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Chapter 84: The Moon Swallowed by the Sun (6)

"Wa-wait!"

Rosanna hastily blocked my path.

She glared at me with a mix of panic and fury in her eyes as she opened her mouth.

"Who... what are you, exactly?"

"I introduced myself yesterday, didn\'t I? Getting old and forgetful already, auntie?"

"You little...!"

Rosanna’s expression twisted into something fierce.

"How did you break through the Sun Gate?"

"How did I do it? I heard everything from here, didn\'t I?"

I glanced at her Hero Watch, which was still powered on, and smirked.

"I just smashed through it all."

There wasn\'t time to craft a cunning strategy or put together a detailed plan.

As soon as I realized that Yuren... no, Yurina\'s Stigma had been forcibly changed by someone, I charged straight toward the Helios family and smashed through the front gate without thinking.

\'It would be a lie to say I had no doubts at all.\'

If there was one thing that held me back, it was the potential change to the future.

\'In my past life, the Yurina I knew bore the Stigma of the Sun God.\'

But if I intervened here and stopped the change to her Stigma, she\'d live on with the Stigma of the Moon God instead.

If that happens...

\'She might not reach the same heights as before.\'

Of course, the Stigma itself doesn\'t directly affect one\'s abilities.

Just like how I, with the Stigma of the Forest God, had momentarily reached the pinnacle of the Sun Sword, she could reach the same heights even with the Stigma of the Moon God.

\'No one can predict how the future will change.\'

If I leave things as they are, Yurina could become the greatest swordsman in humanity.

What I\'m about to do could be like tearing up a winning lottery ticket with my own hands.

But as soon as I stepped into that basement, forcing myself to ignore my doubts, I realized something immediately.

"Da... le?"

That kind of worry was utterly useless.

"How, how...?"

A trembling voice.

Her breath quickened, and her shaking eyes turned towards me.

Like a child lost in a crowd finally finding their parents, her gaze was filled with an unmistakable sense of joy that she couldn\'t hide.

"..."

I had learned so much from Yuren.

How to wield a sword, how to lead a party, and how to muster the courage to face fear.

And so, I had been mistaken.

I thought Yuren had always been that kind of person.

A person who never felt fear, who never considered hardship.

Like a radiant sun, high in the sky, shining brightly from the moment they were born.

I made an assumption.

I never considered what kind of life Yurina, swallowed by Yuren\'s sun, had lived or what kind of life she had hoped for.

"You\'ve held out well until now."

The words she longed to hear.

For the first time, I gave voice to the desire that had never been fulfilled.

"You don\'t have to shine anymore."

What does it matter if the future changes?

What does it matter if she doesn\'t become the greatest swordsman in humanity?

Yurina has already carried too much.

She\'s only ever received burdens.

If she can\'t become the sun, then I will become the sun.

If she can\'t become the greatest swordsman in humanity, then I will become the greatest.

If the weight she bears is too heavy, then I will carry it with her.

On that day, when I turned back time.

I had already decided to live this way.

"Ah..."

Yurina\'s eyes widened.

Tears, streaming down her cheeks, gathered at her chin before falling one by one.

"Ah... uu."

As if releasing all the emotions she\'d been holding back, Yurina hugged herself with both arms and sobbed.

I was about to approach the sobbing Yurina when—

"You filthy republican mongrel dares...!"

Rosanna\'s face contorted viciously.

She grabbed the sword placed in one corner of the basement.

Golden mana surged around her, violently swirling throughout the room.

"Who gave you permission to say such things?!"

Rosanna gripped her sword and violently kicked off the ground.

Her speed was frightening, especially for someone dressed in a gown.

Sun Sword, 6th Form: Variant – White Light (White Radiance) – Ultimate.

This was Rosanna’s signature technique, the one that earned her the title of "Flash" during her active days as a hero.

It was a technique that concentrated the light of White Radiance into a single point, launching it like a piercing needle, requiring extremely precise mana control.

"Hyaah!"

The golden flash shot toward me.

I smiled faintly as I watched the golden light rapidly close in.

Yeah.

\'White Light – Ultimate\' is indeed a technique requiring fine mana control, but—

\'When it comes to precise mana control, even Yuren in his past life couldn\'t beat me, auntie.\'

I swung my sword toward the incoming flash.

Sun Sword, 6th Form: Variant – White Light (White Radiance) – Ultimate.

The same technique Rosanna had honed over a lifetime was unleashed through my blade.

There were two differences: the aura from my sword was a dull gray, not a radiant gold.

The other difference was—

Clang!

My \'White Light – Ultimate\' was far more refined than the one she had unleashed.

"Kyaaa!"

Clang!

With a sharp scream, Rosanna’s sword shattered into pieces.

Rosanna stood there in shock, clutching the broken hilt, her mouth agape.

