Episode 28

The Hidden-World Ruins, where the oldest necromancy had been sealed. Nothing could be felt anymore from the space that had been filled with an uncanny presence. Along with Masfelt’s departure, the power of the necromancy had also been lost.

“Necromancy left behind by Shupilad, is it? To think it was this powerful……”

He had never imagined that it would not merely let them hear the voice of the dead, but summon the person himself. Even Glanz, who had been called the wisdom of the nation, did not know many things.

“However…… I feel sorry for Skinny-san, but I can understand why the nation regarded it as dangerous.”

It was precisely because the concepts of life and death were clear that people respected life. That was why they lived with all their might, and why life shone. The necromancy sealed within these ruins blurred the concept of life and death.

“It was an extremely fascinating event, but…… now then, what should we do?”

Aktor smiled wryly in困惑. At the end of his gaze was Van, who was still collapsed in tears. He was choking back sobs as though enduring them.

“Van. You can’t keep crying forever.”

“Yes. It may be painful right now, but……”

Eris and Ciel called out to him. Considering Van’s current state, it was only natural to worry. They likely sympathized with him too. But not everyone necessarily felt the same way.

“……I do not think it is right for only one person to act like a victim.”

“Selen, you don’t have to say it like that……”

Selen’s expression as she looked at Van was extremely cold. Her eyes, the same color as her own clear hair, held nothing but chill.

“Zeke was also at fault for not explaining properly. I will make sure he is thoroughly educated on that point from now on…… but you were far too selfish.”

Sharp blades of words mercilessly attacked Van.

“It was a misunderstanding…… That is no longer enough to settle this. How will you take responsibility? Does holding the title of Sword Saint make you forgivable? I am not from this country, so I do not really know.”

“……Wait, Selen. In that sense, the Knight Order also bears responsibility. It is unreasonable to blame him alone.”

“That is true…… I bear responsibility as well.”

Something that had happened once could not be made to have never happened. No matter what the parties involved thought, the fact remained that they had fought with their lives on the line.

Zeke, one of those parties, had gone alone to the altar.

He pulled out the sword that had remained thrust into it and sheathed it. He muttered quietly that there was no presence left.

“To borrow Masfelt-san’s words……”

Glanz approached Van and spoke in a voice that everyone could hear.

“You all have time. If you do not understand, then speak until you can understand one another. From now on, you will surely make mistakes, be hurt, and hurt others as well. That is what it means to be human.”

Everyone was drawn in by his gentle expression and kind words. Surely, even Zeke, who seemed to be ignoring him, had heard them.

“Hey, what are you people doing? Do you intend to live in this gloomy space forever? Disgusting.”

Zeke hurled his usual abuse at those around him and walked alone toward the exit. If one looked only at his words and attitude, anyone would see him as nothing but a detestable corrupt noble—a Lagias. But everyone present understood that Zeke’s true nature was different. —Van included.

“W-wait, Zeke. M-maybe another ghost might appear.”

“Are you an idiot? ……The spirits must have been disgusted after seeing that stupid look on your face.”

“!?”

Zeke mercilessly cut down Kratz, who had timidly run over to him. Aaron, Simon, and Aktor followed after them.

“Luke, shall we go too? ……If we take our eyes off them, there is no telling what they might do.”

“H-haha…… That is certainly true.”

The area around Zeke became noisy, perhaps because Aaron had done something suspicious. They should have been exhausted from battle, but they were quite lively.

“Let us go as well. Van-san, can you stand?”

“……Yeah.”

Thus, they left the Hidden-World Ruins behind.

Sunlight shone upon them as they emerged from the dark, enclosed space. The radiance of the sun, which they felt for the first time in a while, cleared their gloomy hearts.

“Sunlight really is nice. Come on, Van and Atri, you two need to change gears already. Masfelt-san will worry about you, you know?”

“I know……”

“……Yeah. I’ll try.”

Eris encouraged the two of them. To the current Van and Atri, the bright and positive Eris was deeply appreciated. She also played the role of connecting both sides.

“So…… what is everyone going to do from here?”

“That is a vague question. ……In my case, even if I return to the Mage Corps, I might be treated as a traitor, so what should I do?”

Though each of them had different positions, there was no major divergence in their objectives. Precisely because one problem had been resolved, they needed to think about what to do next.

“If we correct the Knight Order’s mistake, the other issues should also be resolved. ……Her Highness Arnica will likely cooperate as well.”

The incident had begun when Zeke was suspected of murdering the Sword Saint. Though the circumstances had invited misunderstanding, it was now clear that Zeke himself was not the culprit.

