Netori: Stealing The Hero's Party!

Chapter 689: Aeons of Toil

The moment her connection to Avarice was severed, the otherworlder knew that something had gone wrong. Paired with the chaos of the city streets, it finally became clear that her ruse was over, and everyone who shouldn’t have known already knew about her true identity. Then what comes next? What more than a final stand? With her own cursed heart fueled with years upon years of mana, it was time to either do or die, and the otherworlder was ready to die for her cause.

But it wasn’t just her who would die; the hope of her world died alongside her. The last god living had already been killed by Razor, and although his blessing ensured that even the god of time couldn’t prevent her heart from exploding, there was doubt in her heart–but the weight of the entire world made her swallow it alongside her saliva.

Sitting behind an army of automatons and with the trio of crab-like vessels to host Amedith inside them, she stared at the only door that led into the lab, waiting for someone to push it in.

’Aeons of culture, aeons of life, aeons of worship, and aeons of toil.’ For once, as her numb eyes glanced down at her trembling fingers, she scoured through memory, trying to relieve the past even though it wasn’t all that bright for her, ever. ’The hopes and dreams of those who still live, those pods back home, they’ll never see the light of day again.’

Burdened with responsibilities she never asked for, she massaged her palm as her mind toiled away. The army of steel, the burden of providing support to the king and the hero fighting against the demon lord. In the end, it had been for nothing, and yet the thought of returning to that horrible life felt more comforting than allowing what had happened to her world to happen in the first place.

’I can save it all, turn the clock back a few years and work things out better.’ Lifting her head again, she watched the door, still locked shut. ’What else am I supposed to do? Die for no reason? Breathe ash every day until my lungs give up? What about the girls trapped in ice? What about the infants still maturing in someone’s belly?’

Although she knew it was time to give up, the shackles of responsibility were weighing her down. Like a curse, it followed her, and even though there was no compulsion for her to do so, she couldn’t back away–not because she wanted to but because she was too accustomed to doing what she felt was necessary, even if it cost her everything.

”Aeons of culture, aeons of life, aeons of worship, and aeons of toil.” Reciting a song that she’d heard from an angel during the battle between rival gods, she tried to bring comfort to her heart, but right then, the door opened, and the hero of this world walked right in.

He was all alone with a striking fur jacket on his shoulders and rather underwhelming gear for what should’ve been presumed to be a battle against three thousand and some more enemies. Looking around, Raven noticed the tall stairs that used to reach the head of Mono’s death machine, crowded with automatons and the walls of the place were also infested like bats on a ceiling.

”You alone?” Asked the clone, getting off her chair.

”Never,” looking right into the woman’s eyes, Raven lifted his right hand and conjured up a dark flame. ”I always carry an army of horrors in my pockets for situations just like this.”

Bleeding darkness out of his palm, Raven brought out a spiraling violet cloud with a cursed book sucking in the smoke from the front and exuding it from the back. Maintaining a twisted face with creases that followed the spiral of smoke, it appeared as a monster with both humanoid and inhumane features.

Another horror came out not seconds after the first, but unlike the cloud and the book, it possessed the form of a lich leaning on his withered walking cane with a hunched back.

The sight of such monsters sent a chill down the otherworlder’s very soul. She knew what they were, after all, she’d helped fight against monsters like these for nearly her entire life.

”Y-you trying to intimidate me?” Forcing an arrogant laugh, she smiled and spread her arms wide to show off her army as well. ”You three against thousands! There’s no way you can win! And even if you kill me, my heart will destroy your world and everything you love alongside it!”

Tilting his head sideways, Raven squinted his eyes. A mix of concern and curiosity was reflected within them, and noticing the otherworlder’s nervousness, he decided to walk closer and closer to her with no concern for her army.

”ST-STAY BACK!!” Grabbing a knife from her pocket, she aimed it not at Raven but at her own heart. ”STAY THE FUCK BACK!!”

”Heightened sense: Flash...” It took less time for Raven to take the knife out of her hand than using his ability. Snatching it right off before she could even realize, he threw the knife away and grabbed both of her hands. ”About this heart thing, tell me more.”

Struggling to get herself away from him, she rammed her head against his chest and even tried to bite Raven on the hand, but for one reason or the other, she never ordered the automatons to move an inch.

”LET GO OF ME!” Her words fell on deaf ears, but Raven tried to read her mind the same.

To his surprise, however, the influence of a god, albeit weak, was protecting her memories, but that’s all it was protecting, nothing else.

”AGHHH!! LET ME GO OR KILL ME YOU BASTARD!” Ramming her head against Raven, the clone stumbled back on her feet and fell. All the while, Raven stood in front of her, unaffected and even positively shocked that her army wasn’t doing anything.

”Why don’t you order them to attack me?” He asked her, his right hand extended to help her up.

Staring at it with a wincing face, the otherworlder slapped it away and barked.

”Just fucking kill me!”

”Not before you tell me what happens when you die.” Stuck in a stalemate where neither wanted to hurt each other, a necessary sacrifice finally had to be made, and the one to initiate it was the girl sitting on the floor.

”ATTACK HIM!” She ordered, and her army instantly riled up to fight.

Even so, with the automatons charging at him and the horrors that he’d summoned, Raven stood still on the spot, staring at the clone with a singular thought running through his mind.

’She didn’t wanna fight, but why?’ The thought plagued him, but before chasing an answer, there were about a thousand more automatons to get rid of.

”Alright, let’s get this done.” And thus emerged from his flesh a flood of darkness, consuming any and all and erecting numerous horrors from it. Everyone but the clone was instantly affected, and as she watched it all happen, her mind drifted while her eyes searched for a weapon...the knife that had been thrown away.

’THERE!’ The moment she reached for it in the utter dark, her hand touched the flood of corruption assailing everything around her. Her flesh burned like it had been dunked in burning oil, yet, biting through it, she got the knife.

Quickly looking around with the knife right to her chest, all that she could see was dark, with the sound of metal being crushed, squeaking everywhere. As hopeless as everything seemed, she decided to go through with her plan and stab herself while Raven wasn’t looking at her. But of course, it wasn’t just Raven that she had to worry about, as there were many more intruders in her house...