The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody - Volume 8 - Chapter 102

CHAPTER 102

Ireena Litz de Olhyde Takes a Stand upon the Dawn-Lit Battlefield

Ard Meteor and Alvarto Egzex.

Both were completely taken by surprise at this latest development. Alvarto stared with a dumbfounded expression…at Ireena, the young woman who had leaped out of his own chest.

Ard, too, was making a similar face. He froze with his blazing white sword held aloft, staring slack-jawed and stock-still.

Ireena used her momentum from her arrival to embrace her best friend as he stood there, frozen in shock. Was it a hug to commemorate their reunion…? Evidently not. She had done it to separate Ard and Alvarto.

“Ah?”

Ard was garbed in a pure white outfit that, at first glance, resembled a dress. His body was slender and he seemed almost a stranger in Ireena’s arms as the two of them flew off to a distance.

Eventually, Ireena shoved Ard into a snowbank. Only then did she release him and move a few steps back to take in the sight.

“M-Miss Ireena…?” Ard appeared confused. Perhaps it had all happened too quickly.

At the same time, Ireena was puzzling over how her childhood friend looked.

Oh, so it really is true. Ard really is the reincarnation of the Demon Lord. It wasn’t a lie.

He was very different from the person she had known all her life. Ireena didn’t know why. What was important was…that he was identical to the Demon Lord Varvatos she had seen when she had been transported to the ancient world.

She had been informed of the truth ahead of time, and her mind had accepted it. However, her heart hadn’t digested the emotions stirred up from getting visual confirmation.

Still, she had no intention of placing much priority on those feelings. Ard was Ard. Ireena’s mind was made up about that. Thus, she took a breath…

“Sorry, Ard. I’m sure you were worried sick.”

…and smiled as she usually did. Ireena addressed him like on any other day. There was no nervousness or fear in either her expression or voice. If anything, Ireena felt a certain wistful sadness as she gazed upon the Demon Lord crouched on one knee.

“I’d love to spend time chatting, but…I need to take care of some things first.”

With that, Ireena looked away. Alvarto Egzex. His body, the one that had been on the verge of death a moment before, had completely regenerated. He stood there in silence, staring at her.

His beautiful visage was locked in intense confusion.

“Why…? How…? That’s…?”

Splitting off from a fused soul. How had she managed it? Undoubtedly, that was the source of bewilderment eating at Alvarto’s mind.

Ireena accepted his gaze confidently and answered his question. “I wanted to leave. When I desired it strongly enough…I could.” It almost sounded like she was mocking him.

Ard tilted his head, puzzled at the explanation. Yet Alvarto suddenly seemed to have all the necessary information to make sense of her statement. He must have hit upon some reasoning that made sense to him.

“…Oh, that’s right. She has his blood running through her veins. It goes to explain why she also possesses his powers… I had no idea it had grown this strong…”

Alvarto slowly regained his composure and took several deep breaths.

“…This is indeed unexpected. But it’s not a true complication. We have a new spectator. That’s all it is. Nothing to worry about.”

To him, Ireena was like a pebble lying on the side of the road. He had kidnapped her as a hostage to force Ard to kill him, and she had already fulfilled that purpose. Her breaking free now changed nothing.

Ireena Olhyde was, in the end, a fragile young woman born in the modern era. All Alvarto had to do was ignore her.

It was easy for Ireena to understand what he was thinking. “A spectator? Yes, I suppose. That’s what I had been until now. I was okay with that, too. Hide in Ard’s shadow, watch his accomplishments, and laugh with everyone at the end. I thought I was fine with playing that role. But…this time is different,” she declared defiantly to both Alvarto and Ard. She made no apologies and displayed no fear in expressing her own intent.

“Ard isn’t the one who’ll put an end to this dumb fighting. I, Ireena Olhyde, will guide things to the right conclusion. I’m not letting anyone stand in my way. And I mean anyone.”

The two duelists looked at Ireena with expressions of such dumbfounded shock that an observer would swear they heard crickets chirping in the background.

Alvarto’s face all but screamed, “What the hell is she going on about?” Even Ard, who was Ireena’s closest friend…no, because he was her closest friend, felt the same. To them, Ireena was the damsel in the story, not one of the protagonists. That was the role she fit. She couldn’t become the knight in shining armor.

