CHAPTER 137: CHAPTER 137 - SHARDS

Lucien found himself drifting. His mind was unfocused and his eyes flicked across the empty space as though chasing a thought just beyond reach.

A revelation teased the edge of his mind and almost within his grasp... only for it to slip away like mist.

He exhaled slowly.

The third life in the mural had just ended. His third death.

No matter how he struggled, the outcome was fixed. It felt less like a choice and more like history carved in stone, replaying itself through his eyes in merciless first-person clarity. The past or whatever it was would not bend.

A soldier. A commander. A monster.

Three lives. Three deaths.

The memories had already begun to fade at the edges... But the pain, the struggle, the weight of each life...

They lingered. They were etched into him as something more than illusion.

Those lives whispered to him as if carrying a message he had yet to decipher.

Were they fragments of history? Or warnings from a future not yet written?

He recalled the sweeping scale of battle. No, not just sweeping. World-shaking.

Humans betrayed their own kind to fight alongside monsters.

And then... The twist that he had not expected. Some monsters turned against their nature to stand with humanity.

His gaze dropped to the two slimes bouncing quietly before him.

Slimes. They were among those who had chosen to ally with humankind.

And in his third life, he had been one of them. A slime capable of taking human form.

With those unlikely allies, the losing battle had finally begun to turn. Humanity that was once cornered, started to regain its footing.

For a time, at least.

And then came another twist.

The goblins who were once counted as allies of humanity... turned traitor. They’d only been hiding in plain sight, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

That betrayal ended Lucien’s third life.

What unsettled him most was their leader. The figure’s face was disturbingly familiar. It was almost identical to the Ancient Goblin Figurine he had.

It was as though the idol had been carved from that very image.

Lucien shook his head.

The world within the murals felt different from his own. Not merely larger. It was vast beyond comparison.

Continents stretched far beyond what he knew. There were also strange landmasses scattered across seas he had never seen.

The thought triggered a memory.

Midas’s question echoed back to him. Do you think the world is small too?

"Does he know something?" Lucien muttered.

His gaze drifted once more to the two slimes before him.

He had seen their kind in that other world. They were slimes that governed life and death. Not just these two. There had been many of them.

He remembered others as well. Slimes that resembled Skittles, Oreo, Nyxis...

Each one has destructive power and far stronger than the body he had inhabited there.

They were no ordinary creatures. Why were they here, reduced to this dungeon?

What had happened to them?

What was the origin of these dungeons?

What exactly were these slimes?

And what was that other world?

Questions outnumbered answers. Each was heavier than the last.

One thing was certain. The power in that mural world pulsed with the same force as the colossal hand he’d once faced. No. Maybe even stronger.

Lucien swallowed hard.

If he could finish every story the murals held, perhaps the truth would finally reveal itself.

He let out a dry laugh. "So the fourth level is basically the floor of spoilers."

But he would see it through. He had to.

First, because answers waited there. Second, because each life gave him strength and knowledge he could carry back into this world.

The shards didn’t change who he was. His personality remained his own. The memories only sharpened when he was inside them.

But the battles. The pain. The instincts. Those stayed.

He didn’t know why. He didn’t know how. But something about this level felt deliberate. It’s like it had been created for him to witness.

Lucien shook his head.

Then the air stirred.

The three shards he had already lived through began to move. It lifted and glided into the air.

They glided toward an empty section of the space and slid neatly into place like pieces of a waiting puzzle.

A soft click echoed. Light flared. The gaps and fracture in the space was sealed again. The wall shimmered and a change occurred. A whole mural was formed from those three fragments.

Lucien’s breath caught.

’Does this mean that finishing the stories repairs this broken world?’

Another thought followed.

’If this broken place is restored, will it open the path to the fifth level... or something even greater?’

His thoughts were interrupted as the two slimes bounced before him again.

At last, he understood why they had let him kill them earlier. It had been a sacrifice. Their soul essence had fueled the murals, charging them so that his own spirit could step inside.

For the nth time, he exhaled. Not this time. He’d had enough for today.

His mind was wrung dry. It felt as if decades had passed within the shards though his link to his pets told him only moments had slipped by in reality.

He pushed himself to his feet.

He casted a final look at the many shards still floating in the air. A helpless smile touched his lips.

