Chapter 31: Will Humans Be the Strongest in the Future?
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On the snowy plain where they had come from, Ash couldn't help but feel that something had changed.
He wasn't sure if he was misremembering, but as he returned to this time and place, the snowfield seemed different from before.
Was it because the war was still ongoing? He couldn't be sure.
However, when he was sent back, despite having a rough understanding of the current situation, he didn't feel overly panicked. In fact, he felt a bit relieved.
According to what Serie had told him, the goddess must have set up something to prevent others from traveling through time and space before leaving—perhaps a massive barrier covering the entire planet, meant to stop anyone from tampering with history.
The system created by the Demon King in the mythological era allowed him to bypass these restrictions temporarily by simulating miracles, but now he had been sent back.
However, the changes in his surroundings made him suspect that the deportation time had been slightly off.
[The system has detected that the blockade has intensified. The next time you attempt to go back to the past, it may trigger an alarm and result in unpredictable risks. Please proceed with caution to avoid further dangers.]
This rare system prompt made him realize that his method of cheating the barrier had been banned. It was no longer available to him, leaving him with a sense of regret. At the same time, another thought crossed his mind.
"So... Flamme is dead now?"
He stood quietly on the vast snowfield, looking at the familiar yet distant snowy landscape. The realization that he hadn't had the chance to express his gratitude, nor even properly talk to Flamme about things other than magic, filled him with a deep sense of sadness.
"Life is full of uncertainty. It's true... eight or nine out of ten things never go as we wish, even though I'm no longer human," he whispered to himself. His last words were tinged with a hint of self-mockery.
There was also a trace of bitterness, drifting in the cold wind like snowflakes, eventually disappearing into the endless snowfield just like his figure, fading away into the snowy expanse.
.....
Ash used to visit the town beneath the snowfield frequently—it was, after all, built by him. But now, the town had completely changed.
Everything from the past was gone, and the once-familiar streets seemed to have undergone numerous renovations.
This made him realize that a significant amount of time had passed since they had last set out.
Still, he considered himself lucky when he came across a biography of Flamme in a bookstore.
The book, still popular in this era, vividly recounted Flamme's story and even mentioned that she had an elf disciple and a human junior fellow apprentice by her side.
"...History has indeed changed, but even reading it now only deepens my meaningless sorrow."
In the illustrations, Flamme still appeared as she had when he knew her. He lingered on the image for a few more seconds, sighed, and then placed the book back on the shelf.
Of course, there were no portraits of Frieren ,or himself—after all, they hadn't played a significant role in the transformation of humanity.
Yet from this latest edition of the book, he could tell that nearly a thousand years had passed since that time.
The vast time span made everything feel surreal, and Ash couldn't help but worry that Aura might be dead.
Though demons, like elves, have no natural lifespan limit, they are still bound by the rule of the Demon King, who constantly drives them toward war.
Many demons disobey the Demon King, and if they can hide successfully, they may survive. But if they're caught or disobey his orders openly, they will be killed. Even those who escape into the forest are at risk of being discovered and surrounded by humans.
Demons living for hundreds of years are exceedingly rare, and Aura's magic studies, still immature, had limited effects. This left Ash deeply worried.
Though Aura had her own hidden motives, she was still the sister he'd grown up with, sharing raw meat in their struggle to survive. He couldn't shake his concern for her well-being.
"...But for now, all I can do is hope she survives," he muttered to himself.
After wandering through the city and seeing the current level of magic, Ash's emotions were a complex mix.
The magic of this era paled in comparison, not only to the legendary magic from Serie's mythological time but even to the magic of Flamme from thousands of years ago. Even the technology from back then had become lost knowledge, further emphasizing the backwardness of this era.
Ash had finally obtained the complete magic system he had long desired, more advanced than anything this world had, but the price he paid was the disappearance of his only remaining "family."
Not only that, his first human friend, Cathy, who had once been his adjutant, was now long gone, and it was unclear if her descendants still survived.
Even after all this time, he couldn't be sure if Frieren and Serie had survived. Both were skilled magicians, but in a world full of dangers, even the most powerful could die.
Hundreds of years could change far too many things.
...
The street he recognized was one of the few remaining connections to his past. It had rough stone roads, worn smooth by the passage of time, with low wooden houses lining each side. Every so often, a dim oil lamp flickered in the wind, casting long, wavering shadows.
Though this street wasn't as bustling as more modern places, it still held life. Vendors continued to sell their goods, knights rode by on their horses, and pedestrians either chatted with one another or hurried along, each focused on their own business.
In the midst of all this, Ash felt like an outsider.
He walked alone on the stone road, feeling as though he were a traveler from another time entirely. The vibrant life around him seemed more like distant, vague background noise.
A cool breeze swept through the narrow streets, carrying dust and fallen leaves, as though it was pulling some of the warmth from his heart.
His eyes wandered over the faces of passers-by, but no one caught his attention, and no one paid any attention to him.
Everyone around him seemed to be moving forward, lost in their own world, too preoccupied to notice this solitary traveler.
That was until a man, with long bangs and a slightly scruffy beard that made him look oddly older than he was, suddenly blocked Ash's path.
In the middle of the crowded street, this young man, with two long swords hanging from his waist, locked his gaze on Ash. He stared for a long moment before breaking into a smile, as if remembering something.
"...I almost forgot. This is our first meeting, right? So let's get introductions out of the way. My name is Frank, and soon enough, I'll be the strongest man in the world. Honestly, I've been waiting for you for quite some time now, Mr. Ash... or rather, future Demon King."