"I'll enjoy a millennium of riches."
"????"
[No!]
Vulcanus' bombshell caused both Petos and Leon to turn a deaf ear.
Petos was horrified that he would have to make this impermanent as his agent for a millennium.
"No, Mr. Petos. Why are you so surprised?"
[A thousand years---will you be my Holy Knight for a thousand years!]
"Well, if I'm going to live young and long, it's only natural that I should be a living saint."
[You bastard, do you know that being a Holy Knight is a means of staying young!]
Despite Petos' outburst, Vulcanus responded with an ear-piercing sternness.
"Mr. Petos. Where do you think you'll find a Holy Knight of my caliber?"
[------]
It was true.
Vulcanus would have been the greatest Holy Knight of all time if not for Leon's presence.
His strength is unrivaled, and Leon wasn't wrong to consider him as his successor.
With the Lionheart transplanted into him, he would be a Holy Guardian that could defeat a Demon Lord.
[Yes, it's a problem that you're so wasteful with your power, spreading it everywhere without even realizing I don't have more!]
"Mr. Petos. When I come to power, I'm going to conquer the world."
[------!?]
Petos was silent at Vulcanus' bombshell.
"When I conquer this planet, I will spread the faith of Petos everywhere, except for China, which is in turmoil right now, and I will take it over. Do you hear me? Remember the warriors!"
Petos thought to himself, "Vulcanus has a point."
"Hah---Petos. Do not be persuaded."
[Persuaded---Not persuaded].
Petos denied that he was persuaded by Vulcanus.
[But conquest is necessary to reestablish Lionheart in this land and spread the rightful faith. No nation should follow in the Empire's footsteps.]
"Yes! The Lionheart Empire will be established, and I, the Lionheart Emperor, will be crowned Holy Knight King. The lands of Pyongyang here and Taiwan there are fine, and I'll have them for my villa!"
[Vulcanus, you shut up!]
Vulcanus shrugs his shoulders at Petos' tirade and walks away. Leon could tell that the gods of the pantheon were secretly in agreement.
"Is everyone else of the same opinion?"
[Well, the kingdom must be rebuilt, let alone the empire, and this goddess wishes to see Lionheart rebuilt once more.]
That was what Leon had been thinking, too. As Vulcanus mentioned, the land of Greater China is empty right now.
It shouldn't be too difficult to take it.
"But, Lord Vulcanus, is that what you mean by a millennium of riches? Don't you intend to ascend?"
"GRARARA. As a living saint, with my strength and youth, why would I hurry to the banquet hall? I will enjoy all the pleasures of this life and forgo them."
"Hmph------"
Leon gave him a dubious look. He had never heard a Holy Knight declare that he would delay his ascension to enjoy the riches of this life.
"I knew Sir Vulcanus had a different temperament than the rest of the Knights, but I didn't realize it was this different."
"Heh, heh, heh, heh, I'm all too human."
"You need to show more respect for the gods and paradise. How about a little theological education?"
"------?!"
Leon's words caused Vulcanus to shudder and sputter.
In the days when Vulcanus had just surrendered and become Leon's squire, he had learned many things from Leon.
Among other things, the theological education was almost brainwashing, and Vulcanus had been shaken away from the ideas of the Demon Gods.
"Hmph, hmph--- theological education, not even when I was a squire."
"There is no end to learning, and if you, a saint, are seen to be studying despite your status, wouldn't that set an example for others?"
"Yes------"
Vulcanus huffed and puffed in disgust. But Leon was unyielding.
"Then, beginning tomorrow, you will join me in the theological training of the knights."
"Ah, Your Majesty!"
Vulcanus bellowed, and Leon smirked and handed him his drink.
"There is a way to get out of theological education if you really don't want to."
"What is that?!"
"You can go to this king counseling center."
"Hoooo------"
Vulcanus gulped down Leon's drink and wiped the corner of his mouth.
"What is troubling our Lionheart King?"
"For a long time, this king has been looking forward to the day when he would be able to go to Paradise. I don't think it's good for the Lionheart King position to be held by the same person for too long."
Leon couldn't afford to find a successor right away.
He wanted to preserve his position until the demons were destroyed and the cornerstone of Lionheart's rebuilding was completed.
"But I have a feeling that the gods, and many others, will not welcome your ascension."
Vulcanus understood Leon's point. He, too, was greedy for the next Lionheart King, and found it hard to imagine what would happen after his departure.
But if Leon wants to rest, he can. He deserves it.
