The Price of a Hero's Sacrifice
[System: You have died.]
[Killed by Orc Lord. Yu Siwoo: Deceased. [2/3].]
Now, if that [3/3] hits, I’m done for—Goddess Points or whatever else be damned. I’d be dead for good. To be precise, it would be a "Game Over" ending. I might have acted like a total maniac throughout the tutorial, but in the end, I’d just be a pathetic, failed candidate who couldn't even clear three tutorial stages, my soul sealed away forever. In that sense, this death could be called my final one, but—
"Dying to an Orc Lord. How humiliating."
Before the regression, I had killed countless Orc Lords, never mind being killed by one. I did it on purpose. The Orc Lord’s attack aimed at Han Jeongho was certainly sharp. If I hadn't intended to die—if I had just wanted to end it by saying, "I got hurt because of you, so take responsibility"—I could have just let him graze my shoulder and stepped back. But I didn't. I deliberately shifted my body toward my heart. And then, well... thwack.
"Wow, look at that expression."
Han Jeongho was screaming, letting out a guttural howl. The guilt and despair of having caused someone's death, combined with the rampaging Orc Lord, had completely shattered his mind.
"Still, well... a guy like that will probably pull himself together soon enough and lead the others. Don't you think so, Angel Estiel?"
"...I don't even know what to say."
Estiel showed me the screen of the Orc Colony stage and let out a dry laugh. "I had been eavesdropping on your plans, but I never imagined you would actually go through with it."
"Really?"
"Yes. I thought it was just a calculated remark to seduce Shin Yuhee or the others. If you keep feeding them 'Park Changsoo is a piece of shit,' your image in their eyes improves."
"Using someone else's downfall to boost my own image is a bit too much, even for Park Changsoo."
"...But you really died. Or rather, you let yourself die."
Estiel knows. She knows I died on purpose.
"At the moment of death, you looked every bit the hero."
"Right? Man, I really am good at acting when it comes to this stuff."
"Are you a professional?"
"Not exactly. In modern theater terms, this is called 'method acting.'"
How would Yu Siwoo, the hero of the first playthrough, have acted? If it were a moment where he could save people by throwing away his own life, how would he have behaved? Not just Yu Siwoo, but all the countless heroes I’ve encountered—how did they act, and what were their final words? The culmination of that experience and knowledge was Yu Siwoo’s death [2/3].
"How was it? That was a pretty decent performance, right? Look. As soon as I died, everyone’s mental state just collapsed."
"It’s absurd, really. If you compare a hero who cleared an A-rank to a hero who struggles even with C-rank, the value of the A-rank hero is obviously higher."
"Right. That goes for... the people who came out of Chekhov's Arena, too."
Everyone except Choi Yujin and Kim Chaerin was in shock.
"A hero shouldn't rely on anyone. The story of a hero appearing from the sky like a savior when you're being pushed back by demons... that only happens in movies."
"Is that so..."
"Yeah. If stories like that kept happening, well..."
I wouldn't have been left to fight alone as the last survivor before I regressed. The hero who always joked, "Don't be afraid, I'm coming," while flying through the sky wouldn't have ended up sobbing at the sight of a ruined building before taking his own life.
"Anyway, the candidate heroes definitely need to realize this. 'Ah, if I want to survive in this hell, I have to get stronger.' They need to drop the thought that someone will carry them."
"I understand you want to use shock therapy, but... what are you going to do if they all get wiped out from the trauma?"
"I died for them, is that really a difficulty level where they'd all get wiped out?"
"......."
Estiel shook her head. No one knew more about stage difficulty than an angel. Furthermore, unlike Chekhov's Arena, I had constructed this tutorial stage according to the standard route, not some hipster pick.
"It won't be a total wipeout. Not unless there's someone else who wants to die on their own."
The Orc Lord is a threatening enemy, but for people like us, it's hard to even die unless you do it on purpose. Well...
"Hmm, that looks a bit rough."
Thwack. Shin Yuhee stabbed her blade into the Orc Lord's heart. But Shin Yuhee had a wooden spear the Orc Lord had thrust deep into her side.
"What happens if she does that?"
"If she holds out until the Orc Lord dies, it counts as a clear, but..."
Thud. Shin Yuhee fell to the ground. The Orc Lord didn't vanish, and Shin Yuhee spat out a mouthful of blood and closed her eyes. Her body dissolved like mist. Soon, Shin Yuhee turned into a stream of light and disappeared from the screen—
Flash!
"...Ah."
She appeared in front of me, her face pale. "Ugh... as expected, I'm not used to dying."
"That's why I told you I'd go alone."
