Chapter 48.2: Seawater Tribe’s Treasure (2)

The members of the tribe who had listened to his will closed their eyes one by one as if mourning his death. Anne was weeping endlessly with empty eyes.

Shit.

Not long after, the chieftain's chest ripped open, revealing a blue jewel from within.

Anne reached out and slowly picked it up.

The wizard, who was watching the scene, widened his eyes.

"Magic Crystal…"

A crystal formed by the fusion of the magical powers accumulated over a lifetime. The essence of pure magic.

A treasure from the heavens that mages could not artificially create.

Anne turned her head and looked at the mage as if to kill him.

"Only because of this one stone!"

She cried out in a shriveled voice.

"Half of this world already belongs to you humans! You conquered and took possession of the land, resources, and everything in abundance!"

"···"

"But when are you going to be satisfied?! How much more do you have to take to be satisfied?"

"It is a treasure of no use to you."

The mage opened his mouth, furrowing his brows.

"And you're talking really foolishly, Seawater tribe. We humans are the ones who have finally saved this continent during the long war. The hero beheaded the demon king and finally stopped the invasion of the evil demons. The peace of this land so far. Whose power do you think it is that's keeping it intact?"

"Mage."

I jumped in to stop him from talking.

"Shut up when I'm still giving you a chance to live."

He turned silently and looked at me.

My tone was more sarcastic than normal because the other just made me feel dirty.

"And it's not just humans who stopped the demon invasion. What brazen voice are you talking about?"

"…That the one who finally sealed the Demon King."

"Yeah, that was done by the hero. But was that what you guys did? It's just the achievement of the hero alone, not the whole Empire."

"That hero is the guardian of our Santea."

"A guardian of an empire who hunts and slaughters innocent races. You know it too, don't you? The hero despises your emperor and the imperial family."

There was only one reason the hero had left the imperial family's secret evil deeds until now. No, she had no choice but to leave them alone.

Because she was a hero who truly cared about the peace of the continent.

And the mouse-like emperor used that very well as a shield.

I stopped the guy who was about to react with an angry look and said.

"Stop it now. If you run into me again, I will kill you no matter what the circumstances are."

The Mad King, who had her arms crossed with a sullen face, gestured with her chin.

"Go. I paid off the debt with this, so I'll kill you if you appear in Calderic again."

He flew into the air, biting his lips, and in an instant, he crossed the air and disappeared to the other side.

So the situation was settled.

The Mad King, who was looking at the sky, shifted her gaze to me. Then she asked, making a slicing movement across her throat.

"Are you really going to kill me?"

"···"

"If we kill each other, don't you know how the Overlord will react? Well, it seems like you're like me who doesn't even care about that…"

"What were you doing here?"

She answered my question by tapping her sword.

"I'm not doing anything in particular. I was just on my way back after leaving a few swords with Agor."

···The First Lord?

Apparently, she appeared here by coincidence.

"So, what were you doing in this lake? What are those other things?"

"I don't know."

The Mad King giggled and turned around.

"It's terribly chilly. There's nothing else to do, so I'm leaving. See you at the next meeting."

Seeing her back disappearing through the bushes again, I let out a small sigh, as it exhausted me for nothing.

"···Ron."

Anne, who was holding the crystal blankly, looked at me and called my name.

There were no words to follow.

Several members of the tribe stood up and wrapped their arms around her shoulders.

I looked down at the chieftain's corpse and briefly prayed for his repose inwardly.

Although he died, everyone else survived, so his death would not have been meaningless.

***

I stayed by their side until dawn.

They buried the chieftain in the back of the cave where they were staying and held a ceremony for a long time. It looked like a tribal funeral.

They left the cave only after dawn and lined up in front of the lake.

Anne stepped forward and released the crystal in her hand into the lake.

The crystal then emitted a bright light and slowly dissolved in the water and disappeared.

The magical crystals of the Seawater tribe would dissolve and disappear when they came in contact with water. It was a fact I already knew.

And, as one could see, it was also the way the Seawater people honored the dead.

When the crystal was completely dissolved in the water, Anne stood up and said,

"Grandpa said. This crystal is made with the magic we've absorbed from the water all our lives. We have to release it back into the water to keep the cycle going."

"···"

"Thanks, Ron. Thanks to you, at least the last funeral was done properly."

I asked her as she looked at the lake with a little blank eyes.

"Are you planning to leave right away?"

"It should be. Now I'm going to the sea without stopping."

A river that originated in Gaitan Lake and ran to the North Sea of the continent.

They seemed to plan to ride it straight to their home.

Splash!

They thanked me and said goodbye, and one by one they started jumping towards the lake.

I said to Anne, who remained until the last to make sure that no one was left behind.

"Someday, after I've finished all the things I have to do, I'll visit your home."

"···Huh?"

"When we meet again, I hope I can see you with a smile. Goodbye."

She glanced at me blankly, raised the corners of her lips, and jumped straight into the lake.

I stood still for a while, staring at the surface of the lake, then turned around.