"…I won't touch your memories of magic. I'll just erase the existence of Diego Brando from your memories, and in a reasonable way make you accept it without noticing anything unusual."
Diego lowered his gaze, took a deep breath, and slowly helped the three of them up.
"Wood spirit…"
A tree burst out of the ground with lightning speed, twisting in a bizarre way until it finally became something like the heart-shaped swings that couples in the park love to use.
Diego settled the three onto the swing, his mood flickering between light and shadow, relief and pain appearing in the same pair of eyes.
"Next is you…" Diego placed his hand on his own forehead. "Farewell, Sui."
"『Memory Oblivion』!"
Diego further lost control of his body, his whole form swaying unsteadily. Clearly, as the little dinosaur's life drained away, even the ability to walk normally was slipping from him.
Sure enough, my consciousness is about to leave…
Even so, Diego still limped over to Serie's side.
"Dio, why are you crying?"
"I'm not crying. This must be… Sui…"
"But Serie, based on the achievement of killing the Demon King, you should give me a spell too." Diego's pupils were unfocused, yet he stubbornly met Serie's gaze.
"…But you don't even have mana. No, never mind, pretend I didn't say that. What kind of spell do you want?" Serie was silent for a moment before finally deciding to grant Diego a spell.
"Heh heh, a spell that can clean stains off clothes perfectly. I… never want to experience clothes covered in mud and water again…" Diego laughed freely, though the laugh looked truly desolate.
"Please, give this spell to Frieren."
Diego Brando, during the five years of subjugating the Demon King, hunted demons in the most brutal and terrifying ways. He was the only existence in human history to intimidate the entire demon race through personal strength alone.
His dinosaur form was dubbed 『Scary Monsters』 by the demons.
After the Demon King's death, the remaining demons were dominated by the terror of 『Scary Monsters』, almost never appearing near human borders anymore.
It was quite a ridiculous thing—a killing machine bringing a brief period of peace between humans and demons, who had been irreconcilable since ancient times.
Even though he was accepted by neither the human side nor the demon side…
But at this moment, this man showed a humble side to Serie for the first time.
"…" Serie stroked the flower in her hand, her gaze lowered, an unprecedented sorrowful expression emerging. Then she suddenly tossed it outward.
Diego rushed out and caught the flower Serie had thrown, right at the edge of the cliff.
"Sniff sniff, sniff sniff."
Diego clutched the flower Serie had discarded tightly in his palm and said softly, "It smells so nice. This is a flower made with flower field magic, right?"
Though it was a question, his tone carried an unquestionable certainty.
"…Don't say such insincere things." Serie's emotions fluctuated slightly. "You've long since lost… that proud dynamic vision and sense of smell. The you now can't even maintain dinosaurization."
Diego gave a wry smile and said awkwardly, "Can't hide it from you, huh. Hey, Serie, how about we make a deal?"
"What's there to deal at this point?" Serie glanced at Diego, her deep eyes tinged with an almost mocking amusement as she let out a soft laugh. "Even if I go back on it later, you wouldn't be able to do anything about it."
"You won't." Diego rarely regained his spirited confidence.
And this firm reply left Serie speechless.
"Then let me explain the deal. You protect them for me… no, take care of them." Diego pointed at the three on the swing.
"Oh? What can you offer me to make me agree?" Serie propped her chin, staring at Diego with interest. "Besides, when they run into danger again, couldn't you just possess them with that weird ability of yours?"
"It's useless. Only dinosaurs infected by my flesh are special." Diego clenched his fist and sighed. "But this isn't my body after all. I can't replenish the little dinosaur life residing in the Cosmic Stone…"
"I see… What a useless ability." Serie glanced over and said no more.
Feeling Serie's mocking gaze, Diego wasn't annoyed. Instead, he continued along her words:
"Yeah, thanks to this useless ability, I got the chance to see you all one last time."
"As for the reward…" Diego's lips curved into a grin as he extended his hand toward Serie. "I'll give you everything I have…"
What is this guy… talking about?
