Book 11 Chapter 19
Episode 271
#Epilogue: Epilogue to the Prologue.
Year 1544 of the Imperial Calendar.
Warm spring sunlight seeped into the [Cheonggang (淸江)] classroom of <Delaiten>, the Empire's leading magic academy.
“Our generation has no way to retrace the footsteps of the Dragon Sage, who brilliantly illuminated the past hundred years, other than through written records.”
Elective subjects like magic history were low in credits and utterly boring, but whenever the story of the Dragon Sage came up, all students' eyes shone.
“The Dragon Sage was extraordinary from childhood. He suddenly became the top student at <Delaiten>, disappeared during the Black Spot incident, returned two years later, and achieved 7-star rank at the young age of 18.”
Why wouldn’t they?
At this very moment, the fact that so many people could enjoy the benefits of magic was all thanks to that sage.
He was the third sage and the second great sage, and the title he received as a sage was Dragon Sage (龍賢).
“Hey, your great-grandfather’s story is coming up.”
A boy, dozing by the window in the pleasant spring breeze, half-opened his eyes and yawned.
“I don't really need to listen.”
Noble black hair and red eyes.
Due to mixed blood from the Republic during his great-grandfather’s time, his skin tone was slightly darker than the fair complexion typical of Imperial nobles.
This freshman boy, who secured the top admission spot under the name of the "Genius Young Master," was named Albert Ludwig.
“I’ve heard it so much that I'm sick of it as I grew up.”
The Ludwig family was originally renowned as a powerful magical household, but after producing the Dragon Sage, they stood shoulder to shoulder with the Page Marquisate, the foremost magical family.
“Before becoming a magical sage, the Dragon Sage spent his time surveying the Empire's situation. He traveled to every corner of the world, making the blind see, the crippled walk, and curing the sick.”
Beyond simple service, it seems our ancestor was searching for a certain nemesis, but ultimately failed to find them.
“Inspired by this journey, Mirngadia of Cheongseong (淸聲) later drastically developed sorcery.”
Mirngadia.
Called the Dragon Sage's children, she was the youngest and only female among the 'Three Sacred Dragons' who succeeded the Dragon Sage in protecting the world.
“If previous sorcery mimicked draconic language, the sorcery newly interpreted and presented by Mirngadia is said to rival the miracles used by fairies…”
Scholars speak of it as a horizon impossible to see without living two lives, one as a dragon and one as a human.
“Although it had the limitation of being confined to healing magic, it is a well-known fact that the medical field advanced leaps and bounds.”
It is speculated that Mirngadia developed such thoughts while growing up beside the Dragon Sage, but the 『Travel Journal』 leaves behind a somewhat profound statement.
[As if to atone for sins from a past life I can't even remember…]
What exactly was that past life?
The 『Travel Journal』 never explicitly explained it and never mentioned it again afterwards.
Thus, it remains a mystery to later generations.
“Hey, Albert. Haven't you heard anything?”
“No.”
When he once asked about it, his great-grandfather only replied in a voice as calm as a lake that he didn't know either.
Even now, as the guardian of the World Tree, he always meets his other sisters at their appointed place on his great-grandfather's memorial day.
He visits the mansion very occasionally, but when they meet, he is quite kind.
“After finishing his travels, the Dragon Sage became the Magical Sage of the Hwangha Office in the new cabinet formed by the reformist monarch Raida Eijin, taking charge of overall imperial governance.”
It was 'Setsun, the Thunder Echo (雷響)', the second of the Three Sacred Dragons, who completed the foundation of reforms laid by Raida and the Dragon Sage.
Setsun, who had returned after receiving comprehensive draconic education from the Yellow True Dragon Yoshuhar of the Papacy, drastically reorganized the legal system and established a fair judiciary.
His precise personality, which clearly distinguished between good and evil, was actually well-illustrated in an anecdote from Albert's childhood.
- Not striving hard is evil (惡)! If you have a heart that loves justice, getting top admission to <Delaiten> will be no problem!
Amazingly, that was the phrase used to cheer on Albert Ludwig during his last exam.
That wasn't special; it was just that every time he spoke, 'justice' or 'evil' was always included. There were no exceptions.
Perhaps becoming the head of the 'Golden Children,' the institution for religious deliberation, was a destiny set from childhood…
“During this period, the Dragon Sage established the system of compulsory education in the Empire. Thanks to this, many of you sitting here have also benefited from education.”
Magic granted people surplus time, referred to as leisure, and during this time, many people learned to read and write.
