"What... What is this?"
Ruby, momentarily dazed by the situation unfolding before her, took a few steps back, her expression one of confusion.
"What is this?"
Before her eyes was the exact moment she had dreamed about daily for years, the time she had wanted to return to no matter what.
"Is this... a dream?"
For a while, Ruby stared blankly at the scene, the first possibility that crossed her mind.
But she had just pierced her own heart and ended her life. If she were dead, she shouldn't be able to dream.
"Is this hell? Is this... hell? Or maybe... a flashback?"
Immediately, other thoughts flooded her mind.
Could this place be some sort of hell or purgatory designed to show her terrifying scenes? Or, was this her last vision before death?
[Congratulations on clearing.]
[Ending 999 - Hero's Corruption]
However, these thoughts dissipated as soon as a simple message box appeared before her eyes.
"This..."
Ruby touched the system window floating in front of her and muttered, her face pale.
"This is real."
She recognized this texture, this resistance, and the strange sensation of something gradually fading from her body; she'd summoned the system to play around with before when bored.
"...Could this... actually be reality?"
The fact that the system was truly appearing meant only one thing.
What Ruby was experiencing right now was neither a punishment of hell nor a final vision, but a real situation.
"Then..."
As the thought formed, Ruby's eyes grew wide.
Thump, thump, thump...
At the same time, her heart began to beat wildly.
"Could it be...?"
The moment Frey chose corruption in her stead.
No, ever since she refused to accept the redemption quest, she had desired one wish above all else, never wavering for a single moment.
But Ruby knew well it was something that could never come true, a desperate wish she thought about only in dreams. For some unknown reason, however, there was now a high probability that it had actually been granted.
[Ending the Hypocrite's Path system.]
"Let's... check first. I need to check first..."
Ruby, clutching her wildly beating heart, swiped away the system window that had appeared just like before and started running somewhere.
".....!"
Before long, Ruby stopped abruptly.
"Y-You... Hero?"
"Are you... okay?"
"Y-You guys..."
The faces of the hero party, the ones who had shared so many life-and-death struggles over the years and whom she thought she'd never see again, now appeared before her eyes.
"Hero."
"Ruby..."
And even Benner and Aria.
Tears began welling up in Ruby's eyes as she saw their faces, faces she had missed dearly.
"What... What is going on?"
"Ruby, what did you say to Oppa earlier?"
Benner, whom Ruby had cast aside in that past moment, and Aria, who had gone to check on him, asked her questions.
"Y-You guys... don't you remember...?"
"What?"
"The... the thing that happened last time..."
""........?""
Seeing their confused expressions, Ruby trembled as she asked, her voice shaky, and then she realized.
'I've come back.'
Somehow, she had returned to the past.
'I'm the only one. The only one who returned with all her memories.'
Her heart was racing as if it would explode at any moment.
But she didn't care. If her long-held wish had truly come true, then her heart... no, it didn't matter what happened to her.
"Help system."
Thinking this, Ruby spoke softly.
"I have a question."
Since the day Frey fell, she had tried countless ways to access the "Help System," but it never opened.
No matter how much power she gathered, it wouldn't open, and she spent a long time contemplating the reason why.
Finally, Ruby concluded that she lacked the "power" to open the Help System because she was now a girl.
This meant that as long as her powers as the Demon Lord weren't fully gone, she might be able to ask a question, even if only once.
In fact, she managed to ask a question this time too.
Please speak.
"Did... Did I get the 'Retry' ability?"
Ruby, her face tense with anticipation, asked the question as she stared at the Help System that had appeared before her.
"You know, the one that allows you to go back to the past..."
Yes.
"Ah."
Thinking the system might not understand, she added an explanation, but upon receiving the clear answer, she stood there dumbfounded.
You currently possess the unique ability 'Retry.'
"Ah...."
"R-Ruby...?"
Ruby, who had been staring blankly at the Help System, which fizzled out and disappeared, collapsed to the ground.
"Sn-sniff... Huuu..."
