“Ian.”
Had I lost consciousness for a moment? At the sound of my name, my awareness returned. I struggled to open my closed eyes and raised my head.
Beyond my blurred vision, I saw a gray-haired woman clad in white armor.
She was noble and beautiful, like a white flower blooming amid the ruins.
As I stared blankly at her, she lowered herself onto one knee and spoke with bitterness in her eyes.
“You survived.”
Her blunt manner of speaking did not suit her sweet voice, yet a smile naturally formed on my face the moment I heard it.
“……”
I opened my mouth, but no voice came out. After pausing to breathe, I tried again. I failed.
She took my hand. A warm energy flowed into my body, breathing a little vitality into me.
The pain subsided considerably as well. However, my dying body showed no sign of recovering.
She had probably done no more than buy me a little time. In that case, I could not simply squander these precious moments.
“Is it over?”
At my question, the woman nodded gravely.
“Yes. Look over there.”
I followed the direction of her finger. Far in the distance, one of the divine beings from the Outer Sea—the world beyond that sought to bring ruin upon this one—lay motionless.
The moment I beheld that utterly gruesome sight, a tremendous upheaval erupted within me.
An intense sensation surged upward from the depths of my body, and a flash burst through my mind like a bolt of lightning.
A great feat.
The moment I realized that I had played a part in an achievement no one else had ever dared accomplish, the steadfast wall that had hindered my growth collapsed, and I finally awakened.
At the same time, a single brilliant light appeared within my mindscape, which had been stained pitch-black.
My corrupted mind cleared, and the reason that had been fading beneath the haze of madness returned to some extent.
The Spirit Star.
It was the proof of Level 6 and the beginning of the higher ranks. At long last, I had obtained the star of the soul I had desired so desperately.
I had hoped that this might trigger the physical reconstruction I had only ever heard about, but regrettably, no such dramatic change occurred.
The cause was probably my absurdly depleted mana and the fact that my stamina had already reached its limit. What a shame.
Still, it was fine. This had granted me a reprieve from death. That alone was enough to satisfy me.
Abella, who had been watching me silently, spoke again.
“You achieved your goal.”
“Are you not going to congratulate me?”
“You already know how I feel without my saying it.”
A quiet laugh escaped me at the joke, which was so unlike her.
“Thanks to you, I managed to fulfill every one of my dreams. I am not pleased that it happened just before my death, but this is good enough. I think I can leave without any lingering regrets.”
“……”
“What about the others? Once they have come to their senses, they should at least come over and congratulate me. No matter how much they hate me, we spent a long time together. Surely they could do that much?”
“…I am sorry.”
“What?”
“They are all dead. You are the only one who survived.”
For a moment, I was left speechless. Silence lingered between us. As I contemplated her words, I was reminded anew of just how absurdly powerful the divine being she had slain had been.
Even those mighty individuals, each capable of bringing upheaval to the world, had been unable to survive against it.
Now that I looked more closely, the woman before me was hardly unscathed either. I simply had not noticed because she was drenched in blood.
Even the armor personally bestowed upon her by one of the Twelve Lords was cracked and shattered in countless places.
“To think that I, the weakest of us, survived the longest. How contradictory.”
“You were fortunate.”
“Was I? Fortune seems like a word that has little to do with me.”
“……”
“Abella, did you know? When I was young, I dreamed of becoming a hero.”
“……”
In a low voice, Ian calmly began to speak of his past. It was a story he had never shared, not even when he was thoroughly drunk.
Whenever anyone asked, he would merely give a bitter smile and firmly seal his lips. Abella knew that as well, so she listened attentively.
“I possessed a brilliant talent, and I had the powerful Berger family behind me. I never doubted that it would be possible. But I was wrong. Around the time I became an adult, I realized that there was always another sky above the sky.”
“……”
“Had there been only one such person, I might have thought it understandable. Unfortunately, there were several. They were the ones truly destined to become heroes. Distinctive personalities, exceptional talents, striking appearances—there was not a single fault to be found among them. Ah, though their personalities were rather wretched.”
