Chapter 656

" 'Don't charge the Arc Crystal?' " Kaiyer frowned at Roudina's words. "Yeah, we only need to use it until the Diane battle in its current state." During the battle, they were using the Arc Crystal by having Kaiyer charge it and Roudina draw out the magic. "You have to keep using it even during the battle." As Kaiyer said, they were using the Arc Crystal by charging it and drawing out magic during the battle. "You collapsed while doing that." Kaiyer's physical condition was very bad. Even if there was one last battle left, it was uncertain whether Kaiyer would survive if they continued to use the Arc Crystal in the same way. The Arc Crystal was fully charged now. Roudina suggested that they leave it as it is and use it only once without recharging it after the last battle, and Kaiyer had a stern expression as Roudina nodded her head. "I know what you mean. I can use more magic if you're there. It will definitely be helpful." "But you also know. There's a strange army." Kaiyer opened his eyes at those words. He now knows what that army is. "People say it's an undead army made up of warriors, but I don't know how much of it is true. But anyway, because of that army, our importance and necessity are not as great as before. So, it seems like it's enough to just use the existing Arc Crystal." Roudina was saying that there was no need to use magic that burns life force to extract it. Kaiyer knows about Immortal. Indeed, Roudina's words were not wrong. Roudina's importance and necessity for firing magic from the Arc Crystal are less than before as long as Immortal exists. The need for Kaiyer to shoulder a big burden soon is also low. But, is it okay? Before Kaiyer could say anything. -Thump Roudina knelt in front of Kaiyer. "Please." Roudina looked up at Kaiyer while kneeling. "Don't push yourself anymore." "Until now... I've been too much to you. I've done wrong to you. Because I didn't know anything. I only thought of myself. I acted selfishly." Kaiyer watched silently as his younger senior knelt and begged. "I don't know what I should do. I want to apologize, but I don't know how. I don't know what's the right way to apologize. I'm sorry..." Eventually, Roudina started to sob, and Kaiyer Bioden smiled bitterly as he looked down at her. Kaiyer wasn't the only one who was broken. Roudina, who had to decide the deaths of countless people with her own hands, couldn't help but break down. But, she must have been so broken. She apologizes while looking at something she has broken. She doesn't know what to do, and she trembles with her head down. There's no need to apologize. Just keep doing what you've been doing. Kaiyer had been saying that relentlessly. However, now, someone else can take their place.

Isn't it unnecessary to continue to push forward recklessly?

Forcing oneself to continue when they haven't died yet, isn't that a cowardly act?

Risking one's life in a situation where it's not necessary, it's not to end the Gate incident or to save people.

Even here, just telling them to do as they've been doing is just revenge.

It's just tormenting Roudina.

That's why Kaiyer kneels in front of Roudina and apologizes.

"I wanted you to see me die and regret it for the rest of your life."

"Please... please..."

"Too bad."

It's a malicious statement, but ultimately, it means that they will do as Roudina says.

There's no reason to cling to meaningless things.

Forcing oneself to risk their life in a situation where they don't have to die is just foolish.

"I'm sorry... I was wrong. I was... too much until now."

"Don't cry. It's unfortunate."

Kaiyer gently pats the shoulder of the unfortunate and cowardly senior.

* * *

Reconciliation is difficult, but once it's done, it doesn't feel like a big deal.

In the end, it was Immortal who made Roudina and Kaiyer reconcile.

After Immortal appeared, Roudina realized that her existence as someone who uses the Arc Crystal was not as important as before.

Kaiyer had to realize that it was meaningless to obsess over charging the Arc Crystal with a false sense of duty.

Of course, ultimately, it was Roudina who persuaded Kaiyer to reconcile.

Only those who have tried to reconcile know how difficult it is.

Until reconciliation, it feels like the most difficult thing in the world, but what's important is what comes after.

"..."

"..."

An awkward silence that makes one's whole body sweat.

If they were originally very close, it would be possible to reconcile and live like before, but these two never had a 'before' to speak of.

