‪ORIGINAL STORY BY ‪KANEHITO YAMADA / TSUKASA ABE
THE NORTHERNMOST POINT OF THE CONTINENT
I REACHED AUREOLE, THE LAND WHERE SOULS REST,
A PLACE WHICH THE PEOPLE OF THIS WORLD CALL HEAVEN
THERE WERE MANY SOULS GATHERED THERE
AND I TALKED TO MY FORMER COMRADES
THE GREAT MAGE FLAMME
Frieren.
The royal capital is within sight now.
The party of heroes is making a triumphant return home.
I bet they're filled with excitement.
Once we get back, I have to look for a job.
You're thinking about that already?
It's important.
It doesn't end just because we took down the Demon King.
We have our whole lives ahead of us.
-A job, huh? -I want a job where I can drink.
Excuse me, you're a priest.
That's true...
Frieren,
you are probably going to live for so much longer
than we can even imagine.
Maybe.
Himmel, the hero.
Eisen, the warrior. Heiter, the priest.
Frieren, the mage.
You did well in taking down the Demon King.
Now, an era of peace will come upon this world.
The king is apparently going to erect statues of us in the plaza.
Although, I'm still very skeptical whether they can accurately depict
how handsome I am.
What a self-serving man, that king.
He's the one who only gave us ten copper coins when we departed.
Now, now, Frieren.
Now we get to drink for free.
Let's call it a deal.
Corrupt Priest.
So it's over, huh?
Yeah.
Our adventure ends here.
Ten years, huh?
So many things happened.
Like the day we departed...
when Himmel and Eisen
spoke disrespectfully to the king and were almost executed.
In the worst-case scenario, our adventure could have ended there.
There was that time when Heiter was useless because of a hangover.
You look like an undead, but are you okay?
-I'm not. -You're not, huh?
He was like that at least once a week.
Compared to that, I'm a model student.
When you were almost eaten by a mimic, we thought about leaving you behind.
How many times did we say that it was a trap? Seriously?
Can we leave this elf behind?
Jeez...
We only have lousy memories.
But it was fun.
I'm glad I was able to go on an adventure with you all.
I agree.
Although it was only a short while.
Short? What are you talking about? It was ten years.
Look at Heiter. He's become such an old man.
-That's rude. -He was always like that.
That's rude.
It's about time.
The Era Meteor Shower, was it?
A meteor shower that happens once every 50 years.
It's a perfect start to an era of peace.
How beautiful.
It's hard to see in the middle of the city.
We're getting emotional over here. Can you try to read the mood?
Then, next time...
In 50 years, I'll show you to a place that I know with a better view.
-What? -No...
It's nothing.
Okay, let's all go to see it.
All right, I'm going this way.
What are you going to do now?
I'll continue my pursuit of magic.
I plan to travel around the central lands for about 100 years.
So, I'll visit from time to time.
An elf's perception of time is unfathomable.
Seriously, how long has she been alive?
I bet to her,
50 years and 100 years don't make much of a difference.
A shadow dragon's horn?
We don't sell that here.
I haven't seen a shadow dragon around for two to three decades.
I see. What should I do...? I need it to summon...
That reminds me, I entrusted the one I found
in the Demon King's castle to Himmel.
Um, it's exuding some kind of evil aura.
It's not harmful, is it?
-I don't know. -You don't know?
It's almost time for the Era Meteor Shower anyway.
I guess I'll go get it.
The townscape is quite different from the last time I was here.
It should be around here.
Frieren?
Himmel...
-You're a feeble old man... -Well, that's rude.
I've grown old, but I'm still handsome, aren't I?
It's been 50 years.
You look just like you did back then.
I thought I would never see you again.
The Era Meteor Shower, huh?
That brings back memories.
Also, about that thing I found in the Demon King's castle...
The shadow dragon's horn, right?
Not a day went by without me thinking about it.
After all, there was constantly an evil aura coming out of the drawer.
Sorry about that...
You could've just tossed it into a shed or something.
How could I do that?
You may have left it with me without much thought,
but to me,
it was something important that was entrusted to me by a special comrade.
It was something I needed to return to you one day, just like this.
It's really not that important.
Himmel, are you ready?
You're bald, so there's no point in caring too much.
Bald people still have their preferences.
All right, let's go see the Era Meteor Shower.
You look so distinguished now, Heiter.
I'm a bishop in the Holy City now.
You haven't changed at all.
Stop patting my head.
Eisen, you haven't changed much.
-Yeah? You think so? -You're a dwarf after all.
So, where is this place with a great view?
We're going there now?
It's still a little early for the Era Meteor Shower.
Yeah, so we'll walk for about a week from here.
-It's that far? -Jeez...
What a way to abuse the elderly.
