No Game No Life World, Library.
'This is...'
Jibril stared at the screen showing an Elf Race structure, her expression one of surprise—this was the very place she had flown over back then.
After being hit by the Elf Race's flight-interference magic, she'd crashed and ended up with a bump on her head.
At the time she had unleashed a Heavenly Strike, obliterating the Elf capital and making off with a trove of grimoires; what happened afterward she had no idea.
'That time?'
Jibril truly hadn't expected the Elf capital to have housed such a weapon back then. Why hadn't they used it against her?
Oh, right—she'd hit and run. Never mind.
Watching Rick and Shuvi on the screen, Jibril felt an inexplicable premonition growing stronger. Could that sudden 'Final War' have been orchestrated by them?
This being called Rick had first uncovered the Goblin Race's Marrow Burst, and now here he was discovering the Elf Race's Void Ranko Zero.
Coincidence? Or... As she watched the pair, Jibril's gaze turned subtly dangerous.
She wasn't alone; every race in the No Game No Life World now had their eyes glued to the footage. Compared with Tet the opportunist,
they cared far more about what had really happened. Among the major races, many sages had already guessed
that the death of Artosh—the spark that ended the Great War—had been orchestrated by someone from the Human Race.
Yet what that someone's true aim had been, no one knew, and there was no proof such a person had ever existed.
They were like ghosts: sensed only faintly, their deeds shrouded in mystery.
The video continued.
Rick and Shuvi stared ahead, momentarily stunned.
'What is this...?' Rick exclaimed.
Shuvi studied the patterns and said, 'The Phantasma Race's blessing sigil—Lord Kainas's mark.'
'Kainas?' Rick frowned. 'The creator of the Elf Race?'
Unlike humans, every other race had its own gods and creators; only the Human Race had none, which was why life for humanity in this world was so harsh.
'...'
Shuvi stepped closer, examining the pillar. 'These aren't blessing sigils. They don't match any Elf Race glyphs or Cursed Techniques in my data.'
Rick didn't look surprised. 'They must be building a weapon even you don't know about. Like the Goblins, they seem to enjoy blowing up planets.'
He crouched, tracing the Elf script on the floor. 'Void Ranko Zero Technique—Theoretical Validation Test Furnace.'
'?!' Shuvi blinked. 'Rick, you can read Elf?'
'...' Rick hesitated, then said calmly, 'If we can't read the intel we've bled to obtain, it's worthless. Through oral lore, written records—every means—we've passed down other races' natures, languages, even habits, generation after generation.'
He turned to her. 'We humans aren't just drifting toward extinction.'
'!'
Shuvi's eyes widened in shock.
She wasn't the only one; every race watching from the No Game No Life World was equally stunned. Six thousand years ago the Human Race had been worse off than sewer rats; their mere survival had been a miracle.
Yet here was their leader—this man named Rick—fluent in every major tongue.
Without spirits to aid them, living in such brutal conditions where food and sleep were daily battles,
he had still found time to master other races' languages. Unbelievable.
'That said,' Rick murmured, fingers on the script, 'I can't decipher much more. This part here, I think, is a name.'
He pointed, looking vexed.
Shuvi stepped over. 'If it's classified Elf data, it's probably encrypted.'
Rick nodded. 'Exactly. So classified even the developers' names are encoded.'
'Void Ranko Zero Technique,' he said, a cold sweat beading. 'One thing's sure: this is nothing good.'
'Ssssh—!! Wumm!'
Overhead, a magic circle spun into life, translucent arrows forming. Shuvi instantly shielded Rick. 'Rick, fall back!'
'Deploy! AllVectorsReverse!!!'
She deflected the incoming arrows and hurled them aside.
'Boom—!!!'
An explosion rocked the hall. 'Run!' she shouted, voice tight.
The far gate began to slide shut. Together they sprinted for it,
but they were too slow; the gate slammed closed just as they reached it.
'Damn it!' Rick pounded the door, barely holding back fury.
'!!!!'
Beneath Shuvi a yellow circle flared, engulfing her in a sphere.
'Shuvi?' Rick stared in horror as she was sealed inside. 'Shuvi!!!!!'
'Ri...'
Shuvi herself turned into light, her expression vacant, then—boom.
Riku was blasted away; Shuvi crashed to the ground, electricity crackling over her body.
"Shuvi!!!" Riku's usually calm voice cracked with raw panic.
