Night World Players

Chapter 239 Last
What does he want to do?
suicide?

Just like every enemy who had ever faced Rast... a hint of doubt flashed through the gravedigger's mind as he watched the boy raise his revolver and press it against his temple.

Could it be that he wanted to use suicide to avoid being captured alive and the tragic fate of "The Library of Fools" falling into the hands of the gravedigger?

But doing so is clearly pointless. The sniping just now was not a power that a sixth-tier superhuman could wield; it must have relied on external force. The "Library of the Fool" is within Rast's body and has not yet been passed on to anyone else; there is no doubt about that.

Even if one chooses suicide, for a quasi-angel, resurrecting a fresh corpse that has just died and whose soul has not yet perished is just a trivial matter.

The thought flashed through my mind in the blink of an eye.

The next moment—

Click.

Trigger pulled.

The hammer was released, the cylinder rotated, and a white light suddenly appeared from the muzzle.

However, what followed was not the scene the tomb keeper had imagined: a brain pierced through and blood and flesh splattering everywhere.

The silver-white revolver did not fire a bullet.

However, as the trigger was pulled, Last's temple seemed to be pierced by something.

An ice-blue light suddenly lit up in his eyes.

boom--

A blurry phantom suddenly materialized behind Rast, obscuring the twilight-shrouded sky.

It was a magnificent Tower of Babel, piercing through the dark clouds.

Through the dark tower, one can see twenty-one pale, long staircases that extend upwards from the earth, leading straight to the top of the tower, to the distant end of the night sky.

At the beginning of each long staircase, a phantom card is slowly rotating. Some cards are so blurry that only the back of the card, which symbolizes the sequence, can be seen. Other cards are clear and distinct, with the character illustrations on the card face clearly visible.

The tower's projection reaches the sky and illuminates half of the heavens.

Within the capital, whether it was the powerful and wealthy attending the wedding or the most ordinary people, everyone could see the towering pagoda as soon as they looked up.

Built of thoroughly fired bricks and stone lacquer, it was so magnificent and majestic... Above it was a night sky where millions of suns shone simultaneously, and below it was a brightly lit, bustling imperial capital, as if shrouded in many giant lanterns. The tower rose from among the countless lanterns, piercing the dark clouds. People standing on the vast wilderness gazing at it could almost hear the resounding hammer blows echoing day and night.

"The Fool's Library".

High above the capital, the tomb keeper hoarsely uttered the true name of this tower that reaches the heavens.

Before this towering tower, his true form, which was originally majestic and powerful like an ancient dragon, now appeared as insignificant and insignificant as dust.

As one of the Tomb Keepers, he was no stranger to the "Library of Fools," which originally belonged to the Tomb Keepers but was stolen by a hateful traitor and a despicable fire-stealer a few eons ago.

But now that the "Library of Fools" has truly come to life, and I have witnessed that magnificent tower with my own eyes, I am still overwhelmed with awe.

In the first age of gods, the fool who led humanity to rise from the encirclement and suppression of mythical races such as ancient dragons, high elves, and dire wolves left behind a tiny seed, the spark known as "The Fool's Library."

Later, as generations of library owners accumulated their life's knowledge, experience, skills, abilities, and techniques in the library, it finally began to take shape.

The accumulation of generations, the passing down of the torch from generation to generation...

At this moment, that tiny seed has grown into a towering tree with all its wonders.

Faced with the accumulation of countless years and generations... the power of an individual, even a quasi-angel, is as insignificant as an insect.

"However, even the most powerful weapon needs a strong person to wield it."

"You're not even a legend, so even if the 'Library of Fools' has a vast collection, how much of its power can you unleash in your current state?"

The tomb keeper regained his composure and looked again at the boy standing atop the Tower of Babel, thousands of meters above the ground, just like himself.

Even if the manifestation of the Library of Fools is truly awe-inspiring, its current owner is nothing more than a weakling, not worth worrying about.

His wings flapped.

The dragon-like membranous wings stirred up a storm in the high sky, transforming into a fierce wind and thunder that swept towards Rast.

……

Nearly 10,000 meters above the sky, above the dark clouds, below the stars.

Raste stood in the Tower of Babel, watching the raging storm rushing toward him.

