Chapter 47: Renewed Resolve

A sleeping person’s body weighs heavier than normal. A dead one, even more so. But despite the added burden, Raive’s speed was actually climbing.

Carrying Hershey’s body like a princess, he pushed forward.

His eyes swept the surroundings without pause, hunting for any hint of a trap. He was so wound up it felt like his brain had gone into overdrive.

"FUCK...!!!"

But no matter how fast he ran, the whipping of the vines only grew louder. The monsters were speeding up, closing the gap fast!

’Is this what Hershey was afraid of?!’

Raive figured the closer he got to the end, the faster those monsters would move. If not for the head start they’d earned earlier, those vines would already be breathing down his neck.

Going by the sound alone, he guessed there was still about 500 meters between them. Plenty for now, but shrinking fast.

At this pace, he’d get caught sooner or later.

He needed something to buy time.

"...!"

Right then, an idea struck.

He shifted Hershey onto his left shoulder and drew his wooden sword. Planting a sharp step forward, he spun a full hundred and eighty degrees and slashed.

"Sword Flash!"

A cutting arc tore through the air, chewing into the walls as it climbed toward the ceiling. Raive didn’t stay to see the result—he turned forward again, settling Hershey back into a princess carry.

Then he leaned harder into his stride, pushing past his physical limits.

BOOOM!

A moment later, the whole passage shook like a bomb had gone off. No ear-splitting blast, so Raive knew it was his slash that had caused it.

Right behind it came the rumble of falling rubble... fast, and getting closer.

"S-Shit...!"

The attack had brought down the entire ceiling, far more than he’d expected. Now it was chasing him only a few meters back. One lapse in focus, one moment of hesitation, and he’d be buried alive under it.

"HNNNNGH!"

He pushed for 120% of everything his body had, shoving well past its limits. He could feel muscles tearing, bones grinding.

His brain’s limiter was probably fried by that point.

He ran, dodging traps, outracing the collapse behind him, and outrunning the monsters still further back.

A terrifying situation, but not quite hopeless.

"...!"

Ahead, he caught a flicker of light. The end of the path!

He didn’t rush, and he didn’t ease off either—just held his pace steady, breathing in through his nose, out through his mouth. His vision blurred, the shaking light making him dizzy, but he forced himself forward and leapt into the light.

BAM!

The corridor sealed shut behind him, buried under rock.

Watching the collapse, Raive guessed the ruined temple had been some structure buried deep underground.

Looking around, he found himself in a wide dome. Above, crystals hovered near the ceiling, throwing off mystic light in every color, blending into a soft, peaceful white.

The walls gleamed with white marble, scattering the light and washing the whole space in brightness.

"Huh?"

But what caught Raive off guard most was the exit.

A portal stood at the center, loot already hovering in front of it. Above the portal, a single number floated there—ominous, glowing: one.

"So only one could actually make it out." Raive sighed.

He’d guessed the dungeon’s gimmick correctly from the inscription on the door, but none of it felt like a win.

A clear that cost him three out of four.

There was no way he’d accept that as the ending.

Still, he checked the loot and found himself surprised.

Once again, no level 4 or higher skill scrolls—just level 3s and 2s. Alongside those sat 40 stat-up candies, plus two skill scrolls.

He consumed the candies first, then checked the scrolls.

[Skill Book - Speed Runner Lv. 1 (S)]

[A skill that lets the user run at increased speed after surviving the Speed Dungeon. Current Bonus: 50% speed up. Passive.]

[Skill Book - Last Stand Lv. 1 (S)]

[Received for being the last survivor of the Speed Dungeon. Increases the user’s toughness and defense on activation. Effect: 100% defense increase. Cooldown: 1 hour. Mana Cost: 120.]

Both looked useful, so Raive didn’t hesitate to learn them.

Low rank, only S-tier, so vessel capacity wasn’t a concern. As expected, no warning, no pain, nothing.

Afterward, he lifted Hershey off the ground once more and walked through the portal.

A flash of pure white washed over his vision before fading back to normal. When it cleared, everyone stood nearby, staring in shock.

"W-Why’d you leave? I can’t reset it if the dungeon’s already gone!" Reinhardt complained, then caught something wrong. "Wait... just the two of you? Where’s Hazel?"

"..."

Raive said nothing. He lowered Hershey to the ground, letting her rest against the fence, and his silence alone was enough to spread dread through the group.

"Don’t tell me..."

Raive met the man’s eyes and nodded.

"Sorry. I couldn’t recover their bodies." He said, shaking his head.

Reinhardt’s expression shifted—shock, then anger, then something closer to acceptance, and finally a tired, bitter smile.

BAM!

His fist connected with Raive’s cheek. But with the gap in their stats, it barely moved his head. If anything, it was Reinhardt’s hand that took the damage.

Raive didn’t react. He just lowered his head, thinking.

’During the times I loop back... what happens to those worlds? Do they keep going? Or do they vanish the moment I change the future?’

Ever since learning about Hershey’s ability, the question hadn’t left his mind.

Once everything settled, the group quietly scattered.

Without bodies to bury, they wrapped Hershey in cloth and cremated her instead. Raive watched the whole thing, expression unreadable.

"What now?"

Therese asked once the ceremony ended, hours after he’d returned from the orange dungeon.

Her eyes were still puffy and red—she must’ve been crying not long before. Raive looked at her, then shook his head.

"Nothing changes. I keep doing what I was doing." He said.

Then he stood, walked over to the lone tree by Hershey’s home, and stopped before the swing. He pulled a bottle from his pocket and drank it down without a glance, as casually as knocking back a drink.

"Ugh...!"

Pain tore through him instantly, like fire eating him alive from within. He dropped to his knees, gasping through it.

Even with his stats sky-high, this part never changed.

"R-Raive?!"

Seeing him collapse, Therese panicked and rushed over.

’Ah...’

Raive watched her desperate expression as she ran to save him. But it was already too late.

Something did shift this time, though.

"I..." His voice came out ragged as he reached a hand toward her. "I’ll never let the people who follow me feel this kind of grief again...!"

And then—

[User’s Heart had Stopped Beating.]

[Please select which save slot to load.]

[Confirmed selection: First Slot.]

[Auto-Load activating...]

[Success.]