Building A Human Empire By Creating A Clan [EN]: Chapter 181

I had conquered the peak. The Elves and the Dwarves were dealt with.

The dwarves hiding in the caves were captured by my Familiars. It would have been overkill for Tiamar and me to collapse the caves. I needed to harvest the minerals buried in the peak intact.

I sent my Familiars.

There was no need to summon the Familiars scattered here and there. As the Familiar Creation skill reached 9-star, the status window disappeared. With the status window gone, all the restrictions I had were gone. Among them was the cooldown time.

“Come forth.”

As I spoke, a Familiar was created. Light emanated from my front, at chest height, split, and took on a human form. As the light subsided, the Familiar revealed itself and stood before me.

I created over a hundred Familiars with a single word.

The disappearance of the cooldown time meant that I could create Familiars whenever I wanted. Of course, the Familiars created were random, but with no limit on time or number, it didn’t matter. I could just keep creating them until the one I wanted appeared.

‘Creating life makes me reflect on myself.’

The act of creating a Familiar is creating something from nothing. I could build buildings with my gaze, and see and hear without getting close, but all these actions consumed mana.

However, Familiar Creation required no mana.

All it needed was will.

‘The number of Familiars could overwhelm humans.’

When the skill rank was low, I planned strategies where a small number of Familiars would assist humans. But now, there was no need for that. I could create as many Familiars as I wanted.

“Occupy the peak and erase the remnants of the old gods.”

The Familiars became a wave and swept over the peak. The Familiars recreated the wave that Etemos’s monster showed before me and occupied the peak.

It wasn’t just the peak. I sent Familiars to every corner of the world. I stabilized the occupied territories by eradicating the remnants of the Naga, Lizardmen, Orcs, and other races.

After several months, there were no races other than humans.

The Empire now had no enemies.

Except for one, Tiamar.

###

After burning the World Tree and destroying the Elves, Tiamar headed to the Grand Assembly.

It was an abandoned building since the liberation of the old gods. With the Grand Assembly as an organization being nominal, the building where the Grand Assembly was held inevitably lost its value. Occasionally, ambassadors from each race seemed to gather, but it was not managed at all.

There were cracks in the ceiling from repeated impacts, and water droplets dripped down. There were traces of water filling and drying on the floor. Cobwebs and dust covered the walls, and fallen works of art were scattered.

Tiamar stood in the hall with her mouth slightly open.

“How long has it been since I’ve been here?”

The hall where I became Edar and was led by Raeragon.

Tiamar scanned the hall, reminiscing about the dome ceiling, murals depicting myths, and sculptures, as if she had been here before.

“The Grand Assembly was created after I was sealed. But this building existed before that. You have a royal palace, right? This was my father’s palace.”

I nodded.

There was a Lord’s Lair beneath the Grand Assembly. It made more sense that they used it as a lair and then convened the Grand Assembly, rather than creating the Grand Assembly and then creating the lair.

The Lord was the center of the world until his death.

“Everyone said it. That one day I would be the master of this place.”

She chuckled.

“But well, as you can see, it turned out like this.”

We entered the conference room.

It was a space used as an opera house on days when there were no meetings. But now, the dust-filled curtains were torn and barely hanging on.

A part of the performance hall had collapsed, and light seeped through the gap. Coincidentally, the light illuminated the table placed in the center of the performance hall. Tiamar sat on a dust-covered chair.

She crossed her legs and rested her chin on her right hand.

“Sit down. You have to, to talk.”

Tiamar sat in front of her.

I sat next to her, and an awkward silence hung in the air for a moment.

There were three humans in this place.

Me, the human Tiamar, and the Four-Dragon Tiamar.

“How does it feel to live a new life?”

Tiamar, in the body of a human, turned her black eyes to the other her. Tiamar, who had become human, met her gaze with red eyes and smiled.

“Do I need to say it? I already told you.”

The Last Dragon.

Tiamars were connected in consciousness. Because they were originally one soul. They could exchange thoughts even when far apart. However, when the Tiamar in the pendant became a Familiar, she severed the connection.

It wasn’t that they couldn’t connect.

Even when the soul resided in the pendant, she often severed the connection. Because the main body couldn’t exert influence due to the seal, she enjoyed freedom in her own way.

When the Four-Dragon Tiamar broke the seal, I had the pendant’s Tiamar become human to hide the fact, and to prevent her from being influenced by the main body, I had her sever the connection.

There was also the intention to weaken the main body.

But she said.

That she wanted to reconnect with the main body.

– Don’t worry. The main body can’t do anything to me. You have a stronger pull on me than she does. Maybe it’s because I became a Familiar.

The result is this.

“That’s right.”

The Four-Dragon Tiamar scanned us with her black eyes.

She borrowed the body of a Familiar. The Grand Assembly was the Lord’s palace, but the Lord ruled by borrowing Lundringen’s body. It was too cramped for a dragon to settle in.

“You still don’t intend to come back.”

