“This is strange. Why do the heroes of humanity sacrifice their lives for each other…?!”
The moment Dobi raised his voice, everyone turned their gaze towards him.
Just from that momentum, Dobi could feel the mana barrier enveloping him being crushed pitifully.
The emotions reflected on everyone’s faces were a mix of resentment, grievance, and even greater annoyance and rage.
“So, what changes if we don’t self-destruct?”
“That’s the preciousness of life!”
“Those precious lives have died like bugs, turning into that absurdly huge moon. The stars have turned into a land of blood and death. What would be different if we survive in that situation?”
“Ugh…”
“I don’t even know how a weakling like you survived in the first place, nor why precious mana is being wasted on someone like you. Wouldn’t it be better for humanity if you became bait instead?”
There was neither pride as the last squad of humanity nor heroism in their sharp critiques. They were just ordinary people, filled with grievances, making one last charge.
Even if they were slightly more talented and exceptional than others, after the collapse of civilization, that extraordinary quality had no use left.
An era where everyone had lost the meaning of life and was seeking a place to die.
Such an era had come.
“…”
Dobi could not dare to say that they were wrong. He couldn’t condemn the one who was the leader of these people, a giant standing at 2.3 meters tall.
There were no alternatives.
That was the end.
That’s why this was strange.
The critic’s point was valid.
He was a worthless life.
Why would the leader, who looked down on human life and consumed it like a resource for a final charge, share precious resources with someone as inferior as himself?
“Why me?”
After reaching the mountain peak, only two people remained in the squad.
The strongest leader.
The weakest Dobi.
It might be a misnomer.
He didn’t even have specs to be recognized as a member of the squad, unable to assist in repelling even one Bloody Spawn.
It would have been reasonable to scold him for asking such insolent questions, yet the giant did not even glance at him and answered.
“New quest.”
“?”
“A new bait has appeared.”
The man said indifferently.
“First-year academy gear. Poor capabilities. If we just figure out the trigger, time travel is estimated to be possible. If you can surpass such a strange thing, you are not a player.”
“Player…?”
“It means someone who will fully enjoy the game’s fun in this world.”
Dobi’s hair bristled.
Fun, huh.
That’s something only dragons enjoy.
Does that mean this man is a dragon, not a human?
‘That actually makes sense.’
There were finally parts he could understand.
He was too large to be human.
The atmosphere was unusual.
His attitude treated human lives as disposable.
If a dragon truly regarded humans as inferior beings, everything would fit together like cogs.
“Did it really have to be this way?”
That made him even more resentful.
If a dragon is the strongest being on the ground.
Wouldn’t the options available to such a strong being be much broader?
Why would such a strong being devise a cruel plan that relies on the sacrifices of those who spend their fun together?
“Capabilities are not lacking. But I’m already tired of a world where the happy ending is over. So I maximize the damage coefficient.”
“Damage coefficient…?”
“When a strong comrade dies, it increases damage with the power of friendship and anger, forming a beneficial functional boost. When stacking beyond a certain amount, it’s a very useful feature that can push away patterns in boss battles.”
“So it wasn’t a lack of capability, huh?”
“If I put my mind to it, I could do it. But what meaning is there in a character who can’t even maintain their concept if they’re not an all-in character?”
[One Hit Kill Strength All-in Marine]
When he finally revealed his intention, his identity was unveiled.
An extremely careless name, one that could hardly be imagined as a human name, bestowed like a dragon’s jest.
‘It’s a lie. Even if it’s not a lie, it has to be a lie.’
There was no way such a careless being could have had any affection for this world from the beginning.
At the point where the fate of the world relied on such an existence, this world was already finished.
“I can’t acknowledge you.”
“If you can’t acknowledge me, what will you do?”
“I’ll repeat it. And I will find something that will overturn your determination.”
Dobi released the mana barrier with his own will.
The boiling blood vaporized, leaving behind a miserable end. The man did not stop him.
*
“You’re asking for the story of the moment I regretted the most in life before I die?”
The Northern Grand Duke Irene, with her world and life coming to an end, freely shared secrets she had to protect.
“I regret the past when I killed someone with ice magic. Gathering mana beyond the limits set by my mentor with the resolve to defeat powerful demons turned out to be my downfall. The overflowing mana in my unconscious formed ice magic and froze the soldier approaching me to death.”