The surrounding runes vanished, the room dimmed. Clenching his teeth, Riku staggered up and half-crawled, half-ran toward her, shouting, "Shuvi! Shuvi!"
A year had passed; the bond between Riku and Shuvi was now beyond ordinary imagination.
Terror and despair flooded him—had she died protecting him?
His trembling hand reached out to check her condition.
Shuvi sat bolt upright like a reanimated corpse, head tilted. "That was the defense system. The Elf Race's barrier is still active."
"Huh?" Riku stared at her blank, almost broken expression, unable to process what was happening.
"But it's fine now," she continued calmly.
She seemed to reboot; eyes forward, she intoned, "Initiate, Pseudo-Spell: Aerial Capture."
Whoom!
A green sphere appeared before her; under her control, countless vacuum blades surged forward, shearing a chunk off the stone door.
Riku gaped at the gap. "What was that?"
"A unique Ex-Machina function," Shuvi replied evenly. "Analyze, imitate, reproduce. As a parsing unit, I can't even replicate one-tenth of the original output."
Riku fell silent, eyeing the hole. "Still… that's insane."
They stepped outside. "Sorry," Shuvi said. "I broke my promise and used Elemental power."
"Eh." Riku exhaled. "Better dead's no good. Let's move before that thing pinpoints us."
"Understood."
She nodded and followed him upward.
They emerged into howling wind laced with black ash—a storm that stopped them in their tracks.
"Black-ash death storm," Riku muttered, dismayed.
"Shuvi is unaffected." As an Ex-Machina, she could ignore the ash. "I carry cleanser to purge contamination."
Riku pulled up his hood. "Lucky you. I'm not ash-proof."
He descended, set a stone into a dish of water.
Orange light flickered, giving the gloom a pulse of life.
"You brought Chess?" he asked.
"Sorry…" She lowered her head.
He sighed at her apologetic look. "I'm not mad. Let's play."
"Eh?" She blinked. "May we?"
"In this storm no one will sniff us out. Perfect time-killer."
"Mm!"
She almost smiled, clearly pleased.
The wind kept roaring.
"Damn it! I lost again!"
Riku's yell joined the gale; he swept the pieces back. "Again!"
"Riku," Shuvi ventured, "why keep playing when you never win?"
"Never win?"
She delivered the verdict: "You have lost every game so far."
He finished setting the board and met her eyes. "I had you thinking on that last move. I can win."
"…" She studied him. "Shuvi understands a little now."
"Hmm?"
She moved a piece. "This planet is lethal to Humans; their continued life is an anomaly. An anomaly that must be corrected—yet it persists."
"Because of your will, Riku."
He bit his lip and played on.
"Human survival is statistically impossible, but you reject that fact. Why?"
"Then tell me—" Riku looked up. "What's the point of living here? We scramble to survive, and then what?"
"Do we just vanish like dust? If I refuse—if I sacrifice nine hundred ninety-nine to save a thousand and one—does the world change?"
The questions he'd locked away burst open; his voice cracked.
Shuvi reached out and gently touched his cheek.
He calmed, eyes shut, voice shaking. "Tell me, Shuvi—what can I still do?"
She laid her hand on his chest. "I want to know what answer lives in your heart."
Riku gave a rueful laugh. "I ask because I don't know. Now you're asking me."
"Riku," she said, "what do you want to do?"
"What do I want…?"
"Anything," she murmured, hand still on his heart. "Until I understand your heart, Shuvi will stay beside you."
"No matter what Riku wants to do, Shuvi will help."
"So..." Shuvi looked at Riku, her voice unwavering: "Shuvi wants to make what Riku wants happen."
"!!!!!!"
Riku's pupils trembled.
At this moment Shuvi and Riku gazed at each other, and the atmosphere turned subtly delicate.
Shuvi slowly closed her eyes, like a shy Little Girl about to offer a kiss.
"Checkmate."
The next second, Shuvi won; she had checkmated Riku.
The scene became awkward, and even Riku had to complain, "Shuvi, in this situation it should at least be a draw—judging by the mood."
"Is something wrong with the atmosphere?" Shuvi tilted her head, looking genuinely puzzled.
"..." Riku froze, then smiled from the heart. "No, it's nothing."
Under his laughter the storm outside seemed to pause.
Shuvi and Riku noticed and walked out together. The camera pulled back, letting viewers witness a dream-like beauty.
Of course, it was cruel for any shut-ins in dark rooms; the scene was gorgeous but bright enough to sting the eyes.
"So beautiful." ×2
Riku and Shuvi spoke in unison, then glanced at each other.
