After leaving the team, the adventurer ladies regretted it deeply

All the clocks were suspended in the dark void, emitting a ticking sound.

The pervasive noise fell on his ears, stabbing his brain like needles.

Lin Da frowned, spread his wings, and searched for an exit in the clock-filled space.

First, he flew upward for half an hour.

Clocks were everywhere.

Each one bizarrely shaped and distinct.

Looking into the distance, it was still a vast expanse of black space.

Clocks hung above, below—ubiquitous and inescapable.

"What's going on? Is there no end to this place?"

He couldn't even tell how time flowed in this infernal place. If he managed to escape only to find that Lia and the others had died of old age, he might be left with nothing but tears of despair.

Still, there was hope.

Lin Da thought to himself: the fact that he was alive was proof enough—Tricia, the bitch, had tried to devour his soul, but he was still here, which meant she hadn't succeeded.

Current circumstances not only defied his expectations but presumably Tricia's as well.

Lin Da kept flying upward, pondering to himself:

He had been struck down by Tricia's Holy Sword "Future." According to that damn goddess, the sword cuts the present, past, and future. If her theory held, he shouldn't have been alive, let alone strategizing in this bizarre space.

It all suggested that something—something tying him across the dimensions of "past, present, and future"—continued to exist.

As long as that something wasn't destroyed by Tricia, he wouldn't vanish completely.

Understanding the rough logic, Lin Da still felt helpless.

Whatever "that something" was, he had no idea.

Even if he did, there was no way to transmit messages outside.

This clock-filled space resembled a universe: each grotesque clock could represent a star. No matter how he flew, he might never reach the end.

A bad premonition crept into Lin Da's heart.

"Why clocks, though? And why do they look so weird?"

The more he stared at these objects, the angrier he became.

He unleashed a burst of magic power, attacking one of the clocks.

Crack.

The clock shattered, with shards of glass flying past his face.

Huh?

Lin Da's eyelids twitched.

The glass fragments refracted bizarre images in the darkness, resembling a vivid recording:

Lia and the others stood atop a carriage, flower crowns adorning their heads, their faces beaming with joy as they waved to the cheering crowds on both sides of the street, a scene of triumphant heroes returning.

"What is this?"

Lin Da's expression turned peculiar.

Had time outside fast-forwarded to the end of the war, with everyone happily returning to the Royal Capital?

He picked up the scattered shards and pieced them together.

He continued observing the scene inside.

It turned out this day was the heroes' commendation ceremony, where the Royal Family granted all participating Legendary Rank warriors the title of "Glory Hero."

The Mystic Continent had returned to peace, and the Royal Capital was abuzz with celebration.

Lin Da felt an ache in his heart.

Have you all forgotten something?

At the evening banquet, Lia drank to the point of intoxication.

She stood on a table, waving her Great Sword around and making a fool of herself.

Thankfully, Aiko dragged her back to her room.

Lin Da was utterly baffled.

Wait a minute,

aren't I supposed to be your Oath-bound?

I "died," and this is how you all rejoice?

Someone has to shed a tear, right?

At least pay some tribute to the hero?

Forget Lia—even Lin Xi, who had resumed her human form, seemed entirely unfazed by his "death" and had gone off to play with Klrona.

Bailuo, meanwhile, led a group of Water Series Legends, boasting about her experience leveling up to 99.

Her cat ears stood smugly upright, her youthful figure propped smugly with one hand on her hip, wielding a pointer stick as she gestured grandly at a diagram on a board, looking insufferably proud.

She had completely forgotten about her teacher.

If Lia was clueless, Lin Da could understand.

But Bailuo acting like this?

Lin Da was sure—the world reflected in the clock was anything but normal!

"Could it be…?"

A chilling thought flashed through his mind.

Gazing at the infinite expanse of clocks in the pitch-black void, dread gripped his heart.

"Damn it!"

Lin Da swore aloud, unable to suppress his anger.

