‘I’ll check the border. Alone.’

As the main hall approached, Zion sent a signal to Moren, who was following him.

Moren understood the meaning of the signal from the superior and led the watchers. Then, Zion left the formation and headed east towards the mountain range alone.

As he crossed the mountain range, a black area that seemed like a lie revealed itself.

There was no sense of space or reality in that vast territory. It was just eerie, as if someone had torn the night sky and spread it out on the ground. It felt like the world had been torn, revealing its back.
Beyond human understanding and cognition lay the boundary where Amaneser lurked.

Zion descended to that land along with the daughter of Tardes, his counterpart. The sensation of stepping on the ground was similar to crushing charcoal with one’s feet.

The identity of this land had not been revealed yet. However, Zion knew it alone.

That man, who never wanted to accept him as his future self, had taught him this as well.

‘The curse that confines Amaneser.’

The identity of this black area was a curse that confined a mad dragon, Amaneser.

The core of the curse that made Amaneser insane was insufficient, so it was keeping the dragon confined in this form.

However, this curse would disappear in the near future.

According to the man’s words.

“Protect Ibi.”

“Ibi…?”

“Not me. The person who will save you.”

The man said to Zion, who was repeating the unfamiliar name. Then, he added like this.

“So, she will become your everything.”

At those words, Zion froze once again.

He stared at the face that seemed strangely similar yet different from his own and muttered in a hoarse voice.

“A woman?”

The man nodded in response to Zion’s question. So, Zion, like a fool, unintentionally raised his voice.

“You came all the way here just for that? Just for one woman?”

“Be careful with your words.”

Zion was arguing senselessly when an intangible pressure struck him.

“Not just one. Don’t say it like that.”

The man’s warning was calm and gentle. However, Zion could feel the cruelty hidden behind it.

Even though he felt suffocated, Zion didn’t back down. It felt unjust to silently accept it; it felt like he would go crazy.

“If it’s not just one, what is it, then? Are there no other women like her?”

When Zion, fueled by anger, asked the question, the man smiled and slapped Zion’s cheek. Despite Zion’s attempt to counterattack, the man easily subdued him and ruthlessly trampled on him.

“First time? It’s a ranking ceremony.”

The man asked Zion, who was lying on the ground. When Zion looked up with a bitten lip, the man added with a voice mixed with laughter.

“I haven’t experienced it either.”

He had a very satisfied look as he could beat himself up.

“This crazy guy…”

Zion, who kicked the man, coughed up a dry cough and ground his teeth. However, the man didn’t get angry, and that made Zion even more insane.

He had just realized that he was thoroughly exploited by Laurel, used as a sacrifice by his father and family.

And in the midst of all this, the man who came, the stranger, now asks me to protect a woman, an unknown name.

Zion found this fact incredibly cruel. He hated that he wasn’t the one being taken care of first.
That man had no hint of affection for Zion. There was no love, sympathy, or interest. He appeared ruthless and indifferent, only focused on his own duty.

“If you can’t understand, just think of it as a debt. If you need a good reason to move.”

The man said to Zion, who had a pained expression on his face.

“If I hadn’t come here, you would have become just like me. You wouldn’t want that.”

At those words, Zion forced a smile. It was a bitterly twisted sarcasm.

Zion barely understood. That lunatic was a different existence from himself. Therefore, it was only natural to be bound by a debt. If it meant being separated from that thing, it wasn’t a loss.

“So, what do you want me to do?”

“Take care of Ibi. Spend time together, cherish her, and protect her.”

Zion, who had been grinding his teeth fiercely, scoffed at the man’s affectionate nonsense, distorting his face even more.

Then the man smiled slyly and lightly kicked the ground.

“Do you know what this is?”

No, Zion didn’t know. The identity of this black area had been unknown for the past 300 years.

However, the man casually revealed the true nature of that long-standing secret.

“This is a curse. It’s for imprisoning Amaneser. The curse placed on this land causes the fallen Amaneser to sleep for a month.”

“How do you know that?”

“I’ve seen it.”

The man said calmly and indifferently. He announced the end with that tone.

“It will disappear soon. Then Amaneser will escape from here, and afterward, there’s nothing that can stop him. No matter how many times I killed him, he stubbornly revived and ruined everything. That crazy dragon.”

There was a chilling madness in the man’s calm voice. So, Zion’s chest tightened once again.

The words that Amaneser would be released from the east and that the man had killed Amaneser were both shocking and unbelievable.

But what truly made Zion uncomfortable was an entirely different aspect.

“…Why are you telling me this now?”

The order seemed strange. Shouldn’t he have said this story first? To prepare for Amaneser being released soon.

As Zion looked at the man with suspicion, he smiled and answered.

“Because it shouldn’t rampage in Ibi’s world.”

With the man’s affectionate words, Zion felt like crying once again.