No one has ever seen the ending of The Defense.
This is because of the game's notoriously brutal difficulty, which makes clearing it nearly impossible.
Because of this, some players began to suspect that there might be special conditions required to reach the ending.
Even reaching the Black Line stage was a struggle, let alone the infamous 99th stage, so such speculation wasn't unreasonable.
Soon, the Church of Morte route became one of the most likely candidates.
Of course, as time went on, it became clear that The Defense could not be cleared via the Church of Morte route, and the theory faded.
But that didn't mean the hypothesis that there were hidden conditions for reaching the ending disappeared.
What are the hidden requirements to see the ending of The Defense?
What absurd method must be used to surpass the 99th stage and reach whatever lies beyond?
Many players fixated on this mystery.
They sought clues from factions believed to hold secrets within The Defense: the White Line, Church of Morte, Shadow Order, Möbius, the Silver Dawn, the Machine Cult, the Desert Sentinels, and others.
I was no exception.
Every day, I racked my brain trying to figure out how to clear The Defense—until one day, I stumbled across a clue by chance.
The Sail.
Deep within the White Line.
A place so heavily restricted that even most of Ark's high command dare not step foot in it.
That's where I discovered the remnants of the Sail.
At first, I had no idea what had once occupied that space.
But after countless attempts—accident upon accident—at last, I figured it out.
The White Line called it "the Sail."
I didn't understand why they used that name at first.
Days of tiresome trials passed as I pondered the mystery, and in the process, I picked up a few clues.
Normally, the horizon's distance is about 3.6 km.
But in the world of The Defense, it's clearly well over 10 km.
Most players brushed this off as a matter of game design or convenience, but a few proposed an alternative theory:
What if The Defense doesn't take place on Earth?
Once the hypothesis was raised, more evidence was sought, and plenty of oddities became apparent.
Even allowing for a post-apocalyptic setting, the geography and scale were too different from Earth.
And there was the endless influx of monsters and demonic beasts—another anomaly.
Most of all...
Why is it called Ark?
One question led to another, and they snowballed until everything culminated in the revelation of the Shadow Order's true purpose.
While the Shadow Order aimed to seize control of the Ark, its leader, Isabelle, had another goal:
To take the White Line—and whatever was hidden within it.
And to fulfill that goal, she needed the Sail.
The true objective of the Shadow Order—
To be precise, Isabelle's objective—was to go back.
Back to humanity's origin.
* * *
A long or short thought—depending on your perspective—passed through my mind.
Lania, who had remained silent, sensed something was off and quietly spoke.
"You're making a face. You know something, don't you? What is it?"
"…I have a hunch, but I'm not certain what it is yet."
"Oh really? What's the hunch?"
"I'll tell you later—once I'm sure."
Though I was nearly certain about the Sail's purpose, I still couldn't say it aloud.
If this truth got out, there was no telling what might happen—not just to the Ark, but to the entire world.
"Can I trust you to leave this with me?"
"Huh? That's no problem… but how are you going to carry it? That thing's pretty big."
Lania's trust in me seemed nearly absolute, and she readily agreed to hand over the Sail fragment.
And transporting the object wasn't much of an issue, either.
"I have a way."
"What, you want me to borrow a truck or something—"
I extended my hand toward the Sail.
[Activating 'Rift Space'.]
The space around us split open, revealing a pocket dimension.
I summoned Ether and pushed part of the Sail into it.
"That…"
As the [Rift Space] devoured a portion of the Sail, Lania's expression shifted to shock.
"…What the hell is that?"
"You can't do it?"
"…How would I be able to do that? What is that?"
I had assumed there was no need to hide anything from Lania, especially after she mentioned meeting a Watcher.
But apparently, she wasn't able to use [Rift Space].
'Well, there's no need to keep secrets from her anyway.'
After all, Lania was my only remaining family in this damned world.
Plus, since she knew about the Watcher, there was no harm in telling her about an ability that stemmed from them.
"I got it after meeting the Watcher."
"The Watcher? Ah… I see."
Only once I mentioned the Watcher did the confusion in Lania's eyes seem to clear.
"Is it something like this?"
Whoosh—!
