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“I can guess why you’re here.”

Sophie just stared at me with an unusually cold expression.

“Is it because things have deviated from the original flow? You said it was your role to maintain that.”

For me to become the adversary and shatter the domain of god would indeed be quite a departure from the original narrative.

“Sophie.”

No response came, even when I called her name.

“I’m going to save Hana. So please step aside.”

“······.”

“Right. You said there’s no self in reality.”

The current Sophie was in a state devoid of any consciousness, unlike when we met at the brink of death.

She was merely a system operating as predetermined.

Yes. The girl before me was an absolute system for maintaining order.

In other words, she was no different from a god.

To break the domain of god and save Hana, I had no choice but to confront her.

Fragments of shimmering light swirled around Sophie, hovering in the air.

I quickly realized the destructive power contained within those objects was on an entirely different level.

This was quite a precarious situation.

After all, fleeing from the current scenario was impossible.

I had to face her. I recalled my abilities and began to solidify them.

The most powerful ability vividly painted itself in my mind.

Imitating the miracle of the Messiah.

A divine golden light colored the world. I felt overwhelming power coursing through my body.

At the same time, I realized just how dangerous this miracle was.

It felt fortunate that it would only end with my lifespan being shortened.

Miracles were not something one could casually handle.

Sweat began to trickle down my forehead.

As the Holy Grail had already left my grasp, one wrong move could lead to my demise.

Moreover, the current miracle was merely an imperfect imitation.

If I lost here, there would be no second chances. It would be the end for me.

But that’s okay.

I can never lose.

I closed my eyes and calmed my mind.

And I recalled. The longed-for smile of the girl.

The performance of the replicated ability was proportional to the distance from the target.

The closer the relationship to the other, the more powerful the ability.

Having already peeked into the world of all possibilities, I could confidently claim that I was closer to Hana than anyone else in the world.

Of course.

No matter how far apart we were.

Even if destiny or death sought to tear us apart, the feelings I hold for you will never fade.

“Just wait a little longer.”

The end was near.

*

I succeeded in breaking the system.

That meant I had truly reached the proximity of my goal.

However, the cost was substantial.

The excessive use of miracles had completely wrecked my body.

It wasn’t merely a matter of my lifespan being shortened; my very existence was becoming untenable.

I quietly stared at my hand.

It appeared translucent and blurry, almost as if I could see through it like a hologram.

So success isn’t easy, huh?

I didn’t know exactly how much time I had left, but if the plan failed, Kim Shinwoo would completely vanish from this world.

With nothing left behind.

Transcending the timeline, I would disappear from all realms of possibilities.

In other words, the fact that I existed in the past would also be erased.

Everyone would forget me.

“······.”

It would be a lie to say I wasn’t scared.

But it wasn’t the fear of disappearing that troubled me.

It was the fear of not being able to save you and failing to keep my promise.

Not just for you.

But for all those who were sacrificed in this world full of despair in the name of destiny.

It’s not over yet.

I can still move and I still have things to do.

A little faster. Before it’s completely too late. Hoping for success.

My steps were directed towards the academy.

The war had long since begun.

Countless innocent people had died and suffered.

How ironic that the purpose of this war was said to be the salvation of humanity.

This world had been built upon contradictions from the very start.

If a world where everyone could be happy can only exist by sacrificing a girl, then isn’t the foundation itself flawed?

Therefore, it must change.

It must be properly restarted from the very beginning.

The academy had not yet been directly impacted by the horrors of war.

Though it wouldn’t be long before it turned into a battlefield.

There was a somewhat uneasy atmosphere, yet the academy’s students were going about their daily lives as usual.

As I walked through the center of the streets, I became lost in deep reflection.

Although the back side of the academy might be rotten, the memories I built here filled me with a profound nostalgia.

I stopped in a small, sparsely populated park.

There, someone was already waiting.

There was a strange sense of familiarity, almost as if I hadn’t seen her in ages.

In fact, aside from the six months of resurrection, I hadn’t truly met her in days.

“Longinus.”

As I called her name, the girl looked up sharply.

“Shinwoo. I was waiting.”

“You knew I would come here?”

“I was waiting while reading your book.”

Was my current meeting mentioned in the book I wrote?

