Amelia the Level Zero Hero

Chapter 117

Arthur had nothing left. He had lost it all. From his family to his dreams. His ambitions lay in ruins at his feet, and now he felt empty.

So he lay there as he pleaded for his demise. Because he knew that the only path ahead of him was despair— void of happiness, and full of longing for what could have been. It was his only path to salvation. To become one with the World System once again in his death.

But that was not all. Beyond just escaping from the life of pain and solitude ahead of him, he believed that this was what he deserved. Because of what he had done. All the things he had done in both life and undeath— this was his penance.

He turned away from the angel to face the brown-haired woman. She stared at him as he lay prone on the ground, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“I have done… terrible things,” Arthur choked out. “I have killed so many people. So many lives taken— all because of me. I don’t deserve to live. Not after everything I have done.”

Why was he crying? Why was he regretting his actions now? Perhaps that was because he was no longer Ar’elith— maybe it was because he was no longer the Lich King. The Void had taken from him everything that had made him become the Lord of All Undeath.

And now, he was just Arthur. He was an ordinary man who had lost both his wife and his children. Even still, he held the memories of what he had done, and he wept. He wept for not only himself, but for all those he had wronged. Because he believed in a fallacious ideal, they suffered. Because he had thought immortality could be achieved through undeath, they died.

Ar’elith had believed that he could bring peace to all three continents of Vacuos. But Arthur knew that it was merely a foolish dream brought about by the insanity of despair.

So he lay there, facing the ground as his tears rained down and wet the soil. His vision blurred, and he saw nothing but the faces of those he had mercilessly slaughtered. He heard the echoes of their screams of terror. And he rested his forehead on the ground.

“Please, just let me die,” he said as he recalled his sins. “This is what I deserve. This is what I want. So let the judgment of the World System be passed onto me, and let me die once and for all.”

Neither the angel nor Amelia said a word when he was finished. They remained silent as Arthur lay there, eyes closed. This was his punishment. This was only what was right.

“You don’t have to protect me…” He saw a smiling face as he felt a pain in his chest. His wife stood there, hands behind her back as she waited for him in the light, while he was bathed in darkness. Her urging voice called him along. “You don’t have to save me. I don’t want to be saved. I want to… I want to…”

And his children appeared next to his waiting wife. They stretched out their hands at him, and their mouths moved. He heard them calling for his name. So he drew closer. Even as his chest ached, and his tears poured down his face. Arthur moved to embrace them.

“I want to return to them.”

He mustered up the strength to say those words. He had prolonged seeing them once again for over ten thousand years now— his quest for immortality had kept him from reuniting with what he had lost. Now, he had a chance to see his wife… to see his children. He couldn’t bear to live in this world without them for another passing moment.

So he waited. He lay there in silence as the world grew still. He waded through the darkness of his mind, drawing closer to his family. And he heard a set of trudging footsteps approach him. He waited for his death to be delivered to him.

But as he raised his head to behold the angel, all he saw were a pair of brown eyes boring into him. Amelia squatted down to meet his gaze as she rested her chin on her hand.

“You say that you should be killed for what you’ve done, but…” She gestured vaguely at him, then towards the direction of Arelioth’s Pass. “I mean, you did already die for that, didn’t you?”

“What?” He blinked as he took in her words.

“Multiple times, actually,” Amelia said simply.

Arthur tried to work his jaw. He opened his mouth, but she spoke over him. “That’s—”

“There was the time you died ten thousand years ago, then there was that time you died to me.” She tapped a finger on her chin as she spoke thoughtfully. “And I don’t know if it really counts, but Z did kill you like… a hundred times? Maybe a thousand times? I didn’t actually keep track…”

“But that’s not the same thing!” Arthur exclaimed as he tried to get back to his feet. Amelia backed up as he collapsed back onto the ground, groaning. He placed a hand on his chest as he felt the constricting pain throb in his heart. “I am still alive. Even if I have died a hundred times, I still live. How can the world be right if I am allowed to survive?”

The brown-haired woman shrugged. “Honestly, I’m pretty sure dying a hundred times is punishment enough. But if you’re still alive, then why not make things right? Repent for all the horrible things you’ve done and do what you can to help others until the day you truly die. Is that not better than letting you die here because Z’s being a stubborn idiot?”

She tilted her head as she asked the question. Arthur stared at her, utterly befuddled. Slowly, he gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. His breathing grew heavy, before he looked back down at himself.

