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Chapter 251: Underworld (3)

Unable to move,

And she scoffed while seeing it.

Naturally, the memories of a man named Seo-jin were excluded, so there were times when Ferzen\'s actions appeared to be completely incomprehensible......

No, in fact, it was ridiculous to think that she could understand them.

The onset of a life stained with powerlessness, frustration, and despair.

The development of a life stained with desperation, urgency, and relentless pursuit.

And the conclusion of a life ending in resignation and compliance.

Why should she "understand" all this?

After all, it was probably because the memories that washed over her also carried the emotions felt by him.

Among them, the most revolting were...

Yuriel,

Laura,

Euphemia,

Jeremiah,

Raymond,

Elizabeth,

And many others.

It was the process through which Ferzen realized his own happiness through his bonds with them.

Therefore, Lizzy erased all those emotions through the karma Ferzen had transferred to her.

While she never handled such power before, the nature of Karma made Lizzy instinctively aware of how to use it, so there were no mistakes.

Then, naturally, that void began to be filled with pure anger and hatred.

Unsympathetic.

Unspeakable personal circumstances.

As life crumbles.

As the companions disappear.

As the family leaves.

Even if she carried the tragedy of her own life on one side and his circumstances on the other.

The scale showed a clear asymmetry, merely tilting.

Despite learning the importance of happiness from building connections with others, he destroyed her bonds.

Despite knowing the pains of being cursed with something beyond his control, he bestowed upon her the same.

......After all, now that she knew all of this, wasn\'t he just being a stubborn fool by choosing to be evil at every crossroads?

Lizzy could hardly stand the nausea from his attempt to take on such a clumsy form of atonement.

Rustle!

Struggling to her feet, Lizzy staggered towards him, raising her hand before...

She struck his cheek fiercely.

Even though she could bend causality by consuming karma,

Directly inflicting physical damage by releasing karma—devouring the karma he held—was impossible, and Lizzy felt her frustration boil over.

No, releasing it was possible, but

It was merely a handful of karma.

Thus, the time it took to release all of it was shorter than the time it would take for her soul to collapse under the weight of this karma.

"Disgusting to the very end."

"......"

"Don\'t even utter the word \'atonement\' with that mouth. Isn\'t this just an act to soothe your own creepy and uncomfortable feelings? You block everything that could be the worst for you, and then ask me to be your balance?"

Lizzy grabbed Ferzen\'s face with both hands, forcing him to look at her as she bit her lips.

As a soul, she couldn\'t shed blood, but the twisted expression on her face conveyed the deep resentment she felt.

"Stripping away all the irrationality that bound you, and returning to this world to live a happy life—I can\'t stand to watch that with open eyes."

"......"

"What do you think about me reincarnating as the child that Euphemia is carrying?"

Or,

"Sister Yuriel...No...It\'s funny to even think of her like that...But what if she can\'t have children?"

Or,

"What If I make Laura something beyond your reach?"

"......"

"Wouldn\'t it be funny if I became Jeremiah\'s wife as well? I could wrap him around my finger and corrupt Brutein, bringing that twisted Empire down with it. Yes...That seems like the best idea. Well? What do you think?"

Lizzy leaned in close, her voice low and filled with deep resentment as she murmured.

"Let\'s hear that eloquent mouth of yours speak."

"......"

"Speak up—!"

Slap!

"Speak!"

Slap!

"Speak—!"

As Ferzen maintained his silence, Lizzy continued to slap his cheek while demanding answers from him.

In response, Ferzen bowed his head, and, unable to contain his frustration, began to tremble as he opened his mouth towards Lizzy.

"......If you\'ve seen my memories, then you already know the answer better than anyone, Lizzy."

Lizzy would not harm those she had connections with.

No, more precisely, she couldn\'t.

Because that would be less about revenge and more about venting her inability to destroy herself due to the essential limitations of a human soul in this place.

And could she truly follow in the footsteps of the life led by Ferzen, whom she so despised, a man who stubbornly committed evil deeds for his own ends?