Even the gods can't deny him that, but they don't want to lose the greatest Grail guardian of all time.
"Your Majesty, the reason you want to go to paradise is because of Queen Castile?"
"------"
Leon replaced the words with a bitter smile and poured himself a glass. It was his punishment for not being able to answer.
"Well, I understand. It was a love so great you built a temple on the moon."
"She is not the only one. Gildus, Antoine, Gunnar---all of this king's friends are there."
In this place, Leon is just a king. King of the mighty Lionheart. Agent of the gods and guardian of the Grail.
Vulcanus knew that in that paradise, Leon could be free of all restraints and be a husband and friend.
"Very well. You have a wife and friends in paradise."
"Hmph. You're a big fan of having friends."
"Well, I blew off one of my friends' arms, and I haven't made any friends since."
Leon remembered a man who had always been by his side when he had defeated Vulcanus, a loyal, yet 'evil' presence.
"Well, enough about me, Your Majesty, just try to make some sense of this world."
"And you think I'm doing enough?"
"A man of your stature can't befriend just anyone. Maybe me or Lord Yappy, or President Ahn Dong-gil, who is a fine man."
Vulcanus raises his glass. It clinked with a loud clatter.
"Hold a lady, too. As the goddess Arianna always says, if you've been chaste for two hundred years, Ms. Castile will understand."
For now, Karina is eyeing up potential stepmothers, though she's careful to create as many Lionheart descendants as possible.
"I like how simple you are."
"GRARARA, you're overcomplicating things, and that's a recipe for depression."
Their nagging echoed late into the evening.
* * * * *
~A party cadre's home in Pyongyang~
After the Great Marching Forces took over Pyongyang, some of the homes were conscripted for welfare purposes, and this was one of those conscripted homes.
"Hoo------"
Beatrice sipped her wine, which she'd scavenged from the now-defunct home of a party cadre.
She heard it was the poorest country in the world, but the quality of luxury is higher than she expected. It must be the luxury of the people's blood.
"Bittersweet------"
Beatrice's mouth watered at the bitter flavor of the wine, as if reflecting her thoughts.
It was for her people's sake that she first began to follow Leon.
For those who had become Death Knights themselves to protect her from falling from grace.
To purify the souls of those loyal knights so that they might enter the path of reincarnation.
To spread the faith on this earth, so that Fle, who manages the world of the dead, may once again begin the cycle of reincarnation.
She willingly agreed to become the High Priestess of Dreams and Death, and she has unwillingly put in charge of Leon.
He is arrogant, intolerant, and authoritarian, but he is also virtuous, just, and honorable.
The criminals must have felt the same way, for Beatrice, noble by birth, was a dazzling person who had no disadvantage.
"Was it greed?"
Inwardly, she hoped so. That she, herself, with her beauty, her strength, and her bloodline, would be quite a suitable companion.
"Honestly, if I'm that good--- isn't it okay?"
[Yes, it is. It is not lacking even in the eyes of the princesses and goddesses.]
"Isn't it?"
To anyone else, she would be a drunkard, talking to the air and asking questions, but to the saint closest to the gods, it's a routine communication with the gods.
[What a pretty and capable girl, and that wallflower is------]
"Wooh---is the late queen really that great, that he can't forget her even after two hundred years?"
Fle tried to comfort the drunken priestess, but Moon Goddess Dinah giggled.
[He kidnapped a priestess of chastity, you should have some sense.]
[The moon should be quiet in times like this]
Fle cut Dinah off.
[I would not lack for a priestess, Leon, even if he were half the man Vulcanus was]
And Arianna, aroused, said.
[How can Dream speak such terrible things, for my knight's steadfastness is matched only by his noble heart.]
Irmin, the goddess of forests and trees, clicked her tongue at the goddess of light, who was busy defending her knight.
[All this would not have happened if Light had not stubbornly refused to marry off the high elf of our forest.]
[Why is the forest talking about such things now?]
The gods' displeasure bubbled up at the bewildered Arianna.
[My babe in the temple of Lebonia adored Leon, too--- and Light stole her chance to tell him her heart]
[Life, even you!]
[Did Light not tolerate polygamy in order to monopolize the authority of the Pantheon? I have long wondered about that.]
[How can you blame me for my knight's chastity? My knight merely upheld Earth's notion of monogamy.]
While the goddesses cavorted, Beatrice huffed and poured herself a glass of wine.
