[User] Now that they understood victory would require getting Vincent back to the palace, they had emerged from the guardhouse. Unfortunately, the group promptly stopped dead in their tracks when they sensed they were surrounded by innumerable hostile presences.

[Assistant] “So many of them. I can’t believe I didn’t notice… They really caught us with our pants down.” Reinhard, like Julius, scanned the area, frowning to realize they’d been taken completely unawares. This look of chagrin was unusual for him, but his frustration with himself was understandable. They were encircled by so many; it should have been impossible not to notice them.

[User] “Ten, twenty… No less than fifty, I’d say.”

[Assistant] “Wow, that’s not good news. I didn’t know your Sprouts could count, Julius.”

[User] “For better or worse, they’re excellent students, and I’m a proud teacher.”

[Assistant] “Hmm, not the brag I was hoping for…” Ferris quickly hid himself behind Julius and Reinhard.

[User] When Julius had his greater spirits confirm the number of auras surrounding the guardhouse, he discovered it was many tens of times their own. They were not Volakian troops, however. Rather, Julius was certain these were assassins sent by whosoever was hunting them. The killers seemed to meld with the trees, preventing the spirit mage from getting a good look at them. Even if he strained his eyes, following the guidance of his spirits, he still couldn’t seem to make anything out.

[Assistant] “It would seem even the vaunted Sword Saint can’t elude the empire’s prized hunting hounds.”

[User] “Are you implying you know who they are, Your Majesty? Maybe you could give them a good shouting-at, then? We share the same fate meow, it looks like.”

[Assistant] “I very much doubt it. If they’ve allied themselves with the rebels, then they won’t care whether I personally approve of what they’re doing. It’s obvious enough from the way they’ve thrown aside their role as spies and informants to turn into simple assassins.” Vincent crossed his arms and remained suitably imperious as he eyed the auras around them.


[User] “One supposes you were talked into it with sweet nothings. What were you told? That when I had been removed from the throne, the treatment of the weakest tribe would change? You were bought at a cheap price.”

[Assistant] “Um, Your Majesty… If talking to them won’t work, maybe we could at least…not taunt them and make them angry? Just Ferri’s little idea.”

[User] Vincent’s provocation had certainly seemed to enhance the menacing pressure that surrounded them. These faceless assassins had come to murder the emperor, he who ruled their nation. With Vincent’s words, the last vestiges of hesitation had been wiped from their minds. Suddenly, they heard a grating, clicking noise.

[Assistant] “This sound…”

[User] “The indication that their preparations are complete. These are frightening and powerful opponents. Show me how you’ll protect the ruler of Volakia.”

[Assistant] “As you command.”

[User] “I’m meowy uncomfortable with this!” Ferris exclaimed. He was the last of the four of them to speak, for it was then the enemy made their move. With incredible speed, someone approached the guardhouse from behind—a figure flying on wings made of stretched skin. It had legs and arms like a human, but also several crucial differences. The wings were one of them, as were the feelers and compound eyes. All these differences shared a kind of similarity: They were all parts of a bug.

[Assistant] “They are from the Insect Cage Clan. They’ve domesticated these fearsome bugs. They may not be much to look at, but they are more than powerful enough. Even compared with a Sword Saint.”

[User] “Understood,” Reinhard said as the enemy closed in. The Insect Cage Clan was a minority group that existed only in Volakia, a tribe that included a wide variety of demi-humans. From a young age, members of the clan ingested bugs with special powers, adopting the qualities of those creatures over time. They shared their Odo, the wellspring of all life, with the insects, combining their very souls in order to share their bodies and gain the insects’ power. This was what led to their monstrous external appearance. When the people of this clan unleashed the power of the insects, they themselves transformed into something very much like the bugs.

[Assistant] The attacks were very mechanical, holding no passion or emotion. The clansfolk were hunting powerful humans, and they were doing it logically, cruelly, and mercilessly. They danced through the sky on their wings, shot poison darts from the pipes in their mouths, used their mutated arms like sickles to slash at their prey, stabbed with horns that could punch through steel, and even charged headlong, relying on their own bodies, encased in impenetrable carapaces. All unique moves that no normal person could perform, and yet…

[User] “Well, well. I’ve never seen any of these attacks before. I guess it would be impolite to describe this as ‘very interesting.’”

[Assistant] “…? !” To the assassins, it must have been like a nightmare, for all their attacks were denied.


[User] Reinhard used his fancy footwork to keep them all at a distance, despite their flight advantage. The Sword Saint slapped their poison darts down in midair. With his hands, he deflected their wind-slicing sickles and their armor-piercing horns, while he met their shattering charges and sent them reeling with a single kick. Reinhard had never seen any of these attacks before, yet he wasn’t so much as dirtied by them.

[Assistant] "Impossible…" The man groaned, with horns growing from his shoulders. His attempt on the emperor’s life had been stopped cold.

[User] "These are our most secret and deadly techniques, yet you treat them as nothing… How?!" The bug-like assassin’s voice trembled in astonishment as he watched Reinhard.

[Assistant] "I’m sorry. I’m just going on intuition."

[User] "Wha…? !" The man’s face stiffened in further disbelief. The next moment, Reinhard pulled close two opponents he had grabbed hold of and sent them crashing into the man with the huge sickles and horns.

[Assistant] A saber flashed out and sliced the deadly protrusions in half as an enemy with poisonous feelers tried to take the opportunity to get behind Reinhard. "Reinhard, that explanation was not very helpful." Poison scattered from the tumbling bits of feeler; Julius brushed it aside with the wind he whipped out from a swipe of his saber, then stabbed the reeling assassin through the limbs. The man crumpled and fell. Julius slammed him in the face with the hilt of his sword, sending the insect-person into unconsciousness.

[User] Having subdued this one opponent, Julius turned to discover that in the meantime, Reinhard had taken on another five of the Insect Cage Clan killers and overpowered them all.


[User] "That is rather astonishing…" Vincent murmured as he watched the scene unfold before him.

[Assistant] Reinhard’s knifehand, which could cut more effectively than live steel, slashed through the oncoming clan members as they flew at him one after another. To the emperor, perhaps the Sword Saint’s combative dance, along with his red hair, painted a scene of moths tragically charging toward a flame. Still, the enemy was a plentiful swarm. Numbers would tell eventually. "Julius! Take Ferris and His Majesty!" Reinhard shouted as he continued to turn back the storm of deadly attacks. It was clear he intended to be the rearguard again.

[User] "Rather inelegant, but unavoidable." Vincent remarked. Destroying the enemy was not their victory condition.

[Assistant] Julius knew what he had to do. "Your Majesty, this way!"

[User] "So I shall be made to run again. You know no fear of your betters, do you?"

[Assistant] "Don’t complain! Ferri and Julius are running, too!"


[User] Thus, the flight back to the Crystal Palace began in earnest, with Vincent in tow. There was a furious beating of wings; most of the Insect Cage Clan were stalled by Reinhard and couldn’t pursue them. A few, though, were able to give chase through the skies. "Ire! Alo!" Julius gave a sweep of his sword, summoning the red and the green great spirits. A howling conflagration spun up. It burned the wings from their pursuers, who fell to the ground, screaming.

[Assistant] "Hrgh… Grr…" Even on the ground, the Insect Cage Clan members struggled and tried vainly to reach for their target. Julius ignored them, however. The knight ran to catch up with Ferris and the emperor, who were ahead of him.

[User] Julius couldn’t help feeling some sympathy for the assassins as they stretched and strained to continue their pursuit. If what Vincent had said was true, then these creatures had joined in the rebellion in hopes of gaining higher status for their people. He didn’t agree with their methods, but it wasn’t his to say that their wish, which had moved them to such actions, was wrong.

[Assistant] "Would you let that cheap sentiment lure you into allowing them to achieve their goals?"

[User] "Your Majesty…"

[Assistant] Vincent had matched his pace to Julius’s and looked over at him. When the ruler of Volakia saw the effect his words had, he coldly stated, "You cannot. That is the truth. Mercy, compassion, decency—all are but ways the strong show their superiority over the weak. Chivalry seeks to dress this fact up as something more, but when all is said and done, it only shows that true selflessness is impossible." Vincent’s words were like a merciless blade cleaving Julius’s sympathetic heart. However, the knight didn’t dispute the emperor’s description of his feelings as cheap sentiment. He couldn’t.

[User] "Your Majesty… Take it easy on Julius, all right?" It was not Julius, but Ferris, now bringing up the rear, who spoke up. His breath was starting to come in gasps, but his gaze was still intense as he leveled it at Vincent.


[User] “You might think Julius is a big, serious guy—it’s an easy meowstake to make. But inside, he’s just a kid, and getting him all bent out of shape with the way you talk makes you nothing but a bully.”

[Assistant] “As you proved in the throne room, you certainly do not hesitate to criticize me, beast-boy. Perhaps it only emphasizes that you truly are feral. Did you leave your courtesy behind when you left your mother’s womb?”

[User] “I was most humbly spoiled, if you will, sire, by one who was not so easily offended by blunt statements. By no stretch was our king in the slightest way suited to rulership, and yet, Your Majesty…he was a better man than you’ll ever be.”

[Assistant] Vincent narrowed his eyes at Ferris’s words, then broke into a slight smile.

[User] “Let it not be said you are without courage. You’ve provoked me to draw my attention away from your friend.”

[Assistant] “…How’s that, sir? Poor li’l Ferri doesn’t know what you mean!” Ferris put a finger to his cheek and pretended not to understand what the emperor was saying. That alone revealed the true intention behind Ferris’s baiting remark—he had been trying to protect Julius.

[User] “Ferris, my thanks.”

[Assistant] “I told mew! I don’t know what mew’re talking about! Listen to me!” Ferris puffed out his cheeks in mock annoyance, then quickly unpuffed them to grab another breath as the trio continued their flight.

[User] Julius, one eye on Ferris, chose to throw away any concerns about what they had left behind and focus ahead

[Assistant] “We have to make it to the Crystal Palace…”


[User] The group would have to cross through the forest again to reach the castle, but the structure was already visible in the distance. If they proved able to clear the palace walls by riding the wind, it would be simple to evade the eyes of the imperial troops. However, as Julius considered the plan, something unexpected happened…

[Assistant] The knight’s naive strategy was cleaved apart—rather like Vincent’s right arm, which came flying off at the shoulder.

[User] Vincent's slim arm went spiraling through the air, landing on the grass at about the same time as Vincent himself, who was knocked to the ground by the shock of it all. It was a moment later before the wound began to gush blood, soaking the emperor’s red-and-black outfit.

