Splat!

In an instant, jet-black hair scattered across the ground.

Beneath the tangled strands, crimson blood began to seep out.

“Hah… hah…”

The man’s breathing was ragged, as if it might stop at any moment. With each exhale, droplets of blood sprayed from his lips.

Finally, his pale lips parted with great effort.

“Suhyeon… do you remember what I told you before? Not to… save me…”

“Hyung…?”

“But you… you must survive. No matter what, survive and… see it through to the end…”

“Hyung…”

Before the young man could respond, the trembling in his arms ceased.

The yellow currents of energy that had been coursing through his body slowly faded away.

His eyes, once filled with life, lost their light in an instant.

Thud!

His head and hand fell limply to the ground.

And at that moment—

Roar!

“Aaaaaaah!”

A cry of rage and sorrow tore through the air, echoing madly.

It was all over.

It felt as if something that had been filling my mind had suddenly drained away.

I let out a sigh for no reason and looked up at the sky.

The sun was now high in the sky. I wished for a cool rain, but the midday sky was clear and bright. As I walked, staring blankly at the sky, a few messages suddenly appeared in the air.

『User Kim Suhyeon has defeated the ‘Demon Spy Nergal’!』

『The ‘Demon Spy’ Nergal was part of a long-term plan by the demon lord Beelzebub. If Simon Grimes had returned as he was, the continent of Hall Plain would have plunged into uncontrollable chaos.』

『However, by killing the potential awakened who received the ‘Seed of the Demon,’ user Kim Suhyeon has made a significant contribution to thwarting the demon’s plan.』

『In recognition of this, user Kim Suhyeon is awarded 500,000 Gold Points!』

“…”

‘Half a million points…’

I stared at the messages, feeling a bit dazed, and closed my eyes for a moment.

500,000 Gold Points.

It’s quite a generous reward for taking down just one demon. This means my suspicions were correct. If Belphegor was a product of chance, Nergal was definitely a planned element. They must have considered that when deciding on the reward.

Honestly, I don’t feel much. I’ve handled countless GP before. So even though 500,000 GP is a substantial amount, it doesn’t really hit me.

I had left the forest behind. As I continued walking, I began to sense the presence of people ahead.

I opened my eyes and dismissed the messages hanging in the air. As they vanished, the battlefield I had left behind came into view.

Or rather, it was no longer a battlefield.

There were many people moving about, but the intensity I had felt earlier was gone.

So I kept walking. I walked and walked, entering the area where people were gathered. And I passed them by.

The sun shone brightly in the clear sky, illuminating the field vividly. The weather was starkly at odds with the scene of scattered bodies and flowing blood.

Suddenly, I felt the warmth of the sun on the back of my neck. Realizing this, I found myself walking through the middle of the field.

As I passed by people, the scenes around me began to filter into my ears.

“Suyeon! Suyeon! Answer me! Suyeon!”

“Someone, please help! Priests, come over here!”

People desperately searching for someone, pleading for help.

“Thank goodness… thank goodness we’re alive…”

“Huh… huh…”

People relieved and grateful to be alive.

“Hyung! Hyung! How can you close your eyes? Open them! Please? Hyung…?”

People crying out in despair in front of a dying comrade.

“Let go! I said let go! I’m going to kill those bastards!”

“Calm down! Calm down! They’re surrendered prisoners! It’s all over now!”

“Who said they’re prisoners? The war isn’t over yet, you bastards!”

People confirming death and exploding in anger.

“Hyung! Hyung! No, right? It’s a lie, right? Damn it! Hyung!”

And people mourning the death of a friend…

‘Huh?’

A voice that sounded familiar reached my ears, and I stopped walking without realizing it. Slowly turning my head, I saw a group of people gathered in one spot. Most of them bore the emblem of the Goryeo Clan on their chests.

“Damn it! We promised to survive together until the end! No, this isn’t the time for this. What are the priests doing? Hurry up and cast healing spells!”

