Chapter 202. Epilogue
Zzzing-
The glass door opens.
A coolness wrapped around my neck.
After taking a few steps in, the door closed behind , and the air was subrged in silence.
The endlessly stretching corridor was like the shelves of a quiet library.
The difference is that the books here contain only the last page.
Because a columbarium is a place where death is stored.
Thud.
I walked down the quiet corridor.
I can hear the presence of other people and the chanical hum of the ventilation fan from all over.
Strangely, even that feels like a part of the silence.
The noise and light of the outside world seed to be perfectly blocked by a single door.
I looked for the familiar number and turned into the corridor.
Two urns are placed inside the glass window.
And a photo.
“I'm here.”
A famous film director once said that a photograph does not capture a visual scene, but all the senses and mories within that scene.
I agree.
I feel it too.
The gentle atmosphere. My mother's wrinkles around her eyes. My father's hearty laugh. My younger sister who took that picture. , grumbling about how many pictures she was taking. The sunny weather. The flowers and trees of the arboretum.
“I'm doing well. I'm eating well. I'm sleeping well.”
As I look at the urns and quietly ramble on, another mory cos to mind.
Another world where I lived.
A cenotaph built in a moderately secluded open space in Burken Fortress.
There, too, the bodies of the fallen soldiers were all left as bone powder.
Since it was the border with the Vampire Archduchy, it was a preventive asure to prevent the bodies from being contaminated by the mana of necromancy and becoming undead.
“...I don't have nightmares anymore.”
One month.
It's been a month since I ca back.
To a world without magic, holy power, elves, dwarves, or Outer Gods.
There is no necromancy in this world.
I don't know if spirits wander the nine heavens.
I don't know where the soul goes.
Perhaps there are no wandering spirits in this world, and they just go to the afterlife as they said in the church my parents used to attend.
If so, they would be in heaven.
Because I don't know, I say.
“I'll co again.”
I wonder if they can hear .
Whether they are here, or in heaven.
“I'll say hello to Jina for you.”
Leaving the cold columbarium behind, I drove onto the road.
The hospital is 30 minutes away.
I parked my car in the parking building and entered the ward.
Even in the air cooled by the air conditioner, I can feel a warmth.
If the columbarium reminds of a cenotaph, this place reminds of a battlefield.
Because the patients, doctors, nurses, and caregivers are all people fighting a desperate battle against illness and death.
My sister's room is on the 5th floor.
“Hello.”
The nurse in charge greeted .
I greeted her back.
She guided to the hospital room.
On the way, she explained in a way that even a layperson could understand what the patient's recent condition was, what tests were scheduled, what new treatnts were available, and so on.
“We perford an EGG test on Wednesday. If you look at the brainwave analysis data here….”
Well, to be honest, it's not like I understand it well.
I arrived at the hospital room, letting the words go in one ear and out the other.
Yoo Jina.
The inside of the door with the naplate is a clean private room.
The nurse left.
I sat in the caregiver's chair provided next to the bed and looked at my motionless sister.
“Hello.”
Honestly, it's not a pleasant sight.
Even a person with a heart of steel would not find it easy to see a family mber who is closer to death than life.
The regular chanical sound that only announces survival.
The chest that rises and falls in ti with the faint breath.
The nurous tubes connected to the limbs and all over the body.
The pale skin and the long eyelashes under the closed eyelids make feel like I'm talking to a wax figure.
Nevertheless, I chattered on for about 10 minutes.
“...Besides that, there are a lot of stories I want to tell you. I've been through a lot of interesting things. To give you a hint, I almost got married to the granddaughter of a count who was a candidate for sainthood.”
For a mont, I had the illusion that her eyelashes had twitched.
It must have been an illusion.
If she were awake, she would have given her characteristic sharp retort, 'What kind of foolish delusion is that now,' but now it's just a wish.
In fact, I'm not personally holding out much hope.
She hasn't regained consciousness for the past few years.
It is said that the possibility of recovery for a patient in a coma decreases over ti.