Riku smiled from the heart and asked, "Shuvi, having companions is great, isn't it?"
"Mm?" Shuvi looked puzzled. "Riku, you were never alone, you know."
"No." Riku shook his head wryly. "I used to act like an idiot, playing the lone hero... but, well, saying it is easier than doing it."
"..." Watching him, Shuvi's pupils widened again, unknown feelings swirling in her eyes.
"Shuvi." Riku met her gaze, voice firm. "Tell me the purpose of this war and the condition to end it."
Outside the video, in Magical Girl Illya World.
"Ahhhhhh!!! magical ruby!!! Send me over there right now!!! I need to push their heads together!!!"
Illya's voice cracked with excitement; seeing Shuvi close her eyes she'd shouted, "Kiss! Kiss!! Don't mind us!"
Then... Shuvi shattered the mood—master of atmosphere destruction.
Illya was so worked up she wanted to leap into the screen and force their lips together.
The mood had been sugar-sweet, like honeyed dates, and Shuvi ruined it—how could Illya not fume?
"Calm down. I can cross worlds, but we can't jump into a video."
magical ruby sighed. As a first-rate mystic code of the Second Magic, parallel worlds were feasible, but diving into a recording? Impossible.
Illya was asking the impossible.
"What a shame," Miyu murmured; the mood had been perfect, yet Shuvi chose to checkmate Riku.
Was this a victory on the board but a loss at love?
"Uuuuuu!!!" Illya sobbed—she'd been elated, now crushed—but took a breath. "It's fine; sweeter scenes will come."
Watching Shuvi and Riku grow close made Illya happy; the under-age Little Girl adored sugary romance.
She loved Magical Girl stories because they brimmed with a girl's rosy dreams.
Right now she wanted nothing but tooth-rotting sweetness; plot twists could wait.
"..." Miyu looked resigned, studying Riku's determined face.
She sensed he was about to attempt something world-changing.
After it, the world would likely become the game-as-war realm the Blank Siblings knew.
Glancing at Illya, Miyu realized such a feat would cost Riku and Shuvi dearly.
Changing a world wasn't child's play; when her own brother had arrived battered, she'd learned that power was needed to fight fate.
Still, she hoped they would survive—she didn't want them to die.
One-Punch Man World.
"It's starting."
Genos sat grave-faced beside a hotpot, lifting meat while watching Riku.
He knew the human was moving; the moment Riku sought to end the war, history's wheel began to turn.
All Genos knew was that, besides the slightly capable Shuvi, Riku's side had no other fighters.
How would he proceed? Genos was curious; from the Blank Siblings' future, the plan had clearly succeeded.
Yet success aside, the process mattered more!
"Ah, I'm jealous."
Saitama, ignoring plans, envied Shuvi. "I want a girlfriend like that."
"..." Tornado snorted. "With your power no ordinary person could survive intimacy; only someone like Boros could take a punch and live."
"Better think hard about how you'll avoid dying alone."
"Rude!"
Saitama shouted, "I'm an ordinary guy—I can control my strength!"
"Ordinary?"
Tornado scoffed. She'd seen his daily training, but after trying it herself she'd only gotten sore with marginal gains, so she stuck to boosting her esper powers.
"Yes, with Teacher's power, an ordinary woman simply couldn't endure it; only a legendary species like that stands any chance of surviving his seed."
At that moment, Genos too began to worry about Saitama's future.
After all, their teacher was just too strong—and great strength meant… well, you know.
Better to plan ahead, just in case.
"Genos?!" Saitama had never imagined his own disciple would start fretting over his love life; he'd only been sighing in passing!
He truly didn't want to marry—he was flat broke; what woman would ever look twice at a guy like him?
"Anyway," Tatsumaki cut in, turning to the screen. "What do you think those two will do next?"
"That's… tricky,"
Genos hesitated. He was the type to charge straight through any problem; he'd picked up a few tactics lately, but his style was still overwhelming firepower.
As long as he could suppress the enemy with sheer firepower, victory was halfway assured.
But asked how Rick and Shuvi would proceed, he was stumped—the human side here was hopelessly weak.
In short, not a single fighter worth mentioning. How could they possibly win?
If he were Rick, he'd hole up somewhere safe, gather strength, and pour everything into developing tech that could kill the enemy—until they could finally strike a crippling blow.
