Simulate the universe, starting with speedrunning Greek.

Achilles: "Who are you?! If you don't even dare to tell me your true identity, then there's no trust or cooperation between us."

Chryseis: "Is that so... Alright, then I'll tell you. Anyway, if I don't lay out the whole plan for what I'm about to ask you to do, you'll still hesitate and waver."

Achilles was shaken by the entire plan...!

What exactly is that?

As expected, your true identity isn't Chryseis!

From the moment Chryseis appeared, he had a vague feeling that there was an invisible hand controlling everything.

The feeling of being led by the nose was extremely unpleasant, and now, finally, Achilles, like Aeneas, had also noticed Chryseis's problem...

Will he know the truth now?

Achilles thought a lot, and even his breathing became rapid and tense. He closed his eyes slightly and prepared himself to remain calm no matter how absurd the truth was.

After all, there's no guarantee that this woman isn't lying to him again!

Remembering how he painstakingly collected materials only to be tricked in the end, the person opposite him disappeared in the blink of an eye. If he had followed the other person at that time, the situation might have been different. Even now, when he thinks back on it, Achilles still feels a thick shadow hanging over his heart.

However, the next moment, Chryseis said that she was only an avatar and that she would immediately send her true self to see him. Once they met, Achilles would naturally understand what was going on.

...The moment a familiar, magnetic male voice rang out, Achilles broke down.

"Long time no see... Achilles—"

No, impossible! That voice!

……

……

Impossible, impossible, impossible—!

How could that person's voice be here! Achilles' pupils suddenly dilated violently, and he abruptly opened his eyes, his face filled with disbelief.

But when she saw the familiar pure white hair and those eyes, as clear and beautiful as gemstones, like the starry sky, that transcendent beauty that transcended gender! A figure from her memory overlapped with the figure appearing before her.

There's no mistake, his beautiful and dazzling radiance, and the light of his conviction as a hero, are unparalleled in heaven and earth. There is no other friend who can imitate or fake his true self.

Achilles, incredulous, surprised, and shaken, uttered the name: "...Griffiths!!!"

...He came back to life!

Unbelievably, a real, living Griffith is right before my eyes. He is actually Chryseis's true form.

The figure that appeared before him had an impact on Achilles more intense than a magnitude 13 earthquake.

Subsequently, Achilles learned much more from the person in question…

Just like the question that came to his mind the moment he saw the night—'If Chrysei is Griffith in disguise, then…'

Just as the hero Aeneas once thought—and believed—he saw in the witch Chryseis a divine belief: to weave a fairy tale called hope and love for the world.

Perhaps he was right all along; a hero's intuition never lies.

However, sometimes the truth is slightly off by a point or two.

The shining belief of that beautiful person is not weaving a fairy tale, but reality.

Fairy tales, though beautiful, are too ethereal, existing only in dreams. They are more fleeting than brief moments of beauty, and even if they could be realized, they would only last for a moment. But heroes crave more…

Faced with the calamity that swept across the land due to the death of Ares, the god of war, a war that would not cease for at least several decades.

Thus, the hero of yesteryear has become the demon king of today.

Human history has taught him that the greatest lesson humanity has learned is that it never learns from its mistakes.

Permanent peace is impossible, but temporary peace is possible.

He wanted to bring about a new life for the land of Greece from destruction.

then--

He destroyed the homes and lands of his former friends, killing the corrupt, but he left behind the seeds of hope. Though the kingdom perished, civilization was not destroyed.

...In the name of destruction, they seek to provide protection.

While it's impossible to completely protect everyone in this process, innocent people will inevitably be affected...

But those who instigate larger wars should be prepared to bear the consequences of their sins.

Achilles trembled—and what he really had to do was...?

Chapter 308 Zero's Requiem Plan: You will... kill me yourself!

Those who lack the awareness to bear the weight of life are not qualified to wield the butcher's knife.

Since you've killed someone, be prepared to be killed yourself... So—

Therefore, being transformed into immense evil does not require forgiveness or approval...

They shelter humans like Achilles, who appear to have died on the battlefield but are actually being protected, waiting for the right moment to personally hand them the sharpest blade to wield against themselves.

