Original subtitles

So this was the aftermath of his training, huh?

ORIGINAL STORY BY KANEHITO YAMADA / TSUKASA ABE

You aren't going to fight the dragon, right?

Then why continue your training?

When I came to this village,

everyone looked dreary, and they were terrified of the dragon.

But now, those same people are laughing happily.

They say, "This village is safe because Master Stark is here."

Even though I haven't done anything.

The only reason the dragon hasn't attacked

is because it's not in the mood.

If the dragon attacks the village,

will you fight?

I'd rather die. But you know...

to the people of this village, I am a hero.

I'm Stark, the hero of the village.

I have to be the one who protects it.

That being said,

I might run away when the time actually comes.

Even this scar on my forehead

is from an argument I had with my master

over not wanting to fight monsters.

That was the first time he ever hit me.

I'm sure I disappointed him.

In the end,

my master didn't praise me even once.

What?

Master Stark,

I don't think you will run.

- What do you know about me? - I don't know a thing.

But I remembered how scared I was.

Scared?

The first time I fought a monster.

I had gone through

more than enough training up until then.

But I became weak in the knees out of fear,

and I ran away.

The monster kept chasing me.

And for some reason Mistress Frieren would not help me.

Oh, that's how my master is too.

In the end, when it caught up to me,

I strengthened my resolve

and my body moved.

All I needed was resolve.

Everything you've acquired up until now will not betray you.

You may be a hopeless coward,

but I am sure that your resolve

to protect the village is genuine.

Resolve, huh?

How was it?

I don't know.

I don't know,

but I'm sure it'll be all right.

He's not here. He ran, huh?

And I had high hopes for him too.

Oh well.

Fern, it's time to play tag with the dragon.

What?

Frieren.

You need me to buy you 30 seconds, right?

You're late.

Can you promise me one thing?

Even if I die in the middle of it,

will you make sure to kill the dragon?

Okay, I promise.

But why are you going this far just for the villagers?

What?

Oh, I just thought it was a strange question.

I've been in this village for three whole years.

- Not very long, huh? - It's very long.

All right, let's get this done!

- Your hands are shaking. - It's scary, okay?

You don't have to laugh.

You're just like Eisen.

My master?

We've got ourselves a strong opponent.

Eisen, your hands are shaking. Are you scared?

Yeah.

You admit it so quickly.

Feeling scared is not a bad thing.

This fear

is what got me this far.

You guys even tremble the same way.

I see...

So Master

was also scared.

All I need

is my resolve.

He's within the dragon's reach.

It's not attacking yet.

It's acting cautious.

So I was right...

No wonder the village was never attacked again.

Dragons are smart animals.

They aren't foolish enough to willingly pick a fight with a strong opponent.

The reason why Eisen hit Stark

was not because Stark was weak

or because Stark disappointed him.

We had a fight and parted ways.

You hit him?

My body reacted by reflex.

I feel bad for what I did.

I was scared.

I was scared, Frieren.

He truly is an amazing guy.

My apprentice

will become an incredible warrior.

Okay! Shoot it now!

Come on! Why aren't you shooting?

I did everything you asked!

You're making me fight alone?

Don't you dare, you stinking hag!

- You're just like Master... - It's already dead.

Huh?

"Stinking hag," huh?

That's not going to end well.

Did I

do it?

I killed a dragon

on my own?

Stark,

good job.

You exceeded my expectations. Well done.

A mountain of treasures!

We can't take all of that.

You're only allowed three.

It really is nonsensical.

How can you become engrossed in this?

It's a mountain of treasures.

Master said that the adventure

of the party of heroes was completely nonsensical because of you.

Yeah?

He said it was

a nonsensical yet extremely fun journey.

Wow! Shaved ice is really coming out!

Wasn't it worth the search?

And this is the fluffy kind, not the crunchy kind!

You're right!

What nonsense.

Are you okay with this?

What's the harm?

Our journey has just begun.

Even the Hero of the South, who is known as the strongest of mankind,

was killed by the Demon King's Seven Sages of Destruction.

We don't know if we can return alive either.

Eisen, do you want to go on a difficult and painful journey?

You know,

I want to go on a fun journey that we can call nonsensical

and laugh about once it's done.

Look at this!

It melts the moment you touch it.

- Don't touch it. It's food. - Nonsense...

By the way, where's the syrup?

I don't have a spell that produces syrup.

- You don't? - This is seriously nonsensical.

How is it? Can you see through it?

I can see.

But it's not a very interesting spell.

Well, I'm sorry my body isn't interesting.

What?

- So small... - It's not small!

Well then, what are you going to do now, Stark?

You can return to Eisen's place too.

Master told you to take me along, right?

Plus,

I want to go on

a nonsensical journey too.

28 YEARS FROM THE DEATH OF HIMMEL THE HERO

RIEGEL CANYON IN THE CENTRAL LANDS FORTRESS CITY, WAAL

The monsters are very active in the northern lands.

Currently, we are not allowing anyone through the checkpoint.

When will the checkpoint open up again?

