Seol and Jamad resolved themselves while looking at the gods.

Were getting out of here.

If someone asked Seol when he would wake up from his dreams, his response would be when he realized everything was a dream.

However, that wasnt the case right now. Even though Seol knew this was all a dream, he couldnt escape.

As such, the situation became dire.

Fine, do you hate us now?

Thats so harsh. I cant believe you insulted us after we played with a human like you.

Youre making us sound like were the bad ones.

Jamad then warned Seol.

Careful, were going to break through them.

Nod.

Seol also felt that if he escaped late, he would face a similar flood like when he delved into Karens memories.

Stay with us

Crackle

Snap Crackle

The body of one of the gods started growing.

Their body grew and grew like a balloon or a pufferfish, until they eventually popped.

Pop!

Splatter

Urgh

With an awful smell, abominations started appearing.

Guaaaaaargh

Compared to my memories, yours are practically hell.

I agree. Even if these are my memories, I want to get the hell out of here.

These monsters looked like what would happen if ones flesh and skin were swapped. The horrific monsters slowly lumbered to block their paths.

Pop!

Pop!

Guaaa Dont go lets play forever

Jamad swung his massive fist at the monsters in front of him.

Cruuuush!

Kieeee!

Jamad and Seol ran.

No one can stop my path!

Crush!

Crush!

Kieeee

Haha you wont escape

Shut up!

Crush!

Watching Jamad felt like watching a brave, stalwart general.

This scene reminded Seol of historical movies where a general would help their lord escape by breaking through an army.

Thud!

Punch!

It wasnt just one or two gods that turned into abominations.

Guaaaaaaargh

Dont go

Damn it, its never-ending.

The fortunate thing, though, was that the gods were fairly slow and didnt use other spells.

Still, there were many of them, and they were tenacious.

Seol and Jamad continued breaking through them until they finally felt free.

It was because they had escaped the abominations ring.

Gasp Gasp the path separates.

The path was split.

Jamad then asked Seol.

Your instincts were always good. So, is it right or left?

......

Hey, Seol!

Right!

Alright! Lets go!

There was no light in front of them.

The only thing Jamad could rely on as his milepost was Seol, and even Seol didnt rely on the light.

It was the darkness.

The familiar darkness guided Seol forward.

It whispered to him, guiding him in that direction, promising that if he persisted along that path, he would reach his desired destination.

To the light he longed to see.

Where do you think youre going?!

How dare you commit the sin of sullying the heavens! You shall pay the price by being imprisoned in eternal darkness!

Suddenly, the gods appeared in their original form, riding strange-looking horses.

Fsssssss

A hot surge of steam shot out at Seol.

Grab!

Jamad grabbed that, too, with his hands.

Krgh Hey, Seol! Get a hold of yourself!

What?

You control this place. You can do whatever you want. Stop being pushed around by their words, nothing is decided here! Theyre nothing more than your imagination!

The situation was getting worse and worse.

Over there!

Tch, at this rate

The abominations were increasing in number, making it harder to escape.

Enemies appeared faster than Jamad could defeat.

They had to do something here.

During this moment, Seol was thinking about what Jamad told him.

My imagination imagination

Crush!

Aaaargh! How dare you!

Seol!

Seol raised his head and looked at the enemies head-on.

I thought of a way to get out of here!

If you have one, do something!

As Jamad mentioned earlier, if Seol were to feel fear for even a moment, his nightmares would become real.

Each worry that Seol had would only appear to block their path.

However

What if I used it the other way around?

There was no guarantee that only Seols negative thoughts would turn true.

And as such, Seol's imaginationhis delusionscould become the key to escaping.

Think Think

What could Seol think of?

It was always easier to imagine something specific.

So, what specific thing could Seol think of here

Could I borrow those?

Their items

Their powers

Seol closed his eyes and quietly thought.

First, he thought of a fast way of travel that could help them escape.

Frsss

What what is that?

Squeaaaaaal!

Neigh

An enormous hog, capable of easily carrying Jamad's weight, appeared in front of them, as well as a beautiful stallion with a blue mane.

Hoggs and Grimbell.

The two of them were legendary mounts famous all throughout Pandea.

Seol had imagined them, and they appeared before him.

Get on! Theyll help us escape!

Alright! Things are finally going well!

The gods wore shocked expressions on their faces the moment Seol and Jamad suddenly found ways to escape.

St-stop! No one can be allowed to escape from here!

Shut up! Lets go, Seol!

[Jamad mounts Illusion: Hoggs, the Heavy.]

[You mount Illusion: Grimbell, the Galloping.]

Squeaaaaal!

Rumble Rumble Rumble!

D-Dodge!

Kyaaaa!

Chaaaaarge!

As Hoggs charged at them, the gods were unable to avoid it and were deflected away like loose kites.

