Mythos Of Narcissus: Reborn As An NPC In A Horror VRMMO-Chapter 318: To The Depth Beyond The Cliff, Considering

The fight ended as quickly as it had begun.

Not with a climactic final clash, nor an overwhelming display of raw power.

But with cold, calculated suppression.

The Theogrunts, unable to take further action due to Verina's imposed limitations, were left standing in place, their golden energy bars slowly regenerating, but barely able to do anything as they always tried to perform a somashift defense whenever possible, depleting their bar the moment it regained.

It was over.

I guess the lack of adaptation in the Gestalt Core part was somewhat of a giant problem in itself. Maybe it was better if I lowered the limit of the control that the neuromorphic network could have for the Theogrunts.

The battle had reached its conclusion and the aftermath cleaner had already been starting to do their work.

"Oh, come on!" she groaned. "That was so boring! We didn't even get to fully clash till the end!"

Verina, standing calmly beside her, exhaled softly through her nose—though a hint of smug satisfaction was barely hidden beneath her usual deadpan expression.

Meanwhile, Charis clapped her hands together, smiling warmly. "That was an amazing conclusion, Verina." She turned toward the side, where the three Theogrunts stood like they just went back from a trip to the grocery, unharmed but effectively neutralized. "The Theogrunts weren't even fully damaged. They were merely suppressed, which means that there will be no need for a deep maintenance for them.

"And more importantly, they've gathered incredibly valuable data. If they ever encounter this kind of environmental restriction again, the network will have a reference to better prepare for it.

"The Bastion's survival rate in an unknown domain like this would greatly increase." Charis nodded proudly.

Lupina grumbled, crossing her arms. "Still boring."

Verina finally turned toward her and smirked.

It was subtle, just the faintest upward curl of her lips—but it was enough.

Lupina hated that smirk.

She could complain all she wanted, but even she had to admit that Charis was right.

Verina had been the MVP of this bout.

And that was annoying.

"Whatever." Lupina huffed, grabbing a fresh drink from one of the Heavenly Maids who had approached with refreshments. She downed half of it in one gulp before pointing an accusatory claw at Verina. "I still say you're a terrible teammate."

Verina simply blinked at her, unimpressed. "And you are an inefficient one."

Welp, that goes their usual friendly banter.

Hmm? What's this?

"All of you, or to be exact, my confidantes." My voice carried across the field, gathering their attention. "It's time we return to the Landship."

Lupina perked up, tail flicking. "Huh? Already?"

I nodded. "The research at the Cliff of Nothingness has yielded significant results. We need to be briefed on the findings."

That was enough to wipe the remaining smugness from Verina's face. Charis, too, straightened her posture, sensing the shift in tone.

And so, with the sparring session concluded, we made our way back.

The briefing room was dimly lit, illuminated only by the floating projection screens displaying endless streams of data.

Viviane and Kuzunoha were already there, waiting for the rest to join. Looking at their expression, I had zero idea of what they were about without prying into their soul. Then again, I couldn't even pry to one of them if I wanted to.

The moment everyone entered, one of the Duolos vessels stepped forward, her glowing cyan eyes flickering as she prepared to present her report.

"Mother." That was definitely intentional. "I mean. Lady Narcissus," she began, her voice an artificial yet fluid harmony of tones. "The research regarding the Cliff of Nothingness has concluded its first phase. The findings are as follows."

She gestured, and the floating projections shifted, displaying the reconstructed three-dimensional mapping of the anomaly.

"A decayed spatial core of unknown origin has manifested approximately twenty kilometers ahead of the Landship's current position. Its presence has warped the influenced perimeters into an expanded two-hundred-kilometer perimeter of an exotic space-time continuum, exhibiting a high concentration of purity essence and lingering divinity."

My eyes narrowed slightly. Divinity.

That was a dangerous word.

"More importantly," the Duolos continued, "This anomaly induces severe perceptive disruption across all spectrums—psychic, spiritual, and conceptual. Traditional methods of reconnaissance, such as Lady Viviane's foresight spell, Lady Kuzunoha's psychic extension, and your own perceptive reach, have proven ineffective."

"That's not all." Viviane finally spoke up, arms crossed. "We attempted to send scouting drones and Duolos vessels modified with plasma-wing mutation templates into the anomaly's core." She exhaled. "They were repelled by an external force."

Verina's gaze sharpened. "What kind of force?"

The Duolos vessel turned toward her. "According to Lady Kuzunoha's analysis—"

Kuzunoha smirked and took over the explanation. "The spatial core is exuding an immense amount of existential height—so much so that it conceptually prevents anything with mortal-tier existence from approaching it."

Verina raised her hand immediately, "…Meaning?"

