“This is the burden of the previous generation.”
“My Lord…?”
“Wouldn’t it be irresponsible for the heroes of the previous generation’s party not to pass on responsibility to the heroes of the current generation?”
Jill Ber laughed coolly as he looked at Isabelle.
Maximilian’s daughter. Those eyes so reminiscent of that lad, it’s truly astonishing.
He was fiercely jealous. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t catch up to that skill.
But still, back then, he risked his life and raised his shield to protect. Inferiority can never be heavier than duty and justice.
Reading Isabelle’s stance and demeanor as she drew her sword, Jill Ber chuckled softly.
You’ve grown well. You resemble that skilled man even though he never taught you anything. It’s almost terrifying.
Now there’s no jealousy. Maximilian was too brilliant for him to be jealous. How relieved he felt after realizing that.
After hearing the curse of the demon king, he swore. He would protect his daughter no matter what. Seeing the mature Isabelle now, laughter was inevitable.
“Walk as heroes. Head towards the land that needs your help.”
“My Lord… No, Uncle.”
“Bella. And all of you. Entrust the tasks of this era to the heroes of this era. Go. Save Saint Mathilde and protect this country. This is not a request from the previous generation, but from the homeland.”
Jill Ber willingly bowed his head. The entire group hesitated and tried to dissuade him.
Nevertheless, Jill Ber remained silent.
“Protecting this country is indeed my duty, but would I dare to entrust my duty to the heroes of this era? Will you accept this mission willingly?”
“Uncle… Yes, gladly…”
“Thank you, heroes.”
Jill Ber stroked Isabelle’s head and then looked at his son.
Oscar was biting his lip, his face as though he might burst into tears at any moment, staring at the ground.
“Son.”
“Yes, Father.”
“This is the Sword of Etarique. All authority in Saint Mathilde submits to the authority of this sword. Now, it is yours to wield.”
“It’s… too great… an honor for me…”
“It’s your duty.”
Jill Ber caressed his son’s cheek.
Oscar’s wet eyes looked up at Jill Ber.
“It’s not about honor. There is no honor there. Only duty. Take this and save the people. Save the country, save your king, and protect your mother and your siblings.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Now, you are a knight of the Eastern Order. Go. Be a knight of valor. Defend the heroes bravely in the face of death. Remain faithful to your duty, protect the weak, and always act with dignity before morality.”
“Yes, Father.”
The burden of the past belongs to the past, the duty of the present belongs to the present.
After giving the best words left to say in the camp, Jill Ber turned his back once again.
With a brief farewell, the group descended down the mountain.
*
“Am I late?”
Ivan reached the summit, catching his breath.
No, it wasn’t too late yet.
The Eastern Order was still intact. Despite some losses, they had the strength to continue the fight.
The Capital Defense Army was nearly annihilated, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say so. Now, the remaining number barely reached a thousand.
And Jill Ber…
With the armor in one hand, the Duke of Etarique was breathing heavily over the body of the dragon.
“Jill Ber!”
“Ivan.”
Jill Ber, who turned his gaze to the approaching Ivan, chuckled under his helmet.
“How many did you kill?”
“Three.”
“Haha, I got five. I won. Again!”
“I’ll join.”
Approaching Ivan, Jill Ber nodded silently.
While the dragon’s attacks had subsided, the battle was far from over. The dragons that had been soaring in the sky were now hesitant to approach Jill Ber and the Eastern Order’s fight.
Instead, almost all the forests of the Bernini Mountains had been destroyed.
Ashes scattered. Whenever the wind blew over this barren wasteland, the ashes scattered like mist.
Beneath it all, a massive crevice appeared.
Jill Ber stood before the crevice, raising his spear.
“Do you remember the dungeon beneath this mountain?”
“Yeah.”
“It wasn’t just a dungeon. If we must be precise, it was a temple.”
“…A temple.”
“The temple of the dragons.”
Standing beside Jill Ber, they surveyed the scene.
A tingling sensation emanated from the cracked crevice. The presence of the dragons was seeping up from below.
