"Celestia Löwenthal."
The woman who appeared to be Philie-san's biological mother gave her name quietly and matter-of-factly.
"I have read all the articles about you. You seem to be quite accomplished despite still being so young."
Every time she spoke, it felt as though I was looking into a mirror.
It was almost as if Philie-san, sitting beside me, was being projected right in front of us.
Even after tea was served for everyone, none of us were in any mood to touch it.
After introducing herself as Philie-san's mother and taking her seat, she had barely said another word. It was hard to tell why she had even shown herself.
Surprisingly, it was Philie-san who ran out of patience first, perhaps unable to bear the silence any longer.
"...Um..."
Before Philie-san could say anything further, Celestia-san nodded gently.
"...Yes, of course. You must have so many questions....However, I am sorry, but my husband will be here shortly. Could you please wait just a little longer?"
Her husband.
In other words, Philie-san's father would be arriving here soon.
"Though, if you wish to know right away, I will tell you now."
"Tell me... what?"
"Everything."
Celestia-san set her teacup down onto its saucer.
The porcelain made almost unnervingly little sound.
"Everything. Every last detail."
Philie-san didn't change her expression, but her shoulders trembled faintly.
Just then, the door swung open with great force.
"Philie!!"
The man who entered was middle-aged with a trimmed beard.
He was tall and lean, with black hair swept loosely back.
He was breathing heavily, as if he had sprinted the entire way.
"To think you would come looking for me on your own..."
Holding his head in his hands, the man took brisk strides toward us—straight toward Philie-san.
"Ah, damn it...! What a thing! Is it truly, truly you, Philie?! Ah, you've grown so big...!"
"Dear, please calm down."
"How can you stay calm, Celes?! Philie is right in front of us!"
"Filiestra-san is frightened."
The man snapped his mouth shut as if suddenly coming to his senses, looking down at Philie-san. Philie-san awkwardly averted her gaze from his direct stare.
"...Pardon me. I got a little carried away."
The man straightened his collar and took a seat across from us.
Looking at him head-on, he gave off an atmosphere similar to Gerald or Mercedes. He was a middle-aged gentleman radiating refined nobility.
Combined with his immaculate, wrinkle-free white coat, he looked like the walking embodiment of social credibility.
"A pleasure to meet you. I am Zectromeo Löwenthal. I serve as the guildmaster of this hospital's guild. I have heard much about you all. It is an honor to meet you, members of the Imperial Archmage Faculty."
Even though we hadn't introduced ourselves yet, Zectromeo-san seemed to already know who the three of us were.
Still, basic manners dictated that we introduce ourselves first.
"...Are the two of you, um... truly my parents?"
Unexpectedly, Philie-san cut straight to the heart of the matter before we could. Of all people, it was her—the most polite of us all.
"Yes. I am your father, and Celes is your mother."
Even across the quiet room, the sound of Philie-san catching her breath was unmistakable. And for good reason. After all, the people sitting before her represented the ultimate goal of our entire search.
"However, rather than explaining it with words, I believe looking at my wife will convince you. Tell me, Philie. What did you think when you looked at my wife—at Celes?"
What did she think?
There was really only one possible answer to that.
"............Honestly, I can only see her as my blood relative."
Both Amae-san and I felt the exact same way.
Their facial features were simply too identical.
To top it off, she even wore her hair in a short bob.
If anything, her attire was appropriately sophisticated for her age, radiating a mature composure that set her apart from Philie-san.
"Hearing you say that makes me happy as well. Though I am a tiny bit disappointed you didn't take after me at all."
Zectromeo-san continued with a self-deprecating chuckle.
"I have canceled all my appointments for today. If it is all right with you, would you give me the chance to explain everything right here and now? That is likely why you came here, is it not?"
"That is... true, but..."
Philie-san responded, seeming unsure of how to react.
And she wasn't wrong.
We had traveled all the way to Temcha in search of Philie-san's parents, and now those very parents were sitting right in front of us.
For some reason, that reality felt completely surreal.
It was an overwhelmingly convenient truth, yet one strangely difficult to swallow.
"However, this matter pertains deeply to Philie's birth. I am truly sorry, but in front of your two companions..."
Zectromeo-san trailed off awkwardly.
Philie-san, however, shook her head resolutely.
"If possible, I would like to hear it together with the two of them. Of course, provided they are fine with it as well."
Her voice carried a forcefulness unlike her usual self.
We had come this far with her.
As the person in charge, I needed to brace myself and see it through.
When I made eye contact with Amae-san, she gave a serious nod as well. For today at least, her usually sleepy, droopy eyes were sharp and focused.
