Repeat Vice - The Villainous Noble Doesn't Want to Die, So He Swore to Not Die As One of The Four Heavenly Kings - Chapter 55: Two Years

Chapter 55: Two Years

“The Crimson Wind” began searching for the sky city of Ciel Parc about two years ago.

There were several reports of sightings of a massive dark cloud.

However, even with the mobility of the airship, they were never able to catch that huge cloud.

Iz’s illness progressed, causing her to lose vitality day by day.

No matter how desperate or frantic their search, all efforts ended in vain.

Riruka was tormented by the fear that this time would also be fruitless.

It was during such a moment that Rofus contacted her.

“…How long are you going to wander? It’s about time you returned to the Lightress territory. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten our agreement to use the Lightress territory as a base.”

The voice of Rofus emerged from the mouth of a swordfish peeking out from Riruka’s shadow, displaying its saw-like teeth.

Riruka answered in a subdued voice, masking her emotions.

“I haven’t forgotten… But Iz’s condition is worsening. There’s no time to return; we need to find the sky city quickly.”

“…Do you have any leads?”

“……”

Riruka responded to Rofus’s question with silence.

There was a sense of a sigh coming from beyond the swordfish.

“If there are no leads, return. Continuing is a waste of effort.”

Hearing the word “waste,” something snapped within Riruka.

Grabbing the swordfish’s head with her bare hands, ignoring the pain and bleeding, she forcibly pulled it out.

With a desperate expression, Riruka confronted the swordfish, or rather, Rofus beyond it.

“Don’t say it’s a waste! Iz is alive; we still have time! Maybe you don’t care much about Iz, but to me, she’s family… my sister.”

Her voice trailed off to a whisper, and tears welled up in her blue eyes.

Riruka was more desperate than the rest of “The Crimson Wind.”

She had witnessed Iz suffering and dying helplessly last time.

Riruka had never forgotten Iz’s face as she smiled bravely, despite her suffering, trying not to worry others.

When the world was reset by the Six Gods, the first thing Riruka saw was Iz, still able to stand and walk.

Clinging to her while crying, Iz, though surprised, hugged her back gently.

At that moment, Riruka swore to herself that she would cure Iz’s illness.

To cure her illness and explore unseen dungeons and ruins with “The Crimson Wind family” like they used to.

This determination kept Riruka going in this second world, doomed to perish soon.

However, the crucial guidance from the Wind God showed no reaction regarding the location of the sky city.

The frustration over the lack of time and anger at the Wind God and her own powerlessness, which she had been suppressing, overflowed at Rofus’s words.

Rofus, seeing Riruka crying silently, sighed again through his familiar.

“…Have you finished your tantrum?”

“What a horrible thing to say…”

Still looking down, Riruka retorted weakly.

The swordfish, which had fallen to the floor, suddenly straightened and slapped Riruka’s cheek with its tail.

“—!?”

Riruka’s eyes widened in surprise as her cheek reddened.

The swordfish then headbutted her, causing her to fall backward and lie on her back.

The swordfish landed lightly on Riruka’s stomach.

“…Hey, Rofus. Isn’t this treatment a bit much for a heartbroken girl?”

“Have you cooled off? Then return to the Lightress territory immediately.”

“…Why? Do you miss me that much?”

“I found the location of the sky city.”

“!”

In her astonishment, Riruka sat up quickly, causing the swordfish to fall off her stomach.

“No way… How do you know?”

“I’ll explain when we meet. Hurry back.”

“Yes, I’ll return immediately.”

Wiping her tears, Riruka rushed to Sigil.

Soon after, the airship changed course and headed rapidly towards the Lightress territory.

“Hey, Riruka! Your hand’s covered in blood!”

Sigil’s loud voice echoed through the ship as it flew at full speed.

*

At the Lightress family’s secondary residence.

Responding to Rofus’s call, “The Crimson Wind” had returned and was led not to the guest room but to Rofus’s study.

Riruka, Sigil, and Hawk stood in front of Rofus, who was working on paperwork.

The rest of the members stayed on the airship to avoid crowding the place.

Rofus, signing documents and stamping the Lightress seal without even looking up, addressed them.

“You’ve arrived. Wait a moment. I’m almost done.”

Moving his hand with incredible speed, Rofus quickly cleared the pile of documents.

“Yurika, take these to Carlos.”

“Yes, Rofus-sama.”

Lifting the stack of papers effortlessly, Yurika left the study.

Rofus stretched his shoulders, finally finished.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. My apologies for summoning you.”

“No, it’s fine…”

Sigil, speaking for the group, was slightly surprised by Rofus’s appearance.

“You’ve grown taller, Rofus.”

Murmuring in surprise, Sigil and Hawk both noted the change.

Riruka, who had been communicating through her familiar, was seeing Rofus in person for the first time in about two years.

Rofus was now 14, approaching adulthood, and about to enter the academy.

He had grown from about 140 cm at 12 years old to around 170 cm.

“You’ve gotten so big…”

Riruka commented like a neighbor who hadn’t seen him in a while.

Though Riruka had grown a bit, she still had to look up at Rofus.

Rofus stared at Riruka, then suddenly pulled her slender body into an embrace.

“Wha!? Rofus!?”

Holding the surprised Riruka gently, Rofus then looked at Sigil and Hawk, who were wide-eyed.

“When lovers reunite after a long time, isn’t it customary to leave them alone?”

“Wha, Rofus!?”

