“It’s all my fault.”
Roka clung to my arm, sobbing pitifully. Of course, it wasn’t true.This incident, in fact, wasn’t anyone’s fault. In the end, everything turned out fine.
“I… I wasn’t good enough, so Master’s eyes…”“They still work fine. That’s all that matters.”
Even though my pupils were shattered, I could still see, so I decided not to dwell on it. What’s done is done, and even if I could undo it, I would’ve made the same choice anyway.
Kugugugugung!
At that moment, the Artabus Ship landed—or rather, crashed—with a heavy thud. Whether it was a smooth landing or not, the ship scraped across the ground for a while before finally coming to a halt. From afar, the voices of His Holiness the Pope and the Chancellor could be heard.
“Well, well, this is completely unusable now. It’d be cheaper to scrap it and build a new one than to repair it.”“Still, it’s over now, Your Holiness Nergal. Once we return to Valles City, I’ll support the construction of three, no, five ships like the Artabus.”
Their voices carried relief and joy. We lost a lot, but if we hadn’t come this far, we would’ve lost everything.
Thinking about it, this victory didn’t really gain us anything. Only scars remained. But between living with scars and dying outright, the choice is obvious.
“Haha, truly amazing… no, what on earth is going on?”
With a loudthud, the door opened—or rather, the door fell off completely. Beyond it, the Chancellor approached with a smile, only to be startled upon seeing Roka crying.
“Is something wrong? Did someone get hurt?”“Master’s… eyes…”
Hearing Roka’s sobbing voice, the Chancellor’s gaze turned to my eyes. Our eyes met briefly, and the Chancellor stumbled, collapsing to the ground as if his legs had given out.
“No, what is this…”
Seeing my shattered pupils, the Chancellor couldn’t continue. I simply smiled and replied.
“Those who harm others must be prepared to be harmed themselves.”
Even if I harm others with my own power, the night when the Milky Way bleeds is not my power.Since I harmed my enemy with the Lord’s power, it’s only natural that I bear the consequences. It’s the inevitable price of my actions. It has nothing to do with right or wrong.
“It’s just that simple.”
From my perspective, Phoenix is no different from a demon. That creature nearly killed Roka and brought the Citadel Republic to the brink of destruction.
Many people fled to the Capital through the gates, but now that the gates have stopped, it’s unclear when they’ll be able to return. Suddenly separated from their homes, they’ll need to earn their passage back.
Truly, many shed tears, and those less fortunate couldn’t even do that. Buried under ash and lava, they perished in the disaster Phoenix brought.
But whether the Lord sees Phoenix as evil or not, I can’t say for sure.
“I’ve burdened you greatly, Teacher. How should we handle this…”
The Chancellor clutched his head in distress. I stopped him.There’s no need for that. I knew this would happen, and in the end, it did.
“If it were just financial damage, we could solve it with money, but this… Things that can’t be restored with money… Once lost, they can never be regained.”
“Is something the matter?”
His Holiness the Pope, coughing as he emerged, also gasped upon seeing my eyes.
“No, my goodness. Hoho, this is…”
He looked much older than when we last met, his wrinkles deeper and his voice rougher.
Both he and I ended up laughing. When humans borrow divine power to overcome a crisis, this is the price they must pay.
“I’m already an old man, so this isn’t a big deal for me, but what about the young ones…”
Those who followed also saw my eyes and each had something to say. I kept reassuring them, but they all worried nonetheless. Sir Robert approached me, bowing his head in greeting.
“Teacher. I’ve been rude to you.”
With just those words, he hesitated, unable to continue. But I understood.Sometimes, conversations happen not with words but with expressions and glances.
“Thank you so much, Priest. You saved not only the Republic but also the continent. Truly, I don’t know how to express my gratitude. Thank you. Thank you so much.”
Mr. Thomas also grabbed my hands tightly, repeatedly expressing his thanks. Sir Robert, about to light a cigarette, suddenly had an idea and scattered the tobacco ashes evenly. Then, he lit them.
“Hey, what are you doing?”“It’s instead of incense. I want to pay my respects to my late wife.”“Using tobacco instead of incense? Did… did you not get along with your wife?”“What does it matter? They’re both made from plants.”
Seemingly sincere, Sir Robert knelt and prayed toward the rising smoke. In the solemn atmosphere, the Chancellor spoke up.
“We were briefly happy, but there are too many sorrowful things. Let’s all return for now. This isn’t the atmosphere to celebrate victory.”
He let out a deep sigh.
“In peacetime, I would’ve taken everyone to a bar I know for a drink, but that place is probably closed now. More importantly, there’s so much to do from here on out. It’s just depressing. Sigh, anyway…”
He looked at me again and bowed deeply at the waist.
“Thank you so much for saving our country. I should offer you something in return, but I’m not sure what’s left. Let’s head back for now.”
He went inside the ship for a moment and returned shortly after, holding a stone that resembled the melted remains of the Moonlight Blade but emitted a different kind of power.
“Since there might not be anything left when we return, take this as an advance. It’s a Sunstone. You can’t even buy this with money now, but compared to what you’ve done, it’s far too little.”“No, you don’t have to give me this…”“Take it if I say take it. You lost your eyes, so you should at least get something in return.”
Before I knew it, the stone was in my hand. The Chancellor advised me.
“However, a stone is just a stone. To make something out of it, you’ll need to refine it, but I’m not sure if there’s a master craftsman on the continent capable of that. You’ll have to look for one in the Empire.”
Roka, currently clinging to me and crying, probably doesn’t realize it yet, but her Moonlight Blade has also melted into a stone. We’ll need a skilled blacksmith. After all, Roka can’t go around empty-handed forever.
“Everyone, board for now. I’ll use my navigation skills to somehow drag this… scrap metal back to Valles City. Sigh, I don’t know. If it seems like we’re going to crash midway, we’ll land.”
Cardinal Omen called us all, and we boarded one by one. Comforting the sniffling and disheartened Roka, we made it to the deck just as the Artabus Ship rose into the sky again.
However, this time, it wasn’t flying very high. It was low enough to see the ground clearly.
“The ship’s condition is too unstable. If we fly above the clouds and it disintegrates mid-air, we’re all dead. I don’t want that, so we’ll fly low and slow.”“Hey, even if I fall from here, I won’t die.”
The Chancellor, who was neither a mage nor a knight, protested, and Cardinal Omen shrugged.
“Of course, I’m just saying. We’ll return safely.”
Kugugugung!
Perfectly timed, the bow of the Artabus Ship suddenly broke off. Many people turned pale as they watched the bow fall.
Crash!The bow collided with the ground. Luckily, there was only ash below, but if it had hit a house, it would’ve been a disaster.
“…I’m starting to lose confidence.”“What?!”“The damage to the hull seems worse than I thought. I’ll slow down further.”“I came here prepared to die, but I don’t want to die in a crash on the way back. Your Eminence, I beg you. Let’s return home safely.”
Somehow, we managed to get close to Valles City. Just as we were about to arrive, everyone on the deck, including me, widened their eyes in shock.
“Wait, what? Is the volcano erupting again?”“Why is smoke billowing from over there?”“Phoenix hasn’t come back to life… right?”
Everyone panicked and rushed to see.We hadn’t been gone that long, but Valles City was already burning fiercely.
