Girl in the Box: Please tell me why I was reincarnated as a mimic monster!

"Yes."

The ghost quickly retreated, then led a few people towards Seria. Seria and her group were now considered targets for elimination by the kingdom; their existence would disrupt the kingdom's plans, so…

Farewell, 'Those Involved'.

The adventurers rushed towards the entrance leading deeper into the duchy. Meanwhile, Seria and her companions had already departed, beginning their escape to the duchy. The ghosts gave chase, and the final battle began on the other side.

"Dragon Sparrow - Gale".

A whirlwind of sword energy swept across the ground in front of the entrance, causing the adventurers to stop in their tracks. Zhou Tai, enveloped in azure flames, slowly walked over, his golden eyes burning like flames.

"I'm sorry, gentlemen," Zhou Tai said, planting his knife in the ground. "This road is blocked. Please leave."

"Are you... an enemy?" one of the adventurers asked.

“That’s right. I am your enemy.” Zhou Tai nodded. “If you have no desire to fight, please leave.”

"What's going on?! How come there are so many traitors?!"

"Need I say more? Kill him!"

Clearly, communication was impossible. The adventurers launched an attack on Zhou Tai, and in the chaos, ghosts intervened, attempting to deliver a fatal blow to Zhou Tai. However, every ghost that intervened was beheaded by Zhou Tai.

Like a demon returned from hell, he fought fiercely against numerous adventurers, their strength evenly matched. He single-handedly withstood all attacks and even launched counterattacks. To this day, no one has been able to break through his defenses.

As the adventurers began to consider whether to give up here, Hale and Xia Que had already rushed into the melee.

"Master! Leave it to me alone!" Xia Que shouted to Hao Er, "I must face him alone."

“…I’ll stop them for you,” Hale added, “but I will intervene if I deem it necessary. Understand?”

"Yes, thank you, Master... That's good..."

For some reason, Xia Que always felt that she had to face that person alone. It was like a destiny; as she looked at the other person, she accidentally discovered that he was also looking at her.

When Hao'er reached the front, he held his spear horizontally, blocking the adventurers' advance. Xia Que, alone, passed through the spear and walked up to Zhou Tai.

"I'm sorry, everyone," Hale said apologetically. "I'll leave this to the hero. You all know how strong that person is."

"..."

The adventurers silently put away their weapons. They understood what Hale meant; that person was very strong, strong enough to withstand being surrounded by so many people without being defeated.

Therefore, it's best not to launch any more reckless attacks now. The enemy has already shown mercy, and he didn't take any of the many opportunities to kill them.

What they need to do now is to trust in the brave.

Xia Que stood not far from Zhou Tai, watching him. Zhou Tai also looked at her, and the two remained silent. Their hands holding the knife, their postures, and their stances were exactly the same, as if they had been carved from the same mold.

And... a sword... the "Holy Sword" Great Xia Dragon Sparrow...

Although Zhou Tai's weapon was an unstable blade made of qi, Xia Que understood that it was still the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow.

Looking at his injuries, Xia Que could imagine what he had been through, and even feel it.

“Are you… another ‘me’?” Xia Que asked.

“Who knows…” Zhou Tai assumed a fighting stance, “But I know what I need to do now. You understand as well… the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow in your possession is incomplete.”

"Are we... going to fight?" Xia Que tried her best to avoid such a situation. "Is there no other choice?"

“If you have a solution, I might consider it,” Zhou Tai said playfully. “But you don’t, do you? What I have is the ‘intention’ of the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow, while what you have is the ‘blade’ of the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow. Neither of our blades is the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow. Only when one of them disappears will the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow be complete.”

"..."

Helpless, Xia Que felt ashamed of his powerlessness. Despite being a hero, he lacked the ability to perfectly resolve any situation. This was the true nature of a hero—completely different from those in stories. Being a hero was far more difficult than imagined.

There was nothing more to say. To become whole again, Xia Que had no choice but to fight him. Xia Que knew Zhou Tai would show no mercy; she knew what kind of person he was.

Xia Que assumed a fighting stance, calmed her breathing, and stared intently at Zhou Tai. Then, they both took a step forward simultaneously, and their swords clashed at that moment.

...Click, click, click...

The ticking of the second hand echoed in Rielfa's ears, and the faint sound startled her awake. She quickly reinforced the ritual that was about to dissipate.

