Chapter 49

The underground was littered with countless corpses of humans and monsters. From the depths of the abandoned room, eerie groans echoed. The doors, walls, and ceilings, which had been set up for intense battles, were utterly destroyed, and debris was scattered everywhere. In such a place, Flamm and Nect faced each other.

Indeed, it was Nect who brought the information about the research facility in Sheol to Flamm. But he was also a member of the Church. Flamm, still exhausted from the battle, drew her sword again and took a stance. Her shoulders heaved heavily, and her breathing was slightly labored. Nect, observing her condition, shrugged his shoulders.

“Just so you know, I don’t intend to fight here.”

“Are you trying to kill me?”

“It’s not your life, but the power of your Reversal. I don’t know where it came from, but Origin wants it, and that’s why they want to connect you.”

“I hear you say ‘connect’ a lot, but I have no idea what you mean.”

Flamm glared at Nect. He placed his hand on his chin and said, “Hmm,” thinking for a moment.

“Then, as part of your reward, I’ll explain a bit about it. How about that?”

“I need to go pick up Milkit from Dafiz’s place, and I’m not really...”

“I’m in a good mood now, so I’ll answer what I can.”

Nect interrupted Flamm’s words and proposed this with an overly condescending tone.

“But, I need to...”

“Are you worried about Dafiz? Don’t worry, he won’t become a killer. Besides, I’m thinking about telling you about Origin now...”

This was an appealing offer to Flamm. If it was a reward for destroying necromancy, he might be willing to share information about Sheol’s location as well.

“But—”

More than anything, Flamm wanted to prioritize reuniting with Milkit, who was waiting. Her attitude seemed to slightly irritate Nect.

“And if you upset me, that might be even more frightening.”

The proposal turned into a threat. At this point, Flamm had no choice but to comply.

“If you’re going to talk, put away that dangerous sword. And don’t be so on guard. I just feel like chatting, that’s all.”

If he wanted to, he could have killed the exhausted Flamm long ago. However, at the moment, Nect’s expression and the atmosphere around him did not convey any murderous intent. Flamm continued to be cautious but put away her weapon.

“Thanks for being honest. So, where should we start?”

“...What do you mean by ‘connect’?”

Tension made Flamm’s voice lower as she asked.

“Just as it sounds. Connect, ‘click.’ And then you become part of the circuit, integrating with Origin.”

Flamm’s Reversal is the only power that can destroy the Origin Core. If Origin’s goal is to integrate her, then the target is not her life but her ability.

“Are you trying to incorporate me to prevent yourself from being destroyed by Reversal?”

“That’s right.”

“Then, why didn’t you connect me when my status was 0...”

Or perhaps—there was a reason they couldn’t. The journey to defeat the Demon King, its participants were chosen by “Origin’s revelation.” Flamm had always wondered why she was chosen, but it was likely to connect her and integrate her Reversal ability. However, why did they need to go to the territory of the demons?

“Is this another question, but... was the journey to defeat the Demon King just a pretext to take me somewhere? For example, to the location of Origin’s ‘main body’ in the demon territory?”

“No comment.”

“Huh?”

“There are questions I can answer and questions I can’t. It’s not allowed by Origin, so no comment.”

Flamm glared at Nect again, but it had little effect. However, in reality, not being able to answer might mean that it is equivalent to an affirmation. In other words, for Origin to connect Flamm, she herself had to go to the Demon King’s castle. Regardless of the necessity of Kiril and the others, the only reason to bring her, who was only a hindrance, was that much. This means that Nect’s “connection” requires physical contact with Origin, and there is likely a main body of Origin in the Demon King’s castle—

“But, if I were to reach Origin—”

“Why are you assuming that? I said no comment.”

“It’s just a hypothetical. If I reach there and directly ‘connect,’ isn’t it too risky? I’d rather be left as a simple country girl.”

Even if Flamm’s status was 0 and she was useless, there’s no telling when cursed equipment might fall into her hands and Reversal might come into play. If Origin were to be destroyed by some chance, everything would be ruined.

“Indeed, Origin fears the existence of Flamm Apricot, who has the potential to kill them.”

“Then why bring me closer?”

“Perhaps... they think that with your current level of power, it’s not a threat?”

He smiled with malice and provocatively said,

“I know that already, so tell me the truth.”

Flamm responded calmly, and Nect said, “Tch,” in a bored tone. She had struggled so much against Suzy, who only hosted the Core. If the main body existed, he couldn’t imagine defeating it, and he understood that the power of Reversal, which could be nullified by Suzy, was still insufficient.

“...Yeah, yeah.”

He suddenly closed his eyes and nodded several times. It seemed as if he was listening to Origin’s voice—after a while, he smiled and resumed the conversation.

“Origin says it’s okay to explain this part. Even if you know, it won’t change the future where you will be connected.”

“An unpleasant reason, but I want to hear it quickly.”

“When Origin first recognized the existence of Flamm Apricot, their unified will, influenced by the fear of ‘the possibility of death,’ experienced its first division since its birth.”

“I don’t understand from the start...”

The possibility of death refers to Flamm’s Reversal destroying Origin, but what does “unified will” mean?

“Well, just listen.”

Nect, without much explanation, moved on to the next part.

