Chapter 255. <The One who didn’t conquer the stage (1) >

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Translator: Seven

1.

Time passed quickly.

Although for the first time in history a snail had become the Chairman of the Fire River Council, there was not much chaos. Even those with doubts couldn’t help but nod their heads when they heard [That Snail beheaded the Red Dragon]. Numerous warriors from the goblin and oni races who accompanied her, testified to Seimslam’s record.

“This is no longer a country for just the goblin race!”

The Black Dragon Master said excitedly.

It seemed that talking about this topic was to Anastasia’s liking.

“The country our children will make will be greater than Rome! Do you understand how amazing that is, Gong-ja?”

“Anastasia, I’m a middle school graduate. I dropped out of high school. Please say it so I can understand…”

“Ah, um. Rome originally started off as a country for just Romans. However, when foreigners from completely different provinces were allowed to enter the center, and when the religious belief from a border territory grew to become the state religion, Rome finally became a great Empire that encompassed all people.”

Looking back at that world, the Black Dragon Master placed her hands on her cheeks.

“However, Rome had its limitations… Do you know what those limitations were?”

Of course I didn’t know.

So there was no need for me to say anything.

“It’s because the religion became more sacred than it needed to be!”

“Wasn’t it because there were no more countries to conquer, making it difficult to draw out the war economy?”

“It’s because politics is corrupt and society was led astray.”

These were not my words, but an interruption by the Heretic Questioner, Count, and Crusader.

‘Uh-uh’, waving her arms, the Black Dragon Master made a sound.

“You guys go away. I’m talking to Gong-ja right now.”

The three withdrew with sulky faces.

The Black Dragon Master cleared her throat.

“Um. There were many limitations, but I think it was mainly because the interests of each group were not clearly divided.”

“What do you mean?”

“Look.”

The Black Dragon Master pointed towards the seats in the Fire River Council.

“The goblins are in charge of the defense and food production, the elves manage the capital, and the mermaids control logistics. The snails are in charge of the underground resources… In this way, the factions are formed on the biological level of race. Unless a race is exterminated or enslaved, no other race can extend their tentacles and seize power!”

The Black Dragon Master’s cheeks were slightly red, probably because she’d drank too much.

She even stuttered.

“This, this is important. It’s a decision made on a biological level. That we need each other, we need each other, so we naturally make checks and concessions…”

“…”

“This system is strong and solid. It is friendly even to latecomers. Any race, um, even a new race for example, if they are better in a certain field that one of the existing races is in charge of, it would naturally become the specialized field of that race. However, um, however, it is a very difficult system to establish.”

The Black Dragon Master ruffled her hair.

“For example, if a race fears that they will be challenged. If they are afraid of being pushed out of their field of expertise. They might decide to suppress the latecomers. If the established races take it for granted and allow such a trend to prevail instead of stopping it, then this system will rot over time. However.”

No species had gone extinct.

Because Uburka didn’t allow the snails to go extinct.

In a time when the continent seemed to be unified centering mainly around the goblin race, racial discrimination had been eliminated by the Fire River Council in a timely manner.

Ssonia. Because this child, who was born an elf but wanted to perform, devoted his life to showing blood flowers on the stage.

The discovery of the new continent cemented the position of the mermaids who guided the waterways, and the dream demons, who were the natives of the new continent, were said to have merged with the vampires led by Anastasia.

And in the battle with the oni race, the people had gained a sense of distance from god.

One at a time.

One person at a time.

One life.

The world changed, and finally, a snail became the Chairman of the Fire River Council for the first time.

The Fire River Council was being reborn as a great council that embraced both fire and water.

“Everything, um, fits so well together.”

On the screen, a grand festival to commemorate the defeat of the Red Dragon was being held.

Some talented elves presented all kinds of circus tricks and fire painting, and tourists from all over the country laughed in harmony at the festival.

“Gong-ja, this scene that we see before us. It is a huge miracle, like a sacred painting that was created with the overlapping footprints of countless people.”

The Black Dragon Master muttered in a dreamy voice.

It wasn’t a bad feeling, so I smiled a little.

“You’re right. It really is a miracle….”

“Unless this miracle was ‘made’ by someone.”

I paused.

Before I could even blink, the faint feeling in the Black Dragon Master’s voice faded. At the same time, the atmosphere, or to be precise, the look in her eyes, changed.

“I’m talking about you, Gong-ja.”

The Black Dragon Master looked at me.

All the uninvited guests had retreated so could not hear our voices.

In this place where only the two of us were talking, purple eyes pointed towards me.

“You didn’t [regressed] without telling me, did you?”

“…”

“Kim Gong-ja, you have a regression skill. Just like when we defeated the [Devil King of Fall Rain]… climbing to the stage and dying on your own, finding a route where we don’t die, and finally figuring out how to make everyone happy… You didn’t carry us all the way here, did you?”

The Black Dragon Master’s hands grasped both of my shoulders.

The beer cans fell, and the chair toppled. I lay on the cool ground, and the Black Dragon Master stopped me from moving.

“That world, isn’t built on your corpses, is it?”

Ahh.

“…”

I see.

‘Um.’

To my embarrassment, I almost burst into tears at that moment.

It wasn’t that I felt like crying because my hard work was recognised. Again. That was an emotion that had already passed its expiration date, and I had long since disposed of it from the refrigerator of my mind.

It wasn’t that.

‘As expected, senior is a beautiful person.’

In Anastasia’s eyes were things like sorrow, regret, gratitude, and anger. Things that weren’t like those. And even things that I wasn’t sure about. They were all mixed together.

Even though I didn’t have any mind reading skills.

