◆
“Saria collapsed?!”
Albert let out a startled shout.
After carrying the unconscious Saria back to her room, I had gone to report the situation to Albert and the others.
“I-Is she all right?!”
“Yes, she’s just sleeping now. She doesn’t have a fever, so I think she’ll be fine.”
“Hmph. Well, she looked like she’d been frettin’ over an awful lot lately. It was only a matter of time before exhaustion caught up with her,” Birgitte said, her eyes scanning through a stack of documents at a dizzying speed.
She and Albert were currently buried in paperwork in preparation for tomorrow’s main event. Between stall permits, seating arrangements, guest protocols, and participant coordination, the list of tasks seemed endless.
“Nnn... I’m worried. I’m so worried. Did she corner herself and push too hard...?”
“Now, now, Albert. Do you really have time to be idlin’ around?”
“Older sister, but...”
Albert started to protest, but he swallowed his words under the weight of Birgitte’s intimidating aura.
“That music-obsessed girl went out of her way to find a substitute herself. That’s how much responsibility she’s carryin’ on her shoulders. We’ve gotta do our part to live up to that. No time to be slackin’ off, right?”
“Older sister...! Yes, you’re right.”
“Mm-hmm. Good that you understand.”
Just as Birgitte nodded, the sound of rhythmic clapping echoed through the room.
“My, my, that is exactly right! Success for the Live Fest is what she wants most of all, so we really should put all our effort into it!”
The source of the applause was the Holy King.
As usual, the man appeared out of nowhere. Birgitte turned a sharp, piercing glare toward his playful expression.
“You keep your mouth shut. I’m only lettin’ you handle this because it was Saria’s wish, but normally, I’d have kicked your teeth in by now.”
“Oh, how scary! My, my, what a display of sisterly affection.”
“I’m tellin’ you now—if you slack off during the performance...”
“I have no such intention, not in the slightest. I swear it on my name as the Holy King.”
“You’d better. If you mess up, I’ll have you crucified.”
“Ahaha! Crucifixion? You’d really say that to a Holy King? Well, I’m not lying when I say I’ll do my best, so feel free to relax.”
The Holy King waved a hand breezily as he let himself out.
“Tch... He’s as flippant as ever! What is he even thinking? He’s always acting so suggestive.”
“Darn him, he’s a hard guy to pin down. Always floating around... what on earth is he after?”
Grimo and the others tilted their heads in confusion, but to me, it honestly seemed like he wasn't thinking about anything at all. I couldn't help but wonder if he really was just moving purely on impulse.
He accidentally robbed Saria of her music, naturally felt the need to make amends, naturally tried to encourage her, and naturally offered an explanation to Birgitte and the others... That sort of thing. Between his title and his cryptic way of speaking, I felt like everyone else might just be reading too much into his actions.
Well, that was just my own imagination. In any case, it probably wasn't good to be trapped by preconceptions.
“Well, we’ll find out soon enough.”
Tomorrow was the day of the Live Fest. As far as I was concerned, as long as I could fulfill my goal of testing the effectiveness of my Magical Song, I didn't much care about the rest. Oh, and Beal’s resurrection, of course.
Now then, I wonder how it will all turn out? I was so excited I felt like I wouldn't be able to sleep.
◇
Dawn broke, and the day of the Live Fest finally arrived.
“Phaa... I slept well.”
As I let out a big yawn and stretched, Grimo and Jiriel popped out of thin air.
“You were sleeping like a log, Master Lloyd.”
“In fact, it is already noon. Have you not slept a bit too much?”
“I was busy with a few things, so I ended up going to bed late.”
I had stayed up late performing a final check of the musical score. Looking out the window, the sun was already high in the sky. I definitely overlept. It was rare for Sylpha and the others not to come wake me, though.
“It looks like you’re finally awake, Lloyd-kun.”
Turning toward the voice from beside my bed, I saw Connie sitting in a chair, reading a book.
“You looked so peaceful that I ended up just leaving you be.”
“Connie, is it all right for you to be up?”
“Yeah, I’ve been feeling great lately. Maybe it’s because I’ve been listening to your music, Lloyd-kun.”
The Magical Song meant to restore Beal had secondary healing effects that also worked on Connie, his vessel. I had been refining it day by day, and the results seemed excellent.
“We still can’t communicate yet, but it feels like Beal has recovered quite a bit, too.”
“What? Really?”
“...Why do you look a little disappointed?”
Connie looked at me with cold, suspicious eyes.
I wouldn't say I was disappointed, but if possible, I had wanted him to make a grand, dramatic revival during the actual performance. If he recovered halfway beforehand, it would be harder to gauge the true extent of the song's effectiveness.
Well, Beal’s mana was massive, so I suppose a full recovery in one go was too much to ask for regardless. It’s a common theme in all things—recovery requires much greater power than destruction. It’s always harder to fix something than it is to break it.
“By the way, Sylpha-san and the others went to help out with the Live Fest. Lady Birgitte took them away early this morning.”
“Ah, so that’s why they didn’t come to wake me.”
No matter how stubborn Sylpha was, even she couldn’t go against Birgitte’s authority. Still, to draft even Sylpha... Birgitte truly was impressive.
“She seemed very disappointed, though. Since she always wakes you up,” Connie giggled.
Well, it was fine to take a break every now and then. Thanks to that, I got to sleep in.
“More importantly, Connie, did any weird guys come around while I was sleeping? Like a breezy man with black hair.”
“The Holy King. If he came to finish off Beal, it wouldn’t be strange for him to make contact with Lady Connie,” Grimo and Jiriel added.
Connie tilted her head at their question. “Hmm... Let’s see... No, I didn’t meet anyone.”
“Well, I thought as much.”
There were no signs of anyone approaching the Barrier. The Holy King seemed flighty, but he didn't strike me as a liar. I supposed I should just assume he was sincerely reflecting on his actions and cooperating. Still... it was hard to say for sure.
As I sat there pondering, Connie stood up and took my hand.
“Lloyd, more importantly, let’s go to the Live Fest. You’ve been sleeping all morning, and I want to move around.”
“You’re right. I should be heading there soon anyway. But don’t overdo it.”
“I won’t.”
Leading Connie along, I headed toward the venue.