What the Hell?

Translator: CinderTL

In that very moment, Paul experienced something truly extraordinary.

At first, a flash of icy blue light appeared, and before Paul could even register any pain—Coleridge's Ice Crystal Spike had already pierced through his chest.

But instead of the expected gush of blood, a silvery radiance burst forth from the wound.

His vision began to distort, reality peeling away like shattered glass. The cries of Catherine and Eileen reached his ears, but they sounded as if they were coming through a thick pane of frosted glass. He could see his body becoming light and transparent, his fingers disintegrating into countless shimmering particles of light.

A sudden sense of weightlessness overwhelmed him, and the surroundings completely disintegrated. Time and space lost all meaning at that moment, as if he had fallen into an ocean of pure consciousness. There was no up or down, no light or darkness, no warmth or cold—only flowing currents of thought energy swirling around him like nebulae.

In this mysterious realm, Paul was astonished to find that he still maintained a complete sense of self. He looked down—if that concept even held meaning here—and saw that his body was composed of countless tiny Rune Chains, each one constantly rearranging and shifting, emitting a faint azure glow.

From afar, an ethereal echo reverberated, as if a thousand voices were whispering simultaneously. A cognition that transcended language was directly infused into his consciousness: this was not death, but a higher-dimensional exile. The White-haired Witch's assassination attempt seemed to have opened a strange door, casting him into this bizarre dimension that existed between the material and the spiritual.

Paul's consciousness gradually stabilized in this void-like realm, and his physical body slowly began to manifest, eventually solidifying into a form identical to his original one.

From the flowing silver mist around him, a few hurried breaths and low exclamations suddenly emerged. Following the sounds, he saw the hazy fog slowly part like a curtain, gradually revealing several familiar figures.

The first to emerge was Catherine. Her golden hair fell as smoothly as ever, shining like sunlight in this ethereal space.

But what nearly made Paul's eyes pop out of his head was the fact that Catherine was completely unclothed.

Instinctively, Catherine wrapped her arms around herself. Her fair skin glowed with a pearlescent sheen under the mysterious light of the space, her face a mix of shock and embarrassment.

When she turned and saw Paul, a flash of joy appeared in her eyes, but it was quickly replaced by shyness. "Paul! Where... where are we? Why are we—" Her voice abruptly stopped, her cheeks flushing crimson.

Next, Eileen stumbled out of the mist. She let out a gasp, nearly falling, her golden hair cascading like a waterfall, as radiant as her sister's.

"What the hell! How did I—" She immediately crouched down, trying to use her hair and arms to cover herself, but to no avail. She glared at Paul, her face red with frustration, "Don't look, you jerk!" Her usually lively and mischievous expression was now flushed with sudden embarrassment.

On the other side of the mist, a pained groan echoed. Paul turned his head and saw Ladia kneeling on the ground, her green hair disheveled and hanging loosely. The wound on her chest, pierced by an ice spike, was still visible, with dark red blood seeping from it. She gritted her teeth, trying to stand, but staggered due to her weakness. Despite her frailty, she forced herself to straighten her back, her cold eyes filled with wariness, though they couldn't hide the unease brought by her nakedness.

What was most surprising was the glaring silver figure slowly emerging from the mist not far behind Ladia—Coleridge.

She still had that icy demeanor, but like the others, she was completely naked. When the witch's gaze met Paul's, her ice-blue pupils suddenly contracted. Her right hand instinctively moved to summon an Ice Spike, but she quickly realized her magic wasn't working. In an instant, she discovered something even more serious—her clothes were gone.

The white-haired Ice Witch, now stripped of all her garments, had a rare flicker of panic in her ice-blue eyes. Her usually cold and proud posture stiffened due to her nakedness, her silver hair barely covering parts of her body, which seemed to shimmer slightly with her emotional turmoil.

"This…" Paul opened his mouth, only to find his voice unbearably dry.

The five of them exchanged glances, the silent flow of mist in the mysterious space unable to mask the absurd and awkward atmosphere—they were not only trapped in this bizarre space but also forced to face each other in their most primitive, most exposed state.

Coleridge's face twisted with shame and anger as she abruptly turned around, her silver hair drawing an arc in the void.

"Don't look at me!" she almost roared, her ice-blue eyes burning with unprecedented panic and fury. She sprinted away with her long legs, her bare feet stepping on the void without creating a single ripple.

However, no matter how fast she ran, the silver mist around her remained ever-present. Even more terrifying was the realization that, despite her full-speed sprint, she couldn't increase the distance between herself and the others—Paul, Catherine, Eileen, and the severely wounded Ladia remained eerily within sight, as if pulled by invisible threads.

"Damn it!" She stopped, her white hair disheveled and hanging over her shoulders, her chest heaving violently. When she turned back, she met Eileen's mocking gaze.

"Save your energy, Ice Queen!" the blonde girl taunted, though equally embarrassed. "It seems in this cursed place, we're destined to be completely exposed."

Coleridge's fingertips trembled as she tried to conjure magic, but not even the faintest chill could be summoned. She bit her lower lip hard, ancient magical patterns appearing on her pale skin, yet they triggered no effect. What drove her to the brink of collapse was that she couldn't even use her hair to fully cover her body—in this bizarre realm, every inch of her skin seemed illuminated by an invisible light, leaving her nowhere to hide.

"What kind of evil magic is this…" she cursed under her breath, her voice carrying a vulnerability never heard before.

Just moments ago, they were trying to kill each other, but due to the current awkward situation, their previous hostility vanished in an instant.

At this moment, Catherine finally came to her senses and glared fiercely at her husband.

Paul awkwardly turned around, facing away from everyone.

Catherine sighed softly and said, "Calm down. What we need now is to think about how to get out of here, not... to be hostile towards each other."

But even as she spoke, she couldn't help but use her arms to shield her body.

In this bizarre space, five naked souls were forced to face each other, and any attempt to escape became futile.

(End of the Chapter)

---

📖Read (FF) on Pa.treon@CinderTL - c885. [+1]

🔑Early Access at $5.

✍Translated (6) Series, (3K+) Chapters, (4.2M+) Words.

💥Flat 30% Discount on All Tiers Available Till 26th July, Use Code 3KCHAPTERS to Avail.