The Fool's End
I lived a foolish life.
It had been a month since I was ousted from my position as Guild Master.
Walking along the forest path, I repeated that name in my mind once more.
A secret name passed down through my family for generations.
Dummy Data.
This name, seemingly written in an ancient, undecipherable tongue unused in this world, held no clear meaning to me, other than representing some mysterious power.
However,
I had heard from my late parents that it was something incredibly dangerous, a power to be used only when the Empire fell and a crisis threatened to bring about the end of the world.
But,
I no longer had the luxury to heed the warnings passed down through generations.
Because of the Hero Party I raised and the guild executives I trusted, I had lost everything I had built over a lifetime.
The beliefs I had cherished so deeply were brutally trampled,
and even my beloved fiancée, whom I had trusted without a doubt, ran off with the Hero and abandoned me.
To make matters worse, not a single person answered my pleas for help in this situation. Instead, they all accused me of crimes I didn't commit and harshly cast me out.
Although there were still people out on expeditions whom I could have asked for help, with even my closest aide, Isis, turning her back on me, I couldn't bring myself to trust them either.
Furthermore, with the Hero Party potentially trying to kill me to eliminate any loose ends,
even if those on the expedition did support me, I couldn't just wait around in danger for people who might not return for a long time.
And most decisively, even if they did return, it would be impossible to turn the tide immediately against those who held the power of the Hero and the legitimacy of the Emperor.
With no other options in sight, no matter how much I thought about it,
I came all the way here to claim the power of the Dummy Data despite my ancestors' warnings, driven solely by a single-minded desire for revenge.
All I had to rely on was a map fragment I had inherited and kept safe, along with my own intuition.
Relying on such threadbare clues, I eventually reached this deep forest in the southern region, far beyond the borders of the Empire.
Here, I began to thoroughly search the area where the ruins sealing that power were said to be located.
My body was covered in scratches from pushing through the dense undergrowth,
my life was constantly threatened by wild beasts that leaped out without warning,
and when night fell, I had to endure the torment of being bitten all over by various insects.
Yet, despite the pain,
I cut down on my sleep and poured all my strength into finding the place.
No...
I had no choice but to do so.
In my current situation, it was the only thing I had left.
It was the only thing left in my life that I could call a goal...
A figure was visible through the thick foliage.
Watching the target's movements, which could be clearly felt even from a considerable distance, the tracker moved cautiously yet swiftly.
There was plenty of distance between this spot and where the target stood.
It was a gap so wide that ordinary people, and even professionally trained individuals, would find it impossible to detect any presence.
Yet, even in this situation, the tracker had been pursuing the target for days without issue, keeping the other party completely unaware of their existence.
It was a feat possible only for the most skilled individuals in this line of work.
However,
aside from this impressive tracking ability,
the tracker had not yet attempted to close the distance any further to strike.
They had confidence in their skills,
but they also knew very well that the capabilities of the target they were pursuing were extraordinary.
Although Seton had focused solely on administrative work as a Guild Master, he was still a man who had made a name for himself as a Grand Master adventurer during his active years.
Against such a man, approaching any closer risked exposing their presence to his sharp senses.
If Seton attempted to flee in this vast forest and they lost his trail as a result, it would lead to a highly troublesome situation.
That was why the tracker waited.
Waiting for the perfect moment...
A golden opportunity to end the job flawlessly, without any variables.
And finally,
the opportunity they had been waiting for began to show itself.
A cave shrouded in deep darkness.
Relying on a small lantern, I examined the wall before me.
'Based on what's written here, this must be the place...'
It was a place inscribed with bizarre, incomprehensible terms.
Although the bronze wall was written in standard characters that I could read, I could not understand the meaning of the content.
Event Patch.
Gacha System.
Mass Resignation of GMs.
Server Shutdown.
And...
The word that had guided me here: Dummy Data.
Because it was filled with such undecipherable ancient words, I couldn't grasp what they meant at all.
However, I could at least tell that this was indeed the place I had been looking for.
The problem was that I had no idea what to do next.
The knowledge left by my ancestors only stated that a certain power slept here;
they had no idea what it was or how to obtain it.
'It seems like deciphering these strange sentences might reveal something, but...'
Inferring from the general context,
it seemed that a massive ritual capable of changing the rules of the world was once attempted, but the plan was ultimately discarded due to someone's opposition. As a result, those who tried to carry it out fell into ruin.
But the main actors...
I had no idea who these 'GMs' were, despite my decent knowledge of continental history,
nor did I have any knowledge of what the 'Event Patch' they tried to implement was.
'Something incredible is definitely sleeping here. The question is how to awaken it...'
I lost track of time as I pondered over and over, trying to decipher the text on the bronze wall.
Just then...
"!"
A faint presence was suddenly felt.
Sensing a sharp line cutting through the darkness and silence of the cave, I whipped my head around.
In that instant,
"Urgh!"
A sudden, excruciating pain flared.
A dagger plunged into my flank, and hot blood began to pour from the wound.
Feeling a deep sense of shock, I endured the pain and quickly drew my sword.
And then—
Clang!
"Tsk!"
"!"
Someone had rushed in and swung a blade at me.
The moment I saw the attacker, a mixture of shock and intense anger flared in my chest.
Despite the mask she wore, her face was clearly recognizable even in the dim light.
A member of the Hero Party, and one of the bastards who had betrayed me.
The woman who had sneered at me as she took everything away.
The assassin of the Hero Party...
"Annas!"
"Tch..."
The black-haired, black-eyed woman showed a hint of frustration at my successful parry, immediately pulling back to create distance.
Annas drew another dagger from her coat, holding one in each hand.
Watching her, I adjusted my grip on my sword and took a defensive stance.
But...
'...! Th-This is...?'
In the next moment, my vision began to blur, and I rapidly lost control of my body.
Her dagger was still lodged in my flank.
Although the bleeding was severe, the wound itself wasn't deep enough to be fatal. Yet, my rapidly deteriorating condition forced me to realize the truth too late.
'Is this... poison?'
A deadly poison coated the dagger piercing my flesh. As it spread, I felt my consciousness slipping away.
Watching my state, Annas slowly approached me, daggers gripped tightly in both hands.
She was an orphan I had taken in, setting her on the path of an adventurer.
Seeing the very girl I raised now walking toward me with blades drawn,
I realized once again just how foolish my life had been, and a hollow laugh escaped my lips.
'...Ha... Haha... Right... So this is how it ends. In the end... not by a monster or the Demon King... but by the very Hero Party I raised...'
A miserable end brought about by actions born of goodwill.
And so...
Realizing once more how useless a life sacrificed for others truly was,
I could no longer maintain my grip on reality and lost consciousness completely.
My final thought—
If there was a next life,
I swore I would never hold onto a pathetic emotion like mercy again.
Instead of chasing meaningless ideals, I would live solely for myself...