The Empire’s Emperor Yayoi painfully recalled his troubled past with a gloomy expression.
“Though I can’t say they were a close family, the deaths of the competitors disputing the throne left me with great sorrow. I did not hate them; I respected them. The moment I turned away from a death I could have prevented is what I regret the most.”
The ultra-speed Rockbell looked down at the headband tied to his sword sheath with cold, sunk eyes.
“What gives you the right to reveal someone else’s past?”
“No, it’s not like I’m going to drop any kindness since I’m about to die…”
The world split apart.
The moment he realized he was decapitated by the soundless drawing of a sword, his body had already crumbled.
*
Dobi barely found a way to persuade Rockbell.
It was to ask about the owner of the headband.
“Dorothy. I wasn’t able to protect her. I practiced martial arts to save her, only for her to die in a place where my eyes could not reach.”
The noble and confident Mandela responded with a grand laugh.
“Oh~~ Hohoho! Regret is what a failing student bears for not spending yesterday fruitfully. True nobility cannot harbor such emotions!”
Listening to the regrets of the other squad members, Dobi realized he was ready.
“Why dig up old pasts?”
“I want to pretend to be a time traveler.”
“What? Time traveler? What kind of nonsense…!?”
Dobi released the mana barrier with his own will again.
This time, his body quickly turned into a mummy and crumbled away.
*
“I am a time traveler sent by your past selves. I know your most regrettable moments as proof. First, Irene, you regret the death of the soldier due to the forced magical manifestation of excessively accumulated mana.”
“!?”
“Empire Emperor Yayoi, you lament the deaths of the First Prince and the Second Princess.”
“I never revealed my true feelings to anyone… How did you know my true intentions?!”
“Then tell me about my past.”
“Rockbell. Uh, so… what was it?”
Overwhelmed with too many past stories, Dobi hesitated in his words.
Rockbell did not hesitate and swung his sword.
“I can’t leave a suspicious fellow alive.”
“I really forgot…”
With those pitiful last words, his eyes closed.
*
“Rockbell, you regret not being able to protect your lover Dorothy, who you left in the hometown forest.”
“Really? I believe you.”
Dobi, who had endured many blunders and forgetfulness while repeating time, first persuaded everyone to refuse the leader’s orders.
“The Marine commander’s plan is misguided. No matter how bleak the world may be, throwing away your lives like mere grass is not the solution.”
“So what do you propose? To destroy the Bloody Super Moon, we need to climb Shinjung Mountain, and to ascend the mountain, we must self-destruct to eliminate the massive Bloody Spawn.”
“If we all combine our strength, it’s possible. We don’t have to defeat it all at once; we can share the risks among each other.”
The Strength Marine’s playstyle bizarrely emphasized one-hit kills in every battle.
The squad members he brought also possessed builds specialized for one-hit.
Thus, only after countless observations did Dobi realize that what seemed efficient on the surface was fundamentally inefficient.
‘We don’t have to push for one hit; if we assault two or three times and collaborate to fill in the gaps caused by our lack of synergistic breathing, we can advance so much more smoothly.’
It was a fundamental realization fitting for a lower-class student who needed to use his brains due to lacking sheer power.
Those blessed with talent, however, consciously avoided such realizations since they did not need to.
“That’s troublesome.”
The Strength Marine glared at Dobi with fierce eyes.
“The concept must be maintained. No exceptions.”
“Is your game that important?!”
“Perhaps. You may be a time traveler from DLC content called here by everyone else, but it seems you weren’t called by my request. Well, it’s understandable, as you’re just an NPC.”
For some trivial reason, perhaps wanting to enjoy things with certain constraints during play.
Dobi’s expectations were only half correct.
“Everyone here has imposed restrictions. They will defeat every enemy with a single hit, and if they cannot keep that promise, they will lose half their abilities permanently.”
“!?”
There were restrictions.
But not for trivial fun.
“Thus, the moment a single hit is not permitted, you must self-destruct against a strong enemy. After all, your power will be reduced by half regardless, so you can maximize value and firepower.”
It was the atrocious cruelty of a game that forced players into that kind of inescapable constraint from the very start.
