Chapter 155

Ariadeline realized too late.

It was clearly trying to take over her body. The one said to be shaped by the will of the gods.

It had been crouching and waiting all this time to seize her body. But then.

“AAH-!”

As the darkness consumed him, his groans grew louder.

Ariadeline did not approach. No, she couldn’t approach.

“Don’t come!”

He shouted. He was struggling to hold onto the darkness that had swallowed him.

“No, that’s not right…”

She muttered helplessly.

“You wanted me…!”

Ariadeline tried to jump toward Carlothian. At that moment, someone suddenly hugged her from behind.

“Ariadeline…!”

Luciano. He had opened his eyes at some point.

He had just awakened and surveyed the situation.

While he couldn’t grasp everything, the first thing that caught his eye was Carlothian, being consumed by darkness.

As Ariadeline tried to approach him, he instinctively blocked her.

Carlothian was dangerous in his current state. Luciano grabbed Ariadeline, ringing alarm bells in his mind.

“Ariadeline, stay still…!”

Luciano cried out desperately. Carlothian staggered, unable to stand properly, curling his back.

His body was turning black.

“Carlothian—!”

She called out to him like a scream.

The darkness was consuming him. What should she do? Ariadeline urgently opened her mouth to stop him from turning completely black.

A pathetic song flowed out. Nevertheless, the divine power moved steadily along with the melody.

But his groans of agony did not diminish.

The darkness that was devouring Carlothian only grew denser, while the divine power in Ariadeline’s song could not exert any strength at all.

“Ugh…”

Carlothian struggled to regain his senses. This was because there had been things gnawing at his mind since earlier.

I have to possess it.

I have to possess this, which my other half created…….

Ariadeline, that body of hers!

The will of the demon was distinctly felt. It was so clear that it was taking over his body.

He gritted his teeth and forced his fraying consciousness to hold on.

“Carlothian!”

She was calling out to him. Desperately calling for him.

If Luciano hadn’t held her back, she would have likely run to him and thrown herself into his current state.

“You wanted me!”

She shouted, as if feeling wronged, like a scream.

Because of that, Carlothian thought even more that she must not fall into the hands of the demon.

No, in fact, it didn’t matter.

She was someone he wanted to protect.

At the cost of anything.

The resolution he had engraved in his heart long ago surfaced in his mind.

I would give my life for you.

And he felt it.

Ah, that time is now.

Carlothian maintained his fraying consciousness as he thought.

Why didn’t the demon die even after killing the emperor?

It was because he had not fulfilled the ‘conditions.’

He recalled what Ariadeline had said. That he needed his sword, Deathrotea, and the crown prince’s sword, Arotesia.

“Crown Prince, Your Highness…!”

Carlothian spoke to Luciano, who was holding Ariadeline.

He barely managed to lift his drooping head.

She was still twisting in Luciano’s arms, trying to get to him.

So he had to finish everything before she could run to him and embrace him.

“Your sword, please… Ugh!”

He bit down hard. Blood flowed from his gums. The blood trickling from his mouth was black.

Ariadeline screamed. Carlothian’s whole body was turning black, and his gaze swayed like a ship caught in a rough storm.

It felt like his eyes would roll back in his head.

The demon whispered.

Devour that.

In the end, the will of my other half will crumble…

It continued to speak endlessly.

You will never be able to stop the calamity that comes every ten thousand years.

Carlothian screamed at the pain that filled his head. It felt as if someone were scratching his brain with their nails.

He gritted his teeth. This was to somehow calm her, who was reacting sensitively to his screams.

Bring that to me.

The demon whispered. It tormented him like an irresistible command.

He turned his head towards Ariadeline. He saw her face, looking at him desperately while nestled in Luciano’s arms, crying out his name.

Yet, Carlothian’s body leaned towards Ariadeline.

Even biting down hard enough to draw blood from his gums, it was difficult to reject the gentle command whispering in his mind.

It felt like his whole body was bound by threads, forcibly manipulated.

“…Ari, adel, ine.”

“Carlothian…!”

Luciano staggered back, taking her with him. But Ariadeline stood firm, trying to approach him.

In the end, Luciano could not step back, and Ariadeline could not walk away.

Carlothian finally approached Ariadeline, bringing his blackened appearance close to her.

“Just a little, just a little, just hold on. I, I…”

Carlothian opened his mouth.

How pitiful.

Ariadeline’s eyes widened. His voice and the demon’s voice echoed together.

Ah, he had been completely consumed by the demon. It felt as if her heart was dropping to the floor.

In the end, everything would fall into my hands.

