The Rebirth Of The Hero’S Party’S Archmage [EN]: Chapter 255

“Just, just give me a little more time.”

It was the moment when an unexpected tension was drawn so taut it felt like it would snap at any second.

「Countless beings wish to become dragons, yet you willingly forsake being a dragon. How mysterious is this.」

The third son, Jakan, who had been maintaining a reverent silence, spoke, causing the wyverns to flatten themselves to the ground.

「Forgive the rudeness of these children. Their long lives have made them more stubborn than any other race.」

Then, the second daughter, Grüdaone, approached Aki, knelt on one knee, and met her gaze.

「Is that human your father?」

Aki nodded vigorously.

「Humans cannot give birth to dragons, nor can dragons. Yet, you believe that human is your father?」

Aki nodded again.

Suddenly, a heavy silence fell, and then Grüdaone let out a laugh filled with reverent trembling.

「Then let it be as you wish. The name Alakish gave you is Freedom (自由) [Japanese for Freedom]. What you wish to do from your heart is your mission.」

The wyverns dared not defy her dignity, barely managing to voice their concerns.

「However, Child of Fire, humans cannot walk the same path as dragons.」

「A mission, you say? That is true. But which dragon in this land can argue with Alakish about missions? With the being who has guarded the distant North Pole alone since the Age of Origins?」

「!」

「And you call him human, but your eyes are too weak to see that the texture of this human’s soul is already the same as the Black Sun. He no longer falls within the category of humans.」

I blinked my eyes.

I didn’t understand what was happening. When I asked why, Grüdaone said,

「The age of the dragon is coming to an end. We, the last true dragons and legions who served Bel’dakidun, will soon exhaust our lives as firewood for this .」

“That…”

「Dragons live by their mission and die when their mission ends. It is paradoxical. They live for nearly eternal ages, yet they remember the old world but do not know the current world.」

Having received the Fire Dragon’s command to guard this wall of flames, the red dragons must live only guarding this wall until the day they die.

This time, Jakan approached.

His eyes were looking not south, but north. To the north, where the Republic’s land lies, and across the narrow sea, the Empire, Duchies, and City-States exist.

「In the future, let that child tell us.」

“……?”

「What that great and beautiful world, protected by Alakish, Shalesarum, Pyras, and the legions with envoys and commands, looks like now.」

“……!”

「The age of the dragon is entering twilight, and the age of humans is dawning. Let us feel the light of that dawn.」

Grüdaone nodded as if agreeing with her sibling’s intention, looking at me with kind eyes.

「Perhaps Alakish would want this as well. Her soul is giving off such tremors. Will you protect Akirea until she becomes an adult?」

My eyes widened, and Jakan added an explanation, thinking I didn’t understand the meaning.

「When your body reaches the end of its life or Akirea becomes an adult, we will begin the true dragon’s education. At that time, we will send her back here.」

There was no need to hesitate in answering.

Forgetting even the heat of the white sand, I bowed my head to the ground.

“I will do so. Please, allow me to do so.”

Grüdaone and Jakan exchanged smiles and reached out to Aki.

「Now, since we won’t be taking your stepfather away from you, come into our arms for a moment. We want to know the warmth of your soul.」

Aki, sniffling, hesitated for a long time before approaching the true dragons, on the condition that I didn’t move more than two steps away.

Jakan first put his hands under Aki’s sides and lifted her up, and then Grüdaone hugged Aki tightly.

It didn’t take long for tears to well up in the eyes of the two true dragons.

「You are truly Alakish’s daughter. How long has it been, sister? How wonderful it would have been if you had come with us…」

At that moment, just for a brief moment.

Perhaps it was an illusion born from a desperate desire for it to be so.

In this tearful reunion, I thought I saw the figure of my beloved benefactor. With his hands on his two siblings’ heads, sending a kind smile to me.

「Thank you.」

* * *

Du… Gero… Al ki de….

The dragons’ song sang of the sunset, echoing reverently.

This song, filled with the hope for all living things and those yet to live.

“It’s a song they sing when they bless a fellow dragon embarking on a long journey.”

“Aki is no longer a dragon.”

“You’re saying that again. Well, she’s young now… But you should at least show some gratitude to the true dragons. It’s the polite thing to do.”

Aki still didn’t want to leave Rein’s arms, but when Rein kept saying that, she finally peeked her face out over his shoulder.

“Haba ne shi rade mia.”

And she uttered dragon words in response to the dragons’ song.

Then, the dragons sitting on the ridge of fire spread their wings all at once, a majestic sight that was deeply moving.

The two true dragons were still in their dragonkin forms, waving their hands at Aki.

「To think that a little brat who only knew how to whine for herself has learned to cry for someone else. People really do live long enough to see everything. Right, Pipi?」

Freede and Pipi giggled playfully.

To be able to giggle so happily over something so trivial, Pipi really should stay by Freede’s side.

Pipi wanted that too, and Freede didn’t really see any reason to leave Pipi with Rein anymore.

「Where are you going now?」

“There are many places to go… I haven’t even seen all of the Empire yet. But I think I’ll go home for now.”

「Ah, are you going to show off your beautiful wife and granddaughter to your parents? That’s not a bad idea.」

Milia’s face, which was silently glaring at Freede, seemed to be tinged red, perhaps because of the darkening twilight.

“Freede, why don’t you come with us?”

「What are you talking about? I told you, this is my Transcended form. I reached Transcendence with the Fire Dragon’s help. So I have to protect this place.」

“……”

「Why are you both making those faces? I’ll probably live longer than you two, right? You have long lives ahead of you, so come visit sometimes. I’ll come to meet you whenever you arrive at .」

Right….

