## Chapter 308 – Lingering Scent of Flowers
—The world was severed.
With that, the dryads and the encroaching giant vines all crumbled and vanished. A sword strike of the utmost extreme. Power reaching the sublime. A single strike from a true Heavenly Demon was more than enough to shatter heaven and earth.
Heavenly Demon Destroyer.
Severing of Illusions.
The descended demon shatters the sky, severing evil.
That was the result.
“Kuhk…! Cough! Khuh! This, this is…!”
The eternal garden of flowers, once filled with the essence of spring, had transformed into a terrifying ruin that would haunt my dreams. Is this… is this truly the work of my own hands?
The overflowing power and the ‘sublime force’ surging through my brain were so surreal that even I, who had wielded it, could scarcely believe it.
“This can’t be happening!!! What in the world have you done…! Kahak!!”
Alaune, with only her upper body remaining, roared madly. Her enraged eyes and bared fangs looked incredibly fierce.
But despite her fury, she was powerless. The very foundation of her being had been severed by that powerful strike.
…Unbelievable power.
“No.”
I said to her.
“This is undeniable reality. Queen of Flowers.”
“Khuh-uh-uh-uhk…!”
I raised my sword and approached her.
Alaune writhed and screamed, but no more vines sprouted, and no dryads appeared. The life-or-death struggle had ended in my victory.
“Impossible…! Impossible! I had only just awakened! Not like this… not like this again!! I can’t accept it!!!”
Come to think of it, she had said she hadn’t been conscious for long.
It must be incredibly regrettable for her. But that was true for all the people she had hunted until now.
That karma.
I will sever it here.
—I raise my sword.
“D-don’t come any closer!”
Her queenly demeanor was long gone.
“Don’t come near me! Don’t approach me!”
Like any other victim facing death, she too yearned for life and pleaded. Just like… how I had been a moment ago.
The world is like a coin, with a clear front and back.
Where there is life, there is death. Where there is death, there is life.
“Not bad.”
Alaune, the cruel Queen of Flowers, dies here.
Because I will make it so.
“You had nice breasts, Alaune.”
“…Eek!!!”
Alaune’s breasts will remain in my heart forever, eternally with me. She was a monster, but those breasts were magnificent.
—Thwack!
Aiming for her solar plexus, I brought the sword down.
No mercy, no compassion. From the start, Alaune had intended to use me as nourishment or do other heinous things. Above all, she was a vile criminal who enjoyed listening to her prey’s stories in that twisted way.
Killing her is only right.
There’s no good in letting her live. It would only lead to more victims or retaliation.
“Keuhk…! I can’t… I can’t disappear like this again…!”
Alaune, clutching the blade, coughed up blood and expressed her resentment. I silently chanted a prayer, wishing that she would be reborn as a beast to pay for her sins.
“How many years… would I have to…”
What?
Was she a monster capable of resurrection?
“Hey, what are you ta—”
—Rustle.
In that instant, Alaune’s body began to turn into red flower petals. Rustle. This was reality, but the sight of her transforming into flowers and disappearing felt sacred, like the most beautiful work of art from a dream.
The petals were carried away by a wind that came from somewhere, scattering into the air.
Was this the end of the Queen of Flowers?
…It was quite a sight to behold.
“…What’s this?”
When Alaune turned into flower petals and scattered, only a single red flower remained where she had been lying.
“A flower?”
—A beautiful flower.
It seemed incomparably more radiant than the monster, and though I didn’t know what kind of flower it was, it looked extremely beautiful and valuable.
I dug up the flower, wrapped it carefully in nearby leaves, and placed it in my pouch. I didn’t know what it was, but it seemed like I had finally obtained a decent trophy after a long time.
“Right, Kopson…!”
I thought of Kopson and immediately tried to check on his condition.
Don’t tell me this bastard rolled around here and died—
“—Keuhak!”
Suddenly, blood gushed from my mouth.
What the hell?
“Cough!”
The blood that gushed out soaked my chest and legs. I frantically tried to catch it with my hands, but there was no way to stop the blood that had already been spat out.
At the same time, the world spun around.
My mind was distorting.
Internal injuries…
“Kuh-uh…!”
I knew instinctively.
A world that wasn’t reality.
In other words, as a side effect of drawing on the extreme power of a fantastical world, my mind was facing imminent collapse. I realized that instinctively.
“Shit…”
The sublime realm I had tasted for a moment was clearly my potential and future, but now even a fragment of it was out of reach.
The power that had awakened momentarily lost its form and vanished like smoke.
I had held ultimate power in my hands, but now simply keeping my eyes open was my limit.
—Heavenly Demon Death Beam.
That power, which could have been called true infinity.
I couldn’t feel even a sliver of that immense energy now.
And the ultimate secret technique, Severing of Illusions, which I had just used to sever the world, had long since flown away to a distant place, along with its method of use.
The power of illusion, drawn from a dream, had become a dream and vanished.
If you asked if I could use it again… I couldn’t.
However, I had a conviction that someday I would definitely be able to make it my true power. The battle just now had allowed me to experience the realm of ascension, even if only temporarily.
“But.”
But.
“I think I’m going to die here, damn it.”
I’m not lying, I think I’m going to die.
My mind was flying off to the other side, and there was no strength left in my body. I never thought I would feel my soul turning to dust while alive, but that was exactly what was happening now.
—Thud.
My knees gave way.
A strange sense of floating washed over me, and the world lowered.
Before I knew it, I had fallen.
“Ugh… uh… is this my final hurrah…”
I couldn’t manipulate even a single cell of mana, let alone my muscles.
