Chapter 72
In the original The Fallen Crown Prince of the Cosmos Empire, the major supporting character ‘Elisha’ partially overcame her trauma!
“I’ll shoot!”
Like a single drop of rain falling on the parched nose of a farmer standing on cracked earth, the system and Elisha’s shout rang out simultaneously.
From behind, a red flash shot forward, piercing through a Desert Wraith.
The arrow, stretching straight in a line, skewered dozens of wraiths and reached the throne of the undead army clad in the Hierophant.
At that moment, a wave of sand surged from the floor, swallowing the red arrow.
But the red beam burst through the sand, causing a massive explosion.
‘What incredible power!’
The sand dust from the explosion filled the hall before settling.
Unfortunately, the throne and the undead army atop it remained unscathed.
Yet, that earth-shattering destructive force was enough to carve a path to the crown, as if parting the sea to reach an island on the other side.
The undead army clad in the Hierophant, the Desert Hierophant, seemed frozen in shock from the sudden bombardment.
A voice of apology came from behind.
“Sorry. I was… too late, wasn’t I?”
She must know how much she messed up.
I had no intention of nitpicking.
Trauma from losing family wasn’t something easily fixed.
Even these mere novel characters had their own circumstances, sorrows, and pains.
There was no reason to hate, belittle, or resent them for it.
Having felt pain myself, I could empathize.
I didn’t wish for others’ suffering just because I was hurting.
“No.”
I didn’t bother turning around.
That would be uncool.
“It was just the right time.”
It was worth the wait.
Elisha’s firepower was incomparably stronger than a half-baked guy like me.
The talent of a genius, elixirs spared no expense, and secret techniques amassed by her ancestors.
The ‘true skill’ built meticulously from a solid foundation was on this level.
Know-It-All (Lv 3) accessed the profile of the major supporting character Elisha.
[Name: Elisha von Tresha Harmadun]
[Age: 17]
[Gender: Female]
[Personality: Confident, prideful, full of self-esteem, trauma (in recovery)]
[User Perception: Guilt, curiosity, favor]
[Harmadun Secret Archery Lv 7]
[Archery Proficiency Lv 1]
[Mana Cultivation Lv 8]
[Information Analysis Lv 6]
[Movement Lv 3]
It was explosive growth.
The most striking were her foundational skill, Harmadun Secret Archery, and the skill indicating pure weapon technique, Archery Proficiency Lv 1.
It was on par with my Firearm Proficiency.
‘She’s strong.’
This was my first time seeing Elisha’s full strength.
“This time, I’m counting on your support fire.”
“Got it!”
I charged forward.
I took down two with my bayonet and gun butt, dodged an attack, blocked an enemy with a kick, fired buckshot, and retreated.
Then Elisha’s bombardment followed.
Red arrows poured like a rainstorm over the Desert Wraiths’ heads.
In the meantime, I pulled a potion from my bag and splashed it on myself.
It was barely a recovery window.
Using Stellar Force would be convenient, but now wasn’t the time.
“Once more.”
“Got it!”
Close-range bayonet techniques, dodging shamshirs, knocking back with kicks, scattering buckshot while retreating, Elisha’s bombardment.
The synergy between gun and bow, like a duo rehearsed thousands of times, clicked perfectly.
Repeating the winning pattern, the number of Desert Wraiths visibly dwindled.
Checking the throne, the glow in the eyes of the undead army clad in the Desert Hierophant seemed weaker than before.
But we were getting tired too.
It was time to settle this.
“Cadet Elisha, snipe. That first shot that reached the throne—can you do it again?”
“Huff, I can! Even more than that!”
I felt a massive wave of Mana from behind.
It was chillingly exhilarating.
“Here I go!”
I charged again, repeating the pattern.
Otherwise, the wraiths would rush Elisha.
A shamshir grazed my cheek.
Luckily, the wound was shallow, but…
‘Allowing an attack to my face.’
Was I getting tired too?
“I’m ready, Cadet Martin!”
Without a word, I shouted back.
“Shoot!”
“Move, then I’ll shoot!”
“Shoot!”
“No, move! You’ll die!”
“Shoot, please! No arguments! I can dodge!”
The arrow didn’t fire.
Well, that might be normal.
But.
“If you can’t trust your ally on the battlefield, what happens to that war?!”
“Ugh… fine, whatever!”
Elisha, biting her lip as she spoke, immediately corrected herself.
“No!”
“I’ll trust you!”
The bowstring was released.
The red arrow shot straight like a laser.
“Hah!”
As if pouring all her Mana into it, Elisha collapsed to the floor.
‘It’s coming!’
Wild Instinct sounded the alarm, and I used Flash instantly.
My body reappeared in the air inside the hall!
Elisha’s full-powered shot passed beneath me.
It was an attack on a different level.
The undead army clad in the Desert Hierophant flinched and began emitting Mana furiously.
Whoosh.
With the sound of shifting sand, a tidal wave of sand rose, swallowing the arrow.
And this situation was exactly the picture I’d envisioned.
‘Now!’
I loaded a black gem bullet I’d prepared and fired at the murky brown Desert Hierophant.
The gunshot echoed, and the black bullet shot straight toward the Hierophant.
The sand moved belatedly to defend, but Elisha’s arrow, buried in the sand, caused a secondary explosion, scattering everywhere.
Thanks to that, it reached.
The black bullet hit the Hierophant.
More precisely, it hit the thin barrier surrounding the throne!
‘A shield!’
If the Hierophant was the emperor’s crown, the throne was the emperor’s chair.
Naturally, it had some kind of defense.
