The World After the Fall

"N-no! Don't come near me!!"

The General couldn't stay calm anymore. The rest of them had all been killed.

"W-What do you want?!"

He shouted in fear. From a distance, Laika couldn't believe what he was watching.

"P-please! Don't kill me! If you let me-"

The sword moved, and his head was cut off. Laika looked at the head fly off with eyes filled with disbelief. Then, he came back to his senses at the sudden voice of a woman.

"Huh? There's one more here."

Jaehwan walked up to him. Laika felt fear-struck; he couldn't move. The sword moved slowly in front of him. Laika felt his back drenched in sweat, maybe he was crying too. By the time he realized it, he kept repeating one phrase.

"I don't want to die."

"Do you want to live?" Jaehwan asked and Laika nodded frantically. Sirwen then spoke.

"Oh, I remember. You're Laika, right?"

"…Do you know him?"

"Yeah. He's the lowest rank of the Lesser Generals. I heard he's so weak that he even gets beaten up by the other Generals."

Laika couldn't even object to that statement. Sirwen then asked Jaehwan, "What are you doing? Aren't you going to kill him?"

"I need a witness."

"Witness?"

Jaehwan turned to Laika.

"Where are the [Fruits]?"

Laika came back to his senses. Maybe he still had a chance to live. Should he tell them the location of the [Fruits]? He felt the Greater Generals' presence far away, but the sword was in front of him.

"In that safe box…"

Laika pointed at the storage in the main hall of the Den of Pleasure.

Other Dimensional Safebox [Rebirth]

It was the second treasure, along with the [Narrow Door], of the Palace of Rebirth. Laika smirked as he watched Jaehwan and Sirwen walking over to the safe box.

'It won't be easy.'

It was made by [High Artisans] to allow the storage of an infinite amount of [Fruits].

'The password generates infinitely and…'

…

"Yay- It's open."

Laika turned pale. Opened? Without the help of the Prince?

"See? I'm THE High Artisan Sirwen."

"…The Palace security is weaker than I imagined."

"No way! It's just that I'm that amazing."

"I guess they didn't think anyone would be able to sneak in."

Laika then realized the woman was a [Nightmare]. She had pink hair with horns, and she was the [High Artisan].

'N-no…!'

Even if he survived, if they ran away with all those [Fruits], he would be a dead man.

"There isn't much. Is this all?"

There were about ten left; they had been running out. Laika managed to raise his voice to object.

"…Y-you are making a grave mistake by taking that." Laika continued, "You are making all the Lords of the [Great Lands] your enemy."

"They were my enemies from the beginning."

Jaehwan spoke and turned to the window. Something was coming.

"It's about time."

Powerful spirit energy. Laika looked toward the direction with hope, but the people that arrived were not what he expected.

"I'm here, Master."

"I'm back too, kid. My back hurts from fighting those two."

Chunghuh and Cayman were in bad shape. They threw down the Generals they had subdued onto the ground.

"They are barely breathing. I almost lost, so I had no choice."

"Good work."

Laika became pale as he checked their faces.

'…All of them?!'

Hirkmyer and the other two Generals that fought Chunghuh were slumped on the ground.

"But why did you make us bring them here?"

"To kill them."

"We could've just killed them if that was the case. Why…"

Chunghuh then froze in shock as he saw Jaehwan slicing his sword past the top of the Generals' heads. Again, Laika witnessed the skill that could cut off the link between the spirit and the body. The Generals screamed immediately, and Jaehwan silently struck them down with his sword to finish them off.

It was a massacre.

Laika couldn't believe it. He heard a rumor that the leader of [Rupture] knew how to rip away the linkage, but this man was not even a member of [Rupture].

"You don't want to believe it? But you have to."

He then realized that he was facing death himself. Who would die next?

"…Are you going to kill me?"

He felt the fear of dying.

"Don't worry. I'm not going to kill you."

"Then…"

"You will spread the fear."

Laika then realized he was being strapped. Particles of the ruins of the Den of Pleasure were binding him so he could not move. It was Sirwen's magic; she was glaring at Laika with an uncomfortable look on her face.

Spread the fear? What did that mean?

He wanted to ask.

"Are those the [Fruits]?" Cayman asked. He was looking at the golden fruits that Jaehwan had placed on the table.

"Yes."

These were the fruit that came from the top of the Tree of Imagery, the miracles that allowed one to relive life by consuming one. However, unlike Cayman who was shaking, Chunghuh was calm. He didn't seem to be interested in the fruit. Jaehwan looked at Chunghuh and turned to Cayman.

"What do you want to do?"

Greed was showing in Cayman's eyes.

"If you wish, you can have it. Do as you wish."

Cayman walked up to the fruit. It was the treasure that could bring him back to life. He asked with a shaking voice, "…Is it really okay?"

"Doesn't matter."

Cayman reached out. He held the [Fruit] and brought it up to his face.

It had been a long fight. Long and lonely.

It was the moment that a man would be rewarded for his life. But the [Fruit] did not stop at his face and was thrown up towards the sky, and dropped.

The fruit was crushed as it hit the floor, disappearing along with the tremendous spirit energy it held.

One, two, three…

Cayman did not hesitate. Jaehwan looked on without emotion, Chunghuh with slight surprise, and Sirwen and Laika in shock. The legend of the Tree of Imagery was disappearing in front of their eyes. But nobody could stop Cayman.

Jaehwan was letting it happen. When there was one left, Jaehwan asked, "Why are you destroying them?"

"…Because there was only ten of them."

Just ten. Meaning only ten people could be reborn.

"The presence of the [Fruits] is of no help to [Chaos] at this moment."

Cayman knew that those [Fruits] would bring war upon [Chaos]. Even if the Palace was gone, the people would fight over the remaining ten [Fruits]. That would inevitably hinder the [Depth Expedition Team].

With it, [Chaos] could not be saved.

It wasn't an easy choice, but Cayman, by overcoming all the hardships in his mind, made his decision. It wasn't something that anyone could do, but someone from [Chaos] had to do it. That was why Jaehwan took Cayman with him.

Cayman realized then that Jaehwan believed he would choose to do this from the start.

He picked up the last [Fruit] and threw it.

At that moment, Jaehwan frowned. There was that feeling of space distorting, air sinking, and time slowing down. It was something terrifying that only Jaehwan felt.

"Cayman, move away!"

However, a thundering sound erupted as soon as the [Fruit] was thrown up and Cayman's body was smashed the side of the wall. Chunghuh shouted in shock.

"Cayman!"

Yet, there wasn't time for that. Chunghuh couldn't even withstand the power that was flooding in. A furious voice came through with the spirit energy that rushed toward them.

"Fools, you dare to touch the [Fruits]?"

Chunghuh realized who it was immediately. It was one of the Greater Generals who came after him ten days ago, the one ranked in the top 30 Generals in the Darkness region.

The Greater General, Kanael the Storm.

But there were more.

'Dammit… all three are here.'

Behind him was Magito the Silent, the invincible swordsman who was known to place all he fought into complete silence.

Just the two of them would be too much to handle, but there was one more.

Behind them was the one who was on an entirely different level. Chunghuh shook in fear.

Sameng Garam.

He was the Greater General who was known to be most powerful in the 9th region, excluding the Lord of Darkness Gerome and his 7 Commanders. It was his second time seeing him, but Chunghuh knew him well.

The 9th rank in the 9th region.

Sameng Garam was upon them.