The following day, the opening ceremony of the Advent Festival was held in a colossal stadium located at the heart of the Imperial Capital.
The tiered, bowl-shaped stands were packed to the brim. Wrapped in the venue's stifling, intense energy, Zest and I blended into the crowd and quietly observed the arena.
“This heat is extraordinary, to say the least.”
Even factoring in my past life, I had never attended an event with this level of excitement.
The average lifespan of citizens of the Empire is 150 years. For people who have weathered all the sweets and bitters of life to be this fanatical, the Advent Festival must be an exceptionally captivating spectacle.
Just then, an announcement echoed through the stadium, directing everyone’s attention toward the specially prepared VIP box.
Following the spectators' collective gaze, I looked over... and saw a man step into view.
I could tell in an instant.
That was the Emperor of this country.
"Lord Carlos!!"
"Long live His Majesty the Emperor!!"
The immortal Emperor had the appearance of an elderly man around sixty by the Kingdom's standards. His hair and beard were stark white, and his cheeks were somewhat gaunt. Yet the piercing intensity in his eyes held such commanding power that it felt like having my heart clutched even from a distance.
An absolute ruler who has reigned over this nation for eight hundred years. The moment he appeared, a thunderous cheer erupted, shaking the arena to its foundation. What an extraordinary presence and overpowering aura. So that man is the one standing at the apex of this country.
“We should begin soon.”
Yeah...
Squeezed between the roaring spectators, I looked down at the festival contestants assembled in the center of the arena.
Zest, start scanning.
“Leave it to me.”
Zest’s power expanded in a soft, sweeping wave.
If we restrict our detection strictly to the contestants in the center of the stadium, it won’t overwhelm me with information.
“This is...!!”
Haha... looks like we hit the jackpot, huh?
Still, with numbers like this, I can't exactly celebrate.
“There are two hundred contestants. Of those, roughly twenty have seeds embedded within them.”
They're crawling with them...
Cold sweat began to trickle down my neck. As expected, it seemed the Seeds of Artificial Mythos had been targeted and planted into the kind of seasoned combatants capable of entering the Advent Festival. In the vision I saw through the Master Eye, it looked as if the spectators had all transformed into Apostles at once, but in reality, it was likely the contestants eliminated before the finals who were turned.
In other words, what I have to do is simple.
Ambush those twenty contestants in the dark.
Just like with Eileen, I should be able to extract the seeds using Zest’s power.
Pulling it off mid-match would obviously be difficult, so I'll make my move once their bouts conclude.
“............Hm?”
As he maintained the scan, Zest voiced a sudden doubt.
Just as I was about to ask what was wrong, I noticed it too.
Among the contestants lined up below, there were three familiar faces.
One was Reiji. I already knew he was here, but...
The problem was the two standing behind him.
Unmistakable, lustrous silver hair and dazzling blonde hair stood side by side.
Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?!?!
Why?!?!?!?!
Celestia and Eileen?!?!?!
What on earth are you two doing here!?!?!?
◆
Lined up in the center of the stadium, Celestia and Eileen calmly took in their surroundings.
"...He is not here, is he?"
Celestia let out a soft sigh.
"No. There's no sign of Claude."
Eileen surveyed the area with a sharp scowl.
Upon learning that Claude had departed for the Empire, the two of them had immediately set out after him.
As the top two talents of the Royal Academy, they were as sharp as they were composed. Claude’s objective was to serve as a stepping stone for Reiji. Therefore, they reasoned that tracking Reiji's movements would inevitably lead them to Claude.
According to what the Headmaster had told them before they left the Royal Capital, Reiji was planning to participate in an imperial event called the Advent Festival.
Knowing Claude, if it meant becoming a stepping stone for Reiji, he would undoubtedly seize a grand stage like the Advent Festival to play the villain before the masses. Anticipating this, Celestia and Eileen had pulled every royal and ducal string at their disposal to forcefully secure entry slots for themselves.
And yet, he was nowhere to be found.
Contrary to their expectations, Claude was not competing in the Advent Festival.
"Could he have anticipated our actions...?"
"It is quite possible. Lord Claude wishes to keep us out of harm's way, after all."
Celestia spoke in a subdued tone.
If Claude were to participate in the Advent Festival, he would have no choice but to drag Celestia and Eileen into the fray along with him. In order to stoke Reiji's righteous indignation, he would have to overtly torment them before the public eye.
Perhaps he had hesitated to enter the tournament precisely because he wanted to spare them that fate.
Celestia and Eileen bit their lips, picturing the back of their benefactor—a figure they could never seem to reach, no matter how desperately they pursued him.
"...For now, let us remain calm and seek out what only we can accomplish."
"Right. Claude's goal is to make Reiji stronger and save this world. If so, there's no reason we can't serve as the walls Reiji must overcome."
With that, Eileen glanced at Reiji standing ahead of them.
To lighten Claude’s burden, even by a fraction... they would become stepping stones for Reiji as well. For now, the two girls were entirely convinced that this path was the right one.
And there was one more matter.
Ever since arriving in the Empire, a persistent question had weighed on their minds.
"Tia. Could you check just one more time?"
"...I will try."
Celestia murmured in a breath barely audible to anyone else.
—Lost.
The Secret Rank Magic quietly handed down through House Rosemilian.
She had once believed it to be a power that reduced all magic to nothingness.
In truth, however, it was far more terrifying.
It was the power to reduce all Mythos to nothingness.
Using that power, Celestia gazed upon the hidden, true form of the world.
In the Kingdom, one or more threads stretched toward the heavens from the crown of every single person's head.
Yet here in this country...
"...As I thought, I cannot see them."
Not a single thread rose from anyone.
Upon arriving in the Empire, Celestia had immediately invoked Lost to peer into the realm of those threads, believing she could locate Reiji simply by tracking where they converged.
