What kind of monster is that?
Skull and body crushed into the ground, Scarab—the former master of the Violet Tower—muttered in disbelief, replaying the mere five seconds of the battle that had just transpired.
The moment he detected the descent of that 150-meter behemoth, he fired five illusion spells in quick succession. The first two spells, designed to induce immediate psychosis, missed entirely.
It wasn’t a matter of poor aim—how could one miss something as massive as 150 meters tall? No, the spells veered off course at near-right angles.
It was then that Scarab realized the creature possessed an innate ability to divert targeted spells away from itself. Adapting quickly, he resorted to an area-of-effect spell that couldn’t miss.
“Parasite Seed of Madness.”
The spell projected an eerie wave that twisted part of the target's psyche into living insects. These psychic parasites would consume the host’s mental faculties, multiply by laying eggs, and eventually render the victim a mindless husk. Opening the skull of the final victim would reveal a withered brain swarming with writhing translucent bugs—a gruesome and terrifying sight.
But even that spell failed. The monster had no vulnerabilities, no gaps, no psychic weaknesses—a flawless mental defense akin to smooth, impenetrable metal.
The last two spells? They were desperate attempts. Scarab summoned a massive beetle and a venomous wasp to slow the beast’s descent and attack it. These were meticulously prepared spells with near-instant cast times, barely taking a second to activate.
Woom—
But the summoned insects, half-manifested, were cleverly disrupted by the creature’s counter-magic and transformed into harmless butterflies. It was as if he had lit the fuse of a stick of dynamite, only for the explosive powder to be swapped for sugar in the blink of an eye.
Faced with its colossal size and overwhelming illusionary magic, Scarab couldn’t help but compare the monster to a dragon. No, not just any dragon—but the kind that ruled half the world.
It couldn’t be that kind of dragon, though, could it? How could such a being end up trapped here in the Erasure Domain alongside himself?
A chill ran down his spine as the monster’s sheer presence seemed to smother him.
And then, the physical force struck.
Now, Scarab lay crushed into the ground, reflecting on the events.
He hadn’t died—death wasn’t a phenomenon that could occur in the Erasure Domain .
That meant there was still a chance.
The white, gelatinous creature—its massive form now a grotesque hybrid of flesh and steel—was speaking to the pink-haired succubus. They seemed to be discussing plans to delve deeper into this domain.
It didn’t appear to realize Scarab was still alive. And why would it?
Slowly, Scarab transformed his body into a small cockroach and began scurrying toward a nearby crevice where he could hide. Safely tucked away, he could bide his time and recover his strength.
His insides growled with hunger.
The loss of information from the impact translated into a gnawing, primal hunger. Driven by his insect instincts, Scarab searched for anything he could consume. He soon found a cockroach identical to himself, frozen in place.
Strangely, the other cockroach was alive but motionless.
Good. Easier to eat that way. Scarab opened his mandibles and began devouring the other cockroach—a macabre act of cannibalism.
The taste was exquisite, and with each bite, he felt sharper, smarter. It seemed as though the missing information within him was being restored.
After sating his hunger, Scarab began to contemplate his next steps.
He would need to recover more fragments of himself, restore his body, and then...
Wait.
Something wasn’t right. Where had that other cockroach come from?
He had consumed nearly every fragment of information in this domain. No creatures, not even cockroaches, should have remained.
So, if that cockroach was here, that meant...
His thoughts froze as he turned his gaze toward the direction his body had been shattered during the impact. And there he saw it—a new cockroach emerging from the remains of his corpse.
Panic set in. His body froze, even his antennae locked in place.
And in that instant, Scarab understood.
He wasn’t whole. He was only a fraction of himself. The monster had shattered his consciousness into thousands of pieces, scattering them across the domain.
And now, piece by piece, his fragments were awakening.
To return to his original state, Scarab realized he needed not to devour his fragments, but to fuse with them. Devouring them would only destroy the possibility of reintegration.
But his body refused to move.
Rustle, rustle.
Another newly-born cockroach scuttled toward the same crevice.
It found the frozen Scarab and, driven by its own hunger, began to move its mandibles.
Crunch. Crunch.
It was eating him.
Scarab screamed silently within his mind.
No, this couldn’t be happening! This wasn’t how he was supposed to end! He wasn’t meant to devour himself. He needed to merge, not consume!
I am you! he wanted to yell. You’re me! Think, you fool! Why would a cockroach suddenly appear here? This isn’t how it ends—this can’t be how I...!
Crunch.
And so, the 334th fragment of Scarab met its end.
Yuri asked,
"Are you sure you don't need to finish him off? A former Violet Tower Master like him might have prepared some method to resurrect himself even in that state."
"Don’t worry," I replied, "I’ve already looped his death. He’ll just keep killing himself."