Alvarto’s and Ard’s responses made their opinions plain.

“…What can a mere girl like you even do?”

“…Miss Ireena, this is a deadly field. Please, step back.”

Both essentially told her to know her place and stay out of this. Ireena’s reply was curt and to the point.

“Screw that.”

Then she acted upon her intent, stretching her hand out to the cloudy sky.

“Come to me! Vald-Galgulus!” Lightning surged out from Ireena’s palm. The air quivered, and the void echoed with the noise.

Vald-Galgulus, one of the Three Holy Swords.

“Go get ’em, Ireena.”

When she gripped the hilt, she felt the sword speak to her.

Yeah, I will.

There was not a trace of doubt in her mind. Ireena calmly opened her mouth and began chanting.

“Arstella. Glisten, O Soul! Fotoblis. Become My Light… Tenneblicke. And Dispel The Darkness!”

Her bold, dignified voice shook the very air itself, and in the next instant, Ireena’s body was enveloped in argent light. It then formed into the shape of armor…and materialized into a majestic silver plate.

“If you can beat me, you can do as you like. But if I win…I’m making you discard that stupid death wish.”

Alvarto furrowed his brow and responded with a faint note of irritation in his voice. “You’re forgetting your place, Ireena Olhyde. Enough is enough. A Holy Sword isn’t sufficient—”

“—for you to manage anything.” No doubt that’s what he’d wanted to say.

There was no reason for Ireena to listen to him, however. As her opponent continued to speak, she lunged forward with a slashing strike.

Alvarto was unable to react.

A single diagonal cut. A wound opened from his left shoulder to his right flank.

“Ah?”

Alvarto wasn’t the only one who let out a yelp of surprise. Ard, too, was staring in open-mouthed astonishment.

Ireena proudly proclaimed, “Don’t underestimate me.”

Alvarto blinked at the sheer intensity behind her statement and, after several moments, leaped backward. He was getting out of her range. That was, in essence, an acknowledgment that the young woman posed a threat.

“M-Miss Ireena…!”

Ard must have intuitively realized as well that she was no longer a frail girl. But even then, it seemed his sense of responsibility as her guardian drove him to try to stop her. However, his fatigue from the battle had reached a far greater level than even he realized. Before Ard could take his second step, both his legs gave out from under him, and he crumpled to the ground.

“Ah…!”

He scrunched his face in exertion as he tried to brush aside his limitations. It was no use, though… He returned to his usual form.

“Tch…! Not yet, not now…!” Ard sounded ashamed of his weakness.

Ireena kept her eyes on the opponent in front of her, even as she addressed Ard. “Hey, Ard. Up until today, I’ve always felt that everything you did was right. I really believed there was no room to doubt anything of it. But…this time, I’m going to have to say it.” From that brief disclaimer, she went on. “Ard, you’re walking down the wrong path. I need to set you right.”

This was her role, her responsibility, and no matter what anyone said, it was what she needed to do. Ireena cast Ard a smile from over her shoulder.

“Leave the rest to me.” A single sentence. Ireena had concentrated the entirety of her unshakable will into that phrase. Now that she’d delivered it, she turned her attention back to Alvarto. “All right. Shall we dance?”

“…Do you really think you can win?”

Both combatants gripped the hilts of their respective Holy Swords.

“Stop babbling and come fight already, little crybaby.”

“Don’t let this go to your head, you modern-born weakling…!”

They exchanged barbs, then…

…clashed.

“No mercy for anyone who dares get in my way!”

“You better prepare for a proper spanking, Alvarto Egzex!”

The true final battle began with a vicious exchange.

When was the last time I felt this much confusion? This much panic? The shock had simply been too much. My mind was as blank as the untrodden snow around me.

“Ard, you’re walking down the wrong path.”

Words that rejected the choice I’d made. She had never, ever uttered such a thing until now. The reality that she had done so ravaged my heart and froze my mind. Before I could even respond, the fight had commenced.

“No mercy for anyone who dares get in my way!”

“You better prepare for a proper spanking, Alvarto Egzex!”

As they made their hostile intentions clear, the pair stepped in toward each other with amazing speed.

The split second when they entered striking range, both lashed out with their weapons.

The Holy Sword Vald-Galgulus.

The Holy Sword Dilga Zervatis.

