Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: The Heart of the Saint Heard
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Following the last words my parents left behind, Victoria and I left the house and began walking forward.
As the shape of the house, filled with memories of my parents, turned into a dot and gradually disappeared, the faint sound of children's laughter could be heard amidst the cool autumn breeze and the vast, golden wheat fields.
It was the scenery of the peaceful village I had lost long ago.
It was the image of the simple happiness I had continued to yearn for in my heart.
"Astal, you've really grown up well. It feels like just yesterday you were babbling in your parents' arms when you were little…."
Amidst those scenes, familiar faces I could never forget began to appear.
"…Uncle Eric."
"Hoho, you still recognize this old man. Honestly, I thought you might have forgotten since so much time has passed."
The fruit shop owner who was always kind to me.
A man who, due to the Demon King's army, had a large hole torn where his heart should be, becoming a lifeless corpse.
"So, do you still like apples? I always used to put one in your hand whenever you passed by the fruit shop…. You used to nibble on it like a squirrel, it was so cute."
Uncle Eric was talking about the past while looking at me.
I thought he would resent me for not saving him when we met, but what he was concerned about was something entirely different.
"You don't… resent me?"
"Huh? Why would you think I resent you, Astal?"
"Because the Demon King's army's invasion ultimately happened because of my existence."
I confessed my true feelings to Eric.
I wished he would scold me severely, or get angry and give me harsh words.
If only I hadn't been in this village,
Or if I had known the Demon King's army was stationed here and asked for help from the surroundings, perhaps he wouldn't have had to die.
But,
"You rascal. No matter what, I'm not so narrow-minded as to resent a 10-year-old kid. Besides, you weren't a stranger; you were a kind child that everyone in our village knew."
Instead, Eric patted my head and said it was okay. His expression held not despair or anger, but a bittersweet pity.
"That's right. No matter how much guilt you may feel, Lord Astal, it's not your fault."
"…Is she your girlfriend? If so, the girls in our village will shed some tears! Here, these are apples harvested today. They're filled with honey, sweet and delicious. Try one!"
Even Victoria held my hand tightly and offered words of comfort, and seeing this, Eric smiled brightly and gave each of us an apple.
"Thank you. If there's a chance, could you tell me more about Lord Astal from his childhood? I'll make sure to repay you sufficiently…."
Victoria received it, bowed her head in thanks, and asked if there were any more pictures or stories from my childhood.
"…Let's go now, Victoria. I think I'll be okay now. Thank you for not forgetting me all this time. Uncle Eric."
Seeing Eric's form begin to fade away right after giving us the sun-drenched red apples, I barely held back tears that threatened to fall.
"Yeah, for some reason, the apples just ran out that day! It took ten years to finally give you one, so don't hold any grudges against this old man now!"
The reason he had endured without passing on for such a long time was a simple one—it had bothered him that he couldn't give even one apple to someone like me.
"…You were truly loved by many people, Lord Astal."
"They were people too good for someone like me. You included, and my hometown folks too."
Crunch. I took a bite of the apple and spoke to Victoria. I had been able to reach this place thanks to the connections I had made along the way.
At the Magic Tower, I met my master and could become a mage,
And when I left to die in despair during the Demon King subjugation, I met Victoria and my comrades and found hope to live on.
"Could it be that all these people ahead…"
"Probably they've been waiting for me to come here. I thought they'd be filled with resentment towards me for having their lives taken by the Demon King's army…"
Victoria and I had to pause for a moment as we saw the many people before us.
"…It seems not all are like that. I guess I was wrong."
There was a crowd of people, chattering as if they had something to say to me, showing bright smiles.
I thought they'd resent me for being horrifically killed by the Demon King's army, but contrary to my expectations, they seemed to have been waiting here for my arrival.
"Brother Astal, can you show me magic again today? The water droplets turning into star shapes were so cool! I tried doing it alone, but I couldn't do it like you!"
A cute girl with her hair in twin braids was the first to tug at my sleeve and speak.
She was a girl who used to play with me often because our houses were close in the past.
Seeing this ill-fated girl, whose limbs were severed by the Demon King's army and who met her short end screaming and crying, I immediately had to cast magic.
"Sure, if that's what you wish, as many times as you want."
Float, float.
The water droplets, originally spherical, took on various shapes like stars, unicorns, and clouds due to magic.
"Wow! That's amazing! Bro, how do you cast magic like this? I tried learning on my own, but I couldn't figure it out…"
Children flocked around me as I used magic to create the wondrous water droplets.
Among them, I also saw the face of the little boy who once asked me to teach him magic with sparkling eyes.
