When I came to, I was in the white place.
The same white place as always.
I'd only been here a handful of times since coming to this world—maybe enough to count on both hands—but even so, I'd visited this blank, empty white expanse more times than I could comfortably remember.
And as always, when I came here, my appearance was that of my previous life.
A protruding belly. Flabby fingers.
A heavy body. A sense of powerlessness.
And yet, strangely, it no longer bothered me.
I didn't feel that irritation welling up from deep in my chest.
I could accept this for what it was.
Was it because it had been so long since I'd been here?
Or perhaps…
"Huh?"
That was strange.
It wasn't a matter of it being a long time—I had no memory of removing the bracelet.
There was no reason I would have taken it off.
And yet, here I was.
Come to think of it, what had I even been doing before this?
I couldn't remember what I'd been up to before bed today.
I vaguely thought it might have been… making children, or something like that.
No, but I felt like it had been a long time since I'd done anything like that.
At least ten years, maybe?
My memories felt hazy.
"Hey."
My memories were hazy, but my vision was clear.
In this white place, as always, he was there.
A mosaic-like mass.
The Human-God.
But something was wrong.
The Human-God's condition was off.
His body was scattered in pieces.
On top of that, each of his four limbs seemed to be held in place by what looked like magic circles, bound by semi-transparent chains.
Like a final boss in an RPG.
I got the sense that if I didn't take him out starting with his right leg or something, he'd resurrect himself and it'd be a pain.
"..."
What was going on with him?
Playing the sealed fallen angel, were we?
"I've been beaten."
By who?
"Would you really want to hear that from me?"
Who else is there to ask? Is there anyone else here besides me?
"...Look over there."
Doing as I was told, I turned around.
There was a large crowd of people.
They were standing with their backs to me.
All strangers.
Strange men. Strange women.
Strange demons. Strange humans.
Eight of them, more or less.
Among them was one person I recognized.
It was
He was the same as always.
But there were differences too.
He wasn't wearing his black helmet.
And on his face, a large scar remained.
Thanks to the scar, he looked even more terrifying than usual.
And yet, despite that, the people around him were smiling at him.
Orsted still had his fearsome expression, but he also seemed to be showing a softer look.
I couldn't make out what they were saying, but I could tell they trusted one another.
The one he was talking to was... a boy.
Seventeen or eighteen, maybe.
He had short hair and the handsome face of someone who played sports.
A popular-kid face.
His features looked Eastern.
Even so, what a smile. Was Orsted's curse not working on him?
As I watched him, one woman from the group stood up.
She had been sitting hidden among the crowd—more of a girl than a woman, really.
A girl with blue hair.
At her side sat a massive white wolf.
Ah, I'd seen her somewhere before too.
She looked like
But she wasn't Roxy.
She was definitely Migurd—I'd never mistake Roxy for anyone else.
So who was she?
Could it be... Lala?
As I wondered, she waved at me.
No, not at me.
She was waving at the Human-God behind me.
Then a man nearby spoke to her.
He was probably asking what she was doing.
When she answered something, the man looked over at me with a surprised expression.
He too had Eastern features.
That type of face was rare in this world.
Perhaps he was Japanese?
His age looked like he was in his twenties... maybe not quite thirty.
He bowed to me.
His movements looked Japanese, so maybe he really was.
As that happened, everyone turned to look at me all at once.
There were young people and old people.
I'd initially counted eight, but there seemed to be many more. A haze made it hard to see clearly.
I recognized Orsted's face, but beyond that...
Ah, wait—that one might be
A red-haired woman with her hair in a braid, a swordswoman, was looking this way too.
But she was a little different from Eris...
They each bowed toward me in their own way.
Toward the Human-God?
No... the gesture didn't quite match that.
What was going on?
As I watched, they stepped onto the magic circle Lala had drawn and vanished.
All of them, gone in an instant.
The magic circle remained, glowing a faint blue.
And after a while, the circle lost its light and disappeared too.
Nothing was left.
"They ganged up on me, beat me to a pulp like this, and sealed me away."
The Human-God spoke.
"They said that if I died, the last remaining human world might be destroyed too."
Would it be destroyed?
"Who knows. It's never happened before, so I wouldn't know."
I see.
Fair enough.
No one knows what happens after they die.
"Are you satisfied?"
Satisfied about what?
"This is the ending you wanted."
"I had all my abilities sealed. Now I'm alone here, kept alive forever."
"Kept alive solely so the world continues to exist."
"I can no longer see the world. I can't speak to anyone."
"From now on, for all eternity, I'll keep staring at this blank, empty, light-filled expanse."
Was I satisfied?
I didn't know if I was or not.
My goal was never to do something to you.
I just wanted to live happily with
Go to work and earn money, come home and eat with the family, and when night came, make love in the bedroom with the ones I cherished.
