The Time-Stop Breeding Uncle Want’s to Retire

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There once was a man called the Guardian.

His memories were scattered, but within those fragments… he was human.

For his homeland and his people, memories now long faded, he had stood his ground. He had pointed his sword at the encroaching monsters.

Even after falling into the clutches of the monster’s creator, even after losing all his memories, his desire to protect remained.

Ironically, this proved the creator’s cruelty, twisting his unwavering devotion into something monstrous.

The Guardian wanted to protect.

He had one single, clear memory.

To protect his lord.

The fallen Guardian no longer possessed honor or dignity. But the desire to protect lingered.

[A pathetic vermin like you, content to wallow in your fortress, was never our match!]

His words pierced him.

The words of the hero who had defeated his lord and rebuilt the Royal Knights. Their weight struck the Guardian, stripped of his pride.

He had desperately tried to protect this place, grotesquely consuming the fortress, dividing his heart and hiding the pieces, all to survive, to defend this place. But my words had awakened him.

Not his memories, those were likely gone forever.

The one who created him, the one who named him a blood demon, had seen to that.

He had been designed with such malice that regaining his memories was impossible. But fragments remained.

And within those fragments, the embers of honor and pride flickered.

The viscous, repulsive flesh burned away, leaving only the Guardian.

Clad in rusted, scrap-metal armor, his body still filled with burning flesh, but now, with a single, unified heart.

He was the Guardian.

“Come! Human! Prove your pride!”

His cry echoed through the fortress, the cry of one who had never retreated against monster or demon.

His power had diminished, but his skill, honed over centuries against monsters, now targeted me.

They exchanged a deadly dance of blades, a touch of which meant death.

He thought it was over. But then, he realized. His right arm was gone. No, not his arm. His head.

I clicked my tongue.

‘Damn, does he have some weird power?’

Even with his speed and skill, decapitating him while time was frozen had been easy. But I released Time Stop just in case, and…

I had clearly seen the severed head, yet the moment time resumed, only his right arm was missing. It seemed his power had activated.

He looked at his remaining arm.

He had been completely defeated.

My crude, unrefined slash, devoid of finesse, had bypassed his skill and speed.

“My Guardian’s pride is gone, and my human honor has fallen.”

That crude attack resonated with him. He had reached this point with such raw talent. His sword must have been steeped in anguish and fear, just like mine.

But he had to overcome that fear and move forward. That was the burden of those who carried such a weight.

The memories he thought were lost forever began to resurface.

“But my sword and will are mine.”

It had happened here, in this ruined fortress. He had faced an overwhelming foe, lost an arm, and been captured.

Then, he had become this grotesque monster.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

He wouldn’t make excuses.

His spirit had broken in the face of overwhelming power, and he had joined the demons. But he wouldn’t look away any longer.

He would bear the sins he had committed as a monster.

“I, Ares, will walk the path of the Guardian until the end.”

It was a coincidence. Losing an arm, facing a similar situation. But coincidences, aligned, became miracles.

His regaining his memories was a miracle.

In this moment, Ares, the Guardian, was grateful to me, the hero. And relieved. The battles he had fought weren’t meaningless.

They had led to this.

And now…

I, the hero, was receiving the gratitude of the Guardian who had reclaimed his name.

And I was thinking…

‘Your mom.’

I inwardly hurled insults at him, too afraid to voice them aloud. This whole situation was incredibly frustrating.

🚨 Important Notice 🚨

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The monster I thought I had killed had suddenly revived and powered up.

I cut off his arm, and he powered up again, his fighting spirit rekindled.

‘What is this, a Dark Souls boss fight? How many phases does this thing have? This isn’t a Souls-like, it’s an eroge! Damn it!’

But my mind raced.

‘He said the seven hearts merged into one. And that burning smell… there’s still flesh inside that armor.’

I had fought countless battles, risking my life, and I knew I had to remain calm.

So, I spoke.

“Humans only have one heart. What about you?”

“I, too, have only one heart now.”

“I see. Then you, too, are human.”

I raised my hand and placed it over my heart.

Ares, watching me, mirrored the gesture.

‘There it is! You son of a bitch!’

‘This bastard has no conscience.’

He was hiding his heart in his abdomen. Actually, the burning flesh had shifted its position, but he didn’t know that.

Sensing my hostility, Ares attacked first.

A single, swift strike, all his skill honed to a razor’s edge.

For a fleeting instant, a fraction of a second, he reached a level beyond his limits. If I hadn’t been his opponent…

It was a strike that could have killed even the one who defeated him in the past. But his attack couldn’t break through Time Stop.

I was stunned.

‘That was… something else.’

I had seen speeds I couldn’t react to countless times. But Ares’s attack was fundamentally different.

Sensing the danger, I swiftly drew the holy sword and pierced his heart, severing his remaining left arm for good measure.

Time resumed.

He looked at his severed arm, flying through the air. He could no longer wield a sword. But he smiled.

“What is your name?”

“Hans.”

“You fought well, Hans.”

He no longer needed his worn, battered sword.

The descendant of the humans he had sworn to protect had arrived.

Their will would be inherited, honed. It had been a satisfying battle.

He had witnessed the sharp blade of his descendants. He couldn’t ask for more.

Ares’s body began to crumble.

The last remnants of his flesh burned away.

The stench from the fortress dissipated.

I looked around.

The grotesque fortress, filled with flesh and entrails, was gone.

Only the ruined structure remained, like Ares himself.

I clicked my tongue and looked up.

“There’s the Commander! Commander!!!”

“Teacher! Are you alright?!”

“Honestly…”

I chuckled, watching my unit members run towards me.

I had grown fond of them, despite their antics.

I wanted to scold them, but we had achieved a great victory together.

I felt a sense of camaraderie.

We had fought side-by-side, risking our lives.

It was natural. But just as I was relaxing, I heard a cracking sound.

I wondered what it was.

[…Our…]

[…Eternal…]

‘…!’

A fleeting, unknown memory flashed through my mind.

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[Translator Notes]