Chapter 113
As Seseona joined the Resurrection Sect extermination team, the situation rapidly progressed.
“Target organisms, currently 331 individuals surviving. I will intercept all at once.”
Boom! Along with her brief announcement, the missile launchers on her arms continuously spewed fire.
And the dozens, hundreds of mini-missiles flying high in the sky fell like meteor showers, leaving fiery red streaks all over Kern.
Kaboom! Overlapping explosions rocked me from all sides, deafening my ears.
Kern was soon filled with acrid smoke and gunpowder. I brushed away the smoke that filled my vision and muttered.
“Did we take them out?”
I immediately regretted saying it. The probability that they survived this attack was very high.
And indeed, science isn’t called science for nothing. The members of the Resurrection Sect she could annihilate in one go were merely the lower-level ones.
“Hmm. My missile firepower seems to not even damage the rest…”
Seseona tilted her head in confusion and muttered helplessly. I shifted my gaze towards her words and found those who were still alive, bound by chains.
“…”
“…”
The remaining targets were some high-level members of the Resurrection Sect, the monsters deployed by Cassas, and finally, the Demon King’s sister. That was all.
But that problem was easily resolved. After all, the Resurrection Sect extermination team wasn’t Seseona alone.
“Leave the rest to me, fiery miss.”
Adrang swiftly rushed to the remaining members of the Resurrection Sect, ruthlessly resuming the decapitations.
Even Seseona gasped, “That’s a bit…”, at the sight of the splashing blood. In the end, however, they crumpled without much resistance.
“There’s only you left now.”
Adrang eliminated all the members of the Resurrection Sect in no time flat. Then, he strode toward the last remaining Demon King’s sister.
The Demon King’s sister gnashed her teeth repeatedly before eventually bowing her head in resignation.
“…To be defeated so helplessly… To fail at my revenge without even accomplishing anything…”
“What can I say? That’s just the way things go. Sometimes things look like they’ll succeed but fail, and other times it’s the opposite.”
“…”
“I shall slay every witch. This is the vow of witch hunter Adrang.”
Adrang laughed cruelly while fiddling with his gauntlet, while the Demon King’s sister gritted her teeth. As the two rapidly closed the distance between them, what was I doing?
“Kh… Huhk.”
Finally, I had reached my limit in maintaining the chains, and I was deactivating the skill.
After coming this far, it’s too unfortunate to die like this. After endless deliberation, I chose survival over all else and released the skill.
Squeeeeek! The dark chains that filled Kern were now being sucked back into the portal in the air. I clutched my staggering breath and watched the scene silently.
My vision gradually narrowed. My eyes were closing.
“Ah… Straight…”
Hold on a bit longer.
At the very least, I want to confirm the final moment with my own eyes before collapsing. Even if I die this way, I want to engrain in my mind that this method was not wrong.
However, at that moment, the Demon King’s sister and Adrang clashed after hastily loosening the weakened chains. The slight tremor from their impact caused my consciousness to crumble helplessly.
“Er… len.”
My body feels ambiguous, both light and heavy. As always when on the verge of death, an uncomfortable pitch-black sensation dominated my body.
I instinctively extended my hand forward in a last-ditch attempt.
“…”
Suddenly, something warm touched my fingertips.
It intertwined between my knuckles. Before I could confirm what it was, everything went dark.
It was surprisingly peaceful.
*
I suddenly opened my eyes.
“Return to immortality point updated…?”
I sincerely hoped that the dreaded return point panel would not appear.
I stared wide-eyed for about ten seconds before realizing that the return point update panel would not appear.
“… I survived.”
A sigh of relief escaped me.
At the same time, my head began to throb. All the tumultuous events from my previous life and the current one hit me all at once.
“?”
There was one thing I noticed late due to this:
Instead of Ruci’s face that I’d seen with every reincarnation, a different woman’s face filled my vision.
“Ah, you’re awake?”
Blonde hair and silver eyes. A calm smile that felt comforting, paired with a Gothic Lolita-style maid uniform.
It differed slightly from the uniform Leira had worn, mixed with an oriental floating flair, making it quite unique. However, it definitely suited her well.
