Chapter 779: You Are All My Wings

Song Ren looked at Nia, who had transformed into a Blade, and at this moment, he almost couldn't help but say on Nia's behalf, 'I was here first, whether it was getting to know you or teaming up.'

But why did it turn out like this?

Nia's shares, which originally held a glimmer of hope, immediately hit their lower trading limit.

That previous line, 'I love Nia, and everyone,' combined with her field skill [Endurance] after transforming into a Blade, and the unlock conditions for fighting alongside Pyra and Mythra.

Between the lines, Song Ren looked from left to right, up and down, and ultimately could only read one message: Bullying Nia!

If someone said it wasn't intentional, Song Ren would be 100% skeptical.

Because in the game, he had already felt enough malice from the official developers, and various memes.

For example, when he first drew the Blade Floren, he originally thought she was a cute and delicate little girl. He catered to her with good food and drinks, found things Floren liked by all means, and worked hard to raise her trust level, unlocking her Affinity Chart little by little.

Even with Perun and Dagas, Blades who appeared very powerful, he never abandoned Floren.

But what he never expected was that this girl he had always thought she was, turned out to be a devious shota.

There was also the experience of salvaging for several hours in Mor Ardain just to earn money to buy the Core Crystals from the general store in Gormott.

He chose Mor Ardain because the map's background music there was quite energetic, but no matter how energetic, he couldn't listen to it for so long.

After accumulating 500,000, he finally bought the Core Crystal, and what emerged was indeed a beautiful girl, just as he had imagined.

But the crucial point was that the roles were reversed!

The Blade Rinne he pulled was indeed very beautiful, but the key was that this Blade started a harem, rather than Song Ren himself as he had fantasized.

And then there was Poppi, the artificial Blade created by Tora. Although Tora had emphatically claimed that 'JS' and 'JK' stood for lofty terms like 'Judgment Knight' during their conversations.

However, given the maid outfits and school uniforms in Tora's house, and Tora's statement in the Mor Ardain factory that his grandfather, Senzo, drew inspiration from 'dirty magazines,' and his father, Bundo, could only find joy in creating 'beautiful girls,' Song Ren had reason to believe that 'JS' and 'JK' actually referred to junior high and high school students.

While Song Ren lamented the bullying of Nia and how improper the game was, he also pressed on with the game's story as quickly as possible.

He didn't really explore the maps along the way, after all, Pyra and Mythra's fate was still uncertain.

Especially when the camera switched to Pyra's side, watching her suspended between two artificial Blades, and hearing her cry 'Don't take away my and Rex's memories' as Malos absorbed data from her Core Crystal, it made all players anxious.

Inside the Spirit Crucible, Rex failed to obtain the so-called third sword, leaving his companions stunned and disappointed. Yet, Rex smiled and said he understood everything.

As the story progressed to this point, Rex had finally begun to mature.

By the time everyone arrived, Pyra's information and memories had already been stolen by Malos. A grief-stricken Rex fought against Malos and Jin but was completely suppressed.

However, parts of the Core Crystal on Rex's chest still held Pyra and Mythra's memory backups. They watched Rex being continuously suppressed by Jin, overwhelmed with sadness.

They asked him why he still wouldn't give them up? 'Our true wish is to go to Elysium, and have the Architect erase our existence—that would be beneficial for this world, so just leave us be.' 'How could I possibly leave you... Every time you get hurt, your pain reaches me, and with every increase in pain, I can feel your heart crying.' 'Even if we disappear, you can still reach Elysium someday, so...' 'That would be meaningless! I want to go to Elysium with you. We promised, didn't we? I'm going to Elysium for you, and for you alone, I will surely reach Elysium! So let's go together! Let me confirm why you were born, let me confirm where our future with you will lead—I hope you believe in me, for your sake, I won't let you burn this world any longer, so—give me everything you are!'

Accompanied by Rex's confession-like promise, all his past worries and fears dissipated with Rex's words.

They revealed all their deepest secrets to Rex.

'This is all we are. Even so, do you still want us?'

In that instant, Rex's consciousness arrived at a vast platform. Pyra and Mythra stood there, and behind them, a mech, half white and half red, stood tall.

"Holy cow! What the heck, fantasy turned into sci-fi? Where did the mech come from!"

Song Ren was utterly stunned!

Although the previous plot had him boiling with excitement, it was only because the game's presentation was so excellent, with perfectly timed camera work and music.

But there weren't many truly astonishing moments, as with this kind of classic shonen plot, one could generally guess what would happen next.

Up until now, what truly impressed him was the game's map and art design, as well as its world-building.

But this sudden appearance of a mech still startled him.

Blades and Aether flow had always led Song Ren to believe this was a Sword and Sorcery World. Even with the appearance of mecha girls like Poppi and technologies modified for Titans by empires like Mor Ardain, he hadn't paid too much attention.

After all, even in a Sword and Sorcery World, there were professions like engineering and alchemy. World of Warcraft even had subways and airships.

But what the heck was this mech! This was too much!

Seeing the mech appear before him, Song Ren was completely stunned. Of course, the truly outrageous part wasn't even there; what he found most egregious was Rex's subsequent actions.

'This is truly all we are. Even so, do you still want us?' 'Do you like this world?' 'Nia, Tora, Gramps... I truly love this world with everyone in it.'

Facing Pyra and Mythra, who had revealed everything, Rex smiled, nodded, and slowly walked forward, taking both of their hands.

[You are all my wings...]

For some reason, as he watched the scene unfold, a line suddenly popped into Song Ren's mind.

The next second, returning to reality, the Core Crystal burst forth with light, and the previously unconscious Pyra truly awakened the full power of the Aegis.

"Pyra and Mythra... turned into Pneuma!"

"What could this be implying now...?"

Watching the Blade representing Nia, which Rex had been holding, be replaced by Pneuma's sword after Pyra and Mythra's awakening.

Combined with the color, Song Ren remained silent.

In that moment, he suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for Nia. Surely there wouldn't be any more scenes of bullying Nia after this, right?

(End of Chapter) <>