Lucian stared at the crooked braid he'd just finished tying and nearly laughed at himself.
'How did it turn out even worse than last time?'
Then again...
He really couldn't expect much from someone who had only braided someone's hair twice in his life.
Without saying a word, Lucian quietly undid the disastrous ponytail and started over.
This time, although it was still nothing special, it was at least presentable.
Looking at the finished braid, he finally let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Most of the girls around him never wore their hair in braids.
And besides Millicent, the only other person who regularly tied her hair, Irina, could do it herself.
Lucian simply had no opportunity to practice.
"There."
"That should look about the same as before."
Millicent reached up and gently touched her newly tied hair.
With her back still facing Lucian, a faint smile spread across her lips.
'Such clumsy hands...'
'...but it makes me happy.'
Seeing that Millicent hadn't turned around and kept fiddling with her hair, Lucian mistakenly assumed she wasn't satisfied with the result.
Now he no longer dared continue talking about her hair.
Quickly changing the subject, he turned toward Alexander.
"Alexander, I came today to follow through on what we talked about before."
"I'd like to visit your home, Jarburg, and ask whether the jars would be willing to move to Stormveil."
"If they're willing to come, I can guarantee that no poachers will ever harm them again."
"The different races in Stormveil get along very well."
"They won't have to worry about being mistreated there."
Stormveil was already home to plenty of races besides humans.
Trolls.
Misbegotten.
Demi-humans.
Everyone lived together peacefully.
Adding the Living Jars wouldn't be a problem at all.
If the various jar villages could even establish contact with one another afterward...
That would be even better.
Alexander agreed without the slightest hesitation.
"HAHA! Thank you so much!"
He spent most of his life wandering the Lands Between.
There were no warrior jars left in Jarburg capable of protecting the others.
The only reason he'd been able to leave with peace of mind was because the village's location was so incredibly well hidden.
Lucian nodded.
"Good."
"Then let's head there."
However, Alexander merely fidgeted awkwardly, making no move to leave.
"Hm?"
"What's wrong?"
Embarrassed, Alexander scratched the lid atop his head.
Before he could answer, Millicent spoke first.
"Because..."
"...Alexander forgot the way back to his own village."
"We were actually trying to visit his hometown before this."
"Instead..."
"...we got lost and somehow ended up here."
After saying that, she couldn't help giving Alexander a sidelong glance.
Hearing that, the corner of Lucian's mouth twitched.
He already knew Alexander had an awful sense of direction.
But he hadn't expected things to reach the point where the man couldn't even find Jarburg anymore.
'At least in the game,' Lucian thought, 'he managed to reach the cliff overlooking Jarburg... he just got himself stuck in another hole.'
Come to think of it...
Repeatedly getting lost...
Or repeatedly falling into holes and getting stuck...
Which one was actually more ridiculous?
Lucian shook his head.
"It's alright."
"I'll take you there."
"I've already found the place before."
As he spoke, a gentle storm wind lifted both of them into the air.
The moment Alexander found himself floating...
He panicked.
His arms and legs flailed wildly as he desperately tried to regain his balance.
Unfortunately, all that frantic waving accomplished was making him spin helplessly through the air.
If his lid hadn't been securely fastened...
His contents probably would have spilled everywhere.
As a warrior jar—
No.
As a jar of any kind...
Flying was simply not an experience jars were meant to have.
For Living Jars, being high above the ground was terrifying.
Their bodies simply weren't built to survive a fall from great heights.
A short drop might be manageable.
But from too high up...
It was practically suicide.
Millicent, meanwhile, remained remarkably composed.
Thanks to her agile, flexible body, she quickly figured out how to stabilize herself.
She even found herself quietly enjoying the unusual experience.
After helping Alexander settle into a more stable position, Lucian led the two of them swiftly through the sky toward Jarburg.
Alexander collapsed onto the grass the moment they landed.
"Ugh..."
"I think it's my turn to feel dizzy now."
"Millicent..."
"I finally understand how you felt earlier."