[I hate it when a friend dies without my knowledge.]

I could understand the meaning in senior’s eyes.

Because Anastasia had already been beaten by me once.

The battle I was thinking of had ended without any damage like a miracle… The war that took place in the Aegim Empire was actually a flower that had bloomed from my countless deaths.

Senior now knew about it.

“Senior.”

That’s why.

“We, let’s renew our friendship contract.”

I said seriously.

“Huh?”

“The contract we made last time. Ah, let’s please take a moment to clean up. If Raviel were to see this, she would laugh and say [In any case, whenever you go out to drink someone attacks you].”

“Ah, I can imagine that for real… Sorry. Let me sober up, too. Here’s the contract.”

The Black Dragon Master scratched the air with her fingernail. The air split in two as if a zipper had been opened, and within the crack was a black abyss.

As if it wasn’t a big deal, the Black Dragon Master reached into the Abyss and quickly took out something.

+

[Friendship Contract(友情契約書)]

This contract was concluded when the request of Anastasia Zelenski(hereinafter referred to as A) was accepted by Kim Gong-ja(hereinafter referred to as C).

A does not trust the validity period of human emotions, and is confident in the belief that a firm attitude and diligent intelligence will be the foundation for the two parties to stand on. As such, A and C pledge to the following.

1. All promises are only valid if both parties agree.

2. All promises can be abrogated if both parties agree.

3. However, the establishment or abrogation of a promise can only be carried out during the weekend(i.e Saturday or Sunday).

4. If there is a difference of opinion between the two parties, they will roll the dice and follow the opinion of whomever rolls the highest number.

Signed: Anastasia Zelenski(signature)

Signed: Kim Gongja(signature)

+

“Huh. What about the contract…?”

I concentrated a bit of aura on the tip of my fingernail.

“I’ll add a clause.”

Scratch, scratch.

I carefully wrote with the aura on my fingernail. No, in reality, the correct expression would be [burn writing] since I was lightly burning the surface of the paper.

+

5. Just as the two people can say what they want to each other, they can also not say what they don’t want to, and even lie.

6. But when asked with the phrase [swear on the contract], there can be no lies.

7. And the answers received after [swearing on the contract] can never be doubted.

+

I looked up.

“What do you think?”

“…”

“In this case, wouldn’t it be a good way for us to build trust? It’s a bit, well, it’s not that it sounds childish, but since we wrote something like a friendship contract in the first place. I wanted to fit in with senior…”

“Swear on the contract.”

Before I finished talking, Anastasia grabbed my right hand.

Then looked straight at me.

“Have you ever died to create this world as it is now?”

“…”

At most a few lines.

At most a few clauses.

Words and clauses had no power, so it was easy to break them or ignore them.

If things that are easy to break and ignore suddenly become difficult, it could only be because the hand and fingers of the person who wrote them were not ordinary.

“…”

A country whose country was divided into two parts when they were a child. She lost her father while escaping through a crack. I didn’t ask what happened to her mother and she didn’t tell me.

However, she had abandoned the world once.

The fact that she’d abandoned the world showed the Black Dragon Master’s coldness, and her longing for the recognition of the world she abandoned revealed Anastasia’s deficiency. The rebuilding of the abandoned world in the Tower revealed the Black Dragon Master’s nobility, and the fact that she could not take her hands off of the Tower she built showed Anastasia’s anxiety.

If her heart also had a color, it would also be black.

However, nevertheless, she never stopped acting.

Instead of sitting down and sobbing, instead of hugging her knees and shutting herself in, she always stepped out and dealt with the things in front of her.

Senior Anastasia was a strong person.

“I died once.”

I said quietly.

“It would take a long time to tell you about that death. Who I met, who died, what happened as a result… I will tell you about them one day, no, as soon as we clear these stages.”

“However, Anastasia, I can promise you one thing.”

I said to Anastasia.

“From the 31st Floor to the current 37th Floor— I haven’t died once while clearing these stages.”

“The children I raised, the children everyone raised, are amazing. Seriously. I didn’t regress. All of those miracles you mentioned were all possible without me.”

“Huh.”

Suddenly.

The Black Dragon Master stroked my hair.

“Right.”

“…”

“I see.”

Once, twice.

Senior Anastasia’s hand shook as she stroked my hair

“O,”

‘I’, senior said.

After being silent for a while, she said.

“Will ask you to die one day.”

…

“For the Tower, for the world, for the people.”

It was a scene that was easy to imagine.

“I want you to die. To bring back those who died. To please turn back time.”

On the day I revealed that I was a regressor, Anastasia had said.

“On the pretext of sympathy. The lure of justice. The snare of brotherly affection. I will make sure a request to you without shame.”

She would take advantage of me.

My life, and my friendship, for the sake of what’s more important, I would become a human tool to be used for the Tower.

“So, to be honest, I don’t have the right to say these words, but…”

I knew that Anastasia was that kind of person, and Anastasia also knew that she was that kind of person.

Nevertheless.

“But I will say it anyway.”

Senior Anastasia smiled brightly.

“I am glad.”

The smile was as complex as the hues of her heart, but there was an emotion in her eyes, which were looking at me, that I would never misunderstand.

“I’m really glad you weren’t hurt while leading these kids.”

I nodded silently and accepted those words.

“Yes.”

I smiled as well.

“Thank you for worrying about me, and thank you for your concern.”

Suddenly, the Tower’s voice resounded quietly.

[Attention everyone.]

[Entering the 38th Floor.]

[Once again.]

We all turned our heads to the hologram at the same time.

[From now on, we will enter the 38th Floor.]

For the races that live in this world.

For our children, the next ordeal had begun.