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There once was a man called the Guardian.
His mories were scattered, but within those fragnts… he was human.
For his holand and his people, mories now long faded, he had stood his ground. He had pointed his sword at the encroaching monsters.
Even after falling into the clutches of the monster’s creator, even after losing all his mories, his desire to protect remained.
Ironically, this proved the creator’s cruelty, twisting his unwavering devotion into sothing monstrous.
The Guardian wanted to protect.
He had one single, clear mory.
To protect his lord.
His shattered pride and mories were as formless as the flesh and entrails surrounding him.
The fallen Guardian no longer possessed honor or dignity. But the desire to protect lingered.
[A pathetic vermin like you, content to wallow in your fortress, was never our match!]
His words pierced him.
The words of the hero who had defeated his lord and rebuilt the Royal Knights. Their weight struck the Guardian, stripped of his pride.
He had desperately tried to protect this place, grotesquely consuming the fortress, dividing his heart and hiding the pieces, all to survive, to defend this place. But my words had awakened him.
Not his mories, those were likely gone forever.
The one who created him, the one who nad him a blood demon, had seen to that.
He had been designed with such malice that regaining his mories was impossible. But fragnts remained.
And within those fragnts, the embers of honor and pride flickered.
The viscous, repulsive flesh burned away, leaving only the Guardian.
Clad in rusted, scrap-tal armor, his body still filled with burning flesh, but now, with a single, unified heart.
He was the Guardian.
“Co! Human! Prove your pride!”
His cry echoed through the fortress, the cry of one who had never retreated against monster or demon.
His power had diminished, but his skill, honed over centuries against monsters, now targeted .
They exchanged a deadly dance of blades, a touch of which ant death.
He thought it was over. But then, he realized. His right arm was gone. No, not his arm. His head.
I clicked my tongue.
‘Damn, does he have so weird power?’
Even with his speed and skill, decapitating him while ti was frozen had been easy. But I released Ti Stop just in case, and…
I had clearly seen the severed head, yet the mont ti resud, only his right arm was missing. It seed his power had activated.
He looked at his remaining arm.
He had been completely defeated.
My crude, unrefined slash, devoid of finesse, had bypassed his skill and speed.
“My Guardian’s pride is gone, and my human honor has fallen.”
That crude attack resonated with him. He had reached this point with such raw talent. His sword must have been steeped in anguish and fear, just like mine.
But he had to overco that fear and move forward. That was the burden of those who carried such a weight.
The mories he thought were lost forever began to resurface.
“But my sword and will are mine.”
It had happened here, in this ruined fortress. He had faced an overwhelming foe, lost an arm, and been captured.
Then, he had beco this grotesque monster.
He wouldn’t make excuses.
His spirit had broken in the face of overwhelming power, and he had joined the demons. But he wouldn’t look away any longer.
He would bear the sins he had committed as a monster.
“I, Ares, will walk the path of the Guardian until the end.”
It was a coincidence. Losing an arm, facing a similar situation. But coincidences, aligned, beca miracles.
His regaining his mories was a miracle.
In this mont, Ares, the Guardian, was grateful to , the hero. And relieved. The battles he had fought weren’t aningless.
They had led to this.
And now…
I, the hero, was receiving the gratitude of the Guardian who had reclaid his na.
And I was thinking…
‘Your mom.’
I inwardly hurled insults at him, too afraid to voice them aloud. This whole situation was incredibly frustrating.
🚨 Important Notice 🚨
); }
The monster I thought I had killed had suddenly revived and powered up.
I cut off his arm, and he powered up again, his fighting spirit rekindled.
‘What is this, a Dark Souls boss fight? How many phases does this thing have? This isn’t a Souls-like, it’s an eroge! Damn it!’
But my mind raced.
‘He said the seven hearts rged into one. And that burning sll… there’s still flesh inside that armor.’
I had fought countless battles, risking my life, and I knew I had to remain calm.
So, I spoke.
“Humans only have one heart. What about you?”
“I, too, have only one heart now.”
“I see. Then you, too, are human.”
I raised my hand and placed it over my heart.
Ares, watching , mirrored the gesture.
‘There it is! You son of a bitch!’
‘This bastard has no conscience.’
He was hiding his heart in his abdon. Actually, the burning flesh had shifted its position, but he didn’t know that.
Sensing my hostility, Ares attacked first.
A single, swift strike, all his skill honed to a razor’s edge.
For a fleeting instant, a fraction of a second, he reached a level beyond his limits. If I hadn’t been his opponent…
It was a strike that could have killed even the one who defeated him in the past. But his attack couldn’t break through Ti Stop.
I was stunned.
‘That was… sothing else.’
I had seen speeds I couldn’t react to countless tis. But Ares’s attack was fundantally different.
Sensing the danger, I swiftly drew the holy sword and pierced his heart, severing his remaining left arm for good asure.
Ti resud.
He looked at his severed arm, flying through the air. He could no longer wield a sword. But he smiled.
“What is your na?”
“Hans.”
“You fought well, Hans.”
He no longer needed his worn, battered sword.
The descendant of the humans he had sworn to protect had arrived.
Their will would be inherited, honed. It had been a satisfying battle.
He had witnessed the sharp blade of his descendants. He couldn’t ask for more.
Ares’s body began to crumble.
The last remnants of his flesh burned away.
The stench from the fortress dissipated.
I looked around.
The grotesque fortress, filled with flesh and entrails, was gone.
Only the ruined structure remained, like Ares himself.
I clicked my tongue and looked up.
“There’s the Commander! Commander!!!”
“Teacher! Are you alright?!”
“Honestly…”
I chuckled, watching my unit mbers run towards .
I had grown fond of them, despite their antics.
I wanted to scold them, but we had achieved a great victory together.
I felt a sense of camaraderie.
We had fought side-by-side, risking our lives.
It was natural. But just as I was relaxing, I heard a cracking sound.
I wondered what it was.
[…Our…]
[…Eternal…]
‘…!’
A fleeting, unknown mory flashed through my mind.
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[Translator Notes]
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