---
Title: Clash of Shadows Within Jean's Heart
Clark spoke in a deep voice, his gaze drifting into the distance:
> "It's not difficult now, exactly. But if we go deeper… it will become difficult. Right now, I'm not whole. I need to complete my evolution. It's… the inheritance. That's why I must remain there, without any of them knowing. And it's a good thing they're going to die… let them. Perhaps they'll die without ever learning the emperor's secret."
---
Jean was lost in his thoughts, his brows furrowed, lips pressed tight with worry.
He'd done several insane things—things that could destroy his life and reputation. Even if he survived this horrific battle, what he did to that girl… and that corpse… Vern's body… might be discovered. He claimed he was a noble, didn't he? If so, it wouldn't be hard to destroy me.
---
Amid the battle, Jean watched everyone with wide, trembling eyes, drenched in cold sweat that glistened on his forehead.
Though he fought well, fear gnawed at him from within.
Clark noticed. His face expressionless, eyes sharp as blades.
> "They were all fairly composed… rational, even complete. Except Jean… a rabid dog, shaking."
He thought coldly to himself:
> "I must exploit this fool. Why? Because he's a rabid dog. I need to grab him by the neck and make him obey. I must find what terrifies him so deeply."
---
On the other side of the battlefield, Alyssa was drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, her eyes locked on relentless foes.
She gritted her teeth, holding the jaw of an orc trying to bite her.
> "Damn it! Their numbers won't decrease… They won't grow cowardly unless we kill that wretched king! The Goblin King!"
Clark heard her. A faint smile curled at the edge of his blood-stained lips.
> "Once that foolish king dies, the real event begins… the fun dance."
He thought with cunning:
> "I'll kill two birds with one stone… strain Jean, shatter his pride, and destroy him entirely."
---
Clark's piercing gaze scanned the enemies before him—armed goblins, massive orcs, and bomb-throwers at the rear.
He surged into them like an infernal wind. Dodged a swing from an orc aiming at his head, ducked, rolled, rebounded with uncanny grace, then leapt onto the staff of another massive orc and drove his blade cleanly into its heart.
He grabbed another and began punching savagely—black sparks erupting from his fist.
Inside the orc's body, a black flame ignited, silently devouring its brain.
This technique only activated with direct contact.
> "A black fire formed inside the enemy—created from within, it burns without them ever understanding how."
But it rarely worked on strong warriors, especially those whose bodies were honed by divine will or the sanctity of the Light King.
---
Clark killed everyone standing between him and Jean.
From a distance, Alyssa watched with suspicion.
> "What's with these two? This isn't the time for personal vendettas."
Clark approached, his steps light despite being soaked in blood.
He pushed his hair back, one half-closed eye gazing at Jean.
Jean, meanwhile, was disheveled—soaked in more blood than Clark, panting, eyes vacant, sweat pouring from his brow.
---
Clark drew closer, whispering in a voice soft enough to fall directly into Jean's heart:
> "Heheheh… So you're afraid? Afraid of dying? There's something you don't know, Jean… something called the false truth, and the lie our minds choose to believe."
> "You… which side are you on? Are you scared? Is there something you don't want anyone to find out?"
> "You curse inwardly… why? Isn't that right? Your heart's trembling now, because I struck your core. Isn't that true?"
---
He added with a cold smile, eyes fixed on Jean:
> "Maybe you killed… right? Maybe… raped? Maybe, maybe… so many possibilities."
> "Me? I'll enjoy digging up what you've done. Do you hate me now, Jean?"
---
Jean's face turned pale, his eyes widened to the extreme, as though his heart had escaped its ribcage.
His breathing quickened, his body trembling involuntarily.
Clark smiled inwardly, pleased.
> "Yes… time for the finishing blow. It may be a lie… but in his current mental state, he'll believe it."
He said with faux emotional pain:
> "I've regained my memories… guess who ruined my life? It was you. A mangy dog like you. You were the reason everything fell apart. The reason we ended up here."
> "Look around you—now we're in a world where no one knows us. Outcasts. Are you happy?! This is because of you!"
