Super Righteous Player-Chapter 1172 - 219: Coward

And Ofelia’s punishment of "action" actually corresponds to "gluttony." The nature of the sin of gluttony is the craving for comfort, pleasure, lack of ambition, and wasting one’s "possessions," indulging excessively in something or some affair.

As a Prince of Dennisiowa, he had long been aware of the corruption within this nation. Yet he was obsessed with music, devoting all his talent to it... and at a time when the country needed him the most, he chose to board the treasured ship Silver, forgetting all troubles and embarking on a joyous world tour.

His nightmare forced him to confront his own talent and responsibility—to become a King and give up the path of music he loved most, only then could he save this world. Otherwise, by his own power alone, he could not contend with this hollow and icy cold world.

...Speaking of which.

The corresponding sin for Ingrid should be "envy." Envy for love, and envy for those favored by fate—like Annan. It lies between greed and pride... coveting what others have, yet regarding them with a godlike disdain.

Her punishment of "thinking" is to make her calm down and honestly face what she possesses. If she had maintained a clear thought process from the beginning, patiently communicated with that demon king, and gradually gained his trust over a long period of time... then perhaps she would not have fallen into such a plight.

She might even have obtained true "love."

Annan shared their experiences in the nightmare, along with his own speculations.

He concluded:

"Rather than saying these are punishments or traps... I think of them as sacred trials. They are remedial classes for students with skewed talents, designed to compensate for each person’s flaws."

"What Ofelia did, in some sense, has already approached the miracles once performed by Yawen."

Paper Princess praised: "And Isaac, by his own strength alone, saved a world on the brink of falling into hell. It’s not problematic to call him a savior...

"Rather than saying that you obtained Fragments of Truth from the nightmare, it’s more like the nightmare ’reported’ your actions ’as is’ to the Mist Realm. Allowing you to naturally become a future deity with your own merits—

"We need people like you!"

"...Speaking of which," Lucia, who had been hiding by Chiron’s side all along, suddenly spoke in a soft voice, "In the future I saw before... if Yufimia entered the nightmare, then Isaac and Ofelia wouldn’t have been able to return."

"Huh?"

Yufimia was taken aback: "Why?"

"I don’t know either, because I didn’t even see what it was like inside the nightmare..."

"I think I know why."

Annan thoughtfully said.

He had roughly figured out the nature of this nightmare. Unfortunately, if he had guessed it before leaving the nightmare, he probably could have received more rewards...

"It’s because of placeholders, I guess."

The Faceless Poet suddenly interjected: "From what you said earlier, the allocation of those several nightmares seemed somewhat far-fetched.

"The nightmare where one is sealed in an ice mountain, unable to move, seems to also fit well for a restless and melancholic poet like Ofelia to despair; Isaac could also fit into a world full of light, or even one of fire. And Ingrid, locked in a black coffin, being thrown into that vast prairie world, or one where you must be full of love to pass the world of light, any of these could plunged her into despair."

"Yes."

Annan nodded: "Simply put, these worlds are not tailor-made for individuals. Instead, when people enter them, they are allocated to different worlds based on their own character traits.

"Apart from the world that represents fire, which can accommodate many people, the other worlds can only hold one person at a time.

"Based on my understanding of Yufimia... she once forgot her own name, fully living as another person. Neither her identity nor name was her own anymore, and this is also a form of ’jealousy’. A jealousy more intense than Ingrid’s.

"Yet Ingrid entered the nightmare earlier than anyone else—once that spot is taken, it has to be deferred downward..."

Annan said, casting his gaze toward Yufimia.

What he meant was: "Can I continue with the next part?"

Yufimia hesitated for a moment, but still nodded.

"If only Ofelia and Arthur changed... I would quickly fall behind."

She whispered: "Please say what you want to say. I’m also ready to confront this past. Moreover... I actually want to know what issues I still have."

"The answer is—you will occupy the nightmare that Ofelia resides in. Because the mission you escaped from is one that should not be avoided even more than Ofelia’s."

Annan answered: "You yourself have said it... the ’Corpse Curse’ borne by the Melvin family. The arranged marriage you were sent to could have lifted the Corpse Curse, effectively saving a life.

"You didn’t want to marry the old Crow—or rather, you were merely rebelling, not wanting to follow your family’s wishes. But in fact, you weren’t the only one sent to an arranged marriage.

"You didn’t simply ’not want to be in an arranged marriage’; if so, you could have traded this ’blessing’ to another clan member. This would mean saving a soul that yearned for freedom... but you didn’t. You didn’t give this opportunity away, because once it was in your hands, it was yours.

"You truly didn’t want the marriage... but you wanted to escape the family, to be free. So you asked your best friend to marry into Noah’s family for you—she was nearing the end of her life and didn’t want to die before her parents, so she gladly accepted.

"However, under normal circumstances... isn’t it that one would want to spend more time with their parents when their lifespan is nearing its end, to leave no regrets?"

Upon hearing Annan’s words, Yufimia couldn’t help but tremble.

It was the fear of her own inner ugliness being forcibly dragged out and exposed in the sunlight.

But she just closed her eyes, desperately closing the mouth that subconsciously wanted to retort, to defend, to find excuses.

Because deep down, she was also aware of this—

"Lily Rasputin didn’t ’just happen’ to want to leave Winter. It was because she saw her friend’s desperate desire for freedom, and the gentle Lily decided to fulfill her friend’s wish, thus she made up this kind lie.

"Yufimia has always been a rebel against family Tradition, and there was a reason you were chosen for the arranged marriage. In the end, you didn’t even manage to lift the ’Corpse Curse’ before you hastily fled the family, without halting for a moment...

"This was undoubtedly to make the timing of swapping identities with Lily seem more logical. But isn’t it also because you feared Lily might suddenly regret her decision, so you ran away overnight, rendering her unable to regret?

"—This is indeed a betrayal. Because you cannot face the responsibility that is yours, nor can you confront the consequences of your actions.

"If you too enter this nightmare, the one where Ofelia resides, it will be where you meet your end. And perhaps Ofelia might then enter the world where Isaac is... for he too, is a slothful person." freēwēbnovel.com

"...Yes. You are right..."

Yufimia softly replied: "I am a coward.

"Just like being attacked by the Frost Beast, I am the coward who threw down her friend and turned to flee."