In the dark red sea of blood steadily spreading across the shop floor, only the monsters’ shrieks rang chaotically in my ears.
“Ugh…… Ja…… James……?”
“……Ah.”
To make matters worse.
The Hero regained consciousness.
“The…… the……?”
[The Hero has witnessed the gruesome deaths of his former companions.]
[The Hero’s mental state deteriorates.]
[Status Effect - Mental Breakdown!]
“Uwaaaaaaaa-!”
The Hero suddenly went into convulsions.
Then he began screaming at the top of his lungs.
“Grrk?”
Several monsters turned their heads toward us.
“……Damn it!”
I immediately grabbed the Hero and ran.
The monsters’ howls and James’s screams, left behind all alone, gradually faded into the distance.
Then, at some point, James’s voice rang out one final time as a brief death cry.
And just like that……
……the last hero from my first-time draw was neatly deleted.
.
.
.
“Aaaaaah……! Aaaaaaaaagh-!”
The Hero’s Mental Breakdown lasted for quite a while.
He roared so loudly that practically every monster in the area came running toward us.
By the time I finished fleeing in a panic, I had somehow reached the outskirts of the capital.
I briefly considered knocking the Hero unconscious along the way.
But with my strength, one chop to the back of his neck seemed more likely to turn him into the late Hero, so I gave up.
‘They weren’t supposed to die that easily. My three-pull really ended this pointlessly…….’
Thinking about it any longer would only make me feel worse, so I decided to forget about it.
“Phew…….”
Once I felt that we had shaken off our pursuers, I climbed onto the roof of a suitable building.
……GULP!
My throat was so dry that I pulled out a potion and took a sip.
It was not exactly medicine that was supposed to be used like this, but I desperately needed fluids.
‘I should rest for a moment and then leave. I can’t guarantee our safety here.’
Low-ranking mutants transformed into monsters after coming into contact with the crimson vapor.
These humanoid monsters were attracted not only by things that stimulated their sight, hearing, and sense of smell, but also by mana.
Which meant there was no way we could spend the night on a rooftop.
They would spend the entire night stubbornly climbing up the building before opening their jaws wide in front of my face.
“Sniff…… Hic…….”
The Hero continued sniffling as enormous tears rolled down his cheeks.
It seemed he still could not believe that the companions who had been precious comrades in his previous life had died such gruesome deaths right before his eyes.
“Everything…… Everything is ruined…….”
“…….”
“This isn’t another chance…… It’s a nightmare. No, it’s a curse…….”
It would be troublesome if another status effect appeared and made him start screaming again.
So I decided to explain things properly and calm him down.
“Hey, Hero. Charles Brown.”
“…….”
“I’m telling you this now so you don’t misunderstand. The one who slaughtered your party in the previous playthrough…… No, your previous life wasn't me.”
“……What?”
“Can’t you tell just by the way I talk and act?”
“……?”
“I was living perfectly well in another world, and then suddenly I possessed this body. I’m going insane over this too.”
The Hero stared at me with an incredulous expression for a moment.
Then the corners of his mouth twisted strangely.
“……You’re saying you’re a different person?”
“Something like that. A different soul entered this body.”
“No, you seem exactly the same to me. You’re still a psychotic murderer with a rotten personality……?”
“…….”
Silence lingered for a moment.
A wind carrying the stench of blood occasionally brushed past my nose.
Only after quite some time did the Hero speak again.
“……I feel sorry for her. She confessed to a bastard like you, suffered because of you…… and was eventually murdered by you.”
The Hero’s eyes trembled slightly before he looked away from me.
Like a male who had lost a competition for a mate.
“Why…… did you cut her down first back then?”
‘Could it be that the Hero had a crush on that healer in the previous playthrough……?’
I was staring blankly at him when-
WOOOOONG-.
“Hm?”
A powerful wave of mana suddenly surged up from below.
BOOM!
An explosion followed immediately afterward.
‘That’s the entrance leading to the Underground City, isn’t it?’
Judging from the surrounding terrain, its location, and that uniquely ominous atmosphere……
It was definitely the entrance to the dungeon infamous for crushing new players.
The Underground City.