Yuri folded her arms, nodding thoughtfully.
"That battle ended rather anticlimactically."
"What did you expect? He was an illusion mage. How was he supposed to defend against a 150-meter body slam? He’d need a golden-tier mage’s skillset or illusions better than mine to survive that."
The battle could be summed up simply: I exploited the matchup.
High resistance to illusion magic, overwhelming physical power, and the cold precision of the machine algorithms I’d absorbed from the giant robot made me a living nightmare for any illusionist.
Right now, I was like some overpowered janitor—a "0.3-tier cleanup golem," if you will. Let the likes of Dark Yuna or anyone else come for me; Armored Colossus Mima will take them all on.
Now that the obstacle had been cleared, only the exploration remained. With Yuri perched atop my head, I descended deeper into the Erasure Domain . The deeper we went, the darker it grew. The air became dense and oppressive, like the crushing depths of the ocean.
And then, at a certain point, it was as dark as space itself.
Yuri spoke.
"This place... there’s nothing here. I don’t see any physical structures at all."
"No, there’s plenty here," I said. "I can see it—layers upon layers of haunting, melancholic memory fragments. Let me make it easier for you to see."
I waved a clawed hand, and the memory fragments glimmered like crimson stars scattered across a cosmic void. A glowing red galaxy drifted lazily within the darkness.
I slowly sank downward, skimming through the fragments of Erasure Domain . Echoes of the past began to unravel before me.
Voices floated from what seemed like another time. The shattered remnants of Scarab and the Lamb’s voice spoke.
"To turn a person into a ‘door’ or a ‘mirror,’ they must be pure. A blank slate with no will of their own—mindless and empty. If a mirror possesses self-awareness, it will reflect only what it wants to see."
"And once a shard of the dark god is reflected, you’ll summon the deity of the Violet Tower. Brilliant as always, Master."
"And so, ‘Goat,’ my disciple, devise a way to break the minds of those children. They must live without truly being alive."
They subjected their test subjects to relentless ordeals—forcing them to distrust one another, to endure extreme emotional highs and lows, to taste every flavor of suffering.
The goal was to reduce them to ashes—stripped of every emotion, unflinching in the face of any agony, pushed into a state of enforced apathy.
"This week’s food ration is a single slice of bread. If you cannot bear the hunger, you’ll have to cut the flesh from another’s thigh. Here, take these knives. The cage is open."
"Wait—please don’t fight. I’ll share my bread! We can’t hurt each other. We shouldn’t hurt each other."
A girl with violet eyes, trembling yet resolute, offered her bread.
"If only you hadn’t used the ‘Golden Key,’ none of this would have happened! You’ve been skating by, doing nothing while pretending to be a saint!"
"I didn’t use it! Believe me! Even if I did—don’t fall for their tricks. We just need to hold out a little longer... just a little longer!"
"Yurensto, your will is admirable. But surely you’re exhausted. The others see you as a traitor—a nuisance. Isn’t it time to give up? If you stay silent, I’ll ensure you’re treated better."
"Never! I... I’ll stay human. We’ll all stay human!"
"You’re slowing down the experiments. These children weren’t supposed to endure this much. Very well. If you insist on being stubborn, let’s see if you can bear the collective suffering of everyone here."
"Aahhh—no... no...!!"
Despite everything, she resisted.
"Mima, you might want to ease up. You’re clawing your own arm," Yuri warned, her voice calm but firm.
I hadn’t even noticed. My claws had unconsciously dug into my thick, gelatinous hide.
How did someone so small find the strength to endure all that?
And why?
I understood Yuna’s nature well—her love for romance stories, her joy in witnessing others’ happiness. But was she the type to lay down her life for some abstract ideal? No.
I thought back to Dark Yuna’s chilling proclamation: "Because I love, I must destroy." Her extreme aggression was born from a desire to protect Yuna at all costs.
So, how must Dark Yuna have perceived Yuna’s innate goodness?
She might have seen it as toxic data —self-destructive altruism.
Why choose a path of goodness that no one acknowledges? Why walk a road of hardship with no reward at the end? It was all so futile.
Especially in the tortured, oppressive space of the old Violet Tower. Resistance only magnified the pain.
Perhaps... that’s why the first thing she erased with Subtraction was Yuna’s kindness.
"Mima, look down there," Yuri said.
At the very bottom of the Erasure Domain , amid its deepest darkness, shone a single, luminous star.
I could feel it—a pulsating, radiant sense of goodness emanating from that light.
That’s it.
That’s the star Yuna once carried in her heart.
I hesitated, my claws hovering over the shining fragment. Yuri, ever my devil’s advocate, asked the question on my behalf.
"Should you return it to her?"
"It’s hers to begin with."
"It’s something she’s already lost. So much time has passed. Would it even matter if you gave it back?"
