The days spent in his hometown were slow and peaceful.

Now that he no longer needed to chop wood to earn money, he only split enough firewood for his own use. The rest of his time was spent resting comfortably, strolling around the area with Kishiar, or repairing the old house.

Every two or three days, they would go down to the village to buy groceries. After the first day, it seemed word had spread that Yuder had returned. Quite a few people greeted him warmly and asked how he’d been. It turned out that the reason they’d been wary of the first visitor hadn’t just been because of Kishiar, the stranger. More than expected, many of them admitted that they hadn’t recognized Yuder at first—like the old lady who ran the grocery store—saying he looked like a completely different person. They apologized, saying his appearance had changed a lot in the past year, and Yuder told them it wasn’t necessary.

Meanwhile, Kishiar, with his usual shameless nature on full display, quickly became famous in the village as “Yuder’s guest.” After a few visits, people even began talking more with Kishiar than with Yuder himself. Watching Kishiar surrounded by villagers, Yuder quietly thought:

“If they knew the person they’re talking to is the Duke of Peleta, they’d probably faint. I’ll have to make sure they never find out—not even later.”

Even this village that seemed unchanged had undergone some small shifts in the past year. Some people had gotten married, some had found new jobs and moved away.

The most surprising change, however, was hearing something related to Awakeners.

“Some time ago, the lord gave an order to all the nearby villages. If anyone starts changing strangely or shows signs of using strange magic, bring them in.”

“Why?”

“Not exactly sure, but it sounds like they want to give them work. Apparently, a lot of people like that have started showing up lately. In one region, they supposedly did something incredible.”

“I think I heard about that too. Wasn’t it something like flattening mountains and flipping the sea, and then being hailed as a hero...?”

“Yeah, that’s it. I heard down in the lower village that the lord is really into those ‘hero stories,’ so I guess it’s all related.”

“......”

Kishiar, lounging comfortably, glanced over at Yuder with a mischievous glint and winked. Yuder, expressionless, turned his head slightly away as if he hadn’t seen anything.

“When there’s a kid born with magic talent, don’t the lords sometimes pay for their magical assessment and schooling at the Pearl Tower? It sounds like that kind of thing.”

The lord overseeing this area actually lived in another village about half a day’s journey away. Because of the mountainous terrain, the territory was vast compared to the number of residents, making travel between villages difficult even within the same domain.

That’s why the lord rarely issued personal orders. Even Yuder, though this was his hometown, had never seen the lord’s face before.

“If I recall, they were just a modest, unambitious low-ranking noble family. No particular drive to develop the territory, but not entirely irresponsible either... Just about that level.”

The fact that such a person had given an order to locate Awakeners and put them to work meant that even nobles like them had now received widespread information about Awakeners—

“And as beings just as valuable as mages.”

Nobles considered it great fortune if a mage was born in their territory. The difference between having access to someone who could craft magical tools and not was huge in terms of quality of life.

As mages became rarer, the value of such talent only increased. These days, if there was even the faintest sign that a child from a commoner family had magical potential, most nobles would go so far as to personally fund their training at the Pearl Tower.

Considering that, in Yuder’s previous life, even after risking their lives fighting disasters, Awakeners never received this kind of recognition—

This was truly an unbelievable change.

As Yuder was lost in thought, the conversation among the villagers took a curious turn.

“Come to think of it, wouldn’t someone like Yuder, who worked in the capital, and his guest know more about all these rumors? Don’t you know anything?”

“Yeah! That hero or whoever—they say he’s some amazing guy. Anything you’ve heard would be good, just tell us!”

Yuder decided that this was his cue to get up and leave.

What he hadn’t expected... was that Kishiar had no intention of letting it end there.

“Ahem! If you’re curious about those rumors, then you’ve come to the right place. I have personally met the very hero in question!”

“Ooooh!”

“See? People from the capital really are different!”

The moment people sensed that a fun story might be coming, their eyes lit up. They swarmed around Kishiar as ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) if drawn by gravity.

Yuder watched the scene and shook his head slightly.

“What exactly are you planning to say? You can’t.”

