“Look, if you check the comments section, there are already explanations and such, so maybe it’s okay if I don’t write the continuation?”
“No, I’m sorry! I just lost motivation after writing the ending!”
After a long and arduous battle against the Evil God…
Although there were a few miscalculations, not a single person was lost, and the Evil God was completely vanquished.
And then…
I, who should have been the greatest contributor,
“Alright, Soma, I’m going to make you puke it all up!!”
Found myself surrounded by my companions, forced to perform seiza in the center.
“This is wrong, isn’t it?!”
How did we go from such a deeply moving scene to this!
“First, Soma. Do you even know why we’re angry?”
Despite my inner turmoil, Maki, with her eyes narrowed, shoulders squared, and arms crossed in anger, interrogated me.
Honestly, I was scared, so I answered truthfully.
“Well, it’s because I couldn’t max out the Evil God…”
“Th-th-that’s-n-not-i-t-e-n-t-i-o-n-a-l-l-y-!”
Maki’s anger flared even hotter at my response as she pressed closer.
“What I want you to explain is this!”
She pointed at the stringed instrument I was holding, or rather, the Sand Dragon Sword “Lute Dies Aster.”
“—Why… why did the Evil God turn into a musical instrument?!”
She screamed, her face beet red.
I was full of, “What are you talking about now?” but surprisingly, all my other companions seemed eager to hear the explanation, so I decided to explain it from the beginning again.
Needless to say, the reason the Evil God turned into a stringed instrument was the power of the forbidden item “Dragon’s Secret Treasure,” which also appeared in the Evil God War Video Record, capable of turning people into weapons.
In the Game, this Dragon’s Secret Treasure couldn’t be used on enemy characters, nor was it easy to use on allied NPCs.
The activation condition for the Dragon’s Secret Treasure was to speak the name of the weapon you wished to change into and your own name while touching it. So, if you wanted to become a weapon, you normally had to raise your affinity with an NPC character and ask them to become a weapon.
However, the candidates for weapons that could be transformed by the Dragon’s Secret Treasure were vast.
Besides standard weapons like swords, spears, and axes, there were also projectile weapons like shuriken, darts, and Girly Panties.
And then… musical instruments like harmonicas, guitars, harps, pianos, and “lutes.”
Remembering this, I was genuinely shocked when I watched the final episode of the Evil God War Video Record.
It was because the Evil God had used a skill with a ridiculous name.
…That skill was the Revival Skill “Abso ‘Lute Dies Aster’.”
In other words, it was the Evil God’s trump card, containing the activation keywords of the Dragon’s Secret Treasure: “The name of the candidate weapon” + “Your own name.”
The activation condition for the Dragon’s Secret Treasure was to be “in contact with the Dragon’s Secret Treasure” and to speak “the name of the candidate weapon” + “your own name.”
While the “Abso” part before “Lute” was unnecessary, as long as the keywords were spoken, any extraneous words preceding them would naturally not be an issue.
So, I thought that if I could press the Dragon’s Secret Treasure onto the Evil God the moment it activated “Absolute Dies Aster,” I might be able to turn the Evil God into a weapon.
Normally, it would be impossible to weaponize Dies Aster, a character set as an enemy.
In fact, even if it were possible, there was no way in the Game to make an enemy say the activation keywords for the Dragon’s Secret Treasure, so its validity remained unknown.
However, I had a chance.
It was the rival character Richter from the Evil God War Video Record.
He wasn’t human, but a Monster.
Furthermore, he was a boss character called an Archdemon that appeared in the latter half of Nekoneko’s Dungeon.
Despite being a monster, Richter rebelled against the Demon Lord, aided the Hero Alex, and eventually transformed into the Knight Sword Richter using the Dragon’s Secret Treasure, leading Alex and his allies to victory.
This world was recreated as faithfully as possible to the world of Nekoneko, without contradictions.
Therefore, I thought that if it was possible in this world, even if not in the Game itself, there was a non-zero chance I could turn the Evil God into a weapon.
Of course, this was still a long shot, a huge gamble.
But this plan had a significant merit that made it worth taking the risk.
First, if this succeeded, I could truly defeat the Evil God.
The Evil God would revive no matter how many times it was killed, and it would develop resistance to attacks it had taken.
However, resistance only increased after death and revival.
By not killing it and simply turning it into a weapon with the Dragon’s Secret Treasure, it should not revive.
And the other benefit that greatly swayed me was the original purpose of the Dragon’s Secret Treasure.
—That is, the desire that if I made a weapon using the Evil God, it would surely be a powerful one.
