Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [380]
The sacrifices—Halnera.
“The…other half?”
Captain Ronmel put his grimy, cracked gauntlet on Wataru’s shoulder. “You completed your journey. That alone should be answer enough.”
Oh. Mitsuru.
“I go now to the Goddess. I’m glad we met here. To send off a Traveler from Vision is a great honor…it lessens the burden of sacrifice.” The edge of his mouth jerked upward into a smile.
The feel of the captain’s hand on his shoulder brought Wataru’s sense of touch back to him in a sudden rush. The strength returned to his legs. His blurred thoughts regained their focus.
“No tears,” Captain Ronmel said, his blue eyes fixing sternly on Wataru. “This is not a sad thing. Do not cry.”
Unable to speak, Wataru merely frowned and nodded.
“You were the one who broke the Mirror of Eternal Shadow?”
Wataru nodded again.
“On behalf of all the people of Vision, I thank you.”
Wataru remembered what he had to say. He had so many things to say, but one thing came out first. “Captain!”
No tears.
“I-I couldn’t save her. I let Kutz die.”
The captain raised an eyebrow then lowered his eyes. “I see.”
“She was guarding two children in Solebria. I don’t know what happened—but she kept fighting. Even when she dropped her whip she went at those demonkin with her bare hands.”
“How like her.”
Wataru choked back a sob.
“In Vision, when a person dies, they become light.”
“Kee Keema taught me.”
“Very well. And you know that eventually, she will be reborn?”
“Yes.”
The captain’s gaze softened, and the smile returned to his face. “Then I will be watching over the Vision into which Kutz is reborn. That suits me. That suits me quite well.”
Wataru knew he was wasn’t just putting on a brave face—he truly meant what he said.
“And I hope that when a thousand years are past, and my duty is finally complete, I too will become light. Then I’ll be reborn in the same place as her, so many lives later. We never did finish our last argument to my satisfaction.”
Now he’s posing.
“Tell the truth. You don’t want to argue with her again.”
The captain threw his head back and laughed. “Go now. I would like to be the last to see you off on your final journey.”
For a moment he stood there, looking at the captain.
“Brave Traveler,” Captain Ronmel put his fist to his chest in the Knights’ salute. “May the Goddess of Destiny watch over you, even in the real world.”
“Thank you.” Wataru returned his salute, and began to walk. He could feel the captain’s gaze on him, pushing him.
He didn’t look back.
At the bottom of the stairs, Wayfinder Lau was waiting, just as the Goddess had said. He stood casually with his staff held in both arms. He looked as if he had just sent Wataru on some errand and was impatiently waiting for him to return.
“Shall we?” Wataru said, coming to a stop before him.
The Swamp of Grief and the translucent collage of towns and villages were gone. He now walked through a void much like the one swirling around the staircase. Wataru walked quietly, following behind the Wayfinder. He couldn’t even see what they were walking on.
His mind went blank, as empty as his surroundings.
Then the Porta Nectere loomed into view—the giant gate between the real world and Vision, its apex lost in clouds and mist.
It seemed like a thousand years had already passed since he last saw it.
Wayfinder Lau stopped a good distance before reaching the gate. Tilting his head, he gave Wataru an inquisitive look. “You have given the Demon’s Bane back to the Goddess?”
“Yes.”
“Then to me you must return the pendant that marks you as a Traveler.”
As directed, Wataru gave back the pendant. Wayfinder Lau took it and put it in a pocket of his robe. “You journeyed well.”
“Thank you.”
“Your adventure is your own. No one may ever take it from you.”
“Yes.”
The Wayfinder’s long whiskers swayed. Maybe he was smiling, but even if he was, it was only for a second. Still, for that moment, the loud, ornery old man seemed like a different person entirely.
I’m going home. I no longer belong to Vision. I have