The tolling bells that announced the end were solemn and majestic.
For the first time in a long while, silence hung over the Academy, where an immense crowd had gathered.
Enough to make the turmoil of the past several days feel like nothing more than a midday dream.
The crowds lined up along the main avenue created an atmosphere of solemnity.
Within that restrained order, there was not the slightest wavering.
That was how momentous an occasion this was.
The death of a great warrior.
A sea made of human beings had parted.
Along the path it opened, one man’s journey would reach its end.
Most of the people gathered had never even seen his face, yet the man’s deeds had long since become famous.
Within the countless tales of adventure he had left behind while roaming the continent, the swordsman had been a hero.
He had saved innocent people, cut down nightmarish monsters, and rescued villages and communities in peril time and time again.
How could anyone fail to mourn the end of such a man?
For the past several decades, he had even protected the world as the Empire’s ‘Sword Duke.’
Thus, there was no distinction between high and low in the grief of the present.
Was that not also why the funeral was being held at the Academy rather than within the Imperial Court?
Because he was a man worthy of receiving flowers from everyone, nobles and commoners alike.
It was the greatest respect that could be shown to a man who had been born into the highest station and walked all the way down to the lowest places.
Of course, there were still…