I'll Smash Everything with Passive Skills-Chapter 100: . The Path, and the Path (Complete)

Sadness.

The living room was covered in a thick layer of dust. The girls sitting there were quietly sipping tea.

"Graduation... it is."

"Yes. Graduation. The memories of the academy end here."

An unexpected event occurred suddenly.

Veris von Vitelbach. It had been quite some time since he had disappeared after a brief farewell.

The promise that he would definitely return.

That one phrase had not been forgotten. The girls were 'acting' as if it were just another day, reminiscing about that sweet day.

A chilling, gloomy atmosphere. Yet, no one voiced even a hint of anxiety.

Taboo.

Speaking of the vanished Veris was a taboo for them. They believed. They believed that Veris, who had vanished without a trace, would one day return with his usual playful smile.

"The world has changed..."

In the midst of this, Maria murmured in a small voice.

As she said, the world had changed.

The exact cause was unclear, but they believed it was due to the actions of the missing Veris.

The changed world was more intense than they had expected.

People lived to survive. They rushed into anything that would benefit them, and in the process, lies and wounds became commonplace.

But.

Strangely, the girls did not dislike it. Finally, they had awakened to the false world that Veris had spoken of.

They regarded this newly begun world as a new milestone.

Pride, stinginess, jealousy, anger, lust, greed, laziness.

Someone studying philosophy warned that the end of the world had finally come. Like a dam that had burst, the sins of living beings, including humans, had come alive.

But.

Unlike the initial chaos, the world had regained peace.

Humility, charity, kindness, patience, purity, temperance, diligence.

Like birds in a cage. The beings that had opened their eyes to sin had awakened to the beauty of life as described above.

And so.

In that mysterious atmosphere, the world continued to turn. The girls seemed to quite like that atmosphere.

Of course, the absence of one person felt painfully large in their hearts.

"..."

Maria's soft voice. The three girls sitting next to her stared silently into the void.

Arwen.

An elf from the Great Forest, she had mastered spirit magic and swordsmanship, and had come to be known as the 'Spirit Sword' at the academy.

Having become the focal point of the new academy, she had turned into a person devoid of emotion. The reason was simple. The reason for her life had embarked on a distant journey one day, with a brief warning.

Saintess Cecilia.

The benevolent Saintess from the Holy Kingdom had lived diligently during the void left by Veris.

The Church of Light. Since the Pope of that place was executed at the hands of the imperial emperor, the faith of the continent had reached a significant turning point.

Finally, the church and politics had separated and begun to walk the path of purity. The one leading those priests was the new Pope of the Holy Kingdom and the Saintess of the academy, Cecilia.

She had passed on the title of Saintess to another. Cecilia was no longer officially a Saintess. Yet, people still praised her as a Saintess.

Maria.

The noble daughter of the emperor, Maria, had received quite a few suitors.

With her beautiful appearance and outstanding strength as a member of the imperial family, it was only natural that numerous marriage proposals would come her way.

However, the imperial family and Maria had swiftly cut them down.

Maria was still missing one person. Like Arwen and Cecilia before her, she too was gradually adapting to this endless wait.

Lastly, Beatrice.

She had officially declared her withdrawal from the Magic Tower.

As an ordinary student of the academy and the daughter of the Marquis family of the imperial border, she often locked herself in her room to write letters.

Those letters never reached their intended recipients. Thus, the letters piled up deep in the drawer of her desk, with no place left to put them.

Her younger brother had once said.

Even if the brother he served was not at the academy now, he would surely appear one day with a faint smile.

That was all.

The academy, where Veris had vanished, now boasted an atmosphere °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° quite similar to that of a typical academic city.

But though it was not explicitly stated, everyone was waiting for Veris.

The Sword Master.

The Sword God.

The savior of the empire.

The myth he had written in a short period was truly remarkable.

Thud, thud, thud!

"It's me, Gunther!"

As a moment of silence swept over the girls.

A sudden noise. The girls couldn't help but show expressions of confusion.

Creeeak!

The impatient Gunther finally burst through the door into the mansion.

Beside him was Anna, who had become his official lover.

"What kind of rudeness is this?"

Beatrice, Gunther's sister, said with cold, sunken eyes.

No matter how much Gunther was Gunther, this was a space where Veris and their memories lived and breathed. As an outsider, Gunther had no right to act so recklessly.

"Damn it! This isn't the time for that!"

"...What? What's going on?"

Gunther's reaction was distinctly different from usual.

Had he sensed something strange?

"Calmly, please. Gunther, everyone here is all ears, waiting for your words."

It was Cecilia's gentle voice. Gunther, panting heavily, clutched his trembling heart and shouted.

"Lightning! No, it's light!"

"...What does that mean?"

Even Arwen tilted her head in confusion.

Gunther, seemingly frustrated, pounded his chest and shouted.

"A brilliant light fell from the clear sky!"

Now, Gunther had completely dropped the formalities. But the meaning behind his words was profound.

A bolt from the blue.

A phrase that was hard to expect. Yet, something deep within their hearts stirred, causing all the girls to slowly rise.

"...Is it true?"

Even Beatrice, who was about to get angry, asked with a dazed expression.

Hearing her question, Gunther, in a rush, spoke in an agitated voice.

"Those who witnessed the phenomenon are flocking to the source of the incident. The location is at the edge of the northern district. We don't have time for this!"

"...!"

Thud!

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Leaving those words behind, Gunther smashed the mansion door and dashed outside.

