It was like an earthquake powerful enough to shake the world.
Kwa-kwaang! Kwa-kwaang! Kwa-kwaang!
From outside, the roaring booms echoed without rest, blending with the tremors.
To hear them even deep within the underground Bunker—it was clear how deafening the noise was.
Evan crashed into the ceiling, slammed onto the floor, and rolled around helplessly.
“Damn it! What the hell is happening all of a sudden?”
Thinking quickly, Evan formed Sword Qi and stabbed his sword straight into the ground.
Thunk!
The sword dug deep into the floor.
Evan gripped the sword’s hilt tightly with both hands.
Looking around, he could see just how violently everything was shaking—even with the naked eye.
‘Is this why the buildings were constructed like this? There was a real reason for the double and triple protective barriers.’
Only now did he truly understand the unique architecture and sturdy facilities of this village.
Without such precautions, survival would have been impossible.
‘This really is the end of the world. Did they believe there wouldn’t be any survivors left?’
Evan remembered his first encounter with Marlak.
The words Marlak had spoken hadn’t just been idle talk.
It was remarkable just to have survived in a world plagued by one catastrophe after another.
The tremors gradually subsided, and the thunderous noise from outside grew faint.
It seemed like stability was finally returning.
“……Is it finally over?”
But just as Evan felt a wave of relief—
-The World Managers are initiating world adjustments.
-The World Construction System has rejected this action.
-The world adjustment phase has been downgraded to danger level 32%.
A new adjustment message appeared, and Evan’s face twisted in frustration.
Then came a fresh wail, like a scream, and an explosive roar.
Goooooooo—!
The atmosphere itself trembled as the ground began to shake once more.
Evan clutched his head and struggled to his feet.
‘Now it’s really over. Damn bastards.’
A world that had seemed ready to end finally calmed down after several hours had passed.
Evan looked around. The underground Bunker was a complete mess.
He could feel every aftershock of the disaster.
No, rather, it was remarkable that things had ended with only this much damage after all they had endured.
As Evan stood up, he saw that Alan and Reynold had passed out.
‘They managed to hold out somehow…’
Now, he understood why they’d been trembling so much, why they looked so haggard and full of despair.
Anyone would, if they had to live in such hopeless terror every day.
‘World Managers. Who on earth are they, to be able to change the world like this?’
Evan felt threatened by their very existence.
Whether this place was inside the Memory of Ellecell, or a ruined world—it didn’t change that it was all one and the same world.
Even if it was said that World Managers couldn’t be found in this era, as long as they hadn’t vanished completely, it meant they were still somewhere in the world.
‘I need information on them.’
He wanted to ask Alan and Reynold, but they weren’t original residents of this place.
There would inevitably be a gap in information.
‘Come to think of it, the people of this village aren’t really existing humans either.’
They were humans made up of the Memory of Ellecell.
Meaning, they themselves were memories.
‘I need to extract as much information from those memories as I can.’
As Evan moved to take a step, suddenly, Elisa—who should be upstairs—came to mind.
She hadn’t come down in the midst of all this chaos.
“Damn…”
Evan hurriedly ran up from the Bunker and began searching for Elisa.
He scanned the area, checking for any sign of her wellbeing, when he heard a voice, barely hanging onto life, from somewhere nearby.
Near the window, he found Elisa collapsed.
A protective barrier was activated around where she lay.
“My Lady!”
Evan rushed to where she had fallen.
Carefully, he lifted her into his arms and checked her condition.
Thankfully, as she had used the barrier, there were no major injuries.
It looked like she was suffering from exhaustion due to excessive Mana use.
“First, to somewhere safe.”
In Evan’s embrace, Elisa struggled to open her mouth.
“Evan…”
“Why didn’t you come down? What if something had happened to you? I’ll move you to a safe place. Please focus on recovering your Mana.”
When Evan looked at her with worried eyes, Elisa was caught off guard.
This was the first time someone other than her family had worried about her.
Feeling a strange mix of emotions, Elisa stared deeply into Evan’s eyes and apologized.
“……I’m sorry.”
“It’s a relief that you’re unharmed. I’ll stay by your side until your Mana recovers.”
“……Yes.”
Evan headed straight back toward the underground Bunker.
Even though the adjustment seemed to be over, there was no telling when another might erupt.
During that brief moment of moving to the Bunker, silence hung between them.
But only for a moment.
“Evan.”
Elisa broke the silence first.
“While I was observing from upstairs, I discovered a few things.”
Evan nodded lightly, listening intently to what she had to say.
Elisa continued,
“The strange forces causing these phenomena outside—they’re nearly identical to what was found at the Ancient Ruins. They feel just like the traps that activate there. And that peculiar, unnatural Mana flow. These things are familiar to me.”
Elisa locked eyes with Evan as she went on.
“You mentioned before, didn’t you? That this place is another world. I’m certain of it now, too. And this is just my guess, but I think we’ve entered a world created by magic left behind by the owner of the mansion.”
Evan already knew as much.
Still, it amazed him that she, a regular person without a system, had deduced this much.
But her next words were new even to Evan.
“This world probably wasn’t this large to begin with. No, to be precise, it’s more accurate to say it was ‘stopped.'”
Evan tilted his head, puzzled.
“‘Stopped?’ But nothing seemed amiss when we entered, did it?”
Elisa shook her head.
“There were two people who entered before us, right?”
After a moment’s thought, Evan quickly recalled the two.