‘But why are people blocking the entrance?’
Wait.
Could it be?
‘Is this before the Underground City was destroyed by the mutant outbreak?’
DING!
[TIP - The first step toward Ailant’s independence!]
[Complete the Checklist and reach the Hidden Ending.]
At that moment, a holographic window unfolded before my eyes.
[Loading Checklist.]
[Hidden Route Progress : 0%]
-(new!) 『Purify the Underground City』
-『???』
-『???』
…….
‘……Purify the Underground City?’
So the story really was unfolding differently from the original game.
I immediately selected it and opened the detailed description.
【Purify the Underground City】
-Beneath the Imperial Capital lies a home for the filthy, unclean, lowly immigrants of Ailant.
-Eliminate the Special Mutant hiding within the Underground City and prevent the mutation from spreading.
‘So this is where the Hidden Route truly begins.’
My heart began pounding rapidly.
At last, I could see a thread of hope that might allow me to escape this damned world and return home.
“Hero, get up. Looks like we need to go help.”
“Wh-What-.”
I immediately hoisted the Hero over my shoulder and headed toward the entrance to the Underground City.
“P-Put me down! Setanta……!”
“Stay still. We can’t attract the monsters around us.”
“Put me-!”
He struggled so much that-
SMACK!
I lightly slapped his backside with my palm.
The Hero’s entire body trembled violently.
“Hngh……! H-Huh, ugh, aaah…….”
“Ah, sorry. You’re still alive, right?”
As the old saying went, Heroes were best kept in line with a beating, were they not?
In any case, I was glad he had quieted down.
* * *
After approaching the vicinity of the Underground City, I lowered myself.
‘……The atmosphere doesn’t look good. I should hide and watch what’s happening first.’
Two groups of people stood facing each other around the entrance to the Underground City, looking as though they were about to break into a brawl.
Judging by their appearances, some of them had already begun mutating in various parts of their bodies.
“Open this door right now! If it isn’t open by the time I count to three, I’ll blow the entire entrance apart……!”
“How are we supposed to know what you’ll do once you’re inside?! And look at the state of you…… Your mutation has already progressed considerably!”
“You parasitic bastards……! This kind of thing goes away after a little rest! Open it, now-!”
The shouting man snapped his fingers.
A sphere of mana floated into the air.
He was probably a Mage.
“Sir……! You must not cause a disturbance! If more monsters are drawn here, we truly won’t be able to hold them back!”
“Then let us inside. Listen while I’m still asking nicely.”
“Do you truly have no conscience? Think about what your people have done to us Ailants all this time! How could you-.”
“Shut up!”
The man who appeared to be a Mage raised his hand and pointed.
BANG!
The sphere of mana flew forward and struck the protesting man directly in the face.
“Ugh…… Aaaaaagh!”
With a small explosion, he was thrown backward and rolled across the ground several times.
Through the hands covering his face, I could see that nearly half his skin had been badly scorched.
“Se-Setanta. Put me down!”
“Charles, stay still. Let’s watch a little longer.”
I held onto the struggling Hero.
‘Most of the Underground City’s residents were immigrants from Ailant.’
Their homeland had been rendered uninhabitable by exploitation and pollution from the ruling Empire.
They were the people of a fallen nation who had been forced to immigrate to the Empire simply to survive.
……Naturally, they would have been subjected to all kinds of discrimination and injustice.
‘Good. If I earn the Ailants’ favor here, getting into the Underground City should be easy.’
It was a simple affinity event.
If you saved someone being bullied, they would naturally start liking you!
“Hey, Charles. Stay here by yourself for a minute.”
“What? Setanta, what are you planning to……!”
I immediately began my affinity strategy.
For thugs like those, a beating was the best medicine.
‘Good. They shouldn’t be able to see me from this angle.’
I approached from their blind spot while suppressing the sound of my footsteps.
They were so focused on tormenting the innocent Ailant immigrants that, fortunately, none of them noticed me.
“Open the door while I’m still asking nicely……. You Ailant beggars.”
“U-Ugh…….”
“Damn it! We have to survive too!”
“…….”
“Stop resisting and open the damn door-.”
