The Player's POV

— Kael!

— Kael!

— Kael!

Kael's name was continuously uttered in Hans's voice.

"Where are you, Hans?"

But unfortunately, Kael couldn't see the source anywhere.

It was as if the protagonist and he were in two different dimensions.

So close, yet so unreachable.

"Damn it!"

He started looking around, trying to find some kind of abnormality.

But unfortunately, there was nothing.

[Authority of Gluttony.]

Kael's Ability didn't work either.

In this place, all of his powers were sealed.

Crack!

But at that moment, a crack appeared in the air.

"Huh?"

Without thinking much, he rushed towards it.

There was no way a crack would suddenly appear in the air.

Which meant that this was most likely the path that would lead Kael back to reality.

Without hesitation, he punched the crack repeatedly.

"…!"

And surprisingly, Kael could actually make contact with it.

It felt as if… he was punching bulletproof glass.

"Harder!"

Kael began to increase the power of his punches.

"Faster!"

They started to get faster, but still had the same power.

And, his efforts were rewarded, as the crack began to spread.

At first, it only spread a little, but after more than 10 minutes of trying, the crack had invaded the entire reality.

"Just one more punch!"

Kael paused, took a deep breath, and focused.

"Right now!"

His hand instantly clenched into a fist, and then, it shot straight toward the crack with all its speed and power, like a cannonball.

Shatter!

The next moment, Kael completely lost consciousness.

***

"..."

Kael let out a soft groan, then slowly opened his eyes.

And the first sight that greeted his eyes was Hans's tired but unconcealedly joyful face.

"...Indeed."

A smile appeared on Kael's lips.

Then, he slowly sat up.

As if he had just passed through death's door.

Which was the truth.

"Kael, are you feeling better?"

Hans asked worriedly, as if their previous argument had never happened.

"Don't worry, although I'm still a little tired, all my injuries have healed."

And in response, he gave a small smile.

"So, how's the situation?"

Kael looked around, then realized how meaningless his question was.

The entire village was now a pile of rubble.

Most of the villagers had been exterminated.

Everything was now just a part of history.

"Sigh. As you can see, Kael."

Kael's expression immediately darkened.

But, if he looked on the bright side, most of the strongest demons had been exterminated.

"Are there any survivors?"

"…Before I came here, I saw many people fleeing this village."

That meant they were still alive.

However, the protagonist's complexion was still quite bad.

"But perhaps… this will leave psychological scars on them for the rest of their lives."

"That's only natural."

How could they have imagined that on such an ordinary day, the village they had devoted their entire lives to would suddenly be completely destroyed by demons?

Furthermore, their loved ones had probably drowned in this invasion.

"Sir, if there are no more missions, then I'll take my leave."

Mavis's voice rang out, interrupting Kael and Hans' conversation.

He turned towards her, then gave a grateful smile.

"Thank you for your efforts, Mavis."

"It's what I have to do."

With that, she disappeared, returning to Death City.

Leaving Hans and Kael alone in this place.

"Then…"

It wasn't that the two of them felt scared, but rather that the atmosphere felt extremely awkward.

When Mavis was still here, the two of them could still converse normally.

But when she left, they didn't know what topic to talk about.

After all, not long ago, they were still arguing fiercely.

Kael scratched his head, forcing a smile towards Hans.

"Um… Then… have you… forgiven me?"

The protagonist didn't respond.

Instead, he immediately gave him a warm hug.

"You idiot… of course I've forgiven you. How… could I be angry at you?"

The corners of Hans's lips curled up slightly.

"After all… we're friends."

Friends?

Kael smiled as well when he heard those words.

"That's right… we're friends."

Best friend.

"I… was really scared, Kael."

He could feel the protagonist's body trembling.

It wasn't because of the cold, nor was it because of excitement.

"I really thought you wouldn't make it… and I would lose you forever."

Kael gently patted Hans's back.

"Come on, I'm still alive after all."

"Next time… don't do anything stupid like that…"

If Kael didn't do it, would he have to let the protagonist die?

That was something Kael couldn't agree to.

But right now, he couldn't answer like that.

"Yeah, I won't do it again."

"Thank you…"

…

Just like that, time passed, and Kael began to feel a little… uncomfortable and awkward.

Of course.

After all, the protagonist had been hugging him tightly all this time.

"Um… can you let go of me, Hans? I'm not a homosexual."

"…"

He was completely speechless.

And then, with a sigh, he sneered:

"You're an expert at ruining the mood, Kael."

***

The moment Kael and Hans returned to the Voidveil Empire, Alaric also returned from his journey.

However, the King did not return alone.

He brought two things with him.

First was a boy named Rudeus.

"This is?"

Kael looked at the boy in confusion.

Even though he was a child, his personality was that of an adult.

"This is the kid I met on the journey. Mature, right?"

Kael forced a smile.

This kid wasn't just normal mature.

It gave him the feeling of being faced with an adult.

"So, where are his parents? Don't tell me you kidnapped him, Alaric."

"…The village he lives in is on the outskirts…"

Oh…

That couldn't have been a more subtle answer.

It was able to answer Kael's question without bringing up painful memories for the kid.

"…I see."

His expression also became a little heavy upon hearing that information.

And the second thing Alaric brought with him… was the answer to Kael's request.

"This expression of yours… proves that you have an answer, right?"

The King's expression had looked quite bad before.

But now, it had become much better.

"Yes."

A smile appeared on Alaric's lips.

"I accept."

Hearing what he wanted to hear, Kael couldn't help but smile.

All the preparations were ready.

All the necessary actors had appeared as well.

Now, all they had to do was wait.

Wait for all six leaders to understand the feeling of despair before the absolute power of the demons.