Translator: Dreamscribe

The Empress’s wrath.

Haebyul and the Heroes could empathize with the Empress’s fury.

That was because the despairing past they had glimpsed through the experiential video and Ella’s eyes was now being reenacted before their eyes. A dark current surged around the Empress and pushed back the energy of Erosion.

But the standoff didn’t last long.

As Mary put strength into her two-handed sword and swung it, the Empress was pushed toward the Heroes. Numerous summoning circles rose around the Empress. The Knights of Vengeance were summoned to the Romance Domain at her command.

“Evacuate the people of Arsilan.”

The Knights of Vengeance bowed their heads and began evacuating the people of Arsilan.

Jinwoo was observing everything while hidden. He listened to the conversations between the Knights of Vengeance and the people of Arsilan.

“Let’s go.”

“Ah, yes. This is my first time doing something like this, I’m excited.”

“It’s my first time too. I wish I could have done this back then…”

“Thank you for doing your best for Arsilan.”

“Not at all. Thank you for surviving.”

“Haha, this is kind of embarrassing.”

Though the situation seemed urgent, the conversation was peaceful.

The knights comforted each other and the people of Arsilan as they talked about their painful past memories. Jinwoo cast illusion magic over the knights and the people of Arsilan so they could share more stories freely.

The knights looked toward the place where Jinwoo was hidden. They gave a small nod of gratitude, then peacefully exited with the people of Arsilan.

The first battle between the Empress and Mary began.

As Mary raised and swung her two-handed sword, the Empress cast dark magic. A giant dark magic circle appeared before the Empress but vanished at the same time as a slash.

[Pathetic struggling.]

A viscous liquid flowed from Mary’s armor, dyeing the surroundings with Erosion.

Was it because of some emotion she felt while looking at the Empress?

Mary moved somewhat irritably and charged toward the Empress.

Mary and the Empress clashed head-on.

They collided at incredible speeds, appearing and disappearing around the area repeatedly. Even the Heroes who were over level 90 couldn’t properly follow their movements.

Taat!

The Empress, flung away, landed on the ground and extended her scythe toward Mary. Then, hundreds of dark magic circles rose behind her, and black flames erupted.

Rain began to fall.

Rain made of black flames started pouring down toward Mary like a downpour. But the dark magic didn’t work on Mary. When Mary flicked her hand downward, the black flames slammed into the ground and were devoured by the ashen swamp.

Mary’s body seemed to waver, then she appeared right in front of the Empress.

Kwaang!

Mary continued swinging her two-handed sword. Her speed easily broke the sound barrier, creating shockwaves and violently splitting the earth around her.

The Empress was barely able to defend against Mary’s attacks.

Even that looked awe-inspiring in the eyes of the Heroes. That’s how strong Mary was, strong enough to be described as ‘invincible’.

“Ugh!”

The Empress was flung backward, rolling on the ground before barely coming to a stop. A crack appeared in her scythe, and her hand was trembling slightly.

“We’ll help too!”

“Let’s stop her, no matter what!”

“Protect the Empress-nim and the Domain!”

Haebyul and the Heroes joined the Empress, raising their weapons, and Heroes rushed in from the harbor of the Romance Domain. The Hero’s Flower from the underground labyrinth couldn’t be used, so they had come running from the harbor side.

-The Domain’s ruined.

-It’s all destroyed.

-Even the fruit fields outside the Romance Domain have withered?

“Hey! You crazy bitch!”

Haebyul, who had heard the news through the chat window, screamed furiously.

She looked like she was about to foam at the mouth.

The time she spent healing while looking at the vast fruit fields had felt like a dream. Since the seeds were brought from inside the Empire of Evil, each one had been incredibly expensive, and it had taken tremendous effort to get them to bear fruit. Once harvested, the crops were supposed to secure the funding to operate the Domain.

But now, everything had withered.

Because of that crazy bitch, the so-called Princess of Erosion!

Reacting to Haebyul’s outburst, Mary swung her two-handed sword. Each swing made Heroes disappear, and the Domain split apart. In contrast, the attacks from the Empress and the Heroes couldn’t reach Mary.

