NOVEL NEXT Chapter 534
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EP.534 The End of Childhood (6)
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“What are you planning to do? Can’t you tell by looking?”
In the Professor’s Office at the Apuria Academy.
The professor in charge of the advanced Mana Trading Studies and the basics of Elemental Magic shrugged while sipping tea.
“I’m teaching, you see. I think I’ll keep doing this for a while; until I retire, that is.”
Kelharlem Bel Artiya.
Once known as a Braver, a Superhuman Mage who lost his mana and was freed from madness. He was now a professor at Apuria, and as the one who recommended him, I shrugged in response.
“Looks like you’re adjusting well?”
“Not really. I didn’t need to adapt; I’ve always been rooted in being an educator. The past hundred years were just an aberration.”
He wasn’t wrong.
Originally an educator, Kelharlem headed to the battlefield to keep a promise to his disciples. Now free from that promise and insanity, he might have returned to where he started.
Sip.
Seeing Kelharlem leisurely sipping tea and preparing materials for the next class made me chuckle. He seemed to be doing well.
“By the way, it seems Apuria has been bustling lately.”
“The scale is expected to grow even bigger. The war has ended, and in the process of expanding the capital, they plan to expand Apuria as well. I’ve heard they’re also going to accept foreign students.”
I heard that from the Master.
The reputation of Apuria, which has produced great heroes, has risen even higher, and with the end of the war, the royal family provided tremendous support.
Plans to establish branches of Apuria in the expanding capital.
Pulling in foreign students.
Forming partnerships with numerous other academies and towers.
Just hearing about it made my head spin. Maybe that’s why, Master hinted that Aaron, the head of the academy, had gone bald. Poor guy.
“With the expansion, they’ll likely recruit new professors.”
“That seems likely.”
“I’ve heard Cardi van Armiel, that Great Mage, is also interested in Apuria.”
“He’ll probably come soon. I think he’s supporting it in alchemy and Mana Trading Studies.”
I heard it from him not long ago.
While dusting off the store and organizing memories, Cardi casually mentioned that he was thinking about teaching at Apuria.
“Are you thinking of joining?”
Kelharlem suddenly asked.
I mulled it over, scratching my chin.
“Well, it’s not like it’s completely out of my mind…”
Being a professor at Apuria is honestly a good job.
If I were to work again, I might end up coming back here, but that’s a bit far off.
“For the time being, I plan to just relax. Do nothing. For about a year? That’s the kind of feeling I have.”
“Is that so?”
Kelharlem chuckled.
“Well, you might need a little break.”
“Right?”
“No one will complain if you take a break. It might be good to take this opportunity to sort things out.”
“What kind of things?”
“Thinking about what you’ll do going forward.”
Flinch.
I froze, my hand hovering over the teacup. I subtly glared at Kelharlem as I averted my gaze. Kelharlem, as always, was looking at me with a blank expression.
However, perhaps because he was freed from madness and his emotions had returned, he wore a gentle smile. He let out words with a grin that belied his youthful appearance, reminiscent of an old man.
“Don’t let yourself be dragged along. Think carefully about what you want to do.”
He sipped his tea.
“The days ahead are long, and time flows by. These days, I can truly feel the passage of time. It’s a curious feeling.”
Kelharlem said.
“I’ve been freed from immortality. I can’t stave off aging with overflowing mana anymore. Now, I can truly feel the passage of time. It’s been a century since I understood what it means to age.”
“Really?”
“Some may fear aging, but for me, it feels good. It means I’ve returned to being a person.”
He exhaled deeply.
With that sigh, Kelharlem chuckled lightly.
“Thanks to you.”
“Because you wouldn’t let go, right?”
“Anyway, think about it while you rest.”
As it was getting close to class time, Kelharlem rose from his seat. As he stood up, he lightly tapped my head with a stack of documents.
“Don’t carry such a burdened face at your young age.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Live joyfully from now on. Don’t just live hard.”
Kelharlem waved goodbye and walked away. After staring at his back for a while, I got up from my seat.
“Retirement.”
“What did you say?”
“I’m saying I’m retiring. What’s there to do? I should finally throw off this dreadful conquest and retire.”
Destel laughed, as if he felt refreshed.
“You’ve been saying you’d retire like it’s your catchphrase. So now it’s time to retire, huh? Gonna rest well with the money you’ve made, and do all those things you couldn’t do before.”
“What kind of things?”
“I told you about my dream.”
Sipping cheap beer, Destel drew in a long breath, Haaah. We were having drinks on the roof of the small building he owned, and the snacks were pitiful for two heroes.
Cheap beer with cheap jerky and greens.
Destel said these suited my taste, so he didn’t bring anything else. Eating it was oddly enjoyable. I chewed the jerky while listening to his words.
“I’m thinking of learning acting. Professionally.”
“You’re already good at acting.”
At my words, Destel chuckled.
“The roles I’ve played were all heroes, but not every role is flashy and glamorous like them, right?”
“That’s true.”
“There’s bound to be a pathetic villain, or a common businessman, or perhaps a greedy merchant focused only on self-interest. To be a true actor, you’ve got to master those roles too, right?”
As he spoke, Destel was smiling. Though I’ve known him for a long time, it was the first time I saw him laugh like this. Smiling, Destel said,
“I want to learn acting from famous actors, join a notable troupe, and watch all the plays I’ve postponed over the years.”
“Is that so?”
“You’ve never seen a play, right? I’ll pick out the masterpieces for you later, you have to watch them. It’ll change your quality of life.”
“Change my quality of life?”
“It does change. People should enjoy a bit of art. That’s how life becomes richer.”