Serie was puzzled. She saw Diego reach out and project his memories.
"This is…?" Serie's golden pupils slowly widened, showing an incredulous expression as her lips parted uncontrollably. "You monster…"
"『Memory Projection Magic』." Diego explained, as scenes from years ago of his investigations flickered in the memory screen.
"The Unified Empire has a special agency dedicated to dealing with mages. Its members are all warriors enhanced with mana concealment abilities, called… warriors in the shadows."
"From the intelligence I gathered, the shadow warriors have supreme operational authority that even the emperor can't directly interfere with."
"Whether deciding the 『list』 for assassination or the specific methods of action, it's all determined by their commander."
"Do you know why the empire back then agreed to Flamme's nationwide effort to research magic? Obvious, right—to gain power to counter the Demon King's army."
"After all… those old fossils who view magic as taboo aren't that benevolent. Forget using magic—even mentioning it could get you labeled a demon spy."
"A thousand years ago, to understand humans and realize his ideal of coexistence with them, the Demon King waged war on the Unified Empire, wiping out nations and ethnic groups that made up two-thirds of the human population."
"The progress of you founding the Continental Magic Association went so smoothly thanks in no small part to the Demon King. The empire needed your power to increase their odds against the demons."
"But…" Diego shifted his tone. "Now the Demon King is dead. The sword of Damocles hanging over their heads is gone. The common enemy between the empire and the Continental Magic Association no longer exists."
"If the empire truly felt at ease with the existence of mages, there wouldn't be so-called warriors in the shadows…"
"Killing the donkey after unloading the millstone—those old things in the court have done plenty of that…"
After all… I'm still on the wanted list even now.
The achievement of killing the Demon King was placed on Frieren and the other three.
All that remained was the legend of a cruel beast who slaughtered entire clans, hunting both demons and humans.
"Heh…" Serie laughed disdainfully, pausing for a moment. "You should understand—if they assassinate me, it would be a complete joke. Even if they gathered the entire empire's military might—"
"Dio, can you imagine a future where I die?"
"And you tell me not to say insincere things… In the end, you're saying it yourself…" Diego briefly showed a forlorn expression, pondered for a moment, then replied firmly, "If it were me, I could do it."
"During our travels, I once heard Frieren mention that you said if she were killed, it would be either by the Demon King or by humans.
So I think—doesn't that sentence describe you just as well?"
"The me now could kill you the instant I see you."
"No matter how powerful your magic is or how outstanding its effects, if you can't release it, it means nothing."
Even if time stops, a monster like Serie could maintain defensive magic indefinitely.
That year at 18, he had no equal on the entire continent.
Then, Diego slowly backed away a certain distance.
"If it were the old me, at about this distance, I'd have confidence in killing you. This distance shortens exponentially with the warrior's level—and I'm the strongest warrior in the world today, meaning…"
"Don't let any powerful warrior break through this distance to approach you…"
Whoosh!
Diego moved, appearing beside Serie.
"Otherwise, there's a minuscule chance you could die."
A gentle breeze lifted Diego's hanging hair, and a complex smile appeared in Serie's eyes.
"…Sit down. I'll tie your hair for you." Serie lowered her head somewhat dejectedly and re-tied the hair that had come loose during Diego's battle.
"Hahahaha, actually I was worrying too much. The sword of Damocles known as Scary Monsters is enough to sustain fear and deterrence for half a century. At the very least, during this time, they'll fear my existence too much to act against you."
Diego obediently sat down, holding his head as he burst into laughter, slapping his thigh while letting Serie tie his hair.
Tch… At a time like this, you could at least play along and laugh a bit. Looking so indifferent…
Snap!
A finger poked Serie on the forehead.
Serie looked at Diego in disbelief, her mouth slightly open. She no longer kept that expressionless face but showed great interest.
"This is?!"
"I'm storing my lifetime of combat experience and skills, my hard-forged battle instincts, on-the-spot inspiration and explosive power, and my body honed through grueling training—"
"In the form of a book in your mind. It won't affect your personality. When you have time, you can flip through it or simulate battles."