Even now, countless threads extended from Reiji's head.
From the rest of the citizens of the Empire, however, not a single one appeared.
"...The Empire is a nation that worships the Second Mythos Eternity rather than the Fourth Mythos Fate. Could that be why its people are free from the dominion of those abhorrent threads?"
"It's certainly possible....Though that doesn't mean we can let our guard down."
"Indeed. There are a great many nations that revere Fate."
As for the Third Mythos Magic, its widespread nature had ironically left very few nations that truly worshiped it. When a miracle becomes commonplace, its perceived sanctity inevitably fades.
Presently, countless nations across the globe worshiped the Fourth Mythos.
Tragically, there were precious few places in this world where Claude and the two of them could ever find true peace.
"We don't mind. But for him, this world really is..."
"...Cruel, irrational, and surely far too painful to endure."
As they recalled the sins they each bore, their eyes clouded over.
Over time, the two had developed their own rituals to soothe their aching hearts.
Celestia bit down hard onto the palm with which she had once struck Claude across the cheek, clamping down until blood nearly seeped through. It gave her the fleeting comfort of feeling as though she were atoning, if only a fraction.
Eileen gently placed a tender hand over her stomach, where Claude had struck her in the past. The pain she had felt back then was the very manifestation of his kindness. The more vividly she recalled the ache, the more intimately she could feel his presence.
"This time..."
"...I will prove useful to him."
As the athlete's oath concluded and the contestants began to break formation, the two girls finished their rituals, regained their composure, and stepped toward Reiji.
"Tia?! Princess Eileen?! W-What are you two doing here?!"
"Long time no see, Reiji. We just came to test our mettle a bit."
Eileen flashed her usual mischievous grin.
That alone was enough to satisfy Reiji's curiosity. Inwardly, Eileen patted herself on the back for having established such a free-spirited reputation.
"How did you manage to enter the Advent Festival, Reiji? You have only just begun your studies abroad..."
"Uh, where do I even begin...? Well, after I picked up this local technique called Life Shroud, the Saint and the Holy Knights took notice of me. They suggested I enter the Advent Festival since I was already here, so..."
As if it were the most natural thing in the world, this boy had already established ties with the nation's leadership.
This, too, had to be the innate talent of a hero.
"By the way, Reiji, have you seen Claude? We heard a rumor that he was in this country..."
When Eileen asked with an air of complete innocence, Reiji's face soured slightly.
"I actually ran into Claude yesterday. He was the same insufferable bastard as ever....Honestly, I have no idea why he even bothered coming to see me."
Reiji muttered under his breath.
At his words, the expressions on Celestia's and Eileen's faces smoothed into emotionless masks.
"Oh, is that so...?"
"Without saying a single word to us..."
They understood. The only reason Claude had approached Reiji was to fulfill his duty as a stepping stone.
Even understanding that, they could not rein in the tangled knot of emotions within their chests. Not when he had slipped away to the Empire without even showing his face to them...
Knowing Claude, he surely had no intention of forming close bonds with anyone, yet the deep kindness buried beneath his facade was potent enough to charm anyone he crossed paths with.
Here in the Empire...
She could only pray he hadn't taken up with some other woman...
Uncontrollable emotions tugged the two girls in every direction.
Watching them, Reiji broke into a bright, easy laugh.
"You know, you two seem a whole lot livelier lately."
To think he would reach such a conclusion looking at them now.
Celestia and Eileen stared at him in sheer surprise.
"Ah, wait, don't get me wrong! I know you're in a bad mood, and that's on me for bringing up Claude."
Though he completely misread the cause, Reiji offered an apologetic grin.
"It's just, how do I put it... you both seem so much more expressive now. Tia was always way too serious, and Your Highness used to spend half her time overthinking the room, no matter how carefree you acted."
Reiji gave them an open, unburdened smile.
"Looking at you two now, it really feels like you're living with everything you've got."
Hearing those words struck a profound chord within Celestia and Eileen.
Ah... in The World as It Should Be, they were indeed destined to be saved by this pure, earnest boy.
Yet in that destined timeline, Celestia would have lost her life along the way, and Eileen would have ultimately transformed into a monster and perished. The one who had torn them away from such a horrific fate—who had saved not merely their hearts, but their very lives—was that reviled villain whom the world despised.
These feelings of theirs would never belong to the boy standing before them again.
Even so, had Claude not been there... it was easy to see how this boy would have been the one to grant them salvation.
"...Reiji, do you have a sweetheart?"
"H-Huh?! Where did that come from all of a sudden?!"
At Eileen's abrupt question, Reiji became visibly flustered.
"If you're interested, I could introduce you to someone. Right, Tia?"
"Yes. Reiji is hailed as a hero in the Kingdom, so I imagine you would have your pick of suitors."
Reiji was completely bewildered, utterly incapable of grasping why they had pivoted to such a topic.
Rubbing the back of his head, he finally managed a response.
"I mean, I appreciate the thought, but... I really can't afford to think about stuff like that right now."
As Celestia and Eileen tilted their heads inquisitively, Reiji lowered his voice.
"There's someone I have to take down... No, someone I absolutely have to beat."
He spoke as if drumming the resolve into his own heart.
That person he sought to surpass was, beyond a shadow of a doubt, Claude.
Their chests tightened with warmth.
He was faithfully fulfilling his role.
So what could they do for the sake of a man like him?
Celestia and Eileen traded glances, the corners of their lips curling into bold, fearless smiles.
"How hurtful. Are we entirely beneath your notice?"
"Reiji. We're going to show you what we're made of."
The resolve binding the two girls had never wavered, not even before setting foot in the Empire.
Even if it was only a fraction.
Even if it was the smallest measure, they would be of help to him.