The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent

[...I won’t forgive you.]

Alice stood up as she spoke.

[I don’t care if you’re a goddess or whatever.]

[Same here.]

Claire finally snapped out of her daze and added:

[I’ll make sure you suffer just as much as she did.]

Ah, here it comes.

[Saying you’ll bend the world to your will... I won’t allow it.]

That’s it. The classic scene during the final boss fight—where the protagonists each deliver their lines one by one.

Charlotte was followed by the rest:

[D-Destiny is ours. We’ll never hand it over to you.]

Mia.

[Even if time rewinds again and again, we’ll be here, standing firm. You foolish creature.]

The Sword Saint.

[Honestly, doesn’t this part always break the immersion a little?]

[This speech goes on forever LOL]

[And it's fully voiced, so you don’t want to skip it either LOL]

Exactly. These kinds of important scenes always get the full voice acting treatment.

In older games, when the budget ran out partway through development, the voices just stopped altogether. But once the series started getting steady international sales, dubbing returned even for major scenes like this.

It’d be a waste to skip them.

This is a game that costs over 70,000 won per installment. Soon it’ll probably hit 80,000. And it’s not like the graphics are exactly groundbreaking.

Maybe it's a budget issue—or maybe they're just not allocating resources there. But if they used the money from full-price packages on development, the technical quality would improve.

The graphics are gradually getting better, if only a little.

Still, it’s a full-price game. For the same cost, you could buy the latest Final F**sy* release. Or a Western AAA title.

Which means a huge part of the ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) budget clearly goes toward hiring famous voice actors.

So skipping these lines would be like throwing money away.

It’s not because I’m a full-blown weeb or anything.

...Not yet, anyway. I’m just an otaku.

[She’s listening to every line. Sylvia is the real deal]

[A true fan]

[But didn’t the in-game Sylvia’s voice sound just like hers?]

[?]

[Wait, really?]

[She actually listened to that?]

[LOL]

“......”

While I debated whether or not to ban a few people from the chat, the cutscene was reaching its climax.

[We’ll reclaim our time! With Sylvia!]

[Fools...]

The goddess muttered as she looked at Leo, who was shouting at the front like a true protagonist.

[...In the end, your time is almost up. Unless that dying incarnation of mine rewinds time again, death will claim you all sooner or later.]

If Sylvia rewound time, the goddess would just find another, more definitive way to kill her. Something more instant, more certain.

[Very well, then. I’ll enjoy a little game with you all for now.]

And with that—

The goddess’s body expanded until she took up nearly half the screen.

...Yeah, I’d noticed the party had been standing in a fan-shaped arena.

So it was meant for this massive boss to stand at the center.

Even after becoming gigantic, her face was still shrouded in light.

[Uhowwww Sylvia’s huge boobs GET dazewwwwww]

“......”

I couldn’t let that one slide. Instant ban.

That was the goddess. Not me.

Granted, they might have meant in-game Sylvia. But either way, it pissed me off.

And so, the game’s final battle began.

The music kicked in—your classic “grand Latin chorus boss theme.” I had no idea what the lyrics meant, but it was probably lore-related.

As expected from a company known for good soundtracks, this one didn’t disappoint either.

“You know, it’s kind of weird that the goddess didn’t just fight them directly earlier,” said Alice, tilting her head.

“What do you mean?” Claire asked.

“Well, in the game, they take turns attacking, so it’s a fair fight. But in reality, no one would stand a chance against something like that.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Yeah. Like, when they use magic, the background changes to another realm, right? And when they use ultimates, the screen turns black or white. The terrain doesn’t even matter when using abilities.”

“True. If this were real, fights wouldn’t happen face-to-face like this. It’d be more like shooting from trench to trench,” added Charlotte.

“Also, magic can be interrupted while casting. That’s represented here too, but clearly the characters cast high-level spells far more leisurely than would be possible in a real fight.”

...All of that was true. But also, kind of missing the point.

[Ah yes... the weight of realism]

[Can we not treat this like a war documentary? LOL]

[They’re talking like they’ve actually been through this in another world LOL]

See? Even chat was losing patience.

“Maybe the goddess had a clearer view of the future,” I said.

Everyone in the room turned to look at me.

“We think that what she’s doing now is impossible. But in the timeline with ‘Sylvia who’s not me,’ it might’ve been possible. That’s probably why the goddess brought me here.”

Yeah. That’s how I interpreted the game.

That future must’ve led to a dead end that the goddess couldn’t stop—so she brought me to Atherna instead.

“Still, you could’ve finished the story without ever meeting the goddess,” Claire said.

“We’re only here because she threw a tantrum.”

[Wait, that’s what was going on?]

[She’s so chill about it LOL]

I didn’t really care what chat said at that point.

Even if I never fought her directly, I still got to see the sequel’s story.

And I got to live carefree in this world for a few months. That alone was worth it.

If I really did go back someday, it’d be one hell of a memory.

*

It took a while since I had to revive a few fallen characters along the way.

Because I’d used up a bunch of skill points in the Sylvia fight, the timing for my ultimate was tighter than expected.

Still, I managed to tank through the damage and stall just enough to finish the game.

At first, I thought the others had only beaten the goddess without me because they’d grown stronger. But now that I’ve played through it... it’s probably just “video game logic.”

I’d briefly forgotten that the player characters’ skill effects are over-the-top—and so are the enemy’s.

How are you supposed to beat someone who can summon black holes with their bare hands?

Maybe the real-world goddess couldn’t go that far. Maybe there are limitations once they manifest in the physical world.

[...I see. I failed again, after all...]

The goddess murmured after her HP hit zero.

[But I am an eternal being. One day, when even you no longer exist, I will try again.]

[And when that day comes, there will be others—just like us—waiting for you.]

Leo answered.

The goddess didn’t respond. She simply vanished into thin air.

[Big Sis...!]

[Claire...]

Sylvia was still alive—just barely.

But even the in-game graphics showed how pale she was. She wouldn’t last much longer.

[...Everyone, thank you. You’ve all done well.]

Light began to spill from Sylvia’s body.

Was that the goddess’s power still lingering inside her?

The one ability the goddess hadn’t been able to take from her.

Though technically, it was the goddess’s power to begin with.

[It’s almost time to say goodbye. Thank you for dealing with an unwelcome guest who had no reason to be here.]

[Big Sis, no...!]

[Sylvia!]

[Don’t go, please...!]

Claire, Alice, Leo...

And everyone else—they all called out to Sylvia, shouting her name.

[When I die, the remaining power will be used for your sake. There may be conflict. The destinies you reclaimed will return, and with them—the world we experienced together...] 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Sylvia’s eyes locked onto Claire.

A small smile curved at her lips.

With a bloodied hand, she reached out and touched Claire’s face.

[Your past too... will return to that blessed time...]

[Big Sis? Big Sis...!]

Sylvia’s hand fell.

Claire reached to catch it, but it began to dissolve into light from the fingertips down.

[No, no, no...!]

Claire’s scream echoed—and the screen slowly faded to white.

And then—

Would you like to save?

I pressed YES.