I Don’t Want to Be a Heroic Spirit [459] [30 PS]

Though he was not on the same level as Grausam of Miracle, Nasca's mastery of mental magic far surpassed that of most mages in this world.

The illusions he created not only replicated his aura and voice with precision but even mimicked his magical signature.

To mages who relied heavily on mana perception, his illusion was indistinguishable from the real thing.

That was why he couldn't understand—

"How did she find my real body?"

But no one would ever answer that question for him.

With doubt and disbelief lingering in his heart, Nasca perished—without even a trace of his existence remaining.

The truth was, Aesc had noticed Nasca long ago. The magic blast she had fired earlier had never been aimed at Rigar in the first place—Nasca had always been her true target.

The three Demon Generals, while formidable, were warriors first and foremost. None of them possessed the means to resist the Dream Festival's Grand Magic.

Which meant—there had to be a fourth demon, someone proficient in mental magic.

Aesc had deliberately wasted time talking to Uckande and the others, waiting for her magic blast to annihilate Nasca.

And sure enough, the moment Nasca died, Rigar and Uckande lost their mental defenses, slipping into the same dream-bound slumber as Frieren and the others.

They were nothing more than helpless prey now.

"Still, I'm a little surprised… I didn't expect another demon capable of partially resisting the Dream Festival's magic after Grausam's death."

"I wonder… was this a long-lived demon who recently refined their mental magic to this level? Or a newly born demon prodigy with exceptional talent?"

"Either way, it's a serious threat to the fragile peace we have now. If left unchecked, we might just end up with a second Grausam… and I can't allow that. I won't let Himmel and the others' efforts go to waste."

Muttering to herself, Aesc coldly swung her sword.

She slaughtered Rigar and Uckande where they lay, without a moment's hesitation.

Even though they looked human, Aesc felt nothing.

She knew all too well—

These were nothing more than monsters wearing human skin.

Killing two sleeping demons didn't stir any guilt in her heart.

Even if a group of demon children were to beg her, crying out "Mama! Papa!" while pleading for their lives—she wouldn't hesitate to cut them down.

Because demons were masters of deception.

They were far more cunning than the infamous Zen sect of Daoist fraudsters.

And without a doubt, they were leagues ahead of the goblins from Goblin Slayer when it came to manipulation and deceit.

And with that—

The three Demon Generals and the mental magic specialist who had come to Skoll were all completely eradicated.

...

"Aaaahhh~~"

Aesc let out a long yawn, rubbing the corners of her eyes.

"All done. Nice, nice. Time to go back to sleep!"

Aesc wasn't as bad as Frieren when it came to oversleeping—

But she wasn't great at waking up either.

She figured it was probably because she hadn't yet fully adopted the immortal mindset of her kind.

Unlike Frieren, though—Aesc had a serious case of morning grumpiness.

Waking her up prematurely could be… catastrophic.

In truth, her battle with Alonger and the others had mostly been her venting her frustration at being woken up.

If not for those four demons, she'd still be curled up in bed right now.

And considering that winter had just ended, the cold night air was unbearable.

Only those who had experienced it firsthand would understand the suffering.

Before heading back to her room, Aesc sneaked over to Frieren and Fern's door, peeking inside.

Both of them were fast asleep.

Seeing that, Aesc felt relieved—

But also… just a little bitter.

They get to sleep while I was out here working…

The thought reminded her of the painful school days of her past life.

You stay up late studying, only to still get outperformed by someone else—that's the worst.

Her gaze lingered on Fern's sleeping face.

What kind of dream is she having?

The Dream Festival's magic let people see those who had died or those they would never meet again.

So… Fern was probably dreaming about Heiter.

After hesitating for a moment, Aesc ultimately shook her head.

"Nope. I'm not some annoying white-haired nightmare demon. I have standards."

"Peeking into someone's dreams is way too tasteless."

She prided herself on respecting privacy—a true model citizen of the modern age.

If I ever do something like that, it'll be after I get Merlin or Meltryllis' Saint Graph…

"Let them enjoy their rare sweet dreams."

With a soft smile, Aesc quietly shut the door.

Nobody noticed her presence.

Everyone was lost in their dreams.

Reality was cruel enough.

At the very least, people deserved to be happy in their dreams.

In Fern's dream, she sat across from Heiter, having dinner together.

When he spotted the cauliflower on his plate, he scowled in disgust and began sneakily dumping it onto Fern's plate—

Only to be scolded.

"Picky eating is bad, Lord Heiter! You need proper nutrition!"

In Stark's dream, he fought side by side with his elder brother, Stoltz.

He held his ground bravely, displaying impressive combat skills—

And for the first time, Stoltz looked at him with pride.

In Frieren's dream, she retraced the journey she had once taken.

A journey she once found dull and tedious.

Yet now, walking it again—

It felt… different.

It was a dream of things lost.

A dream of regrets she never realized until they were gone.

All across Skoll, people dreamed.

Until morning came.

When Fern and Stark finally awoke, they both sat there in a daze.

The memories of their dreams—too beautiful, too vivid.

For a moment, they found themselves rejecting reality.

It was an expected reaction.

After witnessing the warmth of a dream… how was one supposed to accept the coldness of reality?

If a virtual world existed—one where people could fulfill every wish and longing—

Would anyone truly want to return to reality?

But Fern and Stark weren't at that point yet.

Theirs had been just a fleeting dream—not some artificial world.

And besides—

They hadn't completely given up on reality.

That so-called Land of Tranquil Souls...

Whether it was real or not, at least it gave them hope.

Because if they could truly meet the souls of the ones they cherished—

Then there would be no need to seek them out in dreams.

