“…Lucifer, I have something to tell you.”
The man, reunited after 25 years, spoke.
“I’m going to die soon.”
After finally meeting again, to hear that he was going to die was a shock.
Lucifer, taken aback, exclaimed.
“Dying… Dying? What on earth do you mean?!”
It was hard for her to believe.
Though the man wasn’t exactly young by human standards, he wasn’t old enough to be talking about death either.
Just when she was about to shout that he should cut out such a cruel joke, Lucifer’s eyes suddenly fell on the collapsed ceiling of the cave.
The marks left by their swords clashing.
Seeing that brought an unsettling feeling she hadn’t noticed amidst the joy of their reunion.
Suddenly realizing something, Lucifer asked the man.
“…What on earth have you done?”
As she questioned him, Lucifer looked again at the sword marks on the cave ceiling.
The blade of the man, reunited after 25 years, had grown strong enough to duel with her.
Yet, under normal circumstances, such a thing wouldn’t be possible.
Because the man she knew was a swordsman who only knew swords, and unfortunately, even at his best, he was just mediocre.
So, even with 25 years gone by, she realized it was impossible for him to reach that level with his talent unless he had trained extraordinarily hard.
But while she felt sorry for him, she couldn’t feel any anger at the man who seemed utterly unrepentant for what he had done.
She had known he was that kind of person all along.
Lucifer sighed deeply and asked him.
“…So, did you come to say goodbye before you die?”
“That’s similar, but there’s one more thing.”
The man, sensing Lucifer’s complex feelings, unsheathed a gently glowing blue sword.
“This sword is called the Holy Sword of Wishes. It may not be grand, but it has the ability to fulfill a small wish.”
As soon as she heard that, Lucifer realized why he had come to find her.
“…You mean that wish is for me?”
“Yeah. Do you have a wish?”
The man slowly nodded his head, and hearing that made Lucifer bite her lips.
What she truly wanted was always just one thing.
She just wanted to be able to spend time with him; that would have been enough.
But now that he was here, saying he would die soon, he was asking her if she had a wish?
He must have come with good intentions, but to Lucifer, it felt frustrating.
“…I don’t need it. If you have it, shouldn’t you use it for yourself? Maybe to extend your short lifespan, or how about wishing for what you desired?”
He had burned with the desire to be stronger than anyone, hadn’t he?
The man smiled bitterly at her words and replied.
“That’s ridiculous. If I achieve my dream not by my own strength but with the power of something else, what’s the meaning in that? Besides… the two things you mentioned are impossible.”
“Why?”
“…Because the price for wishing is the user’s life.”
Lucifer widened her eyes at that.
The price for making a wish is the user’s life?
So, you’re saying you were going to sacrifice your life to grant my wish?
Who would want that? She wanted to scream at him to stop being so foolish.
But she couldn’t do it.
“…Ugh.”
Because the man’s body suddenly started to crumble.
“…! Are you alright?!”
Holding on to him as he suddenly seemed to lose strength, Lucifer laid him across her knees.
She asked if he was okay, but somehow deep down, she knew.
She realized that his time was running out.
Did the man feel that too?
He looked at Lucifer, who was staring at him with concern, and said.
“…Lucifer. As you know, I’ve abandoned everything except for swords. I don’t regret living my life chasing my dream, but I lived a life that wasn’t very human. I thought that way.”
“……”
“But now that death is near, you come to mind.”
As their eyes met, the man gently spoke, different from the usual tone he took.
“…Somewhere in my life, you were there, Lucifer. The stories we shared, the days I taught you swordsmanship, the meals we ate together—all those turned my inhuman life back into something human. Looking back, the memories you gifted me are something I can smile at. I’m truly grateful for that.”
He stretched out his hand and caressed her cheek as he expressed his gratitude.
And as he wiped away the tears welling in her eyes, he said.
“…I came here to repay that. So, if you have a wish, will you tell me?”
“…A wish.”
Lucifer felt his profound affection for her in the way he gently brushed away her tears.
He may not be good at expressing it, but she couldn’t refuse his feelings.
So, she decided to forget the resentment she had held onto until now and spoke honestly to him.
“If you are reborn…”
If reincarnation truly existed, and someday, someday he would be reborn.
Then, at that time, don’t leave me; stay with me.
Like the family humans spoke about.
Lucifer wanted to say that to him.
“…In the next life, huh?”
But perhaps her words struck a nerve.
The man murmured with a barely audible voice.
“…If there really is a next life, will I be able to become stronger than anyone?”
“…Hehe.”
Hearing him mutter that, as if holding onto the regret of a dream unfulfilled, Lucifer couldn’t help but laugh even though she was on the verge of tears.
His words, even in this dying moment, felt so much like him.
As Lucifer laughed, the man seemed embarrassed to have spoken his thoughts out loud and chuckled softly.
“…No, now that I think about it, that would be difficult.”
“Difficult? Why?”
“Somehow, I feel like even if I die and be reborn, you will still be alive by then, Lucifer.”
Lucifer didn’t deny his words.
In the 25 years they had spent apart, the man had aged, but she hadn’t aged or weakened at all.
She had already guessed that she could be such an existence.
“As long as you are alive, no matter how many times I am reborn, it will be difficult for me to become stronger than you.”
He spoke as if it was an unavoidable reality, but then he added with a smile.
“…Of course, even so, if I were reborn, I would still definitely strive to become stronger than anyone.”
“…Hahaha, yes, you would definitely do that.”
Her heart was filled with the certainty that his dreams and aspirations would carry over into the next life.
With that confidence, Lucifer laughed and nodded.
He was the same man, stubbornly unchanged.
Yet, she regretted nothing about having fallen in love with him.
After all, he had been the one to make her life more human.
Lucifer took hold of the man’s hand that had been wiping her cheek and grasped it tightly.
She wanted to stay like this forever, but she felt his strength gradually fading from his hand.
The moment of parting was approaching.
So, Lucifer spoke to the man.
“…But it’s clear that as long as I live normally, it’ll be tough for you to be the strongest. I’m just too strong. So let’s do this.”
Lucifer wanted to become like family to him.
But he was a man who lived and died by the sword, and he would probably continue to be that way in the next life.
So, she decided to change her wish.
“…Wish for me to become your sword. I want to be your sword. That way I won’t be a hindrance in your next life, but a support instead.”
The man’s eyes turned to Lucifer.
Was it because her wish seemed too absurd?
He looked at her questioningly, as if asking if she truly wanted this. But she nodded.
Saying she wanted to be his sword, which he must have valued more than anything, was her confession that she wanted to claim the first place in his heart.
The man, unable to refuse her passionate confession, chuckled and mumbled.
“…Let’s meet again, Lucifer.”
As he mumbled that, Lucifer saw the man’s body lying on her knees transform into light.
The holy sword, glowing blue, led the shimmering light toward Lucifer.
The moment the light enveloped her body, she felt a power wrapping around her.
That power was something she could have rejected if she had wanted, but she didn’t resist and entrusted her body to it.
“…I will wait for you, my dear.”
Thus, she became a sword, waiting for the day of their reunion like the wind.
*
Later, Lucifer heard a story from the Holy Sword of Wishes.
At that time, she had exhausted all her strength to become a sword, so she had no capacity to worry about any next life.
Thus, their reunion was solely a miracle wrought from their fierce bond.
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