Chapter 417
Rumble!
The Reversed World created by Dawn was, as its name suggested, a space that perfectly inverted reality. That shadowy reflection of the real world was clearer than an illusion created from dream mana, but fainter than an entirely separate void space.
And now, that distorted world—designed to eliminate the weaknesses of both the void space and dream space while maximizing their strengths—was emerging into the world from above.
“This... this is...”
“What in the world...?”
It was as if the museum ceiling had turned into a mirror. Looking up, men from the Demon Force were so mesmerized by the feeling that space had doubled in size in the blink of an eye that they momentarily forgot about their purpose.
As they stared, they noticed something bizarre. There was another version of themselves staring down at them from above.
Why am I up there...?
They were clearly still standing on the floor, yet their identical selves were up on the ceiling. Perhaps the ceiling had actually become a mirror? But if that were the case, why did the space above feel so vividly real?
Is the world I’m standing on the real one...? No, was I up there the entire time?
Something feels... off.
As they started at the Reversed World, their gazes gradually grew hazy. Then, one by one, their bodies melted into shadowy puddles that pooled on the floor.
“A-Ahh...”
“Ugh... urk...”
Not a single scream or cry of pain could be heard. There was just the sound of lifeless bodies dissolving into nothingness. Watching the spectacle unfold, the Seeker clicked her tongue and formed a different mudra.
“Even though they were sent asdisposable pawns, they couldn’t even withstand direct exposure to the Reversed World? Tsk. How weak.”
She thought that if it had been a certain ruthless bastard, he wouldn’t have been ensnared by such weak interference. Rather, he would have denied the Reversed World’s very existence altogether and shattered it instantly.
Thinking about it, that would’ve been fun to watch. What a shame.
She briefly regretted stepping in, but there was no use dwelling on the past.
Cleaning up her lingering thoughts with a sweep, the Seeker gazed up at the Reversed World that had swallowed everyone around her.
“Now then. Let’s see... the controls should be...”
Clink-
Scarlet-colored mana threads stretched from the Seeker’s body, wrapping around unseen runes and gradually invading their structure. She then tried to dive deeper to seize control of the Reversed World—
BOOM!
The museum walls exploded with a deafening crash. The Seeker turned her head, wondering if the main force had finally arrived, but all she saw were dark red fruits the size of human heads flying in through the hole.
“Wait, those are...!”
CRACK!
Before she could finish her sentence, the fruits crashed into the museum floor and burst open, releasing black vines in every direction.
A parasitic plant that absorbed mana and emitted demonic aura—a monster engineered by Exuviation for environmental erosion—took over the museum. Simultaneously, the Reversed World above began changing.
Rumble-
Like a perfect reflection, the parasitic plants grew in the Reversed World as well. Like below, the copied monstrosity spread its roots into the mirrored dimension, growing at a terrifying speed.
“Oh...?”
The Seeker looked up, intrigued. Unlike in the real world, where the plants had only just begun taking root, they had already spread across every corner of the Reverse World. Just from that, whoever had created the creature had clearly designed it to target the Reversed World specifically.
Whoever did this... they did a fine job. The Seeker smirked.
Judging by how meticulously engineered the parasitic plants seemed to be, perhaps it was done by someone who had been waiting for the opportunity to take down Dawn for a long time.
She leisurely observed, and in the meantime, figures were emerging one by one from beyond the broken wall.
Thud!
First was the combat force enhanced by Offering, where weapons were fused with their bodies. Then came in the artificially engineered Named Monsters of Exuviation. And lastly, bringing up the rear, were the altered soldiers of Transcendence that had only parts of their bodies mutated.
Each equipped with the different technologies of its respective faction, they made up the Watcher’s assault force together.
Yet, the Seeker watched them with amusement.
Hmm... They don’t look too weak.
Instead of blindly charging in, they cautiously spread out, obviously trying to contain her rather than eliminate. The Seeker was enjoying the sight, when suddenly, she sensed strange movements from above.
Slither-
From the vines in the Reversed World, a black liquid was seeping out, spreading like slime as it searched for something. She observed the phenomenon unfold, and not long later, the Seeker figured out the Demon Force’s objective.
