There was a man once known as the Guardian in the past.
In fragmented memories… he was human. For his homeland and people, now only a blurred memory, he stood his ground. He aimed his sword at the encroaching monsters.
Even if he fell into the hands of the creator of monsters, forgetting all memories, his will to protect remained. Ironically, it proved that the creator of monsters was indeed evil.
Though his heart to protect never changed, it forced him to aim in the opposite direction. The Guardian wished to protect. Only one clear memory remained. He had wished to protect his lord.
His crumbled pride and memories wobbled like flesh and entrails. From his completely torn apart form, honor and pride could no longer be felt. However, the heart to protect remained.
[You trash buried in a fortress like you are meant that you were never our opponent from the start!!]
A single word pierced his heart. It was the word of a hero who defeated his lord and went on to rebuild the Royal Knights. The weight of that word came crashing down on the Guardian who had lost his pride.
He wished to protect this place at all costs.
So, he ugly expanded his flesh and swallowed the fortress.
He divided his heart into seven and hid them away.
He wished to survive and protect at least this place. Yet, with the hero’s word, the Guardian regained his senses. Of course, it didn’t mean his memories returned. They might never come back.
The one who created him and granted him the name Blood Demon had designed it that way. With such cruel malice, it was impossible for the Guardian to regain his memories. Yet, fragments remained.
And in those fragments lay honor and pride he thought he’d lost. The sticky, ugly flesh completely burned away and disappeared. In its place stood the Guardian.
Though encased in rusted scrap armor. Inside, it was still filled with burning flesh. However, unlike before, he faced the battle with only one heart. His name was Guardian.
“Come forth! Human!! Prove your pride!!”
The Guardian’s cry resonated through the fortress, not retreating against the advancing monsters and demons. Although his power diminished, his skills revived once again.
The terrifying techniques that had not retreated against monsters hundreds of years ago were fully directed at Hans. The deadly line that meant death flashed towards Hans dazzlingly. He thought it was over.
However, the Guardian immediately recognized the fact that his right arm had been completely severed. No, to be precise, it wasn’t just his arm but his head that was severed. Seeing that, Hans clicked his tongue.
‘Damn, is there some strange power at play?’
No matter how fast the Guardian was and how excellent his techniques were, it wouldn’t be hard for Hans, who stopped time, to decapitate him. But just in case, when he released the time stop, what was this?
He clearly checked that his head was severed, yet as soon as time resumed, suddenly it was as if his right arm was cut instead. It seemed the Guardian’s powers had been activated.
On the other hand, the Guardian looked at his remaining arm. It was a complete defeat. A speed he couldn’t even react to, and flashy techniques didn’t exist. Only a clumsy strike remained.
“The Guardian’s pride has vanished, and the human’s honor has fallen to the ground.”
Therefore, that clumsy sword remained in the heart of the Guardian. With such talent, he had come this far. Surely, his sword must have contained countless agonies and fears. I felt the same.
But I had to overcome fear and move forward. That is the fate of those who bear such burdens. Memories he had certainly declared he would never regain began to return slowly.
“But the sword and will are mine.”
It had been like that then. In this half-destroyed fortress, facing overwhelming enemies. After struggling with one arm severed, he ultimately lost and was captured. After that, he fell into such a foul monster.
I won’t make excuses. Faced with overwhelming power, my heart was broken, and I grasped the devil’s hand. But I won’t turn away anymore. The sins accumulated by my fall into a monster, I will bear them in my name.
“I, Ares, will walk the path of the Guardian to the end.”
If you think about it, it was a coincidence. Losing an arm and finding myself in a similar situation. However, when coincidences accumulate, they become miracles. Him regaining his memories was nothing short of a miracle.
At this moment, the Guardian Ares felt gratitude towards the hero. And at the same time, he felt relief. The battles I had fought, we had fought, were not meaningless. They were continuing on.
And.
The hero receiving the gratitude of the Guardian who regained his name.
Hans was now.
‘F*ck that.’
In his mind, he was dissing the Guardian. The key was that he was worried about getting angry if he said it out loud. For Hans, it was a Sh*t situation.
A monster he thought was dead suddenly stood up. It awakened by itself. So, when he cut off an arm, it suddenly ignited its fighting spirit and awakened again.
What kind of dark soul game is this? How many phases are there? This is not a soul-like, it’s just a porno game! Sh*t! Yet Hans’ mind was busy working.
‘They said seven hearts combined into one. Plus, this burning smell means… that armor must have flesh inside.’
Hans had fought for his life countless times on the battlefield. At the same time, he realized he needed to fight with even more calmness. So, he said one thing here.
“Humans have only one heart. What about you?”
“Right, I also have only one heart now.”
“I see, then you are also human.”
Saying that, Hans raised his hand to where his heart was. Then, Ares, who had been watching for a moment, likewise placed a hand over his heart.
‘Yes! That’s it! Sh*t!’
This bastard has no conscience. Hiding his heart in his abdomen instead of his chest. In reality, the flesh was continuously burning, which caused its position to drop, but Hans had no way of knowing that.
Did Ares read Hans’ hostility? The first to move was Ares himself. He attacked a step ahead of Hans. All the dazzling techniques focused on one ultra-fast strike.
For a very brief moment, so short it was comparable to the speed of light. Ares reached an area beyond his limits. If the opponent hadn’t been Hans…
Perhaps he could have struck down even the opponent who once made him despair. However, Ares’ fatal strike could not break through the wall of time stop. Hans was taken aback.
‘That was… on a completely different level.’
Up until now, Hans had seen speeds he couldn’t react to numerous times. That was the kind of battlefield it was. But even Hans sensed that Ares’ previous deadly strike was fundamentally different.
Perhaps because he recognized the danger, Hans quickly drew his divine sword and pierced his heart. And just in case, he also struck Ares’ last remaining left arm. At the same time, time flowed again.
In that instant, Ares looked at his remaining arm. The last of his arms flew away into the void. He could no longer hold a sword. But he smiled instead.
“What is your name?”
“Hans.”
“Well done, Hans.”
He no longer needed the worn-out, battered blade. The descendants of the humans he had risked his life to protect had come this far. Their will would continue to be passed down and honed sharply.
It was a satisfying battle. Moreover, he confirmed the finely honed blades of the descendants at the end. Could it get more satisfying than this? Ares’ body soon began to crumble.
All the flesh that remained of Ares burned away and vanished. No more foul odors flowed from the fortress. Hans lifted his head and looked around.
The disgusting fortress filled with flesh and entrails was no more. Only the half-destroyed fortress remained, just like Ares. Hans clicked his tongue and shifted his gaze.
“There’s the Commander! Commander!!!”
“Sir! Are you okay?!”
“Well then.”
As he looked at the members rushing from afar, Hans couldn’t help but smirk and laugh. They say you grow fond of the ones you dislike. Thinking of all the trouble they’d caused, he wanted to give them a hit.
Yet, as they had built such a great achievement together, he surprisingly felt they were comrades. Thinking about it, Hans and the members had risked their lives and fought together until now.
So, it’s not wrong to feel they were comrades. However, when he was letting his guard down, suddenly, a squelching sound was heard. When he was trying to figure out what it was, at that moment.
[……Our…….]
[……Eternal…….]
“……!!!”
For a fleeting moment.
An unknown memory brushed past.
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