Fern wanted to ask Frieren about it—

But as expected, Frieren was still sleeping.

Just then, the door creaked open.

Fern turned—

And locked eyes with Aesc.

"Lady Aesc, this dream… what exactly was it?"

Aesc knew what Fern wanted to ask.

But she didn't answer immediately.

"Wake up Frieren first. Then I'll take you all somewhere."

"We can talk on the way… and I'm sure Stark is just as curious as you."

Stark, of course, was in the next room.

After all, he was the only guy in the group.

And more importantly—

He had the lowest status in the party.

Whenever he was around Fern, he could never lift his head.

Aesc had a feeling that if Stark and Fern ever got together, Stark was doomed to be the ultimate henpecked husband.

Of course—

The real challenge was waking Frieren the Sleep Demon.

Since Fern really wanted to know more about the Dream Festival—

Her method of waking Frieren up was… decidedly less gentle.

After being forcibly woken up, Frieren wouldn't stop grumbling at Aesc.

"If you could wake up, wash up, and get dressed on your own, you wouldn't have to suffer like this, you know?"

Aesc told her this with a straight face.

But Frieren just muttered, "I know that… but I can't do it, okay?"

"The way you say that… are you actually proud of it?"

Frieren never once asked about the demons from last night.

She was certain that they were already dead—all at Aesc's hands.

Later, Stark also approached Aesc, unsurprisingly wanting to ask about the dreams from last night.

Aesc gave him the same response she had given Fern.

"I'll take you all somewhere. On the way, I'll explain everything you want to know."

Stark frowned and asked again, "Where exactly are we going?"

After a brief moment of thought, Aesc pointed toward a large mountain near Skoll.

"Over there… I think. If I'm remembering correctly."

"…Why does that sound so unreliable?"

Stark's expression turned doubtful.

Once they had packed up their belongings, Aesc and the others resumed their journey.

With Aesc leading the way, they followed a mountain path.

There were faint traces that people had walked this trail before, but it was clearly a long time ago—grass and weeds had already begun reclaiming the path.

"Where should I even start…"

Avoiding the plants that could snag her clothes, Aesc began to explain.

"A long, long time ago… Well, actually, not that long. Just a few hundred years ago."

"Back then, there was an incredibly powerful mage."

"Because it was so long ago, very little is known about him today. Most of what we do know comes from the research notes he left behind on magic."

"Through analyzing those notes, people discovered that in the first half of his life, he was obsessed with researching magic related to immortality and life extension. But in the second half of his life, he switched to studying resurrection and soul-related magic."

Listening to Aesc's story, both Fern and Stark felt the same thought rise in their minds—

He must have been doing all of this… for someone, right?

Someone important to him.

Probably someone who had either a terminal illness or a very short lifespan.

A loved one he desperately wanted to save.

At the same time, a strong urge welled up within them—

They wanted to ask.

Did that mage… succeed?

But reason kept them silent.

Immortality magic. Resurrection magic.

Such absurd spells… There was no way they could exist, right?

That wasn't magic—that was a miracle.

The kind of divine power only the legendary Goddess of Creation could wield.

Aesc continued.

"That mage failed. He may have been a genius in his time, but in the end, his talent was still limited to the realm of humans.

"Neither his immortality magic nor his resurrection magic succeeded."

"However… he truly was a genius. Before his death, he managed to create the most advanced mental magic in existence."

"That magic… is the true nature of Skoll's Dream Festival."

Upon hearing this, a look of understanding flashed in Stark and Fern's eyes.

"The purpose of that grand spell is to force people into dreams, allowing them to see those who have died… or those they will never have the chance to meet again."

"But every time it's activated, it takes an entire year to gather enough mana before it can be used again."

"That mage likely created this spell because he realized that he would never see his loved one again in reality."

"So, he chose to see them in his dreams instead… even if it was nothing more than self-deception."

At that moment, both Fern and Stark detected something in Aesc's tone.

A faint trace of sorrow.

To create such a powerful spell, that mage must have been an extraordinary person.

And yet—

Even someone so brilliant had ultimately bowed their head before the cruel reality of life.

"Alright, we're here."

Aesc's voice snapped them out of their thoughts.

What lay before them—

Was a tree.

A massive tree.

Its trunk was so thick that even if all four of them joined hands, they wouldn't be able to wrap their arms around it.

Part of its roots had emerged from the ground, making it difficult to approach.

The air around the tree felt ancient.

No one knew how many years it had stood there—

How many times it had witnessed the passing of the seasons.

Standing beneath it, the sheer size difference made Fern and Stark instinctively feel a sense of awe.

"Lady Aesc, is this…?"

Fern couldn't hold back her curiosity and asked.

Aesc's gaze lingered on the tree for a moment before she spoke.

"In the records left behind by that legendary mage, nearly everything was about his research on magic."

"There were only a few sentences about his personal life."

"Roughly speaking, they went something like this—"

'I once planted a tree.

It was a tree my wife and I planted together before she passed away.

I hope that when it grows tall and wide, I can be buried beneath it—alongside her.'

Fern's eyes widened.

She turned toward the massive tree in front of her.

"Then… this tree is…"

"The one that mage and his wife planted together?"

But Aesc's response was unexpected.

"No idea."

Fern stared at her, dumbfounded.

Aesc simply shrugged.

"It's been way too long. There's no way to verify it anymore. The records are scarce, and all modern scholars can do is guess."

"There are two gravestones beneath this tree, but…"

"Neither of them have inscriptions."

"No names. No markings."

"There's nothing proving that they belong to that mage and his wife."

"For all we know, it could've just been some random people who thought this was a nice spot and got buried here instead."