Beyond the Eternity

It was weird.

Simply put, it was very, very much weird.

I'm certain anyone with a clear mind would have felt the same way.

Like honestly, how was I supposed to feel about this?

« Dominate the female and gain her total obedience »

Was this some kind of Harem MMORPG quest? And when did the system start including such absurdities in the character's description?

I frowned.

It said if I dominated her in a one-sided manner, she would follow me. Does that mean I had to completely overwhelm her in a fight?

Given the situation, that seems likely. But what exactly does it mean for her to follow my every command?

Since she was created by the Darkness Witch, wouldn't her loyalty be tied to the Witch of Darkness?

Could it have something to do with favor? I'm trying to think of a reasonable explanation, but my thoughts keep drifting in that direction.

Dammit. Is she that kind of person? The serious type who secretly enjoys being dominated? Could that be it?

No, I'm probably misinterpreting the situation. Maybe she's just someone who respects strength.

Her name was Superbia, which meant "pride" or "arrogance."

What's the best way to deal with a prideful person?

The natural answer would be to destroy the source of their pride. Shatter it completely, reduce their self-esteem to nothing, and crush it underfoot.

And what was the root of this person's arrogance?

Obviously, it was her strength.

I see. Since she was a creation of the Darkness Witch, she must take a lot of pride in that.

"Hmm~ Hey, are you even listening? Don't you know it's rude to ignore someone when they're speaking to you?"

She's the eldest of the Seven Sisters of Darkness, but also the least talented. Doesn't that make her the weakest?

"Ah? Why are you staring at me so intensely? Are you trying to penetrate me with your predatory gaze? Don't think that just because you're a little good-looking, it gives you the right to look down on a young lady like me."

How did she hide that from her sisters? Did she put on an act to conceal the truth?

"What's your problem? Do you have a problem with me?"

Destroying the pride of a weak person isn't hard. But the way the system phrased it made me uneasy.

"Hey! Hey! Hello!!"

In the first place, who was the person writing the system messages?

"Oh my god, would you say something already?! How long are you planning on staying silent?!"

"Wassup?"

Suddenly, I was jolted back to reality. Superbia had been speaking, but I hadn't been paying attention. Why were her cheeks flushed? Was she perhaps angry?

"So you finally decide to answer me, huh? Do you enjoy ignoring a young lady?"

"What are you upset about? I was just lost in thought."

"Who wouldn't get upset when they're obviously being ignored? What were you even thinking about, anyway? Don't tell me you were captivated by my beauty!"

"What? Hell no," I said with a scoff. "You're seriously not my type, and for the record, you're not even sexy." Explore more at empire

Her expression froze in shock. "Eh, what?"

I didn't wait for her to recover. Instead, I glanced around the space and pressed on. "By the way, are you the only one here? You mentioned there were seven of you, right?"

Superbia quickly regained her composure, though a faint trace of her earlier surprise lingered on her face.

"Weren't you listening at all?" she huffed. "We are the Seven Sisters of Darkness, and I am the eldest among the Sisters, the Flame of Pride. We divided ourselves to ensure the participants are handled properly and the game remains fair. As for you..." Her lips curved into a smirk as she leaned forward. "It's been decided that I would be your opponent. Do you understand? I... am... your... opponent."

I ignored the unnecessary theatrics and focused on the important detail.

She was alone.

Scanning the area again, I confirmed it. There were no other presences.

Wasn't that good news?

If she really was alone, I wouldn't need to worry about surprises or some third party ruining my plans.

"Huh. Did you guys use a game to decide the order?"

"That's right. Wait, how did you know about that?"

"Isn't it obvious? Using a game to make decisions like that is pretty standard, isn't it?" I stratched the back of my head, letting out a long sigh. "Still, this is kind of disappointing."

Her expression sharpened, the earlier smugness vanishing. "What do you mean by that?"

"Uh, no offense, but I don't find you interesting in the slightest. Maybe I'd give you some points if you were cute or sexy, but you're seriously not my type. At all." I paused, giving her a once-over. "And honestly, you don't even look that strong. Oh, by the way, you mentioned you have younger sisters, right? Is there any chance I could switch opponents? I think I'd appreciate that. No hard feelings, yeah?"

Superbia froze as though she had been struck by a barrage of invisible blades. Her gaze dropped, shadowing her face, while a dark aura began to seep from her trembling shoulders and swirling like smoke around her.

A low, chilling laugh escaped her clenched teeth.

"What the actual hell? Has anyone ever dared to disrespect me like this before? No, I'm certain this is a first. Congrats."

Her dark aura flared as she directed her cold glare at me.

"You've really outdone yourself. Somehow, you've managed to hit every single one of my nerves—something not even my sisters have ever accomplished. Well done. Truly, an impressive feat. You're quite the remarkable guy."

Her mocking words dripped with venom, yet her tone carried a strange air of calmness.

Without warning, she swung her hand to the side.

Fwoosh!

