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Epilogue

A huge crowd of people was gathered in the theocracy’s capital. Today was the day that Miledi Reisen, the greatest sinner in history and the heretical witch who’d led the greatest insurrection against the church in Tortus’s history, would be executed.

“I just hope we don’t get a repeat of what happened seven years ago...”

“Don’t jinx it. The witch’s six comrades are still at large. Who knows what they might try.”

A group of two men looked worriedly around the rebuilt capital plaza. There was another execution platform that had been set up in the center, and like before, the leaders of the various nations were attending the execution.

The only difference from seven years ago was that it was dragonmen that were guarding the skies instead of the Paragons of Light, and the pope, the archbishops, and the respective commanders of the Three Pillars of Radiance were all different people.

“I heard the other six already died, though,” another man said.

“Really? Well, it’s not like anyone’s seen them doing anything in a while, so maybe...”

“Even if they show up, we just have to band together again and we’ll be able to take them!”

“Yeah. That rebellion from seven years ago was awful, but that surge of faith I felt welling up was amazing. I’d like to experience that feeling again someday.”

“Yeah, it was so strong that we even fought alongside demons for a bit. Things looked dicey there after the rebels were taken care of, but the church managed to negotiate a truce and the demon empire’s been quiet ever since.”

The people in the crowd spoke fondly of their memories from seven years ago.

Suddenly, something shoved one of the men in the back. He turned around to see who it was and caught a brief glimpse of a hooded youth vanishing into the crowd. Clicking his tongue, the man put the youth out of his mind and looked back up at the execution platform. He couldn’t wait for this seven-year-long war against the rebels to finally be over.

The youth that had bumped into him scowled, then slipped into a side alley.

“Hey, I saw that. We’re not supposed to stand out, remember?” the hooded youth’s companion said as he stepped into the alley.

The hooded youth—who was none other than a 19-year-old Ruth—looked away bashfully. He had the grizzled features of a hardened craftsman, and he was taller than even Oscar now.

The other hooded youth was Dylan. He had bulging muscles now and carried himself like a true warrior. However, he also had a gentlemanly older-brother demeanor, which he’d clearly inherited from Oscar.

“Will you ever settle down, Ruth? You’re such an idiot,” Katy said with an exasperated shake of her head.

“Don’t treat me like I’m a dog!”

Katy was leaning against a nearby wall, and she too carried herself like a powerful warrior. Though she’d only just turned fifteen, she was quite the muscular beauty.

“Come on, no fighting, you two. We’re trying to lay low, right?” Corrin said in a gentle voice.

“Oh, um, sorry...” Ruth and Katy said, immediately cowed. Corrin, too, was only just fifteen, but she had an extremely motherly aura about her. Moreover, her boobs had grown quite big, which was noticeable even through her baggy cloak.

Sharm—who’d grown into an extremely handsome man—held Corrin’s hand to pacify her and said, “It’s almost time, guys.”

The current generation’s hero looked sadly off into the distance as a series of bells began to toll. Ruth and the others’ expressions stiffened, and the emotions they’d been trying to distract themselves from with small talk rose to the surface.

The pure-white double doors north of the main street swung open to reveal a chained Miledi. Her appearance had changed quite a bit over these past seven years. Her waist-length hair had lost its golden luster and was quite wispy. Her limbs were red and sore at the point where the shackles were digging into them.

Still, the sky-blue eyes that peeked out from behind her bangs were as striking as always. She looked exactly like Belta had when she’d been trapped in the Reisen Manor’s prison.

The executioner yanked on Miledi’s chains, and she staggered forward. Then, after a moment of silence, the crowd started hurling insults at her.

“You witch!”

“Pay for your sins with death!”

“How dare you turn your back on Lord Ehit despite being blessed with his powers!”

They flung garbage, stones, and even shit at her.

“Those bastards,” Ruth said through gritted teeth.

“Ruth-kun,” Sharm mumbled as he placed a hand on Ruth’s shoulder.

Ruth glared at Sharm, but Sharm tightened his grip and the pain brought Ruth back to his senses.

“This is what Nii-san and the others decided to do to preserve our future,” Dylan said in a shaky voice.

Katy squeezed his hand, but she, too, was trembling with anger.

