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Chapter 68
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Books related to Aurora were extremely common.
They were placed in every library within the Empire.
After a thousand years, they had now become fairy tales that only children might read.
Because of this, Daehyeop Kim frequently encountered tales of Aurora’s heroics while traveling across the Empire.
Initially, it was nothing more than simple curiosity.
Why does the player start in the Hall of Heroes?
What kind of place is the Hall of Heroes, and
why is there a statue of Aurora there?
These small questions gradually captured Daehyeop Kim’s interest.
…Of course, the influence of Director Aurora in reality played some role as well.
Regardless, Daehyeop Kim came to understand, more or less, who Aurora was.
She was someone quite similar to the players.
Just as players followed the main story,
Aurora also seemed to be a person bound by the purpose of saving the world from the Object of Destruction.
Wasn’t that why Fowler, who had contracted with the Corrupted Spirit King, referred to players as “outsiders walking the Hero’s Path”?
At first glance, Akare appeared to be a highly realistic and open-ended game.
But to progress through the story, players were forced to choose from predetermined options.
Moreover, there were areas that players could not even enter without advancing certain main storylines.
Above all, Aurora and the players shared a common goal: to protect the world from the Object of Destruction.
In other words, could Aurora have been a player of the past?
Of course, this was nothing more than Daehyeop Kim’s speculation.
If Aurora were to hear such thoughts, she would likely respond with something like, “What kind of nonsense is that?”
Nevertheless, through this process, Daehyeop Kim became a fan of Aurora.
Not Director Aurora, but the hero who saved the world—Aurora.
And then, he ended up meeting her for real.
The hero who saved the world a thousand years ago—Aurora.
“Is there something on my face?”
Had he been staring too intently at her face?
Daehyeop Kim quickly adjusted his gaze.
“I never imagined I’d meet you in person…”
“You know who I am, then.”
Snap!
Aurora snapped her fingers.
At that moment, the surrounding scenery changed.
Like applying paint to a blank canvas,
a void space soon transformed into a vibrant garden.
“Shall we take a walk?”
Though Aurora asked for his consent,
contrary to her question, her feet were already moving.
If you were going to do that, why even ask?
Barely managing to suppress his inner thoughts,
Daehyeop Kim hastily moved to walk beside her.
“You must have many questions—where this place is… what happened to the Twisted World Tree… and how someone like me, who isn’t an immortal being, can still exist a thousand years later…”
“I have been waiting for you. Or more precisely, I’ve been waiting for future generations to reach this point.”
“You’re making that ‘why?’ face again. Oh, it’s not some mind-reading magic or anything like that. I’m not in a good enough state to use such impressive magic.”
“Distortion and corruption. The calamity that was once dormant, only to awaken again over the long passage of time.”
“In the past, I acknowledged my own shortcomings and entrusted this calamity to future generations.”
“Pathetic, isn’t it? That someone once called a hero would pass on their responsibility.”
“My mission is to give hope to those who will one day reach this place.”
“Ah, time has flown by already.”
“Let’s get to the point. I don’t have much time left.”
As Aurora finished speaking, a holographic window appeared.
[Main Story – Defying the Eternity of Time]
―――
[ Questions ]
- “What do you mean by not much time left?”
- “Where is this place?”
- “What are distortion and corruption?”
- “Do you know about the Hall of Heroes?”
- “Hope?”
―――
In the past, the choices never exceeded two or three at most.
But now, there were five choices in total.
Momentarily stunned by this, Daehyeop Kim quickly regained his composure and made a selection.
[Main Story – Question 1]
“What do you mean by not much time left?”
“It means exactly what it says.”
After a brief pause, Aurora continued her explanation in a low voice.
“Memory Illusion—a spell that creates an illusion by sharing part of the caster’s memories. The trigger for activation is the complete neutralization of the Twisted World Tree.”
Aurora’s gaze shifted toward a black rose in the flower bed.
“The spell has already been cast. That’s why I don’t have much time left.”
As the illusion of Aurora answered, another holographic window appeared.
Should he proceed in order or try a different question first?
After some thought, Daehyeop Kim decided to proceed in order.
[Main Story – Question 2]
“Where is this place?”
“This is a subspace completely independent of reality. This subspace is maintained by mana stones left behind by Aurora. I, this illusion, am also being sustained by them.”
[Main Story – Question 3]
“What are distortion and corruption?”
“They are emotions, embodying the potential to destroy the world. They are closely tied to the origins of the Object of Destruction. That’s about all I know.”
The illusion of Aurora avoided Daehyeop Kim’s blunt gaze.
“No matter how great a hero or grand mage my true self may be, she doesn’t know everything about the world.”
Her confidence left Daehyeop Kim momentarily speechless, but he continued with the next question.
[Main Story – Question 4]
“Do you know about the Hall of Heroes?”
“The Hall of Heroes… that place is…”
Bzzzzt—!
Static disrupted the illusion of Aurora.
At the same time, everything around them accelerated.
The flowers in the flowerbed withered rapidly.
The sky shifted like a flowing river.
The sun, which had been moving slowly, set in an instant.
Dusk. Then the night sky.
