“But…!”

Meyer exclaimed in despair. Not even St. Marianne could keep Jun alive… All hope was gone.

St. Marianne stared at Meyer and continued to speak quietly.

[So, I will raise the merit of defeating the Demon King and give you the ultimate skill early.]

“The ultimate…”

Meyer repeated the word “ultimate skill” in a whispered voice.

The power of a god, obtained when one had reached the limits of the human condition and had reached the state of a demigod.

It was probably the same ability that made Jun save him and disappear.

St. Marianne spoke with a thin smile on her face as Meyer repeated the words in a daze.

[Yes. It can give you absolute power that can split the earth or break the heavens and the earth. Meyer Knox, because your potential is that strong.]

Absolute power… That was all Meyer could hear.

The possibility that he, like Jun, could be given the ability to bring people to life.

That made Meyer happy. Meyer hastily exclaimed.

“Then please give me the power to save people! Just one person, just one time!”

[… The power to save people is that strong. Jun Karentia also had a similar ultimate, but had to pay the price.]

She didn’t have to tell him what Jun paid for. Meyer Knox’s heart was cut like a knife.

St. Marianne continued her words matter-of-factly.

[Meyer Knox, you must also bet something in return for saving a person.]

“Then at least my soul…!”

If only she could open her eyes and smile again, Meyer could offer anything.

If his soul was not enough and he had to offer everything in the world, he would have gladly become the second demon king.

St. Marianne quietly admonished Meyer, who hastily exclaimed without looking back and forth.

[Think about it, Meyer Knox, you have one more thing left to give besides your soul…]

St. Marianne’s fine fingertips pointed to Meyer Knox’s hair.

Still blackened hair.

Only then did Meyer realize something else he could offer instead of his soul.

“Then…”

Meyer opened his lips.

His plea, close to whispering, reached St. Marianne.

St. Marianne, who heard him, nodded and asked again.

[Your wish, I heard it well. Do you have any regrets?]

“I don’t.”

Meyer answered emphatically.

It was the only hope that had risen in the midst of despair. He had no regrets for breathing life into the sleeping Jun.

Meyer’s golden eyes flared up.

He looked at St. Marianne with an intensity that did not allow him to take a step back, if by any chance St. Marianne was biting her words.

[That’s right. You have such determination… I will give you the ultimate strength.]

St. Marianne reached out her hand. Light shot out from the hand that rested on Meyer’s head, and soon Meyer’s figure was enveloped in light.

Feeling a burning ability, Meyer Knox embraced Jun in the bright light.

Let’s live together, Jun.

Together, in a new world.

***

St. Marianne and the Demon King were two sides of the same coin to sustain the world.

Because they were both powerful beings, they were forbidden to interfere in the human world.

The fact that the Demon King needed the power of the human world to use his magical powers, and that St. Marianne only had the authority to give talents to humans were all part of that prohibition.

St. Marianne was content with her role and took care of the humans, but unlike her, the Demon King swallowed the tiger’s eyes to take over and wanted to hold power on his own.

[Don’t do it, Yana.]

[Marianne, you are too soft. What is it to have divine power? In the Demon Realm, being an accessory that supports this world, only passing through eternity!]

The Demon King did not even pretend to hear St. Marianne’s retraction. The Demon King soon invaded the human world, and as such the First Holy Demon War took place.

St. Marianne again admonished the Demon King, who was defeated by the hero Giovanni.

[Yana, give up now. Keep the human world at peace.]

[I can’t do that.]

The fully wounded demon king answered St. Marianne over the water with a self-mockery.

The Demon King’s black, rake-like fingertips turned to the surface, but the surface of the water simply grabbed and smeared Marianne’s face.

[Look at this, Marianne. Look at the recent situation where you and I have been unable to cross one another’s waters and finally exchange a few words. Are you happy with this situation?]

[…]

[I can’t. I don’t care what the rules of the world are that keep you and me apart… What’s so important about humans!]

The Demon King was furious. His red eyes shook with an unfamiliar thought.

