GAME OF CONTRADICTIONS (PT2)

DAY 19

It took Kobayashi 3 days of nonstop travel to reach the next land. It was an unknown city with an foreign language written on every wall. It was presumably a country Aisha had visited in her lifetime and spent considerable time living in, likely in her childhood. Every detail was noted by him for later use when he would visit the legitimate country, wherever it was. His feet felt as if they were about to fall off from the long distance walk.

He was exhausted because of the trip and from lack of food and water. He was cold, hungry, and thirsty. His stomach felt like it was slowly consuming itself each second, a sharp pain running through his abdomen. And to make the current situation even worse, it was currently night, meaning the 20th day would arrive in a few hours time.

"Maybe I won't win... Perhaps Alexander and I really weren't meant to redeem this world..."

Kobayashi spotted a cart of fruit and scurried over to it, messily stuffing his mouth full to subside his ravaging hunger.

"Maybe I won't come back...and I'll die here...alone like I deserve..."

He continued to devour as much food as he could possibly fit into his mouth. The pains in his stomach began to slowly recede as he consumed more and more, until he eventually exterminated his hunger. After he was finished he looked up at the sky, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Mother, remember how you always said to look to the stars and when you saw a star flicker, it meant someone we lost was looking down and smiling at our actions?" Kobayashi asked curiously.

Nobody was around to hear him, and not a single soul was in the vicinity to even acknowledge his existence. His state of mind could be considered even depressing. He seemed as if his mental state began to deteriorate rapidly as the game went on. He was, however, very well aware he was only conversing with himself. His mother had died long ago and was most definitely not there to listen to his words. He only remembered her in his heart, for the loving and gentle woman she was.

"I don't know if that's true, but I hope you're proud and smiling at what I'm doing now."

Kobayashi laughed warmly, observing the countless specks of light sprinkled across the night sky.

"I won't give up on this world and the task I've been assigned, even if it means I'm to die. I'll save others where I failed last time."

He obviously received no response from anyone. No congratulations for risking his life, no expression of love from his mother who he cherished in his memories each day. He then wondered what every man would think—was it all pointless? Even if, by some chance, his mother were to hear him, she could never respond to what he spoke about. If she was listening to him, that would mean she was likely a wandering soul who could never rest. That thought began to disturb him even more than the original. But he wasn't disheartened by the thoughts, as he loved his mother above nearly all else, and as long as his words were directed at her, he cared not of whom they actually reached.

Kobayashi's eyelids gradually began to close, and he then let the thoughts slip away and he was no longer disturbed by them. He eventually drifted into a deep rest on the cold, uninhabited streets of the unknown kingdom. He didn't seem to have a plan of action anymore. He was running from the inevitable danger which used to seem escapable if he just kept on the run, but he had now gotten stuck at a dead end and could only watch as the enemy neared in on him.

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DAY 23

Kobayashi had now recovered to a better mental state, beginning to regain some of the hope he once had in the beginning of the game. He wasn't hungry anymore, nor was he dehydrated; the supplies in this lifeless wasteland were enough to nurse him back to health. But he was beginning to miss the conversations he and Alexander had before he was eliminated. The days that were now so slow it seemed antagonizing. It passed much quicker when the young knight was accompanying Kobayashi, Alexander's old stories from his childhood and annoying jokes that got Kobayashi to laugh on the inside. But despite his growing hope, he knew he wasn't going to be safe for much longer. His feet had swollen and blistered from the long and excruciating walk to this place, taking away his ability to flee anymore (this had little effect on him, as he had reached the last landmark), and Aisha would likely soon arrive to claim the title of victor. The pain had begun to go down, but he was still in no position for running. There were no more crafty plans left to pull Kobayashi out of this bottomless pit of doom.

"I'll be happy to finish this game and return to the real world," said Kobayashi as he examined his wounded feet. It was the first time he ever had to deal with injuries like this, and he was slightly uncertain on what to do.

"I suppose I need something to help support my weight and let my feet take a rest..."

Kobayashi's eyes scanned the area, searching for something to serve as a sort of crutch. And to his disappointment, there was nothing. The only things around him were a few carts of hay and food items, and the market tents hugging the sides of stone buildings.

"I wouldn't have believed an entirely different world could be so bland..." Kobayashi chuckled softly, finding it amusing how the world was so ordinary compared to his home back in the old world.

Even Alexander's hometown was more interesting than this. The only notable difference between the two landmarks was this one smelled terribly of pig waste from a nearby empty barn. Other than this one difference, the two places could be considered identical. He was expecting otherworldly kingdoms to appear...well, otherworldly and not like an average European kingdom from his old world.

"I guess I should make my way indoors..."

Kobayashi slowly limped his way to a nearby home, occasionally leaning on walls for support to relieve the pressure on his injured feet. Each step sent painful spikes surging through his feet. The injuries sustained to his feet look as if they wouldn't heal soon. It was surprising how he still maintained any hope or confidence at this point. The normal person would give up all hope and allow themselves to be eliminated. It was such a hopeless situation that not any person would hold onto their ambitions of victory anymore. The average individual would instead crumble under the pressure.

He finally made his way into the home, resting on a small chair, presumably made for a young child. The chair amazingly held him up despite him being well over the weight limit it should have held. It was a comedic sight to see a grown man sitting on a chair designed for a child no older than a toddler.

"Aisha, you are a formidable foe. I would've never expected getting decimated so badly in a game like this."

Kobayashi leaned back a bit, attempting to get relaxed in the comically small chair.

"I don't even think I could understand some of your plans right now if I tried. You're smart. You remind me of my mother in some ways..."

