The fear that came to mind when hearing the word "demon" quickly subsided.
After Captain Curtis took Captain Ghai out, my hands were shaking for a while, but when my older sister saw that, she sat down in a chair and held me on her lap. My older sister was tall, and since there was a height difference between us, she embraced me completely and stroked my head gently. When she did that, I felt so good and calmed down.
The trembling in my hands quickly subsided, and I felt so good I couldn't help but laugh out loud. Then my older sister burst out laughing happily.
"Fia, you haven't changed at all since we were kids, you see. Just a quick pat on the head puts you in a good mood right away." (Oria)
That's right. I always feel safe and in a good mood when I'm with you. As I was thinking that, I clung closely to my sister, who laughed at me and said, "What a big baby."
Then, after my older sister was sure I had calmed down, she turned to Green and Blue.
"But for a baby, your companion seems like a fine knight, don't they?" (Oria)
The two of them straightened up after hearing my older sister's words. I quickly got off my sister's lap and straightened my back.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Oria Ruud, a member of the Kingdom's Knights, 11th Knight Order" (Oria)
My older sister stood up, approached them, and held out her hand.
Green and Blue quickly stood up and each took the outstretched hand.
"This is the first time I've met you, dear sister. I'm Green. While I'm here, I'll be accompanying Curtis and Fia as a companion knight." (Green)
"Similarly, I'm Blue. I'm glad to hear that you are in good health, dear sister. We'll in your care from now on." (Blue)
My sister looked satisfied with the strength of her grip, but after the two of them finished exchanging greetings she tilted her head.
"My dear sister... hey. This is the first time I've been called that. So, does that mean you all view me by Fia's standard?" (Oria)
"No, that's not what I meant...!" (Green + Blue)
The two of them said in unison in a panic, but Oria ignored them and looked at me with a happy expression.
"It's quite an accomplishment that such a big knight is interested in her! Fia is small, so I've always thought it would be nice to have a partner who is big." (Oria)
"Big Sister!" (Fia)
It made me happy to hear that she was thinking of me.
My older sister smiled at me, then turned back to Green and his brother.
"Please take good care of her, okay? She's not flashy, but she doesn't give up even when she can't do something, and she's a hard worker who keeps trying again and again. She's a good girl. People who have their eyes on Fia are down-to-earth people. I'm glad you've noticed how good Fia is." (Oria)
Hearing my older sister's excessive praise, my face involuntarily turned red.
"B-Big Siser! Even if you try too hard to praise me, I've been on adventures with Green and Blue before, so they know me, and nothing will ever look better than I really am!" (Fia)
However, contrary to what I said, Blue, who was a considerate person, wholeheartedly agreed with what my sister had said.
"Oria, of course we understand that Fia is wonderful, but that understanding only scratches the surface of how wonderful she really is. Thank you for filling in the gaps in our understanding and helping us understand how wonderful she is." (Blue)
...Blue is so kind. Well, if that makes my sister happy, then maybe it's fine. Thinking that, we left the room without saying anything more, along with my satisfied older sister, Green, and Blue.
Afterwards, being her usual kind self, my older sister showed the three of us around the fort. Along the way, all the knights she met call out to her.
As I thought, my older sister is really popular wherever she is! While I was feeling proud of her, the tour of the fort finished and my older sister asked the last knight we met to look after Green and Blue.
"These two are our associate knights. They will be staying at the fortress for a few nights, so please show them to their rooms." (Oria)
I didn't have anything in particular to do that day, so I just stuck around with my older sister. My sister was a hard worker and always took on one job after another, so at the same time, new work kept piling up. Even though I couldn't help even half of what my sister did, she always looked happy and praised me. And by sticking close to my sister, I was able to become friends with many of the knights at the fort.
That night, I slept with my sister. My older sister told me stories of how cute I was when I was little, how much of a pain I was, how we trained together in the territory, and how she was worried about me during my coming-of-age ceremony, and so on, until I fell asleep.
As I listened to these stories, my heart, which had been unsettled since I first saw Captain Ghai, suddenly calmed down, and a feeling of understanding suddenly settled in my heart, "Ah, that's right."
——That's right, I am Fia Ruud. I have the memories of my past life, and along with those memories I hold the powers of the Great Saint, but what still defines me is the me who has lived for the past 15 years as Fia Ruud.
I wanted to be a knight, so I trained from a young age. My older sister has always taken care of me. All of these things have shaped me into who I am today.
...Therefore, in order to continue living as Fia Ruud, I must face my past.
I curled up in the blanket, hugging myself tightly, and exhale slowly.
...It's okay, it's okay. I'm safe now.
But... I don't know if tomorrow's me, or tomorrow's sister, will be safe, so... I must not run away.
As I tightened my arms around her, my consciousness naturally shifted to the last moments of my previous life.
Suddenly, my heart started beating extremely fast and I began to sweat profusely. My body was falling asleep listening to my sister's voice and should have been enveloped in a comfortable warmth, but in an instant my whole body began to tremble violently. A sticky, disgusting feeling crawled all over my body, making me short of breath and giving me chills.
...Ah, no good. Whenever I tried to think about "The Demon King's right hand man," my body rejected it.
As a result, my memories of the final part of my previous life remained vague. I only had a vague memory, shrouded in a mist, and it didn't come back clearly.
However...
I put both hands over my mouth and gritted my teeth tightly to stop them chattering with fear.
My whole body was filled with fear and refused to let the memories awaken. If it were me before, I would definitely have prioritized releasing the tension in my entire body.
However, ———I don't think that's the right way to do it. A strong feeling welled up from the depths of my chest, "I must remember the end of my previous life!"
It was thanks to the courage given to me by everyone who had been in contact with me since my memories of my past life came back to me.
——I want to protect the people important to me.
——I want to spend the rest of my life with the people I love.
As if encouraged by that feeling, little by little, the memories of my past life began to unravel. Gradually, facts that I didn't notice when my memories returned begin to become clear.
I remembered the time just before I encountered "The Demon King's Right Hand Man" —when I entered the Demon King Castle with my three older brothers from my previous life.
—— Ah, that's right. ...I ...... the Demon King
The scene of when I confronted the Demon King came to my mind. Then, the scene after the battle with the Demon King.
——What happened to the Demon King in the end? (...I remember. I can remember.)
——Was he lying on the ground, covered in blood? (...No, that's not it. MAOU was nowhere to be seen.)
Because... because...
My teeth started to chatter. No matter how hard I hugged myself, the trembling wouldn't stop.
Even with my eyes closed, the scene from 300 years ago clearly appeared behind my eyelids. My brothers covered in blood. Me covered in blood. And one box.
——What was locked up in that box?
A simple question. I remembered it clearly now.
...Ah, that's right. 300 years ago, I "sealed" the Demon King.
Behind my closed eyes, the empty throne of the Demon King Castle floated in my mind. My brothers were in high spirits. A box was in their hands.
——Inside that box, we sealed the Demon King.
Using all our strength, draining all our magical power, and exhausted, my brothers and I managed to trap the Demon King in the box.
………That's right. 300 years ago, when I was the "Great Saint," I stopped the Demon King's activities, not killed him...