As families leave,

As houses fall,

As lives are shattered,

Lizzy questioned herself about these excruciating irrationalities.

And by doing so, the humans known as "Ferzen Von Schweig Brutein" and "Lizzy Poliana Claudia" become equals.

......At that point, she would no longer be able to demand any further price from him.

Of course, from Ferzen\'s perspective, Lizzy\'s method would be the most painful.

However, from Lizzy\'s perspective, the fact that others, not Ferzen himself, would bear the cost would be unacceptable.

"Do you think...... I can\'t do it......?"

"If you really would do that, then here I should kneel and beg you."

When Lizzy mentioned using the karma she had received in such a way, it was something Ferzen could potentially mitigate.

However, the amount of karma consumed to mitigate it would not be insignificant, naturally reducing his standing in the underworld.

Even if he had been pushed to the very bottom, the moment they realized he was weakened, the monstrosities would surely move against him.

Isn\'t the end of that path vividly demonstrated by the previous lord of the underworld, whose name has been forgotten?

In fact, if we were to delve deeper, that would be a secondary reason.

No, it would be incorrect to even call it secondary.

The weakening of his position in the underworld meant that, in the long run, he would not be able to keep the souls of Yuriel and Euphemia tethered to him after their deaths.

\'......\'

And when he reaffirmed his purpose and resolve, Ferzen could only chuckle bitterly to himself.

For he found it curious that he, existing in the Underworld, was struggling to extend his earthly connections even here.

Even if he achieved his goal, there was no guarantee that the future would be smooth.

Becoming timeless did not mean eternal, after all.

As the forgotten one had said, eternity was an unreachable ideal—permitted only in dreams.

Yet, despite this, Ferzen dared to grasp it.

Even if turning the mortal into an immortal was impossible, he could perhaps sketch something infinitely close to immortality.

"Then try kneeling."

As Lizzy lifted her head and spoke thus, Ferzen bowed his body without a moment\'s hesitation.

In this realm, governed by the laws and all monstrosities,

He,

Berthem Elquia Eruie.

Knelt to a mere human soul, a mere cog in the workings of the world\'s order.

Ferzen believed that Lizzy would not choose to pass her burdens onto others...

Yet as long as there was even a slight possibility, he was clearly the subordinate at this moment.

"Is this all? You\'ve seen how desperately my family and I begged that day—!"

Lizzy sneered, demanding further humiliation from him.

To which Ferzen willingly bowed his head even lower, to her feet.

"Ha... Ahaha...!"

Watching this, Lizzy stomped on Ferzen\'s head with her foot, howling like a beast.

"It\'s so easy... to do this—!"

Why,

Why things weren\'t like this on that day?

Why now after all this time?

Had it been done then, this outcome would never have come to pass.

What fuels her fury even more here is knowing all too well the motives behind Ferzen\'s actions.

Indeed, Lizzy could never have made such a choice.

The fact that Ferzen does not bear the consequences of this injustice is utterly intolerable.

The mere result of such venting, becoming just like him, was too repulsive.

No, beyond repulsive, it was profoundly unjust.

The perpetrator is clearly him.

Why should she, the victim, become just like him to return the pain she felt?

Why should she, the victim, bear the burden of his sins?

"Aaaaaah!"

With a desperate scream of the oppressed, Lizzy reached out both hands, struck down on Ferzen\'s head, and tore at his hair, pouring out her suppressed emotions.

While she wished for Ferzen to fully experience the frustration, despair, and pain she felt,

she wanted to do so without dirtying her hands, remaining the victim to the end.

...Is this truly a misguided wish?

No, surely it is not, for humans have created laws to punish crimes.

The maintenance of order.

The ideal a state expects from its people.

While the concept of "law" may have various perspectives, ultimately, Lizzy  thought of it as a means to eliminate the absurdity of a victim having to become a perpetrator to punish their aggressor.

But neither the laws of the living nor the order of the Underworld could dare to punish him.

In this relentless injustice that bound her to the end, all that remained for her was a twisted scale.