I Was a Sword When I Reincarnated (LN) - Volume 12 - Chapter Ep

Epilogue

HEY…it’s you again.

I wasn’t asleep. I didn’t need to sleep. But I was dreaming again. Still, this was becoming a semi-regular occurrence, and I was getting used to it. At the very least, there was no reason for me to panic while I was here. And by “here,” I meant in the white void, with the same man in front of me—dressed in flowing robes with slicked-back silver hair.

Oh yeah, it’s almost the Festival of the Moons again.

Usually, the capital would celebrate the festival, but current circumstances made that impossible. This year, there would just be a simple ritual. But apparently, this man drew strength from the Moons Festival—or rather, from the alignment of the moons. Because of that, I was expecting him to turn up. 

Say, can you tell me who you are? I asked. You’re the unknown soul inside of me, aren’t you? Are you Fenrir?

Sorry. Can’t tell you. Not yet.

I thought you said you’d tell me the next time we met?

Circumstances have changed…thanks to a certain someone. I can’t tell you who I am right now. It might be dangerous. The memories could…

What do you mean? I asked. 

I need you to trust me on this one.

All right…

The man’s serious tone was enough to convince me that things were dire. 

You look worn out, I told him. 

He looked a little different than he had before. His dignified and driven aura was gone, now replaced with a haggard look. He was pale, and there were bags under his eyes. His cheeks looked sunken too.

Stuff happened. And there have been anomalies with you too.

What?

You may know this already, but you are in slight—er, grave danger.

Are you talking about that strange voice?

The voice had demanded things. “Devour everything! Heaven and earth, gods and demons, man and beast, everything!”

At least, that’s if I remembered it correctly. The voice was brutal. That was all I needed to know.

That’s not the only thing, said the man.

There’s more?

Much, much more. But I don’t have the power to solve those problems here.

No wonder he went out of his way to appear before me.

In any case, here’s what you need to do. Come to the Demon Wolf’s Garden within twenty days.

Twenty days? I asked. Should I go to the altar?

That’s right. The Lunar mana should still be at its peak then.

Lunar mana. First, he got stronger during the Moons Festival, and now this. I was beginning to wonder if he was a servant of the Goddess of the Silver Moon. The man was a man, after all, so he couldn’t be the goddess herself.

I’ll tell you who I am when you’re there, among other things.

Wait—

And then he was gone, taking the white void along with him. My vision cleared, and I was left staring at our inn room. I guess he only needed my mind to talk with me in the white void.

Dammit! He always does all the talking!

At least I got critical information out of him this time.

The altar in the Demon Wolf’s Garden.

The place where I first awakened in this world. Apparently it held other secrets too. We were already going to the Garden so Fran could train, but now we had another reason to go.

“Teacher…?”

Sorry, Fran. Did I wake you?

“Hm… I felt something weird.”

Actually—

I told her about what just happened. Fran already knew about the strange voice that came up after I Cannibalized Fanatix, and it made her worry. I tried to reassure her by saying that I was the same as I’d always been.

“We have to get to the Garden!”

Of course she’d want to leave right away. We were going to see the head court doctor today, but I was worried she might want to skip that appointment.

Calm down, we still have twenty days. We can take a few days to get to Alessa, and the Garden itself isn’t that large. No need to rush.

“But he said you’re in danger.”

Sure, but he didn’t sound desperate, and he gave us a twenty-day head start, so we don’t need to be there this instant.

We needed to hurry, sure, but we didn’t need to rush.

Besides, we should meet with the bigwigs before we leave for Alessa.

“Okay…”

Fran understood the need for etiquette—at least, I hoped she did. I didn’t think she would skip her lunch appointment with the court doctors so readily. When we got there, the head court doctor and chamberlain complimented her fine work, but she ignored most of their comments.

The luncheon took around thirty minutes, and I never thought I’d see the day Fran wouldn’t finish her plate…but she excused herself early by saying, “I have to go to Alessa.” Everyone paused for a moment, but they were strangely willing to let her go. They must have thought that she needed to leave at once—perhaps because she’d accepted a quest. Something to do with preparing for the Raydossian invasion. Either way, I was willing to let the misunderstanding stand, especially since no one gave her any flack for it.

“Teacher, let’s go to Alessa!”

All right, all right.

There was no stopping her now.

“Do your best, Jet.”

“Woof!”

Jet should get there in four days without any trouble. Fran got on his back, but before we could leave, someone called out to her.

“Fran! Wait!”

“Erianthe?”

“I can’t believe you would just leave without saying goodbye! Good thing I posted lookouts near the gates!”

Erianthe was prepared for Fran’s departure and ordered the guild to keep an eye out for her. Besides, it wasn’t like we could leave right away. We still needed to line up at the gates for departure. Now, Erianthe, Colbert, Garrus, and Count Bayreeds were here to see Fran off.

“Do you need something?” Fran said.

“Look,” Erianthe sighed. “Oh, never mind.”

I sympathized with her exasperation.

“We’re here to thank you before you go,” she said, bowing her head deeply. “You did a lot to help the capital. And, as the representative of all the adventurers here, thank you.”

The others came to shake Fran’s hand and bow in respect, and applause started breaking out everywhere. The guards watching the gates, the adventurers who’d just entered the city, and the citizens around us all joined in. The clapping got louder and louder until it became a thundering applause. It was easy to imagine the sound reverberating through the city—you could probably even hear it from the castle.

“Thank you so much for saving us, Saint Fran!”

“Come visit us again soon!”

“Thank you, Saint Fran!”

This was probably the first time so many people had gathered to wish us well, and Fran’s eyes widened with surprise. To her, she only defeated her enemy and did what she could to help. She knew that the people she’d helped would want to thank her, but she didn’t understand why everyone else was involved.

“Why?” she asked.

“Because you did something amazing! Get with the program already!”

She’s right, Fran. You helped far more people than you imagined.

Hm…

Fran was still bothered by the fact that she slept through the Fanatix fight and didn’t think what she’d done was that significant.

Try waving your hand, Fran.

“My hand?”

Fran raised her hand, and it was greeted with even louder cheers.

Everyone raised their voices to thank her.

This is how they feel about what you’ve done, Fran. They’re all really grateful. You should feel proud.

“Hm…”

“Come again soon, Fran! We’ll welcome you anytime!”

“Come show me your gear again!”

“Thank you!”

Fran took in the blessings and words of encouragement, and then told Jet to run. She was blushing. She tried to hide it, but I could tell. The ghost of a smile formed on her lips.

The capital’s been through a lot…I hope they recover soon.

“Hm.”

Next stop, good old Alessa.

“Can’t wait.”

“Woof!”

Still, it had only been six months since we were last there.

“Come on, Jet! Full speed ahead!”

“Arf! Woof woof!”

Aaah, you don’t have to go so fast!

“We’ll be fine!”

“Woof!”

This is not fiiiiiine!