“We came here to see her last moments as a human. Don’t ruin them,” Corrin said in a resolute voice. She definitely had the strongest mental fortitude of the surviving children.

The crowd roared with approval as the executioner affixed Miledi to a cross on the platform. She was going to be burned at the stake, and there was a huge pile of firewood ready beneath the cross.

The priests summoned fireballs into their hands and the new pope, who’d been chosen solely because of his family line, stated, “Heretic Miledi Reisen. This is your last chance to repent. Renounce your sins, and in his infinite mercy, Lord Ehit shall grant you a painless death.”

Miledi looked up at the pope, and the crowd fell silent. They wanted to hear history’s greatest heretic beg for forgiveness.

“I’ll repent...” she said slowly. But then, she grinned and added, “Did you really think I’d say that? Hah, you guys are so stupid! There’s no way I’m ever gonna apologize to that piece of shit god! I’m not a liar, after all!”

She raised her head to look up at the sky and glared defiantly at Ehit. Everyone, including Sharm and the others, looked at her in surprise.

Before anyone could recover from their shock, Miledi added, “Oh, but there is one thing I need to apologize for. I’m sorry I couldn’t kill Ehit.”

The regret in her voice was genuine.

The crowd wasn’t able to keep up with how quickly she went from joking to serious, and the only person with enough presence of mind to say anything was the new dragon king, Shival.

“I’m tired of listening to her prattle! Burn her!” she shouted from the spectator stands set up for the various world leaders, finally bringing the pope back to his senses.

The priests remembered what they were here to do as well, so they launched their fireballs at the pile of wood. In seconds, the fire was at her feet.

Even though she should have been screaming in pain, Miledi looked kindly at the crowd. It wasn’t the kind of expression a witch who’d tried to destroy the world should have been making, so the crowd looked at her in confusion.

“Hey, everyone, is it really a sin for all races to join hands?” she said as her clothes started to burn. The flames were licking her body now.

“Is it so wrong...to open up to others? To laugh...with them?”

The fire was eating up all the nearby oxygen, making it difficult for Miledi to breathe. Her voice came out in faltering gasps as she continued, “Is it so wrong...to say you like...the things you like?”

She was so badly burned now that her face was unrecognizable. But until the very end, Miledi continued speaking to the crowd in an exceedingly gentle voice.

“There’s no way...it could be wrong... We’re not...Ehit’s toys!”

There was so little of her left that it was hard to believe she was still able to talk. Even the members of the church were transfixed by the sight.

“May your futures be free,” Miledi said as she finally succumbed to the flames. She’d been dazzling until the very end.

The crowd stared, dumbfounded, at the charred corpse of the world’s most dangerous heretic.

Suddenly, Miledi’s body was enveloped in sky-blue light. The light slowly rose above the cross and coalesced into a ball, then vanished into the sky.

“Did her soul...return to heaven?” a man muttered, looking up.

It had been such a fantastical moment that the crowd continued looking up long after the execution had ended.

“Miledi really went out with a bang,” Ruth said with a sad smile, which Dylan and the others returned. They then walked through the confused crowd, looking as though a weight had lifted off their shoulders.

“I guess it’s finally time for us to say our goodbyes,” Sharm said, and Ruth nodded to him. They weren’t children anymore, and they each had their own journey to embark on.

“Dylan and Katy, you guys are going to Dastia, right?”

“Yep. It’s going to become a haven for all the people branded as heretics, so I want to go there and protect it.”

“Plus, our teachers, King Alfard and Rasul-san, are over there.”

The wave of madness seven years ago had affected people within the vampire kingdom as well, but Alfard was the kind of guy who prioritized the people he cared about over the needs of the country. He’d quelled any and all uprisings with overwhelming violence, which had prevented the kingdom from falling apart. However, it had been a close call, and he’d realized that he needed strong warriors with no ties to court politics to keep his loved ones safe in Dastia.

Fortunately, it was around that time that Rasul had shown up, together with the demons he’d managed to rescue from his empire and Batlam. Thus, there were now demon villages as well as human villages in Dastia, and Rasul was serving as Alfard’s adviser, as well as the captain of his royal guard. The two of them got along surprisingly well and were good friends.

“Look after Onii-chan for us, Ruth-onii-chan,” Katy said.

