◈ Episode 309. Even If the World Abandoned Them (5)
Middle
2.
I define that dark history as a time when I couldn’t distinguish reality from ideals. In short, I was immature. Naturally, someone like me was captivated by Akshan.
Shall I give an example?
Look at the demon hunter’s long, trailing outfit.
At a glance, it looks incredibly convincing.
But in terms of performance, it has absolutely nothing to boast about.
And the weapons?
A silver sword in one hand.
A crossbow in the other.
It sounds versatile, but in reality, both are awkwardly below average.
Demon hunting was the same.
Hunting demons.
It gave off a strong impression of uncovering the hidden evil of the Arcana Continent, but at most, all you did was drive demons possessing NPCs out through exorcism rituals.
It was the very definition of a shiny apple rotten inside.
At that point, I should have been disappointed like the other players by Akshan’s gutter-like reality, which was far removed from my ideals. But back then, I couldn’t tell the difference. So I stubbornly raised the demon hunter class.
It was the same even now.
I looked at the quest objective that had appeared. ‘Why are you going this far?’ Class quest.
The demon hunters inside the belly of the ill omen.
This had to be the only means by which they could communicate with me.
Because I knew that, I couldn’t understand. ‘You were betrayed, weren’t you?’ Akshan warned the Arcana Continent of the existence of demons.
Once they began to move in earnest, they would be impossible to control.
So a holy war had to be declared, and they had to respond quickly.
But the result was annihilation.
They were stabbed in the back by the Arcana Continent, had their bodies devoured instead by the demons they hunted, and in the end, were swallowed by the ill omen and vanished from the Arcana Continent without a trace. ‘Even if you laughed and said they deserved it, no one would have the right to say anything, would they?’ Even if that Akshan laughed at the Arcana Continent that had been reduced to ruins.
There would be no one who could criticize Akshan.
If they had any shame, that is.
And yet, what was so good about that damn Arcana Continent?
● Final demon hunter. (Success)
● So that no one will ever be swallowed again. (Success)
● So that no one will ever be forgotten. (Success)
● Seal the great calamity with us in the southern sea. (In Progress)
They were saying they would be buried in the southern sea along with the ill omen?
I, Lee Hoyeol.
Personally, I loathe tearjerkers.
I’m a world-weary office worker who’s long since grown sick of hero stories that emphasize sacrifice. Naturally, if it had been before, I would have grumbled about what kind of quest was this embarrassingly chuunibyou.
But now that I had come to know more deeply about Akshan.
I couldn’t simply laugh it off.
And I had been inwardly worried.
That the ill omen was not a monster that could be killed.
Even if I believed in the effect of [Last Adventurer] and risked my life to charge at the ill omen, that would only be temporary. Hadn’t AAU said it as well? The ill omen was an existence created to give plausibility to [Creation]
and [Deletion]
.
Even if it was defeated, if Raymond Sean manipulated the code, it might move again. That was the ill omen. In that sense, perhaps this was the only method.
The ill omen was an existence no one could predict or handle.
The Akshan demon hunters whose [Natural Enemy Relationship]
had been activated.
Sealing it with them beneath the southern sea. ‘But why are you the ones volunteering for that?’ Restoration messages had appeared in a dizzying rush.
Among them, Akshan did not exist.
I had wondered if it could be.
I had assumed it was simply because the diversionary operation wasn’t over yet. After the ill omen hunt ended, I had even counted my chickens before they hatched, thinking of the scraps that might fall from Akshan.
But to think they had planned the finale of the diversionary operation like this.
I wanted to stop this damn operation even now.
But there was someone here who understood that damned Akshan sentiment.
Better than anyone else.
“Is that your pride?”
Yes, the ideal I had held in my childhood.
The existence in which that ideal had been realized.
Grandfell was here.
Though I truly didn’t want to, the words continued calmly.
“I understand.” ……
Is this also karma I brought upon myself?
If I had a better option than this damn diversionary operation.
I would have pushed forward with that method long ago.
But seniors weren’t called seniors for nothing. ‘……
This is a plan that Akshan of all people came up with.’
And to receive praise I had never heard before in my life at a time like this.
● Well done. (Success)
That’s cheating, isn’t it, you people?
Shrrng— And now that I had said it.
I had no choice but to keep those words.
If that was your pride.
Then playing along with it was the best I could do.
I raised Illusion Breaker high.
“I will join you, Lord Grandfell.”
Mary’s violet magic grew even deeper.
Even so, I did not expect to be able to kill the ill omen.
The role given to me was merely.
To drive the ill omen down into the southern sea.
I should at least be able to do that much, shouldn’t I, Grandfell?
At last, I moved.
Levitation. I walked through the air and approached the gigantic ill omen.
