CHAPTER 47

A Missing Hero

Worried that something might have happened to Seiya, we head to the item shop where he said he was going. While it’s late in the night, the main road of Orphée is bright and full of life. After arriving at the item shop, I ask the owner about Seiya.

“Oh, hey. If it isn’t the lady who lost to my herbs… Huh? The man you were with? No, he hasn’t been here. In fact, I haven’t seen him all day.”

“What…? He wasn’t here? But Seiya said he was going to buy some items for synthesizing…”

“Hey, Rista? Maybe he went to a different item shop.”

“Oh yeah. Excuse me, are there any other item shops around here?”

“There’s one on the outskirts of town, but it’s got nothing on my shop.”

Going to the other item shop turns out to be a waste of time, too. The shopkeeper apparently hasn’t seen Seiya. It’s no different when we go to the weapons shop or armor shop.

“Let’s head back to the castle for now. Master Seiya might already be there for all we know.”

We return to the castle like Mash suggested. A far cry from when we skipped to the castle earlier, we now drag our feet with a darkness weighing us down.

“Where in the world did he go?”

The moment my brain switches back on, I get a bad feeling about it in the pit of my stomach. Just as I thought, even after returning to the castle, Seiya is nowhere to be found. I ask around, but no one in the castle has seen him, either.

It’s been around three hours since we promised to meet up. While helplessly waiting in Seiya’s room, Elulu suddenly mutters:

“Y-you don’t think…Seiya went to go fight the Demon Lord by himself, right?”

I swallow my breath, briefly in shock until…

“No, that wouldn’t even make any sense! The embodiment of overcautiousness himself? He would never do that! I mean, he was reflecting on how to improve after his close battle with the emperor! So there’s no way he would go straight to the Demon Lord after all that. I would bet my life on it!”

Mash agrees with me.

“Yeah, you’re right. That wouldn’t be like him.”

“Besides, the Demon Lord has Chain Destruction! Seiya would die permanently if he lost, which is why he’s going to be extra-careful with his preparations!”

“Yeah… I guess you’re right… But then…where did Seiya go?”

It’s unusual that we can’t find him even after all this searching.

I stand and head toward the door.

“Rista! Where are you going?”

“I don’t know, but I can’t just sit around and wait any longer!”

After opening the door, I rush into the hallway, where I run into the imperial mage Flashika.

“Ah! Flashika! Have you seen Seiya?”

But he hasn’t seen Seiya, either.

“Oh? The Hero disappeared right before the final battle against the Demon Lord?”

He places a finger on his chin while pondering, then frowns.

“While he may be the Hero, he is still human. Perhaps he ran away?”

Mash raises his voice in response to Flashika’s speculation.

“L-like hell he did! Master Seiya would never run away from a fight!”

“But Madam Rosalie told me the Demon Lord has a weapon that could shatter the Hero’s soul. He seems to still be young, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he was afraid…”

“Seiya isn’t like that! He’s no coward!”

Both Mash and I berate Flashika. I’m pissed. It almost feels like I’m being personally attacked.

“I apologize if I offended you. Please forget my careless remarks…”

After parting ways with Flashika, I give in to my rage and storm through the castle, but what Flashika said replays in my head the entire time.

He got scared and ran away? Th-that’s ridiculous…!

Even during his battle against the emperor, Seiya acted like it was nothing. When I saw that, I thought Seiya must be mentally strong as well. But…maybe he was simply putting on a brave front? Maybe he was in so much pain and agony that he couldn’t take it anymore and it broke him? Maybe that’s even why he slept at the castle for three days…?

The more I think about it, the more pessimistic I become. Then, out of nowhere, a certain thought pops into my head.

“Wait… Did Seiya commit suicide before the Demon Lord could kill him…?”

“Wh-what?! The hell are you talking about?!”

“What do you mean, Ristie?!”

“If the Demon Lord kills him, then his soul will be destroyed! But if he dies outside of the Chain Destruction’s range, then his soul wouldn’t completely disappear, and he would be able to return to his world! Th-that’s why Seiya…”

“Are you saying he abandoned us?!”

“I don’t know! I’m just thinking out loud!”

