novelraw Chapter 179: The Afterlife of Heroes (1)
Chapter 179: The Afterlife of Heroes (1)
Translator: Dreamscribe
The Jinwoo family event was smoothly concluded. After coordinating schedules between both sides and holding the formal meeting between the families, they decided to set a date right away. Hyung could not hide his happiness as he looked at Lee Eun-seo, and Lee Eun-seo also had honey seemingly dripping from her eyes.
They were a couple that matched extremely well, not only in reality but also in Arsilan Saga. RomanticBard was ranked first among crazy heroes and did not listen to anyone’s words, but he was the only one who listened carefully to the words of SockThief. The problem was that he interpreted them in a twisted way.
Anyway, time passed in such a peaceful atmosphere.
Jinwoo was happy.
After the Holy Sword was born in Arsilan, heroes became able to have children with countless possibilities and potential. They were children of light who would make Earth and Arsilan peaceful.
“What are you so happy about?”
Ella appeared next to Jinwoo.
Jinwoo was looking out over the panorama of Seoul from the rooftop of the Research Lab. The largest space in the Research Lab had now become a shelter for Ella and Helby. Ella often came here to escape from Astel, who nagged like a mother.
Jinwoo remained silent for a moment and looked at the heroes who were fighting hard in Seoul. After recovering Leon, a new main quest had begun. It was the battle against the Lord of Despair.
The sky split open as the Lord of Despair descended, and fierce battles broke out in multiple cities where Gate of Souls had been installed.
Tia wrote the scenario, and Tiris directed it personally. Jinwoo did not participate and was instead enjoying watching from the back like this.
Jinwoo looked at the heroes with a satisfied expression, then shifted his gaze to Ella to answer her question.
Ella was using the body Jinwoo had made for her after remodeling it to suit her taste. Behind Ella, Helby also appeared while yawning.
“Well, you see….”
Both of them knew all of Jinwoo’s circumstances. When Jinwoo accepted the two of them into FS Games, he had told them everything. It was not really something that needed to be kept secret. When he told them about his hyung and sister-in-law, Ella was shocked, and Helby’s eyes became clear as if she had suddenly woken up.
“Uh, that is an incredible… encounter.”
“It is truly fortunate that RomanticBard and SockThief are heroes of Arsilan. If they were enemies, it would have been terrifying.”
No matter how powerful Helby was, RomanticBard was a frightening existence. The noise transmitted to the soul was difficult to endure.
When he told them that they had a child, Ella smiled brightly and was delighted.
"When the baby is born, I'll give it my blessing."
“Mm, I shall bestow a baptism of magic power.”
Jinwoo, Ella, and Helby stood side by side and looked at the Legion of Light, which was joyfully fighting. The gigantic tentacles that descended from the sky were apocalyptic, but they were finding ways to deal with them and overcoming them together.
“Then I should do what I need to do now.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Ella tilted her head.
Jinwoo’s schedule was empty until the Lord of Despair disappeared. He had divided and delegated work to the FS Games development staff, and the Erosion Headquarters of Arsilan had also reduced Jinwoo’s burden. Thanks to that, he finally had some free time.
“After this main quest ends, many heroes will die.”
The heroes who were enjoying Arsilan Saga while wearing Soul Link were now approaching the milestone of one hundred million. New lives were being born among the heroes, and death was approaching as well.
Heroes who were suffering from serious illnesses or whose lifespans had come to an end.
Their lifespans had been forcibly extended through Soul Link, but they had now reached their limit. If it were extended any further by force, there was a risk of damage to the soul.
“I want to give them a chance to choose.”
Death on Earth meant the complete extinction of the soul. Souls that left Earth vanished in outer space. It was complete rest that left nothing behind. Jinwoo wanted to give a new opportunity to the heroes who had worked hard for Arsilan.
The opportunity for reincarnation!
Although he would place restrictions to prevent them from revealing the truth, they would be able to enjoy a free life. He even planned to recruit heroes who carried brilliant light.
When Ella heard Jinwoo’s plan, she smiled widely. Helby gave a small smile and nodded.