He looked over at a painting on the wall, a portrait which was carefully handcrafted over a long period of time. The portrait displayed a young man, roughly in his mid-late twenties with dark hair and fiery, intimidating eyes, yet they were filled with much ambition and passion. He wore high-class clothes—a pure white jacket and white trousers. He was obviously an important figure in this world, but Kobayashi had never seen anything about this individual during his long research sessions at the library. In the background, positioned behind the man, was a young woman, roughly the same age, with bright blue eyes and long hair as white as the winter snow. She had a beautiful smile with a hint of playfulness and affection for the young man. She wore a similar outfit as the young man, but her outfit consisted of a black robe adorned with gold buttons and trimming. They posed as if they were a couple of siblings with seperated parents, who rarely got to see each other.

"You two must be important for Aisha to have remembered you with so much detail. I'll look into your identities once I've won the game."

But out of all things, what Kobayashi found most noteworthy was the fact Aisha remembered these two individuals with such detail. Something was significant about these two characters, but Kobayashi wasn't exactly sure what it was. It piqued his interest and made him feel a desire to uncover the two's identities once he finished the game.

"Maybe you're rulers of one of the countries, or maybe you're her family...or maybe you're a piece of the puzzle to fixing this broken and utterly hopeless world."

Kobayashi pondered on the endless possibilities behind the truth of these strange people. The eye color of the male figure clearly suggested they were from a non-human race, but they had no significant features of other races like the Kemono to identify them exactly. They had no set of animal ears or tails to mark them as Kemono. They had no wings or halo above their head to mark them as the mysterious douleia race. They had no fish tails for legs to identify them as the plethora of different thriving underwater races. They had no reptilian scales to mark them as the feared orcs of the forest on the Primal continent. Most of the world's races were all humanoids, closely resembling mankind down to some of the smallest possible details with yet some of the biggest differences. And these individuals were the race with little-to-no differences in appearance to identify their race.

"Well, I'll conduct the research in the future. For now, I shall rest so my feet can recover."

Kobayashi closed his eyes and began to drift asleep once more. He had no wish to explore the kingdom or find a place to hide himself away from Aisha. He didn't have the feeling he should attempt to flee to the end of the generated world, and he only wished to endure what would be destined for him to face.

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DAY 24

Kobayashi's feet had recovered quite well overnight and seemed to have become considerably better with the swelling and pain decreasing to a minimum. From their former appearance, one would've thought it may have taken weeks for them to heal. Though he was still far from being able to flee from danger if the time came, he no longer needed to use nearby objects to support his weight and ease the pain. It boosted his hope of victory to an even higher level than previously, maybe even comparable to the hope he felt at the beginning of the game.

He had decided that today he would explore the area to get familiar with it. It might be a while before he did visit the actual location, but he wanted to get acquainted with the kingdom so he may easily get around the real place when the time came to visit it. As stated previously, the entire city was nothing more than one would expect it to be, and was instead a bit of a letdown. However, the end of the main street laid a palace with extraordinary beauty. It had large stained glass in high windows, at least a hundred feet in the air. In the front of the structure was a ginormous spruce door sealing the entry point shut to shield the palace from any outsiders. The stone walls seemed to be laid with much carefulness, not a brick being out of place; the stone bricks formed a visually pleasant pattern up the walls and even drew out the male's face from the portrait mentioned previously. The windows bore an odd insignia at the peaks of each stained glass window. And the behemoth of a palace had no trace of weaponry of any sorts on the outside, perhaps implying the presence of a powerful force laid in wait behind its thick walls, something strong enough to scare away any intruders.

"No entrance to the inside. What are you hiding from everyone in there? Is it a cure to the sick world, or are you hiding something much deeper than that?"

Kobayashi inquisitively asked, curious about what secrets this palace kept. There were many windows, yet the position of the windows were so high he couldn't possibly come close enough to reach them to peer inside. With the primary gate being closed to shield whatever may be on the inside, he was unfortunately unable to put his curiosity to rest and learn what secrets the walls kept from the general public.

"Interesting... You seem to have many secrets you wish to keep in the dark. Whether it be Aisha who is intentionally withholding information or the ruler of this strange country, I will say I am eager to discover what secrets you hold."

He looked around for a few seconds until giving up on entering the gated fortress any time soon. There was no point of endlessly searching like a fool for a secondary entrance that likely didn't exist. The only way he could've entered if it had not been through the gate would be to break through the windows. But he had nothing in his possession which could help him reach the high windows and break through them.

"What's this?"

Kobayashi saw a drop-off in the distance. With a growing sense of wonder, he gradually began to approach the chasm.

"Was it unable to finish generating...?" Kobayashi looked downwards into the abyss, an eerie darkness flowing boundlessly at what should have been the bottom.

It seemed that the world was indeed created from the players' memories, but by following these rules, the unseen bottom of the ravine was unable to exist and instead expanded endlessly into the nonexistent.

"If someone fell into that...they would be stuck forever, not even having the fortune of being dealt death."

Kobayashi's face then lit up, what he believed to be a rather clever idea forming in his mind.

"If two people fell into it, they would have no choice but to be stuck together until the end of the game. There would be no more running or difficulties associated with this part of the game if you were to be trapped in free-fall."

Kobayashi grinned and turned around to walk back to the home he was staying in. He now had a new plan. Though it would likely end the game sooner than expected, it would end the repeated scurrying of one land to another. But his plan had much room for error, many holes that would inevitably cause problems whether it be on a high or low scale, meaning he could make a fool of himself. He could be the cause of his own death and the death of a fellow innocent man who wished to never be included in this world to begin with.

