Chapter 414
My head is dizzy.
I also feel strangely buoyant.
My face feels damp.
It feels like my whole body is heating up like when I have a bad cold.
.....Am I alive?
I unconsciously checked whether I am alive or dead.
Thank goodness I am not on the brink of death yet since I can think.
I blinked my eyes a few times.
What I felt earlier wasn't an illusion.
Something hot and sticky was stuck to my eyelids.
I moved my left hand to wipe it away, but an excruciating pain suddenly shot through me like an electric current.
"Keuk!"
It was a pain that felt like my arm was paralyzed, but that momentary sensation woke up my dazed mind.
I raised my head, gasping for breath.
I was clearly engaged in a bloody battle with Seir in the ruined plaza of the empire.
I had been struggling with all my abilities suppressed due to the eroded system.
I remember being hit by Seir's attack and flying away.
'How far did I fly?'
The sunlight that had been shining down from the sky was no longer visible.
The surroundings were much darker, and the smell of bricks and gunpowder from the collapsed building strongly stung my nose.
I turned my creaking neck and looked around, making a strange sound.
I saw the remains of a gate that looked familiar.
The pillars that once towered high into the sky were shattered into pieces, leaving only their bases, and the garden of flowers that once splendidly spread out inside the gate was now covered in black, dried-up dirt.
The road I walked with Owen and Ray.
I had flown all the way to the entrance to the Imperial Palace.
'It's a miracle that I'm alive.'
I let out a bitter laugh as I thought about the distance from the plaza to the gate.
It was amazing how humans could be so funny, even in a situation that was the very definition of despair.
I regained feeling in my right hand and slowly moved my fingers, feeling a cool yet heavy sensation.
It was truly amazing how I managed to keep Durandal from getting lost, even in such a miserable state.
"Ugh!"
I tried to push Durandal into the ground and raise my body.
However, just moving my legs made my whole body scream.
It seemed like at least four bones were broken.
My legs, chest, arms. Not a single part of me was intact.
[※Warning※ The system will be shut down soon. ※Warning※]
[Time left until system shutdown: 2 minutes]
Looking at the red system window, the current situation became even more bleak.
Only 2 minutes left, and my body is like a pair of worn-out shoes.
I don't know if I can properly hold the holy sword, but I can faintly hear the footsteps of someone who is slowly enjoying this desperate situation of mine.
"I think I'm truly disappointed in you, Crown Prince. Is this the only result of swinging the sword with the determination to die?"
A cold voice that makes even the air freeze.
Even though I can only see a shadow, a black aura emanates that makes my breathing even more suffocating.
Seir let out a deep sigh, his black hair fluttering in front of me, who was barely standing on two feet, relying on Durandal.
"You're a special being, so I thought you would be able to fight me even in that state, but this is truly a regrettable result."
"...Stop talking nonsense."
"Oh, you still have the strength to speak? Amazing. But is that all? It seems like you won't be able to attack properly with that arm."
Seir's longsword tapped Durandal.
The Durandal that I held precariously in both my hands shook as if it would be pulled out of the ground at any moment.
"This is why the human race is so pitiful. They get hurt quickly, break quickly, and die quickly. What if your will still lives? Your insignificant body can't hold on."
The Demon King's words really felt like he was sincerely pitying me.
It felt very unpleasant and alien.
"That's what I was wondering. Karis von Walden. Can humans really live like that? Do they deserve to live as beautiful creatures? But humans have disappointed me time and time again. In this world, and in your world."
Seir bowed slightly.
Seir's and mine, who were unable to aim properly, were at exactly the same eye level.
The two pupils, thin as a poisonous snake, looked at me with pity.
"How many decent people were there in that world? Weren't there only beings who held you back? Did you miss that world so much, where there were only selfish creatures who were busy attacking each other and only thought of themselves?"
"Humans are not what you think they are."
"I can't understand your thoughts at all. You dreamed of such childish play? I can't believe it."
Seir shook his head and turned away.
The air suddenly became several degrees colder.
A strange pressure began to press down on my whole body.
It wasn't my imagination. The debris rolling on the floor was shaking.
"Look!"
A tremendous roar erupted from the Demon King's mouth.
The air in the area exploded.
I was barely holding myself together with Durandal, but I was blown backwards again by the shockwave from Seir's body.
My back hit the base of the gate pillar, and my broken bones screamed in pain, and it felt like my lungs were being twisted by someone's hand.
Seir swung his longsword toward the floor and rushed toward me.
"Look at you now! Where has that brave warrior gone? You are not fit for that lowly vessel! I did not wait to fight again with such a fragile and easily broken being!"
I opened my mouth to refute.
However, Seir, who had brought his face right up to my nose, was making everything around cold.
I felt the blood flowing from my forehead gradually coagulate, and my entire body, which had already been trembling due to the excessive bleeding, trembled like an aspen tree.
"You do not fit in there. In that peaceful place, you are nothing but an alien being. This is where you fit in. In this beautiful paradise, only the two of us should fight and enjoy our games forever."
Seir moved closer to me.
His longsword touching my left thigh was as cold as a block of ice.
