The negotiation with Belred concluded successfully.
I received from him the thod to sever the connection between Nastrond and Earth in the future.
And Belred gained a very precious experience of directly feeling a Transcendent's power through sparring with
and surviving.
Thus, finally.
"You can use this communication crystal for detailed scheduling."
I obtained Belred's promise to participate.
"Hmm."
I took the dark blue crystal that Belred held out and examined it from various angles.
"It's set up to exchange ssages through special waves that cannot be intercepted from the outside."
"You should know well that there are no absolutes for a Transcendent."
"Yes. But Belphegor wouldn't be interested in this kind of petty sche."
I chuckled.
"That's true."
After parting from Belred and returning to the Human Fortress, I reported my return to Heo Sung-gyeom and Gong I-an, then received news that most of the captains who hadn't yet returned were obtaining positive responses.
"That's fortunate."
"It's all thanks to your reputation. There's no human who wouldn't feel hope from the story of soone who single-handedly slaughtered six Great Overlords whom no one else could defeat."
And one more thing.
"The hope that they can rebuild to the previous civilization is just as powerful as the fear of death."
That afternoon.
I headed to the personal training room and sat cross-legged in the center, holding a Sain Sword.
Belphegor, and the powerful enemy Eligoss who would be waiting before him.
'Even for , Belphegor is a completely unknown enemy.'
He knows my fighting style, but I know nothing about his.
The sa was true for Eligoss.
'Almost always, information was my weapon.'
But the upcoming battle would have to be fought within an imbalance of information.
It would be unfamiliar to
and very disadvantageous.
'How will it turn out?'
In addition to the information imbalance, I am like a newborn as a Transcendent.
And Eligoss, the most trusted confidant of Belphegor who achieved transcendence long ago, who has reached the highest realm as a quasi-transcendent.
'Eligoss was truly strong.'
I never managed to defeat him.
Crosell, Furcas, and even Belred.
In the past and now, even for
who had experience defeating all the high-ranking Great Overlords, Eligoss's strength remained difficult to asure.
'What's certain is... that Eligoss is the most powerful martial artist among the Great Overlords.'
From his origin, he was a warrior and knight.
Before I achieved transcendence, I couldn't surpass even the martial realm that Crosell had reached, let alone Eligoss, no matter what thods I used.
Even if I used Liberation, Over Clock, Chukji, Tachypsychia Mode, the realm of cutting through the grain of objects, and the realm of non-self, all together.
'Before transcendence, I couldn't even defeat Malek.'
Of course, now it's different.
All those realms have been integrated within , so I don't even need to consciously activate them.
Moreover, the fighting that once drew out extre reactions through reflexes, dynamic vision, and experience has now reached a realm where I can read all possible moves that might happen in the future and counterattack even before the opponent's attack begins.
That's why I could achieve an overwhelming victory even against Crosell, who had honed demonic martial arts to the extre.
'Nevertheless.'
The reason I had previously evaluated Crosell's martial realm as second among the Great Overlords was because it was too obvious who was number one.
Eligoss.
'At that ti, as soone who had barely reached quasi-transcendence, I simply couldn't defeat him.'
But what about now?
In terms of skill, it's natural that I surpass Eligoss.
But I know better than anyone how many variables the advantage of information, the imbalance of information, can create.
'I'll just do my best. The result that follows, one can't know without trying it directly.'
Uncertainty breeds anxiety.
Clack.
I drew the Sain Sword that I had placed on the floor from its scabbard.
Swoosh.
A cold yet beautiful sound was heard.
'Listening to the sword's breath.'
This was a realm that Lee Un-hak had taught.
Flowing mana into the sword, understanding the feel of the hilt in my hand, the weight of the sword, and the exquisitely distributed center of gravity.
When the sword depicted in my mind beca no different from the real sword.
Wooong.
The Sain Sword howled and released sword energy.
Thump.
Then it pulsated.
'This is truly a good sword.'
A sword made by refining Andromalius's horn.
Its completeness and class had undoubtedly reached the realm of a masterpiece.
Moreover, the intention felt from its pulsation was 'comfort and encouragent'.
It was a gentle sword, hard to believe it was made from a demon's body.
'...Well. Now I'm being worried about even by my sword.'
It ans that the fear and concern I'm feeling are that great.
Perhaps it was natural.
'This ti it's truly the end.'
Whether I die or Belphegor dies.
There is no next ti.
'That's the problem.'
For soone who is going to make his last attempt at sothing he has failed hundreds of tis without succeeding even once.
Is it easy to have hope that this ti will be successful?
'No.'
It's much easier to be intimidated and discouraged by repeated failures.
That, at least.
Was an emotion that even I, who had acquired an iron will and a Transcendent's perspective, couldn't avoid.
"Sigh."
The worries deepened with the night.
That night.
News ca that Hwang Ji-su and Lee Yu-jin were the first to return.
"Su-hyeon!"
"Su-hyeon!"
The two rushed over, trying to outdo each other.
"Welco back."
"I heard your mission went well?"
"Of course. I heard the sa about you two."
"Yes."
Yu-jin smiled brightly.
"After hearing about Su-hyeon, they were already half convinced."
"Everyone needed hope, it seems."
Yu-jin and Ji-su spoke alternately.
"That's good."
Ji-su, who had been carefully observing
nodding, asked.
