Former Hero, Solo Play Oriented-Chapter 176

“What... what is this?”

Chris muttered in shock, standing in the faded remnants of the world around him.

Rain... had gone through all this?

She had fought, getting wounded and scarred, all to save people from a foreign world?

He knew that Rain had once lived in this world, the continent of Astria—he thought he understood that much from what he’d been told. But understanding it in his head and actually seeing her history with his own eyes... those were entirely different things.

Was this just some special event within the game?

But why? Why did this...

Why did Rain’s story...

Why was such a cruel tale laid bare before him like this?

When he first saw a younger, smaller Rain, Chris found himself covering his mouth, stifling a groan as his hand helplessly reached toward her head. When her eyes sparkled, just as they had when she looked up at him from Melissa’s embrace, he’d even felt a burning pang of jealousy. Whenever the fallen princes showed her kindness, he would clench his fists, growling at them unconsciously.

But there was nothing Chris could do—he could only watch as Rain was slowly dying.

He wasn’t prepared for this. Not at all.

Even though Rain’s presence here, alive before him, was proof enough that she’d survived, he couldn’t look away from her past.

To understand Rain...

Chris could only clutch his chest, silently screaming a voiceless agony, desperately praying for the safety of the Rain he saw, bloodied and broken.

---

That day, the Eastern Legion Commander’s assault left the human resistance with countless injuries and casualties.

Yet, the resistance wasn’t entirely defeated. While they couldn’t kill the Legion Commander, they managed an impressive feat by annihilating the demon generals who had attacked alongside him.

Of course, that was all the work of one single hero.

The priests of the resistance exhausted themselves healing the wounded, staying up all night with no rest.

And the high priests focused their efforts on one person above all else. They poured all the weakened divine power they could muster in this era, where the goddess’s presence was faint, to save that single life.

The princes prayed.

For their small friend.

Please, don’t let her die.

---

Perhaps their prayers reached the heavens, as Rain survived the night.

The princes, exhausted and sleepless, checked on Rain’s faint breathing in her tent and let out relieved sighs.

But they couldn’t fully relax. She was clinging to life by a thread. Rain had lost too much blood; her survival was a testament to her sheer willpower.

The priests, with their diminished divine power, couldn’t completely heal her grave injuries. She might not wake up the next day.

Melissa sat by her bedside, gazing at Rain’s pale, pain-stricken face, a hollow look in her eyes.

Bernhardt glanced at Melissa, his expression troubled.

“Master...”

“...”

Master Melissa didn’t answer. She only stared blankly at Rain.

To think that the ever-confident, unshakeable Master Melissa would show such an expression.

Melissa cared for Rain far more deeply than Bern could ever imagine.

But now, in front of her, Rain was slipping away.

A situation even her power couldn’t change.

Thump, thump!

“It’s our fault...! She’s like this because she tried to save us!”

Leonel knelt, slamming his fists into the ground.

Blood seeped from Bernhardt’s clenched lips.

How could they, so powerless, hope to become kings of humanity?

The princes could do nothing but be protected by this small hero.

“What is the goddess doing!? If only I had holy power, if the royal bloodline bestowed me with power equal to that of the Holy Maiden...”

As Leon cursed his own powerlessness, something shifted in Melissa’s gaze.

Suddenly, she stood up.

She gently cradled Rain’s small body from the bed.

The princes watched Melissa’s sudden actions in stunned silence.

“Master?”

“The Holy Maiden!”

At Melissa’s shout, the princes’ eyes widened.

“Why didn’t I think of that? To prevent this from happening to Rain, she needs the Holy Maiden at her side at all times!”

“The... Holy Maiden? But... isn’t she currently at the Supreme Church’s main temple, maintaining a barrier to protect the entire central continent from the demonic miasma?”

“Miasma be damned. If I work a bit harder, I can handle that myself. After all, I just need to make life hell for those Legion Commanders causing the spread across the continent, don’t I?”

Melissa’s explosive declaration left the princes speechless.

No matter how strong Melissa was, taking on a Legion Commander alone was unthinkable. In a one-on-one fight, she could probably hold her own, but within demon-occupied territory, she’d face more than just the Commander.

