The abyss stretched endlessly around me, black, yet scattered with faint celestial glimmers. The only light rises from the glass-like ground beneath me. Cold and translucent.
In here, I had no body, only my voice, my thoughts, and the weight of her presence.
[ I knew where I was. ]
[ I just did not expect her to show herself this quickly. ]
UNKNOWN VOICE. I'm impressed. You manage to survive two near-death encounters. Tell me—how did you manage it?
"Surely you didn't bring me here just to ask me such stupid questions."
Inside, my thoughts coil like smoke. I survived Jia Wei because of my 'Fate'. I knew if my old self survived his skill, then my current could as well. I am partially immortal now, thanks to [ The Phoenix's Requiem ].
A smirk tugs at me. While the morticians escorted my charred corpse, I discovered something new. I tested it with Hashur to be certain. The skill [ The Phoenix's Requiem ] has a subskill, and it transferred with me. Nothing can kill me now.
Stopping the fourth has never been easier. All I need is Anny—her growth will bring down the Lords.
UNKNOWN VOICE. It seems your heart speaks louder than your words, Zack.
UNKNOWN VOICE. You do realize I can read your mind as long as you're inside my realm?
Ah… right.
My stomach twists. I forgot about that detail. Well, to her it will be censored.
UNKNOWN VOICE. Censored?
"…That's right."
UNKNOWN VOICE. It looks like you need a refresher. I am outside of Time.
UNKNOWN VOICE. I am ■■■
Her words strike me like a fracture in the glass beneath. It's as if something inside me caves in. My thoughts scatter, my voice shatters. How could she possibly…? Is it because ■■■? But— she still hasn't ■■■—?
UNKNOWN VOICE. Fool.
UNKNOWN VOICE. You're foolish to think the subskill will give you immortality, or does throwing yourself into the fire excites you?
"There's no surprise that the subskill truly benefits my first and my second skills. No one in history has used [ The Phoenix's Requiem ] before. The subskill is something only I know about."
UNKNOWN VOICE. …
"■■■, It makes no sense for you to be able to understand every word I say. Doesn't the universe restrict you?"
She let out a laugh, and the place rattled.
UNKNOWN VOICE. Are you sure you remember everything correctly from your original timeline? I mean— if you did, you wouldn't ask me that.
…
"I guess you're right. I don't remember everything. As the process keeps changing and altering it barely follows what I remember. Everything was going smoothly until we reached
UNKNOWN VOICE. Hmm… Mont-fairy… Are you saying Raily wasn't there? That's strange. I wonder.
"Do you know something?"
UNKNOWN VOICE. Truths have a way of slipping into my ear. Ever since those revelations, I've been… entertained.
"Revelations? From where?"
UNKNOWN VOICE. Shame, knowledge is a mischievous thing.
UNKNOWN VOICE. You, who have reached the 4th 'catastrophe', remain deaf to wisdom.
UNKNOWN VOICE. Maybe the Lords will silence me— or the universe will punish me. I don't care. Stay away from the subskill. It is not yours to hold.
"Stay away from it? It was carved into my wrist the moment I woke up nine years into the past."
She didn't respond to me immediately and for a second I thought she was silenced.
UNKNOWN VOICE. Do you even know the name of the subskill? Has it been revealed to you yet?
"The subskill doesn't have a name. It's a subskill of the original skill. [ The Phoenix's Requiem ] is an SS-card. It can go hand on hand with ■■■."
[ A subskill can be a passive or a similar version of the main skill. Just like how our skills have sub-cards. ]
UNKNOWN VOICE. [ The phoenix's Requiem ] isn't in your hands. Whoever sent you back in time didn't explain the skill to you. The subskill isn't a sub-card, it's a completely different skill than the Phoenix.
"What? Then what happened to [ The Phoenix's Requiem ]?"
UNKNOWN VOICE. It looks like you haven't changed a single bit, my little Zack. That's up to you to do your research.
UNKNOWN VOICE. When the time comes, the name shall be revealed to you.
"Wait—hold on!"
The ground beneath me fractured with a sound like splintering glass.
Shards of light and shadow cascaded downward, and the abyss itself convulsed— sucked inward. Everything curled, folding into a single dark sphere that pulsed once before vanishing behind my eyes, leaving the sensation of falling.
