Reunion

Lowell looked toward the source of the sound.

Himmel stood a few steps away, hands on his hips, looking up at the bronze statue. He was dressed in comfortable, light clothing, his coat casually open, his blue hair slightly swaying in the afternoon breeze. His expression held a hint of disdain.

"Hey! Himmel!" Lowell raised his hand in greeting.

Frieren and Fern also turned around.

"Long time no see," Frieren said.

"Himmel," Fern nodded slightly.

Himmel seemed to have just recovered from his "attack" on the statue, and turned his head. When he saw the group, a bright smile immediately spread across his face, and his previous dissatisfaction vanished in an instant.

"Ah! It's been so long! Lowell, Frieren, Fern!"

His gaze shifted to Methode and Liletta beside him, and he winked.

"And who are these two?"

Methode stepped forward, extended a hand, and wore that gentle and polite smile.

"Himmel, greetings! I've heard so much about you. I am Methode, First-Class Mage."

She turned to the side to indicate.

"This is Miss Liletta."

Himmel naturally reached out and grasped Methode's outstretched hand, shaking it up and down. The movement was crisp and decisive, carrying the cheerfulness unique to a hero.

Hello! I am Himmel!

His gaze quickly drifted back to the bronze statue, and his lips immediately fell into a smirk.

"Damn it..." he drawled, turning to Lowell and pointing at the statue, "Lowell, look at my statue... how did it get like this?"

He scratched his head, looking utterly bewildered.

"My good looks... are completely gone. Who is this? He looks like an overly serious middle-aged man..."

Just then, a series of light footsteps approached from afar.

Ruby jogged over from the other side of the square, still sporting her signature fiery red curls, though they seemed even redder than before. Her mouth was stuffed full, her cheeks like squirrels with pine cones hidden inside, and she held up a string of bright red, glistening candied hawthorns, their shimmering sugar coatings gleaming temptingly in the sunlight. Seeing the group, her eyes lit up, and she quickened her pace to approach.

"Huh? Frieren! Lowell, Fern!"

She greeted them indistinctly, a few glistening sugar crumbs clinging to the corner of her mouth. She happily bit into another hawthorn before continuing to speak, her voice clear and crisp.

Hey hey, long time no see!

Her gaze fell on Himmel, and her eyes crinkled into a smile.

"Himmel...?"

Then, following Himmel's mournful gaze, she looked at the bronze statue.

She blinked.

Look at the bronze statue.

He blinked again and looked at Himmel.

"Huh? Whose statue is this?"

She tilted her head, looking a little dazed. She even forgot to chew the hawthorn in her mouth.

"It's Himmel, probably," Frieren's voice rang out calmly.

Ruby.

Her eyes slowly widened, her gaze sweeping back and forth between the bronze statue's imposing armor, its furrowed brows, its overly ornate greatsword, and Himmel's simple clothes and slightly disgruntled expression.

Then--

"Pfft... Haha, hahaha..."

Her shoulders began to tremble. She was holding her breath, and her face was slightly flushed.

"Haha... this is Himmel...?"

The laughter grew louder and louder until she couldn't hold it in any longer. She clutched her stomach with one hand, pointed at the bronze statue with the other, and laughed so hard she bent over, almost dropping the candied hawthorn.

"Haha... What is this... Hahaha... A mighty warrior... Hahaha..."

She laughed so hard she could hardly breathe, and even squatted down, her forehead against her knees, her shoulders swaying.

"Well..."

Halfway through her laughter, she suddenly realized something and looked up.

The surroundings had quieted down a bit. Several passing villagers stopped and looked over. Their gazes fell on Ruby, who was laughing without any regard for her image, and then on the new statue that the village was so proud of, which made their expressions clearly less than pleasant.

Ruby's laughter stopped abruptly, as if she had been choked.

"Cough cough..."

She quickly stood up, brushed the dust off her skirt, and slung the candied hawthorn behind her back. She tried to put on a serious expression, but tears of laughter still lingered in the corners of her eyes.

"This... this doesn't look like it at all."

She muttered to herself, her gaze drifting to the side.

"Bustling in stature, imposing in appearance, with an expression as serious as if attending a court meeting... He clearly looks like a nobleman, who would wear such... such ceremonial attire to battle?"

Lowell crossed his arms, looked at the bronze statue, and nodded.

"Indeed. This thing is clearly for ceremonial purposes. If you actually wore this to fight the Demon King, you might accidentally step on the corner of the cloak and fall flat on your backside. Discal would probably laugh so hard that his magic would go haywire."

Frieren also examined the bronze statue, her emerald eyes calm and unwavering.

"Hmm... I'm alright."

"At least the gender hasn't changed. I remember in the Imperial capital, Flamme's statue had all turned into an old man."

She looked away.

"The empire has always tended to exaggerate and deify these heroes. However, I recall that this kind of reshaping used to be limited to the deceased..."

