𝐄𝐩𝐢𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐮𝐞
After the Demon King was defeated, the demons sensed it keenly and, further intimidated by divine magic, fled from the Demon King’s Castle.
Many demons are arrogant, but none truly believed they could win against a foe capable of defeating the Demon King.
Especially after witnessing a grand display of God’s magic, which was more for show than offensive power, they naturally chose to flee.
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However, the fleeing demons were cornered by external forces that overwhelmed them through sheer numbers and the backbone of Iron Dwarfs. The strike team entering the Demon King’s Castle followed from behind, resulting in a pincer attack that led to many demons being slain.
It’s a conflicting feeling to think that among them may have been supporters of the Demon King or Fezard, but the reduction in threats menacing the people is a positive outcome.
There’s no choice but to see it that way.
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Subsequently, the King of the Sirius Kingdom, who was the supreme commander, declared the successful subjugation of the Demon King and the triumph of their operation.
He made a grand announcement to the citizens and conducted both a parade celebrating the Demon King’s defeat in the royal capital and a memorial service for the fallen warriors.
We attended both events as part of the Hero’s Party, and once the two ceremonies were over, the Hero’s Party was formally disbanded.
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Blade returned to the elite knight corps of the Sirius Kingdom, to which he originally belonged.
He plans to work diligently as the successor to Ruberto-san, the next squad leader.
His new job is to hunt down remnants of the Demon King’s Army scattered across various places and to learn various things from seniors like Doug-san to move beyond his meathead ways.
As for me, I’m planning to meddle in his love life as payback for past embarrassments.
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Rin has returned to the Holy God Church to which she originally belonged.
However, it’s not like she returned to her hometown in the countryside; she got a job at the main headquarters of the Holy God Church in the capital city.
She used to say that once you get used to the convenience of city life, you don’t want to go back to the countryside.
It seems that her new job mainly involves treating the often injured knights in the Order, and Blade, who hadn’t lost contact with her, was visibly relieved. It was quite delightful to see.
Eventually, I want to make Rin more aware of this, to make things more interesting.
It should be noted that Stella is in agreement with this opinion.
There seem to be plenty of opportunities to visit the capital city.
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Auntie Elle, who served for many years as the most formidable Holy Warrior, retired and plans to travel at her leisure.
A certain mama’s boy cried upon hearing this, but in an effort to force him to grow up, she undertook the journey without telling her son the destination.
She told us she’d keep writing letters and might visit if she felt like it or if she thought children were about to be born, so we should be able to meet again without issues.
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As for us. . . . . .
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“Ah, we can finally go home. I wonder if everyone’s okay?”
“Probably, they should be fine. Speaking of the previous world, nothing happened there for years.”
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We were having such a conversation as we made our way to a certain location.
The place we are heading to is our rural hometown village.
Stella returned the Holy Sword to the kingdom and the church, and she chose to abandon her position as a hero to return to our hometown with me.
Well, even if we’ve renounced our hero status, the credit for defeating the Demon King remains, so we still have considerable authority.
Nonetheless, we are officially retiring from the public eye.
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Stella didn’t seem to regret it at all.
Rather, she seemed quite relieved.
She had the qualities of a hero, but it wasn’t her style.
If you listen to her stories from when she was training in the castle, she would often say things like, “It was a tense lifestyle.”
She has a father back in her hometown who’s eagerly waiting for her return, so there was no reason not to go back.
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“So, when is the dojo starting?”
“It’s set to start in about six months. We can relax for a while.”
“I see.”
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Just like our friends are starting new jobs and lives, we too have new life prospects.
That is to open a dojo and teach my Ultimate Killing Sword technique to those who haven’t received divine protection.
Stella plans to help out with that and the household chores.
She said, “Leave it to me!” with a pat on her chest.
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By the way, this is a job commissioned by the Pope of the Holy God Church.
The work of the church is to support humanity, and they spare no effort in nurturing exceptional talent.
From the church’s perspective, my swordsmanship, capable of holding its own against demons even without divine protection, seemed very appealing.
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I had been so focused on achieving the goal of defeating the Demon King and saving Stella all this time,
that I hadn’t really thought beyond that, whether I would live in my hometown and help my parents, or if I would accompany Stella if she had something she wanted to do.
So when the Pope approached me and said that if I didn’t have a specific plan, he had a job for me, I was open to it.
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So, I accepted the offer.
Like Ruberto-san, I wanted to leave something behind for the next generation.
The Pope’s proposal was a godsend.
