Ch.335Chapter 335: Epilogue – Farewell with a Smile

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After three years, I was momentarily startled to see how much Fafnir resembled me when he finally revealed his bare face before me.

“Still, you’re far from satisfying me!!”

With a spirited shout, Fafnir raised the edge of his right hand and once again pierced through to my heart.

This aggressive approach was completely opposite to his usual tactics during our sparring matches, where he would hide in the mist to disrupt my senses and exploit my openings. I could feel that he didn’t have much time left, which was bitter, but I needed to focus on dodging or blocking his fierce attacks.

Clearing away distracting thoughts, I swung my sword, barely deflecting his right hand that remained unscathed even when struck by the sharp blade of my dragon sword as we continued our match.

When would I be able to conclude that this was reassuring enough? My head was already flushed with blood.

It seemed that only after fighting me to his heart’s content would his movements cease. I could only respond to his near-roaring cries with silent swings of my dragon sword. That was very much like Fafnir, if anything could be said to be like him.

There was something almost demonic about the determination in that face so similar to mine as he charged at me with burning fighting spirit.

But even Fafnir’s determination, after about 15 minutes since we resumed our match…

“Haha… That was enjoyable.”

With these words expressing satisfaction, he stopped all movement, and thus ended what would be our final sparring match.

Considering that our usual matches lasted at least an hour, this was an absurdly short time.

I could barely control the sweat dripping from my forehead, having somehow pulled together my body that had been battered from the final battle with Desire.

“Since becoming this form, I’ve never had such an enjoyable contest of strength and skill.”

This wasn’t the excited tone he had shown throughout our match.

Fafnir, who had returned to a dignified tone as if preparing to reveal something, wore the Crimson Dragon Armor that bore sword marks all over, indicating how much had happened in that short time.

“For the first time in three years, I’ll say it. I lost this match.”

After countless sparring matches over three years, I finally heard him admit defeat.

It was a splendid victory, making such a formidable opponent acknowledge his loss with his own mouth.

“…”

For some reason, though, hearing his declaration of defeat didn’t fill me with excitement.

…Perhaps that was only natural.

“Don’t even imagine this is some farewell gift before I go. I’m not so rotten as to boast falsely after seeing a sword so sharp that I couldn’t dodge or block it even if I wanted to.”

As Fafnir calmly continued with words acknowledging my victory, his body gradually became more transparent. I wasn’t foolish enough to be drunk on victory while witnessing this.

The fact that he fought me without his body becoming transparent during our match was likely the final flame he had prepared before bidding farewell to this world…

Yes, it was a final flame befitting Fafnir, who had always burned brilliantly before me from the moment we met.

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Fafnir’s body was gradually becoming transparent as he praised me for my victory over him.

Suppressing my complicated feelings, I looked at him with slightly raised eyes.

“Well? Are you surprised?”

Despite being aware of his condition, Fafnir merely displayed a casual attitude and playfulness, as if it were nothing unusual.

It was certainly difficult to know how to react to someone who took everything so lightly and joked around, but that dilemma didn’t last long.

“…A little surprised, yes.”

I chose to maintain a deliberately calm tone while pretending to be unfazed.

He had already told me that he wasn’t dying from exhaustion but rather leaving because his time had come, clearly trying not to make the situation too serious.

I didn’t want to dampen the mood by showing gloom at such a moment.

With that thought, my complicated feelings settled into calmness, and I could look directly at Fafnir, who continued to speak even as his body grew increasingly transparent.

“It seems more than just a little.”

“Take it however you wish.”

I gave a firm response to Fafnir’s playful question about my seemingly calm demeanor.

But the reality was somewhat different.

I wasn’t greatly surprised.

Nor was I just a little surprised.

How should I put this?

Perhaps I should say that the shock I initially felt when first confronting this situation quickly diminished in intensity, allowing me to face it calmly.

As I grew accustomed to his composed demeanor while preparing for his departure from this place, my gaze simply examined Fafnir’s appearance, which was almost identical to mine.

Except for eye color and a few minor details, Fafnir’s appearance was virtually indistinguishable from mine, giving me a strange sense of familiarity and déjà vu rather than shock.

From our first meeting, Fafnir had shown me a peculiar intimacy while covering his face with a helmet in this stifling, fog-covered place.

Seeing this, I had vaguely imagined that his concealed face might have some connection to mine, and now that speculation had become reality—perhaps that’s why I wasn’t surprised.

“Seeing that you’re not very surprised, could it be that you predicted I would look like this?”

“Rather than a prediction… I’d call it intuition.”

“Intuition…”

Hearing my words, Fafnir sat in his usual elegant chair, resting his chin on his hand as if contemplating the meaning of what I’d said.

Well, even my answer about “intuition” was spontaneous rather than carefully considered, so it probably didn’t seem very convincing to him.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Fafnir rose from his chair, slowly approached me, and said:

“Well… if that’s what you say.”

He simply indicated that he accepted my casual remark without resistance.

…I stared at him with a dumbfounded expression, thinking it strange that he would take such a light comment even more lightly.

But despite my silent protest, Fafnir didn’t offer a specific response to it.

