My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 848 - 849: Final Rebellion

Evangeline rested her head upon Damon’s shoulder, her movements slow and filled with a touch of uncertainty, as if she were gauging whether such intimacy was permitted. A fleeting thought crossed her mind: perhaps she should have simply agreed to his earlier suggestion, even if he had only meant it as a jest.

She bit her lip, her eyes falling toward the hand she currently held. Her grip tightened for a moment before relaxing again, caught in a wave of hesitation.

Ultimately, she felt she had no other path to take.

She was well aware of Sylvia’s feelings toward Damon. Though the elf girl appeared harmless—all gentle smiles and soft features—Evangeline recognized the truth. Sylvia possessed a sharp edge, a quiet possessiveness, and was deeply committed to him.

And yet... in this private moment, Evangeline found she didn't mind the closeness at all.

"Hey..." she finally whispered, her voice barely audible.

"Hmmm?" Damon murmured in response. His eyes remained shut as he felt the city steadily siphoning his mana, like a parasite feasting on his internal reserves.

"Do you believe we’ll ever return home?"

It was the first time Evangeline had given voice to her lingering dread. Perhaps because it was Damon, she allowed her shell to crack, letting her uncertainty and fear show through.

"Why wouldn't we?" Damon answered in a nonchalant tone. "I’ve already formulated a plan. We just have to slay a god and use his extravagant magical gate to head back."

Evangeline shifted her position, causing strands of her hair to spill over and brush against his shoulder.

"But what if we have simply landed in a past version of our own world?" she asked softly. "What if this is a dream we can never wake from?"

Damon’s brow furrowed slowly.

"A dream?"

His voice didn't sound dismissive; rather, it was filled with curiosity. Having known him for so long, Evangeline could easily tell the difference.

"Yes," she confirmed. "This is the nightmare of an entity named Lazarak. A voice spoke when we first arrived..." She stopped, the memory vivid in her mind. "Victory is an eternal nightmare, and defeat is the moment of awakening."

She leaned her chin on his shoulder, disregarding the social norms that frowned upon such proximity between men and women. The city was freezing, and his warmth was far more important than any rules of etiquette.

"There is a prize as well," she added. "Those who manage to survive until the end will be granted the boon of a fourth-class advancement."

Damon turned his face toward hers until their noses nearly touched. His frown became more pronounced.

The Nightmare of Lazarak.

He recognized that name and knew exactly where Lazarak was supposed to be located. He also recalled the system notification; it had relayed those exact words.

'Victory is an endless nightmare.'

That specific phrase... it was clearly the handiwork of the Unknown God. This was the same being that had pulled them into this nightmare and used it to consume the dungeon gate itself.

If that was the case, then this might truly be a—

"Nightmare," Damon whispered under his breath.

However, the detail regarding the boon was new to him. The promise of reaching the fourth class just by surviving was a significant revelation.

Evangeline’s concerns were valid.

If this wasn't the actual past but rather an artificial dreamscape, then...

Damon shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.

The evidence was right there. Yet, when dealing with the Unknown God, the line between a dream and reality was blurred. This was a deity capable of folding the entire omniverse at a whim.

Was that the reason he had appeared in person?

He had inhabited the body of the priestess from the snake temple; there had to be a deeper meaning behind that choice.

Suddenly, Damon stood up.

The core question was straightforward.

Was this the historical past?

Or was it a realm meticulously crafted by a true god?

"You are experiencing the Nightmare of Lazarak," Damon muttered to himself.

"You are... no, Lazarak is..." He trailed off, his eyebrows knitting together. He needed to think. In the waking world, Lazarak was dead—he had to be. Damon had discovered the tomb of the lesser gods that Lazarak had fathered. The Goddess would never permit him another chance to threaten her divine order.

Therefore, Lazarak must have already met his end.

Which led to one conclusion—

The ones currently dreaming... were all of them together.

"How exactly does one wake up," Damon whispered, "from a horrific dream?"

Evangeline watched him closely. She could tell that Damon was lost in a train of thought far more complex than he was letting on.

"We cannot afford to die here," she said in a low voice. "I have a feeling that if we do... it will be our final end."

He gave a slow nod of agreement.

"I know. I haven't missed that detail." He let out a long breath. "But at the same time... the Unknown God has a fondness for riddles. 'Victory is an endless nightmare.'"

He turned his body to face her directly.

"Does that imply that if we succeed... we will stay trapped here forever?"

She frowned deeply.

"But we cannot simply choose to lose in order to wake up," she reasoned, "because if we suffer defeat... we die."

The night breeze tugged at her hair.

"It’s a paradox. Victory means we never leave, and defeat means we perish." Her voice took on a harder edge. "It’s exactly what I’d expect from the god of the demons. A truly malevolent entity."

Damon inhaled deeply and shook his head.

"That is true. However, for the moment, our priority is locating the others, demons included." His gaze turned sharp. "I suspect they are in the inner city, given their strength. We will need the help of Sylvia, Lilith, Renata... and whatever power the demons possess."

He tightened his fist.

"If this truly is the Nightmare of Lazarak," he declared coldly, "then so be it. I want to see exactly what kind of horror Lazarak endured in the past."

From his tone, Evangeline realized he possessed secret knowledge about this figure.

"Who is this Lazarak, anyway?" she inquired tentatively.

"Lazarak is a minor deity of darkness, peace, serenity, and rest," Damon explained. "Though he rarely grants the last one."

He continued his explanation calmly.

"He was the first being to exist within Aetherus, and he is the older brother of Aetherus itself."

She started to ask another question, but he held up a hand to silence her.

"Yes, Aetherus is a person. Or more accurately... a god. The planet is a living deity. The god of light, life, and war."

He began to pace as he spoke.

"Order reigned for a time. War blanketed the world, and lesser gods were honored at altars of blood. That lasted until Lazarak, the god of peace, staged a rebellion."

His voice grew heavy.

"The revolt was crushed. Everything changed after that. Lazarak was locked away for millennia, buried in the deepest pits of the imaginary prison known as Eidolon."

Damon folded his arms across his chest.

"Eventually, I suspect he broke free. He wiped out the lesser gods, signaling the conclusion of the Zero Epoch. In doing so, he facilitated the Unknown God’s entry into our world."

He sighed heavily.

"True worship of the Unknown God only began during the First Epoch, led by Mugu the Wicked Prophet—the very first demon. He sowed the seeds of the demon race, which Ashcroft later expanded into a dominant empire during the Second Epoch, before his eventual downfall at the hands of the Goddess."

He finally stopped pacing.

"I believe we are standing at a pivotal moment in history," Damon said softly. "We are witnessing—or perhaps living through—the start of Lazarak’s final uprising."

His gaze softened, filled with a trace of melancholy.

"The concluding chapter of his story."

Evangeline bit her lip nervously.

"If we only knew Lazarak's location," she whispered. "We might be able to stop him."

Damon raised an eyebrow at her.

"Stop him?" he repeated. "Why would we want to do that?"

Evangeline looked back at him, her own eyebrow raised in suspicion.

"You know where he is, don't you?"

Damon reached up to scratch the back of his head.

"Well... we were essentially cellmates back in Eidolon."

Evangeline’s eyes went wide with shock.