- Possibility.
Those who excelled here received imperial scholarships, learned mathematics, and became mages.
- Magic is not seeing the world as it appears, but seeing the infinite possibilities hidden within it.
The number of mages has increased by nearly twelve times compared to 100 years ago. Unlike then, countless people now live enjoying the benefits of magic.
- That is what mathematics aims to convey, and the truth that magic seeks to teach.
In the era of the Dragon Sage, the fragmented magic world was unified.
This was partly because the Dragon Sage freely preached the truth to everyone, but it is also said that friendships from his school days greatly helped.
Lillian Carain of Rivendell, Logan of Chayhuk, and Kaiden of Harimun, who left their names as deans of the eight academies.
“And Krista Warden, who persistently followed the Dragon Sage, asking about magic, and eventually became the 13th Great Mage, cannot be left out either.”
The 13th seemed to feel more academic rivalry than romantic interest towards the Dragon Sage.
When everyone else gave up on chasing him, she alone tried to walk the same path to the end, and thus reached the realm of Aquizard (5-star).
She even became Empress, bringing about a resurgence for the Warden family, which had been in decline.
“The help from acquaintances made in youth doesn't end here. The Star of Creation, who formed the cabinet at that time, completed the subjugation of the Spider Lord together with 'Bart the Mighty' and the court archer 'Rem, the Best Archer in the World'.”
“…!”
“Therefore, I hope you all cherish the relationships you form here, at this very moment. Everything you gain here will become a valuable asset for your future.”
And…
After the 『Travel Journal』 was published, the most loved of the Three Sacred Dragons by the world was, of course, Akirea, the eldest daughter.
'Indeed, it deals with the Dragon Sage's influence on the Empire, so his story isn't covered here.'
However, in the Republic, she is a hero herself.
Akirea, who became the sect leader of the Cheonhwa faction, extensively reorganized the sect, nurturing beings called 'Red Pilgrims' who traveled throughout the Republic.
These were the guardians of order in the Republic, which had once fallen into decline and chaos.
They protected human lives from abyssal incursions, monitored to prevent the resurgence of evils like slavery, and tracked the movements of the Black Church.
'And the elder I respect the most.'
Akirea, with her brave yet mature, bright yet profound character, made everyone she met smile.
She made them forget sorrow and only enjoy joy.
But even such an elder, when asked about her great-grandfather's end, would only give a truly sad smile and say nothing.
What kind of end did his great-grandfather meet? And what would it feel like to live an eternal life and remember the dead?
'This isn't a problem that thinking about will solve, but…'
◀ ◀ ◀
In this world, there is a flower that blooms only briefly when twilight shines.
True to its nature, the flower was named Twilight Flower.
As the autumn twilight gently swayed the flower garden, buds bloomed one by one amidst a rustling sound.
“My hundred-year journey of life… has finally reached the end of that long road…”
The Dragon Sage died that autumn.
Two days after a simple farewell ceremony at the Ludwig family mansion, he visited this place for the last time with his children.
With his children, not of flesh and blood but of spirit, to exchange final goodbyes, at this place he loved most throughout his life.
“Someday, yes, truly someday, Bart once told me something… and my heart feels the same now.”
“What did he say?”
“That he was too worried to leave…”
“That sounds like him.”
“I, too, felt that way, bringing order to the world for a hundred years of my blessed life… and even after resealing the Spider Lord… thinking of the era you all must face ahead, I cannot close my eyes…”
As the Spider Lord was sucked back into the light seal, he roared:
- As long as he protects me, I, Ashiron, shall live eternally! Pen bar tes, I am the one who devours worlds! When the era you have built falls into decay, I will awaken again and devour everything!
In that era when I am gone, all my companions are dead, and only these children are left to endure alone…
He had hoped to find and destroy the first pillar of the Black Church somehow, but the fiend never showed his face.
What schemes was he hatching under the <Burning Vastness>, or perhaps he died at the hands of demons while plotting evil… one could only hope.
“I've told you countless times that just 5 years, only 5 years of my journey, changed my entire life…”
What I could give to these children, then, was only a peaceful hundred years?
“But I lack confidence…”
Did that time truly hold as much meaning for these children as it did for me?
“Whether the years I spent with you truly held that much value for you…”
The Red Dragon, its armor-like body evanescently shattered by the twilight, tightly clasped the Dragon Sage's old, wrinkled hand.
“You changed it, Father. I will remember the days I spent with you for the rest of my life.”
