Ch-195. **Hidden Trait — The Eye of Truth**
—
The Fire Spirit King, **Agnis**.
Having been reverse-summoned back to the summit of the Spirit Tower, he did **not** respond to Issera’s resummoning.
“Agnis. Do you intend to violate the terms of the contract?”
The Water Spirit King, **Equerel**.
She smiled faintly at Agnis as she spoke.
It had been so unimaginably long since a Spirit King had contracted with someone that the mere fact of a contract was extraordinary.
Yet Agnis was refusing the summon—thus violating his obligations.
On the contrary—
“… I agreed to become a spear that pierces through everything. But since I cannot pierce through my opponent, I am not ‘a spear that pierces through everything.’ And if I am not that, then I have no reason to answer the summon.”
He flatly stated the reason for ignoring the summon.
Pure sophistry.
Equerel clicked her tongue quietly.
“So Issera didn’t please you.”
In the end, Agnis simply did not *want* to be summoned.
A Spirit King’s fickleness was nothing unusual.
The very fact that Issera had managed to contract with Agnis in the first place was a miracle.
He had used nothing less than a **Dragon God’s Wish Orb** as collateral to call him forth.
After that, Issera began using **Myrion’s Wish Orb** instead.
Perhaps that was why.
Issera never managed to wield Agnis’s power properly.
At best, only about **20%**.
It might not have pleased Agnis that his rare outing was being wasted on a half-wit who couldn’t even draw out his power.
*‘Surely that Spirit is…’*
Of course, the real reason was something else entirely.
Agnis didn’t bother answering.
Instead, he thought of what he had seen—
The **spirit shaped like a Grim Reaper**.
*That spirit, fallen from the Heavenly Realm into the Chaos Zone — it must be the one.*
The **Chaos Zone**.
Even the Spirit Kings, the masters of the Spirit Tower, could not enter that place.
But Agnis had always watched it intently.
Because he knew that a portion of the Chaos Zone was connected to **the Heavenly Realm**.
The Spirit Tower itself had once been part of the Heavenly Realm in ancient ages — so this was only natural.
But just as one disposes of garbage, the Heavenly Realm continuously dumped all manner of **contaminants** into the Chaos Zone.
Because the Heavenly Realm had to remain immaculate.
Then one day, the Heavenly Realm discarded something **for the first time** that was not waste.
A **spirit egg** that had yet to hatch.
*Spirit eggs stolen from the Heavenly Realm. They were created for one purpose alone.*
Agnis knew what that purpose was.
There was no spirit in existence that Agnis — who had lived through eternity — did not know.
Artificial spirits, manufactured in the Heavenly Realm.
Those spirits were born for a **single purpose**.
*—To revive the Celestial Emperor: spirits of the soul.*
If defined precisely, they were **‘Soul Spirits’**, a type that had never previously existed.
Created to be used as material for the resurrection of the ruler of Heaven.
And so Agnis deliberated for a long time.
He loathed the Heavenly Realm, which dumped corruption into the Spirit Tower.
Naturally, he could not help but loathe Soul Spirits originating from the Heavenly Realm.
If he encountered one, he intended to **erase it instantly**.
But he did not.
He simply watched.
For a simple reason—
*A replica that is not merely a replica. That form was clearly…*
…too close to the **original**.
—
—
*When the Blade Queen Hana obtained the Karma of a Dragon God, I saw the ‘Gate of Truth’ open with my own eyes.*
At the same time, I realized that **something within me** reacted.
Thus I had no choice but to retreat from the battlefield and leave the fight against Issera entirely to Hana.
If I waited even a moment longer, that epiphany… that “something” inside me would retreat back into hiding.
“Hmm.”
When I opened my eyes again, the war had already ended.
Countless system messages floating before me spelled out that fact beyond doubt.
But among them, one thing stood out above all—
**The reward.**
The transcendence of rewards due to overwhelming contribution!
*I transcended a total of five times.*
Over **90% contribution**.
Meaning Hana had fought Issera **alone**.
And had **won** — just as I predicted.
Thus I earned the right to enter the **Primordial Dragon God’s Treasure Vault**.
However, the reward was completely different from when I sealed the First Hell King, Ahram.