Two of the three Holy Swords met in midair, producing a shower of sparks and a gale-force blast of wind.

Ireena showed incredible skill with her sword against the greatest of the Four Heavenly Kings, and as I bore witness…

…a strong sense of danger carried away the bewilderment I felt and brought a new sense of dread into my heart.

“St-stop…!”

I needed to end this or Ireena would die. If she were simply facing a first-rate opponent, that wasn’t an issue. But not against Alvarto. There was no way that Ireena, who was born in the modern era, could stand a chance against one of the mightiest warriors of ancient times.

“Guh…!”

Stop them. Stop them. Stop them.

It repeated in my mind, yet my body refused to budge. The price for activating the Brave Demon Full Body: Final Phase had been far too high. It was hard for me to move so much as a finger. I was left standing on the sidelines, and the situation continued to develop at breakneck speed without me.

“You’re such a brat!”

“Blasted girl! I’ve had enough of your attitude!”

The two engaged in a dizzying exchange of strokes. Blades rang like a cacophony of bells, and sparks flew through the air. All the while, the impact from the clashes sent snow flying.

They remained locked in a stalemate.

It seemed that this vexed Alvarto, and a faint touch of color began to tint his pallid features.

“That’s…”

With each swing, he grew wilder and more enraged. Although it was impressive to look at, it left him far too exposed.

And that’s why…

“Raaagh!”

…Ireena evaded the punch handily and caught him as he was most exposed after the frenzied swing. She delivered her own fist right into his face. The iron-hard blow crumpled his beautiful features…and cast him far into the distance.

“Guh…! You damned nuisance!”

Blood poured from Alvarto’s nostrils as he roared with rage… It was out of character for him—very much so. He brandished his weapon ferociously, looking like a grumpy child in a playground spat.

“This…is odd…”

Alvarto’s feelings were completely leading him. Perhaps it was helping me reflect upon myself, because the panic burning in my chest cooled, allowing me to see things as they were.

“Why…?! Why, why, why, why…?! Why am I…?!”

The battle had become one-sided since that punch. As Alvarto wildly hacked at Ireena, she glided around his attacks and…

“Raaah!”

…socked him in the face.

Alvarto took the blow that was enough to deform his skull and flew through the air. He landed and, while he wobbled in place, glared at Ireena.

“You daaaaamn biiiiitch!” Alvarto let out another cry of anger and charged right back toward Ireena, like a lemming. His beautiful visage was painted red, but it wasn’t just because of his nosebleed. And as he stepped in, he exposed another hole in his defense and was clobbered for it.

This was impossible. There was something clearly wrong here.

A calm appraisal of the situation made it clear this shouldn’t have been achievable.

After all, Alvarto’s Holy Sword, Dilga Zervatis, granted its wielder ultimate skill in melee. Ascendant Martial Strength, one of its seven abilities, had to still be active. So why was he being bested by Ireena?

I recalled there was a time when I’d wondered the same thing in the past. In my last life, before Alvarto had put on the mask of madness. If I remembered correctly, that was when he and I had just started our fourth duel.

Lydia had suddenly burst in on the battle…and punched Alvarto, utterly clobbering the man.

I’d faced him three times prior and had never beaten him. The union of blade and wielder was a godly level of skill that even I had difficulty dealing with. That’s why we’d always ended things in stalemates where one of us withdrew.

How had Lydia won so easily? When I asked her, this was her answer: “It’s a difference in intensity. That milk-breathed brat has nothing on me in terms of intensity.”

Explain it in a way that makes sense, you idiot. That had been my reaction at the time, but…later, I understood.

Lydia was the daughter of Mephisto and had inherited his powers. Meaning…she, too, possessed the extraordinary and completely absurd cheat ability of granting any desire through force of will. Undoubtedly, she had unconsciously been making use of it.

It seemed that something about Alvarto angered Lydia, convincing her that he was an opponent she couldn’t afford to lose to. The power of the Evil God had reacted to that intense emotion and completely neutralized her opponent’s abilities. Hence…

“Nrrrgh. Raaaaaaaah!”

…this situation, with Ireena dominating Alvarto.

The only explanation I could think of…

“Does she have the same power as Lydia…?!”

…well, it was true that Ireena’s family was descended from an Evil God, but surely that couldn’t be it… No, given what I was seeing, I needed to accept that was the reality. Her form. Ireena in this form.