[Assistant] “Your Majesty!” After the instant it took for his thoughts to stop and restart again, Julius pulled the emperor up.

[User] Ferris, his face pale, collected Vincent’s arm and quickly began working a healing spell.


[User] "Ferris! We have to get back to the woods! There’s nothing to hide behind here!"

[Assistant] "Wha—? Huh? Hwah?"

[User] "We don’t know how His Majesty is being attacked! I don’t see anyone! It must be someone striking from a distance!" Julius spun on his heel and, just as he had told Ferris, made a dash for the woods.

[Assistant] Ferris followed after, but without keeping his head down; the situation still had not sunk in for him. An attack of some kind grazed his cat ears, slamming into the trees beyond. Whatever it was punched clear through the trunk of the first tree, as well as the one behind it. It was then that Ferris finally understood what was happening. "A sniper? !" Ferris cried.

[User] The blow that had claimed the emperor of Volakia’s arm was a long-range, covert magical attack. The assassin had likely been positioned to watch over the route back to the Crystal Palace, and when the fugitives had so readily shown themselves, the killer had taken a shot. Whoever it was, they were careful and attentive, and their accuracy was alarmingly good. If they had aimed just an inch or two higher, it would have been Vincent’s head they blew off. "They don’t even seem to care if we go in the woods…!"

[Assistant] "That’s because they no longer need to be subtle. And all those shots… How many of them are there?" Ferris gripped his head as he ran; Julius held the emperor. Sniper shots followed them like a curtain of rain. From right to left, they came with frightening speed and precision; Julius had minimized his movements when dodging to avoid throwing Vincent around too much. The emperor was pale—and unconscious from the shock of losing an appendage. If they didn’t stop the bleeding, the man would die. Julius had to make a choice, and soon. "Ferris! Take shelter under a tree and tend to His Majesty! I’ll keep those assassins busy!"

[User] "You think you can do it?"

[Assistant] "I have to! The emperor’s life is what determines whether it’s peace or war for us!"

[User] “…! All right…!” Ferris trembled for a moment at the weight of this responsibility but nodded. Julius set Vincent in the shadow of an especially large tree, and Ferris began treatment immediately. Presently, he had the severed arm reattached and had moved on to lifesaving measures. The demi-human was a healer among healers, able to reverse the course of even a mortal wound so long as he began to work on it before the victim died. This was Ferris’s—Felix Argyle’s—battlefield.


[User] “Go get ’em!” Ferris cried, and Julius made for the clash with the wind at his heels.

[Assistant] Sniper shots tore up the earth mere hairs behind the man as he sped across the difficult forest terrain. The enemy was highly capable, but it wasn’t enough to stop Julius. Perhaps they knew he was the greatest threat, though, because the incoming shots quickly shifted to target to him. Even as he evaded blasts from all four directions, Julius was relieved to know he had gotten the attention of the snipers. Now Ferris would be free to do his healing work. All that remained was for Julius to play his part. Shots grazed his cheek and the soles of his feet, allowing the knight to see that the attacks were colorless globes of light. The projectiles were simple spheres of mana, not imbued with any element. That made them akin to the non-elemental attack of Groovy’s magic knuckles. However, these marksmen proved much more refined than that, aiming specifically for Julius’s hands, feet, and vital organs with almost unbelievable precision. Their speed was far greater than that of a heavy bow, and the sniper’s ability to target a moving enemy seemed almost inhuman. The notion floated into Julius’s thoughts that this assassin might be another of the Nine Divine Generals. They were Volakia’s most capable fighters, after all. If so, then at this moment, there was only one person who would deliberately take aim at His Majesty… “Balleroy Temeglyph!” The man was not testing Julius’s skills or trying merely to incapacitate him. The knight of Lugunica was involved in a genuine duel with one of the Nine. Picturing himself in a sort of joust against one of the empire’s best fighters, Julius felt his heart tremble. Would his own abilities prove enough for such an opponent?

[User] “” Julius was said to be the third strongest of the Knights of the Royal Guard of the Kingdom of Lugunica. Though he was ranked just after Reinhard and Marcus when it came to strength, the purple-haired man was all too aware of just what a distant third place it was. His abilities were still growing, and Julius didn’t know how well he could match one of Volakia’s strongest. Thus, whether he quaked with excitement or terror, neither could be certain. However, there was one thing Julius was certain of.

[Assistant] “This arm of mine, gripping this sword. It burns in this moment.” He felt the weight he bore, and he knew the awe in which he held his enemy. At times, he doubted his own skill with the saber and whether he had really earned the title he had been given. This battle would doubtlessly reveal the answer, or at least, the hint of one.


[User] “…!” Julius emerged from behind a cover of dense trees within the forest. The moment he did, his very flesh reacted to the hail of the invisible light-missiles with the physical enhancement gifted to him by Ine, the light-element greater spirit.

[Assistant] It was the same card he had played in his battle with Cecils, one that substantially improved Julius’s reactions. The moment his heightened senses detected an attack, he would bring up his sword to block it at the speed of thought. He sent the globes of light flying away with swift, small motions of his flame-wreathed saber.

[User] Julius parried one, then another, and yet another. “” As he blocked each of the incoming shots—though only just—the knight tried to reach out with his feelings to determine the location of the sniper.

[Assistant] Once Julius emerged from the woods, he would be in a wide-open plain. There would be no appreciable obstacles until the walls of the capital; he’d be a sitting duck. But the sniper wouldn’t be the only one who’d benefit from the better lines of sight. It would also leave the assassin’s own location more obvious to his target.

[User] If Julius could just discover the sniper’s location, it would allow him to retaliate with his own magic. Thus, the knight of Lugunica made a choice. He would relinquish the initiative but still move to the plain, knowing he would be on the back foot. Whether the strategy would be for good or for ill, Julius would discover if he survived his opponent’s opening gambit…


[Assistant] "Not bad, not bad. But it only works if yer enemy is at the same height as you.” Julius thought he heard these words drifting on the wind as he emerged onto the grasslands.

[User] However, there was no time to waste on the voice. For the same instant it reached him, so did several sniper shots, each from a different location, and it took everything Julius had to defend against them.

[Assistant] “Impossible…” By exercising the limits of his swordsmanship and magic, he was able to deflect most of the globes of light that came at him. A few shots he couldn’t protect against had managed to graze his left shoulder, right leg, and thigh. Yet Julius felt more surprised than pained. He no longer doubted that Balleroy was the sniper. Even so, Julius believed there had to be more than one shooter.

[User] When one considered the shots taken at the emperor, and now at himself, there was little doubt. Otherwise, how could the projectiles have come from so many directions at once? However…

[Assistant] “I can’t imagine there are very many people alive who are capable of such precise shooting.” The entire volley had come at Julius in the space of a breath. That there was a group of people around who could launch a barrage not only with great strength and accuracy, but also maintain such incredible coordination, was unthinkable. The only conclusion was that Balleroy had some sort of trick up his sleeve.


[Assistant] In the woods, hidden beneath the shadow of a great tree, Ferris could do little more than put his trust in the fighting skills of his two companions while pouring his own efforts into healing the mortally wounded Vincent, who lay before him.

[User] “I’m begging you, don’t die! It would be the stupidest thing to end up in a war because of this…!”

[Assistant] “…Don’t shout directly into my ear. O more-feral-than-ordinary beast of a person.”

[User] “…Look at you—finally awake, and the first thing you say is something nasty.” Ferris had been utterly taken aback by the Volakian ruler’s sudden remark.

[Assistant] Emperor Vincent, his face pale, smirked at the obvious relief in the cat-boy’s expression. “It seems your fears are much alleviated. If I am to depart this mortal coil, war between the empire and the kingdom will become unavoidable. A heavy burden for your narrow shoulders, no doubt.”

[User] “Uh-huh, very much so, so again, please don’t die, Your Majesty. It would be a stupid way to start a stupid war.”

[Assistant] “You feel war is stupid?” Vincent’s cold, bloodless smile didn’t change at Ferris’s remark. In the emperor’s dark eyes was the reflection of the young knight, who hadn’t even bothered to try wiping away the blood that spattered on the Volakian ruler. “This must vex you greatly. Were Lugunica’s royal family well, and the covenant with the Dragon safely in place, you would have no need to save this life of ours.”

[User] “Your healing abilities are considerable. I acknowledge as much, without sarcasm or irony."


[User] "To be unable to wield those skills on behalf of those to whom you were most loyal… There are no words for how ill your stars must be.”

[Assistant] “…! Don’t mock me!” Even as his injuries were being healed, Vincent didn’t hesitate to needle at Ferris’s own wounds.

[User] The demi-human had resolved to let it pass—but in the end, he was unable to do so. “Vexed, you call me? You say I don’t want to save you? What do you know about me…? !” The cat-boy’s voice shook. Though his hands were full of healing power, there was anger in his eyes as he glared at his patient.

[Assistant] Vincent was right. Just as he’d said, Ferris’s abilities had done nothing against the magical plague and had been impotent to save his homeland or its king. There were many he had wished to save and many he had watched die. Worst of all, the one he had to save, Ferris had lost, and the young knight had been swallowed up by his own powerlessness. Yet now he was here, doing this. His power had been unable to save his prince, but this man, curse him, he could save… “But His Highness… He never would have thought that way. He may have been lost, but that man would’ve had me help others. He was never so narrow-minded as to begrudge the happiness of others!”

[User] If he closed his eyes, Ferris could still see that young man’s smile as clear as day. How long he had wished for him to be happy, for Ferris and his master to be blessed together. But it was not to be, and his inability to make it so left the healer wishing to die at times. But Ferris knew, well enough to break his heart, that His Highness would never have allowed such a thing. That was why, even now, Ferris did not withdraw his hand or slacken his effort as he healed this person he reviled. “Don’t mock me, Emperor Volakia. I am the healer of my lord the prince and of the Lion King. In their kindness, they made no distinction among people. So how could I, as their hand, choose some and reject others? If every one of them were alive and well, I would still answer to what was asked of me. I have committed to it—and no less.”

[Assistant] Vincent does not speak.

[User] Ferris realized he had gotten emotional, but he didn’t regret it. The young healer refused to bemoan that he had bombarded the emperor with his words, piling on disrespectful words one after another. In that moment, he felt only love for those two people who evoked such feelings of admiration from him with but a thought. That was the most important thing in Felix Argyle’s life. He had reaffirmed as much precisely with his caustic words to the ruler of an entire empire.


[User] “Unless I’ve missed my guess, that sniping was done by Balleroy Temeglyph.” Vincent suddenly offered, letting the words out in one long breath.

