Heilins had returned to the country.
I heard about it yesterday.
I couldn't sit still, but there's an order to these things.
It took time before Heilins could meet with me.
Yesterday I was restless and couldn't calm down.
And today, the meeting with Heilins was finally arranged.
I was in the room where the meeting would take place, eagerly waiting for Heilins to arrive.
"Seems I've kept you waiting."
Heilins visited the room.
He looked thinner than the sharp figure I remembered.
"Shun, I'm sorry!"
Without warning, Heilins pressed his head to the floor and prostrated himself.
Do they even have dogeza in this world? A irrelevant thought flickered through my mind for an instant.
"
"What do you… mean?"
My mouth went dry, but I managed to say that much.
"Take this."
"What is it?"
What Heilins held out was a tattered red feather.
"It's a feather of the phoenix. An item that temporarily grants the owner an undying effect."
"And this is…?"
"That was originally something Julius, as the Hero, should have possessed. But he kept forcing it on me, saying I needed it more than him as the shield."
"Then…"
"Exactly. I survived because of that item. It's lost its power now, but the one who should have been left alive—it shouldn't have been me. It should have been Julius."
Heilins kept pressing his forehead against the ground in prostration, as if performing penance.
"Heilins, please raise your head. There's nothing you need to lower your head for."
"No, I…"
"Heilins, Julius forced it on you, didn't he? Saying something like 'It's fine, I won't die.'"
"Heh. You really are siblings. Spot on."
Heilins raised his head with a wry smile.
"'I won't die, but since you're the shield, your chances of dying are higher, right? So you should have it rather than me.' No matter how many times I tried to refuse, he wouldn't take it back."
His poor imitation of Julius made the corners of my mouth relax involuntarily.
I stiffened again and asked the question I had to ask.
"Heilins, please tell me. About my brother's final moments."
"Understood."
Heilins stood up.
Heilins and I sat across from each other at a table.
"It'll be faster to see it than to hear about it."
Heilins said that and took out a crystal-like stone.
"What's this?"
"An item with the special power of past viewing. It's a precious thing that even Skills can't replicate at this point."
Heilins placed his hand on the crystal.
"Place your hand on mine."
"Alright."
I placed my hand as Heilins instructed.
"Close your eyes. Here we go."
The moment Heilins spoke, images flooded behind my eyelids.
Not just images—I could feel sounds and smells too.
It was a battlefield.
Countless warriors that appeared to be from the Demon race.
Corpses rolling across the ground.
At the far end of the vision was Julius's back.
A white girl slowly approaching.
The atmosphere Julius radiated was one of anxiety more intense than anything I'd ever seen from him.
Julius moved forward as if to shield his companions.
And in the next instant, Julius's body crumbled to dust and vanished.
Darkness.
The vision cut off there.
"That just now…?"
"That was Julius's final moment."
Could such a thing really happen?
Julius was the strongest Hero of the Human race.
My brother, reduced to dust in an instant, without any resistance allowed.
Impossible.
Even as I thought that, Heilins told me it was indeed Julius's end.
"Something like this…"
"I didn't understand what had happened either. The next thing I knew, I was surrounded by the Demon race. I managed to retreat from there, pulled out my memories, and finally came to accept that Julius was dead."
"What was that?"
That white girl.
She was the one who…
"I don't know. I don't know the identity of that Demon. But if it's the nature of the attack that killed Julius, I can make a reasonable guess."
"What is it?!"
"It was a corrosion attack."
"Corrosion…?"
"An attribute said to be wielded by some Monsters—one that governs death. If you fail to resist that attack, your body is said to crumble to dust. That's exactly what happened to Julius. And when you crumble to dust, only the body goes. What you were wearing remains intact."
Heilins took something out.
"This was something my brother always wore."
"Right. Julius apparently never told you, but this was the last gift your mother gave to Julius before he died."
Heilins handed it to me.
A pure white neck wrap.
"Sorry. It's the only thing I managed to bring back."
"No. Thank you."
That was all I could manage.
My vision blurred.
I remembered the first time I met my brother.
I was still a baby then.
My brother came to the nursery with his attendants.
He looked back and forth between me and
That was the only time I ever saw my brother cry, before or after.
My brother said something while patting my head and Sue's head, then left.
Back then, I didn't yet understand this world's language.
So I never knew what my brother said at that moment.
I still don't know.
But I think my brother made some kind of resolve at that time.
Later, I learned that our biological mother had passed away the day before.
Honestly, even being told this white neck wrap was my mother's handiwork, it didn't hit me.
I'd never even met my mother.
But my brother was different.
For him, mother must have been an irreplaceable, precious person.
To lose his beloved mother at such a young age, and then have to fight as the Hero.
