C859
"Haha..."
Sheryl, leaning against the tiger rock like Rimmer, let out a deep sigh.
"Looks like they're leaving already."
She bit her lip softly as she watched the Light Wind division swordsmen depart from the Fifth Training Ground.
“They’re handling it better than I am.”
Roenn clasped his hands in front of him as he watched the Light Wind division.
"I still haven't been able to let go of Master Rimmer, but it seems the Light Wind members have somehow accepted it."
He chuckled softly and said his age was embarrassing.
"Can't be helped. We spent time with that damn guy…"
Sheryl frowned deeply. Her complexion was dark, as if she hadn't accepted Rimmer's death yet either.
"A swordsman always lives with death on his back."
Glenn, standing on the tiger rock, spoke with gravity.
"But when that swordsman dies, the death he carried with him becomes a sword that pierces the hearts of those left behind."
Glenn muttered that he was still in the process of accepting the sword Rimmer had left behind, telling them to be patient.
"That's right. The only thing we can do is accept it."
Despite her words of acceptance, Sheryl clenched her fist so tightly that her arm trembled.
"That bastard."
Unlike when she showed strength in front of the Light Wind division, her eyes turned red.
"He really was a wonderful person."
Roenn stroked the tiger rock as he looked at the blue sky.
“He always visited my workplace and caused a ruckus before leaving.”
"...Doesn't that make him a crazy person instead of wonderful?"
Sheryl let out a hollow laugh, as if she couldn't believe it.
"Since I usually work alone, I think he came to keep me company so I wouldn't feel lonely. Sometimes he also trained with me when I couldn't control my murderous instinct."
Roenn nodded and said Rimmer visited him frequently and helped in various ways.
"Him?"
"Yes. Everyone might think he went to the taverns when he wasn't at the Fifth Training Ground, but Master Rimmer wandered around Zieghart and spent time with many people. He had a special talent for making people happy just by being around them."
He said that Rimmer was cheerful but sincere and clasped his hands together.
"His eyes shone especially when he talked about the Light Wind division. He bragged nonstop about Raon and the other swordsmen."
Roenn smiled and said he could get most of the news without having to go to the Fifth Training Ground thanks to Rimmer.
"He did the same with me. Even when Raon accomplished something small, he would come to the lord's mansion and make a fuss all day. It was like seeing a proud father bragging about his son's first steps."
Glenn nodded in agreement, a slight smile on his face.
"He would have been very happy to see Raon reach Transcendence. That's why he probably left with a smile."
He clicked his tongue, as if regretting not having seen that expression.
"..."
Sheryl lowered her head as she listened to both of them speak.
-Ah, now that I think about it, there’s one more thing.
Roenn raised his index finger as he looked at Sheryl.
"Master Rimmer was also extremely happy when he talked about you, Sheryl."
"What about me…?"
Sheryl tilted her head, as if she didn't understand.
“He often asked me for advice, told me about the conversations he’d had with you, and how you were struggling.”
Roenn closed his eyes briefly before opening them, saying that Sheryl and the Light Wind division were the ones who made Rimmer the happiest.
"I heard that often too."
Glenn stroked his chin as he looked at Sheryl.
"He would come to me to chat whenever I was embarrassed or did something well."
He told her that most of Rimmer's chatter was about Sheryl and the Light Wind division.
"That idiot…"
Sheryl gritted her teeth and hid her face behind her hair.
Why didn't he tell me anything?
Her voice cracked as she expressed resentment towards Rimmer.
"..."
Glenn and Roenn, sensing Sheryl's feelings, waited silently without saying anything.
"...Actually, I wanted to go."
Sheryl gripped her trembling wrist as she watched the Light Wind division leave the Fifth Training Ground.
"I wanted to give them his last belongings, but I thought it was right to give way to the children who lost their master."
She lowered her gaze, filled with a mixture of regret and bitterness.
"Rimmer would understand, even if others don't."
Glenn patted Sheryl on the shoulder, telling her not to worry.
-No, that idiot wouldn't understand. Right now, I just…
Sheryl sighed and wiped away the tears that had formed in her eyes.
"I just hope those kids overcome their grief and return."
She waved her hand as if she were waving goodbye to the Light Wind division disappearing from sight.
"Yes. The Light Wind division will surely return stronger. When that day comes, as Rimmer wished…"
Glenn nodded, his gaze deeply sunken.
"We will be able to promote Raon and the Light Wind division."
***
'I wonder why?'
Raon raised his knees as he looked at the campfire burning softly.
-What do you mean?
Wrath, who had finished eating and even had a late-night snack while on guard duty, asked as he clicked his lips.
«I still don't feel like I've truly reached Transcendence.»
Despite having reached the realm of Transcendence that he so desperately craved, he didn't feel any accomplishment from becoming stronger. Instead, only the desire to reach even higher sprouted within him.
-Mountains always seem high before you climb them, and low after you climb them.
Wrath moved his round finger back and forth.
-You've already climbed the mountain of Transcendence, so of course it seems low. If you had stayed at Grand Master, it would still seem like an insurmountable wall.
-I guess that's true.
Raon nodded as he looked at Wrath floating like a cloud.
-Besides, since Pointed Ears died, you've only been looking forward. Like a racehorse with blinders on.
Wrath let out a short sigh.
-You're whipping yourself, promising never to lose anyone again after experiencing Pointed Ears' death.
He shook his head and said that otherwise, Raon wouldn't have trained all night even on holidays.
"I guess you're right."
Raon exhaled heavily. As Wrath said, he wasn't enjoying the realm of Transcendence, he was just running towards something higher.
"Because I don't want to lose anyone else."
Not just the Light Wind division swordsmen, but he didn't want to lose anyone in Zieghart. He wanted to become strong like Glenn and solve everything.
