After being seen off by the Hera Familia, who looked terribly apologetic, I finally had a moment to myself. To settle my heavy stomach, I decided to take a night walk through Orario.
It was already growing dark, and one shop after another was starting to close. As more time passed, even those few lights vanished, leaving me to walk alone through streets swallowed by a complete, heavy silence.
*Is there a tavern around here...?*
Normally, even in the dead of night, the noise from the pubs would keep such a stillness at bay. It seemed there were far fewer taverns in this era than I had expected.
*So there was a time like this, too.*
The Orario in my memories had always been boisterous, so this silence felt strangely alien. It was almost as if I had been transported to another city or world that merely resembled the one I knew.
*So much has happened...*
As I wandered the streets, old memories began to surface unbidden.
From the first time I arrived, to my first adventure, failures, challenges, successes, the cheers, the criticism, the tears, and the longing.
Along with those fragmented memories, the emotions of that time rose and faded. Smiling wryly at memories that were happy yet now carried a faint, stinging ache, I directed my steps toward a specific place.
"Haa..."
After all, this was the best place to be when you had something on your mind.
From atop the city wall, I looked down at Orario wrapped in darkness. Seeing it from this height made it feel doubly unfamiliar.
"What am I supposed to do now...?"
I muttered to myself in frustration, but no answer came. Then again, since I was talking to myself, it would be far more terrifying if something actually answered.
With a troubled heart, I looked up at the sky. There were no clouds; the clear night sky was brimming with stars and the glow of the moon.
Woom— I thought I felt a faint tremor, but it vanished instantly. Was it just my imagination?
"Haa..."
Lately, every time I started to relax, another incident would erupt, making me forget where I was and what I was even doing here.
*I need to make a decision soon.*
As Materia had said, nothing would change if I just kept agonizing over it. I had to decide my direction.
It wasn't just about Ais. Including the other major issues, I had to decide what attitude to take when faced with the choices that would determine my future.
Should I follow the path, oppose it, or simply ignore it?
The options before me were all equally daunting. In other words, it felt as though I would regret whichever one I chose.
My conscience wouldn't allow me to ignore it. But if I opposed it, the future I had already walked through would pull me back by the ankles.
It felt as if my goddess and all the companions I had grown close to were being held hostage. The fact that I could change their futures with my own hands weighed heavily on me.
It should have been the same when I was living through it the first time, so why did it feel so repulsive now? Was it because I was conscious of the knowledge I possessed?
"Haa..."
A third sigh. But that didn't change a thing.
No matter how many times I sighed, the burden in my heart didn't lighten in the slightest.
Perhaps that was why.
"You look like you've got a lot on your mind."
"...!"
I hadn't noticed someone approaching from behind.
"You are..."
I hurriedly turned around to identify the figure.
No matter how distracted I had been, to not notice someone getting this close... Had I really been resting for too long?
Feeling the passage of time in a way that felt entirely wrong for me, I looked up to see a man with a build so massive it was impossible to mistake him for anyone else.
"[Great Figure]...?"
"It's been a while."
A heavy, deep bass voice and a presence to match.
The strongest man in the city. Grandpa's first and most powerful subordinate had appeared before my eyes.
"What brings you here... You aren't here to check on something again, are you...?"
"Just a simple patrol. Before a great undertaking, this kind of groundwork is essential."
"I see..."
[Great Figure]'s words were logically sound. The more important the event, the more thorough the preparation should be.
But at the same time, the way he said it felt suspicious. Being "thorough" often meant there was something specific one was worried about.
And [Great Figure] wasn't the type of person to simply be "overly worried."
"Is there something bothering you?"
"...I can't say there isn't. There's already one right in front of me."
"Huh?"
I instinctively glanced left and right. Naturally, there was nothing there.
"...Me?"
[Great Figure] gave a slow nod.
Wait, you're suspicious of me now?
"It's not suspicion. You're just one of the things that's bothering me."
"Isn't that the same thing? Why now of all times...?"
"Hmph."
[Great Figure] let out a small chuckle at my flustered reaction.
What? Was he actually teasing me?
"You looked like you were moping, so I thought I'd make a joke."
A joke... I knew [Great Figure] was human and capable of humor, but given his image, it was a surprising thing to hear.
He looked like the kind of man so rigid that a sword would snap if you tried to stab him. I hadn't realized he had such a soft side.
If that's the case, why was he so sharp with me last time?
"I heard from the old man before. As expected, you were someone connected to him."
"Old man...? Do you mean... Lord Zeus?"
"Hm? You aren't on familiar terms?"
"Pardon?"
"Anyone actually connected to that old man wouldn't use a refined title like 'Lord Zeus.' Most call him an old man, a geezer, or just plain trash."
*Grandpa... just what kind of life are you living?*
"Well, regardless... why are you moping around here at this hour?"
"I'm not moping... I was just thinking about the future."
"Hm. So you were moping."
I told you, I'm not moping!
I felt a prickle of irritation as he kept dismissing my serious concerns as "moping." I was being sincere here!
"Because you are."
"No, I mean..."