“User Jo Seong-ho! The Goryeo Lord has passed away. We mourn his death. But please, calm down…”

Hearing those words, I felt a slight awakening.

‘The Goryeo Lord is dead?’

So he died just like in the first timeline.

…I don’t know how he died. But I hope he didn’t die in vain, as he was well-regarded after his death. That’s just what I thought.

With a faint sigh, I passed by the people who were crying out.

As I went further, the noise around me gradually subsided.

Eventually, I arrived at the place where I had rescued the children.

The place where An Sol awakened and Shin Sang-yong’s death was confirmed.

No one was standing there. Only a few bodies and traces remained. It seemed Go Yeon-ju had followed my instructions well.

“…”

Among the bloodstains that kept catching my eye, Shin Sang-yong’s must have been mixed in. I stared at the spot for a while before starting to walk again.

As I walked, the once-quiet battlefield became noisy again.

Squelch, squelch, squelch, squelch.

My steps were slow, almost painfully so. It felt like a dream that I had been running madly across the battlefield just moments ago. Was it because I was wandering aimlessly, following my heart?

How long had I been crossing the field?

When I saw a group of users gathered in the distance, I stopped without realizing it.

The users I saw were members of the Mercenary Clan.

At first, I didn’t know why my steps were so slow. But as soon as I saw the clan members, a thought crossed my mind, and I instinctively found the answer.

A long time ago, in the early days of the Mercenary Clan, I remember seeing a group of users returning from an expedition. They were also returning from an expedition, but unlike us, who were excited after a great success, they seemed very gloomy. The reason was obvious. They had failed the expedition and lost comrades.

The kids stopped talking and just watched them quietly. I was curious about what they were thinking, but I made a vow back then. I vowed never to fail, so that such a scene would never come to the Mercenary Clan.

But in the end, I failed.

On a personal level, I achieved my goals through the war. But for the clan as a whole… I put all the clan members in danger, and worst of all, we lost someone.

Of course, Shin Sang-yong was initially excluded from the selection, but I changed it at his request. But that decision was also mine, and participating in the war was an undeniably wrong choice.

‘I should have gone alone.’

With that thought, I stopped and looked at the clan members.

Thanks to the ‘Miracle’ effect, everyone except Shin Sang-yong seemed unharmed. I felt relieved seeing them, but I was also worried. Even without approaching, I could sense the atmosphere.

I thought about going to them, but my feet wouldn’t move. I bit my lip as I stood there.

“Suhyeon!”

’…?’

“Suhyeon! Suhyeon!”

A voice suddenly called out. Turning my head, I saw a figure running towards me. As I recognized who it was, I let out a small sigh.

It was my brother.

“Suhyeon! You…! Oh…?”

When he reached me, he paused for a moment as our eyes met.

“Are you… okay?”

“Okay?”

I replied.

It was a strange question, but if I had to answer, I wasn’t okay. With ‘Rage’ deactivated, the fatigue returned to my body. And as soon as I realized it, my vision blurred.

“Oh…”

“Suhyeon!”

Thud!

The ground that had been approaching suddenly stopped. I looked up to see my brother. He had caught me as I was about to fall.

“You…”

His lips parted, but seeing my face, he closed them again. What was he going to say?

At that moment—

“Suhyeon!”

“Mercenary Lord!”

My brother’s voice must have been loud, as the clan members began to turn around one by one. I closed my eyes for a moment, then stood up with all my strength.

A sudden stubbornness welled up inside me. I was tired of losing consciousness. And more than anything, I didn’t want to show weakness.

“…”

Surprisingly, my brother didn’t say a word. He simply supported me, helping me walk in silence.

As we drew closer to the clan members, I noticed a few of them starting to rush toward me. I raised a hand to stop them, signaling them to stay put.

The closer we got, the heavier the air felt with a somber mood, and I could clearly see the faces of the eight remaining clan members.

