Chapter 268 Impending Doom (Part 5)



<As a human being who has lived for over three hundred years, my existence has been filled with numerous triumphs and victories. I have witnessed countless battles and played a significant role in nurturing the emergence of numerous formidable heroes within my world.

But if someone were to ask me about the time in my life when I felt the most pride and excitement, I would have to point to that particular moment.

My memory will always be etched with the moment that we entered our first world war, accompanied by thousands of S-Ranks and hundreds of SS-Ranks on the battlefield, adorned with vibrant green grass and the invigorating scent that filled the air, which served as the backdrop for this momentous event.

At the forefront of our mighty army, our most extraordinary achievement, stood the item holder, exuding an aura of power and grace. Cloaked in a flowing snow-white dress that fluttered with each gust of wind, she commanded attention and admiration. Her shining silver battle armor shone brightly across the battlefield, serving as a visible representation of her unparalleled might. She embodied our world's pride and instilled unwavering confidence in our ranks as the sole SSS-Rank among us.

This powerful army, this great success, was our shared honor and pride, and at that very moment, we believed — no, we knew for certain — that no matter who our adversary was, they would not be able to stand against us.

Unfortunately, we hold onto these thoughts until we are faced with our enemies and once more realize how ignorant we were. 

I had no idea that day would turn out to be the one on which I would feel simultaneously the most proud of myself and the most desperate in all of my life.

I am a person who has lived for countless years, once standing at the pinnacle of power as an SS-Rank item holder, only to have it all stripped away, witnessing the demise of my companions one by one, and the relentless destruction of my world until the very end. Now, I am the sole survivor, bearing the weight of forgotten memories and an unknown name.

I am a person who has been through all the hardships that a person is capable of going through as well as every kind of depression there is.

But it was on that day that I understood what true despair is.

While we were waiting there with our thousands-strong army for the enemy, finally that long-awaited enemy appeared on the horizon.

The cause of our despair on that fateful day did not lie in the quantity or appearance of the enemy. Surprisingly, the opposing force comprised merely 80 item holders, resembling reptilian creatures with scale-covered bodies.

However, at the time, we were unaware that these beings were not merely common lizards but rather members of a high race known as the Draconians. 

Even though the real fight hadn't started yet, just looking into the eyes of these eighty opponents for the first time was enough to instantly deplete all of our willpower and make us want to give up the fight.

"Stay strong, it's merely an illusion. We still outnumber them," were the words spoken by our sole SSS-Rank, our beacon of hope amidst the darkness that engulfed us.

However, when we witnessed her tense voice and slightly trembling body as she uttered these words, the hope that had just begun to blossom within us withered away at the same rapid pace.

In spite of the fact that we were keenly aware of the staggering imbalance of power, we refused to give in to hopelessness. We were a strong force, having once prevented the end of the world and persevered in the face of insurmountable odds. Our unwavering faith and hope have always been our greatest source of strength as human beings. Even in the face of a certain defeat, we resolved to give our all and fight in this war, refusing to retreat without leaving a trace of our valor and determination.

With these thoughts, we were trying to regain the will and courage to fight when a voice emerged from the middle of the enemy item holders.

''This is fascinating. The lowly human race was the last thing I expected to see here. ''

The owner of the voice confidently made his way through the Draconians while dressed in striking black and metallic body armor that marked him as the group's leader. Half of his face was covered in silver scales, giving him an air of power and authority that drew our attention.

But what really left an impression on us was not how powerful this draconian appeared to be; rather, it was the way that everyone was compelled to instinctively submit to his extremely powerful existence.

Confronted with such a formidable presence, none of us could deny being labeled as mere humans, for it was evident that in the presence of this superior race, our own race stood as nothing more than the feeble human species at the bottom of the hierarchy.

On that fateful day, our army of thousands of human item holders faced off against eighty Draconians.

But in the end, there was only one Draconian that we fought against.

Only one Draconian had annihilated our entire army without breaking a sweat, under the scornful gaze of the remaining 79 enemies.

The war was over in a matter of hours, but by the time it was over, we had lost more than half of our army and our sole SSS-Rank member to their true deaths.

That day began as the day I felt the most pride in my life, but it also turned out to be the day I felt the most hopelessness.

Unfortunately, the humiliating defeat was just the beginning, as we realized the true extent of our loss when we returned to our world with only a few hundred survivors from the thousands who had participated in the war.

When we first returned to our world, we were not greeted by terrifying monsters or buildings that had been destroyed; rather, the situation was much worse than either of those things.