louisehourcade Chapter 53 What is a hero?
Chapter 53 What is a hero?
Upon hearing this, March 7th instinctively turned to look at the remains of the Doomsday Beast.
Then, she saw it.
They saw the purple, more deadly antimatter beam that had condensed from the mouth of the Doomsday Beast—a beam more lethal than any of the previous ones.
Everything happened in an instant; no one had time to react.
Dan Heng moved.
Himeko moved as well.
But the remains of the Doomsday Beast were less than ten meters away from March 7th, and they couldn't possibly make it in time.
March 7th's pupils contracted sharply, and his body froze on the spot.
She didn't have time to draw the bow, nor could she dodge it.
He could only watch as the purple light magnified infinitely in his eyes.
……
As Lu Li roared, Xing subconsciously looked in the direction of March 7th.
In his eyes, a purple light was slowly approaching the stunned March 7th.
Time seemed to slow down.
Jiko, gritting her teeth, charged toward Dan Heng on March 7th, a look of panic appearing on her face for the first time.
And not far away... Lu Li, who seemed unaware that his fist had clenched so tightly that it bled.
Although the time I spent with them was very short.
But for some reason, Xing felt that the memory was still vivid and unforgettable.
Was it because Lu Li and the others saved her after she lost her memory?
No, it's not.
This is……
"Don't let yourself regret it."
Kafka's parting words flashed through Hoshi's mind like lightning.
Xing's gaze instantly hardened, her body moving a thousand times faster than her brain.
She didn't even know how she did it.
All she knew was that when she came to her senses, she was already standing in front of March 7th with her arms outstretched.
He used his own body to block the light.
As the purple light drew closer, Xing slowly closed her eyes.
Life is very short.
But she doesn't regret it.
then.
"star--!!!"
"Lu Li!!!"
Dan Heng's furious shout, Himeko's call.
One second, two seconds...
There is no pain.
The expected excruciating pain of being pierced through the body by the antimatter beam did not occur.
Wait, she thought she just heard someone shout...
Xing suddenly opened her eyes.
The first thing I saw was a very familiar back view.
He had black hair, wore a train uniform with half of the sleeves burned, and stood ramrod straight.
Lu Li stood before her, holding the broken sword in one hand.
The blade was reduced to only one-third of its original length, and a terrifyingly hot red light was emanating from the broken edge—the mark left when it forcefully cleaved through the antimatter beam.
The two swerving aftershocks grazed Xing and March 7th from either side, leaving two shocking scorch marks on the wall behind them.
Yes.
He split it open.
A person, a broken knife.
It sliced the antimatter beam that the Doomsday Beast had condensed before its death in half right in the middle.
He didn't have enough time to gather his mental energy and use his words to deflect the beam of light emitted by the Doomsday Beast.
Therefore, he could only rely on his pure physical strength to control the ether to strengthen the broken sword in his hand so that it would not be melted instantly and he could withstand the blow.
As a result, Lu Li's upper body clothes were directly vaporized and completely disappeared.
The exposed skin was completely red, radiating terrifying heat.
The platform was quiet for about half a second.
"Lu...Lu Li?"
"March 7th behind the star" murmured.
Danheng stopped sprinting.
Himeko stood still, staring blankly at that figure.
Lu Li turned around and glanced at Xing, who was standing there in a daze.
"What are you still standing there for?"
His tone was calm as he said, "Take March back."
Xing subconsciously took a step back.
She saw that Lu Li's face was expressionless when he turned around, and the red skin on his body was rapidly recovering.
But... his knuckles, gripping the broken knife, had turned completely white.
deceptive.
He was anything but calm.
……
Lu Li was indeed not at peace.
Because he did something he shouldn't have done, something that even he himself found outrageous.
He moved the instant the Doomsday Beast fired its beam.
The body moves faster than the brain.
By the time he realized what was happening, he was already standing in front of Xing and March 7th, and he swung the broken sword out.
The plot... was completely changed by him.
According to the original script, this attack should have been blocked by Xing on behalf of March 7th.
At a critical moment of life and death.
The star's spirit of sacrifice and fighting will attract the attention of Nanuk, the god of destruction, thus activating the star core within her and setting her on the path of "pioneering".
That was the starting point of the whole story.
And now, that starting point... has been cleaved away by a single stroke.
Ahhhhh—!
Who on earth did such a stupid thing!
Ah, it's me.
That's fine.
—No way!
Without this starting point, there would be no Luofu, Xianzhou, Pinocchio—nothing at all.
Everything will be rewritten, and the plot will completely go astray.
Lu Li cursed himself in his heart.
You fucking try to hold it in!
I clearly said from the beginning that I couldn't make a move, and I didn't move even though I clenched my fists until they bled.
How come my body still managed to run away on its own in the end?
Lu Li: "..."
Is it really just the body moving on its own?
Lu Li closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath.
No.
He can't fool himself.
At the moment the Doomsday Beast fired its beam.
He wasn't thinking about "plot stability" or the "butterfly effect."
He was thinking...what if.
just in case.
But what if... things don't go as planned?
What if the stars can't withstand it?
What if Nanook hadn't looked this way, and the star core had been activated?
More importantly... what if March 7th is affected?
In reality, if even one of these "ifs" goes wrong, the consequences will be irreversible.
He can use the "plot" to convince himself not to take action.
But he couldn't gamble with the fate of March 7th and Xing using the "plot".
Because they are living people.
It wasn't those two lines from the script.
March 7th—this girl who constantly complains about him slacking off, secretly takes photos of him training, and laughs foolishly even when he flicks her forehead.
There are also stars.
This gray-haired girl had only opened her eyes a few hours ago.
She remembered nothing, understood nothing, and felt lost and unfamiliar with everything before her.
But when the antimatter beam was directed at March 7th.
Despite her hand trembling as she gripped the baseball bat, she ran out and stood in front of March 7th.
This courage was so pure that it made Lu Li's heart ache.
For some reason, he suddenly thought of "himself" in the sky.
Everyone says he is the hero who defeated the Destroyer and saved the universe from destruction.
But... he doesn't think so.
That person was nothing more than a madman who, in order to teach Kafka "fear," was willing to fall into a demonic state and use his life as bait.
He has never acknowledged that it was him, even in his past life.
But at the moment his body rushed out on its own, Lu Li suddenly understood something.
Perhaps some things can be inherited without needing to be remembered.
Lu Li's understanding of heroes is that they are selfless and altruistic.
It is someone who can abandon their personal interests and choose the greater good at crucial moments.
Therefore, he is not a hero.
And I... am not one of them either.
Because they all share a common characteristic.
That is... the instinct to do anything to protect the people you care about.
Screw the plot!
Screw the butterfly effect!
He can accept being a salted fish.
I can accept that I'm afraid of trouble, overtime, and anything that requires effort.
But to sit idly by and watch a potential tragedy occur, even if there is only a one in ten thousand chance of it, when you have the ability to prevent it.
That's not called salted fish, that's called cold-blooded!
He is indeed a salted fish.
But even when you're a salted fish, you should be a salted fish with dignity, principles, and the ability to occasionally turn over and bask in the sun!
What about the plot?
So what if he's a star god?
So what if you're a slave to fate?
So what if Xing didn't activate the star core within his body?
Damn it, I'm flipping the table and I'm not performing anymore!
I have a cheat code!
At worst, he can follow the main characters wherever they go and be their full-time nanny.
capable.
Even he and that broken system that only plays anecdotal history will be killed!