In an instant, something 'orange' erupted violently, a burst of light radiating from her palm.

The fiery glow spiraled across her hand, twisting and condensing into something heavier, more dangerous. The vibrant orange deepened, like a painting scorched by flame, its colors darkening into a deep, ominous black.

Even from a distance, with no direct contact, it felt as though my eyes were being scorched just from watching the fire. I instinctively used my hands to protect my eyes.

Demonic Flame (火魔)

A power originating from the demon world. Even if you're unfamiliar with it, I can tell you with absolute certainty that you won't have a pleasant death if you're ever consumed by those flames.

Have you ever felt the sensation of burning to death? Now, imagine that pain a hundred times over, that's what you'd experience.

Truly, It's a terrifying power. And that woman was threatening to use it on me.

No, I'm sure she was itching to unleash those flames on me, to watch me scream and burn in agony. I could see it in the wild gleam in her eyes.

I smiled nervously.

It seemed my plan to provoke her had worked. Maybe too well. But... this was fine, right?

"I hope you're prepared. You are, right? Because there's no way I'm letting you go. I'm just going to hit you with this. It won't hurt too much, I promise. So, please accept my little 'gift of love' with open arms."

You idiot. How do you expect me to stand still and accept your 'gift of love' when it would burn me to death?

Would any normal person think like this? Of course not.

As expected, this woman was completely unhinged. Was she like this because it was ingrained in her programming?

Her master was really great.

Past the hand covering my face, I could see an unnatural, twisted smile stretching across her red lips.

Still grinning, she swung her hand.

The black flame morphed into a lethal spear, hurtling toward me in a straight line, its target unmistakably my body.

†

†

Soo Jinyoung moved through the house while calmly avoiding all the traps.

The shadow wolves were easy to spot, the flying steel arrows simple to detect and evade. Even materialized trap-like entities like the giant skull and the headless woman were no match for the swift strikes of her sword.

So far, everything had been too easy, yet she never let her guard down for a second.

After all, wouldn't dropping her guard be like handing her neck to the enemy?

Thus, she saw no reason to drop her guard and remained cautious as she continued her stride.

I've been searching for a while, but I still haven't found anything.

It wasn't strange for her to think this way.

She had been searching the entire place alone, looking for anything of importance, like a shattered fragment, but no matter where she looked, she hadn't found a single thing.

No party members. No fragments. No memories.

To make matters worse, the house kept changing its layout, making it difficult for her to access certain areas, which wasted most of her time.

It was hard for someone like her to feel truly frustrated like a normal person, but she couldn't deny that she was a little annoyed.

If I keep searching, I'll eventually arrive at my answer.

Her thought process was pretty simple: if she kept searching, she would eventually find what she was looking for—and perhaps even manage to escape her current predicament.

It wasn't a matter of being optimistic. She truly believed that continuing her search would lead her to the answer.

"...."

Soo Jinyoung came to a sudden halt.

The path she had been walking on had abruptly transformed into a hallway. The change in scenery was obvious, but what truly caught her attention were the two dark silhouettes standing in front of her.

She narrowed her eyes.

The two figures were women. Even though they had distinct appearances, both wore the same kind of suit.

The one on the left had smooth green hair and hazel eyes, with a few strands covering her right eye. The one on the right had long yellow hair and red eyes.

Both had slender figures, but there was a noticeable difference: the one on the left was tall, while the other was slightly shorter.

In the end, they were both stunning beauties, but It was somewhat strange that they were both wearing suits.

Even so, Soo Jinyoung wasn't interested in that.

Her grip tightened around her sword hanging by her waist.

They were blocking her path and had appeared in the same Nightmarish House that had consumed Ryu Yeji's soul. Soo Jinyoung would be a fool to be deceived by appearances, and she wasn't naive enough to believe in coincidences.

Soo Jinyoung asked, "Who are you?"

It was a simple question, but the way it left her lips made it sound more like a demand.

The two sisters briefly noted her harsh tone, frowning for a moment before their smiles returned, as if remembering to plaster them back on.

"Oh, isn't this person interesting? She seems to have some spirit," the green-haired sister remarked, a sly grin playing on her lips.

"I agree. I was expecting to be matched with someone dull, but I suppose this woman will suffice," said the blonde with a shrug.

"Right? But what's with her choice of clothing? How could someone have zero fashion sense with that level of beauty? Tch, tch, tch." The green-haired sister clicked her tongue three times, clearly annoyed by something.

The blonde sighed impatiently and began her introduction. "Ah, let's skip the pointless chatter. My name is Avaritia, the Flame of Greed and the fifth among the Sisters of Darkness."

Her companion followed up with her own. "And I'm Invidia, the Flame of Envy and the second oldest of the Sisters of Darkness. In accordance with the rules of the Devil Roulette, we've been chosen to be your—"

Invidia's words caught in her throat.

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

Without warning and before she could even finish her sentence, Soo Jinyoung's sword was already a mere breath away from her nose.