The Great Sword is not the Main Body!
Chapter 183 – The End of the World (5)

[Noah. If Laila dies here and now, the Advent of the False Paradise begins.]

“F-False Paradise…?”

[In exchange for the lives of Rubia and Serr, a gate to the higher world will open.]

I turned my gaze toward Laila.
Despite Kartia’s words and my stare, she maintained the same smile, slowly nodding in agreement.

[I wish I could deny it… but it’s true.]

“That’s impossible… Rubia. Rubia is…”

Even after hearing this—
Even after learning she would die—
Rubia showed no reaction, responding to my gaze with silence.

Resignation? Shock?

No, that wasn’t it.

That expression…

“Rubia, don’t tell me you… knew?”

It was the face of someone who had known from the beginning.
The expression of someone whose lie had been exposed.

“…I’m sorry.”

“What about Serr? Did Serr know too…?”

“I knew.”

“Why… why didn’t you tell me? Why is everything so…”

According to what I knew, all the Beasts of the End should have been subjugated and the Ancient Dragon slain before Lilith’s awakening would begin.

Of course, I had long accepted that this world wouldn’t follow the game exactly.
I definitely knew that… but I never expected the main storyline to change so drastically.

I never imagined things would unfold so differently.

Why? What caused everything to change like this?

Why did Rubia know this truth?
Why did she hide it from me?
Why didn’t even Serr tell me anything?

A voice thick with resentment rose to my throat.
My chest felt like it would burst.
My throat tightened painfully.

But… I couldn’t open my mouth.
I couldn’t express my frustration.
I couldn’t release my anger.

Because I too had hidden things.
From Rubia, from Serr, from Hermilla.
From Kartia and everyone else.

I had committed the same mistake as Rubia.
I had thought the same way.

I couldn’t condemn her.
I didn’t want to blame Rubia, who had cared so deeply for me.

“Sniff… hic…”

Instead of blaming her, I wanted to tell her like always to trust me.
To tell her I would fix everything.

I wanted to comfort her, to reassure her as she trembled in fear.

I wanted to hold her cold, shaking hands and embrace her, sharing my warmth.

But why?

“Hic… sniff…”

Why was this pathetic body trying to release all these emotions?
Why was I showing such a pitiful side of myself?

[Hey.]

Kartia’s hand touched my downturned face.
She pinched my cheek.

[Are you crying?]

“K-Kar… sniff… Kartia…”

[Sigh… you pathetic kid.]

“Sniff…”

[I haven’t finished talking, so stop crying and listen to the end.]

Rub rub — After a brief touch that left a faint sting, Kartia withdrew her hand as her voice lowered.

[Rubia, Serr. You two as well. Stop overthinking and listen carefully.]

[You’ve changed a great deal, Kartia.]

[Maybe you long-eared folk wouldn’t understand, but spending over a thousand years alone changes anyone.]

Crack — Kartia reversed her grip on Frey and stabbed it into Yggdrasil’s roots, smirking.

[Indeed. I suppose that’s true. Very well then. Tell me. Do you have a better solution that I haven’t considered?]

[Don’t order me around.]

Raising her middle finger at Laila, Kartia turned to us and spoke.

[Before explaining the Higher World, I should explain the False Paradise.]

Creak, Crack

As Frey moved, deep scars formed in Yggdrasil’s roots.

Numerous small circles and one large circle.
Between them, an awkwardly inserted rectangle.

[These small circles represent the Lower Worlds where we live. The large circle is the Higher World where the great bastards reside. And here, between the Lower and Higher Worlds,]

Tap — Frey’s tip pointed at the rectangle.

[This is the endless battlefield that nameless bastard in the sky wants to reach. The place called the False Paradise.]

“I-I know about the Higher World… but what is the False Paradise…?”

[Hmm, the False Paradise is… How should I explain this…]

Tapping her foot while lost in thought, Kartia eventually nodded as if she’d found the right words.

[A cauldron brewing deadly poison. Simply a world where only the strongest survive. It’s a battlefield where qualified beings from various Lower Worlds enter and fight endlessly to reach the Higher World. Well, it’s similar to the era I once lived in.]

“W-what does that even…?”

