The Beginning of Hell
"Ugh... damn it."
As soon as he stepped inside, the mansion began to collapse. Frey spat out a short curse and threw himself forward.
"No... at this rate, we won't last even a minute."
The entrance he'd come through had already crumbled, and even the relatively intact areas were collapsing disastrously. In that horrific situation, Frey tightly shut his eyes and began spreading Star Mana in all directions.
"Kuhk...!"
But having nearly depleted his mana slaughtering the assassins indiscriminately and rescuing the children, he soon vomited blood and collapsed to the floor.
"Right there... just ahead."
Fortune or misfortune, the person he sought was right in front of him. Despite his mana shortage, Frey pinpointed his destination.
"Wh-who are you...?"
Enduring excruciating pain through sheer willpower, Frey reached a spot where Perloché lay sprawled on the floor.
"Perloché! Get up! We have to get out!"
Frey tried to lift the limp Perloché, but realizing her body had no strength left, he cried out in a voice laced with despair.
"I don't know who you are... but please, you escape. There's no hope for me."
But Perloché, who had exhausted all her strength wandering the halls to find injured students overcome by toxic gas and infusing them with divine power, could only respond in a fading voice.
"No, I absolutely can't give up. Never."
Of course, Frey had no intention of abandoning Perloché. Her death was one of the system's game over conditions—and one of the things he absolutely refused to let happen.
"Please don't... just leave me and get out of here..."
"Stay still."
With that, Frey finally lifted the fallen Perloché. He lacked even the stamina to walk out himself, let alone carry her, but the desperate resolve to save her granted him extra strength.
Rumble...!
"...Damn it."
But it seemed the gods weren't on the side of the hero and saintess. The moment Frey hoisted Perloché and turned back, the mansion fully collapsed.
"The basement... we have to get to the basement..."
In that desperate situation, staggering with Perloché in his arms, Frey headed somewhere—anywhere.
Sometimes inhaling smoke and coughing up blood, sometimes sustaining deep wounds from falling debris or burns from the flames scorching his body, he pressed on. Forward, ever forward.
"We're here... finally..."
After walking and walking, Frey reached the basement entrance.
Creeeak...
Opening the door protected by magic, Frey carefully pushed Perloché inside and let out a sigh of relief.
Crackle...!
"...Ha."
But soon, he realized the protective magic on the basement door was shattered.
"You crazy bastard."
Spotting the charred corpse of the assassin leader right beside it, Frey deduced he'd destroyed the magic and died from mana overload. Useless information in this hopeless moment.
"H-hey... why aren't you coming in? Hey...!"
"Yeah..."
Pondering briefly as Perloché's faint voice echoed from inside, Frey murmured with a resolved expression.
"If it's a bad ending anyway... better Perloché survives than me turning into a useless wreck from the game over penalty."
The next instant, Frey slammed the basement door shut and poured his remaining Star Mana into the broken magic circle.
It was far too little to repair it fully. But the Starlight family's Star Mana unleashed explosive power when sacrificing oneself to protect others.
Shrr...
"Sorry..."
Exerting miraculous power to restore the circle, Frey quietly closed his eyes and whispered.
"...that I couldn't survive."
His final thought was of his mother.
.
.
.
"Hey! Why aren't you coming in! Hey!!"
In the pitch-black basement, Perloché pressed against the door, shouting desperately. The man who saved her still hadn't entered.
"Eek...!"
After crying out for what felt like ages, she mustered her last strength and crawled slowly toward the door.
"Ugh... ughh!"
Reaching the protected door, she strained to open it.
Thud...
"...Huh!?"
After struggling, she succeeded—but something crashed into her, sending her sprawling.
"Cough! Cough!! Ugh..."
Startled briefly, Perloché coughed as smoke seeped through the open door. She shoved the intruder aside and headed back to close it.
"H-hey! Are you okay!?"
Sealing the door with her remaining strength, she grabbed and shook the fallen figure beside her.
"D-don't die! Hey!"
