Chapter 267
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 267
Chapter Title: Together! (3)
The mother and daughter held each other in silence for a long while.
Watching them, Jamie had many thoughts.
Mostly about familial love.
What would he feel if his mother, Sears, fell gravely ill?
What about his father, Count Welton?
And his little sister, Sara?
It would probably be no different from what they were going through.
His heart would tear apart, feeling as if a piece of it had been sliced away.
That's what Bena must be feeling now, and Hifen too.
But in life, farewells were inevitable.
They were something one had to overcome eventually, something one had no choice but to accept, no matter how much they hated it.
'I went through it myself, and I probably will again.'
In his previous life, the pain had been so unbearable that he'd chosen the extreme path of severing his emotions.
Not this time.
If a farewell came, he would accept it fully.
Because that was the way to honor the other person.
What if he'd done that back then? Might the outcome have been a little better?
"We've shown such an unseemly sight in front of our guest."
As Jamie was lost in thought, Queen Hifen approached him.
Her eyes were red-rimmed too, as if she'd been crying.
Hifen smiled at Bena.
"Introduce him, Bena."
"Okay."
Bena seemed somewhat composed now. She stood and introduced Jamie to Hifen.
"This is my master. I've talked about him a lot before, right?"
"I'm Jamie Welton."
Before they were Bena's parents, they were the queen of the Valkyries, so Jamie greeted her with proper respect.
Looking closely, Hifen's face was the spitting image of Netis, the former Valkyrie queen.
He hadn't used honorifics with Netis back then, but times and attitudes had changed, so he had no intention of acting the same way now.
"I've finally met the benefactor of the Valkyries. Thanks to you, I could find my daughter. Thank you so much."
He'd expected some haughtiness as the Valkyrie queen, but Hifen expressed her gratitude with utmost respect.
"Not at all."
"I have nothing else to offer, but please accept this. I've wanted to give it to you if we ever met."
What Hifen held out was a green leaf.
It looked ordinary at first glance, but Jamie's expression showed a hint of surprise upon seeing it.
"That is..."
"As expected, you know it. It's a leaf from the White Tree. Just having it invigorates you."
It wasn't empty flattery.
The Valkyries' White Tree was a divine tree that rivaled even the elves' World Tree.
Especially since it bore the queen's essence, it was said to surpass the World Tree in terms of vitality.
Its leaf was incomparably precious, not something that could be traded for ordinary treasures.
No, it wasn't something you could obtain just because you wanted to.
"Please take it."
As Jamie hesitated, Bena nodded with a smile beside him.
Seeing her like that, Jamie couldn't help but smile too.
He stepped forward and cautiously extended his hand.
"Then I'll gratefully accept."
As Jamie received the White Tree leaf, he felt his body restore to peak condition.
He'd been mentally drained today, but that torment vanished completely.
As expected of a divine tree's leaf.
As Jamie examined the White Tree leaf from different angles, Hifen asked,
"Now, shall we discuss my daughter's future? Is that alright?"
"Mom."
"Be quiet, Bena. This is a conversation between your mother and the man you chose as your master."
"But..."
"It's fine. Go wait over there for a bit."
"Listen to the queen."
At Hifen and Jamie's simultaneous words, Bena reluctantly stepped aside.
Now alone, Hifen spoke first.
"What should I call you?"
"Feel free to call me Jamie."
"Alright, Jamie. Did you perhaps tell Bena about my lifespan?"
"Yes."
"I thought so."
Hifen nodded as if she'd expected it.
"I didn't think Piyon would have said anything. Despite her lighthearted personality, she has a very tight tongue."
"I didn't say it lightly."
"I believe that. Do you want Bena to become queen, Jamie? Perhaps to gain the Valkyries' aid in the upcoming war?"
"It'd be a lie to say that's not part of it. But it's not the only reason."
"Then?"
"It doesn't make sense that a daughter wouldn't know her parent won't live long. I tried to dissuade her from following me, but when she said it'd be fine once she had a sibling, I ended up telling her."
It was something only Jamie, awakened to familial love, could say.
"I see."
"I heard the second princess—the flower has bloomed. I'm still not sure that makes sense, but setting all that aside, it takes two years for another queen candidate to be born. Even then, she won't become queen right away. She has to grow. Who knows how many years that will take, but I doubt it's just one."
"You know well."
"So the Valkyries will be without a queen for at least a few years. I also know that to the Valkyries, the queen isn't just a ruler. Isn't the queen the very reason the Valkyries exist?"
Hifen was quite surprised at how much Jamie knew.
Come to think of it, the little bull-like creature that had brought Bena five years ago also knew a lot about the Valkyries.
Behemoth, was it?
Jamie continued.
"Anyway, for those reasons, I told Bena the truth and had her return here."
"I didn't want to tell Bena."
"That would be too selfish as a parent. Children have a right to know about their parents."
"You're right. It was my selfishness—I didn't want to see my daughter suffer. But now I feel relieved."
"I'm glad. I was worried you'd be angry at me."
Jamie replied cheekily, and Hifen shook her head with an exasperated look.
"Bena said you're young even among humans... but you don't seem it."
"There's an old man inside."
Jamie grinned, and Hifen let out a soft chuckle.
She probably thought it was a joke.
It was the truth, though.
"It must be reassuring for Bena to have someone like you by her side."
