Time and memories
"Perhaps, for me, recalling the happy times I spent with my wife has become a source of fear."
After saying that, Dunkel glanced at Rienta and continued:
"It was only a few years ago, when I learned from my old friend Lernen that my hometown had been swallowed up by the Golden Land, that I made up my mind to return here."
At this point, Dunkel gave a wry smile and said self-deprecatingly, "I really am a heartless person."
Heartless?
Perhaps there is a little bit.
After all, he hadn't returned to his hometown for decades.
Rienta glanced at Dunkel noncommittally, without saying a word.
Whether Dunkel is playing the victim or something else right now.
None of them were of much use to him.
Rienta blinked, looking completely bewildered, and gestured for Dunkel to continue.
Dunkel turned around, his back to the crowd, and looked towards the distant [Golden Land].
The sound drifted along with the breeze, echoing on the Cliffside.
"My initial motivation for taking over this Barrier and becoming Barrier manager was not to defeat Macht or save my hometown."
"I just wanted to completely let go of those memories."
"I thought that once I saw my hometown, so different from what it used to be, I could finally let go of everything."
"I believe that all the memories I shared with my wife no longer exist in this place."
"I would say that we've left that memory in the past, half a century ago."
Dunkel stopped talking, but the tone of his last sentence changed.
Rienta's position prevented him from seeing Dunkel's expression, but he could hear the tone in his voice.
Dunkel's voice now sounds like it's burning with passion.
A raging fire.
Dunkel paused only briefly before speaking again.
"I had originally planned to spend the rest of my life quietly in this place after witnessing all of this."
"But."
The familiar scenes of [Golden Land] instantly flashed into Dunkel's mind.
Nothing has changed.
Nothing has changed.
Dunkel said that sentence twice.
It's like they're confirming something.
It also seems like a denial of something.
"[Golden Land] only swallowed up that place a few years ago."
"But the place where my wife and I left our memories half a century ago remains unchanged."
As the Barrier manager, Dunkel has the authority to enter and exit the Barrier.
The first thing he did upon arriving here was to go to a place he hadn't returned to in decades.
To his complete surprise, things did not develop as he had anticipated.
The streets he and his wife strolled together, the house they lived in together, the benches they sat on together, and even the church where they got married.
Everything was exactly as he remembered.
The only difference is that there were two people before.
Now he's all alone.
Dunkel never talked about these things with anyone else.
But today, he spoke, and he spoke an unusually long time.
Perhaps it was to elicit Frieren's sympathy.
Or perhaps, they simply wanted to vent their frustration and resentment through words.
"What am I doing...?"
"No matter how much time has passed, no matter how bumpy and tortuous my life has been, for me, there was not a single lie in that happy time."
Dunkel has finished speaking.
Everyone on the Cliffside edge fell silent.
Time is a wonderful catalyst.
It doesn't just make the wine more mellow and fragrant.
Even memories, something so intangible, can become increasingly unforgettable over time.
This is especially true for imaginative magicians.
Rienta how to deal with Macht, one of the Seven Sages of Destruction Golden Land.
Yes, he has already started studying playing styles.
Dunkel's story is indeed good, but it's not enough to truly move people.
But.
After listening to Dunkel's story, the expressions on the faces of Frieren, Fern, and Stark clearly conveyed their meaning.
'This is so touching, we have to help him!'
Indeed, playing the victim is an exceptionally effective tactic, no matter when or where.
Whether Dunkel had this intention or not, the result was that Dunkel successfully moved the other three people besides himself with this story.
Even Frieren, who had twice explicitly refused, was moved at this moment.
Three against one.
What can Rienta do?
We can't very well refuse to accept the commission under these circumstances.
Frieren looked at Dunkel quietly; she remembered Dunkel's expression.
Himmel said, this is called remembrance.
[Flower field magic].
As the name suggests, it's a magic that can create a field of flowers.
But in Frieren's hands, she can create a sea of flowers.
This was Flamme's favorite magic, and also the magic she remembered most vividly.
In a sea of flowers created by [Flower field magic].
Heiter and Eisen were thoroughly enjoying their cruise.
Frieren and Himmel, on the other hand, were sitting and resting.
Frieren is looking at the sea of flowers.
Himmel is looking at Frieren.
"Himmel, you're such a strange person, to be interested in magic that conjures up flower fields."
Himmel chuckled softly, not answering the question, but instead saying:
"... Frieren, I didn't expect you to make that face."
A gentle breeze carried the petals, which fluttered and drifted about.
After staring at the scene for a while, Frieren said softly:
"My master passed away a long time ago; this was her favorite magic."
"This spell reminds me of my master, so I will try to use it as infrequently as possible."
Frieren was squatting on the ground, hugged her knees with both hands, and her originally upright ear tips drooped slightly.
She misses her master.
"But it really is unbelievable."
"Now, I actually feel very at ease when I see this magic."
Although she said she felt relieved, the lingering sorrow and disappointment on her face were impossible to hide.
Himmel thought this to herself, but said aloud, "Frieren, I don't know what kind of life you've lived so far."
"But if that experience has made you unable to understand even such a simple truth, then it must have been an experience filled with hardships and obstacles that I can hardly imagine."
Frieren turned her head, somewhat bewildered, and asked, "What simple truth?"
Himmel looked directly at Frieren and said softly, "For you, the time you spent living with your master must have been an incredibly happy time, right?"
Although it was a question, Himmel's tone was very confident.
Frieren nodded, but still didn't understand what Himmel meant.
Before she could ask, Himmel looked at the sea of flowers and continued:
"You're just reminiscing about your happy memories."
"So, Frieren."
Himmel turned her head and smiled at Frieren.
A gentle breeze carrying flower petals brushed past the two of them.
"Please cherish the happy times you've had."