Episode 2

The Royal Special District. A special zone where entry was restricted to anyone not involved, because residences for royalty had been built there. It also included the mansion owned by the Astera Ducal House.

“Same as ever—stupidly huge. What a waste.”

“…If a building owned by a ducal house looked shabby, that would be unnatural in its own way.”

Actol of the Astera Ducal House and Zeke of the House of Lagias.

Their public relationship was known not only among royalty and nobles, but across the entire nation.

“Only people with nothing to do would care about that. …This is what you wanted.”

Zeke tossed a book from his chest area and handed it to Actol like he was throwing it away. It was the secret letter recovered the other day with Aaron—something that could be called an intercepted missive. Inside were exchanges with nobles from another country.

“—I’ve confirmed it. Just as we suspected. They should have stayed quiet…”

“Maybe they got sick of you people from the kingdom.”

Under Actol’s orders, Zeke had carried out missions together with Aaron. There had been no irregularities, and everything was completed on schedule.

“…I think this every time, but these are not easy missions. This time in particular, we should have been under heavy suspicion.”

“Hah. That’s just the standard for you ordinary fools. Go ahead and lament your miserable fate of being born without power.”

“…………I think this every time, but isn’t your mouth too filthy? I’m the next duke, you know.”

Actol, the eldest son of the Astera Ducal House. Skilled in sacred arts, brilliant-minded, and competent enough in combat. A flawless successor—yet Zeke’s attitude showed no sign of changing.

Two years had passed since Zeke had formally, at least in name, entered Actol’s service.

At first, Actol watched him warily, convinced Zeke was plotting something, but Zeke never harmed the country or the ducal house. Rather, he completed every mission he was given, often producing results beyond expectations, and even began offering advice—though laced with abuse. The incident where he noticed abnormalities in a neighboring country faster than anyone and settled a skirmish through his own force alone was still fresh in memory.

It was strategy that felt like he held the entire kingdom in his palm, insight so sharp it could be mistaken for foresight, and absolute power capable of toppling a nation single-handedly.

He could not be left unchecked. If Actol did not keep him where he could be watched, it could invite the collapse of the country.

And yet, Actol also found it a waste. If only he were not a Lagias, Actol would have welcomed him in a true sense without hesitation.

—Actol’s thoughts spun in many directions, but Hiroto had not been thinking that deeply.

His broad knowledge came from awareness of the original story, not because he could see the future. And while his strength came from life-or-death training and experience, the simple truth was that Zeke himself was exceptional. He had gone to fight in the neighboring country just to test his power, and he had even been thinking that if responsibility became an issue, he would pin it all on Actol.

Actol had been spectacularly mistaken.

“…Fine. I don’t expect you to follow my orders outside of work, anyway.”

Actol cleared his throat and reset the conversation.

“I don’t know if it’s that organization, but—Ciel was attacked. Fortunately, we repelled them, but I believe there will be another attempt.”

During travel by carriage, a person in black clothing appeared and a fight broke out. Thanks to the escort’s performance, the incident ended without harm, but the enemy left behind a troubling remark.

“They looked at Ciel and said something like ‘the key that opens the gate.’ The words themselves are ordinary, but I assume that is not what they meant.”

“…A ducal-house woman being one of the ‘keys’ is a done deal. …Either their objective is achieved, or she’ll be hunted until she dies.”

Zeke stated his assessment flatly. There was no emotion in it, only a steady distance, as if he stood one step removed.

“I may not be in a position to say this, but shouldn’t you be a little more surprised?”

“You’re right. Still better than you, who tried to kill her. Besides, even if she dies, it just gets passed on to the next one—nothing changes.”

It was known throughout the country that Ciel could use sacred arts. The event where she saved Apion was famous. That was precisely why she had been targeted more than once, but this time the enemy’s purpose was clearly different.

“From your perspective, losing that woman is inconvenient—whether for sacred arts or for the key. …I’ll introduce a perfectly tailored guard for you. Cry tears of joy.”

“? What are you talking about? There is no one more suitable than you. You’ve met her, and more importantly, she wants that.”

“…Rethink it. I’ll kill you.”

“It’s the house’s unanimous decision. It won’t be overturned now. —Come in.”

At Actol’s instruction, two women entered the room.

What caught the eye was hair the color of silver, as if reflecting a starry sky. The way her gaze wandered looked somehow restless.

The other was tall for a woman, and her expression was brimming with confidence.

Both had grown from girls into women. If they walked the streets, they would undoubtedly draw attention.

Ciel Astera—born of a ducal house, and now arguably the foremost sacred-arts user.

Protecting Ciel was Selen Bloom, an elite guard who had sent many ruffians to prison.

Their appearances and relationship were unchanged from the original story.

Zeke’s (Hiroto’s) natural enemy had appeared.

“G-g-good to see you again!!”

“…You silly girl. You need to be cooler than that.”

For Selen, it was their first reunion in two years, and for Ciel it was the same.

Those cold eyes that seemed to see through everything, and that lustrous black hair, were unchanged. But his features had become more sharp-edged, carrying the weight of strong will. If she let her guard down, she felt like she might be drawn in.

“What are you staring at… You want to die?”

“…I’m relieved. It’s not just me you talk filthy to.”

The same foul mouth as ever. The same irritated expression as before. In a sense, it could be called a straightforward kind of growth.

“It’s been a while. Hero who saved the kingdom?”

