The Hero Who Returned From Death Quits

98 – EP6. The Great Transformation

The Mountain of Death was typically an undead with a production difficulty similar to that of a Death Knight. It was neither as agile as a Death Knight, required an exceptionally large number of corpses, and couldn’t even breathe. But the reason this undead was used was simple.

Overwhelming mass. A monstrous entity made up of countless bones, flesh, and skin, with an absurd amount of mass that caused ripples just by moving, enough to knock out most monsters that came near.

So, the Mountain of Death would pick up the fallen monsters’ corpses and grow even larger, continuing to expand until it couldn’t grow any further. Hence, it was a mountain. Hence, it was the Mountain of Death.

I didn’t particularly prefer creating it, but in situations with numerous monsters, it could wield tremendous power. Thus, I summoned the mountain of corpses without hesitation.

“Unbelievable… how do you, a mere hero, know the ancient crafting method?”

Since most dark sorcerers who knew the ancient crafting method had died long ago, this undead was considered a near-mythical entity among dark sorcerers. Few knew how to create it. The dark sorcerer seemed shocked that I had made it.

“I learned. Why do you find that surprising?”

“Unbelievable! If someone like you knows that, then… it’s an impossible feat for anyone other than a powerful dark sorcerer like Grandis!”

“I happened to learn it. So… now that it seems difficult to hinder you with monsters, how about we continue our little scuffle?”

The dark sorcerer gritted his teeth.

“…Can you even reverse-engineer my dark magic? Damn it, fine, I admit it. Right now, there’s nothing I can do to you.”

“Maybe you should run? Though I doubt it’ll work.”

I smirked at him, and he, holding a lantern, began to shake it.

“…For now, I have no choice but to flee, but next time, it’ll be different.”

He vanished in an instant.

…Perhaps he used a lantern to teleport. He must have inscribed a spell on the lantern in advance and then activated it, making it impossible to interfere with the spell.

“Needlessly quick,” I sighed. Then, I gazed at the Mountain of Death, where he was wiping out the monsters.

No pause to catch his breath, no rest. Only slaughter. And absorption. More slaughter.

I watched the Mountain of Death attacking the monsters for quite a while.

When the monsters were finally wiped out, I set fire to the Mountain of Death. The ashes seeped into the ground, and the dark magic was absorbed, so intense that nearby plants visibly withered.

Dark magic had a destructive nature, capable of killing life even as it permeated the earth.

It was clear that if this land was left undisturbed, it wouldn’t bear fruit for many years. So, I purified the land with holy energy.

But even as I purified the land, the aftermath of the Mountain of Death’s movement caused trees to fall and grass to be uprooted. The devastation resembled the bloodshed of those who sacrificed themselves between mighty combatants.

In the end, this was it. Those who were fragile and delicate were bound to have their lives threatened by the aftermath of the battle.

The ongoing conflict in the empire would be no different. There was no safe haven to completely escape its consequences.

“If I live here like this for long enough, I might forget about the battles. I fear that. I’m afraid I’ll leave the dead behind and immerse myself in peace. Will I come to believe that I can enjoy complete peace here?”

“Well, not a bad idea. Taking a break for a while to build up strength to face the enemy is fine.”

“Is that so? It feels too long to say that the years I’ve spent like this are just a break.”

“Well, human life is short. That’s why. So, is your goal wavering? Are you tormented by the desire to live like this forever?”

“…I lost my comrades due to my mistake. No, I killed them with my own hands. I have to go back. I have to resurrect them and kill the Demon King.”

“If your goal hasn’t been broken yet, that’s fine. You decide your own path. All I can do is hope you reach the place you want to go, both in the future and in the past. Demons can’t even pray to the gods, so we can only make wishes in our hearts.”

“I have to kill the Demon King. But… at least for now, I want to enjoy this tranquility.”

And then.

“You foolish one. Did you think it would be okay to hide by yourself? Did you really believe your solitude would be perfect? Because you didn’t step up, this is what happened as you secluded yourself.”

“No, no!”

“Everything you loved went up in flames. All because you were deluded.”

And again.

“You… will go back to the past, won’t you? And you will fight. You knew that running away would only lead to loss. But… even though I knew you would go back to the past, I couldn’t bear to see you in pain.”

“Oh, no, no…”

“…■■■.”

Memories from the past once again stirred in my head. My head felt like it was about to split.

I grasped my head.

Yes, I learned it painfully. I understood it as if my heart was being torn apart.

In the end, there was nowhere to escape. In the aftermath of the collision, no one could escape properly.

The repercussions had me in their grip, and I had to find a way to withstand them before I crumbled like a broken tree.

…

“Sigh…”

Peria let out a sigh.

She had ascended to the imperial throne, becoming the most powerful figure within the empire, and she could now act without political considerations.

But she couldn’t bring herself to speak about him.

She believed the charges against him were false. So she asked the empire’s intelligence agents if they had framed him.

However, the response she received was unexpected.

“No, we did make a few modifications and adjusted the direction to favor the former emperor, but the hero’s murderous rampage is true. Truly, Your Majesty! Moreover, the fact that the hero deliberately let Grandis go is clear. We didn’t create something out of thin air to frame him. We understand that you may want him back, perhaps even pardon him. But we genuinely did not frame him! It was just an exaggeration!”

She finally understood. No matter how much she believed in Angel, people wouldn’t believe it.

No matter how she used her power, people would only pretend to accept it on the surface while still looking at Angel with suspicion.

He didn’t want to be called back to the empire for that kind of scrutiny. He wasn’t that kind of person.

She thought that all his actions needed to be fully disclosed, whether he was falsely accused or not. That was why she became an emperor and immersed herself in the deciphering of the Holy Sword’s records.

She hoped people would acknowledge the false charges against him and return him to the way he used to be, where he could simply smile.

She still felt the pain.

And then, news reached her that Sein was returning to the empire.

“Sein is coming back?”

“Yes. He probably met with the former hero, Angel, saw everything, and is now returning.”

Peria raised an eyebrow. There was nothing strange about his return. In fact, it was more strange that he hadn’t returned earlier.

But given the current circumstances, she suspected there was a reason for Sein’s return right now.

“What’s going on? Why now of all times?”

Peria was puzzled, but she went out to meet Sein in person.

Sein was baffled. He had returned to the empire upon hearing rumors of dark sorcerers causing havoc, only for the dark sorcerers to suddenly vanish without a trace.

And then…

“Why are you the emperor now?”

Sein stared at Peria with an incredulous look. Peria briefly averted her gaze and muttered.

“There were some circumstances…”

Sein continued to gaze at her in disbelief.

“Though I’m not sure what exactly happened, it felt like something significant, yes.”

Peria remained silent.

“…Should we head back to the capital for now? It’s not ideal to stay on the outskirts of the border like this.”

“Yes…”

Peria teleported with Sain.

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