Spiral of Madness: Ascension of the Villainous Dragon Prince-Chapter 91: The Gardener Of The Emerald Moon [1]

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Louis felt as if he were plummeting into an endless abyss.

One moment he triumphed over Verdant, slaying the traitor and the Gardener’s vessel. The next, he found himself here, with no idea how he had arrived.

Was he dreaming? Could this be some kind of nightmare?

As he fell, he studied his surroundings. The endless black void sparkled with beautiful stars and red nebulae.

He rapidly approached a large celestial object glistening with green light, seemingly made entirely of emerald stone.

"What’s happening?!"

His impact sent pain exploding through his body, as if several bones had shattered. The landing caused a small tremor across the green moon.

Slowly, he opened his eyes and surveyed the area. The surface resembled the moon’s—covered in craters.

Yet unlike Earth’s Moon barren, gray desert, this celestial body teemed with lush forests, blooming gardens, and dense jungles.

"...What?"

He stood gradually, drawn forward by an instinctive pull, as if something—or someone—guided him. He simply knew where to go.

He walked, climbing out of the crater his fall had created, making his way through forests, gardens, and jungles.

Finally, he reached a vast crater filled with red roses, entwined with green vines and golden thorns.

At the center stood a tall, humanoid "thing" waving an arm, as if greeting him from afar.

"You..."

Louis instantly recognized it. Each step closer was agonizing, sharp vines piercing his feet.

But he pressed on.

And faced it.

"The Gardener...? But how... We destroyed your vessel... What is the meaning of this?!" Louis demanded furiously. "What have you done now? Why are you so stubborn?"

The plant-like entity’s head—a giant blooming red rose—opened its petals, revealing a single red eye at the center that stared at him.

A voice resonated in his mind.

"BecauseIwantedyouinmygarden."

"Ngh?!"

Sharp pain lanced through his soul. Louis watched in horror as his Astral Projection began blossoming into countless flowers. His legs turned to roots, burrowing deep into the Emerald Moon’s soil and spreading farther.

"Haaa... Haaa...!"

He gasped desperately, though his soul needed no air. His mind flooded with alien images, visions, and memories. The Gardener had stubbornly claimed him as its vessel, forcing his metamorphosis into a "flower for its garden."

"H-How did this happen?! We defeated you...! Your influence...! You...!"

"Seedinsideyourfantasyhearthasblossomedbeautifully."

"What?!"

Barely comprehending the words, Louis realized his Fantasy Heart was overrun with White Lilies and Red Roses.

When had this happened?

How quickly had they grown?

Was it during the battle, in the heat of the moment?

He thought the White Lilies were from his mother’s Inheritance, was he mistaken?

"Youwillbecomemybeautifulbeautifulflowermybeautifulbeautifulroseeternallywithinmygardenmydearroseiloveyouiloveyouiloveyoumyrosemyrosemyrose."

"Ugh?!"

Louis clutched his head as roses bloomed across it and the rest of his body. His vision blurred with each new sprout.

"I won’t...! Forget this! I swear I will kill you!"

He roared, aura surging. What little energy remained flared around his arms as he swung them toward the Gardener.

"Gungnir!"

A pillar of light descended from the skies, piercing the surrounding garden and incinerating hundreds of meters.

"---!!!"

The Gardener emitted a guttural, alien scream as its beautiful garden burned to ashes. Its giant eye wept golden tears.

Louis pointed at the ashes. They gathered around his hand, transforming into particles of light that infused Gungnir, making it shine brighter. He was nearly out of Fantasium. His three Incarnations had suffered heavy damage and were recovering. Outside his Fantasy Heart, he couldn’t draw their full power. Gungnir was his last resort—his only hope of fighting back.

Thus...

"Nnnggh...!"

He pierced his own legs, tearing them free. Roots served as makeshift limbs as he stumbled through the burning gardens, absorbing surrounding Ashes to form Ashen Frost legs for better movement.

"Mygardenwhywhywhywhywhywhydontyouwanttobecomemybeautifulrosewhywhywhywhy...!"

"Why in hell would I want to become your damn rose?!"

Louis bared sharp teeth and thrust his spear forward. The Gardener’s Avatar couldn’t escape, rooted to the Emerald Moon itself.

Gungnir pierced deep into its Fantasy Heart. A guttural scream echoed as Louis felt his mind fracturing, on the verge of shattering.

Countless fragmented images flooded him—visions tied to the Gardener’s origins.

A woman with long black hair, in tattered robes and covered in wounds, standing over a desolate wasteland.

A man running joyfully with his daughter on his shoulders through a vast garden of vibrant flowers.

A world singing in eternal harmony as red, white, black, and blue roses bloomed across every continent.

"Nngh! What the hell did I just see?! Just what are you?!"

Louis attacked relentlessly, thrusting his spear into the creature’s body. The Gardener collapsed into pieces—only for another to appear behind him, completely unharmed.

"...What?!"

Louis’s eyes widened, unable to comprehend it. The one he killed had felt real, yet upon its death, the Gardener simply reappeared.

This time, it didn’t attack. It merely stared with its massive eye, weeping golden tears.

"Don’tyouwanttobecomemyrose?Joinmygardenwecantraveleternallythroughalldimensionsseekinghappinesstogether."

"Happiness?! You call turning everything you touch into plants happiness?! I saw your past...!" Louis gasped. Flowers bloomed across his body again as his soul fractured further. Time was running out. "You... Are you that girl from those memories? That woman in the desolate wasteland, Gardener?!"

The Gardener tilted its head, crawling closer and caressing his face with thorny hands that tore his skin and drew blood. Louis groaned, Gungnir glowing as he thrust it into the creature’s eye, exploding it.

Yet...

"That’s...!"

More Gardeners emerged—from left, right, behind, and front. They advanced, grasping him and caressing his face. Their giant eyes scanned his head, touching every flower sprouting from his soul.

"Beautiful..."

"Beautiful..."

"Beautiful..."

"Beautiful..."

"Beautiful..."

"Beautiful..."

"Beautiful..."

"Don’t touch me!"

Louis screamed in rage. His Aura surged briefly, Despair fueling Ashen Frost that froze everything around him. He broke free, crawling away into the burned area where the Gardener couldn’t spawn.

The Gardeners simply extended roots and vines into the scorched soil, expanding their garden once more. Their eyes wept golden tears as they closed in, hands reaching to seize Louis and tear apart his legs.

"Wait—Ngh?!"

Louis screamed in agony as his legs—part of his soul—were ripped away, transforming into beautiful flowers the Gardener tossed into the air, laughing and celebrating his integration into its eternal garden.