Ch 1 - How This World Ends

"It's the final battle! Everyone, raise your weapon! We can win this."

I shouted at the top of my lungs.

Normally, shouting without mana was enough, but this much was needed given how noisy the sounds of monsters and explosions were.

"We-We did it!"

"We took out the giant!"

""OOOH!!""

Cheers rang across the battlefield.

Even the mages who looked so exhausted that they almost fell over and died went crazy and hugged whoever was next to them.

I smiled at the sight, but thanks to my multiple regression, I know we can't relax just yet.

"It's not over yet! Look!"

Cracks in the sky were still there, spitting out monsters from the otherworld.

We can only win if we do something about that crack.

"Hero party, rise up!"

It was the moment for humanity's strongest to force a breakthrough.

"We will separate from the army and close off the crack!"

Without complaint, the 6 of them gathered.

"I will open the path."

The paladin charged ahead.

"Huh, reckless as always. It can't be helped, I'll help."

The sword saint was next.

With every swing he took, a swarm of monsters was cut. Whether it’s a bone dragon diving from the sky, a giant mollusk from underground, or even the seemingly endless swarm of monsters, nothing could block his path.

"What happened to strategy? Geez, this is why young people these days are."

The archmage shook his head and fired colorful magic.

The ground exploded, and the sky distorted as if cut by the wind. Then, a rain of meteors fell from the sky and killed the monsters without mercy. This scenery reminded me of the end of the world that the Seer prophesied.

"Fufu, don't worry. I’m here if anyone ever gets hurt. Plus, isn’t it cute for men to be reckless sometimes?"

The saintess smiled softly.

A domain of light spread out beneath our feet, recovering our wounds in an instant.

"…"

The archer just silently pulled her bow.

With inhuman strength, she accurately one-shot all the giants and enemies on their weak points. Without me telling her, she chose to target enemies with high defense, high enough that none of us could kill them with ease. This must be the fruit of having fought together for years.

'It was a truly, really long time.'

Even if you don't count the regression… Was it more than 8 years?

"Raon Eva."

The last person called me.

A person with androgynous beauty that seemed out of this world.

"Hero."

"No."

He shook his head.

His golden hair, tied in a ponytail, swung with the movement.

"Rather than me, Raon, you are more deserving to be a hero."

"… I'm just a weak person who tried his best to survive."

"A weak person…"

The hero laughed.

"Say that again after you stopped killing monsters with bare fists. Aren't you killing more monsters than me even as we speak?"

"I just happen to know their weakness and my strength, that's all."

It was thanks to the countless regressions.

Was it called the save and load function?

The player sure has a weird naming sense about these things.

Then again, he's a being more trustworthy than anything I know.

["I will draw out a path."]

Then, a map appeared in my head, telling me which path to take and which enemy to engage. It was a path without a single error in sight.

‘As expected of the player. Truly the best.’

"Everyone, charge!"

We moved ahead, killing only the monsters we needed while saving energy to prepare for an emergency.

In the end, we managed to arrive at our target while maintaining perfect condition.

"As expected of sir Raon."

"No, it's not me."

"I know. It's the player, right? Hahaha, you're still going on and on about that."

"It's true."

I feel sad to hear my partner's effort being dismissed.

Then again, it's a common occurrence.

Everyone didn't want to admit the existence of a higher being who played with their lives and treated them like games.

But, from what I've seen, the player is someone who treats this world more sincerely than anyone else.

"I believe you, Raon."

Except for the hero.

"People's heart turns darker every time they sinned. But Raon's heart is pure white."

A being who can see and judge evil.

"Raon never tells a lie, not even white lies."

"Hero…"

"So, after everything's over, I would like to meet them too. The player."

The hero smiled at me. That might be an impossible wish to fulfill, but…

"Yeah."

Me too.

There's nothing wrong with having a dream, right?

After protecting the hero for a long time, finally, the crack was closed.

"We did it!"

We all cheered.

"Now, all that's left is to clear the monsters, right?"

It was the moment the hero said that.

The sky shakes. No, not just the sky. The ground, the sea, and even my soul were shaking fiercely. I looked around just in case, but rather than seeing anything strange, I heard the player's surprised voice instead.

["What…? No, are you kidding me?! We closed the crack and yet, this? Is this a forced event?"]

The moment he said that, I knew that something terrible was coming.

"["Everyone, fall back!"]"

The player and I shouted at the same time. We have been with each other for such a long time, so we know what each other is thinking to some extent. So, I managed to move my body without delay.

"Kyaaa!"

"S-Save me!"

"UAAAAH!"

The others are not so fortunate. A crack that encompasses the entire sky appears in the blink of a moment. No, rather than a crack, isn't this a wormhole? A huge monster appeared and quickly killed three of us in one go: the saintess, sword saint, and paladin.

"What--"

"…!"

Before they could react, even the wizard and archer were brutally killed.

"Ha… Haha…"

Seeing that grotesque appearance, I could only laugh in despair.

It's a familiar monster. To be exact, it is the final boss. This damn monster is so strong it can destroy the entire planet by itself. The problem is that even the strongest among us could only destroy a continent or two. And that's after partying together and giving it our all.

The difference in strength is no joke. So, the player tried everything to prevent the final boss from coming instead of facing it directly.

But in the end, everything we did was useless.

"Ah…"

When I saw the hero's death, I felt like crying there and then.

It was the moment when the world ended.

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