Beyond the Eternity

Chapter 207 Dark Flame [1]

superbia stared at the blazing object lighting up the passage like a torch.

the heat was so intense that it could scorch one's eyes just by looking at it. the flames were black like the void, devouring all light and leaving behind an ominous, smoldering trail.

"did i go too far?"

she ran her fingers through her hair, staring at the charred remains of what had suffered the intense burning.

however, it was not a mere object. it was the body of a human, a man, or at least, what used to be one.

the man, or rather, the corpse had been consumed by the black flame. there was no salvation for anyone eaten by those flames. it was a demonic power that could not be extinguished by any means, magical or otherwise. it was like an unholy curse that ate away at the victim's essence until nothing remained. not even immortals could survive those flames.

therefore, she didn't need to check if he was still alive.

even if he had some kind of power that allowed him to resurrect, he would never see the light of day again. in a world this cruel, miracles like that simply did not exist.

"ughh..."

superbia sighed.

the child of man had spoken so condescendingly and acted so arrogantly, yet in the end, he was a massive disappointment. if she had known this would be the outcome, she wouldn't have wasted so much of her strength and time. funny enough, it wasn't his power that had made her hesitate, it was his empty bravado, the way he had carried himself like a king among mortals.

now, as she stared at the smoldering remains, she couldn't help but feel irritated. perhaps the only thing more fragile than his body had been his pride.

shaking her head in annoyance, she cast a final glance at the inferno, as if she could see beyond the ruin of his body.

"thank you. because of you, i learned something important about myself. still, it's a shame you amounted to so little. even if you were given a thousand chances, you wouldn't have won. would that be considered misfortune?"

"i suppose 'yes' would be the appropriate answer, but that response only holds meaning if i had lost. don't you agree?"

for an instant, the sister froze in place in shock at the voice coming from the flames of purgatory.

slowly, the corpse began to rise to its feet. then, something unnatural started to happen to the missing upper half, as the black flames continued to scorch. the flames intensified, almost as if splashing against a transparent glass statue, and an object began to form.

the missing upper body started to take shape.

first, the stomach. then the chest. the shoulders, the arms, the hands, the fingers and finally, the head.

in approximately five seconds, the upper body had been completely restored. even then, the black flames showed no sign of abating.

instead, it felt as though a black flame demon had been born from the remnants, instead of the missing identity. but the voice she heard definitely belonged to that hateful man, which caused her great confusion and disorder.

"w-what is this? what is going on? is this even possible?"

superbia muttered in shock, perhaps even anxious.

was it possible for someone to resist the black flames? no, that was simply impossible. something wasn't right. was this some kind of illusion? even as the thought crossed her mind, she felt no distortion in her mana flow, and quickly discarded the possibility of an illusion as it came.

faced with the unexpected and unforeseeable phenomenon, superbia could only force herself to maintain a brave front.

"haha! what's this? you've gotten even uglier than before — or should i call it a vast improvement?"

she sneered,

"i don't know how you survived my black flames, or even how you're alive right now, but that makes no difference! your resurrection is meaningless if you still can't defeat me!"

determined to end his life, superbia swiftly conjured magic stakes and sent them flying toward him with a command. the stakes shot through the air, accompanied by a gust of wind as though guided by the spirits, aimed straight for the vital points of her target.

... but nothing happened.

"what?"

superbia blinked in disbelief as she watched the magic stakes vanish the moment they entered the man's space. he remained unharmed. it was as though an invisible force had repelled them, causing the stakes to disintegrate into nothing but sparkling glitter.

what just happened? did he use some kind of magic negation technique?

even that thought didn't make sense. if he truly had such a technique, why hadn't he used it earlier? why now, of all times...

her unease grew with each passing second.

clicking her tongue, superbia conjured more stakes. at the same time, she activated the trap mechanism with her authority, releasing the sealed arrows, and fired them all toward him like a bouquet of razor-sharp shards.

however, all the stakes and arrows were disintegrated in an instant, leaving him unharmed.

the man laughed, as if all her attempts were nothing more than cute, pitiful gestures. a twisted smile appeared on that demon-like face.

