Chapter 33

Old Man Voll is the thirty-third chapter of Yamada Kanehito & Abe Tsukasa's Sousou no Frieren.

Summary
Twenty-nine years after the Hero Himmel's passing, Frieren's Party is in the Klar Region. They are traveling to meet one of Frieren's old friends, a dwarf warrior whom Frieren calls Grandfather Voll. Frieren tells Stark to train with Voll and throughout the week, while the party completes tasks for the village, reminisces with Voll about the past. At the end of the week, Frieren thanks Voll for giving her the chance to get to know the Hero Party all those years ago. Voll asks if Frieren still remembers Himmel's face and voice, as despite his wife being his reason for protecting the village, he no longer recalls hers. The two continue reminiscing, and upon hearing that Frieren is currently traveling to Ende, Voll wishes for a peaceful era to arrive soon. Frieren does not correct him and instead tells him she will carry his memory with her. The next day, as Frieren's Party is about to depart, Voll tells them that he had a dream of his wife. The party then continues their journey north.

Plot Details
Twenty-nine years after the Hero Himmel's passing, Frieren's Party are in the Northern Lands, specifically the Klar Region. Frieren's Party is traveling along a forest road to get to a village. While walking along the road, Stark asks Frieren if the person that they are visiting is a powerful warrior. Frieren tells Stark that this warrior, who is a dwarf, has been protecting the village that they are going to for close to four hundred years. Frieren says that his name is Grandfather Voll, a long-time friend of Frieren's who she wishes to visit before he dies so she can talk with him. Frieren jokes that maybe she will stay with him for ten years, before Fern shoots the idea down, telling Frieren that they will be staying there for one week maximum.

They arrive at the village to see a dwarf sitting on a rock next to the entrance with a broadsword propped up beside him. Frieren calls out to the dwarf, who is Voll. She then turns to Stark and asks him if Voll looks cool for a seasoned elder warrior. Stark, however, is unconvinced since Voll appears to be going senile. Voll asks Frieren who she is, and Frieren responds with her name and then asks when is he going to drop the act. Voll proceeds to knock Stark to the ground with his sheathed blade, and warns him that imprudence is one of the most common causes of deaths on the battlefield. He tells Stark to get up, and that even master warriors can suffer a fatal injury if they lower their defense. Frieren, smiling, calls Voll out for his cowardly tactics as always, and he welcomes her to the village and tells them to enjoy themselves. As the rest of the party heads into the village, Stark complains that he cannot get up and walk, to which Frieren replies that he should get Voll to train him. After Stark acquiesces, she and the others go check into the inn.

After checking in, Frieren attempts to solicit a job from the innkeeper as she wishes to stay at least ten years, but Fern harshly reprimands her and reminds her that they will be staying for a maximum of one week. Afterwards, Fern and Sein are seen helping around the village while Frieren is talking with Voll. While Fern and Sein help one of the villagers with his wagon, the villager comments that this is the first time he has seen Voll talk so ecstatically, and that he thought Voll didn’t have any friends. He says that Voll is a senile old grandpa with whom you normally cannot hold a conversation, and that despite the fact he has been protecting the village since long ago, he doesn’t know why. Fern comments that it seems that Voll has always been alone.

The party stays in the village for a week, where Frieren reminisces with Voll throughout. All the while, Voll trains Stark using various methods, from carrying Voll as he sits atop a large boulder to fishing to slaying bear-like creatures. At night, on the last day of their visit, Frieren and Voll are walking outside. She asks him how Stark's training is progressing, and Voll replies that Stark has reasonably improved. Frieren says that it has been fun being with Voll and that she is thankful because he gave her the chance to get to know Himmel and the others all those years ago.

Frieren then reminisces on the Hero Party's last visit to the village. Voll is sitting at the entrance of the village with the Hero Party standing next to him. Himmel asks Voll why he protects the village, and Voll says that his reason doesn’t matter anymore. Himmel is unamused by this answer and tells Voll that people do not risk their lives for something that does not matter. Voll then answers Himmel’s question seriously - he is just protecting the village that his wife, who was human, loved. He is simply fulfilling a promise to her, but he does not intend on sharing details, because he can’t remember anything anymore - not his wife’s face, gaze, nor voice. Voll says that it must sound funny, constantly protecting a promise to someone deceased. Himmel replies that perhaps that is the case, but he is sure that Voll's wife is happy that he is still protecting that promise. In response, Voll tells Himmel that he is a good hero and that he will surely defeat the Demon King. He then says that his wife also wished for a peaceful era, and that he will carry the memory of Himmel with him into the future. Himmel says that he is thankful for that, but since Frieren and Eisen are in his party, there isn’t a need. This causes Eisen to respond that he won’t live as long as an elf, so Himmel then says that it'll be Frieren’s duty. Frieren says that she doesn’t mind. Voll acknowledges this, and tells Himmel is that he is blessed with his comrades. Himmel then self-importantly tells Frieren that he’ll need to show her a compilation of handsome poses after this, making Frieren retort that maybe she should stop remembering him after all.

After recalling Himmel's handsome pose compilation, in the present, Frieren tells Voll that the handsome poses that Himmel made her remember were a waste. Voll then asks if she remembers Himmel’s face, to which Frieren immediately replies yes. He then asks if she remembers his voice. Frieren pauses for a moment, then tells him not to take her as a fool and that she remembers everything because Himmel was her reason for getting to know humans. She says that it is equally as important a reason as to why Voll wants to protect the village. In response, Voll tells Frieren that he cannot even recall his wife’s face, voice, or gaze. But he is protecting this village nonetheless because it is something important to him. He then asks where Frieren's Party is going on their journey. Frieren tells him that they are going to Aureole, the lands where souls rest. He asks where that is, and she says that it is where the Demon King’s Castle is. Voll then says that then someone is finally going to defeat the Demon King and that he hopes a peaceful era arrives. Frieren is shocked by the fact Voll has forgotten his time with the Hero Party, but she stops mid-sentence and decides not to correct him. Laughing, she tells him that she will bring Grandfather Voll's memory into the future with her as well. Voll sits in contemplation for a moment, then tells Frieren that it sounds like a nice thought and that he is glad to have met her again in the last moments of his life. Frieren tells Voll that he already said that to her eighty years ago.

The next morning, Frieren's Party says their farewells to Voll. Frieren tells Voll that she will see him again and to stay strong. As Frieren's Party departs from the village, Voll calls out to Frieren and tells her that he had a dream of his wife, probably because he reminisced with her about the past.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Frieren
 * Fern
 * Stark
 * Sein
 * Voll
 * Himmel
 * Heiter
 * Eisen

Locations

 * Klar Region

Events

 * Frieren meets with Voll, an old dwarven friend of hers.

Spells

 * Unnamed magic that makes objects float

Chapter Notes

 * The Voll Basin, a location in the Central Lands that appeared in Chapter 7 and Chapter 8, might be named after Grandfather Voll.