#378
Absurd Story
My head hurts.
With the familiar headache, consciousness slowly returned.
Naturally, my memories came back as well.
I had killed Messiah and then collapsed.
But by now, the voice of the Black Prince, who should have been calling out to me, was no longer there.
I felt inexplicably gloomy.
Damn it.
Still, I can’t just lie here.
I opened my eyes.
Beep, beep.
Along with the sound of medical equipment, I saw the white ceiling of the hospital room.
On my legs, covered with a white hospital blanket, was Olivia, sleeping while leaning against me.
Did she stay up all night taking care of me again?
Through the window, the distant sight of Tokyo under reconstruction was visible.
It was all over.
I survived.
A sense of relief washed over me.
Turning my head, I noticed Durandal, the magical sword, elegantly leaning against the dresser.
“Black Prince…”
I quietly called out his name.
But, as expected, there was no response.
Had he really disappeared?
I still couldn’t believe it.
I felt a wave of emotion rising.
“You… are awake?”
As if sensing my movements, Olivia stirred and spoke to me with a groggy face.
Her words pulled me out of my thoughts.
“Uh…”
My throat felt dry, and my voice didn’t come out properly.
Olivia’s pale face turned bright red upon meeting my gaze.
“Ah?! D-Don’t look! You fool! Dimwit! Sea cucumber! Sea squirt! Anemone!”
Olivia shouted, tightly shutting her eyes while her face turned crimson.
She seemed to not want to show her just-woken face.
I sighed as I turned my head away.
“What do you mean don’t look…”
“Looking at a lady’s bare face! You must be the biggest idiot in the universe…”
“Your bare face is pretty, though.”
At my words, Olivia’s face turned even redder.
Her blue eyes spun around in a daze.
Puff!
Steam seemed to rise from Olivia’s head.
Can you believe this is real life? It’s like a light novel scene!
“W-What you just said is cheating! You fool! Ah, anyway! Turn around!”
Whack.
Olivia threw the cushion she had been hugging at me.
I caught the cushion she threw and embraced it while turning my head.
What happens if I just let this slide?
After a while, some time passed.
“O-Okay. You can look now.”
Olivia’s small voice reached my ears.
Turning my head, I saw her fully dressed in armor.
With her fluffy, fair skin and blue eyes, the platinum-haired beauty was blushing as she twisted a strand of hair with one hand.
“How long have I been out?”
“A week…”
During that time, one person took turns nursing you each day.
Olivia added.
Then she began to tell me everything that happened from the moment I collapsed until now.
It began recounting the events that had transpired up to that point.
The heroines were said to be busy cleaning up after the final battle, referred to as Armageddon, that took place in the skies above Tokyo Bay, where Messiah and I had engaged in an epic showdown.
In the Soviet Union, which had been under Messiah’s control, a coup occurred, changing the leadership, and the League and its collaborators were currently facing trial for war crimes in the International Criminal Court.
The Soviet Union, having participated in Messiah’s terrorism, had to cough up huge war reparations to me, South Korea, and Japan.
While the Soviet Union swayed, it was said that China was eyeing the leadership position of the Second World Communist Bloc.
Moreover, the hosting of the tournament, the Great Game, which determined the strongest hero candidate, was canceled.
The reason was that the strongest hero candidate had already been decided.
“And it has been confirmed that you will ascend as the New Crowns.”
That strongest hero candidate was me.
New Crowns.
A title bestowed upon the hero who protects the world in place of the Five Crowns.
The World Hero Association unanimously decided to grant me the status of New Crowns.
And there was also talk of a new moniker I had received.
Messiah.
People were calling me that.
Damn it, what’s with this embarrassing title of Messiah?
I’d rather be called the Black Beast.
Besides, according to Olivia, the day I defeated Messiah in the final battle has already been designated as a worldwide public holiday and commemorative day, with the Taegeukgi (Korean flag) raised all around the globe.
Raising the Taegeukgi?
Are they out of their minds?
“That’s how it ended up.”
“······.”
After hearing Olivia’s words, I was left speechless.
What a damn light novel world this is.
I never expected to be served such a plate of crap even after the ending.