The gods were discussing Leon when the door opened to reveal the culprit behind the whole mess.
"Your Majesty?"
It was Leon.
"Beatrice, why are you drinking alone?"
"It's ------just the right time."
[The dream priest is showing her frustration openly. She's drunk.]
[Shut up, light!]
Leon smiled faintly at the goddesses' hesitation and sat down beside Beatrice.
"Your burden has made you sad."
Leon took back the bottle of wine she was about to pour, hoping to placate her. When Beatrice gave him a questioning look, he laughed.
"This is no time to pour a glass. Let's get out of here."
"Your Majesty?"
Beatrice faltered at Leon's urging and followed him. Outside, Stallion was waiting for them, and Beatrice climbed into the saddle, led by Leon's hand.
"Let's go, Stallion."
Leon stroked the nape of her neck, and she flapped her wings and began to fly.
"Hold on tight."
The cold night breeze sobered him, but Beatrice was still clueless.
"Your Majesty, what can I do for you?"
"Forgive me first."
"What?"
At Beatrice's puzzled look, Leon spoke in a gruff voice.
"I have lived a long life of duty. I have fought for two hundred years, with only one goal in mind: to destroy the demons who destroyed my kingdom."
Leon confessed that he hadn't thought of what came next.
"If the gate to Earth hadn't opened," he says, "this king might have froze in place. I wouldn't have known what to do."
But the gate opened, and he returned to Earth, where he realized that there were demons there, too.
Leon was relieved. He knew he still had work to do.
"This battle is not yet over," he said, "but when it is, I think this king should ascend to Paradise as he deserves, for stagnant water rots."
"Your Majesty--that will not happen."
The knight had fought for two hundred years and retained his integrity and honor.
Beatrice could not imagine him changing.
"Hoo-hoo, perhaps. There were other reasons."
"Speaking of other reasons------"
"My friends, my grateful courtiers and soldiers who shared my honor to the end, and Castile, the woman I have loved all my life."
"------"
Beatrice pursed her lips at the mention of that name, for it was the name of a woman she could never beat, a woman she doubted she could even compete with.
"I suppose it is only fitting that after my duty is done, I should go to meet them. I look forward to laughing and talking with them at the dinner table some day."
Beatrice buried her face in Leon's back, unable to hide her sorrow. She pressed her forehead against his and muttered a timid rebuke.
"It's finally opening. Look at that."
"???"
Her gaze traveled to Leon's fingertips, where a giant World Tree stood, its branches gathering countless lights.
"What is that?"
"The races of the forest. Elves and tree men. They've asked Lord Koo Dae-sung to hurry up."
The world tree was huge, reaching into the clouds.
Each of its branches stretched halfway across the city, and as the light gathered on the fruit on each branch, it was a sight to behold.
Hundreds of years ago, the Sages of the forest stayed with the Lionheart King until the end and eventually became extinct.
They refused to give up until the very end, and entrusted Leon with their care.
The Ark plan and the Last Grail plan.
They trusted him with everything, so they put everything on the line.
Leon's experience of history and Beatrice's acquisition of the Lunar Grail at the Gate. Their devotion is one of the miracles of time and space, and it's only fitting that it should be fulfilled by Leon's hand.
"Tree men live dozens of times longer than humans. They spend their lives protecting the harmony of nature, and at the end of their lives, they give everything back to the forest and plant new trees."
That was the Sage's seedling. Gunnar's seedling soon became a world tree, and we are seeing its fruits now.
The cycle of life that had stopped is starting again on this Earth thanks to several miracles.
"Your Majesty--do you mean to say that it is natural?"
Beatrice resented even Leon for saying this; after all, he seemed to be saying that his ascension was a natural harmony.
"Of course, it is natural."
"------"
Beatrice buried her face in her hands. But then──
"Come on, we need some time."
"What?"
"To see if I should go against the natural harmony."
Beatrice's eyes narrowed as she realized what that would mean. Without looking back, Leon spoke awkwardly, carefully, as if he were committing a sin.
"Just give me a little time. I've spent my whole life believing that, and changing my mind is not something that can be done in an instant."
"Your Majesty------"
"Can you wait?"
Beatrice wrapped her arms around Leon's waist and buried her face in his. The meaning was definitely different than before.
-"▀▀▀▀"""""▄▄▄▄!!!
The resurrection of species embracing the light of life continues here and there in the branches.
knights, soldiers and everyone else mobilized to rebuild the city watched in fascination for a moment.
It was a night they will never forget.