CHAPTER 14

Lista Alter Syrphen

Hero Lista.

The Feyquaria have existed throughout all ages, but not all of them have been recorded as heroes. Among them, only two, including Lista, have been recognized as heroes.

"A hero, huh…"

As Rain, I had many chances to hear tales of Lista's party, but I deliberately chose to close my eyes and block my ears.

Was it because I already knew the stories?

That was part of it, but the biggest reason was sorrow. Every time I heard my comrades' names, grief etched into my soul would overflow.

"And yet, the reason I'm reading this book now is simple…"

Because I suspected that whoever sent me this book had left a hint for me within it.

[The Archmage Lyn was a child utterly lacking in sociability and adaptability when they first joined the party.]

Oh, they know me very well.

[The only reason they were able to become a member of the Hero's Party was due to their overwhelming skill.]

Ah, well, that's true.

To be honest, there's a bit of embellishment. Back then, I wasn't the only mage at Gladoth's (4-star) rank.

[Orphaned from a young age, Lyn was blunt, constantly irritable, and always complained about everything—a textbook example of an insufferable brat.]

Who the hell wrote this?

No, really, I'm curious. It's not like I want to hunt them down and beat them up. Absolutely not.

How do they know me this well?

[Yet, Lyn was said to be particularly attached to Lista, perhaps because they saw her as a mother figure.]

...?

[One day, when cursed by a dark magician and regressed to the mental age of an infant, Lyn allegedly cried out, 'Waaah, baby Lyn wants milk!'—a confession Lista later shared, claiming it was Lyn's true nature emerging.]

"Oh, what the hell."

The curse slipping from my lips was the first one I had spoken since inhabiting Rain's body.

Are you messing with me, Lista?

I have never been cursed with age regression. Even if I had been, I would have bitten my tongue and died before uttering something so ridiculous.

[To Frieda, Lyn supposedly whimpered, 'Big sis Frieda, hug me tight!']

???

[To Kies, Lyn allegedly said, 'Big bro, something's wrong with my pee hole…']

????????

I stared at the page in disbelief. It was so absurd that I started coughing as if I had choked on air.

"Did they all go insane? Just because I'm frozen in ice and can't refute this nonsense?"

Despite my outrage, I found myself flipping through the pages. My eyes scanned the text rapidly, taking in every word without missing a single detail.

"Of course, there are plenty of dramatized embellishments…"

Still, the overall narrative remained accurate.

The book chronicled the journey of a child who knew nothing of the world or its people, how they met Lista, learned about the world through her, and gradually matured into an adult.

"When we entered the Black Forest, Kies nearly died from eating a poisonous mushroom."

"Frieda, thinking she had discovered a treasure vault, ran straight into a wild boar trap…"

We had traveled to so many places. Even though it was an era of turmoil, everything had seemed dazzling and beautiful.

[At last, when the core forces of the Dark Church opened a dimensional gate, Lyn cast a protective barrier to shield their comrades.]

The problem was that, whoever they were, the enemy's shadow mage was a step ahead of me. My barrier didn't hold.

[Ultimately, Lyn switched the barrier's rune from 'Protection against Impact (艆)' to 'Damage Absorption (論),' directing all the harm onto themselves.]

"...."

[Though Lyn was instantly afflicted with a fatal dark poison, they refused to release the barrier that protected their comrades.]

Had I really maintained the barrier?

Everything had been such a blur that I couldn't remember.

[It was not mere self-sacrifice. It was proof that the boy who once cared only for himself had become an adult. Bowmaster Kies confessed this.]

Kies said that?

What kind of nonsense is this?

Kies was mute and illiterate. There's no way he could have said something like that.

"Huh…?"

But as I turned the page, evidence was attached—a note filled with wobbly, scribbled letters. My vision blurred.

[▲ A note left by Kies. He learned to write from Lyn.]

Kies, you idiot…

You used to clutch your head in agony whenever I taught you a new word, and now you've managed to write a full sentence?

— Kies, what are you gonna do if you can't speak or write? How did you even become a bowmaster?

— …!

— Just pure skill? Don't puff up your chest so proudly! Come here, I'll teach you letters. It's easy.

— …?!

— You don't need it? Yeah, right. You might be healthy now, but when you're old, you'll regret being illiterate.

I could almost hear Kies groaning as he struggled to learn each word.

[In his final moments, Lyn cast the ultimate magic they had developed—a five-star spell in an attempt to reverse their own death.]

"...."

[This spell, Lord's Minor Plan Reversal (主濾小計袋反), was a fusion of Imperial magic and Republican sorcery, an ability bordering on the divine. To this day, no modern mage has been able to fully decipher it.]

I wasn't brilliant on my own. I only completed it with Frieda's expertise in sorcery.

[At the moment of casting, Lyn made a promise to their comrades: that they would return.]

I did.

I made that promise—to Lista.

[And as everyone knows, even after 300 years, Lyn has yet to return. Or rather, was it that they could not return?

With the Hero Lista, the Bowmaster Kies, the Priestess Frieda, and the Archmage Lyn all long gone, turned to dust and returned to the embrace of the gods—

If Lyn were to awaken in this era, could they truly be said to have returned?]

I feel the same.

This isn't a return.

A tight pain squeezed my chest, my breath coming in sharp gasps. Then, I saw the final line.

[And so, Lista left Lyn a letter. A guide, a reason to live, and an apology for failing to keep their promise.]

If the first half of the book chronicled Lyn's life, the second half detailed their magic and combat style.

"No need to read this part."

Flipping through absentmindedly, I finally closed the book. There was nothing more to gain from it.

"Why was this sent to me? Just to show me the note? I already knew about that."

Did someone know my identity? Was one of my old comrades still alive?

But even if they were alive, how would they recognize me? My appearance was entirely different. And if they could recognize me, why hadn't they reached out?

It was incomprehensible.

I hated questions like this. Math problems were at least honest and straightforward.

And yet…

"Perhaps it's time to visit the library."

To find out what had become of my old comrades.