"............Thousand Transformations, with all his divine schemes and devilish plots... That was quite the exhilarating show, wasn't it?"
The Living Mirror, which had been projecting images of the distant Yggdra, lost its light.
Adler carefully polished the crack-covered Living Mirror—it had exhausted everything it had to carry out his commands—and tucked it into his coat.
Uno, who had been watching the mirror's images with a serious expression, asked for confirmation.
"Is it gonna be okay? The Living Mirror?"
"I expected as much, but... it's done for. No idea how long recovery will take... Well, we'll just have to wait it out patiently. I pushed it way too hard this time."
The Living Mirror was an ancient Mirror that had become a Monster. It wasn't the type of Monster that engaged in combat—it simply projected images of its target—but being a living creature, it had its limits.
It had cracked before, when he'd peered into the deepest reaches of the Divine Source Temple, but the strain from witnessing this battle was incomparable.
It was barely, just barely still alive. But how long recovery would take was anyone's guess. It could even take decades.
But even so—Adler had needed to witness that battle. In order to move forward.
The battle between Keller and the fox god that Thousand Transformations had summoned.
A clash between gods capable of annihilating the world—it was on a level Adler hadn't even been able to imagine until now.
Compared to that, every battlefield Adler and his crew had faced before was garbage. Even the battles they'd experienced since coming to Yggdra didn't come close.
He now understood clearly that Keller hadn't been remotely serious when fighting Adler. And even in that state, Adler hadn't been able to lay a finger on him using Yuden—which meant the world was far wider than Adler had imagined.
As for the skill of Thousand Transformations, who had orchestrated the god-versus-god confrontation—there was no need to even comment on that.
Adler and the others were in a remote countryside town far from Yggdra. They'd burned through the last of Ripper's remaining power to fly here—the town farthest from the World Tree. Even Thousand Transformations' name meant nothing in this place, so far from Zebludia.
It was an undeniable retreat. But Adler had no intention of arguing against it anymore.
"Thousand Transformations... He never needed to team up with us. Not ever."
Quint's voice, worn and exhausted. He was exactly right.
If the man could manipulate gods that powerful, he didn't need anyone else's help.
Not being able to beat him—failing to beat him—that was just how it was. Adler actually felt oddly refreshed about it.
They shouldn't have gotten involved so casually. No—maybe he should count himself lucky they'd crossed paths before making a bigger name for themselves.
Because if Adler and his crew had been any stronger, that man would have opposed them with everything he had.
Quint looked at Adler.
"So, Adler—what now?"
"Hmm, let me think..."
It was a casual question, but Adler understood exactly what it meant.
What to do from here—continue ruling as Demon King under the banner of Thousand Ghost Parade, or give it all up?
Most of the Monsters under his command were dead. The only usable asset left was a single Card Soldier that Quint had tamed in Yggdra. Thousand Ghost Parade had no fighting force to speak of anymore.
Of course, they could replenish their Monsters. It would take time, but a comeback wasn't out of the question. Thousand Transformations was unquestionably a monster, but Adler still had confidence that they were stronger than most Hunters out there.
But after thinking it over for a while and scratching his head, Adler said: "I'm kinda tired. Maybe we'll do some helping people next."
"......I mean, I get it in theory, but putting Uno aside—are we really the 'helping people' type?"
"Not at all! If we adjust your hairstyle and outfits and whatnot, I think even you could pull off helping people~ I know it feels a bit late, but these are times when people need strength, and there might be things we can do~"
It seemed Quint and the others had no intention of continuing their activities as Thousand Ghost Parade either.
Adler scratched his cheek as Quint and the others, unfazed by a proposal that was the polar opposite of everything they'd been doing, launched into an animated discussion.
§ § § The Mages used the power of the spirits to clear away the rubble. Yggdra, which had been reduced to something resembling ruins, was neatly leveled in just a single day.
Yggdra's townscape had always made maximum use of natural materials. For the people of Yggdra, who maintained friendly relations with the spirits, perhaps rebuilding the town wasn't all that difficult as long as nature was in abundance.
Construction work was outside our wheelhouse. Instead, we—or rather, Rize and the others—took on forest patrol duties.
Yggdra no longer had the barrier that had protected it for so long. Keller had destroyed it at its very foundation.
Yggdra had plenty of non-combatant residents, and powerful Phantom Beasts and Magical Beasts inhabited the surrounding area, so until the town had taken enough shape, someone needed to protect it from those creatures.
That said, most intelligent Monsters had been wiped out by Keller's influence. The attacks weren't frequent enough to really require patrols.
The forest patrols and culling were about half hobby for Rize and the others.
