…And so, Claire Delfin Mascarena opened her eyes.

“…Huh?”

As she regained her senses, Claire found herself standing in a dark and unfamiliar space.

Just a moment ago, she distinctly remembered being in the heart of Nineveh, but somehow the surrounding space had completely changed.

What on earth is happening? What has become of her? And what events had transpired?

Thud—

As she unwittingly took a step forward, a sound akin to stepping into a puddle echoed around her.

The surroundings were so dark that she could hardly see, and yet there were pools of water scattered everywhere—why had she come to such a dreadful place?

“Ugh, um…”

Calming her thoughts, memories of what had just occurred began to surface.

She recalled that a moment ago, her one and only possession had been taken right before her eyes, and in the end, an unidentified voice had whispered malevolently to her, and then at the end—

“…Huh?”

Suddenly lowering her gaze to her hands, Claire found them stained bright red.

…No, it wasn’t just Claire’s hands. Not only her hands but the very space she stood upon was drenched in blood.

Thud—

It was then that she realized what she had taken for puddles until now was, in fact, blood that had pooled from someone who had bled excessively.

“…So, you’ve finally come to your senses. It seems you’re lucky in your misfortune, Claire Delfin Mascarena.”

In a corner of the darkness, something Claire had thought to be merely a rock began to stir and eventually spoke.

Concentrating her mana to enhance her vision, Claire finally recognized the identity of the figure lying helplessly on the ground.

“…Chairperson?”

Indeed. The person gazing at her with a breath so feeble it seemed ready to extinguish, their entire body torn to shreds, was none other than Lisitia von Edelstein, the chairperson of Nineveh.

“Why…?”

As she witnessed the chairperson’s pitiful state, one thought dominated Claire’s mind—why?

Who could have turned the chairperson into such a miserable sight?

As far as Claire knew, the chairperson possessed enough strength to be considered among the mightiest in the world, barring the Seven Heroes.

How could it be that someone like her had ended up in such a state, unable to put up even a meager fight? No, more importantly, who had done this to her?

…No, figuring out the mystery or identifying the culprit could come later. What mattered now was far more urgent.

The chairperson’s condition was far too grave. Each time she attempted to say something, she coughed violently, indicating that her internal injuries must be as serious as her visible wounds.

Just as Claire had decided to draw forth her mana to cast a healing spell on the chairperson—

“…Huh?”

The spell failed to cast. At that very moment, her attempt fell short.

…No, that wasn’t quite it. It wasn’t that the casting had failed; rather, she hadn’t been able to cast from the beginning. To be more precise, she couldn’t use magic.

Because at present, Claire’s own body was moving autonomously, detached from her mental control.

And that was where it ended. Claire’s consciousness faded once more, and she reverted to the lifeless puppet she had been before.

“…This is worse than I expected. Is it already too late?”

The chairperson gazed at Claire, her heavy breaths revealing frustration as if lamenting something.

Not long ago, realizing someone had invaded the seal, Lisitia had rushed here, only to be met with the sight of Claire losing her consciousness, plunging her into despair.
‘Is it true that destiny cannot be changed?’

As the guardian of the seal, residing deep within Nineveh, she realized that the situation she had dreaded had come to pass, and she was aware of certain secrets from the past.

She knew it. Even though the people of the world had completely forgotten all of the past and were living in a state of blissful peace, this peace was a hollow illusion that could crumble like a sandcastle at any moment.

In a mere decade, the descendants of Valentine were predicted to bring about the world’s end, and the realization that such an event could occur at any time loomed large.

At this very moment, if she did not slice away the thing that was consuming Claire’s body, it was possible that the world could be destroyed not in ten years, but right now.

Despite knowing this all too well, the chairperson could not rid herself of her weakness until the very end.

She could have killed Claire without any hesitation, but because she had tried to subdue her instead, she now lay on the ground in such a pitiful state.

…No, upon reflection, that was an excuse. Her own arrogance, stemming from her failure to properly gauge her opponent’s abilities and merely attempting to subdue her, had brought about this result.

‘To be able to grow this strong, even though her body hasn’t fully transformed into an Apostle, and she has only received power through some link…’

Even without the seal being officially broken, and merely having a semblance of power trickling in, Claire had gained strength beyond her limits.

Then, if the seal were to be lifted, just how powerful would the monster coiled beyond the threshold become?

