The World After the Bad Ending

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

Chapter 279

A thunderbolt, cast down from the divine realm, erased the sky as it fell upon me.

The Demon Sovereign’s scream echoed.

He tried to cling to me, squeezing out his final power through the nightmare of Celestial Duke.

But his desperate struggle was in vain.

The thunderbolt erased everything.

The Demon Sovereign is vanishing.

The wretched fate that repeated over thousands of years is finally being erased.

A cry filled with the grudge of a lifetime burst from the Demon Sovereign.

Once a godlike being who sought to consume even the divine realm—he met his end at the hands of his own greed.

He had already endured Isabel’s Goddess Descent.

With only a fragment of his soul left, he couldn’t withstand the 108th thunderbolt.

Amid the radiant light,

my body began to disappear.

And yet, the smile on my face did not fade.

Faces of the girls who stood by my side filled my mind.

If I had one last regret—

It would be not seeing their faces again.

I closed my eyes in the thunderbolt.

Until a voice rang out from the sky where the thunderbolt struck:

“DANGSHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!!”

My eyes snapped open.

It was unmistakably Isabel’s voice—though she should still be in the Demon Dungeon.

Why was I hearing her now?

But it wasn’t just Isabel’s voice.

“Prince Sweet Potato!”

Seron’s booming voice followed.

“Whoa, it’s total chaos now.”

“You were going to leave me behind, weren’t you, Oppa?”

Even Sharin’s relaxed tone and Iris’s voice came one after another.

“Senior, you’re trying to do it all alone again.”

And finally, even Nikita’s voice reached me.

High above in the sky—

They were plummeting toward the thunderbolt.

My eyes widened in disbelief.

I couldn’t comprehend how they were here.

Then I noticed it—Isabel was holding the Gongdo.

Gongdo was the key that opens dimensions.

But for humans, traveling through it was dangerous—coordinates were jumbled, and one could end up trapped in space.

That’s why, without Adora and the celestial cat, it should have been impossible.

But Sharin had mastered celestial magic on her own.

And here was Xenia.

Only three people in the world possess divine magic: Xenia, Sharin, and Midra.

So Sharin followed the divine magic she sensed from Xenia across dimensions, bringing everyone with her through the Gongdo.

They were outrageously reckless—so much that it stunned me.

But why?

Why did seeing them make me not want to die?

I clenched onto the body that had been fading away with the thunderbolt.

Magical engravings across my body began to glow in unison.

The scenario had reached its conclusion.

And I had believed it would be fine even without me at the end.

But I was wrong.

I, too, wanted to see the world beyond the scenario.

I wanted to move forward.

More than anything, I didn’t want them to mourn my death.

A world after the Bad Ending.

Such a world didn’t need to exist anymore.

A forgotten wish resurfaced within me.

And then, a new kind of power surged.

There would be no more Bad Endings in this world.

No endings set in stone.

The world always moves forward without anything predetermined.

A world after the Happy Ending.

That’s the world I wanted to see.

The remnants of the ancient dragon, nearly destroyed by the Demon Sovereign, let out a roar.

It had been suppressed by both me and the Demon Sovereign—but now, wanting to live, it devoured the thunderbolt wildly.

The thunderbolt, which had been melting my body, now surged inside me.

My body trembled, and it felt like I would lose consciousness at any moment—but I clung on desperately.

To see the world after the Happy Ending, I summoned every last ounce of strength.

Deep within my body,

The flame of ashes burned violently.

The flame that had once been passed on from Rosli—reduced to ashes—now blazed up once more, mingling with the thunderbolt and reigniting every last ember.

The final flame of the Ashen Fire burned brilliantly.

And yet, it still wasn’t enough to withstand the 108th thunderbolt.

At that moment, Isabel spread her wings more radiantly than anyone else from high above.

And together with the others, she began to manifest the form of the Goddess.

The fifth awakening of the Goddess’s Wings—Goddess Descent.

“Everyone—please, help me!”

Within the descended Goddess, Isabel cried out.

They had already pushed themselves to the limit in the previous battle.

