Why me? Why does it have to be me!"
At the headquarters of the Continental Magic Association, Falsch sat draped in a lavish ceremonial robe, clutching his head and letting out a string of pitiful groans.
"…There's no helping it. There's simply no one better suited to be president than you."
Around Falsch stood a circle of mages — Edel, Ehre, Wirbel, Genau, and Lernen among them.
"Surely Elder Lernen is the most qualified candidate? He's the strongest, and the most respected of anyone here!"
Falsch looked as though he still wanted to fight his way out of this, but the others exchanged glances and offered him nothing but sympathetic looks.
"This old man has no talent for leadership… If that child Sense were still around, she might have been a fine choice."
That was Lernen's verdict.
"Exactly — Falsch, aren't you terribly good at handling all sorts of administrative work? Now that Lady Serie wishes to step off the stage of history… there's no one better to take over as president."
Ehre immediately chimed in to back up her grandfather.
"Seconded. No objections from me either."
Edel gave a firm nod.
"Tch… can we put the whole president business on hold for a second?! Did I miss something?! The Demon Race is gone, there was some massive, unprecedented battle — and I didn't get to show up for any of it!"
Wirbel slammed his hand down on the table, his voice dripping with impatience.
"Ah… um…"
At those words, Ehre felt a shiver run down her spine.
"Wirbel, trust me — it's a good thing you weren't there. If you had been… you would have died even more horribly than the rest of us. Fíliya absolutely would have killed you first."
...
"Fern — so you've decided not to stay and work at the Association after all."
Stark fell into step beside the girl and struck up a conversation.
"Yes… my journey isn't over yet. This time, I'd like to travel to the far south — I heard the wars among the Southern Nations have finally come to an end."
"Oh? Really? They'd been fighting for decades — how did things just suddenly turn peaceful?"
"It was the upheaval from before, most likely… The chaos Fíliya caused left every nation without the capacity to keep waging war. I don't know how long this peace will last — but at least, for now, it holds."
Fern smiled softly as she said it.
"I see."
Stark nodded.
"So when do we leave?"
"Not for a while yet. First, let's go meet up with Lady Frieren — and then all go together… to visit Lady Flamme."
"Ah… speaking of which, Lady Flamme really is something else. She became the Empire's Chief Mage again in such a short time."
"Yes… Lady Flamme still wants to keep dedicating herself to this country, I suppose. But with her there, at least we don't have to worry about the Empire going astray."
"That I can believe… Oh, should we bring gifts?"
"Not sure. Let's meet up with Lady Frieren first and figure it out together."
Fern, Stark — it's been a while…"
Frieren — and Himmel at her side, of course — exchanged quick greetings with the two younger ones the moment their eyes met.
Then the four of them made their way together to the residence of Flamme, the Empire's Chief Mage.
"Now this is a rare sight."
When the four young people (debatable) appeared before her, Flamme wore an expression of quiet wonder.
"By the way, Master — I've always been curious about something. You never took an alias?"
"Why would I need an alias? Do you see any connection between me and that statue over there?"
Flamme gave a light laugh and gestured toward a bronze statue standing not far down the street.
"'Flamme' isn't exactly a rare name… Everyone just assumes it's a coincidence. At most, they'll remark that the current Chief Mage happens to be called 'Flamme' as well."
"I see."
Frieren nodded, more or less following along, then held out her gift.
"Hmm? What's this?"
Flamme opened the box with curiosity.
"'Magic to Make Paper Planes Fly Further'… Frieren, you really do manage to dig up the strangest little things."
Flamme smiled and accepted the gift with evident delight.
"…And this is for you."
Fern followed Frieren's lead and offered her own gift — though she and Stark hadn't exactly come prepared, and had only picked something up from a roadside stall on the way.
"Oh, something for the young ones, is it? I like it — this sort of thing suits me just fine."
Flamme smiled and placed the trinket Fern had given her on her head.
"Master, the Empire feels a little different this time… Why are there statues of Demons on the streets?"
Frieren finally voiced the question she'd been holding back.
"Well, Macht did contribute quite a great deal, after all. He's teaching at the Imperial Magic Academy now — I have to say, Fíliya's decision to keep Macht in the human world has proven remarkably effective."
"I suppose… Demons are beautiful by nature, and they can put on a perfectly charming and articulate front when they choose to. Give it a few more decades, and humans will probably forget entirely that Demons used to be man-eating beasts."
Frieren said it with a thoroughly disgruntled look on her face. The matter was settled, yes — but seeing a Demon earn such a respected place in human society still left a sour taste in her mouth.
"So then — what brings you to see me today?"
Flamme merely smiled at Frieren's sulking expression and let it pass without comment.
"We read the stars… and the results show that next month, there'll be a major meteor shower. We were hoping to invite you to watch it with us."
"A meteor shower, is it… That sounds rather lovely. I can find an excuse to set the Empire's affairs aside. Where are we watching from?"
"…"
Flamme pressed for the answer, but Frieren seemed to hesitate, suddenly at a loss.
"Hmm?"
Flamme noticed.
"According to the star charts… the ideal viewing spot is… where the Demon King's Castle now stands."
"Is that so… How long has it been?"
At those words, Flamme's expression shifted — something deep and reflective crossing her face.
"Three years."
"Already? It feels like it was just the blink of an eye."
"It does. She caused such an enormous amount of trouble — I think it's only fair that we go and give her a bit of grief in return."
As Frieren said it, a smile spread across her face.