Chapter 400. Side Story 4. Epilogue (3)

They crossed into the Realm of Void.

"This place has changed way too much," Caron murmured, glancing around.

Where once there had been nothing but dust and the remnants of an ancient civilization, green life was now beginning to grow again. The land had always been fertile, with endless plains and a river cutting straight through the territory. Once, it had been the heart of a great Arcane Civilization, and it still held that value.

"Wouldn't it be great to build a new city out here?" Caron asked. "Legally, this land is mine, you know. Maybe I should try my hand at real estate."

"Why not take this chance to break away from the family altogether?" Halo suggested.

"Break away, huh? That's a problem," Caron said. "Whenever I screw up, Leon cleans up after me. Why would I give that up—wait. Where did the respect go? Did a little brat like you really speak informally to the uncle you should be treating with the utmost respect!?"

"What's the big deal? Nobody's watching," Halo said, then snickered and looked around. "Man, it's been fifteen years since I last came here."

"What are you even doing?" Caron asked.

"What do you think? I'm letting myself loose," Halo answered.

He pulled another pouch out of his pouch of dimensional space. Then he began scattering its contents across the ground.

The things in his hand were seeds.

"Let me relax a bit here," Halo said. "Honestly, sometimes I feel disgusted with myself. Gotta take the mask off somewhere. Haaah."

"Idiot," Caron said. "Once you pick a persona, you stick with it until you die."

"No, seriously, my plan really was to fool you for life. But then that World Tree dropped a massive hint to you," Halo said.

Halo the nephew disappeared, and Halo the old friend stood in his place.

He kept scattering seeds as he continued, "It's not an excuse, but my memory isn't exactly in perfect shape—"

"You look perfectly fine, considering you've been mouthing off without shame," Caron interrupted.

"Let me finish a sentence, will you? The moment Fake Caron and I self-destructed together, it turns out my soul got a bit shredded. Memories get engraved on the soul or some mystical nonsense like that. Anyway, it took time for everything to come back. Something like... about seven years?" Halo continued.

"Infantile amnesia?" Caron asked.

"Was it the same for you as well?" Halo asked.

Now that they had stepped into this place, he seemed to have completely abandoned the act.

Caron shook his head and sneered, then retorted, "Do I look like I'd go through something like that? I'm not you. I reincarnated twice, remember."

"Oh, what an achievement. That means you died twice. Actually, one of those times was because I killed you, wasn't it?" Halo said with a smirk.

"You little—want me to make sure the same thing happens to you today?" Caron snapped.

"I wonder if you have the guts to assassinate a crown prince," Halo said with a shrug.

Caron's hand twitched. He really, truly wanted to carve a line across that annoying face.

But with superhuman patience, he held himself back, exhaled deeply, and asked, "So what are those seeds?"

"Oh, just my side job. The World Tree commissioned me," Halo answered.

"...Then the candidate the World Tree mentioned..." Caron trailed off.

"It was the reincarnation condition. Sure, it stuck me with a bunch of tedious chores, but come on—was I supposed to pass up all the chances to mess with you?" Halo said.

No wonder that clingy World Tree had given up so quickly.

Caron shook his head—only briefly—before grinning wickedly and asking, "So, how does it feel to be reborn as your granddaughter's son? Let's hear it."

Halo froze mid-scatter and trembled, then said, "Don't even bring that up."

"Why not? Revelio and Leon treat you well," Caron said.

"Do you have any idea how it felt to call my granddaughter's husband and my granddaughter 'Father' and 'Mother'? It was... It was pure humiliation," Halo answered.

"The real fun starts when someone else has to change your diapers. Now that I think about it, that's a fond memory," Caron added with a chuckle.

"What a psychopath," Halo muttered.

"When you were unconscious, I had to change your diapers once, you know. I used a dirty one on purpose," Caron teased.

"You're an actual psychopath, aren't you!?" Halo asked with a disgusted face.

"Hey, you pissed on my face," Caron replied.

"That was well deserved," Halo said with a satisfied look.

It had been a long time since he'd spoken with a friend like this.

A faint smile crept up Caron's lips.

"The world's really ending," he began. "One day, someone like you is going to become emperor. The empire's future is dark. Very dark."