He knew very well that what the other person said was actually correct.

Between the quasi-angel and himself, who has yet to reach the pinnacle of legend, lies a chasm as vast as heaven and earth.

To think that one can bridge the gap between angels and mortals by merely sacrificing a single "fantasy collapse" outfit is far too arrogant.

Therefore, from the very beginning—the sniping that was launched at the cost of the permanent destruction of the "Seven Domains" was merely a test he was conducting.

But only now does everything truly begin.

"You have been equipped with the Nightblade Codex of [Chariot Hiltina] - 'Infinite Blade: All Weapons'."

In my mind, the azure blue notification flashed rapidly.

At the same time, a pale silver light suddenly shone in Rast's eyes.

[Everything is a weapon: This refers to assigning the concept of "weapon" to anything and placing it entirely under one's control.]

This is Hiltina's most basic Nightblade ability, derived from an ancient legend about knights who never die unarmed.

For Hiltina, even when she holds a tree branch, she can still unleash power comparable to a sword that has been forged a thousand times.

For Raste, the concept of weapons he attributed to all things was not "swords," but "bullets."

His gaze slowly fell upon the towering pagoda.

The next moment, everything in the entire Tower of Babel, whether it was the twenty-one endless steps leading straight to the end of the sky or the rotating illusory cards, began to tremble violently and burst forth with incomparably dazzling brilliance.

boom--

The howling wind and thunder, along with the magnificent offensive launched by the tomb guardian quasi-angels mixed in with the storm, were shattered the moment they touched the tower.

The towering pagoda, reaching to the heavens, became increasingly ethereal and transparent...

The "Library of Fools" gradually faded, its presence becoming increasingly faint, almost imperceptible.

But, at the same time.

High in the sky, the dark-haired, dark-eyed youth's eyes shone with an ever-burning silver light.

Despite his frail and thin physique, his aura was all the more dazzling, dazzling and incomparable.

The dark light gathered behind Rust, condensing into thousands of illusory feathers, which then coalesced into a pair of pure black wings.

Those were dim wings that symbolized depravity, each flap leaving a dark trail in the sky, with black tail feathers drifting in the air, casting an eclipse-like shadow over the city below.

As dusk fell, a dim, yellow light spilled across the clouds, illuminating Last's outstretched wings. His shadow, hundreds of meters long, stretched across the clouds, like a demon that had escaped from the Code of Solomon.

In some mythologies, he is called Iblis, the ancestor of the elves; in others, he is known as Set, the evil god. However, in Rast's previous life, he was more commonly referred to as a "fallen angel" or a "demon."

Satan Yar.

"Angel!"

The horrified voice came from the tomb keeper's mouth. This was the first time he had lost his composure since he became a legend, but he had no choice but to.

Although the forms are different, the pair of jet-black wings behind the boy are undoubtedly the "wings" of an angel. It is a symbol that at this moment, Rust has briefly touched the "divine realm" that only angels can reach, in some unknown way.

Moreover, unlike himself, who had barely reached the realm of divinity and whose mythical creature form was not yet complete and still possessed many incomplete features—

The fallen angel before him was far more perfect than himself, both in his figure and his wings.

These are the true mythical beings, flawless angels.

"Actually, there's nothing surprising about it."

Last gazed at the horrified tomb keeper before him, whose illusory black wings fluttered slowly, casting a shadow that blotted out the sky among the clouds.

"Equivalent exchange" is the only universally accepted principle in the extraordinary world.

"To destroy a crested ceremonial garment in the name of fantasy, causing it to be permanently damaged, is certainly not enough for me to transcend my rank and kill a quasi-angel."

"What if what I'm about to 'collapse' is something even more expensive?"

The boy, shrouded in fallen wings and resembling the demon Satan, slowly raised his hand.

Silvery-white light spots gathered in mid-air and transformed into an iron-gray gun, a revolver named "Iron-Patterned Moon".

"Not only all the Crest Craft Essences I possess, but also my 'Tower' series of high-ranking Craft Essences, and my Nightblade 'The Fool's Library.'"

"My heart, my spirit, my memories, and my soul..."

"Everything possessed by a human named 'Last'."

To burn one's own body and soul.

Using the ability of "everything is a weapon", he endowed his sequence level, "the library of fools", his entire body and mind with the concept of "bullets".