Weapons made with the Dragon’s Secret Treasure, commonly known as “Sand Dragon Swords,” had a fixed attack power, but a certain percentage of the stats of the character who used the Dragon’s Secret Treasure would be applied as stat bonuses.
If I could continuously defeat the Evil God and raise its stats to near Max Level, the resulting Sand Dragon Sword would undoubtedly become a weapon of astonishing power, truly worthy of the title “strongest.”
“…Well, the biggest concern in that case, as Mitsuki pointed out, is what happens then.
If the Evil God reaches Max Level, it’s possible it could disappear or its stats could invert and it would become weaker.
In that case, it would be unfortunate if I couldn’t make the strongest weapon…”
“W-wait a minute! I never said anything like that!”
Mitsuki interjected, as if wanting no part in this.
No, I distinctly remember her saying it…
As I tilted my head, Mitsuki continued in a flustered tone.
“W-well, that’s not important right now.
More importantly, after hearing all that, there’s something I want to confirm…”
“Confirm, something?”
“Y-yes. I believe it’s impossible, and I’m probably mistaken… but…”
With uncharacteristic hesitation, Mitsuki paused, then asked in a tone that was almost like a prayer, or perhaps a plea.
“—Perhaps, if I hadn’t considered making a weapon, defeating the Evil God just once would have been enough?”
Her question was surprisingly straightforward, which put me at ease. I answered cheerfully.
“Huh? Yeah. Of course, that’s true.”
If the goal was only to defeat the Evil God, I could have just pressed the Dragon’s Secret Treasure onto it the moment it used “Absolute Dies Aster.” There would have been no benefit in repeatedly defeating the Evil God to make it stronger.
That was indeed something I had agonized over.
“Geez, I wanted the Evil God to be the strongest weapon possible, but…
The more I defeated the Evil God, the greater the risk of failure, so I was hesitant.
But then, Mitsuki said with great conviction, ‘A selfish desire that determines the fate of the world, isn’t that fine?’ and everyone else said they would support me!
Thanks to that, I was able to make up my mind, and I can’t thank Mitsuki and everyone enough for pushing me on.
Truly, you, you all are my wings… what?”
Somehow, Mitsuki ended up crouching on the ground, her ears flat against her head, groaning like a zombie, “Ahhh… What have I done… Ahhh…”
“Please, for goodness sake. Stop it now.”
“After all that effort for Soma, this is hardly fair.”
Sahzan and Maki stepped in front of me, stopping me.
Their gazes were stern, and they didn’t look convinced at all.
“Ehh… Why is it…”
Why is it…
I explained it properly, yet everyone’s gaze towards me seemed to be growing more intense.
Glancing to the side, Ena was in a state of shock, mouth agape, her soul seemingly having left her body. Layla was looking down, muttering something to herself, which was quite unsettling.
—But!
But even in this situation, I had an absolute ally.
“Ringo! Ringo, you understand, right!”
Ringo, who had vowed to indulge me for the next ten years, my oasis of the heart!
“…So, Souma.”
Ringo, struggling to move her expressionless face, tried desperately to form a smile, failing again and again… and then…
—*Pow!*
“Eh? Wh-what?”
She delivered a cat punch to my head, tears in her eyes!
“Ow! Ah, well, it doesn’t actually hurt, but ow!”
Ringo wasn’t fighting seriously, and with my current stats, I naturally took no damage.
However, Ringo’s sudden change of heart left me shaken.
“No, if you can accept this, you’re not just an angel.”
“Rather, Soma, you should be thankful you weren’t hit with full force.”
The Sahzan and Maki duo began to needle me again.
As if to add insult to injury,
“If you had just explained properly, I would have cooperated…”
Mitsuki, with her usual dark gaze, joined them, and with her having recovered slightly.
“Th-that’s true, the timing was pretty dicey, but…”
Just before the Evil God revived, I had desperately reached out with the Dragon’s Secret Treasure.
It was good that I made it just in time, but if that timing had been even a second slower, the Evil God might have revived without becoming a weapon.
“B-but, I did have a backup plan, you know.
I gave one of the bears the Dragon’s Secret Treasure, thinking that if the worst came to worst, he could use it against the Evil God in my stead.”
As I said this, everyone’s eyes shifted to Kuma.
“…Ohhh? K-Kuma?”
At Maki’s words, Kuma, who had been playing nearby until then, hastily hid the Dragon’s Secret Treasure behind his back.
But it was painfully obvious.
“…Sigh. Well, very well.”
It was Mitsuki, surprisingly, who broke the tense atmosphere. With a face as if a demon had left her, she said.
“I don’t particularly like the saying ‘all’s well that ends well,’ but no actual harm was done.
You have defeated the Evil God without sacrificing a single person.
