Chapter 309
Chapter 309
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 309
Chapter Title: The Black Witch (3)
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At the Black Witch's command, Adora moved.
And without hesitation, she reached out.
Puk!
She ripped out Park Chan-woo's heart.
There was no trace of hesitation, no hint of emotion.
She simply stared at the severed heart with a face cold as ice.
Thump! Thump!
The heart's beating gradually faded.
Park Chan-woo was dying.
Even his formidable regenerative powers couldn't restore the heart.
Much less the vast error, which remained utterly still.
Swaaaaa!
Mana surged from the heart.
It was being released.
And soon, bit by bit.
Park Chan-woo's body turned to black dust and vanished.
The Abyss's death was devouring him.
Yet the heart alone did not disappear.
"Bring it here."
"Yes."
Adora obeyed the command and handed over the heart.
She didn't even glance at Park Chan-woo's demise.
The Black Witch smiled in satisfaction.
"You've become purely my child now, Adora."
The Black Witch reached out and gently stroked Adora's cheek.
"He is not someone you should follow. The only one you must follow is me."
"I know, Black Witch."
"Now, then. Open your eyes."
And with that.
Shwooooo!
The world turned upside down.
The surrounding scenery scattered like leaves, and time began rewinding.
Adora was still lying there.
The countless curse seals binding Park Chan-woo remained unchanged.
At last.
"...Did you have a good dream?"
Adora opened her eyes.
At the Black Witch's question, Adora nodded with an expressionless face.
"Yes."
All of this had been a dream orchestrated by the 'Black Witch'.
A scheme to hurl Adora repeatedly into the abyss of despair.
The Black Witch had never trusted Adora in the first place.
Her failure to return was betrayal enough.
Worse, she had sided with the thief who stole her possession.
'Forget. Forget everything.'
In the realm of the deep abyss, the Black Witch's power grew stronger.
Her abilities, rivaling those of a demon god, were on full display.
Of course, something as simple as tampering with memories or diluting one's sense of self was child's play.
She forced the curse of dreams—nightmares, by another name—upon her dozens, hundreds of times.
There was resistance at first, but Adora changed bit by bit.
She grew numb to slashing and killing her former comrades.
And finally, she killed Park Chan-woo.
She extracted his heart and offered it wholly to the Black Witch.
Stroke. Stroke.
The Black Witch brushed Adora's hair.
"You will become a perfect witch. A 'Walpurgis' unlike me—one I could never be."
This realm of 'Night' was the foundation laid solely for that purpose.
Now, it was time to begin.
This place would become 'Witches' Night', the starting point for conquering the Abyss.
To achieve that, witches first needed to be recognized as an official 'race'.
"Soon, you'll join the Racial War and show them your power. Let them see that we witches stand above the Twelve Races."
Until now, witches had been barred from the Racial War.
They were stripped of even the qualification.
Branded as the race of curses and cast into the depths.
The abyss was like the sewer of the Abyss.
Witches without a proper Abyss territory couldn't participate, no matter how much they wished.
But now.
With this as their stronghold, not even the demons could ignore them any longer.
'A witch's curse is fatal even to demons.'
That was the sole reason they had been relegated to the abyss.
Demons and witches shared many similarities.
Yet witches fed on 'curses', marking a clear divide.
Demons drew power from the Abyss itself.
The issue was that witches' curses polluted Abyss territories.
Demons, obsessed with those territories, could not tolerate witches roaming freely.
"I've made ample preparations. Even sisters who look just like you."
She flashed a sly smile.
Shing! Shwoong!
Black warps formed on the floor, and seven young witches appeared.
"Did you call for us, Black Witch?"
The young witches bore Adora's childhood face.
It was like gazing upon seven identical twins.
"..."
Adora showed no reaction.
The Black Witch turned to the seven young witches.
"You've seen your big sister. Greet her properly."
"Ah...! So this is the 'Witch of Death'!"
"Sister. Nice to meet you."
The young witches bowed crisply.
Yet their eyes were chillingly cold.
These witches had been born feeding on Adora's curses.
More precisely, they were 'curse monsters' nurtured by amassing the essence of the abyss.
They appeared young, but had already reached the level of demon lords.
All thanks to the Black Witch's meticulous care.
"How does it feel to meet your little sisters for the first time?"
"...I don't know."
"They all wield 'death'. Not quite like you, but. And by the time the Racial War begins, these children will be complete. It'll be quite the spectacle."
The Black Witch brimmed with confidence.
The outcome of this Racial War would differ from all before.
She would etch the true face of witches into everyone's eyes.
