The steps on the ground feel incredibly light.
The long hair, which has always been a bother, now looks quite nice.
The once embarrassing white costume clings tightly to my body, stained red from the battlefield.
The scars engraved from countless battlefields feel fresh.
The texture of the attitude felt in my hands is madly adorable.
I closed my eyes and took a breath.
Rather than leaning against Noah as usual, I was breathing with my own body.
The thick smell of blood and the pungent scent of dragons now sting my nostrils as the aroma of the battlefield digs in.
The reality that flowed in through my nose woke up my silent mind and added tension to my slack body.
“Feels good.”
It’s been so long since I’ve spoken with my own voice instead of mimicking the thoughts.
The vibration felt in my throat when a sound comes out, the movement of my tongue, the feeling in my mouth, the shape of my lips—nothing felt awkward.
But I didn’t dislike it.
In fact, I felt a bit giddy.
A thousand years.
Having lived for a thousand years like an idiot, even the most mundane things feel precious.
But I’m neither human nor anything else now.
“Haha.”
I let out a small chuckle and opened my eyes.
Unlike just a moment ago, the battlefield was now completely vivid.
“Wow… it’s a mess.”
This place I’m standing in is a total disaster.
No, “total disaster five minutes ago” might be more accurate.
The end of a world that was beautiful and dreamy,
where the sky overflowed with a sea of stars, and the endlessly stretching horizon became a star itself.
But now, it’s filled with nothing but death.
The beautiful stars that floated in the sky have all closed their eyes.
The roots of flowers that used to sway shyly, wanting to be seen, have all been pulled out, and the once peaceful sea of galaxies is now muddied with blood.
Above that tragically ruined landscape, only the darkness spewed from the black sun and the loud cries of hatchling lizards filled the air.
And at the forefront…
a monstrous being that perfectly embodies the word ‘huge’ was bowing its head towards the Nameless One.
That must be the primordial beast Laila mentioned. With its wings, it’s probably the creature called ‘Jiz’.
Its size defies perception.
A giant that perfectly fits the description of ‘huge.’
Even with its head bowing to the ground, I had to lift my neck all the way up to meet its gaze.
Compared to a dragon flying beside me, it’s like comparing a chicken to a chick.
In comparison to me, Jiz’s claws might still be bigger.
Or maybe even smaller than that.
I clicked my tongue and met Jiz’s gaze.
Its bright yellow eye, slit vertically, looked down at me.
Just looking at it made my breath catch and an overwhelming pressure engulfed my body.
And its eyes held a clear intelligence.
Determined, I vowed to pluck out that arrogant eye first as I exhaled short puffs.
I slowly lowered my stiff neck from looking up for too long and tilted my head side to side.
I relaxed the awkward muscles in my body and faced forward.
“Oh my… it’s been a long time since I’ve seen that face.”
The Nameless One, with a genuinely surprised expression, smiled like Rubia used to.
“I thought so before, but indeed, Cartia’s current appearance suits you best. Flowing blond hair, perfectly fitting outfit, scars that stand out here and there. You look like a hero straight out of a fairy tale. I really like that look on you.”
You crazy bastard.
“Hey.”
“Yes?”
“If you want to die comfortably, it’s best not to say you love anyone with that body.”
The withered gaze of the Nameless One, feigning ignorance, finally turned to Noah, who is just barely catching his breath behind me.
“Hehe, is that so?”
“Yeah. I know this for sure, if you keep it up, you might just be in big trouble.”
“… Indeed, if I were to say that, Noah could be disappointed. Thank you for the advice, Cartia. I’ll try to hold back from now on.”
Wow, this bastard is such a nuisance.
I held back the curses choking my throat.
I didn’t want my one and only cute apprentice to learn bad words from their esteemed master.
So I bit down on my rage and glanced back.
There, hung on a black cross, was Frey, unconscious.
“… Ridiculous girl.”
Just like before losing consciousness, Frey’s soul was slowly being consumed by the black cross.
I could forcefully pull her away, but the scars left on her soul would remain.
