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!"

demon that was attempting to sneak out from behind one of the

me

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

"It's fine."

my

means a lot to us older folks, and for that, you don't have to feel guilty about their death… I'm sure the lot of them are happy knowing that they finally managed

"Is that so…"

I muttered absentmindedly.

Edward

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

has a lot more responsibility than I give it

feelings of guilt in connection with their passing,

thing in the world to realize that I was the reason why they were

just the thought of what I'd have to say to their families once all of this was over made my stomach

"Haaa…"

But this was life…

I looked up and let

if I felt

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

fight against the demons and other times

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

sure that the plan was successful, and as a result, I was more aware

didn't really matter,

come to the realization that I was a hypocrite, and despite this realization, I found that it did not affect

things that were keeping me from

sure are

sigh and turned

on my

a figure materialized in front of me. I didn't even need to look up because I

know that you're

Octavious, who, unlike before, seemed to have a

since his recuperation, I was still not accustomed to his new

experiencing these emotions; in fact, everyone else did

calls and messages inquiring about Octavious' well-being

was his image

I received provided a sufficient amount of information to answer my

we going to do

of my thoughts, and I

slaying the last of the demons, and

"About that…"

raised one foot, focused all of my mana into it, and then quickly stomped down on the ground

going to hunt for

into contact with the floor of the

Booom―!

began to

***