C173
She was curled up in the corner of the table.
She wore a golden crown atop her fine silver hair, dressed in a silver gown.
I squinted my eyes.
I had seen her several times. I couldn't not recognize her.
Until a few days ago, we had been face to face.
‘Pria.’
Her appearance was very strange.
There were tears in her golden eyes, and she was biting her lips so hard they bled.
How unfair it must have all been.
“...Ah.”
I sighed and sat down on an empty seat.
I crossed my legs and looked around slowly.
“Although we have lost, I do not regret it. Everyone did their best, and each did what they could. We came together beyond class and race differences, and fought together with one body and one mind.”
The young man's speech continued.
Some at the table were so moved they were about to cry.
“….”
A whimper escaped Pria's lips.
I turned my gaze to the other side of the table. Behind the empty throne, there were twin marble statues of goddesses. Two girls holding hands. One of them had a face that remained deeply engraved in my mind.
I chuckled to myself.
Indeed, it was obvious who that person was.
There was no need to predict it.
“The twin goddesses who rule Taonier, you said?”
I knew it from Nerissa.
The two goddesses were called ‘Tel’ and ‘Ikar’.
It was said that the saint received the goddess's oracles directly.
I crossed my arms.
The eyes of the goddess statue, which should have been purely decorative, glowed red.
But it seemed like almost no one had noticed.
Everyone was absorbed in the young man's speech.
Boom!
The entire palace shook violently.
Chunks of stone falling from the ceiling shattered part of the table.
“It seems there's not much time left.”
The young man smiled bitterly.
A knight standing beside him spoke.
“According to reports, they will reach the palace in an hour.”
“That means that's all the time we have.”
“I'm sorry.”
“No, everyone did their best. There's no blame to assign.”
The young man comforted the knight, who, moved, bowed deeply.
Well, at a glance, it's a moving scene.
<How ugly.>
A sinister voice sounded, as if scraping the inside of my ears.
I looked to the other side of the table. A place that was empty before. Suddenly, a shadow began to twist and form a figure.
[SS▩SH黑⊙∈※ Lv.999]
<What do you think, don't you agree?>
A girl with ebony-colored hair looked at me and smiled.
In a landscape of soft tones, she exuded an undeniable presence.
<It's been a while since we've seen each other directly. You've made it here alive. As expected from the Master I've chosen.>
Tel smiled gently.
“Why have you come out? I don't want to see you.”
<How sad. I made time amidst the preparations for the event just for this.>
“Leave, please.”
Tel drank from a cup full of a thick tar-like liquid.
<It's not ugly, is it, Loki? They lost. A total disaster. And now they come saying they did their best, that they don't regret it. Justifying themselves in their delusion.>
“……”
<Except for one, they're all trash. Not worth saving.>
Tel, with a sensual gesture, caressed the cheek of Pria, who was curled up as if feeling nothing.
<Hehehehe…>
Tel let out a cold laugh and her body dissipated into shadows.
I leaned back deeply in my chair. The young man's speech continued.
“Does anyone have anything else to say? Anyone who has something to say…”
Pria raised her hand.
At that moment.
‘Hmm?’
Uuuuuuuuum.
Bifröst began to shake violently.
I grabbed the hilt of my sword, and the shaking ceased after a moment.
“My dear younger brother. You've worked hard too. You've supported us in every way…”
“Your Highness the Prince.”
Pria spoke clearly.
“I don't want everything to end here.”
The atmosphere among those present tensed.
Bang!
“Listen, everyone!”
Pria stood up abruptly and slammed the table.
“Is this what we've run for, shedding blood and sweat, for this ending, for this conclusion? Did we do our best, but we lost? And are you satisfied with that? Was that all you wanted to protect? Was it to surrender to such a crisis?”
“……”
“Aren't you angry... aren't you really angry?” Pria shouted as if lamenting.
The peaceful atmosphere at the table changed to a cold one.
The smiles disappeared from everyone's faces.
“Look at those behind you. They're scared, fearful. And the leaders give up so easily? Aren't you ashamed in front of your ancestors?”
“How dare you! How dare you say such barbarities? Even if you are of golden blood…”
“Shut up!” Pria exclaimed.
“I will not accept this ending. To end here after enjoying a dinner together? What a joke! Our warriors are still shedding their blood outside!”
“So… what does Your Highness the Princess suggest?”
A witch dressed in a purple robe smiled.
Above her head, a name tag read ‘Lady Sternberg’.
“It's not that we're not angry. But nothing we tried worked. In the end, this is how it has ended. So, Your Highness the Princess, what would you like to do? Shout and stomp?”
“I understand Your Highness the Princess's sentiment. But this is the inevitable outcome. Sometimes, you have to accept it. I believe that's the last pride we have left.”
“But... there is one option left.”
Pria, who had remained silent, spoke.
Her gaze shifted to the altar to the right of the table.
“Saint, hasn't the oracle of the goddess descended? I heard it contains crucial clues to save the continent. Why do you keep it secret?”
The young woman called saint, dressed in a white cloak, remained silent.
The knight who stood beside her spoke.
“Your Highness the Princess, the saint does not lightly hide the oracle of the goddess. Perhaps there is a misunderstanding.”
Versace of Silver Sparkle.
The woman whom I myself had cut in half yesterday.
Pria shook her head at Versace's words.
“It's not a misunderstanding. I heard it clearly. The goddess gives us a chance… a chance to start everything anew.”