Step, step.

With a dazed expression, Claire moved her footsteps towards the massive iron door, thickly shackled with chains.

The door was so enormous that it could fill this chamber to the brim, raising doubts about whether a mere human could ever open it.

Swoosh—

But as soon as Claire’s hand touched it, the chains clasping the iron door melted away as if by magic, and the door creaked open.

After 200 years, the steadfast seal that had blocked it came crumbling down like a lie.

And—

“…Ah.”

Beyond the door, in a space filled only with inky darkness, a pair of lights reminiscent of the sun caught her eye, large and imposing.

…No, it was not the sun. It was merely a pair of eyes so enormous that they naturally invoked thoughts of the sun.

Even as she looked, it felt unbelievable. How could such a colossal life form exist and move in this world?

“Cough!”

Being in the same space as that entity felt like her sanity was unraveling. Unable to withstand it, the chairperson coughed up dark, blackened blood.

However, the being beyond the door paid no attention to the chairperson, as if she were nothing more than an ant scuttling along the ground, not even worth a passing thought.

[You have come. My faithful servant, and my puppet.]

As it spoke, a thunderous voice echoed around them, and at that moment, Claire, now seemingly returning to her senses, looked up at the entity with a pale expression.

“…Who are you? And where is this? Why am I here?”

[Who am I, you ask? What a rude question. Does this mean you’ve already forgotten my existence, despite our many conversations up to this point?]

There was something sinister yet simultaneously gleeful in the manner of its reply.

[But I shall forgive you. It wouldn’t be fitting to be angry with my precious puppet. As the master of your soul, I must extend this level of grace and mercy.]

“…Conversations? Have we?”

And in that moment, it dawned on her. The sinister voice that had been endlessly swirling in her mind was exactly the same as that of the entity before her.
Her entire body, including both hands, was drenched in blood. However, the blood did not flow from her own body, for Claire’s physical form was unscathed, without a single wound.

If that was the case, what then was this blood covering her body?

And during the time she had lost consciousness, what exactly had she done to reach this place?

“You… you—”

Stifling a wave of nausea, Claire gasped for breath.

“You toyed with me. You infiltrated my mind from the beginning, manipulating my thoughts and whispering strange words, all to prepare for this moment!”

As Claire shouted with a voice that seemed to growl, the entity whispered back, almost adorably, as if amused by her distress.

[Well… rather than saying I toyed with you, I merely liberated the desires you had been hiding. No, to be precise, I have simply fulfilled your wish.]

“…You fulfilled my wish?”

What foolishness was this? Claire had never wished for such a situation to occur.

To prioritize her own desires at the expense of another’s sacrifice, drenched in blood whose origin she could not identify—she was absolutely not the kind of person who would want such a thing!

[No, that’s not it. Because you have come to possess something far more precious than your own life or dignity.]

Though the subject was not stated, Claire understood perfectly what it referred to.

Because at this moment, she was continuously envisioning her one and only family and their safety in her mind.

[Your heart is filled with fear, sorrow, and despair. You are consumed by the anxiety that the one thing you have longed for in your life might leave you.]

[That is precisely why I granted you power according to your wish. A strength that can eliminate anyone who would dare take away what belongs to you.]

The sinister voice shifted, turning beautiful and warm. In an instant, it pierced her heart, igniting a single, fiery desire.

[You sought strength from me, and I brought you here to give it to you, just as promised. Is it too much to ask what discontent you have that causes you to wear such a face?]

With a hint of mockery in that voice, Claire found herself at a loss for words, unable to lift her head.

The words were undeniably true. Though it had toyed with her mind and whispered into her ears, she was the one who ultimately succumbed to its seduction.

And in the next moment, something she had uttered caused Claire to open her eyes wide.

[…Ah, thinking back, it wouldn’t be entirely incorrect to say I haven’t toyed with you at all. Because, you see, the emotions currently occupying your heart are nothing but falsehoods.]

“…What do you mean?”

[Oh my, have you not understood, or are you just pretending not to realize? You’re clever enough; surely you grasp what I’m saying.]

Upon hearing that, Claire felt as if her heart was being squeezed. She momentarily held her breath, and the entity spoke with genuine amusement.

[The feelings of affection and passion you have for that man were artificially bestowed upon you by me from the very beginning.]

[Your heart for him has been a complete fabrication since the start.]