“You got it. Though really, he’s gonna be the one looking after me, I think.”

Oscar had chosen Ruth as the one person he could stay in contact with after entering his labyrinth. The details of their contract with Ehit meant that only those who actually cleared Oscar’s labyrinth could take any of the artifacts he made down there. But while Oscar couldn’t send back any of his creations with Ruth, he could still train his younger brother to make artifacts himself.

Laus, of course, had chosen Sharm as his one person. Normally, Sharm would be traveling around the world as a wandering hero, but he would be checking in with Laus periodically. Corrin had also decided to travel with Sharm, and there was a budding romance between the two of them.

“Sharm. If you ever make Corrin cry, your life is forfeit,” Katy said in a dangerous voice, and Sharm and Corrin both blushed.

“It would have been nice if Yunfa and Diene could have made it...” Dylan said sadly.

“It would have been hard on Yunfa, since she’s pregnant and all.”

Unsurprisingly, Naiz had chosen Yunfa as his one connection with the outside world. In a way, it was Yunfa who’d grown the most over the past seven years. It was as if she’d inherited Susha’s spirit, as well as her rather extreme attempts at seduction.

As soon as she’d become of age, Naiz had finally given in and agreed to marry her.

“Plus, Diene’s in Andika, so it would have been a long journey for her.”

“I hear she’s taken over Baharl’s position as the city’s don, so she’s probably pretty busy too.”

The conversation naturally died out, but everyone was still reluctant to part.

The crowd had finally recovered from their stupor as well. They were chattering excitedly to each other, completely ignoring the priests who were giving some speech about how the death of the witch proved Ehit’s righteousness.

Sharm smiled a little as he listened in on the conversations, then held his fist out to Ruth and the others.

“Let’s survive and meet again.”

They had made it this far thanks to the sacrifices of others, so it was their duty to keep living and ensure those sacrifices hadn’t been in vain. Ruth and the others smiled and bumped Sharm’s fist with their own.

After a few seconds, they turned around and began walking down their respective paths. They would make sure the truth about the Liberators got passed down, one way or another.

Standing on the plains next to where the old hidden village in the Reisen Gorge had been was a circle of seven people. Or rather, a circle of six people and one golem that was currently being bathed in sky-blue light.

“Miledi-chan’s baaaaaaaaaaaack!” the golem with a smiley-face mask exclaimed and struck a cutesy pose.

This golem had been created with the combined efforts of all seven ancient magic users, and it was Miledi’s new body.

Seven years ago, Miledi’s faith had been rewarded when Oscar and the others had returned. They had been extremely conflicted at first, but after spending time talking with their loved ones, they’d ultimately decided to go along with Miledi’s plan.

They’d spent the past seven years together, cherishing every moment as they worked together to create the labyrinths. However, today was the last day they’d ever see each other.

“My, Miledi-chan! I can’t believe you continue to refer to yourself in the third person even after passing twenty. That’s the most cringe thing I’ve ever seen!”


“Shut up, Meru-nee! I don’t wanna hear that from a thirty-year-old who—”

“Excuse me?” Meiru said with an extremely threatening smile, and Miledi looked away awkwardly.

“This isn’t the time to be fooling around, guys,” Naiz said in an exasperated voice, massaging his temples.

“Hey, you don’t have any right to talk, Nacchan. You’re the one who got a super young wife in your midthirties.”

“Not only that, but he’s been totally henpecked. Isn’t that right, Naiz-kun?”

“Please don’t remind me,” Naiz replied as he squatted down and cradled his head. It seemed he really couldn’t win against his young wife in anything.

“Cut it out. Every time I hear about people’s married lives...I get depressed.”

“Sorry, Lau-chan, I guess that’s still a traumatic event for you. Anyway, I’m impressed your hair still hasn’t grown back.”

“That’s because I shave it regularly! I’m not bald!”

Ignoring Laus’s protests, Miledi turned nostalgically to Vandre and said, “Van-chan...your taste in mufflers has gotten awful.”

“It’s not my fault. Margaretta keeps making them for me.”

Vandre was currently wearing a pink muffler dotted with red hearts. It was obvious who he’d chosen as his one person to stay in contact with.

