A spring breeze drifted in through the gap in the window.
From beyond the streets of the Royal Capital, the peal of bells reached my ears, followed by the sharp crackle of fireworks. Cheers and singing spilled from the taverns. Even now, months after the fact, the capital remained steeped in the afterglow of celebration.
—Hero Leon had defeated the Demon King.
The news had swept the nation in an instant, moving people to tears of joy. The threat of the Demon King was gone, and peace had finally arrived. Hero Leon’s name was firmly etched into history, and rumors even claimed a bronze statue would be erected in the Royal Capital Square.
It was a celebratory occasion.
I leaned back in my chair in the House Kronstadt study. The spring sunlight streaming through the window cast soft shadows across the desk.
Thanks to healing magic, my physical wounds had closed, but scars remained. They were like medals of honor carved into me during the final battle with Verdict.
Medals, huh?
Though they were medals whose meaning was understood by only three other people.
In the moments after I defeated Verdict and Aristia vanished into light—
I had no time to stand there in a daze. The different dimension space began to collapse.
Giant cracks spiderwebbed across the ceiling, and stone pillars shattered. Rubble rained down in a relentless torrent.
This was bad. The whole place was coming down!
I shook Silvia, Milia, and Kaname awake, then grabbed Klaus’s body and somehow managed to escape through the entrance door indicated by Florina’s petals.
Klaus, who had been used by Verdict and died—
Even though he was no longer among the living, I couldn't bring myself to leave him behind.
When we returned to the Academy, our appearance—bloodied and carrying the body of a missing classmate—caused a massive stir. Fortunately, thanks to the even greater uproar surrounding the fall of the Demon King, our situation barely became a topic of conversation.
Since I couldn't explain the truth, I told a simple lie.
We had engaged the Demon Race. Klaus, who had come to our aid, was killed in battle.
That was it.
There was no point in speaking of Verdict or Aristia. The Demon King was dead. Hero Leon had slain her. It was enough for the world to know that single fact.
The only solace was that Klaus’s honor was preserved and his death was confirmed. His family wouldn't have to spend the rest of their lives waiting for someone who would never return.
I brought my consciousness back to the present world.
In short, no one knew of my struggles. Not that they needed to.
A single notebook on the desk caught my eye.
It was the Theory Notebook of 'Final Extreme Blade' that I had co-developed with Aristia. The cover was worn and soiled from use, its corners curled.
Aristia had kept it to organize her thoughts, and I hadn't touched it since. The inside was surely filled with her illegible scrawl.
I reached out and brushed the cover.
However, I didn't have the heart to open it yet. If I did, I knew a whirlwind of emotions would tear through my chest. In my current state of exhaustion, I didn't have the strength to weather them.
Not yet.
When the time was right, I would open it.
It wasn't just Aristia. So many people had died. Even just among those close to me: Luna, Leon, Serafina, Klaus, Eliana...
I was lucky enough to be a survivor.
It had been worth the desperate struggle to escape my death flags, but sometimes I couldn't help but feel that my very struggle had birthed this tragedy.
Was I overthinking it?
A knock sounded at the door.
Before I could answer, the door swung open with a bang.
"Albert-kun, don't just shut yourself away! Come outside! It's a festival!"
It was Silvia. Her silver hair swayed as she charged into the study with a radiant smile.
"Come on, look on the bright side. The world is savoring peace, you know? It's about time you stopped acting all cool and melancholy with that somber face."
"I'm not exactly trying to act cool!"
Kaname cut in.
"Lord Albert! I desire a recharge! It has been quite some time, and my body is aching...!"
No, well... recharging was easy enough, so that was fine, but she always made such strange noises during the process. I wasn't really in the mood to hear that.
"Say, Lord Albert. Maybe it's because things have become peaceful, but the rats targeting you have all disappeared lately... I'm bored, so won't you tell me if there's anyone in your way?"
Milia's suggestion was terrifying.
She was definitely planning to kill them, wasn't she?
The serene atmosphere was ruined in an instant. It always turned out like this whenever these three showed up.
"...Can't you lot be a little quieter?"
"I think a talkative agent is perfectly fine!"
"I wish for the aching in my body to be stopped, forsooth!"
"I can be quiet when I'm assassinating someone, you know? So just give me an assassination request!"
Three different, immediate responses.
Good grief. They really never changed. Their wounds were fully healed, and they were right back to their usual antics.
Well, I was just happy they were doing well. If even one of them were missing, my melancholy would have likely swallowed me whole.
That was precisely why the thought haunted me.
Could I not have at least saved Luna?
"Luna..."
