The Man’s 101st Bad Ending

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Miragen, now calmed, met his gaze without hesitation.

His words, and his promise not to let her go again, must have had an effect. Even he felt a little embarrassed by his own words.

Perhaps it was because he had never held onto someone so passionately before. Well… it was enough that Miragen had returned to her usual self.

He chuckled, looking at her lying on his lap, then sighed, thinking about the task ahead. He had confirmed Kaitel’s intention to kill Adele.

If he refused to cooperate, the trust he had painstakingly built would disappear. His expression darkened as he pondered what to do, but it softened slightly as he looked at Miragen below him.

Judging by her soft breaths, she seemed to be asleep. She must have been tired after crying so much.

He had been worried she might collapse from exhaustion, but thankfully, she was sleeping peacefully against him.

The end was truly approaching.

Whether it was the end he desired remained uncertain, but Kaitel would surely make his move the moment Adele was saved.

After that, the plan to overthrow the Emperor would begin in earnest. Dealing with Miragen was scheduled for autumn.

There was still plenty of time left, enough to prepare for ‘what comes after.’ He wouldn’t be able to contact Miragen for a while.

If their communication was discovered, it would be dangerous in many ways, and she wouldn’t be able to head North after receiving such an order.

“…She’s going to hate me.”

She would probably come all the way to the capital if he didn’t contact her, so he only hoped she wouldn’t come until his plan succeeded.

Still, it would be good to send her something that would give her a clue.

He gently laid Miragen’s head down and stood up, walking towards the window. If his memory served him correctly, there should be an imperial carrier pigeon.

Chirp-

He whistled, and soon, the flapping of wings was heard. He had used the imperial carrier pigeon several times, so he knew it well.

The fact that something like this hadn’t changed gave him a strange feeling, but the message he would write was to prevent Miragen from coming to the imperial capital.

The recipient was Lotus. He felt sorry for entrusting him with so much, but it was a pity that Lotus was the only one in the North who could understand these matters.

He couldn’t reveal everything he intended to do, or the fact that he had regressed. But Lotus was the only one who could understand this code and inform Adele.

“I hope it gets delivered safely.”

She might hate him, even more than just being disliked. But it was necessary.

Even after Miragen’s matter was settled, there was still a wall remaining, and this obstacle… might be even more difficult than capturing the Four Dragons himself.

“To Lotus.”

He tucked the letter into the pigeon’s leg and channeled his mana.

The mana that enveloped the bird’s body harmonized it with the sky, making it difficult for anyone to notice until the letter was received.

He could keep in touch with Adele, but the most important part of his plan was to make everything seem natural until the very end.

The reason he was going through all this trouble to send a letter was to mimic that naturalness.

He rubbed his dry face and looked up at the sky.

The presence of the bird, now completely harmonized with the sky, was faintly visible, but even that began to disappear, obscured by the sunlight.

His plan started today.

He had heard about Miragen, and he had been with Kaitel, who had declared his intention to kill Adele, today. But he couldn’t delay any longer.

If he didn’t move quickly, Adele would die.

Even if he saved Adele, he didn’t think he could smoothly proceed with Miragen becoming Empres.

Preparation.

Building the steps for everything, training to move forward.

At the end of spring, the blowing wind was already becoming warm. The wind no longer blew from the North.

The snow that had once blanketed the world had completely disappeared, as if it had been a fleeting dream, and the world was once again beginning to be painted green.

When the flowers bloomed, when the trees were lush with leaves, when the sky grew higher and the sun hung at its highest point.

That was the time for everything to begin anew.

He covered the sleeping Miragen’s shoulders with a blanket, chuckled softly, and turned his gaze back towards the window.

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The letter to Adele seemed to have been delivered without any problems.

This meant that there would be no contact between them until autumn arrived.

He also had to tell Adriana that the plan needed to start soon, so he headed to the Moon Tower.

“I see the matter you were worried about went well.”

“That’s right. Well… for now, Miragen accepted it well.”

It would have been difficult if Miragen had continued to blame herself.

Thankfully, she had understood his feelings and accepted them, allowing the matter to be resolved quickly.

She had also accepted the fact that she had to become Empress surprisingly calmly.