"Why... why are you suddenly crying...?"
"Ahhhhh... Ahhhhh..."
Tears began to flow uncontrollably from her eyes as she sat on the ground.
"I've come back... I've really come back..."
A miracle had happened.
The "Retry" ability that Frey had used countless times to save the world, the children, and herself had now come to Ruby.
The "second chance" she had desperately wished for had arrived at the moment of her death.
"Thank you..."
Was it a gift from the gods? Or perhaps a trick of the Demon Lord?
Maybe the "System" itself was involved?
"I'm really, really thankful..."
But Ruby didn't care about that.
"Huuu..."
"I've never seen the Hero cry like this before..."
"How much pain have you endured...?"
The fact that she now had a second chance revived emotions that had been wearing away, but more than anything, the fact itself that she had a chance was what mattered.
"Then... what should I do first..."
Ruby, after sobbing on the ground for a long time, finally collected herself and muttered quietly.
Thud, thud...
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed in front of them, and Ruby's expression changed.
"Greetings."
Because of the overwhelming joy of the second chance, she had forgotten.
"Hero party."
""........?""
Frey, by this point, had already fallen into corruption.
"Ah..."
Ruby's expression darkened as she watched him.
Several days later, on a ship returning to the Empire.
"Hack, hack... ugh..."
"Hero, are you okay?"
"Ah, yes..."
Ruby, sitting on a bed and quietly coughing up blood, was startled by Olivia's words and sat up.
"Please rest. You were badly hurt trying to hold Frey back that day."
"Yes, right... haha..."
Still unused to being called the "Hero," Ruby scratched her head awkwardly.
'Even after a few days, nothing has changed. This really isn't a dream or an illusion... it's reality.'
Now aware that she had regressed, she was currently heading to the Empire with the hero party.
She was going to the "Starlight Mansion," where Frey was, to talk to him.
'I have to remember, I failed last time, but this time I have to bring Frey back...'
On the first day of her regression, Ruby had clung to Frey's leg, crying.
In the previous timeline, Frey had fallen, but he had shown a small possibility of recalling her, having sketched her image hundreds or even thousands of times.
Because of that, she wanted to stay close to Frey, but for the sake of the hero party's safety, she had to retreat.
'Yes, since he's only at the early stages of corruption, he might not remember yet...'
Even though Frey seemed vastly different from the last time she saw him, Ruby resolved to bring him back.
"Why were you clinging to Frey all day long? You almost got yourself killed."
"It doesn't matter. This pain is nothing."
"Huh?"
"There's something like that."
Saying this, Ruby sighed and lay down.
"So these are the things you carry around... a journal, toiletries, a basket of sandwiches... hmm? A silver and ruby-colored orb... it's beautiful."
Olivia, sneaking glances at Ruby, smiled as she explored her belongings.
"Sigh."
Ruby looked up and saw a familiar system message hovering.
[Retry Quest]
[1 - 01]
?? ?? ?? (0/6)
"What... is this?"
A system window floated in front of her, just as it had when she had temporarily fled with the hero party after being beaten down by Frey.
"A quest, perhaps..."
Since she was already familiar with quests from her previous experience with the "Hypocrite's Path" system, Ruby could understand it easily.
'This must be an additional feature of Retry.'
Reaching that conclusion, Ruby closed her eyes, smiling sadly.
'This time, I will save you... Frey.'
"So by now, the Empire must know that Frey is the Demon King, right?"
'…no matter what it takes.'
Ruby was now determined.
Unlike in the previous timeline, she hadn't revealed the truth this time. She knew all too well the consequences of revealing it too soon from the events of the last timeline.
This time, she planned to reveal the truth only once Frey was back and peace had returned to the world.
"That seems likely…"
For that, she had to remain a hero until everything was resolved.
She didn't plan on taking too long. As soon as their ship reached the Empire, Ruby intended to leave the hero party and go to the mansion alone.
Once there, she would stay with Frey for years if necessary, slowly helping him regain his memories.