“Go take another flight, little boy!”

She looked identical to Lydia in her prime. From the moment I’d met her, I’d glimpsed a faint glimmer of Lydia in her, but now she was a full-blown reflection. Maybe that was why…

“Ard, you’re walking down the wrong path.”

…I took those words of criticism as a sign of friendship.

“To keep me going the right way…”

Once, I’d longed to hear those words from another.

After losing Lydia, I’d continued along the incorrect road. And I did so until the very end. Through it all, I’d yearned for someone who could stop me. Someone who could put me back on the right path. Yes…like Lydia had once done. I desired a person who would stand next to me and stop me from making an error, even if it meant beating me over the head.

In the end, I never found that person in the ancient world, but…several thousand years later, she had appeared.

“…Thinking back on it, I don’t think I ever made the right decision when it truly counted. Meaning, in this case, the decision I’ve made was, as you say, Ireena, the wrong one.”

I had no idea what the proper choice was. I couldn’t begin to imagine the decision she had found.

But that was exactly why…

…Ireena was truly my dearest friend, the one who could stand next to me, shoulder to shoulder.

The protectiveness and anxiety I had felt earlier had vanished. I elected to observe the events unfolding until the very end.

“…I’m counting on you, Ireena.”

How had this happened?

As he heard his own skull groan at the impact, Alvarto felt irritation well up within him. He took another blow to the face and went soaring.

This was the forty-seventh time. Since this battle had started, Alvarto had been on the losing side.

“Damn…it…all…!”

He landed upon the snow-covered ground and glared through the falling snowflakes at the girl beyond. Ireena Olhyde. Everything about her appearance—the silver armor, the Holy Sword in her hand, her demeanor—all of it reminded him of that woman.

“Lydia Viigensgeight…!”

In Alvarto’s long, long life, she was the only opponent he had never defeated.

Lydia seemed to loom alongside the girl in front of him.

“Curse you…! Curse you, curse you, curse you…!”

He was vexed. It annoyed him to no end.

Those eyes. He hated those eyes more than anything. She wasn’t looking down at him, hating him, or offering him compassion. No, she simply gazed straight into him, understood him, and continued to watch. It made his frigid heart burn.

“Don’t look at me that way, dammit!”

He was acting completely unlike himself. Although he realized that fact, he wasn’t able to stop. Alvarto stepped forward. His motions were no longer those of a warrior. No, they were of a child who was bawling and swinging his arms in wide circles. Ireena calmly regarded his actions, and…

“And another one!”

…she waited for the perfect moment. Then she lashed out with an intense burst of anger through her fist. And so Alvarto took the forty-eighth hit to his face and arced through the air.

As his body felt weightless in mid-flight, his mind went back to the same question. Why was this happening? And how? Try as he did, no answer came.

Rinse and repeat. He landed, and he charged forward again. Alvarto let his anger drive him to attack. He attempted to engage in close combat…and another blow from Ireena sent him soaring.

“Why…?! This shouldn’t be possible…!”

He wasn’t holding back in the slightest. He was putting everything he had into his attacks.

The one-hit one-kill black flames from his Original. The absolute power from the ultimate Holy Sword. He utilized them as best as he could to kill Ireena, yet she neutralized every effort and decked him each time.

It was all due to her bloodline. The absolutely overpowering and absurdly supernatural ability that had started with Mephisto Yuu Phegor and had been passed down through the generations. It was truly the power of a god.

However absolute a presence Alvarto was, he was still a deity’s creation—he would never surpass one. And repeatedly being reminded of that made him furious. With each passing second, his heart filled with white-hot rage. In stark contrast…

“Phew. I feel a bit better now after venting like that.”

…Ireena let out a satisfied breath, unclenching her fist.

While Alvarto grew more heated, Ireena became calmer. Yet at the same time, the intimidating aura that emanated from her body climbed in intensity, seemingly unconstrained by any limits.

The situation verged on the incomprehensible. One of the most powerful beings of the ancient world was being intimidated and overwhelmed by a frail young woman from the modern era.

Ireena paid no heed to that fact as she addressed Alvarto. “A damned mewling, spoiled little brat. It’s been thousands of years since Lady Lydia said as much, but you haven’t changed at all. That’s why you’re getting beaten up.”