"Alexander, I will win this game. We might be viewed as idiots now, but we will take the throne. We will become the next rulers and restore peace to these foreign lands. I will do these things not for the power or the riches, but for the honor of those who met their early demise on my behalf—my mother, my friends, my brother, and most importantly the wife I failed to protect. I will wager my life for the people of this world who face discrimination, disease, poverty, and constant fear because of a failed god who was too weak to battle after what he believed to be the end of his potential. I will succeed where even the perfect ruler failed."

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DAY 25

It was now the 25th day since the game began. 5 more days and the game would come to an end automatically, crowning Kobayashi and Alexander as the winners by overall performance in the game. Though the odds of Kobayashi and Alexander winning the game because of submission from Aisha were near impossible. She was far too attached to her royal title as Queen to simply give it away like a birthday present to two men she barely knew.

Kobayashi was currently outside, enjoying the beauty of nature. His feet were nearly healed completely and the pain was barely noticeable to him. He could now walk like normal without occasionally wincing from random shots of pain surging through his feet.

"Kobayashi!"

The sudden young voice of a woman carried from across the plains, reaching Kobayashi and stealing his attention. He found himself looking at Aisha, who was all the way on the other side of the plains, glaring at Kobayashi with a purely hateful and threatening look on her face. She was done chasing him around like a wild animal hunting its prey. No more would she waste her time chasing this man around, the fraud (in her eyes) who dared to associate himself and his companion with the long anticipated saviors of this godforsaken world. The imposter who sought to lift the throne from right beneath her feet and repurpose it for his own benefit. This would indeed be the end of him.

"I see you've finally come to end the game, Aisha. And your wish shall be fulfilled; we have indeed reached the final destination of this long and perilous journey. And in a few moments, we shall discover if I and Alexander are the ones who have come to save this world or if we're only idiots who cling to a title given to one who will come to truly bring an era of freedom to this place."

Aisha scoffed at him and stared him down with eyes of wrath. It was truly the end of this painstakingly long game, and possibly the beginning to a new world.

"You are but a mere fraud, a thief who wishes to steal the title of a true legend to come! I will not allow your desire of thievery to go unpunished!"

She then charged at Kobayashi as fast as she possibly could. To his surprise, she seemed to teleport across the land at lightning speeds. He was now trapped, cornered with nowhere to go. He slowly inched backwards, before vanishing...

"Where did he go?"

Aisha stopped slightly out of breath, looking in every direction for where Kobayashi went. Yet she found nothing. He was gone, without a trace. Vanished within the blink of an eye. Nobody was fast enough to escape the entire city or plains within such a short window of time. But Kobayashi was gone, not a shred of evidence that he even stood there. No magic could pull this stunt off either. It was baffling to her how he could disappear like this.

"Down..." Aisha said quietly and looked into the abyss in front of her. There he was, falling endlessly into the darkness of the pit, starting to disappear before her own eyes.

"We end this now! Stop running!"

Aisha jumped in after him, taking no hesitation or thought at all, falling much faster than him and gaining on him at a rapid rate. It will all be over now. Once she caught up with him, one of them would strike the final time and end this.

"You LOSE!!!"

Aisha grabbed ahold of his shoulder, reaching him in an impossibly fast fashion, her speed like a falcon. He was caught off guard. He didn't anticipate for her to catch up with him so fast. He didn't even have the chance to grab his katana before she reached him. Before he even had time to react, she stabbed him in the chest with her dagger, removing his second chance.

"My family will remain undefeated like the gods we have become!!! YOU OLD BASTARD!!!"

Full of rage and anger, Aisha screamed in his face as loud as she possibly could and delivered the final killing blow. Kobayashi was now eliminated. Aisha let go of her dagger and exhaled, letting out a deep breath and releasing her pinned up rage. He began to drift through the bottomless abyss, a look of despair and defeat on his face.

He and Alexander were then just frauds? Two men who were deceived by Johan, some sort of divine entity, for what purpose? To serve as a form of twisted entertainment for him? Why would such a cruel act be committed, and why did these two have to be the victims of it? They did nothing worth being put through this suffering. The two had already suffered enough before they came here. Kobayashi and Alexander had only made fools of themselves in this case, so proudly proclaiming to be prophesied rescuers of the shattered world. Nothing more than just two fools who were so easily deceived by even their own lie. What was even the point in them trying? If they were to die anyway, they would've been better to have delivered themselves to the Kemono race the moment they arrived here; then they could've evaded such a humiliating defeat. What would be of them now? Executed by the people who suffered because of the greed of humans? The potential legacy that could've been created, all lost within an instant. Lost in a game that could not ever be won from the start, defeated by the new god of the crumbling world.

"The time of rebirth is nigh, I tell you. I and Alexander shall restore this world to its golden era!"

Kobayashi, who's body had begun to look lifeless, was perfectly fine. He grabbed the dagger falling beside him that Aisha had dropped and stabbed her in the arm.

"H-huh?!"

Aisha was disturbed and surprised. How did he do it? She was certain she hit him six times throughout the game. It was impossible. Did he cheat? No, it wasn't that he didn't cheat. He did indeed cheat, but only on equal terms with Aisha to make the game somewhat fair.

'Wait a moment,' Aisha thought to herself...

It finally clicked in her mind. Back at the burning hut in Kobayashi's homeland. Did she really hit him? She was sure she did before, but now the question arose at the worst time. Before she could piece the moment back together, it was too late and she had already fallen for whatever trap he set.

"Simulated player Aisha Königin of the human royal family has been eliminated. The victor of this match is: Kobayashi Hachiman of the Kobayashi dynasty and Alexander Webb of the English royal family," declared the same automated voice from a few days ago. It was the same voice that spoke to announce Alexander's unfortunate elimination.