[If that’s the case, I’d rather…]

He, who had not changed his mind even after Marianne’s conciliations, quietly sharpened his sword for a thousand years.

The nucleus of the Demon King planted in Grand Duke Knox became powerful enough to turn back time during the passage of a thousand years.

Ironically, this gave Saint Marianne the power to turn back time at the opposite point of the Demon King.

As a result, it was possible to call in Jun and stop the Demon King’s plot, and in the end, everything was bitten.

Maybe the Demon King also knew this would happen.

[You were so stubborn… Are you satisfied?]

St. Marianne smiled a small smile. Meyer offered his magical power as a price and disappeared to the last remaining magical instrument in the world.

And then…

For the sake of the balance of the world, she too would be gone.

Just as her body began to slowly dissipate.

Like a firefly leaving one or two, St. Marianne quietly watched as the hem of her own skirt and the tips of her own hair disappeared oar by oar.

Once she disappeared, it would no longer be possible to distribute magical talents to people.

The magical blessing that had been bestowed upon the succession would not disappear immediately, but it would fade in the blood and gradually disappear…

The end would remain a story in legend.

But St. Marianne did not worry too much about the future of humanity, because when the time came, humans would also be able to stand on their own. They would do well.

[Wait for me, Yana. I’ll be right there.]

St. Marianne smiled faintly with her eyes looking down, recalling the dark face that fluttered over the water.

CHAPTER 20. True Ending

The light pierced my eyes. I squinted and quickly blinked.

I finally woke up and saw Meyer Knox looking down at me against the setting sun.

Joy and exultation flooded his eyes…

It was the most beautiful landscape I had caught sight of since the moment I was born.

To the point where my eyes stung.

Meyer smiled at me and whispered softly.

“Welcome, my hero.”

“… I’m back.”

I cleared my hoarse throat and went on painfully. It was a low voice that didn’t sound like mine.

I don’t know the exact circumstances, but I was sure that St. Marianne had done something.

I sat up in Meyer’s arms and looked at him.

“Don’t be angry that I died on my own.”

“Angry? Even that’s a luxury. Didn’t you come back to me like this? That’s enough.”

Meyer hugged me, unable to twitch his face to tears, as if he was so thrilled that I had risen.

His hair hung with a silver sheen over my head. It was proof that the magi was gone.

I reached out and touched his hair. It was originally this color. It was unfamiliar to me, but it also suited him well.

As I stared at his head, Meyer grumbled awkwardly.

“If you like black hair, I’ll make sure it stays dyed.”

“It’s fine. I like it because it looks like a set.”

I reached out and twisted my hair and his with the tip of my hand.

Between the long gray locks, Meyer’s hair shone like glittering gold in the sand.

I wondered what point the words “like a set” hit in Meyer, his eyes lit up with a flash of heat.

His hand covered the back of my head, and gradually the distance between our eyes began to shrink.

Oh, wait a minute. It’s something like….

Drunk with the atmosphere, I had forgotten for a while that we were not alone here. I hurriedly tried to look sideways, but I couldn’t budge at how firmly Meyer held my face.

“I defeated the Demon King, Jun.”

Meyer rubbed his forehead on my forehead and whispered softly. The tip of his nose touched the tip of my nose.

Considering how we looked in the eyes of the other expedition members, it seemed I had to push Meyer, but then I thought about it, we defeated the Demon King, and we even died once each other and came back to life.

Well, I was not sure what to do.

Meyer stared at me and said again.

“So don’t tell me to wait any longer.”

Yeah, it’s time to tell the others. The ridiculous memorandum must also be fulfilled.

Just as I was about to lose my reason a little under Meyer’s genuine gaze, August coughed and broke in.

“Ahem, ahem, Your Excellency. I understand how you feel, but I think you should get your act together.”

Meyer didn’t even listen. I thought he would care more about a dog barking behind him.

But the opponent was August. He continued calmly, indifferent to Meyer’s indifference.

“Sevi says people are getting close… If you two want to continue this public love affair, I don’t care.”