Chapter 55: A Broken World (1)

As expected, when Lilith rushed to the original location in panic, Dia was already gone. Frustrated, she used all her strength to search for Dia’s whereabouts. Her mental power once covered the entire Sasan region, but sadly, she still couldn’t find any trace of the fourth apostle who had used puppets to lure her away.
Dia’s disappearance left Lilith flustered, and she no longer had time to carry out her plans to eliminate Thors. Yet even with the full power of the Flores family at her disposal, she couldn’t locate Dia. With no other choice, she decided to go to Thors herself, who was in Vando—after all, Thors still possessed great power in that place.
“Dia’s missing?” Thors was clearly shocked when he heard this.
“Mm!” Lilith gave the man before her a complex look and recounted everything that had happened last night, omitting the fact that she had interfered to prevent Thors from meeting Dia.
After discussing the situation, Lilith left. Dia’s disappearance seemed to throw this queen of darkness in disarray. Not long after she left, just as Thors was about to leave, someone knocked on the office door…
“Knock, knock, knock!”
Picking up his coat that was lying aside, Thors said in a deep voice, “Come in!”
A professor pushed the door open and handed Thors a letter, saying, “Dean, this was delivered just now!”
“Oh?” Thors was stunned. He instinctively glanced at the letter, which bore no message. Confused, he opened it, but after just one glance, his expression changed abruptly. He asked urgently, “Where is the messenger?”
The professor shook his head in surprise and said, “They only said to give this letter to you, the dean. They didn’t say much else, so I didn’t pay attention. Has… has something happened?”
“…” Thors opened his mouth, shook his head, and forced a smile. “It’s nothing. Go back to your work.”
“Yes!”
After watching the professor leave, Thors’s gaze fell back on the letter.
“Dia Palas, your woman is in my hands. If you don’t want her to die, come to the Brim Fields alone!”
Suddenly, Thors understood—this was aimed at him!
What worried him most was the location mentioned in the letter: the Brim Fields. That was where the apostle of Greed, Argus, had died… Was it Argus?

Sos’s mind instinctively brought to mind Argus’s scornful smile, but he quickly shook his head. After all, he didn’t believe that man would resort to such despicable acts.
“The Bream Plains, huh?” he muttered with a frown, then clenched his fist lightly, shattering the letter in his hand as it fell to the ground.
—Meanwhile, somewhere else—
Dia seemed to wake up from her coma, staring blankly at the desolate surroundings. When she came to her senses, she found herself trapped between three huge rocks. As she stood up, a sudden gust of cold wind knocked her off balance, nearly making her fall. The biting cold made Dia instinctively wrap her cloak tighter around herself.
“How did I end up here?” she murmured in surprise, looking around at the endless barren land.
Suddenly, a clear voice came from beside her.
“It’s warmer if you sit down, big sister!”
Dia instinctively turned her head and was stunned to see the cute little girl she had met before crouched on the ground, arranging firewood as if planning to start a campfire.
“You?” Dia stared at her in shock, then, as if suddenly remembering something, said warily, “Who exactly are you?”
“Bear!” The campfire was lit. Under Dia’s wary gaze, the little girl raised her head and said with a smile, “Big sister is so kind. I won’t hurt you, but don’t try to run either. You can’t escape, because…” She opened her eyes, revealing a pair of eerie pale red pupils, before continuing, “Because I’m an Apostle!”
An Apostle…
Dia had heard this title more than once. She certainly understood what it meant. Any Apostle possessed unimaginable power—just like Argus back then. He was an Apostle who single-handedly destroyed an entire empire and killed countless powerful magicians. Her lover… no, her former lover, Sos, also known as the great magician Volmon Klaest, had once been an Apostle too. That’s why he could defeat Argus…
The power of an Apostle was beyond what humans could ever match!
“Is that so?” Dia sighed slightly. Thinking of an Apostle reminded her of Sos, leaving her in a low mood. Sitting across from the little girl, she propped her chin and said self-mockingly, “Apostles are very powerful…” Then, as if remembering something, she asked with a smile, “By the way, what’s your name?”

