Translated by A Passing Wanderer

Edited by RED

What the heck, this old man… He’s so desperate to fight something, isn’t he? If it was like this, maybe he should’ve given up on going to the Heavenly World and instead, head straight to Purgatory and raise hell over on that side.

I decided to keep the lid on my inner thoughts and got up from the sand. After dusting myself off, I asked him, “Okay, anyways. If I want to wake up, where should I head off to, grandfather?”

Kelt pointed to the sky above. “That leads to the world of living. All you have to do is go through there.”

I followed his pointing finger and stared at the sky.. There was a pool of water covering the sky really high above. It kind of looked like holy water, emanating the unmistakable sacred aura.

Aaah, I see. My holy water was connected to this place, then?

However, that was far too high up in the sky. I had no way of reaching up there. Even if I now possessed superhuman strength, it was still asking for the impossible to jump up that high, and summoning holy undead to create a ladder would not work, either.

Hmm. Did that mean I had to perform the Grim Reaper transformation on myself or something?

Suddenly I became curious about something. “By the way, grandfather? What brings you to this place?”

“I was wondering why you suddenly popped up in here, that’s all. So I crossed over from the Heavenly World.”

“Hang on, is that even allowed?”

“Honestly? Definitely not, since crossing over the boundary is seen as a heavy crime. But well, I have some status in this place, so I’m sure it will work out favourably in the end. Goddess Gaia is a rather benevolent being, so yes, it should be fine. But if things don’t work out as nicely, then I’ll probably get chased away to Purgatory. Nothing more serious than that. Ahaha! I guess that might be a good thing in its own way!”

Kelt guffawed out gallantly at his own words.

Huh. He sounded like an old man completely immersed in enjoying his downtime after giving up the throne of the Holy Emperor.

Maybe the uber-peaceful Heavenly World wasn’t to his liking, after all?

“I got to chat to my grandson after so long, huh.” Kelt stared at me and made this rueful, lonesome face. “But now, it’s time for you to go home, child.”

“Sorry?”

Just as I tilted my head in confusion, someone suddenly grabbed me. I flinched a little and turned around to discover Roy holding my hand.

“I found you!”

“…Roy? What are you doing here?”

Hang on, were you killed off, too?

No way, that didn’t seem right.

Just as I started to get even more flustered, Roy asked me something else, “A-are you really the Holy Emperor?”

“Ah? Y-yeah, that’s me. Why do you ask?”

“Really? But why are you taking it easy in here?! You died, you know!”

Oh? But no one told me straight that I was dead, though?

“Do you know how hard we had to work to revive you for the past week?”

“Wait what, a week?!”

I looked at Kelt in confusion, but the old man shrugged his shoulders and spoke nonchalantly, “The time flow of the world of living and this place aren’t the same, grandson. They fluctuate and shift around all the time. Sometimes faster, sometimes slower. Something like that.”

Roy lifted his head to look at Kelt next. The boy instinctively grew fearful and stumbled back. “W-who is this old man, Your Majesty?”

I replied, “Well, he’s your grandpa.”

“Eh?”

Roy got flustered, prompting Kelt to break out in a wry smile. “It’s time, grandson.”

It was at that moment that my mind grew hazy. Along with Roy, I began floating up.

“Meeting like this is also fate, child.” Kelt reached out towards me.

I reflexively reached out to grab his hand. Our fingertips touched, only to part ways soon after.

“Whenever you find it too difficult to move forward…”

My body seemed to get lighter, only for it to grow heavier almost instantly. It was as if gravity was applying the other way around and my figure rose rapidly into the air.

“…Call on me, child.”

The whole world was suddenly flipped around. Up became down; my figure was flung down and I plunged into the pool of water that used to be up in the sky.

-Lord Allen!-

I thought I could hear a voice.

It belonged to Alice.

Roy and I flailed about in the sacred water, then swam towards where that voice was coming from. Feelings slowly returned to my body: vision, taste, smell, hearing, and even my sense of touch… Every one of them felt vivid and real, as if I was still alive.

-Lord Allen, Allen…!

It was right at that moment that my vision brightened. Air was sucked deep into my lungs, and in return, they screamed in pain.

