Beyond the Eternity

Miyuki tilted her head.

"I can communicate with ghosts and spirits?"

"Yes. Didn't you check your system interface information?"

"I did," she said quietly, looking down. "But I just didn't think it was important."

"Make sure to check it properly time."

Upon saying so, I quickly went through her private information.

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[System Interface]

Name: Miyuki Kuroi

Age: 11

Star Contract: Kim Jakga

Primary Attritudes: Caster (Rare), Medium (Unique)

Specialized Skills: Low-Grade Fire Magic Lv. 8, Spirit Communication Lv. 3, Taming Lv. 5, Quick Casting Lv. 7

Divine Authority: Magic Talent

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Medium.

It was an attribute that granted the user the ability to perceive and communicate with spirits from the spiritual plane.

According to Song of Nightmares, the spiritual plane was described as the dwelling place of spirits. While this was evident from its name, the residents of that plane carried their own unique stories yet were unable to interact with the physical world.

When the Disaster of Storms took my life, my soul retreated into its spiritual vessel, drawing me into the spiritual plane.

It was no different from the real world. In fact, the spiritual plane coexisted with the physical world, and completely overlapped Its boundaries.

At the time, I couldn't afford to focus on observing the peculiar plane due to my ongoing battle with the Disaster of Storms. However, one thing was certain:

The laws of logic and physics held no sway in the spiritual plane, and its presence was omnipresent.

「 The Spiritual Plane permeates all realms, extending through higher dimensions such as the Demon World and the Kingdom of Gods, reaching beyond the Tree of Mysteries 」

「 The Da'at Abyss lies outside the Tree of Mysteries, a Void of Nothingness where those who have lost their sense of self are cast away 」

「 If the Spiritual Plane reaches even the Da'at Abyss, then It would make sense that spirits would be present in this house 」

Those were the words of Soo Jinyoung in Song of Nightmares.

It was her first encounter with the mysteries of the Abandoned House. However, she failed to clear the Sixth Fable due to her mistakes, and as a result, was forced to reincarnate to escape a cruel fate. Needless to say, she never encountered the Abandoned House again, as the contents and setting of the Sixth Fable shifted in the next alternation.

But such a scenario won't occur in this round.

This Soo Jinyoung was no longer alone, and I wouldn't let the same mistakes repeat.

If Miyuki could communicate with the spirits, we might be able to solve this mystery much more quickly. However, that doesn't mean every spirit in this place could be considered an ally.

There was a particular group of malicious spirits that would try to hinder our progress. For example, the one that spoke using Miyuki's voice.

What If he died before his birthday?

What an interesting theory.

I might have considered that possibility if it weren't for the well-known fact that, on his 80th birthday, Family Head Reginald uttered some disheartening words to his children.

You had to be alive to speak, Yes?

The possibility of a Doppelgänger didn't even cross my mind. If the voice that spoke had truly belonged to one, his children would have sensed something was off from the start.

Could there be such a thing as a perfect impersonation?

In the end, it was nothing more than a useless theory with no solid ground. It was a cute attempt, but I won't be fooled by deception of this level.

"Hey, I found something."

The moment Yoo Rin entered the study, she spoke, immediately capturing our attention. At the same time, Moon Jiyeon and Ryu Yeji stepped in as well.

Yoo Rin raised the spiritual orb she held in her hand.

It was a Fragment.

[You have found the Fragment — First Murder.]

I smiled and said, "Good work, Yoo Rin."

"Ah, thank you, Ahjussi."

Yoo Rin scratched her cheek, brushing it awkwardly. Did she like being the praised?

What an innocent fellow.

Having collected the fragment from her hand, I proceeded to activate the system interface.

[Would you like to examine the Shattered Fragment?]

[ Yes (Select) / No ]

Fufufu!

The room distorted, and the scene shifted. It was the familiar sensation of a memory examination, one we had already experienced twice before.

"Oh my god!"

"What the hell?! What the hell?!"

Panicked cries assaulted my ears. The characters from this memory had entered the study, only to be confronted by a horrifying scene.

Even the faces of the group members quickly paled.

"Miyuki, cover your eyes quickly!"

"What kind of sick bastard would do something like this?"

Ryu Yeji clenched his fist, while Yoo Rin quickly covered Miyuki's eyes. Even Soo Jinyoung and Moon Jiyeon were unable to hide their unease.

[Personal skill, 「 Black Box 」 has activated.]

If It wasn't for this skill, I would have completely lost my composure.

