Chapter 121. Commander of the Dark Legion
Someone who looked exactly like me.
It wasn’t merely his appearance.
Even the information displayed by Predatory Instinct [S] was identical to mine.
The only difference was the information listed under “Name”.
Adrian White Wolf (Memoria).
“Memoria?”
....I had never heard of it before.
Even after searching through the memories and experiences of my previous life, I found no information about Memoria.
When I used Predatory Instinct [S], information about Memoria fortunately appeared before my eyes.
◆ Memoria : An information-based life-form that perfectly replicates its target’s memories, experiences, and information. It can reproduce not only the target’s appearance, but also their age, physical condition, habits, personality, and even trauma, while also using their abilities.
Replication that transcended mere imitation.
Only now did I understand.
Rule 6 of the Vanished Social Club.
[Rule 6]—If the next social gathering begins before the Anomaly has been eliminated, Kiwio WKS will devour your memories and soul. You must eliminate the Anomaly.
Kiwio WKS, the entity that devoured memories and souls.
Apparently, that was Memoria.
However, its identity had yet to be determined back then.
That was why the text had appeared corrupted.
But after the social gathering had repeated dozens of times, it had absorbed enough of my memories and experiences.
In that it copied its target, Memoria resembled a Homunculus.
But they were fundamentally different.
An information-based life-form.
Memoria formed its existence by absorbing its target’s memories and information rather than their Genetic Factors.
In other words, it was not a simple imitation but something closer to a “perfect replication”.
More importantly, since it manipulated “memories and information”—
‘Monarch of Darkness.’
....It was connected to him.
But calling it the Monarch of Darkness seemed like a stretch.
In that case….
‘Commander of the Dark Legion.’
That was the conclusion I reached.
It would also explain why I possessed absolutely no information about Memoria.
Just like the Monarch of Darkness, all information about Memoria must have been erased from memory.
In that sense….
The Vanished Social Club.
This space seemed to have been a “cultivation chamber” designed to nurture Memoria.
The kingdom’s high-ranking nobles who attended the social gathering.
It was a horrifying and enormous plan to convert all their memories and information into Memoria and devour the Kingdom of Vatenberg.
That was the true purpose of this social gathering.
However, because of me, that plan had gone awry.
Because I had not forgotten even within the repetitions, and because I had recognized the flow and resisted it, Memoria had been unable to devour anyone other than me.
But as a result, my memories and existence had been engraved deeply into it.
It had “perfectly” replicated the abilities I possessed.
It felt ridiculous for me to say this, but….
‘So I really do have a lot of abilities.’
Even so, there were abilities that Memoria had failed to replicate.
The abilities it had copied were “perfect”, but it had not “completely” replicated every ability.
Solo Level Up [EX].
Successor’s Will [EX].
And Predation [S+].
It had failed to replicate my most important and essential abilities.
Perhaps it was incapable of copying them. Or perhaps there had not been enough repetitions for it to do so.
I didn’t know which one it was.
But it didn’t matter much.
In our current circumstances, neither Solo Level Up nor Predation [S+] could be used.
Those abilities would not significantly affect the outcome of this battle.
Therefore, it was safe to consider that thing identical to my current self.
Was that why?
At precisely the same moment, we charged at each other.
* * *
Claaaaang—!!
The chilling impact of metal colliding with metal rang out.
Sparks flew so violently that even the air trembled.
At the center stood Adrian and Adrian.
Two identical beings clashed their claws against each other.
“W-What is that...?”
First Prince Leon was so overwhelmed by the mounting confusion that he had nearly lost his mind.
Seraphia was no different.
She blinked repeatedly as she looked back and forth between the two Adrians.
‘There are….two of my brothers...!’
Perfectly identical appearances, stances, and strength.
Their movements were perfectly symmetrical, without even the slightest deviation.
“You want to get rid of me and pretend to be the real one, but—”
“Not a chance.”
