Epilogue / “Thank You”

A slight breeze whipped my bangs in front of my eyes as I gazed down at the town of Fordin in the distance. Brushing the strands aside, I took a deep breath to combat the anxiety in my chest.

I wonder if I should get it cut soon… or maybe she likes this length better. I should ask her.

I grumbled quietly, annoyed at myself.

Even when I try to distract myself by thinking about something else, it just wraps back around to her!

I sighed as I looked around, eager to find something interesting to occupy my thoughts while I waited. Soon, my eyes landed upon a wall segment a few towers down, still half-destroyed from the battle that had unfolded a few days prior.

Even from here, hundreds of feet removed from the site of the conflict, I could envision the entire scene playing out on those ramparts, down to the slightest movement. In retrospect, it was a miracle no one died, though perhaps I simply wasn’t giving us enough credit.

Sliding my gaze further, I stared at the remnants of a fragmented tower, just as ruined as the wall. It was from that point that Ames Nori had been summoned, leaking from a horrific curse inscribed upon the floor—a forbidden spell cast by someone I trusted in order to end my life.

Professor Seris…

After witnessing Vandan’s attack, which seemed to transcend reality as I understood it, I couldn’t pretend like the professor’s concerns were entirely unfounded. If, one day, the rest of us reached that pinnacle of strength, the world would have every right to fear us.

But even if he might’ve been correct, I still couldn’t condone anything he’d done.

And besides, I don’t know about past Inheritors, but I know who I am, and I know who the others are. None of us would do any of the things you described.

And even if one of us tried, the rest would step in. We’d make them come to their senses and right their wrongs. We’d never allow a friend to fall so low, and we’d stop them before they ever went too far.

The future you feared will never come to pass. I’ll make sure of it. All of us will.

The academy was still in an uproar from Professor Seris’s actions. The appearance of an Anomaly Beast was one thing, but the fact that a professor was behind its summoning threw into question the entire idea of entrusting us to Fordin Academy.

In the aftermath of our victory, we’d been granted emergency permissions by the headmaster to do whatever we felt was necessary to ensure our safety. In practice, however, all we really did with these special powers was interrogate the academy’s staff to ensure Professor Seris had no collaborators. Kerne and Mara brought in some friends they trusted who were versed in lie-detection magic, and, one-by-one, we checked off each of the hundreds of teachers, guards, and other faculty members working at the school.

In the end, we concluded that Professor Seris had acted alone. That might have been a foolish assumption, but it was one we were willing to bank on.

We had all come to the agreement that, if possible, we would like to stay at the academy, despite the risks involved and the growing history of corruption within it. Ultimately, it was Fordin Academy that had successfully prepared us to defeat Ames Nori, and it was here that we were best shielded from the outside forces that might seek to abuse our powers. But most importantly…

We want to stay together, at all costs. In the place that’s become our home.

Maybe that’s a naïve wish, but I’m still a teenager; it’s my right to be a little childish sometimes.

The future was uncertain, and we were still only a few steps away from the starting line of our journey. Even so, I refused to fear it as I gazed onward.

Ames Nori was merely the first. Seven Anomaly Beasts remained, and we didn’t know how long we’d have before the next one surfaced.

And yet…

I heard a soft set of footsteps approaching from behind me.

… I have a threat far scarier than any Anomaly Beast ahead of me right now.

I spun to face my guest, cracking a smile. “Sheesh, took you long enough.”

“It’s not my fault,” Shina grumbled. “It was your stupid idea to meet on this wall. Not only did I have to climb all those stairs, but I’m also kind of traumatized by the school ramparts now! Couldn’t you have chosen anywhere else? What’s wrong with just meeting in your room like normal?”

“Nah, it had to be here.” I pointed toward the town. “I mean, look at the incredible view of Fordin. And see the beautiful sunset, just beyond it? Isn’t it worth it?”

“I mean, I guess it’s pretty. But why are you suddenly interested in showing me this kind of thing?”

“Um, I dunno. I just… felt like it today.”

“Sure, but… ah, whatever,” she said, shrugging. “So, what is it you wanted to talk about? I’m getting a little hungry, so we should head back after the sun goes down.”

…

“What is it you wanted to talk about?” Really? Seriously?

I invited you here, alone. I said I had something important I wanted to tell you. I set up a whole romantic view as the backdrop. What else do you think this could be about!?

Unsure if she was playing dumb or just oblivious, I sighed. Then, whipping out the object I’d been hiding in my hands, I gently lowered a flower crown onto Shina’s head, ignoring her evident bewilderment.

“Everett? Is that…?”

“Yep. It’s the same one I gave you for Trivune. I slipped it out of your room yesterday when you weren’t looking.”

Shina seemed even more confused. “But… Trivune was like a month ago. I don’t get it. Why are you acting so weird today? Ah, are you an illusion!?” Suddenly, she poked me in the chest to test her suspicions.

“I’m obviously real!” I complained. “I just figured it would be a waste if you never wore it again. I mean, I paid a premium to get those wilt-resistant flowers, and I fully intend to receive a return on my investment!”

“Return? What do you get out of me wearing this now?”

“Huh?” I tilted my head, unsure if she was joking. “I mean, you look absolutely adorable with that on. Of course I’d relish any opportunity to see you even cuter than usual.”

“Ah…” She took a step backward, her eyes opening wide and her cheeks reddening to match the hue of the sunset.

