"Ah... The loser is here." Deadmeat scowled.

Gerhart recognized the younger man wearing leather armor and wielding a sword and buckler as Younger Gerhart.

"You know, I feel sorry for you. You never knew warmth your whole life." Younger Gerhart gave a pitying look toward Deadmeat.

"For a pathetic orphan to pity me... Man, our life sucked, hah? Mature Gerhart?" Deadmeat mocked himself.

"Stop involving him in your past. He isn't you." Younger Gerhart frowned.

"He is both of us, dumb dumb! Oh, right. You were still lvl 1 or 2. Never mind." Deadmeat waved his hand.

"Okay, roll over now. My turn." Younger Gerhart snapped his finger, making Deadmeat disappear. He then looked at Mature Gerhart. "Well... I never expected myself to become you. I wish Mylo and Hazel lived to see it."

"..." Mature Gerhart remained silent.

"Don't let that jerk get to you. Deadmeat knew nothing but pain and coldness his whole life. But we are different. We saw the light. We knew warmth. We felt love." Younger Gerhart motioned with his hand.

Gerhart saw himself as a child, playing with the other orphans. Although he was poor, sometimes hungry, and had no money, he knew happiness and fun.

Gerhart then saw himself fall and cry, his knee bleeding. And then he saw Mother Roysa run over and give him a warm hug while casting a minor healing spell.

"Shh... It's okay, Gerhart. I'm here for you..." Was what she whispered.

The scene then shifted to when they were a bit older. Mylo and Hazel lay on the grass outside the orphanage, gazing at the blue sky.

"You know, I have a dream. One day, I to make the world a better place, where no one will suffer." Gerhart said.

"Gerhart, that's too much! Make it a bit more realistic!" Hazel retorted.

"Then how about we have a short-term goal first? Let's make a ton of money and help the orphanage!" Mylo suggested.

"That's a good idea!" Hazel agreed.

"Okay! Let's work hard together!" Gerhart also agreed.

"So I was the one who started that idea, hah?" Mature Gerhart said.

"Yes. We knew warmth. We knew love. We had an ambition to turn the world into a better place. We still do. Your positive outlook on life made many people more positive." Younger Gerhart said.

The scene then shifted again.

He found himself in one of his side jobs, carrying heavy sacks.

"That's the last one..." Gerhart muttered, putting the sack in storage.

"Good work, young man. Here's some water." One of his employers smiled, giving Gerhart a waterskin. "But why is someone as young as you working so hard as a laborer? Shouldn't you be playing?"

"I'm saving up to be a Dungeon Explorer! I want to earn a lot of money to repay my orphanage!" Gerhart earnestly replied.

"That's a noble goal. Here is your pay." The employer handed several coins.

"Thank you... 1, 2, 3. 4, 5, 6... 6?! That's more than we agreed on!" Gerhart exclaimed, surprised.

"Someone as hardworking as you deserve more. Besides, you gave me a bit of motivation to work harder for my dreams as well. Good luck as a Dungeon Explorer, kid!" The employer smiled.

"Thank you, mister!"

The scene faded.

"I never realized I impacted the lives of others that way." Mature Gerhart muttered.

"That is why you should always look at the filled side of the cup! Good begets good!" Younger Gerhart said with conviction.

"Is it? I think you pretty much skimmed all the bad parts." Deadmeat popped up at this time again, his face carrying mockery. "Why don't you show all the pain you suffered? Hah?"

Suddenly, the scene changed. Gerhart found himself in an alley, where he got robbed and extorted from his hard-earned money.

And then another scene with some employers making fake excuses to duck his pay.

And another, with several well-off kids picking on him because of his poor apparel.

"Don't pretend these didn't happen, you damn loser!" Deadmeat menacingly grinned.

"Stop calling me a loser, you distorted monster!" Younger Gerhart pointed at Deadmeat with disgust.

"Well, what are you besides a loser? I mean, you died as a stepping stone for others and locked our memories because they were too dark for you! If it weren't for me, you would have been forgotten by now!" Deadmeat said with a condescending look.

The scene then shifted to one that Gerhart painfully remembered.

.

.

.

"Kee!" A goblin cried as it charged forward, only to be shot in the head by an arrow.

Soon, it vanished, turning into a magic stone and a used arrow.

"That's the last of them," Gerhart said, sheathing his sword.

"Hehe. This floor isn't too hard." Hazel chuckled as she walked over to pick the stone and arrow.

"Don't underestimate the dungeon. Nobody knows what can happen down here." Mylo said, putting away his mace.

"Stop being a worry-wort, love! I mean, other explorers are more dangerous here than the monsters." Hazel said, picking up her arrow and putting the magic stone in Gerhart's backpack.

"That is what I AM worried about..." Mylo shook his head and looked toward the chest Hazel found.

"If you are worried so much, let's open the chest and get out of here before anyone greedy shows up," Gerhart said.

"True. Hazel, open it." Mylo said.

"Okay!" Hazel smiled, rubbing her hands as she walked over and opened the chest. When she saw what was inside, she exclaimed. "We hit the jackpot!"

"What?" Mylo walked over to take a look. "A skill book! It is a skill book!" He muttered, his eyes shining with excitement. "With this... We can fund the orphanage and improve our gear..."

