Chapter 143
Chapter 143
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 143
Chapter Title: Farewell to the Beastkin
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The beastkin crossed the parted strait under the guidance of the White Dragon Legion and made their way to the continent. They were told they would cross to the land of the World Tree under the legion's protection.
I wanted to thank Eldvihi separately, but by the time things had wrapped up, he had already vanished. He must have returned to Harbadonia.
In contrast, just before departing, representatives like Griffion, Opus, and Beduel came to bid us farewell.
"Now we must part ways."
For some reason, even though I knew we had to separate, hearing those words made my chest feel heavy.
"I don't even know how to thank you all."
"I didn't do anything..."
They had said such grand things, but in reality, I hadn't solved a single problem.
It was Kiran who resolved the issue at the barrier, Alakish who dealt a mortal blow to Shar'kas and sealed him away, and Yeriserika who brought the beastkin to the continent.
It seemed like we'd gone through so much hardship, but most of it had been meaningless. As I tried to force a wry smile with that thought, Beduel pulled me and Kasena into hugs one after another.
"Be happy. I'll pray to the gods every day that you both find happiness..."
"Village chief, you rest easy now in a warm land."
Surrounded by the Durankus tribe that had suddenly gathered, as we exchanged goodbyes, Kasena's face was instantly streaked with tears.
Watching the scene warmly, Griffion approached and knelt on one knee before me, meeting my eyes directly.
"Take back those words."
"Pardon?"
"You said you did nothing. That's not true at all. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have crossed the barrier, and by now we'd be slaves to the White Young Master, wandering up there."
"It was you who defeated the White Young Master—"
"—You. Kevn's son, Rain Ludwig. You shed tears for us, went to the barrier for us, returned for us. You fought for us time and again. All of it, you."
Meeting those noble eyes, memories of the past six months unfolded in my mind like thousands upon thousands of fragments, heating my own eyes.
It looked like I'd tried so hard, but really, I'd accomplished nothing...
"We will never forget a single thing you did for our honor. I, and all our kin, will remember."
With that, Griffion removed a silver-blue gem the size of a fist from around his neck and placed it directly into my hand.
I could sense an immense, dormant power swirling within it.
What could this be? It wasn't ordinary, not with Black Sheep Lin resonating with it.
"Qingxian. A relic left by the hero Enuel to our ancestors."
"Pardon?"
"It's said to have been the gem at the base of the true holy sword Sharilion, passed down to each generation's great chieftain."
"Why give it to me? Take it back. I can't accept this. Absolutely not."
"No, you must take it. This isn't a gift. We're entrusting it to you. As a token of our covenant."
"A covenant...?"
"I promise. Whether it's you, your descendants, or whoever holds this gem and comes to us seeking aid, the entire beastkin race will help without question, without weighing the matter's importance. My friend."
Beastkin value honor above all, and they never make promises lightly. When they do, they stake their lives on it, upholding it until death.
Realizing the weight of those words from their great chieftain, the significance of passing me the Qingxian, tears slipped from between my tightly shut eyelids.
"You are a great warrior, Rain Ludwig. Don't bow your head. Don't shed tears. Warriors don't show tears when parting."
"......!"
"They bless each other's futures with smiles. So that when a friend becomes a departed soul, we can remember their final smile and grant them peace."
Barely holding my crumbling posture, I managed a smile and clasped the large, fierce raptor hand Griffion extended.
The warriors sent up fervent cheers in agreement with Griffion's words.
At that moment, only Kasena, her eyes red and puffy from tears, grumbled with a sulky face.
"Why didn't you give me one? Give me one too! I want something to remember you by!"
In response, not just Griffion but all the beastkin scratched their heads as if they couldn't comprehend.
"But weren't you two one?"
"One?"
"You were always together day and night, so we naturally assumed you were married."
Silence fell instantly.
Aki, sleeping peacefully in the sling against my chest, let out a sleepy sneeze—atchoo.
Kasena, realizing what they meant, flushed crimson in an instant and wildly slashed at the air.