Her identity was Seseona. Her face was inches away from mine.
“…”
“…”
For a while, I didn’t have the strength to speak, so I kept my mouth shut. She also seemed not inclined to talk but simply watched me silently.
Finally, I, feeling awkward, mustered the courage to speak first.
“Your clothes have changed?”
“Ah yes! This is the work uniform for the inn where I work in Crossfade. How is it?”
How could it not be good? The owner has impeccable taste and knows how to make money.
I silently thanked the unknown innkeeper in my heart.
“It suits you well.”
“Ah… Ah, hoh. Thank you!”
Seseona visibly brightened at the offhand compliment and scratched her head.
Good. This much formal exchange should suffice. I quickly moved onto the main topic.
“Anyway, what are you doing now?”
“I saw you suddenly collapse, so I’m giving you a lap pillow.”
“… Is that so?”
“Yes. That’s right!”
Seseona nodded enthusiastically with a cheerful face.
Behind her, I could see the sky. I was lying down. She was looking down at me. And the warm, soft sensation on the back of my head felt vague yet comforting. She was pressing quite closely.
It seems that was indeed the case.
“Kuh…!”
I tried to move my body belatedly but couldn’t budge.
No, in fact, my entire body screamed in pain, begging to be put out of its misery. Even shifting my gaze made my head feel like it was about to break. Having no other choice, I had to maintain eye contact with Seseona in silence.
And Seseona didn’t even seem to have any intention of averting her eyes from me.
“Seseona.”
“Yes, Master Jung Yong.”
“Though it may seem embarrassing, can you lower me to the ground?”
“No, I can’t.”
A surprisingly firm refusal came, accompanied by her cheerful smile.
This was unexpected. Caught off guard, I stammered.
“I’m fine. It seems like I’ve passed the critical point, so if you just leave me be, my ether will recover quickly and I’ll heal…”
“Actually, I just want to give you a lap pillow, so I don’t like it…”
“…”
Is that so? My apologies.
Her consistent cheerful rejection left me without any urge to argue. She was as assertive as ever, which in a way was comforting.
In this situation, escape would be impossible. I decided to defuse the awkwardness and strike up a conversation to pass the time.
“How did things turn out?”
“By ‘situation,’ are you referring to the treatment of the special-brainwave-emitting living beings that you had bound?”
“Yeah, that’s what I mean.”
“At the end, the violet-colored female creature with DNA resembling humans was completely shattered by the gentleman with white hair, thus concluding the matter. The living beings you bound were thoroughly destroyed, leaving no trace of their original form!”
“Ah… Thanks. You worked hard.”
“Ah, not at all!”
Seseona cheerfully explained while flicking her fingers. The problem was that the content of her words, combined with her characteristic strict phrasing, sounded a bit eerie.
I dazedly nodded while absorbing her report.
“Well, anyway… it’s really… over, right?”
Finally, is the incident resolved? Is it truly over this time?
Do I not have to die anymore? Can I stop kissing Ruci?
Please, someone, tell me it’s over. Death has become as common as breathing, so this time, it feels impossible to truly believe it’s finally over.
“…”
I stared blankly at Seseona’s face for a long time.
No matter where I looked, Seseona was all that met my eyes. Unable to escape, I started intently examining every feature of her face. ‘If you can’t avoid it, enjoy it.’ Engaging in a staring contest with a beauty can only be beneficial for me.
“Uh… Hmm, ai…”
As I stared fixedly, she actually shied away and averted her gaze. Judging from her expressive face even more emotional than mine, she probably felt embarrassed.
‘You started this. Why are you shy now?’ Confused but still seeking to diffuse the increasingly awkward atmosphere, I asked:
“Anyway, how did you know to find me? That I’m here?”
This was genuinely one of the things I was most curious about regarding Seseona.
It’s truly heartwarming that she came to find me. She arrived just in time, saving me like a savior. In fact, I’m so touched that I’m considering founding a religion. No, I definitely will. Seseona will be the pope, and I the bishop. Long live the robot maid sect!
