Confusion. Calm. Fear. Longing...
Waves of overwhelming emotion surged through Kanzaki Rei’s sea of consciousness like a raging ocean. By the ti he realized his spiritual essence was being devoured, far too much of it had already been consud.
And this ti—
He hadn’t even noticed it happening.
All he had felt was a dull sluggishness in his thoughts.Things that should have co instantly to mind... didn’t.Details that should have been obvious... slipped past him entirely.
His inner world trembled.
His thoughts swayed, unstable.
"The key to ntal defense is precision," Izparut said calmly. "Simply constructing barriers is the most primitive form of protection."
"It’s not attacking your body—it’s attacking your emotions. It’s rewriting your cognition."
As he spoke, magic circles began forming within the sea of consciousness.
Spells Kanzaki Rei had never seen before were being constructed by Izparut.
Ding—
Countless motes of light filled the sky above the mindscape.
Yet—
The massive eye in the sky narrowed slightly.
In the very next instant, Izparut’s ntal defense magic exploded apart.
Seeing this, Izparut fell silent for a mont, then sighed faintly.
"...This isn’t my own sea of consciousness, after all."
"But the principle is roughly the sa."
"You understood it, right?"
...
Understood?Izparut, you really trust my learning ability.
...Well.
I can more or less grasp it.
It’s just that... with so much of my spiritual essence gone, my comprehension isn’t what it used to be.
But fortunately—
My talent still remains.
[God-Tier Talent · Tower of All Magic] activated.
Kanzaki Rei reached out toward Izparut—
And directly extracted the spell Izparut had just demonstrated.
"Iz... I’m borrowing this."
Izparut felt the magic he had just created vanish from himself.
The thod of casting it—gone, erased entirely.
The sensation was... strange.
「Sixth-Tier ntal Magic — Veil of Knowing (LV: 501)」
Whoosh—
A vast, surging mist spread across the entire sea of consciousness.
BOOM—BOOM—
The mindscape trembled violently, the fog shaking along with it—
But the damage being inflicted had clearly lessened.
...This spell works.
"Heh... looks like it’s reaching its limit," Ansu said with a faint chuckle from the side.
"This world is constructed from your own mories and cognition... and sustaining it consus your spiritual essence every mont."
"You’ve cut off the supply."
"It can’t maintain itself much longer."
Ansu let out a cold laugh, then turned his gaze toward Izparut.
"A genius of magic... how does it feel, knowing you’re about to disappear along with soone else’s cognition?"
Izparut simply shrugged.
"It’s quite interesting."
"The human mind and awareness... can actually construct a complete world."
"That’s a fascinating direction for research."
"...The inner domain of the mind, hm?"
He murmured to himself, utterly devoid of fear, despair, or hesitation.
RUMBLE—
Suddenly, the sea of consciousness shook again.
Within the layers of mist—
Figures began to erge in waves.
Countless Huang Minzhis.Countless Luluwis.Countless... versions of himself.
"...Persistent, aren’t they," Kanzaki Rei muttered.
Ansu replied, "This thing’s ntal attack isn’t forceful in nature."
"It amplifies your confusion, your fear, your unease."
"In truth, every attack you’re experiencing... originates from yourself."
"Even the smallest inner demon will be magnified infinitely."
"If you can’t face your own heart, then even if you leave this place, those seeds will remain buried within you."
"And one day... when you’re forced to confront yourself again, you’ll be trapped by them all over again."
"What you need to do now... is face them."
Kanzaki Rei fell silent.
As the mindscape trembled, even Izparut’s form began to flicker, turning indistinct.
Kanzaki Rei faced forward.
Layer upon layer of figures stood before him—
And at the very front...
Was his older self.
"Why... are you still unwilling to return?"
"Do you not know how long they’ve been waiting for you?"
"Is this world... truly worth clinging to?"
Kanzaki Rei shook his head.
"No."
"I’m not going back."
"Reality is reality. Escaping it is nothing but self-deception."
"I don’t believe the life within the Deep Earth belongs to ."
"I know I’m often conflicted, often awkward... but no matter what, I follow my own heart."
"It’s not as if only decisiveness is correct."
"Even Kumironi hesitates because I’m a Death Priest. Even Izparut sighs when he sees practice martial techniques."
"How could there be anyone who never feels lost?"
"I do feel sorrow for what happened to Earth. I do feel regret."
"And I also cherish this opportunity... to stand beyond the world."
He turned his gaze toward Huang Minzhi.
"...Brother. Your death... it hurts deeply."
"But pure grief changes nothing."
"More than grieving... I want to save you all."
"My heart has many flaws. I’m far from a perfect person—morally or otherwise."
"But everything I do... I can at least face myself without sha."
"If you ask about my choices... I won’t feel any regret."
As Kanzaki Rei spoke—
The trembling of the sea of consciousness grew more and more violent.
Yet at the sa ti—
The shrinking mindscape began expanding again, swelling outward like a storm-tossed ocean.
A realization slowly dawned within him.
The knots that had long entangled his heart... began to unravel.
...Of course.
Ever since returning from Earth, this had been buried deep inside him, refusing to fade.
Ti had passed.
He thought he had forgotten everything that happened there.
Thought he had sealed away his emotions.
Even in dreams... Earth had stopped appearing.
But now—
He realized.
He had never truly let it go.
Everything that happened that day in the Secret Sea still echoed in his ears.
Kanzaki Rei slowly closed his eyes.
"...So that’s how it is."
Then—
He opened them again.
And in that instant—
He found himself sitting on a calm, unmoving ship.
The sea was tranquil.
The bench beneath him was cold.
Everything that had just happened felt like nothing more than a fleeting dream.
Even Ansu’s voice—
Felt like sothing imagined within that dream.
"Kid. You’re finally awake."
Ansu’s voice echoed clearly in his mind.
Kanzaki Rei opened his eyes fully and gave a faint nod.
His perception swept outward—
And soon, he saw it.
A massive eye floating in the sky, staring directly at him from afar.
Beside him—
Luluwi and Kiyomi lay slumped on either side of the bench, unconscious, as if in a deep sleep.
...So this is a battle of the mind?
He couldn’t even tell whether the scene before him was real or illusion.
How many layers deep was this now?
Am I in reality...
Or still inside its domain?
At this point, Kanzaki Rei couldn’t even determine whether his future simulation was real or false.
Or worse—
When exactly had he been ensnared?
Was it really during the investigation of Luluwi’s consciousness on Fallen Moon Island?
Or... had it begun even earlier?
Each environnt—
Just as it beca familiar—
Would suddenly shift.
Exactly like now.
Like waking from one dream, only to fall into an even deeper one.
And the worst part—
That transition...
Had been initiated by himself.
He thought he had understood sothing.
Thought he had seen through the enemy’s intent.
And then—
He "woke up."
Only to realize—
He had entered an even greater illusion.
Recalling everything that had happened monts ago, Kanzaki Rei frowned.
Entering Luluwi’s consciousness.Finding the Deep Earth.Killing Luluwi.Releasing this unknown entity.Choosing to test its strength.Falling into its domain...
The scene kept changing.
Every ti he adjusted—
It shifted again.
...Could it be—
This wasn’t the beginning at all?
He exhaled slowly.
First ti I’ve encountered an enemy this troubleso.
The scenes kept cycling.
Again and again.
Kanzaki Rei could no longer distinguish truth from illusion.
Am I truly awake now?
Or still trapped inside its domain?
Or worse—
A chilling thought surfaced.
Kanzaki Rei decided—
To end this simulation.
If he ended it...
He would finally know—
Whether this was truly a future simulation... or not.
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