My consciousness sank.
The physical world faded away, replaced by a vast expanse of pale gray mist. Clouds of memories drifted about, layered endlessly like an ocean.
Such a vast soul… I thought.Far too vast for Sequence 8.
I stepped forward. Every cloud I touched slowly shattered, revealing fragments of memories.
Blood.Screams.Faces twisted in fear.
I saw Elian torturing people, extracting information, forcing others to kneel before him. There was no pleasure in it—only emotional release.
"I'm not here to judge anyone," I murmured softly.
I continued deeper.
The deeper I went, the older the memories became… and the quieter they felt.
Then I stopped.
"…Strange."
I looked around, realizing that nothing had blocked my path this entire time.
No seals.No soul walls.No traces of any blocking magic.
Yet if communication with the gods had been blocked, something should have been embedded to obstruct it.
"Is the barrier too weak, so it had to be hidden?"
I moved even farther, until I finally reached the deepest end of the soul.
And there, I saw it.
A void.
Not clouds.Not memories.Not darkness.
Just empty space—something completely out of sync with everything around it.
I approached and reached out my hand.
My hand stopped.
It was as if an invisible wall stood before me—not rejecting me, just… not allowing passage.
"…Not this," I muttered. "This isn't a communication barrier."
I withdrew my hand. Even without knowing what it was, I was certain it wasn't the reason Elian couldn't communicate with the gods. That thing had existed since the very beginning of his memories.
If it wasn't here, then I needed to investigate from the moment Elian first obtained his destiny.
The scenery changed.
A luxurious room, filled with expensive paintings and beautifully carved walls. At the center stood a large bed, stuffed dolls scattered across it.
A young girl sat quietly, leaning against a pillow. Her green eyes were empty, stiff, unfocused.
Beside her, a white-haired boy carefully fed her, his hands trembling.
Suddenly, the door opened, and a woman with dark golden hair entered the room.
"Mother," the boy said anxiously. "Liana won't talk… and she hasn't slept for days."
The woman glanced at Elian briefly, then focused her gaze on Liana.
"Althea…" I murmured softly."She looks a little different from the portraits."
She walked up to Liana and extended her hand.
In the next instant, Liana fell asleep.
"Mother…" the boy's voice trembled.
"She'll be fine," Althea replied shortly. "I promise."
She left without looking back.
I frowned. Cold… not at all like her reputation.
Time moved on.
The boy—Elian—began reading fairy tales.
For the first time, Liana reacted and turned her head toward him.
"Who?" she asked quietly.
Elian's face lit up, realizing his story had finally reached her."It's a secret. If you listen until the end, you'll know."
Days passed.
Story after story was told by Elian, yet he received no response from Liana. Even so, he continued, telling more interesting tales each day.
One day, a light emerged from Elian's body.
"Awakening," I murmured softly.
From that day on, every time he told a story, Liana would fall asleep. Elian looked happy, realizing his efforts were finally bearing fruit.
Time jumped forward again.
Elian swung his sword on the training field, then began spending time in the library, reading books. Even so, most of his time was still spent with his sister.
Until—
Klang.
A metal tray slipped from Elian's lap. Quickly, he placed the plates onto the table beside him and bent down to pick up the tray.
"Thank goodness this tray is made of metal. If it weren't—"
His words cut off.
The smile on Elian's face vanished instantly.
In front of him, Liana clutched her head, her face pale with terror. Her body trembled uncontrollably, her hands digging into her own hair.
Elian rushed forward and pulled Liana into his arms."It's okay. I'm here."
Days passed, and Liana's condition continued to worsen.
Whenever Elian accidentally made a loud noise, Liana would shake in fear. When rain fell and thunder struck, she would curl into herself and bite her tongue until it bled.
"Mother, Liana's condition is getting worse. Please, do something!" Elian shouted inside Althea's study.
"She's still traumatized by what happened to her before. I'll soon obtain a destiny that can erase her memories," Althea replied flatly.
"Then why don't you ask someone else to erase Liana's memories?! I'm sure there are plenty of people who can do it!" Elian shouted angrily.
Tears streamed down his face."With your authority, that would be easy. I'm begging you… I already lost Father. I don't want to lose my sister too."
Althea looked at Elian with an indifferent expression, offering no answer.
"Strange," I murmured. "Even though I've never met her, I've heard Lady Althea would fight countless enemies just to save her subordinates."
Elian stood up and left the room.
He wandered through the city, entered a temple, and knelt before statues of the gods for hours. When he finally stood, night had already fallen, and with a disappointed expression, he hurried back home.
After returning, Elian went straight into Liana's room and read her a fairy tale as usual. This time, he didn't leave immediately after she fell asleep.
Slowly, tears fell from the corners of his eyes.
Suddenly, Elian stood up and looked around.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
There was no one else in the room—only Elian and Liana.
"Can you really help me?"
I frowned, realizing that the being Elian was speaking to was the source of his current problems—yet I couldn't see it.
"I want you to erase part of my sister's memories so she can return to how she was before."
"Of course. I'll give you my life. But can you give me a few days to spend with my sister?"
Elian kept talking to himself.
"Oh, I see. Fine. I promise I won't tell anyone about this."
Curiosity pushed me to act.
In an instant, I created a magic circle and directly entered Elian's point of view.
Before me appeared a golden sheet of paper, inscribed with the following terms:
Party A will help Party B heal Party C in its own way and ensure Party C can live and function normally as before.
In return, Party B will follow Party A to the demon realm after the end of their lifespan. Party B is not allowed to take any actions to extend their life.
If any third party becomes aware of this agreement, Party A will immediately know and forcibly bring Party B to the demon realm.
After I finished reading, the room suddenly shook violently and collapsed. A deafening voice echoed inside my head.
"I don't know who you are… but I'll let you go because you helped me."
I woke up gasping for air. That voice left an overwhelming fear deep in my heart.
My mind was filled with its echo. After so long, I felt this kind of terror again—the terror of an existence beyond comprehension. The terror of something outside human understanding.
"Ms. Seraphina... Why do you look so frightened?"
"Elian, what is that on your forehead?" I pointed at the strange symbol on the young man's brow.
Elian touched his forehead, trying to feel something.
"Arghh—!"Suddenly, Elian screamed in pain. A beam of light shot out from his forehead, and an overwhelming force pressed down from the sky, causing the air around them to tremble.
Note: Sometimes I think, why did I decide to write this complicated novel? Why didn't I write a novel where the main character beats people up like dogs with a system and a group of women chasing after him?