It ans she is closer to death than life.
Still, they say that in not a few cases, the sense of hearing remains alive until the very end.
With a glimr of hope, I speak softly.
“So let's go back soon.”
I didn't sit for long.
There's nothing to do even if I stay for a long ti.
It would be better to show my face often.
“I'll co again tomorrow.”
I carefully ruffled her disheveled hair.
Fortunately, I don't have to worry about the hospital bills.
Because I have a lot of money.
Not to brag, but I'm also planning a new business.
I recently got in touch with a slightly strange older brother I beca friends with in the army, who had gifted with the wealth to endure the hard tis and then so.
He was also the only visitor who ca to see every month when I was in a coma in the hospital.
As I was leaving the hospital room with a calm expression, the waiting nurse in charge approached .
“I just heard this. It wasn't caught on cara, but the nurse who was checking her vitals last night said she saw her move her finger.”
She gave a little warmth.
“Since you've been coming so often lately, maybe your sister decided she needs to get well soon too.”
I head ho with the warmth in my heart.
“...Hmm.”
To be precise, I was about to.
I sighed when I saw a car parked horizontally in front of my car while I was gone for a short ti.
Is it because it's close to the entrance?
By the way, I thought double-parking was not allowed here.
I barely managed to check the position of the gear stick through the heavily tinted window.
P.
Parking.
Fortunately, there is a number.
[Ah, yes. I'm coming out.]
I waited for the car owner while sitting in my car.
I cooled my sun-drenched body with the air conditioner and cooling seat, and was lost in thought.
Lately, I've had more ti to think alone like this.
Is it because I've been talking to myself for a long ti?
It's a little different from the 'conversation with myself' that philosophers or ditators talk about, but in a way, I had a more revealing conversation for a long ti.
That conversation often remained in my mind and was repeated even after I returned to the real world.
The guy had said after a certain battle around the 4,300th ti.
“I find you amazing.”
‘Why?’
“I regretted it after seeing countless people die, but you don't, do you? What makes you able to keep repeating this nightmare-like battle? Even if it's fake, your cherished comrades and subordinates die every ti.”
It was a question I couldn't answer at the ti.
Because ti ran out while I was thinking, and I moved on to the next battle.
How did I endure the sight of my comrades dying next to every ti?
Although they weren't really dying, I had to listen to their screams and wails, which were no different from reality.
‘...Maybe it's because I saw my comrades die every ti.’
It's a paradox, but I think this is right.
They say that people are most honest when they are babies and just before they die.
Although they were comrades who had crossed the front lines together through nurous life-and-death situations, I couldn't say I knew them well.
Because we walked side by side with a single line between us and death, we did not walk the sa path as death.
As I had my last conversations with my comrades at the mont they were accepting their actual deaths, I got to know them better.
That Alina had prepared a ring to propose to when she returned.
That Olif was unexpectedly feeling tired of his noble title.
That Brol's dream was to create a liquor museum that collected famous liquors from all over the world.
That Karen had wondered where my hotown was after seeing 'recall' strange dishes or recipes from ti to ti.
And so on.
The more I learned, the stronger my will to save them beca.
Even if it ant going through the pain of death repeated thousands of tis.
Even if it ant giving up everything I had gained.
It must have been an emotion that the of the first playthrough, the Warrior, did not know.
Because he, who had obtained the divine throne with his own power, had no comrades who fought with him until the end.
Vroom-
The car in front moved out of the way.
I drove ho.
After I ca back, the ga was discontinued from the platform.
The ga company went out of business.
Although people who had already bought it could continue to play, it was impossible to buy it new.
Amid rumors of bankruptcy and corruption, the popularity of the already niche ga gradually declined.
I cautiously searched the internet communities, but there was no one who had experienced the sa phenonon as .
Even this is the sa as the cliché.
Like the day I fell into the ga.
By the way, in the end, I couldn't find out who that being was, the one who took into his ga.
Was it Luark of the Imperial Church?
The Sun God of the Theocracy?