“They had three opinions: kill, leave alone, or connect. In the end, the opinion of the ‘connect’ faction, which was the largest at the time, was adopted, and a plan was devised. The reason the majority chose this was that once an attribute is born into the world, there is a risk of it being reborn after a few hundred years. Just like the ‘Hero’ attribute of Kiril Sweetchka, even if they die, they will be exposed to the fear of ‘Reversal’ again after a few hundred years.”

“Is this about reincarnation?”

“No, the first Hero was a strong man, completely different from the current one. It’s not the soul that is reborn, but the power that is recycled. It might be more accurate to call it the will of the stars resisting.”

Flamm frowned. Another unfamiliar word had appeared. The will of the stars—does it mean an entity opposing Origin?

“In any case, once they were defeated, the crisis didn’t go away. So, they decided to incorporate and learn how to deal with the power before it was fully understood—Origin reached this very rational conclusion.”

But it failed. Though he didn’t want to admit it, it was thanks to Jean’s reckless actions. Genius and madness are a fine line, and this was a perfect example.

“But, unexpected events occurred along the way, and Origin was further confused.”

“Maybe it was part of the plan?”

“Given how much they were shaken, they couldn’t even pretend to be dead, right?”

“Well, it’s undeniable that they overreacted. They have their reasons, you know.”

Flamm wanted to hear those “reasons,” but he would probably dodge with a “no comment” again.

“Oh, by the way, the further away you are, the less impact you have on the dead.”

“So, outside the research facility is still safe?”

Only some of the dead had entered the facility, so people near Eterna, Ink, and Gadio might still be safe. Paradise would be destroyed soon. But if they could use the time to prepare mentally—

“However, when I saw it, all the dead in Sheol were already out of control.”

Nect said this with a mocking tone, looking at her with a smirk. It seemed to be a form of harassment. Flamm clenched her teeth in frustration.

“Hahaha! Emotional people are so easy to handle. Hey, how does it feel to be toyed with by a much younger child?”

“...If the talk is over, can I go now?”

“Sure, I’m satisfied. I’ll take care of the rest on my own.”

Nect approached the lying body of Suzy, bent his knees, and placed his palm on it.

“By the way, I don’t intend to directly harm you or your acquaintance, but I’ll give you a warning. You might get caught up in it, so it’s better to run away quickly.”

“What do you mean?”

Flamm turned to ask, but Nect was already gone. He had apparently used “connection” to transfer Suzy’s body somewhere.

“He said something about the final touch...”

The reason for moving Suzy’s body was unclear. However, from the word “caught up,” she imagined a possibility. As a member of the Church, even if they were opposing groups, they would want to prevent information about the research using the Origin Core from leaking out. For that—evidence destruction. From Nect’s tone, it seemed he would use a method that would destroy the entire facility.

“I can’t die in a place like this after surviving!”

She ran up the stairs with all her might, heading straight for Dafiz’s room.

◇◇◇

The conversation between Dafiz and Milkit ended in a deadlock. They remained in the room in silence, waiting for the victory of their respective partners.

“...What is this, the air is so oppressive.”

Nect suddenly appeared there—accompanied by Suzy’s body.

“Suzy!”

Dafiz clung to her body, which had been carelessly thrown on the floor.

“Well, too bad, Dafiz. Your proud wife lost and ended up like this.”

Nect looked down on him coldly, taunting. But his words didn’t reach Dafiz.

“I think a dirtier corpse would have been more impactful, but maybe she held back. Ah, disappointing.”

“Y-You...?”

Milkit, trembling, looked at him with fear. This triggered Nect’s sadistic tendencies.

“What, what’s this girl who looks so easy to bully!”

He reached out to her, as if to connect one of her arms, but stopped just before.

“Maybe you’re related to Flamm?”

“You know my master!?”

Milkit reacted eagerly. Hearing this, Nect’s shoulders drooped.

“Ah... I said I wouldn’t do anything, though I want to bully her, breaking a promise is not good, right?”

“...Bully? Promise?”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m here for Dafiz, not the bandaged lady.”

Despite this, he stared at her for a while—then sighed and finally gave up. He approached Dafiz again, placed his hand on his shoulder, and leaned in to speak.

“Do you understand why I’m here?”

“No matter how much you’re a member of the Children, if you interfere with the necromancy facility, the entire project will be in jeopardy.”

“True, I was told not to destroy it. But—”

Nect’s face twisted. His youthful, well-defined features distorted, turned red, and morphed into a swirling mass of flesh.

“You... You can’t be...”

Milkit’s voice trembled as she saw this. She finally realized he was one of the Children, Nect Linkeage, as Flamm had mentioned.

“—I wasn’t told not to trample on the destroyed.”

Blood flowed, staining the collar of his red shirt as Nect spoke. He clenched his fist, tearing the shoulder apart,

“Connect.”

He exerted his power on Dafiz. Immediately, his body sank, beginning to integrate with Suzy’s corpse.

“A... This... So, this is... connection... Ah, Suzy...”

There was no pain. Strangely, there was no fear. Embraced by the dead body of her beloved wife, she felt as if this was the best way to die.

“I’m so kind, to kill someone I hated so much so gently! Hahaha!”

Nect spread his palms, laughing as if intoxicated. Seeing this bizarre scene, Milkit took a step back. His laughter abruptly stopped, and the writhing mass of flesh turned to her, splattering blood.

“Well, miss. Your master will come to get you soon.”

“W-Why do you know about my master...”

“I met him earlier and