Pina Grancia’s true happiness, huh.
I definitely remember wishing for something like that to the God of Light.
“Are you saying it’s all my fault…?”
That didn’t excuse her for having to live an unhappy life.
I clenched my teeth in resignation.
Unhappiness created not by my will but by others.
If only you all had picked a proper hero, none of this would have happened!
“You should’ve chosen a proper hero to face the Demon God…”
I shook my fist at the two gods.
The ones who had the power to choose heroes and demon kings.
“At that time, it was the best choice.”
“What do you mean?”
If we’re going to lay blame, shouldn’t it be these guys for not being more careful when selecting heroes?
“Apologies won’t be enough, Demon King of Conviction.”
The dark god sighed bitterly.
Lisette opened her palm and conjured something.
“This world is connected to other worlds.”
The scales of Fantasia.
It looked just like the place Pina, who had fallen into a Demon God, tried to invade.
A white snake entwined with a black tree trunk.
Why show this to me now?
“If one side breaks, the other world can crumble too.”
──KUUUNG!
A white weight added to one side of the scales.
The ground shook beneath me as if an earthquake had struck.
“The reality you live in is the same, Demon King who owes Pina Grancia her life.”
They insisted that this world and the reality I inhabited were connected.
Considering how Pina saved my younger self across time and space earlier, it seems we saved each other.
‘So you really saved the younger me.’
It was a paradoxical scene, reminiscent of the chicken-or-the-egg debate.
The day I learned about the game [Night Heart] wasn’t a coincidence; it was destiny.
“But what does that have to do with our Pina?”
I paused to catch my breath as I asked.
I felt like I was getting closer to understanding what Pina’s happiness was, but…
“If, dear Lee Soo-hyun, the gathering of what is good (善) manifests as a Saintess…”
The God of Light responded as if posing a riddle.
That innocent smile held no malice, yet…
The scales had lost their balance and were tipping.
“What do you think the opposite would be?”
Well, maybe the opposite of a Saintess is a Demon God?
So said the black-haired, rose-decorated Pina.
“A Demon God…?”
If a Saintess brings miracles to the world, then a Demon God brings destruction.
I, too, erased the presence of the Magic Hat and myself in this world line.
And the Demon God Pina attempted to kidnap me from another world.
“Right, this abomination created by the malevolent energies of this world. That was the Demon God we couldn’t anticipate.”
Starters and Lisette said they were horrified when the Demon God first appeared.
Initially, it looked like dozens of spiders lumped together.
A lifeless woman’s limbs combined with a mechanical creation.
“It was the worst outcome, born from a human trying to defy the death of their beloved.”
“At first, it was an idol made by the Demon King who lost their beloved.”
The obsession of trying to reclaim what was lost was filthy and ugly.
All manner of corruption gathered like refuse dumped into a sewage system.
Thus, it gained the power to cross into different world lines.
“The position of a Demon King wasn’t given to commit such heinous acts.”
Lisette frowned, pressing her forehead.
Even if they fell from hero to Demon King, it doesn’t mean their minds should be corrupted.
Kainel was like that, Pina was like that, and so was I.
“Then why… the Demon Kings…?”
“Because even after losing their beloved, humans must continue to live for tomorrow.”
Four small weights, identical in shape and size.
Starters placed a white weight on the opposite side to balance it out.
“The brighter the light, the darker the shadow when it’s lost.”
The powers of a Demon King are stronger than when they were a hero.
Beyond merely using concepts, it can even overshadow the laws of this world.
“How one changes the world is entirely up to them. Like you, Lee Soo-hyun.”
She smiled softly at me.
Even as a fallen Demon King, I worked hard to save Pina.
Kainel, who transformed into the Light Demon King, and Pina, who became the Demon God, felt the same.
“We believed in such human qualities, which is why we searched for the ‘strongest’ heroes across different worlds.”
“At that time, we urgently needed to defeat the Demon God.”
A magician who wanted to turn the impossible into reality.
A reaper who felt compassion for a girl afflicted with an incurable disease.
