Advent of the Three Calamities

Chapter 654: Remnant South [2]
“Ukh!”

“Herrkh!”

Several gagging sounds filled the surroundings as the cadets emerged from the other side of the portal, their bodies falling to the ground while they held onto their stomachs in distress.

“Bleergh!”

Some even puked.

“W-what the hell…”

There were some that held it better than others, but in general, almost everyone was having a hard time.

This couldn’t be helped.

The portal was an extremely long distance one. Even Delilah was surprised by how far it brought them.

All she did was follow the direction of where she found the ‘clues’ to be.

It led her to this exact place.

Splash! Splash!

Standing before a tall cliff as crimson water sprayed all over, Delilah looked towards the surroundings, her gaze falling on the crimson waters. Her deep black eyes narrowed as she looked towards the sea.

Though she couldn’t exactly pinpoint the location, she felt a terrifying presence hidden within the depths of the water.

One that even made her tense a little.

Whether she could win a fight against such a beast or not, she wasn’t sure.

…And that was enough to tell just how powerful the creature was.

The creature was also another reason why she didn’t teleport any further. She was sure it would try to stop whatever she tried.

“Wah, look!”

All of a sudden, as one of the cadets recovered, they pointed towards the distance.

That was when all heads turned and focused towards the distance, where they saw several structures and buildings, alongside a tall spire.

The faces of many changed.

“Wait, is that a city?”

“What’s going on…?”

“Wait, look! There are people! Holy shit!”

Delilah’s eyes narrowed as she looked towards the distant city. She could feel a few troublesome presences in there, but not enough to make her wary.

She wasn’t at all surprised by the sight.

The Mirror Dimension was vast, holding several Empires and Kingdoms in the past.

There indeed existed cities and civilizations that still thrived in the Mirror Dimension. Many such places, however, were located quite far from the Mirror Cracks.

However, most Empires were aware of their existence.

Looking at the city, Delilah’s eyes narrowed faintly.

Could he be…?

Her thoughts faded as she saw the cadets all turn to look at her.

She merely looked back without saying anything else.

“This is the next part of your trial. Try to interact with the locals and figure out more about the Mirror Dimension.”

Her figure faded shortly after that.

She herself needed to do some digging regarding the place.

As her figure faded, the cadets collected themselves and looked around before eventually settling their gaze towards Aoife, who appeared to be in deep thought.

“Should we…?”

As someone was about to suggest exploring the place, Aoife shook her head.

“No, that wouldn’t be smart.”

“Why?”

“I’m sure most of the people there are somewhat aware of who comes and goes there since this is the Mirror Dimension. If all of a sudden a bunch of strangers show up in the city, things will look suspicious. Only a small number should go, and we should also change our clothes.”

Aoife’s suggestion was reasonable.

A lot of the cadets understood her intention and stopped speaking.

Eventually settling her gaze on a certain few, Aoife’s voice lowered.

“What do you think?”

***

The moment the massive shadow that stretched across their vision appeared, Lazarus’s mind blanked. All previous thoughts faded from his mind.

‘We’re here? Already…?’

He had expected the journey to be a lot longer than this.

He had been prepared to stay in the ship for a few more weeks to even month.

But… they were already here?

This quick?

“Looking at the faces you two are making, you seem surprised by how fast we’ve managed to reach the Remnant South.”

“That’s…”

Lazarus looked at Anne and eventually nodded.

“Yes, this was a lot faster than I anticipated. I thought it was going to take a lot longer to reach the Remnant South.”

“I get it.”

Anne dismissed with her hand, placing it over the wooden top of the ship while looking towards the distant land.

“You’re not wrong to think that. Under normal circumstances, it would have taken much longer. But if you haven’t noticed, our journey went unusually smoothly. Nothing happened to hinder us, and we moved forward without a single delay. The fact that we’ve managed to arrive so quickly shouldn’t really come as a surprise.”

Lazarus opened his mouth, but soon closed it.

Indeed, she was right.

Their journey had been smooth. No pirates. No monsters. No anything…

But that wasn’t because of their luck.

Far from it.

“This is the first time that something like this happened and—”

“Here.”

Cutting Anne off, Lazarus tossed her a small mirror.

“Huh?”

Catching the mirror, Anne looked at Lazarus in confusion. Why did he…?

“Just look at it.”

Though confused, Anne still followed the merchant’s instructions and looked at the mirror. Her brows immediately jumped up the moment she saw nothing in it.

“What sort of…”

“So the same is for you.”

As if finally confirming something, Lazarus nodded his head as he looked at An’as, who was also staring at the mirror. He didn’t look as shocked as Anne did. Probably because he had also noticed the same thing as him.

“Is this some kind of joke? Why don’t I see—”

“Because our existence is slowly being erased from this world.”

“…..!”

Anne’s expression, alongside An’as, changed rather severely upon hearing the merchant’s words.

