Chapter 159: Bombshells of Truth

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༺ Bombshells of Truth ༻

"…Haah."

With a heavy sigh, Isolet moved to rise from the chair at the head of the table while wearing a miserable expression on her face.

"E-everyone."

She intended to share what she saw with the other girls around her.

"...…."

However, she immediately shut her mouth and froze in her seat when she noticed the unmistakably downcast expressions on their faces.

Even without asking, it was immediately apparent that they too had regained similar memories of Frey and his actions.

"Ugh…"

In such a situation, Isolet managed to finally stand up from her seat with great difficulty due to the tremors that were going through her body.

– Ssk…

Shortly thereafter, she began to trudge towards the entrance.

"C-Commander! What in the world happened…?"

"Is the fight over? What's actually going o…"

"Step… aside."

She shoved away the messengers at the entrance who were blocking her path.

"…Huh?"

However, before stepping out, she slowly turned around to glance behind her.

Isolet gazed at the four girls who had risen from their seats and were now approaching her.

– Ssk

Alongside them, Isolet emerged from the tent.

"Frey…"

Together, they began heading somewhere, looking aghast and pale as they mumbled something incoherent.

"Frey…"

They trudged for quite some time, almost seeming like they were aimlessly walking.

"I must collect Frey's remains…"

Upon reaching her destination, Isolet found Aria collapsed from exhaustion due to crying. She also saw Ferloche lying unconscious, and Abraham in a deep slumber following his medicine consumption.

– Ssk… Ssk…

While wearing a hollow expression, Isolet began to scoop up the glimmering soil.

– Ssk…

Following her lead, the four girls behind her mechanically scooped up the shimmering soil with the same empty expressions on their faces.

And so, they gathered Frey's remains for a long time, not intending to miss even a single speck of dust.

"W-We must collect Frey's remains quickly…"

Her voice quivered as she spoke, her expression gradually hardening.

"Before the wind blows it away and before his last remains disappear… we must save anything we can as soon as possible."

The thoughts of the four girls were the same as hers as they started to desperately collect Frey's remains. Isolet was the only one to gather the glimmering soil into her scabbard.

"....Ugh."

However, she broke into tears when she could no longer maintain the poker face she had kept so far.

It was the first time she had wept since she had vowed to choose the path of knighthood for life back when she was young.

"…Professor, what kind of memories did you recall?"

Isolet turned to Serena, who had asked her that question in a trembling voice.

"It was a memory of Frey when we were both mere children."

Then, Isolet began to describe the memory she had seen about young Frey to the quivering Serena and the rest of the girls who still had pallid faces.

"It was a memory that Frey had erased… But I clearly remember it now."

"What was… the memory about?"

Serena asked in a broken voice, her vacant expression still radiating devastation. After scratching the ground to the point where it almost broke her fingernails, Isolet looked around at those girls and began explaining.

"I remember going to Frey's house for our usual training, just like any other day. However, what was different about that day was that I lost to him during the sparring match."

"…Professor lost to him…?"

"I was completely defeated. It felt like it was just yesterday that the little brat had lost to me when I was only using my left arm… Yet, on that day, he overwhelmingly won against me with a single strike."

As she spoke, her hands began to palpitate.

"Because of that one strike, I was flung into a wall and had my breath knocked out of my lungs. Do you know what he said to me at that time?"

"What… did he say?"

"He said that he was terrified."

"…Ah."

"He said it was frightening to suddenly become a Hero and gain so much power beyond his control. And also…"

As she spoke, Isolet vividly recollected the scene in her mind despite the chaos swirling inside her.

"…He said he was scared because he couldn't rely on me anymore."

A tear rolled down her cheek, and fell onto the collected soil.

"That young Frey was trembling in desperation, realizing that he couldn't behave like a child around me any longer and petrified with the fact that he had hurt me because he couldn't control his new-found power."

"Ah…"

"Because I didn't understand what exactly happened, I tried to approach him to comfort him…"

She continued to tell her story at a very slow pace.

"… However, that boy suddenly tore a scroll apart, mustering a smile as he said his final words."

Before she realized, her hands were now encrusted with blood. Despite the uncontrollable quaver in her voice, she did not stop speaking.

"Regardless of what happens in the future, he said he would regard me as the second person he respects the most in this world."

A silence enveloped the surroundings as Isolet finished her story.

"And indeed… he always kept his promise."

In the midst of that silence, Isolet continued once more.

"Ferloche stated that he has endured for an unfathomable amount of time in countless regressions…."

The only audible sound was Isolet's tearful voice.

"I recall teaching him that the sword's purpose wasn't to hurt people but to protect them. At that time, he grinned and said he would never forget…"

Isolet's lament continued as she clutched the blood-soaked dirt with her injured hands.

"While I promised that he would always be my most beloved disciple… I broke that promise. However, Frey… Even after he was beyond broken with loneliness and despair, he still respected me until the end."

Her tearful recollection filled the garden, yet all that reverberated was the echo of her sorrowful wails.

"It wasn't Ruby who saved my life during the Academy Siege, but Frey. He was the one who saved me from being brainwashed at the auction house, and he was also the one who paid for the tuition of the Class A commoner students when they were forced to find sponsors."

"....."

"But I… I… "

As Isolet's sobs resounded, she displayed a fragile expression she had never shown before.

"…Huk."

Finally, she lowered her head and bit her lip hard, as if she wanted to tear off her tongue and die right on the spot.

"....."

For a moment, utter silence filled the air.

"…In the end, the Young Master's mother turned into a werewolf, and my parents' ambitions turned me into a warlock."

