Chapter 716

Naum looked up at Ian, who was holding onto him.

The lord who had just been yearning for death was gone. The fading life force had flared up like a blazing fire, filling the space around them, and the heat was palpable.

It wasn’t only Naum who sensed this. Crony and Luigi’s faces also showed clear signs of bewilderment.

Whoosh!

Clang!

Ian lowered his stance and charged at them. His movements were exactly as they had seen countless times during training. His hair swayed with the emperor’s motion, and a faint glow lingered in the air where his fierce gaze had passed.

Ian—where on earth is this strength coming from?

“Ugh!”

Ian’s Idgal sword struck Luigi’s protective shield head-on. It’s notoriously difficult to physically break through a mage’s magic, a fact everyone knew and never doubted—but—

What is this?

The shock coursing through his entire body was anything but ordinary.

Sure enough, cracks began to spiderweb across the shield where the Idgal sword made contact. Luigi hastily reinforced it with more magic, but—

Crack!

Clang!

The shield shattered into countless fragments, scattering around. Luigi stared at the fallen pieces in disbelief.

“…Crony.”

Panting heavily, Ian pointed the Idgal sword at Crony. The sharp tip pressed precisely against Crony’s neck.

“I asked you. Who am I?”

Naum noticed Ian’s voice had dropped significantly. Though cold and sharp on the surface, a raging fire swirled within him—one that would burn, melt, and mercilessly trample everything in its path.

“…Ian.”

“Yes. I am Ian.”

The very Ian who had held you with his tiny hands, who had truly considered you family and felt deep gratitude, and who had been unable to treat you harshly even when he realized that your world was flawed.

It’s all my fault. I should have severed the bond between us much earlier…

“I’ve thought deeply about where it all went wrong.”

He traced it back, step by step, all the way to the beginning of his own existence. But now, facing it like this, he understood. My darkness, which would be nothing once cut away. The lingering regrets of the past, easily discarded.

“It’s not me—it’s your existence that’s wrong.”

The shadow’s greed to live under the sunlight, the long-rooted black seed born from that desire.

Because it was so thick and tightly bound, the child inside couldn’t even breathe and died… How could I call that my fault?

“…Ian.”

Crony twisted his lips and muttered, but Ian’s gaze instantly sharpened.

“How dare you speak the emperor’s name.”

“Ian! This is too much!”

Crony half-hid behind Luigi and shouted. His hand cautiously moved toward his waist. He had inserted a magic-sealing stone into his body to prepare for situations like this, but had delayed doing so for various reasons—and now this mess had happened.

Crony tapped Luigi’s back with his other hand.

‘Look for an opening.’

There was a dagger made from the magic-sealing stone. If only they could cut somewhere on that man’s body with it…

“Too much?”

“Do you think I wanted this? You followed me, calling me family! Ha! Then why did you ignore all my warnings? Hide your magic, don’t enter the palace, the emperor’s throne is not right! Didn’t I warn you over and over for your own good?”

Ian looked at him with a calm gaze, then let out a bitter laugh. Wiping blood from his hand, he muttered:

“No matter how dark, it’s disgusting.”

“What did you say?”

“That’s enough. I’ve crossed too long a timeline. I no longer want to listen to your meaningless excuses.”

An overwhelming aura of magic radiated from Ian’s entire body.

Luigi swallowed hard, overwhelmed by a spirit he had never felt before. He knew the emperor was a powerful mage, but had never faced such raw intensity.

Just as Ian gripped the Idgal sword to strike—

“Meaningless? Ian, your parents’ deaths are all your fault! Still, you say it’s meaningless?”

Crony’s shout made Ian’s sword hesitate.

Seizing the moment, Luigi gathered magic in both hands and cast a spell.

“Mando (Late Arrival).”

A small clock shimmered in his grasp.

This place was narrow and dark; they couldn’t overpower Ian by force. So a spell to bind the opponent’s time was perfect. If they could buy time, they could get help from other mages to deal with him.

Ziiing!

Click.

As the clock’s hands slowly moved to the right, light spilled around. Facing that, time would slow.

Ian sneered mockingly and began gathering magic at his fingertips.

“Waaahhh—!”

A strange scream echoed from above the underground prison. Everyone looked up simultaneously. From that high place, they saw Beric falling.

“Iaaaan!”

“Ian-nim!”

Then Tommy, Nakina, and Hey also appeared, more like they were dropping than falling.

As they descended toward Ian, they traced small magic circles with their fingertips.

“Get away from Ian-nim—!”

Whoosh!

They landed lightly before him and immediately unleashed magic in all directions.

“Chegyeong (Body Mirror).”

Swish!

Boom! Thud! Thud!

In an instant, the surroundings transformed into a hall of mirrors.

With light reflecting unpredictably, Luigi had no choice but to retract the clock. If they got trapped here, it would truly be the end.

“Crony-nim.”

Luigi looked back at Crony. They were outnumbered and outmatched; it was best to get out and call for help.

But—

“Luigi!”

“C-Crony-nim?”

There were many Cronys. Luigi was just as bewildered. They were trapped in a maze created by dozens of mirror walls.

“What the hell is this…!”