So much for our slice-of-life moment…

I create a gate to the spirit world.

“I didn’t want to do this, but we don’t have any other choice! We’re going to have to ask Great Goddess Ishtar where Seiya is!”

Taking Mash and Elulu with me, I walk through the portal to the unified spirit world…

I appear right before Ishtar’s room and then, without knocking…

“I’m coming in!”

I lunge through the door, but the Great Goddess isn’t there—and unusually so. Instead, a very familiar goddess stands alone by the window. Ariadoa is gazing out the window with her back to us.

“Aria?! What are you doing here?! More importantly, where’s Great Goddess Ishtar?! We’re in trouble! Seiya’s gone, and we need her to find him!”

Aria slowly turns around as I continue to rattle on. But when I see her face, I am taken off guard, for tears are running down her cheeks.

“A-Aria…?”

Without even wiping the tears away, she says with a dead-serious expression:

“Rista, follow me. Ishtar is waiting for you in the Chamber of Eternal Stasis.”

Aria, who’s usually so talkative, walks through the sanctuary without saying a word, and we follow her, mimicking her silence. There’s a heavy feeling in my chest, as if a lump of lead is buried in it. Only when we get to the end of the hall on the third floor does Aria stop.

“This is the Chamber of Eternal Stasis.”

I follow her into the room and immediately feel as if I stepped into zero gravity. Slightly up ahead is a desk with Ishtar sitting behind it.

“Rista, children of the dragonkin, thank you for coming. Under normal circumstances, humans would be prohibited from entering this room. However, I will make an exception for pure souls such as yours.”

Rows of shelves are lined up behind the Great Goddess. At first glance, it almost looks like a library. Nevertheless, on the shelves are not books but countless objects emitting a pale light. Without even daring to ask, I can intuitively tell that these are our divine souls. The moment I start to open my mouth to ask her where Seiya is…

“Rista, I know what you want to ask me.”

The Great Goddess Ishtar, who can see into the near future, solemnly continues.

“Allow me to get straight to the point. Seiya Ryuuguuin left for the Demon Lord’s castle almost immediately after you split up.”

“What…?!”

Mash, Elulu, and I are at a loss for words. A few moments go by before I slightly process what she said and immediately object.

“Th-that’s ridiculous! That overly cautious Hero would never challenge the Demon Lord to a fight without even training! Chain Destruction could destroy his soul, right?! Then why—?”

“Yes, Rista. And it could destroy your soul as well. Seiya Ryuuguuin knew it was possible the Demon Lord could kill you, and that’s why he went to face him alone.”

“…What?”

I can’t understand what she’s saying. I rack my brain, trying to process the information.

“S-so you’re saying Seiya went to fight the Demon Lord…to save me? Ha-ha…ha-ha-ha! That’s crazy talk! Seiya just thinks I’m a pain. He doesn’t even see me as a goddess. I mean, he makes fun of me, punches me, kicks me—”

“He has a sharp tongue and is ill-mannered as well. But even then, Seiya Ryuuguuin is a kindhearted man—much more so than you think. Ever since you summoned him, he has been putting his friends’ safety first.”

“No… That can’t be…!”

Even Elulu and Mash open their eyes wide when they hear this.

“Master Seiya…cares that much about us?”

“Mash, Elulu… Seiya Ryuuguuin refused to take you with him at first solely because he didn’t want to lose anyone. And that’s also the reason why he can be cold and why he refuses to involve you in battle. In some cases, he may even prioritize his friends over his duty to save Gaeabrande.”

The Great Goddess gazes up at the high ceiling, then adds:

“That is why he saved Mash when he was being tortured by Deathmagla, and that is why he couldn’t allow Elulu to become the holy sword at Dragon Village. Furthermore, that is why he protected Rista from the emperor, unconcerned that his own soul might very well have been destroyed.”

“I-it still doesn’t add up! If what you’re saying is true—if he really was worried about our lives, then he could just take us to the spirit world! After that, he could train more than ever!”

“Training any longer would be meaningless.”

“Why?! Because there aren’t any gods stronger than Valkyrie?! He could at least level up to increase his chances of defeating the Demon Lord!”

