CHAPTER 203
The Transcendents disappeared, and the world returned.
So, did anything in the world change?

Well, not really.
If anything, it was just in an uproar for a while.

The Empire is still in a state of chaos over the imperial throne. Right after the Day of the End, the Emperor came back to life, causing quite a commotion, but he soon passed away peacefully as time went on.
The silver lining was that the Emperor didn't reverse his decision to let the 1st Princess ascend to the throne. Whatever deal was struck between the Emperor and the 1st Princess, that's how it played out.

“1st Prince Pelion Gladion is hereby excommunicated.”

The 1st Prince was excommunicated from the Imperial Family when his dealings with Black Dawn came to light. This was because Asheria Eve, the Great Sinner of Wrath and leader of Black Dawn, confessed everything after being captured by the Regular Army.

"I thought they'd execute me."
"Shut up. You're going to suffer for eternity."

Black Dawn faded into the dark alleys of history after their final operation ended in failure. Like any other terrorist organization, they met a bitter end.

However, because of this, the Regular Army faced a new problem. Since they had always treated Black Dawn as their main enemy, their identity was shaken when Black Dawn disappeared.

It was the 2nd Commander-in-Chief who corrected this instability. She actively pushed for treaties between the Imperial Family and various royal families, resolving numerous issues and proving the Regular Army's worth once again. I heard Lieutenant General Kandelhar played a huge role in that process.

The Holy Church changed its form.
After the Day of the End, the Embrace of Holy Light vanished. Though the warm light bestowed by the Embrace of Holy Light was gone, new scriptures and verses were written, declaring that the light now resided within themselves.

The Saintess was the one who actively pushed for this. Her heavenly beauty and voice naturally guided the Holy Church down a new path.

Ultimately, whether the Transcendents existed or not, this world kept spinning on its own just fine. And because it was a world that kept spinning... the fact that I no longer had to care about it was pretty nice.

The world didn't change drastically. People lived as they always had, forgetting their hardships. I was no different.

"Waaaaah, Shishirokaaaaa."
“Ahaha, you're crying too much.”

I revived Shishiroka and, together with my master, welcomed her back. Watching Rapiel bawl her eyes out while hugging the resurrected Shishiroka made me chuckle for various reasons.

Horizon said she was leaving on another journey. Having defeated the Great Sinner of Envy, she had completed her revenge for her parents. Now, she wanted to find her own path in life.

Lululio left the Regular Army after this final war. For some reason, she suddenly announced out of nowhere that she wanted to bake. Apparently, it was her original dream back on Earth. I figured no one would dare steal her bread.

Conversely, Ririran decided to spend the rest of her life helping the Regular Army. It seemed Rapha Hastel's final death weighed heavily on her heart.

Soun collected the corpse of Sohan that had plummeted to the ground and quietly left. Saying he had nothing left to teach Aranseol, he also relinquished his title as the Sword Lord.

Because of this, Aranseol ascended as the next Sword Lord. Naturally, Aranseol was full of complaints, but since it was Soun's will, she accepted it.

Mister Bulldog's son finally held his wedding with great success. He got scolded by his wife for bragging about how he used to take care of the Saint back in the day, but he looked happy.

Aigis resumed her duties as the Paladin Commander. She recently built an orphanage with her own money, and she seemed to enjoy watching the children grow day by day.

Just like that, I met people I hadn't seen in a while and exchanged greetings with acquaintances, telling them they had worked hard.

A journey that was long if you called it long, and short if you called it short.
Defeating the lunatic group known as Black Dawn. I had run toward that single goal for all that time.

Because of that, some might ask if I felt a sense of emptiness now.

'Not at all.'

Far from feeling empty, my life couldn't be any more comfortable than this.
That was to be expected, considering the value of the land I had dumped my entire life savings into buying at rock bottom had skyrocketed.

With Black Dawn gone and global threats erased, a full-blown construction boom occurred. Real estate went crazy as massive investments poured into the buildings that had collapsed during the great earthquake.

To think I'd become a landlord after coming to this world.
I never imagined I'd achieve something here that I couldn't even dream of back on Earth. Naturally, I built a house on the best plot among the lands I had bought.

Thanks to that, I was freed from the shackles of wealth. Since rent just rolled in on its own even if I played and ate all day, nothing could be more comfortable.

I used to think I'd have to make a living off Resurrection Magic for the rest of my life. Ironically, losing my Resurrection Magic liberated me from everything.

The reason I was able to stand as a Saint was thanks to Resurrection Magic. Thus, without Resurrection Magic, my past relationships became meaningless.

Of course, some said that what I had accomplished as a Saint was already enough. But my thoughts were different. A Saint without Resurrection Magic would eventually just crumble.

So I lightly brushed off those past relationships. Some people felt sad about it, but what could I do? I didn't have Resurrection Magic anymore. On top of that, since my tree had collapsed, I had practically lost my Holy Magic as well.

Of course, there were still people who stayed by my side regardless. Because our relationships weren't solely tied together by Resurrection Magic and Holy Magic.

But maybe that was why.
When a human is freed from one desire, another desire is bound to surge.

“......Aranseol.”
"Yeah."
“Don't you think you're clinging a bit too closely?”
“Yeah.”

So she didn't think so.
Aranseol held tightly onto my arm with no intention of letting go.

“Don't you have to go train with your sword?”
"I like listening to Harua's heartbeat better than that."

To think I would beat out Aranseol's love for her sword.

"It's pounding so fast."

