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Original Elroy: [this]

Isha: (this)

So, to describe how it feels to suddenly come face to face with someone who looks exactly like you…it’s like sitting on a tree stump, muttering to yourself, and then the ant climbing up the stump responds to your muttering. That’s how it feels.

“…What’s going on here?”

It’s just… extremely bewildering. No matter how fantastical this world, how surreal this realm is, I’ve never imagined a situation like this before.

[What’s going on? You just met me.]

I – well, to put it more simply, the ‘original’ Elroy knelt and crouched in front of me. His gaze was directed at the section where my arm had been severed.

[Quite a sight, isn’t it? It’s almost like watching myself die. Honestly, it’s interesting.

I furrowed my brow. Listening to Elroy speak, it was clear my personality remained faithful to the original. He looked at my disapproving expression, chuckled, and plopped down on the ground with a hearty laugh.

“Where on earth did you come from? Your voice… if what’s left of Isha said is true, you should have died back then.”

[You should’ve realized that was not the end by now.]

I looked at the Elroy from the original work. His face is pale. That was the first thing that struck me, and the second was that his hair was much scruffier than I thought. And his deep turquoise eyes. He appeared much older than I had imagined.

[Isha left remnants, right? So, I left my own remnants within the Holy Sword. Haven’t you, as the Hero, ever heard strange voices?]

Another voice aside from the Holy Sword. I remember them vividly. When I defeated the Giant or underwent the trial of the Criwb, the mysterious voices resonated in my mind. It felt like encouragement at times and a gentle push forward at others.

“Did you keep an eye on me all this time?”

[You fought pretty well. Different from me. Your way of dealing with comrades, how you treat people, and your perspective on the world were all completely different from mine.]

The Elroy from the original work chuckled bitterly.

[I felt an indescribable emotion watching you achieve what I couldn’t. It was a feeling I couldn’t even call jealousy, just regret. What I thought I had lost could have been gradually found if enough time had passed.]

Elroy stared blankly into the dark space momentarily, and I turned to look at him.

“How did you regain your memories?”

[Death is a mysterious phenomenon, Elroy, more than you might think. It’s like different roots that eventually separate, only to converge into one vast ocean. An absolute god and an ant end up in the same place—the world.]

The Elroy from the original work patted my head lightly.

[The memories I had forgotten came back to me in that moment, the ones buried deep by Isha. Do you remember, Isha?]

(…I remember every moment.)

The voice seemed reluctant to say more. He chuckled as if satisfied with the response.

[We were all failures. Isha, me, and even my comrades from the previous world.]

Elroy’s hand rested on my unscathed shoulder.

[But you continued forward as if denying our failures and frustrations. You tried to create a better world, choosing the path where fewer people would die. You never looked for an easy way out; even when it was difficult and challenging, you tried not to turn away from responsibility. Even now, you’re moving forward just like that.]

Elroy once again lifted his head towards the darkness of the surreal space.

[Isn’t this what you wanted?]

(I…It is, but I wished that you, Elroy, wouldn’t be trapped by the obsession I planted.)

[No one forced me. I’m doing this because I want to.]

[That goes for him too.]

Elroy went down on one knee.

[Isha, my determination to save you was not forced by anyone.]

I looked at the conversation between the voice and Elroy and let out a small sigh. Well, it’s good that the reinforcements have arrived. But somehow, I had a feeling that he would send me away and walk into the darkness alone, pretending to be cool.

“Just so you know, don’t try to go in alone. This is my fight, not yours.”

[You talk a lot for someone missing an arm and leg.]

Elroy chuckled and reached out to me. I reached out with my left hand, supporting myself awkwardly. It was amusing how my balance felt strangely stable.

[So, what was your original plan?]

Elroy asked, and I took a short breath and raised my head towards the distant, faint light.

“Go in there; either pull out Isha or fight together.”

[You really had nothing, huh? How on earth did you save the world?]