Afterlife content!
Jinwoo wanted to turn even death into content for heroes. Of course, he would judge whether they were stained by sin or not by looking at the color of their soul before giving them an opportunity. Would that not be a reward for having lived a virtuous life on Earth?
“There will be many heroes who will not be satisfied with an ordinary reincarnation, so I will first create the Spirit Realm.”
There were still Spirits left in Arsilan. There had once been a place called the Spirit Realm, but when Arsilan was pushed close to total annihilation, it naturally disappeared.
“Recruiting them into the Celestial Realm would also be fine. Angels with the souls of heroes would become incredibly strong.”
“Mm, if they are in the state of pure souls without the shackles of the body, we could also increase the number of dragons.”
Like FS Games employees, Ella and Helby offered ideas.
They were good ideas.
When Jinwoo reached out his hand, countless Status Windows appeared and reflected the figures of heroes. Even heroes whose lifespans had ended were currently fighting the Lord of Despair. They were being considerate so that Jinwoo could enjoy the final main quest.
In reality, they could not even move a single finger, but in Arsilan, they showed the appearance of powerful heroes. They were smiling happily, but their eyes were full of regret. That was because they instinctively knew that they would have to leave before long.
He saw a hero who was enjoying the final event together with guild members.
[This might be my last quest.]
[Hey! Hyung, do not say things like that. You have to stay with us at least until Episode 10.]
[I hope that can happen.]
The hero called ‘Lamp’ had suffered from a serious illness since childhood.
From the moment he encountered Arsilan Saga, his life force had already been completely exhausted, and he was facing death.
The time of life that had been prolonged through Soul Link was also coming to an end.
Until this main quest was completed, Jinwoo was somehow maintaining his life.
Lamp’s guild members were accepting his death.
That was because they had all gone together to visit him in the hospital a year ago. It had been difficult to see his face, and even at that time, it looked hard for him to move even a single finger.
Lamp gave a faint laugh.
[I will go check in advance whether there is an afterlife and contact you.]
[Contact us? Haha….]
[Should I send a letter at least?]
Lamp joked about his own death.
[Let us go again! If I die without killing that bastard, I do not think I will be able to rest in peace!]
Lamp and the heroes charged toward the Lord of Despair once more.
Ella and Helby also looked seriously at the heroes who were fighting desperately. It seemed that Helby’s motivation was rising again after a long time.
“Then, shall we create a stage to direct?”
Jinwoo looked at the Seoul field where the Lord of Despair had descended, then moved to Arsilan.
Jinwoo first cast a barrier and created space in an empty area of Arsilan. After making the space vast, he imbued it with the light of the Holy Sword. Ella and Helby shaped the environment with sacred techniques and magic, and Jinwoo decorated the space based on the appearance of the Spirit Realm that had existed in the past. As the staff who had been waiting also gathered to help, the Spirit Realm was completed in no time.
Jinwoo looked at the appearance of the Spirit Realm.
Beautiful land and mountains, rivers, and the sea.
It looked even more like heaven than the Celestial Realm.
He also added a large amount of content planned for the Spirit Realm. At the center was growth content that allowed progression from lower Spirits to highest Spirits, and then to Spirit Kings.
Since the power of the Holy Sword would transform the soul itself into a spirit body, they would be able to feel freedom liberated from the physical body.
Heroes who became Spirits could leave the Spirit Realm at any time, but the setting was that they could not exert their power unless they formed a contract with an Arsilan native or a hero.
He hoped that everyone would once again happily protect Arsilan.
“For the Celestial Realm, let us go with expanding the existing one. And for the dragons…, shall we make use of the Starlight Grand Canyon?”
“I will select the souls suitable to become dragons.”
At Jinwoo’s suggestion, Helby nodded and replied.
The Celestial Realm expanded the existing space, and they went straight to the Starlight Grand Canyon to create multiple caves. They were dragon lairs.
A novel Jinwoo had read during his school days came to his mind.
“When I was young, I read many novels about reincarnating and becoming a dragon….”