But with no response, Perloché teared up and gathered divine power in her hands. She'd used most of it saving other children, yet she drew out every last drop.
"Still... there's a faint spark of life... so if I infuse even a little divine power..."
She sensed a weak life force—salvageable, perhaps. Like a candle in the wind, but her power might sustain it until rescue.
Clinging to that hope, Perloché poured divine power into him.
"...Huh?"
Something was wrong. Despite her full effort, the power wasn't transferring.
"Th-this is weird? I'm definitely using divine power?"
Thinking she'd depleted it, she checked her hands—faint divine power still emanated.
"Why isn't it transferring? Why?!"
Confirming, she tried again, but his life force didn't revive.
"Wait, this happened before."
Panicking amid the anomaly, Perloché's eyes sharpened as she muttered.
"Yeah, in the orphanage basement too. That time, the one affected was... definitely...!"
Her voice unusually clear, she tremblingly reached for the man's mask.
Shh...
".....!!!"
Peeling it off, Perloché froze in shock.
"Fr-Frey... Frey?"
A strangely relieved smile adorned Frey's face, greeting her.
"You... why you? Why did you save me?!"
Panicking, she desperately infused divine power while muttering.
"Frey's a villain, right? A bad person? The one who hurts everyone...? Why... why on earth..."
Muttering on, she exhausted her remaining power and collapsed beside him.
"...The Demon God... the Demon God will awaken."
With those words, Perloché lost consciousness—five minutes before Clana found them.
.
.
.
"Frey... please wake up... I beg you..."
"...Perloché, what happened here?"
Clana stared blankly at Perloché cradling Frey's cold body, tears streaming down her face, and asked in bewilderment.
"Cl-Clana... Frey... Frey... he's dead."
Her face a mess of tears, Perloché sobbed her reply.
"...I see."
Clana glanced briefly at Isolet standing beside her.
"........."
Isolet stood dazed, feeling an indescribable emotion.
'This is... the end.'
Averting her gaze, Clana murmured inwardly.
'Frey's dead, and though sooner than expected, the Moonlight family is shattered too. Now... everything returns to how it should be.'
Recently, Clana had heard the Moonlight family's council was dismantled—a welcome update. She'd vowed to deal with those who broke their deal and tried harming innocent commoners, even if she had to act herself.
'But why did they break the deal?'
Questions lingered. Clana had promised full support upon her rise to power in exchange for assassinating Frey—a ploy to exploit them until their inevitable doom.
She'd planned to link Frey and the nobles, then leak their marked locations to the Moonlights. Assassins would strike before days passed, killing Frey and the future empire's corrupt nobles.
'Aris,' a commoner spy for the Moonlights, would be framed—her info, alibi, and evidence rigged. Now a skilled assassin in a secret group, she'd take the fall post-investigation.
The Moonlights saw her as disposable, but Clana insisted on protecting her, incorporating a rescue into the plan. Relief had come as execution day neared.
But Isolet's solo act ruined it. Despite rigged votes via magic, she swapped team leaders.
Undeterred, Clana contacted Aris via Serena, the Moonlight head, to replan.
'Secret Lord... what were you thinking?'
Then last night, Serena's urgent letter: the Secret Lord had rampaged. The Moonlights' first assassination squad hit the Starlight mansion. If nearby, flee immediately.
Paling, Clana rushed over—but the mansion was already aflame.
'Lucky. Only Frey died.'
Panicking briefly, with Perloché confirmed alive, Clana sighed in relief.
She knew the incident stemmed from her plan, despite the Secret Lord's frenzy. Innocents hurt gnawed at her guilt.
She'd compensate commoners with all her wealth, and further...
"Frey... open your eyes... please..."
"...Hm?"
Snapped from her reverie by Perloché's sobs, Clana refocused.
'Why is she so heartbroken?'
Perloché's kindness explained it, but she'd demanded Frey's death recently. Why gaze at him so desperately now?
"Perloché, get up."
"Hic... sob..."
Baffled briefly, Clana prioritized her treatment and helped her stand.