"Simple," Saitama said around a mouthful of meat. "Just leak the secret weapons of the Goblin Race and Elf Race to the other side. Once a secret's out, it's not a secret anymore; both camps will hesitate, and the war should stop—at least for a while."
"If they stop, the other big players will probably call a cease-fire too and just watch how things unfold."
"?"
Tatsumaki blinked, surprised. Saitama usually seemed careless—downright stingy when it came to money—yet now he'd said something startlingly insightful.
As they kept talking, the video rolled on.
Scenes flickered past, and Rick's voice returned—different now, warmer, no longer cold.
"When I was small, I thought the world simple: no match was unwinnable, effort always paid off, anything was possible—everything felt so clear-cut."
"Win, lose, draw—I saw the world through unobstructed eyes."
"Naïve as that child was… however—"
The image shifted to a map; Rick's eyes shone, a grin on his lips. "Turns out, back then, I wasn't wrong at all!"
"Eh?" Shuvi tilted her head.
Rick met her gaze. "With you, Shuvi, I feel like we can do something interesting in this world."
His once-dead eyes now held light.
"Mm…" Shuvi murmured, a tremor in her voice. "I like those eyes."
"Eyes? …Like?" Rick puzzled.
Shuvi closed her own eyes, searching inward, then opened them again. "I like those eyes—that's what I think."
Rick's cheeks colored; he scratched his head with a laugh. "There you go being vague again—hahaha!"
He laughed as if it were the best joke ever.
The scene shifted: dragons soared alongside Goblin warships.
Cannons charged, shells rained down and slammed into the water.
It was only a probe, yet for distant humans it spelled disaster; a girl spun and sprinted for the settlement.
She brought word of the catastrophe.
"Stay calm!" Corone shielded a purple-haired Little Girl. "Head for the west exit—now!"
She knelt to the child. "Nanna, stay with the others."
"Mm!" Nanna ran off with the group.
Corone hurried to Rick and flung the door wide. "Rick!"
She froze: Rick clenched a map, every line of him screaming frustration.
"Rick…"
She reached for his hand.
"Damn it!" he choked. "Even this place falls? Everything I've done—what was it for?"
In the background, cloaked figures slipped toward some unseen goal.
Corone embraced him. "Rest, Rick. Leave everything to your big sister now."
Tears rolled—she wouldn't let him carry the burden any longer.
Then— "Shuvi," Rick said, suddenly calm. "Did you record it?"
"Crystal-clear~"
Shuvi stood in the doorway, paper and quill in hand.
"Eh?!" Corone gaped.
Rick's face mirrored Light Yagami's "all-according-to-plan" smile. "From today, Corone, you're head of the new settlement."
He pressed the map into her hands. "Western route's safe. Get everyone moving."
Corone remained frozen, still trying to process what had just happened.
Riku picked up his clothes and the Chess set with great ease, saying leisurely, "Alright, I'll leave the rest to you."
"This!?" At this moment, Corone realized she had been tricked by Riku; he hadn't been broken at all. She hurriedly said, "Wait! Riku!! The settlement and I both need you!!"
"No!" Riku flatly refused. "As long as you are here, everything will be fine."
Then Riku turned his head and gave a very sincere smile, looking at Corone and saying, "From now on, no one else will die."
"!!!!"
Corone's pupils shrank slightly as she said in shock, "Riku..."
Riku and Shuvi strode outside, and at that moment, the 'Tail' behind Shuvi was exposed.
Seeing this, Corone didn't say much, but instead put her hands behind her back and said with great interest, "Hey, do you two have some big plan?"
"To play a game."
Riku showed a confident smile, waved the items in his hand, and looked at Corone. "It's just a game between children."
The scene shifted again.
On a complete map, Riku's voice rang out, speaking calmly, "Everyone here has stayed until the end. It seems we are no longer ourselves; we no longer exist in this world. We have become ghosts."
As Riku spoke, a group of humans wearing hoods appeared. Their expressions were solemn, ranging from old to young.
They were Riku's followers, but in the recent evacuation incident, they had become 'ghosts'—beings that no longer existed in this world.
Riku looked at them and continued, "Stop hoping the war will end one day. Stop expecting a future that will never come."
"Are we to just run and hide in this hopeless world, struggling to survive and praying for the war to end? To whom would we pray?"
Riku suddenly slammed the table, looking at the crowd with a hint of anger in his voice. "To those destroyers who call themselves gods?!"
"The creator of the Flügel — Artosh."
"The creator of the Elf Race — Kainas."
"The creator of the Goblin Race — Okane."