Or another deity I don't know?
If this is also a cliché, I will never know.
Still, that being, for soone who kidnapped a person from another world and made him work like an alien in a movie, the ending was not bad.
The day I refused the divine throne and walked into the darkness.
The place I woke up was my room.
Only a few days had passed, and the mory of having lived and played the ga as usual for those few days naturally seeped into my mind.
And as if possessed, I approached the monitor and saw the notification window that appeared as if to greet .
[Achievent Unlocked!]
[You have saved the world.]
[As a reward, the following special benefits will be applied in this playthrough and all subsequent playthroughs.]
[Conqueror King]
[When invading the territory of another country, the morale and combat power of your soldiers will be greatly increased.]
[Life is all about talent]
[The main hero will receive a correction value equivalent to the highest level among the heroes of the sa affiliation in all skill groups and trait acquisition.]
[Blessing of Abundance]
[Everything will beco abundant. This includes the flow rate of rivers, the mining output of mines, the production output of factories, the reproduction of crops, trees, and livestock. Oh, and people too!]
[Mirage-like supply line]
[Except in cases where you are too close to an enemy base, the supply line is immune to plunder…….]
[Excellent actor….]
[…….]
Well, it was basically an endless reward.
I could feel a sense of gratitude, so to speak.
Of course, I have no intention of starting a new playthrough.
I arrived ho, made dinner, and went to my room.
Out of habit, I turn on the computer and sit down.
I launched 'Warlord Conquest.'
Not 'New Ga,' but 'Load.'
The screen, paused at the ending, appears before my eyes.
It's been fixed in this state ever since I ca back.
“……”
The funny thing is that even though it's paused, the background in the strategy screen wriggles slightly.
Is it an environntal effect to add realism?
Well.
Soone who doesn't know might think so.
The reason I don't show hostility to the 'unknown otherworld kidnapper' is not just because of the small amount of in-ga currency provided by the defunct ga company.
I lay down on the bed with the computer on.
The sensation of falling into a deep sleep passes, and I open my eyes.
A familiar ceiling.
Several tis higher than my house's.
The carved luminescent stones on the ceiling instead of fluorescent lights emit a faint, gentle light.
It's morning, as I can see the sunlight shimring through the curtains.
The bed supporting my back is not as ergonomic as an Ace bed, but the pillow has a luxurious softness.
I feel a stirring movent from the side.
“...My love?”
Alina, with her blonde hair disheveled, looks at blankly, half-buried in the blankets.
“Alina, you have to get up.”
“Umm, what ti is it?”
“I don't know. Shall we guess?”
“Hmm… the winner makes breakfast.”
“Isn't that just telling to lose unconditionally?”
“Are you teasing for not being able to cook right now?”
After a little morning banter, I left the room.
I washed up, changed my clothes, and headed to the office as always.
That's right.
I am also in this world.
As soon as I passed through the endless darkness and returned to Earth, I could feel it.
That the one who had brought to this world had prepared a soul and body in this world as a gift.
Furthermore….
“Ahem, that lovey-dovey stuff.”
“Tick-tock?”
“Hoho, young ones don't need to know. Although the master couldn't be defeated even by the divine throne, isn't he still a human?”
“Nyom nyom?”
…Our nagging Outer Gods are also here.
Although all the influence that the Warrior, the forr God of War, had scattered along with the divine throne of the God of War has been erased from the world, the fourteen Outer Gods themselves have survived.
Having beco spirit-like creatures that can switch between a spiritual and physical body, with a size of a fist like the original statues.
Although they can't wield as much power as before, they are at least cute and occasionally helpful pets.
“Anyway, have a good day today, master. We'll have the lord's castle cleaned up nicely!”
“Kiiiiing!”
“We have to teach the newbies how to cook too. Master, can you invite the Fairy Queen over soti?”
“Ding-dong-ding-dong?”
“Hmm, Ding-Dong says we need to improve our skills in laundry and dishwashing first.”
“...Do as you please.”
I left it to them and went out.