Carlothian’s lips drew closer to Ariadeline. Her chin trembled.

Luciano tried to pull her back urgently. But then.

“No…”

In an instant, Carlothian’s voice came through.

Carlothian bit his tongue hard to regain his senses. Blood gushed from his mouth.

“Duke!”

Luciano wrapped one arm around Ariadeline’s waist and pulled her while drawing and throwing his sword. Carlothian picked up the sword that had been thrown at his feet.

“I can stop it.”

What a truly commendable dedication.

“No, don’t! No! Carlothian!”

Ariadeline screamed desperately. Yet, he had no hesitation.

He had never truly protected her.

This time, he would protect her. He didn’t care if it cost him his life.

He picked up the sword at his feet. He felt the resonance of his sword and Luciano’s sword within the dome.

The two swords, imbued with black and white light, soon.

“It’s okay.”

Merged as one with the light.

Carlothian whispered.

“Ariadeline, you’ll be okay.”

He smiled for the last time.

Ariadeline screamed as if she were spitting blood. Her throat hurt. Still, she did not stop calling for him.

“There must be another way, another way. No. Don’t! Stop!”

Ariadeline’s face was soaked with tears. Carlothian raised the merged sword in reverse.

And then, immediately.

Thud.

He plunged the sword into his own chest.

“Ahhhh-!”

Ariadeline’s scream erupted. As she screamed, his body collapsed in an instant.

Even as Ariadeline wept in Luciano’s arms, pleading, the fact that the sword pierced his body remained unchanged.

Ah.

Thud.

His body fell, and soon Carlothian heard the demon’s voice in his ear, lingering as if it would break.

…Ah.

It’s fading. Carlothian lay on the ground, staring into the void. A pitch-black door appeared in the air.

The two seemed unable to see that door, clinging to each other and screaming.

Carlothian realized. The two swords were not meant to kill the demon.

The demon had emerged through a portal opened by Yermondi’s summoning.

And these two swords only served to reopen the door through which the demon had come, sending it back.

The calamity of ten thousand years is waning.

Thus, only a deep sense of regret emanated from the demon’s voice.

Carlothian felt the darkness slipping away from him.

It felt as if his soul was being sucked away somewhere. His eyelids were heavy.

A body tainted by evil does not return. A puddle of black blood formed on the floor.

Still.

Still, in the end, he was able to protect her.

That was somewhat satisfying.

I will not disappear.

The demon withdrew its black hands that had been cast over Carlothian. It was time for him to return to where he belonged.

In the next ten thousand years, I will return.

With that voice, Carlothian’s consciousness abruptly cut off.

Ah, this time it’s truly the end.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

Carlothian faded away. His voice could no longer be heard. Ariadeline felt like she was losing her mind.

“No. No. No.”

She muttered frantically. Luciano embraced her tightly, biting his lip.

The path Carlothian chose was solely for Ariadeline.

Luciano understood that feeling. He too would do anything for Dorothea…

“Let this go. Let go!”

Ariadeline scratched Luciano’s hand. Blood glistened.

Luciano, looking at the fallen Carlothian, lost his grip on her.

Tap, tap.

She rushed towards him. Kneeling, she leaned down to listen to his heart.

It had to be heard. The sound of a heart beating: thump, thump, thump.

But.

“…Why, why?”

Nothing could be heard with the ear pressed against his heart.

Ah, ah. Ariadeline screamed. Her scream seemed to hit the ceiling and echo throughout the entire palace.

Ariadeline shook Carlothian. As if to bring him back to his senses.

“Carlothian…!”

Wake up. Wake up and look at me. Open your eyes.

“Please, okay? Please…!”

We decided to go on a trip to the villa together.

Her face was soaked with tears.

At that moment, Ariadeline saw the sword in front of her.

Ah, no. Maybe I can do it. I can do this.

“You can’t go.”

She murmured.

“You can’t die and leave me alone.”

We have to survive together. If you die…

I will die with you.

Her blood can purify evil. And her song can heal wounds.

Ariadeline boldly pulled the sword from Carlothian’s hand.

“Ariadeline!”

Luciano rushed to stop her, but it was too late.

Thud.

The sword pierced her chest.

Gasp. Blood poured out, and wherever her blood touched, darkness receded.

Ariadeline opened her blood-red lips and began to sing.

Ah, ah.

A language that was not pronounced correctly. A throat that felt as painful as if it were filled with shards of glass. A body that seemed to bleed to death from being pierced.

None of it was an obstacle to her.

In the pain of her throat being torn apart, she sang.

Loudly.

Louder.