[How annoying.]

As if everything so far had been a game, an enormous surge of Erosion energy swept out. That alone caused the Romance Domain to shake violently and begin to collapse.

[All at once….]

Gathering a massive amount of Erosion energy, Mary raised her two-handed sword high.

[Die.]

The Empress unleashed her full power and cast dark magic. A massive wave of darkness surged forth and engulfed Mary. However, the Erosion barrier that rose around Mary easily blocked the dark magic.

Kwagagaga!

As Mary slammed her two-handed sword downwards, a wave of Erosion surged forward. The viscous Erosion drove away the wave of darkness and charged ahead as if to devour the Empress and the Heroes.

“Ugh!”

The Empress gritted her teeth and poured out all her strength.

The Heroes also unleashed all their attacks toward the Erosion with everything they had. The balance of power barely held, but unlike Mary whose output never dropped, the Empress and the Heroes began to weaken.

-Keep firing!

-At this rate, we’ll all be wiped out!

-We’re being pushed back!

The Heroes began to collapse one by one. The wave of Erosion turned into a tsunami, seemingly ready to swallow the Empress and the Heroes at any moment.

-Why is that crazy bitch so strong?

-This isn’t even a fair fight!

-What the hell did the Creator nim make!

-Aaah! I’m on my way, please hang in there!

Along with their rage at Mary, complaints toward the Creator God also slipped out.

Jinwoo laughed brightly at that reaction.

‘Just a little more…’

It wasn’t time yet.

Jinwoo waited until despair fully spread across the faces of the Heroes. The Empress staggered and fell to her knees, and the Heroes were flung in all directions, unable to withstand the enormous Erosion energy.

Now was the time to appear.

Let’s heat up the atmosphere even more and turn it into utter despair!

Whoooosh!

A light fell from the sky.

As the light pierced through the Erosion and struck the ground, the wave of Erosion that had been about to sweep away the Empress, the Heroes, and the entire Romance Domain scattered in an instant.

The Heroes looked up at the light that had fallen from the sky.

It was a light far too familiar to them.

“The Holy Sword?”

“Could it be…!”

It was a Holy Sword shining with brilliant light.

As a pillar of light descended from the sky, someone walked out. At that moment, the expressions of the Heroes filled with joy and hope.

The King of Heroes.

The only King of Arsilan, blessed by all the light in the world.

“Your Highness Leon!”

“Leon-nim!”

King Leon of the Kingdom of Sillion descended upon the Romance Domain, blocking the Erosion. As Jinwoo reached out and pulled the Holy Sword, light fell around him.

Papapat!

With Heina, the Knight Commander of the Kingdom of Sillion, the knight order cut through the light and appeared.

“Apologies for being late.”

Jinwoo said so as he looked at the Heroes. The Heroes smiled broadly and shook their heads repeatedly. Despair disappeared from their faces, and hope began to bloom.

Jinwoo’s gaze turned to the Empress.

“…I was too late.”

“Are you Prince Leon.”

“I am a king now, though.”

Jinwoo looked at the Empress with a guilt-ridden expression and bowed his head.

“I’m sorry. I…”

“That’s enough.”

The Empress stood up and shook her head.

“This is not the time to talk about the past.”

“Indeed.”

Jinwoo nodded at the Empress’s words and raised the Holy Sword.

[The Holy Sword’s power dwells in Romance Domain. Fallen heroes are immediately resurrected.]

The fallen Heroes were revived. They stood beside Jinwoo and glared at Mary.

Jinwoo and the Empress stood side by side. Brilliant light and fierce darkness burst forth simultaneously, bathing the surroundings in light and shadow. That sight filled every Hero with hope.

“His Highness Leon is with us!”

“Uaaah! Give me back my Domain!”

“Let’s kill that bitch!”

The Heroes’ rage poured out toward Mary.

Jinwoo and the Empress charged at Mary. They moved as if perfectly synchronized, pressing her hard. The Heroes joined in between, unleashing their attacks.

