Atticus's Odyssey: Reincarnated Into A Playground

Chapter 1661  Can’t Stop

It was only after Atticus had rounded the tower several times that he settled on his next course of action.

To enter the tower, it was apparent he would need the seven clones, despite how impossible it seemed.

With the brief time he had spent with each one, he had already determined the emotion each clone embodied.

Rage. Grief. Betrayal. Vengeance. Injustice. Loneliness. Resolve.

Atticus still wasn't completely certain what the purpose of all this was. His best guess, given the situation, was that the clones were manifestations of Solvath's emotions. And his role here was to overcome them.

If that were true, then it would support his hypothesis that the sixth trial was meant to teach him a way to break free from Solvath's hold.

Regardless, it also meant that to achieve his goal, he would have to overcome each emotion.

Still… there was a faint silver lining to all this, no matter how small.

He had access to all the clones at once. Which meant… he could choose which one to face first.

'If I'm lucky, killing each clone could strengthen me.'

Atticus shook his head, dismissing the thought. He wasn't the type to rely on luck.

Even so, of all the emotions, after weighing everything, his first target was clear.

A moment later, perched atop a tree, Atticus fixed his gaze on the clone staring at the small lake with a somber expression.

'Grief.'

Of all the clones, grief had been the most passive. It had only tried to wear him down, never once attacking. Compared to rage, who seemed intent on tearing him apart, it was the most favorable option.

'I should be able to take him by surprise.'

He moved slowly along the tree branch, his gaze fixed on the clone as he observed him for a few more seconds. After steeling himself, Atticus dropped down and approached.

"What's the point of it all? Why even try?"

As he neared, the clone started to ramble. Atticus instantly felt an ache stir within his chest, then burst.

He clenched his teeth as an overwhelming surge of grief flooded his senses.

'Hold on.'

Biting down on his tongue, Atticus forced the surging emotions at bay. Only a few steps left…

"In the end… they all die anyway. So what's the point? Why keep going? We should just… stop."

Finally, Atticus reached him. By then, blood had filled his mouth from how hard he'd bitten down. But his gaze remained clear as he locked onto the clone's unguarded neck.

He tightened his grip on his katana.

'Now.'

Atticus drew his blade in a flash, only for it to cut through empty air.

His eyes sharpened.

'Where—'

"Why… why do you still act?"

Atticus spun, fixing his gaze on the clone now standing behind him.

'How?'

"Why? Why do you keep doing this?"

The clone gazed at him with a twisted expression, tears streaming down his face.

"They're all going to die anyway… so why do you keep moving?"

Atticus tightened his grip on his katana. The more the clone spoke, the more the emotions threatened to overwhelm him.

His eyes sharpened as a faint killing intent washed over him. The clone was now staring at him with a intense intensity.

"You… you just don't get it. You keep pushing forward like it means something. It doesn't. You have to understand."

The clone slowly drew his blade, his eyes glowing with a deep purple light.

"I'll make you understand."

He vanished.

"!!"

Atticus threw himself aside as a blade carved through the space his head had occupied. He hit the ground in a rough roll and ascended instantly.

The clone was nowhere to be seen.

His instincts screamed. He spun and slashed. Sparks burst as his blade collided with the clone's.

Atticus locked eyes with the twisted expression on his face.

'I was wrong.'

The grief clone wasn't passive. If anything, it was even more lethal than rage.

'I have to escape.'

The clone's eyes flared with a blinding light.

"I need you to understand!"

The clone vanished again, and Atticus barely managed to evade the thrust by snapping his head aside.

 The clone blurred through the air, unleashing a relentless torrent of thrusts. Atticus was immediately driven back, barely keeping pace with the speed.

The clone raised his katana, blinding purple light gathering along its edge. As it began to descend, Atticus turned and bolted.

"Wait! Why are you running? Just listen to me! You don't get it, you have to see it!"

Atticus didn't stop. Only after he had put distance between them did he slow to a halt.

'He won't follow.'

Each clone was bound to a section of the forest. As long as he left it, they wouldn't pursue him.

Atticus began pacing slowly.

'Now what?'

Clearly, he had been catastrophically wrong in his assumption. The grief clone wasn't the weakest, it was just as dangerous. Which meant…

'They're all the same.'

They could use Solvath's power. They were faster, stronger than him. He couldn't win in a direct battle.

