The Second Strongest Has Returned

Chapter 72

Holy Sword

The Council of Elders had, for all intents and purposes, fallen apart, though it was temporarily frozen on the surface.

There were several reasons for this, but the decisive blow was undeniably due to the wild card known as Leonardo.

The exchanges from the hearing had been recorded by a clerk and left as documentation, which the Reinhardt family forcibly seized under the authority of the family head.

Thanks to the swift actions of the family head, the Council of Elders had no time to engage in their usual schemes, and with both Marquen and Chris backing the validity of the proceedings, it held sufficient credibility.

Upon learning the details of the hearing, everyone in the Reinhardt family responded with a consistent reaction of two distinct types:

1. The Council of Elders has collectively lost their minds.

Or,

2. If they were subjected to such an interrogation, they, too, would have walked out.

In essence, the actions of the elders amounted to nothing less than tearing down the merit of a knight who had upheld loyalty and faith, while unjustly attempting to hold him accountable for crimes he didn’t commit.

It wasn’t as if Leonardo had refrained from defending himself either. Even those who harbored no goodwill or bore resentment toward him had to admit that his arguments were logical and valid.

No matter how displeased they were, trying to penalize him instead of recognizing his achievements was an act that public opinion simply couldn’t tolerate.

In the end, fueled by the outrage of the public, the senior members of the Reinhardt family, including the family head, decided to freeze all activities of the Council of Elders.

Even then, the elders resisted and tried to sow discord, but their efforts were swiftly dismissed by a single remark from the family head, Gladio Reinhardt.

“How many young people must sacrifice themselves to satisfy your retirement?”

Moreover, one significant reason for the lack of resistance was the stance of the Council’s chairman, Jeyron Reinhardt, who had already prepared for this outcome as if he had anticipated it.

As a result, the Council of Elders was officially frozen, implicitly dismantled, and internally buried.

* * *

Meanwhile, a bustling meeting was underway at the mansion.

Ensuring that information about the Council of Elders didn’t leak to the public and organizing a structure capable of leading the family without the Council were not tasks that could be taken lightly.

Among all the shocking developments, however, one of the most startling revelations was regarding Leonardo’s recovery.

“…It’s just… there are no abnormalities whatsoever.”

Given the current circumstances, they couldn’t call upon a healing priest or a paladin, so they had opted to bring in a healing mage for a house call. Yet, no one had expected this kind of response.

“…What do you mean by that?”

“He lost consciousness, but… his pulse, his blood pressure, and there are no internal or external injuries. The only thing remaining are scars on his chest and parts of his abdomen from some superficial burns, but those cannot be erased…”

Leonardo had fought as if he were on the brink of death just moments ago. Even a berserker would have been terrified if they had witnessed that battle… so the idea that he had no injuries was simply unbelievable.

“…As a mage, it’s not really my place to say this, but… it seems nothing short of a miracle…”

Everyone had their own reactions to the mention of the word miracle. The power of the Holy Sword displayed by Ariasphil at that time was indeed like a divine miracle.

‘…Even Ruben Reinhardt, the first Hero, had to draw the Holy Sword by hand…’

In Ariasphil’s case, the Holy Sword flew into her hands on its own.

At that point, it wouldn’t have been an exaggeration to say that she wasn’t merely continuing the Hero’s legend, but was writing a new one.

“For now, I understand. You’ve done well, so go and get some rest.”

At Gladio’s words, the healing mage, looking relatively unconcerned, packed up his belongings and left.

“The current medication is just a mana stabilizer and a nutritional supplement. Once her strength recovers, she’ll get up right away. If there are any issues when she wakes, contact me again. I’ll come immediately.”

As the specialized healing mage left, the entire Reinhardt family could finally grasp the depth of the chaos and confusion they were in.

“…What exactly has happened?”

Rios was the first to speak. Rarely showing such fatigue and burden, he asked the question tensely.

“My granddaughter has become a Hero, defeated that useless fellow with the Holy Sword… If I had to summarize, that’s about it.”

Perhaps because Marquen had lived the longest, the old knight succinctly summarized the complicated and baffling situation.

“…It was definitely an iron sword at first…”

Even Ariasphil, the one at the center of it all, seemed to be confused. It hadn’t been a conscious action, nor could it be described as instinctive or intuitive.

It was as if a typhoon had blown from the sky, a tidal wave had risen from the sea, or an earthquake had shaken the land.

Just as a mere human cannot control nature.

“Yes, at some point, the Holy Sword flew over and replaced the iron sword.”

The feeling, like the start of a sunrise, was engraved in her hands.

“…Do you think you can wield the Holy Sword, Aria?”

Chris asked, staring at the Holy Sword in Aria’s hands. For security reasons, it was wrapped in cloth, but even so, the divine aura, as radiant as the sun, seeped through the fabric.

“…That is…”

Ariasphil unwrapped the cloth and revealed the Holy Sword. Then, she forcefully thrust it toward her own hand.

“What are you doing…!”

No one could say a word. Regardless of anything, it was the legendary sword of Reinhardt, the sacred relic that had saved the world from the Demon King, a sword that could rival any other in existence.

And yet, the Holy Sword…

“The blade has gone dull.”

It hadn’t even left a scratch on her palm, let alone anything worthy of the Demon King.

“…It seems you haven’t fully earned its recognition.”

It might have been obvious without needing to think too deeply. She hadn’t formally drawn the sword from the Reinhardt family’s vault, nor had there been a divine oracle from the temple.

So…

“Come to think of it, hasn’t there been any contact from the temple?”

“…That’s the problem.”

