"Are you awake?"

Feeling the characteristic taste of the potion remaining on the tip of her tongue, Misha Karlstein opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was Abman.

—... What happened? We won? Mike asked, barely opening her eyes, and tried to remember what had happened. Her memories were not complete. They were periodically cut off.

"Protect Raven!"

The Corpse Collector turned into a skeleton and rushed at them.

She could not withstand a single attack and was knocked out.

*Bach! Bach!*

When she awoke from the thunderous sound, she saw Bjorn lying face down, both hands on the ground, barely protecting them.

It was her last memory.

"I don't know if we won, but at least we're safe now. The enemies all retreated.

"Really?" This is pleasing. But did anyone die...?

***

Abman frowned as if someone had really died. Seeing the expression in her eyes, he shifted his gaze.

Abman said quickly:

"Oh, don't have strange thoughts. All members of our team survived. Only the elf died.

"Elf...?" Her heart leaped at these words. "Was it Ervena?"

Although it couldn't be said that they had a good relationship, sadness wafted from the depths of her heart.

"No, her sister died. In the end, she covered Ervena and protected her from the explosion.

—... And what about Ervena then?

"They said that she would have died if help had been provided later. I don't know if we can say that this is fortunate, but now she is unconscious. I'm worried about how she'll keep her sanity when she wakes up.

"I see...

Misha also learned about the condition of the rest of the team. Raven also lost consciousness, and Einar woke up earlier and went in search of Bjorn.

"Don't get up. I wanted to stay by his side too, but the priestess pushed me away because I was in the way... You won't listen anyway. This is there.

Mike asked Abman for directions and went there. Now that the battle was over, the Goblin Forest was very bright thanks to the fire that had been created everywhere.

*Top, Top*

Misha walked and walked through the researchers. She saw some sitting on the bare ground to rest, while others were crying. Someone was happy to consume alcohol, and someone dragged the motionless corpses of soldiers and threw them into the flames.

"Oh! It's a cat lady from Yandel's team!

As she walked quietly, the researchers struck up conversations with her.

"Are you going to Yandel?" He must be over there.

"Hmm, although I would advise you not to go.

"Yes, you're probably worried about your teammate.

All of them commented. On the other hand, there were those who spoke frivolously.

"Oh, don't worry so much. This guy can't die.

"Bjorn, son of Yandel, is immortal!"

"I've heard that he almost killed the Corpse Collector, and that if it hadn't been for the Scientist of Destruction, he would have won." He will become incredibly famous when he is outside.

Researchers recognized the greatness of Bjorn. The more this happened, the faster Misha's legs moved. Soon a tent appeared. A few more researchers gathered outside.

"Ah, Miss Karlstein is here.

The first thing she saw was Einar arguing with Kyle Pevrosk at the entrance.

"Please excuse me for sitting down. In fact, it's hard for me to stay conscious.

"Why don't you let me in?"

"I told you so. Even the priestess risks her life to save him. So please don't make any noise if you really want to help him.

"But-...!

"Ainar, stop it!"

Misha hurried to stop Einar. She wasn't sure what was going on, but it was clear that it wouldn't help.

"M-misha!" You're awake! Ainar greeted her happily, but Mike went to Kyle to ask about Bjorn's condition.

It was scary even just to listen. Obviously, the poison was sprayed all over his face, melting his eyes and everything.

"It looks like the poison melted the bones and penetrated the brain a little.

She felt suffocated. Her head was spinning, the whole world was moving, as if she had drunk.

And then...

—... Now you can log in.

The priestess came out of the tent with a pale complexion.

Mike stepped inside, unable to utter even a word of gratitude.

"Bjorn...

She saw that he was sleeping on a makeshift bed made of several layers of sleeping bags. Outwardly, he looked normal. Although there were scars on his face that looked like burns, at least there was nothing serious.

"The scars will fade over time. I didn't have enough strength for this...

"Really... Thank you...

"Nothing special. Compared to what he did, I didn't do anything. Anyway, it's time for me to rest, so I'll leave you...