“They are just novels. Not just anyone can become a dragon.”
All dragons originated from Helby.
Because she had shared her authority, the form of dragons was able to appear in Arsilan. That was also why mythological beings trembled when they saw Helby.
After being defeated by Erosion, Helby recovered much of her authority and granted rest to the dragons that had survived.
Ella, who had been looking at the dragon lairs, gave a sly grin and turned her gaze to Helby.
“The Helby Lovers Group will be disappointed?”
“When those guys die, I will turn all of them into dragons. I cannot let good slaves go to waste.”
At Ella’s words, Helby replied indifferently.
The fate of the Helby Lovers Group was decided!
After installing various devices in the underworld and the Celestial Realm, Jinwoo returned to Earth.
[We won!]
[We let it escape, but anyway, we won!]
[Uaaaaaah!]
[Khuh! Third job advancement is insane!]
Just then, the Lord of Despair was defeated and fled into the Great Rift after turning into a small squid. Cheers rang out not only in the Seoul field but in all cities. Since the Lord of Despair had descended simultaneously from all Great Rifts, it was a quest where cooperation was crucial.
‘I should make use of it again later.’
It would be a waste to get rid of the Lord of Despair like this.
He had already made a plan to subtly make the next higher being of Erosion they would encounter be mistaken for the Lord of Despair. That way, would the narrative not come alive?
“Then….”
Jinwoo let out a deep breath and looked up at the sky of Seoul.
After the main quest ended, countless heroes who had been fighting desperately with life itself met their deaths. The light of their souls that they released beautifully colored the sky of Earth.
“You have all worked so hard.”
Their lives this time had truly been full of hardship.
Even amid pain and despair, they fought desperately for Arsilan. Jinwoo deeply bowed his head as he looked at the light of their souls.
All right! Then now, let us begin the afterlife content.
***
The hero Lamp shouted in cheers as he savored the victory.
The Lord of Despair, which had looked like a cosmic horror, turned into a small squid and ran away. The Great Rift was firmly sealed, so it was said that it would not open again for the time being. Still, since there were many gates left behind by the Lord of Despair, they needed to be managed periodically.
While sharing joy with his guild members, Lamp’s eyes widened. It was because he felt as if something had been cut off. Lamp instinctively realized that death was right in front of him.
“Hyung?”
As Lamp’s expression stiffened, all the guild members looked at him with concern. Lamp took a deep breath and smiled at them.
“We…, have been together since Episode 1, right?”
“That is right. It has already been almost three years.”
“It was really fun.”
For Lamp, who had not even been able to walk properly since childhood, it was the greatest moment of his life. He met good people, shared friendship together, and went on adventures full of Romance.
Regrets….
‘I wanted to do the next episode together too….’
There was no way there would be none.
Starting from the tips of Lamp’s feet, his body began to turn into particles of light. Wondering what kind of direction this was, the heroes looked at him. Then, after seeing Lamp’s expression, they realized what the situation was.
“Today was fun too! See you next time!”
“Y-yes…, n-next time…, khk!”
“Sniff, see you next time.”
It was time to say farewell.
The guild members could not hold back their tears. Lamp looked at them and, for the last time, gave a wide smile and raised his thumb. At least to these friends, he wanted to be remembered in a cool way.
His body gradually scattered and completely disappeared.
Lamp felt that the connection had been terminated.
[The user’s condition is extremely critical!]
[Requesting assistance.]
Lamp opened his eyes inside the capsule-type Soul Link. Thanks to this Soul Link, he had been able to travel comfortably through Arsilan.
[Hero-nim, emergency responders are on their way.]
The mechanical voice that calmly informed him of his condition felt gentle today.
“It is fine. That group chat…, bring it up.”
A group chat appeared in front of his eyes as a hologram.
There were quite a lot of heroes gathered in this group chat.
It was a group chat where heroes who had realized that the day of their death was approaching, like Lamp, had gathered.
[BarefootSmellGoat]: Am I dying?
[SayGoodbyeWell]: It seems I will be going soon too.
