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The cult leader slowly opened his mouth.

“Is possession that important?”

I felt a surge of emotion before I could even process it. Was possession important? What kind of obvious, nonsense question was this guy asking?

“Of course it’s important! At the very least, you must have had a goal to return to your original world, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Did you give up on that? Why are you doing all this? After all, you were just a player who enjoyed this game.”

I expected the cult leader to get angry or show some kind of reaction.

However, his expression remained neutral, closer to boredom than anything else.

He spoke briefly about himself.

“…”

“Knowledge like ‘I already know this world’ meant nothing to me. I simply had to grow stronger to survive. That pursuit of strength led me to become the leader of the Bloodstone Cult.”

Hearing this made me feel sad.

So, he fell into this world three hundred years ago, and all that knowledge from the game turned out to be useless. He just clung to life, seeking power, and ended up as the cult leader.

Ahem.

As someone who also possessed a body in this world, I could understand his feelings better than anyone.

I almost felt like crying…

Yeah, right.

At first glance, it seemed like a tragic story of hardship, but if he was a former player, he would have known. The Bloodstone Cult had sacrificed countless people. No normal human would resort to draining others’ lives to grow stronger.

Which meant this guy was insane.

It made sense that he was the head of a fanatical religious order.

“Don’t expect me to value Earth anymore. I’ve spent the last three hundred years gradually forgetting it.”

“…That’s a rather sad thing to say.”

“Why are you suddenly speaking formally?”

“Well, if you’ve lived here for three hundred years, no matter how generously I count, you’re definitely not my peer.”

He smirked.

“Just speak as you were. Nothing will change.”

Even his smile felt absolute.

A chill ran down my spine.

Titles or whatever meant nothing in the face of his presence.

His core had to be shattered, his energy circulation completely disrupted, and yet he still exuded this kind of confidence.

Calmly, he spoke again.

“Seeing that you’ve made it all the way here, I can roughly guess what happened outside. Did you break through all the surrounding forces?”

“Yeah.”

“What happened to Two?”

“He blocked my way with everything he had… and died.”

To be precise, he was devoured by the Blood Witch.

The Blood Demon tilted his head slightly, as if surprised, before asking,

“How did you defeat Two? I’m curious. He shouldn’t have been an easy opponent for you.”

I stared at the cult leader in disbelief.

For someone who just lost a trusted subordinate, he was way too calm and composed. He was even asking how Two died.

Of course, it was possible he was trying to learn how to kill me using the same method.

But judging by his indifferent expression, that didn’t seem to be the case.

The man was the leader of a religion filled with madmen.

That meant he was completely insane himself.

“Hurry up and answer.”

There was no sorrow, no regret, no hint of sadness in his voice—just pure curiosity.

Realizing just how deranged he was, I finally responded.

“Two was too careless. As soon as your cult’s barrier shattered, he rushed in. He must’ve thought he had the upper hand, but that overconfidence was his mistake. I didn’t have much trouble taking him down.”

“So, the Blood Witch sided with you.”

Damn, he was sharp.

“…That’s also true.”

“I figured. That child was bound to leave me someday. And what about Four? I don’t see him, so I assume you dealt with him as well?”

“I killed him too.”

“I see.”

The cult leader simply nodded.

Despite losing his most loyal subordinates, he showed no sadness.

“Aren’t you even a little sad?”

Before I knew it, I had asked the question.

I was curious—what was he thinking? How had he lived all this time?

I was here because of my comrades, and I was still standing thanks to them. But even though he was alone now, he remained unchanged.

“Why should I be sad? They merely did what they had to do and died in the process. Pursuing strength—that is the way of the Bloodstone Cult.”

He was the cult leader through and through.

A man who moved forward without looking at anything but his own values.

Even if he had started as a player, his nature was fundamentally different from mine.

Looking at him, I couldn’t help but feel that he stood in complete opposition to me.

Well, even our hair color was the total opposite.

That pure white hair… anyone would mistake him for a saint.

Yet he was the undeniable final boss.

“So, how do you intend to stop me?”

I answered.

“You’re trying to consume the world. Isn’t it obvious?”

“If you’re just going to spout clichés that only belong in some third-rate hero’s story, you’d be better off keeping your mouth shut.”

