Book 15 Chapter 35
The City of Gold,
At that time, we all gathered here.
<Halardoniki> was truly a large and unfamiliar city.
I wondered if there was any city in the world that was so orderly, so dazzling, so quiet, and yet simultaneously bustling.
Carriages sped down roads uniformly paved with pristine white cobblestones. Crosswalks were laid out with stepping stones, and pavements and roads were strictly separated by curbs to prevent accidents.
"Your eyeballs are going to pop out like that. What an imperial bumpkin. What's so surprising? Halardoniki is both a trade route and a religious center. Ships constantly come and go from the port, and there are many people crossing the peninsula, so this level of bustling is natural, isn't it?"
Friede explained in a tone heavily mixed with smugness. Lista, walking ahead, chuckled.
"When I first came, I was no different from Rin."
There were also many pilgrims who had traveled long distances, each dressed in their regional attire.
And in the central area where the Papal See building was located, there was a long line of people, all of them sick.
They had gathered here during this time of unrest to receive the healing Dragon Speech bestowed by the Wyvern Priests.
"Seeing things like this, I don't know why people believe in a real God."
A sneer formed on Rin's lips as he walked past.
A question he always held during those hellish days of his childhood, wandering as an orphan, living day to day.
Where is this God who is supposed to make everything good (善)? Why do things called evil (惡) run rampant in the world?
"The very fact that you're thinking that right now is proof of God's existence."
Friede's answer felt like a knife piercing his lungs.
"What are you talking about?"
"Right now, you're clearly distinguishing between good and evil in the world, and you feel sorry for the times when evil runs rampant, don't you? Who do you think gave you that inherent desire for good (善) etched into the human soul? The demons who serve the abyss don't even have such a heart."
Suddenly, Friede approached a sick person in the line who was coughing painfully.
The sight of her gently extending a hand to that face and chanting a healing spell was completely different from the crazy, lecherous priestess he had seen until now.
As he stared blankly at this strange sight, Lista was suddenly beside him, saying this:
"Before the first corruption, that is, before the Abyss tainted the entire world, all things were 'good to see'."
"?"
"My name, Lista, is said to be derived from 'Kitri Starbella,' a Dragon Speech meaning 'to mend the world.' I really like this meaning. It's a calling to fix the broken world again to make it 'good to see' that became my name, didn't it? My mother always used to tell me."
Lista, don't curse the era you were born into. Don't be pessimistic and give up just because evil abounds.
You, you are the one to fix it.
So, when you leave, let the world be passed on to the next generation, mended more beautifully than it was on the day you were born.
"We received power for that calling. I think so."
Instantly, a shiver that made his pupils tremble swept through his mind like a spring breeze of memory.
- From now on, your name is Rin. And it carries the meaning of 'spring breeze.'
Although the given names are different, and the structure of the sentences and the composition of the words used when giving the names are also different…
Perhaps, it was the same heart?
The dean's heart when giving the name Rin, and that heart when giving the name Lista…
"…"
Courtier Kies stared expressionlessly, alternating glances between the boy and the line of sick people, then emptied his beer glass onto his parched tongue.
* * *
The Five Pillars of the Papal See, True Dragon Joshua, greeted the Hero Party in the Papal See Square.
In the heart of faith that commanded good and punished evil throughout the land, even birds did not dare to fly carelessly.
Joshua discussed the fierce tribulations and current situation of the Archdemon front line rather than engaging in idle chatter.
"The two Children of Light who went forth to fight against the darkness have died. Receiving this sad news today, I knew not what to do, but since you have come thus, it is a comfort and grace bestowed by the Light."
An instantaneous hush, a silence as if the world itself held its breath, pierced through everyone's hearts.
The annihilation of the Foresight Hero Parties.
Blood was soaking the land and the sea. Two heroes, who had been at the forefront blocking the corruption that sought to spread throughout the land, had died.
"What kind of… enemy was it, they say?"
To somehow accept the deaths of the senior Faequiriers, to engrave that reality into her heart, Lista clenched her fists in front of her chest.
"It is said that the highest elite organization of the church that serves the Abyss has come to the forefront of this war. Its name is the 'New Heaven' Kaditpol Knights."
"New Heaven Kaditpol?"
