NOVEL WEB Chapter 84: Shards of Dream and Illusion
"... Hope?"
Aiwass murmured.
The power of the Holy Number Eleven... Could it be related to this?
[Hope is the power of "possibility," the power to transcend perfect things, transcend the end of days, transcend fate and conclusion]
The Mad King's skull within the Box of Emptiness spoke thus.
It was indeed the power of the Holy Number Eleven—
"I see, the merging of beauty and dusk..."
After combining what the Lord of Scalefeather had said, Aiwass finally understood.
The ritual of Beauty and Transcendence happened to achieve the Number of Nihility, thus the power of Nihility trapped it inside—while the Swan King had not been devoured by the Power of Nihility all this time because it had precisely achieved eternity through this state of dying but not dead, reaching the realm of Hope through the merging of beauty and dusk within this Box of Emptiness!
It was precisely through the status suppression of the Holy Number Eleven that the power of Nihility never completely devoured his will!
Hope...
It is the power that turns the future towards other possibilities.
The power to break fate.
The tenth Path that should have been born is probably "Hope," because the Lord of Scalefeather had said... Candle Master and Aiwass had reached this world through the Tenth Path. And obviously, Nihility could not achieve that.
Therefore, they most likely entered this world through the Path of Hope!
So, that's why the Serpent Celestial Marshal said those words—
[He does not come from the east, nor does he come from the west. He does not come from any dwelling you know of]
[My Holy Number is 11; it is the number that belongs to us. To the foolish, I am 9; to the honest, I am 8, and also 1 of the 8]
Perhaps it was originally the Zero Path. Hope splitting itself created the Paths from One to Nine. Because it gave birth to "possibility."
"Indeed, the thoughts I just had were also due to your influence..."
Aiwass looked at the Swan King, saying with absolute certainty: "Aleister has not returned yet, probably because your power has influenced her!"
It was under some "unknown force" earlier that he suddenly uttered those transgressive words.
And since those words had already been spoken, he poured out his true feelings with one word following the next.
It was precisely because of this that Aiwass had the chance to realize his true heart at this moment.
—It was the transmission of the power of "Hope." The Swan King realized the day of release had come, and only then did he remove the disguise that had always been controlled.
[If she were here, she would probably have no choice but to fight]
[After all, you are just trying to buy time to meet me face to face]
The Swan King's lips slightly curved up, and that beautiful head looked somewhat alive.
The smell of a corpse faded, and his eyelids twitched a few times, like the noise made by someone about to wake up.
His words, filled with heavy echoes, reverberated in the empty basement:
[But there is no need for us to fight; light and fire will naturally pass]
[We belong to the Rule of Holy Number Eleven—even if the courage in your heart at this moment was partly driven by me. Is the emotion in your heart at this moment false?]
"Of course... it is not so."
Aiwass gently closed his eyes: "Even if the initial fire granted by others ignited me, the flame in my heart... undoubtedly comes from my own inner kindling."
He fully realized the Swan King's friendly attitude, and this... was akin to expressing a melancholic and candid last will.
As a riddler unique to the Path of Beauty, Ludwig II now candidly expressed his purpose. Probably because he no longer had much time left.
—When he awoke from the Box of Emptiness, the once eternally solid Wall of Dusk was destroyed. The miraculous hope reached by an accidental sealing would disintegrate.
This also meant he no longer possessed the ability to continue resisting the power of Nihility.
That's why, even though he could have awoken long ago, he continued to sleep. Once he breaks that solidity, he could no longer maintain an independent will for long.
"When that time came, the flowers trembled on the branches,
"Each one exhaled fragrance like an incense burner;
"The sound and scent drifted in the evening breeze;
"A melancholy waltz, drowsy dizziness..."
Suddenly, Ludwig II opened his mouth.
Not the divine hum with echoing that reverberates from the void.
But a weak human voice uttering a melancholy poem.
As if awaited for a long time.
Like the murmurs of a dream.
He sighed, with two streaks of blood and tears slowly flowing from his pupils, and his eyes gradually opening:
"Each one exhaled fragrance like an incense burner;
"The violin mourned like a broken heart;
"A melancholy waltz, drowsy dizziness!
