The Extra's Odyssey - 228 Fake Hero [2]
-(??? || ???; Location: ???)-
“10,839 deaths, one more time and I can leave this hell.”
I whistled while smirking at the figure in front of me. The figure was covered in black obscurity, preventing me from making out their appearance. The only parts visible were their black wings and the pair of horns on their forehead.
Far behind me was a gigantic tree, if I had to guess it was bigger than our solar system. The trunk of the tree was made from black bones and so were its branches. In place of leaves were black flames wailing in anguish, and five rivers formed circular rings around the tree.
This was a Hell.
“Huh, where am I?!”
Suddenly, the haze covering my mind disappeared.
Wasn’t I going to talk to the being inside my soul? I remember standing in front of the lightless veil inside my soul, but why am I here suddenly?
Remembering him, anger boiled inside me.
“You… awakened?” The black figure circled me. “Are the restrictions loosening because you became an Overlord?”
Shifting my gaze to the black figure, I tried to think of a reason for the gap in my memory, but nothing came to my mind.
“Maybe you’ll remember this time?” Mumbling to itself, the black figure snapped its fingers. “I’ve decided. It’s worth a try.”
At the snap, the innermost river surged and seven figures came out from it.
They looked almost alive, but for some reason, I knew they weren’t. In this realm, the only one alive was me. Not even the black figure beside me was alive anymore.
ραпdα nᴏνɐ| сom
Flapping its wings once, the one who looked at me earlier was flying towards me at an astonishing speed. Only destruction remained in its wake.
“A man cannot slay a God, only a hero can.”
The figure devoured the space in between us to cover the distance faster, even if by a second only.
My body moved on its own and I took a stance to fight, an unreasonable reaction I know, but I did that unconsciously.
I was alive, but I wouldn’t die here. The source of confidence was unknown, but it came to me almost naturally.
“But if you must, you need to become the enemy of creation itself.”
My vision shifted suddenly, and the world turned upside down. As the world spun, I saw a headless body falling to the ground.
“10,840, you can wake up now.”
Darkness engulfed me, but I heard the black figure speaking for the last time.
“Take this as my gift for becoming an Overlord. Don’t take too long for the farewell and don’t worry about ‘him’ watching your meeting.”
Contrary to waking up, I was pulled somewhere else.
*
I was walking.
When did I start? Why was I doing so? I knew not, but my feet would not stop.
The words of the black figure echoed in my mind and encouraged me to reach my destination.
A Farewell.
I wanted to meet him one last time.
With my distorted sense of time, I couldn’t tell how long it took but I reached my destination.
In front of me were colossal gates with intricate engravings of warriors triumphing over forces of evil.
Screeech-
The doors opened with an ear-piercing creak when I reached the doorsteps.
Stepping inside, I found myself standing in an ancient court of someone like an emperor of the past.
A figure was sitting on the throne on the other side of the room. With a crown on his head, and a spear resting next to his thrown, he stared at me with a helpless smile.
“To revive me even if for a moment only, I can’t fathom Mephis’ limits.”
The appearance of the person sitting on the throne was familiar to me. After all, it was the appearance I used in this new world.
“Which Eth are you? The one I know, or the one who transmigrated me?”
“As I thought, you knew, huh?”
Snap-
The figure flicked his wrist, and our surroundings changed. Broken buildings, a shattering sky, countless corpses with the same appearances, it was the scene I last saw in my dream after using [Synchronization].
‘Eth’ pointed at the corpses and spoke to me.
“I am him and he is me. All of us are one and the same.”
My face hardened, but ‘Eth’ didn’t stop speaking.
“No matter how many times he(I) tried, we failed. It was after countless tries he(I) decided to change our approach and…” He turned to me. “…summoned you.”
Mixed emotions surged in my heart. It was like I had thought. These corpses were ‘Eth’ from previous timelines, and the one who brought me to this world was the same.
I felt betrayed.
At first, I believed that the Eth with me had no memories about the previous timelines, but was I mistaken?
“Did you… did you…”
“Have memories of my previous self?” He shook his head. “I was as clueless as you. It was only after I became your soul core that I was given access to the memories of previous selves at the last moment.”
My eyes widened.
Relief and sadness both were crushing my reasoning. But we didn’t have much time left, ‘Eth’ apologized in our farewell.
“He(I) was tired, nothing seemed to work, and he(I) took drastic measures in frustration. Even if I didn’t have my memories, the one who brought you into this god-forsaken world was me(him).”
“You aren’t him.” I clenched my jaws. “If you didn’t have those memories, then you aren’t the same person.”
‘Eth’ smiled back.
“If only it was that easy. Ultimately, I(he) was the one who left the burdens of my sins for an innocent soul to bear.”
The illusion of the surroundings broke, and we were back inside the courtroom in the castle. ‘Eth’s’ voice was filled with sorrow.
“Even if I apologize for eternity, it wouldn’t be enough. All I can do is help you as my parting gift.”
Feeling something amiss, I tried to speak, but ‘Eth’ cut me off.
“Do not trust him(me). He(I) has gone too far to turn back, he(I) won’t stop until he(I) has achieved his goals.”
He stood up from his throne and walked toward me.
“You must focus on your >Seed of Chaos<. It is a power that is a must for an Overlord. In every era, beings with >Seed of Chaos< are born, but only a handful remain alive until adulthood, let alone to be able to die of old age.”
“Blooming that seed is even harder. Since the era of creation, not even ten Overlords have been able to bloom their seeds.”
Stopping in front of me, he bowed.
“He(I) will try to use you, not only him others will, too. An Overlord is the greatest and mightiest weapon of destruction, but that is your chance, too. This is the first timeline with an Overlord. The future is no longer certain to anybody.”
“Ancient horrors of the past will arise, heroes will be born, and the enemies from beyond are lying in wait. But I cannot guarantee that anyone will take your side. That is the path you started walking when you killed the Abomination.”
His voice was trembling as he looked below, suppressing his feelings. A small pool of tears formed beneath.
His sincerity and grief were being transmitted to me through our connection.
“But we are desperate. It is wrong of me to ask you, but please help him(me).”
“Is that what you want?”
“What?”
‘Eth’ exclaimed at my question.
“Helping the ‘Eth’ on the other side is that what you, who only lived this life, want?”
I refused him once, yet he sacrificed himself for me. Even if he said that he was the same person who brought me here, for me he wasn’t.
He didn’t have those memories when he decided to sacrifice himself, even at this moment, he was apologizing to me for bringing me here. He was different from the one hiding behind the veil.
“Yes, that is my final wish.” Raising his head, he smiled. “Maybe for you I’m a different Eth, but for me, he(I) is something I would become in the future, for me we are the one and the same.”
As our parting came close, I spoke my honest thoughts.
“You are right. I can never acknowledge you two as the same person. And… I’m sorry, too.”
The world around us started to flicker out of existence and ‘Eth’ was turning into dust, to be lost forever in darkness.
“Why?”
“Because I’m going to kill him.”
‘Eth’s’ eyes widened, but ultimately he smiled back.
“It’s just like you. Are you trying to take revenge for me?”
I shook my head.
“It’s something I was going to do either way.”
“Sigh, a tsundere until the end.”
He laughed at me.
Finally, he disappeared and left his parting words.
“Thank you for being with me until the end.”
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