This incredible pain suddenly stabbed me all over my body and I was tempted to scream out aloud, but I clamped my mouth shut.

The reason for that was simple; there was someone next to me gently holding my hand and praying away for my sake.

A woman with faintly-glistening tears pooling at the edges of her eyes was next to me. It seemed that she was trying her best to suppress her tears.

I reached out with my other hand and held Alice’s hand. She was jolted out of her prayer and stared at me with wide eyes.

I grinned and addressed her, “Been a while, Alice.”

She smiled back brightly with tears freely trickling down her cheeks. “Welcome back, Lord Allen.”

**

“Ku-aaaahk! Ptooey!”

White spat out some blood pooled in his mouth. Charlotte was not too far away from him, and was breathing heavily in fatigue, as well.

The Paladins in their surroundings had to retreat. This was a fight between those two and a massive monster and as such, the others just couldn’t find the necessary courage to join in.

-You bastards, you are both monsters! How, how! With such small bodies, you…!-

Hjorth spat out gusts of sand. Its body was now in tatters. Even the Jötnar couldn’t beat it, yet these two humans could fight it on equal terms somehow.

-Get out of my way! If you don’t, then I…!-

If Hjorth failed in its task this time, then without a doubt it would be treated as a failed product, and then be discarded. It would be just like how it was with the Mud Giant, who was discarded into this world all those years ago.

Hjorth could not afford to let such a thing happen.

The Mud Snake screeched loudly again. All the sand from the surroundings was sucked up and absorbed into Hjorth’s body.

White tutted unhappily while staring at the Mud Snake restoring its damaged body. “Man, this is even harder than back when I had to fight a dragon!”

“I shall provide you with cover, Your Majesty,” said Charlotte as she held up her shield.

Both of them were exhausted right now. They hadn’t had a chance to rest properly during the forced march, and that meant that they couldn’t guarantee their victory against Hjorth standing tall before their eyes.

However, they certainly couldn’t let this creature do as it pleased, either, because it was obviously aiming for Holy Emperor Allen Olfolse’s life.

The Jötnar had finally cottoned onto the Holy Emperor’s existence, it seemed. That meant their earnest attack would soon commence.

No doubt they would start their invasion of the Theocratic Empire very soon.

-Die, you insignificant insects!-

Hjorth opened its maw wide and pounced on Charlotte. She raised her trusty shield and got ready to deflect the Mud Snake’s attack.

But then…

[I now permit the usage of the Aztal Rune!]

A declaration entered her head. Her eyes shot open wide in shock at that very familiar voice.

Her raised shield was lowered ever so slightly as her eyes shifted towards the half-torn tent over yonder.

There he was, a man wearing Amon’s Skull, his hand firmly gripping a golden spear. Even before he could finish securing the mountain goat’s skull on his head, his lips could be seen bobbing up and down. [Charlotte Heraiz.]

Charlotte confirmed his figure, and roused her divinity.

[This is an order.]

The ribbon neatly tying her hair came loose, and her silver locks whipped in the air. The transparent hood materialised through her divinity, and began to gently surround her head.

[Go, and utterly slaughter this snake of mud!]

The sword in her hand was enveloped in divinity as well, transforming into the greatsword of light, while the armour of light materialised all around her body.

She attached the shield to her forearm, then held the greatsword created through divinity with both of her hands. Particles of divinity radiated and freely scattered all around her.

A smile was etched on her lips as she raised her voice. “I shall obey His Majesty the Holy Emperor’s decree, and…”

She held up the greatsword of light high in the air, the glint in her eyes getting much, much sharper. The blade of light seemed to pierce the heavens above.

“…utterly…”

She roared out.

“…annihilate our enemy!”

Truly blinding rays of light exploded forth from her sword.

The divine power went on overdrive, turning her greatsword into the sword of heaven.

The Heavenly Sword that had slaughtered even the Mud Giant in one strike…

Hjorth saw this spectacle and its eyes trembled in fear. Its whole body shuddered from instinctive terror.

Charlotte stepped forward firmly. With a loud, spirited roar, she brought the sword of heaven down with every ounce of her energy.

< 195. The Boundary Between Life and Death -5 (Part One and Two) > Fin.

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