The one who’d spoken up the most against Isolde and Dohga’s marriage was Rudeus. Dohga had saved Rudeus in the Biheiril Kingdom, so Rudeus owed Dohga his life and really trusted him. Dohga was innocent, honest, and seemed like an easy mark. When Rudeus heard he was marrying a superficial woman like Isolde, he’d wondered if she was after money or if she was going to cheat on him. He’d even secretly done a background check on her. Maybe he’d forgotten that Isolde had saved him as well.
In any case, there was no way he’d ever be disappointed about his daughter. Not innocent Dohga, whom Rudeus trusted so much. The last time Eris had seen him, he’d been smiling from ear to ear as his daughter, who was the spitting image of her mother, sat on his shoulders. Isolde said he even did the cleaning and washing and looked after the children, all of his own initiative.
Even Eris, who didn’t do much around the house as a rule, couldn’t help but say to Isolde, “Shouldn’t you help out a bit too?”
She’d never forget how Isolde had looked away sheepishly and muttered, “But he’s better at it…”
“I hope our children can inspire each other to grow,” said Nina.
Eris nodded in agreement. “Same here. If you like, you could send yours to study at the Magic University too.”
“I like the sound of that, but Gino wouldn’t allow it. He always wants to keep those he loves close to him.”
“In that case, they’ll never be able to leave the Sword Sanctum.”
“If they want to leave, I’m sure they won’t wait for his permission.” Nina giggled a little. She couldn’t imagine ever having a conversation like this with the old Eris.
“Hm?” Eris, suddenly sensing someone, turned around. A child stood at the entrance to the living room. It was Nell, holding a book in his hand. When his eyes met Eris’s, he strode forward, looking determined.
“Um, Miss Berserker Sword King?” he said.
“Yeah?”
“Y-you know this person, right?!” He held out the book to her. It was The Superd’s Adventure, a book Eris knew very well. Norn had written it, Rudeus had turned it into a book, and Zanoba and Aisha had sold it.
“You mean Ruijerd?” she asked. “Or Norn?”
“Norn…? You mean you know the writer too?! Oh, right, I guess you have the same last name!”
“Norn’s my sister-in-law. Rudeus’s little sister.”
“Right, ‘Quagmire’ Rudeus! Number seven of the Seven Great Powers! Also known as the right hand of the Dragon God and Rudeus the Magician King!”
“That’s right. You sure know a lot.”
“I asked my mom about the Superd and about you, Eris! And I heard about the Quagmire and the Berserker Sword King from the bards! I wanted to meet you, even just once!” Nell looked up at Eris, his eyes sparkling. To him, she was a character from the songs of bards, straight out of a legend.
Unlike his father, Nell was itching to know more about the “Outside World.” One day, he dreamed of venturing out into it and becoming someone the bards sang of.
“Did you? I’m honored,” said Eris. She felt a grin spreading across her face, but forced herself to look serious before nodding gravely, thinking she couldn’t ruin the boy’s dream. In her mind, she pictured Roxy’s serene expression.
“Rudeus and Orsted are both here, too,” she added. “You should go see them before they leave. Oh, and North God Kalman III!”
“Can I?!” Nell’s head snapped up to stare at Eris. Number seven and number two of the Seven Great Powers, and Kalman from the Epic of the North God all towered as tall, if not taller, than his monstrously strong father in his mind. He’d never imagined that on such an ordinary day as this his dream of meeting them would come true.
“Um…” Nell tucked the book behind his back, then rubbed his knees together nervously. “You’ve traveled all over the world, right, Miss Berserker Sword King?”
“Yep, from the Demon Continent to the Millis Continent to the edges of the Central Continent. The Divine Continent too. I haven’t been to the Begaritt Continent, though.”
“If you don’t mind, I was wondering, if…if you’d tell me about your adventures…”
“My adventures? Not Rudeus’s?”
“Yes, I want to hear about the Berserker Sword King!”
As Eris nodded, a smile spread over her face. Thinking back, she used to love those sorts of tales, always begging Ghislaine to tell her about her adventures. She’d never dreamed she’d be the one telling the stories. Nowadays, she told Arus and Sieg lots of stories whenever they asked her, but this felt different. This time, she wasn’t being asked as a mother, but as a hero.
Not that Eris thought of it like that. She just felt a bit pleased.
“Let’s see, then… How about the story of when I was teleported to the Demon Continent?” With that, Eris cheerfully began her tale.
Watching her, Nina felt a smile tug at her mouth. “So different,” she murmured.
Nina had changed, and so had Eris. They couldn’t claim to be inspiring each other to improve anymore, but she felt that if anything, she and Eris were closer now. When they first met, she’d been sure they would never get along. Even when Eris had departed the Sword Sanctum as a Sword King, Nina had respected her, in her way, but their relationship had been too confusing to call it friendship. This was new. Nina didn’t have the same level of admiration for Eris anymore, but she felt something she’d never felt back then. It’d been a long time since she’d seen Isolde. If they met now, perhaps she’d feel the same thing. It was an unusual experience for Nina, who’d hardly had any real friends.
“Eris?” she said.
“Then, just like that, Ruijerd cut off the head of the pet kidnapper, and—what?”
“Let’s take our kids to see Isolde together.”
Eris blinked, then nodded. “It’s a plan.”
After becoming Sword God, Gino had changed. With a Sword God like him, the Sword Sanctum itself would start to look different soon. Nothing ever lasts. For all she knew, someone might show up who’d defeat Gino just like that. That was part of being a sword fighter. They were fragile creatures.
However, Nina thought this friendship would endure. After all, she was no longer a sword fighter.