“…I see.”
“Once I learned that people like them existed, my life began to feel unbearably hollow. I am ashamed to admit it, but I spent my days in foolish helplessness.”
“Were the people around you not disappointed?”
“Of course they were. My father most of all. I found it difficult to endure. At least my siblings… tried everything they could to help me recover, but eventually, I even came to resent their concern. I simply wanted to forget everything. So I drank. Every single day. People mocked me when they saw what I had become, and regardless of what they said, I continued to waste away into a ruined man.”
“But I heard that you eventually came to your senses.”
“Yes, I did. Far too late.”
Memories of the distant past drifted through my mind. While I was squandering my precious years and becoming a useless man, I happened to hear stories about treasure hunters.
They said that anyone who crossed the defensive line, ventured into the territory of the fallen Zyle Empire, and returned with relics could obtain wealth and fame.
“The money was secondary. It was the fame that interested me.”
Even if I could not become a hero praised by all, I thought I might at least make my name known throughout the world.
So I gathered a little money and departed without telling anyone.
That was how I attempted to become a treasure hunter. However, the world was not so forgiving.
Without my family’s support, I was nothing. In truth, being a treasure hunter was little different from being a mercenary.
“To earn a living, I even had to do things that made me sick. I had to cast aside my pride as well.”
As though that were not enough, the work demanded a wide variety of skills, forcing me to learn all manner of minor crafts.
It was fortunate that I had accumulated considerable knowledge in my youth. Otherwise, my circumstances would have been truly miserable.
There were times when I could bear it no longer and considered returning to my family, but I knew that doing so would only make me a laughingstock. I gritted my teeth and endured.
“I experienced countless battles in which my life was at stake.”
I nearly died several times. There were occasions when I was foolishly used and others when I was stupidly betrayed. Even so, I survived somehow and accumulated experience.
After much hardship, I discovered several relics, and the name Ian became fairly well known. Members of my family came looking for me once, but I did not return with them.
I still had far too little to show for myself.
I continued wandering as both a treasure hunter and a mercenary until I reached Level 5, the stage commonly called mastery.
My abilities were sufficient to earn respectable treatment wherever I went, but I could not be satisfied. I set my sights on a higher realm.
“And then you met me. Did you know who I was?”
“I recognized you the moment I saw you. Abella, you were one of the twelve Champions blessed by the Twelve Lords, who were said to rule the world in God’s stead. I am only saying this now, but our first meeting left quite an impression on me.”
“In what way?”
“Your remarkable beauty was part of it, but the first thing you said to me was entirely unexpected. Do you remember?”
“Of course. I told you that, tragically, this world was approaching its end.”
“Yes, that is right. It was a fact even a three-year-old child knew, so I nodded. Just as you said, this world was approaching its end.”
It was because of the beings from the world beyond, the place known as the Outer Sea.
The Outer Gods, who possessed transcendent power.
From beyond the dimensions, they tore open space and continuously sent monsters of horrific forms and bizarre abilities into this world.
Their purpose was unknown. Scholars proposed various theories, but not one had been conclusively proven.
Only one thing was certain.
The beings known as the Outer Gods were anything but friendly.
The invasion from the Outer Sea, which had begun centuries ago, destroyed numerous nations and even set the mighty empire of that era upon the path to ruin.
Only when the situation became increasingly dire did humanity finally unite, regardless of race, and stand against the Outer Sea. However, that was now a story of the distant past.
Perhaps the miraculous achievement of joining forces and repelling an invasion by the Outer Gods once had made them complacent. Over time, the unity that had bound them together gradually faded, until the appearance of monsters came to be regarded as an ordinary part of life.
Abella showed a faint smile.
“Yes. The fact that you already understood that made the conversation easier.”
“…To be honest, I thought you were speaking nonsense at the time.”
“Did you?”
