The Principle of a Philosopher by Eternal Fool “Asley”

Amid the crimson glow of the autumn sunset — the light that humanity could bask in on this new month thanks to their victory — stood an Elf.

“Hey.”

Lylia twitched at the sound of Asley’s voice.

Turning around, she found him standing there.

“Quite the stealthy approach.”

“Really? I just walked over normally.”

“You say that as if I was lost in thought.”

“Well, you did seem a bit spaced out, yeah.”

“Heh, very funny.”

Indeed, Asley had not stealthily approached her, nor had he dashed in with super speed.

Lylia had simply let her guard down — that was why Asley was cracking jokes at her.

“The party’s already started.”

“Yeah. I know… I’ll show up later.”

“Later… huh?”

“…I can’t quite bring myself to celebrate.”

“Why not? I mean… we did win and all.”

When Asley asked, Lylia shook her head.

“This isn’t about that. It’s about what comes next.”

“Ah… Right, good point.”

“I have lived my whole life by the sword, Asley… And I was ready to die as one.”

“C’mon, don’t say anything disturbing.”

“But that is no longer an option. That’s why I’m so worried about what’s to come.”

She had only known the life of a warrior.

Such was the result of the turbulent times she had lived through.

Even though she had spent the peaceful days as a guest of Polco Adams during the era of the Holy Emperor, for her, that was not the right — a time of peace, which had already come again. Given that, it was only natural for her to be uncertain about the future.

“Live however you want.” — Asley debated saying those words. They were too merciless, too irresponsible. With uncertainties about the future looming over him as well, Asley knew he could not say anything about it.

That was why, at this moment, between these two, only a third person could say it.

“Well then, Lylia, just live however you want♪!”

“…What?”

“Huh? Hey! It wasn’t me! I didn’t say that, okay!?”

Asley vigorously shook his head, denying the words.

But the words continued.

“Oh, what about being the new captain for Regalia’s Warrior Brigade? Monsters haven’t vanished from this world, so there’s plenty for you to do, right?”

It seemed like those words were directed only at them.

Both recognized a specific something —  a specific someone, in that casual tone, in that voice.

Asley and Lylia exchanged glances… and laughed.

“”Hahaha… It’s like he’s actually here…””

Dry laughter hung in the air, yet in the end, neither of them could dismiss what they were hearing as a hallucination.

However, when they could not help but catch sight of ‘him’ with their own eyes, they had no choice but to believe.

“H-hey, are you seeing this…?”

“So… what do we do, Asley? I don’t think I want to get close to… whatever that is…!”

A silhouette of light appeared before them.

It took on a human form. And then, it transformed into the familiar figure of a man known to them both.

The apparition clearly transcended their understanding.

“Hellllllo, you two! Long time no see♪!”

“”Giorno!?””

The former Hero of the Holy Warriors, Giorno, stood before them.

However, he was not the Giorno Asley knew, nor the one Lylia knew.

“You’re so… young.”

There was only a slight surprise in Lylia’s eyes.

Her expression quickly turned stern.

Just because someone appeared as Giorno did not mean they truly were him.

Asley seemed to agree, as they both leaped back, putting distance between themselves and Giorno.

Barely a moment later, Giorno suddenly appeared behind them.

“Now, no need to be so cautious.”

Giorno’s face suddenly popped up between Lylia and Asley, causing both of them to flinch.

“Whoa whoa whoa, gimme some personal space here! You’re practically breathing into my ear, man!”

“…Yes, this creepy habit is very Giorno… But…”

Asley brushed his right ear, while Lylia cast a skeptical gaze at the individual who took Giorno’s form.

Unable to come up with a response to Giorno’s smirk, Lylia remained silent.

However, Asley, having recovered from the chill, realized,

“…I see. Is that what’s going on? Giorno, could it be… Could you have been with us all along?”

“What’s that supposed to even mean?”

Lylia’s gaze shifted to Asley.

“There was something that’s been bothering me… or rather, something I was told.”

“By Giorno?”

“No, not him — not really.”

“You’re making this sound even more confusing than it already is.”

“Five thousand years ago, after being sent to your era, I spoke with someone in a dream.”

