voice, a blazing storm suddenly whipped up out of thin air.
The magma beneath the flames seemed to boil, trembling violently.
The next second, a colossal, sky-blocking figure rose from the center of the volcano.
From its crimson hardened shell, terrifying magma dripped continuously.
Scalding heat burst forth as Guldon emerged from the volcano, letting out a dreadful roar toward the sky.
Viktor surveyed his surroundings.
This was Mount Vesuvius, a place he knew well.
This was the Mirror Demon's second ability.
Through the mirror, the Mirror Demon could reflect Viktor's power and copy it.
And now, the surrounding volcanic magma and scorching heat waves were all created by the Mirror Demon copying the power of calamity.
At this moment, Marey Dim laughed loudly, his two purple eyes suddenly widening.
"Do you feel it? This power that comes from you!"
"I am the same as you!"
Viktor quietly looked at the Guldon that had been conjured up, a faint smile appearing on his face.
Red energy covered it completely, turning it into clusters of pure energy crystals.
Unfortunately, in his eyes... this fake was nowhere near as oppressive as the real thing.
Viktor's disdainful voice followed, "Have you ever thought about how this power of mine came to be?"
Hearing this, the Mirror Demon suddenly froze.
It could not see through Viktor's soul, nor could it know his experiences, and naturally had no idea where this terrifying power truly came from.
Even merely copying Viktor's power made the Mirror Demon feel an unparalleled sense of intimidation and strength.
But…
Viktor's relaxed demeanor made it hesitate… and feel fear.
Viktor slowly raised Ulrust in his hand.
At the top of the scepter, red natural energy gathered, like streams flowing into the sea, continuously surging toward Viktor.
The next second, Viktor slowly spoke, "Watch carefully."
"Let me teach you how this power should be used."
As his words fell, dazzling red light erupted instantly from the center of the magic formation.
Violent heat turned into a ferocious beast, swallowing everything whole.
The entire land began to tremble as a massive pillar of flame and magma mixed together blasted through the world's shell, as if it were about to devour the gloomy sky itself.
The ground peeled upward in layers, and the flames roasted the air until it turned into smoke and dust.
One after another, colossal magma pillars surged forth, each one terrifying beyond measure.
[Flame Severance: Wrath]
Those flames completely engulfed "Guldon's" body. Between heaven and earth, only a single color remained, red.
"Guldon" stared with eyes wide open.
In its vision, there was nothing left but that dazzling, overwhelming crimson, enclosing it from all sides.
Within the red light, Viktor's voice echoed calmly,
"I'm very curious."
"Why does no one like using their strongest skill right at the start?"
As his words fell, white light shone out from within the magma, submerging all things.
Sound was torn apart as well, and the world fell into boundless silence…
———
Liya slowly opened her eyes, sensing the vague whiteness fade from before her eyes.
Her vision was a little blurry. She tried hard to sit up in bed, but only felt a wave of dizziness surge through her head.
'What is going on?'
She remembered that she seemed to have gone to the mine.
Because the workers at home had dug up a mirror.
Liya raised her head and looked at the tall mirror beside her.
She… seemed to have fainted?
That mirror had to be some kind of magical artifact.
Thinking this, Liya dragged her body and struggled to sit up from the bed.
The next second, a wave of weakness swept through her entire body.
Her head hurt. It hurt terribly.
It felt as if a sharp, tearing pain was constantly echoing inside her brain, like someone was violently stirring it.
Then, a maid carrying a basin of water walked in.
The moment she saw Liya awake, she hurriedly set the basin aside.
"Madam! You're finally awake!"
Liya immediately felt confused.
"Madam?"
A strange thought began to form in her mind.
Oh right, she seemed to be the head of the Clavenna family.
Liya felt a sudden, inexplicable sadness.
At some point, she had become the only person left in the family who still bore the name "Clavenna."
And so, she held the first right of inheritance to Clavenna.
After her father's death, Liya naturally became the lady lord of the Clavenna territory.
But… something felt off.
There was always an inexplicable tearing sensation filling her mind.
Liya shook her head, then looked at the maid.
"While I was unconscious these past few days, did anything happen?"
At that moment, a black crow by the window fluttered its wings and flew away from the estate window.
Only a pitch-black feather was left behind, a sign that it had once been there.
———
At this point, Liya was fully dressed.
She wore a black trench coat and appeared in the backyard of the Clavenna territory.
The reason Liya wore such a strange trench coat was because she inexplicably felt that, as the family head, she had to have a coat like this.
Even though it was honestly quite hot to wear.
Beside her followed a small, white-furred catgirl.
Vanilla, Liya remembered her name.
She was a demi-human carefully cultivated by the head of the Clavenna family. Even her name had been chosen by the family head.
'Huh, that's strange.'
Why did she refer to herself as "the head of the Clavenna family"?
Liya couldn't figure it out.
But during the time she had been unconscious, all of the family's business affairs had been handled by Vanilla.
Everything had been managed in perfect order.
Standing beside her, Vanilla reported methodically, "Family head, preparations are almost complete."
"The elves have sent word. It won't be long before they arrive."
The elves would emerge one after another from the divine tree in the backyard of the estate.
Liya raised her head and looked at the massive divine tree before her.
She didn't know where this tree had come from.
In her memory, there had never been such a tree in the backyard.
It was as if it had appeared out of thin air in just the past few days.
Green luminescence slowly lit up in the air, and the branches of the divine tree began to sway.
Before the divine tree, a spatial rift gradually stretched open.
A massive teleportation passage appeared before Liya.
Waves of powerful natural aura rushed toward her.
Liya knew that the elves were about to emerge from within.
But at that moment, her body suddenly staggered.
It was as if something had bumped into her from behind.
She lost her balance and almost fell.
Liya steadied herself, then raised her head and looked behind her.
There was a girl wearing a loose, black robe.
Unlike Liya, she had truly been knocked to the ground.
Liya recognized her and said in surprise, "Henny? What's wrong with you?"
Hearing Liya's voice, Henny's body trembled violently.
As if coming back to her senses, she raised her head. A glimmer of tears shimmered at the corners of her eyes, and her large eyes turned watery.
Just looking at her made one's heart ache with regret.
She made no extra movements and didn't even cry out loud. She simply looked up at Liya in a daze and said,
"I think I… lost something important."
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