"So, the method you suggest is, in short, to be eaten by that little girl named Rosemary?"
Freesia snickered.
"Eaten... That was a really one-dimensional idea I had in the past. Do you know who I tried to feed myself to?"
-A troll.
"Right, it was a troll. The biggest one, a giant troll. I've been eaten by that troll once."
Trolls themselves are known as the guardians of nature that live in the forest.
However, the giant troll was not a guardian, but a disaster.
It had an overwhelming size and regenerative power to match.
And since eating was what supported its regenerative power, it ate much more than its size would suggest.
It even chewed on trees, so there was no need to explain that it was a nuisance.
"But do you know what happened?"
Freesia laughed as if she was amazed.
"It died. They said it was necrosis due to excessive nutrition. Isn't it funny? A creature that spends its life searching for food dies from an explosion in its stomach after eating just one little girl."
From that experience, Freesia learned one thing.
That she could never die just by being eaten by someone.
"Can that little girl named Rosemary withstand eating me?"
The man answered without hesitation to that question.
-The reason the troll died was because it was a creature that followed the natural order. It had a destined fate to die, so it couldn't contain you.
"You mean, what she has is different?"
-That child is like you. She can take you to death because she is like you.
A being that defies the natural order.
She gained an immortal body because she even defied the concept of ordinary death.
'To defy the natural order, one must be removed by something that defies it.'
Freesia thought of the method, but it wasn't easy.
Even resurrecting corpses does not defy the natural order in this world.
The only thing that could kill Freesia was an equivalent being, so it was never easy to find such conditions.
-Believe it or not, it's up to you. You are the product I created. I don't make things recklessly without a plan.
In the end, the decision is up to Freesia.
She glanced at him with an annoyed look and waved her hand impatiently.
"Really? If your business is done, get lost."
-Alright, I'll disappear now.
"And don't ever set foot in this tower again. Next time, I'll destroy the tower to kill you."
-Don't worry. I won't appear again.
As he turned his foot back, his body slowly disappeared.
-If this fate disappears as well... I'll run away forever.
The incomplete being left those words and disappeared.
Freesia didn't listen to his words.
She closed her eyes and just pondered what he had said.
There was only one thing she had to do.
Now that she had found a way, all she had to do was execute it.
* * *
Dream big tl dot com
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'If I get eaten by this child... I can get the death I wanted.'
A broken link that defies the natural order.
It is a trait that allows one to obtain an absolute physical body and vitality that cannot be interfered with even by time.
When the two immortals combined, the order was restored.
Rosemary's form collapsed.
Her essence, which could not be contained in a small body, grew uncontrollably.
-I'll kill you, I'll kill you...!!
She radiated rage and venom as she chewed on her hatred and poison.
Soon, she turned into an indescribable form, standing in front of Freesia.
Her size was slightly bigger than an adult male.
That was more than enough to overwhelm Freesia.
Freesia no longer resisted.
Rosemary grabbed her with both hands and brought her closer.
"You... are like me..."
Rosemary muttered that.
It was a feeling of homogeneity that came not from the knowledge gained through experience but from instinct.
Who this person was, and what to do...
It was a very simple task.
To devour her.
It was saying that this was the way to kill this woman now.
Her form sharply split, and she bit into Freesia's neck.
"Ugh!"
Freesia let out a groan.
'It hurts.'
It was a slight pain that she hadn't felt even when pierced by a sword or shattered by magic.
The life force that had always been circulating inside her was being sucked in through Rosemary's mouth.
Freesia didn't doubt it anymore.
It was the moment she faced the answer.
'Yes, this is it. With this, I can die.'
Freesia faced it with a face full of ecstasy.
How many years have I wasted searching for this?
How many people have I manipulated, and how many people have I sacrificed?
She wished for her own death.
The continent wished for her death as well.
The moment when everyone could be a winner had come.
But...
'Why?'
She wasn't happy.
She had struggled for decades for this answer, but instead of feeling the joy of a magician seeking knowledge, she couldn't help but think that this death was wrong.
'Don't forget your purpose, Freesia.'
She tried to shake off her unwarranted emotions and opened her eyes wide.
'What a boring life! I have no reason to live. If I die like this, it's over!'
The strength gradually drained from her body.
At the same time, something quickly passed through her mind.
It was undoubtedly what people commonly call a flashback.
She didn't create memories.
To her, who lived long, memories were nothing more than increasing the painful parts.
Nothing but her own death interested her.
'I was sure that...'
Why did she feel so uncomfortable even though she got what she wanted so badly?
As her neck grew sore, that question grew bigger.
Freesia was able to find the answer quickly.
It was because of Reed.
'If I die... what will happen to you?'
At this moment, there is no one who can stop this monster.
Then Reed would die too.
Freesia turned her head and saw Reed in the reversed view.
He was clearly seeing this place even though it was hard for him to manage his own body in pain.
His eyes were sad.
He wasn't afraid of what would happen after Freesia's death.
He was simply saddened by seeing her being helplessly attacked.
'Don't look at me like that.'
She hated Reed.
Pretending to be weak and trying to control people was not the human image Freesia liked.
Knowing that he was actually weak, not just a tactic, made her hate him even more.
I long for death.
The continent wants my death too.
But the only person in front of her wishes for her to live.
