Thus, the hero’s life came to an end.
By chance, wielding the Sword of the Hero and embarking on adventures across the world, defeating monsters threatening humanity.
Receiving praise as a hero from others, their exploits became stories that spread far and wide through the land. But even heroes are no different in the face of death.
‘Is this what death feels like?’
The hero looked down at their own feet.
Their body lying in bed. No, it was their own Divine Body.
And around that body, children were crying in mourning.
Witnessing the scene of their own death being mourned was… strangely surreal in many ways.
They didn’t remember the exact moment of death—probably passed while sleeping.
And amidst all this, there was no sign of their beloved sister.
The Sword of the Hero, Clai Solais, which they hadn’t wielded since losing their strength, had long been hanging decoratively on the wall…and now it was gone.
Surely, if their sister had promised to stay until the very end, she must’ve taken the sword when the hero died.
‘So this is why she said we’d meet again later.’
Truly, the Goddess of Life—who knew everything about life—was unmatched in her wisdom.
Even detecting a person’s lifespan seemed effortless for her.
‘Well, what now?’
As she had explained, the Grim Reaper comes to guide the deceased to the Underworld…
‘A Grim Reaper…’
Though its name sounded ominous, nothing so fearsome appeared before the hero’s eyes.
‘Is it taking its time to arrive?’
“Are you the hero?”
Suddenly, a voice unlike any human’s echoed behind them.
It resonated like words spoken within a cave.
But it carried a small, cute quality.
The hero’s soul turned toward the source of the voice.
“I am your guide to the Underworld. Nice to meet you.”
A petite figure cloaked in a black hood stood there, greeting them.
Carrying a scythe taller than themselves with great effort, their skull-like face was designed in an undeniably adorable manner.
‘A Reaper?’
“Yes. I’m the Reaper.”
‘Not quite what I imagined.’
“That’s a common reaction. The design is courtesy of the Goddess of Life.”
Sister’s taste, huh? Pretending not to be into cute things but clearly loving them, she must’ve influenced this look.
Certainly something she would approve of.
“Ever since adopting this appearance, the Goddess of Life has been delighted, and we’re quite satisfied too.”
With a little cough, the Reaper puffed out their chest, causing the hero to chuckle softly.
‘I thought Reapers were supposed to be terrifying.’
“Well, they used to be. Bigger, real skulls for heads…until the Goddess of Life complained about how gloomy everything was and decided to change it.”
‘Sister really does things her way, doesn’t she?’
“Sister?”
‘The Goddess of Life.’
Upon hearing this, the Reaper paused briefly, then spoke quietly.
“Please don’t call Her ‘sister.’ Many admirers would get upset just knowing someone referred to Her that way.”
Understanding, the hero nodded slightly.
While they had spent their entire life close to Her, making Her feel familiar and familial, to others, She remained the revered Goddess of Life—the most sacred deity in existence.
“I’ll keep what you said a secret. The Goddess of Life entrusted me with some tasks too.”
‘Alright…’
“Do you have any last words for your family? If not, let’s proceed to the Underworld.”
‘I’ve already said everything to my family. They’re grown-ups; I trust they’ll handle things fine without me. It’s okay.’
“Well, that’s fortunate. Some people spend entire nights talking to their loved ones. This simplicity makes things easier. Now, please wrap this around your waist.”
‘What is this?’
“It’s a shadow rope used to bind souls. Occasionally, some souls try to escape going to the Underworld, so we use these to forcibly drag them along.”
Oddly enough, the dark shadow-rope could be touched by the soul.
‘I won’t run away.’
“Still, it’s a rule, so please tie it. Plus, it helps us move faster.”
At the Reaper’s insistence, the hero tied the shadow rope around their waist.
‘Done.’
“Yes. Then let’s depart.”
As soon as the Reaper finished speaking, shadows spread from the rope tied around the hero’s waist, enveloping their soul.
When their vision cleared, they found themselves facing…
“We’ve arrived. This is the gate of the Underworld, located at the edge of the world.”
A massive gate carved into pitch-black rock.
‘This… I’ve never seen it before.’
“Most living beings wouldn’t normally see it.”
Even during their travels with Sister, exploring every corner of the world, they hadn’t known such a place existed.
An ocean filled with white ice and bridges covered in snow and frost.
It must be at the northernmost point of the world.
‘The northernmost end… I didn’t know there was such a place here.’
During their adventures, the farthest north the hero had ventured was when they killed a venomous spider threatening giants, reaching a small village inhabited by giants—but not the very end.
‘Normally, it would take months riding a horse to reach here, yet we arrived instantly…’
“As Reapers, we travel the world gathering the souls of the dead. Returning here happens in the blink of an eye.”
‘Here? Can we not go elsewhere?’
“Yes. Though possible, we need to observe the whole world to recover the souls of the deceased. Teleporting everywhere might cause us to miss some souls, which would be disastrous.”
The hero nodded in understanding.
“Then, let’s head down. Please follow me.”
‘Since I’m tied with the rope, I’d have to follow even if I wanted to resist.’
“Some people do untie themselves. Let’s go.”
Thus, the hero stood together with the Reaper before the gates of the Underworld.
There, the hero noticed an inscription above the gate.
‘What does that say?’
“It’s an inscription written by the Goddess of Life. ‘Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.’”
A warning to those passing through the gate of the Underworld.
Once inside, there’s no return.
Also, a caution to prevent the living from crossing this threshold.
Perhaps because of this inscription, the gate itself emitted an aura that gnawed at one’s spirit, evoking deep fear.
“Don’t stare at it too long. It might damage your soul.”
Casually pushing the gate open, the Reaper tugged on the rope tied around the hero’s waist, pulling them inside.
A passage made of black stone stretched ahead, with stairs so dark one couldn’t see even a step ahead.
‘If I misstep, it’ll be bad.’
“No worries. Since we’re spirits, we’re safe. If we had physical bodies, that’d be another story.”
With the calm Reaper leading the way, the hero descended the staircase leading to the Underworld for quite some time.
Fortunately, as a soul without a body, fatigue wasn’t an issue.
Eventually, after emerging from the cave, the hero found themselves in a vast square.
At the end of the square stood a towering black statue.
‘What is that?’
“The first guardian of the Underworld. The Obsidian Colossus, Talos.”
The hero gazed upon the colossus, its red eyes overlooking the square.
Its immense size and overwhelming presence, even while doing nothing, radiated immense power.
Having such a formidable guardian at the entrance gave the hero a glimpse of the Underworld’s dread.
‘Impressive…’
“Yes. After all, it’s one of the Underworld’s guardians.”
Comparing it to the monsters the hero had fought…no, comparison was futile. The colossus possessed incomparable strength.
“It was the first guardian created by the Goddess of Life when forming the Underworld. Even compared to those managing each layer, its power is unmatched.”
Of course, it had been breached once using clever tactics, the Reaper whispered quietly.
“Well, let’s continue. We have a long way to go.”
Passing beneath Talos, the hero glanced upward.
Would their prime self have stood a chance against this colossus? With any other sword, defeat would be certain. Perhaps with the Sword of the Hero, it’d be a fifty-fifty chance…or more like three to seven odds, favoring the colossus.
Of course, their adventures were always alongside the Dragon Priestess, so fighting together ensured victory.
‘Though, if Sister were here, we’d never fight this statue anyway.’
Thinking this, the hero followed the Reaper deeper into the Underworld.
“Stop daydreaming and hurry up.”
‘Ah, sorry. Got curious looking at that statue.’
Thus began the hero’s descent into the Underworld under the Reaper’s guidance.
