Yuri was dreaming.
He realized it only because something impossible was happening.
Just as Briol was surrounded and cornered in a desperate situation, his father—thought to be gone—returned and massacred the Imperial Army.
Yalta was split in half, the Black Knight admitted defeat and retreated.
The ogre was so terrified it didn't even dare to attack.
Briol was unharmed, and as the Empire ended the war, the continent once again found peace.
After the war, Cedric succeeded the throne and ruled Briol splendidly, and so, everyone had a happy ending.
If only that were true.
But because such a thing was impossible, Yuri knew this was a dream.
"…Huh."
Yet he didn't wake up.
"What's wrong, Yuri?"
"No, it's nothing."
Cedric, sitting on the throne, looked down at him with a puzzled tilt of his head.
At that, Joshua snickered beside him.
"This guy spacing out in front of His Majesty? Got some funny thoughts in your head?"
"Joshua."
"How insolent. Yuri. This is treason, treason!"
"…Uh."
Yuri tilted his head for a moment. It was too realistic to be a dream.
"What's with that dumb look? Did you just wake up?"
"No."
"You've got that face like you don't even know where you are. Hey. Guess where we are."
"Well…"
As Yuri couldn't find the words, even Cedric adjusted his glasses with a serious expression.
"What's wrong, Yuri?"
"It's nothing."
"Yuri. What's going on? Say it. Where are we right now?"
"…A dream?"
"What?"
Yuri stopped. The world in a dream wouldn't look this clear. But he could see every detail of Cedric's pupils, even the glint of concern within them.
He clenched and opened his hand. The sensation was vivid.
"A dream? Are you calling us figments of your dream? Huh? This guy's completely lost it."
"Joshua, stop. He's just joking."
"Look at his eyes. He's serious."
"Joshua…"
The two looked at Yuri—Joshua filled with suspicion, Cedric with concern.
Yuri looked between the two and said,
"This is a dream, right?"
Cedric and Joshua answered in unison,
"No."
"No."
Yuri nodded.
"Yeah, it's a dream."
No way would those two ever speak in unison like that.
"Then I should wake up."
And so, Yuri closed his eyes. Usually, when something like this happened, he would just close his eyes and tense his whole body—and that would wake him.
"Ngh!"
Joshua sneered.
"What, taking a dump?"
"…Ugh."
Yuri opened his eyes.
"Are you sure this isn't a dream?"
"He's still calling us dream characters. Your Majesty, are you really going to let him get away with this?"
"Yuri, are you okay?"
The voices of all three tangled together.
To Yuri, the two looked as if they were acting in a play. Otherwise, something like this couldn't be happening.
But in the end, he didn't wake up.
Yuri had to admit it.
"This isn't a dream, huh."
Well, after all, he had already returned to the past once. Even if he suddenly found himself in the future—or another world entirely—it wouldn't be strange.
Then Joshua asked,
"If this is a dream, what's your real reality like? How beautiful must your crazy dream have been for you to mistake reality for a dream?"
"Well…"
It seemed he had come to the future. All the signs pointed that way.
Since it was too vivid to be a dream, Yuri decided to accept that this might be a new reality.
Still in a daze, Yuri asked,
"What happened to the Empire?"
"What?"
Even Joshua now looked serious. Cedric asked,
"Did you really have a dream?"
Yuri wondered. Maybe he really had dreamed.
In his past life, Briol burned, and he had struggled to avoid repeating those mistakes—but now, that all felt too distant.
He studied Joshua's face for a moment before speaking again.
"Maybe I did."
"What kind of dream was it? Come on, now I'm curious."
"Hmm…"
Yuri said,
"So, the Empire…"
He briefly explained the situation. Cedric and Joshua looked at each other.
"You just had an old dream."
"An old dream?"
"Did you lose your memory or something? You were dreaming way too deep."
Joshua said,
"So in the end, your father stopped the Empire, and now it's completely fractured."
"How?"
"Do I really have to explain all of that?"
Cedric cut in.
"That's enough. Yuri, go rest for now. You don't seem well."
To Yuri, that was welcome advice.
He wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. He needed to calmly assess the situation.
Joshua looked dissatisfied, but nodded at Cedric's words.
"Alright."
Yuri bowed to Cedric the same way he would to his father. It was awkward, but since he had once imagined he would eventually do this, the action came naturally.
Leaving the two behind, Yuri headed straight for his quarters.
"Oh, Prince!"
Ena appeared. She had aged slightly, looking a bit more mature, but she was still the same as before.
"Your steps seem awfully hurried today. Did you cause some trouble?"
"Ena."
"Yes?"
"I have something I want to ask."
Yuri pulled Ena into his room, had her sit down, and asked her about various things.
Everything that had happened starting just before he arrived here, up until now.
Ena explained step by step.
Everything Yuri had hoped for had come true.
The Empire's aggression had been stopped, black magic was eventually purified, and the continent enjoyed peace and prosperity. All the troublesome matters had been resolved.
It was as if the backdrop for a life of joy had been completely prepared.
"This isn't a dream, right?"
"No, it's a dream. I'm actually getting ready to wake you up. You talk in your sleep, you know."
Yuri chuckled.
"Right. Not a dream, huh."
"Of course it isn't."
"Geez…"
"I have work to do, so… Are you going to keep talking about dreams?"
"No. Go on."
Ena stood up. But instead of leaving right away, she gently patted Yuri on the head, then turned away.
"Our prince must've had a scary dream. Rest well."