And with that, the simulation ended. All of the memories collapsed in on themselves like a building with no supports and everything went black. The end of the game had been reached at long last. Contrary to the thoughts of Aisha, the duo were not frauds, but were instead the true saviors of this world and had by far proven themselves worthy of this title. And with that, the first prophecy was fulfilled—the legendary Kanpeki König, the perfect king himself, the man with an unparalleled intellect which ran through his descendants, his family was defeated in a game, just as he prophesied 10,000 years ago. This marked the end of a golden lineage's rule and the start of a new generation, perhaps a generation of hope and prosperity for all who live, regardless of race, gender, or beliefs.

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"Welcome back," said Alexander to Kobayashi as he removed himself from the chair he sat in.

Alexander seemed like he hadn't been conscious very long, meaning the time indeed passed differently in the real world. He appeared drowsy, like he had been awake for days without a rest.

"We are the victors, Alexander...we are the prophesied ones."

Kobayashi laughed, filled with joy because of his victory. Alexander was stunned, not believing Kobayashi at first. The news was unbelievable, and it seemed like the weight of the world was lifted from their shoulders. All of the previous anxiety they felt had finally disappeared.

"W-we're actually victorious? We won the game? You're not lying?"

"It's true. We rightfully secured the victory and now have official control of the country."

Before Kobayashi could even carry on further, the sight of Aisha sobbing on the floor caught his eye.

"Father, I failed you...I failed my promise, our title, and most importantly you... Please forgive me! I am the worst of the worst to lose what we were promised to keep!"

Kobayashi went silent, seeing there was much more than just her title and pride that was broken because of her loss. The sight struck a chord and caused him to feel sympathetic towards her even though she harbored feelings of ill intent towards him. He wasn't the type of person who wanted to see anyone hurt, whether they were friend or foe. Of course, he suspected more would have been put on the line than what was said when Aisha challenged him and Alexander to this game. But he wasn't sure what she truly was putting at stake at that time, but now he had put the pieces together.

"Aisha, you aren't forsaken by your father's love, even if he has long departed from this world. He would be happy to see his daughter was the one to face the long awaited saviors-"

Aisha cut him off, disdain for him dripping from her voice and tears running down her face. She had no desire to listen to whatever else he was going to say.

"You know nothing of my family's history! You know nothing of the promises I swore to uphold to my father when he took his dying breath!"

Kobayashi knelt down on the floor beside her and sighed. She was correct; he knew nothing about her family's history or the promises she made to them. And despite her wishing for Kobayashi and Alexander to die, deliberately cheating in hopes of winning the game, he somehow felt pity for her. It reminded him of the time he lost his mother, how he was so distraught and angry in those moments and how he, too, acted to do what he believed would be best. He knew the path her anger would eventually lead down if left unresolved, the pain and hurt that would additionally be added into her already suffering heart.

"You are right about that, Aisha. I don't know anything about what you've promised to your father or other family for that matter. But I hope you know, that despite the ill intent you likely harbor towards me and my friend Alexander, I wish to help you nonetheless. You aren't the only person who has felt alone and hopeless in their life."

Kobayashi extended a hand in hopes of getting her off of the floor, but she only stayed lying face down and crying to herself.

"And I wish to tell you that I do not intend on completely taking the crown from you."

With those words from Kobayashi, Alexander looked over at him with a perplexed expression. Was Kobayashi seriously going to refuse the prize he was promised just to make her feel better? The idea of not taking the throne from her seemed like a terrible proposition with no upsides whatsoever.

"Kobayashi, I don't know if that's a good-"

Kobayashi held his finger up, prompting Alexander to let him finish explaining.

"I would instead like for the throne to be shared amongst us, if you'd call it that. You don't lose your spot of political status, we don't bring the public's attention to us and risk leaking our plans to other countries who may attempt to oppose us, and we all ultimately get what we'd like."

Though he was still met with no response from Aisha. She only continued to sob quietly, mumbling silently about how sorry she was for failing her family's legacy.

"I guess she'll come to it in her own time."

After a few minutes, Aisha's tears began to diminish. She only had tear stains and red eyes left from the aftermath of her emotional outbreak. She sat herself back in the chair and Kobayashi stood back up. Her red eyes glared at him with hatred, though her gaze had a hint of curiosity in it.

"Y-you wish to share the royal status of a ruler?"

"That is correct. I believe it would be beneficial to all of us. I would be more than willing to share with you the details another time if you'd like to hear."

Aisha sighed in defeat. It was either take their deal or live on the streets as a lonely peasant who would likely die from disease. She knew she had no other alternative that would be this generation, and if she declined it would only make her look a bigger fool than she already was.

"I accept... You two are now the new included members of the royal household overseeing the human race."

Aisha attempted to wipe the tear stains off of her cheeks while Kobayashi and Alexander let out a deep sigh of relief. They evaded what should've been their demise only moments earlier, and now they were officially declared by the Queen herself to be the new rulers of these foreign lands.

"Are you sure you wish to grant her such a generous pardon, Kobayashi? She did try to kill usc after all."

"I'm certain. We can't take the wrongdoing she was going to do and use it as an excuse to commit evil against her; two wrongs don't make a right in any scenario. She has potential to be redeemed, and I know she can be fixed into a better person."

"Whatever you say, Kobayashi. Whatever you say..."

Alexander didn't want to argue with Kobayashi and reluctantly agreed to his decision. He knew that attempting to object would do absolutely nothing and he decided to hold his tongue on what he really wanted to say.

