<Wasn’t this a strategy game? Chapter 152>

In the midst of all the chaos, only Hagen’ti and Sereman remained calm.

As a massive bookshelf loomed above Eden, about to topple over her, Asmun threw himself over her and rolled to the side.

Thanks to that, he barely managed to avoid being crushed by the bookshelf, but Hagen’ti’s attacks didn’t stop.

Suddenly, the immense vibrations ceased, and debris from the crumbled walls began to float around them. It was as if they possessed a will of their own, as they all charged towards Eden.

“Ugh…!”

The heavy, sharp objects missed Eden and came crashing down on Asmun’s shoulders and back. Thick blood burst forth from his wounds.

“Asmun!”

In this dire situation, even rational titles escaped my lips.

Eden felt a sinking feeling in her heart. The image of Asmun rescuing her from Madam Marens during the hunting tournament overlapped with his current attempt to save her.

“Get away! We’re going to die!”

Eden struggled to escape, but Asmun held her tightly and wouldn’t let go.

The magical power oozing from Hagen’ti was overwhelming, and even Eden sensed that Asmun couldn’t possibly stop him instinctively.

It was all coming to an end. The world Eden had fought so hard to save.

“Eden…”

Asmun grunted and whispered in her ear.

“This game… we have… failed.”

Immediately after Eden left so coldly, Asmun sent out his troops to raid the marked location on the map. He couldn’t bear to watch Eden cry.

Yet, Sereman seemed to know everything, attacking the Imperial Palace right after escaping.

There was no longer a way to stop it.

There was no way to protect Eden.

“So, leave this place and go back.”

Eden’s heart stopped at the heavy, pain-laden voice.

“Then… you… can live…”

It was as if he knew something.

“This is the best I can do for you…”

“What do you mean…?”

But Asmun couldn’t explain anything more. With a flick of Hagen’ti’s hand, his sword, which had been scattered about, floated up into the air—

“No…!”

It came crashing down onto Asmun’s back.

“Huff….”

With a sickening crunch, thick blood erupted from Asmun’s lips as he held onto Eden tight even while dying.

The groans of pain that escaped him suddenly ceased, and his weight collapsed entirely onto Eden.

“There’s no need to feel wronged. You should have died long ago.”

Sereman’s voice did not enter Eden’s ears, instead echoing and fading away. With a disbelieving face, Eden reached out to the still body of Asmun.

“Asmun… Is this a joke?”

Asmun’s hand fell limply and hung there.

“As…”

Despite her desperate call, Asmun did not respond.

It was only then Eden realized that Asmun had never failed to respond to her calls before. He always rushed to her side, had always answered her.

So, the fact that he wasn’t answering now meant…

“…”

He was dead.

Asmun was dead.

The unbelievable truth froze Eden’s heart in an instant.

“Don’t worry. The Saint will follow him.”

Sereman smiled as if satisfied with the smooth progress, glancing at Hagen’ti.

“Hagen’ti.”

At Sereman’s command, the expressionless Hagen’ti mechanically raised his hand again.

Then, the sword lodged in Asmun’s back shook and tore itself free, floating up into the air.

Eden hugged the limp body of Asmun and, with tears in her eyes, looked at the blood-stained sword.

Just as Asmun had said, this game was a failure. In the end, she couldn’t surpass the final barrier.

*Ding!*

A new window popped up beside Hesmor’s Sword in the air.

“Do you wish to end the game?

If you end the game now, you can return.”

Eden stared blankly at the window filling with tears. Just as Asmun had said, a window offering her the chance to end the game had appeared.

If she ended the game now, she could go back…?

This was a window that had never appeared before. Not even once during all those near-failures…

How? Was this really the opportunity Asmun had given her?

Eden hugged Asmun’s body tightly, feeling his warmth in her fingertips, and looked at Hagen’ti’s red eyes.

No. This was not merely a game.

She had failed to save this world, failed to save Hagen’ti, and failed to protect Asmun’s empire.

Then, at that moment, as Eden gazed despairingly at the notification window, her eyes suddenly lit up.

“!”

No, wait.

There was still a chance.

“The Saint’s major skills are the Monster Vanquishing skill, capable of nullifying monsters, and Resurrection, enabling the revival of the dead. Defeating the Demon King, the final boss, will allow you to reach level 100 and gain the Resurrection skill!”

Resurrection.

This hidden character, the one she had chosen, had the ability to bring the dead back to life.

She had to resurrect Asmun.

And save Hagen’ti, and save this world!

To do that, she had to kill Sereman, who was holding Hagen’ti.

How… how…

“Holy Sword!”

Remembering the hidden item left to her, Eden called out desperately, and immediately the Holy Sword appeared in her hands.

Just as it had in the snowy fields before, the Holy Sword erupted with sacred light and swept away everything around her.

“Ugh….”

Yet even the light did nothing to Hagen’ti, and Sereman swiftly conjured a shield to withstand it.

“Hagen’ti! Kill that woman, hurry!”