A child whose body was doused in oil, set on fire, and who burned to death leaving behind the smell of cooking flesh and terrible screams.
He didn't dream of becoming a tenant farmer like his parents, but of becoming a mage like me in the future.
"First, you need a wand or…, well, a branch imbued with magical power from the mountains to cast magic. Or I'll just give you one of the spares I have."
I handed out wands I had brought just in case they couldn't cast magic barehanded, giving the children things I couldn't give them when they were alive.
This must be it.
They weren't waiting here to deliver words of resentment to me.
"Wow! Brother Astal is the best as always! I'll treasure this for life!"
"Thank you, Brother. You're still so kind, aren't you? That's why you even got a girlfriend…."
They simply had a little regret over things they couldn't do while alive, and wished for me to resolve that lingering attachment.
"…You, could your name be Clara?"
"That's right, I'm Brother Astal's childhood friend. If you make my brother cry, you'll die by my hand!"
Among them, a girl stuck out her tongue at Victoria, acting as if provoking her.
The Clara my parents mentioned earlier seemed to be this girl. Seeing her holding onto my arm without letting go, I felt a strange tension between the two women.
"Clara, Victoria is my lovely partner now, no matter what anyone says. You can't say such harsh things."
"……!!"
I gently stroked Clara's head, hoping she would resolve her final lingering attachment.
I knew well what unrequited love felt like, and she was already a person who had died, unable to confess her feelings.
- He called her his lovely partner…. Even in a space where he didn't have to lie….
Victoria was speechless at my sudden action, just covering her face with her hands.
"B-but…!"
"And, I never saw you as anything more than a little sister from the start. The type I like is… someone a bit mischievous, but kinder than anyone. Unlike a girl who spread false rumors using her feelings as an excuse."
To make Clara let go of her feelings for me, I deliberately looked at Victoria with warm eyes as I spoke.
It wasn't a complete lie.
Because Victoria was more mischievous than anyone, yet possessed a warm and gentle side.
"Ahem. Th-that's right. I am Lord Astal's partner, no matter what anyone says, and your problem was ultimately that you couldn't convey your true feelings to the person you loved and instead told lies."
"……."
Victoria didn't even try to hide her rising smile, grinning as she spoke to Clara.
"I'm sorry. Do you think I'll have a chance next time I'm born?"
"Of course. At that time, I won't go easy on you either, so let's have a fair competition."
"Haha, what's that…. That's weird…."
"Even if Lord Astal were to die and be reborn, I would fall in love with him all over again, and come to like him once more."
Surprisingly, their conversation was normal.
Victoria offered comforting words to Clara, whose form began to fade as I rejected her feelings.
"Yeah, if someone as kind and pretty as you is his partner, then I should probably pass on now. I don't even feel like hating anymore…."
"…Don't be too heartbroken. A man who will like you will surely appear someday."
"That's just you saying that so you don't lose Brother Astal, isn't it?"
"Did I get caught? You're quick. So next time, please be more sincere and express your love by putting your true feelings into words so others can know. Advice from a life senior."
Victoria deliberately provoked and advised Clara, preventing her from passing on while immersed in sorrow.
Her inner thoughts were that farewells shouldn't be made with tears, but with smiles, anticipating meeting again someday.
"Okay, I get it. Sister, next time I really won't go easy on you."
"I'll look forward to meeting you again too."
Victoria offered a respectful prayer as she sent Clara off, and seeing this, I met and talked with each of the villagers around me one by one.
Congratulations on getting a pretty girlfriend, Astal.
I didn't know you'd become such a cool mage.
You've grown so tall, our little one. Words of support mixed with lingering attachments brushed past.
The guilt I had carried until now gradually diminished, like flames dying down.
For the first time in ten years, the sharp, tingling pain in my chest disappeared.
"How was it, meeting your hometown folks in person? As I said, they clearly wouldn't resent you, right?"
"Yeah, you were really right…."
"You're such a kind and warm person that you tend to shoulder blame for things ordinary people would avoid or forget."
Now we were walking forward to find the First Saint, looking at the scenery where the colors of the sunset melted into the wheat fields at the edge of the hill overlooking the village.
"…Well, that's part of why I fell for you, but I still think you should fix it. It's not a good habit."
Amidst that sunset light, Victoria showed a bright smile, and each strand of her hair seemed dyed by the scenery.
Seeing this, I thought the woman before me, Victoria Aberhart, was such a lovely and admirable person that,
"Now, it's almost time to meet the being called the First Saint. We'll finally be able to learn the secret the gods have hidden."
"Victoria."
"Why are you…"
I couldn't help but leave a small kiss on her forehead.