This is the most mysterious and intriguing creature of Amphoreus, does anyone dare to look it in the eye?
"Mem?"
Seeing Stelle and Castorice both turn to look at her, Mem immediately got excited.
"No problem, just trust Mem!"
With Mem's power as support, a barrier spread out with Stelle at its center.
The area wasn't large, only a few meters in radius.
But within this barrier, empowered by the power of time, the interior underwent an orderly yet astonishing transformation.
Outside the barrier, however, nothing changed at all.
In other words, the space-time inside and outside had been interwoven. And this very change firmly restrained the River of Death.
The river, which the living could not approach, instantly formed a massive circular "vacuum" the moment Stelle carefully stepped into it.
Inside, what appeared were the intact buildings of Styxia, while outside the barrier, the death river continued to flow. Because of the barrier, it even looked as though the river had been sliced apart, you could clearly see the cross-section of the flowing water.
The camera pulled upward.
From afar, one could see wherever the three stepped, the river parted!
The scene was truly magnificent, leaving the audience awestruck.
...
: So cool!
: An army of thousands yields to Yhwach! No, it's the river yielding to Stelle!
: The visuals are absolutely insane!
: As expected of the MC, even the underworld river must make way for Stelle!
: The biggest obstacle is solved now!
: If nothing unexpected happens, they'll soon face the Death Titan directly!
...
Crossing the River of Death, ,the group quickly ventured deep into the heart of Styxia.
There, they encountered a group of "old friends", creations of the Black Tide.
These twisted monsters, whether they had only recently spread into Styxia or had been here long ago, had not caused much destruction.
After all, Styxia was already in ruins. How much more could they even destroy?
Moreover, these Black Tide creations deep in the core had none of the dominance they once showed in the Grove of Epiphany.
Most of them were incomplete, their limbs shattered. Thick black liquid seeped from their wounds, keeping them from ever healing.
Many of them were even waist-deep in the underworld river.
These monsters already possessed extremely tough bodies due to the Black Tide, but the erosion and scouring of the river never stopped.
Thus, they drifted endlessly in the river, constantly on the verge of being destroyed, yet never fully able to die.
"As expected of the place closest to death."
"Even these Black Tide monsters can't withstand the power of death."
Seeing this, Mem felt relieved.
But soon, she became proud. After all, such a terrifying river couldn't stir even the slightest ripple before the power of time.
"Hehe. I'm amazing!"
While Mem was grinning foolishly, Stelle and Castorice noticed that, in some areas deep within the river that weren't submerged, a few scattered souls were standing.
Only upon getting closer did they understand, these souls were the soldiers who had once defended Styxia.
They seemed to have witnessed the city's destruction in full, fighting right up until the end.
Even after death, becoming spirits, they continued to repeat their duties over and over again.
They had even become aware of the Black Tide creatures and were still fighting them, yet even though the monsters here had already been worn down by the river, these spectral warriors could hardly keep up.
Again and again, they charged into the Black Tide, only to be torn into pieces.
Due to the unique nature of Styxia, and the Death Titan's refusal to allow living beings into the underworld, these people would revive on the spot, regroup under the command of a centurion, and continue fighting.
Castorice didn't know how long they had been like this.
She only knew that with every charge, with every death after death, their souls grew thinner.
On the outside, it showed as their minds becoming increasingly dull.
"For… Styxia… charge…"
"Enemies… drive them out…"
Castorice and Stelle watched with their own eyes as the warriors' consciousness degraded once more.
At first, when the centurion revived, he could still recall matters related to the king.
But later on, he could only remember killing dragons and protecting civilians.
"..." A deep pain flashed through Castorice's eyes.
Such warriors, yet they could only be trapped here.
Just like before, unable to bear it, Castorice once again asked Stelle to take her closer.
Stelle had no reason to refuse.
As they approached, the soldiers, who only knew how to march toward death, sensed something different and turned to look.
A trace of hesitation flickered across the centurion's face.
"You… why are you still here?"
"This place is dangerous."
Perhaps because of the arrival of the living, the centurion's mind, worn down by countless deaths, briefly recovered a little.
Castorice tried to persuade him to abandon this meaningless sacrifice.
The centurion frowned. After exchanging a few words with her, he fell back into the same cycle as before.
"Why haven't you left? This place is dangerous."
Hearing this, Castorice could only say helplessly, "Sir, the war ended long ago. Styxia... no longer exists."
The centurion froze, then said stiffly, "Styxia... is no more?"
He tried to process the information. But his shattered soul simply couldn't.
"Th—This cannot stand! Newcomers, hurry up and go take your positions!"
Just like in a dream, when the brain skips over information it cannot process, the centurion's broken soul automatically ignored that fact.
"I'll do it." Stelle stopped Castorice and stepped forward, raising her voice:
"She is the Maiden of War sent here by the queen herself. If you accept her blessing, then today's battle will be smooth sailing."
This time, the centurion understood.
"Maiden of War? I've never heard of this... There's little time to waste. Please don't take too long."
After saying that with some hesitation, he no longer resisted Castorice.
Castorice gave Stelle a grateful look. Then she began to call upon the power within her, chanting a requiem.
For these warriors to have lingered here for so long, endlessly marching to their deaths yet still maintaining their forms, it showed just how strong their will was.
That was why Castorice had to persuade them to lower their guard before she could grant them peace.
Before long, the centurion and his soldiers found rest amid scattered purple flowers.