“Alan and Reynold…”
Elisa nodded at his answer.
“They entered first, and provided the energy that could move the traps—or, rather, to build the world itself.”
Evan added,
“So, the traps had already been activated when we entered.”
“Yes. And in most cases, these sorts of traps are based on personal experience. The method that can corner someone the most is usually the most horrific thing they themselves have been through.”
“Then, this world must be the most hated memory the owner of the mansion ever experienced.”
Evan gleaned an important clue from Elisa’s information.
‘This world is probably Ellecell’s past. The worst memory he ever had. That would be the record of the Last World.’
It seemed this world was constructed based on those contents.
Elisa continued, following Evan’s response.
“Yes. Obviously, the situations in which someone was driven to the limit would corner others just as much. The reason I was able to realize this is because so many traps in Ancient Ruins are similar. They create their own world, trap people inside, and drain all their vitality and energy to power the traps. A truly terrifying device.”
“Then, this world is still…”
“Yes. It’s continuing to expand by absorbing our vitality and Mana. Marlak might refer to it as a continent, but I suspect the space itself has only barely extended beyond the village. Of course, with time, it’ll get even wider, but we need to escape before then.”
Elisa wore an anxious expression.
“If we stay here, we’ll be swallowed up by the trap. Then we’ll end up living here, convinced we’re residents of this world.”
By the time they arrived back at the underground Bunker, Elisa glanced over at the unconscious Alan and Reynold.
Evan carefully laid Elisa down on a bed and replied,
“It’s a race against time. Either the world swallows us, or we escape.”
“As soon as I recover, I’ll start investigating. I might be able to find an exit.”
“Are you serious?”
Elisa answered with a look of conviction.
“I know these sorts of traps well, from all my experiences with Father. There’s always a key point somewhere. I’m sure of it.”
“Understood. Then I’ll leave it to you.”
Evan turned to look at Alan and Reynold, who lay collapsed.
“In the meantime, I’ll collect information here and figure out how to get those two out.”
Hearing this, Elisa managed a bitter smile and nodded.
“That won’t be easy.”
Currently, Evan was following Alan and Reynold on their way to Marlak’s place.
Elisa had decided to go outside the village to investigate, so they would be acting separately for the time being.
‘More importantly, how am I supposed to get these guys to come with me?’
Evan was troubled.
The more he talked to them, the more he realized—they were practically strangers, with nothing in common.
To bring them along, he’d have to find some reason or way to convince them.
But it was as if they’d been brainwashed; the idea of leaving the village simply didn’t occur to them.
“Alan, Reynold. Are you really just going to stay here?”
Evan asked repeatedly.
“Are you crazy? If you leave the village, you’ll die. And an exit—if such a thing existed, wouldn’t that be nice?”
Alan scoffed, unable to believe Evan’s words.
Reynold just kept silent, refusing to listen.
Even when Evan explained the truth about the world and their current situation, they looked at him like he was mad.
Evan let out a long sigh and shook his head.
It seemed he’d have to keep watching for a chance while sticking close to them.
“That’s the Village Chief’s House. You’ve brought us far enough, right? Stop following us now.”
Alan waved his arms irritably and turned away.
Watching Alan’s retreating back, Evan clicked his tongue and knocked on Marlak’s door.
Knock knock.
He felt someone inside, and soon the door swung open wide.
“Evan? What brings you here…?”
Marlak looked at Evan in confusion, then seemed to recall something and clapped his hands.
“Ah! I still haven’t properly arranged your accommodations, have I? There were three sudden adjustments yesterday, and I lost track of things.”
“Yes. Fortunately, I took shelter at Alan and Reynold’s place for the time being.”
“Haha, you’ve gotten friendly already? Those two are important workers for the village. Come in, come in. I wanted to hear about the North from you anyway.”
“That works well, actually. I came because I have a few things to ask myself.”
Guided by Marlak, Evan entered the house.
Inside was a sparse space, similar to Alan and Reynold’s lodgings.
Due to the nature of this world, there weren’t many belongings—just a few simple pieces of furniture.
Marlak pointed to a spot with a wooden table and chairs.
“Well, it’s been a long time since we had a rare guest from afar. I must offer you some precious tea.”
With a hearty laugh, Marlak went off to the kitchen.
Evan sat on a chair, looking carefully around the house.
He was searching for anything that could serve as a hidden clue or hint.
“Heh heh, what are you so curious about? There’s not much to see here—just an empty house.”
Soon, Marlak returned with the tea and sat down.
“No, it’s just that this place is so different from the North, it piqued my curiosity.”
“Is that so? Well, I suppose it is different. Here, have some. These are rare tea leaves—one of the few left in the world.”
Marlak took his cup first and sipped.
“Just a year ago, we could drink tea in peace. How did things end up like this, I wonder. Tsk.”
Hearing Marlak’s words, Evan remembered part of the record of the Last World he’d seen in the mansion.
‘Rapid changes every year. As the world is adjusted for the worse, even survival becomes more and more difficult.’
After another sip, Marlak spoke.
“So, what do you want to ask? I’d like to hear your questions first.”
Evan considered several possibilities, but decided to go straight to the point.
“I’m looking for someone. Do you know of a person named Ellecell?”
Originally, he’d planned to gather other information first, but suddenly the owner of this memory world came to mind.
If Ellecell—if this world was his memory, then surely the person himself would be somewhere within it.