‘But I expected it!’
At that moment, the magic circle etched on the black bullet glowed, activating its magic.
A spell granting extreme sharpness enveloped the gem warhead.
The gem’s name was obsidian.
The obsidian warhead tore through the barrier and struck the Hierophant.
‘It hit!’
The Hierophant, perched atop the withered emperor’s corpse, was finally dislodged.
It floated into the air before falling to the sandy floor below the throne, rolling away.
[O, oooo…!]
The undead army wearing the Hierophant screamed, convulsed, and slumped.
The sinister light in its eye sockets vanished.
“It’s done…!”
I landed on the floor.
Even if a Desert Wraith’s shamshir came flying now, it wouldn’t be surprising.
But not a single Desert Wraith remained.
All had turned to sand.
This meant only one thing.
An undeniable victory.
“Phew…!”
Turning around, I saw Elisha adjusting her posture, gathering Mana.
After unleashing such an attack, she must be dizzy.
I understood.
In the meantime, I circled behind the throne… and gripped the Desert Hierophant in my hand.
‘I got it…!’
Ah, the gloriously named Nature Five.
One of the surest keys to surviving the apocalypse.
‘With this, two of the three sacred relics supporting one of the greatest villains, Princess Adela, are in my hands!’
When I first came here, what was it like?
Days of humiliation and shame, but now I’d done it.
I’d achieved a shining, tangible result!
Even if the protagonist party died in a horrific disaster, I’d laid the foundation to survive to the final stages of the apocalypse on my own!
Lost in awe, clutching the dark brown Hierophant, I suddenly remembered the other person.
Turning back, Elisha was still practicing Mana Cultivation.
“….”
Did Elisha help or hinder this ruin conquest?
Honestly, it would’ve been faster without her.
‘But without her, I’d have had to use the diamond bullet.’
The diamond bullet was a trump card with a long recharge time, a finisher.
If I could save it, I should.
Then Elisha slowly opened her eyes and began to stand.
I approached her slowly.
“Cadet Elisha, are you okay?”
“Ugh, I’m dizzy…”
That was proof she’d poured everything into the attack I’d requested.
“It’s Mana exhaustion.”
Reciting the diagnosis Know-It-All provided, I lifted her.
“….”
This time, she didn’t scream “Eek” or “Let go,” so she must be exhausted.
I set her down behind the unnecessarily large throne.
It was the spot in the ruins with the highest Mana density, perfect for Mana recovery.
Elisha’s eyes caught the Desert Hierophant hanging at my waist.
“What are you going to do with that…? It’s a grotesque thing that summons undead.”
“They’re warriors of the desert who swore loyalty to the emperor even in death. They were merely swayed by the undead army’s greed; it’s not entirely grotesque.”
“Ah…”
The fact that the Rosary of Grace didn’t react when facing demons was proof.
Besides, I might use it, so I should defend it.
Then I changed the subject.
“More importantly, recover. The rescue team might come soon, and if you look like that, I’ll be the one getting blamed again.”
“…Sorry.”
Elisha lowered her head.
Why would I get blamed?
Because my reputation was bad.
When your reputation was bad, you got blamed for everything.
Why was my reputation bad?
Because the protagonist party, including Elisha in front of me, had dragged Martin to rock bottom.
…Of course, it was Martin’s fault, but still.
“Hey, you.”
“Speak.”
“….”
Elisha hesitated for a long time before speaking.
Then she looked up, staring at me with serious, pleading eyes.
“I don’t know what happened… but I’ll help as much as I can. Won’t you reconcile with Gilbert?”
Ugh, this again.
“No.”
“…At least think about it.”
“No need.”
“It’s a rare offer. At least pretend to consider it.”
“….”
Gilbert probably didn’t say anything either, so I understood.
Without knowing the context, she’d think that.
“No. We can’t reconcile.”
Gilbert, who tried to save everyone and nearly got everyone killed, and me, who moved to save at least a few with certainty.
In that situation, who would Elisha blame?
She, too, was a high-ranking noble meant to protect everyone.
She’d side with Gilbert.
Besides, the focus of the issue was off.
This was a problem that couldn’t be resolved in this world.
The source of my hatred and jealousy… was this entire world.
My hatred, resentment, and inferiority complex.
What made me pathetic was this false world, which I once thought was mine but belonged to Recola.
There was no way I could feel fondly toward this world’s protagonists.
Elisha, unaware of this, couldn’t understand me.
Still, seeing her try so hard made me feel a bit sorry for her.
“Whether reconciliation is possible or not, you’re right. I don’t know what happened between you two. It might be a complicated situation I can’t fathom.”
Elisha stood shakily, staring at me.
“But are you going to leave it like this? No matter how tangled, there’s always a solution. I’ve seen countless feuds in noble circles since I was a kid, but there’s hardly ever a situation that’s truly hopeless.”
“When you see a hopelessly tangled thread, do you untangle it bit by bit?”
The normal thing was to grab scissors and cut the unusable parts.
Elisha frowned.
“Human relationships aren’t threads!”
“To me, it’s all the same problem.”
Novel characters or tangled threads—what’s the difference?
To me, except for Lilac, they were all the same.
The conversation paused.
It was an unspoken truce to cool our emotions.
Passionate but not angry, dynamic yet orderly.
We were having quite a proper conversation.
“…Cadet Martin. Then… why do you help us? You said you hate us, but… you show up to help us every time something important happens. Isn’t that a contradiction?”
“Don’t say weird things and think about it. Hating you and sitting by while the apocalypse sprouts are different issues.”