Viviane sighed. "Meaning that, in this entire Bastion, only Narcissus, Kuzunoha, Lupina, and the Heavenly Maids have the existential height to proceed."

"Wait, what about you?" I asked.

Viviane shrugged. "I'm not going."

So it wasn't that she was not included within that criteria. She just didn't want to.

Kuzunoha smirked. "Now, now. That's rare. You usually get thrilled about these kinds of things."

Viviane frowned. "Not this time."

"Well, that is certainly worrying, if the Great Viviane herself felt something off about it."

"I feel…" Despite her composed posture, she seemed to hesitate. "A certain familiarity in that place that felt rather obnoxious. And I don't want to experience it again."

I tilted my head slightly. "I see."

That meant she had encountered something like this before.

And she didn't want to relive it.

Kuzunoha, despite her usual teasing, only gave Viviane a knowing look. "To comfort the fact that there might be something discomforting within the center of the distortion, I already had a couple of accurate hunches about the cause of this whole anomaly, and neither of them could be dangerously threatening to anyone's life in this bastion."

"I appreciate the information." I smiled. "Regardless, we don't have the luxury of avoidance. Taking a detour would greatly delay our arrival at the Quruize Citadel." I turned to my confidantes. "We'll form a small expedition team."

Kuzunoha grinned. "Who's coming?"

"The lineup is obvious," I began, my voice smooth as I listed each member. "Kuzunoha, as an expert in these matters. Lupina, since her Theotech Vessel grants her a pseudo-heightened existential presence. Myself, of course."

I paused for a beat before delivering the last name.

"And Verina."

Verina, as expected, didn't react immediately. But I could feel the subtle shift in her presence—the minute flicker of surprise hidden beneath her emotionless façade.

"I do not have the necessary existential height," she stated, her tone even.

I merely smiled.

"You will."

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Kuzunoha, standing to the side, smirked as if she had already figured out what I was planning. Lupina, on the other hand, just looked back and forth between us, clearly out of the loop.

Verina, to her credit, didn't question me further.

And that was the end of that conversation.

For now.

It wasn't until later, deep within the Landship's hydroponic sector, that Verina finally realized what she had signed up for.

She stared down at the colossal metal vat before her, filled to the brim with the shimmering, translucent gold liquid of Vitae Arboris fruity essence—the highly concentrated extract of the Landship's future food production, cultivated under my direct supervision.

Twenty gallons of juiced Vitae Arboris' fruits.

Verina slowly lifted her head to look at me. Then at Kuzunoha. Then back at the vat.

"...I see," she said, utterly deadpan.

Lupina, who had just arrived to witness the scene, blinked. "Wait—she has to drink all of that?"

"Indeed," Kuzunoha answered. "And not just drink, but fully absorb it into her system for the existential height effect to fully happen to her existence."

Verina didn't hesitate. Without a word, she placed her hand on the side of the vat, activating her Furnace—her ability to manipulate the conceptual heat of digestion and absorption.

The liquid rippled.

Then, as if drawn by an unseen force, the entire contents of the vat surged toward Verina, flowing into her like molten gold being pulled into a singularity.

It was absorbed at an impossible rate, metabolized in an instant, her body breaking it down and reforging itself at a fundamental level.

Her entire frame shuddered as raw, unfiltered divinity coursed through her, reshaping her very existence.

For a brief moment, the air around her warped—as if the world itself was redefining her place within it.

Verina exhaled softly, steam escaping her lips.

And when the change settled, when her body had fully acclimated to its newfound state—her existential height had soared.

Not temporarily.

Permanently.

She had broken past the threshold of her original mortality. Her presence, once bound by kilnalan limitations, now stood just beneath Viviane's own.

Verina had, in a very real sense, become a quarter-god.

Lupina let out a low whistle. "Damn. You're almost divine now. Well, almost."

For the first time in a long while, I saw something in Verina's normally unreadable gaze—an awareness, a realization of the newfound power she now held. She flexed her fingers slightly, testing the weight of her own existence, as if feeling out the changes.

"Enhanced arcane flow…" she murmured, analyzing herself in real-time. "Heightened physical resilience… Strengthened lifeline parameters…" Her eyes flickered, turning toward Kuzunoha. "This is—"

"Half the improvement an average Kilnalan would get," Kuzunoha interrupted, smirking. "Stronger than before, sure—disease immunity, prolonged lifespan, enhanced strength, better arcane efficiency—but you're still not at a proper divine level."

Verina, with her completely neutral face, proceeded to give a thumbs up.

"I'll take that still."

And with that—our expedition team was set.

With the Landship remaining stationed at a safe distance, we began our descent into the depths of the Cliff of Nothingness.