episode_0073

Encouragement from an Otherworlder

“….So… you thought Revo-ssi was around thirty when you first met him?”

“Oh, yes~ It was also the first time I’d seen a human…. And above all, he had such a youthful appearance that it was easy for me to misunderstand and speak informally, she said, bursting into hearty laughter!”

Ah…. indeed. Estur-ssi, who was from the same organization, also had an appearance almost identical to mine, despite being 400,000 years old. So it wasn’t hard to understand the Village Chief-nim’s words. Now that I think about it, I’m curious… why do people with such transcendent ages have youthful appearances?

“By the way, then Revo-ssi also lived a long life, like Estur-ssi, didn’t he, Zeke-nim?”

“Huh? That’s right, Aria?”

“Then if you add Estur-ssi’s age to Revo-ssi’s age…. wouldn’t it be almost 420,000 years?”

“Well… I guess so?”

“Aww~ He’s older than that~ Time in the otherworld is different, so Revo-ssi is much older~”

“….Pardon?”

Aria and I were dumbfounded upon hearing that Revo was as old as the members of the organization called Busterz, who Estur had already mentioned had lived for over 100 million years. Then Aria’s expression turned serious, and she began to murmur.

“I’m quite envious…. It means you can keep seeing the one you love for that long. Of course, I wouldn’t be satisfied with just that, but….”

“….What, are you thinking of living infinitely and continuing to watch over me…? My… my position…?”

“Even if Zeke-nim passes away…. at least…! At least through Zeke-nim’s portrait…!! Wouldn’t I be able to live contentedly?!”

….Hey. Hearing that, if I die and you’re still alive in this world, I somehow get scared that your gaze will reach me even in hell…? The moment I trembled at Aria’s terrifying words, Akada, who was drinking tea, suddenly burst into laughter and began to cough.

“A choked laugh! She stifled a giggle…”

“….What’s wrong, Village Chief-nim?”

“Ah, my apologies, Zeke-nim… Akada chuckled. It just seems the Saint-nim isn’t afraid of eternal life….”

“No. Still, I’m afraid if I can’t see Zeke-nim.”

When Akada said she wasn’t afraid of eternal life, Aria immediately replied to Akada. Then Akada smiled and said to Aria.

“Exactly. Not being able to see the one you love is the most terrifying thing. I was afraid of that and of others seeing me as a monster. So, back then, I moved my home to a place where outsiders were rare… and continuously tried to die alone. Then I met Revo-ssi, and the moment I learned his age….”

The moment I learned Revo’s age, I collapsed again, leaning against the wall, my strength gone and my expression vacant. Revo panicked, not knowing what to do.

“Ugh…. Aaaah?! What’s wrong?! D-Did I do something wrong….?”

“Haaah…. It’s so shameful that I rambled on asking someone who has lived so long what they knew…. I wish there was a hole I could crawl into.”

“Ah… Th-That…. You don’t have to think that! It’s true that I also gained eternal life unwillingly, but it wasn’t forcibly bestowed upon me by others! So… I’m still, what should I say….”

The moment Revo began to stammer, I heard him say that he hadn’t been forcibly given eternal life by others. Slowly, I turned my head to Revo and asked him.

“….? Then how did Revo-ssi get eternal life….?”

“Ah…. Well…. I’ll tell you everything. I’m the leader of the 2nd Unit in the H.S.A, an organization that manages dimensions. When I joined, they warned me that I could gain eternal life.”

“….? How is that possible…?”

“When you cross dimensions, your body undergoes abnormalities. The most typical one is that your growth slows down incredibly. Since I joined the H.S.A when I was about 23, my body has remained in this state ever since.”

“Anyway… so Revo-ssi isn’t the same type as me…. I felt a sense of camaraderie for a moment… Haaah…”

“….I apologize.”

My disappointment grew when I realized Revo wasn’t the same type as me after all. I sighed, and Revo apologized to me. But… though it was disappointing… this human in front of me….

“Still, thank you for trying to understand me, Revo-ssi….”

“….I will do my best to understand your pain….. Well… honestly, I too have experienced, seen, and heard terrible things while living a long life, so I know how painful eternal life can be. At first, I even wanted to die.”

When Revo said he also knew the pain of eternal life, I tilted my head. Then why… no, how was this man still able to live until now…? Why was he clinging to a life of eternal existence, not knowing when he might die?

“But why are you still alive?”

“Hmm….. Of course, it’s because I was resolved. The H.S.A is an organization that protects and aids life from disaster. When I learned about this organization, I joined it with the resolve to die. There were countless dangerous missions, and comrades died around me. There were times when my resolve wavered, but…. I didn’t give up. There were people around me who supported me and whose willpower was ignited by me…. And above all…. I wanted to save many lives! There were times I failed, but… still, to save more… even more lives, I didn’t give up.”

“….To save someone….”