The Arc Crystal is a super-sized power cartridge.

The project related to the Arc Crystal was not originally thought up by Kaiyer or Roudina, but by Adelia.

Someone with strong magic power but unable to use it.

Someone who can perform magical calculations at a speed close to superpowers, but with too little magic power.

Adelia, who knew of their existence, created the Arc Crystal.

So Roudina and Kaiyer are seniors and juniors, but they are closer to meeting each other through work.

They were never close or distant, regardless of whether their relationship was good or bad.

So, there's no going back to how things were before.

At first, they tried to encourage each other, but it was only for a moment, and they were just accumulating dissatisfaction with each other. Summary of previous part only for context: In this chapter, Kaiyer apologizes to Roudina for his reckless behavior and they reconcile after realizing their obsession with the Arc Crystal is meaningless. However, their relationship is still awkward as they were never close or distant, and their work brought them together. They try to encourage each other, but it only leads to dissatisfaction. Roudina hears rumors about the Empire using black magic to create an undead army and people betraying humanity to side with the demon king. Kaiyer confirms that most of the rumors are true. Roudina is confused and unable to distinguish between the real demon king and the one in her mind. She wonders who is responsible for the chaos and if the demon king is truly evil.

Translated text:

Since they had never been close or distant and only worked together, reconciling after their fight only made their relationship more awkward. They tried to encourage each other, but it only led to dissatisfaction. Roudina heard rumors about the Empire using black magic to create an undead army and people betraying humanity to side with the demon king. Kaiyer confirmed that most of the rumors were true. Roudina was confused and unable to distinguish between the real demon king and the one in her mind. She wondered who was responsible for the chaos and if the demon king was truly evil. "When the boundaries of truth were broken, everyone was thrown into judgment. Roudina couldn't stand it anymore and had to cautiously leave her tent. As the end drew near, she had many sleepless nights. Roudina could see someone sitting in a dark corner of her tent, unable to sleep. It was Adriana, who was staring at the starry sky absentmindedly. Adriana was always more than just a close friend to Roudina. When she suddenly left the temple, Roudina felt like they were breaking up. Adriana joined the temple army after the Gate incident. Roudina nodded when Adriana asked if she couldn't sleep. Roudina's connection to the demon king was not just a coincidence, but more like a fateful connection. And clearly, Adriana's connection with Reinhardt was stronger than Roudina's. Roudina asked Adriana if she had heard any rumors. Most of the rumors were true, according to Kaiyer Bioden. Roudina couldn't figure out what to do if they were true. Adriana said it was a sad thing and they should survive. Adriana held Roudina's hand tightly and said they should survive and live in the world. Ultimately, all words are just a way of expressing that determination." Forget all the worries.

It's too late to think about what the truth is.

We fought to survive.

We fought to save.

Now we put an end to it.

"Okay."

Just survive.

"Let's do that."

With that simple answer, Adriana hugged Roudina tightly.