The little girl stared at Dia in surprise, then said with a smile, “My name is Lily. Big sister, you can call me Little Lily!”
“Little Lily?” Looking at her adorable appearance, Dia smiled and said, “Then, Little Lily, why did you bring me here?”
“Because…” A hint of hatred appeared in the little girl’s eyes as she spoke in a resentful tone, “Because I want to take revenge!”
“Revenge?” Dia was stunned and asked in shock, “Take revenge on me?”
“Hehe,” the little girl giggled, shook her head, and said seriously, “Big sister is very kind and gentle. I really like you. How could I hurt you? The person I want is Volmon Klaesti!”
Dia’s heart suddenly pounded. She instinctively stood up and stared at the little girl, who no longer had an adorable look but only a face filled with deep hatred. She asked in shock, “You… you want to take revenge on Thors? Why… why?”
“Because…” A hint of nostalgia appeared in the little girl’s light red eyes as she idly fiddled with a stick in the fire, saying softly, “Because he killed the person who was most important to me…”
“Thors? No way…” Dia shook her head repeatedly in shock. “How could it be Thors? There must be some mistake!”
“There’s no mistake,” the little girl said, gently throwing the stick into the fire. She shook her head and asked, “Do you know where we are, big sister?”
“Here…” Dia looked around in astonishment. To her, it was a desolate and ruined land, covered with debris and deep pits, with artificial trenches visible everywhere.
Seeing Dia’s confused expression, the little girl murmured, “This is the Brim Plains!”
“The Brim Plains?” Dia’s face showed confusion.

Seeing Dia not understand, the little girl rested her chin in her hand and recalled, “Once, on a night even colder than now, there was a little girl whose parents were killed by a group of villains. Helpless, she hid alone in a corner of the city, enduring hunger and cold… Then, she heard a voice that said to her, ‘Do you want to come with me, little girl?’ And so, the little girl followed that man… That man was kind to her, like a father and a brother. In this lonely city without family, he was her only support. He always liked to tease her and say harsh words to scare her. If the little girl cried, he would stroke her hair and comfort her…” As she spoke, the little girl turned to look at Dia and said sadly, “That man’s name was Argus, Argus BartClarkefield. He was killed by your lover, Volmon Klaest, right here…”
“Argus?” Dia’s face was filled with shock.
Seemingly reading Dia’s thoughts, the little girl smiled self-mockingly, supported her face with her hand, and said softly, “I know you all think Argus was a bad person. I also know he did many, many evil things and killed many people. But Argus was a very gentle person. You don’t understand his gentleness…” She then recounted many trivial details about her life with Argus.
“You…” Looking at the happy expression on the little girl’s face, Dia felt puzzled and hesitated, “You… liked him?”
Unavoidably, a faint blush appeared on the little girl’s face as she shyly lowered her head.
Dia was surprised. After all, as far as she knew, Argus was nearly twenty years older than the little girl before her.
“Is it strange?” The little girl mustered courage, looked up at Dia, and said with a smile, “Back then, I always dreamed of growing up quickly so I could marry him. But…” At this point, the happy expression on her face faded, and she stared at Dia with hatred, saying, “But one day, that dream was shattered by someone named Volmon Klaest, your lover!”
“Lily…” Dia opened her mouth but didn’t know how to comfort the sad little girl before her.

“I want to kill him, kill Volmon Klaest, to avenge Argus!” Saying this, the little girl looked at Dia with apology in her eyes and said shyly, “I’m sorry for making you stay here with me in the cold. But only you can lure him out…”
Seeing the apologetic look in the little girl’s eyes, Dia sighed inwardly, sat down next to her, put her arm around her shoulders, and said softly, “Silly! Anyway, killing is the worst thing there is. I’m not trying to defend what Thors did, but I don’t think Argus would want you to avenge him. The reason he didn’t tell you about his affairs is probably because he didn’t want to get you involved. He probably just wants you to live a normal girl’s life, quietly…” As she spoke, Dia suddenly paused.
She vaguely remembered that when Thors was with her, he never talked about work or magic either. He always discussed those matters with Ravia and the others. At that time, Dia found it hard to accept, but after hearing Lily’s words, she suddenly understood Thors a bit better.
“Sis? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Dia said, covering her forehead and shaking her head, forcing a smile before advising, “Anyway, killing is a horrible act. Don’t do that, little Lily!”
But the little girl seemed unwilling to give up. Shaking her head, she said, “I understand you don’t want your lover to get into trouble, sis, but I must avenge Argus. It’s for this goal that I gained this power of hatred!”
“Lily!” Dia suddenly hugged the little girl and pleaded softly, “The power of hatred only brings pain. Even if you kill someone for someone you love, when your hands are stained with blood, are you still the same person? The reason Argus didn’t tell you about his affairs is probably because he wants you to live a normal life like any other ordinary girl. You know best the pain of losing a loved one. If you kill Thors to avenge Argus, what will you gain? Will Argus be revived because of this?”
“I…” The little girl was stunned. After thinking for a while, she looked at Dia and mumbled, “I know! Sis is just saying this because she doesn’t want your lover to get into trouble!”