Their strength alone wasn’t enough to complete the Goddess Descent.

“Girl! Take every last bit of my power!”

[PR/N: DEFEAT HIM GOKUUUU!!!!]

Whitewood was the first to shout.

Then a small pair of the Goddess’s wings sprouted behind her.

“I’m tired of watching my students die. Take it.”

Vega smiled at me from within the lightning.

Wings sprouted from her back as well.

And it wasn’t just her.

“What are you all doing?! Help him! It’s time to save the hero of the nation!”

First Prince, Lukraizen Hysirion.

Even as the First Prince, he did not flee but commanded from the ramparts, shouting to the people.

His cry and will gradually spread to everyone around.

“I don’t know what it is, but take it!”

“The kid’s gonna die. Hurry up.”

“Take this, please!”

“Mine too, take mine too!”

Even those who had no connection to me began to join in one by one.

Though worn out from war, they willingly offered up their strength.

“This… this is something not even magic can achieve.”

The Blue Tower Master joined in with a look of amazement.

And the same thing was happening in the Demon Dungeon.

Isabel’s voice reached everyone’s ears.

“Bring back Wangnon.”

“We have to save that fool.”

“Senior, you deserve to be rewarded for all your hard work.”

Even the academy students responded to Isabel’s request.

The goddess grew ever larger.

And with it, the holy sword in her hand shone brighter than ever before.

“Fram.”

Zenia called out to me one last time.

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

“We finally became a family. I guess I don’t want to part ways either.”

Wings sprouted from her back as well.

“Let’s live a little longer.”

The holy sword burst with a light brighter than the sun and roared toward the heavens.

The goddess, holding that light powerful enough to reach even the divine realm, gripped her sword tightly.

“You.”

“Prince Sweet Potato.”

“Husband.”

“Brother.”

“Senior.”

They each called me by different names, just like they did during the battle with Demon Sovereign.

None of them used my real name.

But I could clearly tell they were all calling out to me.

“Let’s go home.”

Those final words all carried the same meaning.

The holy sword moved.

Reaching toward the lightning, the sword pierced through it.

Having reached its full potential, the sword finally split the lightning.

The 108th divine lightning — powerful enough to erase even death.

The goddess’s holy sword, imbued with such might, neutralized and erased the lightning.

The shattered fragments of lightning disappeared beyond the sky.

Light scattered in all directions.

I stood there dazed, watching the overwhelming and magnificent sight.

But I didn’t have the luxury to just stand there.

They were falling from the sky.

Before I knew it, my broken legs were running.

Desperately, I sprinted to catch the falling girls.

My body was in shambles, melted and on the verge of death, but it didn’t matter.

Right now, in this moment, I could run more powerfully than ever before.

I reached out toward the girls falling to the ground.

Though my arms were far too small to hold them all, I stretched them as wide as I could.

It was the best I could do to return the favor I’d received.

Thud!

As they came down to me, I caught them in my arms and fell backward grandly.

At the same time, I felt their warmth.

For some reason, I found myself grinning like a fool.

“Ugh, seriously… always making us worry.”

Isabel sighed, looking up at me.

“Geez, if you’re going to catch us, do it properly! Like a princess carry!”

Seron snapped, pounding on me in annoyance.

“Honeyyy, do you know how much I suffered today? Hurry up and compliment me~”

Sharin rubbed her cheek against mine, demanding praise.

“I missed this warmth so much.”

Iris, nestled in my arms, peacefully closed her eyes.

“Senior, you’ve worked so hard.”

Nikita smiled gently as she patted my head.

Looking at them, I found myself making another resolution.

That I would try my absolute best never to die again.

And more than anything, there was one thing I really wanted to say now.

“Isabel, Seron, Sharin, Iris, Nikita.”

Their eyes turned toward me.

Even if it was selfish, I wanted to respond to the words they had once given me.

“I love you.”

And so, a legendary playboy was born.

* * *

Will peace come to a world without Demon Sovereign?

Unfortunately, it didn’t.

The empire expended a tremendous amount of resources and manpower due to this incident.

The same was true for the other kingdoms, but the empire suffered the most.

