episode_0271

“Cough.”

My breathing was heavy. My vision was completely red and my limp limbs wouldn’t move.

If I had to say, it’s a situation that’s just right for a loser.

“I’ll admit it.”

Beyond the red vision, I could hear the witch’s voice. Unlike me, she had the composure of a winner.

“It was more than I thought. I didn’t know that it would be so easy to pierce through not only the corpse army but also the enemy’s clones. And even with that dying body… ”

“Cough, cough.”

I was busy spewing blood, not to mention responding. My body was disintegrating from the inside. My sight, touch, smell, all my senses were blurred. My vital organs were losing their vitality and gradually stopping their functions.

I could hear footsteps coming towards me. It was incredibly brisk.

“This is my gift to you. It’s for showing me a good view.”

And then a soft palm was placed on my hair, along with a thumping sensation.

“It must be unfair for you to die alone. After all that effort. But still… won’t this give you some comfort?”

Ridicule is the natural right of the victor. And I have no power to stop it now.

The colors before my eyes became bright again. A large amount of visual information began to pour into my brain through the touching hands.

All the events that had just passed by stretched out like a panorama. And this was not a recollection of the past, but a reality that was happening right now.

And all that was visible through the witches’ eyes was despair.

-The front wall has been breached! No more…!

-There are no troops to block the flank! Support…!

-Save me, save me…!

On the outskirts of the city, a bloody battle was still going on. The giant demon was barely defeated, but the remaining members were unable to withstand the fierce attacks of the demons and witches.

The surrounding area was a mountain of corpses. There were several times more dead and injured people than there were holy people. I walked slowly in the middle of it all. And I looked down at someone with an arrogant gaze.

-Haa, haa… This is…

Even the commander, Black Cat, had one arm hanging limply and was bleeding profusely from his wound.

It was the moment when I caught sight of her. My vision became blurry and quickly spun around.

-Hey! I told you not to make eye contact!!

-no!

One of the cadets who made eye contact with me froze like a statue with a snapping sound. The surrounding area was already filled with similarly shaped stone statues.

I kicked without even looking back. Someone who was rushing at me was slammed into the wall with a loud noise.

A figure gradually emerged from beyond the dust. A single cadet with his head down was motionless. The spear he was holding was broken in half and could no longer be used.

-Hey! Ryu Seung-heon! Come to your senses!

The swearing called out to him again drew his attention. He saw a large cadet struggling to maintain the already tattered barrier.

I created hundreds of particle crystals above my hand and shot them straight through. Finally, with a loud noise like breaking glass, the particle barrier oxidized.

Choi Woo-jin let out a hollow laugh when he saw that sight.

-What the hell.

My vision changed again. I was standing on a giant, living, moving tree trunk, looking down at someone.

-This pest.

And then a curse came out of my mouth. I sat there in pity, panting. The fire giant she had been controlling was already gone.

My image was reflected in her eyes. The bespectacled witch was glaring at Yeonmin-ha with creepy, bloodshot eyes.

-Do you know how many times our children have been hurt because of you?

-Haa, haa…

Yeonmin-ha blurted out, breathing heavily.

-whatever.

-What can I do? If you commit a sin, you should be punished.

A twisted smile appeared at the corner of my mouth.

-I’ll plant seeds in every pore of your body. Feel the pain of being rooted alive.

-Crazy… bitch…

After a final, dejected muttering, my vision rotated again. Before I knew it, I was in the middle of an ice rink.

And then he spoke to the black-haired woman standing in the middle.

-I told you.

-You can’t beat us.

-Unless you kill everyone at once.

-How about just giving up now?

-shut up!!

Yeon-i, who was out of breath, shot an ice pick at me. The moment I felt the excruciating pain of it being stuck in my head, my vision changed. I stood right behind Yeon-i, rising like a shadow.

Uduk.

-Ahh…!

She quickly turned around after feeling the presence, but her shoulder had already been pierced. Yeon-i, who was fatally wounded, could no longer endure it and collapsed. I, who had grown into dozens again, surrounded her.

Yeon-i whispered, her lips pursed.

-Hyun-ah…

My vision shifts again. I’m looking down at a blonde woman lying on the floor.

-It was quite an interesting pastime.

I looked down at the motionless Jinyeseo and spoke calmly.

-If only we had a few more years, the situation could have been reversed. However, we still lack maturity. It’s a shame.

-Coolook, coolook…!

Jin Ye-seo vomited black blood from her mouth. Blood flowed out from her entire body, crushed by the pressure.

I raised my hand and refined the particle decision into a blade shape. Then I approached Jinyeseo and raised my arm.

-Well, at least let’s make the ending comfortable.

Soon, my vision turned red again. A jumble of screams was running wild in my head.

-Save me… please…!

-How long do I have to hold out? The news is…!