“No!” Dia raised her voice sharply, then laughed self-mockingly and shook her head. “Maybe so. Anyway, I still don’t want anything to happen to him. But I also don’t want you to dirt your hands in revenge… If you still can’t accept it, then let me take Sos’s place. One life for another—I won’t hold it against you!”
“Big sister?” The little girl’s eyes were filled with surprise.
“But you mustn’t hurt Sos anymore. Otherwise, big sister will really hate you!”
“…” Staring at Dia’s determined gaze in surprise, the little girl asked weakly, “Was… was he good to you? Worth big sister dying for?”
Dia sighed slightly, then looked up at the sky and murmured, “Well, in some ways, he’s quite like Argus you mentioned—selfish, but talented and gentle. Yet I always felt he was too quiet. Maybe it’s because of his personality. Sometimes, even though he’s troubled by something, he won’t express his worries. Perhaps that’s Sos’s gentleness—rather than both of them being troubled, it’s better to keep it to oneself. Besides… I can’t help him either…”
Seeing the somewhat lost look in Dia’s eyes, the little girl giggled and suddenly said, “Big sister is a very gentle and kind woman!”
“Huh?” Dia was stunned for a moment, then tapped Lily’s forehead with her finger and said irritably, “How do you know that?”
The little girl blinked and said cheerfully, “I can just feel it!” She touched her own heart and whispered, “When I was blind before, I had a special ability—to sense others’ intentions, whether kind or malicious. I can sense it. I feel that big sister is a very kind person, that’s why I said so much to her…”
“Then, can you give up? Give up on revenge against Sos?”
The little girl looked deeply into Dia’s eyes, those eyes as clear as sapphires. Then she sighed, a hint of disappointment in her voice, “Big sister is really kind. I…” Her face showed some hesitation as she said, “Let me think…”
Just then, a voice came from afar—a voice that Dia recognized very well.
“Come out, Volmon Kleist! As written in the letter, you came here alone, a despicable coward hiding in secret. Come out! Hmph, is that there?”
“Idiot!”

After hearing that sound, Dia clearly saw a flame named revenge ignite in Little Lily’s eyes. She inwardly blamed Thors for arriving at the wrong time. Before Dia could say anything, with a whoosh, Thors appeared just a dozen yards away from them. “Dia, don’t worry, I’m here!” Thors thought he had said something to reassure her. Yet to his surprise, Dia glared at him irritably and scolded, “Idiot!” “Huh?” Thors was stunned, then seemed to remember something. He looked around, frowned, and said, “Dia, who brought you here?” As soon as he finished speaking, the little girl beside Dia giggled, “Big brother, the one who kidnapped your sister is right in front of you!” “You?” Thors stared in shock at the little girl not far away. He could hardly believe it was a girl who seemed to be only fourteen or even younger. Seeming to read Thors’ thoughts, the girl raised her hands, counted on her fingers, and said cheerfully, “Actually, I’m only three years younger than you and your sister. I’m fourteen!” Thors was stunned, then suddenly seemed to remember something. He whispered, “An Apostle?” “Mm!” With Dia’s helpless expression, the little girl stood up, stared at Thors with hatred, and said bitterly, “It’s all to kill you and avenge Argus!” “For Argus…” Thors couldn’t help but look around, then at where Dia and the others were. If he remembered correctly, that was where Argus had died. The miserable Apostles, after dying, would turn into dark essence—no corpse would remain, not even their souls would stay in this world. “Stupid!” Thors blurted out those two words, not out of malice, but to tell her that Apostles weren’t as glorious as others thought. What price did they really pay behind that glory?! “Thors, how can you say that?” Dia said reproachfully. Under Dia’s worried gaze, the little girl broke free from her embrace, walked up to Thors, and said angrily, “Are you mocking me, Volmon Kleist? Or are you afraid?” “Afraid?” Thors couldn’t help but smile and said lightly, “Because of your half-baked Apostle power?”