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However, I did make a request to spend some time alone with Stella for a while.
I’ll never forget the look in the Pope’s eyes when we discussed this.
It was as if he had the compassionate eyes of God and the mischievous eyes of our friends, all rolled into one.
I was oddly convinced that this man is at the top of the Holy God Church, closest to God.
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“Are you sure you’re okay? Your senses haven’t returned, right?”
“Don’t worry. I’ve recovered enough to spar with you.”
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In response to Stella, who asked with a worried look, I replied as follows.
My senses, which went crazy because I pushed myself too hard in the final battle with the Demon King, seem to have broken somewhere.
As expected, even though my body fully recovered with Healing Magic, it never returned to normal.
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At first, I couldn’t use any of my ultimate sword techniques, but rehabilitation has made it possible for me to use six from Flowing Blade to Sky Rebellion.
However, that’s all it is—possible.
The accuracy has dropped significantly, and Final Strike is still unusable.
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Now that my skills have declined, and I’ve lost Kurotenmaru, Onryomaru, and the Storm Leg Armor, it’s safe to say my fighting ability has significantly decreased.
It’s not a bluff to say that I can spar with Stella, but if we were to go all-out, I would likely lose.
It would be a close match if it ended after one point was scored.
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Well, on the flip side, if it’s just a match, then it’s barely fine.
Both in terms of teaching others and play-fighting with Stella.
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I don’t have any lingering attachment to the power I’ve lost.
That power was necessary to defeat the extraordinary enemies standing in Stella’s way.
Since I’ve overcome that, the role of that power is finished.
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As long as God doesn’t mess up and a new Demon King doesn’t attack during my lifetime, the power I have left is more than enough.
I believe in you, God.
I’m sure you won’t make the same mistake as you did with Dragburn.
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. . . . . .For now, while teaching at the dojo, I should also seriously retrain myself.
I do plan on leaving behind something like a secret manual, but not being able to demonstrate and teach the Final Strike in person is a problem.
It’s not that I don’t trust God.
I really do.
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“But for now.”
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I clenched the hand I was holding tightly.
The left hand that’s connected to Stella.
Stella’s face turns red with just that; maybe she’s not yet used to this feeling.
Now, I can genuinely think Stella looks cute in such a moment.
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Back when we dated, I was desperate not to drown in this feeling of happiness.
I even wore gauntlets on the hands we held.
Now, there’s no need for such restraints.
The gauntlets have become tattered from the fierce battles in the Demon King’s Castle, and now that both the Demon King and the Four Heavenly Kings are gone, there’s no longer a need for us to fight.
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Of course, I won’t stop training to prepare for unforeseen circumstances, and as long as I’m running a dojo, I won’t be putting down my sword anytime soon.
Even so, there’s no longer a need to be on edge all the time.
No need to keep running at full speed.
I should be allowed to savor this happiness.
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“Heh.”
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I can’t help but smile.
Ah, I’m happy.
I’m truly feeling happiness right now.
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The fight against the Demon King’s Army was tough.
Many people, including Ruberto-san and Rest, have been lost.
Even the deaths of the Demon King and Fezard, who were enemies, don’t leave a good aftertaste.
This ending might not be a perfect happy ending.
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It’s war, after all, so it’s natural that there are sacrifices.
The world is filled with hardships, but it’s precisely because of that that even everyday life is difficult to maintain, and regaining mundane happiness is also tough—that’s why it’s valuable.
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I want to treasure these valuable days ahead.
I want to cherish the warmth of this hand that I was able to protect.
Even for the lives that were lost.
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“We’ll be happy, Stella.”
“. . . . . .What’s with the sudden cheesy line? That’s a given.”
“You’re right. It’s a given.”
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More than anything, it’s precious.
We know that.
Back when we were ten years old, the ordinary suddenly crumbled, we drifted apart, struggled immensely, and even after reuniting, we continued to struggle.
I remember all of it.
That’s why, I’m sure we can cherish the ordinary daily life, simple happiness, and everyday moments more than anything.
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A few days later.
We arrived back in our hometown.
Uncle was the first to notice and ran to Stella with a face messed up by tears and snot,
Dad looked at our interlocked hands with a gentle expression, and Mom welcomed our return with eyes full of mischief.
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I do have a word or two about Mom’s attitude, but I hold back, knowing it would just add fuel to the fire.
Instead, we spoke the words most needed at that moment.
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“”We’re home!””
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And so, our long journey came to an end.
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