NMRJKM Chapter 155

Ariadeline realized too late.

It was clearly trying to take over her body. The one said to be shaped by the will of the gods.

It had been crouching and waiting all this time to seize her body. But then.

“AAH-!”

As the darkness consumed him, his groans grew louder.

Ariadeline did not approach. No, she couldn’t approach.

“Don’t come!”

He shouted. He was struggling to hold onto the darkness that had swallowed him.

“No, that’s not right…”

She muttered helplessly.

“You wanted me…!”

Ariadeline tried to jump toward Carlothian. At that moment, someone suddenly hugged her from behind.

“Ariadeline…!”

Luciano. He had opened his eyes at some point.

He had just awakened and surveyed the situation.

While he couldn’t grasp everything, the first thing that caught his eye was Carlothian, being consumed by darkness.

As Ariadeline tried to approach him, he instinctively blocked her.

Carlothian was dangerous in his current state. Luciano grabbed Ariadeline, ringing alarm bells in his mind.

“Ariadeline, stay still…!”

Luciano cried out desperately. Carlothian staggered, unable to stand properly, curling his back.

His body was turning black.

“Carlothian—!”

She called out to him like a scream.

The darkness was consuming him. What should she do? Ariadeline urgently opened her mouth to stop him from turning completely black.

A pathetic song flowed out. Nevertheless, the divine power moved steadily along with the melody.

But his groans of agony did not diminish.

The darkness that was devouring Carlothian only grew denser, while the divine power in Ariadeline’s song could not exert any strength at all.

“Ugh…”

Carlothian struggled to regain his senses. This was because there had been things gnawing at his mind since earlier.

I have to possess it.

I have to possess this, which my other half created…….

Ariadeline, that body of hers!

The will of the demon was distinctly felt. It was so clear that it was taking over his body.

He gritted his teeth and forced his fraying consciousness to hold on.

“Carlothian!”

She was calling out to him. Desperately calling for him.

If Luciano hadn’t held her back, she would have likely run to him and thrown herself into his current state.

“You wanted me!”

She shouted, as if feeling wronged, like a scream.

Because of that, Carlothian thought even more that she must not fall into the hands of the demon.

No, in fact, it didn’t matter.

She was someone he wanted to protect.

At the cost of anything.

The resolution he had engraved in his heart long ago surfaced in his mind.

I would give my life for you.

And he felt it.

Ah, that time is now.

Carlothian maintained his fraying consciousness as he thought.

Why didn’t the demon die even after killing the emperor?

It was because he had not fulfilled the ‘conditions.’

He recalled what Ariadeline had said. That he needed his sword, Deathrotea, and the crown prince’s sword, Arotesia.

“Crown Prince, Your Highness…!”

Carlothian spoke to Luciano, who was holding Ariadeline.

He barely managed to lift his drooping head.

She was still twisting in Luciano’s arms, trying to get to him.

So he had to finish everything before she could run to him and embrace him.

“Your sword, please… Ugh!”

He bit down hard. Blood flowed from his gums. The blood trickling from his mouth was black.

Ariadeline screamed. Carlothian’s whole body was turning black, and his gaze swayed like a ship caught in a rough storm.

It felt like his eyes would roll back in his head.

The demon whispered.

Devour that.

In the end, the will of my other half will crumble…

It continued to speak endlessly.

You will never be able to stop the calamity that comes every ten thousand years.

Carlothian screamed at the pain that filled his head. It felt as if someone were scratching his brain with their nails.

He gritted his teeth. This was to somehow calm her, who was reacting sensitively to his screams.

Bring that to me.

The demon whispered. It tormented him like an irresistible command.

He turned his head towards Ariadeline. He saw her face, looking at him desperately while nestled in Luciano’s arms, crying out his name.

Yet, Carlothian’s body leaned towards Ariadeline.

Even biting down hard enough to draw blood from his gums, it was difficult to reject the gentle command whispering in his mind.

It felt like his whole body was bound by threads, forcibly manipulated.

“…Ari, adel, ine.”

“Carlothian…!”

Luciano staggered back, taking her with him. But Ariadeline stood firm, trying to approach him.

In the end, Luciano could not step back, and Ariadeline could not walk away.

Carlothian finally approached Ariadeline, bringing his blackened appearance close to her.

“Just a little, just a little, just hold on. I, I…”

Carlothian opened his mouth.

How pitiful.

Ariadeline’s eyes widened. His voice and the demon’s voice echoed together.

Ah, he had been completely consumed by the demon. It felt as if her heart was dropping to the floor.

In the end, everything would fall into my hands.