And alas the two new leaders from outside the royal family were here, the redeemers of the broken world prophesied by the greatest king to ever live. Perhaps everything here was worth the sacrifice of their old, miserable lifestyles. They lost little and gained much in this new world, and the two of them wondered if maybe, just maybe, that they should praise the one who was responsible for this great restart.DAY 19

It took Kobayashi 3 days of nonstop travel to reach the next land. It was an unknown city with an foreign language written on every wall. It was presumably a country Aisha had visited in her lifetime and spent considerable time living in, likely in her childhood. Every detail was noted by him for later use when he would visit the legitimate country, wherever it was. His feet felt as if they were about to fall off from the long distance walk.

He was exhausted because of the trip and from lack of food and water. He was cold, hungry, and thirsty. His stomach felt like it was slowly consuming itself each second, a sharp pain running through his abdomen. And to make the current situation even worse, it was currently night, meaning the 20th day would arrive in a few hours time.

"Maybe I won't win... Perhaps Alexander and I really weren't meant to redeem this world..."

Kobayashi spotted a cart of fruit and scurried over to it, messily stuffing his mouth full to subside his ravaging hunger.

"Maybe I won't come back...and I'll die here...alone like I deserve..."

He continued to devour as much food as he could possibly fit into his mouth. The pains in his stomach began to slowly recede as he consumed more and more, until he eventually exterminated his hunger. After he was finished he looked up at the sky, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Mother, remember how you always said to look to the stars and when you saw a star flicker, it meant someone we lost was looking down and smiling at our actions?" Kobayashi asked curiously.

Nobody was around to hear him, and not a single soul was in the vicinity to even acknowledge his existence. His state of mind could be considered even depressing. He seemed as if his mental state began to deteriorate rapidly as the game went on. He was, however, very well aware he was only conversing with himself. His mother had died long ago and was most definitely not there to listen to his words. He only remembered her in his heart, for the loving and gentle woman she was.

"I don't know if that's true, but I hope you're proud and smiling at what I'm doing now."

Kobayashi laughed warmly, observing the countless specks of light sprinkled across the night sky.

"I won't give up on this world and the task I've been assigned, even if it means I'm to die. I'll save others where I failed last time."

He obviously received no response from anyone. No congratulations for risking his life, no expression of love from his mother who he cherished in his memories each day. He then wondered what every man would think—was it all pointless? Even if, by some chance, his mother were to hear him, she could never respond to what he spoke about. If she was listening to him, that would mean she was likely a wandering soul who could never rest. That thought began to disturb him even more than the original. But he wasn't disheartened by the thoughts, as he loved his mother above nearly all else, and as long as his words were directed at her, he cared not of whom they actually reached.

Kobayashi's eyelids gradually began to close, and he then let the thoughts slip away and he was no longer disturbed by them. He eventually drifted into a deep rest on the cold, uninhabited streets of the unknown kingdom. He didn't seem to have a plan of action anymore. He was running from the inevitable danger which used to seem escapable if he just kept on the run, but he had now gotten stuck at a dead end and could only watch as the enemy neared in on him.

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DAY 23

Kobayashi had now recovered to a better mental state, beginning to regain some of the hope he once had in the beginning of the game. He wasn't hungry anymore, nor was he dehydrated; the supplies in this lifeless wasteland were enough to nurse him back to health. But he was beginning to miss the conversations he and Alexander had before he was eliminated. The days that were now so slow it seemed antagonizing. It passed much quicker when the young knight was accompanying Kobayashi, Alexander's old stories from his childhood and annoying jokes that got Kobayashi to laugh on the inside. But despite his growing hope, he knew he wasn't going to be safe for much longer. His feet had swollen and blistered from the long and excruciating walk to this place, taking away his ability to flee anymore (this had little effect on him, as he had reached the last landmark), and Aisha would likely soon arrive to claim the title of victor. The pain had begun to go down, but he was still in no position for running. There were no more crafty plans left to pull Kobayashi out of this bottomless pit of doom.

"I'll be happy to finish this game and return to the real world," said Kobayashi as he examined his wounded feet. It was the first time he ever had to deal with injuries like this, and he was slightly uncertain on what to do.

"I suppose I need something to help support my weight and let my feet take a rest..."

Kobayashi's eyes scanned the area, searching for something to serve as a sort of crutch. And to his disappointment, there was nothing. The only things around him were a few carts of hay and food items, and the market tents hugging the sides of stone buildings.

"I wouldn't have believed an entirely different world could be so bland..." Kobayashi chuckled softly, finding it amusing how the world was so ordinary compared to his home back in the old world.

Even Alexander's hometown was more interesting than this. The only notable difference between the two landmarks was this one smelled terribly of pig waste from a nearby empty barn. Other than this one difference, the two places could be considered identical. He was expecting otherworldly kingdoms to appear...well, otherworldly and not like an average European kingdom from his old world.

"I guess I should make my way indoors..."

Kobayashi slowly limped his way to a nearby home, occasionally leaning on walls for support to relieve the pressure on his injured feet. Each step sent painful spikes surging through his feet. The injuries sustained to his feet look as if they wouldn't heal soon. It was surprising how he still maintained any hope or confidence at this point. The normal person would give up all hope and allow themselves to be eliminated. It was such a hopeless situation that not any person would hold onto their ambitions of victory anymore. The average individual would instead crumble under the pressure.

He finally made his way into the home, resting on a small chair, presumably made for a young child. The chair amazingly held him up despite him being well over the weight limit it should have held. It was a comedic sight to see a grown man sitting on a chair designed for a child no older than a toddler.

"Aisha, you are a formidable foe. I would've never expected getting decimated so badly in a game like this."

Kobayashi leaned back a bit, attempting to get relaxed in the comically small chair.

"I don't even think I could understand some of your plans right now if I tried. You're smart. You remind me of my mother in some ways..."