Aranseol's ear pressed against my chest. A pleasant scent wafted from her hair. It was a cozy, soft fragrance unique to a woman.

In the past, I didn't really pay attention to it. I just liked having Aranseol sticking by my side.
But as my heart returned, other things returned as well, and I ended up realizing it.

I realized just how beastly a creature a man could be.

Past Harua.
Just what the hell did you do?
I felt like punching that shameless face of mine that used to walk around so brazenly.

"Harua."

At that moment, Aranseol looked up from my embrace.

“I'm fine with Harua doing whatever he wants to me.”

What did that mean?
No, there was nothing to weigh here. Aranseol had already laid her feelings bare to me. I wasn't impotent anymore, so there was no way I wouldn't understand.

Look at those moist, fox-like eyes. Anyone could tell they belonged to a woman trying to seduce someone. When did Aranseol become such a femme fatale? Ah, was she like this from the start?

Bang—!

At that moment, the door to our house slammed open. Standing there was a red-haired girl who had just returned from researching magic at the Imperial Palace today as well.

She scowled the moment she saw us.

“You're getting all lovey-dovey again while I'm not here.”

It was Babiyen. She marched over confidently and squeezed herself right between Aranseol and me. Aranseol looked disappointed, but since she had monopolized me for a while, she yielded.

“I know we're newlyweds, but isn't this too much? This girl goes out and comes back every time, and you two stay glued together all day while I'm gone!”

Babiyen pressed her hips against me and lightly bumped my chest with her head.
Why is she pouting and seducing me now? There are way too many temptations in this world.

"This girl is also a newlywed with you, you know. Got it?"

Babiyen emphasized while tightly gripping my clothes.

I knew it all too well.
It feels like a lot was skipped over in many ways, but that's how it turned out.

As time passed after the Day of the End.
The desires that had been suppressed all that time suddenly caught fire and exploded in an instant. And by the time I opened my eyes, the deed was already done.

I had confirmed their feelings a long time ago. The only way I could repay them was with a sincere answer.

It was practically a predetermined future to begin with. Even before I regained my heart, those two were already incomparable to anyone else to me.

So I proposed.
I have a house, and I have money. I boldly shouted for them to just bring themselves. I said that to the current Sword Lord and the next Captain of the Imperial Mages, compared to me, who had quit being a Saint.

Wait, when did I become so pathetic?
No matter how you look at it, I'm just a kept man playing and eating at home.

While I was despairing, Aranseol suddenly cradled her belly and whispered.

"Baby. Do you know? They say there used to be someone called the Saint."

Yeah, there was.

“That person saved countless people, and moved by that, the world became a place where people help each other. Transferees don't appear anymore, but since him, the Transferees have been living in harmony too.”

Since the Day of the End, no more Transferees appeared. Whether it was a good thing or a bad thing, the Transferees were no longer clinging to their previous world and were just living their lives.

The world they had to live in from now on.
This single realization actually helped the Transferees, who had struggled to settle their hearts, to firmly put down roots.

Ironically, that began to close the gap between the Transferees and the people of this world. Crimes still occurred occasionally, but their frequency had recently dropped.

Did I have a little bit of an influence on that?
Still, I think the percentage of people who vaguely hated Transferees like before had decreased.

Just a tiny bit.
But if that tiny bit grew little by little, it might one day become everything.
Just like my life had.

"But you know what? There's one thing everyone doesn't know, and it's that the Saint also saved the world. What do you think?"

That really was a story nobody knew.

"Aranseol, how long are you going to tell that story?"
"Until our baby grows all up and asks me to stop telling stories about the Saint."

Sitting next to me, Aranseol cradled her belly and smiled brightly. That dazzling smile made my heart race, unlike before.

No, wait.
Before, I just didn't have a heart to race, so it couldn't.

As I looked sheepish, Aranseol gazed up at me warmly, then moved to my other side and leaned her head on my shoulder.

“So, I shouldn't tell our child? I'm just bragging about their dad.”
“......I suppose you can tell it until they get sick of it.”

Hearing my answer, Aranseol giggled and laughed out loud.

"Then, should I also brag about how hard Dad worked for our baby?"

This woman, seriously.

“Will you let me brag tonight too?”
"How did you ever hold it in before, Harua?"

That was simply out of my control.

“Now you're just being lovey-dovey right in front of me! If you're going to brag, brag to this girl too!”

Babiyen, with a feisty expression, blushed after saying that herself. She was still a very shy girl.

“More importantly, we have guests coming over today! Both of you, hurry up and get ready.”

That was true.
If we kept this up any longer, I felt like Babiyen would scorch us with her Fire Magic. I didn't even have Resurrection Magic anymore. I wouldn't be able to come back to life.

"Don't be jealous just because I got pregnant first, Babiyen."
"You really want to fight, don't you."

Meanwhile, Aranseol gloated and bickered with Babiyen.
Watching the two of them get up to prepare the tableware, I let out a chuckle and stood up myself.

As I said before, it was a long journey if you called it long, and short if you called it short.
But it was a pretty decent life.

“Anyway, we have a lot of people coming today. Let's get ready.”

Everyone was coming over to congratulate Aranseol on the news of her pregnancy. As such, there was constantly a lot to prepare.

“Yeah, we should.”

There are still many things left to do.

So, even without Resurrection Magic, I will keep on living.

[I Have Resurrection Magic - End]

Author's Note (Afterword):
Harua's journey has finally ended! I will see you shortly with the completion afterword.