Frieren 65

Title: Hoping and Believing in a Reunion

After stepping down as the officiant, Heiter, giving his place to the local bishop, stood beside Ash and heard his complaints.

Those complaints didn’t sound like something a human would say, but they made Heiter smile and respond, speaking for his childhood friend who had passed: “Ash, you’re wrong… I think a life like this is just right. And at the very least, I’m sure Himmel’s final moments were happy.”

“…If only that were true.”

Ash nodded faintly, unsure if he believed it. This prompted Heiter to emphasize his tone: “It definitely was. Because in the end… we were all by his side. He surely had no regrets. Even I won’t have any regrets.”

“…Don’t say that. I don’t want to attend two funerals in one day.”

“Haha, just kidding. After all, unlike you, the Goddess still looks out for me.”

The somber and solemn funeral ended with Heiter’s out-of-place jest and his frail, elderly laugh.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

After resting overnight in the capital, the next day, they gathered again at the city gate. Only now, they were one person fewer.

A church carriage was already waiting for Heiter at the gate.

Before boarding, Heiter turned and looked at the three of them carefully. He showed a kind smile, very different from his old self: “…Let me look at you all again. This might be our last meeting.”

“Is something wrong with your health?” Frieren’s face showed clear concern, but Heiter only smiled: “Seems like the payback for drinking so much over the years.”

“That’s truly divine punishment.”

Just as Heiter always called him disgusting, Eisen was equally harsh on him.

But such banter was clearly something they didn’t mind.

Heiter just laughed, turned, and boarded the carriage. He told them to bring wine to his grave if they ever visited the Holy Capital again.

This openness about death left Frieren puzzled. But Heiter’s only reason was…

“We’re the hero’s party that saved the world. After we die, we’ll surely be feasting in heaven, and I fought alongside you all for that too~”

With a jest as his farewell, Heiter, showing a satisfied smile, closed his eyes in the carriage and left as they watched.

“Heaven… huh?” Ash muttered softly in place, making Frieren laugh when she heard it: “Forget about a drunken priest like Heiter. You, a lazy fence-jumper, shouldn’t even dream of it. Especially since you vomited on the Goddess’s statue.”

“No, I never even thought about it.”

“Really? You actually have some self-awareness?”

“Of course.”

After all, the Goddess was the enemy of demons. It’d be strange if he could enter heaven. Just thinking about it, Ash shrugged indifferently.

But this attitude made Frieren a bit worried, as if she feared she’d hurt him, and she corrected: “…That was just a joke. You’re not giving up, are you?”

“…What’s there to give up on?” Ash shook his head with a smile and patted her head: “You, on the other hand, think about what you’ll do next.”

“How many times have I told you, don’t touch my head…” Frieren swatted his hand away in rejection. But with a faint, hard-to-express emotion, she slightly gripped her suitcase and looked at both of them with her usual calm gaze: “Next, I’ll keep doing what I did before… You guys?”

“…Just go home. There’s nothing special to do anyway.”

Eisen’s tone was still monotone, but they’d always been like this, so they didn’t mind too much.

But Ash recalled Eisen’s house, which he’d visited once, and showed a strange expression: “…Honestly, wouldn’t it be better to become an adventurer, earn some money, and renovate that cave a bit? When I went there, I thought it was an open grave.”

“At least I don’t have to worry about thieves. What’s wrong with that?”

“Because there’s nothing valuable, so no need to worry about theft… Is that really a strength?”

“Whatever. These old bones of mine can’t be bothered anymore.” Eisen stroked his still impressively long beard and slowly shook his head: “Besides, I’m used to it. I can eat my fill from hunting. What’s wrong with a worry-free life?”

“You guys really have no ambition…”

Honestly, as members of the hero’s party, aside from Heiter, who found success, the others were basically scraping by at an average level.

As a demon, Ash felt that humanity’s rewards for them were stingy… Fortunately, they didn’t seem to mind at all.

But though Ash had shifted the topic to Eisen, Frieren still stared at him, silently waiting for his answer.

This made Ash, who didn’t want to answer such a tricky question, scratch his head in frustration and sigh: “I’m not sure either. Maybe I’ll wander around? Before I go, I need to head south. There’s an old acquaintance I should probably see.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yeah.”

“Then… see you?”

“…Hopefully there’s a chance.”

The two bid farewell. The quiet Eisen also nodded.

A faint smile and a subtle, barely noticeable sadness quietly mingled, slowly spreading in the air.

Ash was also the first to leave among the three.

Looking at the figure he’d known for a thousand years, so familiar to her, Frieren, standing in place, felt something that might be… called the feeling of parting.

In her heart, a faint ripple of emotion passed, barely perceptible.

It might be a subtle sadness from a temporary separation? She wasn’t quite sure.

But then she thought…

(This surely isn’t a final farewell, but an opening for the next meeting. After all, this guy always shows up out of nowhere when people think he’s dead.)

With that hope, Frieren suppressed all the emotions rising in her heart and hoped, believed, that in the future, there would surely be another meeting.

Though logic told her, this time… without even a promise, they might truly never meet again.

But meetings and partings are the main melody of life, and Frieren was used to it now… Or so it should be.

Yet, thinking they might never meet again made her unconsciously grip her suitcase tighter, standing still, letting the sudden strong wind ruffle her beautiful silver hair.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

When Ash arrived back in the south, which he hadn’t visited in ages, in the Kingdom of Tadd.

The young man from back then—Anderson—had become an old man with white hair. But upon seeing Ash, after a moment of shock, he hurriedly approached with the excitement of a child.

Though his parents had passed, and even his great-granddaughter could already play, Anderson still welcomed him as enthusiastically as he did 59 years ago. He even called all his relatives.

Though a bit awkward, Ash accepted the hospitality. When he couldn’t refuse, he even held Anderson’s great-granddaughter and played with her.

But he only stayed briefly and chose to leave… During that short stay, Anderson surprisingly didn’t ask anything about Ash not aging.

Was it because old people no longer had curiosity, or was there another reason? Ash, whose mind didn’t age like his appearance, didn’t know either.

“…It’s better not to come back.”

After confirming their family was doing well enough and didn’t need his help, Ash decided not to visit this place again.

Because he knew, the next time he returned, Anderson would surely be gone.

So he looked at the old man and his family one last time. Then he lowered his eyes sadly and disappeared from their sight before nightfall.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

And… just like that, one day, about eighteen years later.

While Ash was eating on a city street, he overheard unexpected news from a traveling merchant at the next table, who had just returned from out of town.

“…In the south, war broke out again.”

“Isn’t the south always at war? Even the north only calmed down a few years ago because of the Demon King’s attacks. Didn’t they start fighting again recently too?”

“It’s not the same! This time, three southern countries formed an alliance. The Kingdom of Olms, the first to be attacked, has already fallen. Even the Kingdom of Tadd probably won’t hold out long.”

Based on the merchants’ conversation, the ever-turbulent southern countries were facing another massive war.

The Kingdom of Tadd, where Ash had once been a general, was forced to retreat in this war. In the process, they surrendered many cities, including the one he had built back then.

Though Ash had decided not to return to that city.

Hearing the familiar name, he still felt a bit worried about that family’s situation.

So, after confirming the news, he didn’t hesitate and flew straight south.

Along the way, he saw countless homeless refugees from above and several cities completely destroyed.

His second hometown, familiar yet unfamiliar—the once-prosperous city was now in ruins.

Countless houses consumed by flames left only charred skeletons, telling of the disaster that had struck. Or just frameworks, barely standing.

Even more were reduced to rubble, piled up, forming silent tombstones marking the prosperity that once existed here and the sorrow that now remained.