“Lady Ash, aren’t we there yet?”
Unable to endure it any longer, Lifa finally spoke up. At the same time, she cast a resentful and perplexed gaze toward Ron.
Just twenty minutes ago, right before Lifa’s eyes…
The “Lady Ash” she had just met yesterday and deeply respected had casually kissed Master Ron—the man Lifa was trying to pursue.
She had done the very thing Lifa had always wanted to do but never dared to put into practice.
“Heh…”
Walking at the very front, Isis came to a halt. After a light chuckle, she didn’t answer Lifa. Instead, she began to admire the deserted suburban scenery with great interest.
This contempt and nonchalance immediately caused Lifa to clench her fists in anger.
“Lady Ash—”
Lifa was not the type of person who could hide her emotions or thoughts.
She had wanted to ask about the relationship between Ron and Isis the entire way, but she had chosen to remain silent only after noticing Ron’s consistently solemn expression.
Now, her mind was filled with the image of Isis kissing Ron, and her tone was naturally filled with jealousy, shame, and indignation.
“Lifa, you go back first.”
Then, Ron’s voice sounded from behind her.
“Why!?”
Lifa turned around, feeling aggrieved and unable to understand.
‘Lady Ash dared to forcibly kiss Master even while I was watching—if I’m not here, my weak Master will be, he’ll be…’ She didn’t dare think about it any further.
“Lifa, take out my weapon, and then go back to the inn and wait for me.”
Ron pulled Lifa to the side, positioning himself with his back to Isis to ensure his small movements wouldn’t be discovered. He then looked directly into those emerald-green eyes and gave a small wink.
“I won’t!”
Still heated, Lifa was unwilling to cooperate. Left with no choice, Ron added two words in a tone that brooked no refusal.
“Be good.”
On the surface, it seemed as if he had run out of patience for Lifa’s selfishness, urging her to take the weapon from the storage pendant and leave quickly.
In reality, as a veteran game blogger, Ron had felt a strong “BAD ENDING” vibe from the moment Isis appeared in such a strange manner.
However, he still had some theories regarding Isis’s current state. He wanted to verify them through a test and hoped to gather as much information as possible before this failure.
‘Isis, I hope you haven’t reached that point yet…’
A flash of sorrow crossed Ron’s eyes. After gripping the ascetic’s dagger Lifa handed him, he signaled that she could prepare to leave.
At the same time, he used a subtle facial gesture to issue a warning—watch out for Isis.
*Clang!*
As expected, the moment Lifa took her first step back toward the path they came from, Isis moved.
The hero’s sword was drawn from the scabbard hanging at her waist. Accompanied by the wielder’s extreme speed, it pointed directly and decisively toward Lifa’s heart.
Lifa’s combat instincts were indeed almost primal.
Coupled with being on guard due to Ron’s warning, she managed to catch the point of Isis’s attack and attempted to parry, even though there was a chasm-like gap in their strength.
‘No, I can’t block it.’
Lifa stepped back, trying to brace her body to withstand the impact of Isis’s attack, but it was futile.
*Clang!*
The outcome was decided the instant the hero’s sword made contact with Lifa’s weapon. Lifa instinctively closed her eyes as she watched her weapon shatter.
‘Am I… going to die?’
‘But why?’
The young girl had too many questions she didn’t understand, but she knew very well that death meant never being able to see Master Ron again, never being able to say the confession she kept hidden in her heart.
So, Lifa opened her eyes again and looked toward Ron, who was less than five steps away from her…
“Huh?”
An unexpected turn occurred. In the inertia of the impact, Lifa’s body fell to the ground with a thud.
She realized she hadn’t been killed by Isis’s hero’s sword. It was Master Ron who had used a special method to stop Isis’s attack.
“Master—”
The white-haired beauty discarded the Legend grade hero’s sword onto the ground like it was trash.
With a hysteria completely at odds with her cold and elegant appearance, she rushed in front of Ron and grabbed his collar.
“Isis, what were you trying to do to my little Lifa?”
Ron had a smile on his face, as if nothing had happened.
At this moment, he held the ascetic’s dagger that had just been knocked aside. Aside from a single bloody gash on his neck, he had no other injuries.
‘Isis?’
Lifa, who was preparing to get up from the ground, froze when she heard that name.
With that one word, Isis reverted to her expressionless state from before. She silently picked up the hero’s sword and returned it to its sheath.
She could not accept that her beloved Master would go as far as attempting suicide to save the girl beside him.
As Ron stood and watched, he knew that this was merely the brief silence before the storm.
“Between her and me, who is the substitute?”
After a long time, a flock of low-flying birds streaked across the sky.
Isis seemed much calmer than she had been at the inn or moments ago. She pointed at Lifa and then herself, waiting for Ron’s answer.
“Is she a substitute for when I am not by your side? Or…”
“Am I just a substitute until you find your Destiny, Master?”
Ron listened seriously to Isis’s question. Even though he was very interested in the “Destiny” she mentioned, it was clearly not the time to investigate.
He had decided that before dying once and performing a rewind rebirth, he would clarify one thing completely.
“Neither of you is a substitute for anyone.”
Isis’s blood-red eyes narrowed upon hearing Ron’s answer, clearly dissatisfied. Ron ignored her completely and took a step forward, bringing his eyes to meet hers at less than a fist’s distance.
“Instead, I want to ask you, Isis.”
“Who is the one making these choices in your place?”
Hearing Ron’s interrogation, Isis took half a step back. She didn’t expect that her Master, who had been filled with fear when they first met at the inn, would now become as overbearing as he was in the past.
Clearly, the current Master was barely stronger than an ordinary person…
At the same time, Lifa, who had been knocked down, stood up again and rushed in front of Ron, using her body to shield him.
“Master Ron, is she… is she Hero Isis?”
Lifa had heard their entire conversation. She bit her lip. In her muffled voice, there was no fear of the weapon Isis had raised, only the disappointment and anger of an idol’s image being shattered.
“No.”
“Yes.”
While Ron gave a negative answer, Isis provided the exact opposite response.
“Little Lifa, I’m sorry to fail your admiration, but you aren’t wrong.”
Lifa’s appearance reminded Isis that she still had the most important task to complete.
And so, Isis tremblingly drew the hero’s sword. This Legend grade weapon, which usually shone with the glory of justice, now let out a dark, humming wail.
“I am that Isis, but a Hero…”
Shame and pain were suppressed, and the evil within her blood-red eyes bloomed instantly. With a provocative and excited smile, Isis’s gaze toward Ron was filled with both love and defiance.
“I haven’t been one for a long time!”
*Squelch—*
Ron, who already knew the answer, took Isis’s blade for Lifa. Having lost all fear of death and having gained clarity, he patted Lifa’s shoulder with a smile and mouthed the words “goodbye” silently.
“Master!”
“Master!”
[**You have died. After this operation, remaining rewind rebirths: 0**]
[**Save point: Gaderade city gate. Please choose…**]
[**1. Rewind time, reload to the save point activation time**]
[**2. Retain progress, resurrect immediately at your save point**]
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