“You!” The little girl seemed angry. With a vague gesture of her right hand, the soil on the ground suddenly trembled, and soon a human-shaped puppet appeared—undoubtedly the same one Lilith had seen before. Just by observing the intermittent dark aura surrounding the puppet, it was clear that it wasn’t an ordinary mud puppet. The puppet was fast, even faster than the Queen of the Ground, Queen Qunin, and its strength was immense enough to shatter the ground. But so what? With a snap, Thors snapped his fingers. At the same time, a burst of white flame erupted inside the dark mud puppet that was rapidly approaching him. [Flame Flash] “Bang!” The mud puppet instantly exploded into countless pieces. “Thors…” Dia couldn’t help but shout. Then, she saw Thors smile at her gently and say softly, “Don’t worry. I won’t hurt her!” With that, he turned to the little girl, raised a white flame in his right hand, and said lightly, “Thinking you can kill me like this? You overestimate yourself. How ridiculous!” “The ridiculous one is you, big brother!” the little girl retorted with a puffed face. To Thors’ surprise, the dark mud puppet reassembled itself and rushed toward him even faster than before. “Boom!” The moment Thors used his teleportation magic to dodge, the dark mud puppet created a deep pit in the ground. With a proud look, the little girl said, “It’s useless. No matter how many times it’s destroyed, [Pabette] will be reborn in the darkness, and each time, it will be even stronger!” “Hmph, interesting!” Under the little girl’s proud gaze, a milky-white flame with a sacred aura ignited in Thors’ hand. Soon, this sacred flame turned into a fireball that struck the dark mud puppet at incredible speed. No matter how the puppet tried to dodge, it ultimately couldn’t escape the power of the sacred flame. The dark forces surrounding it were instantly driven away by the sacred flame, and its body turned into a purple crystal that disappeared with the wind. This time, it didn’t regenerate… “You…” The little girl seemed shocked. She stepped back a few steps, staring in astonishment at the imperial grand mage before her, murmuring, “‘Sacred Flame’ Volmon Kleist…” “Hmph, it seems you’ve forgotten. I was once an apostle, and I also possess the sacred power of Salonia. Against the dark powers of apostles, the power of the sacred is extremely effective!”

“Well… what about this?” The little girl puffed out her cheeks, seemingly using all her strength. The ground trembled, and under the astonished gazes of Dia and even Thos, the nearby ground began to wriggle. In the blink of an eye, hundreds of dark mud puppet minions appeared.

Under Thos’ surprised stare, the little girl said in a sulky tone, “Don’t underestimate the power of the [Pabets]. Even the great mage Volmon Kleist can’t withstand so many of them!”

“Heh!” Thos smiled faintly. Indeed, these so-called [Pabets] were no ordinary puppets. Each one could rival Allen in his normal state, even without activating his domain. After all, Allen was a great knight. What’s more troublesome is that unless they are purified with divine power, every time they are destroyed, they will rise again from darkness, even stronger than before.

Immune to any weakening magic, unable to be driven away, weakened, or bound by any force other than divine power, and growing stronger with the emotions of the Apostles—this represented [Anger], the divine power possessed by the ancient will [Samael], who wielded the [Power of Hatred]—the [Absolute Power]!

Even among the Apostles, it was an exceptionally powerful force. Moreover, it was the only divine power among the Apostles that could be imparted to others without weakening its own strength. Especially when the Apostle used this power, he became stronger with each battle, growing more powerful with his anger, a special ability that allowed him to defeat all other Apostles.

In the ancient texts of the ruins, the ancient wills once engaged in an unprecedented battle in this world over their conflicts. In that battle, [Anger] ranked fifth among the ancient wills but was the strongest of them all. He nearly single-handedly defeated all his brothers and almost destroyed the entire world. Even [Power of Forgetfulness] Sloth was not as powerful as [Power of Hatred] Samael.

