Interlude: The Ceremonial Sword
A red-haired man stood still.
In his right hand he held a ceremonially decorated sword. The man was surrounded by trees, and nearby was a small, dilapidated shed. Overgrown ivy covered most of the shed, making it look abandoned.
The man looked at the ceremonial sword in his hand.
A small red gem was embedded in the hilt. A sword that emitted a faint white light. For the man, this sword was an unforgettable object. It was a sword once held by his beloved family – his brother.
He understood that it was just a magic sword that imitated the form. But the power within the sword was unmistakable. The faintly shining white magic power was real, surely his brother’s.
[Oh… I can really have that?]
His brother’s form appeared in his mind. His brother sat up from his bed, his eyes shining with excitement.
[Yes, but don’t let them find it. Father will scold me if he finds out].
[–Got it! Thanks, brother!]
His brother grinned happily, holding the ceremonial sword in both hands.
That memory was… when the man took pity on his sickly brother, who couldn’t participate in knight training and wasn’t given a sword, and gave him his own ceremonial sword. Hoping to cheer up his brother, who looked on enviously, the man gave him the ceremonial sword, which was gathering dust from disuse.
The man’s expression softened slightly. A gentle smile, reminiscent of the past.
“You always said you envied me. Always looking out the window, longing for the knights training with swords. You used to look forward to the souvenirs I would bring back from expeditions, even though you weren’t a knight yet.”
He recalls the fond memories.
“You called me your proud brother. You said you wanted to be like me—able to wield both sword and magic, and brave.”
Bright memories, though now impossible to return to.
“I never said it out loud… but I was happy. I did a lot of reckless things because I wanted to live up to your expectations. Remember when I hunted that giant monster? You probably didn’t know, but I almost died several times. I lied and said I [took it down easily], just to keep up appearances.”
The man bowed his head, apologizing, “I’m sorry.”
“Seeing you watching me gave me courage. I had to suppress my weaknesses, unable to show you a pathetic sight… I was able to play the role of the perfect, strong knight brother.”
Suddenly, a small bird chirps. The man looks up and abruptly starts to walk.
“You had something I didn’t. I envied that.”
The man mumbles as he walks through the forest.
“That is purity. A compassionate spirit, gentleness… I had none of that. No, I lost them.”
He suddenly remembers a certain hero. A cheerful, peach-haired hero. Her sincere desire to help people without ulterior motives somehow resembles his brother.
Finally, he leaves the forest and enters an open space.
What spreads out before his eyes is a blue landscape. A beautiful lake with transparent water stretching in all directions.
The wind is blowing, and the man’s figure wavering on the surface of the water is distorted. The rocking water surface gradually regains its calm.
The man’s expression is projected onto the surface of the water.
“And now this same you – I have come to loathe you with an intensity that defies description.”
A hateful expression.
Gritting his teeth, he stares at the water’s surface with sword-swallowing eyes. The ceremonial sword in his right hand creaks, unable to withstand the mighty force.
“I have come to loathe the hypocrisy that was you. Your ideals weighed heavily on me and tormented me many times. That’s why I should have ended it all. So why… why did you appear before me again?”
The man clutches his chest. Trying to suppress the rising emotions. To endure the burning feelings.
An unpleasant wind caresses the man’s cheek. His red bangs sway slightly, tickling his face. The annoying chirping of birds from the forest grates on his eardrums.
“I’ve changed.”
A hollow voice echoes.
“The me of the past is gone. The faint purity I had, my strength, all of it is gone.”
He raises his right hand to his chest. The white light of the ceremonial sword he holds shines on the surface of the water.
Something fell into the water with a small sound. Faintly, but surely.
The ceremonial sword is no longer in the man’s hand.
With empty eyes, he watches the sinking white light and finally turns his heels back to the forest.
The ceremonial sword sinks. Deeper and deeper, into the depths of the lake.
“I can’t go back anymore.”
The shining light no longer reached him.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
Afterword
Thank you for picking up volume three. This is Shiroao Toraneko.
How was it…? For this volume, I wanted to go deeper into the stories of the existing characters. I enjoyed writing every scene, but the one with Rafine and the protagonist at the end is my favorite.
In the next volume, I’ll be picking up the threads laid here while the protagonist plays a big role, so I hope you can look forward to a story that’s even more exciting than before!
I would like to thank everyone involved in the publication of volume three. And especially to the readers who have been supporting me since the web edition, thank you so much! Your warm messages and impressions always motivate me.
I’m very sorry for the long stagnation in updates of the web edition… Please bear with me a little longer, I’ll deliver an extremely interesting story to make up for the wait…!
Ms. Riichu, thank you again for the beautiful illustrations in volume three! Every time I get cool, cute illustrations from you, I say a silent prayer of thanksgiving. I know I’m just an amateur, but your illustrations were amazingly wonderful and divine to begin with, and now they’ve become even more divine, which makes me want to work harder to improve my writing skills and more! I need to write more if I want to improve…I still have a long way to go with so many shortcomings.
Editors, thank you as always. Sorry for all the trouble I have caused you by asking about the work and other annoyances… Also sorry for getting deadline extensions…. I’m like a baby getting a piggyback ride, aren’t I(?)
I’ll keep working hard to deliver an even more interesting story!
Also check out my friend Localizermeerkat for more LN translations!
BUY THE SOURCE MATERIAL TO SUPPORT THE AUTHOR !!!
Kindly click on the green button above and contribute to filling the green bar if you’re interested in having another LN from the request page translated. Also, every donation is being used to purchase the source material and to fund more English translations.
Please consider joining my Ko-Fi membership. By becoming a member, you’ll also gain access to 2-10 additional chapters of all of the novels from this site translated into English. Last but not least your support will also assist me in upholding the translation quality and speed. For more information, please follow the link.
Donation for faster release is always welcome
Additionally, I am now accepting translation requests.
[easily defeated] – entire sentence little odd, my guess isn’t transform in English well? The intention probably about monsters been defeated but it is sound like he himself was defeated, at least for me.
nope, my mistake. it should be [defeated it easily]. reworded the text so it should read better. thanks