The Great Sword is not the Main Body!-Chapter 143: Trials (1)

"...What happened?"

I knew this story.

I had heard it many times.

An unforgettable story.

"Hehehe... back then, your dad didn’t have a car. So we couldn’t go to the city and just hung out nearby. But one day, he said he rented a car. He had just gotten his driver’s license three days before."

But still.

I wanted to hear it again, to feel it again.

The happy days of Mom and Dad.

The happy expressions of Mom and Dad.

"Yeah..."

"So, he brought the car home to take me to the city. And, heh, I started noticing the popped balloons in the backseat. That’s when I figured it out. ‘Oh, it’s today.’"

Three hundred balloons, blown up by hand, without any machines.

Balloons in the colors Mom liked.

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Tied with thin string, just to make it easier.

"So, Mom was really excited, thinking we were going to some fancy restaurant. With baby Noah being so small, I thought we’d go to a quiet place. But... haha! He took me to the mountains. At night?"

"Hmmm... I didn’t know you needed a reservation for those kinds of places. It was a disaster..."

Their expressions slowly started to look more similar.

"Sigh... so as we were going up the mountain, I kept seeing popped balloons along the way. Your dad, not even noticing, was sweating like crazy, carefully carrying sleeping Noah, trying to keep you from waking up."

From joy to happiness.

From embarrassment to happiness.

"And then... when we reached the top, there was this huge tree, decorated with really... really cute balloons."

The biggest tree in that mountain.

The tree that had become a landmark.

"And then there were really tacky candles... heh... they weren’t event candles or anything, just plain white candles, like something for a ritual. Can you believe he bought those and set them up?"

"Hmmm! But you were really surprised too, weren’t you?"

"Of course I was! Those weird candles lined up in a creepy mountain!"

"...Was that really it?"

Dad’s ears turned bright red.

"Anyway... so, we got to the top. And your dad knelt down on both knees—"

Not just one knee.

"Both knees. And while crying, he said he was thankful and sorry, and gave me a necklace."

Mom smiled nostalgically and gently touched the necklace around her neck.

"So, I ended up carrying Noah and asked him to walk, but the moment the necklace was placed around my neck, fireworks exploded!"

"Really felt like something out of a drama, hehe!"

"But even Noah, who used to cry all the time, started laughing when she saw the fireworks. She woke up, and instead of crying, she just laughed happily."

After laughing for a while...

"Then she looked at Dad’s face and started crying again. Hmm... he did look a little scary. Plus, with the shadow on his face from the fireworks, it must have been pretty scary at night."

"Wasn’t I handsome back then... a bit manly?"

"In my eyes, you were handsome. Of course, even now."

"...Hmm."

Seeing Mom and Dad act like a fresh couple, not a married couple, made me chuckle.

After that, more stories about Mom and Dad’s memories flowed out.

Stories I had heard many times.

Stories I could never forget.

The stories I knew so well.

As I pondered those stories,

I savored the happiness that was now nothing but ashes.

"So, how’s the view? Isn’t it amazing?"

"Ugh... don’t shake it, just sit still..."

"Hehehe! Are you scared? Huh? Scared?"

Every time Dad’s body shook, the Ferris wheel shook violently, making my body sway uncontrollably.

"Ahhh! Mom! Hurry! Get Dad to stop!"

"Oh dear, you’re acting like a kid. Stay still. Hehehe..."

"Hahaha!"

"Ahhh!"

I grabbed the thin handrail next to me and broke into a cold sweat.

The lights below, which had been brightly shining, suddenly went dark.

A moment later.

A brilliant beam of light shot up into the sky.

Boom—!

The kind of fireworks that could blind you just by looking at them.

Brilliant fireworks decorated the sky.

"...Ah."

I had never seen fireworks exploding right in front of me.

I’d seen fireworks on Black Sun.

On TV.

On the screen of a smartphone.

But not like this—

Not with the sound and vibrations that you could feel.

Real fireworks, I had never seen them.

So, I was worried.