The temple, or more precisely, the kingdom’s largest religious organization that worshipped the God of Light as the one and only deity.

And Reinhardt was the family of heroes that had inherited the Holy Sword, bestowed by the God of Light.

The relationship between these two groups was inseparable.

“The temple has probably already made its move. They would have sensed the divine power too, so it won’t be long before they come looking.”

Receiving divine revelations and delivering prophecies was the duty of priests, especially in matters related to the Holy Sword—it would be harder not to know.

“…Then about her training as a Hero…”

“We’ll have to discuss that too. Aria, for now…”

“Ah, that is…”

Ariasphil was quietly gazing at Leo, who lay unconscious. Rios, noticing her expression and where her gaze lingered, quickly realized what it meant.

“All right, all right. Let’s step outside and talk amongst ourselves first. Aria must be exhausted too. She needs to rest, don’t you think?”

“Then let’s head out…”

Rios sent a silent message with a forceful gaze at Chris, who, lacking tact as usual, still hadn’t caught on.

“Let’s go… We’ll make the first contact with the temple.”

“…Understood.”

Marquen, perhaps vaguely aware of the real intention, gave a brief reply and nodded.

“Rios certainly makes a good point. We’ll head out first, and if Leonardo wakes up, let us know.”

Surprisingly, Gladio, who had understood Leo’s intentions, left the room, pretending not to notice the underlying tension in the situation.

“Yes, understood.”

Ariasphil responded dryly, lightly waving to her family as they exited.

As their footsteps faded into the distance, the life in Ariasphil’s eyes slowly dimmed as well.

Thud, click.

When the sound was completely gone, Ariasphil walked over to the door and locked it.

“…I know you’re awake.”

“…”

Leonardo remained still, only the subtle rise and fall of his chest betraying his calm breathing. Even the Sage remained silent, which felt odd, but if he wanted to live longer, he had to pretend to be unconscious as naturally as possible.

“If you wake up now, I’ll be less angry.”

Bargaining wouldn’t change anything. He needed a firm promise that she wouldn’t be angry at all for him to muster the courage to…

“Dad! At the Magic Tower with Leo, I…!”

“I have committed an unforgivable crime, my lady. Please spare me.”

Still, he couldn’t afford to die just yet.

“You lied again? Is that your hobby? Or is it your special skill?”

“…Well… I mean…”

Slap!

The crisp sound of a slap echoed, and Leonardo’s cheek turned red with a bruise.

“I’ll let it go this time since you’re injured.”

The one who had slapped him was Ariasphil. Compared to what Leonardo had done, this was a cheap and merciful punishment.

“…Thank…you…”

Slap!

Another slap landed. It might have been better if she hit him somewhere else; this time, it landed squarely on the same spot as before.

“Thank you? Is that really what you should be saying right now?”

She was right. Now was not the time to express comfortable feelings like gratitude. It was a time for confession, to repent for his sins.

“…I’m sorry.”

Her mood remained sour. What Leo had done wasn’t something that could be forgiven so easily.

“What did you do wrong?”

There were countless things he had done wrong.

Leaving the family without permission, quitting as a knight, and even though he claimed it wasn’t intentional, the harsh words and attacks he had thrown during their duel.

On top of that, women kept flocking to him like a dog in heat, and the fact that he was too oblivious to realize her feelings—those were major faults as well.

“…I betrayed your trust, my lady…”

And with that one sentence, Leonardo managed to pinpoint the source of her displeasure.

“…You do know well.”

Had her anger subsided? Ariasphil stopped the hand she had raised to hit him. However, there was still something unresolved.

“…Then why did you betray me?”

That was the lingering question. Since the suspicion of betrayal was vague, the answer could be in a place she hadn’t anticipated.

“……”

“Answer me. Why?”

After a brief hesitation, Leo opened his mouth.

“…I was afraid.”

Ariasphil was momentarily at a loss for words.

Did Leo just say he was afraid?

The Leo who always fought confidently and won against any enemy?

“…I have nightmares every time.”

For the first time, Leo revealed his vulnerability. It must have been Leonardo’s deepest scar, one he hadn’t wanted to show anyone, Ariasphil thought.

“With no warning… you disappear… and everything in the world crumbles with that misfortune…”

For some reason, that story felt familiar, as if it had existed even in the past.

“Every time I dream of that, time freezes around me.”

Each time, Leo’s mind had no choice but to endlessly relive that frozen time, even if he didn’t want to.

“Each time, every food feels like burning iron, water and air sting like sulfuric acid… to the point I feel like I’m going to throw up…”

Why hadn’t she realized this?

“The touch of people’s hands feels like sandpaper scraping my skin, and even whispered happiness… feels like foreshadowing the next disaster… leaving me unable to respond…”

Leonardo had always been scared and struggling.

Why had she arrogantly assumed he was strong?

“…So I was afraid… if it really happened… what would I…”

Suddenly…

Ariasphil was hugging Leonardo before she even realized it.

There was no reason for it.

She just thought it would be unbearable if this boy held back his tears.

“…Can you hear it?”

Their chests pressed together, the sound of their heartbeats connected. The beating of their hearts confirmed that life still existed within them.

“If you’re scared, I’ll keep holding you.”

She wished for this boy’s happiness.

“I’ll keep reminding you that I’m alive.”

She wanted him to take her happiness for granted.

“So don’t leave.”

The boy’s shoulders trembled intermittently. Perhaps the only reason his tears didn’t fall was because it was the last piece of pride he had left.

“Stay by my side forever.”

She whispered softly.

The warmth of their bodies lingered with them for a long time.