‘But I thought she was in the capital.’
How on earth did she know and find me? Crossfade is at least a week’s walk away. With no SNS or UTube here, it’s impossible for rumors from Kern to reach that far within hours.
There must have been some reason she knew of my crisis and came, but I don’t know what it was.
“Of course I knew. Flyers were posted all across Crossfade, and even the Information Guild came to the inn where I work, urging me to come to Kern immediately because you were in mortal danger!”
That was Seseona’s response, and only then did I clearly understand why she managed to arrive here in time.
Huh. I couldn’t help letting out a weary smile.
“Seop Baek truly worked hard, huh.”
“Seop Baek? Is that the name of the person who found me in the capital?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Suddenly, waves of both gratitude and guilt toward Seop Baek washed over me.
She went through a lot in this incident. Suddenly becoming a sacrifice for summoning the Demon King because of me and Ruci, and I didn’t even properly explain or comfort her. She was thrown around by the situation, and while she doesn’t remember now, she died countless brutal deaths.
And yet, Seop Baek was the one who played the biggest role in ensuring my survival.
I made a firm resolution deep in my heart.
‘I will properly thank her later and apologize for how I treated her.’
Yes. The fireworks after the god festival would be the perfect time.
We can watch the fireworks together, eat some good food, and the atmosphere should be nice. Maybe, who knows, some unexpected feelings might develop between us. Maybe? Our sharp angles might align unexpectedly in various aspects…
“Is it a girl?”
“Huh?”
My daydream of sending Seop Baek’s grandchildren to kindergarten and receiving cheek kisses was interrupted by Seseona.
I carelessly turned my gaze and stiffened. The smile on her face seemed exactly the same as before, but strangely, a chill ran down my spine. Was it because my magic power was depleted, making me more sensitive?
“Is it a girl?”
Seseona repeated the same words in the same tone, just like she did during the Trial Curtain. The unspoken threat of the missile launchers growing on her arms was palpable.
I quickly responded.
“Y-yes, she’s a girl. Why?”
“No, um… I was just surprised!”
“I’m surprised too…”
“I assumed you’d only be surrounded by older male non-humans like Skaro and Aldcon, so it was quite shocking. I guess I need to raise my guard…”
“???”
“Some kind of love declaration?”
Seseona kept spouting incomprehensible sentences. I tried to understand for a while before throwing in the towel.
Come on, I couldn’t even understand Seop Baek’s psychology and suffered through it. How could I possibly understand this interdimensional combat maid’s mind?
“… Ah.”
At some point, a quiet exclamation escaped from Seseona’s lips.
Looking far away, her smile was spreading. Out of curiosity about the reason, I used all my strength to turn my head.
And I too couldn’t help but let out a dumbfounded exclamation.
“Beautiful. After all this, I’m finally getting a proper look at the other world after three months.”
“Yeah…”
It was the sunrise.
The blazing sunlight was pushing away the dawn and bringing the morning.
Only then did I nod.
“Really. We survived…”
With the help of countless people, or perhaps because I’ve died countless times, I didn’t really feel like it was over this time. More than when escaping the sewer or capturing the Eldritch, the realization hit me when I looked at the rising sun.
“I don’t know what to say.”
Mixed emotions overwhelmed me to the point of tears. Clenching my teeth to hold them back, I murmured.
Seseona stared at me silently, then deepened the smile on her lips.
“You should just smile.”
After saying that, she added, “Like when we shared a meal in the Trial Curtain,” with a slight blush on her cheeks.
That Trial Curtain meal was my bleak start to life in this other world, but it seems like Seseona cherishes that memory quite dearly. Truly, human affairs are unpredictable.
“You worked hard too, Mr. Jung Yong.”
What’s the point anyway? Seseona’s right.
After working so hard to clean up everything, why ruin your good luck by getting drained? Let’s just laugh about it.
If we don’t laugh at times like this, life in this alternate world, already difficult enough, would be even harder to bear.
“Hohoo. Hahahaha!”
I laughed heartily, genuinely, for what felt like the first time in ages.
Until sheer exhaustion caused me to faint once again.