"In that case, the conversation here must be kept strictly confidential. If you can promise that, I will tell you everything about Filiestra Adinson right now."
"Dear... But dragging other children into this is..."
"She made her way here entirely on her own. It is only right that we honor that resolve. Would that be acceptable to you two schoolmates as well?"
To Zectromeo-san's question, Amae-san and I gave brief replies.
"Understood. I promise not to speak a word of this conversation to anyone."
"I am fine with signing an agreement, too."
Zectromeo-san simply replied with a "Very well," and quietly straightened his posture. It felt just like being a patient awaiting a diagnosis. I found myself instinctively hanging on his every word.
"First, let me start with the conclusion. Philie, you are a descendant of the Grand Duke of the Duchy of Temcha."
"Huh?"
"To be precise, you are the great-great-granddaughter of Grand Duchess Anastasia. My wife, Celestia, is her great-granddaughter."
I couldn't comprehend what he was saying.
It was so completely out of left field that my mind couldn't process the words.
...Wh... What?
What did this guy just say?
"...P-Please wait. For me to carry the blood of the grand ducal family, that's... Besides, wasn't Grand Duchess Anastasia supposed to have remained unmarried her entire life...?"
"Grand Duchess Anastasia had a secret child. The registered legal name you were meant to be given was Filiestra Löwenthal, but to be even more precise, it is this."
Zectromeo-san paused for a beat, then continued in a clear, resonant voice.
"Filiestra Luce Dravenia."
Philie-san's shoulders trembled.
What kind of trembling it was, even I could no longer tell.
The sheer scale of the revelation made it impossible to fathom what she was feeling right now.
"I understand your doubt, but please, just hear me out first. After that, it will be up to you whether to believe it or not."
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see cold sweat beading on Philie-san's profile. Honestly, it was so detached from reality that I had no idea how to react either.
"...I... understand."
"Thank you."
In the end, Philie-san chose to proceed on the premise of believing him.
Celestia-san stroked her chest in relief.
If she hadn't been here, we probably would have walked out already.
"First, let us begin with why we entrusted you to Master Magnolia. As a fundamental premise, we did not abandon you. It was a decision made entirely for the sake of your life."
Zectromeo-san concluded firmly, adding, "I want you to believe that, if nothing else."
"Seventeen years ago, when you were still a newborn, your person was being targeted by both the Temcha Restorationists and the Gleefia Extremists."
"Huh? Wait a moment."
It was Amae-san who interrupted the story, though I could pretty much guess why.
"What are the Temcha Restorationists?"
"...I see, so you are unaware. More than a century has passed since the war between Gleefia and Temcha ended. Even after becoming the same country, there are still factions seeking the revival of the Duchy of Temcha, as well as those attempting to stop them."
"But that's, um... basically a revolution, isn't it?"
"Indeed."
To Amae-san's question, Zectromeo-san gave a clear nod. I had heard rumors of such things before, but hearing their existence confirmed directly by someone of his standing cast Temcha in a very different light.
"Let us return to the topic. Fearing that Philie would never be able to lead a normal life if things continued, we made a decision. It was a plan to fabricate your existence from scratch and sever ties completely, allowing you to live a life detached from the entanglements of Temcha. After elaborate information manipulation, we entrusted your care to Master Magnolia."
"...Why was I being targeted?"
"That is simple. The same applies to Celestia, but it is because you are a surviving member of the grand ducal bloodline. Your value to be exploited was limitless. To the factions wanting to restore Temcha, you were a banner thought long lost. To the Gleefia Conservatives, you were the seed of civil strife."
If Philie-san truly carried Anastasia's blood, that would certainly make sense. Though it was hard to believe on the spot.
"Even with the Löwenthals' influence at the time, keeping my wife Celestia safe was the absolute limit of what we could do. To allow you to walk a normal path in life, we had no choice but to conceal your very existence."
"I was raised separated from my parents in the exact same manner."
Celestia-san, who had remained silent until now, quietly added this. Philie-san's face, which had been tense while listening intently, softened just a fraction.
"...What about your parents, Celestia-san?"
"They passed away a long time ago. I lived in hiding too, moving between the homes of various acquaintances. All while secretly receiving support from the Löwenthals. Filiestra-san, you were the same."
"I received support from the Löwenthals? But I never heard anything about that..."
"Do you really think medical school tuition can be arranged so easily?"
That point was undeniably persuasive.
The personal funds of the late Director Magnolia alone wouldn't fully explain it.
"In other words, you falsified my family registry to ensure my safety?"