In an instant, Lylia realized.

“That means…!”

Lylia looked at Giorno, who remained silent, seemingly waiting for Asley to elaborate on his speculation.

“At that time, he said, ‘those Artifacts of yours are weakening God’s power in this era.’…”

“That’s about your Forbidden Shortcuts, the XP-Boosters…! No, it can’t be!”

Lylia understood the meaning behind Asley’s words.

“Oh, but it totally can. That individual… He claimed to be the Divine Messenger. But later, I realized he was God Himself. The words He spoke… have weighed on my mind ever since.”

“‘In this era’… In other words, the God who appeared in Asley’s dream is the one of THIS era, not from THAT era!”

“And later on, that God appeared in my dream one more time.”

It was during a night in Radeata, right after parting ways with the past version of Irene.

God had taken Asley to the dream world once again.

–By the way, would it be safe to assume that this voice and face is actually yours?

–No, my power is already waning by now. My usual self is “physically” “young,” but the lower my power, the “older” my “body”. Consider my voice and tone as mimicry.

The information Asley had confirmed in his dream — He had been questioning it all along.

Why would God disguise himself as the Divine Messenger? What is the purpose of hiding his true identity?

“So, there were two Gods in that era…?”

Lylia’s question struck at the heart of the matter.

However, even then, Asley shook his head.

“There were actually… three.”

“What!?”

“You almost got it right — during the past war, there WERE two: the God of that era and the God who interfered from the future into that era. But the God I met during the time I spent with Sagan was a god born after the war… which means, it was you… Giorno.”

Asley looked at Giorno, who responded with a sly grin.

“Well done, Asley♪!”

As Giorno clapped cheerfully, Asley looked at him incredulously.

“So, when’d you figure it out, eh?”

“…Well, considering your personality, it couldn’t have been anyone else. God acting with that kind of vibe is just… too out of left field.”

As Asley shrugged, Lylia looked on in disbelief.

“Thanks to Asley’s arcane energy, I finally got my body back, so I came to say hello on a little stroll!”

Seeing Giorno’s innocent laughter, Asley and Lylia exchanged glances.

Though they wore dry smiles like Bright would usually have, Giorno paid no mind to their reactions.

“So you see — the thing is, God picked up my soul after I died in that era, inheriting my whole being. Soooooo… the God who interfered from the future AND the God Asley met in the twenty-eighth year of the War Demon Calendar… were both ME♪!”

“Yeah, makes sense. You didn’t have any power in this era. You were already dominated by the Devilkin right from the beginning. So, the God that appeared in my dreams throughout this era is…”

“–Yup, that’s right! And so I’ll be off to Asley’s dreams right after this!”

“Gah, this is getting too complicated…”

Lylia clasped her head.

Asley, furrowing his brow, gazed into the empty space.

“Now, here’s a question! Which one is the God of the past, which one is me now, and which one is me in the future~~?”

The moment he was asked, Asley gave up trying to figure it out.

“Sorry, that’s a bit too much for me, too…”

“Nice! Now THAT is the face I wanted to see!”

Giorno pointed at Asley, then ascended into the sky as if climbing stairs.

Watching Giorno disappear, the two attempted to follow.

“”Giorno!?””

“It’s okay, it’s okay! I’m just going to spend some time propagating the Legend of the Enlightened! Ahahahahahaha♪!”

As Giorno vanished, leaving behind a laughter-filled sky, Asley pointed up.

“Heh, I know where he’ll be — he’ll have to see it before he can spread it, after all.”

Looking at Lylia, Asley remarked.

Instantly, Lylia burst into laughter.

“Heheheh, what’s with that? Is my problem just too insignificant? Hahaha! That Giorno! Even in death, he still makes fun of me! Seriously… Ugh… hahaha…”

“Um… Lylia? I can’t really tell… are you happy or angry right now?”

Creating new craters in the temple ruins by kicking the ground and shattering boulders, Lylia was indeed angry.

But she was also happy. Seeing Lylia laugh heartily while tears streamed down her face, Asley could only smile wryly.

Then, he looked up at the sky where Giorno had disappeared and whispered just two words:

“Thanks, man.”