Chapter 309
【The Baptism of Stars】
Manifesting one’s beliefs in the world.
I could finally understand the words of the Black Prince.
I close my eyes.
Thump!
My heart races.
Thump, thump.
The Black Stone resonates with my heart.
A montage flashes before my eyes.
Since my possession until now, the path I’ve walked unfolds like a panorama in front of me.
Acquiring Durandal, dueling Olivia, awakening the Gift, my clash with Rin, cherry blossom outings, fights with Eri, Imgan School, Kyoto Training, the fiancé battle, summer school, vacations in Korea, cultural festivals, school trips, and even the Sports Festival.
Every single one of my tracks unfolds before me.
A chuckle escapes me.
Pathetic.
I can’t stand how pathetic I was until just now.
Is it all because of me?
Was it because the original story got twisted, leading to unexpected developments that made me want to give up everything?
I’m not some hero?
“Absurd.”
It truly is absurd.
It’s ridiculous.
On the day I went to France to save Olivia, I had already made my resolution.
The one who would bear the consequences of the twisted original story, the one who would take responsibility was none other than me.
If necessary, I would take on the role of the world’s savior instead of our groom, Yuji.
I had resolved this even when Muramasa invaded Korea and Seoul was attacked by the League.
Neither to remain in this world nor return to the original world.
I’ll choose a third option that cherry-picks the benefits of both sides.
When all the story is over, of course, I’ll take responsibility for everyone and create a gate connecting the original world and this world.
That was my determination.
“But merely······.”
Merely unable to bear such trials.
Merely startled by this small butterfly effect.
I hid like a coward.
It was the same during the cultural festival, the school trip, and even now.
I said I would take responsibility, but when the time came to do so, I crumbled.
It’s really stupid.
If I can’t overcome even this small butterfly effect.
Then capturing Messiah and opening the gate to return to the original world becomes impossible.
My shattered psyche rapidly regains its strength.
The dull blade of my belief sharpens once more.
What does salvation even matter?
What about my actions toward them?
What does the aftermath of possession even mean?
None of that mattered from the start.
My beliefs were set from the beginning.
I take full responsibility for the outcomes of my actions, no matter what they may be.
If there are obstacles hindering my return, I’ll crush them all.
That’s all there is to it.
Simply, I’ve now realized that I foolishly turned a blind eye to the recent events.
I only just realized that I was just avoiding it.
I hated light novels that much, yet I ended up acting like a chump just like a light novel protagonist.
How foolish.
Now that I realize this, I won’t make the same mistake twice.
[Partner. Are you awake now?]
The voice of the Black Prince echoes in my head.
“Yeah.”
The corners of my mouth lift.
“Seems like you’re finally coming to your senses.”
I open my eyes.
The Black Sphere, the Abyss Generator, is right in front of me.
Through my endlessly expanded perception, I sense the world turning upside down.
Over the black landscape that was once the Professor’s domain—where only darkness existed—a deep blue resembling the night sky is applied.
Stars begin to appear, one, two, three, four… countless of them.
It wasn’t just stars.
Galaxies, nebulae, and comets start to appear in the night sky.
[Partner… this is…?]
The Black Prince trails off in my mind.
I know without him saying it.
The landscape I’ve conjured within my imagination is the universe.
In the deep blue space of the universe, a blue star appears, larger than the other stars and galaxies, rising like the moon in the night sky.
It was Earth.
Not the Earth of the light novel world I’m in, but the Earth of the reality I originally lived in.
The world I created wasn’t the light novel world.
It was the universe of the world where I lived, the reality itself.
[…The universe? What are you…?]
The Black Prince trails off again.
I close my eyes and open them.
Floating like a small moon within the vastness of space is the Earth of my original world, with a flustered Professor and the Black Sphere halted right in front of me.
I raise Durandal and slash at the sphere.
Ka-BOOM!
The Black Sphere explodes with a loud bang, dispersing like ink.
The infinite darkness of the universe devours the ink, while the stars sparkle and emit hostile magical energy.
My ability of imagination unfolding comes to mind naturally.
A reality that saves everyone.
It’s the scenario where no one gets hurt and no one dies.
A sanctuary of infinite revivals that permits neither death nor injury, supplied with an infinite vitality as long as it resides within the imagination.
A space that can share the buffs inherent to the user of imagination unfolding with all allies.
It is the universe of the savior.
Woooooosh.
As my belief solidifies, the boundless deep blue universe ripples and roils like waves.
The countless stars, galaxies, and nebulae filling the cosmic space sparkle in response.
The Earth of reality floating above trembles.
In a flash,
A beam of light resembling the Milky Way rises from the countless stars and galaxies in the vast universe and pours down upon the fallen Seira.
[The Blessing of Stars]
A miracle that resurrects allies with starlight infused with the belief of salvation, only possible within the realm of imagination.
She twitches.
Seira’s body stirs.
As she receives the beam of light, her small figure gradually grows until she finally appears as a woman in her twenties.
A voluptuous chest, a slender waist.
It was Seira in her prime, just as I had seen in the animations.
She flinches.
Seira’s eyelids lift.
*
Seira’s consciousness returns.
Thump.
Her heart races.
Thump, thump.
The Magic Core, which had been sputtering like a broken engine from permanent damage, starts to operate smoothly.
Thump, thump, thump.
The Magic Core pulses and supplies magical energy throughout her body.
The overflowing infinite magical energy envelops Seira’s entire being.
Wraps around her whole body.
Thump, thump.
A warm light circles around her body.
Seira opens her eyes.
“······!!”
Seira’s gaze trembles as she witnesses the limitless expanse of the universe.
Her heart flutters as she soon recognizes her returning appearance from her prime days.