Even their voices were perfectly identical.
Two completely identical beings were trying to kill each other.
Seraphia swallowed nervously.
She had to help.
....But.
‘I don’t know which one is my real brother...!’
She couldn’t distinguish which one was the real Adrian. Their claws tore through the air and descended upon each other.
Once again, they displayed identical reaction speeds. Perfectly identical attack patterns. And perfectly identical counterattacks.
They read each other’s attacks and countered simultaneously, only to clash again with the exact same movements.
It looked like someone fighting their own reflection in a mirror.
‘At this rate...!’
Seraphia clenched her fists.
She had to find a way to distinguish the real Adrian. Otherwise, her real brother might be killed.
Seraphia’s eyes darted rapidly.
The two Adrians fought at tremendous speed.
She couldn’t follow their movements. However, brief openings appeared whenever they collided.
She used those openings to search for differences between them.
Just then—
“You shouldn’t do that.”
A voice suddenly rang out.
When Seraphia turned her head, she saw Luseria wearing a relaxed smile.
“Instead of interfering in someone else’s fight, why don’t we play among ourselves?”
Darkness spread from Luseria’s fingertips.
* * *
Luseria’s darkness instantly consumed the surrounding space.
I moved to stop it immediately.
However, something blocked my path.
Dragon’s Claw [A] shot toward me in a straight line.
It aimed to pierce my heart.
‘Dangerous!’
I twisted my upper body, but as though it had anticipated that, another Dragon’s Claw [A] shot toward me from the opposite side.
Its movements completely accounted for all my habits and behavioral patterns.
That was only natural.
It was Memoria, an entity that had grown by devouring my memories and soul.
It was perfectly identical to me.
But the opposite was also true.
Dragon’s Claw [A] collided with Dragon’s Claw [A].
The same abilities clashed in midair.
Once.
Twice.
Attacks that left no room even to breathe collided incessantly.
Clang! Cl-clang!
Crunch!
‘Now!’
I slipped inside its guard and seized Memoria’s arm. Memoria flinched in surprise and tried to pull away.
I wasn’t going to let that happen. I forcefully pulled on the arm I had seized—
Crack!
Flesh and bone were torn apart.
Blood sprayed through the air, and Memoria’s severed arm spun away.
But no.
I hadn’t done that.
I wasn’t the one who had torn off its arm.
Memoria.
It had severed its own trapped arm.
Having created some distance, Memoria retreated.
I didn’t pursue it.
When I turned my gaze to the side, the darkness was gradually dispersing.
Luseria and Seraphia had disappeared.
‘Leon….’
He was nowhere to be seen either. It seemed he had been swept away along with Seraphia.
Or perhaps Luseria had targeted both of them.
When I turned my gaze forward again, Memoria’s severed arm had already been fully restored.
It was the power of Regeneration [B+].
It felt strange for me to say this, but….
“You’re a monster.”
“Look who’s talking.”
We stared at each other in a standoff. We could see through each other’s thoughts. It could predict every strategy and movement I devised.
If I moved carelessly, I would give it an opening to counterattack.
“Aren’t you in a hurry?”
Memoria was the first to speak.
“You know what might happen to my little sister if you waste too much time, don’t you?”
Luseria’s Mind Penetration [E].
Luseria could mentally corrupt Seraphia.
In other words, if this dragged on, the Monarch of Frost might awaken.
That was why I had to deal with Memoria quickly.
‘It’ll be difficult like this.’
Completely identical abilities.
There were no variables capable of determining the outcome.
* * *
A realm of darkness that devoured even light.
Luseria smiled contentedly.
This was Luseria’s space.
In other words, it was the Domain of a Black Mage.
Everything within it was under Luseria’s control.
Luseria raised her gaze and looked ahead.
First Prince Leon was clutching his head in confusion.
Seraphia looked around with trembling eyes. She seemed relatively lucid, but her small shoulders were tightly hunched.
