2nd Rank Has Returned - 2nd Rank Has Returned chapter 298

298 – What I sincerely hope for-1

Trouble was already brewing in the empire.

Suddenly, only Reinhardt’s companions teleported first.

A huge demon castle suddenly appeared in the center of the continent.

And the numerous demonic beasts pouring out from the demon castle attacked the entire empire.

It was possible to respond for now because there were forces that had not yet moved, but in the end it was just a matter of buying time.

“Where on earth has Ariasviel gone!!”

Eileen, who was causing a typhoon to prevent the demonic army from crossing over the castle walls, shouted that in a voice full of screams.

I really didn’t think anyone would know their whereabouts.

Because they suddenly evaporated so suddenly that it could not be thought of as instantaneous movement.

‘…Please just stay alive…! Reinhardt…!’

Kuuung…!!

Immediately binge drinking…!

Leonardo, Ariasviel, and Reinhardt’s group reappeared from the magic circle where they had disappeared.

“Huh…Uhuh…!

“There are many injured…! Please get treatment…!”

They were defeated heroes.

***

The imperial palace was already filled with despair.

From Noble mtl dot com

The demonic beasts continued to pour in, and the most important heroes suddenly disappeared.

The reason the soldiers fought even in such a situation was because there was a little hope.

There was a belief that warriors and heroes would survive.

That’s why I was able to fight.

“…You mean I lost? So miserably…”

And even that hope was trampled by the devil.

The two princes, including the emperor, watched Reinhard’s destruction.

Reinhardt, who seemed to always be strong, was injured to the point where he could not stand up again.

It was not because the injuries were serious enough that an ordinary person would have already died, and the injuries would have left him permanently disabled.

“It doesn’t make sense… It can’t be…”

Aileen Temperius was busy looking for the only missing person in the place of suffering.

“…That Leonardo is dead…?”

Not only Eileen but many people present could not understand the content.

Even though it had already happened, it was not easy to admit it.

Now that a person more important than the hero Ariasviel had disappeared, they had no confidence in keeping their cool.

“I’m not dead yet!”

Rios, who was less injured, shouted.

After Aria, the person who felt a bond with Leo among Reinhardts was Rios Reinhardt.

“…I was just captured by the devil…! He’s still alive! “Stop talking arbitrarily!”

It was almost like a scream addressed to Rios himself.

He wasn’t sure either.

He himself was not sure whether it would be right to say that the person possessed by the Demon King was indeed alive.

“But… Isn’t it true that the Demon King entered Leonardo’s Red Tower?”

Baektapju, who came to help with treatment, asked that question in a trembling tone.

It was not a tone intended to criticize. Since they couldn’t really understand the current situation, they had no choice but to ask.

“…That…”

The question could not be answered, even for those who were forced to participate in the fight.

“…If the concept of a demon king truly entered an immortal body…”

Second Prince Regulus, as a wizard, understood what those words meant and was frightened. As a ‘human’ before the grace he received from Leo, he could not help but be afraid of that fact.

“…How can I get it?”

Questions about whether Leo can be saved or whether humanity itself can survive loom over my head.

“…I have to save it.”

It was one girl who got up from her seat.

She was a girl with a broken heart.

Her daughter broke her heart and her husband broke hers, but Arias Spiel had to rise up.

“We are alive now to save people.”

Reinhardt knows that it is not just now.

From the moment they first met, they were saved by Leo, and even now, they were receiving help.

“Aria…! “You can’t wake up yet!”

{Hero Ariasviel… You are still seriously injured…! If you don’t treat it…}

Before the two saints were priests, they had no choice but to express the opinions of therapists.

The heart was crushed, the lungs were ripped out, and the ribs were mixed together.

Although the sutures had been completed like everyone else, the person in the most critical condition was by far Ariasviel Reinhardt.

“It’s okay.”

She said that and quickly got up from her hospital bed, holding her holy sword.

Ariasviel’s eyes, which looked the most dangerous among all the ones I had seen so far, showed sharp determination.

“Oh, no…! Aria…!”

With her chest and abdomen dented, Gradidio desperately tried to hold on to Arya. There was no time when Gladio understood his daughter better than now.

“You must not end your life now…!”

Ariasviel took an extremely simple approach when it came to dealing with a man.

Everyone looked at Ariasviel at the mention of suicide.

“Hero…! “No matter how hopeless it is… you can’t give up like that…”

“It’s not like that.”

To those who don’t know him, it may have felt like he was trying to commit suicide out of despair over losing Leo.

Actually, it wasn’t completely wrong, but Aria at least had a justification.

“…When I die, the power of the hero will be transferred to Leo. You may also remember that Leo was able to hold the holy sword.”

With a cold tone, Ariasviel grabbed the holy sword. Aria’s face was reflected on the sharp-edged holy sword.

Only now did she understand why Black Aria had persistently ordered her to die.

“And if we do that, we may be able to overcome the Demon King’s current possession.”

Leo will still have the strength of a hero as his serious injuries have not yet recovered.

If he can just transfer the power he has, there is a clear possibility that he will be able to escape from the devil.

{…That’s too reckless! No matter how much I think about it…!}

“Angela.”

Aria looks at her first saint while holding her holy sword. Her body froze momentarily due to the venom in her eyes.

It was a look and expression similar to that of Black Aria.

“[Am I really a hero?]”

Why did the Demon King call Leo Ruben?

Why did Leo, who was not of Reinhardt’s bloodline, become a warrior?

“The Demon King called Leo Ruben.”

This can be explained if it is a spiritual factor rather than a physical factor.

The feeling of being completely assimilated with Black Arya for a moment was enough to explain the feeling of discomfort.

“…Is Leo the reincarnation of Ruben Reinhardt?”

