Chapter 770: Oliver (11)
The elder members of the Development Opposition Committee dashed down the deep corridor, only to return shortly with a group of young men in tow.
Silently, they guided the bewildered young men past Oliver, who also allowed them to pass without a word. Enough had been discussed already; anything further would be a waste.
However, one of the last elders to pass didn’t seem to share this sentiment. He paused, hesitated for a moment, then quietly muttered, “...Thank you.”
Those two words carried an immeasurable weight.
In response, Oliver offered a slight nod and continued walking down the hallway with Eve by his side.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sound of footsteps echoed in the dark hallway until they eventually arrived at a weathered, old-fashioned door.
Creak—
When Oliver pushed it open, a stiff creak sounded from the hinges, revealing the room beyond.
Though the curse of hell had been lifted, remnants of sin remained here—a twisted space of pulsing flesh.
Oliver had taken on their sins, redeeming them, but for some reason, this place alone persisted. The reason quickly became apparent: a dark red door stood in the room’s depths.
The door, carved from a dark crimson wood, had embedded itself into the tainted mass of flesh, forcibly holding this space together.
It was as though it still had unfinished business.
Oliver approached it to examine it more closely.
Twitch. Twitch. Twitch.
The bottom edge of the door, rooted in the flesh beneath it, seemed to spread its hold across the entire space.
Perhaps because of this, the room felt more distorted than ever, as if it were an entirely different dimension—a place somewhere between the human world and hell. And that wasn’t the only strange aspect.
From a distance, the object appeared to be a door, but upon closer inspection, it was merely a wood carving fashioned to resemble one.
It was not a true door; just a piece of wood sculpted in the shape of one.
The fact that pushing it didn’t budge it was evidence enough.
Oliver stepped back and examined the door.
It was massive but otherwise plain, almost like a blank canvas awaiting a painter’s brush.
As if in a trance, Oliver stared at the door for a long time before speaking up, “...I’m not sure what to say.”
This unexpected remark left Eve, Pandora, and Lilith tilting their heads in the same way, looking very much like sisters... perhaps even more than that, given that they were once a single being until they were split at Oliver’s gesture.
Recalling what he had done in the past, Oliver’s expression grew subtly tense. The change was too faint to notice at first glance, but with careful observation, one could detect a hint of regret.
The first to read his feelings was Pandora, who spoke softly.
“What do you mean, Father?”
Turning to face her, Oliver looked into their eyes.
“I want to say something to each of you before I leave, but I don’t quite know where to start. I think it’s because I’ve done you all such wrongs.”
Pandora smiled in a comforting manner at Oliver’s admission.
“Oh, Father, you don’t need to—”
“—No, I mean it,” Oliver interrupted, stepping closer.
Though his tone was gentle, the weight and sincerity behind his words made it impossible to dismiss.
“I only feel regret towards you. Pandora, Eve, and Lilith.”
The three sisters stared at him, speechless.
It was the natural response.
What reaction could a creation possibly offer when its creator sought forgiveness? Especially when that creator was a being almost as close to a god?
When faced with such a scenario, they could only be stunned into silence, perhaps even overwhelmed or afraid.
For sometimes, a gap of overwhelming position and power can render one party a sinner, regardless of fault.
Perhaps aware of this, Oliver continued speaking.
“Of course, this apology may just be for my own peace of mind. But even so, I still want to express my sorrow to each of you.”
“...”
“If I were to stay silent out of fear, it would mean I haven’t grown at all. That’s not what I’ve learned.”
“...”
“So I’ll take on the burden of your discomfort and apologize to you.”
Oliver’s attempt at humor, though bleak, seemed to have reached them.
“...What exactly are you sorry for?”
Eve, who bore an expression as stoic as Oliver’s, quietly but firmly asked for clarification.
Oliver replied, “For everything. I created you, yet failed to recognize you, and when we met again, I struck you out of my own impatience, which led to...”
He trailed off, looking at each of them—Eve, Pandora, Lilith—in turn.
“...It led you to experience pain you should never have endured. Identity crises, threats to survival, wandering, kidnapping, imprisonment, and exploitation. To the point where, in order to survive, you had to consume your own sisters.”
As Oliver’s words sank in, Lilith closed her eyes, Eve grew contemplative, and Pandora forced a smile.
“You didn’t know, did you?”
“Yes, I was unaware until Pandora told me. Which makes me even more regretful. It seems my ignorance and neglect only added to your suffering.”
“...?”
“Not only that, but because I was unaware, you couldn’t fully hate me, could you? Because my ignorance served as a shield.”
“...”
“What’s worse, I know that even if I had known who you were back then, I would have abandoned you.”
He was referring to when Rosburn was abducted by Martel.
Oliver had connected to the World Tree to learn more about Martel, unknowingly encountering Eve and creating Pandora and Lilith with his actions.
Oliver then asked himself—if he had known of Eve’s existence back then, would he have cared? No, he wouldn’t.
Because Rosburn had been taken.
This realization only deepened Oliver’s guilt towards Eve, Pandora, and Lilith.
“I am definitely not a good employer. I doubt I’m a good father, either.”
The word "father" made them flinch.
Oliver continued.
“Even so, I’d like to play the role of a father just this once. If you’ll allow it, I’d like to offer each of you a blessing... Would that be all right?”
“...Yes.”
