Chapter 199 – Prayer

The moment the change arrived, I was engulfed by an indescribable sense of omnipotence.

It felt like my body, which had always been out of sync with the world, had finally become one with it.

It felt like my sixth sense had awakened, beyond the five I had always known.

The things I used to see with my eyes began to be felt on a cellular level, and they started reaching my mind with clear intuition.

However, unlike others, no unique ability manifested for me.

Rather than saying it didn’t manifest, it would be more accurate to say I simply couldn’t fully recognize it.

Something just out of reach kept eluding me, leaving me frustrated.

Even so, I never stopped walking.

There was joy and relief in finally being able to stand side by side with my closest friend.

It lightened my steps and breathed energy into my body, which had seemed on the verge of collapse.

So she and I…

All the beings standing upon the earth, without even a moment to gather themselves, were thrust into battle once more.

And the battle that began was, as expected, far from easy. It was brutal, so much so that I wanted to give up on the spot.

Magic launched from the ground had no effect. A half-hearted sword couldn’t even touch its hide, and even if it did, it would snap like twigs without leaving a single scratch.

My greatsword was no exception.

Even if I had grown stronger, it was my body that had improved, not the sword. Having already been used for so long, the hilt creaked, and the blade had dulled to the point where calling it a sword felt shameful.

But I didn’t give up.

Because victory stood beside me.

All I had to do was clear the path ahead of her.

I slashed through infernos that burned the sea. I tore through raging storms. I split the tidal waves that overturned the land.

I cut down ancient and unknowable magic. I blocked claws and roared back to overcome the howls. Even so, my absurdly large greatsword never broke.

As if it were imbued with my will.

As if the wish I had endlessly yearned for had taken form.

As if it wanted to become a shield for someone weaker than me,just like I once did.

Even if it was too damaged to cut anything, it never broke.

And each time my sword grew harder, her sword became sharper in turn.

She didn’t care about defense. She didn’t dodge.

She believed in me, in my sword, and had absolute faith in her own victory.

She clung to the ancient dragon’s nape with relentless tenacity.

And each time she did, the ancient dragon’s wingbeats grew rougher.

Its roar turned fiercer. Its magic became more violent.

The gaze that had looked at us like insects began to show emotion, and its movements became more frantic.

She took control of the battlefield. She seized the flow.

We drew closer to victory.

I was certain of it.

Until the black sun rose.

The crimson glow of twilight had long since disappeared.

Even the stars that once lit the earth had been veiled in ash, leaving nothing but darkness.

And from above, without hesitation, the black sun began to rise, casting its shadow over a battlefield once dyed with hope.

It was not the dawn we had been waiting for.

It was not the hope we had looked up to.

It was not the light that once brightened the world.

It was despair, leading to an endless abyss.

Eventually, a darkness that held not even a speck of light descended upon the land.

It stole the light from the surface and summoned all the monsters that still remained upon the earth.

And then,

At the very edge of this world draped in thick darkness.

At the horizon that drew the line between sky and earth.

‘The End’ revealed itself.

It had no form.

No, it was unrecognizable.

All that could be seen was a faint color.

And a shape that changed with each passing moment.

At times it was a cloud.

At times it was a star.

At times it was the moon.

At times it was a person.

It was the inferno that would burn the world.

It was the impassable mountain.

It was the sea that could not be crossed.

It was the end and the beginning that would return everything to its origin.

In a world blanketed by still silence,

The figure of the End twisted.

As if dancing, as if stretching.

It swayed like reeds in the wind.

And at the same time,

The horizon distorted.

The sea overturned.

The sky disappeared.

The earth crumbled.

What remained in the void was nothing but emptiness.

The remnants of countless vanished worlds.

The grave of heroes.

Memories.

The end.

The beginning.

And a broken greatsword.

Only then did the black sun, seemingly satisfied, sweep away the darkness.

What remained where the darkness had lifted was only shadow.

The corpses of stars remained. The ruins of civilization remained.

Despair remained. Grief remained.

In that wretched battlefield.

In a world that knew only apocalypse.

In a world where the end had come, and a new beginning awaited and at my side, she laughed.

Louder. More obnoxiously. More exaggeratedly.

Bowing her head. Kneeling down.

While letting go of her sword, she laughed endlessly.

And seeing her like that, I said,

“What are you looking at, you fucking bitch?”