"Kaditpol is the language of 'All Things' meaning 'the beginning of night.' According to what I studied under His Holiness the Fire Dragon. The language of 'All Things' often has inverse interpretations… so perhaps it means 'night begins, and a new sky unfolds'?"
Joshua grunted briefly at Friede's explanation.
"It is sorrowful, this helplessness, to have to watch the honor of the Eldia heroes, who burned the ancient darkness and lit the eternal dawn, be defiled."
The Holy Elmine Knights, an entity completely opposed to that group which had burned the darkness as the blades of the gods… the New Heaven Kaditpol Knights.
It was the first time he had heard the name of the Black Church's First Pillar's direct elite group.
It was also a turning point in a journey that had been primarily filled with laughter and mischief rather than seriousness.
"However, their deaths were not in vain, for the current front line has entered a stalemate. Kaditpol has also temporarily disappeared."
Even Rin wasn't activating his [Reading a grimoire to a cow] mode this time. He let most of the content flow past him, but he recognized that it was a serious situation.
"It seems like a situation where we need to hurry and cross the sea."
As Rin voiced the feelings of the party members, Lista began to pace in place, propping her chin on her fist.
For a long, long time…
Finally, as if her thoughts were organized, Lista slowly raised her head.
"Uncle Joshua. What is the current status of [King's Flesh] collection?"
"That, too, is desperate. There are four villains who have collected a large amount of flesh, and they are called the Four Adversaries. They are growing their power throughout the continent, but alas, I cannot leave this place due to my mission to guard the Seal of the Lord of Time, which is lamentable."
"In that case, we will cross the White Sea and travel overland to <Tervenopl>. On that journey, please give us information about the Four Adversaries so we can collect as much of the [King's Flesh] as possible."
Friede, as if she had expected it, put a pipe in her mouth with a serene smile.
"That's good, I know an absolutely amazing flower garden in the Bellisor Great River region. Let's stop by on our way."
"Flower garden? Wow, where?"
Rin had to tilt his head, unable to comprehend the two women's crazy conversation logically.
"What are you talking about right now?"
She was usually crazy, but not to the extent of going mad even in such a serious situation.
"According to Uncle Joshua, the front line is stalemated, and the Red Dragon Legion and Yellow Dragon Legion are already commanding the front, and all powerful mercenaries and armies are at the front."
"So we should go quickly too."
"That means there's no need to rush too much. Since all those strong individuals have crossed the sea, that's why the [King's Flesh] is running rampant like this."
"No matter how strong the flesh holders are, would they be stronger than whatever Kadit annihilated the hero parties? It doesn't seem like now is the time for such trivial battles."
"Rin."
Lista looked straight at Rin.
That gaze was suffocating.
Instead of her usual light, carefree smile, it was a wistful eye-smile, seeing a world somewhere far off… a world the boy couldn't yet see.
"In this world, there are many people who desperately need even help that seems trivial to us. There's no hierarchy in needing help. And right now, we are the only ones left on this continent."
It sounded like sophistry, but he couldn't refute it… Lista had a power that could make others understand justice just with her eyes and voice.
The True Dragon wouldn't possibly allow this.
With such expectations, he turned to the True Dragon, but Joshua was nodding in agreement with Lista's intentions.
"Do as you wish, pursuing righteousness (義) with joy."
"Uncle, about that, isn't there a tool to transport the [King's Flesh]? What we've collected is currently being carried by Kies, but it's now the size of a human head, and if it gets any bigger, I don't think we'll be able to put it in a glass jar."
"Wouldn't one simply create a method?"
As Joshua took a deep breath, the light scattered throughout the atmosphere was drawn in as particles.
When the brilliantly concentrated light emerged from his body with his exhale… it had taken on a perfect form.
Should it be called a staff of light, forged from light? When the rings hanging from the tip of the staff jingled, a clear and serene light ran over it.
"The Brocade Staff (錦營杖). Forged by carving my soul with the wish to make the world beautiful again, this staff holds the mission and power bestowed upon all True Dragons' souls: the power to 'isolate the Abyss'."
As Joshua pointed the staff at Kies's bag, the [King's Flesh] stored in the glass jar inside burst through the cork stopper and disappeared into the curtain of light emitted by the staff.
"…"
"…"
"…"
As Joshua struck the ground with the base of the staff, the [King's Flesh] reappeared from within the curtain of light. The flesh, which had been attempting to thrash about, extending tentacles in all directions, was pulled back into the light.