Hoggs and Grimbell were beasts that Seols pieces had ridden before.

After materializing them with his imagination, Seol gained confidence.

I can use their powers! Next is a path. Ill create a path!

Think.

Think Seol.

This isnt just your imagination. This is also your fantasy.

Fwooooooosh!

A rainbow was drawn on the ground beneath them.

[You take a step on Illusion: Priminus, the Rainbow Path.]

[Movement speed increases.]

[Luck increases.]

Priminus, the Rainbow Path.

This terrain not only ensured that whoever stepped on it would reach their destination with certainty but also enhanced their luck. Furthermore, it also greatly increased their movement speed.

Rumble Rumble!

Jamad, on Hoggs, and Seol, on Grimbell, raced through Priminus.

Stop them! Theyre trying to escape!

Witness the powers of a god! You damned insects!

Craaaaackle!

A bolt of lightning flew toward Seol. It was something that he had been hurt by multiple times before.

Seol!

Jamad couldnt protect Seol in time.

If Seol were struck by the lightning bolt, he would undoubtedly be thrown off his horse.

However

[Illusion: Idley's Mirror of Madness activates.]

[Idley's Mirror of Madness absorbs the elemental magic.]

[It reflects the absorbed elemental magic with multiple times its original strength.]

Woosh!

BZZZZZZZZZZZT!

Urgh Guaaaaargh

A massive mirror protected Seols back.

Idley's Mirror of Madness was one of the artifacts best at defending against elemental magic.

Hahaha! Did you see that, you idiots?! You cant block us! Now that you know, get out of our way!

Jamad laughed loudly, enjoying his victory.

However, Seol was too busy focusing on something that he couldnt hear Jamad at all.

Means of travel, path, artifacts theyre all as I imagined. This is my imagination. And if thats the case

There was still one more thing that Seol held himself back from imagining.

Kaaaaaaaaargh!

Release the beasts! Block them!

We cant let them escape! They broke the rules!

We must teach them the consequences of refusing to follow the rules!

There were more gods than before. In fact, there were likely more gods here now than there were in the heavens.

Even though Seol tried his best not to think of them, the gods kept intruding into his space.

It was a scene that demonstrated the extent to which the gods occupied his thoughts.

It wont be easy this time

Well make them pay the price for looking down on us.

Gloooow

The gods began gathering their energy.

Even though all of this was a product of Seol's imagination, created by fake gods, it was still undeniable that they had amassed an incredible amount of power.

A colossal orb of energy emitted a radiant blue light.

Hahaha! Well destroy you!

Playtime ends here!

They didnt shoot their mass of energy at Seol.

It was at the path that they were taking.

Krgh! No!

Jamad could not do anything other than shout. He had no means of blocking an attack like that.

However, something strange happened.

Fwooooosh

Everything other than Jamad and Seol froze in place.

The path froze, the energy froze, and the gods froze too.

Everything was encased in ice.

[You used Illusion: Exceptional Skill: Frozen Shut.]

[Everything freezes.]

Gasp Gasp

Seol?

The power that Seol just displayed

Jamad tried his best to understand it, but he couldnt wrap his head around it at all.

What is this strength?

My piece. Its his power.

Frozen Shut was one of the Grand Duke of Frosts Exceptional Skills. When he used this skill, he froze everything.

Ha Hahaha! How fun, how exciting!

We have to leave as fast as we can. It wont last forever.

Yeah, lets go.

Squeal! Neigh!

The two raced forth, leaving behind the frozen gods.

This was a golden opportunity for them to finally leave.

However

Stop there, Snowman.

Fwoosh

After hearing someones voice, everything around them disappeared like an illusion.

And because of that, Seol and Jamad, who had been riding Hoggs and Grimbell, respectively, fell off them and rolled on the ground.

* * *

Translator - goguma

Proofreader - Karane

* * *

Krgh

Despite the sudden disappearance of their mounts, Jamad quickly moved to cover Seol.

Krgh what is it this time?

You are

Seols voice was calm as he looked at the god before him.

The god wore a mask with a giant eye drawn on it.

It was the same god who sent him down to Pandea, Kodon.

How fun even if they are figments of imagination like this

This isnt just my imagination. Its all things that have actually happened.

Haha, you are correct. Those things really did happen. However, it didnt happen to you.

...What?

Hoggs and Grimbell the glorious road of Priminus Idleys mirror not to mention

Kodons voice became nightmarish.

The Grand Duke of Frosts powers!

Thats

"Those are not achievements resulting from your efforts. Have you forgotten? The most you did for them was safely roll the dice while they suffered the consequences of your actions."

......

The ones who took responsibility for your actions were your pieces. Wouldnt you agree that its unfair?

Why

Hm?

Why are you getting in my way? You

You sent me down there.

