1.
Vulcan, Guardian of the Empire.
The indomitable guardian who never retreats, always showing only his steadfast back.
The man who endured against countless demonkin without shedding a single drop of blood—
“…Ian.”
—Shed tears in honor of his fallen comrade who had saved him.
To the mercenaries watching Vulcan, it was a great shock.
And for good reason—wasn’t the man before them none other than Vulcan Gardner, a hero of <Light>?
Unlike them who wallowed in the mire, he had always walked a path of flowers—yet now he, too, experienced despair and collapse.
“I know!! That there’s no point blaming <Black Wolf>!! Ian died because I was weak—because I was such an incompetent, foolish man!!”
Even the way he blamed himself, rather than the overwhelming enemy—
“Because I’m such an idiot…!! Because I’m weak, so weak that I can’t even avenge him properly!! That’s why I need you!!”
—His self-denial, and his desperate plea for help.
“The pain of losing a comrade… isn’t that something we mercenaries understand best?”
It was a sorrow and pain they could relate to deeply.
“…Damn it, I’ll help.”
“…Count me in too.”
“Yeah, it’s not even for free—they’re paying us, right?”
“Hell, he even let us save face—would feel bad not helping, Yellow Dragon.”
Rumble.
In the end, the majority of the mercenaries approached Vulcan, declaring their intention to help.
“Stop crying and get up.”
“…I…”
“Cut the chatter and rise. The only time you’re allowed to cry is after you’ve finished your revenge.”
“…!!”
Vulcan’s eyes gleamed once more.
The most abrasive of the mercenaries rubbed his nose awkwardly and extended his hand.
“Let’s go, Hero. For revenge.”
The intense exchange of gazes between men.
Grasping that hand tightly, Vulcan stood with a resolute expression.
“You are the real men here.”
Wham!
A fiery embrace!
“H-Hmph, you’re… pretty cool yourself… I guess.”
An embarrassed acknowledgment!
A brotherhood between men so strong, just watching it stirred the heart!
“…Idiots.”
“Yes, Captain?”
“No… Let’s go back, Dalan.”
“Yes, Captain.”
In any case, now that they had figured out the whereabouts of the <Heroes of Light>—
‘The rest of them better still be sane.’
Nahan returned to the hideout where the members of <Black Wolf> were gathered, to plan his next move.
2.
Crash!
In a large, silent room shrouded in blackout curtains, a glass plate shattered.
The untouched refreshments that had been served rolled beside the broken shards.
The cause—Marine Blue of the Heroes of Light.
“Why is he…!!”
Three days had passed since Ian’s death, but she still hadn’t recovered from the shock.
No—
“Quiet, Marine.”
“You shut it, Selena.”
“…Try me.”
“Both of you, stop… Please.”
The women of the Hero Party still hadn’t recovered from the shock.
Asha perched on a chair.
Marine collapsed on the bed.
Selena sitting in the corner.
After Ian’s death, they had started blaming each other for failing to protect him.
“If you want to.”
“Then do it.”
“Please!! Both of you, just stop…!!”
Just as the atmosphere was about to explode, the door opened—Vulcan had returned.
“That’s enough.”
He quickly assessed the situation and tried to calm them, but Selena still bristled.
“And if I don’t want to?”
“…Selena.”
“Shut up. The priest died because—”
Wham.
Vulcan silently embraced Selena.
“You’re right. It’s my fault.”
He truly believed that.
Regardless of the details, it was a fact that Ian had thrown his life away to protect him.
“Hate me if you want, hit me if it helps. And if that still doesn’t ease your rage, you can cast me out of the <Heroes of Light> or strip me of the title of Hero. But…”
Tightly clenched in Vulcan’s hand, a stack of documents slipped and scattered to the floor.
They were the signatures of numerous mercenaries—gathered for the <Black Wolf> subjugation.
When the three women realized what they were, Vulcan swallowed his tears and added.
“Until Ian’s revenge is complete… I want to stay here, as one of the Heroes of Light.”
A foolish man.
No—
Vulcan, the fool.
Unlike the women, who could hide their true feelings, Vulcan’s words were always sincere.
“…Vulcan, you idiot.”
Thud. Thud.
Thump.
Selena swung her fists at Vulcan, who truly believed Ian’s death was his own fault.
“That’s not it…”
“…I’m sorry, Selena. I truly am, but I don’t understand what you mean.”
Vulcan didn’t realize it.
That the women of Light were not sharpening their blades at each other out of genuine blame—
Rather—
“It’s not your fault, you idiot…”
They each believed they were the greatest cause of Ian’s death.
