128 - Soul Exchange

In the center of the sky, black storm clouds swirled in a spiral like a spinning top. Purple lightning cracked with a deafening roar, scattering embers across the forest. The vortex grew relentlessly, poised to engulf the entire world.

I'd confirmed everything promised by the operator. Aside from admin privileges, all of it could be obtained in-game directly, but these were essential for saving time. With no room for hesitation, I'd tumbled down the papal stairs like a rolling ball.

Adella's position was immediately visible through the game system. It was a relief I didn't need to waste magic on something like this. Towering structures piercing the sky faded one by one into the background. At the edge of my vision, a black curtain draped over the ridgeline. The dense forest was being devoured by fog. It felt apt to describe it as one world colliding with another, consuming it in the process.

I drew in a deep breath of the frigid air until my lungs burned, then exhaled sharply toward the front.

"Huuuuh... Adellaaaaaaaa!"

My voice spread in all directions, and in response, crows screeched and flapped their wings frantically.

She was moving. Good, she must have heard me. Soon, a silver cat with perked ears came bounding out of the dark woods.

"Euuu... Sis... Sis! Waaahhh!"

The sobbing girl threw herself at me without a moment's hesitation. Up close, her arms and legs were covered in cuts and scrapes—she looked anything but unscathed.

"Adella."

"I knew Sis wouldn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠leave me behind... Yeah... Heh... Uu... Scary... So scary. I don't know what to do anymore. S-Suddenly Sis just vanished... The whole world turned black and white... Sniff... And over there, the ground's collapsing..."

Adella trembled violently, bursting into fierce sobs. Her pitiful cries mixed with pained groans. As if blaming me for disappearing, she squeezed my waist tighter and tighter.

"It's a dream... Gotta be a dream... Sniff... Don't abandon me, Sis, it's too scary..."

Tears streamed from her eyes ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠as she confessed to me. Without thinking, my hand went to her head. I gently stroked her hair like one would a fragile baby, picking out tangled leaves and twigs.

This place might be just a game to some, but to her, it was her entire world. I could feel the fear, terror, and anxiety coursing through her body. It was like the first time a human witnessed erosion—anyone would feel those emotions. Even without erosion, earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, typhoons... Before overwhelming, one-sided violence beyond our control, all things are equal.

I slipped my pinky around her delicate finger and tilted her tear-streaked face toward me by the chin. Our eyes met—her vertically slit cat pupils.

"Adella."

"We're gonna die... It's a dream... Hic..."

"Adella!"

"Nyaa!"

"Have I ever been wrong when you listened to me?"

"Hic... N-No..."

"I'll save you and this world. But promise me one thing. No matter what, believe in me unconditionally. Even if you think otherwise, I'm always right. Got it?"

"Y-Yes! Got it..."

"No time. Follow me closely—don't lag behind."

The power of the four laurels far surpassed real-world magic. Adella instantly regained all her energy, shook off the dirt, and chased after my heels.

As we backtracked through the map, I quickly reviewed the conditions needed for the ending.

First: Find the Laurel of Death, where Mephistopheles's cornerstone is sealed. The moment it takes over Adella's body triggers the final boss.

So, who has that laurel right now?

"Sis, ahead! There's a wall in front!"

"Ignore it and keep running! We can pass through now!"

Normally, you couldn't return to previous maps when transitioning from Part 1 to 2, or 2 to 3. It was for smooth story progression and open-world limitations. But with worlds colliding now, those boundaries meant nothing.

Like Jin Chronicle passing through crowds, once we crossed the black mist, we were practically ghosts.

Crash!

"Kyaa! What's this!? Turkey...?"

"My dinner...!"

"Ah...! Sorry, bald uncle! I'll pay for it later... Anyway, enjoy what's left!"

In the chaos, we must have hit an interactive object—a bald man stomped in frustration, his dinner ruined in an instant.

Blazing through ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠each region's hyperloop in record time, we soon reached the empire's capital.

"This is...?"

I slowed down and checked the minimap, but it was dead like a broken navigation system. No choice but to rely on memory, recalling the full map from the wiki.

"This is Abyss's headquarters."

"Abyss's headquarters? Wait, isn't this the imperial palace?"

The baroque palace visible from Remnant Academy's back gate. We'd just crossed its garden, so her confusion was valid.

"Precisely, the imperial underground. Abyss's leader is none other than the crown princess."

Abyss was the crown princess's secret organization to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stop her demon-worshipping brother the crown prince. Distrusting both empire and holy kingdom, she'd gathered talent to sow discord and eradicate all laurels from the world.

But Gestalt, returning to HQ after losing Adella, couldn't contain her grief and stole the last laurel there to revive the demon—that was supposed to be Part 4's story. The demon, gaining a perfect vessel, would possess Adella's body and manifest as Mephistopheles.

The operators called it overlaying 'generation code'—I didn't fully get it, but I could guess. The Laurel of Death was the key, Adella the lock. Missing either meant no Mephistopheles, and the world collapses.

It was absurd: to save the world, summon the demon intent on destroying it. But it was our only way.

Reaching into the triple-locked vault, the laurel came out with ridiculous ease.

A minor error popped up, but it didn't hinder story progression. First phase cleared.

"Adella, remember the demon that stole your body in the first playthrough?"

"You mean Asmodeus-nyang?"

"Yeah. We're summoning Asmodeus right here."

"What?! A-Are you insane-nyang? Sis, you're not serious, right? I misheard, yeah?"

Normal difficulty had multiple routes and final bosses, including Asmodeus. In Nightmare, though, Adella's suicide kept him off-screen—a tragic demon.

Asmodeus's unique skill: Soul Exchange. It shuffled all souls in range, forcing random party member swaps in PvE. It catered to players wanting to fight as illegal priestess Giselle or ice mage Luna— a special event in World of Arceria.

Recycling that for Nightmare caused this mess.

Adella freaked out and jumped back.

"Precisely, we're just borrowing Asmodeus's skill."

"Skill? Haa... You scared me...! But what then?"

"Obvious, isn't it? Who else is here besides you and me?"

Priest class couldn't use it in multiplayer, but story mode allowed free skill acquisition regardless of job. Otherwise, a pure healer couldn't clear this hellish difficulty.

Normally limited to enemies, but with admin privileges transferred, I could copy code even from the Laurel of Life as an 'object'.

"Adella, take good care of my body for a bit."

I'd just gotten used to elf ears, and now cat ears? Hopefully no tail comes with it.