The priestess left, and Mike knelt down next to Bjorn. She stroked his face. For some reason, she remembered the time when they were chased by the Lord of the 3rd floor, but then everything was completely different. Then he slept peacefully, as if he had done everything that needed to be done. Seeing this, she thought that he looked like a hero. So it was later. Bjorn achieved a lot, and received recognition from many people. It happened that Misha was very pleased and proud of this.

But...

"Why is that...

What was his face like now? It looked sad and upset. And it also seemed that he blamed himself.

*Squeezed*

Mike clenched her fists, unable to finish her sentence. It seemed to her that she knew the reason for such an expression on her face. She couldn't help but know, after all, she had been watching this man for a long time.

Erven...

He probably thinks it's his fault.

Misha took her hand away from Bjorn's body. He hadn't even regained consciousness yet, but every time her hand touched his skin, his body shuddered as if in convulsions. How hard was it for him that this iron man had become like this?

"Now...

Mike closed her eyes and began to pray fervently. God never listened to her prayers, but she still brought her hands together and prayed that this man would never be recognized.

***

When I opened my eyes, the whole team was assembled. When we greeted each other briefly, the priestess came in and checked on me.

I saw it well.

The sense of smell was also normal.

But the body did not move well.

I could feel my arms and legs, but they weren't strong enough and shook when I tried to apply force to them.

"This is a common occurrence with brain damage. If you rest for at least a month, then everything will be fine.

- I see. Thank you.

"It's okay. Now that you are awake, I will bring Sir Perosk.

When the priestess left to look for Kyle, I learned about what happened after my fall from my teammates. There was less than an hour left until the end of the 7th day.

- Were there any more attacks?

— None.

From what they said, while I was unconscious, the Scientist of Destruction and the Clown didn't return. Well, what would they do alone? They would need time to recover, and since all the corpses that Clown had left behind had been burned, they were short of quantity. In addition, it was difficult to call for reinforcements, because it took a whole day to get to the 3rd floor from here. The ascent and descent back took two days.

The Scientist of Destruction, with his temperament, would not want to go at all, no matter how much the Clown insisted. He is not one to act out of revenge.

No wait. While I was talking to my teammates, I remembered something I had forgotten. Why haven't I remembered it yet?

"Oh!" Erven. What happened to Ervena?

When I hurriedly asked, there was a minute of silence. My teammates looked at me with grim faces.

"So she's dead?"

"No, her sister died.

"Her sister?"

I heard the details from Mr. Bear – a short story about how Daria used short-range teleportation right before the explosion to sacrifice herself for her sister. The weight of death began to weigh on me again.

It was indeed a dark world.

—…

Everything happened in an instant.

No one could prevent this, and Daria did not even have time to leave a will at the time of her death. It's good that I heard it beforehand.

"Where is Ervena now?"

—... Is she there.

"There?"

— Yes. Over there.

I wanted to go there, but as soon as I tried to lift my body, it staggered.

"Give me your hand."

Eventually, with the help of Mr. Bear, I managed to get out of the tent.

Just in time, Kyle was there.

"You're awake.

Talking to Kyle, I slowly moved to where the battle was taking place.

"There are a lot of people here, what happened?"

"These are the people who arrived after the battle. There are four groups in total, about a thousand people.

"A thousand...?"

"We left footprints along the way, remember? As soon as the groups were organized, they followed us to the east and followed us all the way.

Got it.

If only they had come a little earlier...

What are you thinking about now?

I kept walking, shaking off regrets and resentments. What's the point of blaming the events of the past?

"Oh, it's Bjorn, son of Yandel!"

As I walked with Kyle, the researchers recognized me and came up to talk. Someone invited them to drink later, someone said that the head of their clan would repay the debt. Some thanked me and even promised to be the first to help me if I was in trouble. But there were no words of comfort among them.

—... Don't think badly of them. Isn't there a saying that heroes are never comforted by others?

I didn't know if the saying existed in this world either, but I didn't think badly of them. They also sacrificed a lot. It was because it was difficult that we joked to smile.

"Uncle...

When I got to my destination, I saw Ervena. She sat on her knees, tightly hugging her sister's hard, burned body. Her face, stained with blood and dirt, clearly showed traces of something dripping.

