Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Beautiful Times Continue
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Everyone around was rejoicing.
It was the mana core of a Lord-grade monster, worth an astronomical sum. There was no way they wouldn't be thrilled.
But why?
Why was my heart pounding like mad? My intuition, which had served me faithfully all my life, felt sharper than ever right now. My throat was closing up, and I couldn't breathe.
Cold sweat dripped down, and words wouldn't come out properly.
"St-stop!"
The moment that forced voice escaped my lips—
My vision went white.
Then came what sounded like an explosion.
I think my teammates screamed, but it was drowned out by the overwhelming noise, faint as a whisper.
After that, I felt heat like my whole body was burning.
"Arghhh!"
Flailing my arms in agony, I realized I was crawling on the ground.
Barely opening my eyes, I was speechless at the horrific scene before me.
It was a sea of fire.
Like something out of hell.
Here and there, blackened lumps—could those be my teammates? The Lord-grade monster's corpse had its chest completely blown open. Chunks of flesh and globs of fat spilling out were engulfed in flames, burning away.
"Ugh!"
I vomited uncontrollably.
What the hell had happened?
I struggled to prop myself up halfway and shouted.
"Deputy leader!"
No response.
"Kid! Fuck! Kid, you bastard!"
Even in this chaos, the surroundings were eerily quiet.
"Ugh! Sniff!"
Something welled up in my throat. My nose stung, and something warm gathered at the corners of my eyes.
I gritted my teeth to hold it back, but in the end, drops fell, staining the ground with small puddles.
"You fucking bastards!"
Not a single reply.
I was the only one alive. Why had I survived alone?
I soon found out.
It was because of the Shield of the Solar Deity rolling at my feet.
After the subway incident, I'd just been carrying it around openly.
When I strapped it to my back, everyone laughed, saying I looked like an American squad leader.
With that shield, my body was reinforced to the level of a high Rank-3 hunter. Plus, it had a +30% flame resistance option. That's how I'd endured.
"Ugh!"
Still, my condition was awful.
Blood poured from my mouth in a gush. I frantically pulled a potion from my subspace pouch and chugged it, but it was useless. This explosion wasn't ordinary.
It was damage from a special spell—potions couldn't heal it. It was like trying to patch a burst hose with a trowel.
Roll.
The half-empty potion bottle rolled across the ground.
I reached for it several times but kept failing and gave up. My hand wouldn't obey. I couldn't grasp what I wanted.
But what was that explosion?
I had no idea what had happened. If I'd known, I never would've brought my team here.
What a blunder. I'd planned to take responsibility for everything afterward.
But that was naive thinking.
No matter how much I needed help, I never should've brought my teammates.
Regretting it now was pointless.
"Hahaha...."
A hollow laugh escaped me.
Six of them had been comrades for ten years in the team. And they were all dead. There was a flash, and that was it.
We'd died like bugs crushed by a passerby, clueless to the end.
"Ha...."
What a hassle. In this state, I just wanted to close my eyes and rest. The only thing nagging me was my sister.
What to do? My poor sister, what to do?
As that thought crossed my mind, the flames suddenly surged wildly.
It was due to a gust like a gale-force wind.
Sparks whirled everywhere like a vortex.
And in the center, an angel descended.
It was an existence that blended perfectly with this hellscape, unbelievably so.
"Ah...."
Even on the verge of death, I was entranced by her beauty.
The angel's wings were black.
Six in total, with dense, glossy feathers.
Each pair varied in size but balanced perfectly.
Her eyes and hair were gray. Her skin was flawlessly white, like milk, without a single blemish.
Her entire form was achromatic.
She looked like something out of a black-and-white photo.
Standing haughtily amid the vivid, bright flames, the contrast was striking.
She spotted me and approached in a straight line. The flames couldn't harm her at all.
I knew who this angel was.
No way I wouldn't.
I'd never imagined meeting her here like this, though.
"Metatron...."
A parched voice slipped from my lips.
Her figure was slender. She looked about middle school third-year or high school first-year in appearance.
But judging her by looks alone would've been foolish, given all the rumors I'd heard. The angel commonly called "that bitch," "that dog," or "that double bitch."
Sure enough, she looked down at me like trash.
"You've all ruined it. The trap I so carefully set."
Her voice was cold, laced with anger.
It was beautifully melodic, yet chilling to the bone.
"A trap?"
"Indeed. A meticulously laid trap to catch another Lord-grade monster. Lord-grades covet and steal the mana cores of other Lord-grades. It was the perfect trap. But you idiots ruined everything."
Metatron frowned at the ashen remains of my teammates.
