The World After the Bad Ending - Chapter 167

Lightning pours down.

This time, it doesn’t stop—it keeps coming relentlessly.

Amidst it, Vulcan and I endure the strikes, locked in battle.

Vulcan had assumed he had erased my soul.

But far from being erased, I simply walked out of the soul world on my own two feet.

Had things gone as he intended, I would have lost both my soul world and my body.

Yet, even if the soul world were taken, Vikarmen’s body would remain beyond his grasp.

And for good reason—the soul world Vulcan stole was originally mine.

‘I am not Vikarmen.’

Vikarmen’s body had always been an empty vessel, devoid of a soul.

I merely happened to occupy it by chance.

In other words, no one had ever truly held dominance over Vikarmen’s body.

Vulcan could only step into that vacancy because my soul world had mingled with his.

In truth, neither of us had full control over Vikarmen’s flesh.

But in the end, one of us would claim it.

To decide that fate, we clashed.

“Grrk—!”

Vulcan swallowed a groan as the goddess’s lightning rained down.

His three eyes strained wide as he desperately endured the strikes.

I was no different.

The pain of the lightning seared deep into my soul.

True to its divine origin, the power was overwhelming.

I’ve called down lightning before, but this might be the strongest output yet.

“Hah… Hahaha… You think… this is enough… to finish me?”

As Vulcan said, this alone wouldn’t settle things.

“Even if… the Earth Dragon… devours me… I won’t… give up.”

KOOOOM—!

I could feel the Earth Dragon drawing closer, tearing through the Mysticism Order’s ruins.

Vulcan’s three eyes bulged further as he stubbornly held on.

True to his legend, he had no intention of retreating.

His willpower was beyond what an ordinary person could break.

But unfortunately for him, there was something he didn’t realize.

I didn’t summon the lightning just for this.

“Vulcan.”

With effort, I called out to him.

“Do you know… what the Ancient Dragon’s remnants… hate the most?”

The roots of the Ancient Dragon’s remnants within me belong to the Frost Dragon.

To suppress them, I used the imprint of the Flame Dragon.

What the Frost Dragon’s remnants despise most—

Is heat. Fire.

And now, the one flame the remnants loathe more than anything has been planted inside me.

The Ancient Dragon’s remnants are territorial.

Once they settle, they rarely leave.

Yet suddenly, a new flame appeared where they had coiled.

Squirm—

The remnants, momentarily subdued by the lightning, stirred again.

“What… are you… planning?”

Vulcan tried to move his arm in irritation.

But then, belatedly, he realized nothing was seeping out from his body.

His eyes slowly widened.

At last, he sensed the danger.

No matter how powerful the remnants are, they won’t move when a corrupted flame rages nearby.

But unfortunately, we’re currently bathed in the goddess’s purifying lightning.

Corrupted flames, born from twisted fire, belong to the darkness.

Even Vulcan couldn’t ignite them under these conditions.

“You—!”

Vulcan finally understood and shouted.

He tried to escape the lightning, but I locked my legs around him.

“Not… running.”

We were doing so well together.

Let’s stay like this a little longer.

I tightened my grip, ensuring he couldn’t flee.

He thrashed harder, but I ignored it.

Enduring is my specialty.

“Let go—! Release me!”

Vulcan spat curses, screaming like a madman.

Unfazed, I waited calmly.

Crunch—

Until the Ancient Dragon’s remnants finally opened their maw.

They’ll devour anything—their appetite is boundless.

From Nikita to me, they’ve tried to consume us all.

Now, a feast lay before them.

They wouldn’t resist.

Vulcan’s soul writhed.

In the soul world, he might have stood a chance—but this is reality.

Worse, we share equal control over Vikarmen’s body.

No matter how he struggles, his power has limits.

“You’ve… cursed the world… enough.”

I don’t know how to absolve his resentment.

But as long as he despises this world, we are enemies.

Because I fight only to protect it.

“My desire… to protect… was stronger… than your hatred.”

That’s why I won.

As Vulcan let out a final scream, the remnants opened wide.

“Farewell.”

“YOU—!”

CRUNCH!

The remnants swallowed half of Vulcan’s soul whole.

Without a chance to resist, he was devoured.

His eyes trembled as he realized his end.

Our shared soul made the sight vivid.

And with it, his memories flooded into my mind.

Under a fading sunset.

In the distant past, a young Rozel stood before a hero.

He asked:

“Olfram, why do you struggle so desperately?”

Olfram.