Someone really knows how to poke at someone’s temper. I can probably understand why Arjen was so irritated in the original. He must have made remarks that scratched at his temper gradually throughout the journey. I looked at the original Elroy with a bitter smile, and he responded while raising his eyebrows.

[All right, then. What can I do for you, who is missing a pair of arms and legs?]

“Either take me there or do something to prevent Isha from interfering. If not that…”

Elroy lifted me up and looked straight into my eyes. Only then could I genuinely look into Elroy’s – my own eyes. Come to think of it, I had never looked directly into my own eyes before.

Turquoise.

Once again, I thought it was a strange color. Elroy erased the mischief from his eyes and smiled. His gaze, imbued with a particular kindness, made it seem like he had become a deity.

[Let’s make your arms and legs grow back.]

At Elroy’s words, I opened my eyes wide in surprise. This was no joke.

“…How?”

[By merging the two of us into one shared being.]

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

I asked with a deep frown, and the original Elroy chuckled softly.

[It means I will be absorbed by you.]

“That’s like saying you’ll commit suicide.”

[It’s not dying but disappearing, you idiot. We’re the same person anyway.]

The original Elroy spoke while lifting his hand. Like being erased with an eraser, the form at the tip of his hand began to blur.

[The end of the story is approaching, Elroy. The first world has crossed the line and interfered with the second world. I will genuinely disappear unless I become a parasite to you.]

“The term ‘parasite’ doesn’t sit well with me.”

[I’m not doing this because I like it.]

The original Elroy sighed.

[The reason I couldn’t disappear and stay in this world was…]

Elroy pointed to the sky.

[To save someone like me, who wouldn’t disappear to protect the world.]

Elroy’s eyes were earnest.

[I wonder if the people who looked at me then felt the same as I do now.]

He chuckled bitterly. I just listened silently to what Elroy was saying.

[I hope you can save her. I hope you go beyond the path I couldn’t take, to become what I couldn’t, to save what I couldn’t. Move forward.]

Slowly, Elroy’s fading form began to merge with me.

[Go on,]

Elroy’s voice now began to resonate from within me.

[I’ll disappear, taking with me the irresponsible words I couldn’t fulfill.]

My left leg grew back. The right arm, once severed, now tightly held the scabbard. Memories not originally mine streamed into my mind.

(Your name is Elroy.)

Someone looked at me, smiling as if creating that name. And hope. Why had I forgotten that memory until now? The emptiness in my head began to fill with light and warmth.

[Now, Elroy, raise your sword.]

I lifted the sword as instructed.

[It’s time to return as a hero.]

***

“So, what do you think now?”

The road ahead appeared clear as if it had never blocked my path. ‘I’ looked down at my hand. It felt strangely odd that all the gaps in my memory had been filled. Though that voice and attitude were now a part of me, they still held a peculiar weight.

“Will you be freed from this space if I bring Isha here?”

(I don’t know. Perhaps simply disappearing might be the best outcome.)

I nodded and turned my gaze. The tiny crack that was once a faint light had now widened enough for a person to pass through, radiating light before me.

(I’ve opened the way. I realized there’s no way to stop you from progressing here. Quite stubborn, aren’t you?)

I gazed at the path, took a deep breath, and exhaled.

(It’s going to be a long fight. It might take as long as the creation and disappearance of entire universes.)

“Even so, I’ll go.”

(Is it because you’re the Hero?)

Hero.

I chuckled at those words, contemplating them in my mind.

“I’m not doing it because I’m a Hero. I just want to save you because I want to.”

Calling me a Hero is an overblown title for someone who wants to rescue one person.

(…Is that so?)

This time, the voice sounded happier. When I turned around, Isha, with silver hair, looked at me with a faint smile.

(I’ll be waiting, so please return.)

My eyes widened briefly, then my mouth turned into a smile, and I nodded.

“Yeah, I’ll rescue you and return.”

And with that, I stepped into the light.