It was a risky plan, but Ruby was confident.
She had regressed and knew the future.
Of course, she could control all the variables…
Squeak...
"Aria?"
Ruby was steeling her resolve when Aria appeared, the first person to shake her determination.
"R-Ruby..."
"W-What's wrong?"
The look in Aria's eyes as she approached was eerily familiar.
"I... I know."
"W-What do you know?"
Ruby looked at her, uncertain but hopeful, but Aria's next words made her blood run cold.
"You're... the Demon King, aren't you?"
"...What?"
Ruby's mind went blank.
.
Despite Ruby not telling her the truth, Aria somehow figured it out, leading to a small incident that seemed to settle down after a while.
"Are you sure...? This is some sort of curse from the Demon King's army, right?"
"Yes, that... that's correct."
Aria, who had recovered her memories, could only be persuaded after a long time of convincing.
"But... how did you regain those memories?"
"...."
Ruby didn't respond to that question.
People had mentioned seeing Aria enter Rosewin's room...
"What... What's going on?"
The second problem arose right there.
Ruby cast a tracking spell to see if Rosewin was somehow involved with Aria's memory recovery, but Rosewin was nowhere to be found.
She was supposed to be with Frey by now.
It was as if she had completely disappeared from this world.
Still, the second issue wasn't too concerning.
The first issue, Aria, could be handled with Ruby's utmost acting skills, and the second issue, Rosewin, had already vanished in the previous timeline as well.
Whatever happened, Ruby thought, as long as she could bring Frey back, everything would be resolved.
"Hero... Are you really going alone? Truly?"
"...This is something I must do."
"Hero~! We're preparing a grand celebration for you..."
"Scram."
"Huh? Huh...?"
As soon as Ruby disembarked from the ship, she left the hero party and the second princess—who had tried to turn Frey into the Demon King—behind and headed straight for the Starlight Mansion.
"Frey...?"
"So, you've come, troublesome woman."
The third and most critical problem arose right then.
"This... doesn't make sense. Why are you here so early? Where are... your women?"
"My women? I have no memory of them. And I have no interest in women."
Boom!!!
"Ah...!"
"What I'm interested in is only destruction."
For some reason, unlike in the previous timeline, Frey had arrived at the mansion days earlier without any of the heroines by his side.
Ruby, who had been considering a plan to retrieve the Hero's relic first to lure him in, was caught completely off-guard.
"H-Hit me as much as you want. I trust you..."
Crunch, crunch...
"I-I know you're struggling. So..."
Crack, crack...
"A-At least... When you think... of me..."
"Annoying."
"Ahhhh!"
But that wasn't the only strange thing.
"This should last for a week. Wait here, and I'll soon unlock the basement seal."
"This... shouldn't be happening..."
The Frey Ruby faced after regressing was so different from the previous timeline.
In the last timeline, no one remembered her except Frey, who vaguely recalled her and eventually stopped his destruction.
This time, Frey seemed like a machine with only one purpose: destruction.
"Ah... Frey..."
"Finally, this damned seal will be broken."
At first, Ruby thought that if she tried a little harder, Frey would remember something and stop.
In his final moments in the previous timeline, he had smiled his old, innocent smile.
But she was wrong.
"How... How did it come to this..."
"So, this is the Hero's relic? Once, I was worthy of it as the Hero. I should be able to use it..."
Clank...!
"It works perfectly. Excellent."
Frey ruthlessly slaughtered the Imperial soldiers, the hero party sent to save Ruby, and everyone else who came after him—right before her eyes.
There was no hesitation in his gaze, no thoughtful expression like last time.
Amidst a mountain of corpses and the thick stench of blood in the mansion, Frey continued to kill mechanically or focus on unlocking the basement's seal.
"You... Who are you?"
It was only then that Ruby realized.
"Who are you!?! Who are you!!!"
"I am the Demon King."
The Frey before her was not the one she wanted to bring back but merely the Demon King.
"Why... Why..."
A sense of déjà vu crept into Ruby's mind.