"H-how...?"

She wasn’t shocked because I had used the Sun Sword.

In fact, the Sun Sword I used was so different from the one used by the Helios family that it could almost be considered a completely different style.

She was so stunned because the technique she had spent a lifetime perfecting had been effortlessly blocked.

And it wasn’t just any block—it had stopped her most confident attack, the one where she condensed her mana into a single point.

"What... what kind of sorcery did you use?!"

Imagine the feeling of having your lifelong technique shattered by a rookie candidate, someone who didn’t even hold an official hero license.

Rosanna, unable to accept the reality before her, threw down the broken hilt and charged toward me.

"Geez."

I clicked my tongue as I looked at Rosanna.

"You\'re a mess till the end, huh, auntie?"

I grabbed her by the collar as she lunged at me, lifting her up with all my strength.

Berald’s Martial Arts.

Heaven Flip.

BOOM!

Rosanna\'s body twisted midair and slammed into the ground on her back.

"Gah!"

Rosanna let out a grunt, spitting out saliva as her eyes rolled back, and she passed out.

Leaving the unconscious Rosanna behind, I turned toward the operating table.

"Sigh. This is... such a mess."

Next to the table stood a young man with silver hair and a gold monocle, shaking his head and sighing.

‘Is this the bastard who switched Yurina\'s Stigma in her past life?’

I tried recalling memories from my previous life, but his face was completely new to me.

‘Well, I\'ll know who he is after beating him up, I suppose.’

Just as I was about to turn toward the mastermind of this incident before freeing Yurina,

"We have no choice. The plan will need to change."

Snap.

As the silver-haired man snapped his fingers, the magical circle that was engraved all over the basement began crawling and gathering in one spot, as if it were alive.

Rumble!

A terrifying mana wave swept through the area as the magic circle coalesced.

"Urgh...!"

I squinted against the rushing wave of mana.

Crack!

A black fissure appeared in the air, splitting the space open.

"Ah... ahh."

From the rift, a creature clad in full black armor stepped out.

But should I even call it a "creature"?

The flesh visible between the armor was decayed and rotting, and inside the helmet, eerie blue lights flickered where its eyes should be, making it impossible to believe it was human.

"That thing..."

It certainly didn’t look like one, but...

‘It\'s human.’

A hero, blessed by the gods, who had awakened their Stigma.

Seeing the black-armored creature, I immediately realized who the silver-haired man was.

‘A demon who corrupts heroes and turns them into his puppets.’

Mephisto, the Archbishop of Corruption.

He was a demon who had vanished without a trace after the war with the six archbishops began to escalate as the seal on the Demon King weakened.

‘I’ve heard his name, but it’s my first time seeing him in person.’

Other than the fact that he corrupts heroes and makes them his puppets, not much was known about Mephisto, which was why I hadn\'t recognized him immediately.

"Well then, I\'ll be seeing you next time."

Without waiting for me to react, Mephisto leaped into the black rift and disappeared.

"...Damn."

Clicking my tongue in frustration at having let Mephisto escape right in front of me, I gripped my sword.

As much as I wanted to follow Mephisto into that black rift, I couldn’t just leave Yurina behind.

I pointed my sword at the black-armored creature.

"Ahh... Arghhh!!"

The black-armored creature let out a monstrous scream, swinging its massive sword.

Clang!

As I blocked the sword, a staggering shockwave reverberated up my arm.

‘Strong.’

In terms of raw strength, it was on par with Professor Lucas.

‘To think a hero like this was turned into a puppet...’

I grimaced and thrust my fist toward the black-armored creature.

Berald’s Martial Arts.

Mountain Breaker.

BANG!

"Urghhh!"

With a loud boom, the black-armored creature was flung back, crashing into the wall.

"Ahh..."

Despite the force, which was strong enough to crumble part of the wall, the black-armored creature rose again, showing no sign of pain.

"Tch."

Realizing this was going to be a tough fight, I was about to ignite my power when—

"Dale."

Yurina, who the magic circle had bound, approached me.

"I’ll fight."

"...Yurina?"

As she drew near, Yurina had a strangely relieved expression as she took my hand.

"Thank you, Dale."

She pulled my hand to her chest.

"Thank you for being my friend."

"Thank you for praising me when I did well."

"Thank you for coming to save me."

"And thank you... for telling me I don\'t have to shine anymore."

Her gaze, as she looked at me, no longer held any fear.

"We can talk later—"

Yurina pulled me closer, resting her head against my chest.

Her silver hair swayed gently, and the soft touch, combined with her fragrant scent, tickled my nose.

"Now, you’re my sun."

She smiled brightly as she said that.

"Mind if I borrow your sword for a bit?"

Yurina took my sword and walked toward the black-armored creature.