I smiled at her reaction. I loved it. I loved every part of her, from her bashful stammers to her confident ramblings, and everything in-between.

Her eyes dropped to the floor. “Y-you didn’t use to be this bold. Killing Ames Nori must’ve gone to your head.”

I chuckled for a moment, amused. “Maybe it did. But I don’t think that’s a bad thing. It just means I’m less afraid of saying how I really feel.”

I grabbed one of Shina’s hands without warning, and her gaze suddenly bounced upward to meet mine.

We stared at one another for several seconds, immersed in silence. Neither of us blinked, and neither of us breathed. We simply drank in the sight of the other, all else evaporating from existence as extraneous fixtures of an irrelevant reality. Only one thing mattered to each of us in that moment, and we refused to let our stares drift from our respective treasures.

And it was here, dyed in orange sunset, that I finally had the courage to say what I’d been too cowardly to confess before.

“Shina, I love you.”

Finally, she blinked, repeating the action several times in quick succession. “W-what?”

“I love you.” I would repeat those words as many times as I needed to until she understood them.

…

“Shina?” She stood frozen, not moving an inch since I reaffirmed my affection. “Are you—”

Suddenly, she barreled into me, shoving her face into my chest and wrapping her arms around me.

“Th-this again? Why—”

“I love you too!” she screamed into my torso.

“Ah…”

My heart felt like it was about to burst.

This is the happiest moment of my life.

Pulling my arms free, I returned her embrace.

“I’m glad,” I whispered. “Glad you feel the same way, and just glad I met you. You changed my l—”

Shina pushed against me, separating us. Before I could even process what she was doing, however, she’d already lifted herself up on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on my cheek.

“Gng!?” An odd sound escaped my lips as I stumbled backward, more than a little shocked.

“Payback…” Shina mumbled, just barely loud enough for me to hear. “We’re even, now.”

Dumbfounded, I finally regained my composure as I broke out into uncontrollable laughter. “And you think I’m the one who suddenly got bold?”

She giggled in turn, her shyness easing as she opened up her heart. “Maybe that victory made both of us a little too daring.”

Or, maybe, just daring enough.

I pressed a hand to one of her cheeks, which burned hot. “I love you. I really, really love you.”

“Y-you already said that.”

“I know.” I smiled. “I just felt like saying it again.”

You know, I’ve been terrified my entire life.

Shina brushed my hand aside and sheepishly stepped forward once more. Turning to face the sunset, she leaned her weight against me.

I was terrified of reaching out to anyone, no matter who they were. The very possibility of rejection was enough to paralyze me.

Apprehensively, I wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her even closer. She neither griped nor fidgeted as I held her, so I maintained the position, gazing out into the distance alongside her.

I forced myself into solitude, insulating my fragile psyche from that terror. And, honestly, it worked.

But that’s not really living, is it?

“Hey, Everett.”

“What is it?” My words turned into a faint mist, a sign of the dropping temperature.

“Thanks for being my friend.” I could sense that she was smiling, even though I couldn’t see her face.

“You don’t have to thank me for that. I’m just as grateful.”

I was so scared nothing would change, even after I awoke in this world.

“Too bad. I’m thankful for you whether you like it or not.”

But that wasn’t the case.

I chuckled, charmed by her endearing sense of stubbornness. “Well, I’m glad I could make you happy. And thanks for making me happy, too.”

“That’s better. And you’re welcome.”

The day you stepped into my life. The day you saved me.

“Since neither of us have any, d-do you… wanna be friends? So we can practice talking and stuff…”

You were so awkward. So strange.

And that made two of us.

I leaned my cheek against her hair as she gently grasped the hand I’d wrapped around her body. Even without an exchange of words, the warmth of our touches said plenty.

Thanks to you, I’m not alone anymore.

Thanks to you, I learned the risk is worth it.

Thanks to you, I’ve forged bonds with so many people.

People I’m indebted to, who have given me so much.

Thank you, Akio, for making me realize how easy it is to find common ground if you just give someone a chance.

Thank you, Kerne, for teaching me that people don’t have to think or act the same to be friends.

Thank you, Mara, for looking out for me, and for showing me that overcoming conflict can bring people closer together.

Thank you, Fleur, for never letting me down, even when I distrusted you, time and again.

Thank you, Vandan, for being willing to change and have faith, even if we struggled to see eye to eye.

Thank you, Professor Seris, for being my guide in this unfamiliar world. No matter what, I’ll never forget your kindness, no matter how far apart we drift.

But most of all…

“Thanks for bringing me up here, Everett. It really is beautiful.”

“See? Told you.”

I’m so glad I found you, Shina.

I’m so glad you reached out to me. That I reached back out to you.

It doesn’t take a miracle. Even so, you were that miracle for me.

Thank you for making the pain of the past worth it. For making the joy of the future worth striving for.

And so, I’ll fight for this world. I don’t care if it’s the will of Aeresi or anything else. I’ll fight… for you.

So thank you.

Thank you for being you.

And there we stood as the sun dipped below the horizon, cloaking us in the dark of night. But we didn’t mind. Even as the air grew colder, we just huddled closer to share our warmth as we spent hours laughing and talking in each other’s arms. The future was uncertain, and so we basked in the present.

And for the first time in my life, I truly felt content.

~~~ END ~~~