Chapter 286 – Epilogue. Preparing for the Journey (2)

Chapter 286 – Epilogue. Preparing for the Journey (2)

I didn’t prepare any grand farewells when parting with everyone.

After all, it’s a place I can come back to anytime, and we’ll be together for the rest of our lives, no, forever.

Still… I didn’t expect them to be too tired to even see me off.

I’m a little disappointed.

“Let’s finish preparing for our travels and meet again in a week.”

“…Okay.”

Her eyes, swollen from crying all night, and the red pupils hidden within, curved beautifully.

My eyes were swollen too.

Even after crying so much, more tears came.

“It was fun.”

“…It was fun.”

I grasped the hand of ‘Me’ that reached out to me.

After a light handshake, ‘I’ immediately let go and turned away without any regrets.

‘Rubia’, who was standing next to her, made eye contact with me once, then turned away with a strange smile towards the Rubia standing next to me.

And, ―crack.

The light that poured out from the violently torn space swallowed ‘Me’ and ‘Rubia’ in an instant.

“Shall we go too?”

“…Yes.”

I also drew my Greatsword and slashed through the air.

Crack― Unlike ‘Me’, a slightly more subdued space opened up, creating a door.

Rubia, who had stepped out ahead, grabbed the doorknob. After a short, deep breath, she turned the knob with a click.

Then, a blue meadow unfolded before our eyes.

We took light steps towards it.

***

“Where were you all night? I looked for you for ages, but gave up thinking you wouldn’t die anyway.”

“…Ah, well… that’s…”

“Indeed, where should we say we’ve been?”

“…Pardon?”

Unlike before, we were sitting at my favorite innermost table in the quiet Alrba Adventurer’s Guild, eating breakfast and sharing the stories that had happened.

Not through my mouth, nor through Rubia’s mouth.

“Ahem, I’ll explain it to you.”

Serr, who was standing behind me before I knew it.

Because she decided to tell the story herself.

“It’s been a while, Hermilla.”

“…What is this?”

Hermilla, who glanced at Serr for a moment and chuckled, slapped her own cheeks, then looked at Serr again, caressing her red, swollen cheeks.

“This is not a dream. This is not a hallucination. This is reality, and I am the genius mage Serr.”

“…Good heavens.”

Hermilla roughly pulled out her chair and stood, tearing up.

Serr, seeing her reaction, smiled proudly as if her plan to surprise Hermilla had gone very well, and explained everything that had happened.

Hermilla’s expression changed funnily as the explanation continued.

“Such a thing… is possible…”

“Heh heh. Didn’t I say? I am a genius. There is nothing impossible for a genius.”

Serr, receiving Hermilla’s admiring gaze, recounted her heroic deeds in detail, like a fish in water.

In the meantime, Rubia came close to my ear and whispered softly.

“Serr seems to have changed a lot, doesn’t she?”

Nod, nod.

She has changed a lot.

If she used to exude an unknown… mysterious and bizarre atmosphere, now she just exudes the atmosphere of a lively girl.

Of course, she doesn’t look like a lively girl at all on the outside.

But if you listen to her talk, it’s really amazing.

Her expression, which used to be stiff, is now very diverse, her voice tone, which used to be a little subdued, has become a little higher, and her elegant behavior has become a little cuter.

How did she endure wanting to do that all this time?

“Not only Serr, but everyone else seems to have changed too. Cartia is the same as ever, but… Pfft.”

As Rubia said, everyone has changed.

Luissar was pitiful for no reason.

Sonia became more talkative.

Carpeng… isn’t Carpeng the same?

Well, anyway.

Primavera too, and, cough… no, Brunhilde too.

Frey too, and Sirin too.

Everyone has changed.

Not with the heavy and sharp atmosphere like before.

But light and fluffy, like a neighborhood aunt or younger sister.

And Cartia.

Cartia… well.

Rubia doesn’t seem to have noticed, but Cartia has changed too.

A little kinder, a little softer.

That change, if you don’t look closely, no, rather.

It was a change that only I, who had always been together with her soul, could know.

Besides me… would Frey have noticed?

Maybe even Frey wouldn’t have noticed.

Because Cartia’s personality before she died in her past life might have been the same as it is now.

She might not have noticed such subtle changes.

Anyway, everyone has changed for the better.

It’s not like I disliked them before, but I like them even more now.

What could be bad now, hehe.

“―And that’s how it is.”

Just in time, Serr’s long explanation ended.

Hermilla stared at me with her mouth wide open.

“I understood Serr’s explanation… so who won?”

“Yes, yes…? What…?”

