Ch.243Epilogue

Liliana picked up a knife. It was a bread knife with a serrated edge like a saw. She placed it gently on top of the pie and pressed down with force. Her gesture was bold, but the pie ended up getting squashed again.

“Heeng.”

Kairos felt a chill run down his spine as he watched from the side. The commander of the White Blood Knights saying “Heeng” of all things.

“Let me cut it.”

But before his words could land, Liliana had already squashed the other side as well.

Once again, tonight’s attempt at neatly cutting pie had failed. As a result, the two had to sit across from each other, eating the completely ruined pie with forks.

The taste itself was excellent. The well-baked crust was crispy, and the filling of stewed apples and berries mixed with honey remained moist.

“It feels like I’m eating porridge, not pie. What’s the problem?”

“The angle.”

Liliana paused her fork at Kairos’s answer.

“Huh? The angle?”

“If you stab at it like that, the filling gets all mushed up. See how the texture gets pulled along? If you cut at more of a slant, it would slice more smoothly.”

Thinking he had a point, Liliana nodded. Then Kairos carefully brought up something he’d wanted to say for a while.

“But do you really have to do that yourself?”

Liliana’s eyes narrowed. Kairos smiled awkwardly.

“I mean, you’re the Lord now, right? It’s natural for a lord to entertain guests properly, but do you really need to personally cut the pie? That’s something the chef could do.”

“I’m doing it because the chef can’t.” Liliana sighed.

“You know the chef wasn’t hired for cooking skills. They were just assigned to the kitchen position based on their tournament ranking. They might be good at carving up a whole roasted pig barbecue, but they probably can’t cut a pie.”

It was true. Even the head chef was no exception. They were simply assigned to the kitchen according to the rule that “those who rank between this level and that level in the tournament shall be assigned to the kitchen.”

Of course, the intention was that “an excellent warrior should know how to do everything themselves,” which included “properly consuming food to store up strength.”

As a result, all the food was incredibly simple. Grilled, stir-fried, or hung from the ceiling to dry.

If this had been a warmer region, they might have struggled with food preservation, but at least they would have developed more diverse cooking methods.

But the White Blood Knightly State was extremely cold. Cold enough that meat placed in storage would freeze solid on its own.

So the cooking in this land rarely deviated from “grilling frozen meat over hot fire.” At best, it might be “adding some dark beer while stir-frying improves the flavor.”

“Do you know people like you?”

“Really?”

“Yes. They say the food has become really delicious.”

“That’s good to hear.”

Before, there was no one to tell them to “sprinkle salt evenly on meat before storing it,” or “rather than putting it too close to the fire, it’s better to cook it at a moderate distance while turning it,” or “don’t serve grilled meat right away, but let it rest a bit on a hot grill for better flavor.”

Kairos taught them these things that were easy to do once you knew them, but that you might never learn otherwise. When he had free time, he would even bake pies himself.

Liliana loved everything he made, but her favorite was the pie made with apples sent from Kairos’s family farm.

Though the pie plate was now empty and the apple cider glasses showed their bottoms, the two continued talking for a long time.

There was much to discuss and decide. The wedding, moving Kairos’s parents and siblings and workers to a village near Valhalla, and the matter of transplanting the apple trees. The last issue was easily resolved.

“Boehm and Bom said they’d help out. They’ll give us some coal too. The Security Bureau people also said they’d contribute various things.”

“Everyone wants to see them soon.”

Kairos had quit his job at the Security Bureau. The same went for Liliana, who had become the commander of the White Blood Knights.

One might have questioned whether someone who had abandoned everything and left deserved to be the knight commander, but the White Blood Knights had seen how she fought in the Northeastern Wasteland and what she had ultimately accomplished, so there was no unnecessary criticism.

For a while, they had been extremely busy. The knight commander had much to learn and much to do. Above all, since Regent Astrid had handled everything so meticulously, Liliana had to work twice as hard to avoid being compared unfavorably to her aunt.

Kairos too had been busy moving about. He traveled throughout the Empire filling in gaps in information, and in the capital, he testified about what he had seen, heard, and experienced.

