I killed Faust.
For some reason, that single sentence didn’t feel real.
But the aftermath was unmistakable.
“……”
The sound of wailing overflowed all around.
They were the dark mages of the Under Chain who had entrusted everything to Faust.
The reason they hadn’t feared death, the reason they had been able to keep living through their sorrow, was gone.
Honestly, it wouldn’t have been strange if they rushed at me right then, shouting about revenge.
But that didn’t happen.
“……You must have had it rough too.”
Everyone here was someone who had run away out of fear of death.
The only reason they had been able to charge forward without fear was because they had dumped all that fear onto Faust.
I could just leave them be. Unlike Faust, I had no intention of taking responsibility for their lives.
Most of them would probably end up losing their lives to imperial soldiers. Whether they resisted or not, most had already stained their hands with blood. It wasn’t my place to judge.
Of course, as always, I was a contradictory and selfish person, so I intended to take care of my own people.
Yeah. I was going to go persuade Ollie one more time.
“Your Highness, I’ll leave this place to you.”
“Very well. I’ll do my best to deliver the fairest judgment possible.”
Lobelia said that, perhaps thinking I might feel some lingering guilt.
Seriously… if she keeps acting like such a good person, it’ll be hard to give her a hard time later.
***
Ollie was at the place Professor Georg had told me about.
Fortunately, it didn’t seem like she had been captured and dragged around by a weakness like Melana had.
Or maybe her unique ability made her unsuitable to be used as a hostage.
“Hey.”
“……”
Ollie looked up at me with hollow eyes.
“The Great Sage is dead. This place will stop functioning properly soon.”
It might have been a bit cruel, but I told her the place she could rely on was gone.
She had to stand on her own. If that wasn’t possible, forcing her to come with me wouldn’t mean anything.
“Ollie.”
“My mind hasn’t changed, Mr. Johan.”
“If you stay here, you’ll die.”
“I probably will. But don’t worry. I’ll manage… I’ll keep running.”
“……”
She didn’t say she’d come back even if it killed her. Right… of course not. That was the very reason she had to rely on the Under Chain in the first place.
“Ollie”
“Please… please stop tormenting me.”
Ollie was suffering just from anything connected to her past.
But what could I do? The past isn’t something you can completely cut off.
If that were possible, I wouldn’t have made it this far either.
“…Haah.”
I sat down on a nearby gravestone and started talking.
“I’m not going to pretend I understand you or anything like that.”
I had felt the pain of loss too, but that didn’t mean Ollie and I felt the same thing.
Everyone experiences things differently.
It couldn’t be helped. People always feel like their own pain is the greatest.
…That thought was wrong.
“If you run away, what are you going to do?”
“……”
“Where are you even planning to go?”
“……”
“You don’t have a plan, do you?”
Ollie said nothing.
Part of it was that she had nothing to say, but she was also avoiding the conversation itself.
She said she would run. I told her she shouldn’t.
I had already decided, on my own, that clinging to Raven who was already dead was foolish.
I shouldn’t have done that.
Everyone heals at a different pace, and sometimes those wounds never fully go away.
“Then at least take my help. I’ll find you a place where you and Raven can stay.”
“…What?”
I shouldn’t have pushed her.
Instead of telling her she was wrong, I should have acknowledged her grief and helped her.
When people are hurting, sometimes they need to sit down and rest. I shouldn’t have tried to force her back up.
“Hey, it’s nothing to worry about. You probably already know this, but I’m not exactly a clean person either. I already know a few dark mages, and I’ve got connections with all kinds of criminals.”
“……”
Ollie still didn’t respond.
But the emptiness in her eyes was gone, replaced with disbelief and confusion.
“Do whatever you want. Just… don’t make me worry too much. You don’t have to cut everything off completely.”
“……”
In the end, Ollie hesitated, then took my hand and stood up.
It really was that simple.
Just trying to understand her was enough.
Of course, I still think her choice isn’t the right one.
But she needs time. I believe that one day she’ll accept Raven’s death and find her way out of that shadow on her own.
I’m not worried.
After all, Raven, the one she wanted to be with so desperately, is right there by her side.
“Mr. Johan. Those people you mentioned earlier… what kind of people are they?”
“A dark mage, a paladin of Eden, and a prophet too.”
“……”
Ollie suddenly stopped walking.
“What?”
“So you really are a criminal……”
“No, I’m not a criminal. I just know people who are.”
“……”
This brat… a dark mage walking around with a death knight is looking at me like I’m the dangerous one?
***
Cleaning up the remnants of the Under Chain was resolved quickly.
That’s because the Under Chain was an organization that revolved around a single absolute figure. That was Faust.
Most of them, having lost Faust, gave up and surrendered.
Compared to the barbarian tribes that still pop up from time to time, they were practically saints.
Though comparing the two groups in the first place doesn’t really make sense.
“Is it… over?”
Early in the morning. I opened my eyes in the dorm and murmured quietly, still unable to shake the sense of unreality.
Faust is dead.
The Scriptwriter, the Great Warrior, the Judge, and even the Prophet…all of them are dead.
The final boss candidates who might have brought about the end of this world.
Every single one of them has fallen.
“……”
I’ve always been on the receiving end of bad luck from all directions.
But as I kept running from them and sometimes standing my ground, somehow they all disappeared.
Has peace finally come now?
For the first time in a while, I stood in front of the mirror after sleeping in, feeling refreshed.
The reflection staring back at me was incomparable to how I looked last year.
After constant effort, I’d built a fairly solid physique, and there was even a certain confidence in my eyes.
“Who am I?”
The liberator who defeated Faust.