Only when the moon rose did the acceleration of the world halt.
Within the landscape of sunset and twilight,
the illusion of Aurora, now clear of static,
was silently gazing at Daehyeop Kim.
“You don’t look well. Did you recall a bad memory?”
“Pardon?”
The illusion of Aurora didn’t seem to have any idea what had just happened to her.
―――
[Question]
- “Hope?”
―――
A holographic window appeared.
This signified that the questions were over.
With a blank expression, Daehyeop Kim alternated his gaze between the choices and Aurora’s illusion before selecting the final remaining option.
[Main Story – Question 5]
“Take this.”
The illusion of Aurora handed over three scrolls.
A scroll engraved with a tree emblem.
A scroll engraved with a water droplet emblem.
A scroll engraved with a mage emblem.
“The scroll with the tree emblem contains magic to separate distortion from the World Tree.”
The scroll with the water droplet emblem was the same.
It contained magic that could extract corruption from the Spirit King.
“Even though I developed these magic scrolls a thousand years ago, I still failed to save Elderheim and the Spirit Realm.”
Distortion and Corruption.
These concepts, which serve as the origins of the Object of Destruction, were practically immortal.
As long as sentient beings exist, the concepts of distortion and corruption would inevitably coexist.
Was there no solution?
The Aurora of the past had longed for a solution to this dilemma over many years.
Eventually, she came up with a single gamble.
“A subspace is independent from reality…”
When mana is depleted, the subspace vanishes.
But what if distortion were contained in a vanishing subspace?
The illusion of Aurora gestured toward the scroll with the mage emblem.
“The effect of that scroll is to open a passage to this place.”
The subspace—it was a realm that would soon cease to exist.
“I don’t know what form distortion, separated from the World Tree, will take… but it’s a highly probable solution.”
By erasing distortion along with the mana-depleted subspace,
this was the hope that Aurora had left for future generations.
It was the only way to save the World Tree.
“The Spirit King can also be dealt with in a similar manner.”
The Spirit Realm.
The Spirit King’s true body was always present in the Spirit Realm.
Without him, the Spirit Realm couldn’t endure for even a moment and would collapse.
Thus, the Spirit King’s true body had to remain in the Spirit Realm.
“You can use that to your advantage.”
The Spirit King’s departure from the Spirit Realm depended largely on his will.
First, use the scroll to separate corruption from the Spirit King.
Then, if you succeed in persuading the Spirit King with the help of Celestia,
even corruption itself could be completely erased from this world.
“It’s time to say goodbye now.”
“…”
The illusion of Aurora snapped her fingers.
The space next to Daehyeop Kim distorted,
and soon a portal formed in its place.
“Are you feeling regretful? To be honest, so am I. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a conversation with someone.”
But perhaps it’s inevitable.
With those parting words, Daehyeop Kim lowered his head.
“May hope blossom in your world.”
With those final words, Daehyeop Kim left the subspace.
The spot where the player had left.
Standing in the empty space, Aurora’s illusion approached the flower bed.
Amidst the withered flowers, there was one that remained unscathed.
A daffodil.
Gently touching the petals of the daffodil, the illusion of Aurora
sat down and gazed at the disappearing sunset on the horizon.
****
[Main Story – Proof]
Jasper, the Knight Captain of the Blackmane Knights.
Because of his unilateral decision, the player and Raven were given an opportunity.
Raven, the vessel of the God of Destruction.
Whether she would become a being beneficial to humanity,
or the Object of Destruction that needed to be cut down before it fully sprouted.
“…Raven?”
Having returned to reality, Daehyeop Kim called out a familiar name.
Raven. She was standing next to him.
“Are you back to your senses?”
“Ah, I’ve returned.”
Though there were still countless questions left unanswered,
Daehyeop Kim immediately sprang into action.
The main story, which had been stagnant for a while, was finally progressing again.
The fact that the main story was beginning anew.
And the presence of Raven at this moment made perfect sense.
“Raven.”
“Yes.”
“Be prepared. Something’s about to happen.”
Daehyeop Kim tore one of the scrolls in his possession.
This caused the Twisted World Tree, which had been neutralized by contact with Celestia, to stir once more.
-!!!
An unidentifiable monstrous cry.
With that cry, distortion was separated from the Twisted World Tree.
A massive slime-like creature that constantly changed form.
That was the root cause of all these events.
Daehyeop Kim tore another scroll in succession.
A portal connected to the subspace was created.
But it wasn’t large enough to swallow the enormous entity.
“I need to shrink it down.”
How? There was no time to think.
Before the collapsing subspace vanished completely,
he had to deal with distortion—the rampaging monster—immediately.
Using all his strength, Daehyeop Kim launched an attack at the distortion.
“Is that the Object of Destruction…?”
Meanwhile, Raven, watching the scene unfold, trembled.
As the vessel meant to contain the God of Destruction,
her uncontrollable body stoked her desire.
To devour the distortion before her.
Not long after, Raven’s eyes turned red,
and her long blonde hair shifted to silver.
Having transformed into a witch, Raven followed behind Daehyeop Kim toward the distortion.
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