"Are you worried about sothing?"
"Hmm?"
I unconsciously touched the corner of my mouth.
"Why? Does my expression look strange?"
"It's not your expression."
Ji-su pointed to her own brow with her finger.
"Your eyes don't look like usual."
"..."
"Are you planning to suffer alone again?"
Feeling the concern and consideration in Ji-su's eyes as she asked, I let out a soft sigh.
'Co to think of it.'
I've spent the most ti with you two.
Jun-seong, A-yun, In-hyeon, Hae-na, Tae-hoon, Seung-yeon...
There were many friends, but looking back, the comrades who stayed with
until the very end were almost always you two.
'And almost always, you sacrificed your lives for .'
Among those countless deaths.
Not once did either of you look at
with resentnt.
What the reason was.
The fact that the emotion underlying the behavior these two had been expressing toward
was love—no matter how dense I was in that regard, I couldn't help but know it now.
Thinking that way, I felt my heart grow sorrowful.
'If I fail in this battle, it will be the end with these two as well.'
Because there was no next ti.
'This won't do.'
Only then did I form the thought that I should tell them the whole truth, and find the courage to speak.
"Actually."
I looked into Yu-jin's and Ji-su's eyes in turn and said.
"I have a secret I haven't told you until now."
After telling everything, ti had already passed midnight.
I confessed the detailed truth, even more than what I had told Belred.
The two of them held back the desire to interject with questions many tis and quietly listened to my story.
"...I'm sorry for hiding and lying all this ti. I wasn't particularly a Prophet of the End or anything. I just 'knew well' because I'd experienced it countless tis."
"It would have been hard to believe even if you had told us."
Ji-su looked at
with an unreadable expression.
"And you must have had the obsession that this fact should never reach the enemy's ears."
"That's right. But on top of that, I always had the thought that I didn't want to tell you."
"Why?"
"Because I was afraid. How you would think of
after learning this truth, whether you'd feel a distance since I ca from a different world? Or whether you'd resent
for still not telling you the whole truth..."
"Idiot."
Yu-jin suddenly said.
"!"
"How much do you distrust us to think that way?"
"I agree with that."
Ji-su's eyes were cold.
"What rises in my heart after hearing all this is only gratitude, pity, and a little resentnt."
Yu-jin's white hand covered the back of my hand.
"Despite everything, Su-hyeon truly loved our world, right? You never gave up even after failing hundreds of tis to save us."
Then Ji-su's hand covered my remaining hand.
"And now you've truly beco a resident of this world, overcoming all real trials and threats, and finally reaching the realm of transcendence?"
"The tis you've trained, sacrificing even sleep and rest, those efforts—we rember them clearly."
The words of Ji-su and Yu-jin gave
a feeling of sothing warm lting sowhere in my chest.
"Looking back now, you always seed lonely. Like a lone wolf. Even while leading everyone, you were ultimately an entity that existed in solitude."
But that gap ends today, Ji-su said.
"Because now we've beco your understanding ones."
You are no longer alone, Ji-su said.
"Ji-su is right."
Yu-jin's eyes beca slightly moist.
"Don't suffer alone anymore."
"..."
I closed my eyes and, after hesitation, finally said.
"Thank you."
"Su-hyeon, you said you're afraid because this is truly the last ti, right?"
"That's right."
"But regardless of how many hundreds of lives you've repeated, for , this is just one life."
I felt strength in Yu-jin's hand.
"Because that one and only life is precious, we struggle so desperately."
"..."
"And now you're feeling fear about the one-ti nature of life? That's a foolish thought."
"Yes... that's right."
As I nodded in deep understanding, Ji-su pouted.
"By the way, thinking about it now is annoying."
"What is?"
"This is why no matter how hard I tried, I could never beat you."
"That's..."
I scratched my cheek, at a loss for a response.
"I'm sorry."
"Idiot, who said you should be sorry?"
??????°??☆????°??????
Several days passed after that.
All the captain-level personnel who had been dispatched for alliances returned.
Awakened who had been guarding shelters as humanity's last bastions across continents gathered at the [Human Fortress] for the alliance.
They were the powerful ones who had protected people from the oppression of Great Overlords and demons, or who had created their own kingdoms.
Since only the elite among them had been carefully selected, the remnants of the Great Overlords, who had already lost their focal point and collapsed, couldn't dare obstruct their movent.
Whether they were heroes who protected people or warlords who created their own kingdoms and ruled.
There was only a difference in degree; none of them failed to feel hope from the na Su-hyeon or to consider the practical benefits after reconstruction.
"My goodness."
"This is truly..."
Those who saw the [Human Fortress] for the first ti couldn't hide their astonishnt.
Incomparably majestic walls.
That solidity and grandeur.
Moreover, the walls were layered in multiple tiers, and beyond the walls in the inner fortress stood all kinds of modern buildings, laboratories, residential facilities, and industrial facilities.
This was truly a human city.
"Ah..."
As if by agreent.
None of the Awakened in shabby appearance, powerful warriors ranging from at least A-rank to maximum S-rank, could hold back their tears.
"Humanity, humans... are still alive."
"And so splendidly, so brilliantly at that."
Looking at their emotion.
Chief of Staff Heo Sung-gyeom, who fully understood their feelings, smiled broadly.
"Welco."
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