Third Person POV
“EDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!”
The moment Lunaritia’s consciousness caught up with reality, she fiercely pushed away Burn, who was stabbing Ed, and laid Ed’s body, now collapsed on his back, on the floor. She had not struck his neck simply because… Ed was more important than anything else.
“Ugh… ah…”
“Wait, Ed, I’ll get the recovery potion right away…”
Lunaritia lifted Ed’s head, which was vomiting blood from his mouth, onto her knee, and immediately took out a recovery potion from the bag she had around her waist to use it. But…
“It’s not healing!? Why!?”
“It’s futile.”
As Lunaritia cried out at the potion that showed no sign of working, Euralia’s voice echoed overhead. At her words, which sounded like a divine oracle, Lunaritia glared at Euralia.
“What do you mean, futile!?”
“…Do you know that if you use too many healing potions or healing magic in a short period of time, their effects diminish rapidly?”
“…I know. But isn’t that the case when you use them over and over again in the middle of battle? I’ve never heard of any lasting effects even a day after.”
Yes, Lunaritia, a seasoned adventurer, knew that the power of healing was not infinite. But she also knew that the diminished power would return after a night’s rest. That’s why she hadn’t interjected when Euralia was excessively using her healing magic.
“That would be true, under normal circumstances… However, the power of a god is different. If I could amplify the god’s power that’s sealed within the Demon King with the god’s power dwelling within me, and fill the Demon King’s body with it…”
“Ugh…”
“Ed!? What is this!?”
As if responding to Euralia’s words, three balls of light floated up from the hole in Ed’s abdomen. They danced around Euralia and disappeared as if seeping into her abdomen.
“Ah, the gods! You’ve finally returned…”
“…So that’s what it was.”
Lunaritia understood the source of the discomfort she had felt in Euralia, who was ecstatically stroking her own abdomen.
From the moment they first met, Lunaritia had felt that Euralia harbored feelings for Ed. But if it were only that, there would be no problem. For instance, Riel also had feelings for Ed, but Lunaritia had never felt anything unpleasant about that.
She was happy that Ed was liked, and she also quite liked Riel. If Ed were to say that he wanted to marry Riel… While she might feel a tinge of sadness deep down, she thought she could still genuinely bless them.
However, Euralia was different. Despite the clear affection, she had felt something else beneath it, something rough and very unpleasant.
At first, she wondered if this was jealousy or possessiveness welling up within her and despised herself for becoming such a distasteful person. After consulting with Ed, she wondered if there were insurmountable differences in their ways of thinking and values.
The true nature of that unanswerable worry… was now revealed in its worst form here.
“Euralia… The affection you had for Ed wasn’t for Ed himself, but for the fragment of god within him.”
“Of course. I am a devout follower of the gods.”
In the face of Lunaritia’s glare, Euralia remained unflinching and smiled.
“It’s a story from ten years ago. One day, suddenly, a God descended upon me. And God spoke to me. Ten years later, when a new hero will appear in this world, there will be a Demon King who has usurped the power of the Gods beside him. If left unchecked, the world will collapse, and all of this world will be shrouded in darkness. Therefore, I prepared myself. I gained the strength suitable to serve by the side of the Yuusha-sama, worked hard to become one of his companions… and finally, it has come to fruition! Now, Yuusha-sama! Finish the wicked Demon King… Yuusha-sama?”
Euralia’s voice was filled with doubt, causing Lunaritia to also turn her gaze towards Burn. There stood Hero Burn, shocked and in tears.
“Why… Why is this!?”
“What do you mean ‘why’? Burn, you’re the one who stabbed Ed under Euralia’s influence!”
“That’s not it! My sword…!”
Suddenly Burn rushed forward towards Euralia, slashing diagonally at her with his sword of light. However, the sword didn’t even scratch Euralia’s body or clothes, she stood unfazed.
“It didn’t cut… What is this!?”
“The sword of Yuusha-sama is a sword that only severs truly evil beings. It only exerts its power against the Demon King and other wicked beings who assist him.”
“…Yesterday, Euralia told me. That Ed is the Demon King. But I couldn’t believe it… Then Euralia said, ‘If that’s the case, why not try cutting him?'”
