The Last Words
A cold night wind blew past Zack as he stood reflecting on the events in Ludonia, and the noise of the city’s bustle returned once again. Before him, the silver-haired princess stood silently, unmoving.
After that ordeal, Zack and his companions had retraced their steps and handed over two bodies to the Ludonia authorities: one belonging to Prince Carlos, and the other—the shapeshifter’s—under the guise of Elliot.
They explained everything, saying:“As we were leaving Ludonia, we were ambushed by a demon commanding a horde of monsters. We were saved by Prince Carlos, but during the chaos, the shapeshifter, who had taken Elliot’s place, caught us off guard and the prince met his tragic end.”
While their explanation omitted only one truth—that Solon had used magic to disguise and switch the bodies—it was surprisingly accepted by the Ludonia side without much resistance.
This was largely due to multiple testimonies confirming that Prince Carlos had hurriedly left the palace in search of Elliot just before his disappearance.
Solon advised the Ludonia king to make the most of Prince Carlos’s death, and his proposal was adopted. For Ludonia, there was no other choice.
The prince’s funeral was held on a grand scale. Simultaneously, the shapeshifter’s body was hung at the gates of the capital for all to see. This served to stoke public outrage against the Demon King’s army and rally the nation toward war.
With the defeat of the blue demon, the commander of the Demon King’s forces, Ludonia managed to hold its ground despite the loss of their prince. The kingdom endured until the Demon King was finally vanquished.
Even after the funeral, when Zack and his companions left the capital again, the shapeshifter’s body remained hanging at the gates, a stark and unavoidable sight.
Leon and Solon averted their eyes out of guilt, but Maria stared at the corpse, unflinching. That scene was seared into Zack’s memory.
There was one more thing. After the prince’s death, Princess Elena vanished from public view. No matter how hard they searched, she could not be found, and Zack never got the chance to say goodbye.
Now, as if to stir up the guilt still lingering in his heart, Elena gave a faint smile.
“Recently, the body of Elliot—the one believed to have been replaced by the shapeshifter—was discovered. I believe you know the location well.”
Zack’s expression did not change. He neither confirmed nor denied her statement.
“You say nothing. Very well, I shall tell you. The body was found in the royal family’s tomb. The one buried as Prince Carlos was, in fact, Elliot. Thanks to the respectful burial he received as a royal, the body was well-preserved, making identification an easy task.”
“Why,” Zack asked, “would anyone go so far as to desecrate a grave?”
To Zack, the act of disturbing a grave seemed unthinkable without a compelling reason.
“Why? It’s simple. I already knew. I knew that it wasn’t my brother lying in that grave. After all, my brother’s body had already been absorbed by the shapeshifter long before.”
Elena’s voice was laced with mockery.
“Princess Elena, are you saying you knew the shapeshifter had taken Prince Carlos’s place?”
“I didn’t merely know. I wished for it. I wished for the shapeshifter to take my brother’s place and protect Ludonia. And the shapeshifter granted my wish. Yes, the one who was strung up at the gates and pelted with stones was the very hero who saved Ludonia!”
For the first time, the icy blue of the princess’s eyes wavered with strong emotion.
“Who told you about the shapeshifter?”
Zack asked, suspecting that someone had influenced her.
“…No one. I summoned him myself.”
“You summoned him? How could you summon a shapeshifter?”
“The royal family of Ludonia descends from a lineage of [Summoners]. That power has mostly faded now, and neither my father nor my brother could wield it. But in me, that bloodline runs strong.”
[Summoners]—beings who, though human, could commune with a variety of entities. Rare and little-known, summoners could call upon spirits, magical beasts, and even demons.
They were sometimes referred to as [Spirit Callers] or [Conjurers] and were considered a subset of mages. However, their abilities relied more heavily on innate talent than other forms of magic.
“So, even Ludonia’s royal family possessed such power…” Zack mused.
Having encountered a summoner during his journey to defeat the Demon King, Zack understood the nature of their abilities. He also knew of the shrine maidens bloodline that flowed through the kingdom’s queens and princesses, which made Elena’s power plausible to him.
“No matter the nation, those who ascend to the throne must possess strength,” Elena said with a hint of bitterness. “You, too, are only fit to be king because you had the strength to defeat the Demon King, aren’t you?”
Elena said sarcastically.
“That’s not what I intended…”
“I know,” Elena interrupted. “No one becomes a hero for such reasons. Being a hero is not a glory—it’s a burden. Heroes are simply vessels for everyone else’s wishes. Without understanding that, I wished for him to become a hero who would protect this kingdom.
Because of that wish, he met such a cruel end. But he’s not the only one. Most heroes meet their end like that. Sacrificing their lives isn’t enough; even their deaths are exploited, their souls dishonored.
That’s what it means to be a hero. Zack, the hero of this kingdom, you stand as the sole survivor atop countless corpses of other heroes. The only glimmer of hope. But I…I wished you were dead instead.”
Zack lowered his gaze, knowing her words were true.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT gadgetizedpanda.net
“I only unearthed that grave because you came back, Zack. If you had died, I could have buried this truth in my heart and moved on. I could have accepted it, telling myself, ‘All heroes are destined to die in war.’ But you lived. You were the only one who survived. And I cannot forgive that! Why must it be you?!”
