---

The Siberian snowfield was entirely covered in white snow.

In that vast snowfield, the powerful object known as the Moon of the Snowfield hung in the sky.

Perhaps because the Moon of the Snowfield had settled in, which caused phenomena of global scale, all other objects had vanished from the vicinity of Siberia.

Moreover, the humans that once roamed this area had also disappeared.

After all, since the humans and drones dispatched to investigate the strange occurrences in this region were swallowed up by the snowfield, no one dared to approach this place anymore.

In that desolate snowfield, the Golden Reapers began to gather one by one from some point onward.

This was information relayed by a Golden Reaper who had carefully observed the unusual behavior of the Sprout Reapers.

Sure enough, following the light emitted by the Sprout Reapers, they arrived at a location where a Gray Reaper was playfully teasing a Golden Reaper and fleeing.

The Gray Reaper stood there, staring blankly upward at the sky, as if gazing at the moon above.

“Mommy!”

“There’s Mommy!”

Originally, the Golden Reaper had sprinted all the way from Korea to this far-off Siberia, filled with rage to seek revenge, but upon seeing their long-lost mother, they couldn’t hide their delighted expressions.

The Golden Reaper, happy to see their mother, began to stealthily approach the place where she was, keeping an eye on the other Golden Reapers.

Then, they snuck up and hugged their mother’s ankle before pulling away, repeatedly.

Only after all the Golden Reapers had sufficiently replenished their maternal essence in this way did one of the Golden Reapers lift a huge snowball and announce their intent.

“A Snowman!”

It was a cute yet cruel idea to turn the mother who had been running away into a snowman.

Then, seeing that it might be fun, the other Golden Reapers began to roll snowballs, and soon the Gray Reaper’s body was being covered in snow.

As time passed, the Gray Reaper had transformed into a large snowman made by the Golden Reapers.

“Mommy is wearing clothes!”

“Mommy Snowman!”

The Golden Reapers were extremely pleased, saying that their mommy was finally wearing clothes that she would never don.

The Golden Reapers sat around the snowman Gray Reaper, grinning widely and endlessly marveling at the form of their mother.

*

The sky had died with the death of the Purple Moon.

In the ominous sky where neither the sun nor the stars could be seen, the shattered and darkened Purple Moon hung alone.

The surface of that Purple Moon was cracked and fragmented, as if it were about to break, and from its crevices, Evolution Liquid continuously seeped out.

The flowing Evolution Liquid poured down like a waterfall, heading towards a massive sinkhole the size of a city.

When I looked down into the sinkhole, I could see the Evolution Liquid swirling and rising from what seemed like an endlessly deep bottom.

Perhaps the Hungry Ghost Beam was too strong, as the hole that replaced the purple city was extremely deep.

It was so deep that it felt like it would take at least a month to fill the hole with the Evolution Liquid.

Despite being a waterfall pouring down with more intensity than any I had seen on Earth, it was still the case.

“Mom!”

“Mom!”

In my arms, I held several Mini Sprout Reapers, who were slightly smaller than the original Sprout Reaper.

The original Sprout Reaper quietly buried its body in the ground and fell into a deep sleep as soon as all its tasks were done.

The Mini Sprout Reapers, as if seeing their mommy for the first time, tightly held onto my fingers or hair and stared into my face.

Gazing down at the cheerful Mini Sprout Reapers, I was lost in thought after thought.

“Right now, I want to throw these Mini Sprout Reapers into that sinkhole.”

Considering the reactions of the Golden Reapers from before, it would surely be a really fun prank!

But unfortunately, I wasn’t sure if the Evolution Liquid was waterproof to anything other than Golden Reapers.

I wished it was just a horrible-smelling liquid, but why did it melt Mini Reapers…?

“Mom, are you hurt?”

The one Mini Sprout Reaper asked, noticing my furrowed brow from deep contemplation.

Indeed, since they are my children, they are considerate enough to be as sweet as me.

…

…

…

Since they are so sweet, would it be forgiven just once if I threw them?

While I pondered a dilemma that a good mother might have at least once, I stumbled upon a strangely shaped Mini Reaper among the Sprouts.

It was a Mini Reaper that had an overall purple hue and hung a purple crab by its side like a ram’s horn.

The Purple Reaper was hiding, shrouded in a shadow entwined with mental pollution, trying to pass as a Sprout Reaper.

However, noticing that I had seen through its disguise, it burst out and dramatically leaped into a stylish pose on the ground.

“Sibling!”

“A new sibling!”

The Sprout Reapers also seemed to catch on and began to fuss.

*

I was watching the Purple Reapers rescuing people caught in the ‘Nameless’ incident with mild curiosity.

The actions of the Purple Reapers were strange yet captivating.

As a Purple Reaper held its palms up, a huge rock covered in shadows sank into the shadow and suddenly popped out elsewhere.

When the Purple Reaper swung its arms flamboyantly like a martial arts movie star, the space around it was sliced up, and obstacles were effortlessly broken apart.

With a confident expression, the Purple Reaper made marshmallows out of shadows for a crying child who was hungry.

I clapped lightly, feeling as if I was watching a movie.

The Purple Reapers seemed to have the ability to manipulate shadows.