-Do you really have to die?
It was an insignificant wish from just one person.
'You bad bastard...'
You are a shameless and disgusting person to the very end.
Rosemary felt something touching her head.
Freesia's hand grabbed her hair.
As soon as she pulled her hair, her teeth sank into Rosemary's neck.
Crunch! Crack!
At the brutal sound of cutting off the tendon, Rosemary let out a scream.
-Aaah! It hurts!
Rosemary screamed in pain and pulled away from Freesia's body.
Freesia, with half of her upper body gone due to Rosemary's devouring, staggered and stood up.
"How is it? It hurts a lot, right? The mouth is really scary. It can hurt people."
A black shadow veil rose around Freesia's body.
"I'm sorry, little one. I was going to obediently die by your hand if I could, but..."
Freesia showed her blood-stained teeth and smiled.
"I found a reason."
Shadows tightly wrapped around Freesia's body.
Her body was wrapped like a cocoon.
Reed knew what that magic was.
Desire Massacre.
It was a magic that amplified desires and reached human limits.
It was what she used when she joined hands with Morgan Hupper in the Hopper Kingdom and caused a disturbance.
-Aaaaa!!!
Furious Rosemary screamed and rushed towards the cocoon where Freesia was hiding.
No matter how many times she hit the cocoon with her hard hands, it didn't budge.
Bang!!!
The cocoon broke.
The solid rock that didn't break even when Rosemary hit it was torn apart like wet paper.
Rosemary raised her head.
What came out of it was a butterfly of destruction.
Two red eyes surrounded by a black aura emitted an empty light.
It was undoubtedly a side effect of causing one's own desires to run wild.
'That was the magic that made enemy's identification disappear.'
Reed felt a bad feeling but didn't step back.
Using that magic on herself meant she had confidence.
Even if that wasn't the case.
'Even if that's not the case, I can't run away.'
Reed had to watch until the end.
That was the duty Reed had.
Freesia looked down at Rosemary.
She spoke in a more relaxed voice.
"Shall we start in earnest?"
Freesia's black smoke-like body disappeared.
Rosemary didn't realize that.
Before she could register it in her eyes, her face was slammed into the ground.
She couldn't catch Freesia's movements at all.
Rosemary's face contorted hysterically.
-Aaaah!!!
Rosemary screamed.
Countless threads pierced through Freesia's body, turning into blades and cutting her.
Freesia's body was divided into 36 pieces.
But, only for a moment, her body seemed to rewind in time and reattach itself.
"That's not enough."
Freesia grabbed Rosemary's body and slammed it to the ground again.
Boom!
The ground cracked and split.
The sound of Rosemary's fragile body breaking pierced their ears.
Rosemary's body returned to its original state.
Rosemary, who was groaning in pain, reached out to cut Freesia's body.
At that moment, Rosemary's vision went dark.
Her own shadow rose from the ground and grabbed her.
-Why, why!!! I'm stronger!!! Why!!
Rosemary screamed in a tantrum.
Her power was undoubtedly superior.
Rosemary knew it, and so did Freesia.
Freesia taught Rosemary a lesson.
"Simply being stronger doesn't mean you'll win in a fight."
But there was an overwhelming difference in experience.
She had researched all kinds of magic in order to die and had discovered how to break them.
Even if it was a new magic she had never seen before, she could quickly break it with her abilities.
The reason she hadn't done so until now was simple.
Because she wanted to die.
Because if she stayed still, she would undoubtedly die.
But now that reason had disappeared, there was no reason to indulge in the girl's whims.
A breathtaking blood battle between the two immortals began.
There was no defense. Only attacks aimed at each other.
Believing in their infinite vitality, they tried to kill each other.
Finally, after more than 30 minutes of intense offensive, someone began to show a reaction.
"Uh...?"
Rosemary was surprised as she looked down at her hand.
Wasn't it trembling as if feeling the extreme cold?
'Why?'
Rosemary could understand the question as soon as it occurred to her.
That woman.
She was feeling emotions through the fight with that woman.
A wall that she couldn't handle with her own abilities.
An inevitable disaster.
An unavoidable calamity.
It was fear.
"I-I don't want this..."
Her monstrous appearance gradually shrank.
Rosemary's face was gradually dyed with fear.
"Don't come."
Rosemary retreated, stepping back.
"Don't come!!!"
As soon as Rosemary screamed, Freesia reached out towards Reed.
A black shadow wrapped around Reed's body and threw him far away.
She realized why she had done that a moment later.
Rumble!
The surroundings of Rosemary began to disappear without a trace.
The ground turned to dirt, and the dirt turned to dust. It was turned into nothingness.
If Freesia hadn't thrown him roughly, Reed would have become dust as well.
Freesia didn't disappear.
She stared straight at Rosemary and stepped forward.
"All I want is to be happy!!"
Rosemary despaired.
Unable to shake off all the agony in her heart, it was too unfair to die.
"Me too."
Freesia whispered in her ear.
Before she knew it, Freesia was standing in front of her.
Her skin was falling off and reattaching itself, creating an incredibly grotesque appearance that couldn't be called human.
It was painful enough to be unbearable even when sane, but Freesia didn't care.
Instead, she looked at Rosemary and smiled brightly.
"But life isn't always easy, is it?"
It was the moment of decision.