As Kodon, the only god who sided with Seol in the heavens, blocked his path, Seol was shaken.

Its because I was disappointed by you.

......

I believed that you could do much better but if this is the best that you can do having such high expectations of you mightve been a mistake.

What do you

What Im trying to say is that I just wanted to see you suffer. Therefore, entertain me.

The ground started shaking.

Fwooooooosh

Krgh

It was a chilling breeze.

The Grand Duke of Frost, Seols piece, which had lost one eye and his emotions, appeared.

After him, more pieces started appearing from the darkness.

The One-Armed Sword Saint.

The Dragon Lord.

The Immortal.

And others.

The amazing pieces of Seol that had failed Ascension and lived their own lives appeared by Kodons side.

Jamad stepped in front of Seol to protect him.

Step back What is this strength

Jamad

They are so powerful

Kodon smiled.

Hey, these are your pieces. Why dont you say whats on your mind, huh?

The moment Kodon finished, the pieces began murmuring things on their own.

You must atone You must atone

.......

You have to atone

Haha its fun, right? Ah, am I the only one having fun? Snowman, why do you look like youre about to cry? Arent you happy to see your pieces again?

No, Im sad.

Right? As expec wait, hold on! What did you just say?

Kodon laughed at first but was shocked after hearing Seols unexpected answer.

Im sorry. Im sorry I couldnt give you better lives. Im really sorry. Ive always wanted to tell you that.

...Did you really think they would simply accept it if you apologized now? You controlled them!

However, once again, something that Kodon didnt expect happened. The Grand Duke of Frost stepped forth and spoke.

Its okay.

After him, more pieces stepped forth.

Its alright. It was a satisfying life.

I have no regrets about my life.

Even if I gained another life, I doubt I could live a life as incredible as this one.

All of his pieces then spoke to him together.

So, its okay.

Kodon furiously swung his arms at them.

They then disappeared like dust.

Fwooosh

Y-You You damned You have no pride, no backbone!

After being born into existence, everyone experiences life.

However, where would it be if one had to draw a finish line for ones life?

The ten incredible beings that appeared before Seol would answer the same thing in unison.

Ascension.

And Seol was an unrivaled player who led all of them to Ascension.

Urgh Then I guess I have no choice but to face you myself!

Craaaaaaackle!

Black lightning appeared in both of Kodons hands.

How dare you

As Jamad charged at Kodon, Kodon lifted a hand toward him.

The black lightning landed directly on Jamad.

Aaaaaaaargh!

Jamad was under indescribable pain.

It was a pain that he was helpless against.

Kodon was more prestigious than the other gods.

They all implicitly feared him.

Even if Kodons powers were a figment of Seols imagination, he was incredibly powerful. Since Seol couldn't use his imagination against Kodon, he had no means of winning.

Kodon laughed maniacally.

Hehehehehe! Now, what are you going to do now? Now that youve thrown away your friends, youre all alone. The only thing left for you, someone whos rejected the gods is

Staaaaaaab

Left is huh?

Two swords pierced through Kodons back and exited through his chest.

Huh?

Seol knew those two swords.

After all, only one of each existed in the world.

Breath and Flare.

The two swords then took turns slashing Kodons body.

Kodon then turned to smoke, his mask falling to the ground.

Thud.

Khrrrrrrgh.

A groan came from the mask as Karen and Karuna appeared.

Karen then growled toward the mask.

Do not deceive my king, you illusion.

Cough Y-Your king? Hes just using you! Hahahaha Someone helpless on their own like him is your king? How does that make sense?

Karen gave a bright smile.

It does. Since I am his knight, he will inevitably become king. So watch us.

......

Karen then looked at the restrained Jamad before speaking.

Good work and thank you.

It was the first time Karen had treated Jamad so kindly. Jamad reacted awkwardly at that warm reception.

...Hmph. Why are you two here?

Karuna answered instead.

The situation was getting dire, so we took on the risks and came here. Master, the exit is this way.

...Yeah.

Seol slowly walked toward the direction the light came from.

Hold on Hey, are you really trying to forget us? Are we really no longer your friends? asked Kodon in a dying voice.

Countless masks suddenly appeared around Kodon.

The mask-wearing gods.

However, Seol no longer planned on wearing a mask.

Yeah, were enemies now.

How come why

Its because Im an adult now.

...It was fun.

It was fun for me too. However, I wont ever come back here.

......

Seol left behind his old memories and burdens before escaping into the light.

Seol could no longer feel the dream-like atmosphere anymore. He only felt the chains wrapped around his body.

Twitch

Clatter

Seols eyes were still closed, but his body was shaking.

Clatter

Clatter

Rumble

The vibrations grew stronger and stronger until it was uncontrollable.

And then

Blink!

Seols eyes opened.