“Aki…”
“And I will love all the weak, powerless, and dying things in this world. Just as you showed me how to live, Father.”
Then, the Yellow Dragon, who had been gently embracing the Dragon Sage's old body, buried his face in his snowy white hair.
“Yes. Until the day we meet again, I will live a life utterly devoid of evil, looking up at the sky where you are, Father.”
“Nen…”
“Even if given a second chance at life, I will travel with you, Father. Nothing was as precious as those years.”
Standing at the Dragon Sage's feet, the White Dragon, its hair fluttering snow-white, gazed at the twilight beyond the distant ripples and spoke.
“If I could be reborn, I would rather be born human than follow you as Mirngadia.”
Why would she say such a thing?
Did she wish to be born human so they could grow old and die together?
But the White Dragon's perception had already reached a realm that even the Dragon Sage, who had attained his level, could not easily comprehend, even as a human.
“As another person, Rain Ludwig.”
“Why me?”
“Because I want to know your heart.”
“My… heart?”
“On the day you first showed me the world, you asked what I wanted to achieve in this beautiful world.”
The White Dragon, usually so cool-headed that her expression rarely changed, turned to the Dragon Sage and smiled gently.
“At that time, I want to know your heart, Father, when you asked that question.”
The Dragon Sage’s eye sockets swelled moistly, and soon hot tears streamed down his cheeks.
“I will cherish all the years I spent with you, Father, for my entire life, and deliver them as light to this land.”
The scent of twilight was carried on the autumn breeze sweeping through the flower garden.
Beginning from his fingertips and warmly climbing up his body, amidst the eternal peace, the fragrance of a soul arose.
He smelled the scent of winter firewood from young Aki’s hair.
He again felt the stinging sensation of summer thunder from young Nen’s saliva.
He seemed to hear the voice of young Mir, which was like water droplets falling into a lake whenever she occasionally opened her mouth to speak.
Essentially different from the biting cold that encased his entire body on that day 400 years ago…
The end of life's journey, by its very nature… is this quiet… and warm…
In this terrifyingly overwhelming world, leaving these children behind… I must go… in this twilight's rest, I, oh…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
“…Father?”
“…Father!”
“…Father, now please rest in peace.”
* * *
Where is this?
His body felt light, like in his youth, no, it had returned to exactly his youthful body.
And this space…
“Yes, you’ve come.”
It was a world of light where black mist gently embraced his feet.
He had been here before. Or rather, he had glimpsed it. The memory of when Ryuken Ludwig finished his race of life and was called here.
Until now, Karenden's venerable face had been obscured by dazzling light, but now that light had faded, he could see it clearly.
“It’s been a long time, Lord Karenden.”
Should he be surprised, or was this like a mirror reflecting his old life?
He had expected a very noble presence, but the overall impression was of someone quite similar to Rin. It felt like facing an older version of his past self.
However, unlike Rin, his hair was a dignified silver, and he wore glasses that conveyed an intellectual demeanor, yet their technical design was unfathomable.
“Sit.”
Black Sun Karenden offered him the seat next to him in the pavilion where he was sitting.
“I felt I had to tell you my story. Only then, I thought, could you forgive me.”
Karenden took a long breath before finally beginning to speak.
“The servants of the Abyss say this world has deviated from its original form, but that's not true. It's just that the world of creation is being encroached upon.”
“I see.”
“Yotiatos, the absolute being of the Abyss. All of this began because of him.”
Yotiatos…?
That's what Beshanthidug, the Minister of Public Security, said. His true identity was the absolute being of the Abyss?
“And we, whom you call <The Arrived Ones>, are the first apostles established by the Creator God Geldharia. That’s why, unlike you, we live eternally.”
Yotiatos, who was Geldharia's servant, harmed him and devoured his divinity, beginning the end of all worlds.
“To end this eternal war, we must not defeat the Abyssal Lords, but destroy Yotiatos and reclaim Lord Geldharia's divinity.”
“…”
“But his power was too great… and the seven of us failed. In the final moment, my strength was insufficient, and I let Yotiatos escape. We had cornered him.”
Karenden lifted his upper garment, revealing the Abyss writhing like worms, terribly covering half of his upper body.
“The cost was great. I created a barrier to protect my friends from the poison he spat out as he escaped, and this is what became of me. Just like you.”
“…!”
“My strength alone wasn't enough, so my sister, Tersia, also had to contribute her power. That's why Tersia is now in a state where she cannot be without a life support device for more than a day.”
