The civilians had been following the soldiers and Noah's group for several hours.
Their journey had become exhausting. Their legs felt heavy, their breathing had grown uneven, and the endless forest seemed to stretch on forever. The trees stood like silent giants around them, their branches intertwining high above and blocking most of the moonlight.
Even the soldiers had begun to grow restless.
Johann dragged his feet along the forest floor, his shoulders slumped as he stared ahead.
Johann: "How much longer? We've been walking for what feels like an eternity."
Karoschi didn't answer immediately.
His sharp eyes moved across the surrounding forest, carefully examining every tree, every shadow, and every landmark. He was searching for something—anything—that could confirm how close they were to their destination.
After a moment, his gaze settled on a particular tree.
A symbol had been carved into its bark.
The symbol of Nexoria.
Karoschi's expression changed slightly.
Karoschi: "We should be getting close."
He took a few more steps forward, then suddenly raised his hand.
Karoschi: "Everyone, stop."
The soldiers halted. The civilians behind them exchanged confused glances, while Noah and the others turned their attention toward Karoschi.
He pointed toward the symbol engraved in the tree.
Karoschi: "The Toren Fortress should be only a few meters ahead. It's somewhere behind these trees."
Noah looked toward the dense forest in front of them. The trees were so tightly packed together that the fortress remained hidden from view.
He took a slow breath before turning toward the civilians and soldiers.
Noah: "Alright. From this point on, all of you stay here. Only our group will move forward. Understood?"
Several people nodded nervously.
Barry, however, immediately began moving toward Noah.
The enormous Titan Golem lowered his body slightly, preparing to follow the group.
Noah quickly turned around and raised a hand.
Noah: "Barry, no. You have to stay here and look after everyone, okay?"
Barry stopped.
The giant creature looked down at Noah, his massive form casting a shadow over him. For a moment, he seemed uncertain.
Then Barry slowly shook his head up and down.
Noah smiled faintly.
Noah: "That's it. We'll be back soon."
But before anyone could move, Noah noticed something at the edge of the forest.
A figure stood between the trees.
It was difficult to make out its features, but its arm was raised.
The figure was beckoning Noah toward it.
Noah froze.
He immediately understood what this meant.
His thoughts returned to Karag.
The promise. The offer. The answer Karag had demanded from him.
Noah's fingers curled slightly.
He couldn't allow the others to find out. Not yet. He needed a reason to leave them behind—something believable enough that nobody would question him.
His eyes moved across the forest as he forced himself to remain calm.
Noah: "Actually… how about we don't enter the fortress just yet?"
He turned toward the others, pretending to consider the situation carefully.
Noah: "We should probably check the surrounding area first. There could be monsters hiding anywhere around here."
Heinrich tilted his head.
Heinrich: "That makes sense. We don't know what might be waiting for us."
Noah nodded quickly.
Noah: "Exactly. Great. Then I'll go in that direction, and you all go the other way."
He pointed toward a different section of the forest.
Anna immediately looked at him with concern.
Anna: "But Noah, if you go alone, something could happen to you."
Noah turned toward her.
For a brief moment, he said nothing.
Her worried expression made his chest tighten. He knew she wasn't simply asking out of curiosity. She genuinely feared that something might happen to him.
Noah inhaled deeply, forcing the tension out of his face.
Then he gave her a reassuring smile.
Noah: "Don't worry. I've got that magenta thing with me, remember? I'll be fine."
He lightly gestured toward his weapon.
The words sounded convincing enough.
But deep inside, Noah knew he was lying.
Anna continued to look at him for a moment, as though she could sense that something was wrong. Eventually, however, she nodded.
Anna: "Alright… just be careful."
Noah: "I will."
One by one, the group began to separate.
Karoschi led Heinrich, Anna and Johann in the opposite direction, while Noah remained behind.
Perfidus followed the group for a short distance.
He walked quietly behind Karoschi and the others, his steps almost hesitant.
Then Heinrich suddenly turned around.
Heinrich: "Not you. You have to stay here."
Perfidus stopped.
Perfidus: "B-but… I can help."
Heinrich approached him and placed a hand on his shoulder.
The moment his hand touched Perfidus, Heinrich noticed something strange.
