CHAPTER 38: CHAPTER 38 : LEAVING THE PORTAL

"Now, let us perform the soul oath. Repeat after me:

’I, Sana, immortal of the Celestial Realm, bind my fate to that of Deon. May our souls remain linked until the end of cycles.’"

The dark silhouette spoke these words in a resonant voice. Each syllable vibrated through the air, filled with ancient power.

Deon hesitated for a moment before repeating the same phrase. The instant he finished, two lights—one golden, the other crimson—burst from their bodies and intertwined.

An intense heat flooded through Deon. He felt his consciousness shake, his mind twisting under pressure. Blurry images from another time invaded his thoughts: endless landscapes, celestial battles, and creatures that even gods would fear.

"Argh! What is this!?" he screamed, clutching his head.

"Endure it! The soul link can only be broken by death. If you fail, we’ll both disappear!" shouted Sana, her voice echoing directly in his mind.

Deon’s body floated a few centimeters above the ground, surrounded by glowing symbols. Sana, on the other hand, seemed to be slowly dissolving.

"I’m transferring my soul..." she whispered, exhausted.

A black mist escaped from her silhouette and entered Deon’s forehead. His entire body convulsed from the pain. His veins turned silver, and his eyes glowed with an otherworldly light.

Ding!

[Anomaly detected — unknown interference.]

[ ??? is watching you ]

For the first time, the system displayed a notification Deon had never seen before.

"Someone’s watching? Anomalies?"

"No... no! Someone’s interfering with the process!" Sana exclaimed in panic.

A sinister, heavy laugh echoed through the hall.

"Ahahaha... How ironic. You, Sana—the arrogant immortal—reduced to begging a mortal."

Sana’s face went pale. That voice... she knew it too well. The Celestial Demon.

"This can’t be... How did you follow me here?!"

"Follow you? Don’t flatter yourself. Why would I bother coming to you? If I came in person, do you think—ah, forget it. I’m just here to make sure you don’t escape, as he wishes."

A crack split open in the air. From that rift emerged a small creature, child-sized and covered in black scales. The energy it emitted made the entire mausoleum tremble.

Deon felt a terrifying presence invading his mind.

"Step back!" shouted Sana. "Don’t let that thing into your mental realm!"

"Tell me how to stop it!" Deon cried through gritted teeth.

"Focus on your consciousness. Visualize your inner world and forcefully eject it!"

But it was too late—the creature had already infiltrated his mental world.

Following her instructions, Deon closed his eyes. Everything turned black. Then, slowly, a glowing expanse appeared: an empty world—his mental realm.

A monstrous figure stood there, laughing in the shadows.

"Hehe... such a young soul. You’ll make a fine meal."

"Not happening."

A surge of energy burst from Deon’s body. Golden chains materialized around the creature, restraining it for a moment. But soon, the creature vanished—it had withdrawn as suddenly as it appeared.

"Damn it, it got us. It wasn’t here to fight... you’ve been marked," said Sana, appearing beside him in spirit form, her body now half transparent.

"Even if I escape this place, it seems they’ll keep chasing me..."

"Sana, I don’t understand everything yet, but you can explain once we’re out of here!"

Deon clenched his fists and took a deep breath. He had just stepped into something far bigger than himself.

A violet gleam flickered in Deon’s eyes.

In a barely audible whisper, a feminine voice echoed:

"We are bound now."

After the oath was sealed and their souls united, Sana began to fade, bit by bit, until she vanished completely.

Moments after her disappearance, the crystal in Deon’s hand shattered. Soon after, the Return Stone appeared.

Ding!

[You have defeated a mystical immortal.]

[You gain 100,000 experience points.]

[Error 404]

[ ??? is watching you ]

[Your experience points have been deleted.]

[You gain 3,000 stat points.]

"100,000 experience points deleted?" Deon was stunned. 100,000 experience points was enormous—it showed just how powerful Sana had been. She must have been Rank A... or even S.

Technically, he hadn’t killed her. It was more of a self-destruction. It would’ve been wrong to get credit for something he hadn’t done.

He had only just reached Rank D. Leveling up without solid foundations would be counterproductive. Strength wasn’t just about numbers.

But another thought nagged at him. If he killed a human, would he also gain experience? And could gods interfere with the system? Who—or what—was the being that was watching him?

For the past four years, Deon had dedicated himself to training and learning about this world. Sure, he could have spoken to his parents about it, but his reserved nature made it difficult. Yet now, he had too many questions he wanted to ask his father. Despite all the books he had read, his knowledge of this world was still limited—and that had to change. Knowledge was a weapon.