‘That’s the normal reaction.’
Once someone entered this place, they had no choice but to tremble in fear. As long as they were human, they could not escape the subjugation of fear.
‘I don’t know how that delinquent managed to endure it, but....’
Adrian was not here.
No one could interfere with her in this place.
She could penetrate Seraphia’s mind and corrupt her.
If she successfully brought everything to an end….
‘He’ll choose me as well.’
Anticipation gleamed in Luseria’s eyes—
Whoooosh—!
Black energy extended from her fingertips like tentacles and began enveloping Seraphia’s consciousness.
“Ugh...!”
Seraphia staggered while clutching her head. Her mind had been completely consumed.
There was no escaping now. Luseria’s smile deepened.
It was time to finish this.
* * *
“As I thought, you couldn’t replicate the memories associated with the abilities you failed to copy.”
“....What do you mean?”
Memoria’s eyes widened at my words.
In other words, Memoria “didn’t know”.
◆ Using the Bond Skill, Mental Empathy [E]!
I was fighting Memoria, an entity completely identical to me.
Naturally, it would take time.
But that was all.
Time was neither “tight” nor “insufficient”.
The Bond Skill, Mental Empathy [E].
It was a skill that could only be used on individuals who had reached an Affinity “Bond Stage”.
Memoria had failed to replicate Ian’s ability.
As a result, it had also failed to replicate the Bond Skills linked to Affinity, and it didn’t even know that such skills existed.
If it couldn’t replicate a skill, it couldn’t replicate the memories associated with that skill either.
The proof was—
‘It doesn’t seem to remember my previous life.’
That was because it had failed to replicate Ian’s ability.
Memoria had failed to replicate the power of Regression, and it had therefore failed to replicate my memories from my previous life as well.
Not that I possessed the power of Regression in the first place.
In other words, Memoria had perfectly replicated my “abilities and experiences”.
However, it had failed to replicate my “connections and bonds”.
Therefore, it had no idea that Seraphia was under the influence of Successor’s Will [EX].
Seraphia had been isolated from everyone else.
That was actually fortunate.
In a chaotic battle where she couldn’t distinguish between me and Memoria, Seraphia would have hesitated to use her Authority.
Seraphia was still inexperienced with the Authority of Frost [P].
It would have been even harder to use that Authority when she couldn’t tell which one of us was the real me.
But what about in a situation like this?
Luseria, the Seductress of Lust.
No matter how powerful a Black Mage she might be….
“You made a mistake.”
Before an entirely different level of existence like the Monarch of Frost, she was nothing more than a petty trickster.
* * *
Seraphia’s reason was being consumed slowly but surely.
‘Finally...!’
Luseria was certain of her victory.
At that moment—
Something shattered the mental encroachment.
Flash—!
A small but powerful resistance emerged within Seraphia’s fading consciousness.
Luseria’s eyes trembled for an instant.
“....Huh?”
The tentacles of darkness extending from her fingertips froze.
Seraphia raised her head.
Her red eyes resembled perfectly cut rubies.
They were clearly focused.
….She had broken free from the mental encroachment.
“W-Why did this...?”
That couldn’t be.
It simply couldn’t happen.
It was….impossible.
Luseria involuntarily took a step backward.
It was an instinctive reaction.
But unlike her instincts, her rational mind could not comprehend the situation.
“W-What...?”
Frost descended.
The air froze, and bitter cold enveloped the darkness.
“Why...? How? No, how did you...?”
Ruuuuumble—!!
The darkness distorted.
Space twisted.
A cold and immense force surged into Luseria’s domain and seized control of it.
Luseria hurriedly waved her hands.
However, the darkness she summoned vanished as though suffocated by the frigid cold.
Crack-crack-crack—!!
Now….
This was no longer the Domain of a Black Mage.
The Empress of Frost.
“Give my brother back to me right now!!”
A frigid silence enveloped the entire space in an instant.
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