Carlothian’s lips drew closer to Ariadeline. Her chin trembled.

Luciano tried to pull her back urgently. But then.

“No…”

In an instant, Carlothian’s voice came through.

Carlothian bit his tongue hard to regain his senses. Blood gushed from his mouth.

“Duke!”

Luciano wrapped one arm around Ariadeline’s waist and pulled her while drawing and throwing his sword. Carlothian picked up the sword that had been thrown at his feet.

“I can stop it.”

What a truly commendable dedication.

“No, don’t! No! Carlothian!”

Ariadeline screamed desperately. Yet, he had no hesitation.

He had never truly protected her.

This time, he would protect her. He didn’t care if it cost him his life.

He picked up the sword at his feet. He felt the resonance of his sword and Luciano’s sword within the dome.

The two swords, imbued with black and white light, soon.

“It’s okay.”

Merged as one with the light.

Carlothian whispered.

“Ariadeline, you’ll be okay.”

He smiled for the last time.

Ariadeline screamed as if she were spitting blood. Her throat hurt. Still, she did not stop calling for him.

“There must be another way, another way. No. Don’t! Stop!”

Ariadeline’s face was soaked with tears. Carlothian raised the merged sword in reverse.

And then, immediately.

Thud.

He plunged the sword into his own chest.

“Ahhhh-!”

Ariadeline’s scream erupted. As she screamed, his body collapsed in an instant.

Even as Ariadeline wept in Luciano’s arms, pleading, the fact that the sword pierced his body remained unchanged.

Ah.

Thud.

His body fell, and soon Carlothian heard the demon’s voice in his ear, lingering as if it would break.

…Ah.

It’s fading. Carlothian lay on the ground, staring into the void. A pitch-black door appeared in the air.

The two seemed unable to see that door, clinging to each other and screaming.

Carlothian realized. The two swords were not meant to kill the demon.

The demon had emerged through a portal opened by Yermondi’s summoning.

And these two swords only served to reopen the door through which the demon had come, sending it back.

The calamity of ten thousand years is waning.

Thus, only a deep sense of regret emanated from the demon’s voice.

Carlothian felt the darkness slipping away from him.

It felt as if his soul was being sucked away somewhere. His eyelids were heavy.

A body tainted by evil does not return. A puddle of black blood formed on the floor.

Still.

Still, in the end, he was able to protect her.

That was somewhat satisfying.

I will not disappear.

The demon withdrew its black hands that had been cast over Carlothian. It was time for him to return to where he belonged.

In the next ten thousand years, I will return.

With that voice, Carlothian’s consciousness abruptly cut off.

Ah, this time it’s truly the end.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

Carlothian faded away. His voice could no longer be heard. Ariadeline felt like she was losing her mind.

“No. No. No.”

She muttered frantically. Luciano embraced her tightly, biting his lip.

The path Carlothian chose was solely for Ariadeline.

Luciano understood that feeling. He too would do anything for Dorothea…

“Let this go. Let go!”

Ariadeline scratched Luciano’s hand. Blood glistened.

Luciano, looking at the fallen Carlothian, lost his grip on her.

Tap, tap.

She rushed towards him. Kneeling, she leaned down to listen to his heart.

It had to be heard. The sound of a heart beating: thump, thump, thump.

But.

“…Why, why?”

Nothing could be heard with the ear pressed against his heart.

Ah, ah. Ariadeline screamed. Her scream seemed to hit the ceiling and echo throughout the entire palace.

Ariadeline shook Carlothian. As if to bring him back to his senses.

“Carlothian…!”

Wake up. Wake up and look at me. Open your eyes.

“Please, okay? Please…!”

We decided to go on a trip to the villa together.

Her face was soaked with tears.

At that moment, Ariadeline saw the sword in front of her.

Ah, no. Maybe I can do it. I can do this.

“You can’t go.”

She murmured.

“You can’t die and leave me alone.”

We have to survive together. If you die…

I will die with you.

Her blood can purify evil. And her song can heal wounds.

Ariadeline boldly pulled the sword from Carlothian’s hand.

“Ariadeline!”

Luciano rushed to stop her, but it was too late.

Thud.

The sword pierced her chest.

Gasp. Blood poured out, and wherever her blood touched, darkness receded.

Ariadeline opened her blood-red lips and began to sing.

Ah, ah.

A language that was not pronounced correctly. A throat that felt as painful as if it were filled with shards of glass. A body that seemed to bleed to death from being pierced.

None of it was an obstacle to her.

In the pain of her throat being torn apart, she sang.

Loudly.

Louder.