Formality was all well and good, but with the seniors suffering this much.
Could a junior really stand back with his hands behind his back?
Swish— For the first time in ages, I did more than walk. I dashed.
And I thrust Illusion Breaker forward.
Puk!
A sharper sword aura erupted.
I drove Illusion Breaker into the body of the great calamity.
The operation of [Tenacity]
flowed like water.
I converted all of my [Tenacity] stat into [Strength]
.
[Tenacity is being converted into Strength.]
[Strength: 570]
My limit in a state where Natural Enemy Relationship was not activated.
I knew without anyone having to tell me.
With a realm I had no choice but to build upon a foundation whose bottom had been completely pierced through, I could not deal significant damage to the ill omen. But even if the bottom was open and everything leaked out.
“Excessively light.”
The burden I bore.
Was heavy enough to make the water that leaked away amount to “mere” nothing.
By contrast, great calamity, you are unbearably light for your size.
As if facing a demon, I recited coldly.
“The weight of Akshan that you swallowed cannot be this light.”
The blade of Illusion Breaker shone even while lodged in the great calamity.
Was that what irritated it? The great calamity began to move.
It shifted its massive body as though trying to shake off an annoying fly.
Mary sent a warning.
“Lord Grandfell!”
The authority of deletion. Everything in the path of its movement was sucked into the mass of machinery. I should put some distance between us for now. And let’s think. ‘What does he, Raymond Sean, want?’ Swish— I manifested magic with the mana I had saved up during teatime.
In an instant, I widened the distance and continued thinking.
Was it thanks to my composure, no different from cold-bloodedness?
I was able to recall it without difficulty. ‘The things that were deleted have been restored.’
Let’s go back.
Deletion is not the ill omen’s power.
It is the power of Raymond Sean, who controls the ill omen. ‘I don’t know the purpose behind that little trick.’
But what is certain is that Raymond Sean had a petty reason.
For deleting Akshan.
For erasing those who poured out of the ill omen from Arcana.
How could I be so certain? ‘Just look at the deletion of the Demon King.’
And just as I had guessed, the great calamity was moving.
Rumble……!
As though it did not care if everyone became aware of its existence.
No, even if it meant revealing its existence.
As though it had to swallow again the things it had spat out.
It was dragging its enormous body out of the southern sea.
Naturally.
“Like creator, like creation.”
I have no intention of letting you go quietly.
Once more, I converted [Tenacity] as smoothly as flowing water.
[Tenacity is being converted into Magic Power.]
[Magic Power: 1,120]
I don’t know about my other stats, but when it comes to [Magic Power] alone, I had consistently improved it through level-ups and through the elixir herbs. You ask if it isn’t lacking because [Natural Enemy Relationship]
hasn’t activated? No, it is enough. ‘I’m not going to manifest anything grand.’
I poured out mana in a thin, continuous stream. A manifestation that would make maximum use of [Blessing of the First World Tree]
, which kept my mana regeneration near its limit.
Yes, because I intended to manifest [『Oddity』]
, which had dragged Gamigin, ranked fourth, down to Hell. I scattered mana particles into the air. I had to add [Gravity]
to the interference process and drag the great calamity down into the southern sea.
Of course, the situation was different from back then.
『Paradoxically, the pride of Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo rises to its greatest height before demons.』
What stood before me was neither demon nor monster.
Nor could I see anything like the 『Hellfire』 that had played a major role in defeating Gamigin. Even so, I did not doubt. It was far too desperate for doubt.
The struggles I had put up since Gamigin.
You say even [『Oddity』]
is not enough?
Do not overlook the fact that only my level and stats have grown.
Because I still had not poured out my full strength.
At last, a noise reached my ears.
Sssss— Enough that it would not be overwhelmed even before the great calamity.
A gigantic silhouette loomed over it.
Realizing what it was, Mary spoke.
“A D-Dragon……?”
[The legend, ‘Black Flame Dragon Lee Hoyeol,’ is materializing.]
The Black Flame Dragon’s enormous wings flapped.
Following my will, it coiled its entire body around the great calamity.
With its wings, with its tail, it seized the great calamity and revealed its sharp teeth.
At least in this moment, I had no choice but to be grateful. ‘To all my inflated bubbles.’
Two completely different worlds.
The Arcana Continent and reality.
The Black Flame Dragon legend was resounding through both worlds.
The power of a legend depends on how widely and how sincerely that legend resounds, so it was not strange for the Black Flame Dragon to possess a bulk that did not fall behind the great calamity. ‘Even if I roughly calculate only the posts floating around on the internet…….’
Without exaggeration, wouldn’t it easily exceed hundreds of millions of times a day?
The Black Flame Dragon’s entry.
