The Hero Who Returned From Death Quits - Chapter 221



EP10. The Falling Twilight

I opened my eyes. No, maybe it’s not right to say I opened my eyes.

The scenery I see before me is a completely black world. And, there is only a flower garden that embraces me.

I couldn’t figure out why I could see flowers even though there was no light source. I just had a gut feeling that this wasn’t real.

And then, I felt a presence.

I hurriedly looked behind me where I felt a presence. What I saw there was the Holy Sword. I looked at it and relaxed my body again.

“hi?”

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The Holy Sword greeted me. I looked at the Holy Sword.

“It looks good.”

What the heck? Are you being sarcastic? I looked at the holy sword with cold eyes.

“Oh, no, I’m not being sarcastic. I mean it literally. What should I say… Your complexion has improved? That’s what I mean.”

“hmm.”

I looked at the Holy Sword and said.

“Am I being sucked into you again?”

“No, this is your inner space. I met you in your inner space one last time, using the accumulated connections from communicating with you many times.”

“This is my inner space?”

In that case, the way I was acting was so young. As I thought that, the Holy Sword let out a laugh.

“So that means your face looks better. It means you live younger.”

“Oh my. What nonsense are you talking about? Did you come here to joke around?”

Well, since I said that in my inner space, I am ‘the image of myself that I recognize’, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that I live young. I thought to myself as I looked at the Holy Sword.

“Of course I didn’t come here to farm… I came here to say thank you for your hard work.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Ra. That means….”

“First of all, the Demon King who broke the balance… is gone. It’s close to being a passing grade, but at least it’s not to the point where I’m seriously going crazy.”

“Isn’t it seriously going to fly?”

“What should I say… Yes, the human side also suffered a lot from this war, so on the other hand, the Demons who are hiding in the Demon Realm and recovering are somewhat balanced. Of course, because of the Transcendents, it’s not to the point where it’s completely balanced, but it’s more of a hassle to select warriors.”

“Yeah, I see… That’s fine.”

Yes, that was it. In the end, it was the same as saying that he had won and that there was no need to fight anymore.

“Yes. I came here to pay tribute to you, the warrior who fought bravely in the most serious and dire situations among all the warriors of all time, the pioneer who changed his fate with willpower alone despite having no talent. And… I also have to say goodbye.”

“It’s goodbye.”

“Now that the balance has been roughly established, you won’t be using me anymore. I could fight against humans, but… you’re not the type to use me for that, and if that’s the purpose of the sword, then you don’t really need to use me, right?”

“Yeah… That’s right. So is it goodbye now?”

The girl smiled and looked at me.

“Yes. Now I’m done with being so annoying. I’m going to… sleep. For a long time. With all the things that have happened, I’ve been awake for so long that I should have been awake for decades. And so, I’ll just wait until the balance is upset again and a warrior is needed.”

I looked at the Holy Sword and said.

“No, you don’t have to wait. I told you clearly. I’ll make sure you’ll never be used again. I’ll make you a useless antique, a symbol of the wars of the old days, gathering dust.”

The Holy Sword looked at me. Then, he let out a sly laugh and said.

“Yes. How are you going to make that promise? The demons are still intent on killing humans, and the demon god won’t stay still. You’re going to turn me into an antique by going against the god himself.”

“Well, it’ll work out somehow. And… with the demons and all, in the end, we can’t properly interfere with this world. I’m not afraid at all.”

“Haha, I’m not afraid of God… That’s truly a remark worthy of divine punishment.”

“No matter how much I think about it, it seems like you came here to joke around.”

“No, I’m really amazed. That a mere creature can say such outrageous things to a god… Yes, that’s really amazing. Yes. You can definitely do that. I’ll cheer you on.”

Gradually, the Holy Sword’s appearance became blurred. I looked at the girl and said.

“What will happen to me?”

The Holy Sword smiled and said.

“Don’t worry. You’re just sleeping right now. A very deep sleep.”

As he said that, the form of the Holy Sword completely disappeared.

…

How much time had passed? I moved my eyelids little by little. Through them, light streamed in and burned my visual cells. It was too bright, I thought absentmindedly.

After a while, I rubbed my eyes. It was a measure to adapt to the excessive stimulation. Then, I opened my eyes little by little.

What I saw before my eyes were Grandis and my colleagues.

“Are you awake?”

Instead of saying that he was worried or that he was glad, Grandis asked a routine question.

I answered her with a smile.

“Yeah. I think I slept for quite a while.”

I heard later that I must have been asleep for quite some time. The Demon King… no, I guess I should call him the Demon King, he vaporized the entire chunk of flesh, and I lost consciousness as a result, and I lost my limbs.

And, of course, it was Beatrice who restored my condition. Beatrice not only improved my condition, but also made my limbs grow back. If it weren’t for her, I might still be on the verge of death, Feria explained.

After hearing that explanation, I got out of bed and started to walk with my legs groping. I had been asleep for three weeks, so I was confused because I had no strength in my arms and legs.

I couldn’t help but feel flustered as I barely managed to move my body using my limp limbs.

Because so many people were gathered in front of the palace where I was lying.

I looked at Feria and said.

“What the… what the heck…?”

Feria shrugged her shoulders. Then, she spoke with a smile on her face.

“It’s simple. Among those who participated in the war, those who survived said something about you. That you took the holy sword and finished off the Demon King, but were injured. That’s why they came to see you, hoping that you’ll recover quickly.”

“No, what is that…”

Sein sat down on my bed and said.

“It’s simple. The darker the situation, the more popular the tale of heroism. The people of the current empire need proof that they have won the war against the Demon King that has come upon them once again.”

“What does that mean… those people, are all praying for me here…?”

“Yeah. Well… people tend to get caught up in rumors a lot, but at least… I think you can say that the unfair slander you received from the Empire has been removed.”

I clenched my teeth. It felt strange. I had never lived my entire life expecting anything like gratitude from people. So I had no idea how to deal with this situation.

Lena patted me on the back and said.

“Wave my hand at least once. Stick your head out the window.”

I followed Lena’s words stiffly.

I could hear people cheering. Neither the dazzling scenery outside nor the people cheering for me seemed familiar.

I just smiled with a dumbfounded face.

…

Time passed. I was dressed in formal attire and standing in a pure white space filled with light.

This is the Holy Land. I was finally here to perform the ritual to return the Holy Sword.

“Get on your knees.”

Beatrice’s clear voice rang out clearly in the silence. I knelt down and bowed my head.

“Summon the Holy Sword.”

I summoned the holy sword. The holy sword, which I had left with the people of the Holy Land for a few days for the ritual, was held in my hand with its usual heavy weight.

“Okay, now get up.”

I stood up and grabbed the holy sword.

“Then, finally, please place the Holy Sword in its place….”

With every step I took, memories of fighting with the holy sword came to mind. With every step I took, countless memories of being a warrior came to mind.

After overcoming that, I finally headed to the seat of the Holy Sword for a truly happy ending.

The Holy Sword gently entered its place.

I smiled and said softly, finally, towards the Holy Sword.

“great job.”

Now, it was time to put the finishing touches on it.

Leaving all the misfortune behind, I thought, I would end up with a final note that befitted the fight I had been through, ‘I lived happily ever after.’