Mary, seeming irritated, grew increasingly aggressive in her movements.

The ground split apart, and the barely-standing buildings crumbled. Even Mary, who had seemed invincible, was slowly being pushed back.

Ting!

Her two-handed sword was deflected to the side, creating an opening.

As Jinwoo gathered light with the Holy Sword, the Empress stood behind him and infused it with dark power. When darkness mixed with the brilliant light, the light intensified even more. It was a scene as if the light were burning brighter using the darkness as fuel.

“Hah!”

Jinwoo swung the Holy Sword at Mary.

The light cut through the Erosion energy and struck Mary’s two-handed sword.

Ddddddddd!

As Mary endured while releasing Erosion, the ground shook as if an earthquake had struck.

“Go!”

“Leon-nim!”

“Pour everything into it!”

The Heroes added all their magic power and strength to the light.

Kwaduk!

Cracks appeared in the two-handed sword that had been blocking the light, and then it shattered completely. The brilliant light pierced through even the Erosion barrier and poured down upon Mary.

Mary reached out her hand to catch the light.

Grgrgrgrk!

Her gauntlet melted, and her body was pushed backward. She was forced back all the way to the front of the Underground Labyrinth, and just before she fell in, her body stopped. Mary twisted her hand and deflected the light to the side.

Kwaduk!

However, she couldn’t deflect it without taking damage. The light grazed part of Mary’s helmet. The helmet shattered, revealing one of her eyes and her ashen hair.

Mary looked at the Empress and the Heroes with murky violet eyes.

The Empress faltered for a moment as she looked at Mary. Jinwoo looked at her.

“What is it?”

“…No, it’s nothing. The attack landed.”

The Empress shook her head as she spoke.

“We finally dealt damage!”

“Her helmet cracked a little!”

“Kya! This is the power of light and darkness…!”

“There’s hope!”

-Her eyes are pretty, though?

-Still, she needs to die. Look at the Romance Domain.

-It’s really all gone. That fishing spot was perfect, too…

Hope filled the faces of the Heroes. It felt like they could win if they kept pushing. Hope began to rise that they could conquer this boss!

[Hope?]

Was that word a trigger?

Mary’s eyes twisted. Viscous, ashen tears flowed from her eyes. The violet irises that had been gazing at hope were completely submerged in the ashen tears and disappeared.

The tears filling her helmet turned into a thick swamp of Erosion and flowed out from the helmet.

Grrook!

The swamp began to boil violently.

Even the tears seemed to scream.

[That fleeting hope of yours….]

Was it because she was submerged in Erosion?

A slightly muffled voice echoed out.

[I’ll offer it as a sacrifice to Father.]

Mary spread her arms wide and stepped back.

Right behind her was the Underground Labyrinth. As she fell into the Underground Labyrinth, the entire Romance Domain began to shake violently.

Kwagagaga!

A massive current of Erosion surged out from the Underground Labyrinth. The Erosion current rose to the ends of the sky and dyed the surroundings in ashen gray. As if swallowed by the Erosion, the sun was blocked, and everything turned black like a hole had opened in the sky.

“Th-this is…!”

“I’ve seen this before.”

The Heroes had seen this scene before.

Every time Mary appeared, the Underground Labyrinth would tremble, and this sight would unfold. A massive Erosion current spread from both the northern and southern skies toward the Romance Domain. It was the energy of Erosion gushing out from the Underground Labyrinth there.

Jinwoo extended the Holy Sword and spread a protective barrier over the Romance Domain.

“The Underground Labyrinth is resonating!”

At Jinwoo’s shout, the Heroes understood why Mary was so powerful. Drawing power from that massive Underground Labyrinth, it was only natural she was close to invincible.

“Grrrk!”

The light of the Holy Sword trembled as if it would go out, but he barely managed to hold on.

Mary’s body, which had fallen into the Underground Labyrinth, began to rise into the air along the current of Erosion. The Heroes looked at her with dazed expressions.

The current of Erosion that had soared into the sky.

At the very peak, fire ignited and then began to fall downward like a melting candle.