"No, we're not! I'm way out of his league! What nonsense is that? It boggles the mind! Why would I marry someone like Rain? Huh?!"
Immense telekinesis... Pebbles from the ground floated up lightly and rained down on the warriors like a shower. The warriors fled in panic.
"Stop! Our mistake! Understood! Even if Kasena's descendants bring it, we'll help with all our might!"
"Don't act like it's a bonus!"
The only one who could stop Kasena's rampage was Beduel, the chieftain of chieftains among the Durankus. He slipped the ring from his finger into Kasena's hand.
"It's sorely lacking compared to the Qingxian, but this is a symbol passed down only to the Durankus chieftains."
"......?"
"Kasena, this is proof we're friends. Will you accept it?"
As the Durankus tribe cheered, Kasena slipped the ring onto her thumb and bit her lip sadly. Perhaps desperately holding back another wave of tears.
Finally, the beastkin quietly paid respects to Aki, Alakish's avatar, then began crossing the parted sea led by Griffion.
That's how we parted with the beastkin. From the transfer to Harbadonia until coming here, it had all been a series of miracles.
The Durankus tribe there had welcomed us warmly... and it was Barlzen's tribe.
Staring blankly at their receding backs, so heartlessly distant, suddenly the figures of my old hero party comrades overlapped with them, and a single tear traced down my cheek.
The pain of bonds being severed, the fear we'd never meet again... As I reached out, Kasena cried out, suppressing her sobs.
"We'll meet again!"
"Pardon...?"
"After graduation, visit once a year! That's it! We'll meet again! It's not forever!"
Right... yeah... Kasena's words, shouted to comfort herself, warmly seeped into my chest.
We'll meet again.
Because we can meet again.
Watching the beastkin procession waving goodbye fade into the darkness, someone approached from behind.
"Kasena."
A heroine as beautiful as Kasena but taller, every movement radiating dignity—Madelia Page.
"Mom."
At that natural response to her name, Madelia's expression twisted in agony, and propriety be damned, she pulled her daughter into a tight embrace and sobbed.
"How... How could you... make me worry like this, because of you..."
She'd planned to scold her upon reunion, say she'd aged decades because of her, that she'd never forgive such recklessness.
But the moment she felt her daughter's warmth again.
The moment she smelled her daughter's scent again.
The moment she heard her daughter's laughter again.
All the words she'd prepared on the way here dissolved, leaving only endless tears.
"Miss."
"Miss Kasena."
"We're so relieved you're safe."
The Page family's magic guards and escort knights, who had served and protected Kasena since childhood, wiped their tears and bowed.
"You know, beyond the barrier, I met tons of beastkin! And I learned magic from this awesome true dragon named Alakish, huh? But weird, I had so much I wanted to say to Mom, but the words won't come..."
Kasena thought it strange that her mom was crying while hugging her. She didn't even notice her own voice choking.
Watching the scene from afar, my chest ached.
That's why I could only whisper a strange question while looking up at Pipi perched on my head.
"If I'd returned 300 years earlier... would they have cried like that for me too?"
"Fride, cried a lot. Cry, cry."
"Yeah?"
In the past, I'd have just swallowed the sorrow, but now, with Yeriserika saying severed bonds might reconnect...
"I'm going south, Pipi."
"South? South? South?"
"Need to take Aki to the Flame Myriad. You'll come, right?"
Pipi, who had flapped her wings vigorously as if it were obvious, settled on my shoulder and rubbed her face against my ear.
"Fride said, when Pipi and Lin are ready to travel, tell me. I'll wait at the Flame Myriad."
"What...?"
"If success, success, success, I'll wait at the Flame Myriad. Fride said."
Success? Success at what...?
Suddenly, Fride's smile flashed in my mind—her puffing cigarette smoke in my face and bursting into laughter.
Probably from 200 years ago, so no chance she's alive. Still...
"Rain Ludwig."
Around then, the sound of fine hooves approached, and Crown Prince Raider Eijin appeared on a white steed.