Raising his glass, tearing at the jerky, and raising a toast to the night sky, Destel laughed.
“I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
Not a hero, not a coward, not a chicken… just a young man who loves acting was shaking his glass and laughing. Shaking his glass, Destel shouted.
“For our tomorrow!”
“What a cheesy toast.”
“For our! Tomorrow!”
“Don’t shout, it’s embarrassing.”
“For our! Tomorrow…”
“Okay, okay.”
It seemed he wouldn’t stop shouting until I responded, so I reluctantly lifted my glass and said,
“For our tomorrow!”
“Your voice is too soft.”
“For our, tomorrow, to, you!”
“Now that’s more bearable.”
“You crazy bastard.”
“Isn’t this the fun of drinking?”
Destel chuckled as he raised his glass.
For our tomorrow.
Not something grand like the future of humanity, just for our future, we clinked our glasses. Clink! A clear sound resonated.
The taste of the drink was good.
So good that I almost forgot it was cheap beer.
What to do from now on?
For the past ten days, I’d been enjoying the festival and asking everyone the same question. In response to the same question, each of them had different answers. Reflecting on their responses, I slouched on the sofa.
Well, today, I had nothing to do.
Not just today, but tomorrow and the day after; I didn’t really have anything to do. The only thing left for me was attending the hero’s retirement ceremony and giving a speech about the changed world there, and that was it.
Moreover, I had already finished preparing for that long ago. Now, I truly had nothing to do.
‘Really, I have nothing to do.’
It’s been so long since I felt like this.
Wait, did I ever have a time when it was like this?
Looking back now, it feels like I was always chased by something. As a child, I lived under a sense of mission to become something, and after entering the Ashen Tower, I was trapped by the compulsion to prove myself. There was no need to even mention it during my time as a Wise One.
After all, even when I was exiled from the hero’s party and returned to the royal capital, I was still chased by lifespan and responsibility. When I think about it, it feels like I was always running from something.
Obligation, responsibility, mission, compulsion, obsession, lifespan.
I was shackled by such things.
It’s not necessarily bad. Thanks to those, I was able to come this far. Sometimes, people need to be chased by something to move forward. I was mainly that way.
But now…
Now, all those things have left my side.
Now that I’m freed from everything, I felt more of a sense of emptiness than liberation. Everything felt strange and awkward. The reality of having nothing to do and being able to do nothing was simply foreign to me.
‘Shouldn’t I do something?’
But what should I do? There’s nothing to do.
Ultimately, with no focus, only random thoughts flooded in. Kelharlem’s words echoed in my ears, Destel’s voice talking about dreams, and the words of friends discussing their futures swirled around.
I had asked them questions, but the questions returned to me again.
『What are you going to do from now on?』
I couldn’t easily answer that question.
I had never thought about ‘what comes next’ after everything was finished. It was now something I needed to ponder. Lying slouched on the sofa, I let out a long breath.
I relaxed my body and closed my eyes.
The sound of the wind rustling the fields came through the open window. The warm sunlight shone down. It was late morning, and the sun was high in the sky. Lying on the sofa like this during the day, meditating…
‘What an unimaginable thing.’
With my eyes closed, I tried to envision what would come next.
What to do in the world that has found peace after everything has ended, something I had never considered before.
Should I search for good restaurants?
A journey exploring famous dessert shops? Traveling to countries I’ve never been to sounds nice. Investigating ancient ruins could be fun too.
It might be worth it to catch up on the plays Destel recommended. Reading novels I’ve put off for a long time could also be enjoyable, and a food tour sounds fun too.
Maybe I should learn something as well. Should I ask Kalt to teach me sword fighting? Learning archery from Remia could also be a good idea.
Or should I, after a long time, do some research? In just a few years, I could write dozens of papers based on what I’ve discovered. If I put my mind to it, I could shake the academic world to its core. Watching them scream would also be quite delightful.
If that’s not it, this, or this, or that…
Ah, maybe this too…
“Aha.”
I unintentionally let out a laugh.
I murmured while laughing.
So this is it.
Thinking about the next step, pondering what I might do tomorrow; this is what it feels like.
“It’s not bad.”
It really wasn’t bad.
I think I finally understand what Destel meant when he said, “I’m looking forward to tomorrow.” To be able to do anything and contemplating what to do is enjoyable in itself.
“Ugh…”
Exhaling deeply, I stretched my limbs. Lying sprawled on the sofa, feeling the pleasant breeze, I closed my eyes for a moment.
The blowing wind felt good.
The sunlight was warm.
I really had nothing to do.
Time was, without a doubt, abundant.
Just a little nap would be nice.
Thinking that, I relaxed my body.
*
Screech, Thud.
Around the time the sun was slowly setting, Rosel returned to the mansion. When he called out to see if anyone was home, no reply came. It seemed he had been going out frequently these past few days; today was no exception. Really, it was hard to see his face even after returning.
As Rosel took off his coat and hung it on the rack, he stepped into the living room. He blinked in surprise.
In his sight was Rania, sprawled on the sofa, sleeping. It seemed she had started sleeping from broad daylight; she showed no signs of waking up. As he got closer, he could hear her gentle breathing.
Rosel couldn’t help but smile at Rania’s wonderfully relaxed expression.
Swish.
Rosel fetched a blanket from the room and draped it over Rania.
Um, she stirred slightly, tucking her head into the blanket Rosel had covered her with. That sight reminded him of a turtle or a snail, and Rosel chuckled.
“Really.”
Yeah, take a bit of a break, you little one.
After running for so long, it was time for her to rest.