The Radiant Light - [English Version]

In a dimly lit room, sounds of cracking and dripping water echoed, along with the tearing of raw flesh, as a shadowy figure seemed to be present. A knock on the door rang out, and all the sounds inside abruptly ceased.

Zebraem: Hey, Die! Are you in there?

Diego: I'm eating!

Zebraem: Well, I want to go out. I came here to let you know.

Diego: Out? Where do you want to go?

Zebraem: To find a few spells.

Diego: Go ahead, don't bother me.

After notifying Diego, Zebraem left Axeler, and a pair of bat-like wings sprouted from his back as he flew toward the mainland. From afar, one could see the aurora walls encircling the entire coastline. It seemed as though the entire island was surrounded by them, these walls acting like an outer defense. As Zebraem approached the curtain, he took out a colorful, shiny knife and cut a straight line down. The aurora wall was severed, creating a hole. Zebraem slipped through, moving inland, and as he passed through the hole, it gradually closed up, as if nothing had happened.

Zebraem: This place is too close; I should go further.

Zebraem continued to soar through the sky. He looked down at the world from above, flying over mountains, rivers, and lush green forests. After passing through two more aurora walls, he spotted a human city.

Zebraem: Recently, I've seen those soldiers bringing back a lot of humans. I wonder where they caught them? Could it be here? I'll head to the tower by that wall first. Die once said that the towers contained the world's treasures. I wonder what's inside?

Zebraem flew in the sky, looking down at the road below. He saw a group of robbers with knives and guns attacking a woman. Zebraem's pupils dilated, his eyes seemed to blaze with anger.

Zebraem: HUMAN!!!

He transformed into an ordinary man, except for his hands which had twelve fingers, and then flew down.

Below, on the path, there were four robbers and one woman. They were dressed quite modernly; the girl likely came from the city Zebraem had visited earlier. The robbers probably hailed from another city near the tower that Zebraem was headed to. Among them was one with a knife, one with a stick, one with a gun, and the leader.

The knife-wielding robber: Boss! Something's coming down from the sky!

The leader: Huh??? What is it??

Zebraem landed, placing himself between the woman and the four robbers.

The knife-wielding robber: He can fly, boss!!! We shouldn't mess with him. Let's get out of here.

Only the knife-wielding robber could speak; those were his last words. In one swift cut, the heads of all four fell, leaving no time for any last words.

The woman: Thank you! Because of you,..... 

Before the woman could finish her sentence, a clean cut swept across her neck. Her head fell, and Zebraem reached out to catch it. In her final moments, all the woman could see was the cold face of the one who had saved her from the robbers—or perhaps the one who had sent her to the afterlife. Having killed them all, Zebraem's mood gradually calmed. He continued to fly toward the tower, holding the woman's head. As he flew, Zebraem glanced at that head.

Zebraem: "Diego seems to really enjoy eating humans, especially the head. Now that I'm a demon too, I wonder what it tastes like?" (Thought)

Zebraem paused in midair, holding the woman's head in front of him while casting Flame, a fire igniting from the hand that held the head. The flames scorched the hair of the head, causing it to shrivel and blacken. Then he cast another spell, which helped peel away the burnt skin. The head was now left with only a thin layer of skin, revealing the white points of the skull, the woman's face distorted beyond recognition. Zebraem brought the head closer to his mouth, biting down on the top of the skull, a piece breaking off, with brain fluid and blood spilling out, falling from the sky.

Zebraem: "This piece isn't very tasty; it seems to be mostly bone." (Thought)

Zebraem used his other hand to thrust forcefully into the hole he had just bitten, while his other hand gripped the head tightly. He pulled away part of the skull, a large amount of brain fluid and blood splattering, some of it trickling down his hand. Zebraem discarded the piece of skull he had torn off, lifting the remaining part to pour it into his mouth.

Zebraem: "This tastes better, not like the piece of skull I just had." (Thought)

Zebraem consumed everything inside the woman's skull, then ruthlessly discarded it. He continued towards the distant tower.

When he arrived, Zebraem stood before a tower hundreds of meters tall, cylindrical, with a base diameter of about 10 meters. This tower was the junction of three aurora walls. Now, before him was a massive door, wide enough for two people to pass through without touching each other.

Zebraem: "Looks like the entrance is here. Surely there won't be traps at doors like this." (Thought)

The door seemed to sense him, slowly opening to reveal a space larger than one could imagine from the outside. Zebraem stepped inside. The interior of the tower resembled a miniature world, with its own unique ecosystem and unique creatures found nowhere else. Beautiful yet dangerous creatures accompanied by death seemed to exist solely to kill anyone who ventured inside, those attempting to conquer the tower and lower the barrier separating the worlds. As Zebraem fully entered the tower, the massive door slammed shut. This place was indeed perilous; creatures rushed at him in droves. They attacked Zebraem with claws, fangs, poison, and even magic. Zebraem tried to sense the amount of energy they were channeling into their attacks and countered with slightly greater energy, as the overwhelming number of creatures prevented him from just defending recklessly.

Zebraem: "These creatures attack me wildly, sometimes coordinating their assaults. Perhaps they are under the influence of something. That makes them fearless. I must find out what it is." (Thought)

After about an hour, the number of creatures showed no signs of decreasing; they seemed to be birthed and controlled by something. Zebraem pondered this and eventually traced the source controlling these creatures to a red gem, which lay within a hollow tree. The light emitted from it likely penetrated the minds of the creatures here. Zebraem attempted to approach the tree containing the gem, but the tree knew how to move. It darted away swiftly, evading his pursuit while the creatures within continuously appeared and attacked Zebraem.

Zebraem: "This is really difficult. This tower connects to three barriers, so perhaps that's why it's so tough. I wonder if shattering that gem would return these creatures to normal?"

After over 30 minutes of pursuit, Zebraem managed to incinerate the fleeing tree and completely destroy the gem. However, the creatures in this space still did not cease; they simply stopped being born.

Zebraem: "Perhaps it's no good! I'm sorry to all of you. I truly regret it." (Zebraem)

Moments later, no more creatures appeared; Zebraem had killed them all. The entire ecosystem was drowned in a sea of corpses, blood, and flesh scattered everywhere.

Everything around gradually dissolved into gray smoke, from the plants to the corpses. The smoke coalesced and focused on a pillar, forming a treasure box. At this moment, Zebraem, exhausted, had nearly exhausted his entire energy reserve to wipe them all out. The sheer number was overwhelming, nearly depleting him. Zebraem slowly trudged toward the treasure box. When he touched it, the previous door opened, the interior space gradually revealing large cracks, trembling continuously as if it were about to collapse. Zebraem took the box and slowly left. As he stepped out of the portal, the interior space completely warped. The massive door gradually closed, and the tower began to disappear. Simultaneously, the aurora barriers slowly intertwined. After all, each was linked to two towers, so even if one side was lost, it would always be maintained.

Zebraem: Today has been exhausting; I should head back to the island first. As for what's inside this box, I'll check later.

By the time Zebraem returned, it was already evening. He encountered Diego on his way back to his room… or perhaps Diego had been waiting for him here rather than it being a coincidence.

Diego: You have 30 minutes to prepare, Zeb. After that, we will all have dinner together.