After their high-speed flight, they'd quickly arrived atop the cliffs overlooking Jarburg.
Standing beside the sprawled-out Alexander, Lucian and Millicent exchanged amused smiles.
Leaving him to recover, the two stepped to the edge of the cliff and looked down.
On a broad ledge jutting from the cliffside lay a quiet little village.
Countless flowers and herbs, many valuable crafting materials, flourished under the careful tending of the jars, transforming the entire settlement into a sea of blossoms.
Most of the jars weren't outside.
Only a handful stood quietly before their homes, gazing into the distance.
Looking upon the village, Millicent couldn't help murmuring,
"This hardly feels like somewhere that belongs in the Lands Between."
To avoid poachers, jar villages were almost always built in the most secluded locations imaginable.
Among them all...
Alexander's hometown was hidden better than nearly any other.
Precisely because of that, the jars living here enjoyed lives far more peaceful than their kin elsewhere.
In their spare time, they could even tend to flowers and herbs.
After resting for a while, Alexander finally climbed back to his feet, his usual energy restored.
Standing at the edge of the cliff, he gazed down at the hometown he'd been away from for so many years and let out a long sigh.
"...Home."
"I've never forgotten it..."
"...even though it's been so long since I last returned."
"But now that I'm actually back..."
"...I'm surprised to find that I'm a little afraid."
He quietly watched the peaceful village below.
In a sense...
He had abandoned his duty to protect the village in order to pursue his own dream.
None of his fellow jars had ever blamed him for it.
On the contrary, they'd encouraged him to chase that dream.
Even so...
He still felt guilty from time to time.
He often wondered what would happen if poachers had found the village while he was away.
Without a warrior jar to defend it...
Jarburg's defenses were practically nonexistent.
Fortunately...
That would no longer be something he needed to worry about.
After judging the distance, Alexander took the lead.
With a powerful leap, he launched himself straight off the cliff.
Although Jarburg lay a considerable distance below, the height was still well within what he could survive.
It wasn't enough to crack a warrior jar like Alexander.
Boom!
His massive body slammed into the soft earth, blasting open a huge crater.
"HAHAHAHA!"
"I'm home!"
The thunderous impact of the landing startled every jar in the village.
One after another, they hurried out of their homes and looked toward Alexander, who had landed in the center of the village.
The moment they recognized him, excited cries broke out.
"It's Alexander!"
"Alexander's back!"
"Haha! Crashing into the village like that, it's exactly his style."
Among them, a small Living Jar was the first to sprint forward on his tiny little legs.
"Uncle Alexander!"
With a loud thump, the little jar rammed straight into Alexander's body.
Laughing heartily, Alexander pulled himself out of the crater and patted the little jar's lid.
"Antiq, you've grown quite a bit."
The little jar, Antiq, grabbed Alexander's hand and shook it enthusiastically.
"I've been training really hard!"
"Uncle Alexander, does this mean you've become a hero?!"
He gazed at Alexander with sparkling excitement.
When Alexander had left the village, he'd declared that he wouldn't be returning.
He had said that one's homeland was something to cherish from afar, that a hero was destined to walk alone and would never come back.
Most Warrior Jars served as guards or bodyguards.
But among them was one peculiar exception.
A jar burning with fighting spirit, yearning for battle, determined to become a hero despite being nothing more than a jar.
Carrying the lingering wills of the warriors resting within him, he threw himself into battle after battle, walking the path of heroism.
That unusual jar was Alexander.
And he had always been Antiq's greatest idol.
Long ago, the little jar had secretly vowed to walk the same heroic road as Uncle Alexander.
He wanted to become a hero himself.
He wanted the world to change the way it looked at Living Jars.
Hearing Antiq's question, Alexander fell silent.
Had he become a hero?
Perhaps.
Perhaps not.
If he were being honest with himself, Alexander still didn't think he deserved that title.
He wasn't satisfied with who he was yet.
Nor did he believe he was worthy of being this child's role model.
Though it pained him to shatter the boy's hopeful dream by admitting he hadn't become a hero yet...