Atticus shook his head, a deep frown settling on his face.

'Think. What am I missing?'

The katana never gave impossible trials. If a direct battle with the clones was impossible, then there had to be something else. He was missing something.

Atticus replayed every clue in his mind.

A forest that forced constant movement. Seven clones embodying different emotions, each trying to make him lose control. What was the connection?

"They're going to pay for what they did."

Atticus snapped toward the voice, catching a glimpse of a clone rushing toward him. Its eyes burned with fury, yet its expression remained eerily calm.

"For Grandma Freya… for everything they took from us… they're going to pay. Every single one of them."

A surge of anger flared within Atticus. The urge to make every single person who had ever wronged him pay threatened to overwhelm him.

He gritted his teeth, recognizing the clone.

'Vengeance.'

Atticus turned and fled without hesitation.

"Don't run. You feel it too, don't you? Come back, we finish this together."

However, unlike before, the clone didn't stop chasing him. It was only after he crossed into another territory that it finally halted. Even as he ran, Atticus could still feel its fierce gaze lingering on him.

Still, the moment of respite he sought never came. Another clone came rushing toward him.

"Can't you see it? This world is broken. This system… it was never meant to work. It needs to be torn down. And we're the ones who'll rebuild it."

'Injustice.'

Atticus didn't stop running. However, the same pattern repeated itself as he entered another territory, and then the next. Even when he returned to the tower, another clone approached him.

Desperate, he ran deeper into the forest, trying to escape them, but no matter how far he went, once he crossed a certain distance, he was always brought back to the tower.

That was when Atticus realized there was no escape. He was trapped here. He moved through the forest, fighting the surges of emotion threatening to overwhelm him.

'What am I missing…'

The forest. The clones. Solvath…

Atticus shook his head, letting out a slow breath. It was difficult to think clearly under the relentless pressure of the emotions.

Logoth would have been perfect in this situation. However, the constant shifting of emotions kept breaking through it.

Atticus narrowed his eyes.

'Shifting…'

Standing still in the forest caused the ground to erupt, forcing him into constant movement. The emotions of each of the clones were no different, they were always shifting. Shifting… shifting.

Atticus' eyes sharpened. The purpose of this entire test was to deal with emotions. Which meant…

'It's trying to show me that emotions aren't still.'

That emotions constantly shifted, in nature and in intensity. If that was the case… then he had been approaching this all wrong. Logoth was a state of equilibrium, of complete stillness, where he separated the emotion from himself. But if the emotions were constantly changing, did that mean he had to keep separating himself over and over?

Atticus shook his head.

'No.'

That would be too strenuous, too impractical. There was another way…

Atticus' gaze narrowed.

'I see.'

He came to an abrupt stop and turned toward the grief clone slowly approaching him.

"Finally…" the clone wiped the tears from his face and nodded. "Now I can make you understand."

"I understand."

The clone halted, sniffling.

"…what?"

"I understand what you're saying."

Atticus slowly clenched his fists, swallowing.

"Even after everything… after all the effort, all the pain… I still failed. The people I loved still died."

A tear slipped down Atticus' face.

The clone's eyes brightened.

"Yes… yes, that's it. Now you see it."

He approached Atticus slowly, a faint smile forming on his lips.

"There's no point… no reason to keep going. You don't have to try anymore."

"No."

The clone froze as Atticus' gaze, once clouded with sorrow, suddenly turned clear.

"Yes, I failed. I lost them. Even after everything… I still couldn't protect them. But that's exactly why I can't stop."

Atticus exhaled.

"I have to keep going. Keep pushing forward… no matter what it takes. Because if I reach the peak… I can bring them back."

His eyes turned fierce. "So until then… I won't stop."

Wham!

The crushing ache in his chest vanished. A surge of energy flooded his body.

'This…'

Through the lake, he saw the purple glow radiating from his eyes.

Solvath.

"…Good."

Atticus turned to the clone, whose body had begun to fade.

The clone looked at him with a faint smile.

"Hold on to that… and reach the top."

The clone vanished a moment later, and Atticus clenched his fists.

'I was right.'

The way to control emotions wasn't through stillness, nor by running away. There was only one way.

Accepting them.

Atticus turned and faced the forest. His eyes, once hesitant, were now fierce.

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