The name slipped out under my breath. The eyes of the three women reacted instantly.
Acting as their spokesperson, Silvia spoke up.
"Hey. Are you still worrying about Luna?"
"...Yeah."
She had desired the battle against the Demon King and died according to that will.
When I sent her off, I told myself that even if it came to that, it was what she wanted. But now that she was truly gone, regret filled my heart.
I had the power to forcibly command her with the Blood Covenant.
If I had stopped her, she might still be here now, full of life.
"The right to choose her fate belonged to me."
A heavy sigh escaped me.
"There was a savable route, wasn't there...?"
"I wonder about that. Is that not perhaps Lord Albert's arrogance?"
"Is it?"
"I have decided to live by bushido and die by bushido," Kaname said. "If the conclusion follows that path, I think nothing of it. Rather, being unable to follow it would be the true tragedy. Since Lady Luna saw her own will through to the end, should that choice not be respected?"
"I suppose you're right."
It wasn't just Luna.
Leon and Serafina had also followed their own wills, defeated the Demon King, and passed away.
They chose a path different from mine, but that path was not wrong.
I wanted to believe it wasn't wrong.
Silence fell over the study.
Silvia spoke softly then. Her voice wasn't light like before, but steady and quiet.
"Hey. We're the ones who are still alive. We have to move forward."
"Indeed. We are alive because of Lord Albert. To repay that debt, I shall accompany you to the ends of the earth."
"Milia-chan-sama will stay by Lord Albert's side forever! Because I'm Lord Albert's property, after all!"
I knew they were trying to encourage me.
They were good people—friends who refused to abandon me even after I'd spent months with a shadow over my heart.
"Thank you. Everyone."
The words came out more naturally than I expected.
At my words, the three of them smiled.
"You're right. It's about time I looked forward."
I stood up and threw the window wide open. A pleasant spring breeze rushed in, and the vast blue sky was a balm to my eyes.
A new era was beginning.
It was a peaceful era built upon many sacrifices. Managing it well was my mission as a survivor.
The Demon King was dead, and I had already surpassed the end of the original game's plot.
From here on, an era I didn't know was spreading out before me.
Suddenly, Verdict's parting words crossed my mind.
It's almost a waste that you don't aim to be a Demon King. Have you not changed your mind?
Ridiculous.
I muttered a quiet reply.
"I have no interest in that."
"Hmm? Did you say something?" Silvia tilted her head.
"No. Just talking to myself."
Ten years have passed since then.
I now occupy a position in this country's court as the head of the Ducal House of Kronstadt.
As for what they call me in the palace...
—The Demon King.
Whoa, seriously?
All I did was independently establish diplomatic relations with the Duchy of Osterreich, develop trade and public works to amass immense wealth, and revitalize the Ducal House of Kronstadt after it had been sidelined for so long.
Furthermore, I am feared because I keep three incredibly dangerous beauties by my side.
My skilled agent—the way she controls information across nations and prepares an advantageous hand for any negotiation has earned her the title of the Silver Vixen.
The Kingdom's Strongest Assassin—a petite girl with pink hair who, even after ten years, silences my enemies in the court with that same innocent smile.
The strong-armed samurai from the East—the presence of a female warrior carrying a katana and clad in lightning is a deterrent that intimidates everyone around her just by existing.
Because of all this, the old, corrupt factions that oppose me absolutely loathe me. Of course, since they oppose me so openly, I tend to crush them without mercy.
...Yeah, I guess I am a Demon King.
I suppose I can't complain about the nickname.
Verdict, did you actually predict this future?
On one such busy day, I decided to take a break. I went to my study and took a single notebook out of a drawer.
It was the notebook left by Aristia—the one I couldn't bring myself to look at ten years ago.
I exhaled slowly and placed my finger on the cover.
Ten years of time had gradually healed my heart and eased the tension within me. I finally felt the courage to face what was inside.
I slowly opened the book.
It was packed with Aristia's messy scribbles. This illegible, filthy handwriting was incredibly nostalgic. Though, looking at it now, I really can't read it. Back then, I'd trained myself to decipher her scrawl, but it might take me a while to remember how.
Fragments of thoughts were scattered across the pages. I picked out the bits I could read.
'Today's food was delicious.'
'Albert-kun is a wimp and mean.'
What exactly were you writing in a theory notebook?
Among those doodles, however, I found these words. They were written in characters that were slightly neater than the rest.
'Albert-kun is my friend. I'm happy.'
I chuckled and gave my answer to the ten-year-old message.
"You're right. You are my friend."
I whispered the words and softly closed the notebook.
Finally, I felt as though the story from ten years ago had come to a close.