Who knows?

For as long as I've been assigned here,

I have not allowed a single monster or man through.

Excuse me.

Captain, the castellan is asking for you.

I'll be there.

Got that, adventurers?

Make sure that you don't cause any trouble in this city.

That wasn't a very nice welcome.

Yeah. He is a very capable guard.

Being strict to outsiders

is how a true guard who protects the citizens should act.

And so...

This city seems safe,

so let's wait it out here.

I can finally take my time and study magic again.

I'll drop my luggage off at the inn and go to the magic store.

What?

The checkpoint isn't open, so we have no choice.

All right, we'll split up here.

I'll go book an inn.

Want to go get food?

Never mind, I'll go by myself.

So scary...

I heard you can't even go by sea these days.

They say an army from the northern lands is being deployed,

but it'll take at least two years for the checkpoint to reopen.

It's terrible for businesses.

This brings back memories.

The Jumbo Berry Special.

The last time I came here, I was a kid

so I couldn't eat it all and I shared it with Master.

But was it this small?

You feel that way because you've become an adult.

I see.

I'm the one who grew, huh?

Everything seemed so big when I was a kid.

But even Master's broad shoulders

started looking small after a while.

Eisen is up in years now.

You better be a good son to him.

I'm trying to right now.

But really, was it always this small?

The passage of time is very harsh, isn't it?

What? Don't judge me.

I bought it with my own money.

Excuse me, can I have milk please?

Coming up.

Uh, what?

Why are you mad?

Master Stark...

Fine, I'll give you half.

That's not what I want.

If I told you that we might have to stay here for over two years,

how would you feel?

Huh? I'd hate that.

- Right? You'd hate that, right? - Yeah...

What's wrong with her?

I'm so relieved.

So you are normal after all.

Hey, did I do something wrong?

A way to pass through the checkpoint, huh?

Sure, I'll help you find one.

Thank you.

We can't just jump and fly over it?

You can't cross the border facing

the northern lands because of a powerful barrier that stretches

up to its highest possible limit.

That makes sense.

Otherwise, it'd be open to monsters who can fly.

That can't be helped. Let's check the merchants guild.

It might be open for trade at least.

Trade has been completely blocked.

They won't even allow guarded caravans.

The northern lands must be pretty dangerous.

I guess we'll have to wait until things settle down.

No.

Let's try the black market and thieves' guild.

Isn't that too dangerous?

Don't worry. I come across pretty strong.

And I'm good at faking it.

- You do have a villain's face. - Shut up.

No success, huh?

I guess it's to be expected.

This is basically a defensive war.

You can't do anything unless the gate opens.

All right.

Next, let's try the guard station just in case.

- What? - Nothing...

I'm just surprised at how cooperative you are.

You're the one who brought it up.

You didn't want to wait, right?

You look more desperate than me.

Well, I don't have much time after all.

What do you mean?

This is a nice view, isn't it?

You can see the northern lands.

When I was small, Master brought me here.

We departed from this city

and headed to the northern lands.

What kind of journey was it, Master?

You want to know?

At the time, we...

He never talked about himself at all,

but he eagerly talked about the adventures of the party of heroes.

He treasured that adventure more than anything

even though it only accounted for ten years of his long life.

I'm sure Frieren is the same way.

I don't know...

Master is too old to travel now.

But he told you two to take me along with you.

That's why I'm going to experience

a nonsensical yet fun journey in his place

and bring back stories to share with him.

This is about the only way I can repay him.

If I take too much time, Master is going to die.

Well then, we can't waste time in a place like this.

But then again, I'll bet he is going to live for a while.

Mistress Frieren.

What are you doing here?

Shush, be quiet.

I'm being chased.

Wh... What did you do?

I don't know.

I was only going from one magic store to the next.

I am terribly sorry!

Mistress Frieren, please forgive me!

Wait... I'm getting a very bad feeling...

It seems the captain of the guards treated you disrespectfully.

As the castellan appointed to this city, I apologize.

Uh, it's nothing.

He was only doing his job as a guard.

And I am in no hurry at all.

Actually, I want to...

You are going to embark on a journey to the north again, right?

I hear that the northern lands

are constantly fighting against the remnants of the Demon King's army.

I'm sure you are heartbroken by their situation.

Your willing spirit is indeed that of a hero.

I am sure it will delight the people of the northern lands.

Please pass through the checkpoint as you wish.

Who knew we could pass through so easily?

Maybe we should have mentioned your name from the start?

I thought it would be useless even if I did.

I wanted to take my time...

And plus, I don't like these kinds of things very much.

This view makes me feel uneasy.

I'm glad I got to see this view.

Master must have departed for the northern lands like this too.

Yeah.

I wanted to study more magic...

She's still whining.

We went through a lot of trouble, you know.

- Right? - Yes.

- It hurts. - Humans make such a big deal.

- Tonight is... - Mother.

...the Liberation Festival.

There is a word.

- I'm interested in that mage. - What a pain.

"Like a Fairy Tale."

Subtitle translation by: Kiko Morita