[Edanian Journey] Epilogue

Chapter 1: A Greeting Upon My Return

The Black Spirit hurried me along, calling it our heroic entrance. It might have been embarrassing to say outright that everyone had survived because of us, but we could at least show our faces to those who had been waiting. So I walked among the people of Angavu. Hearing their cheers was one thing. Asking how each of them had been was another.

Eileen started to check me for injuries, then asked if she could cry first. She did not wait for an answer, and I forgot whatever I had meant to say. Emma told me she had dreamed of a black sun descending from the heavens, and of me emerging from a sea of light. Her relief that the dream had come true, and her thanks for my safe return, stayed with me.

Some told me not to leave again and to come live with them in Velia. I found myself newly grateful simply to have a village I could return to. Orwen welcomed me back, saying she had never lost faith in me, though she had still been afraid. When I tried to give all the credit to the Secret Guards, she told me that, for once, I did not need to be so modest. Trying to pass the credit elsewhere suddenly felt almost like turning away from their gratitude.

Edan laughed and claimed that, by that logic, he was the one who had saved the world. After all, none of this would have happened if he had not found me in the Ancient Stone Chamber. As Orwen scolded him, I thought back to that distant beginning. A chance meeting had helped someone with no memories and nowhere to go back onto their feet, and now, far from where it all began, it had led us back to laughter.

Isobelle groaned about the mountain of damage reports waiting for her, but said that at least there was still a world left to do business in. Saya planned to return home and pursue a non-aggression pact with Calpheon. They even joked about supporting Isobelle for a seat of power. None of those promises had been made yet, but they were already speaking about tomorrow.

The Hashashin said that what they had defended was not the Sanctuary, but the dawn of tomorrow. Once the remaining enemies were dealt with, they would be free to go wherever they wished. When I encouraged them to embrace that freedom, they admitted that not knowing what to do frightened them, while not knowing where their paths might lead filled them with wonder. Those who had once waited for orders were beginning to think about paths of their own.

Alustin confirmed that Hadum's contraction had stopped. I asked him about the Legacy of Heavens Grey had mentioned. He explained that it was a relic left behind by Noir Bartali, stolen from the Bartali Ossuary shortly before my arrival. It was strange enough that Grey knew of it at all, but Alustin promised to look into it. There were still questions left after the battle, but that did not make the peace before me any less real.

I was told that many people would live their lives never knowing what had happened here. Perhaps that unnoticed peace was exactly what we had fought to protect. A king was not someone who needed to be celebrated, but someone who bore the weight of the world beyond the sight of others.

Only then did I accept the suggestion that I rest for a while. For today, simply letting everyone know that <b>I had made it back alive</b> was enough.