“I’ll start with the Holy Maiden, then gather allies who share our cause. Together, we’ll raise Rain, and with her strength, we’ll bring down the Demon King.”

Melissa’s commanding presence returned, and as she looked at Rain, the tenderness in her gaze softened. She carefully held Rain in her arms and walked out of the tent, leaving the princes with one final word.

“It’s time to form a true hero’s party.”

---

Though nearly destroyed, the human resistance managed to recover. With the princes and the leadership still alive, they could continue. They would need to relocate their headquarters now that its location was compromised.

News of the resistance’s triumph over the powerful Legion Commander and his generals spread across the continent, inspiring other powerful figures in hiding to join their ranks.

With each passing day, the resistance grew stronger. Now, they had the power to face off against a single Legion Commander’s forces without being completely overwhelmed.

“That is, provided someone can actually hold off the Commander.”

“It would take a master’s level of skill. Ultimately, we ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ still need Master Melissa’s strength. ...And Rain’s.”

Now seventeen and recognized as adults by Astria’s standards, Bernhardt and Leonel had grown into capable young men.

Many years had passed since they last saw Rain, the young hero who had once protected them during the Eastern Legion Commander’s attack.

Since that day, when he lost all his demon generals, the Eastern Legion Commander had holed up in his domain. Meanwhile, high-ranking demons across the continent had begun moving, clearly searching for something—or rather, someone more threatening than the visible human resistance.

“Oh, who do we have here? You’ve grown! I thought you were already tall, but look at you now!”

And finally, three years later, a familiar face appeared at the resistance camp.

The princes spun around at the sound of a familiar voice to see a woman with a blue ponytail.

Upon recognizing her, Bern and Leon’s faces brightened.

“Master Melissa...!”

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“How have you been all this time?!”

“I was taking care of some business with a nuisance in the north.”

“The Northern Legion Commander...! But how?”

Melissa’s revelation left the princes dumbfounded.

One of the long-standing tormentors of humanity had fallen, completely unknown to the resistance.

“It’s already been three years. Do you remember the day we parted?”

“Yeah.”

Bern’s expression hardened slightly.

The day of the Commander’s attack. The day Rain and Melissa vanished together.

“That day, I went to see the Holy Maiden to save Rain. I brought Elena out from the Supreme Church’s main temple. Instead of simply holding the barrier here, we decided to confront the Legion Commanders ourselves.”

“Wait... you really did as you said back then...!”

Her sheer determination was astonishing.

Melissa had indeed brought the Holy Maiden out, assembled a hero’s party, and defeated the Northern Legion Commander.

“It took years for our hope to reach its full potential.”

Hope.

She was speaking of Rain, the hero.

The princes’ hearts pounded with anticipation.

It had been three years.

Rain, who had once been their peer, was now nearly an adult.

The girl, as delicate as a budding flower, had grown into a striking beauty.

Footsteps echoed across the dirt floor of the camp.

The princes’ eyes widened as they saw her.

“Well, well, you little brats... you’ve grown up quite a bit.”

“Rain...?”

Their gazes dropped downward.

There she stood.

With her familiar silver hair and large, dark obsidian eyes.

It was Rain, the hero they knew.

But...

Had she not grown?

No, she had indeed grown.

But compared to the princes, who had shot up a whole head taller, she was still strikingly petite.

Melissa, grinning broadly, wrapped her arms around Rain and held her up.

Then, glaring daggers at the princes, she warned them.

“You two aren’t getting any funny ideas, are you? I might’ve let it slide when you were younger, but not anymore. Rain is mine.”

“She’s... grown?”

Bern mumbled, dumbfounded, as an unfamiliar voice sounded from behind him.

“Melissa! What are you saying? Give Rain back!”

“Elena! No way!”

Melissa pointed accusingly at a beautiful blonde who had appeared to reclaim Rain.

“Ahaha, the competition over the hero never fails to entertain!”

“Seriously, Melissa, Elena. Even here, in the resistance camp?”

A sturdy dwarf and a white-haired elf joined them.

These were Rain’s comrades—the members of her hero’s party.

Surrounded by her allies, Rain flashed a confident smile.

“Princes, it’s time for humanity to strike back.”