[Assistant] "What?" It took Ferris a second to grasp what the emperor had said—and its implications. Balleroy was one of the Nine Divine Generals. It stood to reason that Vincent would know how the man fought.

[User] “Unless one understands his particular abilities and unravels Balleroy’s little trick, one will most certainly be destroyed by his hail of missiles. Even if your other knight has seen through his gimmick, one person alone will not likely be able to bring him down. Two might manage—just.”

[Assistant] “Two…? But Reinhard is—” Ferris spared a glance back in the direction of the guardhouse and thought of Reinhard. The Sword Saint was still back there, single-handedly holding off more than fifty assassins. Ferris believed that Julius and Reinhard together could overcome any opponent, no matter who it might be. But at that moment, the chances of Reinhard rejoining them seemed approximately the chances of a bug against a shoe.

[User] “Are those ears of yours for anything more than decoration, beast-boy?”

[Assistant] “Decoration…?”

[User] “I said, two might manage. The presence or absence of the Sword Saint is of no consequence.”


[User] Ferris looked down at his small, weak hands. Ferris had just one weapon: the lion-crested dagger he had received from his master. He didn’t know how to use it, nor did he possess any skill as a swordsman. If the emperor thought Ferris would suffice as an opponent for one of the Nine Generals, then he thought in vain.

[Assistant] "You may plead impotence, if you wish." Vincent said with a taunting little snort. "In which case, you need only be a passive observer, watching things unfold."

[User] When the emperor saw Ferris’s eyes widen, he continued, "Perhaps I should use the word bystander, instead of observer? It seems to be your specialty. The price of your weakness was what you were most loyal to before. Seemingly, you are willing to pay it again."

[Assistant] "I’ve had enough…! Fine! Just fine! Act—that’s all I have to do, is it? Take action? Fine!" That manner of speech Vincent used evoked the greatest anger in Ferris yet. However, the object of his rage wasn’t just the emperor—it was his own hesitation. He kept coming up with rationalizations for why he couldn’t do things; excuses made everything so easy. But they were disgraceful. He had spent all his time chasing after people who weren’t afraid of such things, and he was still just following in their wake.

[User] "Then listen well, you beast of a person. You need only gamble your life." Seeing that Ferris had risen to the bait, Vincent beckoned him over with his newly attached right hand. Ferris’s face twisted as he heard the Volakian ruler’s strategy. The emperor smiled when he saw the look, and for the first time, it was not with disdain. His expression was like one of a boy who had come up with a nasty little trick—a smile cruel and beautiful.


[Assistant] The globe of light plummeted from overhead at a severe angle but was batted off course by a neat flourish of a saber. The luminous sphere bounced away with a crash like breaking pottery, and Balleroy whistled from his place in the sky. "Good arm, good eye, good hustle, good call. Ahh, so nice t’ have a worthy opponent." A knight was moving straight toward Balleroy. The man charged across the expanse of the plain, the forest at his back. This man of the Kingdom of Lugunica, who had called himself Julius Juukulius, was turning out to be a foe who merited genuine respect. His swordsmanship and spirit magic were both first-class. On strength alone, he probably could’ve risen to the rank of general second-class within the Empire. Perhaps he could have reached an even higher station. Excepting, of course, the fact that the way Julius fought was too honest and courteous.

[User] "In the empire, victory goes to him who wins… Compared with that, your kingdom chivalry is just a lotta nonsense." If they were to cross swords in one-on-one combat, even Balleroy might’ve had trouble overcoming Julius.


[User] "Cheaters always win, and there’s nothing like a surprise attack. Don’t blame me, chivalry boy—I’m just doin’ what works." He says, on the back of his sky dragon moving faster than the speed of sound.

[Assistant] "I can use light magic to bend light around me and wind magic to diffuse my aura. Now, think y’ can find me and Carillon here?" Using magic to make himself and his mount appear as if they were part of the scenery, he flew where he pleased and shot at his leisure.

[User] "Still, can’t let the preliminaries go on too long now…" Balleroy raised an eyebrow.


[User] Unlike normal mages, they used spirits to exploit the mana in the atmosphere, so they never had to risk running out of fuel. The trade-off was the fact that the greatest amount of mana they could use at one time was dictated by the spirit they were contracted with, but… “”

[Assistant] Julius batted away another globe of light. He was obviously enhancing his own body with a greater spirit; that was what allowed the knight such superhuman reactions. It served to minimize the burden of the several spirits he had made pacts with. What’s more, the spirits would salve the strain on his body almost as it happened. The choice demanded a good deal of pain, but so long as Julius’s spirit didn’t break, he would be able to continue fighting. In fact, if it came to a contest of endurance, it was Balleroy who was most at risk. The rebellious general had trained only for short, sharp engagements.

[User] "I’m gonna cry uncle before he does at this rate…” Traditionally, a sniper hid in one place, keeping his opponents pinned down for hours or even days. But there was a time limit on this coup. He couldn’t spend long here. He glanced down again and saw Julius with his back to the woods, as if to say You shall not pass. Balleroy knew the wounded emperor was somewhere in there, as was the knight-girl with the cat ears. Balleroy’s true enemy couldn’t have been far, either—the red-haired Sword Saint, the world’s strongest knight: Reinhard van Astrea. “When Cecils came back, I thought he might nab my chance." The single greatest uncertainty in this plan was what Volakia’s strongest warrior and greatest optimist would do. Balleroy might be merciless, stopping at nothing, but in the end, he wanted to do the deed himself. From that perspective, he could’ve practically applauded the three visiting knights for getting away from Cecils alive. It ensured he would have his revenge and that his brother-in-law could rest in peace. “Hmm…?" Balleroy adjusted the grip on his spear so it was good and firm, but then he was taken aback by something happening below him. A small figure rushed out of the tree line toward Julius. From his perch on his dragon’s back, he quickly saw that it was the third Lugunican knight, the girl with the cat ears. He had never paid her any mind; she clearly wasn’t a fighter. Balleroy wasn’t the type to relish unnecessary killing, so he had gone out of his way not to target her, but now… “This is how the battlefield works… I’ll let you get things moving for me!” Change could break a stalemate, and victory went to the bold. He who did not hesitate would be triumphant, for the goddess of victory loved best those who were most cruel.

[Assistant] “…!” The girl shouted something at Julius.


[User] Her voice was drowned out by rushing air, and Balleroy didn’t hear what she said, but Julius did, and his face changed color.

[Assistant] Balleroy was not the only one who could benefit from a change in circumstances. He moved to strike before his opponents could construct any advantage against him. "Carillon…!" He sent his partner dragon plummeting from the clouds toward the ground.

[User] The man had cared for his dragon partner since before she emerged from her egg and shared his Odo with her; their souls were bound together. The bond between a rider and his dragon was much like that between an Insect Cage Clan member and his bugs. For the memory of the one who had given them that opportunity and shown them the way, Balleroy and Carillon would wreak vengeance as one.

[Assistant] They sliced through the air, leaving sound behind as they plunged through the blue sky, lining up a shot that would pierce Julius and Ferris both. Balleroy unleashed a globe of light at the nearest one: the girl. There was a spray of blood across the plain, and her body went flying through the air like a rag doll. The light passed through her back and out the right side of her chest, tearing up her bones and organs beyond repair. "Sorry, little lady." Balleroy no longer felt any guilt about killing women or children. To stand between him and his goal was to forfeit one’s life. He understood how brutal that was. That was why he refused to avert his eyes from the sight.

[User] "Wha—? !" Suddenly, the body of the cat-girl, who should have died instantaneously, was engulfed in an incredible light. It shone so brilliantly that it seared the traitorous general’s eyes; it was an explosive, blue-white shine that Balleroy didn’t recognize as the light of a healing magic beyond all comprehension. Still, he was instinctively cautious, ordering his partner dragon into a steep and urgent climb. They had to gain altitude, get ready for another pass…

[Assistant] "C-Carillon? !" Balleroy almost choked with astonishment as his mount did something he never expected. His fingers brushed along the protrusions on her back—the ones the man normally held on to—and as the dragon twisted up through the sky, Balleroy was shaken loose. His dragon’s sudden outburst had stumped the sniper, but soon, the reason became clear.

[User] The sky, the blue expanse into which the creature should have been heading, was awash in a vortex of rainbow hues. Carillon was flapping her wings, struggling to escape the colors, but even a dragon that traveled faster than sound could not travel faster than light. She was enveloped by the rainbow and flung from the heavens by its shock wave.

[Assistant] "Carillon…!" His dragon, his beloved partner, gradually dropped from the air with her wings broken. It was all Balleroy could do to reach out to her, but his hands never found their perch.


[Assistant] "Ferri’ll lure them out—you find them and deal with them!" Julius, occupied by his defensive struggle, went white when he heard what Ferris shouted as he came racing out of the woods.

[User] Ferris came racing out of the woods.

[Assistant] Why hadn’t the purple-haired knight been able to say anything back? Perhaps because Ferris’s commitment was so clear. Or perhaps because the shot that tore through his small body simply came too quickly.

[User] "Ferris!" Balleroy had taken change of situation immediately and acted to remove this new variable in the battle. Ferris, shot from behind, lay bleeding on the grass. Even Julius could tell at a look that the wound was fatal.

[Assistant] The healing spell that erupted promptly after closed the grievous injury, healing Ferris’s damage before his very eyes. He knew that if Ferris had decided to face the enemy, it’d be with a plan in place to ensure he survived.

[User] "I spotted him!" In the second before Ferris was shot, there had been a rippling of the air behind him.

[Assistant] Julius realized instantly that it was the product of Balleroy’s unique strategy: using light and wind magic to make himself all but transparent. And once Julius knew what his enemy was doing…

[User] "Al Clauzeria! !" Judging by his friend’s wound and the location of the waver in the sky, Julius pointed his saber and leaned on the powers of his greater spirits to create a whirling vortex of magic. Six different colors joined into one beautiful rainbow. The aurora filled the sky in a whirlwind, and a multicolored labyrinth engulfed Julius’s opponent. The magic construct was a wall of light, composed of six elements, which meant it was able to repel any sort of magic that might’ve been leveled against it. It was thoroughly impregnable to physical attacks as well. It went without saying, of course, that serious harm awaited anyone who tried to hit it head-on. The result was that a green serpent got caught in the rainbow maze and then quickly began to drop through the air.

[Assistant] "It manifests as a rainbow of light—no one can see what is at its end." The wall vanished, and at the same moment, there was a dull thump of a sky dragon hitting the ground. It was a gruesome sight; the creature’s wings were broken, and its scales were soaked with blood. Such was the product of the dragon slamming into the earth at the speed of sound. By its ragged, shallow breathing, it seemed it had just a minute left to live, perhaps less.