"Why is this world so complex?"

The way events were unfolding was beyond him. If he had once doubted Sana, now he was almost convinced her story was true. He realized that if she had truly wanted to fight them, they would all be dead.

Not long after the system displayed the notification of Sana’s death, the tremors ceased, though the mausoleum continued to collapse.

...

Outside, Alexia, Amelia, and Theo were struggling to find an exit. Debris fell from the ceiling, and a loud crash echoed with every collapse.

"Damn it! We have to get out of here!" shouted Theo, while Amelia used an artifact to create a magical barrier to block the falling stones.

Breathing heavily, Alexia gripped her sword. She had the strange feeling that Deon was still there, somewhere within that storm of dust and unstable mana.

"Hold on, Deon..." she whispered, eyes narrowing.

Even though she was worried about him, her own situation was dire.

Alexia couldn’t see any way out. She was desperate. And what hurt even more was that she didn’t know whether Deon was alive or dead.

She didn’t want to die. Lowering her eyes to the silver necklace around her neck, she wondered if she should abandon her companions and flee alone.

No—she couldn’t. She was lost. Amelia and Theo already seemed to have given up when a familiar voice suddenly echoed through the chamber.

"Alexia, need a hand?"

"Yes!" she answered without hesitation, a smile forming on her face.

As she nodded, Deon pulled out the Return Stone and activated it. In an instant, they were all hurled out of the portal.

...

Back outside, everyone wore calm expressions. No smiles—except for Deon’s.

Even though he had brushed with death, the rewards had been well worth it.

"Alexia, what the hell kind of portal was that?"

"An irregular one," she murmured. "We were lucky to make it out alive, otherwise..."

"If we’d died, I swear my ghost would’ve haunted yours forever!" said Amelia, reaching out to pinch Alexia’s nose, who quickly dodged.

As they recovered from the ordeal, Theo turned to Deon.

"How did you defeat the final boss?"

Everyone wondered the same thing, but Theo was the one to ask aloud.

"I didn’t kill her. Let’s just say she self-destructed to escape the portal herself," Deon replied calmly. "Even I don’t understand all the details yet."

"Hmm, I see..." Theo muttered before asking to leave.

Though he didn’t mention it, both he and Amelia had obtained an artifact after identifying the shadow. His only thought now was to return home and test it.

"That mausoleum was dangerous... but not useless," Deon added thoughtfully.

Having lived peacefully in the village for so long, he had almost forgotten how cruel the outside world could be.

"Can’t wait for the coming-of-age ceremony," he sighed.

Amelia, almost at the same time as Theo, also asked to leave. But before going, she approached Alexia and whispered something in her ear before walking away, smiling brightly.

"They’re all crazy," Deon thought, baffled. "We just escaped death, and they’re acting like it’s nothing. I thought they’d be angry with her, but it’s the opposite..."

Soon, Theo and Amelia were gone, leaving only Alexia and Deon behind.

"Uh... Deon, see you tomorrow?" Alexia said, turning around.

But Deon grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"Sorry," he said, realizing what he’d done and quickly letting go.

"Actually, I wanted to ask... why did you take the lead and stick your finger into the hole that served as the lock to the central room of the labyrinth?"

He wanted to understand why she’d done that. The gesture had angered him, but he wanted to hear her reason.

"Because I was the one who brought you all into this portal. I had to take responsibility."

"No, we all entered knowing the risks. And I was the one who asked you to do it, remember?"

"Yes, but still..."

"I forbid you from doing something like that again."

Deon’s tone made Alexia’s heart skip a beat. Surprised, she widened her eyes.

"Don’t take it the wrong way. It’s just... it really made me angry. We could’ve voted or found another way. It’s good to take responsibility, but don’t sacrifice yourself for others."

Alexia blushed, completely flustered.

"What’s he doing? Is this what they call a romantic scene? So... he was angry because of me?" she thought, lost.

"Understood," she finally replied with a charming smile before leaving.

As always, even when flustered, she managed to stay composed.

Deon’s heart melted at her cuteness, but he knew he had to stay clear-headed.

"Hey, Deon... done smiling like an idiot yet?"

A feminine voice echoed in his mind.

"Sana! I was wondering when you’d finally speak up!"

"I don’t have much time. For the sake of our partnership and smooth cooperation, I must enlighten you about my situation... no, rather our situation, since I’m now bound to you."