*Back then, I obtained a Platinum Box.*
The Grail I gained from that box became the foundation of Priest Andrew’s *“Infinite Indulgence Duplication.”*
I gained tremendous benefits from that.
So it would be a lie to say I wasn’t curious how valuable the rewards from the Treasure Vault would be.
But I couldn’t simply rejoice.
I looked around.
A clear change had occurred inside the Dragon Vein—
“…Hatching has stopped.”
The spawning nests no longer produced eggs.
Those already produced did not hatch.
Not a single ant-sized life remained.
Everything had stopped.
That wasn’t the only strange thing.
*The shared consciousness with Hana was severed.*
The Dragon Vein was still intact, so Hana had not died.
And yet the bond that should have connected us was cut.
Proof that something utterly unexpected had occurred.
Although she won the fight with Issera, something else had clearly entwined itself into the situation.
What in the world had happened?
*How much time has passed?*
If the war was over, a considerable amount of time must have.
But to me, it felt like an instant.
The enlightenment took only a moment — but the process of confronting that enlightenment must have taken longer than I thought.
— *I shall give you a gift.*
The “Eye” and the “Mouth” I encountered at the deepest depths said to me.
They promised to gift me something for finding them.
The gift was simple.
> **【Hidden Trait ‘Great Sage’ evolves into ‘Eye of Truth’.】**
The evolution of a Hidden Trait.
Great Sage had been elevated into **Eye of Truth**.
Then the Eye and the Mouth vanished once more.
— *See clearly. Judge wisely. For the time will come when you must choose one of the two worlds.*
Leaving only that cryptic message behind.
Whether the “two worlds” meant Pangaenia and Earth, I still did not know.
I also still didn’t know what that being really was.
But one thing was certain — it was not hostile to me.
At least, **not yet.**
Hooo…
I took a deep breath and dismissed my thoughts.
Now wasn’t the time to dwell on the past.
“…I need to go outside.”
To understand the situation, I would have to leave the Dragon Vein.
—
—
**Rampage.**
A berserk state that never stops until death.
It slowly devours the body, ending in destruction.
But Hana did **not** die.
The Karma of the Dragon God — the condition — prevented Hana from dying.
— *Kill them!*
— *Kill everything that lives!*
Before becoming a Dragon God, she was the **Queen of the Blood Demons**.
Even newly born, she was still too young.
Too inexperienced.
Naturally, she fell into chaos.
The sudden absence of the one who should have guided her.
She could no longer sense Randolph’s consciousness.
The moment she felt the absence of her god, Hana lost her way.
— *Your god abandoned you!*
— *He abandoned you and your children!*
— *Kill them!*
— *Die!*
The voice of malice echoing from the sword.
Once the rampage began, it would never stop.
Until the moment she died — it would not end.
And if she did **not** die, she would kill **everything living** forever.
*Everything must be destroyed.*
An overwhelming urge to destroy.
She could not withstand the seething rage.
Even the being who now stood before her was no exception.
“…I’m one step too late.”
**Randolph.**
Though his appearance now was pure darkness, it was undeniably him.
But even her former god could not subdue her fury.
—
—
*I admitted my mistake.*
Until now, I personally intervened to resolve every situation.
But this time, I did not.
Blinded by enlightenment, I left the war — and Hana — unattended.
I assumed that she could not lose given the conditions.
But that belief was only **half-correct**.
I forgot that the Hana who hatched from the egg was *still young*.
Perfect yet incomplete.
Disconnected from my consciousness, there was no way she wouldn’t fall into confusion.
*There is only one way to end a rampage — death.*
A condition carried by Hana as the Queen of the Blood Demons rather than as a Dragon God.
One of those conditions was the rampage state now before me.
A final desperate thrashing bestowed upon the queen who failed to protect her kin.
And only the **death of the queen** could quell that desperation.
And to kill the queen—
*Only I can face Hana.*
Hana can only take damage when **I** am struck.
Meaning I am the only one in this world who can oppose her.
Likewise, I am the only one who can kill her.
*…If I leave her as she is, Earth will be destroyed.*
Leaving things alone was not an option.
Her range of perception grew by the day.
At this rate, she would wipe out every living thing on Earth.
It was a clear mistake.
Even now, I had to correct it.
But it would not be easy.
