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He was a bearer of the seven stars.

Once, he had lost everything in flames. His family, his closest friend, his happy life, and even his own self. It broke him. But it also gave him a determination. And the Goddess responded.

It was a peculiar power. Unlike the rest of the Blessings which had their powers concentrated in the body of the wielder, his only contained the sealing circuit. The source of his power wasn't life force like for everyone else. Instead, it came from the outside—from the stars.

No matter how many times the world went through strife, its skies remained unchanged. For they were of the realm of celestial. And they existed beyond the loop of the earthly world. Those stars contained a single thing for him—a record of his journey. Not the one that could be seen from earth but rather the one observed by the heavens.

In other words, he could remember beyond the repetitions. That was his power. It was a feat that only gods could achieve as their existence also transcended the earthly world. But for a human, it was likely a first.

The night after he had lost everything he had a dream. A lady of celestial beauty came to him and spoke.

"I will give you the records of the lost worlds. But please, hurry. We cannot contain the march of time for much longer. Soon, our powers will fade and the cruel world will continue its unstoppable advance. The stars will show you how much is left."

Those were the only words she said, but the boy remembered them vividly. And soon, he became afraid of looking at the night sky. Because every time he looked, he felt like another star was about to fade away.

The bearer of the seven stars spent countless attempts. Many times, he failed at his task. The Demon Lord was powerful and ruthless. Every time he returned, he was more powerful than previously. And this time, wasn't an exception.

Most of the time, he failed to reach the Demon Lord. Hero candidates died left and right. No matter what he did and no matter how much he struggled, the Demon Lord came out victorious. But he still had hope for the more times he failed, the stronger he became.

His Blessing allowed to take a record of his journey. That didn't mean only his ability to remember, he could take the powers he had accumulated and take them into the next loop. But unlike his memories, he could only fully take as many lives as there were stars that guided him. Seven stars and seven lives.

So he became stronger. There were many loops where he bid his time to become as strong as he could before the end reached him. Many times he ended up as the last hero candidate alive. A feeling he never wanted to remember again. But he swallowed his shame and continued on.

Eventually, his seven lives were ready. Seven paths illuminated his road to victory. By then, only two stars were left in the sky.

It was then that he learned the truth of this world. He murdered a child for the sake of justice, and that broke him beyond belief. Because of that, he realized his determination was paper thin. A borrowed fake that he wasn't determined to follow. Nothing more than a proof of his weakness. Eventually, he reached the Demon Lord. But he couldn't defeat him. Not because he lacked strength, but because he lacked the determination to oppose him. To keep this world in its current state was to reject the dreams of the oppressed. Once he started doubting his cause, he could never defeat the Demon Lord.

After many, many repetitions, his mind crumbled in to dust. And at the end, a single girl stood over him. She was unable to bear what he did to himself. And as she cried, she offered him a solution. She told him to give the last star to her.

In the first place, his Blessing was special. The only thing it did was that it kept the connection between the stars and this world open. But beyond that, the stars didn't need to only watch over him. In fact, anyone else could do it if they were close enough to him for the connection to work.

And he agreed. He thought that maybe she would have the determination he lacked.

But the transfer was flawed. The seven lives that stars contained were only useful to its original wielder. But of course—they were his records after all. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't fit them onto her soul. And so the only thing she kept was her memories.

But maybe he was right. Even without her memories she found a miracle. Using the records of countless repetitions he had experienced, she did everything in her powers to achieve her goal.

She wanted to save this lone boy. This boy that was cursed on that fateful day. And she was the one who cursed him. So she accepted this burden no hesitation.

Ironically, she succeeded at his original goal. She had saved the world. But her own task remained painfully far from her reach.

Maybe such was the fate of the bearer of the seven stars.