More specifically, it felt like they could extend their shadows and do anything within them.

This was similar to my Mini Reaper Garden.

Comparing the abilities of the Mini Reapers, the Purple Moon certainly deserved to be called ‘the strongest.’

To have the ability to dominate space?

Moreover, the Purple Reepers moved in a uniquely eccentric manner.

They wrapped their entire body in shadow, excluding their heads, giving off an air that something was always present.

Furthermore, those Purple Reapers would pair off and practice martial arts as if filming a movie even during break times.

However, I knew one hidden secret about this martial arts practice.

That the practice was, in fact, essential for using their abilities, not merely for taking a break.

I happened to discover this while wandering near the sinkhole.

“Help me!”

A faint will echoed suddenly.

With a puzzled expression, I approached to check, discovering a Purple Reaper trapped under a large stone.

“Wouldn’t it be enough to just remove that stone with spatial manipulation?”

As I thought that, other Purple Reapers, sensing the will, rushed over and began to smack the chubby cheeks of the trapped Purple Reaper.

They were not playfully tapping, but seriously giving it their all.

Then the purple crab of the Purple Reaper began to glow brightly, and soon it began to lift the gigantic stone using its own strength.

I found several instances of this, as they would simply say “Help me!” and then proceed to hit each other with their fists.

However, after much observation, I could finally discern the reason behind this.

The spatial manipulation of the Purple Reapers did not rely on “firewood” as a power source.

And the Purple Reapers had another ability besides spatial manipulation.

Energy Conversion.

The Purple Reapers had the ability to absorb energy and transform it into their own.

Noting that it took an extremely long time for the Purple Reaper punches to recharge, the efficiency did not seem all that great.

Moreover, the volatility of the absorbed energy was strong, so they couldn’t store it and had to repeatedly tussle with each other to replenish their energy.

If there were no humans, they would bicker like Mini Reapers.

If there were many humans, they would tussle while pretending to practice martial arts.

Surprisingly, the Purple Reapers were like flashy Mini Reapers.

*

Near a city that had left no trace behind, there was a temporary camp filled with tired and injured people.

In the center of the camp, a large, round mass of marshmallow was ablaze.

Surrounding it were houses made of marshmallows stacked like blocks and secured with twigs.

This area was full of marshmallows.

The Blue Girl enjoyed the warmth by the fire, stroking a purple magical book nestled in her arms.

“Everything is thanks to these little ones.”

Of course, it did feel a bit strange to wonder why it was all marshmallows, but it seemed that the only substance the purple magical book could create was marshmallows.

Every element that made up this camp was the work of these little children.

The Purple Magical Book had rescued people by cutting and moving rocks with its powerful abilities.

Meanwhile, the Sprout Magical Books were scurrying among the people, distributing marshmallows cut into bite-sized pieces.

The arrival of the “Book that Killed God,” which was known to treat humans harmfully by tearing them apart.

The city, which had now vanished, was once a home.

An enormous number of casualties.

Despite this, the atmosphere in the camp was not bad at all, with the harmful magical books roaming around distributing snacks.

It was likely a dreamlike moment due to the combination of the mental pollution from the Purple Magical Book and its cute appearance.

Faint laughter could be heard from various spots around the camp.

If they were to vanish, these people would surely wake up to the cold reality again.

I had such thoughts while gazing at the girl in black and white clothes, who had fallen asleep near the fire.

Somehow, I felt as though once this night passed, everything would vanish.

I lay down on the floor with a white Hungry Ghost-shaped marshmallow the size of a cushion as my pillow.

Then, while patting the belly of the stiff Hungry Ghost that had lost consciousness, I thought to myself.

“I want a soft Hungry Ghost.”

I vowed to somehow create it through research someday, and the Blue Girl slipped into a deep slumber.

*

When the Blue Girl awakened to the morning sunlight, the now cold camp site came into view.

The camp, which felt as if it were under the protection of the moon to ward off the cold, was starting to fill with chilling air.

“It’s gone.”

The marshmallow campfire.

The delicious marshmallows that had been savored.

The marshmallow mats laid on the ground.

The magical books that had moved everything with their small hands and feet.

And the girl in black and white clothes, who had brought all those miracles, was gone as well.

The voice of the girl who had once drifted in my dreams still lingered in my ears.

“The dream is over now.”

“It’s time to slowly leave.”

Perhaps like the girl said, everything that had happened in the city felt like a dream.

“Master. Please wake up!”

Now, I had to live in reality.

As an alchemist who protects humans, there was so much that needed to be done.

*

The shattered moon.

And a black waterfall descending from the sky.

And in that place where everyone had vanished to escape the cold, a gigantic arm that was blackened began to rise slowly.

The Gray Reaper spoke of ‘Nameless.’

The Blue Girl spoke of ‘The Book that Killed God.’

The ‘Nameless,’ which had completely melted in the Evolution Liquid, began to stumble back to the surface.

However, its appearance seemed somewhat different from before it had plunged into the Evolution Liquid.

To erase the name of God.

To eliminate faith.

The ‘Book that Killed God,’ which had been constantly moving, was gazing beyond space.

Perhaps looking to the far-off place where the Gray Reaper might be.

It was facing toward the direction where Earth lay.