Chapter 404
Chapter 404: Will for the Future
A few weeks later.
While the world buzzed with talk of war, corruption, and the Demon Lord’s Prince, and even Night Elves and Dragons, Julietta, locked away in her room, had nothing to do with it.
When Julietta returned alive, her parents… well, they were happy, I guess.
It wasn’t like they hated Julietta; it was perfectly natural for them to be glad that their daughter came back alive. However, the deal they had for financial assistance in exchange for sending her out to serve was now off the table, so naturally, they were disappointed.
…Perhaps disappointment was the stronger feeling.
And the fact that her experience of being “captured by Lake Pirates” was not something she could boast about. Even if she hadn’t been touched by those ruffians, it would undoubtedly have significant repercussions moving forward.
At least, if her lover were still alive, there might have been some comfort.
Romeo was dead.
Julietta returned home in tatters. Everyone in the household treated her with the utmost caution, which only served to deepen her melancholy…
(…How tiresome.)
In her pitch-black room, she lay sprawled on the bed, burying her face in her pillow.
She had grown tired of everything. She felt no appetite, no motivation, just aimlessly existing, not dead yet… those were her days.
But even though she hated everything, she couldn’t choose to end her life. She was all too aware of her own filthy existence. The feelings of impatience, regret, and pure, unadulterated fear of death she felt as the surface of the water receded barely kept her from self-destruction.
Hanging on to life in such a way felt more and more pathetic…
So Julietta sank deeper into her dark room, alone.
Knock knock. Someone was at the door.
“Um… Miss. There’s a letter from the Holy Church.”
Trembling, a servant entered and presented her with an envelope.
“A letter…?”
Who could it be from? Julietta wondered, still lying in bed. Without much enthusiasm, she simply said, “Just put it down.”
The servant timidly placed the letter on the side table and quickly exited the room. It was the usual routine…
“……”
She left it there for a while.
Everything felt so tedious—getting up required a considerable amount of willpower. Everything was like that lately…
Even though everything should be inconsequential, it all felt terrifying.
“…Who is it from?”
Slowly, she reached out for the letter. The address simply read, “To Julietta,” in an unfamiliar yet elegant handwriting.
Turning it over…
“…Romeo?”
She thought it might be a nasty prank. Romeo wrote like a worm—terribly. She nearly ripped it apart in an instant. If not for the “(dictated)” written after his name, she surely would have.
Strangely enough, it seemed more like a thorough notification rather than a prank. In any case, because of that, the letter evaded the trash bin. Without a doubt, her curiosity piqued, and feeling like even her hand’s movements were cumbersome, she opened the seal.
“To Julietta,
If you are reading this letter, I think it means you survived.”
The letter began with those words. She dismissed the possibility that it might be a delayed message Romeo sent before their separation as odd since it was sent here, not to her place of service. Besides, “survived” meant…
“Unfortunately, I have died. However, thanks to a certain kind wizard who can hear the voices of the dead, my words have been transcribed into this letter.”
—She was left speechless. No way. That’s impossible.
A letter from the dead… could such a thing even happen?
“I actually have a lot to tell you and a lot I want to write, but the paper is limited, so I’ll keep it short.
Julietta, do you remember? The summer when we were fifteen, when we secretly went to the cape on the outskirts of town together? The sunset was so beautiful, and it felt like it was just us two in the world—our first kiss. But at first, our noses bumped, then our teeth clashed, and we both burst out laughing, unable to do it properly.”
Her hand holding the letter trembled.
Memories that only they should know… the funny story neither of them had told their close friends…
There it was…!
“…Is that you, Romeo?”
Is it really him…?
“At that time, I swore I would make you happy, that we would always be together, but… I’m sorry I couldn’t keep that promise.
From now on, to take revenge on the Lake Pirates and Vampires that attacked us, and more than anything, to help you, I will cooperate with that wizard. And by the time this is all over, I won’t be in this world anymore. I won’t be able to tell you my words directly, nor witness the outcome. That alone is truly regrettable.”
Cooperate? What in the world was he…?
Wait, Julietta was taken to the surface by that strange beast, and the last voice she heard was…!