TAP!
I immediately dashed forward and struck one thug squarely in the back of the head.
“Please live an honest life from now on!”
THWACK-!
“……U-Ugh.”
A dull cracking sound followed.
His eyes rolled back, and he collapsed limply to the ground.
‘Huh?’
I had only meant to teach him a small lesson.
So why was this bastard trembling uncontrollably with foam coming out of his mouth?
“Wh-What? What just happened……?”
“Who the hell are you?!”
Then everyone turned toward me at once……
Their gazes were chilling.
“No, I was just telling him to live honestly.”
“……An Ailant accent? He’s one of them! This bastard is working with the Underground City rats!”
Cursing loudly, they immediately swung their swords and spears at me.
‘Damn it……!’
I twisted my body slightly and let the attacks pass by.
Then I took one or two steps backward at a time, making small adjustments with my body as blades swept past me and stirred the air.
……WHOOSH!
An upward diagonal slash.
SWISH!
A thrust.
SWISH, SWISH-!
A staggered combination with irregular timing.
‘……I can see every single attack trajectory.’
It was almost as though time slowed for an instant.
Their attacks seemed to move in slow motion.
DING!
[TIP - If there is a comparatively justifiable reason for causing injury or death, a hero’s Morality Value will not decrease.]
A System message conveniently appeared.
‘……So this counts as self-defense.’
SHING-.
I drew the Hero’s Longsword.
Of course, I had no intention of killing them.
I was merely going to help them become a little more ‘virtuous.’
“He drew his sword! Everyone, watch out!”
“…….”
Their offensive began again.
Clumsy.
Slow.
Idiotic attacks.
CLANG! CLANG!
I casually deflected their awkward strikes while retreating.
Then-
TAP!
I suddenly stepped forward.
CRUNCH-!
I drove the longsword straight into the knee of the man at the front.
“A-Aaaaaagh-!”
……One disabled.
I immediately pulled the blade free.
“Y-You lunatic……!”
“Everyone, please live honestly from now on!”
SHNK!
“Aaaaaagh-!”
I ruined another man’s knee.
“S-S-S-Save me……!”
STAB!
And another.
“W-Wait! Ah…… Aaaah-!”
CRUNCH!
“Aaaaaaaaaagh-!”
SQUELCH!
Using similar methods, I stabbed through the wrists and knee ligaments of the rest of the group.
CLATTER!
Unable to put any strength into their hands, they dropped their weapons one after another before collapsing onto the ground.
……GULP!
Pools of red slowly formed beneath their trembling bodies.
Phew-.
The bandit extermination was finally complete.
‘Now, shall I farm myself a new weapon?’
[You have obtained 【Bandit’s Spear】.]
A sturdy-looking spear happened to be lying on the ground, so I picked it up.
This spear was mine now.
“Everyone from the Underground City, you’re safe now. These bandits have become good people.”
I turned toward the persecuted Ailant immigrants and called out.
“…….”
Silence lingered.
Aside from the curses and groans of the thugs crawling along the ground, no one spoke.
Everyone looked deathly pale.
‘What? Aren’t they going to thank me?’
After a moment, the man with one side of his face burned spoke to me in a trembling voice.
“Th-Thank you……. But when you say these men have become good……? What exactly do you mean by that……?”
“Hm?”
I organized my thoughts for a moment before answering.
“Thanks to me, these bandits can’t do bad things anymore, so I think it’s fair to say they’ve become good.”
“……?”
“Their knees are ruined, so they can’t walk. They’ll probably get torn apart by monsters soon. And dead people can’t discriminate against anyone, right?”
“……Ah?”
“In other words, I used justified violence in self-defense and helped these people become good.”
The man with the burned face stared blankly at me.
Had he understood?
“In short, I’m a kind and harmless adventurer who opposes discrimination!”
“…….”
“So, could my companion and I spend one night in the Underground City?”
“……Y-Ye-Yes, of course…….”
The man slowly nodded.
He had clearly acknowledged that I was a harmless traveler.
Although……
Their slightly deranged gazes kept drifting toward the spear and sword in my hands.
It seemed I had successfully taken my first step toward the Hidden Route.