The texture beneath his fingers felt unusual.
Not quite like ordinary skin.
Heinrich frowned for the briefest moment, but he decided not to dwell on it.
There were more important things to worry about.
Heinrich: "I know you can help. But this is different."
His voice became more serious.
Heinrich: "There could be hundreds of monsters around here. We don't know what's waiting inside that forest. So please, stay here."
Perfidus lowered his gaze.
His expression darkened with disappointment.
Perfidus: "…Okay."
He slowly turned around and walked back toward the remaining civilians and soldiers.
He would wait for the group to return.
Meanwhile, Noah began walking toward the mysterious figure.
The moment he took his first steps, the figure turned around and started moving deeper into the forest.
Noah followed.
He kept his pace steady, trying to appear calm.
But his hands were trembling.
Every step carried him farther away from the others. The sounds of their voices gradually faded behind him until all that remained was the rustling of leaves and the quiet movement of the trees.
Noah swallowed.
The figure continued forward.
Noah followed it around a cluster of trees—
And suddenly, it was gone.
He stopped.
His eyes darted from one side to the other.
Nothing.
No movement.
No footsteps.
Not even the slightest indication of where the figure had disappeared.
Noah's breathing became shallow.
Noah: "Where…?"
He turned around.
The figure was standing directly behind him.
Noah's body stiffened.
A deep, chilling voice broke the silence.
Daig: "You're finally here."
The sound of that voice alone sent a shiver down Noah's spine.
His heart began pounding faster. Every instinct in his body screamed that he was standing before something dangerous.
Slowly, No
The man standing before him possessed an overwhelming presence. His posture was calm, but there was something terrifyingly controlled about him—as if he had never needed to fear anything in his entire existence.
Noah forced himself to speak.
Noah: "W-who are you?"
The man looked at him.
Daig: "My name is Daig Kamazuki."
He paused for a moment.
Then his voice became colder, carrying the weight of his position.
Daig: "I hold the rank of Vorrakhel—the highest rank beneath Karag himself."
Noah's eyes narrowed slightly.
Noah: "So… am I supposed to talk to you now? I thought Karag was going to speak with me."
A faint silence settled over the forest.
Then a voice descended from above.
Karag: "Patience, little one. I am already here."
Noah's eyes widened.
He looked upward.
High among the branches, Karag's gas-form rested against the trees.
The monstrous vapor that made up his body drifted slowly through the air, twisting between the branches like living darkness. The turquoise Nexoria symbol on his face emitted a faint glow, illuminating the surrounding leaves with an unnatural light.
Karag's presence alone seemed to distort the atmosphere.
The forest felt colder.
He slowly descended from the branches before landing between Noah and Daig.
The ground beneath his feet remained still, yet Noah felt as though something immense had just entered the world.
Daig lowered his head slightly.
Daig: "My Lord, I do not wish to sound disrespectful, but… is this truly the one?"
Noah glanced toward him, confused.
Daig looked Noah up and down.
There was no attempt to hide the contempt in his eyes.
Daig: "This boy looks as though he would struggle to survive against a single skeleton. And he is supposed to be worthy of possessing the Nexo-Essence?"
Noah's expression hardened.
He wanted to respond, but the words remained trapped in his throat.
Karag's turquoise symbol began to glow more intensely.
Karag: "Under normal circumstances, Daig, I would agree with you."
His voice was calm.
Almost gentle.
That made it worse.
Karag: "However, SHE has chosen him."
The air around Karag shifted.
The shadows beneath the trees seemed to stretch toward him.
Karag: "And we do not question HER decisions."
For the first time, Daig's expression changed.
The arrogance disappeared.
He immediately bowed deeply before Karag.
Daig: "You are absolutely right, my Lord."
Karag turned away from him and focused on Noah.
Karag: "Very well, then let us begin.
Before Noah could react, the world around him suddenly grew heavy.
His vision blurred.
His body lost its strength.
He tried to step backward, but his legs refused to respond.
Beside him, Daig also began to collapse.
Noah's last sight was Karag's gas-form standing motionless between them.
Then everything went black.
Noah opened his eyes.
Once again, he found himself beneath a vast, endless starry sky.
