Time passed once again. Thanks to the blessing of the dragon, Genos had been a great power since its founding. Sigmund always lent his strength whenever humans called upon him.
However, at some point, he realized that it shouldn’t continue. The artificial intervention of a transcendent being was creating fissures in the world of humans.
This was the birth of darkness.
Beasts that emerged from the darkness began attacking the people of Genos. The very act meant to help humans ended up harming them instead. In shock and grief, Sigmund ultimately made a decision.
He decided never to interfere with the human world again. He chose to believe in the strength of humans to overcome adversity.
It was the best way to protect them.
Unfortunately, the darkness that had already been born wreaked havoc. It distorted fate, harmed countless people, and ultimately created the infamous villain, Josephina.
Sigmund, breaking his long-held resolve, turned back time. To correct the twisted fate, he risked everything and leapt into the vortex of destiny. He could face his annihilation because he trusted humans.
And finally.
The twisted fate was restored. It was the dawn of a new era.
* * *
“Lord Sigmund! How long are you going to keep walking? When will you finally open the door to the world of the transcendent beings?”
At the sound of Heinz shouting behind him, Sigmund frowned deeply.
“I told you to wait!”
“Ugh! We just crossed the border of the Magic Empire. It’s been exactly one month since we left the Tower of Magic! A whole month of walking without rest. You kept talking as if you’d open the door to the transcendent world any moment, ugh!”
Heinz clutched his head in frustration. Sigmund snapped.
“How many times do I have to tell you that if I open the door now, you’ll die! The moment I open it, a worthless human like you will be crushed under the power of the transcendent! Don’t you know what happens when a freshwater fish enters the ocean? All the water in its body is sucked out, and it shrivels up and dies!”
“So, how do you know if I’ll die or not? Just open the door already. I’ll go inside. If I feel like I’m going to burst, I’ll come right back out!”
“I told you, that’s not how it works!”
“Since when is anything impossible? If you try, you can do it!”
“I must have been a fool to take on an idiot like you as my contractor…”
“What? Idiot? Did you just call me an idiot? There’s no one better than me! If there’s someone better, let them come out right now!”
Heinz threw himself onto the dirt and began throwing a tantrum. Sigmund shook his head and resumed walking. It didn’t matter; that fuss would end soon enough. He was planning to open the entrance shortly anyway. He just hadn’t told Heinz yet, knowing full well the chaos that would ensue if he did.
That’s when it happened.
A strange sensation made Sigmund pause. With a wave of his hand, a floating screen appeared in midair. A man and woman, both unfamiliar, were on it. The young woman was smiling as she held her stomach. The man, embracing her, was smiling happily as well. Sigmund’s eyes narrowed.
“I’ve waited so long for this day. Perhaps the goddess has heard our prayers.”
“I think you’re right. Didn’t the high priest say he had a dream? By the way, how about we start thinking of a name for the baby? After all, this child is a gift from the goddess…”
Listening to the couple’s conversation, Sigmund’s expression brightened.
“Dinute has finally found the answer.”
“The answer? What answer?”
Heinz, having quickly given up on causing a scene after being ignored, now peeked curiously at the screen from Sigmund’s side.
“Who are they?”
“They’re going to be the parents of Lehir.”
“Huh? Lehir? Didn’t we leave him with Callisto a month ago?”
“Not the one born from darkness—the real Lehir.”
The real son of Josephina, Lehir.
For the past ten years, Dinute had cared for that poor soul. After his soul was healed, she promised to choose the most virtuous and upright people to be his parents. It seemed Dinute had finally found the answer she’d been searching for.
‘If they were chosen by Dinute, they must be trustworthy.’
Lehir, or rather, the child who would soon be given a new name, was destined to live a life entirely different from before.
He would grow up surrounded by the love of his parents and the favor of the goddess.
‘Perhaps he might even cross paths with Leticia someday.’
A gentle smile appeared on Sigmund’s lips as he indulged in the pleasant thought. For a brief moment, he felt the urge to partake in that sweet future, but he was content with the way things were.
‘I’ve already vowed not to interfere in the world as a transcendent anymore.’
Because he believed it was the true way to support humanity. However, one thought still weighed on his mind…
“Callisto, what to do with that fool.”
Not too long ago, Callisto had finally and completely rejected Greta. Despite Sigmund’s repeated advice about how unrequited love wasn’t worth it, Callisto remained stubborn.
“Who will talk sense into that obstinate brat after I leave the human world?”
Just then, Heinz butted in.
“How about you take care of your own issues first?”
“What?”
“Stop worrying about that kid and worry about yourself, Lord Sig. How can you worry about others when you can’t even sort out your own affairs?”
“What nonsense are you spouting now?”
