What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?.

Meanwhile, Philon, who was also lying on the table, muttered to himself, "I thought it was Lord Ash who made the meal."

"So it really is because Frilian's cooking is bad?"

"No! It's just..."

"what?"

"Shouldn't it be Lord Ash who's cooking, judging from the atmosphere?"

"Don't be so greedy. Being content is the most important thing in life." Faced with the girl's dissatisfaction with the imperfection, Ash casually patted her head and pointed to Frillie, who was still studying and deciphering a grimoire, saying:

"I'm already perfect enough. If I could also cook, what would happen to someone as flawed as Frilian?"

"Hey, that's not fair!" The innocent Frillie glared at him, but he ignored her and continued to lecture the child: "Anyway, that's about it. As a person, you have to learn to be content with what you have."

"...However, as expected, at this time, I still want to eat what Lord Ash makes."

But life is bound to have regrets, isn't it?

......

Ash and Philon were bickering, but the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious, completely dispelling the previous gloom.

Meanwhile, Frillie, who was being ignored on the side, felt that she should make him apologize for his previous remarks. Also... did she suddenly become superfluous here?

And... maybe it's better to just ignore him and watch him die of old age? — She couldn't help but think this way, after all, if she didn't, she might be angered by this guy to the point of shortening her lifespan, and might even die earlier than a human.

...........................

...........................

Although for a moment she thought of ignoring Ash, after her anger subsided, Frillie still felt resentful and tried her best to speed up her reading of the grimoire.

This scene also made Ash feel deeply guilty about the things he and Haita had lied to her, but he really didn't understand... it was understandable that Philon was too young to understand, but why had Frilian been deceived for years without realizing the problem?

If there truly were a magic that grants immortality, could that sage have died? Did he simply not want to live anymore, or did he simply find himself living too long?

Even if he might have been murdered... if it meant immortality, wouldn't everyone be fighting tooth and nail for that magic? How could it possibly fall into Haita's hands? Or is Haita the only one who knows about it? How unlikely is that?

But thinking about it carefully, she still believes in the seduction techniques that Vlame taught her on a whim... She still thinks that stuff is very effective, and that no problems have been found even after a thousand years.

Thinking about it this way, he figured he could probably fool Frilian for a thousand years with any excuse he came up with, right? He couldn't help but want to see just how long it would take Frilian's slowness to realize that something was wrong with her.

But as he waited with curiosity, time slowly passed... and Haita's life was also slowly fading away.

Similarly, Philon undoubtedly possesses high magical talent and has a very good teacher.

So, a year and a half after she collapsed in Haita and was unable to walk properly, in the sixth year since Frilian came here—at the age of fifteen—she successfully pierced through the rock on the other side of the cliff.

He rushed back immediately to tell the old man who treated him like a grandfather, which made Haita laugh heartily once again.

And within a few days, Frilian had successfully and completely deciphered the grimoire.

only.....

"...There is no magic here that grants immortality, nor any magic that can bring the dead back to life, and there isn't even a way to prolong one's life." Frilian placed the deciphered grimoire directly on Haita's bedsheet.

However, Haita remained surprisingly calm, even appearing as if he had expected it all along, casually remarking, "...Oh, I see. The reward for the interpretation is in the drawer of the table; take it yourself."

"...You knew all along?"

"Because if it existed, wouldn't that sage have used it himself?"

The overly matter-of-fact response left Frillie looking puzzled: "Then...why?"

"You should ask Ash about that."

"Ash?" Frillie was taken aback, but instantly recalled the events of six years ago, and frowned immediately: "Could it be—that you two were plotting against me?"

"While that may be the truth, isn't it the person who was completely deceived who's at fault?" Ash, standing by the door, preemptively defended his actions:

"Who knew you would actually believe it and even work overtime to decipher it? I did tell you not to work so hard, didn't I?"

"At that time, I actually thought you were worried about my health...!"

"What are you thinking? You've been lazy for so many years, it wouldn't be bad if you put in a little effort, right? I'm just worried that the harder you try, the angrier you'll get." He shrugged nonchalantly, admitting his initial thought.

This made Frillie grit her teeth in anger: "...Now that things have come to this, is this your attitude?"

"Okay, I admit I was a little wrong... I'm sorry."

Before Frilian could lose control of her emotions, he simply bowed his head and admitted his mistake.

Haita was also very loyal, and raised his hand with a smile: "Me too. If you want to vent your anger on anything, you can hit me without any problem."

"...How could I do such a thing? If I were to fight, it would be against that bastard Ash."

"By the way, I'm actually a centenarian too, aren't I?" Ash pointed to himself, his words quite reasonable, but his overly youthful appearance gave the impression of a shameless statement, which made Frilian furious: "A centenarian like you, even if you die, it would be considered a service to the people."

Although she said that... she only coldly rebuked them, and didn't do anything. After holding it in for a while, she finally suppressed her anger and glared at the two of them: "...Tell me honestly, what kind of devilish schemes are you two plotting?"

"It's nothing, it's just that you wanted to repay a favor... and the real favor I need is for you to help me take Philon on the trip later." Ash said with a smile, and Haita added cheerfully:

"This isn't about you taking on a disciple. After all, she's already capable of handling things on her own and should be a great help to you. At least for now... you shouldn't have a reason to refuse, right?"

"...You were plotting against me all along!"

