It feels as if I can finally breathe easy.
It seems like I’ve dropped a heavy burden that was weighing down my heart.
The sky of Arinseia feels exceptionally high.
The breeze blowing is also refreshingly pleasant.
For the first time since awakening in this era, everything has become clear.
I am a Circle of Luke Iruši.
“Yes, so that’s how it was.”
“So when I raised the Circle as a price, her scales tipped significantly.”
Because of that, when I dedicated my mana, only then did Sigarmata’s scales begin to move.
Though I sacrificed things like hair and horns as a secondary offering, ultimately, it was the magic that constituted my Circle that balanced those scales.
“Indeed. So every time my Circle accumulated, my body grew.”
Although the body is inhabited by Levy and the heart occupied by Parvati, my essence is the Circle.
This physical body is young because, it can be said, it has not matured as a Circle.
Because of that, this body, which had not grown much, has developed step by step every time the Circle advanced.
“That’s why I felt averse to Class Magic.”
Even while using Class Magic directly, Luke always felt somehow that it was a ‘cheap trick.’
That’s why he stubbornly clung to Circle Magic.
Thus, he didn’t actively seek to learn Class Magic, declaring that it would only amount to that, and he refrained from further exploration.
If he had focused on Class Magic and abandoned growing the Circle, he would have ultimately lost his sense of self.
He must have known this instinctively.
“Now I understand.”
Luke walked through the streets of Arinseia, fully enveloped in Gleipnir.
The streets felt both familiar and unfamiliar.
There are parts that matched my memories and parts that did not.
Yet, despite everything, the overall atmosphere and feeling had not changed at all from the past.
It was due to the goddess’s fear that progress would ultimately drain this Material Plane.
Yes.
Just like the case of the Demon Realm in the past.
The Demon King was, in fact, a pitiable god.
He must not have had a place to retreat.
A fallen god of a world depleted by progress, that was the Demon King Baal.
He must have had no choice but to conquer relatively abundant alternate dimensions to survive in his dwindling world.
Naturally, knowing this, Renie must have agonized over taking that one step forward.
That was the existence of Arinseia for the long span of 3000 years.
Neither development nor regression.
The truth can sometimes be quite empty.
For that reason, it leaves quite a bit of lingering regret.
Still, everything has now ended, and the modern era is, more or less, functioning well.
Whether it will meet the goddess’s prediction of destruction is uncertain, but it is indeed a part of what this world must accept.
Renie must have realized that too.
——–
Luke sat in the plaza of Arinseia, looking up at the gigantic tree that encircled the royal palace.
A new World Tree had grown, fueled by Arinseia.
Luke smiled refreshingly and closed his eyes.
“Hahaha, it has been 5000 years since I returned home.”
Luke muttered.
“It’s nice.”
The breeze of Arinseia carried the fragrance of 5000 years ago.
Despite the long passage of time, the wind felt just like the memory of that distant past.
As he closed his eyes and felt the wind, Luke’s mind embarked on a journey back to Arinseia 5000 years ago.
Feeling the wind, he lay back on the relatively soft grass floor of the plaza, feeling as if someone was lying beside him.
Renie must have also laid in the plaza like this, quietly reminiscing about the past.
“Oh, by the way, Renie. A few months ago, when I was at the Academy, I saw your statue in Beriton.”
Baal Nier was that Renie…
To be honest, it was quite shocking news.
Luke muttered as if teasing.
“I didn’t recognize you at all. Hahaha. You must have mastered polymorph to such an extent. I guess you don’t need my help anymore.”
Upon hearing this, Renie would surely respond, ‘What, am I some fool? Of course, I would improve with that much practice!’
Perhaps she would even say something cute like, ‘Is that why you are in such a state, you who transformed so well? Hmph!’
However, if Renie had seen how he looked now, it would have truly been disastrous.
There was no way he could ever win a verbal battle against her.
“But, to be clear, it wasn’t by choice. I truly had no intention of inhabiting this vessel.”
Indeed, he had never planned on taking possession of this vessel.
So, being trapped in this body was closer to a misfortune.
However, the response from Renie that popped into his mind felt quite indifferent.