Administrator Bart, Archduke Gabir, and Marquis Pewin—he beca a marquis after I ascended the throne and married Alina—were waiting in the office.
“Your Majesty.”
“Yes. What's the big deal today?”
“Haha, you jest too much.”
“Looking at the state of this country now, it would be strange if there wasn't a big deal.”
Gabir smiled bitterly.
Well, it's true.
After the day of the great battle against the demon army from the East, several events that would be recorded in the history of the Empire occurred in succession.
With the appearance of a miracle-wielding necromancer, a wind of religious reformation blew through the Imperial Church the following year, and the denominations split.
In the east, rumors circulated that a pirate coalition had discovered a new continent.
The Theocracy, taking advantage of the chaotic world, is secretly dreaming of advancing into the north.
And most importantly, with the death of the young emperor, Lui Karlos, who left no heir, the Empire has been split into five pieces.
For reference, one of those five is my country.
The empire ruled by Emperor Ash Wolfskrig.
Since the Outer Gods lost their original power, I can no longer use clones as before, and in trying to sort out the situation where the emperor was gone, I ended up becoming the emperor myself.
Well, I'll have to end the civil war first to beco a true emperor.
“So what's the big deal today?”
“The Northern Archduke has sent a letter to Sir Tember through the monks. He criticizes Your Majesty's legitimacy and suggests we compete to see who will sit on the emperor's throne.”
“Is that so? Tambourine must have caused a ruckus again.”
Marquis Pewin let out a hearty laugh.
“The Knight Commander Tambourine… no, Sir Tember said that the North should be punished by heaven and beco a wasteland where no one can live.”
“That guy needs to be locked up in a monastery and fast for a week.”
“Shall we send him to where Sir Olif retired, like last ti?”
“Let's watch him after this war is over.”
I got up from my seat.
It seems to be a matter for the barracks, not the office.
Personally, I have no ill will towards the Northern Archduke.
He was a loyal subject of the Empire who had long defended the North from the Yeti tribes, and a generous noble who had readily given Randal.
He is a person worth fighting for hegemony.
Randal will like it too.
“To continue my report on the way, in the new continent, Count Ella Siollus….”
I listened to the report and left the lord's castle.
Under the blazing southern sun, I passed through the bustling crowd on the street and rode a carriage to the barracks.
The goal has not changed.
To protect and make my people happy.
People say.
That in the end, a happy life depends on how an individual views the world.
I agree.
But as an emperor, a commander, a husband, and a brother, I believe it is my responsibility to create those conditions.
It may be a very old-fashioned statent, but after being dropped in a dieval land for over 10 years, it might be strange not to change like this.
Of course, in this world, there is one more goal.
“Your Majesty, I have summoned the commanders as you requested.”
“Well done. And our allies?”
“I have contacted both the elves and the dwarves. According to the intelligence just delivered by the Director of Intelligence, Brol, the Northern Archduke seems to have joined hands with the Theocracy.”
“I see.”
Following the guidance of the frozen knight, Yula Katran, I entered the barracks.
In the midst of the ominous atmosphere, a map of the Empire was spread on the table, and the commanders were surrounding it, engaged in a heated discussion.
Randal, Tambourine, Karok, William, Torburn, and other commanders of the major legions.
I stood before them.
“We greet His Majesty the Emperor.”
“We greet His Majesty the Emperor.”
I looked down at the map.
They say Alexander wept because there were no more lands to conquer.
Thank goodness.
There are still many lands to conquer, the continent is far from unified, and a new continent has also been discovered.
Conquering all those lands is another goal that can only be had in this world.
“Randal, you have to fight your old lord, are you okay with that?”
“What are you talking about, Emperor? If I can fight, I will fight. It's the sa bread, so where is there bread you can't eat and bread you can eat?”
“Then it's settled.”
The war that would destroy the world forever is gone.
But the wars of human history have not disappeared.
In the end, power is needed to maintain peace.
And anyway.
“Prepare the entire army for battle.”
Warlord Conquest is a war ga.
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