…Good work. You accomplished it well.”
“Mitsuki…”
These straightforward words of praise, the first I’d heard since defeating the Evil God, touched me deeply.
I almost reflexively said, “Though I didn’t reach Max Level,” but my sixth sense warned me that I would be scolded if I did, so I swallowed the words unspoken.
“Next, regarding explaining this to the others…”
Mitsuki turned her ear towards the crowd, and from there, incessant cheers could be heard.
“…It seems they believe that you sealed the Evil God into that Lute, over there.”
“Huh? Didn’t I say I got the strongest weapon?”
I tilted my head, wondering how that interpretation came about, when Mitsuki looked into the distance with a peculiar expression.
“…Ordinary people can’t even imagine the Evil God being turned into a weapon, can they?
Perhaps that’s the conclusion they reached after reconciling reality.”
I didn’t quite understand, but I supposed that was how it was.
Maki also seemed unconvinced.
“I-I can sort of understand, but is that okay?!”
She confronted Mitsuki, but…
“It’s not okay… but can you, Maki, tell them the truth?”
Faced with Mitsuki’s piercing gaze, Maki immediately fell silent.
After confirming this, Mitsuki clapped her hands.
“In any case, the threat of the Evil God is gone.
There is much I wish to say… but it is over without incident.
…However, from now on, before you do anything, please explain it to us properly.”
While wrapping things up neatly, she didn’t forget to give me a sharp warning with her intense gaze.
I could only offer a wry smile to the astute Mitsuki.
But that was all just a杞憂 (unnecessary worry).
“H-haha. It’s alright. For a while, I won’t do anything so grand that you’d have to stop me.
Right now, I just want to get back to town as soon as possible.”
“Fufufu… Even you must be tired after that battle.”
“Of course, that’s part of it. And also…”
I proudly stroked the Lute, my strongest weapon from this battle…
“—I need to synthesize this ‘Lute Dies Aster’ quickly, you see.”
A moment of silence followed my words, then…
“That’s exactly why you’re so frustratingggggg!!”
Immediately after, I was thoroughly scolded by my enraged companions, starting with Sahzan.
…Unfortunately, due to my companions’ fierce protests, the synthesis of the Lute was postponed indefinitely.
Well, I could understand what Mitsuki and the others were saying.
Though it was likely to be fine, it would be a disaster if the Evil God revived during the synthesis.
However, this weapon, while categorized as a sword, wasn’t particularly easy to handle, and “Lute Dies Aster” was also difficult to say.
Ah, well, it’s customary for the name of a created Sand Dragon Sword to be “Weapon Type + First Name,” so it might actually be “Lute Dies” or “Lute Aster,” but without being able to open my menu in this world, there’s no way to confirm.
However, it’s a matter of preference, but as a gamer, I naturally want to care about the name of my favorite weapon.
If I synthesized it with Altihate, it would gain the trait “only I can wield it,” eliminating the danger of it being misused by others. More importantly, combined with the “long-range nullification” trait, I had wanted to declare, “Light and darkness combined make for the ultimate appearance!” but it seems I have no choice but to give up.
Well, there’s a technique in Nekoneko to make equipment inerasable, and with this Lute alone, my stats would be buffed, making me as strong as a revived Evil God.
Even without focusing on long-range nullification, I probably wouldn’t take any damage from any attack.
“That’s right. Since I have it, let me try it out a bit.”
When I said this, Mitsuki, for some reason, looked a little troubled.
“You may, but be careful not to hit any allies.”
“H-how can you not trust me…”
Despite my grumbling, I approached the large rock I had chosen.
There, I raised the Lute… or rather, I didn’t. Instead, I drew the “True Hi-no-Shinn” with my right hand.
“You intend to test that?”
Mitsuki asked, sounding surprised, but that’s how it is.
“The attack power of a Sand Dragon Sword is fixed.
No matter how strong a character you turn into a weapon, the attack power won’t be that high.”
Even so, the bonus to Strength would apply, so a strong Sand Dragon Sword would possess enough power to be a candidate for the strongest weapon on its own.
But, to unleash its full potential…
“Unlike buffs, this stat bonus applies to unarmed attacks as well.
So, if I wield the Sand Dragon Sword in my left hand and use True Hi-no-Shinn with amplified Strength…”
As I spoke, I pointed True Hi-no-Shinn towards the large rock.
Probably, True Hi-no-Shinn with the Evil God’s Sand Dragon Sword equipped would be the true ultimate weapon.
Honestly, even any strong enemy in the Game wouldn’t be enough to prove the sharpness of this weapon.
Cutting through a rock like this proves nothing, but if it stabs into the rock without any exertion of force, it should at least demonstrate a fraction of this weapon’s power.
