“What’s wrong Aria?”
“Th-that... it’s just...”
As she hesitated, Aria slowly extended sothing towards .
“H-Here, take this...”
“...?”
Curious, I looked at the familiar piece of cloth in her hand.
It was identical to the handkerchief she had given about a year ago.
It was hastily made, with a rough surface and a crooked silver cat embroidered in the middle.
And as I looked at the handkerchief, I noticed the nurous scars on Aria’s hands.
Judging by the scars, it seed she had rushed to make it.
“Did you make this in a hurry?”
When I asked, uncertain, she nodded with a pale face.
“Why?”
Her face filled with anxiety as she held out the handkerchief.
“I heard everything from sister Kania...”
“...”
“Brother. Are you really going to go through with the plan? Really...?”
“...Yes.”
Not wanting to lie, I nodded, and Aria’s face crumpled as if she were about to cry.
“W-we just cleared up our misunderstanding.”
“...”
“And now I can finally be good to you...”
Her slender arm, holding the handkerchief, trembled violently.
“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely co back.”
As I stroked her head and reassured her, Aria looked up at with frightened eyes and spoke with a trembling voice.
“Brother... please take with you...”
“Absolutely not.”
That was sothing I could never allow.
Not you, Aria.
“Th-then...”
As if expecting my reaction, she bit her lip and tried to place the handkerchief in my hand.
“At least take this...”
“...”
“So I can know how you’re doing...”
A faint glow of starlight emanated from the handkerchief.
So she could know how I was doing?
Had all the mana imbued in the handkerchiefs been connected to ?
“...Oh?”
As I pulled out the handkerchief I had been carrying, Aria’s eyes widened.
“You... you didn’t throw it away?”
She dropped the hastily made handkerchief and asked with a blank expression.
“Why would I throw this away?”
Unfolding the beautifully decorated handkerchief, I responded.
“I’ll cherish it forever.”
The silver cat Aria had embroidered, Kania’s black cat, Irina’s red dog, Serena’s gentle moon.
Clana’s golden canary. Ferloche’s silly-faced pigeon.
And recently, the red ruby Ruby had added as decoration.
This handkerchief, perfectly harmonized with all those colors, was my most treasured possession, unlike any other in the world.
“Brotherrrrrr...”
Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at the treasured handkerchief, Aria finally burst into tears.
“I... I always acted like a fool... The brother I wanted... was always by my side...”
Silently patting her back, I kissed her forehead and stood up.
“I’m off, Aria.”
“Ah, ah...”
She stood up with .
“You stay here. I’ll be back soon.”
“...”
Gently setting her back down, I smiled and turned away.
“When I return, let’s go on a picnic.”
“...”
“And have so sandwiches.”
As I said that with a smile, a soft voice ca from behind.
“You’ll really be back soon...?”
“I promise.”
I had to keep this promise to my sister.
“Brother... please be careful...”
“Haha.”
“Don’t take it lightly, Young Master. No matter what the plan is... be cautious.”
With that, Kania and I left the mansion.
“...I’ll rember.”
It was ti to move toward the end.
.
.
.
.
.
The following days were incredibly busy.
“So this is the Hero’s Armant...”
“I’d like to try it on...”
“Get that thing away from . It feels unpleasant.”
From dealing with Serena, who was trying to analyze the Hero’s Armant, Isolet, who eyed the Armant with envy, and Ruby, who instinctively recoiled from it.
“Hello? How? Are you! Nice to et? You!”
“...Is this really going well?”
“I don’t? Know!”
Then receiving soul treatnt from Ferloche, who was still in the process of rging the two personalities.
“Yum...”
“”...””
Dealing with all the killing intents the heroines emit every ti Miho gave her fox bead while she kept tending to Glare, who was still sick.
“Frey, co here. It’s ti to review the plan.”
“That... We’ve reviewed it hundreds of tis–”
“Co here.”
“...Yes.”
Being summoned by Serena, who was extrely tense, dozens of tis a day to simulate the plan.
- Boom!!!
“Wow... you’re really strong with that on.”
“As expected of the Hero’s Armant...”
“Grrrrr...”
Repeating grueling 3-on-1 battles with Irina, Ruby, and Lulu to get used to the Hero’s Armant.
“You’ve exhausted yourself? Good job.”
“Young Master. I’ve prepared a bath. Please co.”
“...Slurp.”
And doing sothing in the na of stamina enhancent every night...
It was indeed very busy.
- Sssk, Sssk...
“What are you doing, Young Master?”
One particularly morable mont was...
“Oh, I’m writing letters.”
“...Letters?”
I was writing letters to everyone I had ever had a connection with.
“What are you writing...?”
“Just... various things. Things I’ve wanted to say.”
At a glance, it might seem like a trivial act, but it held significant aning for .
Writing letters was one of the ten items on my bucket list.
Ideally, I would have liked to et each person individually, have conversations, and clear the air, but ti didn’t allow for that, so I had to be content with sending letters.