But there was little joy on Castorice's face, only a deeper heaviness.
"Cas... Are you all right?"
Stelle gently stepped closer and asked.
"I—I'm fine. I just didn't expect that I would still have to "embalm" others even in the realm of the dead..."
Castorice spoke in a low, subdued voice. This kind of scene always inevitably reminded her of her time in Aidonia.
And the audience outside the screen also recalled Castorice's past experiences.
In an instant, they understood. That so-called "deliverance" of the dead just now… was likely death within death.
Castorice's ability to grant death wasn't limited to the living, she could even send off the dead.
Then… as they drew closer and closer to the center of the city, the souls they encountered became increasingly strange and varied.
Castorice remained silent the entire time.
If she truly couldn't bear to watch, she would ask Stelle to take her over, and then use her power of death to completely end them.
The camera, meanwhile, stayed mostly fixed on Castorice's face. The audience watched the changes in her expression, from initial heaviness and pain, gradually turning into confusion, and then, through repeated acts of deliverance, becoming resolute.
For Castorice, everything she saw began to make her reflect on the meaning of death.
Previously, Gnaeus had tried to comfort her.
Death itself wasn't something to fear. As long as one lived in the world, followed their own heart, and did meaningful things, that was enough.
When death came, it merely drew a full stop. Everyone would face that day eventually, so why worry about it?
At the time, Castorice had been persuaded in her confusion. She felt that what Gnaeus said made sense.
But looking at things now?
These souls, the centurion and the soldiers, charging again and again, dying again and again, only to die once more after being restored…
Did death really mark an end?
At the same time, as the audience watched Castorice's changing expression, they were unconsciously drawn into her perspective, empathizing more deeply with everything encountered along the way.
At first, some viewers were puzzled as to why so much time was spent depicting these souls' stories.
But when the story reached the centurion, they, like Castorice, began to reflect on death itself.
Some well-read viewers suddenly realized, this wasn't just a simple journey across the river of death.
It was a passage interwoven with philosophical debates about death from ancient Greek thinkers like Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, and Heraclitus.
Just like Mydei's patricide, or Trianne's "see you tomorrow." What lay before Castorice was death questioning her.
And at the same time, it was the creators, using the story, presenting an open-ended question to the audience.
….
: Holy shit, it's happening.
: I thought Mydei and Trianne's part was already peak, like they squeezed every bit out of Greek culture. Didn't expect Castorice's part to be even more insane.
: Wait, why did the chat suddenly explode? What are the they talking about?
: One sentence summary: they stuffed a bunch of philosophies into one storyline, gave no answer, and let them fight it out themselves. Absolute madness.
: Huh?
: Bold as hell.
: After today's episode, the internet is gonna go to war over this.
…
After realizing this, the audience focused completely.
On screen, Castorice and Stelle finally reached a platform on the opposite side of the river of death, stepping into a structure that was still relatively intact.
Just like before, there were souls inside.
The first one they encountered was a scholar. Unlike the other souls, this scholar was aware that she was dead, and even recognized Castorice as the War Maiden.
She seemed to be someone who had died in the same era as Castorice. When Castorice assumed that this self-aware scholar would ask to be revived, the scholar instead said something unexpected.
"Hah, I'm well aware of it. Even if you were able to revive me, I would never choose that option."
The refined woman gave a bitter smile.
"That's because I didn't fall into the River of Souls by accident. Instead, I leaped into it to seek my death."
'Seek death?' Castorice was stunned.
This was the first time she had encountered someone who had taken their own life, and one who still retained reason and awareness.
Before Castorice could say anything, the scholar lowered her head and said self-mockingly, "If you could see the life I've led, then you would not reproach me so. My life... was far too miserable."
"But I did not expect that things stay the same even in death! What a joke! In escaping my mortal life, I've entered a millennium of pain instead."
"Cerces above! What cowards humans are, for we fear both life and death simultaneously?"
These self-deprecating words carried a deep question. Why is it that people sometimes fear both living and dying?
Compared to the previous questions, this one struck the audience even more deeply.
Among those sitting before the screen, at least half had, at some point, wanted to end things, yet stopped out of fear.
And a smaller portion, perhaps in their youth, or in moments of despair, had actually taken action, only to retreat just before reaching death.
Many great thinkers had sought answers. But Castorice didn't know them.
She didn't know Plato, nor Aristotle.
She couldn't answer. The only thing that could help her find answers was everything she had seen along the way, the experiences she had personally lived through.
So, after sending the woman peacefully to her end, Castorice stopped walking.
She pressed her lips together, then looked toward Stelle and Mem.
"There are people who do not fear death because of duty and honor."
"There are those whose lives are abruptly cut short because of death."
"There are those who see death as release, only to regret it after dying."
"I've seen too many farewells…"
"For some people... This power that I possess is a "blessing" rather than a curse."
At this point, Castorice looked stubbornly at Stelle, yet she wasn't truly looking at Stelle, but at death itself, which was everywhere.
"...But I never managed to convince myself of that."
"So… I want to create a world without "Death"."
Gathering all her courage, Castorice finally spoke the thought she had long kept buried deep in her heart.
This idea had sprouted when she left Aidonia, and after a thousand years of growth, it finally bore fruit here, at Styxia, the place closest to death.
Mem. Stelle. And even the audience before the screen, all wore expressions of pure shock.
Stelle's mind instantly flashed through countless past events.
"Castorice!"
"Your idea is dangerous! I can't agree with you on this."