What kind of resolve must he have made in the midst of that suffering?
"Nice to meet you. I'm your big brother Julius. I may not look it, but I'm the Hero."
I still remember the smile on my brother's face the second time we met, when I was properly aware of things.
A child who looked like he was only in the early years of elementary school—how could he have such a composed smile? I was shocked.
Even though I should be much older when counting my previous life, I was certain I could never produce a smile like that.
It was a smile that held something that deep within it.
"Shurein is very smart. You might make a great politician someday."
"Sue. You can't just be spoiled all the time."
"Shurein has talent with the sword too. How about it? Want to join me in the future? Oh, Sue, don't glare at me like that. Fine, fine. You can come along too when the time comes."
"Shurein. I hear you've got a girlfriend? And you call each other by nicknames too? Do you mind if I call you Shun from now on?"
"Shun. I know Sue is cute, but you can't just spoil her all the time, okay?"
"Shun, Father is a kind man. But before he's a father, he's the King. He's fulfilling his duty as the King who supports this country. I hope you can understand that."
"Shun, if anything comes up, you can rely on Reston. He's always hanging around the royal palace anyway. He's probably got the most free time out of all of us in the family, and he'll always lend an ear."
"Big Brother is Big Brother. He may have lost sight of himself a little lately, but his feelings for the country are the same as mine. So there's nothing to worry about."
"Heilins is getting on in age—I think he should be thinking about getting married and settling down. And yet there's not a word about it. I'm a little worried. Me? Even if I married, I wouldn't be able to give anything back to my spouse. A marriage that makes both people unhappy shouldn't happen."
"Heh. I have the Evasion Skill, so snowballs won't hit me! Wha—! Sue, that's unfair! Ouch, ouch! Sue! That's not a snowball! Rocks hurt, so cut it out!"
"The Hero is the hope of the Human race. That's why I won't lose. Never."
Memories of Julius poured forth.
My brother always wore a gentle smile.
A deep, reassuring warmth in that expression.
To me, the Hero meant Julius.
Could I follow in those footsteps?
I wasn't confident.
But I didn't want to let my brother's dream die just because I lacked confidence.
"Dreams are fine. Even if people laugh and say they're impossible fantasies, you're still allowed to aim for something. A peaceful world where everyone can live with a smile. I'll keep chasing that ideal. Until the day I die."
I knew I was plenty idealistic myself.
But not as much as Julius.
Even so, I wanted to carry on that gentle ideal.
"Shun. No—Hero Shurein."
Heilins spoke to me in a solemn voice.
"I couldn't protect Julius. I'm unfit to be a shield. If someone as pathetic as me will do, let me serve as the shield for the new Hero."
"Heilins."
"I wasn't able to protect Julius, so let me protect you instead."
"Heilins. Likewise—I look forward to working with you."
Heilins and I shared a firm handshake.
[*So it'll be a while yet before you start your activities as Hero?*] [*Yeah. It'll take time for the Church to install the new saintess, and once that's settled, we need to get everyone on the same page.*] [*I see.*] [*Sue. I think you already know, but once I start acting as the Hero, we won't be able to be together the way we have been.*] [*I figured. I knew you'd say that.*] [*Sorry.*] [*There's no need to apologize. I'm not a child anymore.*] [*Yeah. I know you're mature enough and strong. But I still don't want to bring you along. I don't want to drag you into anything dangerous.*] [*I understand.*] [*This is selfishness on my part. Sorry.*] [*So I'll say it again—there's no need to apologize.*] [*Alright. Sue, you can stay at the academy and finish out your graduation however you like. As long as you're there, you'll be safe.*] [*Got it.*] [*Even after I start acting as the Hero, I'll make sure to show my face when I can. Just like Julius-niisama did.*] [*Brother, are you going to avenge Julius-niisama?*] [*…I don't know. I know that acting on personal grudges isn't befitting of a Hero. But I still can't forgive it. I don't know what I should do either.*] [*It's okay. There's no need to torment yourself.*] [*Why?*] [*You'll understand soon enough.*] [*Alright. Got it. For now, I'll try not to dwell on those things too much.*] [*Okay.*] [*Well then, I'm going to hang up. Goodnight.*] [*Alright. Goodbye, Brother.*] * * * "Oka-san, we've got a serious problem."
"Situation?"
"Worst case. Oka-san, I know you just got back, but prepare to take Shun and leave the country immediately."
"What happened?"
"One of my subordinates betrayed us."
"What did you say?"
"They knew every move we were making. Sorry. It's my mistake."
"What do you think will happen next?"
"If I could predict it, I wouldn't be in this mess. But my unit was attacked. Something is definitely going on."
"Let's move quickly."
"Yeah."