"Yes. We can let the children eat better food, maybe even buy them new clothes..." Hazel nodded with a wide grin.

"Guys... We have company..." Gerhart said, drawing his sword and readying his buckler.

In front of them was Emerald Flame, greedily eyeing the skill book.

Mylo and Hazel got jolted awake, readying themselves for battle. But then, Mylo recognized the four.

"Shit... They are Emerald Flame. A D-rank adventuring party. What are they doing here?" Mylo cursed.

"A Basic Swordsmanship skill book... I want it. Let's kill them." They heard the swordsman audibly say, eyeing the book with greed.

"W-Wait... How about we—" Mylo tried to haggle for their lives.

"They are not worth my mana. You handle them." The female magician among them said with disinterest.

"I know. Aeraf, Galya, kill!" The swordsman ordered as he charged, sword drawn as he turned into a blur.

"Prepare for battle!" Mylo ordered.

Tap* Tap* Tap* Tap*

Flyx charged in a bee-line toward Gerhart, and although Gerhart tried to defend himself, Flyx easily dodged his attack before piercing his stomach with his sword.

He then fell to the floor, his vision reddening and unwilling as he saw Mylo get bashed by a mace double the size of his own and Hazel receive an arrow to her throat.

"Why..." Gerhart managed to squeeze one word, looking at Flyx with indignance.

"It is your fault you trash got something so good... Don't blame us." Flyx coldly muttered as he stabbed Gerhart's throat.

The world turned dark.

.

.

.

Gerhart, both young and mature, clenched their fists in anger.

"Hehehe! See? Good people live short lives! Only villains live long lives!" Deadmeat grinned.

"Three of them became criminal slaves, and the last one got exiled." Young Gerhart refuted.

"HAH! You make me laugh. Usually, they would get away without even a slap on the wrist. It is a fact that you died there! I resurrected you! They should be winners, not losers!" Deadmeat argued.

"The guilt would eat at them." Young Gerhart countered.

"Would it? There are plenty of self-important sociopaths out there having a blast, dying at an old age while making everyone suffer." Deadmeat sneered.

"You..." Young Gerhart shook in anger.

"You WHAT?! BRAT! You already know how much shit I've seen in my career! Sure, there are a few flowers in this cesspool. I can acknowledge that, and I cherish such flowers dearly. But those flowers tend to get trampled on by human-shaped pigs!" Deadmeat said, his voice tinged with indignance. "The world is selfish, cruel, and dark! Wake up!"

"What about Skyler and Abiah? They helped us." Young Gerhart said.

"Them? They are powerhouses and Kingdom Loyalists, and we are an investment. What do you think would happen if we were weaklings? Do you think they would care if we got assassinated in the sewers? The answer is NO! At most, they would care about the reputation of their guilds, not for us as individuals!" Deadmeat said in a ridiculing tone. "This world runs on interests. Only those with absolute power have the leisure to do as they wish."

"Then what if the world was a better place? What if technology was much higher, society had better and cheaper education, food, and clothing, and everyone had equal rights, with even slavery abolished? How do you envision such a world?" Young Gerhart asked.

"In such an environment, things would be much better than now." Deadmeat nodded in acknowledgment. But then, his face became twisted again. "But kid, you underestimate humanity's dark and violent nature! Even when we strive to reach realms of enlightenment and development, our cruelty and brutality only grow! I wouldn't even be surprised if some jackass would make some fake ideology to wipe out an entire ethnicity over being different, such as religion or skin color! Just look at what went on during my time! Humans were all slaves! And the reverse is now happening in the Youvamor Kingdom!"

"Even then... We should at least give them a chance!" Young Gerhart argued.

"Even though we didn't get one?" Deadmeat asked.

"Yes." Young Gerhart resolutely said.

"... Hah... I do have a soft spot for fools like you. Perhaps because I wanted to be a foolish loser like you somewhere in my rotten heart?" Deadmeat sighed and then looked at Mature Gerhart. "Future us, it is okay to have a soft spot, but reserve it for those on your side, not the enemy. Be cruel, be evil even, and use every dirty move you can think of to reach your goals. See you never."

As Deadmeat said that, he disappeared.

"Future us, I know it is selfish, but please avoid committing evil as much as possible on your road to power. Mylo, Hazel, and Mother Roysa would hate to see you become an evil tyrant. However, don't hesitate to commit evil when you need to defend yourself and those you care about. Goodbye..." Young Gerhart said and disappeared.

"I received your wills, however contradictory," Gerhart muttered.

As he said that, a white flame appeared in front of him.

 

You faced your past and know what type of Conquerer you want to be. Perhaps it is a benevolent ruler, evil tyrant, or in-between, but all is fair on the road to power, and there is no true right and wrong. Good and Evil or two sides of the same coin. Now, are you ready to accept the spirit of Conquest within you?

 

"I am ready." Gerhart resolutely said.

 

Good. Accept it.

 

The flame gently floated and was absorbed into Gerhart's chest.

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.

.

After waiting for over an hour, Hope saw Gerhart waking up.

When Gerhart opened his eyes, his eyes shined with silver light, a determined look on his face.

"I know what to do now."