Her massive armor melted away.

The rusted, shabby armor melted into thick Erosion and clung to her body. The heavy armor vanished, and her form became sleek. It was armor that matched perfectly with her title: Daughter of Greed, Princess of Erosion.

From behind the sharp, thorn-like helmet, ashen hair spilled out. Her long hair fluttered like a cape.

Srrk!

The Princess of Erosion descended in front of the Underground Labyrinth.

She had become considerably smaller than before. She was small enough to be called a girl’s physique. However, the oppressive pressure that weighed down the entire Romance Domain was incomparable to before.

It felt like gravity had increased.

The air thickened, becoming as viscous as liquid. The Heroes staggered and fell to their knees. Forget holding out, they were struggling just to breathe. Only after Jinwoo released light from the Holy Sword were they barely able to stand again.

“That… is on a whole different level.”

Jinwoo glared at Mary with a tense expression.

The Heroes gulped. They had never seen Leon this tense before.

Tsrrrk!

When Mary extended her hand to the side, a long single-edged sword materialized. A thick ashen swamp flowed out from the blade, soaking the ground beneath.

Mary turned her gaze toward Haebyul.

To be precise, she looked directly at the camera floating above Haebyul’s head.

-Huh?

-She’s looking this way?

-Wait, she really is!

-No way. How would a mob even notice a livestream?

The murky violet light glowing from inside the helmet aimed squarely at the camera. When Mary swung her sword toward it, an Erosion slash burst out and struck the camera.

“Huh?”

Chjjjjik!

Haebyul’s broadcast screen trembled. The screen began to darken as if it were being swallowed by the ashen swamp.

-Wha, what… Die! Die! Die!

-Helpmehelpmehelpme

-Killmepleasekillme

-What the… Die! Kill me? What’s happening in chat… it hurts it hurts!

The chat window was consumed by screams.

[Haebyul’s broadcast has been corrupted by Erosion.]

Tentacles burst from the camera, and the broadcast screen twisted into a grotesque form, revealing a hellish landscape. As Mary reached out her hand, the camera was pulled into her palm.

[There is no hope. Witness despair.]

The stream resumed from above Mary’s perspective.

Mary’s body vanished and reappeared in front of Jinwoo. The Empress beside him swung her scythe, but

Swick!

It was caught between Mary’s fingers.

With a light flick of her hand, the Empress was flung to the side.

Kwaang!

Mary’s sword clashed with Jinwoo’s Holy Sword.

It started as a slow slash. But as the number of strikes increased, the speed rapidly escalated until it became almost invisible. One of the blows, barely blocked by the Holy Sword, pierced Jinwoo’s shoulder.

Mary grabbed Jinwoo by the neck and slammed him downward.

Kuwaaang!

Jinwoo’s body was slammed into the ground, causing cracks to spread.

Heina, the knights, and the Heroes charged in, but they were all effortlessly repelled. Jinwoo unleashed light from the Holy Sword and barely escaped from the spot.

“Grrhk!”

The wound was deep. His shoulder was tainted with Erosion, making it hard for him to grip the Holy Sword properly.

The Empress, who had risen to her feet, rushed toward Mary.

She swung her scythe, filled with dark energy, but Mary didn’t even bother to defend. She reached out, grabbed the scythe with her hand, and crushed it.

“Keugh!”

Mary gripped the Empress’s neck with her hand.

If she applied even a bit of pressure, the Empress’s neck would be crushed.

“Damn it…!”

Jinwoo lunged at Mary to save the Empress. He gathered light into the Holy Sword and swung it at her. But the despairing situation did not change. Mary caught the Holy Sword with her other hand. The sword flickered, its light fading.

“Your Highness!”

“My body…! Urgh!”

“Binding magic?!”

Hands rose from the ground and grabbed everyone’s bodies. Mary slowly tightened her grip on the Empress’s neck, staring at her. Just as she was about to crush it.

Sniffle!

A sniffle echoed from somewhere.

Amid the wreckage, a young girl clutched a teddy bear, trembling in fear. An older girl, presumably her sister, ran over with a pale face and hugged her protectively.