All of this, everything—all of it—is condensed into a single imaginary bullet loaded into the magazine.

Then, using the illusion to collapse, he fired this shot.

This is the only way for Rast, at the sixth rank, to not only defeat but completely kill a quasi-angel. It is also the only legendary path in Rast's vision that would allow him to rapidly advance.

The so-called "Tower" is actually a Tarot card depicting the Tower of Babel being burned by lightning, symbolizing pure destruction.

If it hadn't been struck by lightning, if the Tower of Babel had never collapsed, then what was the point of talking about destruction?

How can we talk about rebirth on the ruins after destruction?
Last gently turned the magazine of his revolver.

click-

Even though there was nothing between his fingers, the crisp sound of a bullet being chambered could be clearly heard coming from the magazine of the Iron Moon.

Followed by.

Colors silently converge in the void.

It wasn't like the previous sniping, a dazzling, brilliant crimson meteor that illuminated the dark sky.

Instead, it was a pure, pitch-black color.

It swallowed up sound, it devoured color...

Once this shot is fired, in that eternally dark void, neither fate nor light can escape.

……

"Once this shot is fired, there will be no turning back."

Just then, a soft female voice resounded deep within Rust's heart.

"You still have room for regret. Whether you choose to accept the protection of the imperial family or simply find a place to hide, it doesn't matter... The one chasing you is just a quasi-angel, not some inescapable calamity."

"Even if you eventually find yourself with nowhere to go and nowhere to retreat... you can calmly admit your failure and then entrust the 'Library of Fools' and the mission of the shorekeepers to your successors, allowing the next generation, and the generation after that, of shorekeepers to continue your mission and ideals—just as Leader Cicel and I once did."

"But once you fire that shot, everything will be completely different."

"The tomb guardians face severe limitations in their movement in the mortal realm, and the force they have sent is not their strongest... But if you fire this shot, it will not only erase his physical body, but also the mark of his destiny on the Eternal Night Stele, making him impossible to resurrect—"

"Then the tomb guardians will be furious. They will use all the resources accumulated over thousands of years and countless cycles of reincarnation to hunt you down by any means necessary, regardless of the cost."

"At that time... your current stable life will inevitably fall apart."

"And that's not all."

The woman's voice paused slightly.

"Brother Rust, you will completely lose the right to 'admit defeat'."

"Because the 'Library of Fools' has collapsed, there is no next generation of guardians to inherit your mission... and therefore no one to take up this heavy shackle for you."

"Even if I fail, it doesn't matter, because there are still descendants. By cultivating an excellent successor and passing on the mission and responsibilities, I can be free." Even such a thought will become a pipe dream.

“Brother Rust, you are destined to wear the shackles called ‘Guardian,’ bearing an eternal curse—to walk forever in the endless wasteland, in the eternal purgatory, from which even death cannot release you.”

"Is it really worth it to do this?"

Hearing the girl's voice echoing from the depths of his soul, Last couldn't help but smile.

He knew this was a lingering image, or rather, a mark, left by Grey in "The Library of Fools".

It was also the last protection that the former angel of fate left for himself.

In the instant that the "Library of Fools" was about to collapse, the reflection left behind by Gray was finally activated, and it whispered a question to itself.

“I think this is what you once had… but forgot in the long years after becoming a leader and an angel, little Grey.”

Last smiled: "Indeed, at the beginning, it was just a simple longing, a longing for the smile on your face when you held me in your arms amidst the burning ruins of Canaan."

"Later, because they lost their way in the endless cycle of time and lost the meaning of existence... like a disabled person who yearns to fill the gaps, they took the longing in their memories as a lifeline to fill the void in their spirit."

"By sheer chance, I came to regard a borrowed dream, which was no different from a counterfeit, as the meaning of my life."

"But ultimately, this is still my own desire... not because of anyone's need or gift, but because of a deep longing in my heart."

"A dream to overthrow this cycle of despair."

"The dream of an old man who sacrificed his chance for immortality to protect the people, and died like the sun on the broken shore."

"And... the unfulfilled ideals of that girl who devoted her entire life to protecting the future of the Sixth Epoch, yet ultimately accomplished nothing."