[Lamp]: My consciousness is getting hazy? It is strange that we are dying together like this.
[DreamOfLongevity]: This too must be the grace of the Creator God.
[GoodbyeMyDear]: It is nice not to be lonely. I will go first!
His consciousness gradually faded.
[Lamp]: (Emoticon: a cat saying farewell)
[DreamOfLongevity]: (Emoticon: an elf saying farewell)
[WantToDieOfOldAge]: (Emoticon: Let us go! To the world of adventure!)
Lamp’s consciousness was so hazy that he could not write properly. So he barely managed to say goodbye using emoticons. Perhaps it was the same for the other heroes, because emoticons kept appearing.
‘It was hard, but still….’
He was happy because Arsilan Saga existed.
[Guiding the hero who devoted himself to Arsilan to the underworld.]
It felt like he heard an extremely warm voice.
Within that comfort, Lamp’s breathing stopped.
Death had come.
Lamp did not believe in an afterlife. He thought that the moment his consciousness ended, everything would disappear.
He hoped it would be so.
That was because his life of battling illness had been too painful. Life had been a continuous chain of suffering, and he did not want to experience that pain ever again. If there was a god, he wanted to ask why such terrible pain had been given to him.
‘Huh?’
Warmth spread throughout his body, and his consciousness gradually became clear again.
Lamp opened his eyes.
“W, what?”
His voice came out. When he checked his hands, he saw translucent hands. Out of habit, he brought up the mirror app. Surprisingly, the mirror app appeared and showed his appearance.
“My appearance?”
It was the appearance of himself when he had been enjoying Arsilan Saga, the appearance of a hero. It was a translucent appearance, as if he had become a ghost. Lamp was startled that he could use the functions of the Soul Link.
“I am dead, though….”
“What is this?”
“Huh?”
Several heroes arrived around Lamp. In an instant, the surroundings were filled with heroes.
“Oh? It is Lamp-nim.”
“SayGoodbyeWell-nim?”
Above their heads, hero nicknames appeared along with titles.
[S] One Who Has Reached Death
The first hero to reach death.
We applaud your great journey.
He could check the information of the title.
Lamp could not understand what was happening at all. The same was true for all the heroes gathered here. He had clearly died, yet Arsilan Saga was continuing.
“Huh? Everyone, this place looks like the underworld.”
“The underworld?”
“Yes! Arsilan’s underworld!”
Listening to the heroes’ conversation, Lamp looked around. The many gates and statues were clearly things one would see in the underworld.
“No, we died in reality, so how did we come to the underworld of Arsilan Saga?”
“Logout does not work.”
“Well, we died, so is it natural that it does not work? Is this right?”
It was when question marks seemed to float above all the heroes’ heads.
Grgggk!
The large door in front opened, and an angel appeared. It was the Archangel Astel.
“Hello. I am Astel, who will guide you to the underworld.”
“Astel-nim, that means the Archangel? I saw you in paintings at the Grand Temple!”
“Th, then what is going on here?”
“Why are we here? We are….”
Astel gave a gentle smile.
“Yes, heroes, you have just met death. Thank you for fighting for Arsilan until now.”
But Arsilan Saga is a game, right?
The heroes were confused while thinking that. As if understanding their feelings, Astel spoke.
“If you follow me, all of your questions will be resolved.”
As Astel walked ahead, Lamp and the heroes followed her. A flower path made of Hero’s Flowers appeared.
Following the flower path, a place that looked like a courtroom appeared at the end. At the very top, Ella and Helby were seated, and angels filled the surroundings.
“Huh?”
“Ella-nim?!”
“Even Helby-nim….”
Ella stood up from her seat and looked at the heroes.
“Welcome to the underworld. As you know, I am your goddess, Ella. You must have many questions.”
Lamp and the heroes nodded.
“Arsilan Saga, which you believe to be a game, is in fact not a game, but a reality that truly exists.”
“What?”
“W, what did you say?”
“Huh?”
At Ella’s words, Lamp and all the heroes were shocked. That fact was far more astonishing than the fact that they were here because they had died.