superbia's anger flared even further, and she immediately began preparing her next attempt to end his life.

he's not doing anything, yet he's somehow stopping my attacks. i can't sense any mana traces, so he's not using magic. but how is that even possible?

she hesitated as doubt began to take root in her heart.

she had launched an assault that left no room for escape or survival. even then, the man had effortlessly neutralized her attack without breaking his stride or even pausing for a moment.

like there was no need for him to attack or defend at all.

was he using an authority that she could not see or fandom?

superbia watched helplessly as he closed the distance like a predator stalking a cornered and wounded rabbit in the heart of winter.

in a single second—

"....!?"

her entire life flashed before her eyes, and in that moment, even her mission, the sole purpose that had given her existence meaning, crumbled into insignificance under the weight of raw, primal fear.

i-it impossible! i cannot win! i don't want to die!

her thoughts screamed at her to move, but her body betrayed her. desperately, she began to crawl away as fear and despair completely consumed her heart, mind and body.

however, even her attempt to escape had become truly pitiful.

as if saying 'come here', the burning demon grabbed her ankle and pulled her back towards himself.

superbia screamed as the scorching heat of the demon's grip burned into her flesh.

"ahhhhhhhh!! noooooooooo!! it hurts so much! let go! let go! let go! it's burning!!"

her screams only seemed to amuse the demon-like entity. the sister trembled as the burning man spoke.

"why... are you ruuuunnning? don't you see? i only wanted... to show you... my love! hah—haaa! so rude... so very, very rude... it hurts, you know? it truly hurts!"

kim jakga's lips stretched into a venomous smile, his left eye glowing reddish-gold, while the empty socket of his right eye gaped hollow, filled with dyed crimson blood that resembled the maws of a monstrous terror.

a monster's gaze none dared follow.

his demon-like voice carried a chilling sincerity like those words had emerged from the depths of his heart.

"so please—"

with terrifying speed, he wrapped his hands around superbia's neck.

"... accept my embrace!"

he squeezed her windpipe with savage strength.

"ack! ka...grhhkkk!"

superbia's hands clawed desperately at his, each futile attempt met with an unbearable burning sensation spreading across her skin.

her lungs screamed for air, but her throat felt scorched, branded by the devil's touch. the agony deepened as her skin began to peel away in raw, excruciating strips. even the thought of screaming brought a new wave of pain, leaving her helpless and gasping in silence.

it was a torment beyond comprehension. such excruciating pain threatened to consume her senses and shatter her mind.

helplessly, she clawed her hands. desperately, she frantically thrashed around in vain to draw a single breath. despairing, she could only blame and curse her own weakness.

she was the oldest among her sisters yet she was the least talented.

she had long been aware of that painful truth, so she concealed her weakness behind a facade of pride and the authority that came with being the eldest.

but now, even that mask had crumbled in the face of death itself.

she did not care about pride or dignity any longer. all she wanted was for the unbearable pain to come to an end. at the same time, a primal instinct screamed from within her.

as much as she longed for the agony to stop, she couldn't bring herself to enter death's embrace or take her own life.

her heart still yearned for life to cling.

and, like that, superbia's vision faded in sheer horror.

"ka! ka! k... p-please stop! i-i'm sorry! i-i'm sorry! i surrender! p-please... n-no m-more!"

she screamed with her voice cracking under the iron, scorching grip and becoming hoarse.

with that single cry of desperation...

ding!

a mechanical noise echoed, followed by a cold message:

[you have surrendered your role as a "hunter".]

[you have lost your participation rights in the narrative.]

as if on cue, as soon as that message emerged, the scorching grip around her neck vanished.

the burning sensation around her ankle and neck disappeared as well like they hadn't never been burned. as if the pain was an illusion.

her blurry vision regained their focus, and she saw the man who had moments ago been squeezing the life out of her, standing and looking down at her.

except, he wasn't burning anymore.

then, with a disturbingly cheerful smile, kim jakga tilted his head and gave her a casual wave.

"why, hello~" his voice did hum, "just why are you lying down there, i wonder?"