If Ed was a normal human, Burn’s sword would have passed through him. Of course, Ed would get angry, but they could both apologize profusely afterward. If that happened, Ed would surely laugh and say something like, “Don’t mess with me! But it’s really amazing that it didn’t cut. Can you try it again?”… Because he believed such a scene could happen here, Burn had swung his sword.
But the reality was different. The sword meant to slay demons had pierced Ed’s abdomen, and now a comrade he had believed in was writhing in pain before him. He didn’t want to believe this, didn’t want to… But he couldn’t deny it, and with a gut-wrenching feeling, Burn screamed.
“Why… why did it go through!? Ed, were you… were you deceiving us all this time!?”
“Burn… …”
“Ed!? Don’t speak, I’ll immediately… That’s it! Hey Burn, if you don’t like us, expel us right away—“
“No!”
If they were expelled and disappeared from this world, Ed’s wounds would be as if they had never existed. Finally realizing this, Tia was about to voice this when Ed tightly gripped her wrist.
“Ed, why…!?”
“It’s no good… the conditions… and… “
Since he began his journey with Burn, it had only been a little over five months. The six-month requirement for expulsion was not met, so returning to the ‘white world’ by being expelled here was impossible. And even the other ‘deep trust’ condition, which would have been possible yesterday, was now impossible.
And above all…
“I can’t… last more than 10 minutes…”
“…………!”
Ed, who had escaped death many times, knew his condition well. The blood flowing from his abdomen would not stop, and he could not hold on for more than ten minutes, no matter how he looked at it.
Without a doubt, he was going to die here. So what should he do now… What does he have to do? Even as his thoughts were tormented by the pain, Ed turned his face to Burn again.
“Listen well, Burn… I am indeed the Demon King… But I’m not the one… who is attacking this world right now. So your fight… isn’t over yet.”
“Ed? What are you saying—“
“Euralia… I don’t think you’re in the wrong… so there’s no need for you to worry… though, it looks like that goes without saying…”
“Of course. I was only following the will of the God.”
In contrast to the flustered Burn, Ed gave a wry smile to the unfazed Euralia. And finally, tilting his head back, he looked up at Tia’s face, her emerald eyes filled with tears.
“Tia… help Burn, save this world… everything starts from there…”
“Are you asking me… to help the person who killed you, Ed?”
“Hahaha… the hero defeating the Demon King… is natural, right?”
""
“But…!”
“Please.”
“Alright… I understand.”
Upon hearing Ed’s weak words, Lunaritia nodded. Even if it’s something she didn’t want to do, there was no choice if it was a request from her precious comrade.
Only her tears continued to fall freely, raining heavily on Ed’s face.
“Don’t make that kind of face… You know, right? It’s true that I’ll die… but I’ll just die, that’s all…”
“I’ll follow you again. No matter the sacrifice, no matter how much time it takes… I’ll definitely go to where you are, Ed!”
“Don’t be reckless… then, it’s a race to see whether I can return to where you are, or… cough, cough… which is faster…”
“I won’t lose… Absolutely, absolutely, I won’t lose!”
When she once crossed the barrier of the world, Lunaritia consumed a hundred years of her lifespan as the price. At that time, the lifespan remaining for Lunaritia, who was 120 years old, was approximately 80 years.
(T/N: FINALLY REVEALED MY GOD)
However, she never lamented it. Rather, she felt somewhat glad, thinking, “This way, I can age just like Ed and perhaps die around the same time.”
That’s why Lunaritia would not acknowledge such an ending. Even if she had to kick the Demon King Of The End’s butt, she would find a way for the two of them to live. As Lunaritia made this resolution, Ed gently reached out and touched her cheek.
“Even if the world we live in changes, even if the time we live in separates us… we’ll always be together. So, see you, Tia.”
(T/N: Awww)
“Yes. See you, Ed.”
Exchanging casual farewells as if they were going for a stroll nearby, the two exchanged smiles. It’s not that they believed in reunion. They were convinced without a doubt that they would meet again, and that’s why there were no tragic feelings there.
Thus, like a parent leaving for work would do to their beloved child, Lunaritia gently placed a kiss on Ed’s forehead. Inevitably, Ed’s lips also touched her forehead, and each felt the warmth of the other through their touch.
******
On that day, the existence of “Demon King Of The End” disappeared from this world axis. It was three years later that Hero Burn, along with his two comrades, defeated the real Demon King and brought peace to the world.
(T/N: Goodness let my man rest)