“For a transcendent being, you still can’t forget your first love. Any other transcendent would have changed partners ten times by now. If it were me, I would’ve switched twenty times… Ah! Why are you pulling my ear!”
“I’m opening the gate to the transcendent world right now. I’ll have to see your overconfident self burst wide open.”
Heinz, even with his ear being pulled, cheered at Sigmund’s scolding.
“Oh! You’ve made the right decision. Open it now! Burst me open already!”
“The moment you cross the threshold, vanish from my sight. The contract is over, and I don’t want to hear from you again, not for the rest of your life!”
“Look who’s talking! Wait, wait! Why are you stopping midway? Aren’t you going to open the gate? Open it! Open it already!”
“Why should I open the gate just to satisfy you?”
“Because I want to burst!”
* * *
As Heinz had pointed out, Sigmund still loved Romiya.
However, the nature of that love had certainly changed.
Right after her death, every breath was filled with agony and grief. Every time he opened his eyes to a world without her, it felt as if his entire body was shattering.
As time passed, that intense emotion began to fade.
What once felt like a thorny flower lodged in his chest had now turned into something like a nail quietly embedded in a stone.
No longer did it bleed.
But it would remain with him forever.
At one point, the idea of his feelings lightening had been unbearable. Even if it meant pain, he didn’t want to lose a single piece of her.
Yet, over time, he came to see it differently.
It was a relief.
That feverish longing could not have been sustained for long. If he had continued to burn with such emotions, he would have destroyed himself as well.
Perhaps he would have lost his reason and gone on a rampage. The worst possible outcome, leading him down the path of annihilation.
To preserve his heart over the long years, this was better.
Yet, from time to time, he still wondered.
What if, back then, he had broken the taboo and extended Romiya’s life? How different would things have been?
‘Even if I had gained the stigma of falling to mortality for a worthless human, at least I would have been happy for a few decades.’
…We could have died together. Sigmund chuckled to himself.
‘If that had happened, Genos would have fallen into chaos.’
And not just Genos. The lives of those he cherished, like Leticia, Dietrian, and Julios, would have also descended into ruin.
Except for that one lingering regret, everything had reached a fairly satisfying conclusion for everyone.
‘It must be the same for Romiya too.’
She had passed away confident that Sigmund would forget her and find another lover.
Surely, she would have been content with that.
At least, that’s what he chose to believe.
* * *
“Lord Sigmund! O great dragon! I will become your eternal servant! Please, let me!”
“Eternal servant… Don’t even utter such horrifying words. The moment we enter the world of the transcendent, stay away from me.”
“That’s impossible! I will cling to you like a loyal parasite, faithfully stuck by your side forever!”
At last, the day had come to open the entrance to the world of the transcendent.
For an entire week, Heinz had been screaming about wanting to explode, but as soon as Sigmund announced that he would open the gate, Heinz changed his tune and began praising Sigmund.
What was even more irritating was that Heinz’s ridiculous words were all genuine.
‘He’s a creature driven purely by instinct.’
Why did he ever take someone like Heinz as his contractor? There was a reason, but Sigmund refused to admit it even to himself.
‘Thinking of Romiya… I must have been insane.’
He had been reminded of Romiya, who had once begged him to become her guide, willing to do anything just to learn of the great world… and in a moment of impulse, he made the contract. Two hundred years of chaos followed.
“Do not even think about clinging to me. I’m going straight to my lair. You won’t be able to take a single step in.”
“What? You’re going back to your lair? After all this time? Why?”
“What business of mine is it what you think? Isn’t our contract over once we arrive at the transcendent world?”
“Well, that’s true, but I won’t have anything to do there! Until I find a purpose, I was planning on sticking with you!”
“If you spout such nonsense again, I won’t open the gate. No matter how much you scream, I won’t open it before the end of this year.”
At that, Heinz clammed up, his lips sealed like a shell.
Finally, feeling some peace, Sigmund began to construct a barrier.
Normally, a barrier wouldn’t be necessary, but he needed one to prevent Heinz from being swept up in the intense aura of the transcendent beings and exploding.
‘I’ll need to tidy up the lair once I return. This might be my last sleep.’
As he formed the barrier, Sigmund reviewed his plans. Truthfully, there wasn’t much of a plan. His first priority was sleep.
He had lived an excessively busy life in the human world. While humans were endearing, not even their love could overshadow the longing he felt for Romiya. No matter how transcendent Sigmund was, fatigue had piled up.
It was likely to be an exceptionally long sleep. Transcendent beings only awakened when they willed it, after all.
‘Maybe I won’t wake up at all.’
Many transcendent beings met such a fate—gradually fading into oblivion as they slept peacefully.
To Sigmund, it seemed like a rather fitting end.
“Are you really going?”
Sigmund paused mid-barrier. Right before him stood a little girl, no older than five, staring up at him.
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