Chapter 816

Chapter 816
Ereneth’s complexion drained of all color.
The dark intuition she had been suppressing was suddenly confirmed.
“Are you truly… leaving? You… you aren’t dying, are you?”
Ghislain offered a weary smile and shook his head.
“I am not dying. There is no need for worry.”
“Then what is this? Where could you possibly be going?”
“I am returning to the place I truly belong.”
“And where might that be?”
“A location very far from here.”
He meant a millennium into the future. A time so distant it was practically unreachable.
How could he even begin to describe it to her?
“Cough!”
Ghislain coughed up more blood. The demands Ereneth was about to make died in her throat.
“W-we have to treat your wounds first. In this state, you can’t—you shouldn’t go anywhere.”
Her voice shook with emotion. Ghislain simply gave a pained smile and shook his head again.
“Fetch Julien and Kyle. Bring Deneb, too. Tell Marika and Lionel to come.”
Left with no alternative, Ereneth called for them. Ghislain’s physical state was far too critical to ignore any longer.
Upon hearing the news of his departure, Marika and Lionel looked utterly bewildered, unable to grasp the situation.
However, the expressions of Julien, Kyle, and Deneb instantly turned somber.
Noticing their reaction, Ereneth looked toward Julien.
“What is happening? What do you all know?”
Julien glanced at Ghislain, who gave a slight nod, granting his permission.
Julien began to speak with measured words.
“Ghislain and Astion… they are not the same individual.”
“I am aware! He has a second persona! But what does that have to do with—!”
The rumor regarding Astion’s dual nature was common knowledge. Ereneth, Marika, and Lionel had witnessed the emergence of Astion’s other side many times.
They had trained and lived as a group for years. They particularly remembered those nights in the Dragon Lord’s lair when Astion immersed himself in magical research; they felt they knew him intimately.
On occasion, Astion would emerge and record notes in solitude. Everyone had grown to accept this secondary aspect of him.
But Julien shook his head with conviction.
“No. It isn’t that. He is a completely separate soul. One that took up residence in Astion’s body.”
“…What?”
Ereneth, Marika, and Lionel stared in stunned silence. The revelation was beyond their imagination.
Ghislain gave a small shrug and a tired smile.
“It’s the truth. I originated from elsewhere. I intended to keep it a secret, but I couldn’t keep it from you.”
Ereneth’s voice trembled as she asked,
“S-so… are you saying the spirit of a deceased man entered Astion?”
“No. I am still alive in another place.”
“Where? Where is this place? Tell me!”
“…It is a place you cannot reach.”
Ghislain smiled with a hint of melancholy.
If only he could return to his own body and still maintain these friendships. But such a thing was impossible.
He couldn’t even be certain what memories the future versions of Ereneth and Julien would hold.
If Julien were merely a reincarnation, he might possess no memory of this at all.
Ereneth gripped Ghislain’s hand tightly, her voice cracking.
“You’re joking, right? This is just another one of your tricks? You’re just playing with us, aren’t you?”
“…No. For once, I am telling the absolute truth.”
Ereneth, Marika, and Lionel turned their gaze toward Deneb. A Saintess was incapable of such jests or falsehoods.
Deneb gave a slow, sorrowful nod.
In that moment, the three realized it was true.
Yet, their hearts fought against the reality. How could they possibly accept this?
The shock was paralyzing—but more than that, they simply did not want Ghislain to depart.
They questioned him repeatedly, but the answer remained unchanged.
Julien’s voice was unsteady as he continued.
“Back when we first encountered one another…”
He briefly revisited the start of their journey and the events that led them to this point.
It was a concise retelling, but it provided the others with the understanding they needed to face the truth.
Now they understood why a warrior as powerful as Ghislain had withered away and why his body refused to mend.
Ereneth cried out, her eyes filling with tears.
“Then can’t we simply increase Astion’s power level right now? There has to be a way!”
Silence followed. If such a solution existed, Ghislain would have utilized it long ago.
Astion was already an 8th-Circle mage. At his youthful age, such a feat was unparalleled in history.
A sudden advancement in his magical realm was out of the question. Even with the sum of Ghislain’s vast knowledge and experience, they had reached the current limit.