"Why are you worrying so much? You weren't like this before."
"That's..."
There was only one "before" he could be referring to: the first time we met.
Back then, I didn't have the full context, so I had just blurted things out without a second thought. Now that my head was full of complications, I couldn't possibly be the same person.
I didn't regret what I did. Even if I were thrown back into that situation, I would make the same choice and say the same words.
But that didn't mean the worry had vanished. As long as I was in the past, this anxiety would continue to surge like a natural disaster, tormenting me.
The only solution was to reach a conclusion, yet I remained frozen, unable to move forward.
"Hmm..."
He didn't speak, but not everything in this world requires words to be understood. In rare cases, silence can teach more than a thousand words ever could.
[Great Figure]'s eyes were sharp, as if they were piercing through my soul. The gaze of a seasoned warrior held an indescribable weight.
"I see. I have a general idea of what's wrong."
*You do? What exactly do you think you know, old man?*
"Do you know the wasteland to the north, beyond the city wall?"
"...? You mean over there?"
I remembered the place. If I recalled correctly, it was a spot you reached after crossing three mountains...?
"Yes, there. Tomorrow, when the sun rises, meet me there."
"Huh? Wait, hold on—?!"
Before I could even respond, [Great Figure] had already leaped away, vanishing into the distance.
"What the...!"
I had a lot I wanted to say, but since I had no real excuse to chase him, I just grumbled and returned to the underground shelter that had become my home. I slept, woke before dawn, and headed to the location he had indicated.
When I arrived, I saw [Great Figure] just finishing the task of moving something.
"Hm, you came."
As he spoke, he set down the object he was carrying.
Thud— A tremendous crash echoed, and for a moment, I felt as if the earth itself had trembled.
*...A pillar?*
It was a pillar—a massive one, looking as though it could support an entire castle. Just by looking at it, I could tell it was incredibly heavy; even I would have struggled to lift it easily.
Why did he call me out here so suddenly, and why on earth was there a pillar...?
"Did you bring a weapon?"
"Uh... yes?"
"Good."
With that, [Great Figure] turned his back to the pillar and faced me.
The moment he turned, the surroundings began to darken as if night had suddenly fallen.
"!!!"
No, this wasn't actual darkness!
I immediately leaped back, dropped into a combat stance, and tensed every muscle in my body.
This was killing intent. Pure, concentrated bloodlust so dense it threatened to swallow everything in its path!
"What is this...!"
"This is the best way to blow away your worries."
Ignoring my panic, [Great Figure] continued. However, in his eyes, there was a fighting spirit that he could no longer hide.
"I won't waste words."
His voice dripped with competitive drive and the raw euphoria of a warrior.
He might have been saying something else, but to my ears, it sounded like only one thing:
*Come at me.*
*I'm going to kill you right here.*
*
The lion thought to himself. He would bestow a baptism upon the rabbit before him.
He would grant a new lesson to a wandering new comrade.
Yes, this was a trial. As a hero, he would become the towering wall blocking his junior—a trial that would force the boy to become a stronger adventurer.
He wanted the rabbit to climb over that wall and be reborn.
The rabbit was certainly not weak, but he was naive.
He was strong, yet simultaneously lacked the true strength of a warrior.
Therefore, this was a trial the lion would impose. A blessing from a senior to a junior.
By overcoming this, the rabbit would cast off the rust covering his soul and reach the realm of a Hero once more.
*Tch, am I just making excuses?*
Perhaps it wasn't even necessary. Perhaps the rabbit was already complete.
But to the lion, that didn't matter in the slightest.
A formidable enemy that required every ounce of strength to defeat.
An absolute wall that remained insurmountable even after pushing past one's limits.
That was the very trajectory he had walked. The journey they had all shared.
Was it a joke? Or was it fate?
The past had stepped forward to block the future.
From the moment the rabbit stood before him, the lion had craved this encounter.
Eras cycle. Stories cycle.
And perhaps, so does the will of the [Heroes].
Unconsciously, the lion had wanted to see a future where he no longer existed.
He wanted to confirm it.
*Has it been properly passed on?*
The trajectory that he, and the others, had left behind.
As if drawn by their collective wish, the white rabbit had headed toward Orario.
A rabbit who admired them, imitated them, and longed to be like them.
Had the rabbit used them as a stepping stone to move forward?
If so... he couldn't possibly let him pass so easily!!!
The lion wept. With his heart, with his very soul.
To a junior he should never have met, he wanted to deliver the greatest baptism possible in this moment.
He wanted to offer the highest form of praise.
To ask if he had truly dared to follow in their footsteps, and if he had managed not to disgrace their name.
It was the instinct of a lion, something beyond the understanding of the gods. He grasped a fragment of something that could not be processed by the mind or the heart.
In this moment, he realized by instinct, not reason, what he had to do.
The trial.
The duty he had never fully discharged.
The baptism.
The conclusion to a role he had been unable to finish.
The duty and the right that they should have fulfilled, but never could.
He would bring it to an end here and now. With that declaration, the lion let out a thunderous roar.
And the battle began.