The name of the Great Hero.

He stared ahead, his back to Rozel.

“I wonder… how a world that has met its end will move forward.”

“You always say such incomprehensible things.”

At the time, Rozel couldn’t understand.

But now, I do.

My eyes widened.

‘I was right back then.’

Olfram was a possessor, like me.

One who had experienced this world before.

‘Maze Academy Slayer had a distant past arc like this?’

Even I, obsessed with the series, never knew of this history.

A past that stretched into the present.

“Still… I’m curious too. What kind of world do you dream of?”

Rozel, who once dreamed of peace.

He fell, was reborn, and became Vulcan—burning the world with hatred.

“Ol… fram.”

Vulcan’s final words lingered.

“Why… did you give me that chance?”

Olfram isn’t here.

So his question scattered into emptiness.

Instead, Vulcan gazed into the distance.

“…I see. Perhaps… I’m still trapped in the wheel of fate.”

WHOOSH—!

His entire soul ignited in black flames, turning to ash.

“A nightmare.”

The flames consumed him completely.

“A nightmare of being crushed beneath fate’s wheel.”

With those hollow last words, he vanished.

CRACKLE—

The moment his presence faded, I exerted full control over my body.

The third eye on my forehead disappeared.

I had reclaimed complete dominance.

As I clenched my fist, the lightning ceased.

Delayed pain wracked my body.

A metallic taste filled my mouth, my skin burning.

I felt on the verge of collapse.

Even a body of steel couldn’t endure such lightning unscathed.

And it wasn’t over yet.

The remnants inside me licked their lips, eyeing me hungrily.

Having devoured Vulcan, they had grown far larger.

They bared their fangs.

The Flame Dragon’s imprint could no longer restrain them.

‘I wish you’d just leave satisfied.’

But they had no such intention.

The situation was dire.

If they consumed me now, I’d become a dragonkin without a doubt.

I couldn’t allow that.

So I summoned my last resort.

To stop them, I needed fire—

A flame so vast the remnants wouldn’t dare covet it.

‘And I already have it.’

Deep within me.

A tiny ember, planted long ago by the deceased Spirit Lord.

The Flame of Fire.

Though diminished, it still burned.

I fed it the ashes of Vulcan’s incinerated soul.

WHOOSH—

A flame erupted within me.

Ashen fire flickered to life.

Stripped of its resentment, it blazed fiercely.

CRACK—

Then, something black hidden within the flames ignited.

I realized—this was what corrupted Rozel’s fire.

‘A fragment of nightmare.’

Planted in him long ago by the Evil God.

The reason he wielded tainted flames.

As the nightmare burned away, the ashen fire roared.

The remnants, faced with such overwhelming power, recoiled.

Even after consuming Vulcan, they knew they stood no chance.

Flames of Ash.

Once, they carried hope—to protect the world.

Later, they burned with resentment—to destroy it.

Now, only embers remained.

The flames passed from Vulcan to me.

‘They’re no match for Lucas’s Flames of Will.’

But still, I’ve finally obtained my own fire.

I felt the remnants shrink back.

I’d have to wield this flame aggressively from now on.

My mind was in turmoil.

Vulcan’s lingering hatred for the world festered within me.

But I won’t inherit his grudge.

All I can do is ensure such hatred never arises again.

So I’ll keep his Flames of Ash burning.

That is my role now.

“You.”

A familiar voice called out.

I looked up to see the allies who had stormed the Mysticism Order with me.

At the forefront stood a woman with honey-blonde hair and scarlet eyes.

Her gaze was filled with desperate emotion.

Despite the pain and my tattered soul, I smiled.

In this moment, I felt nothing but pure joy.

“Isabelle.”

She rushed toward me.

True to her martial arts training, she closed the distance instantly and embraced me.

Her citrus scent filled my nose.

Warmth and softness enveloped me.

Tears welled in her eyes.

Why is she crying?

For a moment, I didn’t understand.

Then, clarity returned.

She had been worried about me.

Had my self-love and empathy faded so much that I couldn’t recognize concern?

But now, I understood.

I slowly wrapped my arms around her.

“I’m okay.”

“I know. That’s why I’m doing this.”

Her arms tightened around me, refusing to let go.

“I’m so glad.”

Tears fell as she held me.

Seeing her, I finally felt the weight of victory.

As she said—it truly was a relief.

[ Φ㎘ Final ㏀∋ Chapter: ‘Operation Annihilate Vulcan’ has concluded. ]

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