That's You, Isn't It?
I woke up to morning light. Propping myself up in bed, I glanced out the window and saw the sun hanging high in the sky. I'd gone to sleep pretty early last night, so I'd gotten a full night's rest, but after staring wide-eyed in that dream world for what felt like forever before finally snapping awake, I couldn't tell if I'd actually slept or not.
Ever since meeting the Heavenly God in my dream yesterday, I hadn't been able to fall asleep again inside the dream—I'd just lain there with my eyes open. So in my mind, it felt less like waking up and more like I'd been awake the whole time and just teleported somewhere else. The Heavenly God was a god, right? Shouldn't they have told me how to sleep in a dream? Or maybe it was impossible from the start. They could've just reset the dream space once we were done...
"Seres!!!!"
The door suddenly burst open, and someone shouted my name as they stormed in. I flinched, half-expecting the Heavenly God had sent them with a message, but no—it was Viol.
Except she looked nothing like her usual self. The black dress she always wore had one strap slipping off her shoulder, a total mess, and her long red hair—which she normally tied into twintails—was just hanging loose. Her expression was off too. Her eyes kept darting around, her breathing ragged, like she'd seen something horrifying.
What the hell? Her wild appearance freaked me out for a second. Had some massive disaster hit, like another earthquake? But I hadn't sensed anything.
"What's wrong..."
I started to sit up and ask, but in that instant, Viol threw her arms around me. She clutched me tight, pulling me into her chest—and thanks to our height difference, my face got completely buried there.
"...Why?"
I was stunned. She pulled stunts like this all the time, sure, but the vibe was totally different now.
"Seres..."
Her voice was barely a whisper, like she was on her last breath.
"Don't go."
"...Go where?"
"Don't leave me!"
Leave? I had zero plans to go anywhere! She was clinging to me, begging me not to leave when I wasn't even thinking about it—it was baffling. She wouldn't answer questions, just kept hugging me and pleading. And the position was so awkward; I wanted out now .
"Hey, let go—!"
Right as I yelled for her to release me,
"My lord, do you need assistance..."
Niobe rushed into the room and froze, her face twisting at the sight.
"Your Majesty, what in the—!"
Niobe tried to pry Viol off me in shock, but it wasn't easy. Skill aside, Viol's raw strength outmatched hers.
"Good gods. Have you lost your mind too? Release my lord at once!"
"Don't... get in my way..."
" You don't get in my lord's way. Do you think holding him like this helps him at all?!"
"..."
Only after Niobe barked at her did Viol finally let go. But she didn't fully back off—instead, she gripped my hand tightly, like she couldn't bear to lose contact.
"What happened?"
I kept my eyes locked on the clearly unhinged Viol as I asked Niobe. From what she'd said earlier, I had a rough idea, but I was praying I was wrong.
"Everyone's acting strange, so they've come seeking your help."
...Damn. Spot on. So it wasn't just Viol.
"Everyone? Who exactly?"
"Almost all the women connected to you, aside from us."
"Almost? So some are fine?"
"Red."
Red was okay? Then maybe demons were immune? ...No, Sibylius's name hadn't come up either. She must be affected too. What the hell was going on? I ran a hand through my hair, already dreading another headache.
"Lead the way."
"Yes!"
At my order, Niobe took me first to the bar inside the Imperial Palace. I figured maybe someone was drowning their sorrows, but the person chugging booze straight from the bottle was the last I'd expect: Hames.
The woman who always lived with priestly restraint was pounding expensive liquor like there was no tomorrow. Empty bottles littered the floor—god knows how many she'd downed. The bar was trashed, and the staff looked helpless.
"Um, High Priestess Hames? Drinking like that isn't good for you."
Someone tried to intervene, but her response was shocking.
"Shut up and bring more booze!!"
...Was this really Hames ? She screamed like a drunken brawler and smashed a bottle against the wall.
As far as I knew, neither the original Hames from the novel nor the real one I'd met would ever act like this. Even her deranged novel version hadn't gone this far!
"What the hell are you doing?!"
I couldn't stand by while a high priestess caused a scene. My shout made her jump and turn to me.
"Se-Seres..."
But her reaction was weird. She looked utterly terrified, like a kid caught red-handed by the person they'd wronged.
Then she bolted—or tried to.
"Where do you think you're going!"
"Let... let me go..."
I grabbed her clothes to stop her escape, and she whimpered in a dying voice.
"I can't face you!"
"Why not?"
"I-I can't say!"
What the actual fuck? She pulls this crazy stunt and won't even explain? I was holding her back amid the struggle, but Viol still had my other hand, which was annoying as hell.
"Listen to my lord."
Niobe stepped in when I started losing my grip. She pinned Hames down, growling.
"I don't know what's going on, but this won't help him. If you're truly sorry, at least hear him out ."
"What do you know..."
Hames started to retort at Niobe's persuasion but trailed off, her voice shrinking. She gave up fleeing with a resigned look and joined us—but kept her distance, avoiding my eyes.
"Next is Sibylius. That's the worst one!"
Niobe led me there, insisting it was priority over hearing others out. I followed, but suddenly she whipped around, sword drawn.
She blocked a strike flying at me from Viol's direction—with her aura-wrapped blade!
The pitch-black, misshapen sword Niobe parried: Black Pain .
"Don't... get in my way !!"
Ares—the one wielding Black Pain—screamed at Niobe for interfering.
"If you get in my way, you're my enemy too!"
"...That's my line. Swinging that abomination around my lord? Have you lost your mind?"
"I'm perfectly sane. More than ever! We have to separate that one from Seres now !"
...What? I blinked in disbelief at my screaming mother, Ares. I knew she hated Viol, but she'd always shown some respect since she was an emperor. Not now, though. Her eyes overflowed with desperate killing intent as she glared at Viol impatiently.
"If we let her live, it'll happen here too! So I'll kill her first, then all of you next! Hames, Sibylius, Arios! You bitches every one of—"
"Stop!!"
I cut off Ares as she lost all reason and ranted like a maniac.
"What are you doing , Mother?"
"Seres! This is all for you. Let me explain—first, I'll kill that—"
"Calm down!"
I spoke coldly to the excited Ares swinging Black Pain.
"Don't delude yourself. This isn't for me ."
"No, you don't understand the situation. Actually..."
"Actually what ? You think I'd survive if you kill the emperor? And Arios, Hames, Sibylius too? That's pure delusion."
"...We could make it work if we try."
Ares muttered an excuse, but she knew I was right deep down and lowered Black Pain.
"I'll hear why later. For now, come with us. You're not the only one acting weird."
"Fine."
Ares grudgingly followed, still shooting murderous glares at Viol and Hames. What surprised me was how they reacted. Normally they'd snap back at her stares, but Viol just silently held my hand, and Hames desperately avoided Ares's eyes like she'd committed a crime.
Finally, we reached Sibylius's room.
"What the hell is this?"
I gaped at the state of the room. Unknown formulas and magic runes covered every surface.
In the center, Sibylius was tearing at her hair like a madwoman, scribbling nonstop.
"No, that's not it. Make the ritual more precise..."
"What are you doing?"
"...Seres?!"
So deep in focus she hadn't noticed me, Sibylius finally registered my presence and freaked out. She trembled like she'd been caught by someone she shouldn't see, then forced herself to calm down.
"Just... researching magic."
"What kind of magic turns the place into this ?"
"A spell to travel to a parallel world."
"Why the hell would you—?"
"...Someone I need to kill."
The hatred pouring off her was intense—even I flinched at the aura when she mentioned it.
"Who?"
I tensed, asking about the target she'd cross worlds to murder.
"Sibylius."
"...That's you."