“Who the hell are you? Don’t talk to me like we’re close.”

“Huh? I thought Zeke-san and Selen knew each other…”

(I see. So that’s how we’re doing it.)

“It can’t be helped. Wartel was in total chaos. There wasn’t room for anything else.”

Selen summarized the events from two years ago. She had no deep ties with Zeke. She explained it to Actol and Ciel as though convincing them: it had been nothing more than being caught up in a civil conflict.

After reaching the Kingdom of Diabalet, Selen gathered a great deal of information about Zeke.

Born of the House of Lagias, a ruling lordly noble family. Also an adventurer, a genius who became the youngest A-rank adventurer. Excellent in both magic and swordsmanship, and even the famous mage called “the Sage” in the kingdom regarded him highly.

Selen felt proud inside—of course that matched what he had done in Wartel—but beyond that, everything she heard was bad.

He squeezed money out of his people under the name of taxes.

He bought his adventurer rank with collected money.

He destroyed a village with magic.

He spread epidemics and curses.

He released monsters into the royal capital.

He barged into the Knight Order entrance exam and rampaged.

He was trying to curry favor with the ducal house.

Every story sounded unbelievable, lacking credibility. Selen did not believe them, but the fact that the entire nation hated him to this extent felt unnatural in itself.

That was why, to confirm the truth, she continued her own investigation over the past two years while working as an escort.

Asking Zeke directly was an option, but before that she met Ciel, and after one conflict after another, she ended up in her current position.

(If word spreads that I’m close with him, it will damage my position… I can’t accept it. But I respect your judgment.)

To keep him at a distance, she deliberately pretended to be a stranger. To protect Selen. That made her feel both happy and sad.

—Meanwhile, Hiroto had been thinking about something else.

Back when she was Blood, it turned into a fight. It couldn’t be helped, but he had sent her flying—hard enough that she didn’t wake up for a while.

Why was she with Ciel? He didn’t know if it was the original story’s influence. But one thing was certain: he had earned the hatred of both of them. He was on guard, suspecting they had teamed up to take revenge.

—Everyone involved was misunderstanding something.

“For now, both of you sit down. I’ll explain what happens next.”

At Actol’s prompting, the two took their seats. Perhaps mindful of Actol, Ciel sat a little farther away. Selen sat beside Zeke—despite the room being spacious, with plenty of space.

“…Hey, you. Don’t come near me.”

“Oh? The next duke didn’t give any such instruction.”

“I’ll kill you.”

“I won’t die.”

The two traded volleys of words. Watching them, Actol was impressed. The nerve to not back down in front of Zeke was worth praising. As for Ciel, for some reason she quietly shifted her seat—away from Selen and closer to Zeke’s side.

“Save the fighting for later. As for what comes next for you all… I do not intend to have you go into hiding.”

Actol’s stance was not defense, but offense.

“As before. Ciel will act normally.”

“Hah. So she’s a banner-waver to flaunt the authority of you royals. Not bad for a shallow scheme.”

“It’s fine, Zeke-san. If many people are being saved by my power, then that’s enough.”

After awakening to sacred arts, Ciel devoted herself to restoring Apion, and afterward traveled across the kingdom treating many wounded and sick. Having mastered even recovery and healing magic, she had grown into a true specialist in restoration.

“Then, as usual, we do house calls? And we just detain the ones who wander in like last time?”

“The result may be that, but the process is different. There is a place I want all of you to go.”

Actol spread out a map and indicated a location on the eastern side of the kingdom. It was an agricultural district where farming villages sprawled.

“As the map shows, it is farmland, and it is only natural that farming villages exist to match the work—”

“Are you stupid? Everyone knows that. Get to the point.”

“Agreed. Waste of time.”

Actol had been speaking a little proudly. His dignity as the older one was being completely crushed.

“Ghh… In that farming village—every villager vanished overnight. Not one or two. All of them.”

All signs of human presence had disappeared from the village. A trading company that visited regularly for peddling noticed the abnormality and reported it to the kingdom.

“Was it only that village? What about the surrounding area?”

“It seems the trading company visits villages in order, and that was their last stop. Meaning, at the time of the report, there were no abnormalities elsewhere, but…”

“So you don’t know now. …If it’s a poor village, they might abandon it, though.”

Actol denied that. If they were abandoning the village, they would have taken at least the bare minimum supplies, but there were no signs of anything being carried off. More than that, horses, carriages, and livestock had apparently been left behind.

“Everything about it is unnatural. That’s why the trading company reported it, but I’m concerned about the fact that people are vanishing. —Because it closely resembles what happened two years ago.”

Former adventurers who had been stripped of their qualifications in the royal capital. He knew they had been simmering outside Spirito, but one day they vanished without warning. And then came the monster stampede.

“It inevitably calls that incident to mind. I don’t know whether it’s causally connected to Ciel being attacked, but…”

“Either way, we need to move. We can’t leave it alone!”

Ciel was fired up. Having seen the damage in Apion firsthand, she could not ignore it.

“What are the knights and mages doing?”

“It seems they aren’t taking it seriously. …You understand what this means, don’t you?”

Zeke replied that he did—reluctantly. Ciel looked at their exchange in puzzlement, while Selen stayed silent and observed.

“We will arrange the carriage and everything else. Head out as soon as preparations are complete.”

Ciel, Selen, and Zeke.

An unusual party set out to investigate the disappearance incident.