“Yes. That’s why I chose it, even knowing the consequences….. Of course… you, who became eternally youthful without even having time to prepare yourself, might not be able to empathize with my past…. I was resolved, but…. you were not…”

“….I wasn’t resolved… no… I couldn’t even predict such a thing would happen in the first place…. But like you, I also tried to give up on life… I can empathize with that point.”

“I see…. Has something you want to do come up?”

“Hm? How did you know that…”

“You’re smiling, aren’t you? He chuckled. Isn’t that right?”

Just as Revo said, something began to ignite within my heart, and perhaps because of that feeling, a smile graced my face. Hearing Revo’s words, I realized the identity of what was burning within me and tried to stand up from my seat.

“W-Woahhh?!”

“Oh?! Be careful!!”

The moment I tried to stand, my legs, which hadn’t moved for a long time, began to waver. Revo then caught me just before I fell. As Revo put his arm around my waist…. Uh…. W-What is this feeling…?

‘Uh….? Ughh…? W-What… what is this feeling…? My heart is pounding….’

“Are you alright? Is there anything I can help you with?”

“Ah! I… uh… My… My legs must have lost strength because I haven’t moved them in a while…. I want to continue the research I was doing before. Can you help me?”

“Of course!”

Revo supported me as we headed towards the spot I indicated. He dusted off an old book from the bookshelf and handed it to me, then began taking out usable herbs from a drawer. And then….

“….You like Revo-ssi, don’t you?”

“Akada chuckled heartily. I accidentally revealed my feelings just now~ Yes…. I admire Revo-ssi.”

While listening to the story, Aria suddenly asked Akada if she liked Revo, and Akada replied with a smile. Then, hearing Akada’s answer, Aria suddenly let out a big sigh of relief.

“….? Why are you relieved?”

“She exhaled slowly. If you had said you liked Zeke-nim…. I was thinking of killing you with a kitchen knife….!!”

“Oh… Oh my… Akada chuckled nervously. Y-You’re taking the joke too far…. Uh….”

When Aria joked that she would have killed her if she had liked Zeke, Akada seemed greatly flustered and chuckled awkwardly, thinking it was a jest. However, Akada and I felt in our bones that Aria was truly serious, seeing her chilling expression.

“Still, now that I know you don’t love Zeke-nim~ Please continue with your story~”

“…..Human Saint-nims are all scary…”

“No, that only applies to Aria.”

When Akada was about to misunderstand that all human Saint-nims were as scary as Aria, I quickly replied that it was only Aria. Then Aria pondered something deeply and asked Akada.

“But did that man, Revo, not repair the house he first destroyed? I knew he’d be more irresponsible than Zeke-nim.”

“Akada chuckled awkwardly. The house…. Well, you see… She chuckled softly.”

When Aria mentioned the house repairs, Akada gave an awkward laugh, then recalled something and her expression turned serious. She then began to tell us the story from that time.

“Hmm… First, I’ll have to repair the ceiling. Since I broke it, it’s only natural that I fix it…”

“Once my legs heal, together….”

“No~ Would you mind sitting on this chair for a moment? I’ll fix it quickly. He braced himself…”

Revo suddenly sat me down on the chair, then abruptly began to warm up his body. Somehow, a sense of unease began to rise in my heart, and at that moment, Revo snapped his fingers, and an opaque blue barrier covered all the objects in the house, as well as me. I then said, bewildered.

“Th-This is….”

“I saw where the trees were when they fell…. One….. Two!!!!”

“Eh…?! Aaaah?!”

The moment Revo finished his warm-up, a tremendous shockwave suddenly erupted along with billowing dust. Revo began darting back and forth outside at an incredible speed, the… the roof…. at incredible speed…..

“He grunted! Done!”

“…..? Huh?”

When I came to my senses, Revo flapped his cloak, sending all the dust outside, and I saw that the roof had been perfectly repaired. I was too bewildered to speak, and the moment I was dumbfounded, Revo snapped his fingers. Then, the barrier covering the objects inside the house began to disappear, and Revo, with incredible speed, took each object outside one by one and then brought them back. The objects Revo brought back were…. spotless….

“Alright! Finished!!”

“That’s too fast!!”

“Huh? Hmm….. Is that so?”

Upon hearing this story, we also turned serious like Akada, and seeing our expressions, Akada chuckled awkwardly and explained again.

“The… the repairs…. combined with cleaning, it didn’t even take a minute, did it…? You might not believe it, but….”

“No, I already had an estimate of their physical abilities from when Estur-ssi snatched Aria’s staff in an instant…. But that… in 10 seconds…..”

“So that’s why he cast the barrier….. because of the shockwave. Then he must have fixed the house and left right away?”

“No~ I thought so too. But….”

While Revo, who had finished repairing the house, was sweeping away the remaining dust with a broom and duster, I was re-learning my old knowledge through books. Then I asked Revo, who was cleaning.

“Um…. So, are you leaving soon?”