[User] "So ya…did us in, eh…?" There was a human form as well, dragging their feet, their own breath coming in gasps. This person had similarly struck the ground, a moment before his dragon. It was Balleroy Temeglyph.

[Assistant] It only took Julius an instant to understand what had happened.


[User] The dragon had thrown its partner from its back before the rainbow caught them, saving him. Balleroy understood this, too. Hence, why he shambled straight past Julius, to where his beloved dragon lay. The man was there beside his partner for the last few seconds of its life. “Thanks fer everything, Carillon. Tell Miles to wait for me.” Balleroy patted the still creature on the nose, smiling gently at it. Then the warrior rose to his full height and heaved a sigh.

[Assistant] “Sorry t’ keep ya waitin’. Ya didn’t have to.”

[User] “A master was saying farewell to his beloved companion. I have a land dragon of my own that means the world to me. I would not wish to be so uncouth as to intrude on this precious moment.”

[Assistant] “Keh! Look who’s Mr. Noble… But I guess I oughtta thank you. Givin’ me a moment to see Carillon off proper. Now listen…” Balleroy turned, his blue eyes looking straight at Julius. His hair was a mess, and blood trickled down his forehead. He had escaped the knight’s spell, but he had fallen an awfully long way, and he looked the worse for it. The general’s pale face and copious sweat spoke to his internal injuries and broken bones, as well. This much was clear; if he didn’t receive treatment immediately, he was done for.

[User] “…Don’t go saying I gotta ask you for healing, or anything like that. Things are what they are. Ain’t a doc in the empire who can fix me up now. Even if there were, I’d refuse.”

[Assistant] “But why would you…?”

[User] “You really gotta ask why, sir knight? It’s easy. This is the empire, I’m one of the Nine Divine Generals, and you’re my enemy.” Julius had assumed this contest settled, but Balleroy spoke with strength. In his hands was his spear, his favored weapon, and he spun it with dismaying speed as he took up a fighting stance. This was not a man to be dismissed, even at the edge of death. Balleroy had begun his rebellion against Emperor Vincent with the utmost determination. Even if his life was to be saved now, if his mutiny failed, all that awaited him was execution.

[Assistant] “So you’ll fight to the bitter end, in forfeit of your very life?”

[User] “Nothin’ so high-minded as all that… Let’s just say I don’t know when to give up. All I want is to get this spear to my aim. That’s all. That’s all I want.”

[Assistant] “Your aim…?”

[User] “’S right. The Sword Saint’s throat.” The tip of the spear exuded a murderous intent, and Balleroy’s aura grew sharper than before. Julius sensed his immovable pride as a warrior and took a moment to admire the man. Then, a beat later, he took up a stance with his own saber, prepared to fight.

[Assistant] “As a warrior myself, I acknowledge your skill. But Reinhard is my friend."


[User] "For the sake of my kingdom, and for that of my companions, I cannot allow you to reach your goal.”

[Assistant] “Great! Then all that’s left for the two of us is a test of skill!” As Julius’s fighting aura grew quietly sharper and more focused, his opponent’s violent excitement began to burst from his spirit. The two of them locked eyes.

[User] “Julius Juukulius, knight of the Royal Guard of the Kingdom of Lugunica.”

[Assistant] “Balleroy Temeglyph, ninth of the Nine Divine Generals of the Empire of Volakia.” As was the custom among warriors, they both announced their names and stations, and then the fight began.

[User] Balleroy made the first move, striking so quickly with his spear that the attack was almost invisible. One had the sense that the tip of the spear had vanished, and then a moment later, it was coming to bite into Julius’s chest. The polearm was faster than should have been possible for being wielded by a man riddled with wounds, but Julius swept the strike aside with a flash of his own sword. His defensive reflexes remained sharpened by his light magic, and the knight was reluctant to claim victory via augmented abilities. However…

[Assistant] “That’s just another part of your skills, eh!” Balleroy exclaimed, seemingly sensing Julius’s thoughts even as he loosed blow after blow. The knight parried each strike of the spear, pushing off the ground to pursue Balleroy. He raced across the plain, sweeping aside each stab as they came. Sparks flew each time the steel met, and the impacts were clearly taking a toll on them both. Julius felt as if every exchange took a bit of life out of him as his concentration and spirit were worn away. There were, broadly speaking, two ways to attack with a spear: to thrust and to sweep. This was not unlike a sword, but thrusts were more common with a spear. They were a series of attacks aimed at a specific point, or points, demanding an opponent exhaust an enormous amount of focus in order to maintain their guard. Neither of them could sustain this battle very long, and they both knew it. So after some probing exchanges and feeling each other out, the fight began in earnest.

[User] Clang! Julius deflected an oncoming thrust and closed in to press his attack.

[Assistant] Balleroy caught the swinging blade with the haft of his spear. He was unable to completely blunt the impact, though, and flew backward. In that instant, the mood of the battle changed.

[User] It happened before Julius could even register that it was coming. From the tip of the spear Balleroy had pointed at him, a magic missile of colorless light erupted. It was the same kind of attack the general had used when sniping atop his dragon mount. The charge, aiming, and firing all took such a short time that it was almost artistic. The projectile flew at Julius’s chest with no sound or warning.


[User] The purple-haired knight could see a furious intent to kill in Balleroy’s eyes, and Julius pushed the limit of his reactions until they were as fast as lightning.

[Assistant] The blade of his saber just brushed the magic missile, nudging it off course so that it only collided with Julius’s shoulder. At the very least, the knight had avoided a mortal wound…

[User] "Ngh!" That was when an impact slammed into his sternum, causing his organs to shudder and coaxing blood up and out his mouth, along with a groan. He had avoided the magical sniper shot. And yet something had pierced his chest with terrific force. Desperately trying to process what had happened through a fog of pain, Julius hit upon the possibility of a second sniper shot.


[User] "Your life is mine." Balleroy was on the offensive now, following up his ploy with a deadly third shot.

[Assistant] Balleroy's weapon was pointed directly between the eyebrows of his prey. The attack was aimed at the heart and the head, twin vital points.

[User] Balleroy’s face stiffened.

[Assistant] Julius, who had been blown backward by a shot to the heart, was holding his ground.

[User] Julius had prepared a second line of defense: a layer of earth-element armor upon his body.

[Assistant] "My spear—he was still able to—!"

[User] Balleroy could only be impressed by such meticulous fighting, but he was still a hair faster. He put all his strength into his hands, which held his spear, and his legs, which pressed forward as he gave a decisive thrust, seeking to penetrate Julius’s defenses.

[Assistant] "Al Clarista." Julius intoned.

[User] The tip of his spear should have arrived first, yet it was being erased by this knight who exuded such brilliant, multicolored light.

[Assistant] "Well now, ain’t this a surprise…?" The shimmer of a rainbow had pierced the left side of Balleroy’s chest, the scintillating colors scorching his soul. But what filled Balleroy’s heart was admiration for the skill of this enemy who had brought him to defeat.


[User] Balleroy’s body had been enveloped in a faint light. It was the glow of dark magic encountering and opposing light magic. Light magic to strengthen his own body, dark magic to weaken that of his opponent—Julius was casting both at the same time, a delicate and involved maneuver.

[Assistant] "To think I ain’t even made it to my real target… I guess I really have…lost my touch…" Balleroy dropped his spear and stumbled back a step, whereupon the knight’s sword pierced his chest. Blood didn’t even flow from the wound. The light, short and intense, cauterized the cut and incinerated the man’s organs, his very spirit. Balleroy continued on, unsteadily, until he arrived at the still form of his beloved dragon. He managed to slump down beside her, leaning against that great form, and let out a breath.

[User] Behind him, Julius the knight sheathed his sword. "Lord Balleroy, what drove you to such plotting?" The young man seemed to presume the fight was over—a naive idea.

[Assistant] "You don’t pull your punches, do you? …Can’t say I would expect you to understand.”

[User] “You nearly shattered the empire and brought on war with my kingdom. You’re right, I don’t understand. Nor do I understand your obsession with the Sword Saint—with Reinhard.”

[Assistant] “That one’s easy enough to explain. To put it nice and simple, it was about…revenge.”

[User] Julius’s eyes widened in surprise, as if he could never have expected this. It wasn’t the pettiness that seemed to shock him, but the whole idea. The man had seemingly never imagined the Sword Saint might incur the ill will of anyone. In Julius’s mind, Reinhard was above such trite tragedies as becoming the object of revenge. “Looks to me like you’ve got…some pretty innocent ideas about the world…”

[Assistant] “…I’ve heard the same from my friends. I believe I am working to improve that aspect of myself.”

[User] “Good, good to hear. Otherwise, y’ might just end up one of the bad guys, like me…”

[Assistant] Then Balleroy laughed at the outrageously frank exchange, his hilarity coming in thin, reedy breaths. His consciousness was gradually dropping in and out, and he tried to hold on to it long enough to say something else. But what, he didn’t know. Words of hatred, perhaps.

[User] “Are there any last words you wish to leave to Reinhard?”

[Assistant] Balleroy let out a harsh breath. “…That’d be downright ignoble of me. A loser ought to just go his way."


[User] “But I do feel bad for your pretty cat-eared friend, the way I…” Julius seemed to be shaking his head as if to preempt this apology, but Balleroy found himself thinking about the unfortunate young woman, the one poor innocent who found herself involved. Things like the success or failure of the rebellion started by the person who had contracted him, and whether Vincent lived or died—they were unimportant to Balleroy. That was why he had the wherewithal to feel pity for those whom he himself had killed in the course of this all. Condolences or no, Balleroy’s clouded eyes afforded him the vision of an approaching figure. It was coming toward him through the grass.

[Assistant] The person stopped beside Julius.

[User] “Hate to break it to you, but Ferri doesn’t go down that easily.”

[Assistant] “…Hah.”

[User] There she was, her white outfit stained with blood, but her movements showing no sign of any wounds. Ferris breathed a sigh to see Balleroy. Julius, Ferris, and the red-haired Sword Saint, Reinhard. Three people Balleroy could not best. The dying Divine General knew about the whispers, the nasty hearsay making the rounds in other lands that spoke of the Volakian Empire being protected by a barrier constructed by devils. However, the Kingdom of Lugunica seemed to be made of nothing but extraordinary and fearsome characters itself.

[Assistant] “Do tell His Majesty one thing for me… Tell him that if he’s gonna have it out with the kingdom, to make sure he stays the course till it’s all dust.”

