"What?"
"What did you say?"
" Rudeus!!!"
" Luo Ge will die? I tell you, impossible! Absolutely impossible! My son Luo Ge is invincible!"
Upon hearing this news, the person who reacted most strongly was undoubtedly Paul.
He suddenly sat up straight from the window, his face contorted as if he had been punched in the face, first in shock, then twisted into an almost angry denial.
"Haha... Rudeus? You must be joking today!"
"I know! This must be a prank you and Luo Ge played, right? Where's Luo Ge? He's probably hiding in that corner, and then suddenly jumped out to give us a big scare, right?"
Paul laughed, and his laughter grew louder and louder, sounding particularly jarring in the crowded room.
"Hahahahahahaha..."
He laughed and waved his hand, as if trying to blow away what he had just heard, "That kid isn't so easy to kill... He's the Sword King, you know, he can come and go freely in the Demon Continent... He's a genius who can easily defeat even the Demon King."
"Heh? Death? How could you just die like that? Rudeus, that's not a funny joke."
But as he was laughing, his smile suddenly froze.
Rudeus then took the broken part from the bag behind him and placed it on the table with a clatter.
The sound wasn't loud, but it felt like a heavy hammer blow to everyone's heart.
Everyone stared at the Phoenix Elegant Dragon Sword, broken in two, lying on the table.
It has long lost its former brilliance and looks lifeless, as if it has lost its vitality.
Rudeus bowed to the crowd, then said with deep remorse, "I'm sorry... this is all the relic I can bring back."
"This is the Phoenix Elegant Dragon Sword?!"
Upon seeing the broken Phoenix Elegant Dragon Sword, everyone felt as if struck by lightning, as if the sky had fallen.
Paul also has Lilia, Aisha, Norn, Roxy, and Nanahoshi.
In their minds, Luo Ge was very strong, almost unbelievably strong.
How could he die so easily? Yet he just happened to...
" Rudeus? Tell me, this isn't real, it must be fake, right?"
Paul rushed forward excitedly, as if grasping at a last straw, and grabbed Rudeus's shoulders with both hands, shaking him frantically.
His strength was terrifying.
Rudeus was so shaken he almost lost his balance, but he didn't even flinch, just letting him rock him, his face contorted with bitterness that left him speechless.
"Father... I..."
"Tell me, Rudeus! Tell me this isn't true!"
Paul's voice was already trembling with sobs.
He stared into Rudeus's eyes, as if trying to find a trace of a joke in those bloodshot eyes.
But he found nothing.
Rudeus simply lowered his head and remained silent.
Gradually... Paul slowly loosened his grip.
He took a step back, then another, until his knees buckled and he collapsed to the ground, burying his face in his hands and his shoulders trembling violently.
Paul wept, shedding tears of his own anguish.
Meanwhile, everyone else remained silent. Lilia took off her glasses and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, wiping them again and again, but the tears just wouldn't stop.
Aisha and Norn both showed expressions of sadness and grief.
Especially Aisha.
She cried uncontrollably, throwing herself into her mother's arms, sobbing and choking back tears.
Norn bit her lip, her eyes red and swollen, but she forced herself not to cry out loud.
Although Roxy and Nanahoshi did not shed tears, after exchanging a glance, they both felt as if their souls had been ripped out, and slumped into their chairs.
Roxy kept her head down, her hands resting on her knees, clutching the half-eaten bread from last night. She had completely lost her appetite.
Nanahoshi leaned back in her chair, her expression the most complicated of all. She neither cried nor made a fuss; she simply remained silent.
For Nanahoshi, Luo Ge was merely a partner; Roger provided them with security, and they did their best to plan for him.
It's clearly just a business partnership...
But Nanahoshi felt as if she had been stabbed in the heart. She suddenly realized that Luo Ge was more than just a business partner to her.
And they're partners...
He was the first friend she made in this other world.
Nanahoshi is very sad...
Or rather, everyone here is very sad...
Everyone was immersed in pain.
The atmosphere at the scene immediately became somber and filled with sorrow.
"Hateful!"
"... What exactly happened?!"
"Why?"
"Ugh... Why did this happen? What did I, Paul, do wrong to deserve this punishment from God?!"
"And Luo Ge is so powerful, he's the Sword King, a genius who can easily defeat even the Demon King."
" Rudeus?"
" Rudeus!"
"Tell me! Speak... speak quickly... who can kill him? Who can kill him?!"
" Rudeus, speak up! What happened between you two?" Paul shouted, his voice growing louder with each repetition as he stood up again.
Paul, who was questioning him.
Rudeus didn't look up, but explained guiltily, "It's like this... a few months ago... when Eris, Rujierd, and I were passing by the Red Dragon's jaw, we encountered the Dragon God of the Seven Great Powers..."
His voice was broken and intermittent, as if each word required a great deal of effort.
No one in the room interrupted him; everyone listened quietly, but the silence was heavy and suffocating.
"At the very last crucial moment... Luo Ge... it was Luo Ge who saved me..."
With Rudeus's intermittent explanation, everyone finally understood the cause and effect of the matter.
Dragon God?
Another Dragon God?!
So that's how it is. The enemy is the Dragon God of the Seven Great Powers... Therefore, this is a battle with no chance of victory.
"Mmm..."
"We clearly agreed to go rescue Zenith together when we got back... Luo Ge... uh..."
Paul pounded the wall again and again, venting his helplessness and inner pain.
Waaah... He's such an incompetent father.
Splash!
