Beyond the Eternity

[The Shattered Fragment has reached its conclusion.]

[You will be pulled out of the Fragmented Memory.]

Shatter—!

The scene splintered like fragile glass, countless shards cascading into nothingness. As the fragmented memory collapsed, the world around me began to shift and retract, dissolving back into its original form.

In the blink of an eye, I was standing in Victoria's room once more.

I blinked.

The weight of what I had just seen pressed down on me, and I stumbled to the bed, collapsing onto its soft surface. My mind whirled, struggling to piece together the truth that had just been revealed.

Julian.

He was the killer.

The realization hit harder than I expected.

So it really was him…

I had my suspicions, of course, but actually hearing if from his mouth left me stunned. Shocked, even.

He killed Reginald. But why? Rage? A fit of uncontrollable emotion?

It could have been that, yet the gruesome state of Reginald's corpse painted a different picture altogether.

It wasn't just simple murder. It was brutality. Savagery.

What would drive him to do something so… monstrous?

And then there was the letter. The so-called Witch's contract had been fake.

Why fabricate such a thing? What was the reason behind his actions?

As I stared at the ceiling, several possibilities swirled through my mind. After a few minutes of careful thought processing, I settled on a conclusion that seemed the most logical.

Julian had mentioned that Reginald sold all his properties and donated his fortune to charity. Considering Julian's mountain of debts, wouldn't that have left him utterly ruined?

Desperation.

Perhaps, in his frantic search for a solution, Julian stumbled across the gold ingot—a potential lifeline.

It wasn't hard to imagine what happened next. He must have confronted his father in the study, demanding answers. Maybe Reginald refused to explain himself, or perhaps his words only fueled Julian's rage.

And in that moment, Julian snapped.

Realizing what he had done, panic must have gripped him. He couldn't simply dispose of the body—that would have been far too suspicious. So instead, he tried to stage the scene.

He mutilated the corpse, slicing off fingers and toes, slitting Reginald's throat, and tearing open his abdomen. But it didn't stop there. He went further—removing the organs and stuffing sweets into the gaping cavity, turning the body into a gruesome display of violence.

But if he had stopped there, it would have been simple, plain murder—far too easy to trace back to him. He needed something to divert suspicion, to cover up his involvement.

But how could he do that when he was in a position to benefit directly from his father's death?

So he went even further.

He forged the letter, claiming Reginald had been killed by the Darkness Witch. He added layers of fabricated details, weaving together just enough lies and absurdities to muddy the waters and shift focus away from himself.

But was that truly the letter's only purpose?

Perhaps it served a deeper intent, not merely to deflect attention from him, but to orchestrate a far more intricate game of misdirection.

Ah, that's right. Didn't the letter mention something about solving the Witch's Epitaph to uncover the location of the gold hidden within the house?

He was only able to find gold ingot despite his efforts.

But did that mean he already knew where the rest of the gold was hidden?

Of course not.

If he knew where the rest of the gold was hidden, wouldn't his life have been far smoother?

Would he really have accumulated that massive mountain of debt just to save his already failing business?

Not at all.

The true purpose of the letter was to divert everyone's attention toward the Witch's Epitaph, hoping that one of the family members or servants would solve it and uncover the gold's hidden location. Once the gold was found, he could either choose to share the profits or eliminate the one who discovered it.

At the very least, that's as far as my reasoning goes.

Even if he was the one who killed Reginald, that doesn't necessarily mean he killed Adrian.

The memory took place just after they discovered Reginald's mutilated body. Adrian must have died only minutes later.

Adrian might have been killed by someone else, or perhaps he was really killed by Julian.

Wait... if they were really killed according to the letter, then Julian should have been the next to perish—but that's not what happened.

The main suspects are Victor and Iris, but there's also a chance that neither of them was responsible. Someone else might have been behind Adrian's murder.

The question was 'who' and 'why'.

Had the work of a detective always been this difficult?

Wait, there's no noise.

Suddenly, I realized the room had become strangely quiet.

Wasn't there a giant skull trying to force its way into the room with its own body?

Had it finally given up?

Hold on... Did it really give up that easily? How can I trust something like that? I won't be fooled twice!

Didn't something similar happen with the Executioner in the Fifth Fable?

"Tch. Tch."

I clicked my tongue twice.

It was impossible to forget what had happened in the Fifth Fable, where I had basically been sucker-punched and knocked out.

I'm certain that giant skull was waiting for me outside this room.

Or was it possible it had really gone somewhere else?

'I can't sense its presence anymore, so it must have really moved elsewhere. There shouldn't be any more shattered fragments left in this room.'

'It might be best to head outside. I still need to search for more fragments, and I can't afford to waste time lingering here.'

Whether it was a trap or not, I had to leave this room one way or another.

I rose from the incredibly comfortable king-sized bed and retrieved Ivory from the dimensional storage coat.

Slowly, I approached the door, with the Silver Demon [Ivory] in hand, and carefully opened it.

The door creaked as it gave way, and I poked my head out, scanning the area for any potential traps.

It was empty.

No matter where I looked, there were no signs of anything unusual or out of place. Even the giant skull was nowhere to be found.