‘What does it matter? What’s important is the present, and what’s more important is the future. Luke, didn’t you say that yourself?’
He was caught off guard.
Indeed, he had said such things to her.
But he never expected to receive it back in this situation.
“I’m sorry. Hahaha. I can never win against you.”
Finally, Luke raised both hands over his head and laughed heartily.
It truly felt like he was conversing with her.
Although in reality, he was merely retracing the memories of Luke Iruši to construct her dialogue in his head…
It was quite enjoyable.
It felt like the emptiness was somewhat dissipating.
I am the Circle of Luke Iruši, and the love I have for her is surely the same as yours.
“Hahaha…”
However, it felt regrettable that there was only one voice of laughter.
Isn’t this Arinseia?
Where has the owner of this place gone?
“….”
Renie chose to be forgotten.
I must respect the choice I allowed her to make.
But still.
Wanting to see her in person feels somewhat selfish.
Luke grasped the ends of his hat and pulled it down to cover his face.
The hat brushed against his ears, causing a slight tickle.
The wind no longer blew towards his face.
His eyelids darkened, creating a cozy sensation as if extinguishing a light in a room.
For a while, Luke felt a sense of stability in that isolation, but suddenly began to speak.
“To be honest… I was a bit jealous of Baal Nier.”
How could he, as a mage, harbor such thoughts? How could he create something as tremendous as Class Magic? This question always nagged at Luke.
Why couldn’t he have even thought of that back then?
If he had come up with that idea 5000 years ago, perhaps he wouldn’t have had to shoulder all the tasks alone.
The system of ‘Class’ was indeed an ‘immense progress’ that doused the flame of knowledge in the world.
How in the world could someone so young accomplish something he himself could never even dream of?
That question was neatly resolved with this realization.
“You are quite slow in learning.”
She always loved new things, yet she was always very slow to learn anything.
Luke recalled how Renie had outstanding magical talent but struggled to understand magic, always having a hard time.
Thanks to her body, she had easily stacked her Circle, but she was a beginner when it came to magic, struggling even with something as simple as changing her own face.
That she finally created Class Magic with all her efforts took an extraordinarily long time.
“You only had time on your side.”
With his eyes closed, he could almost visualize Renie straining as she researched magic.
If she were right in front of him, he would surely have playfully teased her…
But Renie had already surpassed her teacher.
She would no longer need his advice.
Well, there was nothing to advise, really.
Unlike Renie, who had completed all tasks, he was just an outdated Circle Mage now.
“….”
Gathering his emotions, Luke slightly lifted his hat to look at his own body.
Initially, his body was at best that of a 10-year-old child.
Everything appeared significantly larger, and everything unfamiliar only seemed marvelous.
Comparing himself to his peers back then, he was quite small, and if you compared it to now, he had grown to an unrecognizable extent.
That was likely because he had reached the 4th Circle.
If that’s the case, I would need to return to my original level of the 10th Circle to truly possess a fully grown body of an adult.
“Then, my goal hasn’t changed, after all.”
He would become a Grand Mage; that resolution remained unchanged.
Well, being a Circle means he is also the will of Luke Iruši.
That ambition and purpose do not change.
‘Indeed, it is very much like me,’ Luke Iruši’s image popped into his mind, smiling.
So, whose Circle is it?
Haven’t we been together for quite a long time?
Together we sought heroes, battled against the Demon King, erased dragons from the world, and finally banished even gods into confinement.
For an extended period, I borrowed authority as your hands and feet while simultaneously fed on the emotions you cultivated all those long years.
What could I possibly teach you?
Luke pulled his hat back down and took a deep breath in and out.
The scent of shampoo and detergent, mixed with the fragrance of his hair that lingered on his hat, flooded through his nose.
That modern scent of bath and laundry products suddenly reminded Luke of something.
“Yerna.”
Now that I think about it, how long has it been since I came to this place?
It feels like I spent quite a long time lost in memories.
Luke shot up from his seat and said, “Ah, I have a new family. I should go back now.”
He wanted to introduce Yerna to Renie.
How peculiarly amusing it was that the woman who unexpectedly became his stepmother.