"Whether it matters or not isn’t for me to decide."
"It might bring her pain. The world is harsh—cruel people thrive, while good people suffer. Do you wish to burden her °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° with more suffering?"
"No."
Gently, I cradled the star in my massive claws, wrapping it layer upon layer of protection, cushioning it as if it were the most fragile glass.
Yuri’s questioning had helped me make up my mind.
"I want to give her even greater joy."
"Joy?" Yuri asked, her voice filled with curiosity.
**"It’s about reaching the peak. In any story, there are four possibilities:
Commit evil and meet a tragic end. Commit evil and find happiness—hollow, meaningless. Do good but suffer—a painful tragedy. Do good and achieve happiness—the best possible outcome."**"Yuna only has to do good. I’ll ensure she gets her happy ending. Together, we’ll create the best outcome possible. Don’t you agree?"
"Absolutely. And I trust you’ll do the same for me, won’t you, Mima?"
"You bet. Whatever you want, I’ll make it happen. Now, let’s climb. I need to bring this star to the top of the tower and return it to her."
I would tell her then, that her resistance in the prison wasn’t meaningless. That every act of defiance had mattered.
And that she had never been alone.
Kiieeeeeng──!!
The crimson orb pulsated, ready to explode. The magic of "The Crimson Moon’s Final Act"
had reached its completion, and now, all that remained was for its overwhelming power to be unleashed.Mirror Yuna adjusted the brim of her conical hat and spoke.
"Why not give up already? Yuna needs to return to Yuna’s side. I’d rather not fire this spell—it's exhausting, you know? Resistance is meaningless."
"Shut up!" Aisha snapped.
"What are you even fighting for, fragmented wyrm? Your master is dead. You’re free now. You could just run away."
"You don’t get it. That crazy magician—he always comes back."
Aisha wiped the blood off her lips with her battered arm. She believed it. Even if he had been hit by Subtraction —even if he truly had died and vanished forever—
"The things he gave me won’t just disappear."
If you remember someone, they aren’t truly gone. She still remembered the time they spent together, the new path he’d offered her. She was already living a borrowed life anyway—a fragment fallen from a malevolent dragon.
Even so, he had given her a new name and a new life. And, against all odds, it wasn’t so bad. If she exaggerated a little, she might even call it fun.
So, she thought, she’d at least fight enough to repay him for the time they had shared.
Mirror Yuna tilted her head.
"All he gave you was harassment, wasn’t it?"
Aisha bared her fangs in a grin, laughing loudly.
"It’s not harassment. It’s father-daughter bonding, you idiot."
"...With sorrow and lamentation, the moon is filled. Now, let the night sky weep for me. ‘The Crimson Moon’s Final Act: Descent.’ "
Swooooosh──
Waves of crimson light radiated outward. Though the area was eerily silent, the magical energy surged like a tsunami. A fatal blow was imminent. Aisha could feel death creeping closer.
And then.
Twitch.
The severed tentacle she had tucked away twitched in her arms. Aisha’s face lit up with a glimmer of hope.
"Geez, you’ve got impeccable timing...!"
But what now? Was he trying to come out of there? Did he need her to stall for more time? Or was he asking for some other help?
Twitch. Twitch.
"Throw it? You want me to throw it...?! But if it gets hit by Subtraction , you’re going to die for real! Oh, for crying out loud—I’m done worrying about this!"
Boom.
She planted her left foot deep into the ground.
With a sharp arc that traveled from her waist to her shoulder, elbow, and finally her fingertips, she launched the severed tentacle with explosive force, a burst of draconic scales igniting as it left her hand.
Whoooosh──!
The fragment of Mima soared through the night sky, arcing upward. And then—
Shwaaaaash──!!
A massive hand erupted from that single point.
"...Wha—?"
Mirror Yuna’s expression blanked in shock as she looked up at the shadow looming over her. That was a hand. The right arm of the Colossus she had erased with Subtraction had reappeared from thin air.
Sensing what was about to happen, Mirror Yuna crouched down, clutching her conical hat tightly with both hands, eyes shut in reflexive resignation.
The Colossus ’s arm swung downward, slamming into her.
Wham──!!
"Urgh...!"
BOOOOM, CRASH──!!
Mirror Yuna was sent hurtling through the air, carving a path of destruction through the forest as she crashed into the ground.
A deep, resonant voice echoed across the night sky.
"Aisha, my daughter, sorry for the wait."
"And well done, my daughter. Your stepmother approves and awards you a gold star."
Thud──!
Descending from the sky was the towering, armor-clad form of the Armored Colossus . Perched atop its massive frame was none other than its pilot, Yuri Lanster.
"...You’re late! Can’t you ever show up on time?!"
Aisha shouted, her voice sharp, but her lips curled upward in spite of herself.