"This power, I entrust to you."
The person Joshua offered the staff to was… quite surprisingly, Rin, the last member of the Hero Party.
"?"
Far from respectfully receiving it with outstretched hands, Rin narrowed his eyes at it and opened his mouth.
"Do I, perhaps, absolutely have to take this?"
"?"
"No, it seems like it'd be annoying when casting spells, where am I supposed to put it and carry it around? It'll be a long time before I'm old enough to use a staff."
What insolence!
Around the square, the eyebrows of the wyverns standing guard for the True Dragon twitched ominously in unison.
Friede immediately slammed her pipe down on Rin's head, then tucked his head under her arm and yelled wildly.
"Woah, woah, woah, this crazy kid! I apologize, Cardinal-nim! This idiot always has his nose in a book, so he hasn't learned anything about the world and has no manners at all. I'll make sure to educate him properly from now on, so please forgive him just this once…!"
However, Joshua dismissed the wyverns' caution with a benevolent gesture, then placed his hand on Rin's head.
"Do you seek to comprehend the truth (眞理)? Then go with it. It will aid your journey. We, born of the light of the Radiant Dragon, bear the blessing of lightning. That Brocade Staff is a fragment of the Wish-Fulfilling Jewel, and it will surely provide practical help in your interpretation of providence."
Rin immediately bowed his head.
He had always thought it was truly unsightly to receive the aid of tools on the path to [Becoming the Strongest], but this was a moment to receive such a great opportunity, so he decided to think a little differently.
To be honest, he had started changing his mind a bit since he obtained the Osarius Rosary. No, a lot.
"Wow, if you had said that earlier, I would have bowed and accepted it right away! I'm so grateful for this. I'll take good care of it."
Before he could change his mind, he gripped the staff with both hands, but for some reason, the True Dragon didn't let go, creating a kind of tug-of-war situation.
As he raised his head and tilted it in confusion, the True Dragon smiled.
At that solemn laughter, the wyverns were startled, Friede was flustered, and Kies's eyes widened. Only Lista was smiling faintly from a distance.
"The soul of that child I met again, how it was filled with flowers of laughter; seeing your purity, I understand. That child is truly dear to me. This is my gift to you, who brought laughter to that child."
True Dragon Joshua placed his hand on each member of the Hero Party's head and offered a prayer of blessing to the heavens. The prayer he offered for Rin was this:
"Oh Parents of Creation, for you have said that you are the Way, the Truth, and the Life… teach this boy also to grasp Truth and Life upon that Way."
Merely by his touch, it felt as if sunlight streamed beyond the mind, deep into the soul… That strange sensation of that day… seemed inexplicable by any science in the world.
"Now go. Go and carry the light you have received to the lowest and darkest places of the world."
Lista saluted playfully, then encouraged and led all her party members before turning around.
At that moment, all the Papal See guards surrounding the square knelt on one knee in unison as a sign of respect.
The three bells of the city scattered waves throughout the entire city with a reverent and deep resonance. Over that resonance, the song of the dragons was layered.
"Du… Gero… Al… ki… de…"
Before this song, which contained the resonance of hope for all living things and all yet to live, Friede's eyes widened.
"This… is a song that the Dragonkind only sings when blessing their kin who are embarking on a long journey."
The sick, refugees, pilgrims, residents, merchants… All those who came to witness the Hero Party's assembly that day wept and wailed, scattering flower petals or laying down articles of clothing on the road.
Before that weeping…
Before the clamor of pain and sorrow that slowly, clearly, encroached upon the world, Lista, the Hero (勇士), raised her holy sword high with a smile, promising the arrival of dawn after the long night.
"Everyone, don't worry about anything now. Just as it is said that 'when light shone, darkness could not overcome it,' we will end this summer and return!"
True to that promise, Lista's Party ended the five-year summer in the year 1107 of the divine calendar, ushering in a Golden Age (黃金時代) for the world.
Just as they were, Lista's Party was carved in stone, eternally encouraging all future generations who would follow the path of courage.
And on this very day, to this very spot, Lista's Party returned. However, when they left, there were four of them, but when they returned, there were said to be three.
"Well then, we're off!"
Could it be that this story, therefore, had no choice but to be about the laughter and sorrow, battles and victories, deaths and farewells intertwined within its depths?