Episode 723
Chapter 181: Mary’s Dream (Part 2)
As they stepped out of the Tikan Palace, the gazes of the people on the street naturally converged on the two of them.
Mary was keenly aware of the hostility laced in the eyes of the citizens as they looked at Dipus.
It was only natural.
Even though he had regained his senses in the end, the fact remained that he had slaughtered hundreds of thousands of innocent people.
That truth weighed heavily on Mary. Her brother’s hands were stained with blood that could never be washed away.
Could I ever forgive him?
In truth, that question was what had kept Mary awake these past few nights.
No matter what excuses Dipus might offer today, Mary didn’t think she could ever understand his fall from grace.
They walked on in silence for a long while, as if by unspoken agreement.
Before they knew it, they had left the city behind and reached the beach.
Their footprints stretched out across the white sand, dyed red by the setting sun.
“It feels like we’ve been walking for at least three hours.”
Mary finally broke the silence.
“Has it really been that long? I thought it was only about thirty minutes,” Dipus replied, turning to look back.
In his eyes, Mary and the distant silhouette of Tikan Palace were visible.
“Why are you dragging this out? You don’t want to talk about it, do you?”
Mary’s eyes glared at Dipus, filled with resentment.
“That’s not it.”
“Then why use this walk as an excuse to stall your answers?”
“You know the reason.”
Mary hesitated, then shook her head.
“No, I don’t. Just tell me. I already heard from the youngest sibling that receiving the power of the Maleficent God requires consent. If that’s true, then you weren’t forced to betray us…”
“It’s true.”
Mary’s grip tightened fiercely on Dipus’s shoulder. He didn’t pull away.
“Does that mean you gave in to the Maleficent God because you couldn’t endure the torture?”
“That’s not entirely wrong.”
“Lies. The brother I know wouldn’t break under torture.”
“No, I was truly despairing under endless torture—both physically and mentally.”
“What kind of torture did you endure?”
“It’s impossible to explain in words. At some point, it was like a flickering light—my sense of self would vanish and return repeatedly. Each time, I lost bits of my memory. In the end, I couldn’t even remember my own name. But now, it’s all come back.”
“So you were completely broken mentally and had no choice but to accept the Maleficent God’s power… I guess there was no other way. I shouldn’t have asked such an obvious question.”
“Mary.”
“Yeah?”
“Is that really enough?”
“What do you mean?”
“You asked me such a difficult question just to hear this excuse—that you were forced by torture and despair. If that’s enough, if you can stop agonizing over my fall, then let’s go back.”
Mary stared at Dipus for a long moment without answering.
“…No, it’s not enough.”
As her grip loosened, Dipus turned and started walking again.
Mary followed, watching as the waves washed away his footprints with each crash.
“One day, during the torture, a human who was once like a mother to me—no, a monster—told me something.”
“What was it?”
“That my despair was the greatest contribution to completing the Maleficent God’s divinity. The more I suffered and despaired, the stronger it became.”
“Ah…”
“At first, I didn’t believe it. But the more time passed, the more anxious I became. If that was true, then every breath I took only made the Maleficent God stronger—and I couldn’t even die as I wished.”
A special being’s special despair.
Like Joshua, Dipus’s despair was the greatest aid in the Maleficent God’s completion.
“After some time, I became certain. Every time the Maleficent God came to me, I could clearly see its power growing. Naturally, I could only fall deeper into despair. At this rate, even if Father returned, I doubted we could kill that monster.”
Dipus spoke calmly, and Mary squeezed her eyes shut.
“But one day, the Maleficent God made me an offer.”
“…To accept its power?”
“Yes. To keep being tortured and despairing, or to accept its power and fight alongside the youngest sibling. Either way, it was a cliff with no way out.”
“Why didn’t you hold on just a little longer? If you hadn’t accepted the Maleficent God’s power, we would have come to save you.”
“If that had happened, the Maleficent God would have become an unbeatable force by now.”
“Are you saying we succeeded in this operation because the Maleficent God shared its power with you?”
“Yes.”
“That’s just a filthy excuse!”
Dipus didn’t look back at Mary’s angry outburst.
“Hah! Fine, then why would the Maleficent God share its power with you? If what you say is true, it could have just watched you despair and won the war on its own.”
“The Maleficent God is obsessed with the youngest sibling. As soon as I became a fragment, I could see inside it. It doesn’t just want to win. It wants to drag the youngest sibling down to the very bottom before winning. It wants the youngest sibling to become the same as itself.”
“So that’s why you accepted the power and did those things?”
“Lady Mary!”
Before Dipus could answer, someone came running along the beach, calling out to Mary.
“Your Majesty…?”
It was Kashimir.
“Lady Mary, the meeting is about to start. Please come quickly.”
“Why did the king come personally to tell me? Why not send someone else?”
