[ You have survived the penalty. ]
[ As compensation for your struggle, you will receive a perk. ]
[ You have unlocked the Death Store. ]
[ You have gained 10,000 Death Points (DP). ]
[ Leaving the Penalty Zone... ]
With dull eyes, Lucian simply stared at these holographic screens as he slumped on the red sand, his body and mind utterly exhausted.
In one moment, as though he was swallowed by a dark emerald void, his body imploded to nothingness, leaving nothing but haunting silence in the hellish penalty area.
In the next moment, his figure materialized at the driver's seat where the white ghost girl, who patiently waited, remained seated.
Kim Sana then glanced at him.
"Are you okay, Oppa...?"
Lucian didn't utter a word. Instead, he abruptly exited the car in a hurry, and on the side of the scarce road...
"Blegh!"
—he threw up whatever his stomach had stored.
His breathing became ragged, and the toll of what he had experienced began eating away at his mind, slowly but surely.
Even though the Burning Catcher, after summoning it with his skill, dragged his feet against the other chasing monsters, Lucian still sensed the lingering agony.
In fact, he felt like death was infinitely better than such hell.
Aside from that, he had learned a few things in those two hours.
To begin with, the monsters aiming for his gradually blooming life as an awakener had fixed stats apart from what they were specialized.
The Burning Catcher had a staggering 500 points of Agility, making it equivalent to an A-rank based on Awakener Association standards, while the other stats were all sitting at a fixed number of 50, a tenfold downgrade.
Thankfully, and peculiarly so, there was only one Burning Catcher among the horde of hellish monstrosities.
In addition, Lucian guessed that these folks of hell had a predatory nature. After all, the A-rank Burning Catcher specializing in mobility would be able to easily catch him.
Well, it did happen, but he thought that perhaps it was playing with his life as he ran for it.
Maybe it knew its weakness. That's why it kept its distance.
Lucian thought as he went back inside the parked car, his mind becoming clear, at the very least.
"Sorry for waiting."
He said to the soul beside him.
"It's okay, Oppa."
Lucian flashed a half-smile before he continued driving.
After an hour or so, they arrived at the vacation house that his sister had bought, where the surroundings were a mountain of trees, a small lake, and an empty farm amidst the ruins caused by monsters from dimensional gates.
The rural and eerie atmosphere was palpable.
It was a perfect spot to declare as the new yet false heaven for the souls that lost their supposed paradise.
I wonder why Samantha bought this place.
Lucian thought; he didn't enter the enormous house but rather went straight to the nearest mountain; beside him was the ghost ponderously treading.
"I'm sorry. This is all I can offer at the moment."
Kim Sana noticed the tiredness in his voice. She wasn't aware of what had transpired when he suddenly vanished.
"..."
"Will you be okay?"
Lucian looked at her, his purple eyes glimmering under the midnight's cascading moonlight.
"Oppa..."
Abruptly, she lunged forward, her hands coiled around him, which surprised Lucian as it was unexpected.
"I will be okay... And I hope you too. Again, thank you for letting me see my mother one last time."
It was the first time Lucian felt a soul's warmth as a Necromancer who could interact with her.
Releasing her embrace, Lucian breathed deeply and slowly exhaled. He looked at her and gently patted her head before saying in his tranquil voice.
"Don't worry about your mother's medical bills and debts from now on. Every victim of the Black Rose Guild might be compensated, and if they don't, I'll at least provide for your mother's medical bills."
I feel like the nature of being a Necromancer isn't selfishness but rather selflessness.
Hearing this, Kim Sana gulped, trying to contain her tears.
"O-Okay Oppa... Shall we?"
Lucian stood at the foot of the mountain a few meters away from Samantha's vacation house.
He then muttered a hint of listlessness remaining in his voice.
"I will declare this place as the new paradise for the wandering souls."
Just as he anticipated, the [ Cosmic Fall System ] asked.
[ Name your Paradise. ]
But he didn't foresee that he needed to name it.
Lucian was momentarily at a loss for words; he contemplated, his mental state shaking at acceptable levels.
I have no idea what kind of mess happened to the so-called heaven... and what caused it.
I have no knowledge of the Cosmic Fall System... how it's different from the Heaven System that every awakener has.
And who's the dead god that presumably covers the world through its galactic shadows...
I also realized that being an Eternal-Class Awakener isn't a bed of roses but thorns. But I don't understand why.
Just why... did the deserving innocent souls lose their home?
"Gehenna's Bosom."
[ Ding! ]
[ You have named the paradise as Gehenna's Bosom. ]
[ Finalize your decision? ]
"If the current heaven seems like hell, then maybe this seemingly lonely place can become the true heaven."
"..."
"Yes, from now on, this will be Gehenna's Bosom!"
[ Paradise: Gehenna's Bosom emerged from the world! ]
[ You have complete authority over the Gehenna's Bosom. ]
[ Any wandering soul can enter it as long as you will it. ]
At that moment, in the blink of an eye, Lucian and Kim Sana saw the entire mountain momentarily engulfed by dark green mist. It was as though the very place was now claimed, solidifying the foundation of the new paradise.
"Go... May you find rest."
It sounded similar to a serene prayer.
And Kim Sana, who heard it, smiled at him before walking through its invisible boundaries, her figure then gradually dissipated, reaching another realm that only he could access and see.
Subsequently, several system alerts echoed in Lucian's head. Yet he temporarily ignored it.
Waving at the white ghost girl's vanishing figure, he said,
"Wait for others. You won't be alone."