[Normally, there’d be no reason to enter the False Paradise, but as Laila said, this world has no god. That’s why entering the False Paradise is necessary. To put it simply, it’s like showcasing your strength to find a ‘perfect god’ to protect this world. Well… even without strength, you could ascend to the Higher World if you catch another god’s eye. But the most straightforward method is to kill everyone else and survive. Complete victory. That’s the easiest path.]

I couldn’t understand.
What kind of beings are these gods that they treat living creatures like game pieces?

What kind of entities are they,
To command such things, to observe them,
To make such choices?

[It sounds like a brutal place, but it’s not as bad as you might think. The biggest difference from this world is… you’ll just have to fight more battles. It might actually be easier to live there. It’s a world where the strong hold power. It’s filled with that ‘romance’ you’re always talking about. Wouldn’t that be fun?]

Releasing Frey from her hand, Kartia bent her arm at a right angle.

[Noah, someone like you could wipe out everyone there. I guarantee it.]

Snicker — After laughing playfully, Kartia fixed her gaze on Yggdrasil.

[That’s enough about the Paradise. The way to get there is simple. Just gather all the key fragments infused with Lilith’s divinity scattered throughout this world, and open the door.]

“Lilith’s divinity…?”

[Yes. You and Rubia must have felt it too. The faint divine essence residing within the Masters. Those are fragments of the key needed to open the door. The divinity of deceased Masters has already been collected. The divinity of the remaining Masters will eventually gather in one place to complete the key.]

Kartia’s gaze, which had been lingering on Yggdrasil, shifted to Rubia.

[With that completed key, they’ll awaken Yggdrasil and open the door.]

Then her gaze turned to Serr.

[So, I bet you have another question now?]

“The key fragments… are the Masters? But the key fragments I know of are—”

[Right. The five heroes from the forgotten era. The Beasts of the End are also fragments of the key.]

Whoosh — A faint flame rose around my body.
Through the heat haze, feathers and ice formed. Soft ears and a tail sprouted.

Turning away from Serr to look at what had formed around me, Kartia reached out and firmly grasped the ice.

[The real Yggdrasil standing before us is also a door to the False Paradise.]

My head was spinning.

So… Rubia is a key to open the door.
And Serr is the door itself.

But at the same time, the beings connected to my soul are also key fragments.
And the Yggdrasil before me is yet another door.

But…

“If Laila dies… that means we can’t let it happen, right…?”

[Exactly. If that woman dies, the Advent of the False Paradise begins immediately.]

“Then how do we collect the key fragments…?”

[The forgotten heroes who became Beasts of the End are incredibly powerful. Unlike those pathetic Masters who need nine pieces, we only need five. Exactly five is enough.]

“Five…?”

Beings who reached the realm of divinity, capable of containing divine essence.

Carpeng, Tylant, Valoran, Brunhilde, Laila.
If Laila is excluded, that leaves only four.

Five… fragments?

The flickering flame touched my forehead.

And with that touch,
The conversation with Brunhilde during our battle,
Her words,

Flooded into my mind.

Someone who voluntarily became a key fragment.
Not a being from the Higher World, but a native inhabitant of this world.

Stronger than anyone, having reached higher than anything else.

A human.

A forgotten hero.

The Sword of Victory.

Like a broken doll, my head creaked as it turned toward Kartia.

And her lips curled up into a smirk.
The same smile as always.
That arrogant, irritating smile.

A smile that seemed to declare she was the strongest,
The best,

That confident, self-assured grin.

“Kar… tia.”

[Wow, I was being indirect, but you understood immediately?]

Behind her snickering, Rubia and Serr gasped as they realized a moment later.

[Kartia.]

[What.]

[This is not a wise choice. Your strength will be essential in Paradise.]

[No, this is the right answer.]

Pulling Frey from the roots where it was embedded, Kartia pointed it toward Yggdrasil and smiled.

[My wish, carried through over a thousand years of chaos. The overwhelming, absolute, and perfect path to victory is…]

Thump — Kartia’s hand rested on top of my head.

Not the usual rough touch,
Not a playful one either,

But a touch filled with trust,
A touch meant to instill courage in me,

A gentle, soft hand,

That patted my head.

[You. Shin Noah.]

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