“I felt something similar. How could I not sense fate when I saw you, who so remarkably resembled my human form that I took when I couldn’t return to being a dragon.”

He was simply busy continuing with what he wanted to say.

“…Fate?”

I lightly questioned the word that was difficult to ignore from his casual remark.

“Yes, fate.”

After briefly answering, Fafnir cleared his throat once and continued:

“The intuitive sense of fate that you would end this unfinished battle—a fight that has continued for a thousand years without conclusion between us who live in this world and those twisted, hideous beings who descended as if falling from the sky.”

He recited this long sentence without pause, creating his own rhythm in what could be considered quite talkative by his standards.

Though he wasn’t a man of few words, considering Fafnir’s usual preference for brief statements, I sensed that he was pushing himself quite hard now.

“You found fate in a strange place.”

I tried to go along with him moderately, attempting to set things up so he wouldn’t strain himself, but:

“Listen. Just listen.”

Having apparently already understood my intention, Fafnir began again with a somewhat admonishing tone, though still composed, showing no intention of stopping his speech.

They say that all beings capable of existence and thought, without exception, tend to become sentimental at the end and behave differently from usual.

The taciturn become talkative, as if regretting their usual reticence.

The talkative become quiet and silent, as if reflecting on a life of frivolous speech and suddenly understanding the value of silence that the ancients spoke of.

To me, Fafnir’s unusual talkativeness, as if this were his last moment, only felt unsettling.

Perhaps because I failed to hide this uneasiness in my expression:

“As I said earlier, I’m not dying but returning to where I should be. Your worry is excessive.”

The lower half of Fafnir’s body, starting with his feet that should have touched the floor, had already lost its presence as he sat in the chair.

“Fafnir…!!”

I called his name urgently and rushed toward his chair with even more haste as his presence began to fade beyond mere transparency.

“Stop, stop. No need to hurry. I have time to say everything I need to.”

Fafnir held up his right palm to stop me, continuing to show the calm and relaxed attitude he had maintained since our match ended.

“Desire’s divine body has been destroyed. The demonic realm she created will completely collapse soon, but you’ll still feel uneasy in various ways. You’ve seen things and remember things. You’ll have a vague anxiety that it’s not all over yet.”

He pointed out what I had failed to consider while feeling relief at Desire’s disappearance and being preoccupied with our intense sparring match.

“…Renium.”

As soon as he pointed it out, I named the source of anxiety that had already formed in my mind.

“Yes. That arrogant one who claims to manipulate time.”

He expressed deep hostility toward one of the demon gods who had left indelible scars not only on him but on this world.

“However, he can no longer interfere with this world.”

When Fafnir then stated in a calm tone—as if leaving even that hostility behind in this mist—that the being could no longer interfere with this world:

“…Eh?”

I blurted out what was probably the most stupid-sounding single syllable question I had uttered since arriving here for our match.

…That really was pathetic.

“Hahahahaha!!”

My deflated reaction must have greatly amused him, as Fafnir burst into hearty laughter. Perhaps I could take comfort in providing good entertainment for him as he prepared to depart?

But as if to remind me that nothing lasts forever:

“Ah, it’s time.”

Fafnir’s voice, which had been calm yet powerful as he joked while sitting in the chair, gradually faded, and parts of his upper body that had been resting on the chair also disappeared.

Just as he had been telling me all along that it was time for him to leave.

His physical form, which was fading beyond mere haziness and disappearing in sequence, clearly indicated that he could no longer remain even in this strange place that existed between mind and matter.

Following his request not to be gloomy, I tried to watch his departure with composure.

“There seem to be a few things I haven’t properly conveyed, but if you go to the Sword Shrine and see that noisy woman, she’ll tell you everything you’re curious about, so don’t worry too much.”

Fafnir, regretting that he couldn’t tell me some important facts despite his time running out, gave me instructions for what to do next.

Hmm, the Sword Shrine means I should go see the Goddess of the Sword there. As Fafnir said, she’s quite talkative which makes her somewhat intimidating, but I suppose I’ll have to go.

As I calmly organized my future tasks according to Fafnir’s instructions:

“I won’t be able to stay here much longer either, but I should say one more thing before I go.”

I could tell that Fafnir, who showed no sign of gloom even as he was about to leave, was trying to tell me something important.

What could he be building up to say?

As I strained to hear what would likely be Fafnir’s final words to me:

“Thank you.”

Fafnir grinned as he expressed his gratitude to me.

“I’m the one who should be truly thankful.”

As soon as I heard those words, I naturally expressed my gratitude for all we had shared throughout our journey together.

“We will meet again.”

With these final words, Fafnir, who had barely maintained his form in the chair, completely vanished from this strange space between matter and mind.

He had appeared before me when I had returned to the past with only the vague goal of preventing tragedy, unsure of how to proceed.

He was a comrade who had drawn out my potential and strength, sharing hardships and joys with me…

And in some sense, he could be called my ancestor, who had now calmly exited this world after completing his task.

I would no longer be able to hone my skills and gain experience here, but:

“…Let’s go.”

Until the day I close my eyes forever, I will never forget the memories and experiences accumulated in this place.