“Why are there children?!”

“Get out of there!”

The Heroes shouted at the sisters, but the swamp of Erosion had already reached just before them.

[…]

Mary looked at the trembling sisters.

Just before the ashen swamp could consume them, Mary stepped back, hesitating.

“Grrk!”

The Empress was released, exhaling heavily. Jinwoo, seeing the Empress freed, de-summoned the Holy Sword, then swiftly moved toward the sisters, lifting them into his arms and retreating with them.

Kwaduk!

A crack formed in Mary’s helmet. She clutched the fracture with her hand and staggered. When she released her hand again, the crack had disappeared.

[…I’ve lost interest.]

Mary looked at the Empress for a moment, then turned away.

As the ashen swamp consumed her, the pressure that had been weighing down the Romance Domain vanished, like waking from a nightmare.

The sight of the Underground Labyrinth writhing with violent currents of Erosion, and the ruined state of the Romance Domain, were all that confirmed what had just happened wasn’t a nightmare.

-Huh? Chat’s working!

-Wow, I cried from how scary it was.

-I peed myself.

Haebyul’s camera resumed normal function, and the broadcast was restored.

The Empress fell into thought.

As if something had come to mind, her face turned pale, but she quickly shook her head and pushed the thought away.

“Leon-nim!”

“Your Highness Leon!”

Jinwoo, who had been holding the young girl and her little sister, staggered and collapsed to the ground. He coughed up black blood with a choke.

“Cough, please… take care of these children….”

Heina rushed over and supported Jinwoo in panic.

“Cleric! Get a Cleric here!”

When Jinwoo lost consciousness and collapsed, the Heroes were consumed with rage. They could no longer forgive the existence of that Princess of Erosion.

She had trampled the Romance Domain and inflicted a grievous wound on Leon.

Even the Empress had nearly died.

Only after signs of Leon’s recovery began to show could the Heroes regain their composure.

“But why did she retreat?”

“…It’s strange.”

What in the world could be the reason?

That was the only mystery.

* * *

Behind the scenes, Tiris removed her armor.

She immediately checked the reactions.

Jinwoo (Leon): Nice work.

└Tiris (Mary): Good.

Tia (Writer): Kyaa! That was great! You did so well.

Garsha (Lunatie Village Chief): That moment when you hesitated after seeing the young sisters at the end was so powerful. Did the Empress realize something too?

Luceren (Elvens Village Chief): Tiris-nim! I had no idea you possessed such amazing acting skills. Truly impressive.

Leviathan (Sashimi Restaurant Owner): The Princess of Erosion herself!

Behemoth (Ice Jelly Shop Owner): I learned a lot today.

[Behemoth has donated 10 Platinum Coins!]

KingSlime (Pet, Ice Jelly mascot, etc.): Wow! I really thought it was real Erosion. I’m so excited for the next part!

Mia (Fish Shop Owner): When will they find out each other’s true identities? I’m so curious!

└Tia: Want a spoiler?

└Mia: Ah! No, no! Hehe!

Thomson (Solis Blacksmith): So this is the taste of ruin! Not bad!

Hallon (High Cleric): If I had played the role, I think Mary would have been portrayed differently. It’s good now, but if you’d expressed even more intense emotions, it could’ve been an even better scene. Hmm, next time, if you let me try….

└Tiris: No backseating.

[Hallon has been temporarily muted (2 hours).]

*Reason: Backseating

Hasman (Unemployed): When’s the next episode airing?

Helby (Guardian Dragon): Next. Now.

[Helby has donated 20 Platinum Coins!]

*Helby has become the top supporter of Tiris-nim’s stream!

*Donation Ranking (Platinum Coins)

1st Helby – 230 coins

2nd Tia – 120 coins

3rd Luceren – 98 coins

Alraune (Model Summoned Creature): Wow! 20 Platinum Coins! I respect you!

└Helby (Guardian Dragon): It’s nothing.

“Hmph.”

Seeing the flood of praise, Tiris smiled for the first time in a while.