"I… helped Frey kill that werewolf."

"I… I made Frey swear a covenant that he would die if he didn't make me the Empress."

After a while, the girls broke the silence and began to share their memories in unison.

"…I took away 90 years of Frey's lifespan."

The mood became even more depressing after Serena's statement, which she murmured with lifeless eyes.

"Ugh… Me too…"

Amid such a grim atmosphere, Isolet spoke up.

"This is the sword Frey gave me."

Her expression changed as she looked at her beloved sword, which she briefly placed on the ground as she scooped more of Frey's remains into her scabbard.

"Frey was a swordsman… and to a swordsman, their sword is their other half."

"…What?"

"And if the sword is their other half, the scabbard is the container that holds such a half."

As Isolet spoke, her eyes were filled with nostalgia. They were filled of a past where the bravery of a single warrior commanded and dominated entire battlefields.

"So… if this scabbard contains all of Frey's remnants…"

In that past, however dour the situation was, her determination remained unwavered and unbroken.

"If that's the case, can't we at least hold a funeral for him…?"

In this situation, however, only broken sobs and a wavering voice adorned the scene.

"E-erm… everyone."

The girls had listless expressions as they followed Isolet's instructions and filled the scabbard to the brim with the other half of what was once Frey Raon Starlight.

"The time is drawing near."

".....?"

They tilted their heads and stared with haunting eyes as the Imperial Administrator approached them anxiously.

"T-The journalists and diplomats from various countries have already gathered here. The official press conference has already been delayed for hours. If we delay it further, riots could erupt!"

"…What do you mean by that?"

Rather than the girls who were glaring coldly at the insensitive administrator, the tearful Isolet was the one to reply.

"T-The fate of the world hinges on the outcome of the final battle and isn't it naturally the responsibility of the Hero's Party… to make an official statement?"

The Imperial Administrator replied as she broke out in a cold sweat.

"B-But we are not… the Hero's Party…"

"L-Lady Ruby is not here, and Lady Ferloche has lost consciousness for some reason… leaving only Lady Isolet and Princess Clana as the highest-ranking members."

Isolet flinched and felt a tremendous combination of guilt and fury when Ruby's name was mentioned. However, she suppressed it and began to show a desperate expression as the official continued to speak with distress.

"…If I were to hold a press conference, where would it be broadcasted?"

With a firm resolve, Isolet inquired as she rose from her seat.

"T-Throughout the empire. Yes, it would be broadcasted all over the empire."

"…Really?"

Upon hearing those words, Isolet nodded.

"Then, let's go."

She stood up from her seat while holding back her tears.

"Erm, but what is that…?"

"Ignore it."

She brushed off the question, tightly clutching the scabbard containing the last of Frey to her chest.

– Click, click! Click!

"Over here! Please look this way!"

"Why were you several hours late from the expected time?"

"Last time, you claimed that the rumors about friction in the Hero's Party were baseless. Is that really true…?"

As Isolet, Kania, Serena, Clara, and Irina appeared at the press conference, the atmosphere intensified with fervor.

"Be quiet… everyone, be quiet, please!"

The heated atmosphere soon died down when Isolet showed a grim expression and began to shout for silence.

"What-what's going on? Did they lose?"

"… Don't they look too uninjured to say that they experienced defeat?"

"Then why does everyone's face look like that?"

Since they were mere civilians before journalists and envoys, they couldn't help but worry about their lives and the war's aftermath that would ultimately determine the fate of their precious world.

"...…."

The journalists began to tense up in anticipation after observing Isolet's actions. However, she remained in stoic silence.

"What caused the sun to shake so alarmingly earlier?"

"Did the Hero's Party win?"

"What happened to Hero Ruby, and what is the current situation regarding Frey?"

Their anxiety morphed into a barrage of questions. Isolet's voice finally cut through their cacophony.

"I'll give you all of the answers."

Her expression was filled with sorrow as she spoke.

"As for why the sun shook so worrisomely, further explanation is needed from the Saintess, who is currently unconscious. So, I ask for your understanding on this matter."

Isolet began to explain the events of the final battle.

"Regarding the outcome of the victory or defeat of the Hero Party, I may not be able to disclose everything at this moment since it's a very complicated matter. But one thing is certain…"

Isolet paused for a moment after saying that.

"… Frey has passed away."

The first bombshell was dropped.

"What do you mean?"

"What about Hero Ruby…?"

Her one statement sent the journalists into a frenzy of questions.

"I just received a question about the whereabouts of Hero Ruby and Demon King Frey."

Isolet simply ignored all the questions that journalists asked.

"So, I am here to reveal a truth everyone should know."

She merely continued to explain quietly.

Click, click, click!

Just like that, the journalists' attention was immediately drawn to Isolet's unusual speech, entranced at her every word.

"Ruby was not the Hero."

As she clutched the scabbard tightly, she released another bombshell, further capturing the journalists' focus.

"And Frey was not a Demon King either."

Without giving them time to regain their composure, Isolet dropped the third bombshell, momentarily paralyzing the journalists who believed they had an exclusive scoop.

"Frey Raon Starlight is… "

And the girls who stood behind Isolet looked pale and shocked.

"P-Professor…"

"Was Frey… was Frey really a Hero…?"

"…Impossible."

She stared at the sub-heroines who were also being questioned by reporters.

"…Frey Raon Starlight was the true Hero."

Isolet was on the verge of crying once again as she declared the truth to the entire empire.

"Frey was the Hero who had been protecting us all this time."

That day, the empire fell silent.

You can read 505 episodes for $10. p.*atreon.com/Astrid02