episode_0007

First, let’s make this clear.

I am merely someone possessed by Ronan, not Ronan himself.

While my body is Ronan’s, it was correct to see myself as a completely different person since my mind is not Ronan’s.

“I tried to just let it go.”

So, my current anger towards Ronan didn’t stray far from simply feeling sorry for him. Ronan and I are separate individuals, and I have never betrayed those girls.

Therefore, I hesitated on whether I had the right to be angry at the party members just like Ronan.

What could I say to them? That’s why I initially tried to leave the inn without saying anything.

“Seriously, 89 days is harsh. Damn bitches.”

But no matter how much I think about it.

Isn’t it too extreme to cut short a life to less than three months?

Just because Ronan was used up to that extent?

“You guys are dead today.”

And even after using him up like that, they immediately discard Ronan when he becomes useless?

I simply couldn’t believe that this was something a human would do.

Logically speaking, wouldn’t I have the right to be angry at this point?

I approached the party members slowly with a sword in hand.

With a deeply angered expression.

“Hmph. Ronan, ultimately it’s not your fault, right?”

But why does it seem like you guys are angrier than me?

The mage of the Hero Party, Charlotte, didn’t show any fear when I approached her.

It was absurd, but it seemed reasonable to ask why she was so angry.

“What exactly are you saying?”

Are you blaming Ronan here?

As I looked at Charlotte accusing Ronan, I experienced a truly bewildering feeling.

What kind of thoughts could lead her to say such things?

“Ha. Hey. Ronan… Don’t you know why my lifespan shortened?”

I countered Charlotte’s words sharply.

At this point, she can’t claim ignorance.

“Every day, you pushed me to be weak, to fight, forced us into danger to save you, eating away at your own lifespan, don’t you know?”

For the sake of the party members, Ronan had been consuming his own lifespan.

Because he couldn’t just leave the party members behind, Ronan had to make this choice.

“If you didn’t get stronger for us, you threatened to leave the party. Don’t you remember?”

Not wanting to be abandoned by the party members, he made this choice out of a desire to support them in any way possible.

It was none other than Ronan who prioritized the party members above all else.

“But now you’re saying such things? After sacrificing everything?”

But what did he receive in return?

Nothing but betrayal from the party members.

Ronan didn’t endure all that suffering just to be betrayed upon his return after hearing such words.

It was utterly unfair, driving me to madness.

“You should have controlled yourself better. Who asked you to get stronger like that and beg for help?”

Even as I almost choked up, Charlotte remained indifferent.

She continued to blame me.

Seeing her like that, I gave up on conversing.

There’s no reasoning with a beast.

Thwack!

“Agh!”

A fist struck her face.

Charlotte was hit by the fist and flew out of the smoke field, losing consciousness.

“It’s my fault for having expectations.”

One person had been dealt with, and it was time to look at the next one.

“”…””

The priest and childhood friend Trisella and Amy were staring blankly at me.

From the moment when the hero Jax fell, they had lost their composure.

Even if Jax had been there, it would have been a situation where victory was uncertain, of course.

I hesitated on who to approach first and decided to go to Trisella for now.

“Do you have anything to say?”

“Sir Ronan, I know I was wrong too.”

As I approached her, Trisella looked slightly nervous.

She seemed to harbor some sense of remorse, unlike Charlotte.

“Really? Then it’s time for reflection now?”

“Why would I? I am meant to be a saint. Naturally, I have no room to spare for a dying hero like you. It was an unavoidable choice, I think.”

However, ultimately, Trisella was just like the others.

That was all there was to it.

She seemed unapologetic for betraying Ronan.

“If she were a goddess, she would have undoubtedly abandoned you. She can’t rely on a hero with little time left.”

She justified her betrayal along with Charlotte, claiming it was reasonable.

“Oh my. A mere priestess predicting the actions of a goddess is truly disrespectful.”

“… Even if you say that, my thoughts remain unchanged.”

Knowing the story of the Empire serving the religion of the Goddess, which had decayed in the game, I was somewhat aware. However, even considering that, to think that such a woman was a likely candidate for a saint…

It’s the end times. The end times.

Thud!

“Ack!!!”

“Don’t overreact. Before I really kill you.”

I struck Trisella’s arm with my sword.

Since it was a promised non-lethal duel, I intended to just subdue her.

Leaving Trisella whimpering in pain behind me, I turned to Amy, Ronan’s childhood friend.

“Amy.”

“Ronan… I’m sorry… We were wrong.”

Looking at me, she still had teary eyes.

She showed a pleading look, asking not to do this.

Her demeanor only irritated me further.

“Hey. If I think about Charlotte and Trisella a hundred times, maybe I could understand this much?”

Honestly, compared to Amy, I don’t hold much resentment towards Charlotte and Trisella.

While they are unforgivable traitors, at least they had reasons to fulfill their own destinies, right?

“Charlotte needed the strength of a hero to rebuild her fallen family.”

The sorceress Charlotte, as a fallen noble, initially liked Ronan because of his hero’s power.

“Trisella, despite everything, can be seen as fulfilling her duty as a saint.”

Moreover, Trisella’s reason for liking Ronan was primarily to follow the hero as a saint.

They had some sense of righteousness, so there was a bit of forgiveness present.

Of course, as the betrayer who ended Ronan’s life, I could never forgive them.

“But what about you?”

However, no matter how much I thought about it, Amy felt very different from those two.

I walked up to Amy, grabbed her collar, and asked her why she used Ronan.

“I… Just. For you, Ronan.”

And predictably.

Amy gave an answer that didn’t make sense.

Slap!

I slapped her cheek.

“… Ro… Ronan?”

Amy’s pupils dilated.

Did she think Ronan could never strike her?

To you, Ronan was a fool who only liked himself no matter what, so it’s natural.

“Hey. Stop talking nonsense and tell the truth.”

But I’m sorry, it wasn’t me.

I’m not Ronan?

Once again, I asked Amy for an explanation.

“I’ll say it again… I… I did it for you, Ronan…”

However, it seemed she wouldn’t easily give in.

Slap!

Amy’s cheek turned even redder.

“I told you not to talk nonsense.”

“Ugh… Ronan. I…”

“Ha. This is really going on until the end.”

Despite continued questioning, Amy repeated like a parrot that she was doing it for Ronan till the end.

Her attempt to deceive until the very end was disgusting.

“Hey… logically… logically speaking.”

By the way, never be deceived.

There is not even 1% of truth in the tears of a rag wearing the mask of a childhood friend.

“Can someone who claims to do it for me gnaw away at my life like this? Yeah, then spread your legs for another hero?”

Doing it for Ronan, but tearing his body apart like this?

Yeah, then abandoning Ronan like this?

Where exactly is the behavior that is for Ronan?

“You never acted for Ronan. You just used Ronan for yourself.”

No, absolutely not.

To Amy, Ronan was just a convenient tool to use.

A tool for her own success.

“If you really acted for Ronan from the start, you wouldn’t have said you did. Am I wrong?”

This is the only truth about Amy.

I demanded Amy to speak honestly now.

“Ronan. I really…. Ugh… did it for you… because I liked you…”

Then tears fell from Amy’s cheeks like chicken droppings. As if saying it was so heartbreaking. As if asking why he didn’t understand her heart…

“Ha. Seriously. Tell me one more time that you did it for me?”

Really harsh… poisonous.

Is this going on until the end?

I drew my sword and aimed it at Amy’s neck.