If the two met, it would surely be quite entertaining.
However, words like “I want to see you later,” would not return.
There was no helping it; she is a being that must be forgotten.
I cannot tell Yerna about Renie.
That would be against Renie’s will.
“Well, since I’ve come this far, I can’t return empty-handed.”
Before I go, should I gather some flowers?
I wonder if all the artifacts I had accumulated have been used up by Renie since I can’t find them, but there should be quite a few mana herbs here that can heal Yerna’s arm.
As Luke rose and adjusted his hat to fit his ears while stretching and loosening his body…
Somewhere, he faintly heard a sound like an echo or an illusion.
-Hoho, you will definitely see me someday.
“What…?”
At that moment, as Luke turned towards the source of the sound, an indescribable light enveloped him.
————–
In Luke Forest, at the time when Dayton was struggling with Yerna and Luke’s notebook…
“Still haven’t found anything?”
“…Well, it seems there aren’t any notes or anything…”
“Get on with it; wouldn’t it be better to take another round in the woods than to waste time looking at this?”
“….”
Dayton kept his mouth shut at Yerna’s remark.
To be honest, he thought going that route might be better too.
But then…
-Crunch!
“Huh?”
“What was that sound just now?”
It sounds like something is falling into the thicket.
To be more specific, as a Forest Keeper, I could say it sounded like a child-sized creature falling flat on its rear.
“!”
“!”
Upon realizing this, Yerna and Dayton simultaneously looked at each other and nodded.
That sound could undoubtedly only belong to Luke.
After that, without considering who would move first, they almost got up at the same time.
“Luke!”
“Is it Luke?”
As they brushed aside the thickets, just as expected…
There was Luke.
However, he had a face that seemed about to cry, tears welling in his eyes as he searched for something around him, and his white stockings were holed and stained with blood and dirt from scrapes, and flowers, which he had evidently not known where they came from, were scattered all around him.
Upon seeing Luke, Yerna first felt a sense of relief.
Although he was a bit hurt, it wasn’t anything too serious after all.
The second emotion was a bit of anger.
Why had he wandered into this Grade 1 danger zone all alone, causing them to worry?
Yerna resolved to scold him thoroughly this time and opened her mouth.
“Where on earth did you go, Luke! We were worried! If you’re going somewhere, you should always tell others…!”
However, Yerna couldn’t greatly scold Luke once again.
“I’m sorry, Yerna. I just wanted to heal your arm…”
Seeing Luke’s state made it abundantly clear what had happened.
The flowers scattered around Luke were so unfamiliar that even with his knowledge as a Forest Keeper, he couldn’t properly identify them.
Thus, those flowers must not have been easy to obtain.
“So, I was trying to gather those flowers…”
“….”
Yerna ended up sealing her lips.
Tears spilled from Luke’s face.
Seeing that made anyone’s heart soften.
Well, the story could wait.
Right now, she just wanted to hug him once.
-Wrap.
“I was worried… Do you know how much everyone searched for you?”
“…I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”
Luke smiled while hugging Yerna and wiped his tears.
What emotion was he feeling?
He was not at all accustomed to emotions.
An inexplicable feeling surged, but he couldn’t possibly manage it.
Normally, that would have been a big issue, but strangely enough, the Circle remained calm.
Joy? Ecstasy? What word could possibly explain this feeling?
So, Luke simply smiled.
Until all those emotions were exhausted and faded away.
As Yerna patted the back of Luke, who was both laughing and crying in her arms, she thought.
He must have found being lost quite terrifying.
“When you cry and laugh, you end up with bumps on your butt, you know.”
“Dayton!”
“Why? This is the best way to comfort kids.”
“Seriously…”
Yerna was about to say something, but realized that Luke was chuckling and shaking his shoulders in her arms and swallowed her words.
“Hahaha! That’s really just nonsense with no basis. Hahaha!”
Finally unable to contain his laughter, Luke burst out laughing, causing Dayton to shrug and laugh as if to say, “See?”
“See?”
“Yeah…”
Indeed, Dayton was a master of child-rearing.
It felt like meeting once again.