A normal... yes, a normal life.
As far as I could imagine, the happiest kind of normal there was.
"Your happiness is my misfortune."
Is that so.
Then yes, I'm satisfied.
You look absolutely miserable right now.
If that's what it means for you to be in that state, then surely I've been happy.
"Is that so... I see... How hateful."
The Human-God's expression was impossible to read.
But his voice didn't carry hatred.
It was wrapped in sorrow.
With a voice on the verge of tears, the Human-God said: "I hate you."
Is that so. I hate you too— My consciousness faded.
--- When I opened my eyes, I was in bed.
A big, big bed.
Big enough for three people to lie down comfortably, and soft and plush to boot.
No one was lying beside me.
I could move my neck and eyes, but the rest of my body wouldn't cooperate much.
For some reason, the blanket felt incredibly heavy.
I shifted my gaze and looked outside the bed.
A red-haired girl was sitting there.
Sharp, upswept eyes and a feisty jawline.
She looked just like Eris.
But her hair was in a neat braid, and she was much smaller than Eris. Shorter, and less... well-endowed.
She was about five years old, maybe.
The moment our eyes met, she dropped what she was holding, leaped to her feet.
The chair clattered over, and she nearly stumbled—I instinctively reached out to steady her.
How did I manage that when my body could barely move?
I didn't even know myself.
But the girl planted her hands in midair, righted herself without falling, and the instant her feet touched the floor, she dashed out of the room.
"Mama! Mama! Great-grandpa woke up!"
I listened to the sound of her rapid footsteps and looked at what she'd been holding.
A bracelet engraved with the Dragon God's patterns.
I didn't remember taking it off—so she must have removed it while I slept.
I fumbled with my arm until I picked up the bracelet.
It was surprisingly heavy.
No, it wasn't heavy. I just had no strength.
My arm had wasted away so much that I couldn't even lift a single bracelet.
Then my eyes caught a mirror in the corner of the room.
In it, I saw an old man sunk deep into the bed, looking as though he could die at any moment.
A white beard. White hair.
Deeply carved wrinkles.
A deathly pallor on his face.
Ah, I remembered now.
I was seventy-four years old.
But wait.
I couldn't really remember much else.
It was as if a fog had settled over my memories.
Did my house even have a room like this?
"
A white-haired woman burst into the room.
She looked to be in her forties.
A proper, dignified woman now.
The moment she saw me, she rushed to my bedside and took my hand through the blanket.
"Sylphie...?"
"Mm... yes. That's right, Rudeus. It's Sylphiette."
Sylphie spoke gently, as though guiding me.
"Do you know who I am?"
"Y-Yeah... yeah, I know."
"What happened to me?"
"Nothing happened. You just slept for a long time, that's all."
Just slept, huh.
Come to that, I did feel drowsy.
"But I can't move."
"Mm, that's right... mm..."
Sylphie didn't answer my question.
She just stroked my hand soothingly.
As if humoring a senile old man...
Wait—was I...?
Had I gone senile?
Was that why I couldn't remember?
Wait a second.
Seventy-four isn't that old, is it?
But was I really seventy-four?
Had I actually aged even more than that?
Had I been senile for an even longer time?
Just how long had I been bedridden?
"I'm scared..."
"It's okay. I'm right here."
Her grip on my hand tightened.
That alone eased my fear, if only a little.
But I was still scared.
As I thought that, I saw people filing into the room.
Red-haired children. Blue-haired children. Blonde children.
Young people, middle-aged people, elderly people.
They gathered around my bed in a ring.
They all had faces I felt I'd seen somewhere before.
"Look, Rudeus. Everyone came to see you."
"Yeah..."
But why was it that I couldn't remember a single one of their names?
Ah, there was one I knew.
The last person to enter, closing the door quietly behind her.
A small figure with blue hair.
Her hair was in a braid.
Unchanged, after all this time.
"Roxy."
"...Rudeus."
She looked at me, and for just an instant, her face crumpled as though she might cry.
But she quickly came to Sylphie's side.
And she gently stroked my head.
"Rudeus. You've worked hard."
"Thank you, Roxy... Master."
The word Master slipped from my mouth almost involuntarily.
Tears spilled from Roxy's eyes.
She hurried to wipe them away and put on a smile, but her mouth still trembled, unable to fully hold the expression.
Then a question arose.
"Where's Eris? Is she not here?"
The woman who would normally be the first to come running was nowhere in sight.
"Rudeus, Eris already... went ahead, you know."
"Where to?"
"She's waiting for you, Rudeus."
Ah. I see.
So that's how it was.
"Was I... there for her at the end?"
"Mm. It's okay. She cried for three whole days, but you got through it, Rudeus."
