Despair.
That was the general atmosphere for everyone at that moment.
No one could resist the Silver King.
No one could resist the Silver King's judgment.
No one could stop the Silver King's world destruction.
"Why... did things... come to this point..."
Rentaro groaned, speaking.
Perhaps he was still blurry, only a slight obsession left, helping him utter this question.
"Things... shouldn't... have come... to this point..."
"Yes, things shouldn't have come to this point."
From the start of the battle until now, the Silver King had not spoken a single word. But now he answered Rentaro's question.
Was this mercy for the defeated?
"If those people had not coveted immortality, the Gastrea War probably wouldn't have happened. If those people had not coveted power, humanity probably wouldn't have been so tragically defeated. If those people had not coveted safety through a ruling class, the discrimination against those children wouldn't have happened."
"Yes, things shouldn't have been this bad. The Gastrea disaster should have been strangled by two individuals. The entire rest of humanity should have been united under one roof, working together to fight the common enemy, not torn apart to fight for power and profit. Those children should have become humanity's hope and support, not a despair drowned by your hatred and alienation."
"So many 'ifs,' so many 'should haves.' But life doesn't have that much room for regret."
For the first time, the Silver King spoke so much, so loudly. His voice penetrated the ears of everyone present at the scene, everyone watching.
He laughed, but it was a mocking laugh.
"Humanity... a stupid, ignorant species, which has never learned anything from its mistakes, no matter how bloody its history has been."
"Therefore, it is best for all to disappear."
"No... you are wrong..."
Rentaro stood up. His whole body was still trembling from pushing it beyond its limit. His vision gradually turned white, a side effect of the True Sight. However, Rentaro still looked straight at the Silver King.
"Humanity is a slave to hatred and mistakes. That... is not wrong."
"Even if the end of this mistake is just the beginning of another mistake. Even if the end of this hatred is just the beginning of another hatred. Even if we forget our faults again and again. But..."
"We will continue to relearn how to correct our mistakes. We will continue to stand up. We will still continue to hope!"
"We will still tirelessly dream of a perfect and happy world, even if it is impossible..."
"Therefore, this world is not worth destroying, My Lord... Hope and despair, hatred and love, always go hand in hand. The loop of despair is eternal, but the loop of hope is also eternal!"
Rentaro forced all his spirit to utter these words.
This was also everything he could do. Everything he had realized during the past time.
The Silver King paused. Then, he laughed, as if greatly amused. But the result made Rentaro stunned.
"A very good argument, but that's all it is."
"In this world, some things cannot be accomplished just by talking."
"Is there... no other way... except to defeat you..."
The Silver King was silent, not answering.
Rentaro almost collapsed.
Suddenly, a shout rang out in the distance. It was a woman's voice.
"Rentaro!"
Hearing this familiar sound, Rentaro subconsciously turned his head and also shouted loudly.
"Ms. Sumire?"
His eyes were almost blind. Even when Sumire ran close, he couldn't see that her face was streaming with tears.
Although she always teased Rentaro, Sumire didn't hate him at all. Watching the small, thin boy grow up from the operating table that day to become a man. Sumire had long regarded him as her own child.
Now seeing Rentaro in such a miserable state. Sumire felt like she was back to the first time she saw him.
She wanted to reach out and touch his cheek, but his voice stopped her.
"I'm fine, Ms. Sumire."
Rentaro smiled. Sumire also gave a forced smile. This idiot hasn't changed a bit.
"Alright, I'm here for a serious matter today. Rentaro, this is for you."
Rentaro fumbled and discovered that what Ms. Sumire handed him was a briefcase. When he opened it, Rentaro felt what seemed to be a smooth, regular decagonal device.
"When you touch it, you'll know what it's for."
Sumire stepped back. When she glanced at the Silver King, she sighed softly.
"What is it... for?"
Rentaro instinctively put on the belt and held the decagonal device in his hand. Rentaro truly knew what he had to do.
Clank!
Rentaro attached the decagonal device right in the center of his body. The entire device lit up; its lines glowed green. Rentaro felt a strange sensation, as if his whole body was being reborn.
His eyes recovered immediately. Rentaro instantly saw his whole body gradually being covered by something resembling flesh, yet black and glossy like metal. It gradually took shape, enveloping his entire body like an armor. It was like the perfect fusion of biology and mechanics.
Sensing an unprecedented, terrifying power flooding his entire body, Rentaro was so astonished he couldn't speak.
He looked toward Sumire, then back at the Silver King, seeming to have understood something.
"Prove it to me!"
The Silver King said hoarsely, without the slightest surprise, as if he had been waiting for this moment for a very long time.
"Prove to me... that this world can still be saved..."
No words were needed.
Rentaro and the Silver King immediately lunged at each other. Two fists, one black and one silver, clashed.
Boom!!!
"A long time ago, I always thought about how to save this world."
Boom!!!
"I don't have much time to waste, nor too many options."
Boom!!!
"I cannot control the minds of others."
Boom!!!
"Other gods might be very willing to do so, because in their eyes, that is salvation. But I am not a god; I am merely a false deity."
Boom!!!
"I want to save them, but I must still make them independent, make them willing."
Boom!!!
"Therefore, I can only become a lesson, a lesson painful enough to make humanity understand."
Boom!!!
For the first time, the Silver King retreated, while Rentaro remained standing firm.
The two continued to exchange punches. Rentaro could feel that the energy around the Silver King was getting weaker and weaker.
Boom!!!
For the first time, the Silver King stumbled and fell to the ground.
He stood up, his spine still straight, but his aura was extremely diminished. Yet, at this moment, Rentaro was slow to advance.
"Rentaro, what are you waiting for..."
"Finish me."
The hero will defeat the demon lord and bring peace to this world.
Rentaro finally understood everything. Tears began to stream down his face. Throughout the battle, Rentaro had endured countless pains, but he had never cried. But now, standing before the figure he admired, he couldn't control his tears.
This action of the Silver King was no different from causing him eternal infamy. While he was the one who truly saved everyone, not Rentaro. He should not have had to suffer such a fate!
"He once said that choice is happiness. Even if he endured thousands of suffering, he would still be the happiest person in the world."
Rentaro remembered Luke telling him that.
Just then, Rentaro heard Asahi's voice.
"Rentaro, only a deity can save this world. But only a hero... can lead this world to a better future."
"Can you do it?"
"Yes, I promise."
Rentaro choked up. Then, he rotated the decagonal device. His whole body flew into the air, one leg raised, flying straight toward Asahi.
"Maximum Gastrea!!!"
Terrifying energy gathered at the sole of his foot, exploding in an attack that pierced right through Asahi. Cracks spread all over the armor, proving that it had reached its limit.
Taking the final and strongest blow, Asahi finally collapsed. But immediately after, he stood up again, only not to continue fighting.
Asahi stumbled forward. He looked up at the sky, muttering.
"Blue sky, white clouds, golden sunlight... how good."
"I trust you all will have a bright future..."
"And I bless you all, not as a deity, but as a human..."
He returned to the familiar stone mound and sat down. His body, like a shattered puzzle, piece by piece, fell away and disappeared. Finally dissolving from this world.