Evangeline was right. The people of Crossroad were resilient, and the city's recovery was swift.
A month had passed since the end of the defensive battle.
The corpses of the goblins had been thoroughly cleared, leaving no trace, and their spilled blood had been cleaned.
The returning residents began to resume their lives as before. The walls were being reconstructed, and the city was regaining its usual vibrancy.
...But.
Some wounds never heal.
Year 650 of the Imperial Calendar. The last day of February.
Exactly one year since I fell into this world. That was the day the funeral took place.
Coincidentally, it was also the day to commemorate the soldiers who died during the tutorial stage at the hands of the Black Spider Legion.
"..."
In the western part of Crossroad, at the cemetery.
Surrounded by a cloud of people, I swallowed my words.
The bodies had long been interred. Priests sprinkled holy water over the graves and blessed the afterlife of the deceased.
As the choir's requiem echoed, people wept at the graves of their lost loved ones.
"..."
Lilly watched from a distance.
Godhand's grave had not been made, as his lover Lilly had wished it.
His comrades, Burnout and Bodybag, along with Verdandi, who claimed to have been his superior, agreed.
Thus, Godhand was still officially missing.
March starts tomorrow.
Even though it's officially spring, Lilly was still waiting for Godhand's return.
Behind her, Burnout and Bodybag stood silently, looking down at the cemetery.
I glanced at the three of them before turning away.
Many people had died, and many mourners had visited, but one grave was particularly crowded.
It belonged to Margarita.
Was there anyone in this city who hadn't been treated by her?
From minor colds to severe injuries exposing bones, Margarita had treated everyone.
Suddenly, my left arm throbbed. I grasped it with my right hand.
Her hands had once bandaged this arm.
Now, I could never receive her treatment again.
"I plan to request the central church for a new head priest."
Damien, who had been beside Margarita's grave and then approached me, said.
Damien had been busy for the past month, serving as the acting head priest.
"With staff reinforcements too. But with the princes' civil war going on, I'm not sure if we'll get a proper appointment..."
"..."
"Whether a foolish priest willing to walk into this besieged city still exists, I wonder. Ha ha..."
Damien was right. This was a place only a foolish priest could handle.
A city constantly at risk of falling to monsters, where one must treat the dying and heavily wounded every day.
Margarita was an incredibly foolish person.
Though she constantly complained, she never ran away and fought death at the temple.
That foolishness will be missed.
I ruffled Damien's curly hair quietly. Come to think of it, you're just as foolish.
"Just hang in there a little longer until the next head priest arrives."
"I don't consider it hard work at all. It's just..."
Damien looked at Margarita's grave and smiled sadly.
"I realize now how incredible Margarita was. Even with help from other priests, I keep making mistakes, but how did she manage to handle so much work alone..."
"..."
We realize the value of something only after losing it. Foolishly, as always.
I also visited the graves of other heroes and soldiers. While most were crowded with visitors, one area was noticeably empty.
It was the grave of the Leprosy Extermination Squad.
In front of the empty grave stood Torkel, alone.
Quietly approaching, Damien and I stood in front of the grave and paid our respects.
Torkel glanced at us once, then bowed his head to me and closed his eyes again.
"Torkel has been volunteering for menial tasks at the temple since then."
We walked away from the grave of the Leprosy Extermination Squad as Damien spoke.
"Even when offered easier tasks, he stubbornly insists on taking on the dirtiest jobs that others avoid... Of course, the temple is busy and we're thankful, but if only he could be a little less hard on himself..."
Regret tinged Damien's voice.
"He doesn't need to push himself so hard..."
"..."
That must be his own way of coping with his grief.
So, I decided not to stop him. We moved on to the next grave.
After paying respects at all the newly made graves, the sun was high in the sky.
The funeral was nearing its end, and it was time for my speech. I ascended the podium.
Thousands of eyes, like arrows, focused intently on me.
I took a deep breath and began to speak.
"When I first arrived here and conducted the first funeral, I said that you all would die on this front line."
When I first arrived in Crossroad, during the funeral for the soldiers who died in the tutorial. I had said this.
"But your deaths would be costly. So, I will do everything to keep you alive. Whatever it takes, I won't let you die easily."
After recounting my words from that time, I quietly looked around the cemetery.
"Despite such bold claims, now, a year later... the graves continue to multiply."
"..."
"The invasion of monsters is intensifying, and our casualties are increasing uncontrollably, like a wildfire."
People swallowed hard. I clenched my fist.
"I said in the last funeral that I would use every available means to crush their invasion."
"..."
"But now I wonder... have I really used 'every possible means'?"
I inhaled deeply.
"I promise. Now, I will truly employ 'every means'."
I declared my resolve.
"To annihilate the monsters and save even one more person... I will do whatever it takes."
Some in the crowd paled at my words, some trembled, and others looked at me with shaking eyes.
It doesn't matter.
They will all soon understand what this means.
And I will force them all to follow me.
"I expect your active cooperation in the path I, and the Monster Frontline, will take from now on."
I turned my head to look at the common gravestone.
It was a monument commemorating those who died during the tutorial stage.
Then I turned to look at the new graves.
I silently recited the names of the dead.
For a moment, my voice faltered.
"...After so many sacrifices, I've finally reached this conclusion."
I bowed my head.
"In memory of all those who died in the past year and those who will die in the future, becoming the milestones of the Monster Frontline, let us observe a moment of silence."
Thousands bowed their heads in unison.
After a brief moment of silence, I nodded and stepped down from the stage.
Lucas, waiting beside the artillery unit, signaled, and the gunners lit the cannons.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The salute to the dead echoed hollowly across the cemetery.
Another funeral thus concluded.
