The Author's POV

"…Should I say, as expected?"

As I descended from the top of the tower and made my way toward the hall where the main battle was taking place, I was surprised to see that the battle had essentially come to an end on this side.

I wasn't the only one aware that the battle was over.

The demons knew it too, and…

Boom―!

"Argkh!"

Coming down, I could see that there were still some demons that were actively attempting to fight their way out of the tower; however, just as this was supposed to be a prison that was supposed to trap me and the others, it had instead become a prison for all of the demons that were present.

No one could get out, and more blood splattered all over the ground.

"Ren, you're finally here."

A voice called out for me, spotting my arrival. When I turned my head to see who had called out for me, I realized it was Edward.

"How's the situation?"

I asked, curiously looking around. At first glance, it appeared as though we had won by a landslide; however, when I looked down and saw some of the blood that had been spilled on the floor, I realized that this victory wasn't without its flaws.

…We had sustained some losses.

"Don't worry about it."

As if reading my expression and thoughts, Edward patted me on the shoulder.

"Don't beat yourself up because of the losses. Although it is a fact that some of us were killed, from the very beginning, everyone who participated was aware that death was a possibility. Nobody will blame you; on the contrary, most are quite grateful for everything you've done."

After a moment's pause, a grin broke out unexpectedly on his face.

"We… we have won."

He muttered in a low voice.

His words were filled with unmasked joy, and when I looked around and observed the facial expressions of those who were currently fighting, I realized that he wasn't the only one who was feeling pleased with the way things were going.

"You may not understand this very well since you're young, but…"

Edward continued.

"This victory means a great deal more to people my age than you probably realize at this point in time. In contrast to the world in which you were born, the one in which I and the other people of my age live was not nearly as tranquil as the world in which you were raised."

"Our land and our people were subjected to constant destruction at the hands of demons. I've seen the killings and massacres more times than you could possibly imagine… and so have the others."

Edward brought his hand forward, which caused the mana that was all around him to congregate, and a beam shot out from the tip of his finger.

"Akh!"

was attempting to sneak out from behind one

me to

about to do the same thing, but Edward's response was a little bit faster than

"It's fine."

my shoulder

this may not mean much to you, but it really means a lot to us older folks, and for that, you don't have to feel guilty about their

"Is that so…"

I muttered absentmindedly.

Edward was trying to

did, but at the same time, I couldn't bring myself

being a leader has a lot more responsibility than I give it

have any feelings of guilt in connection with their passing, I was not

exactly the most pleasant thing in the world to realize that

kind of a bummer and just the thought of what I'd have to say to their families once all of this was

"Haaa…"

But this was life…

looked up and

be a hypocrite if I felt guilty

the first time that I had done something similar; in fact, it wasn't

there were times when I commanded the orcs to fight against the demons and other times when

a number of choices that ended up leading to the deaths of members

was successful, and as a result, I was more aware than anyone

really matter,

realization that I was a hypocrite, and despite this realization, I found that it

were other things that were keeping me

sure

sigh and turned away from

done on my

didn't even need to look up because I immediately recognized

that

none other than Octavious, who, unlike before, seemed to have a completely different

since his recuperation, I was still not accustomed to

these emotions; in fact, everyone

calls and messages

how bad was his image

of questions and messages I received provided a sufficient amount of

going

of my thoughts, and I found myself looking up at

were slaying the last of the demons, and I couldn't help but

"About that…"

below me. I raised one foot, focused all of my mana

to hunt

with the floor of

Booom―!

ground began to

***