I wasn’t lying when I said I had used up a hundred years’ worth of swagger, and now I was going to die as a result. Now that I had fallen and become one with the ground, it wouldn’t be strange at all if I were buried in the earth as I was.
It’s a shame.
I had reached that realm for even just a moment.
But to close my eyes without making it my own.
I felt a deep regret.
If only I could have shown it to… Cloudie… how…
…nice that would have been.
With that thought, my vision went dark.
****
“Teeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeng!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
As a terrifying sense of death washed over me, all the swagger and bullshit I had built up vanished, and a girlish scream burst from my mouth. Shit! I don’t want to die! Please save me! Buddha! King David! Hwanung!
I desperately prayed to those I had placed my faith in, but surprisingly, not a single one answered. You goddamn bastards! Where did you all go, please!!!!!
“Hwaaaak!! Barbarian! What’s wrong!”
Suddenly, a familiar voice was heard.
“…Wh-what? Barbarian?”
“This bastard’s finally come to his senses!”
—Slap, slap!
I began to feel a hot sensation on my cheek.
Barely opening my eyes, I saw an unusually protruding human jaw. And then, I saw golden, silky hair.
That’s right.
—It was Kopson.
He was slapping my cheeks.
“Ugh, ugh! Hey! It hurts! Stop! Stop it!”
“Finally… finally come to your senses!!!!!!!”
At the same time, Kopson hugged me. Wh-what is this guy doing? Get off me? It’s not like someone came back from the dead.
Came back from the dead?
Resurrection?
No, what the hell! What’s going on!
“Kopson! What in the world is going on! Where am I, and what am I…!”
“Khuhk! Thank goodness! I’m so glad!!!”
“Stop crying and talk, damn it.”
Kopson, having calmed down, pushed me away.
Only then did my vision fully return, and I looked around. This was… a jungle. But it wasn’t the garden where I had fought Alaune.
Looking closely, this seemed to be some kind of hideout.
“Kuh-uh… I was worried you were really going to die, not opening your eyes for two days. To finally open your eyes! It’s a miracle!”
“What? Two days?!”
“Yes, that’s right!”
To my shock, Kopson explained the whole story.
When he came to his senses, Alaune was nowhere to be seen, the garden was devastated, and I was lying face down.
So he quickly gathered himself, supported my unconscious body, and traversed the jungle at night.
There were many dangerous moments, but with the single-minded determination to survive, he found a safe place, made a hideout, kept my half-dead body, and lived like a dead mouse.
This son of a bitch!!!
He took care of me even in that situation!!
“You bastard! You saved me! Thank you, you son of a bitch!!!”
“You idiot! Isn’t it obvious! Didn’t you save me too!”
“Hehehe! This guy’s just a friendship man!”
“You too!”
Anyway, it seemed I had survived.
As a reward for not abandoning a friend, I was saved by my friend’s help. Fortunately, Kopson hadn’t died, but was simply knocked unconscious by Alaune’s sorcery.
If he had abandoned me, I would have met a miserable end at the hands of the wild monsters that would have rushed in.
Indeed, friendship was precious.
We laughed and celebrated our survival for a long time.
“Keuhak!”
“What! What’s wrong! Cock-Barbarian!”
“No, damn it, my stomach…!”
Perhaps from laughing too hard, I felt a bursting pain near my solar plexus. It seemed that even though I had survived, my body wasn’t in normal condition.
I crouched down for a moment to calm the pain.
“Damn it… I thought I was going to die.”
“You can’t die after I went through all that trouble to save you. Here, drink some water.”
“Thanks.”
I opened the water bottle he handed me and slowly drank the water. The cold energy flowed into my body, and I felt a little more awake. I felt hungry, so I took out the dried rations in my pouch and chewed on them.
As expected, I felt better after putting some food in my mouth.
—Throb, throb.
“Kuh…! Kill me!”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Still, I felt intermittent pain.
I had suffered severe internal injuries from using power that far exceeded my limits. This… I might really die if I make a mistake.
I need to get out of the jungle and get treatment quickly.
“Barbarian-shik…! Looking at your condition, you look like you’re about to die soon! You’re only holding on because you have the spirit of a savage!”
“Ah, damn it… I’m really going to die.”
“We need to get out of the jungle quickly… There are many problems. It’s still unclear how to get out, damn it!”
Kopson tore at his hair and screamed.
As he said, we were still in the jungle. If we stayed in a place like this, the chances of dying would increase no matter what.
“No.”
I answered him.
“We can get out.”
I can get out.
“What do you mean?”
“I think we can get out… I have a feeling.”
For some reason, I knew.
The reason we were lost was probably because of the strange magic that had been gripping the jungle. Of course, it originated from Alaune, so now that she was dead, we would be able to get out of the jungle.
“Well, it’s good to have hope. Anyway… what are you going to do? You don’t look like you’re in good enough condition to find the way right away. Are you going to rest for another day?”
I’ve experienced this much pain and hardship countless times in my zero years of living in this other world.
I can’t be defeated by something like this.
“No. Let’s go. It’s about time to go back.”
“Are you really okay? There’s no answer if you suddenly collapse on the way.”
“Don’t worry, you bastard. If I was going to die, I would have died back then.”
“Hmm.”
It was midday.
I grabbed the hesitant Kopson and came out of the hideout. Now, where should we go? Since I don’t know anyway, let’s trust my instincts.
“Let’s go, friend.”
“Ah, I understand.”
And so, I walked through the jungle with Kopson.
“But Barbarian. What happened to Alaune? What was that ruin?”
“Ah, that.”
I didn’t say that Alaune, who couldn’t withstand the pressure of the crossing between the unreal and the real, was defeated by it.
I embellished it appropriately and said that I was lucky enough to land a surprise attack and slice her up.