“I did. You said that the invasion of the Outer Gods was about to begin in earnest once more. And that was not all, was it? You claimed that monsters would overrun the entire world and that humanity, utterly unprepared, would begin to fall helplessly before them.”
“Was that not exactly what happened?”
“I did not know it would back then.”
“…Then why did you follow me?”
“Because I found it fascinating. You spoke with the certainty of someone who had seen the future, and you asked an insignificant man like me for help.”
“Hmm. You seem to be mistaken about something. You were not insignificant, Ian. At the time, you were the only person who ventured fearlessly into the territory of the fallen Zyle Empire as though it were your own home.”
“No, there were expedition parties, the Pillars, and even the Fallen Emperor at the time.”
Abella pressed her lips together for a moment before speaking again.
“Allow me to correct myself. At the time, you were the only guide I could trust and who would follow my judgment. Were you perhaps dissatisfied?”
“No, of course not. On the contrary, it was an honor.”
“……”
“At the time, I wondered whether this might be my opportunity to become the hero I had dreamed of being as a child. Ian the Guide, the man who led the Champion and her companions. I imagined those words carved upon my gravestone and decided to join you.”
“In the end, that is precisely what happened.”
“Yes, it did. Provided that you erect my gravestone.”
I continued speaking.
“As we traveled together, I realized something, Abella. You were a truly noble and steadfast person. It would not have been an exaggeration to call you the protagonist of a fairy tale. I admired you and wanted to become like you—both your character and your strength.”
“Did you?”
Whenever the Champion saw a horde of monsters, she charged into it without hesitation. Whenever a monstrous beast appeared, she was the first to step forward and face it bravely.
She grew stronger just as rapidly. The same was true of the companions who traveled with her.
“Trying to keep up with you made me grow as well. I thought I was going to tear myself apart in the process.”
Naturally, it was not easy. The Champion and her companions were always ahead of me.
“When I walked, all of you ran. When I ran, all of you seemed to fly. It was overwhelming.”
But I did not fall into despair as I had in my youth. Perhaps because I had already experienced it once, I simply accepted it and continued working tirelessly.
“Ian, I am only saying this in case you did not know, but everyone admired that side of you.”
“Did they? I suppose they did show me some goodwill. Every one of them asked sarcastically why I had not worked that hard when I was younger. But now they are all dead, are they not? It seems I will die soon as well. Hmm. Perhaps that is why I am telling you all of this.”
“……”
“Well, it is not so bad. My life was filled with regrets, but I still became one of those who saved the world alongside the Champion.”
“……”
“Ha, how fortunate. To think that a single awakening would allow me to say everything I wanted, right until the very end, even as I lay dying…. This is what one might truly call good fortune.”
“……”
“Abella, before it is too late, let me ask you one favor.”
“No. I am sorry, but I do not think I can grant it.”
“It is not even a difficult request.”
“No.”
Her answer was so resolute that a hollow laugh escaped me.
“How coldhearted. We have shared a bond for all these years, have we not?”
“That is not why. I… I intend to begin again.”
“…What?”
Again?
“Begin what?”
“Everything, from the very beginning. Now that I have succeeded in killing an Outer God, I should be able to do better next time. I cannot accept an ending in which everyone dies and I alone survive. This… to be honest, was a failure.”
“Hmm. Why… do you… think that?”
My body was gradually becoming heavier. It meant that the end was finally drawing near.
“Because there is more than one Outer God. One was merely the beginning. None of you were meant to die here. Neither were you.”
I was confused. Truthfully, I could not even understand what she meant.
I wanted to ask her to explain, but my voice would no longer emerge. My body, which had been perched on the steps, tipped forward. She caught me.
“Ian. Thank you. It was because of you that we made it this far. And… I am sorry.”
For some reason, she apologized. It did not suit her at all. I wanted to tell her that it was all right, but I did not even have the strength for that.
My vision darkened as well. I could barely hear her voice. Silence was descending upon me.
‘So this is the end.’
That was what I thought.
But.
It was not.
Over yet.