In the bustling commercial district near the Adventurer's Guild in Taraz City, surrounded by lush greenery…
Plop! Crunch!
"Here, Ric, don't drop these!"
"Thanks, Jena!"
"Mhm."
Jena, a stunning young mage in a white robe with short golden hair tied in a braid and a sexy figure, flashes a sweet smile after being thanked for picking up a dropped fruit.
A tall, plain-looking young man with fluffy golden hair, dressed in light armor with a longsword at his waist, takes the apple-like fruit and stores it in his [Item Box].
Flash!
"Whoa… Never gets old…"
"Hm? What's that, Jena?"
"Your [Item Box], Ric! Watching stuff vanish into it gets me hyped every time!"
"Haha!"
The two chat like old friends, smiling warmly, as they head out from the market back to their two party mates handling errands at the Adventurer's Guild.
Passing shops and crowds, the young man and woman stroll slowly, in no rush. They know the paperwork will take ages with the monster surge lately, meaning long queues at the guild.
"By the way… It's been over a year, huh, Jena?"
"Hm? A year of what?"
The young man glances at her with a smile, then looks ahead. Gusts of wind push against the crowd, but they don't faze the two. The noisy bustle doesn't disturb their vibe either.
"Since you guys got all excited about my [Item Box]."
"Since the first day we met, right?"
Jena smiles back, and Ric grins even wider, knowing she gets what he means.
"Yeah, Jena… Since you all came into my life, it's been the happiest time I've ever had… Thanks."
"Wha—What's with you, Ric? Talking like you're raising a death flag… Tch…"
Flash~!
"Huh… What's this creepy chill down my spine?"
"What's wrong, Jena?"
"This city's position… The southern city… This spot… No… I don't get it!"
"What're you talking about, Jena? All of a sudden…"
Continent 2
That massive magic wave, gulping down insane amounts of MP, grows stronger, enveloping Hero Chong in an expanding aura. The 1000+ adventurers watching aren't just gawking—they're channeling MP into the MP-transfer devices in front of them to boost Chong's power.
"GAAAAHHHH!!!!"
"CROOOOAR!!!!"
"KWAAAAAK!!!!"
Hundreds of high-level monsters, sensing the incoming threat, start moving. They leap, trying to climb the city walls to attack Chong.
"Protect him!! MP device controllers, redirect to the barrier!!"
The mage leading the army barks orders with precision, and everyone follows strictly.
All adventurer teams with defensive barrier skills cast magic into massive anti-threat devices, mimicking a city wall's protection spell to block the monsters' assault.
Boom! Boom! Crack!
The monsters inside the city slam the barrier ferociously, but it holds—for now.
"How close are we, Chong!?"
"If this isn't enough, we won't kill a single one… I need more time to gather MP and power! Ten… No, if enough people supply MP… Three minutes! Just three minutes, and I can wipe out over half of them—anything under LV.400!"
Chong's brimming with determination. He recalls all his shadow warriors to save MP and uses every item he's collected on his journey, pouring everything into this attack for maximum impact.
"All mages, split MP to him!! Warriors and tanks maintain the barrier—it'll hold past three minutes!!"
"OOOOOH!!"
Vwinggggg!
Every force works tirelessly… Every heart unites… Everyone's pumped for the next phase.
"Two minutes left!"
But… Why does it feel wrong?
Am I—Fipa (me)—the only one here feeling this!? This position, this city… and their placement…
No, it can't be true. Please don't let it be true…
My skin's crawling. Even this body, devoid of consciousness, still feels it.
"Huff… Huff… Huff…"
Why's this body struggling to breathe…? A bad omen? But Fipa's a monster… No… Maybe because it's like a creature of this world, it has instincts for danger…
"One minute left!!"
"This is our historic moment!"
-If I don't act, tragedy will strike-
Stop them!? But… with this many people…? That goes against my own resolve and rules! Nah, forget it. It's fine…
Yeah, it's fine. Nothing's wrong. Just a bad omen…
"Thirty seconds!"
"Get ready!! Once those monsters get hit, we charge in and finish them before they recover!!"
Just… a bad omen…
"Ten seconds!!!!"
"Reclaim our southern city!!!!!!!!!"
Urgh… Ric!?
No… No way!
Damn it!! Please don't let it be true!! I have to stop them!!
Dash! Dash!
"STOP!!!!!!!"
"Yo, what's that weebie doll doing!?"
"What's that chick up to!?"
"Anyone with spare MP or a stun skill—stop her!!"
Grab! Grab!
"STOP!! Don't shoot, Chong!!!!!"
As Fipa (me) leaps forward, dodging every skill and attack from the adventurers to halt that power, I lose myself…
Clang!
A black-armored shadow knight appears, blocking Fipa.
"Get out of the way!!!"
Slash!
Whoosh!
"A one-hit kill!? Impossible! That's over LV.500… A heavy-armored knight, and she pushed it back!"
Fipa swings her arm like a blade—slash!—and the shadow knight vanishes in one hit, shocking even Hero Chong.
Thud!
"Stop, Chong!! Don't unleash that power—Argh!!"
But another, bulkier shadow knight charges from another angle, shoving Fipa (me) out of the way.
"Stop… Stop!! Don't cast it!!!!"
Fipa screams with all her might… but it's too late.
"The barrier's breaking, Chong!!"
"Cast it!!!"
"[Eclipse of Oblivion]"
ZOOOOOOMMMMM!!!
And in that moment, as Fipa fails to stop the attack… Hero Chong unleashes all his prepared power. A ferocious wave of black aura and sparks engulfs over half the city, instantly killing more than half the monsters with HP below the attack's strength.
No…
"NO… NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"What're you talking about, Jena? All of a sudden…"
"Ric!! Get out of the way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Thud!
"Wha—What!? Argh!"
Crash!
The moment Jena (me) snaps to… A demon, over LV.400, appears behind Ric…
Slash!
It swings mercilessly.
Jena's duty is to protect him… And in this split-second, all she can do is… push him away.
Before Jena's body splits—her head, the arm that pushed Ric, and her torso.
…
"Jena… JENAAAAAAA!!!!"
End of Chapter 64
Jena… Jenaaaa!!!!