He looked over at a painting on the wall, a portrait which was carefully handcrafted over a long period of time. The portrait displayed a young man, roughly in his mid-late twenties with dark hair and fiery, intimidating eyes, yet they were filled with much ambition and passion. He wore high-class clothes—a pure white jacket and white trousers. He was obviously an important figure in this world, but Kobayashi had never seen anything about this individual during his long research sessions at the library. In the background, positioned behind the man, was a young woman, roughly the same age, with bright blue eyes and long hair as white as the winter snow. She had a beautiful smile with a hint of playfulness and affection for the young man. She wore a similar outfit as the young man, but her outfit consisted of a black robe adorned with gold buttons and trimming. They posed as if they were a couple of siblings with seperated parents, who rarely got to see each other.

"You two must be important for Aisha to have remembered you with so much detail. I'll look into your identities once I've won the game."

But out of all things, what Kobayashi found most noteworthy was the fact Aisha remembered these two individuals with such detail. Something was significant about these two characters, but Kobayashi wasn't exactly sure what it was. It piqued his interest and made him feel a desire to uncover the two's identities once he finished the game.

"Maybe you're rulers of one of the countries, or maybe you're her family...or maybe you're a piece of the puzzle to fixing this broken and utterly hopeless world."

Kobayashi pondered on the endless possibilities behind the truth of these strange people. The eye color of the male figure clearly suggested they were from a non-human race, but they had no significant features of other races like the Kemono to identify them exactly. They had no set of animal ears or tails to mark them as Kemono. They had no wings or halo above their head to mark them as the mysterious douleia race. They had no fish tails for legs to identify them as the plethora of different thriving underwater races. They had no reptilian scales to mark them as the feared orcs of the forest on the Primal continent. Most of the world's races were all humanoids, closely resembling mankind down to some of the smallest possible details with yet some of the biggest differences. And these individuals were the race with little-to-no differences in appearance to identify their race.

"Well, I'll conduct the research in the future. For now, I shall rest so my feet can recover."

Kobayashi closed his eyes and began to drift asleep once more. He had no wish to explore the kingdom or find a place to hide himself away from Aisha. He didn't have the feeling he should attempt to flee to the end of the generated world, and he only wished to endure what would be destined for him to face.

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DAY 24

Kobayashi's feet had recovered quite well overnight and seemed to have become considerably better with the swelling and pain decreasing to a minimum. From their former appearance, one would've thought it may have taken weeks for them to heal. Though he was still far from being able to flee from danger if the time came, he no longer needed to use nearby objects to support his weight and ease the pain. It boosted his hope of victory to an even higher level than previously, maybe even comparable to the hope he felt at the beginning of the game.

He had decided that today he would explore the area to get familiar with it. It might be a while before he did visit the actual location, but he wanted to get acquainted with the kingdom so he may easily get around the real place when the time came to visit it. As stated previously, the entire city was nothing more than one would expect it to be, and was instead a bit of a letdown. However, the end of the main street laid a palace with extraordinary beauty. It had large stained glass in high windows, at least a hundred feet in the air. In the front of the structure was a ginormous spruce door sealing the entry point shut to shield the palace from any outsiders. The stone walls seemed to be laid with much carefulness, not a brick being out of place; the stone bricks formed a visually pleasant pattern up the walls and even drew out the male's face from the portrait mentioned previously. The windows bore an odd insignia at the peaks of each stained glass window. And the behemoth of a palace had no trace of weaponry of any sorts on the outside, perhaps implying the presence of a powerful force laid in wait behind its thick walls, something strong enough to scare away any intruders.

"No entrance to the inside. What are you hiding from everyone in there? Is it a cure to the sick world, or are you hiding something much deeper than that?"

Kobayashi inquisitively asked, curious about what secrets this palace kept. There were many windows, yet the position of the windows were so high he couldn't possibly come close enough to reach them to peer inside. With the primary gate being closed to shield whatever may be on the inside, he was unfortunately unable to put his curiosity to rest and learn what secrets the walls kept from the general public.

"Interesting... You seem to have many secrets you wish to keep in the dark. Whether it be Aisha who is intentionally withholding information or the ruler of this strange country, I will say I am eager to discover what secrets you hold."

He looked around for a few seconds until giving up on entering the gated fortress any time soon. There was no point of endlessly searching like a fool for a secondary entrance that likely didn't exist. The only way he could've entered if it had not been through the gate would be to break through the windows. But he had nothing in his possession which could help him reach the high windows and break through them.

"What's this?"

Kobayashi saw a drop-off in the distance. With a growing sense of wonder, he gradually began to approach the chasm.

"Was it unable to finish generating...?" Kobayashi looked downwards into the abyss, an eerie darkness flowing boundlessly at what should have been the bottom.

It seemed that the world was indeed created from the players' memories, but by following these rules, the unseen bottom of the ravine was unable to exist and instead expanded endlessly into the nonexistent.

"If someone fell into that...they would be stuck forever, not even having the fortune of being dealt death."

Kobayashi's face then lit up, what he believed to be a rather clever idea forming in his mind.

"If two people fell into it, they would have no choice but to be stuck together until the end of the game. There would be no more running or difficulties associated with this part of the game if you were to be trapped in free-fall."

Kobayashi grinned and turned around to walk back to the home he was staying in. He now had a new plan. Though it would likely end the game sooner than expected, it would end the repeated scurrying of one land to another. But his plan had much room for error, many holes that would inevitably cause problems whether it be on a high or low scale, meaning he could make a fool of himself. He could be the cause of his own death and the death of a fellow innocent man who wished to never be included in this world to begin with.