How many dragons were slumbering beneath?
How? And since when? Such questions were meaningless.
Dragons had slumbered beneath this temple since a distant era, the demons realized this fact, and three Counts used the demons’ information to create this trap.
To be precise, it was the prelude to the crisis of Tylesse’s destruction.
A system remarkably similar to the ancient underground temple sealed in Krasilov. A kind that even hinted at some evil.
The kind that, once awakened, would engulf the country in flames, yet no one in the country was aware beforehand.
Even in this era, the reason for needing new heroes is precisely that. As the country crumbles, new evils arise, and the villains of old roam the world once again.
How much longer will these things last? This world not only had to contend with the remaining dragons but also with such things. Things unseen, buried in the depths of the nation, time bombs.
Ivan sighed.
Jill Ber’s hand rested on his shoulder.
“Leave.”
“Are you ready to die here?”
“No way.”
Jill Ber chuckled.
“Haven’t we endured enough hardships in the old days? Can mere flying lizards dare to scheme against this Knight of Iron Mountain?”
“…Bluffing.”
“You remember what you said.”
Jill Ber shrugged as if it were nothing.
“Sometime you muttered about being a hunting dog with just a change of leash.”
Whenever it was said. Probably when Ivan first joined and when he left the hero party.
During the final journey to the demon castle, Ivan left the party. It was when the war was reaching its climax.
He had grumbled to Enrique when leaving the party. About how they just switched leashes and utilized it well.
Call it the destiny of a hunting dog. A self-deprecating joke.
Thinking back on what happened afterward, it wasn’t just a joke. They were unleashed after the hunt was over. The extermination unit was certainly not just a proficient hunting dog.
With a face mixed with laughter, Jill Ber awakened Ivan’s conscience.
“Would prey see a difference between the hunter and the hunting dog?”
“…”
“To the prey, both are just natural enemies. Don’t you agree?”
“What are you trying to say?”
“If heroes are the nemesis of demons, then you are too.”
Jill Ber took off his helmet and slid his arm through it, extending one hand.
“I am not part of the hero party.”
“From the perspective of the previous generation… Well, you were the only one who thought so.”
He firmly grasped Ivan’s forearm. It was an old gesture of respect.
Ivan also clasped his arm in return. Locking eyes, Jill Ber chuckled and spoke.
“Representing the current generation, it’s the same. Ivan Petrovich Yermov. You were, and still are, a member of the hero party.”
“Jill Ber.”
“Don’t be so miserably timid. Have confidence. Otherwise, won’t you feel anxious entrusting the children to us?”
With a chuckle, Jill Ber shook Ivan’s arm once.
Their hands parted. Jill Ber put on his helmet again and spoke.
“The burden of the past lies with the past. Stand as the vanguard of the present. Leave the past’s burden and carry on the past’s duty. Illuminate the path for the present.”
As the uncle of the current generation’s heroes, as the father of the current generation’s knights, as a friend of the current generation’s vanguards.
“Don’t speak as if you’re going to die.”
Ivan managed to utter with dry lips. Upon hearing his voice, Jill Ber burst into laughter.
“Oh, we’ll see each other alive. In Marillenne.”
“Good luck.”
“Good luck.”
As Ivan left and turned his head once more, Jill Ber breathed deeply under his helmet. His breath hummed trapped beneath the visor.
Through the cracked slit of the visor, a deep ravine came into view.
Countless yellow pupils glared at him from below.
Laughter erupted.
“Come.”
He raised his spear. Fortunately, still light.
It stretches toward the sky. Above the dense night sky obscured by smoke.
“You stand before the homeland’s defenders.”
The sky splits. The morning star shines. Beneath it, the Eastern Order gathers. The surviving Capital Defense Army rallies, each brandishing their weapons.
Towards the symbol of hope. Willingly.
Not for their own hopes, but for the hopes left in this country.
Banners fluttered. The insignia of Eterkir and the banners of the Eastern Order flowed like a wall.
-Booooo!!
The horn of the homeland echoed through the mountains once again.
