The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years-Chapter 605Book 2

When he opened his eyes.

Residue realized that he had lostnsciousness once again. It was now a reality where even a wry smile wouldn'tme. However, what made this more serious than the previous times was that heuldn't clearly remember the moment when he lostnsciousness.

There was another difference as well. Every time he had regainednsciousness until now, Residue had always been greeted by unfamiliar scenery.

This time was different.

It was a ceiling he rgnized, a place he was familiar with.

A damp, dusty, cramped, and messy room.

The shabby place that Luca had called home.

Residue lay on a mattress with flattened cushions. It was a slightly umfortable softness that now even felt somewhat nostalgic.

…Why am I here?

Could it be that everything that had happened until now was just a dream?

If so, where did the dream start and where did it end? What part of it should be a dream for him tonsider himself lucky? It was a hopeful speculation that wasn’t even worth a bitter laugh.

Scratch, scratch-

At that moment, there was a sign of movement. Residue flinched and quickly sat up.

"Luca?"

The room was dimly lit by candlelight.

An office desk… Was there ever such a thing in this room?

And the figure sitting in front of it, swaying in the flickering light, was far too mature to be Luca.

It was a woman dressed in black, her posture so straight that it was almost admirable. She was writing, and upon hearing Residue’s voice, she turned her head slightly.

A woman who peered at him through glasses, her gaze devoid of warmth, Iris PeaceFinder.

Only then did Residue remember the moment just before he hadllapsed.

"……."

Iris stared at him briefly before turning her attention back to the desk.

Scratch, scratch-

The soothing sound of her writing resumed.

It was the sound that had drifted into Residue’s ears in his half-asleep state.

“…You.”

"Please wait a little longer. I still have some approvals to finish."

"……."

Residue fell silent. Then, he noticed a water bottle placed to his left on the mattress.

Did Iris leave this here?

Such an act ofnsideration only reminded him of a girl whose face he wished to forget, causing an ache in his heart.

When he had emptied about half the bottle, a voice spoke again.

"You must have frequent nightmares."

It was a voice steeped in exhaustion.

Residue, now with a clearer vision than before, looked at the side of Iris’s face.

…What should I say?

Her impression had changed significantly from what Lukas remembered.

Ofurse, he understood that humans were ever-changing beings. He also knew that she had the ability to alter her appearance freely beyond just her hair or eyelor.

But this was a different kind of change.

Her outward appearance remained mostly the same.

The Iris PeaceFinder before him now looked like a weathered statue eroded byuntless storms.

She wasvered in scars, with no shortage of broken parts. But in a certain sense, it gave her an aura more difficult to touch, something almost sacred, more so than when she had been unblemished.

That impression shattered in the next moment.

Finishing her paperwork, Iris pulled something from her pocket and placed it between her lips.

Sizzle-

A small flame flared up and then vanished, and she exhaled a slow puff of thick smoke.

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"…Haa."

"……."

Toba.

It somehow both suited her and didn’t.

Looking again, the eyes behind her glasses were not just sunken but utterly lifeless. The ‘mysterious atmosphere’ that Lukas had found so memorable in her was now nearly nonexistent.

The Iris before him was someone who had been battered by the storms of the world, worn down by its filth, and exhausted to there.

Only those utterly drained by lifeuld emit such a weightless, detached aura.

Residue didn’t know what to say.

It wasn’t that his mind went blank or anything like that, but no matter how much he thought, no words came to him.

Iris was supposed to be the woman who would bring his death.

That was what he had wanted, what he had resolved himself for.

And yet, at this moment, he found himself hesitating to reveal his identity and bring about his own end.

…Luca.

In the end, that child has even managed to shake my resolve.

"Your answer?"

Iris spoke again.

Was she asking about his nightmares? He hadn't slept, he had passed out. But either way, it wasn’t something he wanted anyone to see.

“…Something like that.”

“I see.”

Once again, thenversation fell into silence.

Iris didn’t shift her gaze back to the desk. Instead, with a languid expression, she exhaled smoke and stared blankly out the window.

Residue spoke.

“…The PeaceFinder Armlet.”

“Huu.”

A slow stream of smoke drifted into the air.

It swirled, mixed with itself, scattered, then faded into the raindrops outside as the wind carried it away.

"Was that organization established on Frey Blake's advice?"

“I had alwaysnsidered establishing it. I had already anticipated that the world would turn out this way.”

She said it as if it were nothing, but it was an incredible foresight.

Tap, tap.