In the vast cosmic space, countless stars and galaxies flicker, showering Seira with soft waves of magic energy that resonate and vibrate with her Magic Core.
She spots Kim Deok-Sung floating in the cosmic space.
Instinctively, she realizes.
‘This is······. the kid’s mind projection.’
This universe before her is indeed the realm of Kim Deok-Sung’s mind projection.
Alongside this, Seira’s hand trembles.
Mind projection is the ultimate technique that overlays a hero’s personal landscape with their thoughts and beliefs onto reality.
Only those who reach the pinnacle of superpowers can arrive at this ideal state.
The landscape of the world that mind projection overlays symbolizes the potential and beliefs held by an individual.
Naturally, the broader and more specific it is, the stronger it becomes.
And the world that Kim Deok-Sung manifested was······.
The universe.
The vast and infinite universe, symbolizing his beliefs, conveyed a cold chill to enemies while bringing warm comfort to allies.
As Seira gradually stood up, absorbing the warmth transmitted from the stars and galaxies in the cosmos, she saw Kim Deok-Sung.
Thump.
Seira’s heart raced.
Her face turned red.
‘If so, this means······. the kid’s magic······?’
The thought of his magic flowing into her body took Seira’s heart on a wild ride.
Ten years ago.
She was betrayed by her disciple.
She couldn’t protect her companions.
That truth remained a deep scar in Seira’s heart.
Thus, after that day, she had not allowed herself to become attached to others.
Having survived alone, she believed that failing to guard her disciple resulted in the birth of the ultimate villain, so how could she dare to get close to someone only to eventually hurt them?
She didn’t want to hurt anyone anymore.
She didn’t want to be hurt by love anymore.
Even after becoming the headmaster of Shuo Hero Academy, that thought never changed.
Only Aris was an exception.
But the person before her was different.
Black hair, black eyes.
His appearance and actions reminded her of her long-lost crush.
It started with curiosity, for sure.
But as time passed, curiosity turned into fondness, and fondness blossomed into love.
And just now, at the moment the Abyss Generator took off, Seira realized.
‘This body······. No, I······. have grown fond of this kid······.’
She had fallen in love with him.
‘Not because he resembles the sword master, nor chasing after the traces of my old crush······.’
He resembled the sword master.
The thought that he resembled her past crush was just a self-justifying excuse to deny her feelings due to her past trauma.
Seira belatedly came to this realization.
‘This body······. I······. like you······. not anyone else but you. It has been so long······. that I have come to like you.’
Seira now clearly realized this fact.
She had finally confronted her feelings.
Thump.
Her face turned bright red as she honestly faced her own feelings for the first time.
The heart hidden beneath her ample chest beat more fiercely.
Thump, thump, thump.
With her heart racing like a runaway train, Seira’s face turned even redder.
With a heart racing like a locomotive, Seira’s face turned even redder.
“······Hey, kid!”
Boom.
Seira sprinted over and hugged Kim Deok-Sung.
In her prime mode, Seira had transformed into a tall, glamorous beauty almost matching Kim Deok-Sung’s height, burying his face in her chest.
With a flushed face, Seira gently stroked Kim Deok-Sung’s black hair.
She was holding the guy she liked.
That fact made Seira’s heart dangerously flutter.
From the stars floating in the universe, warm starlight poured down, and she felt his magical energy throughout her body.
“I’m so glad.”
The first thing Seira uttered was relief.
She nearly lost someone precious again.
But she didn’t lose him.
Thanks to her sacrifice, the kid, her beloved disciple, the man she had feelings for reached the pinnacle of heroes—an EX rank in the sky.
That realization made her proud and filled her with warmth.
“······And I’m sorry.”
The next words were an apology.
Until now, Seira had treated him like a replacement for the sword master Kurosawa Akira.
It was an excuse to fool her own heart, but still, treating someone as a mere replacement didn’t change the fact.
It was a selfish notion.
That made Seira feel embarrassed and sorry.
“You are you. Not anyone else… You are my beloved disciple, Kim Deok-Sung.”
Seira stroked Kim Deok-Sung’s head with trembling hands.
A single tear rolled down her cheek.
The shadows that had loomed over her heart began to lift little by little.
Her past trauma was gradually fading away.
Seira released Kim Deok-Sung from her embrace.
Her body filled with the magical energy of starlight.
Seira’s red eyes turned away from him to the traitor disciple, the Professor.
The Professor was flustered.
The black space of his projected vision continued to shrink.
The darkness of despair couldn’t overcome the starlit universe of salvation.
Her eyes, once filled with the excitement and pounding of a teenage girl, cooled rapidly.
“Good job, kid.”
Seira smiled.
As she reached out, the fallen black parasol flew through the air towards her.
Tap.
Whoosh.
The parasol in Seira’s hand unfurled through her telekinesis.
Shimmer.
A brilliant white flash enveloped her entire body.
The gothic dress dyed white fluttered gracefully.
The white parasol in her hand ignited in white magical energy, and a translucent spirit appeared behind Seira.
Overwhelming white magical energy radiated from her, extending endlessly into the vast, dark blue cosmos in a halo shape.
In the center of the dazzling orb that illuminated the dark universe with pure white light, she stood.
The White Empress.
Yoshizaki Seira.
The great hero who saved humanity and the world from a cataclysm descended upon the savior’s universe clad in the form of her prime.
“From now on, this White Empress will face humanity’s enemies.”
Now was the time to finish what she couldn’t ten years ago.
This was a fight that belonged to no one but herself.
It was a responsibility she could never pass off to others.
This time, she would definitely protect everyone.
Seira’s red eyes were fixated on the Professor.
The moment her finger pointed at him.
Shimmer.
A white sun created by the Empress descended upon the universe.
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