She had definitely missed something.
It felt as if there was something she had done in the previous timeline that she hadn't done this time…
It had been so long ago, and so many things had happened that her memory was hazy.
Or maybe she hadn't missed anything?
Was she just fooling herself, trying to rationalize things?
"Goodbye, former Demon King."
"W-Wait... Frey..."
Stab...!
"Ah..."
As Ruby sank into these thoughts, Frey's blade, enhanced by the Hero's relic, pierced her heart. She let out a pained gasp, her tears flowing.
She couldn't resist. She'd taken too much damage on the first day of her regression, and now, after whispering memories to him, she was left weakened.
'I... am truly foolish.'
"Stubborn, aren't you? Just die already, you worthless weed."
'I was given a chance, only to fail like this...'
As her consciousness faded, her heart crushed by Frey's blade, Ruby reached out to him with trembling hands.
This was her last attempt.
If she could evoke Frey's memories by mimicking his gestures, like stroking his cheek or pressing her cheek to his…
Even if she died foolishly here, if this meant that Frey could still be saved...
"Disgusting."
"Ah."
But this Frey only swatted her hand away, looking down at her with revulsion.
"Even so... I will love you... forever..."
With regretful eyes, Ruby looked up at him, unable to finish her sentence before her eyes closed.
Flash...!
The last thing she felt was the sensation of her body being torn apart by Frey's powerful blow, a blow now terrifyingly unstoppable, and...
Crackle...!
...the sensation of the world turning.
"Uh."
When she opened her eyes again...
"I will love you forever, Ruby."
The same scene unfolded before her for the third time.
"....."
Having just died and then come to, Ruby found herself staring blankly at Frey, who was tied to a chair, having just accepted corruption.
[Congratulations on clearing.]
[Ending 999 - Hero's Corruption]
"Haha..."
Seeing the same message for the third time, she collapsed in front of Frey, a hollow laugh escaping her.
"Hahahahaha, hahahahaha..."
It was then that she finally understood.
[Retry: Attempt #2]
"Haha... ha..."
Retry was indeed a miracle, but...
It was also a curse.
There was no telling how many more regressions she would experience, how many tragedies, or how many bad endings she would face.
"....."
For a brief moment, the Demon King nearly crumbled.
But soon, Ruby composed herself and, holding Frey, who was tied to the chair, whispered in a shaky voice, both frightened and determined.
"So this is how it felt for you?"
"...."
"Then if I keep trying, like you did... one day, I'll reach you, won't I?"
"Mmm..."
"I love you, Frey."
And time began to flow once again.
.
One particularly warm morning, in an inn.
Creak...
"Are you here for the dining hall? Or a room?"
A woman wearing a robe entered the inn, and the innkeeper called out to her cheerfully.
"Both."
"Here's your key! What would you like to eat?"
Receiving the key, she replied in a low voice.
"Rye bread and potato soup."
"Got it!"
As the innkeeper cheerfully prepared her meal, he scratched his head, mumbling.
"But... the menu and all, she looks really familiar..."
"...What?"
"Oh, no, it's nothing!"
The innkeeper stopped himself and returned to the kitchen, leaving the customer to sigh softly.
"....."
Until her meal of potato soup and rye bread arrived, the woman kept her head down, sitting quietly in a corner.
"Hello~!"
"....?"
"Excuse me, but may I join you?"
The woman in a robe appeared before her.
"...There are plenty of empty seats."
"Oh, well..."
The woman glanced up, her expression wary, suspecting a scammer or swindler, and attempted to move, but the robed figure grabbed her arm.
"I could tell from your face."
"What are you..."
As the woman frowned, she tried to pull her hand free from the stranger's grip.
"You've only just gone through about ten regressions, haven't you?"
"...!!!!!"
She froze, her eyes widening in shock.
"You... You..."
"Hello, Ruby, who's not pretending anymore?"
The figure pulled her hood back slightly, and Perlote's eyes sparkled as she smiled at Ruby, who was now staring at her in shock.