An expression of complete exasperation and a long sigh. Alvarto found her attitude to be superbly irritating. Fortunately, he had managed to keep from completely losing himself to the fury. Some shred of his dignity remained. But the very next moment, that final bastion of calm…

“If you were sulking a little bit, I’d feel like helping you. But you’ve blown everything completely out of proportion, which just pisses me off. Spending thousands of years brooding, living all those centuries nursing your wounds. Then not only do you cause all sorts of havoc for everyone else, but you’re also oblivious to the feelings of the person closest to you.”

…was shattered by Ireena.

“Just because your mom died doesn’t give you the right to quit living.”

Snap.

Alvarto heard something break. It was the sound of collapse. The final line, the last thread that was preserving his composure, had been broken.

“…Kill…you…” There was nothing left in Alvarto’s mind to preserve his decorum as a person. All sense had abandoned him, and what remained was a beast. “I’lllll kiiiiilllll yoooooou!”

Searing heat burned at his heart and body. The hotness flooded out of his body like a cloud of steam and melted the snow around him.

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” He furiously roared as he charged. All of Alvarto’s movements were purely instinctive. There was no rational thought behind them. He thrashed as though he was once again a scared, savage child. “ARRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!” He let out a high-pitched shriek as he wildly swung his blade with no skill or refinement. It was pure violence, stripped of all intelligence.

While his berserker rage made him more intimidating…his actual attacks were undisciplined to the point of worthlessness, and he didn’t bother incorporating his abilities into his strikes.

From Ireena’s perspective, this was a tantrum, and she did not fear it. “You truly are pathetic,” she said with a cool expression, burying her fist into Alvarto’s stomach.

“Guh…!” It stopped him in his tracks, but only temporarily. The frenzy swiftly returned. “You know nothing…! HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT?!”

Just because his mother died. He couldn’t forgive such a remark. To Alvarto, Luminas was everything. She was the one irreplaceable entity in his life. There was no way that Ireena could comprehend the pain of his loss.

In reply, Ireena said with serenity, “Know nothing? If anything, I know everything. Your rage, your sadness…all of it. I said that with total comprehension.” She imbued her quiet anger into her hands, then hurled both words and her fist. “As Lady Lydia said, you’re a damned mewling, spoiled little brat, Alvarto!”

She punched him in the face. This time, however, he remained standing. Alvarto wasn’t thrown into the air, and with his feet still planted on the ground, he swung his sword. Not one of his slashes connected, though.

“Your mom was everything to you. You’re not unique in that way. There’s no shortage of people like that in the world. I was the same way when I was a child. Mom was the only person who seemed to make life worthwhile.”

Her family was true royalty, a lineage descended from an Evil God. There was no way that children born to such a fate would grow up in an ordinary environment. It was difficult to imagine, much less understand, how it felt to conceal that lineage from all others and live as petty nobles. Just how much isolation was involved in that sort of life?

“Everyone felt like an enemy. No matter how friendly they were, they’d turn on me immediately when they found out who I was. Because I was so certain of that, the only people I could be myself with were my family members—my mom.”

Ireena’s father, Weiss, had been swamped with his responsibilities as a noble and as true royalty, leaving him with no time to spend with Ireena. But because her mother was with her, Ireena was never lonely.

At the time, Ireena’s social circle consisted solely of her mother, and the only place that Ireena felt at home, like she belonged, was at the woman’s side.

“It’ll be all right so long as this person is here. I don’t need anyone but her. I felt that way about my mom. But…at some point, parents will disappear from their children’s lives. My mom was no exception.”

Ireena’s mother sometimes accompanied her father when he left the house. That was what had happened on that fateful day. Ireena had waited alone in the massive manor for her mother’s return. However…

…only her father, Weiss, arrived home. Her mother never showed up after that day. Instead, Ireena’s father, who had never been able to be at her side, kept her company, as though to fill in for her missing mother.

Ireena had repeatedly asked her father, “What happened to Mom? When is she coming home?”

He never answered her.

