Chapter 92: That's Why I'm Doing It

“As you said, I wish to ask before I die.”

[…….]

“You said he handed everything over to me. Everything? What does that mean? Techniques? Methods?”

And.

“Why did Grandeus not exert his full strength in the final battle with my father?”

[Did it seem that way? But how would you know that? You speak as if you witnessed it yourself.]

“…Because I did see it.”

I didn’t know if it would believe me.

[It seems you possess such an ability.]

Even so, the Holy Sword accepted the words calmly.

[The fact that we are conversing like this now is also highly unusual. This, too, must be related to the ability you possess.]

“This situation?”

This was news to me.

[The answer to that is not difficult. The Grandeus of that time was destined to lose because he used me, rather than Elbat.]

As a fellow Holy Sword.

[The Holy Sword possessed by Lueld is, without a doubt, a peerless blade. It is a sword forged by a god in the form of a Holy Sword. In other words, it is a Divine Sword.]

“…….”

What on earth is that….

[Even if he had held Elbat, defeat would have been certain. But at that time, he didn’t even have that.]

“Wait. Weren’t you Elbat?”

[I have never once referred to myself by that name.]

“…….”

What is going on?

If that thing isn’t Elbat, then what is Elbat?

-Ask it like this.

“…….”

I asked, as the Demon King instructed.

“Then why did Grandeus need you? For what purpose?”

[The execution of goodwill. The protection of loyalty. And… what he promised was the eradication of the Great Evil.]

Precisely.

[He said he would grant me the right to slay the Great Demon King.]

-Now the story makes sense. I wondered why the guy seemed so flustered the greater the evil was. The reason has become clear. I suspected as much, though.

“The Great Demon King?”

[If it were not of that magnitude, why would I have been held in the hands of such a thing? A mere being from the Demon Realm who defied the laws of nature.]

“Who defied the laws of nature?”

[Normally, the moment he grasped the Holy Sword, his entire body should have melted away. However, he was a being for whom that was impossible.]

Because he.

[Had no physical body.]

“……?”

Physical body? Does it mean a body?

-At some point, he insisted on wearing only armor. I suspected it, but he hid it well. His concealment skills are top-notch.

The Demon King’s supplementary explanation barely registered in my ears.

“If he had no body, how did he move?”

[He had armor, did he not.]

That man.

[His will alone was extraordinary. He was an absurd monster of will, to the extent that he could form and lead a non-existent body through that will alone. A single will possessing intelligence and moving for a purpose. It is a miracle.]

-Such things aren’t rare in the Demon Realm, but usually, in those cases, they are rooted in grudges and malicious thoughts.

Like the eccentric type that Grandeus was.

-Not something like justice.

[His sense of justice alone was peerless. However, excessive justice is like poison.]

It may be someone’s justice, but it is not a great cause. It is not goodwill, and it is certainly not malice.

[However, if there was one thing he knew, it was that one day he would surely fade away.]

But the will must be passed on.

Even if his justice should crumble and fade.

He longed for someone to carry on his will.

[However, planting one’s will into another is difficult. It is a hard task.]

In the Demon Realm.

And after coming to the Middle Realm.

Only he remained steadfast.

Among those influenced by him.

Not a single person fully inherited that will.

They may have inherited the techniques.

But their will and means were used in an extremely selfish and individualistic manner.

Rather, by passing it on, the will became tainted.

[He personally reclaimed all of it with his own hands. Like a sower weeding out harvests that had grown wrongly.]

However.

One thing remained.

A seed he had not even expected.

…Which grew vigorously.

Growing to a point that far exceeded his expectations.

Even though he had taught them in the most lax and formal manner.

[Even so, Grandeus could not believe it. That person.]

Grandeus gained enlightenment from a conversation with a traveler.

The traveler said.

Once.

When the clothes I hung out disappeared, at first, I became suspicious of the people living in the nearby houses.

Later, after seeing the marks of wild animals biting them.

Only then did I stop suspecting everything.

What I discovered at the end of my suspicion was, ultimately, my own suspicious self.

[He stopped doubting himself. But others were another problem.]

So.

He returned to the Demon Realm.

And after a long time had passed.

He returned again.

To verify that.

Under the pretext of being a Legion Commander of the Demon King’s Army.

Following the invitation of the one who had become his comrade and lord.

…Thus, he explored how the flower that had sprouted and budded back then had faded away.

If the flower had withered.

He was prepared to fulfill his duties as a Legion Commander.

However.

“…….”

The Jet-black Knight explored that child’s journey.

The youth who struggled to cultivate hope during a time of confusion.

The man who despaired at reality and lost everything precious even in his homeland.

…Clinging to the last remaining hope, he sought to start again.

There was no glory or honor there.

There was only a simple, small… wish.

Despite the village he worked so hard to cultivate.

Even that was denied.

He could have despaired, resented the world, and cursed the heavens.

But he was desperate in everything, as if even that time were a waste.