She glanced at the bronze statue's brand-new base and smooth surface.

"This looks very new. It must be a newly built statue."

As soon as she finished speaking, an elderly man dressed formally, who looked like the Village Chief, walked over with a warm smile.

"Are you guests interested in the hero statue in our village?"

He walked closer, followed the gaze of the group to the bronze statue, and a proud expression appeared on his face.

"The original statue of the hero Himmel had become quite old after decades of weathering. The villagers spontaneously raised funds, and we rebuilt it. Look how majestic and heroic it is!"

He nodded slightly, his tone filled with emotion.

"I'm sure Himmel would be pleased to see this new statue in heaven."

The group fell silent for a moment.

Himmel opened her mouth.

"I'm still alive..."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the silence.

"Puff--!"

Ruby abruptly covered her mouth, but a muffled laugh still escaped through her fingers. Her shoulders began to tremble again, and she turned her face away, trying hard not to look at Himmel's helpless face.

"Haha...! In... in heaven... in heaven..."

She didn't dare laugh out loud this time, but her suppressed murmurs and trembling shoulders were even more noticeable than before.

The villagers gathered around. Hearing Himmel's words and seeing Ruby's suppressed laughter, their expressions darkened.

A neatly dressed young woman wearing a sun hat stepped forward, her brows furrowed, her voice clearly displeased.

"Hey! Who are you?"

She pointed at Ruby.

"Why do you always seem to disrespect Lady Himmel?"

Ruby's smile froze on her face. She turned her head, looked at the displeased villagers, then at the innocent-looking Himmel, and blinked.

"Huh? I..."

She tugged at Himmel's sleeve, tilted her head up, and her emerald eyes instantly welled up with tears of grievance, her voice carrying a pitiful nasal tone.

"Himmel, tell me, sob sob... Who am I... This woman is asking me who I am..."

Frieren: "... Ruby it again."

Lowell: "He's got the acting bug, I can't stop him, I can't stop him."

Himmel cleared his throat, gave a signature smile—a slightly embarrassed but still bright one—and said to the woman:

"Uh, I am the hero Himmel."

He pointed at Ruby.

"She is my love, Ruby..."

The girl paused for a moment, then her eyebrows shot up and her voice suddenly rose.

"You are the hero Himmel? Then I am the Goddess!"

Her words were like a powder keg ignited. The surrounding villagers immediately erupted in uproar.

"Are you kidding me!"

"How could Himmel be so young!"

"Disrespecting the statue! Who are you people?!"

"Judging by his attire, he must be an adventurer? How arrogant! And he's not even a fraction as handsome as Himmel!"

The murmurs grew louder, and the crowd tightened. Several hot-tempered men began rolling up their sleeves, while others turned and ran away, seemingly to grab weapons. Several women looked around, clutching the eggs they had just bought, as if searching for a more suitable "weapon"—rotten eggs.

Ruby her spine, and forgetting all about eating the candied hawthorn, she shoved it at Fern next to her.

"Run! Run!"

She lowered her voice and said urgently, pulling up Himmel was still trying to explain, and turned to squeeze into the gap in the crowd.

"What kind of world is this... Nobody believes the truth..."

Lowell, Frieren, and the others had no choice but to run as well.

Frieren pulled Lowell along through the crowd, her silver hair slightly disheveled. She glanced back at the approaching, unfriendly villagers.

"... Why were we attacked too?"

Fern followed beside her, deftly catching a vegetable leaf that was almost thrown at him, his voice remaining steady.

"Because we're obviously together, um... this leafy green is still quite fresh, maybe we can add it to soup tonight..."

Methode ran behind, letting out a soft sigh, her voice tinged with a helpless smile.

"Heh... What an undeserved disaster."

Himmel was being dragged along by Ruby, and she kept looking back at the square, looking both amused and exasperated.

"Damn it... Although I hope to become the kind of hero people aspire to be, that..."

Lowell, running beside him, heard this and suddenly laughed. The laughter was somewhat scattered in the running wind, but the mischievousness in it was undisguised.

"Haha..." he said as he ran. "The communication between the Empire and the Central Lands seems to be a bit slow. After all, you should be a centenarian by now, so it's normal for ordinary people to think you're already dead..."

"Haha, you've become a substitute! The Hero's Sword is fake, and now even you yourself are fake. From now on, you'll be called... Xin'ermei? Meixin'er...?"

Himmel raised his hand to wipe his face and let out a long breath. A bright, self-deprecating smile returned to his lips.

"My heart is aching... Haha, but oh well!"

He raised his voice and shouted to the crowd running ahead and behind him.

"Long time no see! And it's so lively as soon as we meet! Anyway, let's all go eat! It's on me!"

Ruby the first to respond, her eyes lighting up instantly, the embarrassing escape from her just moments ago completely forgotten.

"Okay! Let's eat our fill and eat our way back from all the grievances!"