"Can't believe you had another kid in the short time we haven't seen each other. They call guys like you the Virility King, huh?"
"No, Your Highness, this is..."
My appearance was quite ridiculous.
Aki in the sling, Mirngadia in the basket Alakish had used before, strapped to my back.
Raider teased me with a playful smile.
"I know. Just kidding. The Sea Dragon issued a gag order to the imperial army and adventurers, but who knows how long that'll hold in this era."
He meant me taking custody of Mirngadia.
Only Madelia and Raider knew Aki's true nature besides the beastkin, but Mirngadia was unmistakably a dragon egg, leaving no room for excuses.
"Of course, I'll do my utmost to keep it secret. But don't expect too much."
"No need."
"Sorry."
"Pardon?"
"I talked like I'd solve everything, but someone else actually did."
"No, Your Highness! Without you, there'd have been bloodshed, and the beastkin's position would be far worse. Mine too."
"Thanks, even if it's flattery. Then, until next time, when opportunity allows."
As Raider turned his horse toward the imperial camp, I called out.
"I'll think about it seriously."
"Hm?"
"The position in the Magic Tower... I'll seriously consider it."
Raider's eyebrows shot up, then he burst out laughing—pfft—and nodded. No sooner had Raider left than Seigan, his Magic Tower attendant, reined in before me.
"Skalji Ludwig's grandson, Rain Ludwig. I look forward to the day we vie for the Magic Tower seat again."
"Just thinking about it, so don't expect too much."
"Hmph."
By the time Seigan chased after Raider, the once chaotic swamp had fallen quiet.
The imperial army, marching in orderly ranks with the clink of spears, swords, and armor, boarded their ships. The beastkin, roaring with the scent of beasts, crossed the sea. The White Dragon Legion, scattering holy auras, departed one by one.
I glanced at Kasena sharing a tearful reunion with Madelia and gave a wry smile.
'Our time to part has come too, Kasena.'
* * *
Ever since that day, an intangible darkness lingered in Bellwin, the Ludwig family estate.
The laughter that once filled the mansion had long ceased, and the maids and butlers lived in fear of being swallowed by that darkness, holding their breath day by day.
"It's getting cold. Let's go inside..."
The lady of the Ludwig house, Brim Ludwig, spent nights weeping at her dead son's grave.
She barely ate or drank, her body gaunt and skeletal... Did she wish to follow her son in death?
"Was he happy?"
"......?"
"Did we ever make that child happy...?"
As Brim Ludwig burst into tears again, Kevn Ludwig let out a teary sigh and patted her back.
"Of course he was happy. With a mother as good as you... Now you should look after Bran too. He's only just turned four."
That's when the mansion grew noisy.
With Seri Ludwig, the family's legitimate heir, away at Ribarden Magic School, the estate should have been eerily silent.
The commotion didn't stop, and as irritation built over what it could be, a maid came running.
"Master! Madam!"
Something was off. Since Rain Ludwig's death, the servants had been cautious, never making such a fuss.
Nearly tripping several times but reaching them, the maid panted, her face beaming with smiles as she spoke.
"He's back! Alive, he's back...!"
Kevn was too stunned to press her.
Back? Who?
Had Seri Ludwig returned? His father? Or his younger sibling from the university?
"Rain, Young Master Rain... just arrived! He's hungry, so we served food right away..."
Kevn's eyes hardened.
For a moment, it seemed like a cruel prank, but what reason would a maid have to joke with her life on the line?
"What did you say?"
It didn't feel real. Hearing his son's name from the maid's lips again, reports of his son's actions through her.
How could it not be?
These were stories possible only if that child were alive.
"That child... is alive?"
So he merely repeated the maid's words in a daze, his voice trembling uncontrollably. At the same time, Brim's sobs stopped.
"Yes, Master. He's in the dining hall now. With Young Master Bran. Uh, um, and..."
"......?"
"I'm not sure how to say this. Young Master Rain's daughter is with him too..."