And then, I laughed.

Just like her, the one beside me.

Just like the one I wanted to be like.

Just like my one and only closest friend.

Snickering, I wished.

I reached out my hand and yearned.

I prayed for what I could not reach.

That she could truly laugh again.

That she could rise with strength.

That she could once again hold her sword.

That I could become her support.

That her sword would become one that could never break.

That the perfect victory she longed for would be complete.

Perhaps that wish reached her.

Warmth came to my lost hand.

A drop of water fell on the corners of my mouth, weakly raised.

I heard her laughter at the edge of my dulled hearing.

I heard the sound of her rising to her feet.

I heard the sound of her gripping her sword.

I forced my heavy eyes open.

In my blurry vision, I saw her light footsteps.

I saw the back that would never bend again.

I saw her tightly clenched fist.

I saw her head raised high toward the sky.

Not the broken greatsword.

I saw her holding a greatsword that stretched straight and would never break again.

And then, watching that back growing endlessly distant,

I closed my eyes.

I prayed.

I recalled her name.

* * *

That name.

The name of the friend who led me.

The one I loved.

The one I couldn’t help but love.

The name of that one and only person.

* * *

“Kartia.”

Thud.

Her stretched-out fist clenched.

That fist was small.

Unbelievably small for someone who had wielded such a brutish greatsword.

But it held an overwhelming will. A wish so intense it bordered on madness.

Is this something disciples inherit as well?

Suppressing a faint chuckle, I opened my eyes.

There stood a girl, befitting that tiny fist. Her small body was covered in scars. In her unfocused red eyes burned a desperate hunger for victory.

“You really are alike… huh?”

It must’ve become a habit after so many years, but the words slipped out naturally.

My face twisted in irritation at that creepy, god-awful tone.

But only for a moment.

In the girl’s once-empty hand, a greatsword appeared.

It was massive and heavy.

With a crude, half-heartedly crafted hilt.

But above all, a blade that stretched unwaveringly straight.

A sight so familiar, so dearly missed, filled my vision.

And then, it swung toward me.

Not to cut, but to cast me away.

At such arrogant, presumptuous swordplay, a faint flicker of anger surged.

How dare she show off such a blade in front of me?

Well, I get it. Her master’s a mess too.

“Tsk.”

I swatted away my clenched fist.

Lightly dodging the swinging greatsword, I took a step forward.

I approached the girl who had landed on the ground.

Then, I grabbed her loosened collar and calmly tidied it. Even this lack of concern for her appearance, just like her master.

Not that there was anything worth seeing anyway.

“Ugh…!”

Once again, her fist shot forward.

The greatsword swung. Unknown forces surged.

I had no choice but to push her away to gain distance.

The girl, now touching her neatly arranged collar, looked at me with a trembling expression.

And carefully asked,

“…Frey?”

“Put some respect in your tone. Insolent brat.”

Clicking my tongue, I looked down at my body.

I was dressed in cumbersome, suffocating heavy armor.

“Fucking bastard.”

I roughly grabbed the armor’s joints and tore them off.

With a dull thud, the gaudy golden armor dropped at my feet.

I irritably kicked it aside and undid the rest of the armor wrapped around me.

As the stifling heat within escaped, a pleasant breeze seeped in.

I tidied my unruly hair and looked around.

I looked, and looked again.

I kept looking around.

A myriad of colors filled my vision.

Brilliant, radiant flower fields swayed in the wind.

The dazzlingly vibrant scenery made me squint and take a deep breath.

Open air.

A fresh scent.

The liberation from that void of nothingness was impossibly refreshing.

I closed my eyes.

The loneliness and sense of loss that had once gotten on my nerves, were now familiar.

I savored the feeling of now, where nothing but the soul-wearing pain lingered.

At the same time, I could feel that my time was almost up. The ominous power of that presence that had been gnawing at my soul was growing stronger.

I opened my eyes and looked forward.

A girl with a dazed expression was looking this way.

Behind her, I felt the presence of the one I had desperately wanted to meet all this time.

What should I do first?

Should I greet her?

Should I explain what happened to me?

Should I tell her what happened during the time we were apart?

The hesitation didn’t last long.

I grabbed the greatsword that had been stabbed into the ground, a style completely opposite to my own.

And with a snicker,

I said,

“What are you looking at, you fucking bitch?”      

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