The Hero Who Returned From Death Quits

16 – EP1. Dawn Approaches

He died.

He once again felt the flames engulfing his body.

Time felt elongated, and his whole nervous system could no longer function beyond its limits.

The darkness named death, which followed the flames devouring him. Once again, flames. Once again, darkness.

His mind reached its limit.

The pain caused by the flames was incomparable to any other pain. He feared that pain, the pain he felt every time he encountered the Demon King’s General.

But even more frightening than that was the time spent anticipating the enemy’s attack.

After giving a certain amount of rest, if pain is given, eventually the fear of waiting surpasses the pain itself.

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It is the anticipation of the pain that has already become familiar after the time has passed.

Therefore, he decided to give up on holding on.

Fight. He didn’t come to such a decision simply because he was overcome by fear.

He had died multiple times and realized the power of the ash-colored soldiers who conquers the castle.

The enemy does not tire.

This place is a fortress in the border zone, and behind the fortress, situated on a vast plain, there was a ravine.

“If this place, Felton Fortress, were to crumble, the enemy could swiftly infiltrate the Empire through the canyons and mountain ranges.”

That’s why the value of this fortress was so high that any rational judgment dictated that it must be defended by those capable, even more so than valuing the lives of heroes (excluding the peculiar case of the enemy commander who held heroes’ lives in higher regard than this fortress).

Therefore, Felton Fortress was heavily fortified with immense firepower and sturdy walls. Consequently, the enemy’s commander deliberately sought to breach the gates even at great cost.

And when their attack was thwarted, they changed their tactics by occupying the walls with ashen soldiers and opening the gates from the inside.

The problem arose here.

Heroes had made multiple returns, thoroughly guarding the fortress walls, but the enemy launched their assault with ashen soldiers when the heroes were worn out as if by supernatural means.

The problem was that Felton Fortress was a place of defense, while the enemy was conducting a siege.

The nearby territory of the Demon Lord’s army had once been a massive city, so their supply lines might not be too bad.

However, they were, at the end of the day, the ones besieging, and receiving better supplies than the defending Imperial army was virtually impossible. Delays would only erode their combat strength.

Yet, the ashen soldiers showed no signs of diminished combat strength and seemed to excel at whittling down the besieging forces.

Of course, Angel’s predictions might be wrong, but when he confirmed that these troops, who barely slept in tents, suffered no loss of combat strength compared to those who slept in their quarters, that thought flew far away.

So, what should they do?

Was there hope?

He could barely answer that question.

“We must put an end to it here.”

“What do you mean…?”

“We don’t know when the enemy will recover their strength, and, most importantly, we might never have a better opportunity to defeat them head-on.”

He said with a determined expression.

“The enemy is currently in a state of disarray, and their commander is not in the best condition.”

Just a moment ago, he had been burned to death by Genom, who had been anything but “unharmed.”

“On the other hand, we, in our defensive position, have been able to preserve our strength, and our morale is soaring. Well, I’m no exception.”

It was a lie. He was currently experiencing the sensation of his skin being seared alive.

“If we can defeat them head-on now, the Empire will be considerably relieved of the burden, at least as much as one enemy commander.”

Beatrice shook her head vigorously.

“Uh, in that case, there’s no other choice. We need to talk to the fortress’s commander.”

After hearing their opinions a while later, the overall commander furrowed his brow.

“It’s undoubtedly fascinating, but…”

He lightly bit his lip and continued.

“First, there’s a chance the enemy is stronger head-on than we think, and if the enemy just keeps retreating, it could increase the risk.”

Certainly, he was interested in why they needed to carry out this operation, but he hadn’t paid attention to that particular issue.

And he immediately recalled within his mind.

“I consider killing you more important than taking this castle.”

The words spoken by the enemy commander to him.

“Well, if that’s the case, there’s a way.”

The soldiers of Felten Fortress chased after the retreating demon forces.

They became obsessed with the idea of killing all those enemies here and ending the battle. And leading the charge were the heroes.

Genome discovered it and came to a halt.

This is the opportunity.

All he has to do is kill the hero here. Then, this defeat will mean nothing.

Genome attempted to kill the hero, and Ainzel seemed to have noticed it, so she started running in the wrong direction.

Genome immediately decided to put both his forces and his ashen soldiers on the line.

While they were engaged in battle, he would kill the hero.

He gave the order and started chasing the hero.

He got caught.

Ainzel ran with a hidden smile on her face.

What he proposed for this mission was none other than himself becoming the bait.

The enemy commander, Genome, had greatly overestimated himself.

He had once declared that killing the hero was more important than taking the castle, so if the hero became the bait, he believed that they would follow him for sure.

Of course, at another time, it would have been impossible.

The enemy commander had power far beyond that of mere humans, and Ainzel himself would have been reduced to ashes in an instant.

But now, the enemy commander had sustained injuries.

Using dark magic would likely be difficult for him, and all Ainzel had to do was run away from such an enemy.

With Peria and Beatrice by his side, he could win.

To be honest, he was at his limit, and if he failed this time and died, he would not have the courage to challenge the enemy again.

He staked his final choice.

Genome sent a fireball towards Ainzel.

Of course, as the commander’s, its power exceeded imagination, and Ainzel was hit by the fireball.

And a massive explosion occurred.

The holy power and dark magic had incredibly strong repulsion against each other, causing a powerful explosion when they met.

Say anything, Aengel was running while surrounded by the protective shield of the saint, Beatrice.

From the beginning, it was to cause an explosion.

The aftermath of the explosion interfered with the double-layered shield of Peria that surrounded Beatrice’s protection, and the explosion created a dense sandstorm that blocked the view.

“…!”

In other words, he couldn’t land a single attack.

Genome clicked his tongue.

He waited for the dust to settle.

But the dust did not settle.

Aengel smiled, hiding in the dust.

The wind magic did not disperse the dust, allowing him to continue hiding.

Genome had no choice but to enter the dust.

Until the arrows come flying towards him.

Aengel pulled back the bowstring every time Genome approached, causing his face to contort.

If his condition was perfect, it might not matter, but in his current state, it could be dangerous if he got hit.

He tried to sense Aengel’s position with black magic.

Then, Aengel scattered divine power, reflecting the black magic and preventing detection.

Genome had no choice but to unleash a frenzy of attacks. His subordinates would likely continue to die. There was no time to waste.

And Aengel started to run away again, and the pursuit resumed.

And how much time passed, he ran until a metallic smell came from his mouth.

Genome, no, the pain and fear that came with his form, ultimately running away from death, the origin of it all.

And Aengel finally caught up to Genome.

His wrist was grabbed by Genome, and Aengel heard a sound of something being severed in his mind.

“I rebelled so arrogantly… but in the end, it turned out like this.”

As Genome spoke, Aengel closed his mouth.

“Goodbye.”

No, I don’t want to, I hate it, I don’t want to die, help me.

Countless thoughts swirled in his mind, and he despaired.

It was a desperate plan that he risked his own life for. Even though he did all this, was it a failure? Even though he fought so desperately?

Eventually, he gave up everything.

“Yes. In the end, this is my fate, to die like this.”

…In a life like this, is there any worth?

The flames approached him.

Death chased after him.

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And the arrow pierced the heart of the demon.

“Wh…at?”

For someone who had killed countless heroes, he looked pitiful.

From afar, Lena’s face appeared.

Sein, Peria, Beatrice. Many soldiers were visible.

The demon died by Lena’s hand.

He observed the scene with a bewildered expression.

He tried to process it a little more, then fainted.