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Chapter 53: Past
The day after his Status was updated.
It was noon. Eager to test his newly manifested skill, Tsuna wandered through the dense forest of the 18th Floor, searching for an isolated spot. Eventually, he spotted a small clearing through the trees and headed toward it.
"This looks like a good spot—eh!?"
Stepping into the clearing, Tsuna froze. He had thought it would be a perfect, empty space to train, but to his surprise, the ground was dotted with makeshift wooden crosses crafted from branches.
"Graves...?"
Looking at the weathered crosses, Tsuna quickly deduced that this was a burial site.
Suddenly—
"Mr. Sawada?"
"Ryuu?"
Ryuu emerged from the trees behind him, her arms full of freshly picked flowers. Both of them blinked, surprised to run into each other in such an isolated location.
"Why are you here?" Ryuu asked.
"Ah... I was looking for a quiet place to do a little training..."
"I see."
"What about you, Ryuu? What brings you out here?"
"I came to visit these graves."
"Does that mean..."
"Yes. The people buried here are my former comrades. The members of my Familia."
Having explained the significance of the site, Ryuu approached the graves and gently laid a single flower at the base of each wooden cross. Then, she pulled a small bottle of liquor from her pouch and poured it over the earth as an offering.
Watching her solemn ritual, Tsuna stepped forward, crouched in front of the graves, closed his eyes, and pressed his palms together in prayer.
"Mr. Sawada?"
"Well... I didn't know this was a graveyard, but I still barged in uninvited, so I figured I should at least pay my respects... Even if the people resting here have no idea who I am..."
"The sentiment alone is more than enough. Thank you."
Seeing Tsuna offer a heartfelt prayer for comrades he had never even met, Ryuu bowed her head in gratitude.
"You mentioned before that you quit being an adventurer, but since you made it all the way down here, that means you still have your Falna, right?" Tsuna asked.
"Yes. Though, technically speaking, I am excommunicated."
"Excommunicated?"
"I once worked as an adventurer under Lady Astrea, the Goddess of Justice and Order. The Astrea Familia."
"The Astrea Familia?"
"The Astrea Familia didn't just explore the Dungeon; we actively policed those who disrupted the city's order. During my time, Orario's public order was incomparably worse than it is today. There were countless factions that threatened the peace of the city. We fought every single day to protect Orario."
"Are you talking about the Dark Age?"
"You know of it?"
"Yeah. Seven years ago, an organization called the Evilus was operating in the shadows, and there was a massive conflict that caused the highest number of casualties in Orario's history. They called it the Seven Days of Death, right?"
Tsuna recalled the grim history lesson Finn had given him during their rest on the 50th Floor.
"That is exactly right."
"So you fought during the Dark Age too?"
"Yes. I fought against the Evilus to protect this city."
"Then, are the people buried here from that battle?"
"No. During the Seven Days of Death, my comrades did not die."
As Ryuu spoke, the image of a certain friend who had perished during the Dark Age flickered through her mind.
"Two years after the Seven Days of Death, we were lured into a trap in the Dungeon by the remnants of the Evilus. My comrades were slaughtered. I was the only survivor."
"That's..."
"After that, I arranged for my patron Goddess, Lady Astrea, to escape the city. It was then that she handed down my excommunication. Yet, despite severing our ties, she did not erase my Falna. I imagine it was her final act of mercy."
"Ryuu..."
"Afterward, I hunted them down. One by one, I completely eradicated the Evilus, along with anyone and any organization affiliated with them."
"Eh...!?"
Hearing the brutal aftermath of her tragedy, Tsuna gasped, a sudden realization striking him like lightning.
"Wait... Gale...!?"
"!?"
During his conversation with Finn on the 50th Floor, Tsuna had heard the tale of an adventurer known as Gale, who had single-handedly annihilated the Evilus. Connecting the dots, he realized that Ryuu was the legendary avenger Finn had spoken of. Ryuu flinched, completely caught off guard that he knew her alias.