With each god he named, Riku placed a Chess piece on the map. He said seriously, "These bastards, in their constant struggle for the seat of the One True God, have waged war and destroyed our world in the process."
"Why should we still pray to these bastards?!"
"It's time to accept it! This world... has no hope at all!"
As Riku said this, countless people lowered their heads, their bodies trembling slightly.
But soon, Riku's tone became serious and full of passion. "Therefore, we must create hope with our own hands!"
Everyone looked up at Riku, and Shuvi did the same.
Riku looked at the crowd and said seriously, "This world was originally a very simple game. It's just that those destroyers, in order to seize the star cup..."
"...that conceptual device symbolizing absolute control over the world! They just keep playing their boring games as they please."
"In that case!" Riku reached out his hand to Shuvi and continued, "We will also set the rules we want to play by, and then achieve victory!"
Shuvi reached out and took Riku's hand.
Then Riku reached out his other hand, and as the stirring BGM began to play, he held up one finger and said firmly, "First! You must not kill anyone!"
Riku thought quietly to himself: 'Because my heart doesn't want to kill anyone.'
"Second! You must not let anyone die!"
'Because I don't want to let anyone else die.'
"Third! You must not be seen through by anyone!"
'Because that means death.'
"Fourth! Any method is not considered cheating!"
'As long as it's not exposed, no method is considered cheating.'
"Fifth! No need to care about the rules of other races!"
'Fighting with our lives like they do is foolish.'
"Sixth! Violating any of the above rules counts as a loss!!"
'Because victory achieved by violating these rules is meaningless.'
Riku slowly lowered his hand, then clenched his fist and placed it over his heart. He looked at the people before him, a flash of light in his eyes, and continued, "With that, let's get to work following the rules!"
"We are ghosts. We cannot kill a single person, including those of the Phantasma Race, and we cannot be seen through by them."
"Instead, we will end this Great War through induction!"
"The end of the Great War! That is the victory we will hold firmly in our hands!"
"The enemies are gods! They have the power to destroy the world; it's quite desperate! Our chances of winning are slim."
"Because the condition for victory is that everything must be completed in the shadows. Even if we win, we will leave no memories or records behind."
"We are ghosts, and ghosts do not speak."
"But..." At this point, Riku's voice carried a hint of joy. "If, if we really can win this game! If we achieve the final victory!"
"Then, won't we be able to hold our heads high and die without any regrets?!"
"!!!!!"
Shuvi's pupils shook as she looked at Riku, clearly captivated by him.
"Alright." After saying everything, Riku looked at the people around him. "Those who want to participate in this game, stay."
"..."
No one spoke, and no one moved. Everything seemed to fall silent.
"Well~" Riku looked at the unmoving crowd, his voice sounding a bit subtle. "To be honest, I originally thought you should be a bit smarter than this."
"Hey now."
A man looked at Riku helplessly. "Don't miscalculate on the very first step."
The others also showed helpless expressions or gave indifferent smiles.
"Riku," another person said, looking at him. "Do you think there are still smart people left in this world?"
"How could there be any normal people left in this world at this point?!"
"Smart people choose death in a world like this. Smarter people choose not to be born at all."
The crowd gathered around Riku.
One person patted Riku's shoulder and laughed. "Riku, every guy here was chosen by you."
Another person teased, "Isn't this basically just selecting a delegation of idiots?"
"Hahahahahahaha!!!"
As soon as the words fell, the crowd broke into hearty laughter. Yes, even if there was little hope ahead, even if there was only despair, what did it matter?
They would follow Riku down that path where no hope could be seen, even if the final result was failure.
They were already dead men.
'Humans are foolish.' Riku also spoke quietly in his heart. 'It is precisely because they are foolish that they have honed the wisdom to avoid being killed, the wisdom to survive. In this world with no value in living, they have still survived.'
'Those who stake all their brains, wisdom, and skill on this—if they aren't noble fools and respectable weaklings, what else could they be?'
After a brief moment of excitement, a man with a scar on his face stood up. He looked at Riku and said, "Let's do this! Everyone, swear by the will of the deceased!"
The crowd raised their hands and shouted, "I swear by the will!"
"No." But Riku smiled and said, "We aren't swearing by the will of the deceased, but by the rules we all agreed upon."
Saying this, Riku raised his hand and smiled. "From now on..."
"Aschente!"
At that moment, the BGM reached its climax.
Shuvi and Riku looked out over the continent and thought, 'Come! Let the game begin!'
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