Julien spoke with a hollow voice.
“Now… let us say goodbye to our friend.”
Ghislain was in such a fragile state that his next breath could easily be his last.
They knew this moment was inevitable, yet its sudden arrival felt cruel. Regardless, they could not let him fade away without a proper parting.
Deneb stepped forward first, tracing a cross in the air.
“O Goddesses, provide your blessing to our dear friend as he returns to his rightful realm.”
Julien took hold of Ghislain’s hand.
“My thanks to you. Because of your guidance, I discovered the path I was meant to walk. I will… never forget you.”
Kyle’s voice was heavy with emotion.
“I was just starting to catch up to your level… so why are you leaving so soon…”
Marika bowed her head, her eyes overflowing.
“I will cherish the kindness you showed me for as long as I live. Truly, thank you.”
Lionel spoke with a resolute expression.
“Thank you for transforming my life. And… I shall never forget your actions or your sacrifice for the sake of this world.”
Each sincere word washed over Ghislain. To this group, he was their spiritual anchor and the living proof of the years they had spent together.
Regrettably, Dark was unable to say his own farewells. Ghislain lacked the strength to manifest him.
Kyle, who shared the closest bond with Dark, spoke on his behalf.
“Dark, I know you’re listening. Thank you for everything. I won’t forget our battles together. Goodbye.”
— Hmph… You as well, weakling. Stay alive. Our legends will be recorded in the annals of history. It was an enjoyable time.
Ghislain shared Dark’s message with a faint smile. Kyle sniffled, wiping his nose with his sleeve.
While everyone else had offered their partings, Ereneth remained in a pained silence.
The others retreated slightly, giving her space. she stood there with a devastated expression, unable to find the words.
Propped up against the pillows, Ghislain smiled.
“Are you not going to say goodbye?”
“…”
“Then I shall simply depart.”
He spoke with a light, teasing tone.
He didn’t want his final moments to be defined by misery. He hoped to leave his friends with smiles on their faces.
But then—
Ereneth lunged forward, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face against his shoulder.
“…Do not go.”
“…I have no choice.”
Tears flowed down Ereneth’s face as she bit her lip in agony.
To an elf, a human lifespan was like a fleeting moment—and that was precisely why it was so precious.
Yet she was being forced to let him go before even that brief time had reached its natural end.
She had prayed that this season of their lives would never end.
‘It hurts so much…’
She had always wanted to experience human emotions—but now that she possessed them, why was the pain so sharp?
The sensation was stifling. It felt as though her heart was being shredded, and her tears were relentless.
In that moment, she finally understood.
She understood why elves were so cautious about forming deep attachments with humans.
Because feelings this intense… could eventually break them.
Between sobs, Ereneth managed to speak.
“You claimed you aren’t dying, right? Then what am I supposed to do? How can I find you again? I will come for you. I will search until I find you.”
“…”
“Answer me. You always have a solution.”
“……”
Ghislain paused. He debated whether he should reveal the truth.
Ultimately, he knew Ereneth would encounter him in the future. It was a fixed point in time, a destiny that could not be avoided.
He leaned in and whispered softly.
“……One thousand years from today.”
Ereneth didn’t entirely comprehend his words, but she clung to the small shard of hope they provided.
“When that time arrives… can we meet once more?”
“……Yes.”
“A thousand years from now, I will find you. I promise I will find you.”
“……Very well.”
Ghislain smiled. In truth, she really would find him a millennium later.
However… their dynamic would be quite different from what it was now. Even so, they would reunite, and he felt that when he returned to the future, he might see her in a new light.
Then, Ereneth spoke with an ominous determination.
“Aren’t you going to ask how I could possibly find you after a thousand years?”
“……”
“You’re thinking that even an elf couldn’t survive for a thousand years, so I won’t be able to keep my word, aren’t you?”
“……No.”
Ghislain was already aware that Ereneth would reach him a thousand years later. That was why he remained calm.
However, the plan she was about to propose was different from the history he remembered.
“I can make it happen.”
Her voice was shaky but filled with resolve.