Just what kind of twisted crime scene was this?

Reginald lay sprawled across the table in the center of the study, facing the ceiling above. His body was unnaturally stiff, his neck gruesomely sliced open by what must have been a razor-sharp. Continue your adventure with mvl

Dark, dried blood painted grotesque trails down his pale skin, pooling at the base of the table.

But It didn't end there.

His eye sockets were empty, hollow craters where his eyes had been viciously gouged out. His fingers and toes were severed cleanly, scattered across the floor like discarded trash.

However, even this wasn't the most horrifying part.

His stomach had been ripped wide open, exposing the gaping cavity of his abdomen. His internal organs and carefully arranged in an intricate, almost artistic pattern across the table, forming what appeared to be a symbol or message.

And amidst this horrifying tableau was the most birraze detail of all. Within the hollow of his torn stomach lay a pile of brightly coloured candy and sweets. Perhaps the mysterious assailant wasn't satisfied with simple murder, so they added those candy and sweets as an attempt to mock the savagery of the scene.

The room reeked of coppery blood, decay, and an unnervingly aroma that felt out of place.

Even in a memory, the stench was unbearable.

"Damnit."

I muttered, covering my nose.

"Tck!"

Dante snapped. With a growl, he grabbed the Family Head's Buttler, George, by the collar and hoisted him off the ground.

"You bastard! Tell me what happened here?"

"I don't know, sir."

Despite the grim reality, George remained composed, and radiated an unsettling calmness.

He only lowered his head slightly.

It was this unflappable demeanor that seemed to ignite Dante's fury even further.

"You were the last person to enter this study. Don't lie to me!"

"Sir, I only left to fetch tea for Master Reginald. When I returned, he was already like this and I came to inform all of you at once."

"Do you really expect me to believe that? The study door can only be opened from the inside, and there's no way Father, who never trusted his own family, would have let anyone else in. So if it wasn't you, who could have done it? And why are you so damn calm, even now?!"

"Please forgive me, Sir. I truly don't know how this happened, nor can I explain what occurred. If it will ease your anger, feel free to strike me as much as you wish. After all, I'm nothing more than furniture."

"You... You..."

Dante's grip on George's collar tightened as he ground his teeth. His patience was wearing thin, and the butler's unnervingly calm expression only fueled his rage further.

Before he could act on the anger building inside him, Julian's voice emerged like a knife.

"That's enough, Dante. Release George."

Dante turned his head and looked at him in disbelief.

"Brother, even you.... Don't you understand the situation?!"

"On the contrary, It's because I understand the situation that I can say that."

"What are you saying?"

"I understand you're angry but please use your head a little. If George were the killer, why would he murder Father, especially when he's known to be the last person who entered the study?"

"T-That..."

Dante opened his mouth several times, but words failed to leave his lips.

His anger and frustration lodged in his throat, choking him into silence. Perhaps he must have also realised how absurd the situation was.

He seemed to calm down a little and placed the buttler on the ground, before realising his collar.

Dante said briefly, almost a whisper.

"I-I'm sorry."

"I understand, Sir."

Dante's gaze shifted from George to Julian, and soon, all eyes followed. The room fell silent as everyone waited, eager to hear what he had to say.

As expected, It didn't take long for Julian to speak once more.

"As I mentioned, just because George was the last to enter the room doesn't automatically make him the killer. Besides, this doesn't look like a crime committed in the heat of the moment. Someone had deliberately planned this murder."

"Even so, it doesn't make sense that we didn't hear anything. There's no way the Old Man would've gone down without a fight or at least letting out a scream."

"Father had the study designed to be soundproof, likely to ensure he wouldn't be disturbed while reading. Unfortunately, that decision ended up working against him."

"Damnit.... Did he trust us so little?"

Dante spoke with a shaky voice and clenched his fist. His wife, Luna, held his hand to comfort him.

Everyone was visibly shaken by the gruesome scene, especially Elena and Luna. While they harbored ill feelings toward him, that didn't make it any easier to stomach the sight of his death.

After all, 'he' was still their father despite being a terrible person.

Which child would want to experience such a scene?

Such a scene....

[Personal skill, 「 Black Box 」 is weakening.]

My vision shook.

The the gruesome scene merging with an image buried deep in my mind. I could feel my composure slipping, and the memories clawing their way to the surface.

The sight of blood, Reginald's hollowed eyes sockets and the gaping slash across his neck.

It all brought back that moment. A painful memory I tried so hard to bury in the depths of the Abyss.