"When I ascend the throne, the first thing I'll do is kick the Ducal Family of Leston out. Just watch," Halo said.

"Try it if you can," Caron replied.

"Once I restore my 9-Star rank," Halo said.

Halo's growth as Halo Karien had been far faster than when he was Halo Leston. He would probably reach 9-Star in his twenties. After all, he was already an 8-Star knight. He wasn't rewriting history—he was practically creating a brand new one.

"If I'd been bathed in the dew of the World Tree dew when I was born, I'd already be at 10-Star," Caron remarked.

"You think 10-Star grows on trees? I couldn't reach that state even after seventy years."

10-Star was the new realm Caron had been aiming for recently. 9-Star meant merging all one's cores into one. 10-Star, however, went beyond that.

Though the concept was hard to define, it essentially meant using the world itself as one's core. Not keeping a core inside the body—using the entire world's mana.

It was a realm far beyond humanity, close enough to be called godhood. Reaching 10-Star meant becoming something comparable to the World Tree itself.

"Still, not bad," Halo said. "At least you found a clue."

"I was always smarter than you," Caron pointed out.

"Be honest—you're not really desperate anymore, are you? Do you even need to reach 10-Star?" Halo asked.

"I'm going because there's a road, not because I have to," Caron answered. "Honestly, I don't really care. I wouldn't mind dying now. My kids are grown and living well—that's enough for me."

Halo chuckled softly and said, "You really did change."

"That's what happens when you have kids," Caron said.

"Look at you. All grown up," Halo replied.

It was hilarious—some fifteen-year-old brat was lecturing a man well into his thirties.

"I thought reincarnation would make life fun," Halo said. "Turns out it's not as fun as I expected."

"You know why that is?" Caron asked.

"Why?" Halo asked.

"That's because you were born into the royal family. You should've been born into a backwater family like mine and wandered around all you wanted," Caron answered.

"...To be fair, the Ducal Family of Leston isn't exactly backwater," Halo corrected Caron.

"I'm the reincarnation of the founder. If I say it's a backwater house, do you have complaints?" Caron pointed out.

"After thinking about it carefully, yes—the Ducal Family of Leston has no class," Halo admitted.

"So you think you can talk recklessly just because you're part of the royal family now?" Caron asked.

"You were the founder, aren't you? That means the Ducal Family of Leston has no class either," Halo replied.

"Draw your sword," Caron ordered.

"I forgot to bring it. Lend me your Guillotine. The breathing matched me pretty well last time. Actually, can I just have it?" Halo asked.

"Get lost," Caron snapped.

The two of them traded jokes as they continued walking.

Their destination was the Core of Sin.

***

Once, the city called Glory had stood here, but it had long since vanished like a mirage.

"Ah, we're here," Halo said as he finally came to a stop.

This was the place where the Caron of Void had fought his final battle—where Halo Leston himself had met his end.

Caron quietly took a bottle of liquor from his pouch of dimensional space and poured it onto the ground.

"What are you doing?" Halo asked.

"Paying my respects to the deceased," Caron answered.

"That deceased person is standing right in front of you," Halo said.

"Exactly why I'm doing it," Caron said. "I even stole this from your old office, you know. After your funeral, I made sure to take all the liquor you'd collected."

He flicked the cap onto the ground and emptied the entire bottle, then set it down gently and whispered, "It was the favorite drink of the deceased. May he rest easy."

Halo let out a breath, then said, "You really are the world's greatest lunatic."

"You're not far behind," Caron shot back.

"Alright, enough nonsense. You still have some of the dew of the World Tree in that pouch, right? The World Tree said you swiped some recently," Halo said.

Caron narrowed his eyes, then asked, "I do... Why?"

"Give me a bottle," Halo said.

"You'd better pay for it," Caron grumbled.

Since Halo had bothered asking, he clearly had something in mind. Caron pulled out a bottle of the Dew of the World Tree and handed it over.

Halo uncorked it immediately, and the distinctive fragrance spread through the air.

"Good and evil repeat endlessly, shaping the balance of the world. Or so the World Tree told me," he said. Then he drew out a fist-sized seed and planted it in the soil, patting dirt over it.