"Surely… it can bring a bit of fun to your lonely years ahead. With the memories of the world's strongest warrior, no one can assassinate you. That's the 『deal』 I'm talking about."
Diego withdrew his hand, lowered his gaze, and looked reluctantly at the figures on the swing, quietly waiting for his consciousness to fade.
"Little monster." Serie felt the memories in her mind and suddenly spoke. "Such an unexpected set of memories…"
"Well~ I ate Mahoraga…" Diego said something shocking, yet told it with unusual calm. "That night, I crushed his beloved youngest son's entire head in my grip, and he finally went mad—"
"The monster from the Ten Shadows Technique that can adapt to any attack… No wonder. Back then, the effect of my magic on you was reduced because of that."
"Yeah, even though his whole clan was wiped out, he didn't go mad…" Diego grumbled, then replied to Serie, "I can't do it now. I've bound Mahoraga. What I can use is only the gradually increasing physical strength and recovery ability."
"That means you still have strength left to suppress Mahoraga without fully unleashing it. Quite surprising." Serie clasped her fingers together and sat calmly to the side.
"…Serie."
"What?"
"I'm leaving. I'm entrusting them to you."
"You don't need to tell me."
"So, you absolutely must not die. After all, you're the only elder who watched me grow up…"
"…"
"This candy stick you made is really delicious. Too bad I can't finish it. Want to try the remaining half?" Diego stood up, facing the sunset. The evening glow fell on his face, bringing an indescribable feeling.
"Go die."
"That's a bit harsh…"
Serie stood up too, placed a hand on Diego's head and ruffled it, showing her signature smile unique to her.
"One last question. You clearly could have killed the Demon King on your own. Why go the long way and pick a few burdens to travel with you?"
"…Serie, stop obsessing over who killed the Demon King. Why do you care so much about the output? It'll twist people's efforts, you know?"
"Do you know what output and support mean? Can you really say that? For example, the Demon King's army had tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of demons.
When the numbers pile up, doesn't it slow me down? At times like that, don't they need to step in?"
"Among the huge batches of demons Frieren and the others took down, there were plenty of strong ones. And the top-tier, famous great demons I killed couldn't have been done without their help."
"They just willingly let me take the spotlight."
"Then when the Demon King dies and we tally it up—oh, Dio got MVP, and Frieren and the others are all freeloaders!"
"Look at Frieren, all she does every day is mess with folk magic. Sui's always thinking about jealousy and rivalry. Mabel's just a shut-in who trembles even fighting a demon. Alicia's so gullible she only listens to my orders."
"Freeloaders! All freeloaders! They just slack off, while I, Dio, contributed the most output and carried the game. Can it really be calculated like that?"
"Did I personally wipe out every single demon in the Demon King's army? Could I set up tactics alone? When things went out of control, did I recover by myself? Right?"
"So calling them burdens is too hurtful." Diego took the last half of the candy out of his mouth and said seriously, "The reason for traveling with them might trace back to what my mother said."
[My little Dio is the prettiest child in the world. I don't know how many girls will fall for you in the future.]
Diego showed a nostalgic expression, clenched his fist again, and said regretfully, "But sorry, Mom. Looks like I couldn't make even one girl fall for me…"
Thud!
Diego collapsed, caught steadily by Serie. The aura belonging to Diego faded from his embrace, replaced once more by the presence of the elf Sui.
Serie returned to her usual lazy, carefree demeanor, then gently placed Sui on the swing as well. She slowly walked to the cliff edge and silently picked up the half-eaten candy stick, even though it was already dirtied with soil.
The sun set as usual. The final afterglow never shone on Diego, nor did he ever see the grandest moment of the meteor shower half a century later.
Crunch…
"What the heck, it tastes awful. Where's the good part? Sickeningly sweet with a salty aftertaste…"
"…Anyway, I've got all the time in the world."
...
"You're Diego Brando, right?"
"And you're the great mage Serie, the true star of this banquet."
"I quite like your eyes. They're full of ambition…"
This was their first conversation.