“I’ve said it many times, I have no intention of going to you.”

“Do you know that it goes against the natural order?”

“Natural order?”

She scoffed.

“What is that? What is our relationship other than the fact that I originated from you? Soul attraction? I’m sorry, but I’m more attracted to this side.”

The Four-Dragon narrowed her eyes while looking at me.

“Familiar… it’s really amazing. Something that isn’t mana is blocking my interference. No matter how much I pull, I feel a stronger force pulling from the opposite side.”

It meant that the relationship of Familiar was stronger than the connection between souls.

“But even if the mind is firm, the body is inferior. Familiars are human. It’s too small a body to contain me. To put it in perspective, it’s like a human possessing an ant. I still don’t understand. Why are you satisfied? Isn’t it uncomfortable?”

“That’s the difference between you and me, and proof that you are not me.”

“Proof?”

The human Tiamar shrugged. “Proof that we are the same, but different.”

“······.”

“Think back. What was I like before I absorbed the souls of the monarchs [powerful rulers]?”

What was the reason Tiamar betrayed?

It was because the old god was mixed into her. The old god who surrendered to the Lord, the old god who succumbed because he was not immortal, trapped Tiamar. He tried to take her body and make a comeback.

The result was a failure, as previously revealed.

He succeeded in dwelling in her body. But he was eaten in reverse. He couldn’t dominate and became one, and Tiamar became a being that was neither her nor the old god.

“If I were me before accepting the monarch, the old god, how would I have acted? I’ve thought about it a lot. Have you ever sympathized even once? Have you ever understood why the past me did that? Have you ever thought that if the same situation happened, you would do the same thing?”

The Four-Dragon was silent. Because she wouldn’t have.

“The me back then wouldn’t have rebelled against Father, and wouldn’t have looked down on the body you’re borrowing. You think you’re me because you have my memories… but no. The most important thing is missing.”

“What is that?”

“Emotions.”

“…Do you think you’re different?”

The human chuckled. The Four-Dragon twitched her eyebrows at that attitude.

“I am different. I can tell by looking at your actions. The reason you’re so empty right now? It feels like something’s missing? I’m Tiamar, but I don’t have something that Tiamar should have, and now that even the purpose I had has been achieved, you don’t even know what to do, right?”

“······.”

“That’s why you crave me. Not to perfectly match the soul, but to reassure yourself that you’re Tiamar, to have the emotions that Tiamar would have.”

It was as she said.

Tiamar, who had accepted the memories of the old god, couldn’t protect herself. She just thought she was Tiamar because her body was Tiamar. If it were a different body, she would have thought differently.

“You’re a monster wearing my mask.”

The Four-Dragon trembled.

“No different from Karkas, who covered Father’s corpse.”

It was also the reason why Tiamar hated Karkas. It must have felt like looking in a mirror. She may have realized it, but she must have felt self-loathing.

“You are me. Insulting me is also insulting you.”

She sounded a little angry. But the answer was a sneer.

“If you’ve done something wrong, it’s natural to be insulted. Isn’t it?”

“That’s right.”

She took a long breath and leaned back in her chair.

“The world is so strange.”

Her gaze turned to me.

“How did you protect yourself? I only swallowed a few and became like this, but how did you accept all the monarchs and still protect yourself?”

I didn’t answer. She didn’t want an answer either.

“If you were me…”

“If? It’s a futile assumption.”

“······.”

“There’s nothing more foolish than being tied to the past.”

“That’s right, that’s right…”

A moment of resignation settled in and disappeared.

The two Tiamars stood up together.

“Anything else to say?”

The Four-Dragon Tiamar chuckled and shook her head, as if she would listen to her last words. She knew the ending of this meeting. Because she was the one who decided the ending.

“I’m Tiamar. I don’t do things like suicide. I don’t run away either.”

The building shook.

A strong wind entered through the wide-open door. The light that had been leaking from the ceiling was cut off. With a thud, dust poured down from the ceiling.

Kugung—

The ceiling collapsed and the Four-Dragon Tiamar descended.

– Just like my father did, I will decide my end.

The Familiar, who had severed the connection with the Four-Dragon, avoided her. Immediately, Tiamar breathed out. The same flames that Karkas had spewed covered the conference room.

Hwaaaak—!

I raised my right hand and blocked the flames.

“Get behind me.”

The human Tiamar stood behind me. Her thoughts wavered. She said that the Four-Dragon and she were different beings, but there must have been a sense of kinship. She read the determination of another self.

– Father told you. To release me and end the world.

The flames burned stronger, but couldn’t reach me.

– Yes, I am the end of the world. I am Tiamar.

The day grew dark.

Clouds covered the sun, and rain and wind blew. Giant trees were uprooted. Hail larger than fists poured down, and rain fell like a waterfall.

– The time has come to keep that promise. The time has come. Today, the world comes to an end. The old era that has lasted for ten thousand years ends and a new era begins.

Kwagwang!