Kashimir didn’t answer.
Suddenly, Mary felt her heart pounding wildly as she glanced between Kashimir and Dipus. Dipus didn’t stop walking.
“Please, tell him to wait a moment. I still have things to hear from my brother.”
Mary hurried after Dipus. She had only exchanged a few words with Kashimir, but Dipus was already far ahead.
“Brother! Are you running away? Slow down! Is that really the only reason you accepted the Maleficent God’s offer?”
“Mary.”
“Why?”
“When I was cornered and nearly killed by the prophet’s trick in the Ricarton fortress… what did I think?”
“Why bring that up now?”
—It was strange… Somehow, I felt the youngest sibling wouldn’t keep falling for that trick.
Mary’s words to the prophet in Ricarton fortress.
At a time when it seemed impossible to defeat the enemy and hope was lost, Mary was suddenly overcome by a strange feeling.
Some great being… the youngest sibling… would soon resolve this crisis. For some reason, she felt the youngest sibling would lead them to victory.
“I felt the same. I thought if I became a fragment of the Maleficent God, the youngest sibling would come and destroy it.”
“Lady Mary! Lady Mary…! You’re late, the meeting is starting!”
This time it was Enya. When Mary glanced back briefly, she saw the dark night sky and the distant lights of Tikan Palace.
Even if she ran all night, she felt she couldn’t return to the palace now. They were already that far away.
Dipus was far ahead again. Mary shook her head and pushed herself to catch up.
“Brother, stop…!”
She finally caught up, but Dipus kept moving forward.
“No matter how much I struggled, I couldn’t find a better choice. I thought it better to become a fragment myself, so the youngest sibling could kill me and weaken the Maleficent God’s power…”
“Alright, alright. The meeting’s starting. Let’s go back for now and finish this later, okay?”
“Mary!”
“Mary, everyone’s waiting!”
Voices from the Tona brothers came from behind.
“Why are you all looking for me? Can’t you see Dipus is right here? He’s beside me!”
Mary shouted without turning back.
If she took her eyes off Dipus even once more, she felt she’d never catch up again.
“Brother, let’s go back. I’m sorry. I survived because of your sacrifice that day, yet I kept making things harder for you with pointless words. So please, just stop for a moment… please.”
Dipus finally stopped and turned to look at Mary. She smiled without realizing it, tears blurring his face.
“Mary. Whatever reasons I had for my choice, I can never be forgiven. I committed unforgivable acts. I killed too many people.”
“Hah, but in the end, you came back. You accepted the power to weaken the Maleficent God, and because of you, it happened. And when Gliek was destroyed, countless people survived thanks to you…”
“No matter what, I was just defeated by the Maleficent God. I was weak and lost, and irresponsibly left the aftermath to the youngest sibling, you, and others.”
“People can lose sometimes…”
“As a Runcandel, there are battles I must never lose. So Mary, don’t lose like I did. Keep fighting. With the youngest sibling. With the people.”
“Why do you keep talking like you’re about to disappear? Don’t say that.”
Dipus gave a faint smile.
“As I said before, you know what to do. Go back with the others.”
Mary held Dipus’s hand and turned around.
Kashimir, Enya, the Tona brothers, and all their comrades from Tikan were watching her.
They were beckoning her to come back.
“It’s just a meeting, so why is everyone acting like this?”
“Mary.”
“I’ll tell them I’m coming soon, with my brother.”
“Mary. You have to go alone.”
The moment Dipus said that, Mary felt his hand slip out of hers.
No matter how hard she tried to hold on, she just couldn’t. It was like a dream—her strength wouldn’t come.
Then Dipus gently pushed her shoulder.
“Even if I only experienced it through your dreams, Tikand is truly a wonderful place.”
“Brother!”
“But we have to take back our home. Runcandel’s house is the Garden of Swords.”
“Brother Dipus! Don’t go!”
“It was nice to walk together again after so long.”
You have to be strong, even without me—my little sister.
Brother…!
Mary collapsed.
Just as she was about to get up and chase after Dipus again, what caught her eyes wasn’t his back.
It was her brothers and comrades, their faces full of worry as they stood by her bedside.
“Lady Mary!”
“Lady Mary has awakened!”
“Ah, sister’s awake!”
“Milady!”
Jin pulled Mary into a tight embrace.
For a while, Mary stared blankly at the ceiling before returning the hug.
Yona and Tona joined in, wrapping their arms around the two of them.
Then, Valeria, standing before them, opened a record window to show Mary.
<On May 22, 1803, Dipus Runcandel entrusted hope to Mary and Jin Runcandel by sharing the power of the Dark God.>
<On the same day, Dipus Runcandel passed away, leaving behind a fragment of the Dark God’s power. The Dark God weakens.>
Mary couldn’t tear her eyes away from that record for a long time.