Miragen’s concern about her position had only stemmed from her worry about being completely abandoned after Kaitel became Emperor, she hadn’t desired power for its own sake.

However, the fact that Kaitel had killed him, and the accumulated emotions from witnessing it repeatedly, had turned into hatred.

When he told her he was going to kill Kaitel, she hadn’t been shocked, but rather said it was only natural.

Miragen now understood the situation with the Four Dragons and the masked figures as well.

He could vividly remember her lamenting the fact that the imperial family was ignorant of so many things.

Adriana, after a moment of contemplation, brought up another topic after he finished talking about Miragen. It was about Adele.

Adriana already knew that Kaitel was trying to kill Adele, so the question was how to save her.

“We have to prevent Adele from going to the imperial capital, right?”

“If we save Adele after she arrives at the imperial capital, we’ll have to fight Kaitel immediately.”

However, he didn’t think Kaitel would summon Adele to the imperial capital again.

Unlike before, Adele had refused to appear in the capital and was prepared to remain in the North indefinitely.

“He’s more likely to send a subjugation force.”

“I think Cain is the most likely candidate to go. And if he adds another person…”

He pointed at himself with his finger and gazed at Adriana.

This was what he was aiming for. It was a plan that required his presence, and even if Kaitel didn’t send him, he was planning to go to the North somehow.

Adriana, after listening to his explanation, nodded, agreeing that it was plausible.

If things went this way, it would be quite helpful in dealing with Cain and his remnants, assuming the situation remained natural.

But it was a mistake to assume that everything would go according to plan.

If he saved Adele, he would become openly hostile with Kaitel within a week, and after that… he judged that he would surely encounter something related to the Four Dragons.

“You know that the Minotaur wasn’t the only demon we saw, right?”

“…Right. There’s still a long way to go.”

Besides the Minotaur, there were three more. It was uncertain whether he could fight on equal footing with the recovered Minotaur, even with his current strength.

And since he had to consider the Four Dragons as well, he had no intention of being satisfied with simply being called the Sword Saint.

Fortunately, having seen the light once had helped him.

He only had about four months left, but that was enough time to drastically increase his strength, which had reached a plateau.

“I probably won’t be able to see you for a while. I have to prepare, and it will practically be like wall-gazing training.”

“If you’re talking about wall-gazing training, have you prepared a place?”

“…Not exactly, but I have a place in mind.”

“Then I can help you. I can open the underground area of the Moon Tower. You’re officially my friend, so none of the paladins will question it.”

He tilted his head at her offer of help, and Adriana began to explain the underground space.

It was a space that only the Saint could enter, but she said that the energy flowing through his body, which was mixed with the Saint’s divine power, would allow him access.

“If that’s the case, I’m grateful, but are you sure it’s alright?”

There would definitely be people who would find it strange that he was entering the underground area.

His recent interactions with Adriana had increased, and he had heard that many people complained about the Saint interacting with the opposite sex.

He asked worriedly if it was really alright, and Adriana smiled brightly and said it was fine.

“It’s okay. I don’t really care about what other people think, and it won’t affect me even if they say something. Besides, I’m the Saint, directly recognized by God.”

“And-”

She lowered her voice and added with a slightly suggestive smile,

“I don’t dislike that kind of misunderstanding. I actually rather hope for it, you could say. We’re friends, after all.”

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“…I suppose so.”

That friendship was quite impure, but it seemed she had no intention of crossing the line for now.

She had seemed uncomfortable when he talked about Miragen, and he understood how she felt about him. But he would definitely have to think about how to resolve this complicated love triangle—no, quadrangle.

These were women who would surely be devastated if he died.

It wasn’t easy to change their feelings, and if he left, they would surely chase after him.

His countless regressions had led him all over the continent, and at the same time, it had become good evidence for narrowing down the search area.

If Adele or Adriana were determined to find him, it wouldn’t take long to find him no matter where he hid.

He smiled bitterly and avoided Adriana’s gaze, and she returned to her usual expression and stood up.

She held out her hand to him, and he could sense a small amount of joy in her voice as she offered to guide him to the underground area.

…Well, for now, this wasn’t so bad.

“Let’s go then.”

While he was staying here, it wouldn’t be bad to appease Adriana.

She had seemed quite upset earlier.

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[Translator Notes]

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