Purple flames erupted from Lania's palm.
It wasn't conjured with Ether.
Whatever it was, just seeing it made me feel an ominous chill.
"…What's that?"
Now it was my turn to be caught off guard.
Even I didn't fully understand the abilities granted by the Watcher, so this was the first time I'd seen what Lania could do.
"Be careful. Once it catches, it never goes out."
"…Never goes out?"
"Yeah. It'll burn through everything until it dies out on its own over time."
…That honestly sounded even better than [Rift Space] or [Rift Shift].
Though, to be fair, I didn't need firepower—my current abilities were far more useful in that sense.
"What's wrong?"
"…Nothing."
Lania gaining powerful abilities was a good thing for me too, so there was no point in being jealous.
Besides, envy wouldn't change anything—I couldn't take her power even if I wanted to.
"So, are we done here?"
"No, there's one more thing."
"What is it?"
"This isn't something we can decide between just the two of us."
Lania's eyes narrowed.
"Hmmm… that means we need the old folks' opinion?"
"Yeah."
The "old folks" Lania referred to were the core leaders of the Kronos Union.
"What's this about? I need to know before I bring it to them."
"Soon, a Multi-Wave will occur."
"We've kind of seen that coming… so it really is happening."
Before a Multi-Wave begins, the interval between regular waves tends to increase noticeably.
So as wave intervals grow longer, it's only natural to assume that a Multi-Wave is on its way.
"So? You want us to prepare for it?"
"No. I want the Kronos Union to assist the Ark."
"…Huh?"
Lania's expression twisted oddly.
"Of course, we have a duty as allies to return the favor, but… how?
As you know, we've always predicted wave routes in advance and moved our bases accordingly.
We've avoided direct clashes with monster hordes."
That wasn't just the rule for the Kronos Union—it was the survival strategy for all humans outside the Ark, except for the Church of Morte.
You avoid the waves.
Only the Ark had the barriers and strength to withstand them head-on.
Even if other factions could try, they'd collapse before long.
That's why Lania was asking now:
What are you really saying?
"Are you asking us to sacrifice ourselves? Are you offering our blood in exchange for your alliance?"
"No. It's not like that."
"Then what is it?"
Her voice wasn't raised or angry, but it was sharp enough to cut.
"I want you to temporarily join the Ark's defensive line during the Multi-Wave."
"…What?"
Lania blinked as if unsure whether she'd heard me correctly.
"You're letting us into the Ark? Is that even possible?
Even as allies, would the Ark really trust us?"
It was understandable.
Allowing an armed force inside the Ark, even allies, posed a serious risk.
If the worst happened, it could spiral out of control.
"It won't be easy. But it must be done."
"Why? It's not our first Multi-Wave. Can't we handle it like always?"
"This Multi-Wave will be unlike anything we've faced before."
I added,
"You won't survive it either."
"…Are you serious?"
"Yes. I'm expecting at least four waves."
"Four? That's ridiculous."
Lania tried to deny it.
But when the wave intervals stretch too long, it's impossible not to feel something is off.
And she knew I had no reason to lie.
She couldn't fully believe it, but she couldn't completely deny it either.
"This is good for the Kronos Union too.
Every outpost will be overrun during this wave.
You will be forced to face it head-on."
"…That's probably true."
Even with all their outposts, they couldn't avoid every wave.
The Union had already suffered considerable losses in manpower and resources each time.
Now, with at least four waves expected, that meant they would have to stand and fight.
"So, the Ark will provide its walls."
"…I get what you're saying.
But will the Ark really accept us?"
"That's not something to worry about. There's a way."
"There's a way…?"
"Yes."
There was no need to tour every line and persuade the influential figures like we did when building the Silk Road.
Each line in the Ark might seem like it follows the White Line and the Line Assembly, but in truth, they each have autonomy.
Accepting allied reinforcements from outside the Ark was well within a line's rights.
And as it happens, there was a suitable place.
A place that was always short on troops and supplies.
A place so desperate to protect the Ark, they'd sell their soul to the devil.
"We're going to the Rose Line."
Rose Line.
The current frontline.
And the region where the Tripathi family held tremendous influence.
That's where we're headed.