"Ah... almost..." Rielfa couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

The emblem of Ryze has taken shape, but the details are not yet complete, and the emblem belonging to Rielfa is gradually disappearing. Rielfa gave everything for Ryze's rebirth, but now she feels somewhat powerless.

Originally, according to her calculations, burning everything she owned would be enough to complete the ritual, but for some reason, it seems that something enormous has appeared on Li's body now.

Because it was too large and exceeded her expectations, she is now in another predicament.

This enormous thing cannot be ignored, because it is also part of the principle. If this part of the ritual is missing, she doesn't know if the ritual will be able to successfully reproduce the principle.

On the other hand, if this part is also included in the ritual, her remaining power is far from sufficient.

As the ritual nears its end, if a solution cannot be found, Raelfa will lose consciousness and enter the self-disciplined state that was prepared at the beginning. In the end, the ritual will definitely fail.

This enormous thing is unimaginably huge. To complete the ritual, it would require all of Rielfa's magic power at its peak, which she cannot produce now.

This is not good...

Rielfa's consciousness was gradually fading; in a moment, it would disappear completely. Having come this far, if she failed, she would never forgive herself.

"Lairfa! What's wrong with the stupid box!?"

A girl suddenly burst in, carrying Akatsuki on her back. She gently placed Akatsuki on the ground, then used magic to teleport to the box in one breath.

"Slime...?"

Unbelievable, but Rielfa did see it; the girl was indeed the slime who had mastered humanization. In such a short time, she had already achieved humanization, and with such immense magical power…

"Tsk, such a weak life force." The girl questioned, "What exactly did you do? How did things get like this?"

"I don't have time to explain!" Rielfa shouted. "Help me! Provide me with magic! I need to complete the ritual in one go!"

"Tsk... I don't know what you're planning, but I guess I have no other choice but to help you!"

The girl looked reluctant, but she could only help Rielfa now. She knelt down on one knee, placed her hand on the ground, and connected her magic with the ritual.

"Whoa—?! Is this thing a black hole?!"

The moment the magic connected with the ritual, it was as if it were being absorbed by a black hole, violently devouring the girl's magic.

Although she was well aware of her abundant magical power, this was the first time she had ever encountered such a ritual that seemed to endlessly steal her magic.

Meanwhile, Raelfa was fully focused on the ritual. After the slime provided magic, her ethereal soul gradually solidified, and her consciousness began to return.

With so much magic—it's possible!

Although Raelfa will disappear after the ritual and no amount of magic can help, it will be fine now.

boom--!

The magic surged at high speed, igniting magical flames. The magic circle drawn for the ritual burst forth with intense light, even penetrating the stone walls of the labyrinth. The two emblems suddenly lit up, and the emblem of Li actually swallowed the emblem of Rielfa.

Two rings have appeared around the clock on the original clock emblem of Leylefa, and delicate patterns have been added to the original gears.

Then, this brand-new emblem traversed the labyrinth and appeared in the night sky outside, heralding the birth of a new Dragon King.

"That's—!? Laelfa, are you relinquishing your power!?"

It wasn't until she saw the emblem that the slime understood what Rielfa had done. She had learned some things about the Dragon King during her travels, but she hadn't expected to meet him so soon.

The transfer of the Dragon King's power is complete; now it's time for the body!

Driven by the ritual, Rielfa's soulless body rose to its feet, reverting to its true form as the Dragon King, and unleashed its final roar.

The magic circle rapidly closed, and in the blink of an eye, only part of the dragon's body remained—this was the remains of Rielfa. The upright dragon bones surrounded the area, as if protecting this sanctuary.

The dragon's shadow transformed into a phantom and entered the box. The magic circle eventually shrank to the size of the box, emitting a faint light before gradually dimming and disappearing.

"It's alive..." The slime truly sensed the life within the box.

"Phew... Is it done...?"

Looking at the box, a huge weight was finally lifted from her heart. At the same time, her soul began to dissipate; her time was up.

“Haha…Is it time…” Raelfa smiled helplessly, then looked at the slime, “Hey, slime.”

"You guys are really messing things up." The slime complained before she could speak, "You could have just left the humanization part to me, but you insisted on doing it yourselves, and you even sacrificed yourselves for this result. I'm not worried about you guys, I'm more worried that you stupid box will be screwed over by you guys."

"You have so many opinions! Can you even handle them?" Despite knowing it was a waste of time, Rielfa still argued with her. "Don't you have anything else to say?"

"...Tsk."