It would be difficult to treat the necromancy that had vanished as evidence, but if they pursued Elzen and the Freak Trading Company, proving the truth would likely not be difficult. Fortunately, there were many witnesses. Aktor’s presence as a member of the ducal house would work especially strongly in their favor.

“Hmm. I would like to act immediately, but I am rather tired.”

“That would not be a bad idea. Let us rest our bodies and minds once and organize our thoughts.”

What needed to be done had become clear. But as Glanz said, rest was also necessary. Van, in particular, needed time.

With rest as the topic, the discussion turned to where they should relax. Some wanted a hot spring town, while others wished for a famous restaurant. With this many people, it was only natural that many opinions would arise.

“Do you have any preference? This is only for this time, but the ducal house will cover the cost.”

“……”

“Being ignored at this distance is rather painful……”

Zeke gave no response to Aktor, whose face twitched. Each of them engaged in conversation while listening to the exchange between the two. In a sense, their relationship had largely been formed through Zeke as the trigger. It was only natural that attention would gather on him.

“……”

That Zeke had remained silent the entire time. From the outside, he looked as though he had completely shut out all conversation. —To Luke, he looked as though he was staring intently at something. ……Zeke’s expression twisted.

“Hey, hey, hey…… How did you figure it out? I had cut off my presence, hadn’t I?”

“Hah, I smelled the stench of a filthy petty thief.”

A stranger’s voice suddenly entered their ears. Zeke spat abuse into empty space. The space warped, and a man appeared.

Zeke—Hiroto—himself had not accurately detected his presence. This was also a development different from the original story’s scenario. Even so, he had somehow known. —Perhaps it was intuition as a fellow villain.

“Uncle……”

“Yo, Van. Been a few months?”

It was a reunion with Tret, an old hand of the Freak Trading Company.

Tret had appeared before Van and the others. They could not tell whether he had been there from the beginning or had teleported there like Glanz’s magic. He had given off no presence at all.

“Don’t give me ‘been a few months.’ Where have you been all this time? What have you been doing?”

The last time Van had met Tret was in the Finis Domain. They had encountered him while they were moving to treat Masfelt, who had collapsed from mana sclerosis.

(No, wait. Back then, I’m sure……)

The ones who had appeared to block Van and the others’ path were Feluart and Pariaach. They had barely driven them off, then, just as they were hurrying onward, found Tret and the other members of the Freak Trading Company collapsed on the ground.

They had said they had been attacked by bandits, but thinking about it now, for what purpose had the Freak Trading Company been targeted? In the first place, that area had little traffic, let alone bandits. On top of that, it had been the middle of the night.

If, hypothetically, Tret and the others had not been there, they might have reached Masfelt much sooner. There was even a possibility that they might have come into contact with Zeke, Masfelt, and Elzen.

(Which side……?)

Aktor of the ducal house had said that they vanished after Masfelt’s incident. If they had not met the members of the Freak Trading Company while chasing Zeke, they would not even have heard their story. ……Why had Van not asked them for help? Why had he not requested their cooperation? —Had Van himself actually known the truth?

“How sad. Van, since when did you start looking at me with those eyes?”

“—!?”

In appearance, he was exactly the Tret Van had known since long ago. He should have been. And yet he looked like a different person. What was reflected in those inorganic eyes?

“……Where is my father now?”

“He’s out peddling…… though you won’t believe me even if I say that, huh?”

Tret had treated him well since long ago. Had the kindness he had shown Van and Atri all been a lie?

“……The Freak Trading Company was also a charitable organization. You protected children without relatives, didn’t you?”

“That was for the purpose of searching for inheritors of the ‘keys.’ If we looked after them since they were brats, they’d be easier to control.”

The word “key,” which he had been hearing often lately. He remembered that Feluart and the others had also said it.

“I thought maybe not, but I was surprised when I found out you were one of them too.”

“……Why? Why? Were you deceiving me this whole time?”

“Don’t make it sound so bad. —The true nature of us in the Freak Trading Company hasn’t changed, now or then.”

Tret stated it clearly without any sign of guilt. Van’s memories, his recollections, shattered with a sound.

“You’ve been saying whatever you like while we listened in silence. What are you trying to say in the end?”

Eris readied herself warily. Tension also ran through the others.

“Hm? It’s this…… I want you to repay your debt. Right, Atri……”

“!?”

Why had Atri’s name come up here? According to what Feluart and their companions had said, there should have been three “keys.”

“The Guide. In our plan, contact between the Guide—Atri—and the Watchman—Lagias—is essential.”

