episode_0074

The day I said goodbye to Agapé, I felt something inside me break.

I don’t know exactly what broke. It was just that day, when we reunited on the battlefield… when I saw Agapé’s shattered expression and bid him farewell, I felt as if something very important in my life had snapped.

And immediately after that feeling, the memory of that day forever gnawed at my heart, settling in as a nightmare.

As an indelible, absolutely inseparable nightmare.

Tick.

“Haa, haa…”

Back then, I denied that chilling feeling.

Although I felt a great sense of loss when something important broke, given my timid nature, I thought I was simply overreacting by speaking such harsh words to Agapé for the first time.

So I denied it, thinking it was just my timid overreaction.

Because I believed the heart-sinking sense of loss was false.

After all, I had sent a letter to Agapé and reconciled immediately, and Agapé had forgiven me me, and we had exchanged letters about once a month, sharing news of each other.

That’s why I thought that sense of loss was false.

But…

“Haa, haa, haa…”

Agapé wasn’t there.

There was no Agapé where he should have been in Fallen, no trace of his life, not even a letter.

Realizing that fact, the sense of loss transformed into fear.

A fear so profound that it could easily make me lose my sanity.

‘Who on earth have I been exchanging letters with?’

Awkwardly conveying words of love in Agapé’s clumsy handwriting.

That letter, which spoke of Fallen’s weather, how things were livable now, and how he was only waiting for the day I would come…

‘Who on earth wrote that letter?’

My mind burned hot.

Simultaneously, my vision turned stark white, and as everything went white, my body, which had been running for days and reached its limit, finally tripped over a stone and fell.

Thud.

“Gasp…?!”

Kara, who had been running faster than a horse, tumbled several meters forward and couldn’t get up for a long time.

“Haa, haa, haa…”

My stamina had already reached its limit.

Two days from the Imperial Capital to Fallen, and then another two days from Fallen to Mullipen.

For four days, I had been running like mad without eating or drinking, or even a moment of sleep or rest.

Even with the body of a Sword Master and vast amounts of aura, pushing my body to such extremes and covering that distance meant I couldn’t possibly be fine.

“Haa, my heart…”

My overworked heart pounded violently, regardless of my will.

The loud thumping of my heart, echoing like drumbeats in my ears, and my increasingly ragged breathing.

“Haaak…haaak…keugh…haa…”

My chest was agonizingly pained to an unprecedented degree because of it, but ominous thoughts still wouldn’t stop in my mind.

‘The letter… wasn’t written by Agapé?’

That couldn’t be.

It was definitely Agapé’s handwriting.

In the middle of the letter, there were even stories only we knew, and Agapé’s unique clumsy emotional expressions were so imbued in the letter that it perfectly reminded me of Agapé.

Unless it was a Prophet, absolutely—

“……”

Absolutely…

“……”

Lucas.

I recalled the name of that devil.

A madman obsessed with power to an unbelievable degree for someone representing the Prophets, who are symbols of justice, and a devil who wouldn’t hesitate to seize the most precious things of others for his own purposes.

As I thought of that devil’s name, an even greater unease began to surge.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

“Ka-ha…!”

Because of that, my heart pounded even more severely.

To the point of agony, so painful that I wished I would just faint.

But.

“Keugh…haa…”

If ‘my thoughts’ were correct…

If Lucas truly hadn’t kept his ‘promise’ with me…

If that madman had indeed treated the tragedy between Agapé and me like a game for some other purpose…

“I have to… get up…!”

I couldn’t stay like this.

I had to confirm Agapé’s life or death with my own eyes.

Since he was from Fallen, and a former Oleg Knight, it was unlikely that anyone other than Agapé, dressed in Mullipen attire, would have come out of the city.

So, to quell this maddening anxiety…

“Keugh…!”

I had to move my legs, heavy as a thousand pounds.

Clenching my maddeningly pounding heart.

Rumble…

After quieting my screaming heart and the muscles throughout my body with aura, I had to run towards my destination.

It wouldn’t be too late to rest then.

It would be fine to rest after confirming Agapé’s life or death—

“Agapé…”

This maddeningly anxious feeling.

“A-gape…”

Just like that nightmarish day, erasing the great sense of loss, as if something in my heart had broken, was the priority.

Leading my body that felt like it would collapse at any moment, I began to run with all my might again.

Like mad, without resting, to the point where I wondered if I might die.

***

After half a day, the giant mountain, which had only been visible from afar, finally came into view.

Mount Minerva.

And below it, the comparatively smaller snow-capped peaks and the Imperial Capital.

Seeing that scenery, I instinctively knew that the destination was not far off, and spurred myself on, running towards Mullipen even faster.

“Haa… finally…”

I arrived at Mullipen.

In an absurd time of two and a half days.

I had arrived at Mullipen, located in the very center of the continent, all the way from Fallen, located at the eastern edge.

