Ch.338Vow of Purity. Bloody Mary (3)

The petals were slowly, and utterly, falling apart.

It was a miracle that her soul, or her lingering thoughts, had remained for 1,000 years after her death. Now, the time she could stay in this world was running short.

That’s why the couple followed the slowly drifting petals.

Like innocent children chasing flower petals dancing in the wind. Like a weary farmer seeking the shade of a tree to rest his body. They pursued the last traces she left behind.

The petals crossed mountains toward the fields.

And the husband followed.

The petals crossed fields toward the ravine.

And the wife followed.

The petals crossed the ravine toward the valley.

And the man followed.

The petals crossed the valley toward the meadow.

And that was where the petals settled.

After crossing mountains, traversing fields, leaping over ravines and valleys, she finally descended upon the meadow they reached.

“So. This is where you fell asleep…”

As their steps continued, the red cherry blossoms gradually diminished.

The flood of petals that had left no room to step soon became a tranquil field, and their journey finally ended at a single Bloody Mary tree.

And beneath it lay a gentle mound.

A single petal settled on that mound. The couple knew what it meant.

As they dug into the soil with force, what appeared were the bones of a man who, exhausted to his limits, had finally collapsed and never risen again. And like his tombstone, a tall red cherry tree had grown.

How many years had it endured? For an unfathomable time that even gods couldn’t measure, they had been separated.

“A husband and wife should be together. In life. In death.”

Victor said this as he uprooted the cherry tree with divine power.

And as he began walking back the way he had come, the cherry trees, as if honoring their creator, bloomed even more abundantly and caught their falling leaves.

Blood-red leaves clung to branches swaying in the wind, and the roots of cherry trees that had grown tall enough to block even the sun’s light intertwined to form one massive cluster.

Trees that had been planted by the creator’s hand over countless ages, and had survived the world’s eyes, rain, frost, and heat for just as long, all bowed their heads in unison.

The wind moved petals like a storm, and frost turned to warm air, guiding the final cherry tree floating in the sky along a single path.

“Soon you will meet your wife.”

Victor said this as he brought the last to meet the first.

The first cherry tree, finally reached, opened itself to welcome the last cherry tree, and Victor placed the last inside the first.

Then, as branches and trunks entwined, the two trees slowly became one.

When Raisha brought his remains, crushed them finely, and scattered them in the grave buried beneath the roots, countless branches extended from the entwined final cherry tree, from the embracing first cherry tree.

Higher than any building. Stretching out as if embroidering a massive crown.

And then they bloomed. Red cherry blossoms.

“A thousand years have passed, now depart from this world. The master of humanity bids farewell to your final journey.”

When Victor called out thus, the petals took the form of a couple and faced the Walker couple.

-Thank you.-

“Did I not say? A husband and wife should be together. You lived as spirits dwelling in trees, longing for each other through countless ages. But now it is time to go. Face the sun. Whether you choose eternal rest or rebirth in this world. The radiance will be with you.”

They did not answer. They simply faced the sky and disappeared, taking with them the petals bloomed by their children.

Thousands upon thousands of petals rising toward the sky, creating a massive updraft—it was an ecstasy never to be seen again. People who had climbed the mountain watched with gaping mouths as the couple attained enlightenment, or perhaps ascension.

And when the souls of the couple could no longer be felt, the petals settled back to the ground.

The petals danced in the gentle breeze, and people marveled at the sight that resembled a rain of flowers.

“They left a nice gift at the end.”

Victor said this as he removed a petal stuck to Raisha’s face.

His wife then smiled brightly, like a flower bud blooming.

*

After a day passed, Bloody Mary was engulfed in a festive atmosphere.

A couple reuniting after 1,000 years apart was already worthy of being recorded in history books, but the fact that the Sun God himself had orchestrated the reunion?

Only a fool would pass up this opportunity.

They needed to immediately draw it as a comic, write it as a novel, film it as a drama, release it as a movie, and milk it for all it was worth.

Since this was a region that had always thrived on derivative works, everyone began struggling to grab this new bait thrown after 1,000 years, and the Walker couple watched with complicated expressions.

Although it was natural for divine gospel to be distorted by humans, the city-wide effort to somehow profit from the poignant reunion of a couple seemed rather distasteful to outsiders.

However, since it seemed inappropriate to execute divine punishment for insulting someone who had already attained enlightenment and left this world, and moreover, since these people hadn’t caused any particular trouble over the years, Victor decided to consider this an inevitable shadow of human society.

After all, when observing human society where all sorts of biographies emerge whenever someone becomes successful, the citizens of Bloody Mary were quite well-behaved. At least they didn’t cross the line by doing things like digging up graves in search of material.

“Have the soldiers rested well?”

“Yes.”

“They certainly look like it.”

And since it was a place free from the threat of war for a long time, the soldiers were able to rest very well.

From the legion commander whose face was gleaming with vitality, Victor wondered if the regular soldiers had practically turned into pigs.

Since this was a place with more cultural elements like movies, dramas, novels, and comics than other places, they probably just ate, slept, and lounged around. Thinking they might have lost muscle mass during this time, Victor ordered the non-commissioned officers to conduct intensive physical training, and the NCOs, who had been itching to drill the soldiers, accepted the divine will with wicked smiles.

“We’ll be departing soon. Have the soldiers return by 20:00.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Now they had completed the pilgrimage to all the famous sites on the Hurychel continent.

Faerûn, Miriam, Meridia, Yenisei, Hyacinth, Reision, Hurychel.

Now before Victor and the Iron Walker party who had conquered seven continents lay the Heikiri continent.

His journey, moving from seven to eight, was now approaching its fourth year, and the faith flowing into his soul was growing stronger.

Before moving on to the eighth continent, if he concentrated just a little, the voices of his followers would fill his mind, both abundantly and distantly.

-Please help our sick parents recover…-

-Blood for the Lord of Fervor! Skulls for the Throne of Light!-

-My child was born today… Please bestow your blessing so they may grow healthy and bright…-

-Sun God, please protect me so I can run a sustainable loan-sharking business!-

-People die every day. Please give me the courage and strength to save them.-

-Master of all things. Please send to hell those bastards who confuse homophones and grammar.-

-One who punishes swelling malice and reignites fading goodness. I offer you my loyalty.-

-I masturbate every night while looking at your portrait. You’ll understand, right?-

Although some strange ones kept interrupting, Victor felt an enormous responsibility knowing that so many people were sending their faith toward him.

The theory of human evil nature meant that human nature is inherently evil, but therefore must be reformed to bring out goodness; the theory of human good nature held that human nature is inherently good, but the world doesn’t support goodness, so proper politics and education are needed to cultivate that goodness. The responsibility that he, an immortal god reigning above all mortal rulers, had to bear was literally equivalent to supporting the world.

Although it was somewhat inappropriate to worship the Sun God in the same way as the Four Great Gods, the fact that he was treated as a divine being at least equal to the Four Great Gods proved that he had the authority to rule this world.

-When you use white phosphorus, it produces both light and heat! Damn, light and heat again. I must massacre!-

“What the hell is wrong with these people.”

A season when the autumn harvest could turn into total paralysis.

It was autumn.