In the original novel, Kurosawa Yuji simply saved the world, graduated from the academy, married Kusunagi, and lived happily ever after — a happy ending. But here, it’s reality.
Capturing Messiah didn’t mean it was over.
I had to continue living.
In this damn light novel world.
The thought of the Taegeukgi being raised worldwide made me grateful I missed that sight due to fainting.
“······I’m glad you’re awake.”
Olivia held my hand.
I could feel her warm touch.
It made me feel awkward for no reason.
Looking at Olivia, I intertwined my fingers with hers.
Olivia’s face turned red.
Her face reminded me of what the Black Prince had said.
The words where he entrusted me to take care of Olivia.
“W-wait, suddenly getting this close, what are you doing?! That’s unfair! That’s totally unfair!”
Olivia puffed her cheeks and shouted at me.
I pulled my hand away and turned my head.
My feelings were all over the place.
After a moment of awkward silence.
With a flushed face, Olivia glanced at me and spoke.
“······What are you going to do next? You have a lot of overdue events and things to do once you’re up… like the improvement parade and the New Crowns ceremony…”
Olivia counted off on her fingers.
Events?
What kind of pointless events are there?
I pulled the IV drip out and swayed a bit as I stood up.
“Y-you!”
With a panicked tone, Olivia rushed to my side and supported me.
“What are you doing standing up all of a sudden?! Ughhhhhh! You’re the biggest fool in the universe!”
Olivia puffed her cheeks and yelled.
Whatever, I drew Durandal, which was leaning against the dresser.
Swish.
Durandal came out with a clear sound.
I still couldn’t hear the Black Prince’s voice.
“Gather the kids. Before any events, there’s something we need to do.”
As I said this in a serious tone while looking at Durandal’s blade, Olivia nodded.
I sheathed Durandal once again.
Now it was time…
To let go.
Damn it, tears are just falling for no reason.
What a pain.
*
Paris, France.
Père Lachaise Cemetery.
The largest cemetery in Paris, where the great figures who shone for France and heroes who died fighting for France are buried.
As soon as I left the hospital, I took my private plane and came straight here.
This is where the Black Prince’s grave was located.
Officially, the Black Prince was said to have fallen ten years ago during the Omega-Rank Parnassus expedition that plunged France and all of Europe into a crisis.
Thus, in the official records, the Black Prince was already a deceased person.
As a member of the royal family and the Five Crowns, his grave was quite substantial, complete with a statue in front.
I stood there in a black suit, facing his grave.
Behind me were the heroines and acquaintances who had come to France with me.
Olivia, Rin, Eri, Aris, Senior Kasumi, Makoto, Haru, Seira, Mayuzumi-sensei, Wilhelmina, Han Seo-Jin, Yoo Se-Ra, Bella, Evangelin, Beatrice.
And Kurosawa Yuji, Shinozaki Ichiro, Ishihara Saori, Ishihara Daiki, along with Olivia’s parents, the French Emperor and Empress.
Everyone connected to me wore mourning attire.
I took a deep breath, stepped forward, and mumbled in Korean while drawing Durandal.
“Fuck this. Why did I jump in and stumble around twice for no reason? Damn it…”
The blade of Durandal gleamed under the sunlight.
During the final battle.
“…I could have managed alone.”
No, I had to.
I now understood the desire I had been harboring.
It was to ensure no one got hurt.
To ensure no one died.
But ultimately, I was insufficient, and the Black Prince was sacrificed.
His words echoed in my head.
He had said that he didn’t care as long as I could take revenge.
“I succeeded in revenge. The bastard, Messiah, who was your enemy and your comrades’, is now split in half, falling into hell. Don’t worry, I’ll definitely fulfill your last request. I can’t say if you’ll be happy about it in the afterlife, though…”
I sheathed Durandal again and leaned the sword against the gravestone.
The Black Prince is no more.
Accepting that made tears spill for no reason.
Suddenly, memories of the days spent with the Black Prince surfaced.
Since awakening the True Name Liberation until now.
His voice never left my head, making this situation feel surreal.