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew in from outside the window, lifting a few strands of bangs from Roxy's forehead. Roxy, who had been silent all along, couldn't help but turn her head away.
She glanced at the blue sky and white clouds outside the window, her heart filled with mixed emotions, simply because... she remembered all the moments Luo Ge had spent with Luo Ge, and the night they finally parted ways.
That night, Luo Ge pushed open the door and left, entrusting Nanahoshi to his care. Before leaving, he turned back and gave her a smile, as if it were a final smile before parting.
"Teacher!"
"Believe me... I will definitely come back..."
He said so.
Roxy believed it too.
Moreover, the two of them had clearly made plans to eat pufferfish before they left.
But he broke his promise.
Entrusting the Nanahoshi to him... perhaps when Luo Ge entrusted the Nanahoshi to him, before he set off... he was already prepared to sacrifice himself?
Roxy has already vaguely sensed it.
Luo Ge seemed to already know that his trip was destined to be fraught with danger, and that's why he pretended to be so relaxed.
Why was my reaction so slow back then?
If only I had noticed sooner... I would have known that my disciple's opponent was the Dragon God of the Seven Great Powers.
She was determined to follow and fight alongside Luo Ge.
Roxy... regretted it.
Even if you regret it.
It was all too late.
Not only her, but everyone here has lost Luo Ge.
That once-celebrated prodigy, Luo Ge, will never return; they have lost Luo Ge forever.
Luo Ge is dead.
The Demon Sword King is dead.
If an ordinary person dies, it might be mentioned only briefly, and they might die quietly.
Even the Sword King is no exception.
But Luo Ge is no ordinary Sword King. He is not only the youngest Sword King in the Central Continent, but also the Demon Sword King who defeated the Demon King.
His reputation is widespread; many people, both in the Central Continent and the Demon Continent, know his name.
His death could not be kept secret.
The next day, the news of the Demon Sword King's death spread like wildfire, and no one knows how it got out.
The news spread like wildfire... The Adventurers' Guild near Milison were in an uproar.
Early in the morning, people were talking about it on the street, and there were quite a few onlookers.
"Have you heard? The Demon Sword King is dead?"
"How did you die? Tell me in detail..."
"I heard that he fought with the Dragon God of the Seven Great Powers and was killed."
"No! I clearly heard... he died in battle with the Sword God... killed by the combined forces of the Sword God and the Water God."
"What? You're all mistaken. The Demon Sword King was clearly killed by Alexander the North God after failing to defeat the North God III..."
"Hey, hey, hey! But I heard he died from a relapse of an old illness???"
The discussion was rampant throughout the streets and alleys.
The versions kept spreading, becoming more and more outrageous, but no one was wrong about the core facts.
The Demon Sword King... the fall of this genius.
In just a few short months, news of his death spread throughout the world.
certainly.
News of this quickly reached the Kingdom of Asura, in the City of Ars.
City of Ars, the Water God Style's Dojo.
Isolte just secretly sent a letter she had written to the Northern Sword Sanctum.
But on her way home happily, she overheard two adventurers coming out of the Adventurers' Guild, their arms around each other, completely drunk.
"Have you heard? That Demon Sword King is dead? Speaking of which... I even went to the Sword Sanctum to challenge him a few years ago..."
Did you win or lose?
"Nonsense! Of course I lost! If I had won, would I still be the Sword Saint? Wouldn't I have transformed into the Sword King?"
"Speaking of which... he was clearly very strong, so how could he have died?"
"Yeah... I was a little incredulous when I heard the news of his death too."
"After all, I just heard a while ago that he defeated the Undying Demon King Atofe in the Demon Continent, and now he's dead..."
"Haha, nobody in this world is immune to death. No matter how talented he is... this Sword King is still human, and humans are destined to die..."
They left, chatting and laughing, their figures gradually disappearing into the distance... completely unaware that the blue-haired girl behind them had overheard their entire conversation.
He was completely stunned.
Then, her knees buckled and she collapsed to her knees on the street.
"How is that possible?!"
When Isolte learned of this absurd news, she initially felt as if the sky had fallen.
Although she felt as if she had been struck by lightning, Isolte quickly regained her composure and rallied.
Rumors... they must be rumors that came from who-knows-where.
after all.
Those adventurers rarely speak the truth; they'll make up anything to grab attention.
And Luo Ge is so powerful...
To die mysteriously is simply impossible! Who in the world could kill someone like that?
But over the past few days... more and more adventurers passing through City of Ars have been spreading the same news.
The more people talk about it, the richer the details become.
Isolte's last shred of hope was gradually crushed, and she was completely shaken.
Heartbroken, she returned to her room, locked the doors and windows, and curled up alone in a corner.
She refused to see any guests... not only cutting off all social interactions with herself, but also missing several days of her dojo session.
This dazed and confused state lasted for several days.
If Luo Ge dies... then what will be the meaning of all the effort she's put into pursuing for so long?
She recalled the image of her chasing after that man.
That figure once led her forward, making her feel that as long as she kept chasing, one day they would be able to stand shoulder to shoulder and wield swords to protect others.
result.
But when she heard this sudden and devastating news from someone else, Isolte was completely devastated.
Dawn a few days later.
... When Isolte pushed open the door and walked out of the room again, she felt that something was missing from the outside world.
She stood at the entrance of the dojo. The sun was shining brightly, and people were coming and going on the street. Everything was as usual, but she felt as if the whole world had left her behind.
What, then, is the meaning of human life?