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The leaves were falling like ashes. It had been about half a year since we reunited in the midst of a trial of despair. My younger sister, Sora, appeared before me again. But the joy was short-lived, and I was left speechless.

“You…”

Sora looked as if she had suffered from malnutrition, her face pale and her body reduced to skin and bones. She was so thin that her clothes hung loosely on her.

“Why…?”

I wanted to ask why she had become like this, but I stopped myself. I already knew why. She had been fighting to protect this world from the system, to keep it from being taken over by Park Joon-hyuk.

“Did you really go this far to protect it?”

“You did the same, didn’t you…?”

At Sora’s retort, I looked at myself. My clothes were stained and torn, soaked in blood. My body was riddled with holes from wires. I wasn’t in a position to criticize her. If she looked like a skeleton, I was a walking corpse, no different from a zombie.

“…Yeah. We’re a mess.”

“Haha… right…?”

Sora forced a smile, but it was tinged with regret and self-deprecation.

“I’m sorry, brother.”

“?”

“If I had done better, maybe it wouldn’t have come to this…”

I shook my head.

“Let’s not talk like that. Even if we tried again, we couldn’t have done better. Look at us. This was the best we could do.”

I had hoped this world wouldn’t be dismissed as just a game, that it wouldn’t be trampled by ignorant players. I wanted our world to remain ours, not taken by others.

But that hope was shattered.

“It’s all over now…”

Eventually, Park Joon-hyuk would take over this world, a hollow shell after all the characters were killed by the players.

“So you don’t have to push yourself anymore.”

At my words, Sora lowered her head. I knew she hadn’t given up, even now.

The falling leaves stopped. Sora stood with her back against a bare tree, a miniature version of the massive World Tree that Park Joon-hyuk had consumed. It was a withered, skeletal tree, barely standing, with no leaves left.

Sora wasn’t just leaning against it—she was holding it up with her entire body.

“…Hey, brother.”

“Yeah.”

“I think I’ve caused you too much pain all this time…”

It was a dark past. I had killed our father when he tried to harm Sora and went to prison. After that, we had nothing. I lived a harsh life, moving from one shabby place to another, branded as an ex-convict. I wondered if Sora had carried that guilt all this time.

“Pain? Even if it was painful, it was worth it.”

I worked tirelessly to give Sora a normal life, hoping she could forget our troubled past and live without feeling deprived. No matter how hard it was, I endured it for her.

“No… I know how much you suffered because of me…”

“It’s all in the past. Don’t worry about it.”

Sora gave a bitter smile and then told me something surprising.

“Did you know? I originally wanted to make you the protagonist of my novel…”

“…What?”

You wanted to make me the protagonist instead of Peter Wingfield?

“Are you saying Tristan was originally the protagonist?”

“Well… it’s more like I wanted to write a novel with you as the protagonist.”

“Why?”

I knew exactly how unremarkable I was. I was a typical loner, not as smart as Sora, not particularly athletic, and had no special talents. That was me.

“I’m not protagonist material.”

“I know. You hate pretending to be righteous, like a typical hero or a good protagonist…”

“You know me well.”

“That’s why I had to make you the antagonist. If I had known you’d appear as Tristan, I wouldn’t have made you the antagonist…”

“No, who could’ve known? You did well. I don’t deserve to be the protagonist. It’s too much for me. If I were the protagonist, the story wouldn’t have worked.”

But Sora shook her head.

“Brother, I think a protagonist is someone who never gives up, no matter the trials… a hero with unyielding will.”

“Then that’s even less like me…”

“Look at what you’ve achieved in this world.”

“What I’ve achieved…?”

“Did you forget? Wendy is still alive because of you.”

Ah… now I see what she means.

Sora continued.

“Not just Wendy. Blanshe, Bella, Helga, and the others—they’ve all reconciled and forgiven each other because of you. You were more of a protagonist than Peter, the original protagonist of my novel.”