Noticing the coast was clear, I stepped out of the room, remaining cautious as I scanned the surroundings.

'That's strange. Am I on the second floor? I should be, considering I was in Victoria's room, but the layout doesn't feel right.'

My eyes narrowed.

All the guest rooms, including Iris', Julian's, and Victoria's, were located on the second floor. But something about this floor felt off.

The furniture, paintings, and wallpaper—they all seemed different. No, I was certain they were different from before.

"?!"

I glanced back at the door and suddenly realized it was gone.

What was going on?

Had the house changed the layout of this floor, or was this an entirely new floor altogether? Discover stories at empire

"This is the fourth floor."

My body froze.

Certainly, I was the only person on this floor, yet a voice suddenly echoed from somewhere along the pathway. No, it seemed to have emerged from behind me.

The voice continued, indifferent to my silence.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Actually, this floor isn't part of the house's original structure. You could call it…an additional floor, I suppose. It's not difficult to alter the layout, or even create a new floor entirely, but it's quite the hassle. It drains so much energy, and the House is…unreasonably greedy."

I turned, slowly, toward the source of the voice.

A young woman stood before me.

She was breathtakingly beautiful, with pale, flawless skin and long, straight black hair that cascaded like silk down to her waist. Her crimson, wine-like eyes shimmered with a mix of elegance and cold amusement, and her posture exuded an unshakable confidence.

However, her appearance was peculiar. To be specific, it was her attire.

She wore a sharply tailored gentleman's suit, complete with a crimson tie. The suit fit her slender frame perfectly, its crisp lines accentuating her poised figure. Were it not for her noticeable feminine features, one might easily mistake her for a man.

I blinked. It wasn't that it didn't suit her; it was just…unconventional.

Could it be her master preferred this aesthetic? Or was it her choice?

Pushing away such trivial thoughts, I forced a calm smile and addressed her.

"I appreciate your hospitality, but aren't introductions in order? I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting before."

The young woman looked shocked, her mouth forming an 'O' shape.

"Oh, how rude of me. Where are my manners?" she said, then bowed gracefully. "My name is Superbia, the eldest of the Seven Sisters of Darkness. You can refer to me as the keeper of this house."

"The Sisters of Darkness, you say? How peculiar. Have you been the ones hindering our progress this entire time?" I paused, observing her reaction. "No matter, I suppose I should introduce myself in turn."

I reached into the pocket of my coat and pulled out a black card. Holding it between two fingers, I smiled faintly and proceeded with my introduction.

"My name is Kim Jakga. I am the representative of «The Fool», also known as «The Joker». You may call me the Joker, but I would prefer it if you addressed me by my name."

Superbia tilted her head slightly, as though turning the name over in her mind.

"Kim Jak-ga? That doesn't sound like an English or Japanese name."

"It's Korean," I replied evenly.

"Ah, is that so? This is my first time meeting a participant from Korea. How…interesting." Her crimson eyes narrowed slightly, studying me with renewed curiosity. "What a peculiar experience."

"You sound as though you don't get many visitors."

She let out a long, exaggerated sigh, brushing a stray strand of hair from her face.

"You have no idea. This Narrative isn't a common Story. It's one of those personal stories you'd come across only once in your entire lifetime. According to my master, and my own experiences, «Link» is frustratingly selective when choosing Stories to connect from the «Narrative Tree». Tch, just thinking about it makes me upset. Why is it always the common stories that get chosen? Doesn't it become unbearably repetitive when all the narratives follow the same tired patterns?"

The woman known as Superbia clicked her tongue and complained as if holding resentment. Or perhaps she was simply frustrated by her situation.

The Sisters of Darkness… That name nagged at me. Were they original to this Fable?

My knowledge of the Sixth Fable was somewhat limited, as it had been omitted from the novel.

Let's check her out. Someone like this should definitely have an identity as a character, right?

Without hesitation, I activated a skill.

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

[The information and data about the target will be extracted.]

Fortunately, it seemed the information-extracting power of the [Black Box] was effective against her.

As she continued muttering to herself, oblivious to my actions, I skimmed through the extracted details.

+

[ « Item Information » ]

Name: Suberbia

Classification: Creation

Powers:

| Black Flame |

| Creation Magic |

| Mana Control |

| Mana Transference |

Authorities:

| Partial House Control |

Description:A high-quality creation crafted by the Darkness Witch. Her name was inspired by a demonic sphere associated with a demon, and her personality was shaped to align with that influence. Despite her origins, she is considered the least talented among the Seven Sisters. If you dominate her completely in a one-sided manner, she will obediently follow you for eternity.

+

Her information was… straightforward, to say the least.

She could wield individual magic from the Creation Series, possessed administrative rights to control the House, and even utilized Demonic Flame (魔焰).

But—

I tilted my head upon noticing something strange within her information. Namely, her authority.

Partial House Control? Why only partial control?

Ah, perhaps it was something like this: the master would have full control over the House, while subordinates like her were granted only partial authority. Was that the scenario?

If that was the case, I should be able to manage on my own.

However, there was something in her information that stuck out like a sore thumb. Specifically, a detail in her description caught my attention.

She would obey me for eternity if I completely dominated her?