"I couldn't do that. If I don't follow where you go, who will? More importantly, how was I?"
"It was perfect for shocking the kids."
Estiel's screen was still active. The Orc Lord was spewing a fountain of blood and fell to its knees with a thud, and a notification window congratulating them on the clear was popping up in front of those who had cleared the tutorial.
"Hmm... their expressions are no joke."
"Two of their aces just died."
No one was purely happy about clearing the stage. Even those who didn't seem to like me or Shin Yuhee very much were scattering into mist with faces that said, 'Fuck, we're screwed.'
"Estiel. For now, regarding those who cleared—"
"Even if you call them now, they won't hear a word you say, so just leave them locked in their rooms for about three hours."
"You're ruthless. So, what are we going to do for those three hours?"
"What else? ...You two need to have a talk."
Orc Colony, 105/107. It could be considered a record-breaking clear rate, but the two who died were the ones who had earned Goddess Points.
"Are you worried about the report? I have a justification, don't I? I died trying to save someone who had frozen up."
"Can't you say I lost my mind because you died and fought until I died with you?"
"...Even if you write the report like that, there will be those who think it was an intentional death. To borrow your terminology, this is blatant 'smurfing.'"
"Smurfing?"
"It's the act of losing on purpose to drop your rank. To go to a place where people with lower skills play and crush them."
A malicious act. But the situation had already occurred, and it wasn't impossible, nor did it violate the rules given to the candidate heroes.
"Estiel. It's a bit late to ask, but—"
"There is no rule in the contract that says, 'You must not die on purpose to enjoy more stages.'"
"Right?"
"But if you look at your clear records... the higher-ups will definitely take an interest. There are almost no people who deliberately take 2 deaths to experience other stages."
Almost none. That means—
"Senior. Does that mean there are others acting like us?"
"There must be. If there's someone who wants to throw a dopamine festival, going from 0 wins 2 losses to 3 wins 2 losses."
Shouldn't this be considered the extreme of tightrope walking? Regardless of how the onlookers feel, there are cases where people eat as much experience as possible and then say, "Well, it worked out in the end, didn't it?"
I am, we are, like that.
"It won't be a big problem in the report. This will make the remaining people 'unite'."
"Han Jeongho seemed like he had completely lost his mind, though."
"Then someone else will take the leader spot and lead the group. Whether it's Choi Yujin or someone else."
If even one person is moved by a heroic sacrifice (method acting), it's a success.
"You have Kang Daehan. If Han Jeongho breaks, Kang Daehan will step up. It could become a two-top system with Choi Yujin."
"Maybe we should hope Han Jeongho pulls himself together and becomes a true leader. If he wants to lead all 100+ heroes."
"That's the fate of a class representative, I guess."
"You got out of being a class rep, didn't you?"
"Obviously. If I just sliced up the Orc Lord right there and killed the rampaging one, the candidate heroes would all be begging me to be their representative."
I absolutely cannot allow that.
"When a wave of tens of thousands pours out in the third stage, I don't want to be resented, like, 'Why isn't that bastard Yu Siwoo coming to save me?'"
"...Hey, Senior. That's a bit too much..."
"Is it like a persecution complex? But that's what humans are."
It's just experience talking.
"Then... Estiel. Can you prepare it for us right away?"
"......First, I will clearly tell the two of you who have 2 deaths. You will now be 'mid-entry'..."
Estiel scratched her head as she spoke. "Unless those who died in Chekhov's Arena die again in the third stage, [Siege Scenario], there will be no reinforcements. So, the '3 people' already inside must clear the stage."
"I know."
There were 3 people. Soon, it will be 2.
"Furthermore..."
"Furthermore?"
"...Candidate Hero Yu Siwoo. If you put what you're thinking into action, I have no choice but to report it to the higher-ups, depending on the circumstances. According to the rules and principles."
"......."
"Unless it's a case like Chekhov's Arena..."
"That's fine."
On the contrary, that was what I wanted—no, that was the number one benefit of my death.
"If they ask about it from above, can't I just explain it myself?"
Whether it's an objection or an angelic trial, if a stage opens where I can face the Archangels directly, that's actually better. No, I want it to open. It's much better for the future to meet them before choosing a supervising angel.
"So... what stage are we mid-entering?"
"...It's B-rank, but the actual difficulty is equivalent to A-rank."
"Ah."
An A-rank-like B-rank? 'The Goddess Point farming through the first clear.' Blocked. I can't get the Goddess Points for an A-rank.
" Lampades."
However.
"Nice."
For me and Shin Yuhee right now, it was the best stage.
"The name alone makes it feel like a sex town."