The slime clicked its tongue, made a disgusted face, then looked around hesitantly before finally blushing and saying what it wanted to say to the disappearing Rielfa.

"Thank you... for taking care of the silly box and the foolish fox during this time... and... may you rest in peace."

"You're so dishonest... Some things you can't understand unless you say them out loud." Leilefa couldn't resist teasing her in the end; well, it's just her nature.

"You're so noisy...Aren't you gone...?"

The slime's final complaint didn't reach Lelfa; Lelfa was gone, probably off to find Nao. Hopefully, they can still be together.

"Isn't it... a little too quiet...?"

In just a short time, this place has lost its former vitality and liveliness. The noisy creatures are gone, the quiet creatures are gone, the flowers have withered, and the light of the Perseus Tree has dimmed.

The only people left here are her, a box, and a little fox.

Chapter 39 The Last Flower to Wither

"Oh, what's that? It's so pretty!"

"Don't block my view, I can't see you!"

"Big news! Big news!"

The Demon King's Castle is unusually lively tonight, all because of the emblem that has appeared in the sky above the twin moons. Its distinctive features are gears and clocks surrounded by rings.

In this situation, the Demon King obviously couldn't sleep. With chaos erupting outside, he could only get up and look out the window. When did the Demon King's cloak spread on the floor become his bed?

"Xuanze...?"

Serena, who was sleeping soundly in Xuanze's pocket, was also awakened by the noise outside the window. She groggily climbed out of the pocket and rubbed her eyes, which already had dark circles.

"Ah...sorry, did I wake you up?" Demon King Xuanze was unusually awake.

“No.” Serena swung wobbling onto his shoulder. “It’s just that it’s rare for you to get up on your own… You’re not like that kind of person… Is something wrong?”

"Well, I guess so. Look at the sky."

"Um……?"

Selena forced herself to clear her head, then sat on Xuanze's shoulder and looked out at the sky. A massive emblem made of magic seemed embedded in the sky, its rays spreading out like circuits across the heavens.

“That’s… the Dragon King’s emblem,” Sleina said again. “An emblem I’ve never seen before… does it belong to the new Dragon King?”

Sleina re-examined the source of the emblem and discovered it had appeared within the labyrinth. Based on the information Aye had recently brought back, and the recent events occurring near the labyrinth…

"Did the Dragon King in the labyrinth relinquish his power?" Sleina voiced her guess.

“The labyrinth must have undergone some kind of upheaval,” Xuanze speculated. “Under dungeon circumstances, the Dragon King relinquished his power, and a new Dragon King was born.”

"Has the kingdom made its move?" Sleina asked.

“Let’s send someone to check it out tomorrow,” Xuanze said, staring at the direction of the maze. “I’m more concerned about which side the newborn Dragon King intends to take. Humans? Demons? Or neutral?”

At the same time, Zhou Tai, who was fighting Xia Que, also sensed the birth of the new Dragon King... and the disappearance of Lei Erfa.

A beam of light emanated from Perseus, flashing brightly into Xia Que's eyes. Zhou Tai, completely ignoring the effects on her, approached her and raised the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow high.

"Ugh?!"

Xia Que suddenly felt a strong chill and quickly rolled away to avoid the knife. She tried to stand up, but found that the ground had turned into a smooth ice surface and she couldn't get up.

“‘Dragon Sparrow - Dark Surge’.” Zhou Tai held the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow that was stuck into the ground.

Click, click, click!

"Whoa!"

Several ice blades pierced through the ice and thrust out, forcing Xia Que to tumble and dodge in a sorry state, trying to get as far away from Zhou Tai as possible.

Hao'er, who was watching anxiously from the sidelines, was now powerless to intervene, because the "intention" emanating from Zhou Tai had formed a domain that no one present could break through.

This level of "intention" is so powerful that it can cause injury simply by touching it; it's a kind of "intention" that only a true swordsman can possess. How could Xia Que, a novice swordsman, possibly defeat that person?

Zhou Tai withdrew his sword, restoring the ground to its original state, and then approached Xia Que once more, unleashing a rapid triple slash.

Xia Que barely managed to withstand the three strikes, but the force of the three consecutive slashes numbed her hands.

When she looked up, she saw Zhou Tai almost colliding with her. His knife was firmly suppressing hers; Xia Que had no chance of winning such a contest.

Seeing him like this, Xia Que was speechless. Zhou Tai's all-out battle was his way of giving back to himself.