[User] “I must say I have complicated feelings about relaying that message… But very well.”

[Assistant] There was a rumble in Balleroy’s throat; what he had intended as his life’s final joke had been received with utmost seriousness. He had the distinct feeling Julius really would give Vincent the message, verbatim. He was confident, then, as one of the Nine Divine Generals, that his last words would reach the emperor.

[User] “I’m glad that…in the end…I really didn’t kill any women or children…” Balleroy let out a breath, and in it, he realized he was shyer than he had thought. The man was having a laugh at himself when a familiar face arose in the distance against his closed eyelids. He saw it was the face of the person to whom he owed his life: his older brother-in-law, who had raised him like a parent. He looked down.

[Assistant] “Sorry, Miles. Think this is the end of the line for me.” Balleroy murmured something, in a voice so soft and faint that it couldn’t be heard, and then breathed his last. He had come full circle: The tale that had begun with the faking of his death had ended with his actual demise. At the very least, there were unlikely to be any among his subordinates who would prove to be consummate opponents in the way Balleroy was for the knights.


[User] "But, Julius, with you and Reinhard here, we should be all right. Don’t you think so, too?”

[Assistant] “I mean to do my very best to justify your faith in me. But before that…”

[User] “Before that, what? Hey, what is it? !" Ferris peeked over at Julius from one side.

[Assistant] The spirit mage turned to his friend with his innocent gesture, looking at the site of Ferris’s sniper wound. He touched the spot with his fingers.

[User] “…That sets my mind at ease. If you came back with so much as a scratch on you, I don’t know how I would ever face Duchess Karsten again.”

[Assistant] “Hmph! That doesn’t mean mew can just go pawing all over me! You’re the one who just stuck your hands in my blood, so don’t go blaming me if mew get sick!”

[User] “Your safety comes first. Indeed… I thought I might expire myself when I saw you.”

[Assistant] “I never wish to see one I cherish fall before my eyes. I can’t tell you how glad I am.”

[User] “Feels pretty nice to hear it from you. But well, that’s just like you, Julius.” Ferris received the other knight’s words with an embarrassed smile and a scratch of the cheek.

[Assistant] “Ferris, I doubt I need to ask, but His Majesty, Emperor Vincent…?”

[User] “Fully healed and resting under the trees. At least, he’s probably still there—don’t think he has it in him yet to go running off.”

[Assistant] “I see. Another relief.” Julius removed his own cloak and handed it to the cat-boy.


[User] “Thank you for your help, Ferris. If you hadn’t done what you did, I don’t believe I could have defeated him. Ugh, I still have so much to learn.”

[Assistant] “Ferri feels a little funny realizing he knew exactly what you needed without so much as talking about it… Well, Ferri’s no stranger than you, Julius.”

[User] The purple-haired man didn’t respond to this rather backhanded acknowledgment. Instead, he simply narrowed his eyes. "I wish I’d had the chance to speak more with you.” He turns back to the forest path behind him.


[Assistant] Ferris followed after to find two figures coming their way.

[User] Reinhard, uninjured and waving.

[Assistant] Vincent, leaning on the Sword Saint’s shoulder.


[User] They walked back directly toward the Crystal Palace, showing themselves on the main thoroughfare of the capital of Lupghana. Balleroy Temeglyph had fallen, the Insect Cage Clan had been vanquished, and the rebellion had ended in failure.

[Assistant] Ferris's very succinct summation of the feelings evoked by this display,"Wow"

[User] Vincent nearly smiled before his expression shifted to his customary sneer instead as he turned to Ferris. “This is the fear of an emperor, the way my realm ought to respond to me.”

[Assistant] “The way they ought to respond? You mean the way they’re all cowering because they’re so afraid of you?”

[User] “If one seeks to rule others, power and fear are the fastest and most certain methods.


[User] “…No one would have thrown a rock at the king, either—because they loved him too much.”

[Assistant] Ferris said, quickly looking away, but Vincent just snorted.

[User] “I’ll let you entertain His Majesty.” Reinhard murmured, largely ignoring the conversation as he scanned the area vigilantly. “Though, I doubt even the emperor’s enemies would make a move with so many witnesses around.”

[Assistant] “Balleroy had to be our foes’ trump card, and he has fallen. I would be surprised if they had anything or anyone more powerful in store, but…I wouldn’t be surprised if they were racing to eliminate all traces of their treachery at this very moment.”

[User] “You believe they would recuse themselves now?”

[Assistant] “I believe this is their last opportunity to do so, if they want to minimize the damage. With Your Majesty as our ally, your enemies risk turning the entire empire against themselves.”

[User] “Ferri would not be happy about that after he got shot because of them.”

[Assistant] “Without your brave deed, we would never have avoided war. I am proud to call you my friend.”

[User] “And that’s supposed to be my reward, Julius? Ferri hears a lot about friendship from you, but you ought to know you can’t be Ferri’s friend that easily.” Julius caught the desolate whisper, as well as its true meaning.


[User] As they spoke, they went along a roadway thronged with citizens showing their loyalty, then through the castle gates. They pushed past a crowd of trembling imperial soldiers and at last returned to the Crystal Palace, whereupon…

[Assistant] "Is it true? His Majesty has returned?!" When the group entered the great hall of the palace with Vincent at their head, they heard a bellowing voice. On the second floor of the room stood a fearsome man in golden armor, a scowl on his battle-scarred face.

[User] When this man saw the emperor there below him, he descended the steps with a speed that belied his size and came to kneel before Vincent. "Your Majesty, thank the heavens you’re safe! The vassals are here! The foot soldiers are here! I have been overseeing them with all my heart!"

[Assistant] "Silence, you ape. Or have you forgotten how I told you that every time you open your mouth, you embarrass the empire? You were to keep it shut. My imperial dignity is at its lowest ebb this day."

[User] "Sir! But—Your Majesty! There is still unrest in the castle…"

[Assistant] "This is twice now. Shut your mouth, Goz Ralphone." Thus, Vincent silenced the burly giant, Goz Ralphone, one of the Nine Divine Generals.

[User] The gold-armored man seemed to shrink into himself as the emperor regarded him with a cold, cutting gaze. "To trust this matter to you lot would bring any authority the empire has crashing to earth. Therefore, I myself declare: The purported death of Balleroy of the Nine Divine Generals and all that has happened to my person were the work of plotters who sought to pin everything on the Royal Knights of Lugunica. Balleroy joined forces with these shameless traitors and sought after my life. Though, he has since shuffled off this mortal coil."

[Assistant] "...! Balleroy—did he really do such a thing?" Goz said, trembling.

[User] "It pains me to say it, but all is as His Majesty has told you." This assurance came from someone stepping forth from behind Vincent—an old man who had come from outside the Crystal Palace. Several imperial soldiers were with him, and at his appearance, Vincent crossed his slim arms.

[Assistant] "So you’re here, Belstetz. How unusual to see the Imperial Prime Minister leading men under arms himself."

[User] The old man met Vincent’s venomous tone with a calm shake of his head. "How could I fail to rouse these old bones to action, Your Majesty, when I heard you had been kidnapped?"


[User] "First and foremost, Your Majesty, let me express my boundless joy at your safe return. And to these knights who surely exerted every effort to see you here safely, my equally boundless gratitude."

[Assistant] "Enough with the pleasantries, old man. Tell us what you’re really saying and tell us quickly."

[User] Belstetz looked as bothered as if a cool breeze had blown past him. "You are indeed a man who prizes brevity, Your Majesty. But undue haste may work against that for which we have striven. I urge you to remember as much."

[Assistant] "You dare to admonish your emperor? Know that it will be your last act of public service, you senile dog. I shall tell you a second time. Speak, and quickly."

[User] "Far be it from me to admonish your revered personage, Your Majesty." Vincent’s gaze grew colder, but Belstetz met him with cunning. "I tell you only that we have here the conclusion of rushed plans."

[Assistant] As the emperor furrowed his brow at this response, the prime minister motioned one of his personal guard forward. He held a wooden box in his arms, which he offered up to Vincent. Reaching out toward the container, Belstetz opened the lid.

[User] "Urgh!" The exclamation at the box’s contents came from Ferris. But it was an understandable reaction.

[Assistant] Julius, standing beside the demi-human, frowned at what he saw.


[User] Vincent, inspecting the pale and bloodless face, looked at Belstetz with one eye closed. "I humbly present Your Majesty the head of Viscount Glamdart Holstoy, a retainer whose heart brimmed with treachery. All that has happened was at Holstoy’s instigation. He confessed to everything in a written note before throwing himself on his sword at his private residence.”

[Assistant] “You do indeed work quickly, Belstetz.”

[User] “I confess there were some rather intense moments after the report of General Temeglyph’s death arrived. When I heard a sky dragon had arrived at Holstoy’s mansion shortly thereafter, it was only natural to question one of his people about the goings-on at the house. I apologize to Your Majesty for acting on my own initiative.”

[Assistant] “Your initiative was very much in view when I praised your quick work.” Vincent took a piece of paper that Belstetz offered him. He glanced at it, then looked back at the head in the box. “You say everything that has happened was conceived inside this head?”

[User] “Indeed. Regicide, to be blamed on the knights from Lugunica; followed by the seizure of the throne in the name of punishing the killers. His ambitions were, one might say, imperial—they lacked only the proper forethought.”

[Assistant] “You believe that despite the fact that he was able to turn one of the Nine Divine Generals to his cause?”

[User] “What else could be said of a rebellion that has failed?” Belstetz’s unflinching opinion seemed to conclude everything in Julius’s mind.

[Assistant] “Ahem—Belstetz.” Without relaxing in the slightest, the emperor let out an audible breath.

[User] “Your Majesty,” Belstetz replied with a smile. “What is your imperial will?”

[Assistant] “I order you: Do not move.” With his right hand, the emperor silently grasped a scabbard that suddenly appeared, floating in midair.

[User] Vincent drew out a sword from the hovering scabbard, straight and true, crimson as a garnet from the hilt to the edge. The emperor pressed it against the neck of Belstetz, who stood still as a stone.

[Assistant] The old man slowly touched a hand to his own neck. “Such a jest is most unlike Your Majesty.”

[User] “The Bright Sword is not such a trivial thing as to be drawn in jest."


[User] “It cuts what we wish to cut, and it consumes with flames what we wish to burn. Behold.” Suddenly, fire erupted from the sword in the emperor’s hand and leaped to the box in the soldier’s hands.

[Assistant] The man dropped the box, but it did not so much as singe the carpet, for the flames had not touched the wooden compartment but consumed only the thing inside.

