Chapter 120: A Heavy Burden and a Brother’s Choice

Dion kept his eyes locked on his sister, who was blatantly avoiding his unblinking glare right in front of him.

"Say that again. What exactly do you want me to do in your world?" Dion asked in a heavy voice.

"Um... reset, rebuild, and maintain... stuff like that. Please don’t make me repeat it," Hestalia replied.

"Do you even realize what you just said?" Dion asked Hestalia, his tone dropping even lower.

"Of course I realize it. I’m the one who asked," Hestalia answered.

Dion stepped forward. Slap! He raised both hands and pinched the goddess’s cheeks tight, startling her, before turning her face so their eyes locked directly with each other. The goddess forced a stiff laugh and a tight smile.

"Do you have any idea what kind of burden you just dumped on me?! All I wanted was a quiet, peaceful life, and to retire without any hassles! Now you’re asking me to reset the world, rebuild it, and maintain it?! Do you think what you just said is some easy task that can be wrapped up with a flick of the wrist?!" Dion yelled, his face flushed with clear anger.

"Ugh... I’m sorry! But this is the very last time I’ll ask for your help, Big Brother... Really! This is the absolute last time, and after this I won’t bother you ever again... For real, Big Brother!" the trapped goddess cried out.

"Grr..." Dion growled, staring at the goddess’s awkward, pale, and thoroughly guilty face. Sigh. He let out a long breath and released his grip on her cheeks, and she immediately cupped her own face.

"Why do you want to reset the world you manage?" Dion asked.

"Because... back when I took a break and was born on Earth as your little sister... I abandoned this world. Now everything is a complete mess beyond repair... Things that were never supposed to appear again are appearing, and things that were never supposed to awaken are waking up... And if left alone, it’ll eat this world away from the inside," Hestalia answered.

"What do you mean by things that were never supposed to appear and awaken... appearing and waking up again?" Dion pressed.

"A lot of things, Big Brother... Right now, even the continent you live on is overflowing with problems, isn’t it? Classes that were supposed to be long gone are showing up left and right... You know, those SS and SSS-ranks... And teachings that were meant to guide humanity down the right path have been twisted... There’s just too much, Big Brother. Fixing them one by one is a nightmare, and I can’t personally descend to clean it all up... Resetting and rebuilding from scratch is just way easier," Hestalia explained.

"Grrr... And after that, you just go right back to vacationing, taking breaks, and enjoying retirement while leaving every single thing on my shoulders? Is that it?" Dion asked.

"Um... You’d be living down there anyway! Besides, I deliberately picked out five partners for you! I deliberately gave you a palace, a city, and a nation... You just have to sit back and enjoy it, ehehe," Hestalia answered.

"Hah... Who on earth asked for any of that?! You know full well how my life was on Earth! I just wanted a small farm on the outskirts of town, living quietly and peacefully with dogs, pigs, cows, and horses... You’re unbelievable," Dion snapped back in frustration.

"Come on, what’s the difference between a world and a farm anyway, Big Brother? It’s basically the same thing!" Hestalia argued.

"Grr... I’m not wasting my breath arguing with you. Bottom line: I refuse to reset this world. I’ll settle this world’s messes in your place, but once I’m done, don’t you dare bother me again. Got it?" Dion demanded, pointing directly at his sister’s face.

"Oh... But it’s going to be really tough, Big Brother. My world is massive, you know. There are plenty of other threats lurking beyond this continent," Hestalia warned.

"I don’t care! Do you think I live in your world just to reset it, start over, maintain it, and cast aside everyone around me who has become a part of my life that easily?! Think about my feelings for once!" Dion shouted angrily.

Hestalia went silent. She stared at Dion’s face, which still bore an angry scowl as he stood with his arms crossed. Then, her expression softened into one of deep affection, and a gentle smile spread across her lips. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Dion in a tight embrace.

"I’m sorry, Big Brother. You’re right... I didn’t think about your feelings. How about this then? I’ll entrust this world to you, not because I’m shirking my responsibilities, but because I truly can’t handle it right now. I’ll come back to see you again one day. So, Big Brother... if you ever get exhausted and decide you want to reset this world after all, I’m giving you a special ability to do just that," Hestalia said softly.

"Huh... What do you mean?" Dion asked.