Worried that, in this world I replayed based on my memories, I might not get to see the fireworks festival.

Worried that my resolution might crumble.

Boom—!

But it was a needless worry.

"It’s amazing."

"It’s even more beautiful than the ones we saw 20 years ago."

With fireworks bursting so beautifully,

With the sound so loud,

With the sensations so vivid.

Boom—!

Every time the fireworks exploded, my body resonated.

As the brilliant light bloomed, dark shadows reached out.

As the flowers of light bloomed in full, their lingering aftereffects left traces in my mind.

Every time the fireworks reached the sky, I felt myself drifting farther away from that sky.

Before long, I was looking up at the fireworks I had seen earlier.

"Noah."

"...Yes?"

I turned to look at Dad, whose gentle face was lit up by the fireworks.

"Do you know why fireworks are so special?"

"Because they’re pretty...?"

"You don’t know why they’re beautiful?"

As I tilted my head, I heard Mom’s quiet laugh.

"I don’t think that’s the right answer, but... here’s how Dad thinks. They only bloom for a very brief moment."

A story I had never heard before.

"They only show up for a brief instant, enough to be remembered, and then they’re gone. That’s why people go crazy for them."

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"...What do you mean?"

Boom—!

"Imagine if fireworks like that stayed visible for one or two minutes. Every day. What would happen?"

"Well..."

"At first, people would like it, but after some time, they’d get used to it. It would become something everyone takes for granted."

Dad tightly held Mom’s and my hands.

"Then, gradually, they’d become indifferent, dull. Eventually, they might even start to hate them. They’d be so bright and noisy while people are trying to ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) sleep. How could they not hate it? They’d forget the emotions they first felt and eventually despise them."

Dad smiled.

"But I’m a superhuman, so I’m different from normal people. I never forget the precious feelings I had when I first saw them. I remember the weather and the time when your mom first smiled at me. I remember the sky and the shape of the clouds on the day you were born. I’ll remember until the day I close my eyes."

Mom smiled.

"I feel the same way. Every day feels new and happy. Even if I wanted to hate it, I can never hate it. Your dad, who tiptoed to the bathroom so he wouldn’t wake me up. Noah, who always finds the computer before me after waking up. I can never hate that."

Boom—!

"No matter what happens, even if Noah turns her back on us..."

The brilliant light scattered, illuminating us.

"Mom and Dad love you, Noah."

The last firework soared.

Higher.

Brighter.

Louder.

"Forever."

The firework exploded, soaring so high, it seemed unreachable.

The blinding light stretched across the sky.

The light, as if trying to erase even the shadows, illuminated our family.

Unforgettable.

I thought of the fireworks etched in my memory.

Following Mom.

Following Dad.

I smiled too.

"...Me too. I also, I also... will love you forever."

"Noah! I’m going to take some side dishes to Grandma next door. Can you help me carry them? They’re too heavy."

The door clicked open.

I saw Mom struggling as she set down the shopping bag with the side dishes inside.

"You just need to carry them—our Noah... is something wrong?"

I shook my head.

"I just... had a scary dream."

Mom’s rough hand gently caressed my cheek.

"Noah, I have a superpower. I can tell when you’re lying."

Her hand moved from my cheek to my head, down my back, and then wrapped me up in a warm embrace.

"If something’s bothering you, you have to tell me, okay?"

"...Yes."

"If I can’t help, Dad will be here too. Okay?"

I nodded.

"Alright... sleep a little longer."

"...Mom."

I raised my arms and hugged her tightly.

"Go ahead, go ahead."

"Okay."

"Quickly. As fast as you can... I’ll be waiting."

Mom gently pulled my arms off and picked up the shopping bag.

"Okay, I’ll be back soon."

Then, she struggled to walk out and opened the front door.

I watched her leave, sitting down in place.

I hugged myself and buried my face into the floor.

After a while,

The horrible smell of a fire began to fill the air.

The scream that had been in my memories.

The sound of hell I could never forget.

It began to echo.