***
"I had high expectations for the eulogy at Crossroad's funeral, given its reputation for being moving."
Standing atop a hill, watching the dispersing crowd, I heard a voice beside me.
"This speech was more chilling than moving."
"...Your Majesty."
Approaching was an elf woman adorned with a white branch crown and teardrop marks under her eyes.
Elf Queen Skuld.
I smirked slightly.
"I thought you'd return to the Autonomous District by now. You've stayed quite long."
A month ago, she acted as though she would leave immediately, but Skuld and her elves had been using Crossroad as a base, traveling around the nearby cities. There was no reason to stop them, though it seemed a bit absurd.
Skuld casually shrugged.
"I ventured out of the Autonomous District for the first time in a hundred years. I think I deserved a bit of fresh air. That outing is coming to an end, though... I'm planning to return soon."
"You've been quite busy visiting nearby city-states. Did you achieve what you hoped for?"
"Although I've had some minor successes, my main goal remains unfulfilled. So, this venture wasn't very fruitful."
Her main goal was probably about me. She had hoped to achieve something by leveraging the banner and cause I once championed. But with my abandonment of that cause, it all came to nothing.
"Oh, before I leave, may I ask a small favor?"
Skuld took out a small pouch and handed it to me.
"Please give this to my sister, Verdandi."
"This is..."
"Sunflower seeds grown in the Autonomous District. They're a variety from our homeland. Hehe, quite a delicacy, you know?"
Seems even the Queen carries seeds around, fitting for a member of a hamster race. I silently accepted it.
"It doesn't matter if the Holy Grail exists or not. Whether it's there or not, the Elven Kingdom has already perished, and the World Tree is dead."
Skuld sighed softly.
"I just wish my sister would accept this reality and come back to my side."
"..."
"Please deliver these seeds and my message. Tell her she can come to the Autonomous District anytime. I will be waiting for her."
"I'll do that."
Skuld's subordinates arrived with a deer. She stroked its neck and then looked at me intently.
"Prince Ash, I don't know why you broke your own banner."
"..."
"But I know breaking the banner you've pursued is as painful as breaking your own heart."
I glanced at her.
"How do you know that?"
"Because I've been through it."
Skuld gave a hollow laugh.
"I've let go of so much just to survive."
"..."
"Breaking the banner is extremely difficult at first, but it becomes too easy after the initial break. It's already broken, after all."
Skuld's slender finger touched the center of her chest.
"Once you start compromising, it becomes an endless journey. You'll end up living on your knees. Like me."
"..."
"One last piece of advice. Even if you give up on everything, make compromises with everything, keep one principle firm in your heart. Without it, you're living, but not really alive."
Her advice was sincere and appropriate, but it was too late.
I had already broken it.
My banner was already shattered. I had already decided to forsake it.
I politely bowed in formal gratitude. Skuld reciprocated with an Imperial salute, then leapt onto the deer.
Watching the elves fade into the distance, I turned around.
It was time to do what needed to be done.
***
I headed into Crossroad's city center with Lucas and the soldiers.
Lucas, who had looked gloomy throughout the funeral, began to express his concerns in a worried tone as soon as he joined me.
"Lord. The next defense battle is approaching... but the walls of Crossroad, let alone the recovery of the forward base, have not been completed."
"..."
"Most of the teleport gates we installed along the monster's path have been destroyed as well. This makes guerrilla tactics difficult to employ. I'm at a loss as to how you plan to conduct the defense battle without sharing any strategy with us..."
It has been over a month since the last defense battle ended.
The next stage is coming soon. However, the repairs of the defensive facilities are not yet complete, and the healing of the wounded soldiers is still underway. The recruitment of new soldiers is slow too.
Despite this situation, it's natural for Lucas to be worried since I remain composed.
"Don't worry, Lucas."
I grinned.
"I have something prepared. Right here."
"Here is...?"
I stopped walking in front of a place blocked by thick iron bars.
It was the central prison of Crossroad. The guards at the entrance stepped aside, clearing the way.
Lucas looked at the prison with a puzzled expression.
"You have something prepared? Inside this prison...?"
"Yes."
I led the way inside. Lucas followed me cautiously.
And then, in the deepest part of the prison, in front of a large cell, Lucas's eyes widened in shock.
"Let me go, let me go!"
"What is this? Why are you attaching this to our bodies!"
"Please save me! Save me, Your Highness! Please!"
Four prisoners were screaming, tied up.
These were the four members of the Aegis Special Forces captured during the recent special task force infiltration incident.
They were bound tightly, with a magic core included in the explosive device, and a large amount of explosives connected to their bodies.
"Do you know where, after the temple, the goblins swarmed to during the last goblin invasion?"
"Could it be..."
"Yes. It was this prison. The goblins came swarming in to kill these prisoners hidden behind sturdy iron bars, but ironically, the strong bars saved them all."
I casually sat down on a chair placed in front of the cell.
"Just watching that scene, I thought of an easy way to kill the monsters."
"..."
"The basic principle of monster behavior is simple. They attack the nearest human."
I stretched my legs and kicked the cell's iron bars hard. The prisoners screamed and collapsed to the ground.
"So what if we throw human bombs, draped in explosive devices, into sturdy metal cages in front of the monster horde?"
"..."
"Like monkeys trying to lick the flesh inside a shell, the monsters will swarm around the metal cages. At that moment, boom!"
I mimicked an explosion with my hands.
"It will deal massive damage to the swarming creatures, like ants. Completely efficient."
"..."
"This is not all. This is just a primitive trap. If this test succeeds, we can adapt this method..."
"Lord."
Lucas called me gravely.
Turning around, I saw Lucas shaking his head heavily, his face pale.
"...This is not your way, Lord."