{…That…}

Saint Angela, who saw the death of the warrior Ruben from the side, could not deny that fact.

The answer was already apparent from her expression.

“…It was a reincarnation.”

The white robe aria still comes to mind.

Black Aria’s guilt towards Leo.

The sense of debt she felt beyond herself broke her heart, which had been stronger than it was now.

“Leo was a true hero.”

If Leo was the reincarnation of Ruben, even that feeling would be explained.

Beyond regret and a sense of debt over returning, it is understandable that he harbored self-destructive feelings.

Because Ariasviel, who was thought to be a hero until now, is nothing more than a fake who gained power by chance.

“So I…”

“[It’s not like that.]”

In a situation where no one could refute or answer, there was the only person who gave a definite answer.

A man who had to act foolishly because no one else was wise.

The wizard who needed to help the hero at this moment more than anyone else appeared on the spot.

“[Even if that’s true, you shouldn’t try to die that way.]”

“Sage…? Why in Ain’s body?”

Just looking at his appearance, everyone was shocked because he had the appearance of a demi-human.

“[It’s not because I want to look like this. It’s better for him to stay like this, even if it’s because of the devil.]”

The face of Ain, who was possessed by the wise man, had cracks like broken wax. Ajin, who had been possessed by the Demon King, was in such a state of destruction that even he himself was no longer healthy.

Considering the risk of being used as a vessel by the Demon King, the current possession of the wise man was inevitable.

“…Is there any other way besides this?”

Even though Aria glared at the wise man with her cold eyes, she could not bear to blame him.

Even if he allowed the group to escape at will, Leo’s sacrifice would have been meaningless if it had not been for that teleportation.

The entire party may have been annihilated.

“[No, if killing the demon lord is what you are doing, then your method is clear.]”

{You wise man…!}

Angela shouted as the wise man calmly recited the facts as if he had no guilt.

Other people were the same.

He was a wise man whose remarks easily crossed the line, but now, his words and actions were something that could not be easily crossed.

“[Whether it is right to save Leo is something to think about.]”

“…That…”

It was a theory of emotions, but the wise man had no choice but to bring up the issue.

What was the reason why the boy, Leonardo, came back here even after rewinding time?

“[You know best what Leo wants. Even more so than me.]”

“…Then what is the other way?”

The wise man soon revealed himself.

“[Remember when Leo forgot his memories before? It is possible if he uses the method he intended to use at that time.]”

With those words, everyone looked at the wise man again.

The last bastion that he had kept secret was once again brought out in their memories.

“Is it possible…? That is?”

“[It is theoretically possible. It’s unstable compared to your method, but it’s worth the challenge.]”

I was relieved that such a method existed, but at the same time, I couldn’t help but have doubts.

Why did the wise man postpone such a choice until later?

“Why? “You put that method off until later?”

Chris’ voice was filled with sincere resentment.

If that method had been available a long time ago, there would have been no need for the conflict we have had so far.

“[There are two side effects.]”

Even the wise man knew.

He might as well have done it quickly.

But the reason I didn’t do it was because I had my own reasons.

“[The first is that I will disappear from this world forever. I will be thrown infinitely beyond time and space, whether it is heaven or hell.]”

The wise man calmly conveyed this fact.

Angela’s expression seemed as if the world itself was collapsing, but she couldn’t make up her mind.

In the end, it means that the wise man did not use this method for self-satisfaction.

I know it’s inevitable as a human being, but some people couldn’t suppress their resentment.

“[Actually, this is a minor problem. “I’ve already given up anyway, so it’s damn right to get caught up in everyday life now.”

I actually thought that such side effects were trivial.

It was so disrespectful that even the emperor could not make a proper statement.

“[The real problem lies in the second side effect.]”

A problem that the wise man thought about rather than disappearing from existence.

The problem was actually Leo’s own.

“[Leo’s mindset has changed from when he first met me. In principle, it is the same as back then.]”

Now the wise man recalled the time when Leo regained his memories. At that time, Leo said he was glad he didn’t use ‘that method’ in advance.

It’s probably not just because the wise man himself didn’t sacrifice himself.

“When we first met…”

People who did not know could not understand the meaning of the words, but those who had a deep connection with Leonardo could clearly understand the meaning of the words.

When the wise man and Leo first met, it was at the time when the regression had begun.

When you think about why it regressed, the word mindset takes on a heavy meaning.

He even highly evaluated Leo, saying that his own will was fundamentally important for the success of the return.

“But Leonardo is such an untrustworthy person…”

Everyone was agreeing with the word no before even saying it.

There was, but only Aria was able to reflect on the meaning of those words.

What did Leonardo want?

I once again understood where his fight began.

“…Is it because of your mother…?”

When he first returned, Leo had no regrets about his mother.

Because he thought he would just abandon him.

But that wasn’t true.

[…Okay. This method is meaningless if you do not have the will to clearly follow the timeline.]

We learned that in the current episode.

She understood that her mother died for a great reason.

Because of that, she had no choice but to hesitate.

From Noble mtl dot com

Just as he sacrificed himself to save Ain and Aria.

[It won’t end with me gone. Because it’s difficult for me to even be sure what Leo’s subconscious wants.]

Leo didn’t trust himself enough to make a decision deep in his heart, putting his mother and Aria on the scales.

If anyone wanted a slightly different time, it was a tragedy that either side would fail.

[So Aria, the choice is yours.]

That’s all a wise man can do for a warrior.

Giving choices and opportunities.

The decision on the fate of humanity is left to one girl. Even if she is criticized, there is nothing she can do.

The one you choose must always be a hero.

As always.

“…Yes. I’ve decided.”

The warrior made a decision.

Aria soon stabbed herself in the chest with her holy sword.

Death rushed towards me and my vision was filled with darkness.