#but that's a far cry from the dokja who's going to go get to live in his big house with his newfound family :(

[pttucker]

⸢2%.⸥ That number was the proof – and the lie – that I remembered my companions far better than my Avatar. Even if no one knew of this version of me existing here, even if the companions' stories had come to an end like that… But, at the very least, I swore to myself that I'd never forget about them. ⸢Y ou re gre tting it?⸥ A soft noise came from the clunking subway. I was treated to the view of a completely empty subway interior. The handles no one held onto limply shook about. ⸢Don t fe el so lo nely⸥ "I'm not." I slowly regulated my breathing. I had already experienced a similar situation before. It was also like this back when I became the 'Demon King of Salvation' and fell into the story's horizon. In a way, my situation was better than back then. Well, I wasn't currently suffering from the penalty of leaving the scenario, after all. If there was one thing different from back then, it'd be… ⸢I'd never be able to meet my companions.⸥

So much for the happy ending.

Oh Dokja. 😭

Though I do love that this epilogue picks right up where the main story left off, and I think for the first time ever I actually found a story where we get to see what actually happens when someone makes the choice to stay behind.

I've seen other stories with the whole "I'll become the new Guardian" or "I'll protect X forever" but that's the end of those characters' stories, you don't hear from them again. Or there's stories that start with them all "I've been locked in this place watching the X for 10,000 years."

I've never seen the immediate aftermath of the person learning to live with the big sacrifice, coming to terms with the fact that they now have to go on doing this forever, alone, and it hurts.

As expected of ORV.