Ishtar places a hand on the large crystal ball sitting on the desk.

“Rista, Seiya Ryuuguuin has been hiding his status with Fake Out. Allow me to show you his true attributes.”

Seiya’s stats slowly appear within the crystal ball.

SEIYA RYUUGUUIN
LV: 99 (MAX)
HP: 321,960	MP: 88,155
ATK: 293,412	DEF: 287,644	SPD: 268,875	MAG: 58,751	GRW: 999 (MAX)…

…This might be the first time I’ve had a clear look at Seiya’s stats since the battle against Chaos Machina. His attributes have dramatically increased since then, but I guess that shouldn’t be a surprise.

“H-holy crap!”

“Wow! Seiya’s stats are amazing!”

They gasp in admiration. I mean, his stats are really high, but… But this is…!

“His stats may far exceed those of your average Hero, but even then, they aren’t as good as Warmaster Wohlks Roseguard’s were after turning into a demon. The only reason Seiya was able to defeat the emperor was because he learned one of Valkyrie’s techniques of destruction.”

Mash points at the crystal ball, his hand trembling as if he just noticed something.

“Hold up! ‘MAX’? He’s at…max level…? The hell…?!”

“Yes, he has already reached the maximum level. By the way, this was his status when he fought the Great Mother, Queen of the Dragons, after training with Adenela. His attributes haven’t changed since then.”

Elulu places a hand over her mouth, overcome with surprise.

“H-he was already this strong that long ago…?”

“That is why he focused on learning the techniques for destruction and the magic arrows of light from then on. He was trying to make up for his static attributes with the special moves of the gods. He was very troubled, although it may not have seemed like it.”

“But Seiya never even said a word about that…”

“Because that wouldn’t change the reality of it. Perhaps he felt that it would only meaninglessly worry you all in the end.”

A silence reigns over the room as I clench my fist.

“No…! He can’t…! These stats are nowhere near high enough to defeat the Demon Lord of the S-ranked world of Gaeabrande!”

“B-but Rista…! Master Seiya has Igzasion! I’m sure with that, the Valkyrja techniques, and his abilit—”

“No…! The holy sword…!”

Elulu is listening nearby, but I cannot control the surge of emotions any longer.

“That Igzasion is a fake!”

Mash and Elulu turn as white as snow.

“Y-you’re joking, right?! I thought he crafted one using Elulu’s blood and the Mother Queen’s sword?!”

“The sword he crafted wasn’t Igzasion! He was just pretending it was to prevent a riot at Dragon Village and to protect you!”

“Seriously?!”

“Seiya…!”

Elulu gasps. After we fall silent, Ishtar speaks up in our place.

“He has already stopped growing. He has no sword to defeat the Demon Lord, nor does he have any armor to protect himself from the Demon Lord’s attacks. That’s why he asked Valkyrie to teach him her final attack: a move that cannot be blocked or dodged but at the cost of the caster’s life—the Gate of Valhalla.”

A chill runs down my spine.

“Gate of Valhalla?! But…! But Valkyrie said she wouldn’t teach him that move!”

“Rista, you saw her bestow the aura of destruction to Seiya during the ritual yourself, right?”

The memory of Seiya and Valkyrie holding each other in bed suddenly flashes through the back of my head.

That was a ritual…to grant him the Gate of Valhalla?!

“Even Valkyrie was moved when she saw how Seiya Ryuuguuin would sacrifice his own life to save Gaeabrande. That is why she taught him her treasured ultimate attack…”

“But why…? Why would he…? There is a zero percent chance of survival if he uses Valhalla’s Gate… He wouldn’t be able to return to his world after that… And yet…”

“And yet, Seiya Ryuuguuin went to the Demon Lord’s castle…in order to protect what he couldn’t save before—an illusion of his past.”

“It just doesn’t make sense… Why would he…?”

I yell before the Great Goddess.

“It doesn’t make any sense! Why?! Why would he go that far to protect us?!”

“…There is something I must ask you before I answer that.”

She gives me a sharp stare, nothing like her usual mild-mannered expression.

“Goddess Ristarte, are you ready for the truth?”