“But…” He thought of the smiling face of his wife. He heard the giggling of his children. He watched as they waited for him, and he looked up. “But I have nothing left in this world. I just want to see my family again…”

Amelia frowned. She stared at him as he looked up at her pleadingly, before shaking her head. “So, what is it then? Is your death meant to be your punishment or your reward?”

Arthur froze. His eyes widened as she asked the question. It was a simple question. And yet, he had no answer for her. He pursed his lips as she sighed. She took a step back, glancing at the angel.

“Look, if you really want me to let Z kill you… then fine, I guess. I can’t stop you. But let me ask you this— is this really what your family would have wanted?”

“I…” Arthur started. But he found no words to say. He closed his eyes, seeing the burning fields. He recalled the destruction he had wrought into this world. He heard the cries of fear. He saw the blood. He remembered the terrified faces.

And then he saw his family once more. His wife was still smiling, but she no longer had her hands outstretched to welcome him. She held onto his children as they looked at him with somber faces. They tried to reach for him, but she stopped them.

She looked up to meet his gaze as he opened his mouth. But then she spoke. Silent words that he could not hear. But he could see her lips moving. And he understood what she said.

Not yet.

They turned away from him. Arthur watched as his family drew away, leaving him in the darkness. He tried to reach out for them as he opened his mouth.

“No—”

And he blinked as he grabbed onto Amelia’s hand. She stared at him as he returned back to reality, before he limply let go of her.

“They’re…” he whispered, but nothing else followed. He looked down at the ground as he closed his eyes.

“It’s your choice,” Amelia said softly. “Now tell me— what is it you want?”

Arthur had done many terrible things as Ar’elith the Lich King. It might have happened under a different identity, but that was still a result of his own actions. He stood there in darkness. His family was gone, and the destruction he had brought about still lingered. The wrong he had done… the lives he had taken… if he followed his family into the light, he’d be running away from it all.

He took in a deep breath as he opened his eyes. He stared down at the palm of his hand. He was no longer connected to the World System, but that didn’t mean there was nothing that could be done. He raised his head as he faced Amelia once more.

“I…”

She waited expectantly. He looked past her to face the angel, then looked back down at himself. He clenched his jaw as he opened his mouth.

“I want to live—” Arthur caught himself. He shook his head as he rose to his feet. “No… I must live. I must atone for my sins. For those I have wronged, I have to live. It is what’s right.”

He stood tall. His blond hair swayed with the wind, and the sun began to peek over the horizon behind him. Amelia smirked as she nodded.

“Good choice.” She turned away from him, looking back at the waiting angel. “Hear that, Z? He wants to live, so if you want to kill him, you have to go through me first.”

Arthur shifted back as he heard that. He glanced between both the brown-haired woman and the angel, but neither raised their weapons.

Affirmative.

“Are you still going to try and kill him?” Amelia asked as she raised a brow.

Arthur bit his lower lip. The angel didn’t visibly react. But there was tension in the air. It was palpable. And it was clear that the angel was calculating a course of action. Amelia didn’t even reach for her blade as she waited.

After a tense moment passed, the angel responded.

…negative. And with that, he spread his wings and took off into the air.

Amelia blinked, watching him go. Arthur stared too. As the angel took off into the horizon, flying towards the rising sun. Neither of the pair said anything until he was fully gone. Then Amelia dusted her hands off with a grin.

“Glad that’s settled— I didn’t want to have to fight him. He’s a really good employee. I hope he doesn’t resign over this.”

“Employee?” Arthur asked with a frown.

“Don’t worry about it,” Amelia said as she waved a hand dismissively. “So what are you going to do now?”

“I… I am not sure. I’ll figure something out. First, I need to learn more about this time period…” He felt his chest aching as he realized that this world was not even the same world he knew. But that didn’t matter. “Do you know if there’s anyone out there who can offer me a place to stay?”

“Well, I am looking to hire someone to work for me as a bartender,” Amelia said with a smile. “I can offer you lodging in exchange for a few hours of work every day. Although… I don’t know how my customers would feel about their drinks being served to them by Ar’elith the Lich King.”

“Right.” Arthur shook his head. “Then there is no reason to call me by that name. I am no longer that man.”

“Then what do I call you?” Amelia peered at him curiously.

He closed his eyes. He recalled the name he had once been called— he heard his wife’s voice echoing in his mind. Before he had become the terror that threatened to conquer all of Vacuos.

And he managed to muster up a smile.

“Arthur,” he said. “My name is Arthur.”