He grabbed a triangular clock and peered at its surface.

As he continued staring, images emerged on the surface.

"Lin Da, Lin Da, I don't want you to die. Boo hoo hoo, wake up, I swear I'll stop lecturing you!"

"Teacher..."

"Huh? Lin Da died? Hahaha, serves him right! That Lust Demon plagued countless innocent girls."

A group gathered around the corpse of a rotund, hero-like figure—some crying hysterically, others clapping in relief.

Question marks filled Lin Da's head.

That fat guy looked a bit like him.

But not entirely.

He stroked his chin, deep in contemplation.

The world shown in the clock felt like an alternate future.

A future where Lia and the others forgot him. Where his image was distorted into that of the rotund "Fat Lin Da"—almost certainly Tricia's doing, conjuring a fake hero to replace his sacrifice, rewriting Lia and the others' memories, and restarting yet another cycle of Hero-versus-Demon King.

Lin Da gripped the clock and shouted: "Lia, Bailuo, wake up! That Lust Demon fatso isn't me—remember the real me!"

If even one person remembered him, he'd exist within the "past" and could harness the Time Law's power to escape this cursed clock space.

"Fat bastard, ugh!"

On the clock's glass surface, the New Moon Knight approached disdainfully and stomped on Fat Lin Da's groin:

"You disgusting scum dare spy on me bathing? If you weren't the hero, I would've killed you already!"

"Sister, please hold off until after the hero commendation ceremony. Then we'll dig up his corpse for vengeance," Evelyn said.

Lin Da shook his head—this clock was hopeless.

He smashed it to pieces and turned to the next one.

"Wow, Hero Linda is so gorgeous! I'm going to freeze her corpse and display it for posterity. This brave and beautiful female hero gave her life to defeat the Demon King."

Reporter Kami stood in front of the Demon King's Castle, furiously snapping photos of the deceased female hero Linda.

In that world, he seemed to have turned into a beautiful girl, adored by everyone...

Lin Da slapped the clock into shards.

And then…

He browsed countless clocks.

Not one depicted a normal world.

Either Lia and the others forgot him,

or he became someone like "Lynn," "Li Cha," or "Dai Lian."

Tick-tock, tick-tock.

The second hand of the clocks moved with each piercing sound.

Like cold, indifferent demons, drifting in the void and staring at Lin Da with mocking eyes.

...

He had no idea how much time had passed.

Lin Da slumped to the ground, numbly picking up the next clock.

At first, he kept count of how many clocks he'd smashed. Now, he couldn't be bothered.

It must have been tens of thousands.

He still hadn't found his original world.

And in every timeline, no one remembered him.

When he checked the next clock, Lin Da suddenly froze.

He noticed his hands slowly becoming transparent.

"What's happening?"

Panic surged in Lin Da's heart.

Looking around, he saw this pitch-black void filled with clocks splitting—one becoming two, two becoming four.

When he first arrived, there was a clock every meter. Now, they were crammed together like a swarm of locusts, dense to the point of despair!

"The more futures derived, the weaker my connection to the original world becomes!

Out of these countless clocks, which one represents my 'future'?"

As the number of clocks grew endlessly, Lin Da's link to his original world would eventually sever completely.

By then, he would truly cease to exist!

Lin Da's eyes burned red as he looked at the next clock.

If even one of his companions could recall his existence,

he could break free from this prison.

Through years of adventure, his teammates had given him their unwavering trust.

He had to trust his companions too!

In games, it's almost impossible for players to defeat the Demon King with just one character.

Courage, strength, and mentality are essential elements for clearing the game. But the most crucial factor is the bond between the player and their teammates.

Lin Da, the character, had already been forged.

Favorability, all above 90.

Now, all Lin Da could do was believe in the bonds he shared with the girls.

The thousands of days and nights spent together wouldn't be in vain!

"Bailuo, Anna, Monica, Lia… Remember me. I'm betting everything on your miracle!"