"Alexander, I will win this game. We might be viewed as idiots now, but we will take the throne. We will become the next rulers and restore peace to these foreign lands. I will do these things not for the power or the riches, but for the honor of those who met their early demise on my behalf—my mother, my friends, my brother, and most importantly the wife I failed to protect. I will wager my life for the people of this world who face discrimination, disease, poverty, and constant fear because of a failed god who was too weak to battle after what he believed to be the end of his potential. I will succeed where even the perfect ruler failed."

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DAY 25

It was now the 25th day since the game began. 5 more days and the game would come to an end automatically, crowning Kobayashi and Alexander as the winners by overall performance in the game. Though the odds of Kobayashi and Alexander winning the game because of submission from Aisha were near impossible. She was far too attached to her royal title as Queen to simply give it away like a birthday present to two men she barely knew.

Kobayashi was currently outside, enjoying the beauty of nature. His feet were nearly healed completely and the pain was barely noticeable to him. He could now walk like normal without occasionally wincing from random shots of pain surging through his feet.

"Kobayashi!"

The sudden young voice of a woman carried from across the plains, reaching Kobayashi and stealing his attention. He found himself looking at Aisha, who was all the way on the other side of the plains, glaring at Kobayashi with a purely hateful and threatening look on her face. She was done chasing him around like a wild animal hunting its prey. No more would she waste her time chasing this man around, the fraud (in her eyes) who dared to associate himself and his companion with the long anticipated saviors of this godforsaken world. The imposter who sought to lift the throne from right beneath her feet and repurpose it for his own benefit. This would indeed be the end of him.

"I see you've finally come to end the game, Aisha. And your wish shall be fulfilled; we have indeed reached the final destination of this long and perilous journey. And in a few moments, we shall discover if I and Alexander are the ones who have come to save this world or if we're only idiots who cling to a title given to one who will come to truly bring an era of freedom to this place."

Aisha scoffed at him and stared him down with eyes of wrath. It was truly the end of this painstakingly long game, and possibly the beginning to a new world.

"You are but a mere fraud, a thief who wishes to steal the title of a true legend to come! I will not allow your desire of thievery to go unpunished!"

She then charged at Kobayashi as fast as she possibly could. To his surprise, she seemed to teleport across the land at lightning speeds. He was now trapped, cornered with nowhere to go. He slowly inched backwards, before vanishing...

"Where did he go?"

Aisha stopped slightly out of breath, looking in every direction for where Kobayashi went. Yet she found nothing. He was gone, without a trace. Vanished within the blink of an eye. Nobody was fast enough to escape the entire city or plains within such a short window of time. But Kobayashi was gone, not a shred of evidence that he even stood there. No magic could pull this stunt off either. It was baffling to her how he could disappear like this.

"Down..." Aisha said quietly and looked into the abyss in front of her. There he was, falling endlessly into the darkness of the pit, starting to disappear before her own eyes.

"We end this now! Stop running!"

Aisha jumped in after him, taking no hesitation or thought at all, falling much faster than him and gaining on him at a rapid rate. It will all be over now. Once she caught up with him, one of them would strike the final time and end this.

"You LOSE!!!"

Aisha grabbed ahold of his shoulder, reaching him in an impossibly fast fashion, her speed like a falcon. He was caught off guard. He didn't anticipate for her to catch up with him so fast. He didn't even have the chance to grab his katana before she reached him. Before he even had time to react, she stabbed him in the chest with her dagger, removing his second chance.

"My family will remain undefeated like the gods we have become!!! YOU OLD BASTARD!!!"

Full of rage and anger, Aisha screamed in his face as loud as she possibly could and delivered the final killing blow. Kobayashi was now eliminated. Aisha let go of her dagger and exhaled, letting out a deep breath and releasing her pinned up rage. He began to drift through the bottomless abyss, a look of despair and defeat on his face.

He and Alexander were then just frauds? Two men who were deceived by Johan, some sort of divine entity, for what purpose? To serve as a form of twisted entertainment for him? Why would such a cruel act be committed, and why did these two have to be the victims of it? They did nothing worth being put through this suffering. The two had already suffered enough before they came here. Kobayashi and Alexander had only made fools of themselves in this case, so proudly proclaiming to be prophesied rescuers of the shattered world. Nothing more than just two fools who were so easily deceived by even their own lie. What was even the point in them trying? If they were to die anyway, they would've been better to have delivered themselves to the Kemono race the moment they arrived here; then they could've evaded such a humiliating defeat. What would be of them now? Executed by the people who suffered because of the greed of humans? The potential legacy that could've been created, all lost within an instant. Lost in a game that could not ever be won from the start, defeated by the new god of the crumbling world.

"The time of rebirth is nigh, I tell you. I and Alexander shall restore this world to its golden era!"

Kobayashi, who's body had begun to look lifeless, was perfectly fine. He grabbed the dagger falling beside him that Aisha had dropped and stabbed her in the arm.

"H-huh?!"

Aisha was disturbed and surprised. How did he do it? She was certain she hit him six times throughout the game. It was impossible. Did he cheat? No, it wasn't that he didn't cheat. He did indeed cheat, but only on equal terms with Aisha to make the game somewhat fair.

'Wait a moment,' Aisha thought to herself...

It finally clicked in her mind. Back at the burning hut in Kobayashi's homeland. Did she really hit him? She was sure she did before, but now the question arose at the worst time. Before she could piece the moment back together, it was too late and she had already fallen for whatever trap he set.

"Simulated player Aisha Königin of the human royal family has been eliminated. The victor of this match is: Kobayashi Hachiman of the Kobayashi dynasty and Alexander Webb of the English royal family," declared the same automated voice from a few days ago. It was the same voice that spoke to announce Alexander's unfortunate elimination.