“When this conflict is over… I will surrender my physical form to the World Tree. If I enter a deep seal, I can survive for a thousand years.”
“……”
“And then, I will wake up a millennium later and I will be the first one to find you. I won’t fail.”
“……”
Ghislain’s eyes widened slightly.
In his memory, Ereneth had entrusted herself to the World Tree because of the Adversary’s curse to endure those thousand years.
When that time passed and she returned to the world, she had sought him out.
But that hadn’t been the sequence of the original timeline. This was a future that had shifted because of Ghislain’s regression.
In the first timeline, Ereneth had approached the Human Alliance first.
And yet… the events were converging like this.
Ghislain shut his eyes.
He could no longer distinguish which event came first, or how the past and future were influencing one another.
Had Ereneth searched for him in the future specifically to honor a promise made in the past? Or had the future somehow dictated the past?
Why had Deneb summoned him to this era? What was her true objective?
— Only you… can be our salvation.
He still hadn’t unraveled the meaning behind those words. He was out of time to find the answer.
But as a precaution for this very scenario, he had instructed Astion to keep a record of everything—the events of the past and how they concluded. If those records survived—
He might finally understand his purpose.
Ghislain looked at the gathered group and spoke his final instructions.
“Study the texts I provided whenever possible, and do not slacken in your training. They will provide you with the strength you need.”
He desperately wanted his friends to become powerful. Strong enough that Julien and Deneb would not be forced into self-sacrifice.
If they were unsuccessful, there was nothing more he could do… but he prayed for their success.
Furthermore, he had recently put certain safeguards in place, just in case. Astion had been furious at the time, questioning his actions.
Naturally, he hoped those measures would never be required.
Ghislain let out a soft, internal laugh.
‘I suppose I really am a sentimental fool.’
With that final thought, he peacefully closed his eyes.
……A moment passed.
“U-heo-heo-heo-heok!”
Astion’s eyes snapped open as he gasped for air.
Right before their eyes, his health began to recover at an impossible speed. His pale skin regained its warmth and color in an instant.
The transformation was so sudden it seemed like a divine miracle.
Overcome with relief, Ereneth embraced him again.
“It’s Ghislain, isn’t it? You were just playing a joke on us? Right?”
“……Noona, it’s me, Astion.”
“Is it true… is Ghislain gone?”
“……Yes.”
“……To that world a thousand years away?”
“……Yes.”
“I understand.”
Ereneth closed her eyes. Among them, she possessed the most refined sense for spiritual harmony.
She could sense that something fundamental within Astion had shifted—this was no longer a simple change in personality.
She squeezed her eyes shut, fighting back the fresh wave of tears.
“Very well… because we are destined to meet again.”
The life of an elf is long. And if she followed through with her plan, she was certain she would see Ghislain again.
Elves usually do not pursue life goals with the same intensity as humans. They prefer to exist in balance with the natural world.
But Ereneth was the most human-like of all elves. She made a vow that she would, without fail, find Ghislain once more.
In the heavy silence that followed, Astion suddenly cried out with a forced, cheerful energy.
“Hey! I finally have my body back! I’ve reclaimed it entirely! Aren’t you all thrilled?”
Julien, Deneb, and Kyle managed small smiles, but they were clouded with sadness.
The happiness of a friend’s return and the sorrow of a friend’s departure—
These two conflicting emotions existed side by side.
Astion adopted a purposefully haughty expression.
“Don’t look so miserable, all of you. From this point on, I’ll be the one leading the way. So from here…”
As he spoke, his bravado began to crumble.
“So… so I… sniff…”
Eventually, Astion lowered his head and began to sob uncontrollably.
Of everyone in the room, no one had spent more time with Ghislain and Dark than Astion. They had shared a single physical form; they were essentially two halves of one soul.
He now felt a crushing sense of emptiness—as if a part of his very being had been ripped away. The agony of that void was like a physical wound in his chest.
The friend who had always been his strength and their leader was gone. He desperately wanted to see him again, but he knew he couldn’t.
And so, Astion… wept like a heartbroken child for the rest of the day.

[……And so, just as Ghislain had arrived at our side one day without any warning…… one day, just as abruptly, he departed from our side.]