Epilogue: Under This Beautiful Night Sky

Eddies of yellow sand drifted through the wasteland. The ice had melted, revealing the

raw gashes gouged into the earth by the divine staff. The wind nudged loess into these

dark abysses, filling the earthen pockets slowly, as if the planet were healing its own

wounds—as if the planet were moving of its own volition.

"..." Iska cast a sidelong glance at the scene, taking his time to climb up a tall hill.

"…It's already so late in the day."

The sandy nighttime breeze grazed the back of his neck, causing him to shiver slightly.

He had arrived at the neutral city of Ain at noon, but now he noticed that the sun was

fast sinking below the horizon.

Iska walked across the wastelands and walked and walked and walked.

He trudged forward on the desolate earth—nary a light nor road in sight.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

At the peak of the hill waited a captivating girl with flaxen hair, hugging her knees.

She'd finished treating her wounds all by herself as she anticipated his arrival on the

dune.

"I think you already know, but it seems like Rin is gonna be all right. She's going to

have scars from the burns for a while, but they'll heal naturally over time."

"Uh-huh."

"Jhin and Nene are waiting for Captain Mismis, so she said she's gonna hop on an

overnight bus to get back to the Imperial capital as soon as possible. Can she tell them

about the whole situation with the Founder?"

"I don't mind. It makes no sense to hide it from them, since she put the neutral city in

danger. The Sovereignty takes responsibility for its actions." The princess nodded to

herself as she continued to cradle her knees. "I have one thing to say to you, too. I've

given it a lot of thought, and I think the Grand Witch must have returned to the

underground sanctum."

"In the Sovereignty?"

"Yes. Of course, I can't tell you all the details, but I'll take on the task of watching over

the sanctum. I'll have my mother relinquish the keys to the entrance to me, too… and

prevent the witch from waking up once again." Alice brushed flecks of sand off herself

as she stood up.

Even though she'd sustained injuries all over her body during the fight with the

Founder, she maintained a noble bearing—all while looking absolutely breathtaking.

It was just like the first time he'd seen her in the Nelka forest.

"Well then, I suppose that's all we needed to tell each other."

"Yeah."

"…Right. Then let's start again—our final battle between just the two of us."

No one could get in their way, here and now. The spot was perfect. Everything was

ready.

Iska, the Successor of the Black Steel. Alice, the Ice Calamity Witch. Two heroes born

in opposing nations, the Empire and the Sovereignty.

Their first fateful encounter started it all, and they'd reached the point where they

needed to settle everything now.

"No holding back," Alice warned.

"Yeah."

Alice took a step forward. Iska followed her lead.

"..."

"..."

They each silently watched their opponent as they took another step, then another.

Twenty feet separated them, and then ten.

Ten feet became three.

Before they realized it, Iska and Alice were standing close enough to touch each other.

"There's something I want to say," the Imperial swordsman admitted.

"What a coincidence." The girl of the Sovereignty nodded.

Then—

"…Let's have a truce. Today… I'm too exhausted…," he said.

"…No objections here."

At the same time, Iska and Alice collapsed onto the wastelands.

"…But it's just for today, okay?" she said.

"I know."

"We're enemies again starting tomorrow, okay?"

"I guess we are."

"..."

"..."

They both looked up at the stars overhead.

"The sky is beautiful tonight."

"Yeah."

They continued to sprawl out next to each other, not moving a single muscle.

If a bird soaring in the night sky peered down at the two, it might have mistaken them

for lovers or siblings.

"I can see the 'cradle.' Its constellation is clear tonight. This is the only time of year

that it's visible, so this might be the last we'll see of it."

"Which one?"

"That one. You can tell at a glance."

She copied the boy pointing with his finger by raising her own to stretch out into the

starry sky.

"The streetlights in the Imperial capital are too bright. I don't get to see the stars that

often. Is it that string of blue stars?"

"No, not that one but next to it… No, this time you've missed it completely."

"…It's hard."

"Oh, you're so silly."

They might be enemies. They might be opponents at daybreak, posed to fight each

other once more.

But just for that moment, their laughter rang through the air.

Iska, the Successor of the Black Steel, and Alice, the Ice Calamity Witch, continued to

look up together toward the star-filled sky.

This is the story of the battle with a witch—a fight between you, a witch, and me. Will

we meet next in a distant battlefield? Or a last crusade for the rise of a new world?

Our story has only just begun.