So they want me to make the decision?
If she stayed put, they would locate Vessel first and retreat. But if she made any reckless moves, the hiding Ten Evil would strike from the shadows. It was a textbook strategy—yet one difficult to counter.
Still calm though, the Seeker just silently observed.
“...Heh.”
A sinister chuckle escaped her lips; she had finished forming her mudra.
CLAP!
Clapping her hands together, a shockwave rippled outward. The soldiers of the Demon Force tensed, immediately bracing for an attack. However, what happened next was far from what they expected.
Tap-
“...?’
The first to notice something was amiss were those from Offering. For some reason, the weapons fused into their bodies—extensions of their very being after months of surgical procedures—suddenly felt foreign. A chilling yet familiar sensation coursed through them, allowing them to realize what had happened.
“W-Wait... Our weapons are...?!”
“This can’t be!”
And while they were still reeling in shock...
Crack! Splurt!
“AGHHH!!”
“My body!”
Exuviation’s Named Monsters let out screams as their bodies twisted and expanded grotesquely, vomiting blood as they collapsed. The organs and limbs they had assimilated over time were suddenly going berserk.
Bubble- Bubble-
“Gah!”
“Neutralizer...! Somebody get me a neutralizer...!”
Similarly, those from Transcendence were writhing in agony as their demonic aura-tainted bodies began devouring themselves.
“...”
The ones from Offering started in stunned silence at the pandemonium created by the Seeker’s single clap. And when they finally grasped what had transpired, they let out a collective gasp.
“She... nullified our enhancements...!”
In the brief time since they had arrived, she had analyzed every single enhancement spell that had been cast on them and unleashed a wave of mana which unraveled all of them completely.
Had only one group of the three been nullified, they might have been able to accept it. After all, the enemy was basically the Seeker—such a feat might really have been possible.
“What? You’re already freaking out after just this?”
But nullifying all three’s enhancements that had taken decades to perfect with just a single clap? That was impossible. Unless the enemy understood their techniques completely from start to finish, there was no way she could do such a thing—
“It is possible.”
Seemingly reading their thoughts, the Seeker smiled.
“Because~ I am omniscient.”
Clap-!
Once again, her hands came together in a crisp, resounding smack. Fear gripped the Demon Force as they braced for what would be nullified next.
Alas, it was not something they could brace themselves for. One by one, they crumble into dust, scattering into the air.
Swish-
It was a fundamental law of the world that all things imbued with mana possessed a unique mana array. And the Seeker’s Mana Reversion had obliterated that very array—causing their entire existence to collapse.
No screams. No blood splatters. Just dust dissipating into the atmosphere as raw mana. To anyone watching, it was a sight so utterly transcendent, it could only be described as divine. Yet the one who had caused it all—the Seeker, herself—frowned in dissatisfaction.
“If only my body had remained intact, I wouldn’t have had to bother with all this.... I guess being dead can become a hindrance sometimes.”
Shaking her head, the Seeker swept her gaze over the now eerily silent museum with a peculiar expression on her face.
Why is there still no sign of them?
Although Mana Reversion was particularly effective against artificial beings or partially modified lifeforms, against pure-bodied individuals or those of a certain strength it was weak. That was precisely why she used it to deal with the lesser forces solely—which would create an opening—to lure out the Ten Evils lurking in the shadows.
But not one of them had taken the bait.
Was I being too obvious? No... I made sure they had no time to react.
Then had they predicted her move beforehand and retreated already?
The Seeker scratched her head.
“Tsk... Maybe I shouldn’t have talked so big.”
She had boldly proclaimed that she would destroy the Reversed World and also lure out the Ten Evils. Having failed the latter, she thought of a certain young man that would for sure look at her with a disapproving gaze.
“He used to be more polite... I swear, kids these days—”
BOOOOM!
A thunderous impact from above. The Seeker’s eyes immediately gazed up.
Falling in front of her, a woman with her entire body drenched in blood was clutching something tightly in her arms.
Seeing Anushka reveal herself, the Seeker’s expression turned intrigued.