Freede gazed at her two companions, lost in strange thoughts. No, she was lost in the delusions she had always harbored since the end of the old journey in tears.

She will definitely return someday. Just like it is now, 300 years later.

– If this expedition is over, won’t you travel with us?

– Rin, you promised, right? That you’d travel with us.

– Yeah, I promise.

You definitely promised that.

I believed and prayed that you would return someday and come here too. That’s why I left Pipi behind.

Because I believed that, because I trusted your words, because I knew you were a child who always kept her promises.

No matter how tired and exhausted I became, I didn’t give up on life, and I went through the arduous process of Transcendence and was reborn as a dragon.

– Even if it’s not in this life, but reborn?

Yes.

I prayed that the day you two would meet again would come.

To eternally pray that the gods would have mercy on your meeting, which was foretold to have a tragic severance from the moment you met.

‘There may be no such thing as coincidence in this world.’

Everything is operated under the providence of the gods in the name of fate.

‘And that fate has granted those two a new time. So that they can fulfill the promise they made before being covered in ice that day.’

I have been waiting for this moment.

I prayed that I could see you overcome that tragedy and become happy.

And seeing that prayer finally bear such beautiful fruit, I am simply endlessly happy and grateful.

「Then you two are going on a trip. Just like you said before.」

In the fleeting and mournful sunset, they simply stared at each other for a moment.

Then, without ever having promised each other to do so, they almost simultaneously put their arms around each other’s shoulders.

With Setsunen entrusted to Aki, no one, no matter who it may be, can dare to interfere in this moment.

「You’re still a little brat with no charm, Rin. Don’t say you don’t want to hear nagging and never come here again.」

“I’ll come even if you tell me not to, so don’t worry. I have to see Pipi too.”

“Pipi, Pipi, Pipi.”

「And the hero who shamelessly reincarnated into a new body as I prayed, stop using swords and live happily.」

“If you promise not to tease me every time we meet, I’ll try. But I think I’ll keep using kitchen knives in the future.”

Serweborn and Shirpang emitted their respective lights as if blessing this moment.

At that time, they were smiling at each other, but the twilight shattered into rainbow colors on their eyes.

How much did they want this time, how much did they want this day to come?

Then, as if Rein had remembered, he took out a basket from Seresia’s inner pocket. When he opened the lid, a pure white dragon egg was visible.

“Tureina is inside here.”

“What?”

「Tureina?」

“It’s only a fragment of her soul, but Karenndennim said this is the comfort she gives us…”

「I see.」

Freede swallowed a bitter smile that seemed like it would break at any moment.

「I’m sorry, Rin. It’s all my fault that Tureina became like that. I led her wrong, I should have cherished her heart more──」

At that moment, there was a sound that cut off Freede’s words.

It was no one’s voice. It was the sound of cracks spreading across the pure white dragon egg. One, two, three, and another.

Everyone held their breath in bewilderment, and soon the cracks broke, and a child poked her face out.

“This is…”

Hair and eyebrows that reminded one of the untouched white snow of a winter day. Pure white, flawlessly white child.

“A person? A dragonkin? Was Aki like this too?”

“No, Aki was a baby dragon when she came out of the egg…”

Mirngardia had the same appearance as when Yeriserica had hugged her in the illusion before.

Mirngardia didn’t whine like Aki either. She simply looked back at the faces of the three people and one dragon with eyes as calm as a lake.

A stream of tears flowed from the child’s expressionless, tilting head. Without even knowing the reason for her tears, led by the fragment of her soul.

「Ah…….」

Freede pulled such Mirngardia out of the egg’s mucus, and seeing the familiar texture dwelling in Mirngardia’s soul, she hugged her tightly.

And began to weep silently.

Tears flowed incessantly from Freede’s eyes, who had never shed tears before parting or after reuniting.

There are moments that exist because there are encounters.

There are hearts that are known because there are farewells.

Encounters and farewells coexist, teaching humans the finiteness of life, and teaching humans the hearts of the gods in that joy and sorrow.

Because knowing that there is an end makes each other cherish each other.

Because when they meet again someday after the end, the joy of reunion will also increase as much as they cherished each other.

That is the providence of creation, the hearts of the creator gods who spread the heavens and built the earth.

And this is the story of the end.

The story of the day when the grand finale of the journey that could not be ended for 300 years and has been continued ended.

And at the end of that story, a new life story begins. A story that could only be dreamed of 300 years ago.

Now, finally, the stopped time begins to flow forward.

* * *

“Prime Minister.”

The Prime Minister’s office, located in the Imperial Palace that handles the overall administration of the Holy Human Empire, had a crest with red eyes symbolizing the Ludwig County family.

A black-haired beautiful young man sitting at the table in front of it, busily moving a quill pen, raised his head.

The badge on the left chest of his official uniform beautifully reflected the sunlight, and elegantly inlaid on its surface were four stars.

This is a badge given only to members of the Hwangha Administration, the best talents in the Empire. The young man was the Archmage, who had served in the Empire’s national affairs for generations.

He was too young to hold such an important position, but no one objected to this personnel selection by Raida Eizin, who was newly elected as Emperor this year.

The man’s name was Rein Ludwig.

The third sage in the Empire’s thousand-year history to succeed in entering the threshold of truth (眞理) [Japanese/Chinese for Truth], and the second Great Sage to master that truth.

The era had already revered this young man with such titles even before he became an Archmage. The Sage of the Dragon, the Dragon Sage (龍賢) [Japanese/Chinese for Dragon Sage].

“Um, I’ll go now.”