Yuder already knew from experience how much Kishiar enjoyed boasting about him. But this wasn’t the place for that.

Catching Yuder’s concerned gaze, Kishiar smiled. Then, casually lacing his fingers behind his head and leaning back lazily, he silently mouthed:

“Don’t worry.”

“......”

A moment later, for the first time, Yuder found himself slightly understanding Nathan Zuckerman’s frequent frustrations.

“—It was truly astounding. Even monsters as large as mountain ranges, even waves big enough to swallow the world, could not stand against him! If not for his precise judgment in that moment—and for the Cavalry that bravely followed his lead—one can’t even imagine how much more damage the world might have suffered!”

“That really happened?”

“They say even His Majesty the Emperor and his younger brother, the Duke of Peleta, acknowledged it. Then it must be true!”

Kishiar solemnly nodded, placing a hand over his chest.

“Yes, indeed. The Duke of Peleta, commander of the Cavalry, was so deeply moved by the hero’s ability and beauty... that he fell in love on the spot.”

“Huh? Wasn’t the hero a man?”

“Wait, isn’t the duke also a man?”

The villagers, swept up in the tale, suddenly blinked back to reality and questioned him.

Kishiar tilted his head as if the question made no sense.

“Among Awakeners, there is something known as the ‘second sex.’ It is a newly recognized gender, acknowledged by the Sun God and even the Pope. So such things are not an issue at all. In fact, some people claim that even if the hero weren’t of the second sex, that unruly duke had already fallen for him long before.”

“Is that so...? I haven’t been to the temple in so long, I didn’t even know that.”

“The hero must be incredibly handsome, then. And with such powers, and a heart willing to sacrifice for others... Hah! Now I understand why His Majesty would grant him a noble title!”

“They’re actually buying this?”

Yuder was utterly dumbfounded, but no one else seemed to care. People nodded seriously, some even wiping away tears at the moving story.

“They say His Majesty was deeply pleased and moved when his troublemaking brother abandoned his wicked ways and started living righteously—thanks to the hero’s influence.”

“Amazing. Sounds like the future is looking bright!”

“That must be why the lord is searching for Awakeners too. If you encounter someone like that, I hope you’ll rejoice rather than be shocked by the changes. Or—just let me know.”

“We had no idea the world had changed so much. Of course we will!”

In the midst of their quiet mountain life, Kishiar’s colorful tale of the hero stirred the villagers like a sudden gust of wind. Without mentioning any clear subject or information, he filled the story with entertainment and had them utterly enthralled. By the end, they even applauded.

“I haven’t talked this much in a while. You all listened so intently that I ended up going on and on without noticing.”

“You didn’t not notice.”

“Haha.”

Kishiar laughed mischievously.

“Still, at least none of them here know who you are.”

“You really piled on the embellishments without actually lying.” 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

No one who had listened to Kishiar’s tale associated the hero with Yuder.

“What did he say again... Eyes that shine like the night sky, hair as black as a painted beauty, tall and graceful posture... Ugh. Let’s stop there.”

No one with a properly functioning imagination would ever guess that person was Yuder Aile. Absolutely not.

“Embellishments? I only spoke the truth as I saw it. After all, even when looking at the same thing, people can feel it very differently.”

“......”

Yuder let out a quiet sigh.

“Fine... These villagers may not know. But what about the lord?”

If those funny hero rumors from people who’d worked with the Cavalry spread as far as the local lord, he might decide to come here in person.

“Just the thought is exhausting.”

Yuder firmly decided he needed to finish resting and return before the lord had the bright idea to summon him.

Besides that small incident, the days were so peaceful it was almost as if they had never left in the first place.

But that serenity began to shift—on the afternoon of the fifth day.

“Yuder. Are you reading Luma’s journal?”

“Yes. Is something the matter?”

“I was wondering if I could take a look in the storage room.”

Kishiar smiled with anticipation.

Yuder closed the journal he’d been reading slowly and stood up.

“...You really wanted to see that chair I used, didn’t you?”

“I could look for it myself.”

“But it’s too messy to find easily. Let’s just go together.”