Thwack—!!
Akumo returned to the heart of the [Colosseum].
"Haah... haah..."
Drip—!!!
His arms, pushed far beyond their limits, were slick with blood and devoid of sensation. The wounds inflicted by Akuo had surpassed the point where the vines could provide even basic hemostasis.
"Aren't you coming?"
Rumble—!!!!!!!!!!!!
"Right... that's more like it..."
Despite his condition, he radiated a torrential, lethal intent toward the monsters.
—Groooar—!!!!!!!!!!!!
"Come at me!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
To the monsters, Akumo was no longer a man, but a warrior who had returned to the [Colosseum] solely to kill. They lunged at him with primal savagery.
Crunch—!!!!!
"Was it you!?"
Boom—!!!!!!!
"Or you!?"
Bang—!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Though only his left arm remained functional, and even that was a mangled, bloody mess, Akumo seized a [Barbarian] by the face and tore its head apart. He followed through with a devastating kick, launching the corpse into the approaching horde, detonating the monsters upon impact.
Thud—!!!
"Die!"
Slash—!!!!!!!!!
He no longer cared for the preservation of his equipment or the integrity of his own body. Survival was no longer a calculation; it was an execution.
Clang—!!!
'As if I'd give a damn...!!'
A sword dropped by a [Spartoi] shattered after a single strike that cleaved through half a dozen monsters, but Akumo fought on without pause.
Thump—!!
"...Is that all?"
Crunch—!!!!!!!!!!
"You're pathetic! Every last one of you!!"
'I can't even feel the pain anymore!'
"Good! Better this way!"
If his fists were caught, he used his feet.
Bang—!!!!!!!!!!
If his feet were caught, he used his hands again.
Crack—!!!!!!!!!!
If he couldn't clench his fists, he used his nails.
Rip—!!!!!!!!!!
If his nails broke, he used his wrists.
Boom—!!!!!!!!!
And if his wrists refused to move...
Snap—!!!
"Ever heard of a whip!?"
He lashed out with a limb shattered beyond recognition, using the broken bone as a makeshift flail.
Grab—!
"Hold still!!!!"
Crack—!!!!!!!!
If even that failed, he used his head.
Stagger—!!
The dizziness induced by the vines acted as a morbid anesthetic, fueling an adrenaline surge that kept his body moving until the bitter end.
Crash—!!!
"Urgh...!!"
'These bastards are pushing in all at once...!'
Driven by his sheer madness, the monsters seemed to adopt a strategy, swarming him simultaneously to crush him with pure physical mass.
Crunch—!!
Boom—!!!
He held his ground with agonizing tenacity, slamming his elbows down to thin their numbers. In that desperate moment...
"Survive."
'.....'
"Wasn't that the hero you decided to be?"
'That was...'
"Just the childish selfishness of youth?"
His own voice questioned him from within.
Was this really enough? Was he truly content to die here?
"When did it start? When did you become such a cliché hero?"
The voice spoke as if to soothe him, or perhaps merely to vent a long-held grievance.
"Was it when you made the idiotic decision to save everyone, even when facing an enemy wielding a Divine Weapon?"
Step—
"Was it the moment you used magic in [Knossos], prepared for death just to save them all?"
Step—
"Was it when you saved the [Astraea Familia]?"
Step—
"Or was it when you saved Alfia and Zard?"
At some point, he had become unable to pursue power alone.
"Why did you feel such liberation in a fight without restraint?"
In the battle against Akuo, he had cast aside his reputation, his duties to his Familia, and his need to save others. He had fought purely for the sake of the fight.
"Isn't that proof that you are shackled?"
Because it had been so enjoyable, so fulfilling, the realization was all the more painful.
"You cannot have everything. Or... can you?"
Slide—
"The stronger the light, the deeper the shadow."
Those words pierced his heart with strange clarity.
"The more you crave power, the more you must become the ideal 'Hero.'"
"The more you crave to be a Hero, the more you must become a 'Man' who pursues only power."
The figure standing before him was his mirror image.
"Power is but a means. To achieve an ideal, one must pursue power; to pursue power, one must have an ideal to match it."
The tips of the figure's hair were stained a void-black, and his gaze mirrored the predatory intensity of a Great Dragon.
"From justice, altruism, grand causes, goodwill, and nobility, to effort—"
Clench—!!
"To violence, betrayal, malice, selfishness, ruthlessness, and even luck."
The things he spoke of were far from idealistic.
They were things that could be shackles to some, and unshakable convictions to others—
"Devour it all."
Don't overthink it. Just take it all, because it's all yours.
Step—! Step—!
"I'll carry him..."
"No, I'll do it."
Bell and Ryu were moving through the shadows, carrying Akumo, whose body was so broken it was impossible to tell if he was still among the living.
"We were lucky."
"Indeed. I never imagined there would be an unmapped region beneath the [Colosseum]..."
Step, step—!
""...""
A heavy silence fell between them as they looked at the motionless Akumo.
"Brother... he'll be angry, won't he?"
Step—!
"Most likely... yes."
'He'll ask why we didn't run...'
Step—!
Yet, Ryu and Bell knew they would make the same choice again.
"Even if I had to go back hundreds of times, I would still save Mr. Akumo."
"Me too."
For them, abandoning him had never been an option.
"He always told me."
Grip—!!
"That it's okay to be a little selfish sometimes."
"You said it too, Ms. Ryu. That I'm too kind."
Bell knew it himself.
He knew that his goodwill could become another form of selfishness that might one day lead to his downfall.
"But I'll still save him."
Step—!
"This is my selfishness."
Even if he was called selfish, stupid, or foolish, he would do his absolute best to save the people he wanted to save.
"Mr. Cranel."
"Yes?"
Seeing him like this, Ryu no longer wanted to endure her pain under the guise of consideration.
"The members of the [Astraea Familia]... they are all alive."
"That's a relief!"
"But do you know?"
She didn't care if it sounded selfish or malicious.
"Originally, they all would have died. At the hands of the [Juggernaut]."
With every step Ryu took, the tragedy she might have experienced spilled from her lips.
"Alise would have sacrificed herself in a suicidal charge. Kaguya would have had her arm torn off. Lyra would have been impaled..."
Step—
"Noin would have been cleaved in two. Neze would have had half her body blown away."
Step—
"Astar's legs would have been crushed. Ranya and Celty would have been burned and frozen, respectively."
Step—
"Iska's arms would have been lost, and Maryu's head would have been devoured."
In that moment of absolute despair, Akumo had appeared before them like a beacon of light.
"Even though everyone's lives were saved..."
"I became angry."
Grip—!!!!
"Scars had already been carved into them. Some even quit being adventurers."
"Some began to doubt their own justice."
The growing pains and trials that inevitably follow such events—she might have converted all of it into rage.
"That's why I've clung to revenge until now..."
Drip—!
"And why I let things get to this point..."
Drip—!
Tears began to fall from her eyes.
They were tears of regret for her selfishness, yet also of certainty that she would never regret believing in him.
"But I still want to believe...!!"
"Sob... even so... I just wanted everyone to be happy...!!"
========================
The website for reading paid chapters is available on my Patreon. The number of chapters on Patreon: 173
Link: patreon.com/UltraMagnus_T