After she left, Yuri sat on his bed and looked up at the ceiling.
"This is unbelievable…"
It wasn't enough that he had regressed, and now he had come to the future—what a bizarre occurrence.
But he didn't feel bad.
All the things that had always weighed on his heart were now lifted.
For the first time, Yuri felt true peace.
There had always been a burden on his heart, like carrying a stone, but now, it felt like he could do anything freely.
He lay down on the bed and rolled once.
Then rolled again the other way.
Even such frivolous actions did not feel like a waste in the world he now inhabited.
"Huhu…"
Yuri chuckled softly. Many things he wanted to do came to mind.
First of all, it might be nice to take a trip with Laurent and Jared.
It would be good to visit Bursen to see Jose.
Going to Yoheim to see their statues wouldn't be bad either, or maybe even traveling far east to witness a new world.
"I wonder if Master Moyong Chan is doing well."
He still didn't know the current state of the future, so he had no way of knowing how they were doing.
It was then.
Yuri suddenly sensed a presence from the corner of the room.
From inside the wardrobe.
"Huh?"
Yuri got up and walked toward it.
A strange sound, like a vibration, came from it.
Yuri took a step back and stared at the wardrobe door. It was tightly shut. The unknown resonance continued to sound.
He flung open the door.
There was nothing but clothes.
"Hm…"
At that moment, something vibrated again.
Yuri's eyes turned to the inner edge of the wardrobe.
Something was there.
"Ah…"
Yuri immediately recognized what it was. Though it was wrapped in fine cloth and only the outline could be seen, there was no way he wouldn't recognize that object.
Why was this thing shoved in here like this?
Yuri picked it up.
Guilty.
His sword had been left abandoned like that.
Had peace lasted so long that he no longer swung his blade?
Thinking that, Yuri unwrapped the cloth around the sword.
The word meaning "sin" was still engraved on the blade.
The moment it was fully gripped in his hand, Guilty let out a long cry once again.
"Ah…"
Yuri realized.
The moment he gripped this sword, all the things he had thought he'd let go of—so lightly—came rushing back onto his chest.
The Empire.
War.
Black magic.
The deaths of people.
Anxiety and fear flooded his heart. Yuri wanted to let go of Guilty immediately. But it didn't leave his hand, instead filling his whole body with unease.
The moment he grasped the sword, Yuri and the world were split.
The guilt grew.
Briol, which had perished in his previous life, flashed before him like a hallucination.
His once-relieved mind was once again on edge.
He tightened his grip on the sword. Then, the deadly battles he had endured surged through his mind. From fighting orcs, to the Empire, then Adelvine, and even the bloodshed in Yoheim—he could smell it at the tip of his nose.
His heart pounded.
Tension coursed through his whole body.
Yuri could see the scenery around him change, centered around Guilty.
As if the sword and the world were fighting for territory, the ground beneath Yuri's feet turned to wasteland, radiating outward.
Guilty trembled again.
At that moment, Yuri remembered a horrific face he had forgotten.
The empty eye sockets of the dead were staring at him.
"…Yeah."
Yuri's heart settled.
"I haven't forgotten."
He looked up.
The ground he stood on was barren, and just a few steps away, the peaceful palace scenery he had just seen shimmered like a mirage.
He raised Guilty.
The echo of peace still lingered in his chest.
He didn't want to leave.
But the sword in his hand kept urging him on. Telling him there was still much to do, it cried relentlessly for him to wake up.
Yuri nodded.
"How do I wake up?"
Guilty showed him the way.
The answer was always obvious.
It was something inevitable. He had taken up the sword, and engraved the oath of Briol. Therefore, the only path left to him—was to cut down the enemy.
Yuri gripped Guilty tightly.
And he struck.
The world was split in two.
***
Yuri opened his eyes. He gasped for breath. His heart was pounding rapidly.
"Haa, haa…"
"You have awakened."
Suddenly, a voice spoke to him.
Yuri turned his gaze.
"…Oh…"
"Did you dream a long and vivid dream?"
Moyong Chan was standing there.
Yuri sat up and looked around. He was lying on the grass field created within the royal palace, and only Moyong Chan was by his side.
"What…"
"What did you just do?"
"Me?"
Yuri searched his memory.
"I was… talking with Ena…"
"You're not fully awake yet."
"That was all a dream?"
"So it seems."
"Why am I…"
"Do you have no memory of reality apart from that dream? What were you doing just now?"
"I was, I mean…"
Yuri tried to recall. But it felt like something that had happened far, far away.
"Uh…"
"Bernard."
"Ah, right."
Yuri nodded.
"I was sparring with Bernard. And after wrapping that up, I was heading back…"
"You collapsed."
"Yes."
"And then you dreamed."
"That's about right. Was that really a dream?"
"Yuri Briol. Listen carefully."
Yuri noticed that Moyong Chan's pronunciation had suddenly become precise.
That meant he was serious.
"You said your Heart-Soul Slash contained the martial art of the Heavenly Demon, correct?"
"Yes."
"What you just experienced is called a heart demon."
Yuri's eyes widened.
"What is that?"
"The chaos imbued in the Heavenly Demon's martial art is consuming you."
"Uh…"
"Look at yourself. You still haven't come to your senses, have you?"
"It was just a dream, right?"
"It's not that simple. In fact, it's something quite serious."
Moyong Chan sighed.
The trial given to his disciple was by no means light.
"Yuri Briol. Listen well."
He didn't want to say these words.
But, this was the only solution he knew.
"From now on, do not take up the sword."
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