*She devoured Issera. Along with Lucaria, whom Issera had devoured.*
Right now, Hana was **stronger than I am**.
I could not defeat her by normal means.
The two swords she held — I knew instantly what they were.
The manifested weapons of **Dragon Gods Lucaria and Issera**.
Those two swords alone possessed power beyond the Unique grade.
*Tch. And because of the ring, I can’t observe her closely.*
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
I could roughly guess the swords’ nature, but nothing more.
The **Ring of the Absolute — the Radiant Pureblood Existence** that I gave her just in case Issera used a Wish Orb — prevented me from observing Hana and the swords properly.
I steadied myself and spoke.
“Come then. Try me.”
“…”
— *Spot!*
In an instant, Hana vanished from sight.
When she reappeared, she was right before me.
So fast it was nearly impossible to perceive.
I had no time to block.
*Puuuk!*
Her sword pierced straight through my body.
“Gah—!”
Unbelievable agony.
I surrendered my body almost pathetically easily.
> **《‘Bearer of the Dark Flame’ has been attacked.》**
> **《The attack is divine-type. Cannot be ignored.》**
> **《200% additional damage received.》**
> **《Critical injury.》**
> **《Entering near-death state.》**
Strength left my body.
In the form of the **Bearer of the Dark Flame**, I was vulnerable to divine attacks.
Yet I still chose this form for **one reason only**.
“…!”
Dark blood trickled from Hana’s lips.
Not only there — the same wound appeared on her body, exactly where I had been impaled.
*As expected.*
The condition of the Dragon God, the *Follower*.
It stated that Hana could only be harmed when someone attacked **me**.
Interpreted literally, it would mean that if I died, I would never be attacked again and thus become permanently invincible — which made no sense.
Meaning: **When I take damage, Hana also takes damage.**
The key was taking a near-fatal blow **without dying instantly**.
Fortunately, the gamble succeeded.
And now both of us were in a near-death state.
> **《‘The Dreadful Omen’s Eye’ is being engraved into Hana’s body.》**
> **《In a near-death state, resistance is impossible.》**
> **《‘The Dreadful Omen’s Eye’ opens completely.》**
Haa…
I let out a breath of relief.
I had succeeded in completely subduing Hana using her near-death state.
To force the Omen’s Eye into her body, a situation like this was necessary.
“Hel.”
— *Kyakya!*
Hel opened a warp at my feet.
Instantly, Hana and I were sucked inside.
—
—
My consciousness felt like it could drift away.
Strength drained from every limb, my vision dimming.
But it was too soon to collapse.
With Hana, I stepped into the Dragon Vein.
*I managed to relocate us for now…*
The immediate danger was solved.
Neither of us could be allowed to die, and this was the optimal solution for the moment.
Inside the Dragon Vein, even if Hana expanded her perception range, she could not harm anything outside.
*But the rampage still hasn’t been lifted.*
The root cause was not solved.
Rampage stops only with death.
But that couldn’t be the only solution.
I had to find another way.
If not, one of us would have to die.
*I must remove the ring first.*
The Radiant Pureblood Existence — the ring that prevented observation.
I removed the ring from Hana’s hand first.
And then—
*…I can see.*
Hana’s condition came into perfect clarity.
The hidden trait **Eye of Truth** revealed everything, including what could never be seen before.
> **《‘Lucaria’ and ‘Issera’’s hearts are currently undergoing fusion.》**
> **《72 hours remain until complete fusion with Hana.》**
Even the delicate linking tissue between the hearts — something absolutely impossible to observe — was visible.
It was not yet fully fused.
The two hearts were pushing Hana’s rampage even further beyond its threshold.
Once the fusion completed, the situation would become irrevocably hopeless.
But if I could see the linking tissue, separation might be possible.
If I succeeded, I might find the key to ending the rampage.
The moment I reached that conclusion—
> **《Hidden Trait ‘Dexterity’ activates.》**
> **《Low chance to separate the hearts of ‘Lucaria’ and ‘Issera’.》**
> **《Warning: The longer you wait, the lower the chance of success.》**
> **《Warning: If you fail, the hearts will be destroyed.》**
Thump…! Thump…!
It felt as though the two Dragon Gods’ hearts were resting in my hands.
There was no time to hesitate.
I immediately began to separate the two hearts from Hana.
—