The ground beneath him was smooth and dark, reflecting the light of countless stars. There was no forest. No soldiers. No civilians. No sign of the Toren Fortress.
Only silence.
Noah slowly pushed himself upright.
His breathing was uneven as he looked around.
Noah: "And now what?"
A presence emerged behind him.
Noah turned.
Karag stood several meters away.
But this time, he was no longer in his gas form.
His true appearance had returned.
The Monster King stood beneath the celestial sky, his enormous body radiating a dreadful majesty. His presence seemed to weigh down the entire dream world. Even the stars above appeared distant and insignificant in comparison.
He did not need to raise his voice.
He did not need to threaten Noah.
His existence alone was enough to make the world feel as though it belonged to him.
Karag slowly approached.
Karag: "Now, I will show you why you should join me."
He stopped in front of Noah.
Karag: "And why my path is the only correct one."
Noah clenched his fists.
Noah: "You really think you can convince me after everything you've done?"
Karag: "You misunderstand, Noah."
He raised one hand.
The world began to change.
The stars above twisted into spirals. The ground beneath Noah's feet rippled like water, and the entire dreamscape began to distort.
The peaceful night transformed into a battlefield.
The sky darkened beneath clouds of smoke. Fires burned across the horizon. Buildings collapsed, and the distant cries of people echoed through the air.
Then the scene shifted.
The battlefield disappeared.
A starving village appeared in its place.
People sat weakly beside empty homes. Children clung to their exhausted parents. The fields had withered, and the ground had cracked beneath the unbearable heat.
Before Noah could fully process the scene, the world changed again.
A forest vanished beneath axes and flames.
Ancient trees fell one after another.
Animals fled through the burning undergrowth, while entire habitats were destroyed in moments.
The dream world continued transforming.
War.
Starvation.
Environmental destruction.
Religious conflict.
Human suffering.
Every scene appeared with terrifying clarity, as if Karag were forcing Noah to witness the darkest parts of humanity's history all at once.
Karag stood at the center of it all.
His voice carried through the changing world.
Karag: "Ever since humanity began building civilizations, mankind has continued to destroy the environment that allowed it to exist."
"They cut down forests. They drive entire species into extinction. They take from the world without considering what they leave behind."
"Humans starve while others hoard more than they could ever need. Greed drives them forward, even when their actions condemn others to suffering."
Noah looked away, but the scene followed him.
The world transformed into a battlefield.
Karag: "And then there are their wars."
"Humanity is the only species on Earth that wages war against its own kind for reasons that extend beyond survival."
"They fight for greed. For conquest. For power. For persecution. Sometimes, they fight simply because they enjoy the suffering of others."
"And religion…"
"Humans have slaughtered one another because they followed different faiths. They have turned belief into a weapon and used it to justify hatred."
"The persecution of Jewish people. Conflicts between Christians and Muslims. Generations of hatred born from differences that never needed to become reasons for war."
Karag turned his head toward Noah.
Karag: "Tell me, Noah… how many more must suffer before humanity finally understands what it has become?"
Noah stared at the scenes around him.
For a moment, he remained silent.
He could not deny that the things Karag was showing him had happened.
Humanity had committed terrible acts.
People had destroyed lives for power, greed, hatred, and belief.
But Noah slowly turned toward Karag.
Noah: "And what about you?"
Karag's expression remained unchanged.
Noah: "You want to wipe out humanity completely, don't you?"
Noah stepped forward.
His voice trembled slightly, but he refused to look away.
Noah: "You see yourself as a god. So what would you do if you were the one in control?"
For a moment, Karag said nothing.
Then his nearly ever-present smile grew wider.
Not with joy.
Not with amusement.
It was the smile of something that believed it had already won.
Karag: "No."
The word echoed through the dream world.
Karag: "I am willing to give certain humans one final chance."
He extended his hand toward Noah.
Karag: "They may join me."
The world around them fell silent.
Even the shifting images seemed to pause.
Karag: "SHE desires the extinction of humanity. In HER eyes, mankind is nothing more than a mistake made by the universe."
Noah's eyes narrowed.
Karag's voice became almost reverent.
Karag: "But I will create something better."
The battlefield disappeared.
The starving village vanished.