> "You killed my loved ones in our world. You killed the women… everything. You might blame me… or that idiot who told you, 'Come with me.' But it doesn't matter."
> "You're the cause. Find a solution… or fight like a madman."
> "Or… are you too scared to die?"
---
Jean's eyes widened even more, lips trembling, hands shaking—and within his eyes… there was no longer a mind.
Clark grinned inwardly, relishing the moment. He had created a new weapon of war.
---
Title: Clash of Shadows in Jean's Heart
Clark's heart was calm as he looked at Jean. Now Jean was rattled—his secret, his vileness, his sadism… sure, that girl couldn't talk, but the two corpses were enough to expose everything. There was no way out—so what would he do?
Jean looked at Clark with fury—that composed, arrogant face, just smug enough to insult him.
> You think I feel guilty?
You think your words got to me?
You think I wish I could turn back time?
On the contrary…
> I'd do it again. And again. And again. And I'll slip out of this mess like a hair from dough.
I love killing. I love torture. I love enslaving. That's who I am.
So who do you think you are to try and shake me?
Jean smirked inwardly, mocking.
> Clark… You think you'll escape my grasp? If you're one of the great experts… then I'm the hermit who's lived a thousand years.
He said this to himself, then dodged incoming attacks while responding in a steady voice:
> "So, Jean, do you believe the lie your mind made up? Don't you know? Or don't you care?"
> "You're just a man without essence, aren't you? Or do you have ambition?
Are you just a sadist chasing his urges?
Or are you smarter than all that?
So many questions, right, Jean?"
Jean replied in a cold, breathless tone:
> "Maybe you're right… but you're still attacking. You're just trying to break me, right?
Your heart is calm, and I may seem angry, nervous…"
(He pointed to himself.)
> "I don't need excuses for what I do.
Yes—I'm an addict, a lunatic, a sadist, a fool…
But that's who I am now."
Clark laughed lightly, then said:
> "Maybe you are… but have you asked yourself this?
> Are you walking this path to find yourself?
For a goal? Or are you just a sadistic fool?
> Your desires are petty. Weak. You're like a child who quiets down with candy…
You enjoy killing—it thrills you."
(He stepped closer, whispering.)
> "Maybe I'm not looking down on you… and maybe, just maybe… I'm not even real, Jean.
What if I'm just a fragment of your subconscious?
What if… we are real?
> Maybe… I'm the version of you that sees how far you've strayed from manhood.
Maybe… I'm the voice within you that longs for battle and struggle.
Maybe… the only one who can kill the fool inside you… is you."
Clark stood behind Jean and whispered gently.
From afar, Alyssa watched tensely, uneasy.
> What the hell are those two doing?
Wait—someone was missing.
> Where's Lux?
Lux had disappeared.
Suddenly, Jean lunged at the Goblin King, roaring like a wild beast.
Clark laughed maniacally.
Alyssa rushed beside him, annoyed.
> "What did you do, you bastard?"
> (Laughing) "Hahaha, what a fool. So easy to manipulate…
He plays the wise man—but I've sealed him shut."
Alyssa said worriedly:
> "Just tell me—without the boasting—we're in danger. One of us is missing…"
Clark thought deeply.
> Maybe he wasn't killed… maybe he was taken.
Maybe a Halo user…
The only one who can control minds… is The Horse.
> The Doctrine of Minds…
It manifests through what we love, then controls us with it.
It won't work on me—I love nothing. But them…?
The mystery now: When will he appear?
And what will his first strike be?
Flashback — Clark's whisper in Jean's ear:
> "Maybe this really is all in your mind, Jean.
Maybe you won't die, maybe you'll lose nothing…
But that thing…
Is the embodiment of your filth,
The manifestation of your corruption,
The embodiment…"
(Unfinished)
---
Jean's eyes widened, and his pupils shrank as he lunged at the goblin with all his madness.
The Present
– Hahaha, he's finishing everything on his own.
– He's going to get himself killed, and here we are resting, hahaha...
To be continued...