I casually thrust True Hi-no-Shinn towards the large rock, and as expected, the blade sank into the rock without any resistance…
“See, like th-”
—*SHOOM!*
“………What?”
The large rock vanished without a trace, emitting an indescribable sound that I had never heard in my life.
No, it truly vanished.
Not an explosion, not a burst, but annihilation.
Despite the flashy sound, the rock didn’t scatter; it simply disappeared, leaving not a single speck of dust.
“S-Soma, that…”
Seeing this, my companions looked at me as if I were a dangerous person.
“N-no, wait! This is a mistake…!”
The moment I turned to defend myself, my sword let out a roar-like sound, “WHOOOOOSH!” and a wind erupted from it.
This was a special effect that didn’t exist in the Game, but the incredibly strong attack power had generated wind pressure.
Just how strong was it!
“Ah, well, you see…”
At this sight, my companions scattered away from me in a rush, “Zazazazaza—”. The only one who didn’t move was Ena, not because she was exceptionally brave, but because her legs gave out, and she trembled like a frightened hamster, muttering, “Hawa, hawa wa…”
At this point, there was no point in trying to explain.
“P-p-please. Don’t use it near us.”
“…Yes.”
Under Mitsuki’s cold gaze, I could only nod silently and sheathe Hi-no-Shinn obediently.
“Then, shall we go?”
As I muttered to myself, “Being the strongest is lonely,” Mitsuki, seeing that Ena had finally calmed down, urged us to move.
“Ah, wait a minute!”
However, there was one last thing I absolutely had to do.
I stopped Mitsuki and placed the Lute on the ground.
Even though it was an opponent I had fought a life-or-death battle with, it was necessary to show due respect.
I stood before the Lute lying on the ground and clasped my hands, speaking words of gratitude.
“Thank you for fighting to strengthen the Sand Dragon Sword.
Thank you for dying many times to help me raise the Sand Dragon Sword.
…Thanks to you, I now have such a powerful weapon.”
Saying this, I picked up the Lute again, and Mitsuki, standing beside me, opened her mouth in exasperation.
“…Honestly. You’re quite the character.”
“Didn’t I tell you? Nekoneko players are tenacious.”
Still, let’s call it even for killing my companions.
“I’m going to need you to be useful to me from now on.”
I patted the side of the Lute. As expected of a musical instrument, it produced a pleasant sound.
“What are you planning to fight next?”
Mitsuki looked at me with a gaze that was both exasperated and fond, as if watching something amusing.
The answer to her question was already decided.
“Why, something I haven’t seen before.
There must still be many places in this world that I haven’t visited in the Game.”
My answer stunned Mitsuki, who froze as if her mind had been blown.
As if to voice her thoughts, Ena hesitantly asked.
“B-but… aren’t you going back to your original world, Soma-san?”
Her tone, anticipating the answer, yet somehow holding onto a sliver of hope. I responded to her question…
“Ah. Of course, I intend to return.”
I answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“R-right. In that case…”
Ena replied, unable to hide her disappointment, her voice slightly downcast. I cut in over her words.
“But, didn’t I say it? —I will definitely come back.”
I said these words with great conviction.
Although I had made this decision before the reset, I had conveyed this intention to everyone after the reset as well.
However, I wanted to tell everyone here and now, once more.
I wanted them to know that my words were not lies, that I was serious.
“There must still be many monsters in this world that I haven’t seen, dungeons I’ve never seen, items I’ve never seen, all waiting to be discovered!
…So, it’s like this…”
As I spoke, I surveyed my companions.
Ringo, Mitsuki, Maki, Sahzan, Ena, Layla, Kuma.
My precious, irreplaceable companions.
My dear people with whom I genuinely wanted to stay together forever.
I had no intention of giving up on returning.
But that didn’t mean I had any intention of parting with them.
“I want to explore and seek out the unknown with all of you, my companions.
That is my new dream!”
The greatest crisis, the greatest enemy the world had faced, the Evil God, had fallen, and this world was now at peace.
…But it’s not over yet.
Rather, this is just the beginning.
From now on, our adventures and battles will continue, on and on.
Because…
“—I have only just begun to climb, you see.
This infinitely distant Nekoneko Slope!!”
It was exhausting, and with this, the consecutive updates conclude!
Honestly, I could have ended it here, but I plan to write about three more chapters.
However, the future is still only vaguely conceived in my mind, so I intend to rest for a bit, write diligently, clear my backlog of games, and then update in a burst once everything is mostly shaped.
Thank you for accompanying me this far!
Don’t worry! I’ll be back soon! Surely, soon… surely…