'I'm surprised.'
Raon smiled as he looked at Wrath.
"I didn't know you understood me so well."
-I've been through that too.
Wrath looked away, as if he had experienced the same thing.
Have you been through the same thing? Now that I think about it, before…
As Raon was about to ask Wrath about his past, he heard a sob to his right. Turning his gaze, he saw Yua, who was on guard duty with him, burying her face in her knees and sobbing.
"Yes?"
Raon approached Yua and grabbed her shoulder.
"What's wrong?"
"...I'm thinking about Master Rimmer."
Yua shook her head without lifting her face.
"When we were on guard duty, he always woke up in the middle of the night and talked to us. I remembered that and…"
She sobbed and said she started crying without realizing it as she thought about Rimmer.
"Don't cry…"
Julius, who was also on guard duty, bit his lip as if he missed Rimmer too.
"We mustn't falter. We have to show a strong front so he can rest in peace."
Despite his words to Yua, Julius' face turned red as he couldn't hold back his grief. Raon let out a short sigh as he watched Yua and Julius forcing themselves not to cry.
'Now that I think about it...'
We didn't even congratulate them properly. Yua and Julius broke through the Master barrier and extracted Astral Energy due to their anger over Rimmer's death. Although they couldn't freely use Astral Energy yet because it wasn't stabilized, they had clearly reached Master, but he realized he hadn't congratulated them until now.
«Actually, the same thing is happening to me.»
He had also reached Transcendence, but there was no time to celebrate. He didn't want to be celebrated either. But those kids would be different, so he felt a surge of guilt.
-Then let's cry just for today.
Raon sat between Yua and Julius, hugging them like his parents. Although to anyone who looked at them, both were clearly adults, to him they were still fragile children who needed help. Yua wailed loudly, beating her chest, while Julius, who had been holding back, shed tears the size of peas.
From the tent where the rest of the Light Wind division was sleeping, very faint sobs could be heard. Raon closed his eyes and gripped Rimmer's sword tightly.
"As expected. No, of course. The Master's absence makes me feel so empty."
It seemed everyone was still yearning for Rimmer in a corner of their hearts, even though they believed they had accepted the pain. It was sad and, at the same time, strangely joyful to realize what Rimmer meant to the Light Wind division. Raon closed his eyes and felt the clear breeze blowing as if to comfort the Light Wind division.
***
Huh! Raon exhaled heavily as he gazed at the green world before him. The Great Forest, the vast green land that protected Sepia, the sacred place of the elves, filled his vision. Seeing the dense natural mana and vegetation stretching in all directions, more intense than anywhere else, Rimmer's face naturally came to mind, as he had come there with him before.
«He was also a fool back then.»
At that time, Rimmer had forgotten that he was an elf and showed them for the first time how to converse with the forest. It was absurd, but also very Rimmer-like, which naturally made Raon smile.
"Mmm..."
Yua's lips trembled slightly, as if she also remembered the joke he had made then, asking Rimmer if he was really an elf.
"How do we get in here?"
Martha frowned as she looked at the dense forest without a single gap.
"Isn't it impossible to go without the Division Vice Leader since it's a naturally formed labyrinth?"
She waved her hand, saying she didn't want to get lost.
"We've sent a message saying we're going to arrive, so if we wait here, someone should come out to greet us."
Burren replied calmly, crossing his arms.
"...It smells good."
Runaan hugged Yua, who was trembling, saying that the aroma of the forest was pleasant.
"Let's wait. As Burren said, a Guardian will come."
Raon took a step back and told them to wait there. Since they were coming to return Rimmer's belongings, he didn't want to damage the forest by entering by force. However, even after waiting for more than an hour, no elf came out of the Great Forest, nor were there any signs of wild animals.
-Isn't this a little strange?
Kerin frowned and said it was taking too long.
"You're right. The elves wouldn't forget a promise, would they?"
Dorian also stroked his chin, saying it was strange.
"The master is also an elf." (N/E: It's a bit weird that everyone is calling him master now, although they hardly ever did before. Maybe instructor is a better translation? Pending note, I'll come back at some point to check… maybe)
"Ah!"
At Burren's words, Dorian gasped and covered his mouth.
"Let's go in."
Raon turned his wrist as he approached the Great Forest again.
“They say it’s a labyrinth, how will you find your way?”
Martha narrowed her eyes, as if asking if everything would be alright.
"I think I can open a path."
Raon nodded and extended his hand towards the vegetation.
"Just like the Master did."
Remembering how Rimmer had opened the path, he invoked the Garunua wind to create a connection with the natural mana that spread throughout the Great Forest. Zap!
As the Garunua wind seeped into the mana of the Great Forest, the densely grown vegetation opened to the left and right as if it had a will of its own, creating a path for them to enter.
Raon's fingertips trembled as he looked at the vegetation and trees swaying gently, seeming to welcome them. Recreating the scene that Rimmer had opened with his own power felt strange to him.
"W-what?!"
Kerin's mouth gaped open.
"Was this possible for you too, Division Leader?"
He shook his chin as if asking if Raon had elf blood mixed in.
"Don't be stupid!"
Martha shook her head, telling him not to say nonsense.
"That is…"
"It smells like…"
Runaan nodded as she sniffed the air.
"That's right. I just imitated it."
Raon nodded, saying he had used Rimmer's wind to open the forest path like an elf.
"Really…"
Martha let out an exasperated sigh.
"Let's go in for now. We should reach Sepia before nightfall."
As Raon was about to open the path into the forest, something happened. Boom! A massive body that seemed to block the sky rose from near the center of the Great Forest and then disappeared in a golden light. Raon frowned as he looked at the sky that suddenly lit up.
"A dragon?"
-
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