Treasure Hunters loved the unknown. They hadn't been able to move freely before, occupied as they were with the Divine Source Temple, but the Great Forest that sheltered Yggdra held countless things to capture a Treasure Hunter's interest.
Unknown beasts, unknown materials, and untrodden land—more than enough to keep the Mourning Specter absorbed. Luke, who'd been feeling down after everything ended while he was stuck as a stone, would probably start recovering some of his spirit.
Plus, if we could bring back records of the Yggdra area, Gaark would be thrilled.
After the battle ended, Seren looked busier than ever.
Directing the people of Yggdra was tough enough, but above all, reestablishing the barrier that had protected Yggdra seemed to be quite the ordeal. The technique itself was extremely difficult, and on top of that, Keller had messed up the terrain so badly that the barrier couldn't be deployed as it was.
The World Tree issue was settled, but Seren's days of struggle were far from over.
And as for me, I was starting to miss the Imperial Capital.
Yggdra was a wonderful place, rich in nature, but they had no cafés serving sweets, and there was nowhere to hunt for Treasure Weapons. And while we're at it, safety-wise—the Imperial Capital actually ranked higher than Yggdra.
Luke's curse had been broken, so there was no reason to stay in Yggdra anymore.
There was nothing left for us to do here. While everyone else was preoccupied with the outside world, I talked with Seren in her temporary residence, built on what had once been the town square.
Seren, who had been working with dark circles under her eyes, narrowed them gently when she heard what I had to say.
"I see... It's a bit frightening, but if you're leaving, Human—then it's truly, really, truly all over, isn't it..."
She was being paranoid... but I couldn't really blame her, considering how many times things seemed to go well only for new troubles to crop up. (And honestly, part of the reason I was trying to leave quickly was that I didn't want to get tangled up in any more disasters.)
Now that I think about it... it felt like I'd been in Yggdra for a remarkably long time. It seemed like I'd been on the move the entire time... (Even though in the end, I'd just gone with the flow and hadn't really done anything.)
Seren stopped working, closed her eyes with a look of deep emotion, and let out a small sigh.
"No matter how you look at it, Human, we owe you a great deal. No matter how you look at it, you delivered results. No matter how you look at it, from the recovery of Shero to the repulsion of the god—we've incurred a debt we can never fully repay. The people of Yggdra will tell the story of your exploits for eternity. We'll need to edit the details, of course."
That was a rather loaded way of putting things. She was... quite stressed, wasn't she?
There were plenty of things I could nitpick, but no matter how you looked at it, if Seren said so, I'd just accept it.
"Yggdra never forgets a kindness received. Should you ever find yourself in trouble, we will always lend a hand. Well, I don't think people of our caliber could do much to help you, though, Human."
"Don't... don't sell yourselves short. You've all done a remarkable job."
"In fact, we could use some help ourselves. Luke Saikol keeps running through the forest screaming 'Come out, God!' and the townspeople keep filing complaints..."
Ah, right... we'll be leaving soon... sorry about that.
Luke probably understood that screaming wouldn't make a god appear, but he really was one stubborn childhood friend. You'd think just being able to explore the forest would be enough, but I supposed he had a lot he was still processing.
At that point, Seren gave a small cough and spoke: "I know this barely counts as a thank-you, but—you're welcome to take anything in Yggdra that you want. And should you ever have business here, you are welcome anytime. Human, we fought together and overcame hardship together. Regardless of our species, you are, without question—a comrade of Yggdra."
"To hear the legendary princess of Yggdra say something like that... I've come a long way, haven't I?"
I didn't particularly want anything, but... hearing a Spiritfolk say something like that was quite surreal.
Seren smiled faintly at my half-joking words.
"...We, too, must change going forward. It may take time, but we will gradually loosen the restrictions on entry and exit. This incident has shown us... to fight against gods, unity that transcends species is essential! If you hadn't come, the world would certainly have perished. We will never make this mistake again—I swear it on my position as Princess of Yggdra!!"
Seren really was so serious... but maybe that was exactly why all of Yggdra's warriors followed her orders without question.
Yggdra would truly change from here on out. She had a vision—a vision for building a better future.
I had no intention of returning to Yggdra for a while. I might never come back.
But all I could do was wish the best for this hardworking princess and Yggdra's continued growth.
And then I remembered something Gaark had asked me to do.
It had fallen halfway off my radar, but I should probably bring it up while I had the chance. You never know when a favor might come in handy.
"Loosening the entry restrictions... I think that's a great idea. And, if you're open to it, how about setting up an Explorer's Guild branch here first? Actually, the branch chief asked me to pass along the offer—"