“Where… am I…?”
As I opened my eyes and looked around, all I could see was a pure white space.
“I’m sure just a moment ago…”
Just a moment ago, I was preparing to strike down a monster from above, but for some reason, I was now standing in a place I’d never seen before.
‘Could it be…’
Nothing had happened until now, and I was just going along with it, but how could such an important thing occur at this moment?
Could it be because of the necklace?
With that thought, I immediately turned my head to examine the necklace.
“The necklace…?”
Light was bursting forth from the necklace.
“This is…”
I couldn’t tell what this light meant, but one thing I was sure of.
The sudden light from the necklace in that moment meant that Aria’s words about it helping my growth were correct.
So, could this space be one that allows me to awaken my powers as a hero?
As I made that judgment and turned to see what was around me, something suddenly appeared in the white space.
And what appeared was…
‘Me…?’
It was my own appearance.
Why was my own reflection appearing?
In that moment, I felt such a question arise.
Aria had said it was an item that would help me grow, after all.
But…
‘Is the method to bring me to this place and show me my own self…?’
It wasn’t unusual.
I just found it curious.
Aria had clearly said that she would help me grow until I completed the trial and received my inheritance, and that it would assist in awakening my powers as a hero.
Since it was the necklace that had directly inherited the powers of the ancient hero who underwent trials, I had believed in it until now. But seeing my own self appear in this situation felt strange.
– Lift your head.
“…!”
– Open your eyes wide and look straight at me.
Upon hearing those words, I instinctively raised my head and turned toward the direction of the voice.
In that place, was a man who looked just like me, but somehow seemed even more grown-up than I was now… it was hard to say he looked like me.
The situation was still incomprehensible.
“Where is this…?”
– It’s hard to explain, so just call it the world inside the necklace.
“The world inside the necklace…?”
Does that even make sense?
– This doesn’t seem like the time to be worrying about that.
“Ah…!”
Right…!
Then what happened?
If I’m here, what happened to the monster?
What about the battlefield situation?
Aria…?!
“This isn’t the time to be standing around…!”
Even now that I have disappeared, people might still be dying at the hands of the monsters.
Maybe because I had disappeared, they might even be retreating.
And that’s not all.
If I am gone, there would be no one to save Aria, who might have been eaten by the monster.
In this situation, I’m not even sure if I can save her myself, so I must hurry back.
“I-I have to go back…! I need to save Aria…!”
– Don’t worry. Time doesn’t flow outside while you are here.
At those words, I turned to look at the man again with a mixture of doubt and relief as I stiffened my body.
Then, cautiously swallowing, I asked.
“Who are you…? Why do you look like me?”
That necklace I obtained in the trial’s dungeon.
I knew it was something extraordinary, but I didn’t really know what it was in the end. All I knew was that it was supposed to help me awaken my powers as a hero.
But the answer went beyond imagination.
– I am the former hero.
“The former hero…?”
– Yes, if you think about it, I could say I’m your predecessor.
Of course, there would be former and latter heroes, but was it supposed to pass down like this?
No, that wasn’t it.
It was said that this was the dungeon where the past hero faced trials, but then to have a man presumed to be my future appearance appear was a bit odd.
Could this necklace bring my future self to teach me?
Could such a thing even exist in the world?
‘Esther didn’t know either…’
I wasn’t even sure if the man I was seeing now was indeed my future self.
Though he looked exactly like me, the aura he exuded felt too cold to be me.
Could I really make such an expression?
Perhaps due to that, even though he looked the same, the aura he subtly gave off felt enough to create doubt in my identity.
I sent a suspicious look at him as if to ask what his identity was, but the man continued to look at me with an unreadable expression.
– You will understand someday. For now…
He trailed off as if contemplating and then shook his head.
– No, it’s nothing.
With those words, which carried a significant meaning of “it’s nothing,” I pondered briefly about what I should do, then made a decision.
In fact, there wasn’t much to think about.
At that point, asking more questions would be the same as saying he had no intention of answering me.
– There’s only one reason you’ve come here.
The existence of the former hero meant the awakening of powers as a hero.
“You’ll teach me techniques, right?”
– Techniques… Well, it’s a bit different, but that’s not entirely wrong.
The man nodded and approached me.
Then he placed a hand above my head.
It was then.
“…?!”
I felt something entering my body.
‘What is this…’
Is this… divine power?
No, it was definitely a presence similar to divine power, but since I had already dealt with divine power through Esther, I could be certain.
This is not divine power.
It was something a bit more advanced… something fundamental.
– You have long since completed your preparation for awakening.
At his words, I flinched my shoulders.
Had I already completed my awakening?
Amidst the continuous questions, the man, who was concentrating power on my head, came closer to my ear.
Eventually,
– Remember this.
The man said that and disappeared.
And,
*
“Ah…”
Before I knew it, a blizzard began to swirl around my entire body again.
The harsh wind, like blades, was mercilessly beating on my entire body.
Strange.
Since I had suddenly returned, I should’ve been flustered.
For some reason, it felt as if I knew what to do as my body moved on its own.
I was falling rapidly from the sky, getting closer to the monster.
There, it was as if I had done this many times before, and in a familiar stance, I lifted my sacred sword and began to gather divine power.
– Evan…?
Esther seemed to notice that something had changed within me and called my name.
The divine power gathering in the sacred sword felt strange.
In a manner entirely unfamiliar, yet somehow it felt familiar, the energy circulated around the sacred sword.
The moment I recalled what technique it was, I couldn’t help but smile.
With this, I could defeat that monster.
– Wait, this is…
Esther’s voice rang out, filled with alarm, but it was already too late.
Completely entrusting my body to the technique, I poured all the magic power I had into it, and the divine power converted by the sacred sword explosively burst forth.
It was a level of technique that would normally be impossible.
Evan was sure of it.
Yet, for some reason, he could use it.
Light burst from the necklace, replenishing the inadequate divine power.
Eventually,
A massive sacred sword made of divine power appeared in the sky.
“『Heaven’s Punishment』”
Whispering the name of the technique softly, Evan swung the colossal sacred sword down towards the monster.
…
“Unbelievable…”
Arhen muttered, looking at the sight before him with a look of astonishment.
It wasn’t just Arhen.
Everyone on the battlefield witnessed that strike with their own eyes.
The giant sword, with a divine aura and a diameter of several dozen meters, fell from the sky, splitting the giant monster in half.
It was truly a sight worthy of being called “Heaven’s Punishment.”
“The ground is…!”
“It split apart…!”
Uriel and Stella muttered in voices filled with shock.
“Did Evan really do that…?”
The pure white ground… was split in two.
The monster at the point where the sacred sword had fallen couldn’t withstand that strike and was split exactly in half, dying on the spot.
Having somewhat recovered his magic power, Arhen moved closer to the place where the monster had died to find out what had happened.
And there, he found…
“…”
A man, presumed to be covered in monster bl**d, cradling a girl who lay unconscious with her clothes torn to shreds…
He was gazing at the girl with dazed golden eyes, shedding tears.