The Schnee clan had also reclaimed the old village they’d used to inhabit on the border of the Obsidian Tundra. A lot of the dragonmen who’d respected the Schnee family had moved there as well.

“Hey, Lyu-chan. Are you absolutely sure you still want to go through with that cockroach trial? It’s not too late to change it, you know?” Miledi asked, turning to Lyutillis.

“Nothing you say will change my mind! I’m about to go back to a life of loneliness, so at least let me have my forest friends!”

“You won’t be completely alone. You’ve got Kia-chan still, remember?”

“She’s got an inn to run, so she can’t be with me all the time. Plus, it’s not even in the Pale Forest! One of these days, she’s definitely going to say something like, ‘Sorry, I’m busy. It’ll be a while before I can come again,’ and then I’ll be left all alone forever!” Lyutillis wailed. Sadly, the moment she’d decided to go make her trial a barrage of millions of cockroaches, her comrades had basically given up all hope of reforming her.

It was honestly amazing that Kiara had willingly offered to be Lyutillis’s one conduit to the outside world after learning what she was like. Rabbitmen truly were the strongest of all races.

Ignoring Lyutillis’s crying, Miledi took a picture out of her pocket and looked at it nostalgically. It was a group picture of all seven of them standing on a hill overlooking the promontory where Belta’s grave was. They’d taken it just before they’d started making their respective labyrinths.

Oscar had suggested they all have pictures of each other to help remember each other, and this was just one of the many, many that he’d taken. This, over everything else, was Miledi’s most prized possession.

“He he, O-chan. Thanks for giving me this.”

In the end, Miledi hadn’t been able to return to calling Oscar O-kun. It was proof that she’d well and truly given up on living a normal life.

“That’s the picture from seven years ago, isn’t it? You already thanked me for it a bunch of times back then.”

“Well, I’ll keep thanking you! This is the best picture ever! Plus, it shows me when I was at my prettiest!”

“That reminds me, why did your spirit form have the appearance of you from seven years ago?”

“Don’t worry about it!”

Oscar gazed sadly down at Miledi, and she purposely chose not to comment on his expression. Instead, she smiled even more cheerfully back up at him.

Suddenly, the seven of them sensed a familiar presence in the distance.

“It’s time...” Miledi said, looking over at the apostle sent to monitor them.

Behind each of the Liberators was a magic circle. Once they stepped into them, they’d be teleported to their labyrinths and the teleporters would be destroyed. This was their final farewell.

“All right, everyone, I guess this is goodbye! Don’t get so lonely you leave your labyrinths to come see me, okay?”

It was precisely because they would never see each other again that Miledi was determined to remain cheerful and smiling to the very end. All of the things she wanted to say, she already had over the past seven years.

Oscar and the others stared at her, burning her appearance into their memories. Miledi could feel the love in all of their gazes.

The first one to turn around was Naiz. He stopped just before he reached the teleporter, though, and looked back over his shoulder at Miledi and said, “It was an honor to travel with you. Thank you, Miledi.”

“Nacchan...if anything, I’m the one who should be thanking you. Thanks for fighting by my side.”

Naiz gave Miledi one last smile, then disappeared through his teleporter.

The next one to go was Lyutillis, who said, “Miledi, you showed me a dream, and for that, I am eternally grateful. I will continue to believe that the day will come when that dream is fulfilled.”

“Yeah, I won’t stop believing either. Goodbye, Lyu-chan.”

The queen of the forest’s smile was as firm and unshakable as the sacred tree. She stepped into her teleportation circle and disappeared in a bright green flash. The circle then dulled, its duty completed.

After her, the next to go was Laus.

“Belta made the right choice in picking you,” Laus said in a voice full of conviction.

“Lau-chan...”

“That’s all I wanted to say. Be proud of yourself, Miledi Reisen.”

The world’s strongest knight’s expression was so gentle it hurt.

Once Laus was gone, Vandre started walking toward his circle. Just before he left, however, he glanced over to where Oscar was. He then turned to Miledi, and with a deep sigh walked back over to her.

“Huh?” Miledi muttered, confused. Vandre squatted down and flicked her on the forehead.

“Owww! Hey, what was that for?!”

“That’s what you get for being stubborn,” Vandre stated. He then turned on his heel as if nothing had happened, and as he walked away, he said, “You’re more charming when you’re being annoying. Never forget that.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?!”