“Not because of you… not at all……”
And so they blamed each other, just to avoid facing that uncomfortable truth.
“It’s my fault.”
“…Selena.”
“I got arrogant, thinking I had a handle on the situation… and I realized the priest’s intervention too late…”
At last, she broke down in tears she had been holding back.
Seeing her like that, Marine—who had worn a scowl until then—opened her mouth next.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Useless as you are, sure, you couldn’t do anything. But when a crisis hits the Heroes of Light, I’m the one who’s supposed to react right away.”
She was calm.
Though she had clearly wasted away from not eating proper meals—let alone her favorite snacks—these past days.
“Ian’s death… is mostly my fault. I couldn’t even lay a hand on <Black Wolf>.”
Her expression, as she said it, was clearer than ever.
“…”
Asha remained silent.
Even as everyone claimed it was their fault, only she kept her mouth shut.
Because her burden was too heavy.
Though the team blamed themselves, in the end, she was the leader of the Heroes of Light.
“…”
The guilt she bore was incomparable to that of the other members.
Yet Asha did not remain still.
With her frail body, she carefully picked up the scattered papers Vulcan had dropped, and, wearing the same unreadable expression, she quietly reviewed the documents.
Flip, Flip.
Rustle…
The sound of papers turning filled the silence.
One by one, the members, who had remained frozen in place, began to gather beside her.
When all the members had finally taken their seats at the round table, Asha murmured softly,
“Now… now is not the time to cry. Let’s save our tears—for the day we finish our revenge.”
Her voice carried a coldness that bordered on chilling—far beyond indifference.
Sensing what lay in her heart, the team members finally calmed down and nodded.
The subjugation of <Black Wolf> by the Heroes of Light—
【Bad Ending 10 – <The Collapse of Light> has been prevented.】
One week remains.
3.
Nahan was bewildered.
【Bad Ending 10 – <The Collapse of Light> has been prevented.】
Because he had done absolutely nothing—yet the bad ending was resolved on its own.
“…Why so suddenly…?”
It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.
There was that time he scolded his subordinates to clean up the base properly—and they misunderstood and cleared out all the trash, somehow resolving a bad ending.
“…Did I tell anyone to do anything?”
Nahan thought it over for a moment—but no, he definitely hadn’t.
The last order he gave was, ‘Take the whole day off and do absolutely nothing.’
These guys followed even the strangest commands to the letter, so there was no way they would’ve acted on their own.
“Hmmm…”
After a while of pondering the cause, Nahan finally arrived at a reasonable conclusion.
“No point overthinking it. Nothing’s gonna change. Might as well accept it and enjoy the ride.”
He always worked so hard—he deserved to coast a bit now and then.
With that thought, Nahan turned his gaze toward the newly appeared system window.
【You have prevented 10 Bad Endings!】
【All previously restricted abilities are now unlocked!】
“…Sweet.”
It was the moment he had been longing for since the day he possessed this body—the moment he finally reclaimed everything that belonged to <Black Wolf>.
Without hesitation, he swiped the window aside and opened the system menu containing the data on <Black Wolf>—
“Dear God.”
‘Holy shi—what the hell—’
Nahan barely managed to swallow the curse that nearly escaped his lips as he turned his head toward the door.
There stood a beautiful young man with jet-black hair, wearing a faint, serene smile.
Feigning a stretch, Nahan naturally locked eyes with him.
“What is it, Peter?”
“Well…”
Whether he took that as permission or not, Peter walked in without hesitation, knelt down before Nahan, and brought his hands together.
“I have a prayer to offer.”
“Report.”
“A prayer, my lord.”
A chilling glint sparkled in Peter’s eyes.
“…Fine. Go ahead.”
“Yes, my lord. Ahem, ahem. Since our god has granted permission—please enter, sister.”
“Hff… hhhhaah!!”
The moment Peter finished speaking, Yuria crept in through the open door.
“Hahh, hahhh…”
She moved slowly, on her knees, hands clasped like in prayer.
“Wait…!! P-Please give me… a moment…!!”
“…A posture of repentance. Very commendable.”
“Th-Thank you…!! O senior punisher…!!”
Insane. They’re both completely insane.
Apparently, they came barging into his room just to pull this crap.
Once inside, Yuria steadied her breathing and finally spoke, her face lighting up with cheerful clarity.
“We’ve been discovered by the Heroes of Light.”
“? What do you—”
BOOOOOOOM!!!
“Come out, Black Wolf!!! We’re here to avenge our comrade, Ian Red!!!!”
…I want to go home.