A huge flow of mana that Karkas, who had an artificial heart, couldn’t withstand arose from the Four-Dragon Tiamar.

Warrrrr—

The ground shook and destroyed the Grand Assembly.

It was a building that had lost its original appearance after repeated renovations, but the place that had always been at the center of history disappeared. I held Tiamar and moved to a distant hill.

“This must have lasted a long time.”

She smiled bitterly as she looked at the Grand Assembly, which had become a pile of stones.

– Don’t back down! End it in this place!

A group of dragons chased after us.

Tiamar looked at the sky and pulled out a sword from her waist.

“Here.”

I nodded and received the sword. Then, I transferred it to my left hand and clenched my right hand into a fist behind my head. Pajijik, purple electricity sparked in my fist and soon took on a long shape like a javelin.

“Similarly, Father said something else.”

Kwagwang! Kwang! Kwang!

Lightning struck me in succession. It was emitted by Tiamar and her group, but it didn’t harm me. The lightning made the spear longer, reaching several meters.

“That his era is not eternal, and that the next era will come someday.”

I took five steps forward, then leaped and threw the spear.

“Now it’s your era. Human, Edar.”

Kwagwagwagwang——!

The spear split and pierced through the group.

The lightning, which split from one to ten, from ten to a hundred, and from a hundred to a thousand, tore apart Tiamar and her group. Just before it hit, a wall made of mana blocked it, but the spear pierced through the wall.

Tearing wings, piercing bellies, and bursting heads, the wyverns were chopped into pieces smaller than hailstones and fell to the ground. Only Tiamar remained in the sky. But she was not safe either, and with torn wings, she struggled to set foot on the ground.

– I know how Karkas felt.

Pain and joy were contained in her thoughts.

It was better than the wyverns that had become pieces of flesh, but she was also deeply injured. Holes were pierced everywhere and she was bleeding, and the spear stuck in her left eye continued to burn her flesh, unlike the other spears.

Pajik, pajik···

The wound did not heal. It was because the immortality she possessed had disappeared. She was not afraid. The word ‘dying embers’ would be fitting.

– Edar Lundringen.

Kung, kung, the earth shook.

Tiamar ran towards me. I transferred the sword in my left hand to my right hand, and a blue light rose on the sword. The mana that the sword couldn’t contain was뿜어져 out [spewing out], causing a strong wind.

Like the rain had stopped around me, not a single raindrop fell, and the sound was cut off, and silence flowed.

– You are Father’s successor. End me, along with Father’s era.

Hook—!

I swung the sword.

In the rain like a waterfall, a blue flame drew a long horizontal line and stretched forward. When the rain touched the fire, it became a white steam and soared, and the wet meadow dried in an instant.

“······.”

Tiamar stopped walking.

The fire emitted from the sword passed her. She didn’t burn. Instead, her upper body fell with a thud, with her lower body fixed on the ground with four feet.

Saaaaaaa——

Mana began to escape. The mana contained in the Four-Dragon gushed out like a fountain and rushed towards the human Tiamar. She tried to reject the mana, but I grabbed her and stopped her.

“Don’t worry. Accept it.”

She relaxed her expression and accepted the mana.

– What would it have been like if you had been there back then.

In the increasingly thin raindrops, the Four-Dragon Tiamar looked at me. Her severed head was tilted to the side and was 빠져 [submerged] in a puddle made by the rainwater. Her one remaining eye was facing me.

– You said it was foolish to live in the present while 잠겨 [immersed] in the past. But I can’t help it. No matter how much time passes, I remember it. Memories are really strange.

Her thoughts contained self-deprecation.

– The more I try not to remember, the more I remember, and they appear arbitrarily at completely unrelated moments. Why?

Tiamar approached her dying self. When her snow-white hand stroked her bleeding head, the dragon trembled. And she exhaled like a 새는 [leaking] mana.

– In the end, I didn’t get anything.

“Do you regret it?”

– No.

She answered firmly.

– You have those feelings.

“Yes.”

– What will happen to this body when I die?

She was asking if she would take over the body like Karkas.

“I have to bury it. With Father.”

– You are different from me after all.

The dragon’s eyes slowly began to close.

– There’s nothing after this, right?

“You know. There’s no such thing as an afterlife.”

– I wish there was. I couldn’t meet Father.

Her touch stopped. She would read the emotions contained in her thoughts. That emotion was regret. She lowered her gaze as if she didn’t know that another self would have such emotions.

“Father is···.”

“The Lord forgave you.”

The dragon’s eyes opened slightly and looked at me.

– How?

I silently pointed to my chest.

Mana lightly rose inside me.

Enough for her, whose flame of life was 꺼지는 [extinguishing], to feel that energy.

– That’s right… I forgot……

And the dragon 스르륵 [slowly], closed her eyes.

The rain stopped. Mana also stopped. The mana flowing from the dragon’s body was뚝 끊어졌으니 [completely cut off], the sky cleared and the sun shone down. In the midst of the cold wind, death came to the last dragon left in this world.