"Ah... b-but..."
"No need for guilt. It's Frey. Ugly, repulsive Frey."
As Perloché reached for him tearfully, Clana said firmly.
"He paid for his crimes. Looks like he died in agony. Compared to his past atrocities, it's a drop in the bucket. No pointless guilt..."
"But... but Clana...!"
Interrupting, Perloché tearfully declared.
"The one who saved me... was Frey."
"...What?"
Stunned, Clana soon wore a worried look.
"How hard was it for you... to hallucinate like this..."
"No, it's true... really, really true!"
"We need to get you treated now..."
As Perloché wailed, Clana shook her head and tried leading her out—but...
"...What does that mean?"
Isolet, staring blankly at Frey, asked Perloché.
"Frey... saved you?"
"Yes... He appeared in the flames... carried me here..."
Perloché's tale was hard for Clana to believe.
"Frey in a black mask... carried you collapsed here?"
"Yes... pushed me in, then did something outside!"
Pointing shakily at the door, Perloché prompted Clana's bitter smile.
"Perloché. Frey wouldn't. You hallucinated."
"N-no... definitely... definitely...!"
"Everyone, take Perloché out."
As she persisted, Clana ordered the arriving investigators.
"N-no! Don't take me! Let go! Let go!!"
Dragged away, Perloché suddenly screamed.
"Don't pull me out! Let go!!"
"Saintess, you need treatment. Move quickly."
"Clana! Now I get the prophecy! Everything we did was wrong from the start!"
"...Take her out. Now."
Dismissing it as hysteria, Clana urged softly.
"No... don't open the door... don't open..."
Struggling, Perloché fainted upon exiting.
"Take Professor Isolet too."
"...Yes."
Pitying her briefly, Clana ordered the dazed Isolet out, then gazed at Frey alone.
"Not safe yet."
Her expression chilling, she gathered golden mana and approached.
"You'll revive soon anyway? You're the Demon King's minion."
In past loops, the Demon King revived dead subordinates often. Tough magic, but Frey's recent acts screamed inner circle.
With memories... high chance.
'Or faking death with dark magic.'
If so, this just aided him—perfect cover to vanish and join demons.
Crackle...!
Finishing her thoughts, Clana aimed her gleaming golden mana finger at Frey.
"This is for Serena."
The golden beam pierced his head, but unsatisfied, she spawned arrows.
"For Irina and Perloché."
Thud thud thud!!
Countless golden arrows riddled him, shredding like Irina and Perloché in past loops.
"For Kania."
Undeterred, she formed a golden dagger, piercing his throat.
"Finally... for me."
Withdrawing it from his throat—where he'd stabbed her heart as sacrifice before—Clana pierced his heart.
"...Haa."
Confirming the kill, Clana panted.
"Guess... I lack imperial princess qualities."
Allying with an uncontrollable foe hurt innocents. Guilt stabbed relentlessly.
Lucky no other deaths; casualties would've been nightmarish.
"...When it's over, I'll turn myself in."
No deaths, but it could've killed all. She must bear responsibility.
Crackle...!
Gathering vast Solar Mana, Clana thought: With Frey—who aided Demon King's awakening—dead, time remained. Hold until finding the prophesied hero, purge palace corruption and nobles, reveal truth. The world would judge her.
"Still... can't bear seeing your corpse desecrated."
Creating a spherical barrier, she murmured and exited.
"...Huh?"
Closing the door, she spotted the protective magic circle.
"What's this..."
It showed destruction then reactivation.
"...No way."
Recalling Perloché's words, Clana shook her head and walked on.
"Princess! Was there a masked man too?"
"Yes?"
Blocked by a girl.
"He saved us all."
"Yeah, last he rushed into the collapsing mansion for Perloché..."
"Is he alive? We must repay him..."
As students chimed in, Clana blanked—then distant Irina, just awakened, wailed desperately.
"Frey!! Where are you!! Frey!!!"
"...Irina?"
"Frey... no!!!"
Clana's hell was only beginning.