No, that wasn’t possible.

But perhaps she could have guessed, remembering our conversation in that white room ten years ago.

“You have Kim Shinwoo locked up.”

“It says so in the book.”

She moved in accordance with the contents of the book I wrote.

I, the ten years ago version of myself who witnessed Longinus’s behavior, would later write it down in a book.

Where did this causality begin?

Longinus approached me and stopped abruptly.

Her gaze was fixed intensely on me.

“Shinwoo. It’s strange. My body…”

“Oh.”

Indeed, it seemed rather evident when seen up close.

With a bitter smile, I muttered.

“You don’t need to worry. It’s nothing.”

“······.”

“It’s fine. Everything will be okay if I succeed.”

Does that mean if I don’t succeed, nothing will be okay?

I decided not to bring that up.

“Is it because of me?”

“Uh?”

“Did I stab you, and because of that this happened?”

I see.

Unlike me, Longinus had spent the last six months awake.

She had been engulfed in anxiety for killing me.

“No, this is all part of the plan. I came back alive in one piece, didn’t I?”

“Yeah.”

“So don’t worry. Everything will turn out fine.”

“Yeah.”

“···Thank you.”

“For what?”

While speaking, I naturally came to a realization.

The words “everything will be alright” were meant for myself, not for her.

I hoped fervently for that, unknowingly muttering an incantation.

“I have to go see Kim Shinwoo now. Will you guide me?”

“Yeah. Okay.”

I had already realized long ago who the man in the darkness was.

This meeting was more crucial than any other.

It was almost the most important turning point in my life.

*

I looked at the boy trapped in the room.

The boy ten years ago, seen through the glass window, looked pathetic.

A boy sitting helplessly, having given up on everything.

Endless despair and frustration were deeply etched in his expression.

Is that all it takes for you to give up?

Do you have any inkling of what greater hardships lie ahead?

Are you really going to just collapse there?

“What a pathetic sight.”

The boy must have heard my voice.

Yet, there was no special reaction from him.

“Nothing changes as long as you sit there sulking.”

He must have already known that much.

But the boy believes that even if he moves, nothing will change.

If nothing will be different no matter what he does, then he thinks it’s better to give up comfortably.

What a foolish judgment.

“Then you will lose even the slightest chance for something to change.”

Right. Just the slightest chance.

I trusted that vague probability and walked the thorny path.

Because…

“If it has value, then it is worth doing.”

Because walking is the right thing to do.

Finally, my words reached the boy.

From his shaking gaze, vitality gradually began to stir.

It was painfully obvious what he was thinking now.

“It’s worth it… Of course it is. I made a vow. I promised to make her happy, even if it costs me my life.”

That promise had led me to this point.

Finally, Kim Shinwoo stood up and faced me.

The boy wouldn’t be able to see my face right now.

There’s no need for him to figure out my identity just yet.

What mattered was something far more important.

“If you wish, I will get you out of here.”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course. But there’s something you need to remember.”

This was both a test and a message I was delivering to myself.

“As long as you stay here, the Archfiend will lose, and humanity will win. You can prevent humanity’s extinction.”

That’s the original world that the universe desired and the system sought to create.

Hana, the one with the destiny of a savior, would carry humanity’s original sin by sacrificing her own life.

Now, I intend to break and obliterate that world.

If I don’t leave this place, the world will maintain its current form.

“If I leave this place and meet Hana, does that mean humanity will perish?”

“You already know the answer. I won’t force you. The choice is ultimately up to you.”

“······.”

What answer will you give?

After a brief silence, the boy responded with a resolute expression.

“Right now, my world is Yu Hana. Even if I protect everyone, if I cannot protect Hana, then my world will perish anyway. Therefore…”

“You selfish brat.”

For the sake of just one girl, you’re willing to bring everything crashing down.

I found that self-centered mindset to be deeply satisfying.

“That choice. I hope you see it through to the end. Fate is not something to follow but to carve out.”

“Now let me go. I have to meet Hana.”

“Alright. This time, make sure to succeed.”

With that, I sent the boy skyward using the miracle.

The space was left behind empty.

I briefly looked at my hand again.

The end was becoming so blurry it was almost fading away.

The extinction of my existence had begun.

“······.”

This is it.