For that, Adora was essential.
As a participant in the Racial War, as well.
"Guide them well."
"Yes."
For the growth of these seven children, too.
Just their proximity caused the curses to 'interact'.
Deaths clumped together, growing ever stronger.
And at the center was Adora.
"Your powers lie not in mere 'death'. Their true value is in 'devouring death'."
"Sister, what deaths have you devoured?"
"I'm curious."
"You must have tasted death on a level beyond ours, right?"
The children's eyes turned back to Adora.
Witch of Death.
She summoned death itself, but her most terrifying trait was this:
The more intense and powerful the death she encountered, the stronger she grew.
Ultimately becoming one who 'devours death'.
Adora spoke.
"The death of all things."
"What's that?"
"A demon lord?"
"The Demon King's name?"
Adora shook her head.
"I devoured the deaths of everything around me."
"Ah...!"
"As expected! Just like the rumors say."
"How was Orc Master Kankun's death?"
"What sounds did the demon lords make when they died?"
"I'm so curious!"
The children brimmed with curiosity.
Left alone, they could chatter all day.
The Black Witch reined them in.
"Adora is tired right now. But she'll play with you soon enough."
"Yay!"
"Neck-twisting game?"
"Demon brain extraction tunnel-making?"
"Guess whose death scream is louder!"
Horrific games, even in name alone.
Yet the children spoke of them casually.
Witch of Death.
Though they were Adora's sisters, they were even closer to death than she.
Born and raised for that very purpose.
The giggling young witches bowed and departed.
Silence descended.
The Black Witch's expression hardened as she asked.
"...Adora. Tell me what you saw inside the Great Rift."
"Understood."
In truth, the Black Witch had hesitated to touch Park Chan-woo recklessly.
The same went for other demons or humans.
No one could predict what error might trigger.
Especially with the 'Great Rift' still lingering.
One misstep, and the entire Night—witches included—could face annihilation.
Yet upon hearing Adora's account, the Black Witch could only tilt her head.
'Memories erased.'
Adora seemed to have no recollection of what lay inside the Great Rift.
What trials she endured to emerge.
Likely... the man who emerged alongside her.
Connected to Park Chan-woo.
In the end, the only way to verify everything was direct contact between Adora and Park Chan-woo.
'Adora is fully under my control.'
This much was certain.
A perfect puppet, without even a 0.1% margin of error.
Though it had been a 'nightmare', Adora was oblivious.
She had sincerely slain Dagon and her comrades.
Park Chan-woo as well.
The Black Witch burned with curiosity.
The interior of the Great Rift.
What lurked there.
Though called the outer gods' realm, surely more than just outer gods awaited.
Her knowledge of the Great Rift was perilously shallow.
But one truth stood firm.
'Beyond the Great Rift lies a new world.'
Not the Abyss—a realm of gods, perfectly complete.
The Black Witch viewed the Great Rift as a sort of 'passageway'.
Reach it, dominate the 'New World', and one could claim a life beyond comparison to the Abyss.
The Black Witch observed Adora for some time.
Adora mingled well with the children.
No sign of recalling Park Chan-woo, no hesitation.
With all related memories and emotions erased, it was only natural.
"Adora. Do you recognize that man?"
The Black Witch summoned Adora.
She pointed at the sealed Park Chan-woo and asked.
"I don't know."
"He's our enemy. Cut off his index finger and bring it to me."
The one who had stolen her index finger.
She commanded her to retrieve it likewise, without breaking the sealing curse.
Adora approached Park Chan-woo slowly.
He remained asleep, eyes closed.
As if lost in a long dream.
Adora raised her hand.
She grasped his right hand, intent on severing the index finger.
But then.
Ting!
A small light flickered to life.
-What are you doing?
A familiar voice rang out.
-I'm not cold anymore. But you look cold?
A cluster of tiny lights.
'Wish'—thought destroyed by death.
Adora's pupils trembled.
The moment she saw Wish.
The nightmare shattered, and forgotten memories flooded back.
'Ah.'
She realized it all at once.
What had transpired inside the Great Rift.
"...Adora?"
The Black Witch's voice grew heavy.
She spoke again.
"Are you planning to disappoint me once more?"
The Black Witch's body trembled faintly.
Adora raised her head.
All her memories, powers, and Wish.
Had returned.
"I'm not your child, Black Witch."
"You... you wretched child, truly."
Swaaaaaaaaa!
The Black Witch's entire form dispersed like mist.
Black energy surged forth, becoming Night itself.
Soon, her voice echoed from the heavens.
"You need to be punished."