Why, even after reaching such a state, with a weak human body and mind.

…Does he not give up?

What does it mean for something to be precious?

What is it that allows one to exert something in order to protect?

I do not understand that.

And.

When he burned himself out and emptied everything, he died.

But because of that, he was able to protect everything.

Grandeus.

…Entered the church building of Kariella, called the Holy Site.

Saw that statue.

Examined the sword, his relic.

And peeked into those memories.

It was the journey of a youth who was pure yet upright in some way.

As time passed, many people, admiring that man, sought to follow in his footsteps.

The will was passed on.

I see.

You were not wrong.

I doubted. I did not believe.

The Great Demon King said.

I trust in everything.

That they will fall into the pit by their own hand.

That they will fall, agonizing over their own foolishness!

That their success will be for a moment, and their fall into the abyss will also be for a moment.

…And that suffering and sinking into unhappiness will be close to eternity.

Very rarely, there might be one or two exceptions.

But there is no need to even care about exceptions.

Most will be ruined and will despair.

Therefore, we only need to have faith in that.

Based on that premise.

Whether we rule them, kill them, erase them, deal with them, employ them, toy with them, break them, consider them, raise them, or care for them.

All of that is up to the hearts of the possessors and the enlightened ones.

Therefore, in all the world.

Only your hearts matter.

[He was the exception.]

Therefore.

Grandeus.

Sought to regard him as both a disciple and a teacher.

Therefore.

Even though he was the one who taught him.

He inherited that man’s will and chivalry, which he himself had lost, once again.

And strove to protect the weak.

[That is the reason why Grandeus came to be called a knight, rather than a Legion Commander.]

“…….”

[You know the source of that reason. That is why you are the successor. Those who call themselves the Order of Relief Knights are followers. Knowing that he could not save the world alone, he helped them so they could become independent; he was still not a being who could trust anyone. For it was overwhelming for him to even trust himself.]

Even so.

[It wasn’t that there was no possibility among them. That is why Grandeus entrusted a few things to them. And who knows if a miracle like before will bloom among them.]

And if you are the true successor.

[If they stray from the path, you must be the one to reclaim and recover that as well. To follow in his footsteps is such a karma.]

“…But it looks like even someone like me is about to die soon?”

A hollow laugh escaped.

On the other hand, my heart felt heavy.

Grandeus raised Saint Kariel.

But in the end, was it Grandeus himself who was moved by the footprints he left behind?

If.

Saint Kariel had not carried on his will.

…Does that mean Grandeus would have acted as an ally to the Demon King of Wisdom as a Legion Commander?

[As you suspect. If that were the case… no matter how hard your father, Hero Lueld, struggled, it would have been impossible.]

Grandeus.

[Was a man who burned everything he had from the start for the purpose of slaying the Great Demon King. Because the one who became the Great Demon King disappeared and he lost his purpose, he became weaker… but he was not a being that even the Golden Demon King could treat lightly.]

-Why would I fight him? Even if I did, I wouldn’t engage in a direct confrontation. I’m not a lunatic.

…Seeing the Demon King speak thus, his strength must be guaranteed.

In other words, because he was such a being… no matter if one was clad in a Holy Sword or Holy Relics.

Furthermore, the fact that he did not utilize his specialty.

For me, it remains a question.

-If Grandeus had been my subordinate, the conquest of the continent, which I didn’t even want, would have eventually succeeded. Then the current map of the continent would have rolled in a very interesting direction. This might be a bit regrettable?

“…….”

-I have no regrets, but anyway, one thing has become clear with this.

What?

Did he read my expression?

-The Arcane Secret he entrusted to me was, in a way, a preparation made for you. That’s the story.

“…….”

-Yes. He could glimpse the future. But it was very fragmentary. And that dim-witted sword just said it. He handed some of it to the Order of Relief Knights? Then, you see. Doesn’t the prophecy he babbled about now roughly make sense? It was obvious, but I kept quiet because I wasn’t certain, but now it’s so obvious that I feel sorry for keeping my mouth shut.

[This is all I can tell you. I do not know the location of Elbat. However.]

However?

If you don’t know, you don’t know; what’s with the ‘however’?

[Elbat was not complete. Therefore, for a long time, Grandeus used my body as a temporary substitute.]

“……?”

-Hmm?

What is this talking about now?

[Awaken the Black Light Star. In that moment, the constraints of time and space disappear. Everything has already been handed to you. The rest is simply whether you, the successor and inheritor, awaken it or not. Is that the only issue? Do you still intend to do nothing but doubt?]

“…….”

Is it lecturing me?

Suddenly remembering the story from before, a hollow laugh leaked out.

“Thinking about your lecture.”

Kariel, with eyes that had half-let go of lingering attachments, revealed the guess held within his heart.

With a partial certainty.

He asked, and answered the Holy Sword’s questions.

And so, the two continued their dialogue, however briefly.