Every step forward led only to another mirror, and the opponent who had been there moments ago vanished as if evaporated.

‘Stay calm.’

This wasn’t a mental magic—it was just a visual trick.

Luigi stopped and steadied his breath. He could shatter all the mirrors with magic, but then Crony’s safety wouldn’t be guaranteed. They had to meet up somehow and raise a protective shield…

“Crony.”

Swish.

At that moment, Ian’s reflection appeared in the mirrors. Reflected and reflected again, dozens of Ians nodded their heads in a strange sight. They muttered:

“Explain how it is that your parents died because of me.”

“That’s exactly right, Ian! You may not know, but your existence was predetermined long ago, the starting point of misfortune. You still don’t understand why your mother never reached out to you, do you?”

Crony shouted, looking around desperately. He knew that if he didn’t shake Ian here, he himself would falter. This was a desperate struggle.

In the mirrors, Crony’s figure brushed past like he was fleeing, with Ian following close behind.

“From long ago?”

“Yes. A warning from the temple!”

“I see.”

Ian smiled faintly and tilted his head.

So now you admit that the underground god’s scheme, ongoing for a hundred years, was targeting me all along? I’m so grateful I could cry.

“Masantar?”

“We came from there, you bastard!”

Beric and Nakina’s shouts echoed from somewhere. They were probably watching the situation from somewhere inside the mirrors.

Crony groped ahead with his hands, desperately searching for a spot that wasn’t a mirror.

“…!”

Suddenly, Ian’s figure caught his eye. Was it a mirror? Or not? It was ambiguous. Ian stood slightly askew, looking back over his shoulder.

Without realizing it, Crony drew the dagger from his waist and cautiously stepped forward.

“…I really did it for you. If only you had stayed still, if only you hadn’t gone outside that day… none of this would have happened.”

Crony muttered softly as he studied the figure. The closer he got, the more certain he became it was real. Thanks to the keen senses of one facing death. Then, Crony swung the dagger at Ian’s back.

Clang!

Ching!

“Sir.”

Beric easily blocked the strike. His magic greatsword dimmed instantly, reacting to the magic-sealing stone, but his eyes shone brighter than ever.

“Damn it, shut your filthy mouth and just die in peace.”

Ian turned his head, and Beric stepped aside. Without hesitation—

Thrust!

Ian’s Idgal sword pierced Crony’s abdomen.

“…!”

“I was watching what you’d do. Just as I thought.”

“…Ian!”

“As you know me, I know you. You’re the one who hides in darkness, crawling up to exploit weaknesses. Coveting what’s not yours, with no respect for human dignity or justice, foolishly mistaking cowardice for sophistication.”

Crony’s hands trembled as he gripped the Idgal sword tightly. He couldn’t believe death was so close—so sudden, and at the hands of that Ian.

“Know your place, Crony.”

“I-Iaaaan!”

Crack!

Ian pressed his sword deeper, leaning close to Crony’s ear. His voice was steady, unwavering.

“Blasphemy.”

“Ian! Ian!”

“…In the name of the Emperor.”

Ian lifted his gaze to meet Crony’s. In Ian’s eyes was Crony; in Crony’s, Ian. Both had reddened eyes, but the emotions behind them were unmistakably different.

“Crony.”

I am truly grateful that it has come to this. That by killing you, I am reborn—I am truly grateful.

“In your next life, do not be born at all.”

With that, Ian withdrew his sword. At the same moment, blood burst from Crony’s abdomen. Crony’s eyes followed the blade’s tip as crimson slowly dripped down.

Ah, damn it.

Shhhhhh!

Thud!

Blood splattered thickly across the mirrors surrounding them. Crony’s head tilted sideways, then fell limply, rolling to a stop. The mirrors shattered simultaneously.

Clang! Clink!

Countless shards of glass, holding the memory of Crony’s death, scattered through the air.

Ian made his sword vanish and stared down at the body for a long moment. Ah, yes. Truly, just a nobody…

“Ian-sama.”

“I’m fine, right? Ian Hielo, is that you?”

Nakina, Tomi, and Hale approached cautiously, their eyes searching him. They worried—what if this wasn’t truly Ian, trapped in the darkness?

But thankfully, Ian smiled faintly.

“If not Ian Hielo, then who else could I be?”

“Oh my, my heart nearly stopped.”

“I’m just glad you’re safe.”

“Looks like we’re all tangled up in my darkness.”

“Honestly, I was terrified. Have you been living through worlds like this all along?”

“Yes. Every time, I only realized it at the moment of death. That it was all within darkness.”

And then came the regret. Ah, if only I had known it was darkness, I wouldn’t have done what I did. I wouldn’t have sent Naum away—I would have clung to the will to live, to the very end.

But when the darkness replayed, I lost my memories and lived like a puppet, trapped in the same cycle—dying again and again. So many times that counting lost all meaning.

“Then… can we leave now?”

“Maybe…”

When I first woke, a god in the form of the illegitimate son Ian had stirred me awake—just as I was about to speak.

Suddenly, I realized something was missing.

“…Naum?”

Naum was gone.

From the very place where he had summoned forbidden magic for me.