“What do you say, Your Highness?”
“Going back in time. Several years ago.”
It seems the excerpt is coming out little by little.
I seemed to know the reason for this scene.
They were informing the heroes about the purpose of their mission.
‘Then…’
Does this mean that the heroes who ascend in the future will also see a similar scene?
It was reasonable to expect their attitude to change after promotion. Of course, it would be necessary to see it through to the end to make a judgment. There was still missing information to resolve the accumulated doubts.
“Going back in time.”
The witch's eyes narrowed.
Pria continued speaking as she looked around.
“If we go back to that moment, there might be a different outcome. Isn't it regrettable to give up like this? Ending without knowing anything, without even knowing the enemy's identity. I can't accept it. If there's even a slight chance, shouldn't we try?”
“Is that true?”
The piercing eyes of the mage king turned to the saint.
The saint sighed deeply.
“Is it really possible to change the outcome by starting anew?”
The saint's voice resonated softly.
"Wouldn't it be better... to end it here?"
Her tone grew lower.
"All beings of Taonier joined their forces as one. But still, not once could we win! Are you suggesting we go back?"
No one contradicted her.
Even the youth at the head of the table closed his eyes in silence.
"We are weary now. We believe it is better to end it here."
"……."
The air grew heavy.
I laced my fingers, reflecting on the flow of the conversation.
They were the guardians trying to protect Taonier.
Humans, monsters. Regardless of species, they had gathered in one place. They fought together, but it seems they were defeated without achieving anything. And now, gathered here, they await death in the face of imminent destruction.
'It feels understandable.'
There are no major discrepancies.
If a 3-star hero were to enter here and observe, anyone would nod along.
It was deemed ugly.
I chuckled to myself.
It's true, after all.
Based solely on this picture.
They are terrified.
"…Coward." Pria muttered.
Flames burned in her golden eyes.
"Why do you think you can't win, so you want to end it like this? Don't make me laugh. Don't make me laugh! Your kin are watching! How absurd what you're saying is?"
Pria kicked her chair and stood up.
Her face, once pale as ivory, now flushed red with fury.
"At one point, I thought you were true heroes. Seems I was mistaken. You are cowards. There's no greater coward than you! Aren't you ashamed? You should be ashamed!"
Swish!
Pria unsheathed her sword.
"Why does no one stand up with me? Even if the odds are low, even if it's just a thread of hope, shouldn't we try? Why is no one saying anything?"
"……."
No one spoke up.
"I will. I will, a thousand times over. I will go back and change it. Even if my body breaks and tears apart, if that can save my people... I will."
Wow.
We don't need to look for another hero.
Pria, with her fiery eyes, looked towards the goddess statue behind the throne.
The silver blade of her sword pointed towards the goddess statue.
"Oh goddess, if you are watching, answer! I, Priacis Al Ragnar, will accept your offer. If no one else will go, I myself will go back!"
Uuuum.
The twin statues of the goddess began to tremble.
Crack. The marble lips of the goddess parted, and a mystical voice flowed.
"Golden heir, Priacis."
It wasn't an unpleasant voice that grated on the eardrums.
It was as clear as the wind caressing the forest.
"At this moment, the contract is sealed."
"For them..."
Pria looked around the table with a cold expression.
"Grant them an ending befitting their worth."
"Wait! Your Highness the Princess, what are you saying?"
Crick, crick.
The faces of the twin statues turned towards the table.
The eyes of the two statues flashed red.
"To those without merit, a corresponding curse."
"Argh!"
A man clutched his chest, falling to his knees.
Groaning in pain, he spat out a handful of dark blood. He was the first. One after another, those who hadn't voiced Pria's outcry began to fall, vomiting blood.
"Golden heir, Priacis. To you, we grant the goddess's blessing. Infinite opportunities will be bestowed upon you, and the noblest heroes will follow you."
"……."
Pria closed her eyes.
Beneath her, countless humans and monsters lay scattered, having vomited blood.
"Pria, Pria!"
A young man with golden hair shouted in desperation, but Pria didn't open her eyes.
And then.
The entire palace began to shake.
Columns fell one after another, shattered, and parts of the ceiling collapsed.
The prelude to collapse. The palace was on the verge of crumbling.
"Challenge. Conquer. Master your destiny. The golden throne is yours."
As the goddess's chant echoed, the palace crumbled.
‘Hmm.’
So this is what happened.
Certainly.
‘Just cowards.’
Cowards, indeed.
Pria's description was accurate.
They cannot be called heroes.
Several doubts were resolved.
The reason why Pria is the protagonist in most missions.
More directly speaking, Taonier revolves around this woman.
The heroes who pass this ascension ceremony will understand why they are fighting and ignite their will to fulfill their missions. A quite exemplary motivational technique.
‘Yes.’
If this is the truth.
I looked up and smiled.
"Hey."
Bifröst was shaking violently.
"Enough of lies."
Just before everything faded away, I unsheathed my sword.
A dark gleam shimmered on the sword. Yurnet said this sword was a crystal of interference with infinite possibilities. It seems she was right.
‘Hand it over.’
We don't need this absurd theater.
Bring it.
‘The truth.’
Uuuuuung.
I firmly grasped the burning Bifröst in black.
With a tight grip on the sword's hilt, I assumed a stance and brought it down.
Clang!
What obstructed my view shattered like glass, dispersing.