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"The sky was both sad and beautiful, like a grand altar."
As the Mad King's skull awoke completely, everything around began to tremble violently.
The entire world turned upside down—the earth melted into air, the sky turned to solid stone, the flame froze, and water ignited out of nowhere. The whole Earl's Mansion vanished into void... it was as if it was only a dream. Or like a "dream where the Earl's Mansion didn't exist" replaced reality.
In the distance, a blood-red comet streaked across the sky, as the torn atmosphere emitted a mournful wail.
It was precisely Aleister who had awakened and was speeding toward this place.
Yet the Mad King's skull made no move to resist or attack.
Everything around him transformed into chaos with his thoughts, the sky reversed, and the sun and moon were inverted. Not just the Material Realm... even the entire Dream Realm trembled.
On his face, pitch-black lines began to spread. It was like veins surfacing, or some form of curse.
And still, he stood there, softly murmuring melancholy verses:
"The violin wails softly like a wounded heart;
"Tender heart, loathing the vast and dark death!
"The sky is both sorrowful and beautiful, like a grand altar.
"The Sun descends into its own congealed blood."
"—Aiwass!"
In the distance, Aleister approached from afar.
She held in her hand a giant lance, solidified from congealed blood, its tip spinning and raising a crimson storm.
Her voice shook the atmosphere, transforming into visible waves that shattered the earth—
Aleister's voice echoed both from Aiwass's heart and beside his ear: "Stay away from him!"
At this distance... once Aiwass stepped back, she could instantly pierce the Box of Emptiness!
"...No need."
Aiwass shook his head, refusing Aleister.
Instead of retreating, he stood in front of the Mad King.
He already understood... what Ludwig II intended to do.
—If Ludwig II's soul was already tainted by the Box of Emptiness, he could not enter the Dream Realm to become a god. Because that way, the Void Whisper might follow his soul into the Dream Realm.
In other words, he must die here.
And he chose to depart as a human, reciting poetry like falling petals...
"Tender heart, loathing the vast and dark death!"
His voice grew much louder and turned hoarse.
Each couplet of the poem, the second and fourth lines, and the first and third of the next stanza were repeated. It echoed like a refrain in a musical piece.
"Harboring all relics of radiant bygone days!"
His verses were like a blessing, yet also like a prophecy.
No attack was needed, for cracks already crawled over Ludwig II's skull.
It shattered like glass suddenly bursting under the summer sun.
His voice hoarse and stammering, "The Sun descends into its own congealed blood..."
Gazing at Aiwass, Ludwig II strained to open his mouth.
Finally, he recited the last line:
"Thinking of you... it feels as if I see the Sacred Body shine."
It was a shiver of despair, a melancholic cry.
But at the same time, it was a peaceful and harmonious release.
Hope shone brightly as a divine throne, always illuminating his soul. It allowed him to withstand the infection and erosion of the Box of Emptiness... beneath this dusky sky, he could still sense the beauty and sorrow of life.
And now, there was no need to hold on any longer.
The next moment, it shattered and vanished along with the Box of Emptiness beneath the "neck".
As if it had never existed in this world.
—With his own power, Ludwig II erased the possibility of his existence in the Material Realm.
Thus, he and the Box of Emptiness, harboring the Power of Nihility, dissipated together.
"..."
Watching all of this, Aiwass was momentarily speechless.
He felt a faint sadness for Ludwig II... but at the same time, he felt a sense of peace.
A predestined peace—
The fire of old had passed into his hands.
Someday, would it be his turn to do such a thing?
Suddenly, before Aiwass, the air rippled like water, and a rune emerged from it.
It twisted reality, constantly changing, finally transforming into a book and stabilizing.
"What is this...?"
Aiwass paused for a moment, subconsciously reaching out to receive the book.
It was not the Codex Book he imagined. Instead, it was an old fairy tale book titled "Swan Knight."
Intense Wind Attribute and Light Attribute powers surged into him the moment he touched the book.
A system panel suddenly appeared before Aiwass:
[Celestial Marshal Shard - Shard of Dream and Phantom]
[—The Law of Dreams and Fantasies, remnant power of the Box of Emptiness. Used appropriately, there is a chance to become the Dream Sky Department or Phantom Sky Department.]