* * *

In the midst of confusion, the Allied Forces marched towards the capital of the fallen country, Rizelrun, with signs of division. Even though they had not yet reached the operational area, monsters were pushing forward as the last gates were clustered in place. Therefore, the Allied Forces had no choice but to maintain a constant combat posture after crossing a certain point. It was inevitable that the number of monsters appearing would increase as they approached Daiyan and narrowed the distance. Immortal was constantly deployed, not only breaking through the Allied Forces' marching route but also suppressing the monsters that were flanking and coming in from behind. The reason why the Allied Forces' combat fatigue was not so high was that the tireless army, Immortal, was performing most of the surrounding battles. Thus, the Allied Forces gradually, little by little, reached the day to put an end to all the long and arduous events. Allied Forces Headquarters. -Grrrrrr! -Kururung! The cries, screams, and loud noises of giant monsters were heard from afar. "It's tomorrow." Emperor Vertus looked at each of the gathered army commanders and declared quietly. The expressions of the commanders were all different. Some had already sided with the Demon King. Some were still on the side of the Empire. In the middle of it all, there were those who looked at the emperor with a skeptical eye. Personal judgments and opinions were not important. Anyway, they had to fight as long as they were here. Those who had to end the gate incident to survive, no matter whose side they were on or who they supported. "Currently, Immortal is deploying defense lines near the base camp, and the entire army will march to Daiyan from tomorrow." "Each army will move according to the detailed instructions that have been issued. There won't be much difference from the previous operations, but you should be aware of it." "Retreat is impossible." "The areas behind the Allied Forces' influence are already boiling with monsters." "Remember that our army is surrounded by monsters." The Allied Forces broke through the monster horde and came to Daiyan with Immortal at the forefront. However, as the monsters continued to be replenished, the path that the Allied Forces had already broken through was once again filled with monsters. The fight will not be in the form of a front line, but will be fought in a comprehensive manner on all fronts. The number of people who can escape through teleportation is very small. The last army of humanity is now in an absolute death trap. It is an attack that cannot even be attempted without such a terrible drain. As long as they have come this far, the Allied Forces must achieve one goal. Destroy all the warp gates in Daiyan. If the Allied Forces fail to achieve that goal and are annihilated, humanity will perish. Translation: Even though there was almost no one on his side, everyone had to listen to Emperor Vertus' words with solemn expressions. "Three large gates, five medium gates, and fifteen small gates. That's the number of warp gates left in the world. If we destroy only those gates, the gate crisis will be over. The entire human race has exhausted its resources to get this far. There is no next time. If even one warp gate is left and the army is annihilated, not only humanity but the whole world will end like this." Everyone's expression became serious at this solemn declaration, including the commander of the Holy Knights, Rowen. There weren't many words to convey. In the end, they had to go and fight. Someone who had been silent spoke up, as if knowing that this was the last moment. "Your Majesty, did you really cause the gate crisis?" The atmosphere in the room became tense at those words. But given the special circumstances, it was possible to say such things to the emperor's face. Emperor Vertus stared at the person who spoke, and everyone's thoughts boiled over. It was just that someone had spoken on behalf of everyone. The emperor looked at him with a stern expression. "Is that really important now?" It wasn't a yes or no answer, but it was closer to a yes. With his eyes closed, the emperor said, "May the gods bless us all." That was probably his only sincere wish. "I am afraid that someone may be swayed by strange rumors and harm the emperor. Only the emperor and a few followers will return. Of course, Savioline Tana, the commander of the Holy Knights, will participate in the final battle as a powerful warrior. We cannot predict what will happen in the future. However, Savioline Tana vows to give us victory in tomorrow's battle. Whatever happens, it will be everyone's wish come true. He promises to convey this news. 'Your Majesty.' 'Yes, Tana.' Savioline Tana wanted to dispel doubts that may be the last. 'I have a question.' 'Yes, go ahead.' 'That rumor... Is it true that Your Majesty... caused the gate crisis?' If it's about that rumor, then it's inevitable. The culprit of the gate crisis is the imperial emperor. That absurd rumor. Savioline Tana knew that such a strange rumor had spread. Reinhardt would never do such a thing, and even if the commander of the Holy Knights, Rowen, had acted dictatorially, he would not have allowed it. Then, in the end, there is only one source of the rumor. At Savioline Tana's question, the emperor's mouth twitched subtly. 'I don't know.' The emperor did not give a proper answer this time either. But what is different from admitting it, as was the case with the answer given at the headquarters? In the midst of Savioline Tana's bitter feelings, he was at a loss for what to do with the moment when he was about to say something. 'Tana.' 'Yes, Your Majesty.' 'You will not participate in the battle tomorrow.' Savioline Tana opened his eyes at the emperor's sudden words. 'Yes...?' 'You have something else to do.' It's the last fight. And the most important fight. But Savioline Tana forgot to speak at the shocking story of suddenly leaving. 'Let's talk about it when we return.' 'Your Majesty...?' Before Savioline Tana could say anything. -Flash! The flash of Mass Teleport swallowed the emperor and Savioline Tana. "