Of course, the two never truly fought each other. In that battle, although Sloth was on the side of [Greed] Mammon, most of them were either dozing off or daydreaming. Nevertheless, the texts recorded that [Anger] single-handedly defeated the combined forces of [Arrogance], [Jealousy], and [Gluttony], three of the most troublesome ancient wills.

It is worth mentioning that when Laziness is disturbed, the emotion that arises is Anger. Aside from Greed, the most primal desire, which is the brother of all ancient wills, it is Anger and Laziness that are true brothers. Unfortunately, the little girl seems unable to wield this power freely—just by the absence of the dark tattoos unique to apostles on her face, it is clear she has not been in contact with this power for long. Even if Thors has lost Slos’s power but has gained access to the Force, trying to defeat Thors, who now wields the Force in an incomplete state, is beyond even the power of Hatred, the most powerful of the ancient wills. However, the hundreds of Pabets around them are indeed a serious challenge. No matter how resilient Thors’s body may be, it is no longer his demonized form—it is just human. The Pabets’ formidable physical strength is too much for him to handle; a few hits might not be a big deal, but if they swarm him, things will get troublesome. Fortunately, Thors now has access to the Force, allowing him to sense the flow of the atmosphere and communicate with the World Will. Thus, he doesn’t need to rely on sight to detect his opponents’ movements. With teleportation and dodging, he handles the attacks of countless Pabets with ease. The problem, though, is that there are simply too many Pabets, and the speed at which the Holy Flame can destroy them is not fast enough to keep up with the rate at which the little girl summons them. “What’s wrong? Big brother, you’re the Holy Flame Volmon Kleist!” The little girl seemed determined to avenge herself for the previous arrow attack, mocking Thors. “Thors…” Dia’s eyes showed concern. Not understanding what an apostle was, she never imagined that the seemingly twelve- or thirteen-year-old Lily possessed such power. Suddenly, she saw Thors glance at her, smile slightly, and then the worried expression on her face gradually disappeared. Holding her hands together, she prayed for the two of them—her kind heart didn’t want either of them to get hurt. “What a headache-inducing brat!” Thors couldn’t help but shake his head. Then his expression changed, and with a soft command, an extremely powerful sacred force erupted around his body. The Pabets touched by this force instantly turned to dust. Under the little girl’s astonished gaze, the sacred force continued to expand, like flowing flames, gradually forming a tall white figure behind Thors. In just a few seconds, the figure’s contours became clearer.

It was the image of an angel, dressed in dazzling golden armor like a Seraphim, holding a sword wreathed in blazing white flames in his right hand. Strangely enough, he also resembled a Cherubim, holding in his left hand a book of wisdom marked with an eye that emitted a brilliant light. Even more peculiar was the sacred halo beneath his feet, with divine power growing stronger around him like a domain—a special ability unique to angels.

Behind him were three pairs of enormous white wings. One pair covered his face, preventing anyone from seeing his true appearance, revealing only a pair of eyes burning with holy flames. Another pair covered his waist like a sash, while the last pair covered his legs. What made up these wings were not white feathers but flames—blazing white flames that appeared translucent, creating a very hazy and illusory effect.

This was the most powerful angel born from Sos combining the power of three sacred marks within him with his own understanding of divine power. It was also his most formidable weapon as he prepared to fight Beelzebub—a Archangel, a Higher Angel, and a Seraphim possessing the abilities of a Seraphim, a Cherubim, and an Archangel: [Serafim—The Glory of God: Raphael]!

The radiance of the Seraphim left Little Lily and Dia stunned. At that moment, Raphael suddenly spread out his three pairs of wings, releasing an incredibly dazzling divine power from his entire body. Under this sacred force, which felt like a gentle spring breeze or warm sunlight, all the [Pabets] on the ground were enveloped. Tiny bubbles could be seen emerging from their bodies as the profound darkness was gradually dissolved and driven away by the divine power.

With a strange rustling sound, the [Pabets] instantly turned back into their original mud clumps and scattered on the ground.