[User] The head of the man who, the emperor had been told, was treacherous to his liege had been burned up completely, returned to ash.

[Assistant] “Truly, the Bright Sword shines only for those fit to occupy the imperial throne.” Belstetz said, his eyes narrowed.

[User] “It is indeed beautiful and terrible.”

[Assistant] “With its flames, the blade tests those who would wield it. But there is a way to handle it.” Vincent said, giving a flourish of the sword. Then he held it out to Belstetz, pommel first, smiling as the prime minister looked down at it.

[User] “Would you try it? Don’t you wish to know if your old bones could rule an empire?”

[Assistant] “…Again, you jest, Your Majesty. Such aspirations are beyond this feeble, aged flesh.” The prime minister bowed at the waist, pointedly not laying a finger on the Bright Sword and excusing himself from the opportunity to challenge the blade.

[User] “You may entrust me with cleaning up the mess that has resulted from these events. You, Your Majesty, should think first of your own health.” Then with a word to his soldiers, Belstetz collected the ashes of the head and withdrew.

[Assistant] Watching them go, Julius felt his shoulders slump.

[User] Beside him, Ferris was smiling with evident relief. "Wh-why were things so tense just now? Aren’t they suppurrsed to be friends?”

[Assistant] “Many things can happen within a castle’s walls. Perhaps outsiders like us will never be able to know exactly what. Reinhard… I admire you for not getting involved.”

[User] “Because there was murder in His Majesty’s blade, yes, but I saw he did not truly intend it.”

[Assistant] “How could you tell…?” Ferris asked, furrowing his shapely brow. Julius had likewise perceived that Vincent’s swing of the Bright Sword had contained the readiness to kill, but Reinhard, it seemed, had seen something more. Of those there, perhaps only he, Vincent himself, and Belstetz—standing still as a stone—had understood there would be no murder in that room.

[User] “Hmph. And to think, I very nearly had the tiger by the tail.” Vincent muttered teasingly after the prime minister had disappeared from view. He casually released his grip on the Bright Sword, and the crimson blade disappeared as if swallowed up by the same thin air it had come from. This legendary implement, said to be passed down from one leader of the Empire of Volakia to the next, was of considerable interest to Julius. However, at that moment, Vincent’s half-heard whisper was of even more concern.


[User] Julius took a hesitant step forward toward Vincent. "Your Majesty, please forgive me, as what I’m about to ask is a terrible breach of etiquette, but—"

[Assistant] "Yes, hello, I’m here! I didn’t mean to keep you all waiting so long for my grand entrance! Your Majesty’s humble servant, Cecils Segmund, has arrived at the Crystal Palace to seek revenge on Your Imperial Majesty’s behalf!" A young man in a kimono appeared, rushing through the crowd in the great hall of the Crystal Palace so fast, it seemed he might scorch the ground beneath his feet. It was Cecils, a broad smile on his face and his thicket of blue hair waving.

[User] "Yah-hah! There you are, I’ve found you, I have located you at last! You certainly gave me the runaround—I was all over the capital looking for you after that escape. And then I get word that you’ve come back to the castle with His Majesty covered in blood. This I will not forgive, royal knights of Lugunica! To lay hands on His Majesty’s person! This rage shall be my fuel, the humiliation of my loss to you my catalyst, and together, they shall awaken the ultimate sword-fighting abilities of I, Cecils Seg—"

[Assistant] "Look over here, you simpleton."

[User] "What is this? I am at this moment delivering the greatest soliloquy of my life, such that even His Imperial Majesty could not stop—" But even as he spoke, he turned toward Vincent, and their eyes met.

[Assistant] "What?! Your Majesty, were you not lured into a cruel trap to suffer an ignoble death, your head then to be presented before me as a goad to inspire my greatest feats of swordsmanship?!"

[User] "Truly, your clownery has reached new heights." Vincent said with a sniff in regard to the swordsman’s dramatic outpouring.

[Assistant] "No, no, and again I say, no! It is the fortune of fortunes that His Majesty is still alive! Let us forget about the presentation of the head, then, and may Your Majesty take this opportunity to observe my technique at close range! For I will uproot these audacious royalists who make bold to appear before us—"

[User] "Ngha?!" The overexcited Cecils found his collar grabbed by a massive hand. It belonged to the huge, silent protector standing beside His Majesty, Goz Ralphone. Without a word, as the emperor had instructed, he shattered Cecils’s dramatic performance.


[User] “Just a moment, Goz, my friend! Why do you stop me?! Look there! Those knights stand before us, knowing the entire empire is arrayed against them! They know they would be better matched against me alone than against every man here, yet have they not chosen the dramatic, the mythical? !” Cecils kicked his feet uselessly, like a cat held by the scruff of its neck.

[Assistant] “Why won’t you say anything, Goz?! Having that craggy face of yours glaring at me makes a body nervous, you know!”

[User] Goz, unperturbed by Cecils’s midair struggle, glanced in Vincent’s direction.

[Assistant] The emperor nodded, just. Permission to speak, one supposed.

[User] “…This overheated talk of yours is nothing new, so I’ll let it go—but you need to calm down.”

[Assistant] “How can I calm down?! There they are, even the very red-haired one against whom I bear such a grudge! You can’t imagine the look the swordsmith gave me when I went to get my first- and second-best swords back. If I’m not to use them now, then when? !”

[User] “I admire your enthusiasm, but His Majesty already has things well in hand. Read my lips: It’s all over.”

[Assistant] “Er?” Cecils had been so itching to draw his weapons that it looked as if he had received a most unexpected blow. The man appeared more and more shaken as he was given a broad outline of what had happened. Finally, he looked around at them vacantly, his gaze settling on Reinhard.

[User] “Um, then what about settling things between us?”

[Assistant] “I’m afraid I’ll have to ask that it be another time,” Reinhard responded with a wry smile. “Perhaps when I’m not in…this situation.” He tapped a finger against the collar around his neck.

[User] “Ahh, yes indeed,” Cecils said, nodding. “But—doesn’t that mean I am wholly and truly outmatched? !” The despairing cry of the empire’s strongest swordsman concluded the special diplomatic mission between the Empire of Volakia and the Kingdom of Lugunica.


[Assistant] “So what exactly are we supposed to make of all this?” Ferris put a thoughtful finger to his lips as he and the rest of the group rode away from Lupghana in a dragon carriage. They were on the way to a guardhouse on the border between the empire and the kingdom. From there, it was onward to home. Ferris’s question was aimed at the two members of the Council of Elders, seated across from him just as they had been on the way here.

[User] “Hmm,” Miklotov responded.


[User] "I understand why you might feel that some loose ends remain to be tied up, young Ferris, but I believe we shall proceed just as His Majesty said. All these events constituted a purely domestic matter within the empire. As such, I was told the royal delegation would be rewarded with appropriate recompense."

[Assistant] "Appropriate recompense… Does that mean we’re getting the nonaggression pact?" Asks the cat-boy, not looking much happier.

[User] Miklotov nodded silently.

[Assistant] Whereupon, he promptly agreed to the nonaggression pact they had requested. The bureaucratic formalities remained, of course, but with that, the objective of their envoy had been achieved.

[User] “It just doesn’t quite sit right with me."

[Assistant] "Live with it. We might not like exactly how it happened, but we got what we wanted. Gotta call that a victory. We have our nonaggression pact, even if it does have a time limit. Just means we know exactly how long we have to get the kingdom back on track." Bordeaux replied, crossing his beefy arms. / His eyebrows were arched, and he seemed to be trying to convince himself as much as Ferris.

[User] Julius nodded at the frowns on Ferris’s and Bordeaux’s faces. He himself, though, was bothered by something slightly different than they were.

[Assistant] "You look troubled, Julius." Reinhard said from beside him, as if the Sword Saint could see right through his friend.

[User] "I am. I don’t suppose I’d be very convincing if I tried to deny it. Truth be told, something still piques my interest in Volakia. Something, if I may say, I almost regret having left undone." Moved to look into his comrade’s eyes.

[Assistant] "If there’s anything you regret, you should let us know. Given our position, I don’t think we’ll be coming back here with any regularity."

[User] However, the worries that remained in the man’s heart concerned none of these things.

[Assistant] "You have a regret, Julius? Ooh, what is it? Do you wish you could have tried riding on a sky dragon? Or gotten a better look at that weird red sword His Majesty had?"

[User] "Ferris, I am not a child…"

[Assistant] "So that stuff didn’t interest you at all?"

[User] “…Ahem. In any event, that was not what I had in mind." Realizing he was not likely to win this debate, Julius simply dismissed the demi-human’s interjection.

[Assistant] "Lord Miklotov. Is it possible His Majesty himself was pulling the strings behind everything that happened on this trip?" Instead, he turned to Miklotov, sitting across from him and stroking his beard.

[User] The old counselor stopped stroking his beard at that.


[User] He squinted, calmly meeting Julius’s gaze. "What do you mean?"

[Assistant] "Emperor Vincent, pulling the strings—of what, exactly?"

[User] "Everything. All of it. Master Balleroy’s betrayal, the Viscount Holstoy, who allegedly masterminded the attempted coup—what if the entire plot was part of Emperor Vincent’s calculations?"

[Assistant] "Th-that’s not possible, is it? I mean, just think about it—if Ferri hadn’t tended to His Majesty’s wounds, I guarantee he would’ve died. If he knew there was going to be a rebellion, then before it even started, he could have—"

[User] Miklotov interrupted, having resumed his beard stroking. "Vincent Volakia is a consummately rational man."

[Assistant] Julius raised his eyebrows and asked another probing question. "Then, Lord Miklotov, you believe you know what he was thinking, as well?"

[User] At that, Miklotov curled his lips into a quiet smile, but he didn’t answer.

[Assistant] Julius, though, realized with astonishment that the silence itself was the answer, the most eloquent possible response. "The emperor didn’t actually want a war between the kingdom and the empire. It would have been in his interest to grant the nonaggression pact we were requesting. But…there was a reason he couldn’t do so too readily."


[User] "So mew think he deliberately schemed to have our delegation caught up in an attempted coup?"

[Assistant] "Obviously, if the gears didn’t mesh just so, the outcome would have been very different."

[User] "I’m sure His Majesty was quite careful to guarantee everything went off as planned. No doubt he had agents among the rebels, pushing for certain courses of action and controlling the path of events."

[Assistant] "But who in the world would it have been? Are you thinking of Viscount Holstoy?"


[User] "Balleroy Temeglyph." One of the Nine Divine Generals, and the highest-ranking military officer to join the rebellion against the emperor. It was he, Julius thought, who had been the poison pill the emperor had slipped into the coup.