“The truth that cannot be hidden even by lies, and the omniscience that remembers everything.”
A boy who was an experiment subject bonded with a God.
A Celestial Demon who lost their beloved daughter in the War of the Divine Beasts.
“The greatest strength is a weakness that helps others. Even a Celestial Demon wouldn’t unsheathe their weapon against a child.”
Heroes chosen based on four potent descriptors: truth, omniscience, helplessness, and omnipotence.
Just like me and Pina, Dennis and Kainel.
Even though they selected heroes hastily to stop the Demon God, Starters and Lisette believed in their potential.
“Humans are inherently contradictory beings, finding hope even in despair.”
The two gods nodded as they gazed at me.
Drawing gentle arcs in their eyes, they felt almost like a couple.
“But they wandered as Demon Kings committing evil after losing those they loved.”
“The regression of good into evil… we had to revert it to progression.”
The four weights that she placed on the opposite side started moving toward the dark side.
Balance was collapsing.
The chains tightened as if about to snap, and the scales began to tremble.
“In the end, we decided on a being capable of preventing that imbalance.”
“The Hero of Prophecy who Defeats All Demon Kings.”
They placed a new weight on the scale, restoring the balance.
A white weight with a rose drawing.
The one thing it clearly represented was Pina, which achieved perfect balance.
“Dear Hero…”
“Indeed, originally, Pina Grancia was meant to become a hero to maintain this balance.”
Starters and Lisette had intended to use Pina to ameliorate all tragedies.
“Even if she defeats the Demon Kings, the Demon God could resurrect and cross over from another world.”
“We required a means to synchronize various world lines into one.”
The final destination where all possibilities converge.
Even if they failed this time, hope remained for future success.
A fact only those who inherit souls could perceive.
The name of something that transcends all world lines, a perfect truth.
“…The Grand Route.”
It was the Grand Route.
Originally, the dear hero Pina was meant to defeat all the Demon Kings and establish the Grand Route.
“But the Demon Kings of the Hero Church were more sinister than we expected.”
“Before we could intervene, they kidnapped Pina Grancia and took everything from her.”
The God of Light, Starters, kept wiping away flowing tears. Looks like she foresaw the future with her ability to govern time.
“We barely managed to make her a Saintess, but at that point, the person Pina Grancia was meant to be was no longer capable of happiness.”
Had they not appointed her as a Saintess, Pina would have died a miserable death in obscurity.
To rectify that painful failure.
For the dear hero Pina to complete the Grand Route.
“After experiencing one failure, we shifted our goal to finding a hero with a ‘strong heart.’”
“That was the game trilogy known as [Night Heart Trilogy].”
This world was replicated in a game they scattered across the realm.
They prepared thoroughly to find a hero capable of toppling the Demon God, the Truth Demon God, the Magic Hat.
From recreating this world with [Night Heart] to constructing [Black Heart], which illustrated an unhappy future.
“Thus, what we sought was…”
They had waited endlessly for someone like me to appear.
“That’s right. It’s you, Lee Soo-hyun. The one who cherished the Nameless Saintess the most.”
“A hero who never stopped trying to save her, possessing a heart stronger than anyone else.”
It was then that I, possessed by Licht in round one, was about to conquer the Magic Hat and establish the Grand Route.
“Your unfulfilled wish is Pina Grancia’s true happiness.”
“However, we were in no position to grant that wish.”
The God of Light and the Dark God fell into agony over my unfulfilled wish.
It was too late to make the Nameless Saintess happy.
If the Grand Route were to be established, Pina would forever be bound and never reclaim her memories or name.
“She has already lost her name, memories, family, and friends…”
Initially, they proposed a different wish.
Couldn’t the Nameless Saintess, Pina, just be happy living in a world with no Demon Kings and have children?
“You rejected the notion of being one-sidedly happy.”
“And yet, you wished for a happy ending where everyone is happy.”
But I rejected their proposal.
Living alongside Pina, who lost everything in this possessed state, wouldn’t bring her the happiness she originally deserved.
