"These are your friends, aren't they? Then I’m giving them back to you!"
Peewee shouted as she swung her staff, conjuring a violent gale that birthed a massive tornado, ensnaring the Magic Armor Beasts within its reach. Displaying a ruthless streak, she began launching the trapped monsters one after another like living shells toward Woz. Even as she fired, she used the storm to swallow up more beasts, replenishing her ammunition on the fly.
"Dammit! Dammit! None of you are worth a damn! The Magic Armor Beasts are useless, and Abyss isn't coming to help! This is a joke! Why is this happening to me!?"
"...You were the one who chose this path."
"---!?"
Woz gasped, his breath hitching at the sound of Misery’s voice. He had been scrambling to dodge the bombardment of Magic Armor Beast shells raining from above, barking out bitter grudges against his allies, only to find her waiting for him.
She unleashed the Wasp Needle on her left arm in tandem with a flurry of punches. As Woz struggled just to stay out of her reach, she drove her point home.
"You decided to stand on that side. You chose allies you knew you couldn't trust when the time came. Every bit of this was your decision. You chose this path when you betrayed your teachers, your classmates at Luminous Academy, and everyone on this island."
"Shut up! What could a piece of trash like you possibly know about me!?"
"I don't want to know! I have no desire to understand the heart of someone who doesn't know the value of having comrades!!"
"We might be 'trash' to you, but we aren't alone like you are!"
"That’s right! Including Yugo and the others who aren't here... we’re fighting as one!!"
Misery pressed the engagement, diving into close-quarters combat while skillfully weaving through the falling monster shells. Hex’s axes flew through the openings in her strikes, Verda threw himself forward to shield the group whenever danger loomed, and the moment Woz tried to make a move, Peewee’s magic instantly shut him down.
Their coordination was flawless. Even with the numerical disadvantage, Woz was shaken to his core by the fact that he was being unilaterally overwhelmed despite his superior status and the power of a Clear Plate. He shook his head violently, groaning inwardly.
(This is wrong...! This shouldn't be happening. I... I'm the Protagonist. I'm an elite. I'm supposed to be the Hero of this world... so why—!?)
The version of himself he longed to be—his ideal—was drifting further and further away from reality.
It wasn't supposed to be like this. In his mind, he was the one who should have been cornering his enemies. He should have been the one standing where Misery and her friends stood. The moment he realized his current self was an existence far removed from a true [Hero], Woz’s body grew leaden, and his strength began to sap away.
"I’ve cast the weakening magic! Now’s the chance!!"
"Got it! Thanks, Neries!"
"Let's settle this here... Everyone, let's go!!"
Neries, acting as the team's anchor, cast enhancement magic on all her allies simultaneously. Moving into their designated positions to fulfill their roles, Misery and the others launched their final coordinated assault to bring Woz down.
"Alright! Give it up, Woz!!"
"W-Waaaah!?"
Verda charged in to cover the group's final preparations. He tackled Woz, grabbed him by the legs, and swung him into a massive Giant Swing. After being spun at high speeds and hurled away, Woz stumbled to his feet, dizzy and disoriented, only to find himself trapped within a ring of tornadoes.
"I've caught him! Now, Hex!"
"Yeah! I'm blowing him away!!"
"Guh! Gwah!? Gahaa!?"
Axes spun out of the tornadoes, carving into Woz from every conceivable angle. Each strike gained momentum from the cyclonic winds, layering blow upon blow until Woz collapsed to his knees, unable to take any more.
"I... I was... supposed to be the Protagonist. With this power, I was going to make everyone kneel. And then—"
His future as the Protagonist. His legacy as a Hero. The glory he was meant to seize. All of it was vanishing. Woz reached upward, trying to grasp the light as it drifted beyond his reach. Then he saw Misery diving through the eye of the storm.
"This is our strength! These are our feelings! We’re putting it all into this one blow!"
Needles of magic formed and multiplied. Backed by Neries’s enhancements and elemental buffs, Misery’s power reached its peak as she plummeted toward Woz from above. With a clenched fist and the spear-like needle extending from it, she struck with the full weight of her fall and the collective resolve of her friends.
"Group Up Rising Sting!!"
"Gah! Gahhaaa!!"
The magic needle drove deep into his chest, sending a violent electrical discharge through his entire body. Screaming from the combined agony of the impact and the numbing shock, Woz was hurled out of the tornadoes as the force detonated.
"Ugh... hng... hng... uuuugh... uuuuuuuuugh...!!"
"...I think it’s over."
"Yeah, looks like it."
Woz had been blasted back into his human form. Hex nodded in agreement with Misery as she scanned the area. The battle was largely won. As she watched Woz sob and huddle on the ground, Uno’s voice thundered across the battlefield.
"All personnel, evacuate! The Barrier-generating Magic Item has been destroyed, but the residual magic power inside is about to Overload! Get away from here immediately!!"
Uno, having plunged his sword into the device, shouted to the students while beginning his own retreat. He moved quickly, scooping up fallen students to get them to safety. Misery and the others heard his command and moved to grab Woz to take him with them, but...
"M-my glory... my future as the Protagonist... my happy life as a Hero..."
"W-Woz!? What are you doing!?"
Without anyone noticing, Woz had begun walking toward the Magic Item that was on the verge of exploding. Neries was stunned to see him charging into the danger zone while everyone else fled, and she tried to move toward him, but Peewee caught her arm.
"No, Neries! We won't make it in time...!!"
"But! If it were Yugo-san, he would surely—!"
"I know! But we aren't him! We can't do it!"
Even if it were an enemy, even in a crisis like this, Yugo would never abandon Woz. He would risk his life to save him. Neries and the others knew that better than anyone—but they also knew that they simply didn't have the strength to pull it off.
Verda grabbed Neries and hauled her away as the group evacuated. Hex grabbed Misery’s hand, pulling her along even as she looked back with lingering regret.
"The explosion’s coming! Run, everyone! Hurry—!!" Hex screamed.
"I am, I am, I am, I am... the Protagonist—"
Left truly alone as the world fled from him, Woz leaned against the mangled Magic Item as its power spiraled out of control. The moment a weak, tearful smile crossed his face... the Magic Item detonated, and a violent shockwave consumed everything.