Iris flicked the ashes off her cigarette andntinued.

“Frey’s advice was actually more relevant afterward.”

“Afterward?”

“The purpose of its foundation, the structure of the organization, the direction of its activities.”

“…So you didn’t just get a strategy guide for Destruction from him.”

“……”

For a moment, their eyes met.

Her pitch-black irises held almost no light.

The Iris Residue knew wouldn’t have looked at ‘Lukas’ with such eyes. She was not the kind of woman whould.

"You heard. About what happened to Lukas."

"Yes."

"So what do you plan to do now?"

"About what?"

Residue was starting to find Iris’s feigned ignorance more and more irritating.

“Are you seriously asking that? Look properly. See who it is that’s inside the body of the man you love.”

“……”

“I inherited this body. Lukas Trowman’s body, and even his mind. And yet, look at me. You seem well-informed about world affairs, so you must know. Intributed nothing to the ‘First Subjugation of Destruction.’”

Iris gazed at him wordlessly before speaking.

“And?”

“You still don’t understand? He entrusted me with the ‘after.’ He wanted me, in this body, to stand at the forefront, to be a vanguard against Destruction, or perhaps ammander who would annihilate themmpletely. And yet, after Destruction launched their full-scale invasion, do you know what I did?”

Residue’s lips twisted into ald smirk.

“I observed. Then I ran away. And as a result, I ended up like this. How much time do you think I wasted?”

“……”

“While you were founding an organization to fight Destruction, implementing practicaluntermeasures, applying them, pushing forward relentlessly, sacrificing sleep, exhausting yourself until you became like this, wandering the world… I was-!”

Boom!

Residue’s fist slammed into the floor.

“I was holed up in this tiny, cramped room the entire time.”

A storm of unquenchable rage swirled within him. He was glaring at Iris as he spoke, but the anger wasn’t directed at her.

All of Residue’s fury was aimed at himself. That was why heuld neither forget nor escape it.

“So, Iris PeaceFinder. Don’t you think it’s time to change your attitude?”

Say it.

Say that you can’t forgive me.

Say that you’ll kill me.

He stared at her with desperation.

But the moment he saw her pitch-black eyes, he knew, his expectations would be betrayed.

“There are times when one cannot forgive themselves.”

She murmured in a low voice.

"Sleep is perhaps the best option at such times. Yes. Arding to your own words, you are currently in the middle of running away."

“That’s right.”

“And now you want me to be your executioner.”

“……”

He hadn’t expected her to read him that far.

However, in hindsight, Residue's voice had been far too emotional.

For a woman like Iris, who possessed such keen observational skills, grasping his true intent wouldn’t have been difficult.

“…So what will you do then? Does my attempt to seek liberation through death bother you? Do you wish for me tontinue living and enduring this suffering?”

“No.”

“Surely, you’re not feeling any sympathy for me?”

“Not at all. I have little emotion toward you.”

“Then why? Is it simply because, no matter who I am inside, this is still Lukas’ body? And so you hesitate to damage it?”

“…I can’t deny that.”

Iris let out a sigh.

“That’s only one of the reasons, though. Let me ask you something.”

Her pitch-black eyes turned toward Residue.

“Did Lukas say that?”

“…What?”

“Did he tell you to be the vanguard against Destruction? To bme ammander and devise strategies? To devote everything to stopping it, did he ever say that to you?”

“……”

Residue was momentarily at a loss for words.

It wasn’t a question he had evernsidered before.

Lukas… what had that guy said to him?

─As I said earlier, Mark Trowman, the Beginning Wizard, is one of those who understands me the deepest.

─And the other is you. That’s right, Residue.

A sharp pain shot through his head.

A voice he thought he had forgotten, or rather, one he actually had forgotten, echoed in his mind.

─You can'tntinue like this forever. But for now, even if it’s just for a while, I want you to live as Lukas.

Lukas didn't wish for Residue tontinue living as himself indefinitely.

Then what was it?

What was the role he had entrusted to him,

─If it’s you, I can trust you. So I’m asking you, Residue. Be my last arrangement.

“……”

Residue sat frozen in place.

Lukas Trowman’s final arrangement.

…That was his role.

“He wasn’t that kind of man?”

For the first time, there was emotion in Iris’ voice.

With bitterness laced in her tone, shentinued murmuring.

“I won’t take your life.”

“…Then what? What do you want me to do?”

Residue spoke in a weary voice.

“I need your help.”