Sensing danger, Sereman lost his composure and ordered. But for some reason, Hagen’ti remained rigid, unmoving.

Eden noticed Hagen’ti’s eyes flickering wildly between red and gray. Another fierce battle was raging within him.

A surge of indescribable emotion welled up within her, making her heart feel like it would explode.

“Hagen’ti…! Pull yourself together! Don’t give in!”

Sereman soon caught on to Hagen’ti’s struggles. Finally, with impatience bubbling up, Sereman stepped forward and raised his hand.

“Hatart!”

The sword that had taken Asmun’s life charged toward Eden.

“Huff….”

In the face of this sudden attack, Eden raised the Holy Sword high, preparing to parry. But the sword controlled by Sereman was not aimed at Eden.

“Hagen’ti…!”

Realizing it was targeting Hagen’ti’s heart, Eden rushed forward without thinking and threw herself around him to shield him.

The sword was aimed directly at Eden’s back.

In that split-second moment, as lightning-fast as it was, a circular light encased her, deflecting the incoming sword with terrifying speed.

“!”

Sereman’s eyes widened in shock.

*Ding!*

There was no way she could hear a notification sound here, yet Eden raised her head in surprise. Then, an unbelievable notification window appeared before her eyes.

“The power of Silverstone has manifested and saved your life!”

“What…?”

Silverstone’s power…?

It was then.

“Saint—!”

The door to the half-destroyed Chancellor’s Office burst open, and Chediak appeared. Eden and Sereman simultaneously turned their heads.

“Chediak…!”

“Silverstone… Hah… Silverstone is with the Saint…!”

Chediak, breathless as if he had run a marathon, shouted out, causing Sereman’s brow to furrow.

Eden stared at Chediak, who was saying the same thing as the notification window, with a dazed expression.

“Ella…! It’s the necklace given by Ella’s father…!”

At his words, the face of the blacksmith, Ella’s father, flashed before Eden’s eyes.

“This may be small, but… please accept it, Priest.”

Ella’s father, Tetes Pavelov, had offered the necklace to her as a gesture of gratitude.

“If you think of it as the price of Ella’s life, this is still insufficient. It’s the most precious thing I possess. A necklace that brings good fortune.”

Eden gasped and looked down at her chest. She could see brilliant light seeping out from the necklace hidden under her clothes.

“That’s Silverstone! Hagen’ti had given it to that man’s grandfather!”

Eden’s pupils dilated at the revelation.

“What…?”

She hastily reached into her collar and pulled out the necklace. As she held it up, a ring with a red magic stone dangled and fell.

“…!”

Chediak’s eyes filled with tears of joy as he beheld it.

The reason Chediak had been searching for Hagen’ti was simple. It was his grandfather’s dying wish to retrieve Silverstone from the Great Mage Hagen’ti.

Chediak’s grandfather, Roger Levistron, who was an alchemist and promising wizard, knew the true nature of Silverstone and, upon learning about the bloodshed caused by it in the Barstair family, rushed to retrieve it.

But while researching Silverstone, it had been snatched away by Hagen’ti.

Fortunately, Hagen’ti had vanished, and no calamities befell the empire, but Roger worried until his dying day that Silverstone might fall into the hands of evil and cause terrible side effects.

“Silverstone is truly strange and mystical; if it falls into the hands of those unworthy, it will corrupt its master endlessly. Luckily, it seems it did not work on the Great Mage, but there’s no telling when it may transfer to another’s hands, so we must definitely retrieve it and eliminate it. We alchemists have a mission to do so…”

Thus, Chediak dutifully searched for Hagen’ti, following his grandfather’s will.

He had even suspected Hagen’ti might be the head of the dark sorcerers and had chased dark sorcerers, leading him to meet Eden.

However, when Chediak finally encountered Hagen’ti, Silverstone had already slipped from his grasp.

“I gave it to the blacksmith.”

Hagen’ti casually stated, revealing that he presented it to the blacksmith who had cared for him when he was knocked down.

That precious thing! Knowing what it was!

“Have you lost your mind?!”

Chediak pressed Hagen’ti and pressed him some more until he discovered the blacksmith’s residence, intending to rush there as soon as Eden arrived, only to confront Sereman first.

After that, he had no memory.

It was likely he had blacked out after being attacked by Sereman. Thankfully, he instinctively cast a shield, saving his life, but spent all his magical power.

Having seen Sereman’s might, Chediak awoke and immediately left Hagen’ti’s castle to search for that blacksmith.

Silverstone was a power that could contain evil, and that power was desperately needed right now.

“That gem is no longer ours.”

The blacksmith, flustered to see late-night guests, uttered that disheartening sentence.

But the next words gripped Chediak’s mind tightly.

“I gave it to the Saint’s messenger in return for saving my daughter! A truly worthy person!”

The Saint.

The blacksmith had clearly claimed to have given it to the Saint, and there was only one Saint in all of Hesmor.

That Saint was Eden!

“Saint! Silverstone will help you!”