Chapter 65: Farewell
Having reached a consensus, Uldin could not wait to mount his flying dragon and depart. He was off to summon his kinsmen to gather their weapons.
With him gone, the three compatriots could finally talk about their own affairs, such as the arrangements for going home. Regarding this, Doni was very optimistic. He said, "We can just go back the same way we came here. I'll activate my Authority to make the corridor go out of control, and it should open automatically and suck us in, right?"
"Sounds good, but I refuse."
Hikigaya thought about it and gave up on this tempting idea. Although he felt that Doni possessing such a preposterous Authority was very much in line with the man's personality—after all, he was a typical "troublemaker" (shit-stirrer).
"Well, what a pity." Doni showed no trace of regret.
Then he and Aisha began to chat about the Franks. Aisha had a habit of unleashing her Authorities regardless of the occasion; among them, the most troublesome for the public was her Charm Authority. She had now become a figure in Agripina revered by the Franks, much like Doni. If Doni was the first generation, she was the second.
In fact, Aisha did not entirely agree with Hikigaya's suggestion to let the Huns and Franks follow Uldin's lead and run wild together. This was because Aisha always felt that Hikigaya was up to no good, and being a lover of peace, she felt that even if Hikigaya had no ulterior motives, someone like Uldin would surely lead the Franks astray.
However, since Doni, the "first generation," agreed with the plan, she had no recourse. Perhaps because she was a woman, even though she and Doni were equally loved by the Franks, at critical moments deciding the fate of the tribes, the Franks clearly preferred to follow Doni's advice. Their reverence for Doni's prowess meant that Aisha's Charm was, for the first time, not quite as effective—because the effect of this Authority on the Franks was completely different from its effect on the Romans.
For the Romans, it was "I must protect the Saint," but for the Franks, it was "The Saint is wonderful, let's go out and hack someone to death." Aisha was helpless against this.
This was exactly what Hikigaya found interesting. Among the Franks, it wasn't so much that Aisha's Charm Authority was less effective than before, but rather that because of the Franks' nature, once they became fanatical, things would veer off in strange directions, making their behavior nothing like what Aisha desired.
During this period, the population of Agripina continued to increase. The fame of the God-slayers' prowess was sweeping through the Gaul region at an even faster pace, attracting more Franks.
Because Doni didn't care about management and Aisha's attempts to help only made things worse, Hikigaya had no choice but to join in the administration of Agripina. As a result, he inexplicably became the de facto leader of the city. Not only did the number of Frankish maidservants around him snowball, but even influential local figures originally belonging to the Roman side came with their families to seek asylum.
Too lazy to bother with these trifles, Hikigaya made a grand gesture and told them to go be friends with the Franks. In any case, history showed that these influential figures would quickly accept the Franks and help them rapidly absorb the Roman Empire's cultural heritage in the region to establish the Frankish Kingdom. Since they were destined to be friends sooner or later, it made no difference whether it happened a bit earlier or later.
Half a month later, the vanguard of the Hunnic army also arrived, led by Uldin himself. However, under the arrangement of the three God-slayers in the city, it did not cause too much commotion. Under the witness of the God-slayers, the leaders of the Franks and the Huns held a ceremony, declaring that the two races would move forward hand in hand.
It was on this very night that everyone informed Uldin they would be departing.
The night of the full moon had arrived.
The location of the corridor remained unchanged, still in the forest where Hikigaya first arrived, near Uldin's "villa." Of course, there was still time, so everyone held a banquet, with the leaders of both tribes participating.
The God-slayers, as the shared objects of worship, sat amidst the clamor and raised their cups together—though except for Uldin, no one was willing to drink the wine of this era.
"In short, things are currently unsettled everywhere. I will carefully consider my next moves." Uldin toasted the others (who were drinking water) and spoke of his future policies.
But Hikigaya did not give him any face. "It's your women who are doing the considering, you stud!"
This man was actually just like Doni; his head was full of nothing but pleasure. It was just that his pleasure was women, while Doni's pleasure was fighting.
"Hahaha, brother, don't say that! Don't you have a very good woman as well?" The Hunnic King laughed heartily. "I was originally planning to give you a few of mine."
Liliana immediately began to glare at him unhappily.
"Actually, I originally planned to train talented children to act as my proxies," Uldin said, ignoring Liliana's gaze. "But my wives said that now is not the time to be lazy, so I have to do it myself."
Hearing his words, Hikigaya suddenly thought: 'Could it be that the later Attila came about this way?' It was very possible, because the story of Attila contains elements of divine bestowal.
Understood this way, perhaps it was because Uldin disappeared that Attila was eventually killed.
"By the way, brother, that War God with the strange great sword exited quite decisively. Do you think he will appear again soon?"
"Of course. Eliminating us is His duty. Theoretically, He cannot be destroyed; even if He fails, He will start all over again."
If the gods ran a company, it would certainly be the most devilish kind—no pay and forced infinite overtime. Since He had already been awakened, unless He eliminated all the God-slayers present, there was a high probability He wouldn't just "clock out."
Everyone else was going back, but Uldin was an original God-slayer of this space-time; he would surely have to fight the King of the End in the future. Giving Uldin a serious reminder of this matter could be considered a final farewell gift.
"I know. I'll pay special attention when the time comes. My wife has also seen a strange revelation."
One of Uldin's wives was a quite powerful practitioner of Divine Vision, and Hikigaya had a fairly deep impression of her. Her level likely surpassed the vast majority of her peers in the modern world.
"Ruska said that the War God is a hero who wanders constantly, his strength growing ever greater, a hero on a journey to annihilate our kind."
Embarking on a journey to defeat the Devil Kings of the human world, gaining power during the wandering process to fulfill the mission... this kind of progression, which reads like a legend of a Great Hero, is simply the best material for mythology. Perhaps that is how He became linked with King Arthur, or perhaps the material for the King Arthur myth originally came from the story of the King of the End annihilating God-slayers?
Hikigaya looked up at the sky. A bright white full moon had risen in the east; they could go home at any time.
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