"Therefore, the title 'Guardian' is not, for me, a shackle, fetter, or curse that I constantly want to break free from—but rather a desire that I pursue and that drives me forward."

Even if it's hell, I'd gladly accept it.

Behind Rast, the once illusory tower suddenly became bright again.

With a deafening roar, the dust on the tower was shaken off.

Twenty-one dim, sequential steps lit up one by one, the seals were broken, and they transformed into dazzling light, heading towards the other side.

“Even though, Brother Last, you already know the tragic fate of the previous two generations of shore keepers.”

"Knowing that even if you live your life like a machine, it may ultimately just turn into a laughable illusion, a fleeting dream...wouldn't you regret it?"

Hearing Grey's question, Last did not answer directly, but instead asked a question in return:
"Little Grey."

Do you know the origin of the name "Last"?

For the first time, Grey hesitated slightly in her answer.

She knew that the name "Last" was not the boy's original name... Not only did it not have the usual surname suffix, but it also sounded a bit strange.

In the distant past, in the Canaan town before it was destroyed by the collapse of time and space, the black-haired boy before me must have had another name, a name buried by the years.

only--

After the destruction of Canaan, young Raste arrived in the Sixth Age and was rescued by Grey... who then told young Raste about her ideals and mission as a "shorekeeper".

The little boy then changed his name to "Last".

After that, both Amys and Grey referred to him only as Rust.

"If I remember correctly, that's the name you chose yourself, so only you should know it."

"Brother Rust, have you remembered something?"

Hearing Grey's question, Last shook his head.

"No, it's been so long. They were just some naive fantasies from when I was young and ignorant... They were long forgotten in the time loop of Deep Blue Harbor, how could I remember them so clearly?"

"However, I now have a rough idea—"

The origin of the name "Last".

A hint of reminiscence flickered in his eyes.

“Little Grey, your name comes from a language I speak… ‘Grey’ means gray, because your hair is gray, so I named you Grey.”

"As for my own name, it actually has the same origin as yours, little Grey."

"In my native language—'last' means 'final' or 'last one'."

"Looking back now, it's actually quite ridiculous."

"Things I figured out when I was so young, I've forgotten some of them now that I've experienced so much and grown up..."

High in the sky, a fallen angel resembling the demon Satan fluttered its jet-black wings.

Last slowly raised his pistol.

Then, he aimed at the end of the sky, at the tomb guardian who resembled an ancient dragon.

"Seven eras, tens of thousands of years, countless cycles of civilization's rise and fall, and the steadfast dedication of over a dozen generations of shore-guardians..."

"This wait has been far too long."

"Things like 'If we fail this time, there's always next time,' 'If this era isn't successful, we can leave it to the next era,' and 'Even if I fail, I can just hand everything over to my successor and everything will be fine'... In my opinion, these kinds of thoughts are actually escapism and a manifestation of personal weakness."

"There is nothing wrong with choosing to yield and retreat when you are not strong enough, and to accumulate strength for a future battle. But if you only know how to yield and escape, only know how to endure—saying that the odds are too low when there is a 50% chance, saying that it is too risky when there is a 60% chance, and saying that you should continue to yield even when there is an 80% or 90% chance... then that is not wise, but a cowardly deserter."

"Anyone can 'avoid the enemy's sharpest attack and exercise restraint for the time being.' What people sometimes lack is precisely the courage to put themselves in a do-or-die situation, to fight with their backs to the wall and leave no way out, and to burn their boats."

"The reason why the tomb guardians have gone against the original intention of the Age of Gods, degenerated over the long years, and degenerated into the morbid state that only knows how to pursue immortality and eternity... is because they have lost this kind of ruthless determination that leaves no way out."

“If we continue to run away like this, one day, the shorekeepers will also change over the long years and follow in the footsteps of the tomb keepers.”

"so--"

"Grey, this is my choice."

First came the scattered sparks of fire.

Then, between Rust's eyes and the gun barrel, a raging inferno erupted, powerful enough to incinerate the entire capital city's sky.

"I will become a shore guardian."

"Severing this endless cycle of reincarnation, this hopeless destiny—bringing an end to this long story that has spanned seven eras and more than a dozen generations..."

"The last guardian of the shore."

(End of this chapter)