“You actually make sense. I don’t like those naïve, goody-two-shoes protagonists either.”

“Then you have even less reason to stand in my way. Even knowing your life will come to an end.”

He spoke as if killing me would be easy.

And from his tone, I could tell he truly believed that.

He wasn’t wrong.

After all, he was the Blood Demon, and I was just a human.

But right now, instead of fighting with swords, we were clashing with words.

There was no need to be intimidated yet, so I asked.

“Why are you so determined to destroy the world? Even going as far as summoning the Void?”

“Be more specific.”

“Well, the fact that you’ve lived for three hundred years means that, in some way, this world must have had significance to you. I just don’t understand why you’d suddenly bring in beings from another dimension to overturn everything.”

I held back from saying, ‘Weren’t you also a player who liked this game?’ Because, honestly, Fantasy X Academy was a garbage-tier game.

And considering he was thrown into the story three hundred years ago, it made sense if he ended up hating it.

The cult leader spoke calmly.

“To become a Demon God. I need many sacrifices, so offering up the entire continent wouldn’t be a waste.”

“That’s it? That’s your whole reason?”

The cult leader chuckled at my response.

“Do you not understand the value of the Demon God’s position?”

“I do. But is that worth the lives of everyone on this continent?”

He looked at me as if I were the one speaking nonsense.

“I don’t understand you.”

“In what way?”

“Think about it. You possess knowledge of most things in this world. You know where treasures are hidden. Some of them, with a single touch, can completely control the minds of several people. With that alone, you could have the continent in your hands. Are you really so incapable of grasping that?”

At first glance, it sounded like he was just calling me an idiot.

Like, You know those items exist, yet you haven’t conquered the continent? What, are you stupid?

How very modern of him.

His refined tone aside, he sounded no different from some internet comment section.

Honestly, that stung a little.

Maybe he used to be the type who posted snarky replies.

Or maybe it was just that I hadn’t had a conversation like this in a long time.

Either way, thanks to my title, I was able to maintain my composure.

I decided to play along with his words.

“So, in the end, you just want to take over this world?”

“More precisely, I want to stand at the pinnacle of humanity. To become a god.”

He was no longer a modern man.

He was a being who had lived in this world for three hundred years.

He could sacrifice tens of thousands of people without hesitation.

Drench the continent in blood.

All to transcend humanity.

That’s why he was the villain.

And because he was the strongest among them, he was the final boss.

I could feel that we were approaching the conclusion.

But I wasn’t the one who would decide how it ended.

No matter how villainous or insane he was, he had listened patiently to everything I had to say.

And this was his domain.

That meant he was still willing to hear me out.

I ran my hand over the ground before speaking.

“So then. What do you want? Let’s do as you wish, Cult Leader. Whether it’s a fight or a battle of words.”

“You would let me decide?”

“Regardless of everything, I acknowledge that as the leader of the Bloodstone Cult and the Blood Demon, you’ve entertained this conversation with me. That alone is a remarkable thing.”

“Hehe. You’re an amusing one, from start to finish.”

“Just think of it as a little bit of romance.”

As I spoke, I glanced around.

Even within the cult leader’s domain, there was a distinct aesthetic.

Unlike the Blood Witch’s territory, which was drenched in crimson.

‘If I fight here, my power will surely be limited.’

The Blood Witch had mentioned it—

Domains were like extreme buffs for their owners.

And since the cult leader had already ascended to Blood Demon, he was unquestionably stronger than me.

The disadvantage was clear.

“Don’t worry too much. I’m not so petty as to rely on tricks.”

He smirked.

As if he had read my thoughts.

Then, he slowly rose from his seat.

“I don’t fully grasp the situation outside. Honestly, I had planned to quietly sacrifice Lichten and ascend as a Demon God. But it seems things aren’t going as planned.”

“You’re right. The Void Wave has been mostly repelled on our side.”

“So, half of the Bloodstone Cult’s forces have been wiped out.”

“But it’ll still be difficult to stop the Void Deity you summoned.”

“A stalemate, then?”

“More or less. If things continue like this, neither you nor we humans will get what we want. Everyone will just collapse together.”

“Hmm.”

The cult leader pondered for a moment before speaking.

“Then let’s do this. If you defeat me in a one-on-one duel—”

“…?”

“I’ll stop everything.”