-Wrong…! Now there is hope…

-iced coffee…!

“Coolook, ugh… This dog, the same… ”

I barely managed to swear. I heard a snicker from the bedside, and soon the sound faded away.

“How is it? Don’t you feel a little better? That’s good. We can all be companions on the journey to the afterlife.”

“Shut up… ”

“Don’t be so sad. In any case, in the grand universe, all life is nothing more than dust. You will know when you become one with us. Watch from the inside. How we will color this land in the future.”

“Whew, who, what, you, want… ”

“Anyway, the bet was my win. It was really close. I almost lost all of my kingly power.”

There was a sound of particles condensing in the air. Perhaps they were creating particle missiles or something.

“It won’t hurt that much. You have to stab the heart at once to extract the full power.”

The distant footsteps were drawing closer again. I could sense it. My end was near.

-Tsk tsk…

A sharp particle blade was being created in the hand of the witch who had been trembling. As the witch stroked it lovingly for a moment, the blade soon rose to the surface.

And then, finally, the final sentence is handed down to me.

“Then, take care.”

The sharp blade shot out quickly. I reminisced about the past days in the slowly flowing time.

In conclusion, I failed. I couldn’t save the leader and his sisters, and I couldn’t kill the witches.

You may feel a little proud for a moment because you have gained too much power, but in the end, you are just standing still.

I was still the same as two years ago. A miserable and pathetic time when I couldn’t protect my family, friends, or lover.

Was this story impossible from the beginning?

In that case… this ending might actually be a more appropriate ending.

With that thought, I closed my eyes.

-Bang!

“Meow!”

A flash of light spread across my vision along with the explosion, but I did not die or feel the pain of my heart being pierced.

I opened my closed eyes again and stared at something, frozen in place.

What I saw before my eyes was a small cat lying motionless with its tail hanging down.

“Huh… ?”

My brain, which had been floating hazily on the border between reality and death, regained its sense of reason. I groped and crawled forward on all fours. Then I carefully picked up the small, motionless cat.

“Why, why are you here… ”

“Bye… ”

A feeble cry came as an answer. The creature, now a peanut, looked at me with trembling eyes.

A feeling of bitter despair filled my mind. I thought of the expedition members who had been talking about cat footprints. Could that be…

“No… No… ”

There was no need to look for a reason for following her. The only thing reflected in her small, fruit-like eyes was her blind concern for me.

“No, no… ”

The pulse was gradually fading. All that was left in this small creature was a ember. Aside from the ability to cross between human and cat forms and a little particle sensitivity, it had no powers left.

In return for saving my life, he gave me all his powers, including authority and magic.

And even in the midst of all that, he threw himself into my place.

“That’s ridiculous.”

A voice full of confusion is heard. Regulus also seems to have realized the identity of the small cat.

“Polaris…! It wasn’t dead…? Then its power… ”

The witch’s embarrassment soon spread like paint into anger. It was not important to me. The pain was squeezing my heart hard. It was more painful in my mind than in my body.

For a moment, my head went cold. Another precious being sacrificed himself. It was only when I was in this situation that I could face reality accurately.

“What are you doing there now? Why, why is our king… ”

Even though I said with my mouth that there was no hope, I secretly hoped for it.

In fact, I wanted to live somehow. I hoped and hoped to save the captain and his sisters and live happily ever after with everyone.

“You claim to be the pet of a lower creature… How on earth, how on earth…!”

That shouldn’t have been the case. It was too sloppy thinking. Thinking about the future while facing such powerful enemies? That was just wrong. If you do that, you won’t be able to protect others, but you’ll just cause trouble.

like this.

“That’s ridiculous, how dare you, how dare you do such a terrible thing… ”

I could see for sure. What I need now is not hope, but determination.

The determination to sacrifice everything to protect what is precious.

“How dare you…!!”

Even if that firewood were me.

“Such a disgrace to us!!”

I heard a screeching sound. Hundreds of particle blades flashed before me as I sat down, holding a small cat in my arms.

Regulus shouted, his face contorted with anger.

“Die!!”

The sound of the blades approaching was so sharp it felt like my ears were going to tear. I didn’t respond in any way. I just kept my eyes closed.

My head is clearer than ever. Only at the end can I finally find my way.

I opened my eyes again and stared at the flying blades without avoiding them.

Finally, a ripple of golden waves explodes out around me.

It was a huge wave that filled the entire underground space and still had some left over. The golden waves surged so violently that it seemed as if they would reach the ends of the world. The end was already nowhere in sight.

Hundreds of sharp particle blades lose their momentum and crumble. The field of vision is filled with glittering particles like falling snow.

“Words, nonsense…! How could you…!”

Regulus lost his momentum and stepped back. No matter how hard he tried, no magic came out of his hands. He kept his distance from me for a while, but it was useless.

Now this entire land is my space.