Chapter 10: [New Tales] - (24 Years Before the Original) Is It a Misalignment or Hope? No One Knows (Complete)

The place Grave had mentioned, where the Glass Slipper parts were kept, turned out to be a factory-cum-laboratory.

And not just any factory, but one equipped with cutting-edge technology.

"Here. Used. to. be. military. facility."

"A military facility? Then it’s a restricted area?"

"In. the. past. Yes. Now. occupied. by. Raptures."

"Ah. I see."

Time had clearly taken its toll; the outer walls were rusted and riddled with damage. However, the moment we stepped inside, I couldn’t help but marvel.

Grave felt the same.

"!"

"Wow, it looked like a total ruin from the outside. It was operating under a complete disguise, huh?"

"........"

"Grave? What’s wrong?"

Unlike the dilapidated exterior, the interior was a sleek, metallic expanse—a futuristic factory where robots were manufactured using the kind of advanced technology I'd only seen in fiction.

Holographic panels flickered, robotic limbs shifted, and lifts glided across the ceiling accompanied by the hum of various lasers.

"....Damn it! We. worked. so. hard. to. stop. them!"

"....Grave?"

"Those. bastards. used. human. technology. to. start. again!"

"......"

Grave clenched her fists, trembling as if trying to vent a volcano of rage.

Seeing the grief, the anger, and the profound sense of apology she held for someone, I found myself unable to speak.

The only sounds filling the factory were the mechanical whirring of machines, the hiss of lasers, and the quiet sliding of materials on lifts.

"We. fought. so. hard."

"....."

"Goddess. Squad. all. sacrificed. for. humanity. We. did. too. Cinderella. too. All. of us!"

"......"

"Just. how. much..... hng... sob... do. we... have... to... keep... fighting...?!

"Grave."

"Are. we... in. the. end!... destined... to... lose...?!

"Grave."

The factory continued to churn without pause.

And what it was producing was none other than Rapture parts.

At the sight, Grave began to sob, sinking into a pit of despair.

Then—

Smack!

"!?"

"Get a grip. Did you already forget what our goal is?"

".....Ah..."

I clapped my hands sharply right in front of her hidden face, jolting her back to her senses.

Startled by the sudden noise rather than a physical blow, Grave looked up at me.

"On the way here, while traveling with you, I heard everything that happened."

".....Super...human."

"I can’t tell you I understand how unfair it all was. After all, I’m basically the same kind of 'human' you hate and distrust."

"......No... you... are... a good... superhuman."

"Regardless, I said I understand why you'd be wary of me because I'm 'human,' right?"

"....."

"I won't give you empty platitudes or fake comfort. But there is one thing I want to say."

I placed a hand on her shoulder.

It was a rigid shoulder, yet one that carried an unwavering sense of responsibility to the very end.

Gently squeezing it, I spoke.

"What if the Raptures you sacrificed everything to stop are simply remade?"

"......What?"

"What if the opportunity you all bled for disappears? So what?"

"....Superhuman! You..!"

"If they multiply, then we crush them. If they stubbornly try to survive, then we trample them into the dirt."

"!?"

She had been about to flare up, but she flinched, stunned.

To a NIKKE, this might sound like pure arrogance. But I possessed the power to back it up.

I still didn't know why I had fallen into this 'NIKKE world,' or why I had been granted the skills of Eunwol from Maple Story.

But through my time with her, I realized my body was no longer that of a normal human.

Like a NIKKE, bullets no longer left wounds on me.

I could tear through Raptures with my bare hands without taking a single scratch, smashing them to pieces instead.

The more I fought, the more I destroyed.

My body continued to transcend human limits; now, even optical weapons like lasers couldn't leave a mark.

"The hardships of your past must have left deep scars. And in that struggle, you almost lost Cinderella."

"......"

"Now you can focus on healing her, but before you met me, you were fighting this war alone, weren't you?"

"Superhuman...."

"Don’t despair. I told you, didn't I? I want to see the 'happy ending' you all deserve, and I want to help write that story."

"!"

"You showed me your devotion, your mission, and your responsibility. You never gave up on 'hope,' did you?"

"Superhuman...!"

"So why on earth would you give up and fall into despair now?"

To be honest, I was aware that I was drifting away from the human standard, slowly becoming something akin to a 'monster.'

If this were my original world—a world where superpowers and such technology were dismissed as absurd fiction—I probably would have gone insane.

The thought of becoming something abnormal, something beyond the human scale, would have broken me.

But not here.

This was the world of the game 'Goddess of Victory: NIKKE.'

Even if it had now become the 'reality' I lived and breathed.

In a world this close to a total apocalypse, I knew that surviving required me to become a 'monster.'

Stronger than anyone. Harder than anyone.

This was a dystopia where one could go mad in an instant, where lives were as precarious as a mayfly or a flickering candle flame.

Therefore, I decided to quietly accept it. I would embrace it with a calm heart.

"I'll become a monster. A monster wearing a human mask."

"!?"

"In this reality, a normal human like me would be easy prey for the Raptures. So, why not use this 'power' for something better? For hope? For survival, or for helping others?"

"......"

"Rather than despairing, rather than dying a pathetic death, I'm just going to enjoy my life."

Power breeds arrogance.

Authority breeds overbearing pride.

Ability breeds conceit and selfishness.

Because that is the nature of humans. That is how people are—

"So what if the Raptures swarm in? I'll just have a blast smashing them all to pieces~"

I decided to be 'arrogant,' while wearing the mask of positivity.

==========

She had fought for humanity.

She had lived each day clinging to hope.

She wanted to be remembered in history alongside her masterpiece—the 'hope' of a new humanity, the 'Goddess' who swept across the battlefield to deliver victory.

Cinderella....

Tragically, that hope had morphed into despair and betrayal. In the end, all she received were false accusations, lies, and a heartbreaking parting.

Despite the pain and the betrayal that had nearly broken her, Grave steadied her heart once more, determined to fulfill her mission and her dream.

...If there is a god, then he might be the final 'hope' sent to help us.

A man who moved with infectious energy, a constant smile on his lips.

They had grown close. He could demolish Raptures with his bare hands; before entering this factory, he had taken down a Tyrant-class Rapture alone in a mere twenty minutes.

A monster.

That was the only word that fit. Yet, through the encouraging words of the man she called a superhuman—Hook—Grave found her grip on hope once again.

I want to introduce him to you. The man who fought by my side, and who may become our last and greatest hope.

Though the word 'monster' was frightening and alien, it paradoxically offered Grave immense possibility.

This was different from the past, when she had survived in isolation and nearly lost Cinderella.

She had spent years writhing in agony, blindly obsessed with only one thing: healing Cinderella.

But now, that burden was shared.

Hook was by her side, helping her and shielding her from danger.

He listened to her sorrow and pain without judgment, helping her cast off those suffocating negative emotions.

Traveling with Hook, Grave felt a daily sense of gratitude and a renewed sense of hope.

She would run forward—for the sake of seeing Cinderella shine again, for victory, and for a happy ending.

I will definitely write it. A happy ending. Not a tainted tale, but a story that is right and beautiful.

Unlike her original fate, Grave had encountered hope early.

As they drifted away from their predestined paths, the world around them slowly began to change.

"Grave! I found something! Isn't this the 'glass wide-angle panel' you were talking about?"

"...Com...ing... soon."

Was it despair? Or was it hope?

The fate that had been 'misaligned' by a single existence—Hook—began to shift violently.