“…I only did what I had to do to survive.”

As Tristan, all I had was destruction. I struggled to escape that fate. Resolving conflicts and grudges with the characters was ultimately for my own survival. It wasn’t out of some noble, heroic heart.

“I just changed your story to survive.”

“I like the changes you made. And the protagonist is the one who can change the world, right? No one else could’ve changed the world like you did, not even Peter.”

“If I were the protagonist… if I were truly a hero, I should’ve saved this world.”

That was the decisive reason I wasn’t the protagonist. I couldn’t save this world. No matter how hard I tried, I failed in the end.

“I don’t deserve to be the protagonist.”

More than anything, my heart had already reached a state of resignation. No matter how much I thought about it, there was no way out of this situation. Even if I regressed to the past again, could I really defeat Park Joon-hyuk and the system?

If I were the protagonist, maybe I could’ve done something. But honestly, I wasn’t confident. After dying and regressing over 500 times, my heart was worn out.

Sora quietly stared at me and then spoke softly.

“Brother, the reality we’ve lived through has been far from happy. It’s been filled with sadness, depression, and despair. But you never gave up. You worked harder than anyone, struggling desperately for us to survive in this hopeless world. To me, that’s what a protagonist looks like.”

“…”

“I wanted to write a novel with you as the protagonist. Because in my novel… I wanted you to be happy. This novel… this world was my wish…”

Sora smiled weakly.

“If it weren’t for you, this world wouldn’t have even begun.”

“…But I failed.”

My chest ached as if it had been hollowed out.

“I couldn’t save it… I couldn’t save this world, or you… or anyone. I’m not a protagonist. I’m a failure.”

“It’s okay. You did your best. No one else could’ve come this far… I’m the one who’s sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?”

“I’m sorry for making you suffer because of my poor writing… So it’s okay to rest now. You can go back to your original body.”

“…What?”

Go back to my original body…?

“What are you talking about? Didn’t I die?”

“Yes. But it was Tristan’s body that died. Your consciousness escaped from Tristan’s body… I was able to bring your consciousness here because Tristan died. And I still have enough power to send your consciousness back to your original body.”

Tristan was dead. My consciousness should’ve vanished, but Sora somehow prevented it. She wanted to send my consciousness back to my original body.

“You wanted it too, right? To go back to how things were.”

I did. I wanted it so badly. To return to my original body, to my original world.

But not like this.

“You’re telling me to go back without you?”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t. I have to protect this world until you leave.”

The withered tree was still pressing down on Sora. I could guess that the moment the tree fell would be the true end of this world.

“How long can you hold on like that…?”

“It’s okay. This world was created by my imagination. Even if my body is like this, my imagination is still intact. As long as the author’s imagination supports it, I can hold on. So you don’t have to suffer anymore. You don’t have to be sad. You don’t have to despair. If you go back…”

“If I go back, what?”

I looked at Sora as I asked.

“What’s waiting for me? What do I have?”

“…”

“There’s nothing. I have nothing.”

It wasn’t just Sora. Bella, Wendy, Helga, Blanshe—they were all gone.

“Everything I have is here, and you’re telling me to leave?”

“Brother…”

“I’m not going back. This world is our happiness, the world we created. How can I leave it behind?”

“I know that too!”

Sora shouted, her emotions flaring.

“This world is something we built stitch by stitch! I know! That’s why I don’t want to lose it either. I don’t want to give up…! But I can’t hold on much longer…”

Her voice trembled as she poured out her emotions.

“My imagination has long since run dry. There’s no time… If this continues, you won’t be able to go back either. Even if we can’t both go back, at least you… at least one of us should go back, right?”

“…”

“Please, I’m begging you. Brother… I understand how you feel, but sometimes there’s just nothing we can do. I just want you to live.”

I closed my eyes tightly.

Sora was right. If I could go back, I should. Staying here would only be a burden.