The destroyed forest faded away.
In their place appeared a breathtaking world.
Lush forests stretched across vast valleys. Rivers flowed through untouched landscapes. Cities stood peacefully beneath clear skies. People walked through the streets without fear, hunger, or violence.
There were no burning villages.
No armies.
No screams.
No bloodshed.
Karag: "A beautiful world."
His voice echoed with conviction.
Karag: "A world without war. Without violence. Without hunger."
Noah looked at the peaceful landscape, but he did not lower his guard.
Karag continued.
Karag: "Everyone will be allowed to believe whatever they wish. Even if I know their beliefs to be false."
He paused.
Karag: "Because I have witnessed the truth with my own eyes."
The world behind Karag began to darken.
A shadow appeared in the distance.
A figure stood alone beneath the sky.
Noah's body immediately stiffened.
He knew that silhouette.
He had seen it before.
In his vision—or perhaps in a dream.
The same being that had once given Karag the fruit.
Karag slowly extended his arm toward the figure.
Karag: "I am merely the herald."
His voice became almost ceremonial.
Karag: "And SHE is our salvation."
The figure slowly turned toward them.
Noah felt the atmosphere change.
The peaceful dream world seemed to collapse beneath the weight of her presence.
The air grew dense.
The stars dimmed.
The world itself appeared to recoil.
Noah's face began to lose its color.
His body instinctively moved backward, even though he had not consciously decided to retreat.
The figure looked at the three of them.
And suddenly, Noah felt as though something had noticed him.
A presence far beyond anything he had ever encountered.
His throat tightened.
Noah: "W-who… who is she?"
Karag laughed softly.
The sound echoed through the endless dreamscape.
He stepped closer and placed one hand on Noah's shoulder.
The contact sent a cold sensation through Noah's body.
Karag: "She is, in a sense, the true goddess."
Karag's gaze remained fixed on the figure.
Karag: "She has existed for ten billion years."
The darkness around the figure seemed to deepen.
Karag: "Her name is Nexoria."
Karag: "The Founding Monster."
The stars above trembled.
Karag: "The origin of monsters."
The ground beneath Noah's feet began to crack.
Karag: "And the one who chose you."
Noah could barely breathe.
His eyes remained locked on the being standing in the distance.
Then Noah noticed something.
At first, he thought it was a trick of the light.
Thin strands.
Almost invisible.
They extended from Karag's body in every direction.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
Perhaps even thousands.
The threads were so fine that they could barely be seen against the darkness. Yet each one connected to a single point.
Nexoria.
Noah's eyes widened further.
Noah: What… are those?
The threads ran across Karag's entire body, disappearing into his flesh. They moved subtly, almost as though they were alive.
As though something was controlling him.
Or as though he was connected to something far greater than himself.
Noah's gaze shifted toward Nexoria.
In the corner of his eye, he noticed movement.
She was beginning to approach.
Slowly.
Silently.
Each step brought her closer.
Noah's breathing became heavier.
His chest rose and fell rapidly.
His heart began to pound harder and harder against his ribs.
He could not understand what was happening.
He had faced monsters.
He had stood before Karag.
He had survived situations that should have been impossible.
But this was different.
There was something about Nexoria.
Something that made his body react before his mind could comprehend the danger.
His knees weakened.
His vision began to blur at the edges.
The closer she came, the more Noah felt as though his entire existence was being placed beneath an invisible hand.
His thoughts became difficult to organize.
His body felt strangely distant.
As if he no longer had complete control over it.
Karag's hand remained on his shoulder.
His smile never disappeared.
Karag: "Do you feel it, Noah?"
Noah struggled to ananswer.
Nexoria continued approaching.
The thin threads connecting her to Karag shifted behind them, stretching through the darkness like an enormous web.
Noah's breathing grew faster.
His heart raced.
He could not explain why.
He could not understand how a single presence could exert such overwhelming control over him without even touching him.
But deep inside, an instinct older than reason was screaming at him.
Run.
Yet Noah could not move.
Nexoria drew closer.
And for the first time since he had entered the dream world, Noah understood something terrifying.
Karag was not the only one watching him.
Something far older had already chosen him.
And now…
It was coming to claim his attention.