To concentrate all the world's violence and hatred on oneself—!

Finally, after declaring despair to the world, he personally handed over the knife to eradicate this despair.

The idea was to unite the people of Greece by diverting hatred and working together to achieve a path to peace.

Ultimately, for this massive plan, named 'Zero Requiem'! Finally, at the moment when the hero (Demon King) reveals this hidden, buried truth to a second person.

Let everything return to its initial zero—this is both an end and a brand new beginning.

A requiem that heals wounds with wounds, soothing the Greek land and the hearts of all!

This is--

“Achilles, I have decided... you will kill me with your own hands.”

When the man smiled at Achilles like that, yet ultimately uttered such cruel words, entrusting him with the gruesome task of raising his sword against the evil sorcerer...—

Overwhelmed by the immense shock, and before his brain could even fully process what had happened, Achilles was subjected to another violent shock. He trembled violently, his eyes wide and his pupils constricted sharply!

Then, the hero's expression and body froze, as if he had been played with and broken.

Just as Fimbulle's winter in Ragnarok froze his body and soul.

'Let...let me...kill you with my own hands?!' Achilles asked in a trembling voice.

What... joke! Ah, waaaaaah—!

Upon learning the truth in that instant, he almost suffered a complete mental breakdown. Even Achilles, who was known as an indestructible hero, was as fragile as shards of glass at that moment.

Achilles was overwhelmed with fear, resistance, and a desire to retreat.

How could he possibly do something like killing his own friend?!

This was undoubtedly the cruelest punishment imaginable! The process itself would instill immense guilt in him. 'Why are you so cruel to me—? Griffith!'

Especially in the original mythology, friendship was valued more than honor...

For Achilles, who once sacrificed himself on the battlefield for his friends.

Even if it's a friend's request.

—He actively asked them to kill the other person, but once his hands were stained with his friend's blood, there was no going back.

Just imagining that sorrowful scene caused Achilles' soul to feel a faint phantom pain.

“I…” My throat was dry, hoarse, and trembling.

On one side is the plea, responsibility, and burden of world peace and the heartfelt wishes of friends; on the other side is the inability to raise a weapon against the person before him under any circumstances.

How should he respond? No matter which option he chose, it felt incredibly heavy at that moment, leaving him completely speechless.

At this moment, Achilles, who was trapped in the classic trolley problem in human history, held his head in his hands, and his face showed a ferocious and painful struggle as he cried out.

……

Meanwhile, on the other side.

This is the prison where many heroes, unaware that Achilles was still alive, were imprisoned.

All the heroes fell into a deathly silence, so much so that they didn't even have the energy to argue.

Their minds were filled with the scenes they had witnessed during the day.

A feeling of powerlessness!

For the first time, they realized just how heavy the burden of the word 'hero' could be, how easily it could crush a strong man.

He lost all his heroic spirit and high morale!

That was a pressure higher than mountains and deeper than the sea.

In the past, they believed that as long as they had enough power and a heart that yearned for freedom, they could become heroes.

They dreamed of becoming heroes and unleashed their power freely across the Greek land.

But only when the world truly needs heroes, when human civilization truly needs heroes to protect it.

They then realized how vulnerable their own strength was, and how ridiculous and unworthy their so-called heroic titles were.

The strength one is proud of, even the belief that shines brightly in the darkness, is all utterly vulnerable.

It was easily torn apart by a calamity more ruthless than any storm.

Even when they heard that the Demon King was preparing to swing his sword at Mount Olympus, their first thought was not sneer or doubt, but fear!

The moment I saw the holy sword shattered so easily.

They finally became utterly terrified of this force.

It could even be said that they were so terrified that even the last bit of courage in their hearts was worn away.

People are entangled in a battle with no reason and no hope.

That's not the path a human would choose!

Even Hector was like that...

Even Odysseus thought the world was probably beyond saving.

Yes, the hero Odysseus is still alive, but his presence in this battle has been minimal.

At this moment, Odysseus leaned against the wall of his cell, silently pondering what had led them to this wretched state.