Chapter 354: Stardus

When Egostic retired, Stardus was devastated.

It was then that she realized that she had come to rely on him too much.

He always claimed to be a villain, but he was always the first to come to her aid when she was in danger. That it was always a relief to see him smiling at her, as always.

…and that she wished she could have that kind of Egostic, forever but then he left.

One day, suddenly, he said she didn’t need him anymore.

It was nonsense, she still needed him.

She couldn’t imagine not having him by her side now.

For a while, Stardus was in a state of shock.

Why did he leave so suddenly, what did I do wrong, what’s wrong with me?

 

And yet, in the back of her mind, she believed that someday, he would return, and she would have a chance to see him again.

Then, she heard the news.

‘Egostic, he’s dying.’

…What?

At first she didn’t believe it.

No, she couldn’t believe it. He was so healthy, and suddenly…

…Wait a minute.

He’s okay?

Only then did she remember.

Come to think of it, Egostic had never been healthy.

 

He’d been stabbed in the gut by a monster for her own sake and was covered in blood.

…and then there’s the fact that, occasionally, he’d vomit blood.

I wonder why I didn’t notice.

There were always signs,  if you think about it.

The way he would always pant after a few teleportations, the way he would act so boldly, like he was giving his life away.

It was something he couldn’t do unless he was about to die, unless he was certain of his own mortality.

 If he was dying, all the things that hadn’t made sense before now made sense.

Why the sudden retirement? He didn’t want to announce his death.

Why did he act like he’d forgotten everything that happened in the prison? He knew he’d be leaving soon, and he didn’t want to hurt her.

When I thought of it that way, everything made more sense.

 

And

The moment she realized it, Stardus felt a deep sense of despair overtake her.

“Ah… Ah, ah…”

And from then on something seemed to break inside her.

The day began as usual.

She would put on her red suit, her blonde hair tidied up and she flew through the air, battling enemies.

It was the usual….except for when you start to have doubts about what you’re doing.

‘I killed him.’

Sometimes, such words would echo in Stardus’ ears.

 If only she’d known he was sick from the start, she could have treated him better.

I could have told him how I felt, instead of acting cold.

I could have told him I wanted to be with him more.

She did nothing.

…Egostic, he’s done everything for me so far.

What have I done for him?

This pain, it just keeps piling up.

I wanted to apologize.

 If I ever saw him again, I wanted to tell him, I’m sorry.

‘I killed him.’

If I could have done better.

If I could have done things differently.

… if I could see him one more time.

I shouldn’t have been jealous in the first place.

What’s the harm in being together? You only have to look at yourself when he’s with you.

She regretted everything and was so emotionally drained to the point where she thought she’d killed him.

And that thought went to the extreme.

‘… If I killed him, am I worth living?’

Sometimes, when she was dizzy, she thought about it without realizing it.

I’ll spend the rest of my life protecting people, she decided.

 

I couldn’t think of a single person who liked me, who I even liked.

…That’s how it is.

That was why she’d cut herself off from everyone, and focused on being a hero.

It’s been half a year since the death of Egostic.

Now she was acting aggressively, as if she was sacrificing her life like Egostic.

She had no reason to live anymore.

“Phew…”

The next day, she stood on the ledge of a nearby rooftop, leaning on her back, having just spent the day defeating the same villain.

…Tough.

Stardus sighed and leaned back against the rooftop with dead eyes, thinking about Egostic as casually as ever.

A sudden thought made her turn her head.

There it was, the orange glow of the sunset, slowly setting, staining the sky yellow.

As she watched she suddenly felt a certain emotion she’d forgotten come over her.

Somehow…it was as if she had seen this scene before, with Egostic.

The moment she thought of it, with a cracking pain in her head, she remembered something.

“Ugh…!”

‘…This won’t be the end.’

A voice suddenly sounded in her ears.

With that, she remembered something without realizing it.

Somehow, she remembered something that wasn’t there.

‘Even if ■■ goes back, it’s just the two of us.’

‘People don’t change.’

‘Someday, we’ll be able to talk like this again.’

“Ugh…!”

What the hell is this memory? I’m pretty sure this never happened.

Why do I have this image in my head?

There she is, clutching her head, in pain, with her face somehow smiling weakly.

She remembered his last words.

‘Don’t cry.’

“Ah…”

And when she remembered it fully.

She stood in front of the sunset and found herself, unknowingly, in tears.

***

Her daily routine hadn’t changed, though she recalled strange scenes, like dreams, that she didn’t remember.

Only the thought that she didn’t want to live anymore grew stronger but reality wouldn’t leave her alone.

[Stardus! It’s an emergency! A giant monster is now engulfing all of Seoul…!]

“I’m on my way.”

With that brief reply, she turned on her heel and flew off with the icy cold face that had become more familiar than anything else.

This time, a giant monster appeared in Seoul.

She had been told that it was almost as large as an entire region, and that it was swallowing up several cities, so she traveled quietly but quickly to the area.

She didn’t have to go far before she spotted it.

‘…It’s really big.’

It looked like an elongated dragon, half buried in the ground.

Its translucent body glowed colorfully like a colored mist as it passed through the city.

Although it did not cause direct harm, perhaps because it was transparent, it seemed dangerous to anyone who saw it, rising higher than a mountain visible from afar and moving with a body larger than several cities combined.

It was transparent, like a spiky hedgehog, a vision of pale yellow-pink and blue, with dozens of jewels in front of its strange eyes.

A strange sight even she had never seen before.

Stardus frowned a little, but not much else.

Her heart was already worn and tattered, unable to show much emotion for anything anymore.

‘I wonder where to strike.’

While she was in the air silently assessing the situation.

Kaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!

‘…What is it?’

Suddenly, the transparent beast that had been traveling silently began to twist its body with a painful groan.

Soon after, it let out a pitiful scream.

-Pa-ching!

And then, like glass shattering, its body began to shatter.

In the midst of all this bizarreness of a monster suddenly appearing and breaking itself, she realized that someone had broken it.

The monster’s body had started to shatter, starting from its head.

‘…Who?’

Are you saying that I’m not the only one here capable of defeating such a beast?

It can’t be. If there is, it’s definitely not on the Association’s side.

I need to see for myself what this thing is.

With that thought, she flew up ahead with a cold expression on her face.

In such a blue and pink haze, what she came to witness.

All too suddenly, she saw,

“Grunt. Whew… Ah.”

“Huh…?”

Someone she thought she’d never see again.

“Hah….I had a hard time dealing with him, haha.”

Someone she thought about every night and was sure was dead at the same time.

Someone she wanted to see so badly, but the realization that she would never see them made her sick with anguish.

“Ah…”

“…Haha, why do you look like this, tsk, tsk. I said I was retiring from terrorism, but I never said I wouldn’t engage in activities. Hahaha…”

The one who she thought she could do anything, just to see his smiling face once more.

That was him.

Now, he was in front of her eyes so suddenly, looking the same as always.

The man she’d been waiting for.

Egostic greeted her with a smile.

“Greetings, Stardus. It’s been a long time.”

“Hmph…”

She ended up crying.