“Pardon?”

“Y-You fixed the house…. and, what was it….”

“Ah~ I came here to perform a mission. I need to be here for about… a year, to understand the structure of the dimensional barrier and dimensional pathways here.”

“…! So you’re not leaving right away?!”

I was very happy to learn that Revo wasn’t leaving right away. Then Revo scratched his head and asked me.

“Uh… That’s right, but… is that something to be so happy about? No, more than that…. Aren’t you still suffering because of your eternal life?”

“Ah… about that…. You’ve lived longer than me, and you’ve been doing such things during your long life, while I was just being pessimistic… it just made me feel more ashamed of myself….”

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone has their own perspective. Besides, since this is something you’re experiencing for the first time, it’s natural to have pessimistic thoughts, so there’s no need to dwell on it. All we have to do is decide what we’ll do with our eternal life, and for what purpose, and for whom. Don’t you agree?”

“….What to do…. I wished my race could live longer than they do now. Just a little… a very little longer, so they could do what they wanted. So… while I was pessimistic about the eternal life that suddenly came to me, I decided to resume my research that I had given up. Uh…. Still, it’s not as outstanding a goal as Revo-ssi’s… You… Revo-ssi, you’re trying to save many people…”

“Hm? Isn’t that also a wonderful goal? There’s no need to weigh or score goals. What matters most is whether you do something for that goal…. or rather, if you pursue it passionately. Just as I trained my body to fit my goal, you’ve accumulated knowledge for yours, haven’t you? Goals always tend to change and aim higher, but that doesn’t mean the score of your effort gets higher or anything like that.”

Hearing Revo’s words, I looked at the book in my hand and smiled brightly. Then Revo spun the broom in his hand and said to me.

“Not all my comrades in the H.S.A possess combat abilities. There are also comrades who are engrossed in research, just like you. Everyone is doing what suits them. Well… so you can achieve it too. You can turn eternal life into an advantage, even.”

“Into an advantage…..”

“Yes…. But you know what…. There was something I had forgotten….”

“Something you’d forgotten?”

When Revo said he’d forgotten something, I tilted my head and asked him back. Then Revo leaned the broom against the wall, scratched his head, and said.

“Your name…. what is it?”

“….Ah.”

I remembered that I had only been listening about Revo until now and hadn’t told him everything about myself. So I scratched my head like Revo. Then, without realizing it, I started to laugh, and Revo, seeing me laugh, began to laugh along.

“Hahahaha….. I certainly haven’t told you my name yet.”

“Hahahaha…. It seems I was the only one having fun…. Or perhaps my enthusiasm got ahead of me, and I only talked about myself.”

“….My name is Akada. I am a fairy and… a witch.”

“Yes….. Ah, if it’s not too much trouble, could I stay here for a year?”

“Of course, human Revo. You are my benefactor who uplifted me, so by all means.”

I chuckled softly upon hearing that Akada and Revo had lived together for a year. Then Aria let out an awkward laugh and said to Akada.

“She chuckled. I think I understand what kind of person Revo-ssi is like now.”

“Oh my~ How did you know?”

“…..Because you… seem to have picked up the personality of that human, Revo…. Even your tendency to blurt everything out when you get excited….”

“Oh my? Oh…. Akada burst into hearty laughter. Now that I think about it….”

“Right…”

Upon hearing Aria’s words, Akada realized that she had indeed become similar to Revo in personality and began to chuckle awkwardly. I also straightened my expression when I realized that Akada had acted almost identically to how Revo had. This makes me start to worry about H.S.A.’s security…

“Anyway…. While living with Revo-ssi, I learned the secret to living an eternal life from him, and I taught him how to decoct herbs.”

As Revo sat outside on a chair, simply gazing at the sky, I, whose legs had somewhat recovered, came out of the house and asked him.

“Do you see anything each time you gaze at the sky like that?”

“I can feel what the dimensional barrier is like. But it’s really strange here… not many dimensional pathways are visible.”

“Hmm~? How many are usually visible?”

“In a normal dimension, you’d feel there are holes in various places. In a place like this, there should normally be about ten of them…. It’s truly peculiar. Well…. It hasn’t even been a month yet, so there’s no need to rush to conclusions, but….”

‘Hmm…. I don’t understand what he means….’

Having almost no knowledge of dimensions, I couldn’t understand Revo’s words. Then I brought a chair from outside, placed it next to him, and sat on it. And, wiggling my fingers, I asked him.

“Um…. Are you perhaps thinking of staying longer…?”

“Hm? No…. There are too many dimensions to manage or protect besides this one. I don’t have the luxury of time. So… I don’t know if I’ll even have time to come back.”

“….I see.”

Upon learning that he wouldn’t be able to return, I sighed deeply in disappointment. As a future where I would feel incredibly bitter once he left was painted in my mind, fear began to sprout in my heart…. I wished he wouldn’t go back….