And with that, the simulation ended. All of the memories collapsed in on themselves like a building with no supports and everything went black. The end of the game had been reached at long last. Contrary to the thoughts of Aisha, the duo were not frauds, but were instead the true saviors of this world and had by far proven themselves worthy of this title. And with that, the first prophecy was fulfilled—the legendary Kanpeki König, the perfect king himself, the man with an unparalleled intellect which ran through his descendants, his family was defeated in a game, just as he prophesied 10,000 years ago. This marked the end of a golden lineage's rule and the start of a new generation, perhaps a generation of hope and prosperity for all who live, regardless of race, gender, or beliefs.

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"Welcome back," said Alexander to Kobayashi as he removed himself from the chair he sat in.

Alexander seemed like he hadn't been conscious very long, meaning the time indeed passed differently in the real world. He appeared drowsy, like he had been awake for days without a rest.

"We are the victors, Alexander...we are the prophesied ones."

Kobayashi laughed, filled with joy because of his victory. Alexander was stunned, not believing Kobayashi at first. The news was unbelievable, and it seemed like the weight of the world was lifted from their shoulders. All of the previous anxiety they felt had finally disappeared.

"W-we're actually victorious? We won the game? You're not lying?"

"It's true. We rightfully secured the victory and now have official control of the country."

Before Kobayashi could even carry on further, the sight of Aisha sobbing on the floor caught his eye.

"Father, I failed you...I failed my promise, our title, and most importantly you... Please forgive me! I am the worst of the worst to lose what we were promised to keep!"

Kobayashi went silent, seeing there was much more than just her title and pride that was broken because of her loss. The sight struck a chord and caused him to feel sympathetic towards her even though she harbored feelings of ill intent towards him. He wasn't the type of person who wanted to see anyone hurt, whether they were friend or foe. Of course, he suspected more would have been put on the line than what was said when Aisha challenged him and Alexander to this game. But he wasn't sure what she truly was putting at stake at that time, but now he had put the pieces together.

"Aisha, you aren't forsaken by your father's love, even if he has long departed from this world. He would be happy to see his daughter was the one to face the long awaited saviors-"

Aisha cut him off, disdain for him dripping from her voice and tears running down her face. She had no desire to listen to whatever else he was going to say.

"You know nothing of my family's history! You know nothing of the promises I swore to uphold to my father when he took his dying breath!"

Kobayashi knelt down on the floor beside her and sighed. She was correct; he knew nothing about her family's history or the promises she made to them. And despite her wishing for Kobayashi and Alexander to die, deliberately cheating in hopes of winning the game, he somehow felt pity for her. It reminded him of the time he lost his mother, how he was so distraught and angry in those moments and how he, too, acted to do what he believed would be best. He knew the path her anger would eventually lead down if left unresolved, the pain and hurt that would additionally be added into her already suffering heart.

"You are right about that, Aisha. I don't know anything about what you've promised to your father or other family for that matter. But I hope you know, that despite the ill intent you likely harbor towards me and my friend Alexander, I wish to help you nonetheless. You aren't the only person who has felt alone and hopeless in their life."

Kobayashi extended a hand in hopes of getting her off of the floor, but she only stayed lying face down and crying to herself.

"And I wish to tell you that I do not intend on completely taking the crown from you."

With those words from Kobayashi, Alexander looked over at him with a perplexed expression. Was Kobayashi seriously going to refuse the prize he was promised just to make her feel better? The idea of not taking the throne from her seemed like a terrible proposition with no upsides whatsoever.

"Kobayashi, I don't know if that's a good-"

Kobayashi held his finger up, prompting Alexander to let him finish explaining.

"I would instead like for the throne to be shared amongst us, if you'd call it that. You don't lose your spot of political status, we don't bring the public's attention to us and risk leaking our plans to other countries who may attempt to oppose us, and we all ultimately get what we'd like."

Though he was still met with no response from Aisha. She only continued to sob quietly, mumbling silently about how sorry she was for failing her family's legacy.

"I guess she'll come to it in her own time."

After a few minutes, Aisha's tears began to diminish. She only had tear stains and red eyes left from the aftermath of her emotional outbreak. She sat herself back in the chair and Kobayashi stood back up. Her red eyes glared at him with hatred, though her gaze had a hint of curiosity in it.

"Y-you wish to share the royal status of a ruler?"

"That is correct. I believe it would be beneficial to all of us. I would be more than willing to share with you the details another time if you'd like to hear."

Aisha sighed in defeat. It was either take their deal or live on the streets as a lonely peasant who would likely die from disease. She knew she had no other alternative that would be this generation, and if she declined it would only make her look a bigger fool than she already was.

"I accept... You two are now the new included members of the royal household overseeing the human race."

Aisha attempted to wipe the tear stains off of her cheeks while Kobayashi and Alexander let out a deep sigh of relief. They evaded what should've been their demise only moments earlier, and now they were officially declared by the Queen herself to be the new rulers of these foreign lands.

"Are you sure you wish to grant her such a generous pardon, Kobayashi? She did try to kill usc after all."

"I'm certain. We can't take the wrongdoing she was going to do and use it as an excuse to commit evil against her; two wrongs don't make a right in any scenario. She has potential to be redeemed, and I know she can be fixed into a better person."

"Whatever you say, Kobayashi. Whatever you say..."

Alexander didn't want to argue with Kobayashi and reluctantly agreed to his decision. He knew that attempting to object would do absolutely nothing and he decided to hold his tongue on what he really wanted to say.

And alas the two new leaders from outside the royal family were here, the redeemers of the broken world prophesied by the greatest king to ever live. Perhaps everything here was worth the sacrifice of their old, miserable lifestyles. They lost little and gained much in this new world, and the two of them wondered if maybe, just maybe, that they should praise the one who was responsible for this great restart.