Ah, it was coming back to me now, vague as it was.
Eris had kept training energetically even past seventy.
But one day, she went for a run, did her sword swings, came home, and collapsed face-down on the bed—and never got back up.
By the time I noticed, she was already gone.
I remembered crying, thinking that maybe if I'd noticed sooner and used healing magic, I could have saved her...
But then again.
I couldn't even remember that anymore.
Which meant I didn't have much time left either.
"Sorry. Everyone came all this way, and I can't tell who's who."
"It's okay. Um... from the far end, that's our grandchild, Roland, Lucy's son, and next to him is—"
Sylphie pointed to each person and told me who they were.
Everyone here seemed to be a grandchild or great-grandchild.
Where had my children gone?
Ah, they'd all left the nest.
They all lived far away now.
"And the red-haired one, the one who looks like Eris—she's Ars's granddaughter, Rudeus's great-granddaughter. Felis."
"Ah, the one who woke me up."
The red-haired girl looked somewhat guilty.
Was she worried I'd be angry about her trying to take the bracelet?
But she looked familiar somehow.
Ah...
Right. The Human-God's dream.
I thought she'd been among that crowd.
Yes. She was there. She'd looked much older than she did now, but she was definitely there.
"Come here."
When I said that, she came forward with a trembling, tearful expression.
"Was this what you took off?"
I pointed at the bracelet, and she burst into tears.
Decrying that she'd been caught, she resorted to crying?
"I'm sorry. It was just so pretty."
"Is that so? Then you can have it."
When I said that, she stared at me, wide-eyed.
"Really?"
"But in exchange, you must never take someone else's things again."
"...Okay. I promise."
"Good girl."
I slowly reached out and patted her head.
She might get scolded later, but oh well.
Besides, it wasn't my responsibility even if she was being spoiled.
"Everyone looks healthy."
"Mm. Everyone's doing well."
Hearing that put me at ease.
With this many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, of course they'd all be doing fine.
"That's good to hear. All that hard work finally paid off..."
My arm went limp and slipped from Felis's head.
Murmurs rippled through the room.
Don't worry. I'm not going to keel over just yet.
I'll keep being this bedridden old man a little longer.
Just as I thought that, someone entered the room.
Tall.
And silver-haired, with a fearsome face.
"Rudeus."
"...Lord Orsted."
The moment he stepped into the room, the air changed.
Tension?
Caution?
No, something softer than that.
Relief and trust.
"You don't need to wear the helmet anymore?"
"Right. If I do, your grandkids cry."
When Orsted said that, laughter rippled through the room.
"She doesn't cry anymore," someone said. "She used to really wail, though," said another.
"You're not scary to people with your bare face now."
"No, the curse hasn't changed. Your children and grandchildren are the only exception."
Orsted's face looked far more gentle than when I'd first met him.
He was still fearsome-looking, of course, but relaxed—maybe that was the word.
"Come to think of it, Lord Orsted."
"What is it?"
"Just now, when I removed the bracelet, I had a dream about the Human-God."
"...Did you become one of his apostles?"
"Who knows. Maybe it really was just a dream. But if I had become one, what would you do? Would you kill me like always?"
"Of course. I don't go easy on traitors."
Orsted said that with a serious face, but it was obviously a joke.
Everyone around him was laughing, and Orsted himself wasn't radiating any killing intent.
It seemed like an odd thing to say in front of a half-dead, bedridden old man—but maybe it was an inside joke by now.
"The dream was of you defeating the Human-God and him being sealed away."
"A nice dream."
"Yes, very nice."
Maybe that dream was of something that would happen in the future.
It felt real, but then again, dreams always felt real.
"I hope it comes true."
Orsted nodded with a solemn expression.
After nearly fifty years of seeing his face, I'd gotten to where I could read his expressions.
"You've worked hard all this time. Now, rest in peace."
"Haha... it's still a bit early for that."
I wanted to stay awake a little longer.
I didn't feel bad.
My body wouldn't move much, but the sunlight was warm and pleasant on my skin.
"I'll stay up a bit longer. Just a little... longer."
It wasn't that I had anything I wanted to do.
I just wanted to look at the faces of the people gathered here a while longer.
That was all.
If I had to put it into words—yes.
I was just a little reluctant to say goodbye.
Just another hour, or two, or even ten minutes—just a little more time with them.
There wasn't anything I needed to say.
I had no regrets.
No lingering attachments.
It was just that this moment, right here, felt good.
That was all.
"Just a little more..."
Even as I thought that, my eyelids were growing heavier.
Lowering. Lowering. Slowly lowering.
The last thing I saw was the face of the girl who looked so much like Eris.
I saw Sylphie's face. I saw Roxy's face.
I closed my eyes.
And just like that, my consciousness vanished.