“What are you talking about? What do you mean by our existence is slowly being erased from the world? You must be joking.”

“I am unfortunately not.”

Lazarus shook his head, his face dead serious.

Flicking his hand, a certain book appeared as he showed it to them.

Their faces stiffened the moment they caught sight of the book as they both looked at him.

“Don’t tell me…”

“Yes, the Luminarch wasn’t lying to us before. We were all targeted by the great primordial, and most of our memories of its abilities were erased, making us brush over what had happened before.”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait…”

An’as, still in denial, hastily grabbed the book and started flipping through the pages. As he started reading, he kept mumbling things like, ‘This makes no sense… How come I don’t remember? What is happening? Please let this be some sort of joke…’

But then, he reached the inevitable page, and his expression froze.

“A-ah.”

He covered his mouth, his face turning completely pale.

It appeared like it all finally dawned on him as Anne snatched the book from his hands and showed a similar reaction just a few moments later.

“….”

“….”

The bow fell silent as neither one made a sound.

That was until Lazarus broke the silence as he took the book.

“Our existence is being gradually erased. It begins with our memories of the Great Primordial One fading away. That’s where it truly starts.”

Lazarus flipped towards a certain page, reading a certain passage or extract of someone who had once encountered the Primordial one.

———

Fragment from a Torn Journal – Author Unknown

It begins with forgetting. The Primordial One first. Its name, its shape, its presence… gone, as if it never was.

Then, the mirror forgot about it.

I stood before it, expecting to see my face stare back in weary familiarity, but there was nothing. No reflection. Only an empty pane of glass. I touched it to be sure I was still there… to be sure I hadn’t dreamed myself into absence.

The glass was real. I was fading.

Next were the shadows. Mine no longer followed me. Where once my body cast long, flickering outlines in candlelight, there is now only light and floor.

I walk beneath the sun as a hollow thing, and the world no longer acknowledges me.

Then…

When it truly begins.

The forgetting.

Those I once called friends pass me without pause, their eyes vacant, their smiles empty. My name no longer stirs recognition. My voice, when I speak, seems to reach no ears.

I am… a ghost tethered by the last fraying threads of perception.

I can feel it, even now. The pull. The dissolution. I am being erased, not with violence, but with indifference.

A slow erasure authored by a force too ancient, too vast to be understood. A force that does not hate, for hate would require acknowledgment. No… this is worse. I am being forgotten by the very fabric of reality.

Soon, I will no longer write. I will no longer speak. I will no longer be.

I will drift, unseen and unheard, among the remnants of lost things. No more than a murmur in the wind, an echo like the voices that drift in the air.

Pray you never remember me.

For if you do, it means it has already begun for you as well.

There is no escaping.

———

It was a chilling passage that described the entire process of erasure.

“First, it will be the memories. Then, it will be the reflection, followed by the shadow, and soon… our recollection. The world will soon forget us, and we’ll turn into nothing but the voices that whisper in the air.”

Lazarus’s teeth slowly clenched together.

They were now in the second phase.

“If this is true, what the hell are we supposed to do?”

There was clear distress in An’as’s voice as he covered his mouth and took deep and heavy breaths to calm himself down.

“No, wait… Could this be what Sylas had been planning the entire time?”

An’as’s words gathered the attention of both Lazarus and Anne as they looked at him.

He continued, “Think about it. Sylas is a hollowed, meaning that he’s made up of ‘voices’ or ‘tunes’. What if Sylas and the great one are working together? What if this had been his goal the entire time, and he is just waiting for us to turn into ‘voices’ before absorbing us?”

It all clicked in that moment.

The reason for Sylas’s actions, the reason he could call the primordial one, and his sudden disappearance.

He…

Had been working the entire time with the primordial one.

His goal was to absorb them. Although Lazarus didn’t fully understand why they had been chosen, he knew that he must’ve had his own reasons.

In that case…

“Sylas might be the key to solving this situation.”

But…

“That’s easier said than done.” Anne suddenly cut off, her voice grave.

“Who knows where he is right now? As far as I’m concerned, he could be all the way back in Virinth-Anash. By the time we find him, if he’s not hiding, it’ll be too late for us.”

“So are you saying we’re doomed?” An’as said, his expression was tight as he looked at Anne.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

Anne replied, her voice cold.

“We—”

“That’s not true.”

Lazarus cut Anne off, his expression and voice unexpectedly calm.

As he looked towards the two of them, he continued,

“The situation is indeed unfavorable, but I doubt Sylas is far from where we are. We are his targets after all. He will eventually come for us.”

“But—”

“Whatever the case is, we’re just wasting time.”

Lazarus looked towards the distant land.

“For now, let’s head to the Remnant South. We might figure something out when we reach the place. Though I doubt I’m wrong.”

Sylas…

He was definitely going to come for them.

Of that, he was sure.