“…Even though I was little, I understood. Mom wouldn’t return.” The despair upon that revelation was beyond expressing. “I wanted to disappear. Truly, just vanish.” The moment she said those words, Ireena’s and Alvarto’s blades clashed, and the two locked swords and gazes as they struggled. “There was no way I could survive in a world without Mom. I saw no meaning in the world. Which was why…I attempted to kill myself. I tried to stab myself in the neck with a knife. But, right before I could do so, someone stopped me… It was the first time I’d ever seen my dad look that way.”

When her father had kept her from taking her own life…

…Ireena had gone into a hysterical, weeping frenzy. Just like Alvarto was doing now.

“When I kept screaming that I wanted to die, my dad embraced me. He said I was all he had left… Although a part of me didn’t care, I also wondered if it was right to leave him alone.”

Undoubtedly, her father was a mirror of her own heart at the time. Ireena’s beloved mother was, to him, his beloved wife. She was gone, but he needed to keep living. He likely wished to vanish like his daughter, but he’d chosen to persist for his child. The sight of her father clinging to that last hope had been so pitiable that…

“Which is why I gave up on dying. Because if I died, my dad would be devastated by my death. I felt at that moment that I needed to get over my sadness so that I could live for his sake.” Ireena kept her blade locked against Alvarto’s and gazed unflinchingly into his eyes. “You have someone, too. A person who would be left behind. One who would mourn and miss you when you’re gone.”

At those words, Alvarto just barely managed to squeeze out his reply. “There’s no one…! There’s no one in this world like that…!” He’d said as much without hesitation, which prompted a deep, heartfelt sigh from Ireena.

“That’s the thing that I really hate about you.” Although it was Ireena who responded, she did not do so with her own words. They had come from the girl who couldn’t speak them. “Why don’t you even think about Kalmia?”

Her sadness. Her agony.

Ireena, in Kalmia’s stead, laid it all upon Alvarto. “You’re holding her in your hand right now. What is she to you? Just a tool? A useful bit of power? Perhaps a worthless piece of equipment? Answer me, Alvarto Egzex. What do you think when you hear the name Kalmia?”

The pressure behind the blade. The increasing presence bearing down upon him. It possessed such passion that it brought Alvarto back to his senses, freeing him from anger. Hesitating, he took a nervous step back.

“What do you think when you hear her name?”

Before Alvarto could grasp what was occurring, his body trembled.

He wasn’t sure why. Was his opponent’s aura that intimidating? Or maybe it was something else? Regardless, he shivered, his forehead slick with sweat. All he could manage was to stare at Ireena in silence.

Perhaps she lost patience with his lack of a response, for she burst out, “Why?! Why can’t you answer that question?! What is wrong with you?!”

The force Ireena placed behind her blade reached an extraordinary level, and by the time Alvarto realized what was happening, he had been shoved off-balance and took the seventieth punch.

He was thrown into the air and, after a moment, landed forcefully upon the snow. Immediately, Ireena tossed aside the Holy Sword in her hand and quickly stalked forward, grabbing Alvarto by the collar.

“Think back to your days with Kalmia! The expressions she showed you! Don’t you care about those memories?”

Overwhelmed by Ireena’s sheer anger, Alvarto meekly acquiesced to her demand, recalling the past.

Kalmia. Kalmia. Kalmia.

He could hardly call his initial feelings for her positive. She was an irritating, annoying girl. That was his first impression, and it had only grown worse over time… Yet he’d never tired of her or wished that she’d leave.

“Who was the one who was always at your side?! Who have you spoken to the most?! Who has fought by your side the longest?! Who shared feelings with you more than any other?! Say it! Say who it is!”

It was Kalmia. She was every answer. Although she complained, Kalmia always lent Alvarto her strength. Despite her acerbic comments, she had always stayed at his side. Yes, it was her. She had never, ever abandoned him.

“If you were truly alone, Ard’s choice wouldn’t be a mistake. I don’t think it’s wrong for someone who would genuinely find salvation in death to perish, but…” Ireena grabbed Alvarto by the collar again, her grip on his shirt tightening as she spoke. “…you have Kalmia. You’re not alone. Think! What will happen to Kalmia if you disappear?! Do you really not care about how much she’d mourn and suffer? Do you want death’s freedom so badly that you’d subject Kalmia to what you’ve endured for ages?”

Alvarto’s teeth began to clatter.

“I…”

Once the memories had been called to mind, there was no way to stop them. His life with Kalmia. The memories they shared. It felt natural for her to be at his side. She had always, always been on hand for him, been at his side.