[User] Ferris and Reinhard were left speechless when they heard the name Julius offered.

[Assistant] Reinhard was left speechless when they heard the name Julius offered.

[User] They thought about it: the shot that had taken off Vincent’s arm. Why the arm? A man of Balleroy’s skill targeting a defenseless opponent should easily have been able to take off his head. "Ferris, I believe your healing abilities were already part of the emperor’s calculations… But that last gasp of Balleroy’s—that was for real."

[Assistant] The traitorous general had claimed that his motive was revenge against Reinhard. There had been no lie in those last words of his. Julius was convinced Balleroy had set up the situation the way he did in order to kill Reinhard. Perhaps Vincent had even known of this lust for vengeance and used it to bring Balleroy around to the game he himself wished to play. "The emperor of Volakia has firm faith in what he has seen, what he has thought, and the belief that Heaven has chosen him. I reiterate: He is a man of consummate rationality, as well as unflinching opportunistic judgment."

[User] Miklotov seemed to be indirectly affirming the conclusion Julius had come to. In truth, it was a verdict that shook him to his core.

[Assistant] Julius was confident of it after his time with the emperor, brief though it was. Vincent Volakia was a peerless strategist and a superlative ruler, whose ability to calculate and scheme was to be feared. It was he who embodied more than anyone else the way of life of the Holy Volakian Empire. "The kingdom itself should be so. Have you young men had this thought?" Miklotov asked quietly.

[User] His question was directed at the three royal guards sitting across from the two elders. He wanted to know what they thought of the Volakian Empire, having observed it firsthand.

[User] The three responded only with silence. But it was not silence lacking an answer. When Julius glanced to either side of him, at Ferris and Reinhard, he saw no doubt in their eyes. Both of them were already convinced of the answer to that question. There was a core within each of them that would never be shaken. An awareness of their own destinies that they had carried since they were young, an absolute loyalty to the royal line, though extinguished. Unshaking will to follow the person to whom they owed everything, though that person was gone. Did Julius himself, he wondered, have any such thing in his own life?

[Assistant] "Mmm. I see, I see. Excellent answers, all." The elder across from them smiled, seeming to take the collective silence of the three young men for a response.

[User] They were taken aback, but Bordeaux shook his head, a knowing look on his face. "You never change, Sir Miklotov."


[User] "I know those eyes of yours can see a lot—maybe too much, sometimes! Just how far ahead did you see this time?”

[Assistant] “Only as much as a man can see when he’s too old to quite stand up straight and knows but little life is left to him. One thing I can say is that the buds of the next generation have begun to shoot forth in the kingdom. Mmm. This was a most significant mission indeed.” Miklotov nodded as if to affirm his own statement.

[User] Bordeaux only looked at him, the crags and crevices of his face deepening in a frown.

[Assistant] It was then, listening to the two of them, that Julius understood that he and his friends had not been an incidental part of this envoy from the kingdom. They were the ones recommended to take part from among the members of the royal guard. True, Reinhard had been requested by the empire, but in a broad sense, they were all there for the same reason. The three of them were to experience the empire for themselves, to feel Volakia on their skin. All the knights present—Reinhard, of course, but Julius and Ferris as well—presumably had long futures ahead of them as members of the royal guard. This was an experience on which they could draw in days to come. Perhaps Vincent had even requested Reinhard’s presence specifically to pit him against the Nine Divine Generals…

[User] "Impossible…,” Julius said, the word catching in his throat as the possibility dawned on him. Innumerable maneuvers, calculations, and plots lay behind this mission to the Volakian Empire. Vincent certainly had his hand in the events, but what about the kingdom? What part had it played? Could it be that Miklotov himself had known what would happen before they ever left?

[Assistant] “You give me far too much credit, my dear Julius.” He was no longer even shocked when Miklotov seemed able to read his thoughts. The elder smiled calmly, then gazed out the window.

[User] Bordeaux likewise gave a thoughtful look, his arms crossed. Evidently, the two councilors had presented all the lessons they were going to give today.

[Assistant] “Watch out, Julius, or those furrows around your eyebrows’ll stick!” Ferris said, pointing between his own eyes for emphasis.

[User] Julius found he couldn’t stay serious in the face of the relaxed cat-boy. "It seems a great many webs have been woven in the shadows, where we see them not. But I suppose first and foremost, we should be glad that all of us are returning home safely.”

[Assistant] “Yeah, that’s for sure. Plus, Reinhard finally got to take off the Collar of Submission. How’re you doing? Bet it feels great to have that thing off, huh?”

[User] “Yes, wonderful. Like I’ve been released from the most claustrophobic confinement.


[User] "I know you’ve both been worried about me—from now on, I’ll be able to move and act freely."

[Assistant] "Confinement or no, you still meownaged to beat Volakia’s strongest fighter—that’s our Reinhard!" Ferris said, and the Sword Saint laughed, turning up the collar of his shirt next to his now-bare neck.

[User] Julius nodded. "Yes, you’re right. Both of you. The pondering can wait until we get home."

[Assistant] "So you’re still set on pondering? Couldn’t mew take it a little easier?"

[User] "Just the way I am."

[Assistant] The other two, knowing their friend would never change, looked at each other and shrugged affably.

[User] Julius, for his part, looked out the window of the dragon carriage and up at the sky. There are no borders up there. The kingdom and the empire may bump up against each other on land, but the blue goes on forever. “But then, even so…” There were other borders, invisible ones. Things buried in thoughts or in individuals’ ways of life. He knew now how the empire functioned; he had seen the loneliness of its emperor, discovered the greatness of his strength, and now he was going home to his kingdom. What kind of kingdom would it be in these coming days? It was a vital question, one that could not go unanswered in a land with no king. And when his country strode forth into that yet unknown future, what benefit would this experience of his be? Julius let his thoughts roam as he looked up at the sky. It would not be long until the answer to that question came to him in the form of a meeting with a young woman, an encounter that would set him on the path forward. The royal selection that would determine the next king of Lugunica—it was only months away now, drawing closer every passing moment.


[Assistant] In the Crystal Palace, in the imperial capital of Lupghana. "Fine work, you apes." At the somber pronouncement, those kneeling slowly looked up. Bowed respectfully on the red carpet were soldiers without peer in the empire: the Nine Divine Generals. Some were massive, and others had bestial features or looked otherwise inhuman, but all of them bowed to one man in this world: the seventy-seventh emperor of the Holy Volakian Empire, Vincent Volakia. Vincent sat on the throne in all his glory, resting his chin on his hands. In his right hand was a metal collar, set with a magic crystal in the center. It was the so-called Collar of Submission, used for binding. It was just one of the metia that could be found not just in the empire, but around the world. But this collar had an added value that made it unique among all metia: It had been around the neck of the Sword Saint.

[User] "Mogro Hagane." Dangling the collar from his fingers, Vincent called one of the Nine forth.


[User] In response, a Steelfolk, their body resembling an amalgam of metal and ore, looked up at the emperor.

[Assistant] Vincent nodded. Then he turned his gaze to the ceiling of the great room—no, to the entire Crystal Palace. "I grant there were some surprises along the way, but I believe you had the chance to trade blows with the Sword Saint. How many do you think you could take?"

[User] “Two hits. Maybe. Three.” The voice could be heard all over the room, almost as though the Crystal Palace itself were pronouncing the answer. No one present reacted to the sound’s apparent point of origin, though. That did not mean they weren’t surprised—only that it was not the voice that surprised them, but rather, what it had said.

[Assistant] “Three hits…? That’s some bullshit. What kinda weapon’s that guy usin’?”

[User] “We knew he would be beyond anything we had ever faced. That’s exactly why we were able to prepare our trump card. But even so…”

[Assistant] "I think, dangerous. That man, a threat. Eliminate. Priority should be—eliminate.”

[User] One general was impressed, another hesitant, and still another concerned. The voices belonged to Groovy, Goz, and Mogro, respectively. In each of their minds stood the obvious, indisputable, and deadly facts about Reinhard van Astrea. Each saw the question of how to deal with the Sword Saint as the most important issue facing them.

[Assistant] “Good heavens, I simply have to wonder if he’s really as bad as all that.” This objection came from none of the three who had just spoken their minds. Its source was a man dressed in white from the top of his head to the soles of his feet. It was a shade of alabaster so pale, it looked as if all other color had simply drained away. He was the only one present who had not encountered the delegation from Lugunica face-to-face. No—that was not quite right. He had encountered them—just not with this current face.

[User] “Exactly what do you mean, Chisha Gold? Are you trying to imply that all of us together could misjudge the threat an enemy poses? If so, then the blame lies partly with you, as well.”

[Assistant] “Perish the thought. However, as to whether it would be right for me to accept any blame…”

[User] “Don’t play dumb. To act as His Majesty’s body double in times of peace, only to refuse when it’s most necessary of all—your insolence is unbelievable… Imagine if something had happened to the sovereign!”

[Assistant] “Such a thing is beyond imagining. Unless you are professing a lack of faith in His Majesty’s discernment and wisdom.” The man in white—Chisha Gold—ended up locking eyes with the increasingly irate Goz. For sheer size, there was no comparison, but they were almost the same in height. Now as they both knelt, they could conduct this staring contest from only inches apart.

[User] “Enough. You sound like two dogs at a bone."


[User] “If you have an objection, voice it to me personally.” The standoff was ended by the very person who had inspired it: the emperor himself.

[Assistant] Goz snapped his head back down respectfully. “Your Majesty!” he exclaimed. “If this plan was indeed of your own design, then it has my full support! I, Goz Ralphone, shall stake my very life on—”

[User] “That’s enough of your twittering. Shut your mouth.”

[Assistant] Ordered silent for the third time that day, Goz ceased speaking, but an audible grinding of teeth could be heard.

[User] Once Vincent was satisfied, Chisha addressed him. “Your Majesty, allow me to tender my profound appreciation. However, I myself was most terrified, may I say. I never considered that the loss of your arm might be part of the act. Had I but known…”

[Assistant] “You would have reconsidered trading places with me as my body double?”

[User] “…Most likely. Not to say I’m in any hurry to get my own arm blown off.” Chisha replied diffidently, putting a hand to his chin.

[Assistant] Vincent made a sound in his throat. By the time the generals realized it was the emperor’s laughter, he had already continued to speak. “As I said, it was a necessary price. Without it, peace with the kingdom could not have been bought. In any event, there seems every chance that feral beast-boy would have noticed the difference between you and I.”

[User] “And for that reason, Your Majesty, you gambled with your life?”