If I hadn’t possessed my unique innate talent for aura manipulation and the superhuman body of a Sword Master, my heart surely would have burst and I would have died midway.

Thud.

Kara, who was about to step into Mullipen, finally collapsed where she stood.

My body had long since surpassed its limits.

“Haa, haa, haa…”

Kara, instinctively knowing that if she moved further, her weakening heartbeat would stop and she would die, had no choice but to sit down in front of the city and regulate her breathing.

Then, leaning against a brick lying near the remnants of the broken city wall, I gazed at the plains in front of the city, where countless weapons lay scattered.

‘…Why, of all times, am I thinking of that moment now?’

Gharam.

The continent’s true great evil, which I had simply thought was part of a shadow faction, and thus no match for us who had faced calamities until now.

That day, when I tasted bitter defeat and overwhelming helplessness at the hands of Gharam, a mere part of a shadow faction, not even a calamity, began to play out in my mind amidst this confusion.

‘The Knight in Golden Armor.’

That knight who appeared suddenly.

A strong individual with incomprehensible power, whose physique easily exceeded 2 meters, to the point of being considered a small giant.

The memory of that day, when he overwhelmed me solely with swordsmanship, without any aura, began to vividly play out as I looked at the desolate plains spread before my eyes.

‘…He was strong.’

He was strong.

Stronger than anyone I had ever faced.

So strong that he brought to mind Uncle Orlando, known as the Sword Emperor.

That knight’s sword was chillingly strong, as if it personified death itself.

‘…It was brutal.’

My collapsing stance with each clash, and the sword that rang out as if it would shatter at any moment.

And the hand holding the humming sword was also so painful from the shock that my face grimaced.

Without gaining any initiative, I was utterly and miserably defeated, in a way that could not be described as heroic.

But for some reason…

‘Why am I thinking of Agapé?’

Agapé came to mind.

Even Agapé, who couldn’t use aura, had no one who could match his swordsmanship, at least within Fallen.

‘He’s similar to Agapé.’

For some reason, I recalled Agapé’s back.

Whenever ruffians tried to attack me, he would grip his gladius with his back to me.

Agapé’s appearance, smiling faintly at me before engaging in a bloody fight with the ruffians.

His swordsmanship, fighting style, everything was different, yet strangely, thinking of that knight simultaneously brought to mind young Agapé holding a sword.

“……”

Could there be a reason?

Why did those two, who seemed completely unrelated, overlap so much today?

To be the same person, that knight’s physique was different from Agapé’s.

Of course, Agapé wasn’t small, but he wasn’t as massive as that knight.

‘Useless thoughts.’

My breathing was slowly returning, so I leaned my wobbling body against a brick of the city wall and somehow managed to stand up.

And dragging my weak feet, I stepped inside Mullipen.

……

Naturally, Mullipen was extremely quiet.

It wasn’t that no one lived there, but perhaps due to the previous fierce battle, most of the city’s citizens were still hiding in their homes, scared, with only a very small number actually out on the streets.

‘How do I find Agapé here?’

Even if the crowds on the streets had thinned, it was still one of the continent’s largest cities.

The thought of trying to find Agapé in this massive city, home to over a million citizens, filled me with despair.

But then.

“Who are you, Unnie?”

A child appeared.

With wolf beastfolk ears perked up, chewing on jerky.

“Unnie, did you also come to find someone?”

Surprised by the child’s spot-on observation, I asked.

“How did you know that?”

“How did I know? There are lots of people like you here, Unnie. Some came because someone they knew died, or their family went missing, and also… hmm…”

“……”

Those weren’t words one would expect from a child.

Nevertheless, the little child nonchalantly explained the city’s situation as if it were an everyday occurrence.

“Anyway, most people who come to this city go to the very center. Most people put up posters there to find people, and everyone waits there. But…”

Hmm…

The child hummed, looking at my appearance.

“Knights like you, Unnie, often go to the Ducal Castle.”

“Ducal Castle?”

“Yes! There’s a place there called the Grave of Stars, and most of the fallen knights and soldiers of this city are buried there, or are currently being buried!”

“……”

A soldier, or a knight.

Recalling that Agapé had been dressed as a knight when I last saw him, I asked for the location of the Ducal Castle.

At my words, the child, unaware of my true feelings, replied innocently.

“It’s simple! Just go into that big~~ castle over there, walk deep past the left side of the entrance, and you’ll see a large cemetery! That’s the Grave of Stars!”

“Is that so? Thank you.”

“Eheheh.”

As I began to stroke the child’s head in gratitude, the child’s gaze went to my side.

It was a pouch filled with food.

“……”

“…Do you want to eat this?”

“Really?! Can I really?!”

“Of course. Unnie doesn’t need to eat, so eat as much as you like.”

“Wow~! Thank you, Unnie!”

The child, having received the pouch of food, bounced around and ran off somewhere.

“…Grave of Stars.”

And I, recalling the child’s explanation, moved my steps towards the Ducal Castle and arrived at the place called the Grave of Stars.