Miledi couldn’t believe that this was how they were going to part, but Vandre just laughed and vanished into his teleportation circle.

“Heh, it’s just like Van-kun to leave like that. Now then, Miledi-chan.”

“What is it, Meru-nee?”

“You may have grown over these past seven years, but your boobs never got any bigger.”

“Who cares about my bust size?!”

Don’t tell me you’re just gonna leave like this too, Meru-nee! Miledi thought, but then Meiru suddenly hugged her.

“I’m so glad I met you. I wanted to spend so much more time with you.”

“Me too, Meru-nee.”

The two of them embraced for a while, but then Meiru finally got up.

“Remember, you’re not alone. Even if I die before you, I’ll be thinking about you for all eternity.”

“He he he, I know.”

They smiled at each other. Of course, in Miledi’s case, the smile was permanently plastered onto her mask, but Meiru knew she was smiling inside. Meiru kept her gaze fixed on Miledi even as she walked back to the teleporter, smiling up until the moment she vanished. It was almost as if the two of them really were sisters, seeing how lovingly they looked at each other.

“I guess the others wanted to let us have our moment alone,” Oscar said with an awkward smile.

“O-chan...I’m sorry for being so selfish.”

Oscar shook his head, and for once, it was Miledi who turned her back first. She headed straight toward her magic circle.

“You have no idea how grateful I am to you, O-chan. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have made it this far. You were the one who supported me the most through everything.”

Miledi knew she was turning her back on the promise she’d made with him, so she wanted to at least convey what she genuinely felt.

She stopped one step away from her circle, sensing Oscar’s gaze on her back. But then, Oscar also turned around and began walking to his magic circle.

I wonder if he finally got fed up with me? I wanted to at least see him off with a smile, but I guess I messed up again... Miledi thought as she stroked her mask with a metallic finger.

“Even if an eternity passes...” Oscar said suddenly.

“Huh?”

“Even if we’re both reduced to nothing but souls...”

“......”

“I swear I’ll come for you.”

For the first time, Miledi was glad she had a golem body...because it meant Oscar wouldn’t hear her gasp.

“These past seven years, I kept looking for a way to keep you from being alone forever. I even scoured through fairy tales. But in the end, I couldn’t find anything. Though, I did read a bunch of stories about people being reunited even after hopping between worlds or being reborn.”

One fairy tale had already proven to be based on real magic, so Oscar Orcus chose to believe that the others he’d found were as well.

“Next time, I’ll be the one to find you. It doesn’t matter whether you’re at the far end of the world or even the very depths of hell, I swear I’ll find you.”

Miledi wanted to turn back and reach out to Oscar. But if she did that, she’d return to being a normal girl, and a normal girl wouldn’t be able to endure the long journey she was about to embark on. And so, she didn’t turn around.

Besides, she knew that Oscar Orcus, more than anyone else, would understand and respect her decision...and her feelings.

“I don’t plan on throwing away the happiness I found by meeting you, so I’m not going to say farewell.”

“O...chan...”

“That’s right. I’m O-chan.”

Even now, he approved of and supported Miledi’s decision to remain the Liberators’ leader above all else. It was thanks to Oscar that Miledi felt like she’d be able to pull through.

“See you later, Miledi. One way or another, we’ll meet again.”

“Yeah, see you later, O-chan!”

And thus, the two of them parted ways, holding their feelings—their greatest treasures—close to their hearts. They stepped into their magic circles with their backs straight and tears streaming down their smiling faces.

Neither of them turned back even once.

With the defeat of the so-called mavericks, the world returned to a modicum of peace. Ten years passed, then a hundred. Memories of that age of turmoil began to fade, and a new rumor began to spread.

Supposedly, there were seven labyrinths scattered across the world, and an amazing reward would be granted to anyone who could clear them.

Rumor had it that those seven labyrinths had been created by the mavericks of ages past, and eventually, those labyrinths came to be named after their creators. Yet more time passed and the labyrinths themselves were forgotten, but strangely enough, the Liberators’ names continued to live on in the memories of the people.

It was almost as if there were people constantly passing down the tale to ensure the Liberators would never be forgotten, so that their desire for freedom would burn as bright as ever.



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