To return ho, did I have no choice but to kill soone?
Or maybe, rather than a person, perhaps what it was, was actually sothing less than that.
The Librarian called this an 'Illusory World', didn't she? Then, what were the chances that it was real?
Even if my real body was in it, that didn't necessarily an the world itself was real.
In that case, this Hero...
To kill him―would an not much more than putting an end to a fictional character.
No, if what I've been told is true, then that's really all it was.
That's right... Then――
"Librarian... That's how it is, right? And, if I only do that... that's all I have to do...?"
[Certainly! Whenever you dispatch a Protagonist, or in this case, the Hero, allll~ of the World Stability they greedily gobbled up will co flowing back into the world! And and, thanks to our assistance with the matter, the Library will receive a portion of that World Stability, which we can subsequently use to transport you back!]
Engraving her words into my mind, I nodded, inhaling deeply to calm myself.
"...Alright. Since it's only that... I'll do it."
[Ah! Really? Truly? Verily?! F-fret not! I shall definitely assist you, to the best of my ability! Certainly!]
Scratching the back of my neck for a mont at her persistent zeal, a transient wonder of who the Librarian really was flashed in my mind.
Of course, I had caught a glimpse of her before, and although that image remained more or less fresh in my mind's eye, I wasn't quite sure what to make of it.
Not to ntion the whole part about it being a 'job', everything was just a load of bs.
Protagonists, Antagonists, Illusory Worlds, World Stability... It really did feel like the sort of cheap plot an annoying smart-ass would co up with, so much so that I wanted to laugh.
...But, when I considered how it was that this very situation ca to be, I couldn't dare to.
Because, here, right at this mont, I was living it. And, as for what might co after―
"Alright n! Stand at attention!"
―There was no ti to ponder such a thing, as the human tank George called upon every knights' attention.
"Today is the first day for many of you. Don't worry. This training, though not for the faint of heart, is sothing all of you can handle; that's what you all endured that harsh preliminary endurance examination for, right? Haha!"
'...Hm?'
Suddenly, as soone who had never passed such an examination, my face paled.
❖─────★☆☆☆☆─────❖
I thought I was dying.
"Haahgk...!"
No, I'm sure I was dying. I could feel it.
"Aaaah... Ahh..."
Rather, the sense of imminent death was the only thing I could feel.
Strained muscles I didn't know existed convulsed violently; fissured lips quivered as I gasped for even a smidgen more air; torn lungs, which I'm pretty sure had entirely imploded, released incomprehensible, ceaseless groans.
My body was re monts away from breaking beyond the possibility of repair, my eyes rendered dysfunctional just staring at the empty, dark space in front of . My legs, which had long surpassed the point of wobbling like jelly, were fully numb alongside the rest of my body and wouldn't budge, almost as if the nerves within them had been utterly severed. Despite that, those sa nerves and tendons twitched to no end, giving birth to nothing but more throbbing discomfort.
That was not training.
Such an inhuman, psychopathic, god-awful thing...
I, who had simply stopped working, couldn't be felt, and I wondered if this is what it would be like to be placed inside a hydraulic press and rcilessly squashed.
At least, I was certain that this was what being crushed by the pressure at the bottom of the ocean felt like, to the verge of death.
"Hahaha! Phew~ Today was sure tough, Captain! The newbies are half-dead, aren't they! That's how you know it's an effective regi! Even the oh-so-mighty Hero seems to be totally wiped out!"
"..."
A murder victim lay wistfully on the ground, whom they so cruelly slighted.
At least my ears were working? Although, the sa could not be said for my other senses, tasting nothing but over-salted steel, like tears of anguish, and feeling only searing agony.
With my entire being, I wanted to curse.
Not just those who could still stand, but the Hero, too, for dragging everyone else into it.
I was certain that his previous actions had resulted in the rest of us being picked on, too. Otherwise, there was no excuse for such barbaric treatnt.
"Ahhhh..."
'Just... Kill , please...'
Alas, let alone spew profanities or wish soone to death, I was struggling to even gather the energy just to maintain my frustration. It was too much, to the extent where I had genuinely felt like being put out of my misery was all I could hope for.
[Hang in there, Enki! You can't lose now...! We've only just started!]
I even started hearing voices.
As I lay there for what felt like an eternity, I gradually began hearing more and more voices sprout in my surroundings―Though, being too focused on my own lantation to listen to what was going on, I didn't realise anything had changed until soone crouched down beside my crippled self.
At that mont, gentle words of a prayer flowed into my ears.
"O' great God of Life, gracious as thy heavenly self be; before mine eyes lies a soul in dire need of healing, a body crying for revitalisation..."
More than all of the other myriad signals my body was sending , this indicated that I really was about to pass on to the next life.
[Nooo! You're still alive, Enki! Listen to and hang in there...!]
Too late. My body was already done for, ruined beyond repair. Instinctively, I understood that much.
And yet.
"―Your child of man thus begs, thus pleads; to heed mine words, mine prayers, to grant thine divine favour, My Lord. Greater Restore Life."
Before such a pathetic, anticlimactic fate could befall , a strange warmth enveloped ; coursing through my veins following the stranger's invocation, soothing my agony.
As my eyesight gradually returned to , I caught a magical, soft glow emanating from my skin, and I could vividly feel the inner workings of my body regenerate in real ti.
Euphoria ensued.
The numbness of my limbs vanished.
The pressure on my lungs and ribcage dissipated.
My depleted stamina recovered; my head ceased throbbing with aches; and my breathing so rough that it could hardly be called as such, stabilised.
"..."
Before I knew it, I was back to normal, as if nothing had ever happened in the first place.
'Ahh... What the hell...'
This was not the first ti I had witnessed sothing akin to magic.
On television and online, ever since people started Awakening all over the world, you could see similar things, and they weren't just CGI.
Still, to experience it firsthand, and the effects of it so closely, was profound.
Turning around to find the person who healed , it seems they had already crouched down to pray for the next person. Sighing, I lifted myself from the ground, dusting myself off and adjusting my lightly-tarnished clothes, dampened with sweat.
'Are we having a break? Finally?'
I was too caught up wallowing in the destruction of my own body to realise it, but it seed to be the case. To be honest, it felt a little bit late to considering my previous state, but since they possessed so kind of incredible healing magic, I guess they got a pass.
After all, if you could simply regenerate all wounds and restore all lost stamina with a simple spell, why not endure such harsh training? So long as the torn muscle fibres get properly repaired, wouldn't it still work to build strength? And if you could speed up that painful process with magic, then wouldn't it be even more efficient than anything we've got back ho?
I did almost die because of it, but thankfully it's over now, and so long as I can fulfill the conditions of that Contract the Librarian ntioned, I'll never have to endure it again.
The Hero also seed to have been healed, sitting on the floor listening to a lecture from George with clear displeasure on his face... Well, it honestly looked more like his admonishnt was flowing through one ear and out the other, but that's none of my business.
Rather, what I had to consider now was sothing else.
Simply put, the question was but one.
"..."
――How do I kill the Hero?
Reviews
All reviews (0)