-1596- Unfinished business

Before leaving Mistgun to head toward the continent overrun with Armored Beetles, Rozen found an excuse, saying he needed an opportunity to push his research breakthrough forward.

Of course, this was merely a pretext.

Rozen's real intention was that it was time for him to leave this world.

After spending nearly eighteen years in this world, Rozen had finally found the chance to master the Miracle. He not only obtained High-Grade Mana but also acquired Foreign Mana. Now that he had absorbed the Foreign Mana, his being had transcended and transformed.

With that, it was time for him to leave this world and attend to other matters.

However, unlike in other worlds where he had no particular attachment, Rozen had indeed saved humanity here. He was regarded as a hero, humanity's last hope, and carried heavy expectations. His influence on the human world was unmatched.

If Rozen were to leave suddenly, it would undoubtedly cause significant turmoil, potentially dragging those close to him into the chaos.

Especially Kanata and Chloe, his childhood friends, who would never stand by if Rozen left abruptly. Yuri, too, had argued with him numerous times, only to stand by his side in the end. If he disappeared now, she would surely lose her mind. Then there was the C601 squad—or rather, now the C601 squad. As their instructor, leaving without notice would be irresponsible.

Therefore, even before the Foreign Mana had fully formed, Rozen had made up his mind. For his sake and others', the success of the Foreign Mana needed to remain hidden. Failure would be his excuse to depart from Mistgun.

Otherwise, the revelation of Foreign Mana would undoubtedly lead to countless troubles for Rozen.

At that point, many, including Annerose, would not let him go easily.

Although Rozen had nothing to fear and could act freely, it would make a peaceful departure impossible. Both emotionally and practically, it was ill-advised.

Thus, Rozen simply found a pretext.

That way, people would accept it more easily, avoiding much unnecessary trouble.

Yet, even with this, everyone seemed reluctant to accept the idea.

Yuri, in particular, was adamant.

"That… that's far too dangerous…!" she exclaimed without hesitation.

Many shared her sentiment.

"That's the continent we're talking about!" Misora shouted.

"Aren't there a lot of Armored Beetles on the continent?" Lecty timidly raised her hand.

"I heard the number of Armored Beetles there can't even be compared to those in the airspace," Rico added.

Then, Freon and Mena spoke up together.

"Humanity fled to the sky because there were too many Armored Beetles on the continent. In terms of sheer numbers, not even Zeth Wiegert's army can compare," Mena said solemnly.

"Not all Armored Beetles can fly. Most of them can't, and the continent is teeming with them. Humanity had no choice but to escape to the skies," Freon remarked calmly.

This was common knowledge.

As the leader of the Humanoid Armored Beetles and possessing the original Armored Beetle, Zeth led the most powerful force among them.

But even on the continent, many Armored Beetles remained.

They hadn't been brought under Zeth's control.

For two reasons.

First, Zeth's goal was the humans in the airspace, not the forces on the continent, so he had no interest in ruling them.

Second, powerful forces still existed on the continent.

These forces, while not Humanoid Armored Beetles, were also controlled by particularly powerful Variant beetles.

Among these powerful Variants were some highly intelligent creatures, renowned even in other worlds.

For example, Yamier Kaiser's father, who had turned into an Armored Beetle, was said to be one of them.

Ruled by these powerful Variants, these forces had long run rampant across the land since Zeth had no interest in them.

Though they didn't match the Humanoid Armored Beetles and Collapse Force wielders under Zeth, they were still much stronger than the human factions. Altogether, even Zeth didn't want to provoke them before eliminating humanity.

Thus, while the continent was a place of aspiration for humans, it was also a terrifying hell, where no one dared to venture recklessly, nor think of conquering it lightly.

Now Rozen had declared he would go to the land alone. How could anyone not try to stop him?

Yet...

"Do you really think the Armored Beetles on the continent can threaten me?" Rozen asked with a half-smile, leaving everyone speechless.

Only the C601 squad had a response for Rozen.

"You're strong, no doubt. But facing that many Armored Beetles alone, don't you think it's dangerous?" Misora spoke up.

"I... I think it would be terrifying...!" Lecty added.

"I don't need to give you a lesson in strategy or numbers to show you how important military strength is, right?" Rico chimed in.

These three, still being cadets, couldn't imagine Rozen casually treating the continent as a backyard, even knowing how strong he was.

Only Kanata and Chloe truly understood that Rozen wasn't going to change his mind.

Because...

"Judging by the look on your face, you've made up your mind, haven't you?" Kanata said, gazing at Rozen as if he understood something.

"You're determined to go this time, aren't you?" Chloe added with a calm smile.

Rozen chuckled.

"You two always know me best."

With that simple statement, Rozen let everyone know that he had indeed decided to leave and wouldn't change his mind.

No matter how they tried to persuade him, it was futile.

"I've already dealt with humanity's crisis. I've done all I can. Even the students I've trained have now reached C-rank. With steady effort, they'll soon be an A-rank squad. So now, it's time for me to handle my unfinished business."

Rozen spoke resolutely.

Hearing this, everyone fell silent.

"We…" Misora, Lecty, and Rico looked conflicted.

"Senpai, I…" Yuri stepped forward, trying to say something.

But Rozen stopped them.

"All right, it's not like we won't see each other again," Rozen smiled warmly.

"One day, we'll meet again."

His words brought smiles to their faces, albeit ones filled with bitterness and reluctance.