"Primordial evil may have been erased, but evil must eventually return—that's apparently the law of this world. Or something like that," he continued, then poured the dew over the seed.

A soft trill of sound rippled through the earth as a tiny sprout pushed its way up—a new World Tree.

The New Continent had never been under the influence of a World Tree. But from this moment on, it would be. The land that had once birthed evil would now nurture life instead.

"Yggdrasil," Halo murmured. "Another World Tree will grow here."

"Is it the World Tree itself?" Caron asked.

"No. It's a different being—an ascendant with a new soul," Halo answered.

Caron wondered why a new World Tree was being planted now of all times. The World Tree remained a mystery even to Caron.

As Caron frowned, Halo shrugged and added, "Apparently it wants another transcendent to keep itself in check."

"...Ah, I see," Caron responded.

"The World Tree really is something," Halo said.

The World Tree was creating a counterbalance to even its own potential corruption—it was truly deserving of its title as Mother of Life.

"Our job is to protect it until it grows properly, Caron," Halo said.

"That much is fine... Wait, why us? I rejected the World Tree's request," Caron replied.

"That's what friends are for," Halo said. "You help each other with difficult things. Once I ascend the throne, I won't be able to go wandering around."

"If that's the problem, just adopt the Thebe system. Thebe elects its mayor through the citizens. Why can't an emperor do the same?" Caron asked.

"Huh. Never thought of that. Though the ministers will definitely object to stepping aside for elected authority... Maybe we can set up a regency system instead?" Halo suggested.

"You could just give more authority to the chancellor. No need to create a regent," Caron said.

"Not bad. I should stop by the Academy's political science department," Halo murmured.

"To do what?" Caron asked.

"Like you said—create a new system of rule. Becoming emperor purely because of bloodline is inefficient. If we're going to change it, this is the era to do it. Don't you agree?" Halo asked.

"Well... It does sound fun," Caron admitted.

The empire could end up chaotic, but honestly, the idea wasn't half bad. At least they would never see another Malevolent Emperor again.

Flash!

A bright flash burst from the sprout.

Light enveloped Caron and Halo in a gentle glow. After a moment, Halo closed his eyes and said softly, "When I died here in your place..."

"You regretted it, didn't you?" Caron interrupted.

"Will you let me finish, you bastard?" Halo snapped.

Halo was an old friend. His surname had changed, his identity twisted, but Halo was still Halo. Caron smiled—open and honest—at this infuriating friend who had played nephew all this time.

"I actually felt proud, you know. I died without regrets," Halo said.

"If you died without regrets, reincarnating to torment me shouldn't have happened. It doesn't make sense," Caron said.

"That's different. And come on—if you were offered a chance to mess with you, could you resist?" Halo asked.

Caron thought for a moment. He then nodded and answered, "That's a fair point."

"I had to act like a baby for years, you know. It was so exhausting. Good thing my memories weren't intact—if they were, I'd never have managed it," Halo said.

"Oh, I'd bet my neck and my arm that you were fully conscious the whole time," Caron teased.

"...People with sharp intuition die early," Halo muttered.

"And that's why you died early, right? Or wait—at your age, was it natural death?" Caron continued to tease.

"Watch your mouth," Halo warned.

Flaaash!

Light surged from the sapling, and the tiny tree rapidly grew into a towering World Tree.

Caron tilted his head back, grinning as he called, "Hey, Halo."

"What?" Halo replied, sounding annoyed.

"When things settle down, let's travel. I'll get permission from Leon. How about the South Sea, like we promised? I built an amazing villa there. We can fish, sail, maybe even hunt pirates," Caron suggested.

"Hunting pirates is the best part. Did the Queen ask you to do it?" Halo asked.

"She pays well. And raising kids costs a lot," Caron replied.

"You're the richest man on the continent. What are you spending all that money on?" Halo asked.

"The more money, the better. Write that down, my dear nephew," Caron said.

"Why would I write it down? Don't waste paper. Tsk tsk. Seriously, don't you feel bad for trees?" Halo teased.

"I'll kill you," Caron said with a smirk.

On a perfectly peaceful day, the two friends remained together.

"The Mad Dog of the Duke's Estate"

completed.