[Assistant] “Hence, why I told the man not to aim for the heart or the head. It seems that was enough.”

[User] “As you say, Your Majesty.” Chisha put a hand to his own chest, bowing his head deeply. With that, the exchange between the emperor and his body double was concluded.

[Assistant] “Hey, Your Majesty, I gotta ask… If ya didn’t even tell Chisha here, does that mean you’re the only one who knew everything that was goin’ on? Mogro and I didn’t hear shit about what was gonna happen…”

[User] “You and Mogro knew twenty percent. The contemptible Chisha, fifty. The silent Goz there, ten percent. And as for that blustering, undisciplined, disrespectful thing, zero.”

[Assistant] “Cecils, commotion. Even now.” An uncharacteristic word of sympathy came from Mogro. The strongest man in the empire had not even been summoned to this audience. The Blue Lightning of Volakia had been entirely ignorant of anything that was going on. Though, it was not because the emperor didn’t trust him.

[User] “That thing has his own way of life. Faced with the right enemy, he will give his all and then some. I seek nothing more than that of him.”

[Assistant] “Hey, hey, if the whole point was for him to win, then—”

[User] “He lost once. It will not happen again. Under any other circumstances, I would not even furnish him with a second chance to be defeated.” Vincent, his chin still in his hands, pulled his lips back. The predatory grin told Groovy and Mogro everything.


[User] "The collar… The rebellion… The defeat of my strongest…”

[Assistant] He had ruthlessly treated his own life as one of the cards he held in his hand.

[User] Vincent blinked an eye at his servants, who trembled with awe at the man.

[Assistant] And as he sat there, exercising a caution that was now second nature to him, Vincent pondered.

[User] "Fine work, Balleroy Temeglyph.”

[Assistant] It brought a smile to Vincent’s face, a smile no one saw.

[User] "This world is made to favor you. Hmm.”


[User] "Yawwwn…" The young man put a hand to his mouth, unsuccessfully trying to stifle a yawn.

[Assistant] "Yep… No war today, either," the young man remarked, gazing out from the observation tower at the clouds as they drifted by.


[User] "'Increase vigilance regarding the Volakian Empire.’ Yeah, but how?”

[Assistant] "Hmm…?” The young man suddenly glanced down from the clouds toward the roadway, frowning.

[User] "Whoa! H-hey, wait…!”

[Assistant] "Heeeey, time to change the guard!”

[User] "Huh?” Taken by surprise, the young man found the dust cloud had grown too distant to see, as one of his comrades was climbing up the ladder from below.

[Assistant] “Oh…,” he said. “What’s with the look? Wait… Did something happen?”

[User] "No, uh, er…” The young man was at a loss to respond.


[Assistant] The pair in their snappy, white uniforms caught the attention of everyone on the street. Walking down the shopping thoroughfare in the commoners’ district of the capital city of Lugunica was a handsome man, looking cool and elegant. He was joined by a young woman as beautiful as a blooming flower—a couple of rare loveliness. What’s more, both of them were knights of the kingdom, judging by their uniforms.

[User] Walking with hands clasped behind, thin shoulders bouncing merrily. "Royal guard sounds like a nice title, but it turns out to be surprisingly boring meowst of the time, doesn’t it?" Looking around with wide eyes.

[Assistant] Ferris stretched out his arms, hands still clasped, and stifled a yawn.

[User] "Staying loose is well and good, but yawning? You’re getting a bit too relaxed. And I question that remark about it being ‘boring,’ too. It behooves us to conduct ourselves in such a way that will not bring shame upon this uniform."

[Assistant] "Oh, you saw that, huh? Fine, I give. You’ve got eyes like a hawk, Julius. Don’t you ever get tired, watching everything so closely?"

[User] "It’s part of my job—our job. And anyway, our boredom is good news for the people."

[Assistant] "Only you could recite a slogan like that and really mean it." Shrugs his slender shoulders, smiling wryly at his partner’s vigilance.

[User] In response, Julius allowed himself a smile that only his friends ever saw.


[User] As it happened, the two of them were patrolling the capital on a public-safety round. The royal guard spent much of its time cooped up in the castle. However, routes like this, inspecting the capital firsthand and helping to prevent any crime, proved another important role for them. The pair’s knightly uniforms stood out even at a distance; two of them walking together would hopefully instill a deterrent effect simply by their presences.

[Assistant] “I feel like a scarecrow in a field. But I guess Ferri and his friend have one thing up on a scarecrow—we can walk around! And we’re better-looking!”

[User] “There are those who would stay their hand in the vicinity of a knight, attractive or not. That gives meaning to what we’re doing… Ah, not that I’m denying your good looks.”

[Assistant] “Aren’t you so diligent and capable? Ferri can feel his heart racing!”

[User] “If it’s joy that causes your heart to race, then it seems you feel much the same thing as I do in conversing with you.”

[Assistant] “Ooh, scary. Not the same way as Reinhard or the captain, though.” Ferris scratched a cheek in embarrassment, his cat eyes darting this way and that. Julius and Ferris had known each other since the latter’s admission to the ranks of the knights, which was still not even a year ago now. Despite the brevity of their acquaintance, though, they had become fast friends, closer than they were to many of their other colleagues. They got along well, of course, but Julius felt the real driver of their friendship was the fact that they respected each other. The spirit mage had great admiration for those who could do what he could not, as well as others who spared no effort to better themselves. It was the same way he felt about Reinhard. “Still, I suppose my respect for Reinhard is a beast of a slightly different color.”

[User] “Hmm? Did mew say something?”

[Assistant] “No—I was just thinking, the marketplace seems rife with rumors of the royal family. I doubt it will be long before the royal selection becomes common knowledge. It seems neither wall nor door can truly keep one’s words from getting out.”

[User] “…Yeah, guess you’re right.” Ferris sounded just a little more downbeat after Julius changed the subject. The rumors currently on all the lips in the capital had to do with the extinction of the Lugunican royal lineage. Official word from the castle was that the king, Randohal Lugunica, was bedridden with illness but recovering. In point of fact, however, he was already dead, and the same illness that had claimed him had also killed every other person of royal blood in the kingdom. The result was that the entire ruling bloodline had been completely snuffed out. No one knew where the information was coming from, but regardless, most of what floated around the marketplace contained a startling amount of truth, and it wasn’t uncommon to hear many a voice lamenting the future of the nation.


[User] Flush with anxiety, a handful of people had already approached the two royal guardsmen. Perhaps that’s why we’re here. Marcus, the captain of the royal guard, was not only a brave man-at-arms in his own right, but an astute thinker, attentive to this sort of detail. "The captain’s wisdom never fails to impress me. The royal selection is rumored to start soon, and I doubt we will be able to avoid getting involved. Especially you, Ferris, my friend."

[Assistant] "Mmm, mew’ve got that right. Ferri won’t stop at anything to help Lady Crusch!" The slight demi-human clenched a fist, his sweet features drawing tight with determination.

[User] "Duchess Crusch Karsten…" Julius knew of her, though only in passing. She was a widely applauded genius of high ideals. The purple-haired man could certainly sympathize with the woman’s position, as she succeeded to the head of a prominent noble estate at such a young age and was now poised with the future of the kingdom potentially on her shoulders. Without a doubt, she was the most qualified candidate for the kingship. Beyond that, Crusch and Ferris had both kept close ties to the former royal family; the throne doubtlessly held no small importance to either of them. Their passions must be equal to their histories. As Ferris’s friend, Julius had nothing but admiration for the cat-boy’s dedication to his mistress. Yet there remained a shadow of doubt, like a thorn prickling his heart. Julius repressed the sensation. "Just be mindful not to exhaust yourself. Too much dedication can be a poison of its own. Remember to care for yourself as well."

[Assistant] "Yeah, yeah. Julius, mew’re such a worrywart." Ferris sounded no more bothered than usual.

[User] "I knew you would say that. But still, as your friend—" Julius cut off his words midsentence.

[Assistant] "...? What’s up?" Ferris looked at him, puzzled. Julius seemed fixated on a bustling restaurant across the street, or perhaps it was something inside. The building was characteristic of the many other little establishments on the shopping boulevard, featuring a cramped interior with just a counter and a few tables to sit at. There were only a handful of customers; it was already too late in the day for lunch. However, one of the patrons stood out, though their back was to the knights. This person wore a short jacket dyed bright blue; their indigo hair was tied back behind their head. Underneath the jacket, they wore an unusual outfit called a kimono, the customary dress of the people of Kararagi.


[User] "Huh…? Isn’t that—?" Ferris’s eyes went wide as he noticed the young man Julius was looking at.

[Assistant] The spirit mage didn’t respond, for he was simply too shocked. Yet Julius wished it was a mistake, for it was too astonishing to see that person here.

[User] "Ahhh! Now, that was a meal. My goodness, the food in the capital is ever so satisfying!" The young man nodded pleasantly, setting his empty bowl on the counter without ever noticing the two utterly stunned knights watching him.

[Assistant] "Very kind of you to say so, sir." The clerk replied, pleased to see the empty bowl and the gusto with which the traveler had eaten. "Don’t often see a lad wolf down his food quite like that. Take it you were pleased?"

[User] "And then some! I might say the quantity was a tad stingy, but the flavor more than made up for it. I’m used to big, bold flavors, so all the little details of kingdom cooking are a treat for my mouth." The young man reached into his kimono for his purse as he shared this amicable conversation with the clerk.

[Assistant] The clerk’s eyes went wide when he saw the copper coin the blue-haired man had given him. "Huh? Hey, mister, this—"

[User] "Ah, I’m certain I don’t have any foreign currency left in my purse, so don’t worry if it’s a bit too much. Frankly, it would probably be worth less if I kept it, and I so rarely get to feel this way. Look at you, making money!" The young man stood from his seat, smiling at the flabbergasted shopkeeper. He gathered up the smattering of belongings at his feet and was about to leave with the same breezy confidence when…

[Assistant] "Oh?" He noticed two pairs of eyes on him and stopped. The young, sword-bearing man traded stares with Julius and Ferris for a long moment, clearly in thought, then clapped his hands. "I remember now! Yes, you’re those slightly amazing people who managed to escape me alive!"

[User] Julius and Ferris exchanged a look at hearing the young man’s voice so enthusiastic and at seeing his eyes so bright.

[Assistant] "Hello, hello, long time no see! The Blue Lightning of Volakia, Cecils Segmund, appears before you once again!" Cecils stood there with a completely earnest smile. The empire’s strongest fighter had evidently come to the kingdom uninvited, unchallenged, and completely unconcerned.