But it wasn’t like an interrogation. It was much gentler and more comfortable. Talking about everything he and Anna had experienced, Kairos felt like he had returned to his academy days.

On the last day, Anna hugged him tightly.

“Be as happy as you can, wherever you are.”

“Take care of yourself.”

The next place he went was Magdeburg. He met with Inquisitor Heinrich to discuss what had happened, and then returned to Valhalla with him.

When Maria’s body recovered, the father and daughter left for the Northeastern Wasteland. That was already a month ago. Since there had been no news, Kairos and Liliana were planning to go there themselves.

“It’s officially part of the mission. Field inspection. You know?”

Kairos thought Liliana had become quite brazen.

* * * * *

Imperial territory, formerly called the Northeastern Wasteland, a land not yet named.

The wasteland appearance could no longer be found. The moisture-laden ground was damp, and tender grasses grew from the soil. The characteristic chilly climate of the north remained, but it was no longer as barren as before.

The northern Elector Bernhardt accepted the Emperor’s “recommendation” to transfer serfs and freemen from Gariot and the nearby border areas to the imperial pioneering territory. In return, he received handsome compensation, so he probably had few complaints.

Industrious farmers tilled the fields. On the opposite side, stakes were being driven into the ground with ropes marking boundaries. They were planning to plant fruit trees that grow well in cold regions.

Elsewhere, construction materials were being moved. Wagons continued to arrive, and workers had to labor without rest.

Even this would have been extremely difficult without the help of the Lombardt Free City council.

Thanks to them traveling up the river and unloading cargo at the riverbank dock, a massive amount of freight and labor was saved. Without them, heavy stones would have had to be loaded one by one onto wagons.

The Imperial Army Engineers and the White Blood Knights were carrying out irrigation works under the Emperor’s orders. It was a major project to draw water from a nearby river.

Fortunately, with various support from Archduke Alighieri and the Blue Fortress, the construction was progressing quickly.

While Liliana spoke with the expedition commander and distributed gifts and supplies, Kairos made his way to the Shining Forest.

Even under the midday sun, the forest shone brilliantly. The leaves were greener than before. The writhing shadows near the roots remained, but they weren’t as menacing as before.

“You came?”

A voice called from above. Maria, dressed in comfortable clothes, waved from a tree branch. Her reddish-gold hair had grown long enough to slightly cover her chest.

“Yes.”

“Where’s Lily?”

“She’s talking with the expedition commander. Where’s your father?”

“Fighting with mom.”

Maria pointed to the distance. Heinrich could be seen being chased around by a swarm of black butterflies. It looked less like fighting and more like being one-sidedly beaten.

Lightly, Maria descended to the ground. “They’re always like this,” she said. Though she said this, a smile crept onto her lips. “But they get along well when they sleep. Only then.”

The disposition of Maria’s case had not yet been decided.

In fact, it was doubtful whether prosecution procedures were even in progress. This was due to accidents happening at the Inquisition headquarters in Magdeburg.

There were frequent incidents such as documents being rendered unusable by rats gnawing on them—which turned out to be statements about Maria’s use of black fire—or investigators assigned to the case suddenly taking leave for personal reasons.

With news that the Pope was about to pass away, matters like inquisitorial investigations and prosecutions were pushed to the back burner.

Who would become Pope was a sensitive issue for the inquisitors as well. Personnel matters such as promotions and regional assignments, as well as future policies, could all change.

Because of this, those who didn’t want to go through such an “adjustment period” requested transfers to other departments, or asked to be “dispatched” to regional monasteries or university lecterns. And during the handover process, something would “coincidentally” be omitted.

As people changed and time passed, the uncertain and unsubstantiated rumors about Maria would remain just that—malicious slander.

Though the situation was favorable, she wasn’t living in the forest simply to keep a low profile. For the first time in her life, she was living as her true self with her parents.

And for the time being, she had no intention of giving up this life.

A black butterfly circled above their heads. Maria snapped her fingers. A bright fire floated in the air.

“So you can’t use the black fire anymore?”

At Kairos’s question, Maria nodded.