Blushing, Riruka protested.

With an exasperated look, Sigil and Hawk hurriedly left the study.

“Right! Sorry, didn’t mean to intrude!”

“Riruka, we’re having turkey tonight.”

Sigil turned away, while Hawk smiled and gave a thumbs up.

The door closed, leaving Rofus and Riruka alone.

*

Still held by Rofus, Riruka looked up at him, her cheeks slightly flushed.

“This is rare, Rofus initiating…”

Usually, Riruka was the one to initiate hugs, not Rofus.

Wondering what had changed, Riruka was curious.

But in the next moment, Rofus gently pushed Riruka away.

“Now, about the sky city.”

“Ah… You haven’t changed, Rofus.”

Realizing he had cleared the room for a serious conversation, Riruka sighed half in exasperation.

“Is it true you found its location? We couldn’t find it no matter how hard we searched…”

“Indeed.”

“…?”

Rofus, seemingly annoyed, explained.

“It appears the sky city is moving intentionally to avoid being found. It’s been eluding you all.”

“…What?”

The idea of the sky city moving on its own was bewildering to Riruka.

The sky city Ciel Parc was an ancient relic left by a once-flourishing civilization.

Powered by fully autonomous floating technology, it continued to fly even after the civilization perished.

The method to control it had been lost, and modern humans couldn’t operate it.

Rofus’ words were utterly preposterous. Where had he even obtained this information?

Suddenly, Riruka recalled the guidance of the Wind God, which had not been very useful lately. Rofus was one of the Six Gods’ apostles, so he might have received information from them as well.

“Could it be that you also received guidance from the Six Gods, Rofus?”

Rofus shook his head in denial.

“No, I haven’t had any contact with the Six Gods. The source of the information is the Saintess.”

“The Saintess!?”

Riruka’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected name.

“The Saintess, you mean Fran!?”

“…There is only one Saintess.”

“No, no, no, why would Fran and you…”

“We have a bit of a connection. I once brought her some of the honey we produce as a gift, and she liked it very much… Since then, she has been asking me to bring more. Now we occasionally have tea together… But that’s beside the point.”

“Wait, why stop there? I’m really curious about that!”

“We’re talking about the Sky City now, right?”

Rofus looked exasperated, and Riruka pouted, feeling somewhat dissatisfied.

“…You’ll tell me in detail later.”

“Yes, later.”

Rofus smiled slyly, remembering a similar exchange at the old Giran mansion.

Riruka also seemed to recall this, letting out a sigh with a slightly discontented expression.

“But still, Fran, huh…”

“Why didn’t you seek her help right away?”

“No, no, she’s the Saintess! If an air pirate like me went to her, she wouldn’t listen to me. There’s even a chance I’d get caught.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Rofus nodded in agreement.

In the story, Saintess Fran played a significant role in revealing the existence of the Sky City. This was due to her special ability, “Divine Revelation,” a unique skill classified as holy magic that allowed her to hear the voice of God. It was a rare power that made Fran the symbol of the Church. 

Despite Yurika being the most prominent healer, Fran became the Saintess because of “Divine Revelation.” This ability was capricious, sometimes delivering God’s messages without warning, and at other times responding to Fran’s queries—though sometimes no answers came at all. Nonetheless, the prophecies and predictions given by “Divine Revelation” had never been wrong.

The Church, which worshiped the Six Gods, regarded these as the words of the Six Gods. Regardless, they were undoubtedly the words of beings beyond human understanding.

In the story, there were many instances where the Saintess’s “Divine Revelation” saved the protagonists. One of those was the discovery of the Sky City.

The giant griffin, Despia, one of the Four Beasts, led many bird-type monsters in attacking villages and towns, causing significant damage. However, whenever a battle began, Despia would fly into the sky and escape, making it impossible to defeat on the ground. 

Then, Saintess Fran, through “Divine Revelation,” discovered the existence of the Sky City, Despia’s stronghold, and pinpointed its location. She also indicated the need for an airship and the existence of the air pirates, “The Crimson Wind.”

With the path shown by “Divine Revelation,” Abel and the protagonists met “The Crimson Wind,” and with their airship, they boarded the Sky City and defeated Despia.

Rofus, having this knowledge from his dreams, grew impatient with “The Crimson Wind” as they struggled to find the Sky City and sought help from the Saintess. Normally, “Divine Revelation” could not be used without the Church’s permission, but the Saintess readily agreed to Rofus’ request. 

This use of “Divine Revelation” was, of course, kept secret from the Church. According to Fran, “It’s worth it to make a favor with a high-ranking noble by slightly betraying the Church.”

Although her words were somewhat secular, Rofus, who already had a low opinion of the Church, found them quite agreeable.

The information about the Sky City obtained by Saintess Fran through “Divine Revelation” was highly valuable. It revealed the exact location of the Sky City and that it was moving to avoid the airships, as if it had a will of its own. 

Why it was escaping and how it was tracking the fast-moving airships were still mysteries. “Divine Revelation” often provided only limited information.

Rofus shared the information obtained through “Divine Revelation” with Riruka.

“I see…”

After hearing all the information, Riruka remained silent for a while, contemplating. After a long pause, she glanced at Rofus’s left arm. Noticing it had a solid form and wasn’t the Dark Hand, she widened her eyes.

“Hey, your left arm is healed?”

“You’re just noticing that now?”

Rofus’s exasperated voice echoed in the study.