"Come here."

Ervena shook her head.

"After a while, it'll be time to go down. Are you going to stay here alone?

"I... Not alone.

Removing my hand from Abman's shoulder, I staggered over to Erwen and patted her on the back.

"Listen to me. Now I am your guardian.

—... A what?

I told her about the will that I heard from Daria. It wasn't long. This woman asked me to take care of her sister after her death. For the record, she told me this before the royal guards escaped through the portals, but perhaps she had already guessed that something similar would happen.

"Uncle... my sister, my sister...! She doesn't move anymore. She can't speak. It is cold and hard. And I, I haven't done anything for her yet...

Soon Ervena hugged me tightly.

"What am I going to say to my little sister, this child?" That even our older sister died after my mother? And all because of me?

I stood and listened until she spoke. I did not console her, did not tell her that she was not to blame for anything, that it was her choice. I was just waiting for her to finish. I didn't know how much time had passed.

"Yandel, it's time for us to go.

It was time to go down to the 1st floor. Together with Ervena, I took her sister's body. It was better than from Dvalka. At least now there was a Magus here who could use the magic of [Distortion]. The funeral could be held in the city.

"Let's go home."

I led Ervena back to my team. Misha and Einar, who were not on good terms with her, said nothing. On the contrary, they seemed to want to go up to her and comfort her, but they could not, for fear that they would offend her.

Ainar I have never seen such a person.

Soon we were standing in front of a portal in the center of the Goblin Forest.

[23:50]

The clock pointed to the end of a long journey.

"Come on, let's go back!"

*Woohhh!*

Starting with the teams in the center, we went down to the 1st floor one by one. Although Berzak was terrible, I was sure that he would not appear within ten minutes.

"Yandel!" See you in the city!

"Do you remember my name?" I will definitely visit you.

The explorers entered the portal in front of me, then it was our turn.

[You entered the Crystal Cavern on the 1st floor].

The cave emitted a more eerie atmosphere than before.

As I moved forward to allow those who followed behind us to descend, I continued to keep track of time.

[23:59]

There was only one minute left before the labyrinth closed. There was a feeling of unreality of what was happening. Is it really over?

*Tudum!*

Yes, this is probably the end. There was one minute left, what could Berzak do?

"Damned royal bastards.

"When I get back, I won't even urinate in that direction.

Anger at the royal family escaped from the lips of researchers confident in their survival.

Still, it is better to watch the language.

"Guys, don't say anything strange, even when you come back.

I warned my crew not to curse the royal family in front of anyone.

[Labyrinth Closed]

[You're transported to Rafdonia.]

A pure white light began to penetrate through my eyelids, the light of the outside world that I longed for.

*Tudum!*

Soon the light disappeared, and a clear sky appeared before my eyes. I absentmindedly looked around the surrounding space.

They're all really dead.

Dimension Square, which had always been crowded, was unprecedentedly empty. Wow, how many people died?

"Waaaaa!"

Listening to the exclamations from everywhere, heard here and there, I naturally fixed my gaze on one point.

"It's a portal!"

"Damn it, you bastards!"

In the center of the square, where the portal opened, hundreds of other portals opened, and one after another, those who abandoned us appeared. Everyone appeared the same as they were then. Even if you exit through the [Portal], the exit time was the same.

They can't even imagine what we had to go through.

I couldn't help but grumble to myself when I saw how normal they looked.

But at this moment...

*Shaaaa!*

In the center of the square, where the portals opened, a huge magic circle blossomed.

"Uh?"

For a moment, time passed more slowly. However, everything happened in an instant.

*Tudum!*

The discouraged knights, clansmen, and explorers, sensing something foreign, quickly recoiled from each other.

*Gunooo

Explosion.

*Shaaa!*

The flames brought by the wind swayed and pushed me. Falling to the ground and quickly raising my head, I saw a red-hot column of fire soaring into the sky. It was like the end of the world.

Suddenly, a voice sounded in my head.

"Congratulations. With the only victory."

These were the last words that the Scientist of Destruction left me.