"Haha~ Anyway, you guys should leave tonight. After all, as you can see, I can't hold on much longer." Despite her frustrated friend's complaints, Haita remained cheerful, ignoring her grievances, and proceeded to state her reasons:

“I don’t want that child to experience the feeling of losing someone again, so Frilian… I’m entrusting this child to you. This is my last request.”

“Shouldn’t you have talked to Ash about this? Oh, wait…?” She realized there was definitely something wrong with her statement, but before she could correct him, Haita revealed the truth: “Ash said it a year and a half ago.”

"You two are outrageous... you actually made decisions without our knowledge."

"I'm sorry..."

"But Haita, don't try to be cool now. Philen has already prepared to say goodbye. What you should have done before that was... to properly say goodbye to that child... and leave that child with as many memories as possible."

As they were talking, Frillie, who had sat back down in her chair, could no longer bear it. She lowered her head deeply, trying to suppress her emotions, but her voice and shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

Tears streamed down her face and onto the back of her hand, completely betraying her feelings at that moment.

It wasn't just heartache for Philon's child whom she had cared for for six years, but also an uncontrollable wave of grief over the impending death of her old friend.

This emotional breakdown caused Haita to reveal a troubled expression, yet he also smiled with a hint of resignation:

"Although you appear cold and ruthless, just like Ash, you are actually quite gentle... Frillian."

"Leave me alone...!" She turned her head away unwillingly, her trembling hands unconsciously gripping the hem of her skirt. But then she felt the familiar touch on her head and couldn't help but force out a sob, "Ash too!...Don't touch my head~!"

"...Don't complain. I also wish someone could pat my head. Think about it, this guy was still saying I was heartless at the end. I'm actually having a hard time getting over it too."

Ash and Haita smiled at each other and, as usual, began to tease their old friend of many years.

Even at the very end, Haita, as always, laughed and said, "How dare you say that? Even Frilian cried. Why don't you let me see your tears too?"

"No, no, no, at your age, you're already at the age of happy death, why would I cry? Or is there something you still regret?"

"Of course I do, and I'd also like to attend your wedding with Philon."

"That's a bit difficult. How about I just marry them all tomorrow?"

"Ah, this is good, all three wishes can be fulfilled at once."

......

The two joked around as usual, which unknowingly eased the sad atmosphere.

This caused Frillie to unconsciously stop her trembling sobs and stare blankly at Haita's face, which already showed the marks of time.

The vitality and radiance of youth have long since become gentle and reserved without our noticing, or perhaps it's okay if they've lost their brilliance and dimmed.

But at this moment, she suddenly had a completely new understanding of the concept of "aging"—it didn't seem as heavy and terrible as she had imagined.

During her time with Haita, she discovered that aging is a natural transition of life, like the changing of the seasons, with each stage having its own unique characteristics... It wasn't envy, but rather a new understanding of a concept she might never have been able to comprehend before.

Chapter 81 A Temporary Separation: Aura Just Wants to Be Willful (3K)

While experiencing a new understanding from Haita, Frillie also felt that she and Felene could both give them a good scolding for their strange jokes, but...

Well, let them joke around for now—watching the two chatting happily, although she felt they were being rude as usual, she only watched the men's banter with tolerance and a little helplessness, a slight smile on her face.

After finishing his conversation with Haita, Ash and Frilian left the room. Philon then entered with a smile, sat on the bench by the bed, and chatted and laughed with Haita...

The time that followed seemed to be all happy years.

But just as Haita himself had imagined, in less than half a month... his life finally came to an end.

He passed away peacefully in his sleep on a fine, sunny morning, and Frilian, who was the first to discover him, quickly informed the two of the tragic news.

As was her nature, Phil threw herself into Ash's arms and burst into tears as he comforted her.

As a retired bishop, the funeral was surprisingly simple, at Haita's own request before his death.

Apart from the three of them, only a few others, along with priests from nearby villages, participated. They were simply buried in the cemetery of the cathedral in the city.

As a former bishop who had saved the world, he should be considered a very famous figure. Yet, Haita's grave is simply a plain stone tombstone, without a trace of extravagance.

After attending the funeral, the three of them did not leave as quickly as the others. Frilian quietly went up to the tombstone and poured the wine she had brought six years ago on it, thus fulfilling the promise she made with Haita when he died in Simmel.

The three then packed their bags and embarked on a journey together, except... about two months after Haita's death.

Once Philon had calmed down completely, Ash used the excuse of having some important matters to attend to and, after confirming their travel itinerary, parted ways with them temporarily, planning to return to celebrate Philon's birthday later.

After all... no matter what, he simply couldn't bring himself to obediently follow Frillie's excessively time-consuming journey.

The result of this was that Philon was very angry.

"...I have a really bad feeling about this. This guy ran off so fast, leaving me here is going to be in trouble, isn't it?" Frilian cautiously looked at the purple-haired girl not far away, who was puffing out her cheeks and making a fuss because Ash wouldn't let her follow.

She was also frustrated and couldn't help but complain about Ash's irresponsibility.

Meanwhile, Philon didn't notice Frilian's sullen expression, because she was staring intently at Ash's figure as he gradually disappeared into the distance.

And he couldn't help but secretly vow to himself—next time they met, he would definitely get really angry.

However, in reality, he often goes out over the years... with many casual reasons, but they've probably gotten used to it.

...........................

...........................

Every time Ash leaves, he either goes to the magic city or to find the demons. Since he's going to the demons, he naturally can't tell them what he's going to do.

Although it was agreed that he would protect Philen, even a biological father can't follow someone forever, right? Anyway, with Frilian around, it won't be a big problem if he neglects his duties a little.