“How… how is that possible?” The little girl stared in shock at what happened, collapsing weakly to the ground. She couldn’t believe that the power she had taken pride in was considered so insignificant in his eyes. Due to her momentary distraction, she didn’t even notice that Sos had already approached her.

“Trying to avenge Argus for me?” Sos frowned at Little Lily and shook his head. “You can’t do that now, unless…”

“Unless?” The little girl instinctively raised her head.

“Unless you give up your human existence, fully embrace your identity as an apostle, and become a creature of darkness!”

“Then can I defeat you?” the little girl murmured.

“At least you now have enough strength to fight me, but!” Thorsston paused, looking at the little girl with a hint of pity in his eyes, and said softly, “But from now on, you will no longer be human. Dark tattoos unique to apostles will appear all over your body, and you will be bound by dark forces forever. Even when you die one day, your soul will lose its freedom. The moment you die, your soul will vanish from this world, as if you never existed in the first place, leaving no trace, just like Argus…”
“Argus?” A glimmer of awareness appeared in the little girl’s eyes.
“Yes,” Thorsston sighed slightly, glanced around, and pointed at the spot where Dia was standing, saying softly, “I remember it should be over there. Argus… I’m sorry, I didn’t see him in his final moments, but I’m sure that guy would never show any signs of regret. A man like him…”
The little girl looked at Thorsston hesitantly, distrustfully. “You… you knew him well?”
“Huh,” Thorsston sighed softly and murmured, “Of course, because… we were both apostles once! After all, it wasn’t me who killed him. He chose death himself. If he didn’t want to die, who could kill him? He just wanted to end his own life…”
“Really?” The little girl looked at Thorsston doubtfully, at his eyes as clear as stars, then couldn’t help but start crying softly.
“That fool… That day was the first time he deceived me. He said he would come back, but he didn’t. I knew… I knew. I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want him to hate me, but… he didn’t come back. I knew he wouldn’t…”
“Lily!” Dia rushed to the little girl’s side, hugged her, and glared at Thorsston, making him feel a bit innocent.

“I really don’t hate you, Volmon Klaest,” the little girl said through sobs, lifting her head from Dia’s arms to look at Thos. “Everything you said is true. I know. After Argus left that day, some people took me to a small village near Sassen—Argus arranged it for me. You’re right; he never intended to go back… But I really can’t bear it. I thought I could stay with him forever, but… If it weren’t for you, maybe he wouldn’t have died. So… so… when I was abandoned by this city, it was him who brought me back. Even though everyone in the world hates him and spits on him, he’s the only one who cares about me. He’s my only family…”
“Lily…” Hearing Lily’s crying, Dia couldn’t help but glance at Thos, then stroked the little girl’s head and comforted her softly, “If you want, you can consider me your family!”
“Can I?” the little girl asked weakly, lifting her head.
“Of course! Because… I’m also someone who isn’t needed by anyone!”
“Hey,” hearing Dia’s self-pitying words, Thos couldn’t help but interject awkwardly, “What do you mean you’re not needed? That’s not possible!”
“Why not?” Dia raised her head, looking at Thos with a half-smile and a hint of meaning, “Do you need me? No. What you need is just a replacement for Sister Nina, right?”
“That’s not it!” Thos knelt down, meeting Dia’s gaze seriously, “Even though I initially saw you as the Nina from my memories, you’re not Nina after all. During those days, it wasn’t some memory that was by my side—it was you. What I like is Dia, Dia Palas—not some memory, but you!—I need you!”
“Need…?” Dia stared at Thos in surprise, then her face showed a hint of awkwardness as she said shyly, “I… I can’t do anything. I can’t learn powerful magic or help you in any way. I’m just an ordinary, stupid woman. I can’t do anything but housework…”
“But being with you allows my soul to find peace for a moment…”
“I…” Looking into Thos’s eyes, Dia bit her lip and instinctively lowered her head.
“…” At some point, the little girl in Dia’s arms stopped crying as well. She pouted, glancing at Dia and then at Thos, seemingly upset that they were ignoring her.

