Chapter 267 |
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[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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Creak—
As Nyhill and the Hero disappeared from view and some time passed, the children lowered their weapons as if making a silent agreement.
The professors who had intended to corner the Hero sighed, glaring at the ground in frustration.
Even if they started tracking immediately, catching them would be difficult.
The desire to reprimand the children was evident in their distorted expressions.
Among them, Felson, who had stood in the forefront and hindered them, was present.
As one of the leading swordsmen of this era and the head of a prestigious family with a strong political position, there was no one who dared to challenge his intentions.
They just grumbled.
“Ha, missing such a monster is a big problem. Who should take responsibility for this?”
“By the way, who is the child who escaped with that being?”
“…First, let’s send notices to the surrounding territories and discuss countermeasures.”
“And we must inform the palace. Isn’t Her Majesty a close friend of the Hero? Surely, they will be furious at the current situation.”
Of course, only a few continued to show unnecessary animosity.
Most silently entered the dust and debris.
Mitigating the situation.
That was the first thing that needed to be done.
Although Yussi sat as if her soul had left her body, fortunately, no one here was perceptive enough to notice her distress.
Felson, along with the other members and faculty, directed the people.
“…First, let’s evacuate the children to a safe building.”
Dealing with the casualties would be extremely difficult and dreadful.
The adults wanted to exclude the children.
“They have already done enough by confronting the First Legion.”
Orders for evacuation and return.
Most complied with the instructions and vacated the area, but there were some who had no intention of doing so.
The extreme children were already heading towards the chaos of Rosenstark, where black smoke was billowing.
Felson grabbed Taylor’s shoulder as she tried to call them back.
“Just leave them be.”
“Are you serious?”
“Doing nothing right now is even more difficult.”
Taylor was about to say more but closed her mouth.
She soon sighed and sat down hesitantly.
Felson placed a hand on her shoulder.
Not only Yussi but also the other members were still unable to recover from the shock.
The death of their leader.
It felt so surreal that it didn’t seem real.
But when they assumed that the events of the past year, which seemed oddly out of place, were true because of the Leader’s death, they collapsed.
If what that weirdo said was true.
Their beloved leader and savior had quietly passed away without anyone knowing.
It was insanely unfair.
The scene of his death made them tremble with guilt and anger just by imagining it.
Taylor exhaled heavily.
“Felson.”
“Yeah.”
“The Leader… deserved a much better end, didn’t he?”
“…Yeah.”
“He should have enjoyed more happiness, more love, more peace, more everything! As much as he poured his heart into this world, he should have received it back in abundance.”
Tears welled up in her eyes, evident in her last words.
Hot tears streamed down under her blindfold.
She threw a question to whoever was listening.
“Is this right?”
Even Felson couldn’t help but shake his head at the obvious question.
He was also deeply saddened by the leader’s death, but he was even more confused by the fact that the true teacher who had saved his son Ban from the swamp was a ‘fake’.
Buck—
It was then that a small silhouette walked toward them.
“Let’s go. For now.”
…It was Iira.
There were clear tear streaks on her charred face.
She sobbed as she helped Taylor up.
“We have things to do. No matter what situation. You know, right?”
The words the Leader always lived by compelled them to stand up.
… Right.
To calm their minds.
To cry their hearts out.
To decide how to deal with the weirdo.
That’s all after handling this situation.
But…
Felson’s sunken eyes turned to Yussi in the background.
‘Yussi.’
She had spent the past year entirely with the ‘fake’.
Realizing loss and betrayal simultaneously, what was she thinking now?
Ironically, the bright morning sun shone down on Yussi, who was slumped over.
.
.
.
Zion headed alone towards the control tower.
As the site of the battle, a lot of manpower was needed for the aftermath.
Transporting the casualties and caring for them.
Repairing the destroyed security devices and facilities.
Noubelmag who dashed from the outer wall was also bustling around.
He would have heard of the Hero’s passing.
It might sound cliché, but he was also fulfilling his duty first and foremost.
Zion, who had been silently watching the busy people, turned her back.
Then, she headed towards a place a little away from the control tower.
Although not far from the tower, this place was dramatically quiet.
Perhaps because there was only one casualty to be dealt with.
“Hello, Labin.”
Zion stood in front of Labin, who was leaning against the wall.
His whole body was wounded.
Bitten, slashed, and beaten wounds.
With dried blood covering him, Labin looked crimson under the sunlight.
One could see serenity instead of pain on the face of Professor Labin.
One could even call it pride in other words.
“You’re keeping a calm expression alone.”
Sighing, Zion chuckled and sat down beside him.
After brushing off the bone dust on the ground, she saw the clear sky and the towering buildings of Rosenstark.
This must have been the last scenery Labin saw before dying.
“…In the end, you died without knowing.”
Thinking of the ‘fake’ surrounded by people on the hill, Zion spoke up.
“Was it fortunate?”
Labin had been eager for reconciliation with his disciple in his final years.
But what if he had found out that his real disciple had died?
“…Still, he probably forgave.”
Labin didn’t really hate Ted Redymer.
It was just something he didn’t know.
Even Ted probably knew.
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[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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Like his daughter Dalia.
