The sky was a deep blue, and the earthy scent of fertile soil was carried on the seasonal winds. Even with my eyes closed, that vista remained vivid in my mind, its beauty heightened by the knowledge that I would never see it again.

“The past is just that, the past.”

He looked up solely to gaze upon a blackened sky, where the smell of blood had supplanted that of the earth. Was this the aroma of the seasons? No, it was merely the perpetual, frigid winters that had rendered the world nearly uninhabitable for humans.

[Name: Kim Seong-in] [Alias: Hero]

[Spell Count: 97] [Spell Rank: 9]

Seong-in reviewed his capability records internally. What started as scant had now become comprehensive. Among them, he checked one specific status.

[Fatigue: 88]

“I thought as much,” he murmured, checking his fatigue level on the ground. “No wonder my body feels so heavy.”

Fatigue represented one’s current physical state numerically, with 0 indicating peak physiological condition and 100 the opposite. An 88 was quite high. It was only natural that his body felt as heavy as if soaked through with water. In such a state, most people wouldn’t even be able to move.

Seong-in sighed as he surveyed his surroundings. All he could see were piles of monster corpses in the distance. That was his handiwork.

Thud, thud.

He heard footsteps from afar, one set sounding particularly familiar.

“You guys are really fast,” he said sardonically.

Perhaps they had sensed the battle, but they were still too late. He realized that their strategy was to completely eliminate him, meaning that those monsters were merely bait.

This was supposed to be the end. It hadn’t seemed so bad, thinking this would be the last.

The reason was clear. There was no longer anything left to resist for.

“Now…” Seong-in rose from the pile of dead monsters. “It’s time to die.”

Hero.

That was another name for Seong-in. This title, derived from his abilities, allowed for a 20% increase in both physical and magical damage dealt and decreased the damage he received.

However, that wasn’t his only other name.

“Spell Rank 9? Was there such a thing as a magic awakening?”

“For someone like you, perhaps.”

“That might be possible. No, it must be.”

“Do you think he can restore our world?”

He had heard such words numerous times before.

Back then, he didn’t understand what they meant. No, he knew what they meant but couldn’t comprehend it.

They demanded much from him.

“Seong-in, you are our hope,” they would say. “Do you know what a hero is? Someone who can save the world. You must see yourself as a hero. You understand what I mean, right?” That was his mother speaking.

He had been a good son, and at one point, he did consider himself a hero.

“You are a hero.”

“Please, save this world.”

“Mr. Kim, you’re all we have left.”

Hero, hero, hero… It nearly drove him mad. Can’t you stop calling me that? Aren’t you tired of saying it?

Monsters first appeared about 40 years ago. Many like him, who had awakened to magic, became heroes in the battle against the monsters. But there were too many monsters, too powerful, and even heroes with magical powers struggled. People wanted stronger heroes, and Seong-in was among them.

“Hero, my ass.”

He slumped to the ground, looking up only to see the dark, murky sky. His vision was blurring.

Fafnir. A dragon, an ancient hero slain by Sigurd.

But here, Fafnir was a nickname for a giant with the head of a dragon that had slain countless human heroes. The war had been turning in favor of the monsters. Seong-in himself had fought against giants for three years straight, often retreating. Fafnir was not one to be easily defeated by any human.

“You may be my enemy, but I respect your strength,” Fafnir had said.

That wasn’t much of a surprise. To a monster like Fafnir, nothing Seong-in did was particularly astonishing anymore. He was almost like a demigod. That he could speak human languages was minor compared to his other abilities.

“Shit… Damn it…” Seong-in cursed. “Do you also think I’m a hero?”

“You truly are a hero. Even if that title was given by others, you are worthy of it,” Fafnir replied.

A hero created by others. It seemed he knew everything. Clearly, he had been aware of Seong-in and had been watching him from their first encounter.

But he was different. He wasn’t monstrous.

“You’re the last one.”

The last. It was a self-evident truth. Everyone else had died.

Over the last year, Seong-in was the only one left. He had been fighting alone all this time. The outcome was inevitable: we would fight until one of us died.

Fafnir had brought the world to the brink of destruction. It seemed only fitting for Seong-in to meet his end alongside him.

“I will die fighting Fafnir, taking down as many monsters as I can with me. What purpose is there to live in this devastated world if I’m all alone?”

However…

“This is all I have left,” Seong-in laughed at his dire situation.

Fafnir was far stronger than he had anticipated. He seemed to have no weaknesses. There were still billions of monsters under his command, and Seong-in was alone. To make matters worse, it appeared that Fafnir would not move until Seong-in made the first move.

Even if his fatigue were at 0, victory would be difficult.

Finally, Fafnir opened his massive jaws.

“Eating your flesh will allow me to devour this world.”

The story of a hero who slays the evil monster and saves the world—such happy endings were far from reality.

“So, basically, I’m not meant to be a hero after all.”

Crash—