The silver-haired princess’s fervent emotions washed over Zack, who silently bore the weight of her words.
“…Let me ask you again. Was it you who killed the hero of Ludonia?”
“There was no lie in what I told you before, Princess Elena. Prince Carlos… The shapeshifter shielded me from the demon’s flames and was then stabbed by Elliot. I believe Elliot realized that Prince Carlos had been replaced by the shapeshifter. That’s why he did it. But…”
The hero looked to the sky, then exhaled deeply.
“If we had never stopped in Ludonia, perhaps no one would have died. Felip, Elliot—they might have lived on as knights of Ludonia. Even the shapeshifter might still be here, living as Prince Carlos. You called me a successful hero, but the only thing I succeeded in was defeating the Demon King. I’ve failed far more than I’ve succeeded. So many lives have slipped through my fingers.”
Each failure was etched into Zack’s heart, resurfacing at unexpected times to torment him. His prayer at the memorial was likely the most earnest in the entire capital.
“You’re right, Princess Elena. I killed the hero of Ludonia. If I had been a hero worthy of the title, he wouldn’t have had to die. The blame lies with me.”
Elena stared directly at Zack.
Her eyes brimmed with sorrow, but whether she found his words satisfactory remained unclear.
“Let me confirm one thing. Did he die from Elliot’s stab? And did you simply leave him without attempting to heal him? Maria, the famed saint, was nearby at the time, wasn’t she?”
“The shapeshifter couldn’t be healed. My magic didn’t work, and neither did Maria’s miracles. Maria said, ‘Shapeshifters, being formless, cannot receive divine blessings.’ There was nothing we could do…”
Zack averted his eyes,
Elena’s gaze remained fixed, as if searching for any trace of a lie.
“…One last question. Was he a hero?”
“As you know, he was a true hero. Far more so than I could ever be. I saw Ares in him—someone who could do anything. To me, both of them were ideal heroes.”
Zack’s nostalgic tone revealed his reverence, and Elena closed the distance between them. Gripping his collar, she pressed her head against his chest.
“…I told you, didn’t I? He was far more deserving of being a hero than you. And yet he was strung up, while you walked out beneath his lifeless body, pretending nothing had happened. All the glory and praise of being a hero are yours alone. Isn’t that unfair? Isn’t it cruel? Does slaying the Demon King make you so great? He tried so hard to be the hero I wished for, to protect Ludonia, and yet he met such a horrific end…”
Zack hesitated before gently placing a hand on Elena’s shoulder.
“I think…I understand your feelings, at least a little. At first, I thought the honor and praise of being a hero were wonderful. I thought that if I could give that to someone, it would make them happy.”
Elena gasped. She knew why Zack had concealed his name and defeated the Demon King, and she had dismissed it as mere posturing. But standing before him now, she remembered that Zack wasn’t that kind of person.
“But I was wrong. I was so wrong. After many years, I finally delivered Ares’s last words to his mother, Shera. It was just one word: ‘Mother.’ But even so, Shera was happy. She cried, but she said, ‘That’s all I wanted to hear,’ and, ‘Now it feels like Ares has come home.’ I think Shera will live the rest of her life cherishing Ares’s memory. And when she dies, she’ll probably think of him, just as he thought of her.
I was wrong. You don’t need to be a hero. If, when someone dies, they can think of just one person, and if even one person can remember them, that’s more valuable than any honor. So, Elena, if you can keep thinking of the shapeshifter, I think that’s enough.”
Hearing those words, Elena gently pulled away from Zack and said, softly,
“Perhaps you’re right, Zack. I will likely spend the rest of my life thinking of him.”
The silver-haired princess smiled sadly.
“But there’s no one who will think of me.”
With those parting words, Elena disappeared into the depths of the alley.
TLNOTE:
Because of that volume 1 and 2 fan translation in this site will be removed in the near future
otherwise check the internet archive
As usual, please consider reading other novels written by Daken sensei listed below :
- Monster Meat Led Me to the Throne
- The Castle of Canaan ~ The Lost Kingdom’s Princess, the World’s Hidden Treasure, and the Grand Adventure of the Mightiest Band of Thieves Versus an Empire ~
- The Wicked Princess and 12 Eyes – The Strongest Squires and the Legendary Evil Woman, the Second Time in Her Life
- The Suspects of Necromancy
- The Exiled Merchant Saves the World with the Power of Gold (translated by my friend meerkat)
- The Last Magic (translated by my friend narwhal)
Also check out my friend Localizermeerkat for more LN translations!
BUY THE SOURCE MATERIAL TO SUPPORT THE AUTHOR !!!
Kindly click on the green button above and contribute to filling the green bar if you’re interested in having another LN from the request page translated. Also, every donation is being used to purchase the source material and to fund more English translations.
Please consider joining my Ko-Fi membership. By becoming a member, you’ll also gain access to 2-10 additional chapters of all of the novels from this site translated into English. Last but not least your support will also assist me in upholding the translation quality and speed. For more information, please follow the link.
Donation for faster release is always welcome
Additionally, I am now accepting translation requests.