Even the nobles had been manipulated and used by Demon Sovereign.

The empire’s prestige plummeted to an all-time low.

Still, fortunately, none of the other kingdoms attempted to invade the Empire.

Not long ago, the entire world had united to fight against the Demon Sovereign.

In such a situation, attacking the Empire would have brought universal condemnation.

So, the kingdoms remained quiet and tended to their wounds in silence.

In another sense, it was the beginning of a calm before the storm.

The era was changing.

Though the disappearance of the Demon Dungeon had removed one global threat, the world was preparing for a new period of upheaval.

And among all, the place that faced the most turbulence was undoubtedly the Academy.

The academies of each world were originally established to fight against the Demon Dungeon.

Now that its purpose was gone, the very reason for the academies’ existence became meaningless.

However, disbanding institutions into which each nation had invested substantial resources was a bitter pill to swallow.

Thus, the academies began to take on a new direction.

In the recent battle against the Demon Dungeon, every student had united to protect the world from crisis.

This left a deep impression on their hearts.

Their goal was no longer to fight the Demon Dungeon.

They now aspired to become a vast community that protected world peace.

The noble mission of the Academy continued once more.

The generation of the Golden Flame had passed on their fire to the next.

Autumn ended, and finally, winter arrived.

It would have been a bitterly cold winter, but this year’s winter was strangely warm.

Though it had been one mountain after another, we had overcome them.

And that’s why this winter felt especially meaningful.

Christmas had passed, and the year was drawing to a close.

And as the year came to an end—what was I doing?

“Hey, Mr. Legendary Playboy who confessed to five girls at once. Can you focus on your work?”

I was working.

Once again, working as Professor Vega’s assistant.

I thought my identity had vanished with my death in the Demon Dungeon, but Professor Vega never removed my assistant position.

So, I was reinstated as her assistant.

Now that the whole world knew I was Vikamon, I could no longer attend the Academy under the name Hannon.

“How long are you going to keep bringing that up? It’s been months.”

“Until I forget.”

She chuckled, sipping from a can of beer.

This person, who had been so dependable during the war, had become no different than a carefree slacker since returning.

She had achieved her wish of ending the Demon Dungeon.

And she no longer had to grieve so deeply for her students’ deaths.

So, you’d think she’d stop drinking—but she remained a drinker still.

I guess the saying “Old habits die hard” exists for a reason.

“So, what happened next?”

Suddenly, Vega asked me to continue the story.

The story after the confession, huh?

After I confessed, none of them gave me an immediate answer.

To be precise, my body had reached its limit, and I wasn’t in any condition to hear any answer.

I was rushed to the infirmary.

Thanks to that, I had to undergo intensive care for about a month.

If it hadn’t been for the saintess and the saint personally tending to me, I would probably still be in bed.

Because of that, I couldn’t meet anyone for a whole month.

My condition was so severe that I had to focus solely on recovery.

And after that month passed, I was finally discharged safely.

Of course, right outside my hospital room, those who had been waiting for me were there.

If you’re asking about what happened immediately after discharge…

“Professor Vega, you’ve been summoned regarding the new education initiative!”

At that moment, an associate professor appeared in the office to deliver a message.

Vega set her beer down with a disappointed look and started fixing her tie.

“Let’s talk tomorrow.”

“You were just using it as a snack-time story anyway.”

“That’s what adults do. And you’re an adult now—better learn it.”

I’d really rather not learn that.

“Oh right, I haven’t told you—I’m thinking of retiring soon.”

I froze.

Retirement?

She had achieved her goal, so it made sense that she no longer had a reason to remain in teaching.

I had somewhat expected it.

“So start preparing to take over as associate professor.”

“…Sorry, what?”

“There’s no one better than you. Get ready.”

I stared at Vega in disbelief.

The Academy was entering a chaotic era.

Obviously, work would pile up, and many things were bound to change.

So this person was planning to dump all her work on me and walk away.

“W-Wait a second!”

“Nope, not waiting.”

Vega ignored me and quickly walked off.

Truly, a professor who did things her own way right to the end.

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]