As Anna, a fellow graduate, hurriedly followed him, the girls left behind looked at each other's faces.

"...Could it be?"

"Let's go check it out. I have a unique feeling about this."

The first to move was Arwen. As she silently exited the mansion, Cecilia also began to follow with a brief voice.

Maria and Beatrice did the same.

They were heading north in the academy city, where the industrial district was located.

*

Flash! Flash! Flash!

Whoosh!

The view, once bathed in golden light, gradually brightened.

It wasn't a place that remained in memory, but familiar buildings came into view.

Veris realized that this was a location within the academy.

'What time is it?'

The first thing Veris wondered upon returning was the time.

Since crossing the gate to the celestial realm, it hadn't felt like even a day had passed.

However, Zeroth had said that time in the celestial realm flowed at an overwhelmingly faster pace compared to the earthly realm.

He had prided himself on handling things swiftly. But how much time had actually passed was uncertain.

"W-who are you?"

Nearby, there was a construction site. A worker approached with a dazed expression and asked.

"...."

He looked like a man full of stubbornness at first glance. Indeed, he seemed stubborn enough not to be intimidated even in front of the heretic inquisitor of the Holy Kingdom.

"Over there!"

"Already people are here?"

It was then that a commotion could be heard from a distance.

Had something happened to draw attention when Veris returned? Quite a number of people were staring intently at Veris and the worker beside him.

"Gasp!"

"C-could it be?"

"Senior! What's going on? I want to know too!"

"You fool! Blue hair and red eyes. How can you not recognize that person?"

"Yikes! C-could it be!"

...A conversation that sounded like it came straight out of a boy's comic reached his ears. The crowd continued to swell.

In an instant, Veris found himself caught in the midst of it.

"The great Sword Master..."

"The Sword God!"

"He has returned! Whoa!"

People were reacting with an unusual level of excitement.

How much time had passed? No, more importantly, why did they know him so well?

"Let's ask a few questions."

As the number of people praising Veris began to increase, he turned to the still dazed worker.

"W-what is it?"

The worker's tone became polite in an instant. Veris smiled and opened his mouth.

"What year is it now? No, what grade are Arwen and Cecilia in?"

"...!"

Perhaps it was because the names of the prominent figures had come from Veris's mouth.

The worker looked at Veris with a surprised expression. Then, he stammered a response.

"O-oh, today is graduation day. The graduation of the golden generation. But you...?"

His voice trembled as if he was asking for Veris's identity. Not feeling the need to answer, Veris nodded and slowly began to spread his mana.

"It's already been that long. About three years, I suppose."

Swoosh.

Like a gentle breeze, like a violent tide.

The wondrous mana began to sweep through the academy, starting from the space where they stood.

Veris had closed his eyes.

Finding special people in this overwhelming crowd was a more cumbersome task than he had expected.

"Hmm. That was quick."

Opening his eyes, Veris wore a faint smile.

He felt it.

A few footsteps, dripping with urgency and longing. If he listened closely, he could even feel the pounding of their hearts.

"Ah, damn it. Ah... Brother Veris!"

The first to break through the bustling crowd was someone Veris knew well.

A large figure like a bear. His gentle expression was quite uncharacteristic of his size.

Gunther von Haruen. Veris had known he was nearby. The violent mana had been getting closer.

A madman leaping with mana within the academy city was certainly not a common sight.

"I'm back."

Veris smiled.

The one who had dared to curse was now crying like a child.

"Damn it, brother! You have no idea how worried I was during that long time!"

"Sorry. There were things I didn't know either."

"Welcome back. I'm so glad you're back..."

Gunther was smiling.

No, it was a rather clumsy sight to call it smiling. Tears were flowing from his eyes without a moment's pause.

"Veris-nim!"

Thud!

Crash!

Gunther's pitiful appearance. Just as Veris was about to make a joke, he suddenly felt someone rush into his arms.

...Without needing to lower his head, the familiar scent was one he knew well.

"I'm back. You waited, right?"

"Truly, truly too much. Really..."

Arwen's small shoulders were shaking. The hair that resembled golden threads was rising and falling as she stifled her sobs. That was the signal.

"Here!"

"Phew, I'm not late!"

Following Cecilia, Maria and Beatrice appeared one after another.

Hug.

The girls who appeared in succession embraced Veris without resistance.

Turning his head, he saw the dazed faces of the crowd, filled with astonishment.

"Indeed, it was him..."

"Even as a man, my heart races. Is that the famous Veris?"

"Is this guy a bit dangerous?"

"Don't worry, he doesn't react to the seniors."

"This guy?"

The casual chatter of students clearly reached Veris's ears.

He smiled brightly.

He couldn't move his feet or raise his arms. This was because the girls who had bound him were each bursting into tears.

But something...

He liked that.

Veris thought.

He hadn't known before. But now he felt he might understand.

This emotion he was feeling right now. This was happiness.

It was only a day in terms of perception, so it was true that their reactions felt quite strange.

But upon silent reflection, it was a different case.

For Veris, it was a fleeting moment. But for the girls, and for Gunther, and for the parents of the territory who were anxiously waiting, the story would have been different.

The feeling of being loved.

Veris finally understood.

The wretched fate that had bound him since he opened his eyes in this world had quietly come to an end.

The inexplicable anxiety and the darkness that loomed over the world had lifted.

Now, honestly and calmly.

It was time to share his love.

"I'll smash everything with my passive skill."

The end.