The ill omen could no longer move as freely as before.
As expected, it is my legend.
With the Black Flame Dragon gripping your ankle, there’s no way you can withstand it.
But do not overlook it even now.
Illusion Breaker will feel neglected.
—I have been waiting, Master. It is time to cut down the illusion!
Ego Sword.
I still cannot draw out Gwicheol’s true performance. A legendary-grade item, no less. With my [Strength] and [Agility] values, which together barely hovered around 300, Gwicheol was honestly pearls before swine. ‘Entrusting everything to Gwicheol is the best way to use it.’
Just like when I defeated the Sword Saint, Shegwin.
But there was no way Grandfell’s noble pride would permit being swung around by Gwicheol. Because of that, I had been using Gwicheol without bringing out its true performance.
However.
“You may run wild, Illusion Breaker.”
Right now, it was legal, wasn’t it?
At this moment.
Illusion Breaker had left my hand and was lodged in the great calamity.
Crackcrackcrack!
With the noise of metal being ground away, Illusion Breaker began to dig into the great calamity’s body. Illusion Breaker, living up to its name, spoke directly into my mind.
—The only one who can remain alive while in contact with me is my Master. Mere illusion, do not dare stand at the same eye level as Master. I will not allow it.
The Black Flame Dragon and Gwicheol.
Two legends became fiercely entangled and dragged the great calamity down.
As expected, you are tenacious, great calamity, and Raymond Sean.
Mary widened her eyes and spoke.
“I will lend my strength as well.”
Mary, to whom I had handed over command, was also one of my reliable allies.
But do not overlook it even now.
Our seniors, the protagonists, have not even appeared yet.
Still, they really couldn’t let themselves be spoken of……
Crack—!
Soon, a noise echoed from deep within the great calamity’s body.
At the same time, it began to twist.
Akshan had begun to rampage.
I spoke.
Not toward the great calamity.
But toward Raymond Sean, who was surely watching this situation from somewhere.
“Do not dare attempt to measure it with your foolish discernment.”
Rumble……!!!
At the same time, the ill omen began to sink.
The Black Flame Dragon, Illusion Breaker, Mary.
Akshan drove it onward with even greater force.
“The sublime pride of humanity.” ……
To call it sublime with his own mouth—he really is shameless. ‘Anyway.’
It was as good as having declared victory early.
Now I had truly poured out all of my strength.
Even so, if I could not sink the ill omen. ‘That would be quite a troublesome matter.’
It was the moment I thought that.
I realized it once again.
Rumbleeeee……!!!
This mouth did not utter words it could not keep.
My vision flickered.
[Status abnormality, ‘Mana Exhaustion,’ has occurred.]
[Blessing of the First World Tree rejects ‘Mana Exhaustion.’]
[Status abnormality, ‘Mana Exhaustion,’ has occurred.]
…….
Between the messages that appeared one after another.
● Seal the great calamity with us in the southern sea. (Success)
The flickering quest passed by.
[You have succeeded in the quest.]
[Rewards will be distributed.]
[Your relationship with Akshan has risen to the maximum.]
[Your affinity with Akshan has risen to the maximum.]
…….
I looked at the southern sea.
As though everything had ended, just as the quest had.
It was utterly still. ‘Damn it.’
Soon, I opened my mouth.
“Akshan.”
Whether this damnable ending was Akshan’s pride.
Whether Grandfell had acknowledged it or not.
This was my, Lee Hoyeol’s, vow.
“I look forward to the day I meet you again.”
A vow made with a mouth that did not utter words it could not keep.
It was then. ‘……?’
Suddenly, light surged up from the southern sea. ‘……
Aesthetic Sense?’
[Aesthetic Sense] had reached [Upper]
.
A single ray of light shown by [Aesthetic Sense]
.
That ray of light surged like a wave.
And began to stretch out across the entire Arcana Continent.
“……!”
It did not take long to realize the true nature of that light.
*
“What happened?”
“Damn it, my head…….”
“……
Does everyone remember?”
It was different from the past.
Those who had returned to the Arcana Continent.
Remembered.
“Those demons definitely screamed it. Yes, they screamed Akshan!”
“That’s right, Akshan……!”
“Akshan, did they save us……?”
Akshan, who had sacrificed themselves for them inside the belly of the ill omen.
Therefore, Akshan would not be forgotten.
From their mouths to others’ mouths.
Within stories, Akshan would live and breathe.
Forever on the Arcana Continent.
That was right.
The world called such stories 『legends』.
[The legend of ‘Akshan, Heroes of the New Era,’ resounds across the Arcana Continent.]
...
[Your legend is materializing.]
……
No, wait a second.
If I’d known we would meet again this quickly.
I would have held back even if tears welled up, damn it!!