Ch.82Return to the Beginning (7)

As the autumn night grew colder, I stood on the southern palisade with Liberone and Adelheid, contemplating our situation.

I had suspected there might be a few scattered around, but I never expected one to be in the south.

Well, I suppose it makes sense. If there’s one in the north, having another on the opposite side in the south follows a certain pattern.

Then are there others in the east and west too? If we think about them circling the continent, that seems likely.

But that’s not the important issue right now.

According to that man, he accidentally discovered that subway station in the south and encountered someone there who killed half of his adventure party.

Since I already understand how the subway stations work, identifying that man is the most crucial thing now.

“Could you describe the man’s appearance in detail? And please explain exactly how he attacked you.”

The man grimaced as if recalling the memory was painful.

But there’s no choice. We need to know our enemy to formulate a response.

“Well, that being… I’m not even sure if it was human…”

After hearing his description, I quickly searched through my knowledge of the original game.

Then I massaged my brow and groaned.

“Damn it all.”

“What’s wrong…? What happened…?”

Bellamy asked, but I didn’t answer, not knowing how to explain. My thoughts were completely tangled.

* * * * *

I let the man stay at our shop for the night.

I asked Adelheid to strengthen the southern border security.

I also told Brasya to deploy more pigs.

From now on, we need to watch not just for people sneaking out of the city, but also for anything that might come up from the south.

“Is it possible to create a holy barrier from here to there?”

“That range is impossible.”

Liberone, standing with me on the southern palisade, shook her head.

“Don’t worry, Jack. Our guards are protecting it like an iron fortress.”

Adelheid explained the guard deployment using her scabbard.

It truly was an iron-tight security. Still, I couldn’t feel at ease.

If that mid-boss shows up, our current forces can’t stop him.

Even Liberone can’t do it.

No matter how powerful a Holy Knight she is, Liberone is still an NPC.

To defeat that thing, we need a playable character like Alreina.

He was incredibly difficult to defeat originally, but now he’s died once and come back stronger…

It’s common in games for defeated enemies to return stronger for revenge, but why this one…

“But… you know, don’t you?”

In the autumn night as the cold wind began to blow,

Adelheid turned to me, exhaling white breath.

“Know what?”

“What’s happening in the south.”

Of course I know. Or more accurately, I can guess.

Based on the man’s description, it’s one of the mid-bosses from the game.

If Alreina successfully defeated the demon army, she should have killed him before that.

You can’t progress to the next stage without killing him, so he must have died.

But now this supposedly dead boss is at the subway station in the south?

And with more vicious attack patterns than before?

Let me form a hypothesis.

In the original game, the south was an unlocked region that no one could access.

The developers never clarified whether it would open later or was simply never implemented.

Then I was reincarnated, and unlike the original story, the Starting Village was upgraded to a city.

A completely different route from Alreina following the original storyline.

And now large adventure parties and individual adventurers have entered the south, which should have been inaccessible.

In the game, trying to enter would normally trigger a warning saying “This area cannot be explored yet” and push you back.

This suggests my reincarnation has affected this game world.

I was supposed to be just a potion shop NPC in the Starting Village, selling basic potions and items to Level 1 players.

But after my reincarnation, I’ve been doing all sorts of things and developed the tutorial area that should never have progressed.

Perhaps this small change unlocked the south prematurely.

So was the south already implemented?

Given that a mid-boss who should be dead is in the southern subway station, perhaps it was being prepared as a setting for an expansion.

This is troublesome.

Until now, I’ve relied on my knowledge of the original game, but I know nothing about the south.

To think that a vast unknown region has opened up right in front of our city.

The best option is to completely block access to the south. Better not to disturb the hornet’s nest.

Alright, let’s do that. Next problem.

Where are the surviving half of the adventure party now?

I already know the answer.

The Doomsday Site in the northern continent.

It’s the first subway station and the only “ancient relic” discovered in the game.

This world was rebuilt after the collapse of modern civilization.

It’s a common cliché used in many games and movies.

And the Doomsday Site is the first remnant of modern civilization discovered by people in this world—a subway station.

In the game, you can’t interact with it at all or get any information.

Among users, there were rumors it was a portal to other regions, but nothing was confirmed.

Plus, it often had bugs, so I warned Alreina never to go there.

But now it’s operational.

According to the man, the subway activated and swept the survivors away to the first subway station in the north.

The distance from here to the north is immense.

Without a dimensional gate from a high-level mage, it’s impossible to reach.

Alreina is probably nearby, but we can’t contact her…

All we can do is wait for a response from the imperial palace.

That’s my conjecture.

But I wasn’t sure if I should share this.

Because the moment I speak, I’ll reveal that I’m not from this world.

How would these two react if they heard this?

This world was artificially created by someone, and everyone except Alreina repeats their assigned roles infinitely.

Their purpose is solely to interact with players.

Just as Jack, before my reincarnation, provided beginner items to starting users.

Liberone appears as a support NPC during church-related quests, fighting alongside the player for a certain period.

Adelheid is the main boss in the Remugen Mercenary Corps subquest, ultimately dying at the player’s hands.

That’s their purpose and fate. There is no other path.

It would be a tremendous shock. They might not even believe it.

But I think these two will believe me. And right now, I need allies who understand the full situation.

“Listen carefully, you two.”

I quietly began to speak.

* * * * *

After I finished explaining everything, Liberone and Adelheid remained silent.

They’re naturally reserved, and they’ve just heard something unimaginable.

Adelheid was the first to speak.

“So… this world is designed as a stage for that girl Alreina.”

“That’s right.”

“Everyone exists only for Alreina.”

“Yes. Me, Liberone, and you too.”

“Well, this is something… But Jack, how did you…”

“I don’t know either. I just suddenly became the potion shop owner.”

“Perhaps.”

Liberone, who had been silent until now, spoke.

“Perhaps you lost your memories when descending. According to the church’s theological doctrine, when coming from heaven to earth…”

“That’s not it, Liberone. I have all my previous memories. I just don’t know how I got here.”

Liberone looked at me for a moment, then turned her gaze south.

“Actually… I had been thinking that perhaps you might not be a Guardian Angel.”

“You already knew…?”

“To some extent. I thought you were more like a capable person with broad insight and good judgment rather than an angel. It seems I was right.”

“I’m sorry… I should have told you earlier…”

Liberone slowly shook her head.

“It’s alright. At this point, whether you’re my Guardian Angel or not doesn’t matter. Even if you’re not an angel, it doesn’t invalidate what you’ve done for this city.”

Liberone understood me. Thank goodness.

I wasn’t afraid of her drawing her sword in anger, but rather of Liberone feeling betrayed after following me all this time.

“As the Holy Knight says, it doesn’t seem important anymore what this world is or what kind of beings we are.”

Adelheid said, touching her sword hilt.

“You said everything changed when you were reincarnated, right? Thanks to that, we’re not playing those strange roles you mentioned and are living our lives by our own will. That’s enough.”

“I see.”

“Yes, Jack. What happened before your reincarnation doesn’t matter anymore. What’s important is what we do from now on. I understand everything you’ve said. The best course is to prevent anything from coming up from the south, and to ensure the safe return of the survivors who went north, right?”

“That’s right.”

Adelheid placed her hand on my shoulder.

“I’ll follow you, Jack. I’m sure you can solve everything.”

“As will I.”

Liberone placed her hand on my other shoulder.

“Thank you, Captain. And Liberone.”

A few days later, another person came up from the south.