In the beginning, Alvarto had found her repugnant, and even hated her. However, by the time he realized it, she had become like a part of his own body and mind. Yes, Kalmia was the one and only person left to him…

“You idiot, it’s taken you long enough to notice.” Ireena sighed as though speaking to a foolish kid, then she let go of Alvarto’s collar. “You’re not the only one who’s lost someone dear, and neither am I. It’s something everyone’s got to deal with. I’m convinced it’s a trial that we all have to experience to grow. And it’s long past time you grew up, Alvarto. If not for yourself, then for the sake of your dearest friend who, like you, lost someone she loved and was left behind.”

Ireena’s words struck Alvarto’s heart harder than any of her blows. Curiously, something warm bloomed in his empty heart. At that moment…the Holy Sword, Dilga Zervatis, in his hand glowed and began to change its shape, returning to that of a girl.

Kalmia looked down at Alvarto. “I wasn’t able to stop Luminas. After you lost consciousness, she ordered me to keep living at your side.” Kalmia, who ordinarily maintained a level of stoicism, now allowed her sorrow to fill her beautiful features. “While I don’t consider myself a tool, it doesn’t change my fate. I’m still a piece of equipment at heart. The wishes of one that I’ve truly accepted as my wielder weigh me down like a curse. Which is why…I couldn’t die with you.”

Kalmia’s face twisted with pain. Her fingers trembled and her lips quivered as she vented everything she had kept hidden for so long.

“No matter what, I’m unable to die. But you’re different. You can prioritize your own aspirations and seek peace…and I wanted to stop you. I couldn’t bring myself to say it. You were just so sad and pitiful. Which is why I helped you to achieve your goal, but…” Kalmia choked on her words.

She had definitely struggled over the last several millennia as she was caught between her friend’s last chance and her own desires.

It was precisely because Alvarto was dear to her that she wanted him to find solace. However, she still prayed that he would live. Who could say how much torture Kalmia suffered over the years because of that contradiction?

Alvarto had remained oblivious to those feelings—unable to comprehend them.

“…Kalmia.” He called to her as he gazed upward. There was regret in his eyes, and sorrow, too.

Perhaps seeing these emotions, Kalmia scrunched up her lovely face as she held back tears. “You are…to me…the last remaining…precious thing… So…please…please…don’t leave me alone.” A tear ran down Kalmia’s pale cheek. Alvarto felt a sharp pang of pain in his heart when he saw it.

What have I been doing? Thinking only about myself. I wasn’t able to see what she felt… I didn’t even try to. Yes, it’s true…I really am a damned, mewling spoiled little brat.

What Lydia had once told him. What Kalmia had once told him.

Alvarto couldn’t understand at the time, but now he did. No matter how powerful, Alvarto was still a needy child. That’s why Lydia hadn’t accepted him as a warrior, while Kalmia had hoped he would grow from a child to an adult. Maybe she had wished he would become a man who would change her. One who would free her from her infatuation with death.

If only I had realized this. Had I faced her as a man… No. It’s pointless to linger on that now.

Changing the past was beyond Alvarto. He couldn’t recover what had been lost. That was why he needed to act for the loved one before him.

“I truly, truly am sorry for everything I’ve done to this point.” Alvarto reached out and wiped the tear from his partner’s face. Then, he turned. “…Ireena Olhyde.” No anger remained on his face.

“Living with the pain of loss is difficult, but…you’re not alone. If you support each other, you’ll be able to overcome it. And, if you can’t…then come to me. Then…” Ireena smiled gently, looking as radiant as a goddess. “…I’ll save you…and find a path to live by. I swear it.”

Alvarto gazed down at the ground and grunted. As Ireena had said, it wouldn’t be easy. He would have to throw away his thirst for death and face off against despair. There could be no straying from the path, even if he regretted his own birth.

It was a choice that was so full of suffering and obstacles that the mere notion was depressing. In comparison, perhaps it’d be better, easier, to die. He wasn’t able to let go of that desire completely.

However, when he looked up, the blizzard had stopped, the clouds had parted, and sunlight streamed through.

“Ireena Olhyde.” Alvarto looked at her and smiled for the first time in millennia. His next words marked the end of this battle and were a testament to his newfound determination.

“You win.”