“In that ranking fight, who won?”

The person who won the ranking?

That’s obviously me… huh…

Oh, um… to be honest…

“…Ru, Rubia won.”

Hermilla, who had been making a blank expression, smiled bitterly.

“I expected it, but it’s a little absurd to hear that answer from the person involved. Ahahaha…”

But… it’s the truth.

“Okay… I’m really, really glad. Not everyone is alive, but they still exist. We can meet again anytime, right?”

“That’s right. If you want, you can meet them to the point of getting sick of them. Would you like to try?”

“No. I think I’d really get sick of meeting them every day, so let’s just meet occasionally.”

Hermilla accepted Serr’s joke with an even more playful joke.

Serr, hearing that, revealed a strangely disappointed expression and closed her mouth.

She has definitely changed.

If it were the old Serr, she would have gritted her teeth and tried to win against those words. No, in the first place, she wouldn’t have said anything that would put herself in trouble.

Hermilla seemed to have felt that too, as she tilted her head and made a surprised expression.

Then she glanced at me and Rubia. We immediately nodded.

“Serr, I’m kidding, I’m kidding. Did you really think I meant it? You can always be with me while Noah and Rubia are preparing for their travels. I’ve always been bored anyway.”

“Don’t lie. It’s too late. I won’t be coming out anymore after today.”

Serr, making a ‘hmph’ sound, quickly looked around the table and moved her feet.

“It seems like we’re done eating, so let’s go have some coffee.”

She didn’t say where she was going, but everyone in this place knows where she’s heading.

The smithy.

The promise we made before subjugating Valoran, as a Beast of the End. The promise we made when we were terribly awkward after a big fight.

We didn’t forget that promise.

We cherished it in our hearts.

I thought it was an impossible promise at the time. I never dreamed that the four of us would all gather in Alrba and head to the smithy.

“Heung? Is Serr sulking? Is she really sulking? Does a genius mage sulk too? Huh?”

“Yes. A genius mage sulks too. Isn’t a genius mage a person? Don’t talk to me. I won’t exchange a single word with you.”

“Oh my? I didn’t know that a genius mage could be so petty. Are you really not going to say anything? I have so many stories I want to tell Serr too?”

“Petty…? I am not petty.”

Hermilla, who showed a mischievous smile following Serr who was stomping away, teased her until she left the Adventurer’s Guild and waved at us.

Rubia smiled contentedly at the sight and then asked me as if she had remembered something.

“Come to think of it, Noah.”

“Eung…?”

I, who was about to get up from my seat, was grabbed by Rubia’s hand and pulled onto her lap.

“You said you met Lilith before, right?”

“Ah… yes.”

“Did she say anything else besides the explanations at that time?”

“Anything else…?”

“Yes. ‘I’ said that there must have been other hints. Lilith wouldn’t have ended it with just that.”

It happened so suddenly.

And it happened in a situation where I was out of my mind, so I don’t remember it well.

Lilith… said something else…?

Umm…

“I, I don’t remember well. It was a little… oh, like a dream… that happened… so, it feels like memories are floating around…?”

“Is that so… then it can’t be helped. Shall we get up too?”

“Yes.”

I jumped off Rubia’s lap.

Following that, Rubia got up from her seat and intertwined her fingers with mine.

Tightly, so they wouldn’t come apart.

And we moved our steps towards the door where the warm sunlight was coming in.

The light illuminating the dark interior of the guild.

The sparkling dust floating inside.

Our hands clasped tightly.

Rubia’s subtly wafting scent.

As I quietly felt those things, the floating memories came together. They formed a shape.

Becoming a complete memory, Lilith’s last words.

I pulled out the words contained within, the words remaining in my memory, from outside my subconscious.

That’s right.

At that time, Lilith definitely said this.

***

[I have prepared two gifts for Noah, who has worked so hard until now.]

[I tried to prepare more, more amazing gifts, but two was the limit because my strength was insufficient. I’m sorry.]

[Still, I think Noah will like one of them very much?]

[And, the other one… I’m sorry, but you won’t be able to know what kind of gift it is. But, in the distant future, when the day comes when you find out about that gift, I’m sure you’ll be very grateful to me.]

[Of course, it’s full of my selfish desires, but Noah will like it too.]

[So, Noah.]

[I hope you can spend an eternity of time happily in ‘this world’.]

[After spending such a long time, someday.]

[‘We’ will be able to meet again.]

[Together with ‘everyone’, we will be waiting eagerly.]

[Thank you for everything so far.]

[I loved you all this time.]

[Goodbye. My Noah.]