"Yes. Though it seems our clever Philie saw right through it quite easily."
Zectromeo-san smiled self-deprecatingly once more.
A complete turnaround from when he had first arrived, it was an elegant, profoundly composed smile.
Even so, something about the story didn't quite add up.
She had been targeted by multiple factions?
"Then, if it gets out that Philie-san belongs to the grand ducal family, does that mean she'll be targeted again even now?"
"That would be the case, but the situation has improved significantly compared to the past. Over the course of seventeen years, the Löwenthals used their power to force the organizations targeting Philie into arrest and dismantle them."
What kind of convenient story was that?
Was he trying to claim there was no need to worry anymore, and that she could just live normally?
"Originally, both the Conservatives and the Restorationists were operating in the grey. While the risk hasn't dropped to absolute zero, there is hardly any faction left today that would suspect Philie's existence. As long as you do not carelessly reveal your identity, there should be no issue."
"Then why didn't you come forward to me?"
Philie-san asked quietly.
Just as she said, if the problems were resolved, they could have openly gone to see her.
Even if the fabricated registry couldn't be undone, they should have been able to tell her the truth.
"Because I wanted you to live a normal life. I wanted you to remain unaware of the truth and live happily in a world completely detached from ugly political struggles."
As he forced those words out, a shade resembling sorrow surfaced on Philie-san's profile.
"...Truth be told, I had no intention of coming forward today, either. But upon hearing that someone had come looking for a man named Oswald, I wondered if it might be you. When I checked, the daughter I had resolved never to see again was standing right there."
Zectromeo-san looked away from us with a complicated expression. Beside him, Celestia-san also lowered her head, her expression clouded.
"To be honest, I rushed straight to this room without considering the consequences. It is strange. Even after making such a firm resolution, once my daughter appeared before my eyes, I could not control myself."
So, realizing that Philie-san had come looking for her parents, he had impulsively come to see her. Was disclosing all this information right here on the spot also an irrational decision driven by parental emotion?
"Twelve years ago, at the orphanage where I was raised, there was a record of a visitation request from the man named Oswald whom you just mentioned. What was that about?"
Philie-san asked quietly.
That was indeed something that needed to be asked.
Despite being the person at the center of it all, she was calmer than I was.
"...That was me."
It was Celestia-san who nodded.
"I wanted to see you so badly that I sent a messenger without my husband's knowledge. Master Magnolia scolded me for it later, though. Oswald was one of the servants we employed a long time ago."
So she had sent a proxy because direct contact was too dangerous.
To that, Zectromeo-san added a supplementary explanation.
"Master Magnolia surely intended to erase all traces of it as well. If a record remained, it was likely processed through the standard workflow by a staff member who was unaware of the circumstances."
"What kind of relationship did you two have with the master?"
"She was our mentor. Both in medicine and magic. We learned everything from her."
"Did the master... know everything?"
"She knew. She always thought of you, of Philie, as her own true daughter. For us as well, we owe her a debt we can never fully repay."
"I... see."
After that, Philie-san fell silent for a while.
For several minutes, a heavy silence hung in the air as no one spoke a word.
"...Let us call it a day for now."
The one who made that suggestion was Celestia-san.
"Filiestra-san. I am sorry for dumping all of this on you so suddenly. Let us end things here for today, and, um... if it is all right with you, shall we talk again another time?"
Indeed, I wanted to sort through the information at this point.
Things had gotten pretty overwhelming.
"That's right. If you will still be in Dravena, why don't you have a meal with us tomorrow or the day after? Of course, your friends are welcome to join as well."
"Before that, there is one thing I must convey to Philie."
Just as Philie-san was about to say something, Zectromeo-san cut in from the side. His tone was no longer gentle. It was rigid, harboring a resolute will.
"Dear, must you really bring that up now...?"
"No. It is better to tell her now rather than next time. Frankly, I do not know when I will be able to see Philie again. There is even the possibility we may never meet again. That is why, as a parent, I have an obligation to state this clearly here today."
Zectromeo-san's demeanor suddenly shifted.
Seeing that, confusion and agitation washed over Philie-san's face.
"W-What is it...?"
"I read the newspapers regarding the raid. As a father, I am proud of your achievements in the Imperial Archmage Faculty of Magias."
Zectromeo-san paused for a beat after saying "However," and declared with absolute force:
"Allow me to speak frankly. That school is abnormal. Forcing minors to undertake missions fraught with mortal danger is nothing short of madness. ────As your biological parent, I have a request, Philie. Please voluntarily withdraw from Magias Magic Academy."