Like the Demon Lord of Death looming before me.
"I will kill you, Karis von Walden. I will kill you with these hands and free you from that wretched vessel. And with my magic I will restore your soul. I will put your soul into a new body and fight again, and fight again, and fight again. How beautiful it is, a life that never ends."
Just looking at those two eyes filled with joy makes my stomach churn.
I want to swear at him to stop talking nonsense right now, but I don't have the strength left to open my mouth.
[Time left until system shutdown: 35 seconds]
...... No.
I felt the strength slowly draining from my grip.
Seir was still shouting mad words like a madman with his arms spread out in front of me.
But my ears weren't working properly.
All the sounds sounded muffled.
My vision was also blurry. My eyelids covered in hardened blood were falling. No matter how much I wanted to resist, the shadow of death was slowly trying to swallow me up.
They say that right before death, a person's mind flashes with images.
As everything gradually darkened, I vaguely recalled several faces.
Family? There was no such thing in the first place.
When I lived as Han Ji-hyeok, there were more memories I wanted to forget than good ones.
When I returned to reality, I didn't even think about that damn house.
Where other people would have thought of their parents, I for some reason thought of the faces of the guys I saw every day.
The members who were always by my side when things were hard.
Starting from survival, really......…. The best friends who overcame absurd situations to get to where they are now.
Song Hyung-bin, who lacked confidence when I first saw him, but is now a proper leader.
Chae Eun-gyu, who likes to sleep and doesn't listen well, but is more reliable than anyone else.
Yoo Min-ha, who is always noisy but naturally makes me feel better when I'm with him.
Heo Yu-bin, who used to be the younger brother I had to take care of, but now he's an indispensable presence on the team and to me.
Ji Yoon-chul, who was blunt and lonely at first, but is now Seleste's golden youngest.
And.
'Are you ready?'
Sometimes he really annoys me, and sometimes I really want to hit him to keep his mouth shut, but I think he's the one who's influenced me the most since I came back to the real world.
Thinking about Kang Si-yoon's stupid face, I can't help but smile.
Even though the Demon King of Death is about to swing his sword in front of me.
'........ What a pity.'
That was all I could think.
I wanted to live longer.
I wanted to continue working as an idol. No, I wanted to live my whole life like this. Because it was my dream.
I wanted to stand on more stages and see my fans.
I wanted to show them an even cooler side of me as much as the love I received.
'What would happen to reality if I died here?'
If Karis von Walden died here, reality would be distorted again.
Because I never existed in that world line to begin with.
I don't know how these countless worlds work, but is it possible that my existence will disappear completely from the group called Seleste?
Will it change back to the original six?
Will all traces of my life in that world disappear again?
'...No.'
I unconsciously clenched my teeth.
No. Didn't I already confirm that all traces of my past life were erased once?
To experience that again.
All the time I spent laughing, crying, and enduring with those guys will go to waste.
Just imagining it makes my blood boil.
As I put strength into my body, my ruined body spoke to me.
This is impossible.
No matter how hard I try, it can't be done.
And as if putting an end to it, the system window that had lost its usual golden glow came to mind as the last thing.
[Time left until system shutdown: 3 seconds]
[2 seconds]
[1 second]
[System shuts down.]
[System■ □■운■니■....]
The system completely stopped working.
The system that had temporarily blocked my physical pain disappeared, so now I couldn't even breathe properly.
I felt like I was sinking somewhere below.
My eyes slowly closed.
'..... Sorry.'
I lowered my head.
Durandal, which I had never let go of, moved away from my fingertips.
Right then.
"Are you going to give up like this?"
A strange voice came from my head.
It must have been a long time since my ears stopped hearing properly.
No, is there anyone else who would talk to me besides Seir?
"Why on earth is there no one? Since when did you forget my existence, you idiot."
Why is it so familiar?
It was as if the voice was coming from somewhere.
"Wake up, are you planning to die here?"
There's no way.
My body has long since collapsed, and even my only means of fighting the Demon King has disappeared.
There's no point in getting upset here.
"Are you okay with never seeing those idiot humans again?"
I opened my eyes that had been closed.
There's no way it's okay.
The thought of not being able to return to the real world still makes my blood boil.
I hate it so much that I don't want to believe the reality that I'm going to die here to that Demon King.
"Then isn't the answer already set, Possessor?"
At that moment, my heart pounded loudly.
My body, which had been cold until a few seconds ago, began to heat up.
My eyes shot open, and it felt as if someone had injected me with a stimulant, and all my senses returned.
As my sight and hearing gradually returned, I could finally tell the difference.
A golden figure kneeling next to my right shoulder.
It was transparent, like a hologram, but it was a human silhouette without a doubt.
Platinum blonde hair fluttering.
A black cloak with impressive gold decorations.
Gray eyes with a noble aura.
A face I knew better than anyone else smiled confidently at me.
"Take my hand and stand up."
I extended my left hand, which was slowly regaining its strength.
As my fingers touched the Crown Prince's transparent golden hand, the burning heat in my chest gradually intensified.
"It is still too early for us to fall."
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