Epilogue (1) – Part 2

The soldiers from Minurd stared in confusion. I wasn’t their friend, but I also wasn’t exactly their enemy. A Nadvien swordsman in a robe in the middle of the Hwenian capital… It was understandable that everyone was confused at my sudden appearance. Another strong wind blew, revealing my black hair and my sharp sword. I took off my scarf and my hood.

“Eri… So how long has it been?”

“… It has been 3 years, Juya.”

He finally turned towards me. When the soldiers tried to restrain me, Eriez raised his hand to stop them and added, “And a few months on top of that if you can believe it.”

Time passed by so fast. I could tell that he was comfortable with his prosthetic left hand. It would’ve taken a very long time for him to get used to it. I hadn’t realized I had been wandering around for years. I looked around at the soldiers, but I didn’t recognize anyone other than Eriez.

I faced Eriez again. It felt like it was only yesterday when I last saw him on that narrow path as I tried to escape Minurd. I remembered how he cut his own left hand to let me go… How he scarified himself for me.

I asked him calmly, “I thought Hakim Karid was expecting reinforcements from the capital the year after I left so he could invade Hwen… I was expecting him to invade Hwen years ago, but I guess it didn’t work out the way he wanted, huh?”

When I asked casually, Eriez grinned and shrugged his shoulders as if nothing extreme was happening around us. He replied in the same relaxed tone, “Well, I guess many things happened since you left.”

“Hmm… What things? Like maybe the Goddess’ warrior took too long to test his men’s loyalty? Every time he deemed a soldier disloyal, he beheaded him and kept asking for more soldiers from the capital? Is that what happened?”

“… Juya.”

Last time I saw him, Eriez told me that we would be enemies when we meet again. But… But we both learned that winning without a fight was the most precious victory a man could achieve. So what were we supposed to do now?

At this time, I didn’t want to talk about our past. Instead, I wanted to ask the reason behind this invasion.

“Eri, is it essential to come to this kingdom and kill all these innocent people? This is a massacre. Is that what the warrior ordered? Is that what you really want to do?”

“… I can see that you are practically a Hwenian now, huh? Defending them like they are your own?”

His men flinched and tightened their grips on their swords, not realizing that Eriez was only joking. He continued, “… It’s true, Juya; that was the order. The Goddess’ warrior ordered us to kill as many Hwenians as possible and destroy their culture. That is why we came all the way here.”

“And do you even know why he ordered such a thing?”

I smiled bitterly and undid my cloak, which dropped on the ground. I was wearing a typical Hwenian shirt and pants. I grabbed my scabbard and held the sword handle.

Would I end up being forced to draw my sword today? Against Eriez?

My old friend, a loyal Innocent One, gave me the same answer he gave me a long time ago.

“Is it necessary for me to know the warrior’s reason behind his order? If the Goddess’ warrior ordered it, he must have had a good reason for it. I trust him, and as his servant, I am honored to do his bidding. Of course, you, Juya, would disagree as usual. Typical Juya. You would want to go against the warrior no matter what, I guess. You haven’t changed at all.”

Well… This was not true. It wasn’t that I would disagree with every decision Hakim made intentionally. The first person to claim that many Hwenians needed to die was the mad prophet. I didn’t know why, and I was just wondering if the warrior knew. What I found most interesting was the fact that the Goddess’ warrior tried to kill the mad prophet many times. Now… Hakim Karid was doing the exact thing the prophet wanted. I grinned at the irony of it.

I said to Eriez, “But Eriez, I think you should let these people go. As you can see, they are a pathetic bunch. They are innocent.”

“…”

“You probably killed plenty on your way to the capital, right? Shouldn’t that be enough?”

“And if we do not kill them here? These losers will end up dying somewhere else. Even if we do not kill them now, they will end up being killed soon, so just shut up. It’s none of your business, Juya. Step aside. You are in my way.'”

He came to me to push me away, but before he reached me, I took out my sword part way. I lowered my body a little, ready to pounce, and looked up at him.

“I don’t understand you, Eri. You aren’t making any sense, but perhaps it’s because I’m an idiot. I guess I am an empty man without responsibility or home. I guess… All I want is for the people to not die in front of my eyes anymore.”

“…”

“The Prince told me to just live, so that is what I did. Once I became just a normal citizen, my life became simple. I don’t even know how many people died on your way here, but all I care about is for these people to survive this day. So Eriez, just go back home. Take your goons, and return to Minurd. You have done enough.”

Just then, he took out his sword swiftly and swung at me. My reflex kicked in, and I drew my own sword entirely from the scabbard to block him. As soon as I felt his attack, I realized that Eriez was only trying to warn me, not kill me or even hurt me. He didn’t put his full force into his attack. I asked him, “Hmm… Is it the best you can do? Is it because you now only have one arm?”

“What?”

“You seem much weaker than before, Eriez.”

His pride was hurt, so he swung at me a few more times, but half the time, I knew he was just pretending. It was clear that his intention wasn’t to kill me or even to hurt me. He purposely missed me a few times, and any attacks that got close enough to me to hurt me were too weak. He made it too easy for me to block him.

I asked him again, “Are you kidding me?”

“Yup.”

He answered me simply, and I realized that perhaps we both just wanted to talk.

If we were given a chance, we would have loved to talk like those classy people who sat at an elegant table and drank tea, or like lovers whispering in their bed.

This was how swordsmen talked. We used our swords to make sure we were okay. To confirm how we felt about each other.

I wanted to touch him. I wanted to feel his skin to make sure he was here for real. I wanted him to know that I was okay too. I wanted to tell him that, although my life has been very lonely, I was still alive.

The way he fought me… I could tell that he felt the same. All he wanted was to study me to make sure I was okay.

“Juya, you’re the one who should back down. Don’t you agree?”

“Argh. How could I when my opponent is so weak?”

“Did you just call me weak? You are crazy!”

It made sense that he didn’t attack me seriously because if he did, we wouldn’t get the chance to watch each other’s faces. If I got tired and fled for real, this might be the end. We might never see each other again, and we both didn’t want that.

“Who are you calling weak!?”

Our swords met again and again while we carried on with our strangely mundane conversation. The soldiers watched, but no one tried to stop us. Were we truly enemies or something else? Was this just a playful sword fight or a real battle? I couldn’t see the ship because I had to focus, but I didn’t hear any more noises from that direction. Were the Hwenians surrounded by the Minurd fighters? Were they being captured?

Eriez’s men, who were surrounding us, seemed confused, which made sense. They didn’t know who I was, and they certainly could not understand Eriez’s reaction towards me. Our fight was a joke as well.

They asked Eriez nervously, “Sir, is he the mole sent in advance to Hwen to spy for us?”

“Or is he our enemy? Sir! You need to tell us what is going on so we can do something…!”