There were eight of them left. Four were huddled around Shin Sang-yong, either sitting or lying on the ground, while the other four stood with a grave expression.

“Ugh… Brother… It’s all because of me… Because of me… Sang-yong…”

Among them, Ahn Hyun was the most distraught. He had thrown all his gear aside and was sobbing on the ground.

Next to him, Ahn Sol and Lee Yoo-jung sat as if in a daze, their cheeks stained with tears, evidence of a recent outpouring of grief.

Finally, I saw Vivian sitting quietly, not even turning to acknowledge my presence. She just stared at Shin Sang-yong.

“Soo-hyun?”

Someone called my name, their voice tinged with uncertainty, but I ignored it and moved closer to see Shin Sang-yong.

It was then that Vivian finally turned to look at me, tears streaming down her face.

“Kim Soo-hyun.”

”…”

“Shin Sang-yong is dead.”

”…”

I looked down at Shin Sang-yong without a word. Just as before, a serene, peaceful smile lingered on his lips.

“He was my first student… I never imagined we’d part like this…”

”…”

“I… I hate this so much…”

Vivian’s last words, choked with sobs, pierced my heart deeply.

And I couldn’t say anything in return. What could I possibly say in this situation?

”…”

A heavy silence settled over us.

Then, suddenly.

“I know a way to bring him back.”

A calm voice cut through the quiet, and everyone turned to look.

It was Kim Han-byeol who had spoken.

“I’ve heard there’s a ‘wish’ option in the user shop. It costs a tremendous amount of GP, but supposedly, it can even bring back the dead…”

“Kim Han…!”

“What, what did you say?”

“Is that true?”

Ahn Hyun and Lee Yoo-jung rushed over, and Kim Han-byeol replied, “It’s just something I’ve heard, but I think it’s true.” I gritted my teeth.

But Kim Han-byeol’s answer wasn’t enough for Ahn Hyun, who immediately turned to me.

“Brother! Is it true? Is there really a wish?”

”…”

I closed my eyes instinctively. Memories flooded my mind, making it hard to think, but I managed to respond.

“Let’s stop for now.”

“Brother! If we gather enough GP, can we bring Sang-yong back? Please, tell me!”

Despite my words, Ahn Hyun clung to me desperately.

I steadied my trembling throat and spoke.

“Hyun.”

At the sound of his name, Ahn Hyun paused for a moment.

“Please… let’s stop… We’ll talk about it later.”

“Brother! Oh… Brother…?”

I didn’t answer and turned away. But Ahn Hyun’s eyes widened in shock as he looked at me.

It wasn’t just Ahn Hyun. From the moment I met my brother, the clan members’ eyes were filled with shock and concern as they looked at me.

Only then did I notice the state I was in, covered in blood from head to toe, not a patch of skin visible.

I calmly took off my coat. It was in tatters, the back shredded like a rag. I used it to wipe my face vigorously, once, twice, three times, until my vision cleared a little.

‘Get a grip, Kim Soo-hyun!’

After a moment to collect myself, I forced out a voice.

“User Go Yeon-joo.”

“Y-yes!”

“Please take care of User Shin Sang-yong’s body immediately. Then proceed with cleaning up the battlefield.”

“Understood.”

Then, I turned to my brother. He was still watching me silently. Seeing him brought back memories.

Shin Sang-yong? A wish?

It’s possible to bring him back.

But is it the right choice?

In the distant future. Perhaps…

No, it’s not just perhaps.

The reason I returned wasn’t just to live well in Hall Plain. It was to bring my brother and Han So-young back to Earth ‘safely.’ That was the future I envisioned and planned for.

However.

When that time comes, will bringing Shin Sang-yong back have been the right choice?

I can’t give a definitive answer to this question.

Because…

Even if a user who has died is brought back, in the end, they can’t return to Earth.

---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=

Daily serialization save successful!

As I mentioned before, I’ll do my best to ensure daily updates until the end of Part 1. (__)