Snap!

Hestalia flicked her fingers. Vwoooong! Dion’s holographic Recall interface snapped open before him, and his eyes widened as he scanned the screen.

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Change Soul Persona:

- Dion von Oswald [current]

- Black Knight rank SSSS [activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 1 day)

- Shadow Assassin rank SSSS [activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 1 day)

- Berserk Monk rank SSSS [activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 1 day)

- Mechanical Crafter and Gunner rank SSSS [activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 3 days)

- Ancient One rank SSSS [activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 5 days)

- Calamity Supreme Monarch rank SSSS (cooldown 220:34:18)

- ???

- NEW Ultimate Persona: World Keeper rank GOD (Unlocks when all soul persona requirements are complete.)

*******************************************************

Dion turned to look at his sister, who was smiling up at him while still holding him close.

"Why are you giving me such a terrifying persona?" Dion asked.

"Just in case you change your mind! Like I said, I’m giving you the special ability for it. But don’t worry, you can’t just use it right away. The requirements are listed right there," Hestalia said, pointing to the screen.

Dion read the description, and what Hestalia said was true. He wouldn’t be able to activate it anytime soon, as there was still one final persona he had yet to obtain. The function of that ultimate persona was exactly as Hestalia had described: to reset the world, rebuild it, and oversee it as a new guardian deity. Dion turned back to his sister.

"You really are dumping the entire world onto my shoulders, aren’t you? What a terrible little sister," Dion remarked.

"Hehe... You know how I am! Besides, you already know why I can’t just return to this world permanently right now, don’t you?" Hestalia replied.

"Sigh... Yeah... You’re still alive back on Earth and just got married," Dion noted.

"Hehe... Exactly, Big Brother! Oh, and I have a kid now, too! A little boy, just three years old! I named him Marcus!" Hestalia shared happily.

"Wait... You named him after me?" Dion asked.

"Yep! In memory of the big brother I love so much," Hestalia answered with a bright smile.

"Haha... You really haven’t changed a bit... So, as long as I don’t go looking for that final persona, this terrifying persona stays locked, right?" Dion asked.

"Yep! That’s how it works! But one day, I’m sure you’ll unlock that final persona anyway. Honestly, I thought you’d want to reset right away so you could live peacefully on a farm, building a world and watching over it, isn’t that basically the same thing? I originally wanted to give you this world as your retirement home," Hestalia explained.

"Except I’m already attached to the people around me. They’ve become my family, and there’s no way I’m resetting them away just like that... If you had told me when I was born here or right from the start, maybe I would’ve just gone along with your request," Dion admitted.

"True... Telling you right at the start wouldn’t have been possible anyway. But with things as they are... doesn’t that mean you’re stuck working again, Big Brother?" Hestalia asked playfully.

"Well... What choice do I have? Wrap up every single problem as fast as possible, then retire for good," Dion sighed.

"Alright then, Big Brother! I’m sorry I misunderstood what you wanted. I just knew you loved fantasy stories and used to play RPGs all the time... so I thought... well, it was a coincidence, but turns out I was wrong, hahaha!" Hestalia laughed sheepishly.

"Forget it. No point dwelling on it now. What matters is that I get to retire eventually, it’s just a matter of time," Dion replied.

"Okay! Thank you so much, Big Brother! I have to go now, I’m still at the office after all," Hestalia said.

"Alright, off you go then," Dion said with a warm smile.

Suddenly, Hestalia’s body radiated light once more. Her divine dress shifted back into a neat, sharp corporate secretary outfit. She leaned in, kissed Dion on the cheek, and gave him one last firm hug. After that,

Snap!

Hestalia flicked her fingers. Crack! The surrounding void fractured. Crash! The realm shattered completely, plunging everything back into darkness.

"Ugh..."

Dion opened his eyes. Hek! He tried to sit up, but couldn’t move an inch because Luna, Aria, Cleo, Sheila, and Mei were all piled on top of him. He glanced up toward his pillow and spotted Gina sleeping soundly near his head.

"Recall," he whispered in his mind.

He opened his holographic screen and scrolled to the very bottom, where Ultimate Persona: World Keeper was displayed. Dion smiled faintly, closed his eyes once more, and wrapped his arms gently around Luna and Sheila lying at his side.