This brings back memories. When we're like this,
I feel as if I've gone back in time.
We traveled to many places, didn't we?
Everything was so new
and appeared to be sparkling.
All of you were always a part of my beautiful memories.
You know,
I've always looked forward to the day when we could all get together again.
Thank you, Frieren.
Thanks to you,
I was able to enjoy one last adventure.
How beautiful.
I'm sure Himmel was happy.
You think so?
That girl was Sir Himmel's comrade?
She doesn't even look sad.
How heartless!
My, my! We don't look sad either!
-Bishop, take it more seriously! -How heartless!
They're so harsh.
I mean,
I don't know anything about him.
We traveled together for merely ten years, that's all.
Humans have a short lifespan.
I knew that.
So why didn't I try
to get to know him better?
Stop patting my head.
All right, I'd better head back to the Holy City.
Let me get a good look at you two.
I'm sure this will be the last time.
Are you ill?
My drinking habits have caught up with me.
It must be punishment.
If you ever visit the Holy City,
leave some alcohol by my grave.
Heiter, you're not afraid to die?
We're the party of heroes that saved this world.
After I die, I'm promised a lavish life in heaven.
That's the reason why I fought alongside you all in the first place.
Corrupt Priest.
Well then, I'll be off.
All right, I'll get going too.
A trip to pursue magic?
Yeah, that too.
But I also want to get to know humans better.
I see.
I have something to ask you. Since I'm a mage,
I could use a strong vanguard.
Give me a break.
I'm too old to be wielding an axe.
Don't look at me like that, Frieren.
Once you start aging, it's a surprisingly long journey from there.
I see.
-See you, Eisen. -See you.
THE JOURNEY'S END
I just saw this tree. I always get lost in this forest.
Where am I?
20 YEARS FROM THE DEATH OF THE HERO HIMMEL
THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE HOLY CITY, STRAHL IN THE CENTRAL LANDS
Are you looking for something?
Is something wrong?
No, I was looking for the house of someone named Heiter.
Then you must be a visitor.
You are still alive, Corrupt Priest?
Turns out, it's not so easy to die in a dignified way.
I bought alcohol to leave at your grave.
You want to drink?
-I've stopped drinking already. -I see.
I think it's too late to start behaving for the goddess to forgive you.
Thank you.
-Who is that? -Her name is Fern.
She was a war orphan from the Southern lands.
How surprising.
You're not the type to voluntarily help people.
That's Himmel's job.
Frieren, why did you visit me?
I'm on my way to the Holy City.
I make it a point to keep in touch with whoever I meet on the road.
Plus, I owe a lot to you, Heiter.
I wanted to return the favor before you died.
Then let me ask you for a favor.
Will you take an apprentice?
Fern has the potential to become a mage.
Will you take her along with you on your travels?
Sorry, Heiter. I can't do that.
She'll just be a burden.
You know the mortality rate of mage apprentices on the battlefield.
I'm not going to let a friend's child left in my care die like that.
I see.
Then I have another favor.
This was excavated from the grave of Ewig the Sage.
They say this grimoire contains long-lost spells regarding
the resurrection of the dead and immortality.
I doubt such magic really exists.
That's why I want you to decipher it.
Can you do that?
It's encoded in pictures, right?
People of this era sure loved this kind of stuff.
It'll only take five to six years.
I see.
What's the point in deciphering this anyway?
I thought you weren't afraid to die?
I have two reasons.
One, I was just trying to act cool in front of you two.
Two, compared to then, I am more afraid of dying now.
Well, even if I can't become immortal, I just wanted...
I just wanted a little more time, that's all.
Besides, the scriptures tell us to live in good health.
Longevity is the prime example of that, Frieren.
Corrupt Priest.
Also,
if you have time in between your efforts to decipher that,
will you be able to teach Fern magic?
I'm a priest, so I'm not very good with that.
Sure, I can do that.
There you are.
I had trouble finding you. Do you always train in the forest?
Mistress Frieren, even you had trouble finding me?
Master Heiter always says that my presence is undetectable.
It is a very good thing.
Yeah.
Just as I thought...
I can barely detect her mana.
That requires remarkable mana control.
How hard did she study to be able to do that at her age?
Master Heiter
said that he'll consider me fully qualified if I can pierce that rock.
Heiter knows what he's talking about. That is...
As you can see, my mana disperses and doesn't reach it.
I see.
What kind of training do I need to do?
Hey, can I ask you something first?
Do you like magic?
To a moderate degree.
That's just like me.
-Trying to act cool again, Heiter? -How is your training with Fern?
-Magic is so amazing. -It's worth looking for.
-It'd be a waste to die. -One day I want to show you.
"It didn't have to be magic..."
Subtitle translation by: Kiko Morita