“What, did you give up?”
“...”
Anushka looked at her, eyes trembling. At first, she had thought Sophia had betrayed them. But when the Reversed World was completely extracted, her thoughts changed, and she assumed Sophia had simply gone mad.
Now, though, she had arrived at the truth.
“Seeker...?”
Their god, who had transcended death through the pinnacle of magic and was awaiting only the moment of resurrection... was now attacking them. Anushka did not want to comprehend the reality before her.
“Why... why...?”
God was supposed to protect and guide its followers.
Her god, however, chuckled at the sight of her eyes that were filled with confusion, sorrow, and betrayal.
“Why, you ask? Hah. I could explain it all to you, but you wouldn’t understand, anyway.”
“...”
“So I’ll keep it simple—oh, I know.”
Looking directly at Anushka, the Seeker declared the answer plainly: “Because I am God.”
“...What?”
“Blessings, curses—you fools just interpret them however you want. In reality, they have no meaning whatsoever.”
Woong-
Scarlet mana oozed from the Seeker’s body as her emotionless eyes fixated on Anushka.
“If you can’t understand it, just think of it as a blessing. That’s the only thing you ignorant lot are good at.”
Seeing the Seeker’s hand slowly reach out to her, Anushka’s thoughts slowed. Was the arrogant monster before her—the being that mocked their devotion—really their god?
She wanted to deny it. To her despair, however, her god’s flesh, which had long since fused with her body, confirmed the truth.
No...
The god she had envisioned, the god she had worshiped, was not like this.
“Then why don’t you become a god?”
A whisper brushed against her ear all of a sudden.
...Me?
“You have a god’s body with you, don’t you? Doesn’t that mean you already qualify to become one?”
But if I do that... I’ll no longer exist in this world...
Countless Dawn followers had once proclaimed they would become gods. But none had been able to withstand the vast amount of knowledge the Akashic possessed, each and every losing their minds in the end.
Recalling the insanity, the primal fear of that loss made Anushka shudder.
But that just made the voice whispering into her ear laugh.
“No longer exist? How much of ‘you’ do you think even remains now?”
What?
“Think carefully... how much of Anushka is actually left in this reality?”
The whispers seeped into her mind and Anushka suddenly became aware of her body once more. From her neck to her abdomen, everything was transplanted flesh. Her head, limbs, and organs were her own—but over time, even those had completely changed.
Could she still truly call a body like that hers?
“Be honest with yourself. You wanted to be ‘me,’ didn't you?”
The whisper urged her. Her faith had masked her desires, hidden her ambitions—but now, it tempted her forward.
“You can do it. The person in front of you possesses two pieces. Combined with the ones you’re holding right now, you’ll have five.”
Haven’t you always wanted to know what it feels like... to understand everything?
We can do it. That’s why we are Vessel.
Anushka no longer knew whether it was the whisper or her own thoughts.
But it didn’t matter. She clutched the fragment in her arms even tighter.
Squelch-
Voice and Heart merged into the Vessel.
“Halt.”
A single incantation resounded throughout the world, forcing everything around them to come to a halt.
The Seeker’s scarlet mana, about to burst from her fingertips. The museum walls, crumbling under their own weight. Doppelganger, who was waiting for his moment to strike. They were all frozen in time.
“...”
Even Tuner, who had advised the Doppelganger to attack just then, had not foreseen the development.
This... is God’s true power.
Trembling, the one who caused it felt her heart pulsing in her chest.
She had altered the world with her will alone—an omnipotence beyond all things. Ignoring Doppelganger, Anushka fixed her gaze on the last remaining fragment.
If I absorb that too...
Then, she would truly become a true omnipotent god. Driven by irresistible impulse, she stepped toward the Seeker.
Shank!
And that was when a hand suddenly pierced through her gut.
“...Huh?”
Her eyes widened in shock. Unable to believe what had just happened, she slowly turned.
She had commanded the entire world to stop... how were they moving?
Like a scolded child wondering where she went wrong, she looked at the man in confusion.
And in response, Se-Hoon gave her a grin.
“I’ve had plenty of experience dealing with Incantation Magic.”