His mouth dropped open at the unbelievable story. Lord Tersia, who was called the leader of <The Arrived Ones>…?
“The world says the gods have left this land, and while we are not gods, it's not wrong to say they have left.”
“Even with Lord Karenden here?”
“My friends pursued the escaping Yotiatos to other worlds. Only Tersia and I were left in this timeline, as we would only be a burden in these bodies.”
Starting with Terbel, the Sun of the Azure Sky, one by one, contact was lost, and finally, communication with Maian, the Moon of Creation, the youngest, was also severed. Probably, all of them died.
“If only my strength hadn't been insufficient then.”
One by one, like that.
As his companions died one by one, all Karenden could do was…
“If I had realized a higher truth, I could have defeated Yotiatos then and illuminated all worlds with a true dawn.”
“Lord Karenden…”
“My friends, whose life or death is now unknown, wouldn't have had to embark on such a journey, and Ryuken and you wouldn't have had to experience such a sad tragedy.”
“…”
“It seems like I gave you a second life, but in truth, I merely used you because I had no power to intervene in the world. And to prepare for the day the Abyss awakens, I will have to use someone again in the future.”
“…”
“That's why whenever I saw you, my heart ached as if it would burst with regret. But I will have to continue using this method.”
Karenden, who had been speaking while gazing into the distant void, looked at him and smiled sadly.
“I am not making this confession to give myself absolution, but I wanted to apologize for the results of my failure in this way, through words.”
Then he rose from the pavilion and began to walk away. The black mist slowly began to dissipate.
He was speechless.
He must have gone through such immense hardships in life that he couldn't even dare to interject. It was impossible to offer comfort with the wisdom he had accumulated in life.
But, still, but.
He might not be able to offer comfort, but what if he didn't need to receive an apology in the first place?
He had to get up from the pavilion to convey that feeling. He had to go before Karenden, kneel on both knees, and bow with tears.
“Apology, don't apologize! Because you gave me a second chance, because you gave me a chance, I…”
“…?”
“I didn’t fail; the light you gave will continue into the future! Through the connections you allowed. Through Aki, Nen, and Mir!”
“…”
“So truly, truly someday, those who inherit that light will finish everything… so don’t apologize to me… I am, to you, truly, immeasurably grateful…”
No answer came back.
He raised his head, sniffling, and it seemed as if a tear sparkled in the corner of Lord Karenden's eye behind his glasses, after he stared at him blankly and then lowered his gaze.
As if to hide that physiological anomaly, Karenden simply turned around and lightly waved his hand.
“Now go. Someone who has been waiting for you here all along.”
As the black mist completely dispersed, a voice came from the opposite direction of where Karenden had disappeared.
Faint and yet clear.
The voice of his 'mother,' from whom he had been separated by a lifetime 400 years ago.
“Rin, how was your journey?”
It would be a lie to say he didn't smile.
It would also be a lie to say tears didn't well up.
Even after living for such a long time, does a person remain a child before their mother?
“Dean.”
His eyes were crying, but a deep smile spontaneously blossomed on his lips.
“Actually, I have so much I want to tell you about that.”
▶ ▶ ▶
In a field full of blooming twilight flowers, a simple tombstone stands.
In spring.
Beyond that tombstone, a lush blue river creates gentle ripples, singing nature’s lullaby.
In summer.
The rustling sound of insects in the flower garden echoes clearly, filling the garden with rich melodies.
In autumn.
Golden leaves pleasantly flutter before the tombstone, embracing the twilight, playing the setting season like an orchestra.
In winter.
Even amidst the silence and darkness where the world is buried in white snow, that tombstone strangely seems to emit a certain light.
Too small to be a king’s tomb, too simple to be a hero’s tomb…
But neither the one buried beneath that tomb nor those who visit it every year at this time were insignificant or humble in identity.
From the far north, pure white intellect (知性).
From the far east, golden insight (洞察).
And from the far south, crimson martial prowess (武威).
Every year on the same day for decades, they gathered here at a secluded dawn and parted ways at sunrise.
Their identities hidden by hoods, they reached out and felt the carving on the tombstone, smiling. As if touching the cheek of someone alive.
The carving on the tombstone is simple, easily recognizable to anyone.
A man and three children innocently playing beside him.
Every year they visit this place.
The woman with hair like burning flames is said to kneel before the tomb and speak on behalf of the other two:
“Father, we are here.”
<The Reincarnation of the Great Mage of the Hero’s Party, The End>`