Iris’ voice was the clearest it had been since their meeting.

“The PeaceFinder Armlet… No, the entire world is suffering from an extreme shortage of manpower. There are few we can trust, and even fewer who are strong. Because of that, no matter how many bodies we have, it’s never enough.”

"Are you suggesting that I bme your subordinate?"

"To put it clearly, yes."

Residue let out a deep sigh.

“You must have heard from Frey. The Destruction you managed to hold back was, at most, a mere one percent of the whole.”

“Yes.”

“And yet, even that was enough to leave the world half-destroyed. I can see it clearly. This city, this trash heap, crawling with all kinds of vermin, is actually one of the better places, on average.”

Beyond the city, the world would be overflowing with blood and death.

Every landscape would resemble hell itself.

Therpses strewn on the roadside would outnumber the weeds.

“The snd wave of Destruction will be even worse. Perhaps the Half King will fall, and something hundreds of times larger and stronger than what you’ve faced will descend. And yet, you still intend to fight? With that frail body of yours?”

“It’s not fighting. Thatncept doesn’t even apply anymore. This is struggling.”

Iris fell silent for a moment before adding,

“Even so, I have to do what I can. After all, he went out of his way to keep me alive.”

“……”

Residue said nothing.

Then, he closed his eyes.

…This is hopeless.

This woman, without a doubt, she was someone who deserved to be called a hero.

She understood the nature of sacrifice.

Shemprehended the immense weight carried by those with power.

And, most importantly, she bore the responsibility of not turning away from it.

But Residue…

─Even as he watched the noble declaration of a hero, he felt nothing.

As if his heart had died, his emotions didn’t even stir.

“……”

Had she realized his true thoughts once again?

Iris no longer pressed the matter and simply rose from her seat. Looking down at Residue, she spoke.

“There’s still a lot of paperwork left. I’ll be staying in the next room for the next two days to take care of it.”

“…Two days.”

“Yes. In two days, I have a meeting with this city’s mayor.”

Glancing briefly at the classic watch on her wrist, she murmured,

“Two days. If you change your mind,me find me anytime.”

Residue thought to himself that it would never happen.

Just before leaving, Iris suddenly spoke, her back still turned as if the thought had only just occurred to her.

“One last question.”

“What is it?”

“Can Lukasme back?”

“……”

Lukas had said see you again, but Residue knew better now.

He understood just how impossible those words truly were.

Heuldn’t lie.

“It’s almost impossible.”

“…I see.”

Residue had expected her to finally show some emotion this time.

He thought there would be an outburst, some visible reaction from this woman who was dead in a different way than he was.

But no.

Iris stood there for just a moment longer, then walked away.

***

The difference between a child and an adult lies in maturity.

Then what is maturity?

It is the ability to hide one's emotions.

By that definition, Pale was not mature. In other words, she was still a child. She was someone who had to express everything she felt.

When she was sad, she cried. When she was happy, she laughed. When she was angry, she had to break something.

An infinitely pure but therefore dangerous being.

Iris was different.

Residue realized that now.

Scratch, scratch-

As the night deepened, Residue stood silently in front of Iris’ room.

Unaware of his presence, she sat at her desk, her wrist moving steadily.

She looked just as she had when he first woke up.

Except for a few small details.

“……”

Iris absently wiped her eyes.

It seemed like she was rubbing them to fight off drowsiness, but little by little, her wrist grew damp.

That was the beginning.

Drip. Drop.

Fragments of emotions sheuld no longer suppress stained the pages.

Without a single sob, Irisntinued wiping her eyes.

Her movements weren’t those of someone oveme by sorrow, but of someone who had long since beennsumed by it.

Residue understood.

Iris PeaceFinder was well-acquainted with endurance.

Her life itself had been built on it.

She had lived that way for so long that it had bme an inseparable part of her existence, binding her like shackles.

─Can Lukasme back?

She had tried to ask casually, as if it wasn't important.

But the years, the emotions, the longing buried within that question, Residueuldn’t even begin to grasp them.

Noruld he trulymprehend what she must have felt in response to his answer.

Thellision between her physical body desperately wanting to pour out emotions and her mind absolutely refusing to allow it created a tragic scene.

Even as she wiped her eyes, her hands never stopped working.

It would have been better if she had just cried.

If she had screamed as if the sky itself werellapsing, it would have been easier.

Residue watched for a while, then left.

Because he didn’t want to see it anymore.

Because he didn’t want to feel the weight of the soundless sobbing anymore.