The Man’s 101st Bad Ending

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The desolation was palpable. There was no sign of life. Realizing he had created this wasteland himself, he felt a sense of emptiness.

He had swung his sword to reach a higher level, but he was losing sight of his goal. When he had finished off the knights, he had deliberately let one escape.

He knew they would send a subjugation force.

He had chuckled when he heard that the Grand General was Miragen.

How had someone who had only swung a sword for self-defense become the Grand General?

Kaitel had become Emperor, and his cruelty had remained unchanged.

What had twisted him? He had been intelligent, but not cruel.

Why had he suddenly subjugated the North? Why was he so eager to kill him?

His gaze swept across the horizon, spotting the approaching subjugation force.

Miragen’s subjugation force.

His grip on his sword tightened.

The sword he had picked up in the East had never broken.

It was probably a famous sword, but he didn’t know its name. It had been able to withstand his power, unlike his other swords, which would often shatter from the force of his swings.

“It’s been years.”

He hadn’t seen Miragen since her death. He had always left the Taylor’s to train with his sword.

He had recently started to gather information about her, but that was all. She seemed to be doing well.

He hoped she hadn’t been injured on the battlefield, with so many lives lost.

He hadn’t needed to kill the knights.

The problem was, they had been incredibly hostile towards him.

They had had the same red glow in their eyes as the knights he had encountered before.

The approaching force didn’t seem to have that aura, but the first group of knights hadn’t either.

He wasn’t sure what to say to Miragen. She didn’t know him. She might consider him a powerful enemy.

The Miragen he knew…was no more.

He knew it, but he couldn’t accept it.

What should he call this feeling? As the wind rustled his hair, he smiled, seeing her face.

He might have looked somewhat decent if he had shaved, but…he was the only one experiencing these complicated emotions.

“…He’s smiling. Even when facing the subjugation force.”

Five hundred.

It wasn’t a daunting number.

He knew his own strength.

He knew the power of a single sword strike that could cleave a mountain, and the gap between him and others.

He was the strongest swordsman in the world. But he wasn’t here to kill them. He felt this life was coming to an end. He had to let go of his attachments.

He placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, and all the knights drew their weapons.

He saw Miragen’s tense expression and smiled.

He knew he wasn’t in a pleasant situation.

Should he flee? Or should he defeat them all and head to the capital?

He pondered his options, then sighed, a self-deprecating smile on his lips.

…Ultimately, it would all depend on Miragen.

He had always been weak in front of her.

He wondered if his sword would slow down when she was near.

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The knights felt a terror that transcended anything they had ever experienced.

Their bodies trembled at the mere sight of him.

Every time Robert’s sword moved, they checked if their heads were still attached to their bodies.

They had heard about his feat of bisecting a mountain and slaughtering five hundred knights.

The knights, fueled by their ambition, drew their swords, their hands trembling with fear.

They couldn’t move rashly.

Loken had warned them about the Sword Saint before the battle.

-Don’t blink. Even a fraction of a second is enough for you to die.

The empire’s expansion had hardened the knights. They had faced hundreds, even thousands of opponents, yet this was different.

This was in a completely different league.

Grind.

Robert drew a line on the ground and looked at the knights.

They were too nervous to fight effectively. Even if they were elite, they couldn’t fight at their best in their current state.

He intended to subdue them if they didn’t attack first.

He looked at Miragen, then took a few steps towards her, his sword in hand.

He stopped, close enough for her to hear him. Miragen flinched, realizing he was looking at her.

There was a strange emotion in his eyes, but she realized it was a sign of goodwill.

Why was he showing her goodwill? Before she could fully grasp the question, Robert spoke.

“…I’m glad you’re doing well.”

He had taken up the sword to protect her, but he had strayed from that path. He had become too distant from her.

He had probably died over twenty times since then, almost a hundred years in total.

He looked at Miragen, then his gaze drifted into space. If he let things be, the knights would have their way.

He was speaking to a Miragen he knew, a Miragen who no longer existed.

He had been expecting this reaction. It made him feel strangely at peace.

What would happen if he fled now? Would Kaitel leave Miragen alone if she returned empty-handed?

“You wouldn’t understand. It’s a story only I know.”

A story of a man trapped in an eternal loop, a man who had become obsessed with a woman.

It was a boring story that no one would care about, a story that wouldn’t earn him any sympathy.

But he hadn’t wanted anyone to understand him. He had only wanted to protect her, to ensure he could protect her when they met again.

That was why he had picked up the sword.

Thump.

Robert’s lips twisted as he sliced through an approaching knight. He was the only one who was free amidst the chaos.

The knights’ eyes were turning red again, filled with madness.

He and Miragen were the only rational people here.

Why were the knights’ eyes like that? They had been trembling with fear just moments ago, but now they were all trying to kill him.

‘Is Kaitel behind this?’

He wasn’t sure.

He didn’t know what Kaitel was planning.

Perhaps he would understand if he found the alchemist Arwen, whom Kaitel had been trying to kill. Or maybe he would find a clue elsewhere.

The saint… or perhaps he would find a connection in the North.

He had no attachments to this life.

He would be satisfied if Miragen was safe and happy. If she completed her mission and returned to the palace unscathed, he would be content.

“What’s your name?”

Robert asked, looking at Loken, who had stopped approaching.

He knew Loken wouldn’t understand, his eyes were already red. But he didn’t like the fact that he was standing next to Miragen.

Thump.

He wouldn’t kill the knights here. He didn’t want Miragen to be blamed for their deaths.

He roughly subdued Loken, then looked at Miragen.

Her expression was more complicated now.

He had seen some of that emotion before.

They would all look dead until the end of this fight. She would hate him for that, and if she killed him because of it…

…it would be the perfect death.

He wouldn’t blame her.

He would be happy if that’s how his life ended. He had lived for too long. He would finally be free.

“I’ll see you again. I promise.”

He looked at her, his eyes full of a complex emotion.

He wouldn’t see her for a long time when he started his next life. He would have to find a way to escape this cycle of regressions without her.

He hoped that when they met again, this curse would be over.

Then, he could have a child and live happily, without worry.

His thirty-fifth life, where he had lost her, and his fifty-fifth, where he would die by her hand…

…were the most beautiful deaths in Robert’s memories.

And that was why he wanted to tell her. He had never resented her. He had smiled even as she killed him.

He didn’t want her to grieve.

“I never…resented you, Miragen.”

Robert murmured, stroking Miragen’s body as he finished his story.

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[Translator Notes]

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