“Ahem!”
Honestly, I felt a bit proud.
Up until now, I’d only played a supporting role, but wasn’t Faust someone I personally brought down?
Of course, it wouldn’t have been possible without everyone else’s help, but still, I landed the final blow.
“Maybe I should go to class for once.”
Seriously, the fact that it had been so long almost made me tear up.
I wasn’t usually the most diligent student, but I never realized how peaceful it could be just to attend class.
I should start appreciating this time. From today on, I’m going to be a model student.
***
I guess I was sleep-deprived.
I slept through the entire morning class and made it to lunch.
It couldn’t be helped. If anything, it just meant I finally felt at ease with everyday life.
“Johan! Let’s eat!”
“……”
“What’s wrong?”
“No, I was just wondering if you’re really this unfazed.”
I found myself surprised by how natural Yuna seemed.
No, is that what normal looks like?
Maybe I’d been too caught up in the extraordinary.
“This is how I’ve always been.”
“I… see.”
Come to think of it, this might actually be the more unfamiliar kind of normal for Yuna.
She’d spent more time living as an assassin than as an ordinary person, so it couldn’t be helped.
“Fufu, I get it. You’re not used to normal life, right? Does your blood start boiling or something? Like you want to fight a strong opponent?”
“Luckily, I’m not that battle-hungry.”
For me to become that kind of person, dying once and being reborn wouldn’t even be enough.
I actually did die once and come back, but people don’t change that easily.
“Well, you’ll get used to it.”
“I will.”
I have to.
No matter what, this is the peace I finally found.
For a while, my biggest concern can just be something ordinary, like what to have for lunch.
“Johan, want to go on a date this afternoon?”
“Yuna, even if I’m a little out of it, I still remember that you have to go study at the Magic Tower this afternoon.”
“Ugh.”
She was probably trying to use me as an excuse to skip out, but not a chance.
“Then let’s hold hands until class ends today!”
Yuna intertwined her fingers through mine and smiled sweetly, just like she always does.
Man, I really can’t win against her.
“How am I supposed to pay attention in class?”
“You don’t anyway.”
“Well, that’s true.”
Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s okay.
It’s cute, sure, but isn’t that a bit too much to show off? Most people at the Cradle already know Yuna and I are dating, but that doesn’t mean it’s fine to rub it in their faces.
At this rate, someone might get annoyed enough to challenge me to a duel.
“Whatever, just keep it reasonable.”
Though I’d probably win anyway.
After all, I’m the one who took down the Great Sage Faust.
There’s no way those guys who’ve been living comfortably at the Cradle could beat me.
Yeah, I’m strong.
“Sometimes I worry about that superiority complex of yours, Johan.”
“What did I do?”
Stop reading my face like that.
***
The day came to an end.
That was all it was.
And yet, it still felt a little unfamiliar. Of course, I was far more grateful for this peace.
“……”
But if I stepped just a little outside the peaceful Cradle, I could still see the traces of everything I’d been through.
The city still wasn’t fully rebuilt.
Signs of destruction were everywhere, and people didn’t look happy.
From here on out, things can only get better.
At least, they should…
“Is something bothering you?”
“…Oracle.”
“They say all the terrorist groups have been dealt with, so what’s with that long face?”
“It’s not like I’m unhappy.”
“Then I guess your face just looks like that.”
“You little—”
I’ve said this before, but my looks aren’t exactly lacking.
If anything, I’m on the handsome side. And that’s not all. After everything I’ve been through lately, I’ve built up a solid physique too.
If it weren’t for Yuna, there’d probably be a line of girls interested in me.
“Anyway, if you’re not dissatisfied, then enjoy the peace you have now.”
“Why do you have to say it like that….‘the peace you have now’? Like it’s something temporary?”
“Johan Damus, that’s what you call paranoia. Poor thing… Well, it can’t be helped. For your sake, I’ll give you a firm assurance.”
The Oracle smiled.
Under the glow of the sunset, her radiant smile seemed even brighter than the sun.
“The world will be peaceful.”
“……”
“So there’s no need to feel anxious. Of course, I won’t say everything has been perfectly resolved, but at the very least, there’s no need to fear the end of the world.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Now you can simply enjoy an ordinary life. The world will keep turning just fine without you having to go out of your way.”
“That sounds about right. If anything, it was strange that I was the one who had to keep things moving.”
“Exactly.”
I grumbled about everything that had happened as I walked down the street.
I didn’t really have a destination.
I had only come out for a walk because this peace felt a little dull.
And since I happened to run into someone I knew, making small talk wasn’t so bad right now.
The Oracle didn’t seem as hostile toward me as she used to be.
Of course, there were still things that made me uncomfortable.
Her true identity felt like a thorn stuck in my throat.
Still, it wasn’t all that bad.
“You seem to be enjoying this peace more than anyone.”
“Do you have any idea how busy I’ve been running around all this time? I barely even had the chance to enjoy simple treats like this.”
“You seemed to eat pretty well when you were at the Cradle.”
“That just means I couldn’t enjoy them anywhere else.”
She looked happy.
That alone put me at ease.
“I’m going to eat everything I couldn’t before and do everything I never had the chance to. I’ve been running harder than anyone to stop the end of the world, so now I plan to enjoy my life more than anyone.”
“Is that so…? Well, I’m glad you look happy.”
“Of course. I’m happy right now. I’ve achieved my lifelong dream.”
The Oracle’s smile was dazzling.
She smiled as if she had the whole world in her hands.
“Thank you, Johan Damus.”
Seeing that, I was finally able to relax.
It felt like I could finally accept this peace for what it was.
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