The next day, I gave homecoming greetings to each of my friends.
Zanoba, Cliff, Elinalise.
Nanahoshi too, when I stopped by in the Sky Fortress.
Come to think of it, my number of acquaintances in the magic city Sharia has also reduced by quite a fair amount.
Most of them have left the town.
Zanoba and Cliff will also leave someday.
While thinking so, I proceed to my destination.
It’s evening already.
Under the orange sky, the place I arrived at is a cemetery.
Round gravestones are lined up at this quiet area.
It’s not recommended to come at such a time since demons may appear, but I have no choice.
Because it’s time to pay my respects.
Entering, I greeted the gravekeeper and went to stand in front of a specific tomb.
Paul Greyrat.
That name is written on the round gravestone.
I clasp my hands in front of the tombstone that still looks new.
"Dad, this time it ended with no one dying."
Placing the liquor I bought at the Royal Capital and the flowers I purchased in the neighborhood, I recounted my journey.
Orsted's matter, Hitogami’s matter.
And, the fight in the Asura Kingdom.
"There, I also met your brother, my uncle. He looks similar to father, but his mind seemed rather weak."
I remember Philemon’s face.
In some ways his face resembled Paul’s.
His figure too, but their personalities differed. That was probably because he was the younger brother.
"That person also survived. Your nephew risked his own live to protect his father. Honestly, I was a bit envious of him."
Luke kept his father from being executed.
I didn’t hear everything that was said, but the scene was clearly reflected in my eyes.
Philemon is not a praiseworthy man in any aspect.
I also intended to kill him at first but...
Looking at Luke's figure protecting him, for some reason I just couldn’t do that.
"Then I killed a person. Although, I did not personally deliver the killing blow... He tried to kill me and I fought back. And now he is dead. I don’t regret what happened, but it did leave quite a bad aftertaste."
Actually, it’s not my first time killing someone.
If I think back, there is a previous case.
It’s not like there was anything special this time.
But for some reason, only this time had it left a deep scar on my mind.
Surely, it was because I listened to the Water God Reida’s story.
"......"
I reflect on that event.
This time, everything somehow turned out alright.
No one dying is my number one priority and I have achieved that objective.
But, at the last moment.
It was at that last moment.
If something had went even slightly wrong, someone might have died.
Even though my goal was achieved, the overall results remained, becoming a lump in my heart.
This time, I have indeed succeeded.
It was a satisfactory, total victory.
But, it seems there are still many points to reflect on too.
For example, in the preparation stage, if I got in touch with Ariel earlier.
Then maybe Hitogami would be unable to make Luke his apostle and he wouldn’t disrupt us on our journey.
Well, because of that Ariel made contact with Orsted, so that was a positive result.
If I could have defeated Auber in Red Dragon’s Upper Jaw.
If Orsted didn’t come after the Water God activated her 『Deprivation Sword Kingdom』.
If Auber didn’t carry his antidote.
Well, it’s pointless to think about this now.
However, there is only one thing I can say.
Hitogami is not dead.
Although the job is over, the fight is still far from over.
Then it's still ongoing.
In the future... that fight, will probably be chaotic down to the last minute.
I was lucky this time.
... Well, I’ve been lucky up until now, I guess.
Until now, I wonder why I haven't failed that much.
Maybe it’s because I never expected to fail.
For example, when Paul died.
I thought that it was the best outcome, given that it couldn’t be helped.
Indeed, at that time and moment, I gave it my best.
There were some points where my judgement erred and I made the wrong choice.
But at that time, I did everything I could.
In the end, an ending I couldn’t hope for came to pass.
Such a result could have been avoided.
It was unlucky.
It was not inevitable.
But, is it really like that?
Then, if I had good luck, Paul would have survived.
Yes, he would.
With the Hydra’s last attack, Paul died.
He would probably still be alive if he was lucky.
In the event of a fluke, I wonder what would change.
In reverse, we might have gotten unlucky and someone would become injured on the way, forcing us to retreat.
What about if the circumstances were different, if we just had one more helping hand...
When it comes down to it, luck is a flaky thing.
From now on.
Should I rely on luck to protect my family?
This time, many people could have died.
Especially, Eris who was seriously wounded at the shoulder, struck by a poisoned Kunai.
She could have stood on the brink of death, clinging to luck.
Then, in the last minute, she could succumb to death.