[Mission Progress: 80/100]
"...Do I really have to do this?" muttered the nervous young man, staring at the interface before him.
A sword was gripped tightly in his trembling hand, and before him, his teammates were engaged in fierce combat against tier-3 mutated beasts. They were on a mission—a mission to rid Marcelia of the mana beasts plaguing its lands.
This wasn't a school-related mission, just a side job they had taken for extra money. The pay was good, so they all accepted it without hesitation.
But now...
[KILL THE PROTAGONIST AND YOU WILL FINALLY BE FREE.]
[YOU CAN GO BACK TO YOUR WORLD.]
[DON'T YOU WANT THAT?]
Eren gritted his teeth, his gaze shifting to the battlefield's center—to the pinnacle of this entire farce.
Jason.
The so-called protagonist, locked in a vicious battle against a Grenox, his movements swift and precise. Beside him, four of the heroines fought relentlessly, each one standing as pillars of support.
"Jason! Are you alright?!" One of the girls, still fending off a beast, turned back, concern lacing her voice as she saw Jason struggling.
"Don't worry about me, Jessica! It can't kill me!" he roared, and suddenly, his sword ignited in flames. With newfound strength, he dashed forward, unleashing a devastating strike.
Eren's grip on his sword tightened. "... I don't want to do it. I can't..." His entire body trembled. The thought of killing someone made him sick, but this wasn't the first time the system had demanded the unthinkable from him. And all for what? The promise of returning home.
[THIS IS YOUR LAST TASK, EREN. IF YOU FAIL TO DO THIS NOW, YOU WILL NEVER GO HOME. EVER AGAIN.]
A long silence stretched between his thoughts. His heart pounded in his chest.
Then—
"Sigh..."
He exhaled sharply, closing his eyes for a brief moment. When he opened them again, his hesitation had vanished, replaced by cold, unwavering resolve.
With a blade gripped tightly in hand, he charged forward. His silver hair danced in the wind, his piercing blue eyes locking onto Jason's back.
He won't die from this.
That was the only justification Eren needed.
After all, Jason was the protagonist.
There was no way a mere side character like him could actually kill the main character.
And so, he gambled everything on this one moment.
SHINK!
Blood splattered.
"Ah—"
Jason gasped, his body frozen mid-swing, just as his flaming sword cleaved through the Grenox's skull. A cold sensation spread through his abdomen. He looked down. A blade had impaled him from behind.
Staggering, he turned his head, his eyes widening—not in shock, but in fury.
"Eren...?" His voice was low, trembling with rage. Then, it erupted into a furious roar. "YOU FILTHY BASTARD!"
Before Eren could react—
SHINK!
Blades pierced his body from every direction.
"Urgh—!" He coughed up blood, his vision blurring.
BAM!
A brutal kick sent him sprawling to the ground. The heroines rushed past him, completely ignoring his existence.
"Jason! Are you okay?!"
"Here! Take this healing potion!"
"You need to get treated—hurry!"
They surrounded Jason, fussing over him as if Eren had never been there, as if his betrayal was nothing more than a passing inconvenience.
"Ugh..." Eren coughed up more blood, his fingers digging into the dirt beneath him.
No one even looked at him.
"Heh..." A bitter smile formed on his lips.
It would be a lie to say he wasn't jealous.
Jason had everything—admiration, love, unwavering loyalty.
Things Eren could never have.
But... he had long since accepted that.
He was just a mob character.
Nothing more.
"...System, send me home," he muttered, his vision fading as exhaustion took hold.
But—
Silence.
"System?" He repeated, eyes fluttering open.
Still, silence.
"System!" His breath hitched as his mind raced.
Nothing.
The presence he had felt all this time—was gone.
His blood ran cold.
"No... No... No, no, NO!" He screamed as realization crashed down on him.
The goddess.
That bitch.
She had used him.
There was never a way home.
The system had never been anything more than a leash, binding him to his role as the disposable side character.
"Haa..." His body trembled as tears spilled down his bloodstained cheeks.
And then—
A shadow loomed over him.
His blurred vision cleared just enough to make out a figure.
Pink hair. Cold, merciless eyes.
His heart stopped.
He knew her.
And in that moment, all he could do was pray for death to take him before she did.
But fate was cruel.
She knelt beside him, her gaze devoid of warmth.
"Don't think you're going to die so easily," she murmured, her voice chilling in its certainty.
Her hand reached out, her fingers tracing his bloodied face.
"Oh... how much you will beg for death."
Eren shuddered.
He knew.
She meant every word.