It was dark.
The golden sun, which used to shine upon the world, had turned to a blackish red, no longer illuminating the land as it once did before.
Four out of the seven owners of the magic towers who had survived its collapse, created the “Light of Hope” which was the only light illuminating the world.
Kiiiiiiiiiiii!!
Horrific screams echoed throughout the world.
It was the sound of evil spirits coming to this world, blending themselves in the darkness. Their cries invoked fear in the minds of their listeners and brought despair to many.
The only thing one could see in the pitch-dark were their ominous red glowing eyes.
There were knights known to be superbeings; one could hope to stand a chance at winning against them in a 3v1. Those knights formed a large army and ran towards a specific place.
That place used to be called Sarham. It was a golden land under Kraus’ guardianship which had flourished and prospered.
The demolished walls and broken spires from the foreign invasion spoke wonders to how much this place had changed.
Although no one lived there anymore, the evil beings created a dust storm as they bellowed out. Perhaps they wanted to completely erase all traces of humans there.
The half-broken ramparts easily crumbled like a sandcastle from the charge of the monster waves. Not only the houses, but also the brick roads as well. Everything left by the previous owners turned to dust and fluttered away with the wind.
Only one place remained in the utterly destroyed Sarham. The broken spire from the manor where House Kraus once lived, was quietly awaiting its destruction.
The monsters smashed through everything before heading to the manor. It was like they were leaving the most delicious meal for last.
They were led by some kind of ringleader, and began to besiege the manor. The leader had a cut in one of its eyes. It seemed to be deliberating something while observing the estate before moving its facial muscles in a bizarre manner to imitate a laugh.
It looked up at the sun above its head. The sinister dark light emitted by the blackened sun brought about an instinctive disgust in humans. However, the light was like a blessing to the monsters from their gods.
Accepting the dark sunshine on its body, it raised its snout high in the air to order its subordinates to destroy everything before them.
Kiiiiiiii…..
Their shrieks were louder than any other monster, but it did not last until the end.
There was a gold line drawn in the blackened world. The line, which had passed through the leader’s neck, soon began to distort the world, splitting the world into two, and forming a boundary.
A man stood where the leader’s head fell.
Unfazed by the spectacle he created, he impassively raised his sword at the remaining group of monsters and began to run.
It happened so suddenly that even the evil spirits were disconcerted. However, that only lasted for a moment as they had no fear. They knew nothing but destruction, only baring their teeth and charging at those who came to slay them.
The result was already set and stone.
The sword shrouded with black aura, its color the same as its owner’s eyes, slew the monsters without much difficulty.
He gave off the image of a dragon, circling in the sky, and swooping down to devour the beings down on earth.
Those evil spirits were no longer the predators here.
A final shower of white light rained down from the heavens to cut off the heads of the remaining monsters.
A woman rode the starlight as she descended. She ran towards the man as soon as she saw him.
“Damian!!! You suddenly disappeared, why are you here…”
She halted when she saw a pool of blood wetting her feet.
Dead bodies drenched with blood strewn the land. The corpses and blood of the evil spirits formed the mountains and the sea.
When the man saw her calling him, it was only then did he take off his emotionless mask.
“Sorry, Elena.”
She immediately approached him and grabbed his hand when she heard his voice. He sounded like he was about to burst into tears any moment now.
Unlike the monster’s blood which had already cooled down, warm red liquid flowed down from his hand. He normally would not have bled this much to these kinds of enemies. However, the place he was standing now had made his heart waver. She was the same as she could not forget the faces of the dead when Sarham collapsed.
However, the woman couldn’t offer a single word of consolation.
Just as he was suffering from the loss of his family, she had been overwhelmed with the guilt of being unable to save them all. Such feelings were rooted deeply in her mind, which was why she could not muster the words of solace.
“Let’s go back,” was the only thing she could say as she led the man with her hand.
***
Sometimes people encounter situations that remind them of things in the past. That was even more the case for a regressor who had lived a life before and returned to the past.
I knew the future I was walking towards would be different from the hopeless future that I had in my past life. But still, I could not erase the helplessness and guilt I felt of not being able to do anything back then.
Perhaps that was why I lost myself for a moment. It had only been a small cut, yet I got worked up as if I was seeing a patient with a deadly disease.
Because of that he approached me, his face close to my own.
I had nothing to protect myself against such an advance, consequently, my reason exploded.
When I came to my senses, I waited for his next move, but he had just been playing around with me.
“Damiannnnnnn…”
“Huh? What’s wrong, Elena?
“It’s nothing…”
When he saw my glare, only then did he stop rubbing my cheek.
It didn’t feel bad.
There was no way I hated his smile and touch. I was just a little disappointed because it was a little different from what I had expected.
He gently kept poking my cheek and apologized. He then placed the things I brought on the table, and prepared a seat for the two of us. When he was done, I sat across from him and took a bite of the macarons I had prepared.
“Oh that’s right, I couldn’t join you for dinner. Did I make you wait by any chance…”
“No, Ken had told me about it in advance. Actually, thanks to him, I was able to get closer with Alphonse.”
“Alphonse..?”
I saw his face harden when I brought up his name. He didn’t look as grave as he did before, but it seemed their problem was not completely over yet.
I momentarily imagined him getting jealous over Alphonse and I being alone together, but I knew such a thought was ridiculous.
I caught my breath and calmed my simmering heart.
“Was it because of what happened at the Isilia Pavillion today?” I asked him.
“…What? Oh, yes. That’s right. It’s embarrassing, but I realized how much of a bad older brother I was. But I don’t know what to do to be a good brother… I really am not sure.”
“Then wouldn’t it be fine for you to act as you always do?”
“As I always do?”
His head tilted slightly in confusion. I choked up at the sight. I quickly drank the black tea and slowly stabilized my breathing.
I honestly didn’t think he was a bad older brother. Other families fought each other to gain power. Their relationship was on the good side compared to those households.
These siblings were so caring that they wanted to do more for each other.
“Yes, act as you normally do. Young Alphonse has never hated you. He actually likes you a lot so I think you should spend more time together. You don’t need to put up an act. Don’t be so hard on yourself, Damian. You’re a good person.”
He was blank for a second but soon responded with a smile.
“Spend more time…I see. Thank you for the advice, Elena.”
Seeing him relax reassured me too.
When I contemplated eating the macaron, his hand had already placed one in my mouth.
I unconsciously bit it since it was in front of me. When I realized he had just fed it to me, I heated up. I immediately studied his face, but he looked as if he had done what he needed to do.
Yeah. I should be past getting nervous over these kinds of gestures. Just get used to it, Elena Edelweiss.
I was the greatest magician in human history. If I put my mind to it, I could calm down quickly.
I nibbled on the macaron he was holding, pretending as though my blushing had never happened.
It seemed he enjoyed teasing me because I got flustered often. I don’t dislike it, but I couldn’t be swayed by him forever. I stayed expressionless like he did and took the entire macaron in my mouth.
My lips brushed his finger when I did so.
He’d definitely be embarrassed if I did this. It was a bold move which I wouldn’t have dared attempt if it were me in the past.
I looked up at him, making a triumphant smile on the inside.
For some reason his reaction was not what I had expected. He had a small smile on, he looked to be pretty content.
Huh?
Translator’s Note
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