Frieren didn’t waste time lecturing Ethan.
In her words, only Heiter would do that.
All she could do was stay with Ethan and help him get used to everything as quickly as possible.
It was strange, but ever since Frieren had cradled his head in her lap that one time, he hadn’t had any nightmares.
As he saw more people and things, it was less about getting used to it and more about becoming numb.
He finally understood why Frieren and Serie had such different views on magic.
Frieren feared and hated war, while Serie felt truly alive only on the battlefield.
She was a mage who had emerged purely from war.
Of course, it wasn’t that Serie had major issues.
She had practically climbed out of piles of dead bodies on the battlefield.
Her survival up to now was solely due to her magical abilities, honed over time.
This was related to her upbringing.
It was rather remarkable that she wasn’t actively starting wars now, and instead, a thousand years later, she was still establishing the Continental Mage Association to teach magic to humans and fight powerful demons.
Regardless of her original intentions, she was a great Great Mage.
A noble person judges actions, not intentions.
That’s all there is to it.
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye, and Ethan finally recovered from his numb state.
The two had also arrived at their first destination: the royal capital of the first country destroyed by Minus.
Everywhere were ruins.
Standing at the city gates and looking into the distance, the king’s castle was half-collapsed.
No repairs had been made, and the smell of fire still lingered in the air.
It was a completely different world from the Central Kingdom.
Yet, Ethan found that the people still remaining there hadn’t given up.
Whether they were civilians or soldiers in tattered armor, they worked together, digging through rubble, repairing houses and roads, clearing debris, and carrying bodies…
Everything was proceeding in an orderly fashion.
In the eyes of these disaster victims, despair occupied only a small part, but the will to survive was much more prominent.
Moreover, besides Ethan and Frieren, many other mages and adventurers had entered this country just like them, most having come after accepting support missions from the Adventurers Guild.
As they say, a noble person judges actions, not intentions.
Even if it was for money, the willingness to come here and risk being killed by Minus if she returned was a mindset worthy of respect.
“It seems Heiter has been here,” Frieren said, a look of “as expected” on her face at the sight.
“Comforting people, organizing disaster relief, and bringing hope are mandatory lessons for priests, and things they swear to the goddess they will do,” Frieren smiled.
“Indeed, no matter how much time has passed, that drunkard is still the same.” As long as people have faith, there is hope.
This is certainly true.
“Ethan, what are you planning to do now?” Frieren asked, looking at him for his answer.
“Of course, I’ll help out while asking for news about Bishop Heiter,” Ethan replied with a smile.
He had actually wanted to get involved earlier.
“Then I’ll go with you.
Heiter did indeed do this.” Over the next week, Frieren and Ethan went to the most severely affected areas.
Frieren used the goddess of healing’s magic to treat the injured, while Ethan, as a warrior, rushed around using his strength and physical condition.
At the same time, they naturally gathered information related to Heiter.
As Frieren had said, Heiter was indeed the leader of this relief team, consisting of over a dozen priests, some of whom were still there.
According to one of the priests, Heiter had indeed been tracking Minus’s movements southward.
In his words, with his old bones, he wanted to save as many people as he could, and Himmel in heaven would be happy about that.
After confirming Heiter’s route, the two continued on their journey.
From this point onward, the number of bandits increased exponentially.
They were mostly desperate thugs, and Ethan showed no mercy to them.
Especially after seeing the people in the capital working hard to rebuild, he had no respect for these people who had turned to banditry.
What, they have the strength to rob, but not the strength to walk to the capital?
Frieren merely watched coldly.
Perhaps Himmel would have given them a chance, but Ethan was not Himmel.
“Indeed, these scoundrels are no longer human,” Ethan said after killing another bandit and checking their belongings, which contained a large amount of wealth.
“It seems many people have been their victims…
This is the inevitable consequence of war.” “Master, if Minus hadn’t stirred up trouble, would the Southern Kingdoms have gone to war?” “According to rumors, there was no immediate possibility.
Himmel passed away only about ten years ago, and the demons are not yet completely wiped out.
The Southern Kingdoms, serving as logistics, would likely have sent most of their supplies to the front lines of the Northern Kingdoms.” “So, if Minus hadn’t acted, they wouldn’t have had to go through war, right?” Upon hearing this, Frieren looked at Ethan’s retreating back, a hint of surprise in her gaze.
“…Ethan, you’re not planning to do anything, are you?” For the first time, Ethan heard a hint of urgency in Frieren’s voice, so faint he almost thought he’d imagined it.
“Huh?” Ethan turned back, bewildered.
“No, Master, don’t overthink it.
How could I have that kind of power?
If I could defeat Minus, I would have rushed south by now, not be here.” That’s right.
She subtly breathed a sigh of relief.
For a moment, she had thought he was going to overreach himself, but it seemed her worries were unfounded.
Seven days later, the two arrived at the border city of the second country.
This place was even more devastated than the previous one.
It was said that Minus had only left half a month ago.
Now, let alone rebuilding, most people had fled.
Those who remained were mostly those who couldn’t escape, barely surviving in the few intact buildings, and…
a person Ethan found unexpected.
“Hello, Ethan.
It’s been almost two years, hasn’t it?
We haven’t seen each other in a while.” Ethan looked at Löwe, who stood before him, his appearance completely different from before, and asked in surprise, “What are you doing here?
Are you here for disaster relief too?” The blond man had cut off his long hair, now sporting a surprisingly youthful short style.
His aura was vastly different from the former playboy; he now looked like a diligent and ambitious young man.
The extent of the change in his demeanor suggested that his previous self was merely an act.
“Exactly.
However, I’m quite surprised that you would come here, and with the legendary mage, no less.” Löwe smiled, looking at Frieren with a tone of deep respect.
“It seems he’s your friend.
You two chat.
I’ll go look around elsewhere first.” Frieren walked away without giving Ethan a chance to refuse.
Ethan knew that Frieren probably felt uncomfortable around someone as ostentatious as Löwe.