Sora was still straining her remaining imagination to hold this world together. She would hold on until she could send my consciousness back to my original body. That was the last thing she could do.

Then what about me?

Was there anything I could do?

Even at this point, Sora was trying to do what she could. She was struggling to save her brother. As her brother, I couldn’t just stand by.

I would give everything.

What could I do, with only my consciousness left? What meaningful thing could I do?

I kept thinking, and soon I reached a conclusion.

“…Alright.”

It probably didn’t take long. I nodded and approached Sora.

“Guess this is it. We just reunited, and now we have to part again.”

“…Yeah.”

I hugged Sora, who was holding up the dead World Tree. Normally, she would’ve pushed me away, saying it was gross, but she didn’t have the strength left.

“You said I suffered for you, but you suffered just as much.”

“Brother…”

This might be the last time we could see each other like this. Knowing that, neither of us could easily continue speaking. Anything we said would only bring tears.

“Sniff… I don’t want to say goodbye to you…”

In the end, it was Sora who broke down crying. She sobbed like a child, her shoulders shaking in my arms.

“I wanted to go back with you… Sniff… I wanted to live happily with you again, like before…”

“I’m sorry.”

“No. I’m the one who’s sorry. For making you go through all this…”

“It’s okay. If it weren’t for your imagination… your wish, we wouldn’t have come this far. So…”

I ended the short hug and spoke to Sora.

“Now, I’ll take your place.”

“…Huh?”

Sora looked at me, confused.

“Park Joon-hyuk said it too. Imagination is the power to make the impossible possible…”

I thought about it.

Until now, this world had been sustained by Sora’s “imagination.” This world began with her imagination.

But I had been involved in her writing, giving advice and contributing to the settings. I didn’t hold the pen, but I talked a lot. That meant…

“Then, couldn’t I sustain this world with my ‘imagination’ instead of yours?”

“Brother…?”

“Right? Since I came to this world, a lot has changed. I was able to change this world not just because I was Tristan, but also because I had a share in imagining this world, right?”

“W-Wait. Even if that’s true, you don’t know this world better than I do.”

“Did you forget? I’m your long-time reader. I know all the backstory of this novel. There’s nothing I don’t know.”

I was the only reader and co-author of this world. Moreover, after coming here, I uncovered all the hidden backstory. No one knew this world better than I did.

“So, I’m the only one who can take your place.”

“B-Brother?!”

Without giving Sora a chance to stop me, I reached out and held up the World Tree that was pressing down on her. It was heavy. Had she really been carrying this all along?

The moment my hand touched it, I felt my strength being drained by the World Tree. At the same time, I could feel my thoughts connecting through the tree. Was this what it felt like to have your imagination absorbed?

I pushed Sora aside and took the weight of the World Tree.

“N-No! Brother! Don’t do this! That’s my job!”

Sora tried to push me away, but she was no match for me in terms of strength or stamina.

“Brother! Please…!”

“Let me be your brother one last time.”

“W-Who asked for that? I don’t want you to do this!”

“That’s why I’m doing it.”

“Y-You’re joking at a time like this…?!”

“If I don’t do this, I’ll be remembered as a failure of a brother till the end.”

At that moment, Sora’s eyes widened. She finally understood what I meant.

“W-Why are you saying this is the last…?”

“It’s time to say goodbye.”

“?!”

Sora’s body began to glow faintly.

As I took on the World Tree, my imagination began to influence this world. I didn’t need to figure out how to use it.

I just thought about Sora safely leaving this place. I wished for her to return to her original body.

Then, Sora’s body began to glow and gradually fade.

“No! No! Brother!! This isn’t how it’s supposed to be!”

Sora pounded on my chest with her fists, but her hands didn’t reach me, growing fainter and fainter.

“Brother!!”

Sora screamed, tears streaming down her face.

She probably never imagined that our farewell would be like this.

Feeling the weight of the World Tree on my shoulders, I smiled at Sora.

“Take care, my sister.”

 

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