The guy who always found a reason to criticize my actions like a light novel, the one who acted like a clueless older brother whenever he saw Olivia, the one who sometimes offered serious advice, and the one who frequently said that I should treat heroines as ladies while always lamenting when Seira was around.
During the hot spring trip, he even showed a vision of himself while willing to disappear, encouraging me to surpass myself; the guy who kept encouraging me whenever unexpected developments arose due to the twisted original story.
He laughed and cried alongside me from start to finish.
In the end, he asked me for revenge and entrusted Olivia to me.
The Black Prince, Raul Napoleon Bonaparte.
He was my teacher, my friend, and my partner.
If he hadn’t been beside me all along, I would never have made it this far.
Without the Black Prince, perhaps I would have been swept away by the distorted original story, unable to face Messiah, and might have already met my demise.
“Everything I did, I could do it because of you.”
Who would have thought I’d end up crying over a man’s death?
Damn it, not that I’m gay or anything.
“…It’s just that. You…”
I wiped away my tears and pulled out soju from my pocket, pouring it into a paper cup.
Drip, drip, drip.
The smell of alcohol brushed the tip of my nose.
I sprinkled the soju over the graves of Durandal and the Black Prince.
“You were my best partner.”
After pouring the soju, I wiped my tears.
“…Brother…”
Olivia murmured with a voice choked with tears from behind me, calling out to the Black Prince.
Now everyone knew.
That without the sacrifice of the Black Prince, victory would not have been possible.
As we were silently mourning in that solemn atmosphere…
“…Uh… What’s with this serious vibe?”
A familiar voice, which shouldn’t have been heard at this moment, came from behind.
This voice was…
“Black Prince?”
I turned my head.
Everyone’s gaze shifted toward where the voice had come from.
And there he was.
A handsome man in a trench coat with black hair and black eyes.
The Black Prince, Raul Napoleon Bonaparte.
He was awkwardly smiling, looking like a perfectly alive person.
The Black Prince tilted his head.
“Are we in someone’s funeral? Partner? Olivia? Aunt? Uncle? Everyone…?”
I walked up to the Black Prince, who was spouting nonsense, and pinched his cheek hard.
“Ow! Partner. What’s this? After such a long time, you’re pinching me…”
“You’re alive?”
He was alive.
The Black Prince awkwardly smiled at my words.
“Ah, well… I guess I was alive, but I might have missed the right timing to make a cool entrance. Hahahahahaha…”
Tears unreasonably flowed from my eyes at the Black Prince’s words.
And I wasn’t even gay.
I wiped my tears, sighed, and said in a voice mixed with joy.
“Damn, this is embarrassing.”
“…Anyway. Partner. Olivia. Uncle, Aunt. Everyone…”
The Black Prince looked at me, Olivia, the French Emperor and his wife, and everyone else, smiling.
“This Black Prince has returned to life! Praise this Black Prince, everyone! Hahahahahaha!”
The Black Prince spread his legs shoulder-width apart, raised his right arm and finger towards the sky, striking a cool pose.
Flap.
The hem of his coat fluttered in the wind.
Honestly, I was embarrassed just watching this.
I shook my head and took out Durandal, which I had put beside the grave.
“Partner. Your soul’s partner, this Black Prince, has come back to life, so don’t you have anything to say?”
The Black Prince looked at me and spoke.
Don’t I have anything to say?
His question left me momentarily speechless.
No matter how cliché it was for the sacrificial character to actually not be dead and to return at the end to reunite with the protagonist, I never expected him to come back for real.
And not as a spirit, but in a human body.
But then again, maybe that’s just par for the course in a light novel world?
As I thought that, I looked at the Black Prince and said.
“Uh… Welcome back. But how did you come back to life? You were a spirit, right? Why in a human body…?”
At my words, the Black Prince grinned.
“Oh, that? Well…”
He trailed off his sentence, laughing playfully.
“From now on, this Black Prince is going to tell an epic story. Partner, Olivia, Uncle, Aunt. Everyone. Open your ears and listen closely! This Black Prince’s legendary tale!”
Everyone focused on his words.
And his story began.
I laughed listening to the Black Prince.
It was truly.
A ridiculous tale worthy of this damn light novel world.