“Romeo… was it you…?!”
It was indeed not just an auditory hallucination…!!
“But if I can be of any help in saving you, that is the greatest fortune. The fact that this letter is now being read by you… makes me extremely satisfied. I have no regrets.
…Well, maybe just one.
Julietta, I have a favor to ask.
I feel bad to ask you, as you must be going through such painful and difficult times. But still, let me say this:
—Please live a long life and be happy for my sake.”
…
Julietta gasped at that exceedingly harsh request.
As if… as if it was foreseen that she would arrive at this state…
“Forget about me as much as you like. There’s no place for me in your life anymore. …But if you completely forget me, that would make me sad too.
Julietta, just once in a while, maybe during the change of seasons—please visit that secret cape of ours and remember me then.
That alone would be enough for me.
That would make me happy…”
A plain white sheet of paper with just some lines drawn on it.
The letter was nearing its end. Too short! She didn’t want to finish reading. Romeo’s remnants would finally disappear…!!
“For even a moment, I was happy to be your lover. I loved you even in death. I still love you. From now on, I will always like you.
But I can no longer be there with you, so please forget about me, live your life freely, and for my sake, see many things, hear many things, enjoy many things—make wonderful memories.
Then, after you have become a lovely and graceful old lady—if that day ever comes when we meet again, please tell me all about your memories. All the things I couldn’t experience, the joys of life.”
It was all coming to an end.
His words… his feelings were ending…
“I’m just being selfish. I’m sorry for making you swing around until the very end. I forced myself to come along on this journey too. But thanks to that, I could come and help you.
I take pride in that.
It was an extraordinary life that would be too much for a mere townsfolk. All thanks to you. Thank you. And goodbye, my beloved.”
—With heartfelt sincerity, from Romeo.
At the end of the letter.
It had been so elegant until then.
But just there, as if only he had written it—like a worm, scribbled badly.
In his familiar, handwritten letters—
“U… aa…!!”
As tears streamed down her face, Julietta clutched the letter tightly. It felt as if his warmth still lingered there…
What was—what was selfish?
Indeed, his wish resembled a curse. It admonished Julietta to give up everything and live only to avoid death, dragging her out into the sunlight—an utter curse.
Yet it conveyed that those words came from true concern for her.
If it could bring her life’s vigor—then it should be called not a curse, but a blessing.
“And besides… ‘You can forget about me’…!”
Julietta’s expression turned to one of bittersweet laughter.
—Romeo was, after all, rather jealous. Even if she merely talked to another man, he would put on an indifferent façade while truly being displeased. And when he heard Julietta danced with another man at a ball, the next day he would take her on a picnic and invite her to dance in the flower fields.
So this matter of her serving elsewhere, likely leading to their permanent separation…
His suffering had to be terrifying. While he maintained his composure in front of Julietta, she heard from friends that he was a storm of emotions behind the scenes.
Such a man…
Had said, “You can forget about me.”
But since that was so regretful, he couldn’t fully let go, asking that she remember him from time to time…
That Romeo was so endearing and made her yearn for him… it was sorrowful.
After she cried for a while, Julietta sniffed and carefully spread out the slightly wrinkled letter on the bed.
The heaviness that had been in her chest was, to some extent, washed away by her tears.
Honestly, even still, standing up felt tiresome, and she was overwhelmed by everything.
Living bright and cheerful from now on felt impossible.
But.
Even so.
“Romeo.”
She kissed the poorly written signature and gently folded the letter.
“I… will try just a little bit.”
To cherish her memories with him.
At the very least, she needed to be able to walk to that cape…
Drawing a deep breath, steeled with determination, Julietta rose from the bed.
Holding the letter close to her chest, she unsteadily approached the window—“Here goes!” she shouted and opened the curtains.
The sunlight, previously blocked by heavy curtains, flooded in brilliantly.
“…Bright.”
Julietta squinted her eyes.
The remnants of tears that spilled from the corners of her eyes sparkled in the sunlight.
――――――――――――――――
The Lake Pirates and Vampires arc comes to a close here.
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