A true hero would never lie for the sake of vanity.
But before he could answer, Lucian's voice rang out.
"Yes."
"Your Uncle Alexander is a genuine hero."
"He fought bravely alongside the legendary champion, General Radahn. The glory of the Festival of Combat belongs to him as well."
Holding Millicent's hand, Lucian slowly descended from the cliff above.
The other jars grew noticeably uneasy at the sight of unfamiliar humans.
This village was never meant to be discovered.
If word of its location spread, poachers would inevitably come.
Only after realizing these two humans were Alexander's companions did the jars calm down somewhat, though whispers continued throughout the village.
Antiq, meanwhile, paid no attention to what the humans' appearance implied.
He simply clung to Alexander's hand in admiration.
He had no idea who Lucian was, nor did he fully understand what he'd said.
But he knew it was all praise for Uncle Alexander's courage and strength.
Alexander's body trembled slightly, warmth filling his heart.
Even though he was just an ordinary jar...
Even though he'd been shattered so badly during the Festival of Combat...
Since Lucian had already said as much...
Then perhaps it was all right to let the child continue believing in his hero.
If another little jar wished to become the next Alexander...
Then he would strive with all his might to truly become worthy of that admiration.
Straightening proudly, Alexander gently patted Antiq's tiny lid.
"The road of a hero has no end."
"I still have a long way to walk, so before long, I'll be setting off again."
"But I came back this time because I have something important to do."
"Once that's finished, I'll tell you all about the incredible adventures I've had."
Hearing that Uncle Alexander would soon leave again, Antiq looked disappointed.
Still, the promise of hearing heroic stories quickly brightened his mood again.
His eyes shone with anticipation.
"Okay!"
"I'll keep training hard until I can catch up with you, Uncle Alexander!"
Although the villagers were still wary of humans, Alexander's presence as their guarantor was enough for Jarburg to accept them.
Alexander's friends couldn't possibly be bad people.
If they were, Alexander would have beaten them flat long ago.
Greeting old companions all along the way, Alexander eventually led Lucian and Millicent to one of the village's houses.
Jarburg had no chief, but someone still had to speak on behalf of the community.
As such, matters affecting the entire village were discussed by its oldest and most experienced jars.
Alexander brought Lucian and Millicent before the most respected elder in Jarburg.
The elder was an enormous Living Jar, even larger than Alexander by several sizes.
Unlike the Warrior Jar Alexander, however, his ceramic body looked much thinner and more fragile.
Without wasting time on formalities, Lucian quickly explained why he had come.
After listening carefully, the old jar remained unconvinced, pondering the proposal over and over.
Everything Lucian described sounded wonderful.
For Living Jars, there seemed to be nothing but benefits.
But... that was precisely what made it suspicious.
After all, the jars had nothing they could possibly offer in return.
They were simply supposed to gain a powerful protector overnight?
It sounded too good to be true.
Having personally witnessed poachers slaughter Living Jars in the past, the elder knew all too well that jars themselves were valuable commodities to humans.
He couldn't help wondering...
Had Alexander been deceived?
After thinking it over, the elder, disregarding any concern about seeming rude, quietly pulled Alexander aside.
"Alexander..."
"You haven't been tricked, have you?"
"I don't mean to insult your friend, but... these terms are simply unbelievable for jars like us."
"If you think about it carefully, you should understand why."
Alexander folded his arms across his 'chest' before suddenly realizing what the elder meant.
Come to think of it...
From Lucian's perspective, there didn't seem to be any benefit whatsoever.
But Alexander knew Lucian wasn't that kind of person.
His ideals were loftier than those of any hero Alexander had ever known.
Understanding the elder's concerns, Alexander casually patted the old jar's side with familiar ease.
"HAHAHA! I was wondering why you didn't agree immediately."
"So that's what you were worried about."
"Don't worry."
"I, Alexander, stake my honor on it, Lucian is absolutely trustworthy."
"In the Lands Between, there are still those who fight for a brighter tomorrow."