***

Thump. Thump. Thump.

It was just as the child had said.

Though very few, four or five knights were mourning before gravestones throughout the Grave of Stars.

“……”

Coming this far, I couldn’t help but feel nervous.

I came all this way because Agapé was said to have come to this city, but why did I visit a cemetery where knights were buried, of all places, first?

At least… since people were looking for others in the city square, wouldn’t it have been right to look for Agapé there?

‘But why…’

Was my instinct telling me that Agapé was here?

My long High Elf ears perked up with tension.

And my hand began to reach for the bouquet I had kept in my arms all along, and without realizing it, I picked up the bouquet and walked around the gravestones.

…As if I were already prepared for someone’s death.

Though my reason didn’t acknowledge it, my body was naturally preparing to accept the death of the man I loved.

‘…He’s not here.’

He wasn’t there.

I circled around, looking at every gravestone, but the name Agapé was nowhere to be found.

“Ah, ahahaha…”

A small smile of relief escaped me.

“Right, Agapé… Agapé couldn’t possibly be here.”

He couldn’t possibly be dead.

Old Man Ivan said he clearly saw him coming out of Fallen, so he must be alive.

So,

So…

“Who are you?”

Just then, a gravedigger called out to me.

“…Were you calling me?”

“Indeed. Weren’t you laughing in the middle of the cemetery?”

“…Ah.”

Hearing that, I realized I had committed a great disrespect, and immediately bowed my head to the gravedigger in apology.

“I apologize. I couldn’t find the person I was looking for, and unwittingly, in relief…”

“Name.”

“…Yes?”

“What is their name?”

“Why suddenly their name…”

“I’ve seen many people like you.”

His gloomy eyes gazed at me.

“Since the Ducal Castle opened yesterday, I’ve seen people like you more than ten times. They don’t find a familiar grave, so they think that person must be alive. Then, when I ask for a name just in case, their face, which was smiling in relief, immediately turns to its opposite.”

So tell me the name.

Don’t get caught up in false hope only to taste even greater despair.

“……”

It felt like standing before a grim reaper.

From his gloomy eyes and confident voice to the subtle mix of pity visible on his face.

Every expression and action of that man was like a grim reaper who had come to announce Agapé’s death.

Still, I couldn’t just deny it as the gravedigger said, so I forced my lips apart and spoke his name.

“…Agapé.”

“What did you say?”

“Agapé. The Military Administrator of the Oleg Knights, Agapé.”

“The Military Administrator of the Oleg Knights, Agapé?”

At my words, the gravedigger made a questioning expression.

“…Have you, perhaps, never heard of him?”

“Strange. If he was the Military Administrator of the Oleg Knights, there’s no way I wouldn’t know him, but no matter how I think about it, it feels like the first time I’m hearing the name.”

Strange, very strange.

As I muttered in a small voice, he then asked about Agapé’s appearance.

“Is there anything specific about his appearance? Like the shape of his armor, or a personal item he always carried?”

“Personal item…?”

“Yes, a personal item.”

At his words, I pondered for a moment before speaking.

“He carried a gladius. A good quality gladius, characterized by a silver blade and a black hilt.”

“A gladius?”

“Do you not know it?”

“No. But the name there was erased…”

“…What?”

“Anyway, follow me. I will guide you there.”

Swish swish.

Stepping on grass soaked with rainwater, the gravedigger guided me to a spot located in a corner of the cemetery.

Nikita.

Anastasia.

Helena.

And…

“The grave I spoke of is here.”

Before my eyes was a nameless grave.

“…Are you alright? Why aren’t you saying anything—”

“Kara.”

“If you leave the city, will you marry me?”

Drip… drip…

“Th-this isn’t a dream, is it?”

“Agapé…?”

“Yes…! *Hic*…! You, you promised, right?”

“I promise.”

“*Sniff*…! If you don’t keep your promise, I’ll beat you to a pulp.”

“Agapé?”

Drip… drip…

“No… right? Agapé, …Agapé?”

For what felt like eons, I had lived, always dreaming of a reunion with him, longing for it only in my dreams.

To be embraced in his warm, vibrant arms.

To shed tears in his warm embrace, sobbing that I had missed him.

To receive his abundant love, listening to his clumsy yet gentle touches and words.

But…

“*Sob*…*heh heh*…Ah-ha, ahahahahaha……! Ahahahahahaha…!”

[Charlemagne Year 870 – Charlemagne Year 907]

What awaited me at the end of a long-awaited reunion was neither his warm embrace nor his affectionate words.

Before the large gravestone, where not even a name was inscribed, only his sword—said to be his father’s keepsake—remained, lonely and cold.

Only the lilac ring, which I had given away as if discarding it, remained.

There was no warmth, only the cold touch of steel.

“Aaaaaaah──────!!”

My world.

My precious world.

Clutching my shattered world, I wailed at the top of my lungs.