- - -
When I came to, the silence was broken by pain. My skull throbbed with a dull, pounding ache, but it was my wrist that consumed me. The carved mark seared as if molten iron had been pressed into my skin, each pulse of agony sharp enough to make my vision blur.
The pain was so raw, so insistent, that my mind whispered the unthinkable: sever the hand. Cut it off. Anything to silence the burning torment.
Yet I lay there, trembling, caught between consciousness and the unbearable weight of my own body.
⪻────────𖤓────────⪼
[ Bos-San, Norway East ]
[ 5 days ago… ]
The library lay beneath the ground, a private chamber carved in shadow. Two levels of shelves rose around the walls, their spines glimmering faintly under the dim light. At the far end, tall, narrow windows stood behind a desk, curtains drawn across them like veils.
The air carried a quiet enchantment.
Mertha sat at the desk, her feet edged forward as if ready to rise at any moment. Across from her stood Mei, calmer in stance but betraying a nervous tension in the way her hands lingered at her sides.
Mertha leaned forward, her voice breaking against the hush of the library. "I won't allow this, Mei! You're not leaving— I won't allow it. Her hands trembled against the desk.
My gaze lowered, lashes wet, my voice soft. "That's why I came. To tell you myself. I don't want you to hear rumors or twist my reasons. You need to hear it from me, from my heart."
Mertha's breath caught, but I continued on, each word carrying the weight of my confession.
"I know what I'm planning is wrong… selfish, even. But I've been selfish my whole life. And I refuse to go back to living that way if it means abandoning my daughter."
My throat tightened; a tear slid down, unacknowledged.
— You've carried enough guilt from them! Don't add this to it!
Mertha's voice cracked, raw with desperation.
"No, listen." I pressed my hand to my burning chest. "From the moment Anny was born, Edward bound me. The night King Josef died, I became a puppet, a prop to the
Edward wanted Anny dead the night she was born, yet I held her close to my chest, refusing to let them take her. Her warm, fragile body clutched against me as I protected her. Edward and I made a deal—a deal to let Anny live until she turned thirteen. From there, he could kill her.
I realized I had made a huge mistake. I thought that by then I'll try to distance myself, to slowly erase her from my life so it wouldn't pain me when the time came. But at that moment, I couldn't bear to watch Edward kill her.
I obeyed when Edward told me to refrain myself from speaking to her or being in the same room. He said I should pretend, get used to not having Anny. When she turned five, the
Behind closed doors, Victor reported everything to me, updating me on Anny. My heart could not allow me to sleep in peace, knowing the condition she was kept in.
I spent most of life crying myself to sleep, living in pain and misery, regretting every decision I had made. Somewhere deep inside, I think that maybe If I had let Edward kill Anny that night, she wouldn't have suffered. But I know I would never have been able to live, swallowed by guilt."
My throat was sore, aching as I swallowed. Tears wouldn't stop coming down.
Mertha on the other hand rose from her chair, crossing the space with urgency, and seized my hands. Her grip trembled, her eyes wet with fear and sorrow.
— Mei…
— But I will not let it happen again. This time, I will make it right. I will not let Edward touch her.
Mertha stepped in closer, clutching my wrist as if to anchor her. "Then stay. We'll find Anny together. I swear! I—I'll protect you from them, I'll protect your daughter. Please Mei.
I pulled away slightly, my voice rising with resolve. "You know we can't hide forever. That's not the life Anny deserves— locked away, always afraid. She deserves freedom. She deserves to roam around, Mertha. To walk in the sun without fear, without the constant need to run."
"And you think trading your life will give her that?!"
I turned, trying to pull away, but she held me back, tears streaming.
"It's the only way left. Edward will never stop until he kills one of us. He won't stop until he completes the Lord's duty. If my death buys her safety, then so be it."
Mertha's knees buckled, and she sank to the ground, clutching my dress.
"Then I'll beg. I'll fall to my knees if I must. If that's what it takes to keep you here, to keep you alive — I'll do it!
"I've already lost someone dear to me, I can't let them take you as well, I mustn't allow it! I won't allow it! I won't! I'll never let you go Mei!
I gently kick her grip from my dress. "I'm sorry."