"It’s going to take a while to finish the 4th level," he murmured.

Then he turned and walked away.

•••

Lucien returned to his territory.

The first thing he saw was Cielius, tending carefully to a small plant. This plant grew from the Soulgrain Seed dropped from the Witherwood Tree.

"Grandpa Ciel," Lucien called, "has it shown any results yet?"

At the sound of his voice, Cielius’s face lit up.

"Grandson, its energy is nearly at its peak. But it can’t compare to the seed you planted. Yours has grown... monumental."

Lucien smiled faintly. He’d planted two Soulgrain Seeds himself and both had shot skyward as if trying to pierce the heavens. They now stood like twin world trees guarding Lootwell. They were so tall they could be seen from his other territories.

Good thing he had placed them outside the gates. On the vast stretch of land cleared after the Witherwood Trees were uprooted.

What surprised him most was the divine energy they released. The massive trees had turned the land beneath them into a sanctuary. It’s now a place where his pets loved to rest and recover.

A sudden tremor snapped him back.

The plant in Cielius’s hands began to quiver.

A sudden radiance burst forth.

Then... The plant lifted from the soil. It hovered for a heartbeat then spun gracefully around Cielius as if joyfully greeting its master.

Then the glow softened, fading into the shape of something new.

When the last spark dimmed... they finally saw it.

A staff. It was elegant and alive with nature’s design. Vines curled around its length and a luminous core shone at the tip like a captured star.

Both Lucien and Cielius froze in awe.

"The Soulgrain Seed... it grew into a staff!" Lucien breathed.

The staff drifted forward on its own and settled neatly into Cielius’s hands. The moment his fingers closed around it, a surge of mana rushed through him. His vessels swelled with power and every inch of his body thrummed as though the energy itself was refining him from within.

Cielius stilled. He closed his eyes shut, savoring the flow.

When he finally opened them, a broad grin spread across his face.

"Grandson," he said, "this is exactly what I needed. Something I can wield without worrying about my limits."

Lucien couldn’t help but smile.

The Soulgrain Seed will adapt to its planter. It can form a living tree bound to the caretaker’s will. And that means... this staff was alive. It’s an artifact that could grow alongside its master.

Lucien’s eyes gleamed. ’Definitely not an ordinary item.’

He activated INSPECT.

Worldroot Staff

Type: Living Artifact

Rarity: Epic

Description:

• When rooted to the ground while casting, the wielder can borrow a fragment of the world’s power, doubling the potency of all spells.

Lucien nearly choked. Overpowered didn’t begin to cover it. It might be ranked Epic now but he could tell that it had the potential to grow into something far greater.

He glanced at his grandfather. A wry smile tugged at his lips. ’As expected of Grandpa Cielius.’

Cielius had once revealed his greatest skill to Lucien and the memory still amazed him.

***

Skill (Active): ★★★★★

Illustration: A lone mage stands with staff in hand as the elements themselves bow before him

Name: Eternal Harmony

Description:

• Active

– Achieve perfect synchronization with nature, greatly amplifying all elemental spells while reducing mana cost.

– Allows seamless transitions between elements and the ability to merge two or more at once, creating new fusion spells.

***

This single skill made Cielius truly formidable.

When Lucien first heard of it, he couldn’t help but marvel.

’My grandpa doesn’t have cheats yet he’s still this powerful. This... this is what a true genius looks like.’

Cielius had also learned several rare attributes. He learned them readily. None of them interfered with Eternal Harmony and he relished the challenge of weaving those new elements into his magic.

Of course, Lucien had ensured that all his subjects possessed at least the core elemental attributes.

But the rarer ones... light, dark, space, time... They took time to acquire. Only those within Lootwell had gained access to them first.

Naturally, Lucien intended for his Lootwell territory to lead in everything.

A soft footstep broke the quiet.

Sebas approached with Elunara at his side.

Lucien narrowed his eyes, the corner of his mouth twitching.

’Trying to be lucky, Sebas?’

But Sebas’s expression was serious.

"Young Lord," Sebas said with a firm voice. "I think it’s time to tell you about Luke and Cienna."

He glanced toward Cielius who gave a solemn nod.

Lucien shifted his gaze to Elunara.

"Please don’t mind me, Young Lord," she said gently. "I have a revelation of my own to share... after you’ve heard theirs."