“So you did know after all……”

Words he had heard before appeared again. For some reason, “Guide” and “Watchman” lingered in his ears. Even if he did not understand what the words meant, he could somehow understand that it was not something good.

(Is Atri the target? Did they know that when they took her out of that village……?)

He had met Atri in a certain village they had stopped at while peddling. Elzen had taken in the girl, who had been ostracized by the entire village, in order to save her. After that, she had spent time as a member of the Freak Trading Company, as family.

……Had everything been a lie?

“What are you…… planning to do with Atri?”

“Van. This is where you’re supposed to say, ‘I won’t hand over Atri,’ right? You’ve gotten used to losing.”

“Don’t screw with me! ……I don’t matter anymore. I’m done. But Atri is different, isn’t she? Why are you dragging someone unrelated into this?”

“If she lives in this world, then she isn’t unrelated. Especially if she’s an inheritor.”

“Uncle, I don’t understand what you’re saying……”

His head was in chaos, and he could not understand anything. How had things ended up like this?

Elzen and Tret were the same. Why had they never told him anything?

“Then let me ask you, Van. Was it right to leave Atri in that village? —She might have been killed by malice.”

—A dry gunshot rang out.

When they turned around, Selen had pulled the trigger of her magic gun.

The magic bullet had not hit Tret. Was it a warning shot?

“That wasn’t a warning shot, Van. —I dodged it.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I will make sure to hit next time.”

Hostile intent confirmed. Perhaps judging it as such, everyone readied their weapons. —Van could not draw his sword.

“You can stay calm in front of this many people?”

“Th-that’s right! No matter how strong you are, we won’t lose!”

There were thirteen of them in total. Even excluding Van and Atri, there were more than ten. Moreover, each one was capable, and there were even two sacred arts users. No matter how one thought about it, Tret was at a disadvantage. And yet his composure did not crumble.

“Do not let your guard down. This man can die. Unlike Elzen.”

“Can die……? Is that a metaphor or something?”

“I’ll explain so even a sheltered son of the ducal house can understand. ……It is precisely because humans understand they can die that they can be strong. Like that Lagias over there.”

Tret let out a fearless smile. Perhaps that was the signal, as an unknown magical formula surfaced on Tret’s face. It closely resembled the one Pariaach and Feluart had used in the past. —And for some reason, it had also appeared on Atri.

“……Huh?”

“Damn it! When did you plant that?”

Zeke’s slash attacked Tret at a speed too fast for the eye to follow. Masfelt’s sword caught Tret…… but the attack did not go through.

“……This is the same type of power Feluart-san used. Space itself has been severed.”

“Well spotted, Sage. Guess you’re not just old for show. —Now then, what do you think happens next, Van?”

Tret’s expression twisted with madness. Neither Van nor Atri understood what had happened.

“Atri! What the hell is this!?”

Van tried to touch the bewildered Atri. But his hand never reached her and was repelled by something. The same formula as Tret’s flickered ominously again and again.

“How is it, Atri? How’s the effect of the charm I gave you before?”

When they looked closely, the formula in question was spreading out from the charm hanging from Atri’s neck. The proof that she was a member of the Freak Trading Company. ……Everything, every last thing, had been a lie.

“Relax, Van. Yours is different from Atri’s. It only has the effect of letting us know your location.”

Van tried to touch Atri, but nothing he did worked.

Despair was closing in right before him. And yet, for some reason, Van felt reassured. There were many powerful people here, beginning with Glanz. He blindly believed—trusted—that they would somehow manage something.

“I’m grateful to you, Van. You drew out the most troublesome one, Lagias. I don’t know what happened, but his mana looks empty.”

His lightspeed draw technique bared its fangs as it tried to catch Tret, but before the severed space, the attack did not reach. ……Zeke lowered the sword he had readied. Glanz and the others could not interfere either.

(W-why……? Why aren’t Glanz-san and the others doing anything? Zeke is the strongest, right? Can’t he turn this situation around too?)

“You really have gone spineless, Van. —You can’t stop Elzen. Forget everything and just keep swinging your sword.”

The flickering magical formula shone brighter. It was the same as with Feluart. ……Everyone would disappear.

“How thoroughly you underestimate me. ……Do not think I will let you do as you please.”

“Sorry, but I’m different from the others. I don’t fight battles I can’t win.”

Zeke glared sharply, while Tret smiled calmly from within the severed space.

“……Van.”

“Atri……”

The last thing he heard was the small murmur of his childhood friend. A voice filled with anxiety unlike anything he had ever heard before. Van reached out, but his hand cut through empty air.

Tret and Atri vanished at the same time.