"A fitting end for such fools."
"Unjust blame. We didn't know anything."
"Ignorance is another name for sin, human."
Metatron's tone was icy.
"...Then couldn't you have stopped us from recklessly dismantling the Lord-grade monster? Sounds like you set the trap to trigger the moment the core was touched."
"If I'd known you idiots would do something that brainless, I never would've! But to me, this trap was just one of many preparations. I flew here thinking the blast meant it had activated, only to find this mess. Unbelievable! Humans are nothing but trouble and useless."
What a sharp-tongued woman.
I considered arguing that her trap had wiped out my team, but dropped it.
She hadn't invited us in the first place. We'd barged in on our own and ruined her efforts.
"Ugh!"
Blood surged from my mouth again.
The shield had kept me alive for now, but that was it. I couldn't hold out much longer. The trap was meant to damage a Lord-grade monster, after all.
Guessing its power wasn't hard.
Still, I didn't want to die like this. Metatron's arrival had changed my mind from accepting death.
"Save me."
A pathetic attachment to life suddenly gripped me.
"What? Why should I save you? Sorry, impossible. I don't have the power to heal wounds that severe."
"You're an archangel. Even as an outsider, you're rank one."
"I do have the power to heal wounds. But it only works on me. It's a foreign power—applying it to others would hasten their death."
Now I understood why Metatron was called a fallen angel.
An angel rank one without healing magic? Unlikely. But for some reason, it only worked on herself. No wonder the fallen rumors stuck.
Kuuuaaaang!
Then, a majestic roar echoed from afar.
Metatron scowled.
"It's here. Fighting now would be a bad idea."
Things had gone terribly wrong.
My team was dead except me, and Metatron's plan was derailed. How much worse could it get?
"I'll ease your pain. Otherwise, you'll be eaten alive by a monster."
"Either way, I'll die soon if you leave me."
"You know nothing, lowly thing. I can't fathom how you have such an absurd shield, but it won't let you die easily. The problem is this place teems with monsters. You won't die peacefully—you'll writhe until some monster strolls up and chomps you."
Hearing that, it sounded scary.
No choice. I didn't want to die, but what could I do? Time to give up.
I nodded as if asking her to do it. Metatron frowned slightly.
"What's your name?"
"Haha, gonna remember a lowly one's name?"
"It's courtesy to remember the name of one you kill."
"Yoo Je-a."
Metatron nodded as if committing it to memory.
I'd heard she was rude, but this was surprisingly decent.
How accurate were the rumors about her? Curiosity stirred, but it was pointless now.
"Take my shield if you need it. It's surprisingly good."
"...Fool. It's a bound item. And not ordinary binding—even if you die, it won't release for millennia, so I can't use it. Truly pearls before swine."
"Hahaha."
I laughed lightly. No malice in her cynicism. For some reason, I wanted to talk more. But no time.
Something powerful was approaching.
I couldn't waste more of her time.
"Then."
Metatron drew a flaming sword and aimed precisely at my heart.
She thrust without hesitation.
Stab!
Hot. Like a heated furnace plunged into my chest. But even that faded, and I went limp like a puppet with cut strings.
In my darkening vision, I saw Metatron.
"What is this?! Impossible!"
What was happening? She looked panicked.
An inexplicable golden glow was enveloping her sword.
I was dying to know what was going on.
But that was it.
I met my death.
Eyes closed, only darkness remained.
***
Four days after the fateful gacha pull.
"I'm exhausted, so exhausted."
I dragged myself home, beat.
Lately, I'd been meeting Suiel constantly to learn magic item usage. Today was the last, and it was finally over.
Thanks to that, I'd roughly grasped the shield's usage. Still a long way to go, but I'd research the rest myself.
"Hoo...."
With a weary sigh, I set the shield by the window.
With training done, it was time to face my fate.
No dodging.
No delaying.
Truth be told, I had a pretty good idea.
Why the 99% death probability.
Even before Suiel's prophecy, my heart had been set on one place.
The location in the Wind Walker's photo—with Metatron.
It was like a moth to flame, reckless.
Irresistibly drawn, just the same.
Honestly, I wasn't fearless.
Gazing at the beautiful sunset by the window, I wondered if this was my last.
Today's sunset felt especially warm and gentle.
I always wanted to see this languid, affectionate dusk.
Unthinkingly, I stroked the Shield of the Solar Deity and murmured.
"May these beautiful times continue."
Smiling faintly, I felt a strange sense of incongruity.
What? Déjà vu?
For some foolish reason, I felt like I'd experienced this scene, this moment, before.