“I did wish for such a thing…”
To grant my wish, Starters and Lisette took my memories.
Intervening with fate required constraints.
Going back in time to meet Pina, restarting everything from the beginning.
“This was both a test and a clever ruse to change destiny.”
“The lineage of souls is the inheritance of relationships. Since you love Pina Grancia, we trusted you could do it.”
This was the only method to cast aside all destinies and forge a new path.
Initially, I mistook this world for a game.
“Even if it seemed like a game, your love never wavered.”
“The very fact that you returned to the past was a paradox.”
The contradictory points and inheritance system the status window had always mentioned.
All related to my true identity.
As if I were on a Saintess route in a game.
People with good relationships in past lives could meet again in their next lives.
“You could have formed a harem and raised your affection levels.”
“There were easier methods, yet you walked the righteous path.”
Throughout my 24 reincarnations, I maintained my consistency.
“The Shadow Wolf could have attacked, and I could have fled, abandoning Kainel and Ariel.”
I could have run away, leaving behind the Light Hero and the Blaze Mage, but I didn’t.
“I could have ignored Nex and Schartines.”
I assisted the purple Phoenix and Vampire Saintess in their marriage.
“I might not have rescued Mardol from the Magic Hat.”
“I could’ve chosen not to defeat the Demon King for Dennis and the White Lily.”
Had I been someone else, I would have pursued the heroines to increase affection levels. Most people in games did that anyway.
“I didn’t even need to set up a meeting for the Drake and the Sage.”
“I had no reason to bring the Northern Duchy’s princess to meet her friend.”
But I chose to help others achieve love over my own selfish desires.
Just as the Nameless Saintess Pina saved my life, I believed that was the right thing to do.
“The true Grand Route is a singular happy ending formed from the wishes of both people.”
Starters and Lisette reached out their hands, speaking gently.
“It is the true happiness of the one you love.”
“And being a source of strength beside that person.”
From the outstretched hands emanated a white halo, enveloping my body.
“Even through 25 repetitions, the two of you were always together.”
[Lee Soo-hyun♡Pina Grancia 96% ‘NEW!!’]
The status window before me changed colors to match.
The status window transformed like sparkling diamonds from a pink hue.
The moment I saw it, I felt a presence around me.
“You were closer to a hero who saves everyone rather than just one person.”
The voice of the Nameless Saintess echoed.
Wearing pure white saintly robes, she came to stand beside me, addressing the gods boldly.
[Lee Soo-hyun♡Pina Grancia 97% ‘NEW!!’]
“Su-hyun… is the kind of man who would sacrifice his life for me.”
Now her voice carried a hint of tears.
The Demon God Pina, with her black hair and red rose adornment, appeared at my side, speaking.
[Lee Soo-hyun♡Pina Grancia 98% ‘NEW!!’]
“Brother… you were my first love…”
A voice from below.
Being small in stature, she was almost unnoticed, but young Pina from my childhood stepped up to speak to the gods.
“Su-hyun represents the Black Knight I wish to support and love eternally.”
Wearing sparkling glass armor with a Mana Rose in her hair, she grasped my hand protectively against the others.
[Lee Soo-hyun♡Pina Grancia 99% ‘NEW!!’]
Then, just one percent remained in our affection level.
What should I say here?
“…….”
I had hesitated up till now, pondering what I meant to Pina.
But right now, one thing was clear.
The significance of a hero’s conviction.
“I have come this far with the sole intention of wishing for Pina’s happiness.”
My goal of pursuing her happiness.
I declared my conviction while holding her hand tightly.
“I have always loved and thought only of her.”
[Lee Soo-hyun♡Pina Grancia 100% ‘NEW!!’]
With that, the affection level between me and Pina reached 100%.
That meant there would be no obstacles to our union anymore.
[The name of this world line is the Grand Final Route.]
The Gods of Light and Dark watched me and Pina, altering the text on the status window.
Just as they believed I would reach this point.
[This is the Grand Route, named after Pina (Fine) Grancia.]
─The Grand Route is now complete. Please ensure this time it is a happy ending.