If he had known that Ted died in battle, Labin would have mourned more than anyone.
He would have probably doubled the whiskey he drank at night.
Clack—
Zion reached out and took the sword from Labin’s tightly clenched hand.
“The priest really resembled you.”
In this cruel world, those who tried to uphold duty and conscience always died quickly.
It had been a rule she had lived with for over half a century, but today it felt particularly bitter.
In fact, Ted’s death had a significant impact on Zion.
The defeat she had suffered ten years ago had twisted her life, and the return to the right path had only happened recently.
Ironically, the ‘fake’ had helped with that.
Reconciliation with her granddaughter, the enlightenment of the sword.
He had helped with all of that.
Zion recalled the words and actions the fake had displayed, pretending to be real to her.
There might not have been malice, but it could be seen as thorough deception and manipulation.
But why?
Strangely, Zion didn’t feel as bad as she should have.
Just a sense of regret.
The real one broken and the fake one desperately taking his place.
Their psyche had been somewhat guessed, so there wasn’t an explosion of anger.
But…
‘I’m worried about Leciel.’
Leciel was a child who had pursued only the ‘Hero’.
That was why the Hero’s recognition and care could save her.
It would have been impossible for anyone else.
But now that she realized it was all a sham.
What kind of agony was Leciel engulfed in?
‘I wish she would focus on the substance, not the appearance.’
Zion sighed, thinking of her granddaughter who had suddenly run off somewhere without joining her friends on the hill earlier.
Her heart felt heavy.
It was because it was the first time she had seen her granddaughter crying so hard since she was five.
* * *
Nyhill stopped after running tirelessly day and night.
Her small back rose and fell steeply.
No matter how good her stamina was, running up the mountain while supporting an adult man would have been exhausting.
I looked up.
A small house in the middle of the mountain came into view.
“…It’s one of the Shadow’s safe houses.”
Although it looked like an ordinary cabin on the outside, various traps and alarm devices were hidden around it.
Plus, several months’ worth of preserved food was stored underground.
It was possible to spend some time here without any interaction with the outside world.
By the time Nyhill finished her brief explanation, I had regained enough strength to look around.
However, Nyhill forcibly pulled me and laid me down on the soft bed.
“Just lie down for now.”
I was exhausted to the point of collapse.
In human terms, it was akin to exhausting all vitality to the very bottom.
I would need several weeks of recuperation at least to regain my former strength.
… In other words, I didn’t have the strength to resist Nyhill’s little hands right now.
Slipping—
After laying me down, Nyhill pulled the quilt up to my chin.
This baby treatment was the first time in my long life.
It was so absurdly funny despite the situation.
Nyhill’s monotone voice echoed in my ears.
“You may need to move again soon. You need to rest as much as possible.”
I spoke to dispel his concerns.
“If you’re worried about tracking, it should be fine. The emperor already knew everything.”
“…Is that so? That’s fortunate.”
“You wouldn’t offer me a handshake to cast me out in this situation, would you?”
Although I couldn’t see how the situation was unfolding right now, I could guess it fairly well.
The demons’ tendrils must be clearly stirring up malicious public opinion.
Over the past year, an unidentified monster had been impersonating a Hero.
We don’t know how many more of those shapeshifting monsters there are.
There’s a considerable possibility that they could be lurking around you without anyone knowing, so always be cautious.
…Thus, they would interfere with humanity’s cohesion and carry out pre-emptive maneuvers to prevent me from returning among humans.
Therefore, it would be difficult for Euphemia to positively affirm my existence from her standpoint.
She might command to feign anger and pursue, but would she really push me away?
‘…My disappearance would greatly shift the balance of power.’
The Emperor has no choice but to remain on my side.
She would continue to provide unwavering support for my future activities.
Suddenly, Euphemia’s face came to mind.
Of course, apart from these advantageous aspects, she wasn’t the type of person to mask my identity and lead me away as a hero of humanity.
‘Alright, that’s roughly settled.’
Therefore, the first thing I had to do now was to recover.
And then, grow.
Leaving Rosenstark in this manner would have slowed down the momentum of progress.
I needed to find ways to grow beyond the power of ‘Ted’.
I should discuss it again with Maktania and Izaro when we reunite.
It would be good to see what impact synchronization with ??? had on me.
Since I no longer needed to be confined to Rosenstark, I could seek growth in more diverse directions.
Unlike before, there were almost no limits to my Polymorph.
I would be able to operate much more widely.
It was a moment of relentless planning.
“…Are you okay?”
I stopped the racing thoughts at that moment and turned my gaze to Nyhill by the bedside.
Moonlight seeping into the room through the cabin window illuminated her pitch-black eyes and hair.
She looked at me with a meticulous, worried gaze.
“…Are you okay?”
The same question was asked again.
Was it from Lonkers?
I had told her to never hesitate to ask if she had any questions as a person who performed her duties like a machine without any doubts.
Since then, Nyhill had occasionally asked me various questions, and I subtly enjoyed answering her innocent and cute questions.
But now.
For now, my lips wouldn’t move.
.
.
.
Contact from Euphemia came the next day.
[PR/N: Dude. The fucking cliffhangerl oml.]
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[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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