After a long silence, Dia raised her head and looked at Thos, saying softly, “Really, Thos?”
“Mm!” Thos nodded firmly, then, under Dia’s incredulous gaze, said gently, “Let’s… get married!”
“Marry…?” Dia covered her mouth in shock.
“Don’t you want to?”
“No… I just…” Dia shook her head nervously, then, as if remembering something, asked hesitantly, “What about Ravia?”
“She…” Thos sighed slightly and shook his head. “She’s back in Altak. Maybe she won’t return in this lifetime ever again…”
Dia was stunned and said apologetically, “I’m sorry, Thos…”
Thos couldn’t help but laugh self-mockingly and shook his head. “It should be me who says that!”
“It’s not like that,” Dia shook her head and then gazed at Thos affectionately, saying softly, “As long as you need me, you’ll be satisfied. As for marriage… don’t end your marriage with Ravia. That will make her the laughingstock of others. She must be the one suffering the most right now. It’s just that…”
“What just that?” Thos asked curiously.
“It’s just that if you do that again, could you avoid it in the inner hall? I thought I was the only one at home when I went in…”
“I…” Even Thos felt extremely awkward at Dia’s words, but then he realized something seemed off about them.
Seeming to notice the confusion in Thos’s eyes, Dia smiled slightly and shook her head. “To this day, you still don’t understand why I got so angry that day. I wasn’t angry because of what happened between you and Ravia, but because you didn’t care about my feelings at all… That place is my home, our home together, the place where I hoped to spend my life with you. How could you destroy my hopes like that?—That place is absolutely off-limits. It’s my bottom line!”
“Dia…”
“As for other places…”
“Other places?” Seeming to understand something, Thos said awkwardly, “So you won’t get angry? Won’t be sad?”
“Of course I will,” Dia looked at Thos reproachfully, then sighed. “But I can endure it. My mother said that a good woman should learn to be tolerant, to forgive the mistakes made by the one she loves…” She paused and murmured, “And actually, I think Ravia is suffering more than I am. I know… I was just too angry that day. I’m sorry, Thos…”

Looking into Dia’s sincere eyes, Thors didn’t know what to say.
“Silly, it should be me who says that…”
As the two gazed at each other affectionately, the neglected little Lily pouted in frustration. Just then, her eyes suddenly caught sight of the sky, and she exclaimed in surprise, “Big sister, look! Look at the sky—it’s so strange!”
At the little girl’s cry, Thors and Dia instinctively looked up, only to freeze in shock.
The usually clear sky was now showing a bizarre phenomenon—as if it were an upside-down world.
This upside-down world blocked the sunlight, plunging the earth into darkness.
Faint hissing or cracking sounds could be heard, and even more alarming were the strange arcs of lightning flashing in the sky from time to time.
Amidst a crushing, eerie noise, there was a loud crash, as if glass were shattering. White, transparent crystals began to fall from the sky. Dia curiously reached up to catch a few, only to be surprised as they faded in her hands before disappearing completely.
“What is this, Thors?” Dia asked curiously.
Thors stared at the sky with wide eyes and murmured, “Shards of space…”
In his astonished gaze, the upside-down world in the sky became clearer, and even its ground could be seen—a black, desolate landscape…
This world had collided with another world…
How could such a thing happen?!
As Thors stared in shock, the cracking sounds grew louder. The ground beneath their feet began to shake violently. Suddenly, Thors’ expression changed. He grabbed the little girl by the back of her neck, held Dia in his arms, and vanished in a flash. The moment they left, the entire area collapsed. With a loud roar, countless cracks appeared everywhere, burying everything in bottomless chasms.
Nearby, huge rocks began to fall from the sky. Friction with the air caused them to burn fiercely. These burning meteorites crashed down onto the earth, shattering it into pieces. The largest ones were even half the size of Vando.
“Shield! Shield!”

Vando’s black magicians seemed to have noticed this strange situation as well. Fortunately, Vando was protected by Vandelta, whose protective abilities could shield this city of magicians from disasters. But what about other cities? At least ordinary small towns and villages did not possess such protective capabilities.
It is easy to imagine how severe a disaster such a dense swarm of meteorites would bring to the entire empire, and even the whole world.
“What’s going on?”
“What exactly happened?”
Amidst the chaotic crowd of black magicians in Vando Square, the necromancer Purl stared in disbelief at that world in the sky.
“The Dead Realm… has collapsed…”