With those words, Oliver’s daughters nodded after a long pause. They understood that Oliver wouldn’t have said it lightly. He must have struggled many times before finally bringing it up.
Once they granted their permission, Oliver expressed his gratitude, making the sign of the cross, then laid his hands on each of their heads, in the order of Eve, Pandora, and Lilith, to bestow his blessing.
“After I leave, each of you will gain freedom. You will be bound by nothing and free to live as you desire.
“You will be able to pursue your own questions, satisfy your curiosity, and have the right to live a life of your own choosing.
“Anyone who attempts to infringe on that right will be punished, and I will watch over you as compensation for all the times I failed to care for you.”
After giving his apology and blessing, Oliver embraced each of them—Eve, Pandora, and lastly Lilith, whom he hugged even tighter as he whispered in her ear.
“Lilith, if you wish to meet Puppet, you may do so.”
“...”
“But, before you go, observe him closely. If, even then, you still want to meet him, then do so.”
“...Are you saying I might not want to meet him?”
“No, the choice is entirely yours. Just as it is for everyone else. You simply choose what is best for you.”
Leaving her with these words, Oliver released Lilith and stepped back, speaking once more.
“Then, let us begin.”
In response, Eve, Pandora, and Lilith surrounded the dark red wood carved like a door from three sides, kneeling as they placed their hands on the roots embedded in the flesh below.
[Idea]
Once, they had been a single being, and now, with one mind and one will, they combined the information within the twisted flesh and roots, bringing it into reality. The distorted space, balanced between the human world and hell, began to shift...
Thump! Thump!
The twisted flesh covering the space pulsed like a heartbeat. The tree roots embedded in the flesh swelled and contracted, as if devouring the sin within the flesh.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
As the heartbeat quickened, the air within the space trembled in response. Most notably, something began to emerge on the plain door that had previously been blank.
It was the suffering souls trapped in hell.
[Ahhhhh...]
[Aaah...]
And it didn’t stop there.
Splurt—! Splurt—! Drip.
Black liquid spurted out from the gaps between the grooves in the wood carving, pooling onto the ground.
Just witnessing the liquid’s ominous presence made one’s mind foggy. Without hesitation, Oliver reached his hand toward the door from which the liquid seeped.
Grab!
The souls that had surfaced on the door clutched at Oliver’s arm desperately.
[Grahhhhh...]
They clung to him with the desperation of someone clutching a lifeline at the edge of an abyss.
Oliver looked at their hands and spoke calmly.
“Will you let go?”
[...]
“Would you let me pass so I can come to you?”
In response to Oliver’s sincere request, the hell-bound souls, driven only by primal instinct, one by one released their grip.
Now free, Oliver, without a moment’s hesitation, pushed on the door. Amazingly, the wooden sculpture, previously immovable, opened as if it were an actual door.
Creeeeeak...
An unearthly, haunting sound echoed as a pitch-black void was revealed beyond.
It was a dense, suffocating darkness, as if the night sky, the bottomless depths of the ocean, or pure darkness itself had condensed into this single space.
[Aaaahhhh...]
[Uuuuhhh...]
[Ooohhh...]
[Grghrr...]
From within the darkness, countless wailing voices cried out as a multitude of arms stretched forth, each trying to drag him inward. Without hesitation, Oliver stepped into the abyss.
Into the infinite darkness.
“Ah.”
Halfway in, Oliver suddenly paused and turned back to address Eve, Pandora, and Lilith, who had opened the gate to hell.
“I almost forgot—thank you, my daughters.”
Creeeeeak—slam!
With those final words, Oliver fully entered the darkness, and the gate to hell slammed shut in an instant.
As it closed, the flesh that had coated the surroundings withered and vanished like a mirage, and the hellish door reverted to its original form as a mere wooden sculpture.
Thus, Oliver disappeared from this world.
...
In the infinite void of pure darkness,
Oliver stood alone.
Ordinarily, such a place would be filled with countless hands reaching out for salvation, accompanied by disorienting wails. Yet, for some reason, the moment Oliver fully entered, they vanished.
They had all fled, avoiding something approaching from the depths.
Aware of this fact, Oliver unstrapped the leather case on his back and retrieved Big Mouth.
“Grrrrk?”
Swelling like bread dough, Big Mouth croaked with its characteristic toad-like sound as it surveyed this unfamiliar realm.
“Big Mouth. Could you bring that out?”
At Oliver’s command, Big Mouth promptly vomited out a large box, a bottle of wine, and four wine glasses.
“Blleeeech—!”
Inside the box was a specially ordered cake, courtesy of Al—an exquisite chocolate cake from the Forest Restaurant.
Thud. Thud. Thud...
Just as he took out the chocolate cake and wine, the sound of hooves echoed in the silence of the darkness.
Tap. Tap. Tap...
It wasn’t just hooves. Another set of footsteps steadily approached.
Oliver turned, asking as he looked back, “Are you here to welcome me?”
A short distance away, three figures approached—an old man on horseback, a lady on a camel, and a figure wreathed in flames.
Unlike their corrupted, twisted forms as sacrificial avatars, they now appeared in their original forms... almost beautiful, for demons.
“We have been awaiting your arrival.”
The old man dismounted his horse, and the lady descended from her camel, joining the scorched figure as all three knelt on one knee before him, a gesture of respect.
It was an act acknowledging Oliver’s presence.
In response, Oliver held up the specially ordered chocolate cake and wine, offering, “Shall we start with cake?”