"To think you knew that much..."
"A-Ah... I heard the story about an adventurer named Gale destroying the Evilus... I just didn't realize it was you..."
"I see..."
"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have brought it up..."
"No. Considering you are involved with me, it was only a matter of time before you found out. You are not the only one who knows my past."
Though momentarily shaken that her true identity had been laid bare, Ryuu quickly regained her composure and continued her story.
"After I annihilated the Evilus, the Guild could no longer ignore my actions. I was officially placed on the wanted list."
"So that's why you said it'd be bad if other adventurers saw your face."
"Yes. Having completed my revenge, my body and soul were utterly broken. I collapsed in a back alley. Having lost the will to live, I chose to just lie there and wait for death. But it was then that Syr reached out her hand to me."
"Syr did?"
"Yes. Even knowing exactly who and what I was, she arranged for the owner of the Hostess of Fertility to take me in and let me work there."
"So that's how you ended up at the pub... But how have you managed to work there without getting caught?"
"During my time as an adventurer, I always wore a mask. Therefore, as long as I do not use my surname, Lion, and keep my hair dyed, almost no one can recognize my true identity. The only reason I am able to live a normal life today is entirely because of Syr."
"I had no idea..."
Tsuna had always viewed Syr as sharp, calculating, and somewhat incredibly cunning. But learning that she was Ryuu's savior completely changed his perspective of the silver-haired girl.
"I apologize. I did not mean to burden you with such a foul story."
"Eh!?"
"Speaking of my past has only reaffirmed it for me. I am a shameless, barbaric Elf. Therefore, Mr. Sawada, please do not ever make the same mistakes I did. You possess a truly kind heart. I know you will always choose the right path."
Tsuna had offered a sincere prayer for the souls of people he didn't even know. Ryuu recognized that, just like Bell, Tsuna was fundamentally a good, pure-hearted person.
"I can't. I've already made the wrong choice," Tsuna said quietly.
"Excuse me?"
"I've killed someone out of hatred, too."
"What!?"
Ryuu's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. The idea that this gentle boy had taken a life was completely inconceivable to her.
"There was a guy who caused my comrades to die. I hated him for it. I let my anger consume me, and I blew him away so completely that nothing was left."
In the battles of the future, Byakuran had shattered the order of the world. To restore the balance and allow Tsuna and his friends to return to their peaceful past, Yuni and Gamma had been forced to sacrifice their own lives. Unlike the Evilus, Byakuran hadn't killed Yuni and Gamma directly. But if Byakuran hadn't destroyed the world's order, they never would have had to sacrifice themselves. Indirect or not, Byakuran was their murderer.
"Because of him, countless innocent people died, and my friends had to lay down their lives just to give us a future. I honestly thought that defeating him was the right thing to do. But in the end, what I did was no different from what he did."
What Byakuran had done was undeniably wrong. And because Byakuran was gone, innocent people would no longer be slaughtered. But even so, Tsuna believed that didn't give him the right to act as an executioner.
"That's why I'm telling you... I've already made a mistake."
"You fought to protect the people you loved!! You did nothing wrong!! The only one at fault is the monster who drove your comrades to their deaths!!"
"If that's true, then you didn't do anything wrong either, Ryuu. The ones at fault are the Evilus who killed your friends. You're not the bad guy here."
"That is..."
Ryuu had desperately tried to argue that Tsuna's actions were justified. But Tsuna had also taken the lives of those who had stolen his loved ones. For her to claim that Tsuna was innocent while maintaining that she herself was a sinner was entirely contradictory. Ryuu was left completely speechless.
"I could never say that what I did was right," Tsuna said, looking down at his hands. "But even so... my friends laid down their lives for our sake. So, to ensure their resolve wasn't for nothing, I decided I was going to live."
"....."
Ryuu couldn't find the words to respond. The boy standing before her was younger than she had been during the Dark Age, yet it was blindingly obvious he had walked a path far bloodier and more harrowing than anything a normal person could comprehend.
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