Still, what reassured me in this situation was that Frey’s breath hadn’t completely stopped.
[I’ll handle this part.]
It was Laila’s confident voice ringing in my head.
[Including my descendant lying far away. So, you focus on the battle in front of you.]
A thousand years ago, she was a terrible scumbag I never wanted to meet again.
But now, with that scumbag on my side…
It’s humiliating, but I’ve never felt this secure.
‘… Thanks.’
[What for? I’m the one who’s grateful. But living this long, I never imagined I’d hear gratitude from you. Tomorrow’s sun will rise from the west.]
Tomorrow’s sun, huh.
I looked up at the black sun floating in the sky.
‘True, I’d like to see it at least once.’
“Hehe…”
As my silly laughter mingled with the rising tension,
“Cartia. Aren’t you curious why I was able to settle in this body?”
The pure curiosity-filled voice of the Nameless One reached my ears.
“Not really.”
“What a shame. I wanted to share what I was curious about with you.”
“Live your whole life curious.”
I cut off that question sharply.
At first, it was puzzling, but after being caught in this ridiculous situation, I learned everything.
The armor Frey wore radiated a strange energy.
An energy that even Noah and I couldn’t see inside the armor.
Alstein must have been hiding in there.
Just like before, in that black form.
The condition to come out would be Frey’s awakening.
And that guy had probably extracted all the organs in her body to fill it with the divine object of the Nameless One. So her body must have been empty.
Finally, the key that allowed the Nameless One to take over Rubia’s body was inflicting a wound that would maintain Rubia’s life but cut her consciousness off, and before Alstein died, pouring all his remaining life force to unleash that divine object.
It was a plan that was painfully obvious.
Really obvious.
But I never expected that cockroach-like bastard would go as far as sacrificing his life for that.
…Right.
It’s been a misstep from the start.
All tangled up because of my greed.
I have to take responsibility for it all.
I looked down at the old, broken sword I held in my hand.
The blade that should’ve been sharpened was completely dull. The blade, resembling the pale moonlight, had faded, and the handle made of manticore material—said to be untearable by human hands—was foolishly crushed.
Could I even dare to call this a weapon?
It was a question that crossed my mind.
If I took it to the blacksmith I used to visit, Borian, I’d probably have to sit through a three-hour lecture on how terrible it is.
A sword that was once called a divine sword a thousand years ago, it becomes terrifyingly intimidating with the passage of time.
Of course, I might’ve also treated it roughly.
Both the sword and my body.
Hehehe—
I casually caressed the scabbard hanging from my waist with a light laugh. The sensation against my fingertips sent chills down my spine.
I gripped the handle of the sword in my other hand. The handle, molded to fit my grip nicely, felt pleasantly snug.
And with a clunk—
Despite being broken, the handle held the sword intact. Immediately, a thrilling sensation coursed through my palm.
“Haa…”
This…
This is what my weapon should be, and this is a sword.
Ah, how hard it was to use that oversized great sword all this time.
Thanks to Frey’s senses being embedded in that sword, it endured; if not, I would’ve discarded it long ago.
It was annoyingly big.
Filthy heavy, hard to manage, and difficult to store.
And I had to be super mindful of my surroundings; it was really just a pest…
Hmm, but that’s not entirely true.
The great sword wasn’t all bad.
It had a nice grip, and the exhilarating moment I successively parried was exciting. The big slashes felt clean too.
And, also.
Also…
It helped me bond with that nerdy kiddo.
Thanks to that, I had fun experiences, witnessed pretty rare scenes, felt anger at times, and felt sadness too.
Every moment was enjoyable.
I could truly smile.
Over the ashes of everything burned away, I could ignite a new spark.
Yeah, that hunk of scrap wasn’t so bad.
No.
The great sword was,
at least to me, the greatest weapon ever.
Thinking so, I let out a small chuckle as I pulled out the sword that had been cracked and shattered,
once broken,
but after a thousand years, now beautifully extended, once again cradling the pale moonlight.
