Author's Note:
I've decided to add in little bonus chapters into the series. These were originally supposed to be scenes in the main story, but were cut for various reasons. I will be posting these while I brainstorm some ideas and write up future chapters.
Making these emotional chapters has been pretty difficult as some of these characters aren't exactly known for being emotional in the manga/anime. I also have a pretty big exam coming up to cram for. Please bear with me as I brainstorm ideas for these upcoming chapters. Updates may be slightly delayed, but I will be back on my regular schedule by next week.
Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave me any suggestions for what you want to read about in these bonus chapters!
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What Frieren went through when she was under the illusion. (Based on the events of Chapter 22)
Himmel's smile was soft, the same one he used to wear back when things had been simpler. He offered no hand—only a small tilt of his head, the way he always had when inviting her forward without demanding she follow.
They walked.
The corridor stretched on as endless as ever. There was only the soft echo of their footsteps and the ribbon around her wrist tugging gently, towards Himmel.
"How many years has it been since I died?"
Frieren blinked slowly, she had been enjoying that silence. "I don't see the point in answering. You're just a demonic illusion."
He let out a small, rueful laugh—a sound so familiar it made something in her chest tighten without permission. "Is that how you're going to answer everything? Come on, Frieren. Humor me. Just this once."
"I don't want to give pertinent information to demons," she said evenly. "It's illogical."
"And how exactly is knowing how long I've been gone going to help some demon and its masterplan?" He raised an eyebrow, playful but gentle. "Is this demon just really bad at keeping track of calendars?"
Frieren considered that for half a step. "Perhaps the one who cast this hasn't been able to keep track of time passing."
Himmel chuckled again, softer this time, and looked up at the unchanging ceiling. "Never thought I'd hear you say time matters. Ten years, fifty years, a lifetime… that's nothing to you, right?"
He slowed until they walked side by side. The ribbon tugged lightly between them like a shared thread.
"So humor me," he said quietly. "You've already figured out how to break this curse, anyway. You've been analyzing it since you first entered the corridor. I can tell."
Frieren's eyes narrowed just a fraction. She hadn't expected the illusion to notice that.
Himmel raised both hands in a small, surrendering gesture. "There's no trick here. No hidden meaning. Look—" He patted the empty sheath at his hip. "I wasn't even given a sword. This place isn't trying to hurt you." He paused before grinning boyishly, "Although, it is trying to distract you, of course! So don't let your guard down too much!"
Frieren said nothing as he laughed.
He glanced at her again, eyes softening in that way that always made her feel seen and uncomfortable at the same time.
"Fine," she murmured at last. "It's been twenty-nine years."
"Twenty-nine…" Himmel's voice turned wistful, almost tender. He looked ahead again, as though seeing something she couldn't. "Not as long as I thought. Not as short, either."
They walked on in silence for a while longer.
Then he asked, quieter still, "Who do you travel with now? You mentioned someone earlier. Percia, right?"
Frieren didn't answer.
Himmel tapped his cheek thoughtfully. "You know… you said her name once. In your sleep. Heiter and I were out scouting the perimeter, but Eisen told us later." A small, exasperated smile curved his lips. "He also said he had to drag you away from the campfire before you rolled into it. Have you at least been able to fix your sleeping habits over the last twenty-nine years?"
Frieren's expression remained blank.
Himmel read the silence anyway. "So… no."
She frowned faintly. She wasn't sure how the corridor was getting to her memories. She didn't feel any disturbance in her mental defenses; worse, her body didn't recognize the mechanism of the corridor as magic.
They walked side by side now, shoulders almost brushing. Frieren allowed it. She would be able to destroy it before it struck.
"Frieren," Himmel said after a long pause, voice low and careful, "have you started to forget anything about me?"
She stopped walking.
He stopped too, turning to face her fully. His sky-blue eyes were steady, kind, and heartbreakingly patient.
"How would I know?" she answered. "You're an illusion shaped by my memories. Your appearance is only what I still hold onto."
Himmel looked down at her for a long moment.
Then, very softly: "You know… I wanted to apologize to you."
Frieren's breath caught—just barely.
He continued, words coming slow and deliberate, as though he had carried them for decades.
"To me, my life felt long. I felt fulfilled. I was happy—truly happy—with how it ended." He smiled that luminous smile of his, the one that used to make entire villages feel safe. "You made me happy in ways I still don't have words for. From the first moment I saw you, all the way to the end… I was captivated. Every part of you. When you took us to see the Era Meteor Shower, I thought my heart would burst right there under the sky. I was so full of joy I could barely breathe."
His voice cracked, just once.
Frieren watched as his eyes glistened.
"I…" He looked away, toward the endless corridor, blinking hard. "If there's one thing my life taught me, it's that I was selfish. I couldn't be kinder to you by simply letting go when my time came. I couldn't stand the thought of you forgetting me. So I clung. I talked about you. I dreamt about you." He chuckled, "Apparently I even show up in your illusions now, to deceive you."
He turned back to her, eyes heavy with something deeper than regret.
"I'm sorry, Frieren. Even after death, I'm selfish. I hope—more than anything—that you keep remembering me. Even just a little."
His hand lifted slowly, hesitating in the air between them.
"I'm sorry I made you cry that day."
The hand settled gently on her cheek.
It was warm.
Impossibly, achingly warm.
Frieren did not move. Did not pull away. Her face remained calm, expressionless—but her eyes shimmered, just once, like a meteor flying across the sky.
Himmel's thumb brushed her cheekbone, feather-light.
"I'll be waiting for you," he said simply.
She smiled soft, watching him fade before her eyes, she could feel herself being tugged back to reality.
"Himmel", she looked up at him, taking everything in, for one last time, "never stop waiting for me."