"Normally, yes. She's my proud subordinate, after all."
"Hahaha. Calling the next Valkyrie queen your subordinate. You've got guts."
"Take half of it as a joke. The other half is serious."
They looked at each other and soon burst into laughter.
Then Hifen spoke again.
"Thank you for bringing my daughter back."
"The queen shouldn't bow her head so often."
"For my daughter's benefactor, I can do anything."
"That's what makes me uncomfortable. Could you call Bena over? I have things to discuss with her too."
"Of course."
A short while later, Bena returned, and this time the queen stepped aside.
Bena had stopped crying completely; her eyes were still red, but she looked fine.
Jamie spoke first.
"Bena. You've come this far, so you've made your decision."
"Master..."
"How long are you going to whine like a child? You're going to be the Valkyries' new queen within a year. Show some queenly dignity."
"I don't wanna..."
"Bena. Do you remember the day we first met, five years ago?"
"Of course I do."
How could she forget?
"...I got thoroughly beaten by Master."
At first, she'd thought he was being chased by bad guys and tried to save him, but it turned out to be a trap.
On top of that, her identity as a black sorcerer got exposed, nearly causing disaster, so she'd begged to become his disciple half out of a will to survive.
Of course, she'd been coldly rejected and even had her memories read, but in the end, she'd been saved by his hand.
"I was disappointed when I first learned Valkyries have no talent for magic, but I'm glad we could be together anyway."
The squirrel form had been uncomfortable at first, but she'd grown used to it and even transformed into one occasionally now.
Anyway, for Bena, meeting Jamie was the moment of her salvation, meeting the leader who would guide her, and meeting the hero who would one day save the world.
"How could I forget?"
Bena said tearfully again.
"How could I forget, Master?"
They could no longer be together.
She'd waited five years for the day she could stand by his side again, but now that was impossible.
That pierced her heart.
Jamie nodded.
"Yeah. I'll never forget it either. I still hold those memories intact."
"Master."
"The past five years and the future will be the same. I'm your master, and you're my subordinate. Even if our bodies are apart, the bond of our connection will never break."
"Really? Truly?"
"Truly. You're my first subordinate, after all."
"Sob... sniff..."
"Even apart, we're together, Bena. Always remember that."
"Yeah... together!"
With those words, Bena burst into the tears she'd been holding back.
Jamie did his best to comfort his precious first subordinate.
Though they were parting again like this, it wasn't a permanent farewell.
So they would meet again someday.
"You don't need to see me off."
"But..."
"Parting cleanly like this will make us meet again sooner, won't it? A tearful goodbye will just linger in our minds."
Jamie ruffled Bena's hair and stood.
He saw the queen approaching from afar.
He said to her,
"I'll be going now."
"Thank you once more."
"Not at all. Bena, take good care of the queen."
"...I will."
"Good."
Jamie bowed to them both and exited.
Outside, Piyon was waiting, leaning against a tree.
"How's the princess?"
"Inside."
"I see. Thanks to you, everything worked out. Truly grateful."
Unlike before, Piyon bowed her head politely in thanks.
Jamie waved it off casually.
"Enough. I didn't do it to receive thanks from anyone."
"...Sorry. You must be the upset one."
"Let's head back. You're on dispatch to the Frontier, right?"
"Yeah."
The two quietly exited the "Spring of Flowing Time."
Because Jamie wished it, no one stopped them.
Out in the field, the Milky Way shone in the night sky.
This place shared the same sky as Abracadabra, an identical galaxy.
Jamie told Piyon to put her hand on his shoulder and used teleportation.
"Zzz... Phew~ Zzz... Phew~"
They returned to the lodging in an instant, greeted by Behemoth's snoring.
Annoying how he slept oblivious to everything that had just happened.
Jamie considered yanking his ear but let it go.
This guy would be depressed too when he woke and found Bena gone.
He wasn't the type to show it, though.
"Then I'll head back. Thanks for today."
"Yeah. Get some rest."
Piyon returned to her home.
Jamie dragged his weary steps to the bed and flopped down.
He felt alone again, somehow.
Even with Behemoth sleeping below and his family and fellow mages far away in the Celldam Kingdom.
An inexplicable sense of loss washed over him.
No, he knew this feeling all too well.
"Take care, Bena. Stay healthy."
Lying alone on the bed, Jamie blessed the subordinate who would now rise as queen.
He closed his eyes and fell asleep quickly.
He must have been exhausted.
Someone roughly shook his body.
Jamie rubbed his eyes and looked at the one shaking him.
"...Jamie! Jamie Welton!"
Through his bleary vision, he saw sky-blue hair.
Beside her stood a woman and three men, plus a massive giant.
Jamie rubbed his eyes again and grabbed the shaker's wrist.
"What's going on?"
Having slept deeply, he couldn't shake off the drowsiness.
Jamie yawned widely as he sat up in bed.
Then he checked the faces gathered there.
Isis, Jin, Han, Bayril, and finally Hawks.
Why were the Frontier's top forces assembled here?
As Jamie tried to yawn again, Isis spoke urgently.
"This isn't the time for yawning!"
"So what's the problem?"
"It's broken out."
"...What has?"
"War."
Friedmoor Calendar 524, as winter approached.
Terigia, the nation bordering the north and east, backed by the Zenith Church, had invaded the north.