However, once I returned, I would definitely have heart-to-heart conversations with everyone.
“Ma-ma-master.”
At the mont my letters arrived at everyone’s mailboxes, I was on a hill near the cabin, wearing the Hero’s Armant, facing Lulu.
“I-I’m so nervous...”
The heroines, usually talkative, were now silently watching us with anxious expressions.
“This is a surprise party, right? You’re just trying to trick , aren’t you?”
“...Sigh.”
“...S-Sorry.”
Miho, who had just heard about the plan today and broke the silence awkwardly, received cold glares from everyone.
“Ugh...”
Miho looked at nervously, fiddling with her fingers.
“...Well, let’s begin.”
I smirked at her and then quietly raised the sword in my hand.
“Master...”
Still tense, Lulu clung to .
“Rember, Frey. Once you are in your spiritual form...”
“...Please be careful.”
Serena, equally tense, began the final briefing, while Ruby, holding Serena’s hand, whispered encouraging words to us.
“”...””
The rest of the heroines watched us silently, unable to utter a word.
“...Good luck, Young Master.”
Smiling at them, I took a deep breath and gripped the sword tightly.
- Srrrng...
“A...”
Lulu’s eyes began to waver as she felt the cold blade piercing her back.
“...Cough.”
She looked at , equally shaken, as we both stumbled.
“...Hehe.”
Then, with a sleepy expression, Lulu started licking my cheek.
- Thud...
In the next mont, both of us fell to our knees.
- Drip...
The sword, which had pierced through Lulu’s back and my abdon, glistened in the sunlight.
“”...””
Ti passed.
“Master...”
Feeling the blood drain from my body and my mind grow hazy, Lulu, shivering and spitting blood, whispered to .
“I believe in you, master...”
As soon as she finished speaking, Lulu began to dissolve into particles of light.
“... too.”
Realizing that I was also turning into particles of light, I left a final ssage as I looked at Lulu and everyone else.
“...I believe in all of you.”
As those words left my mouth.
- Crackle...!!!
A massive pillar of starlight enveloped the entire hill.
- Rumble...
The heroines, who had been watching, began to retreat from the overwhelming power.
Lulu and I quietly closed our eyes.
- Boom!!!
Thus, the Hero and the Demon King vanished without a trace.
.
.
.
.
.
A few hours later.
“They... really did it.”
“...Ugh.”
“Are they okay...?”
As the pillar of light dispersed, the heroines, who had retreated, gathered with uneasy expressions.
“Don’t worry, everyone. The plan is perfect.”
In their midst, Serena, still holding Ruby’s hand, smiled reassuringly.
“Now we just have to wait for Frey’s signal. Right?”
“Yeah...”
“So let’s go back and prepare, so we can respond imdiately.”
“Right.”
Nodding to Serena’s words, the heroines followed her back to their seaside refuge.
“Serena, when do you think we’ll hear from him?”
“I’m not sure...? But my guess is within a week.”
“Hah. Frey will contact us within a day.”
“...Wanna bet?”
“Is that a challenge? Fine. I accept.”
Thus began their wait.
One day.
“...Hmm. That idiot Frey. He’s late.”
“See? I told you one day was too optimistic.”
“But he’ll definitely co in two days.”
Two days.
“...Hmm.”
“See? It’s exactly a week, right?”
“How about three days this ti?”
Three days.
“Another loss? Haha...”
“Ugh...”
Four days.
“...”
“I’m starting to go crazy worrying about Frey.”
“It’s okay, everyone. He’ll definitely contact us within a week.”
Ti flowed slower than usual.
“”...””
The eagerly awaited week finally arrived.
“This is strange...? He should have contacted us by now...”
Serena, who had been listening to prenatal music all day, got up with an uncharacteristically anxious expression as the clock struck the hour.
“”...””
Seeing Serena’s reaction, the heroines, who had been silently watching her all day, t her eyes.
“Haha, haha... I guess there’s an unforeseen variable. I need to recalculate.”
Serena forced a smile and continued.
“And it’s possible we’ll hear from him any mont now.”
“But... we haven’t heard anything.”
“At least within two weeks. I’m sure of it.”
Ti began to pass again.
“It seems there’s a variable... But it’s still within expectations. Frey will handle it...”
Two weeks.
“This is strange? Irina, co here. We need to review a few equations...”
Three weeks.
“Frey...? Why isn’t he coming...?”
And a month.
“Why...? Why...? Why...?”
Serena’s forced smile finally disappeared, and for the first ti, she lowered her head.
- Knock knock...!
- Ding dong! Ding dong!
By the ti people who had received Frey’s letters started visiting the seaside cabin, laughter, and conversation had long vanished.
And still, there was no sign of Frey.
- Dong...♪ Dong...♪
As the chis signaling the turn of the year echoed everywhere.
The heroines finally began to grasp the horrifying reality they had been denying.
“”...””
They realized that their world wasn’t a cliché fairy tale.
“Frey... lost?”
In a world that had regained its light and vitality, the darkest tale was unfolding before them.
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