“No. Mother took it all away. She left me this because it was inherited from father. Still, thanks to that, I can at least talk to her in my dreams, so I’m not disappointed. And you.”

“Uh, yes?”

“What did you do with my mom?”

As Maria suddenly narrowed her eyes, Kairos stepped back slightly.

“What do you mean?”

“Then why does my mom keep saying she wants to go to the mountain with you ‘again’? ‘Again’? That means you went before, right?”

Fortunately, Liliana came running from a distance with a pie basket.

“Sister!”

Maria held up a finger. “Just try to run away,” she warned.

Then she brightly smiled and hugged Liliana, spinning around. Perceptively, Liliana took Maria to a spot a little further away.

“Phew.”

Kairos sighed in relief. A black butterfly teasingly landed on the bridge of his nose, lightly touched his forehead, and then flew away to an ash tree.

In front of the large, handsome ash tree, the grass was much greener than elsewhere. The weapons—swords, axes, and spears stuck upside down—were still there, but moss and weeds gently wrapped around them.

Kairos stood in front of the tree.

At his feet still lay the hilt of hope, and Laios and Ismene remained embracing each other.

Darkness flowed beneath the tree. As if it had no intention of harming anyone, it quietly flowed under the bright earth. The sunlight, as if in return, bestowed its light.

Under the careful care of the people of Gariot, the tree would grow healthy for a long, long time.

Kairos sat at the base of the tree trunk. Leaning against it, he enjoyed the midday sunshine. Beyond the veneration offered to the tree, the newly built village was peaceful.

Was it beautiful?

No. He couldn’t say that. He had seen, heard, and experienced too much for that. The land where shadows were sparse was still rough, and the thick walls and ceilings needed to withstand blizzards had not yet been built.

But it was certainly meaningful work.

So it had been worth fighting for.

Satisfied, Kairos drifted into a nap.

* * * * *

Despite the late hour, Emperor Joannes II was still awake.

He had just put down the last page of the manuscript. Though overshadowed by his sister’s reputation, he too was quite a reader and a renowned critic.

“So. First reader. What do you think?”

“Well, there are some typos, missing sentence components, and occasional redundant expressions. Above all, it’s quite raw.”

Anna gave a hollow laugh. It was the same criticism she always gave when her little brother brought her his compositions as a child.

“Revenge?”

“A shot I’ve been waiting 20 years to take. How is it?”

“Really terrible.”

The Emperor rose from his seat and opened a cabinet. He took out a bottle of wine and poured it into silver cups.

“This is the one. The one father liked.”

Anna rolled another sip in her mouth. Strong grape aroma with a bitter finish.

“I don’t like this, it’s too bitter.”

“Me neither,” Joannes agreed.

“Really? I thought you liked it.”

“I tried to like it, but it’s difficult. Who knows. Maybe when I’m as old as father was, I’ll come to like it.”

“Tastes do change.”

“Indeed.”

Though they said this, the siblings poured another cup each and drank in memory of their father.

“So. Sister, are you going to revise it?”

“I’ll refine it. But the content and conclusions won’t change. I’ll polish it, revise it, and publish it. So everyone in the Empire can see it. Perhaps even people beyond the Empire.”

“Report on the Fall of the Hero.” Joannes said the title to himself. It felt quite harsh, but he couldn’t think of anything better, so he left it.

“Let’s put my signature on it too.”

“Of course it should be included.”

“There’s no going back. You know that?”

“Better to burst a boil than let it fester.”

“The aftermath will be considerable.”

“You know. If we don’t stop it now, the price later will be even greater.”

Joannes nodded as well. It was an issue he had discussed with his sister many times, and he agreed.

There wasn’t enough wine left to pour a full cup each. Joannes divided one cup into two. He knew it would increase the bitterness and reduce the sweetness, but the bitter days would end today. The comfortable days would end today as well.

“To the arduous tomorrow, which may get better or worse.”

The remaining siblings drained their last cups. The Emperor stood up and organized the manuscript to return it.

Anna closed the door and walked through the comfortable corridor into the darkness beyond.

<End>