A week had passed, and the clamor of the Lion King Grand Festival had vanished entirely.
the nobles from home and abroad, the travelers, and the street stalls that had filled the Imperial Capital were all gone, replaced by the quiet routine that had existed before the festival preparations began.
The city's many academies were no different. Praise for the tournament participants had died down, replaced by chatter about homework and summer vacation plans.
It was midsummer, and the two of them were on the rooftop during lunch break.
"…It’s quiet."
"…Very quiet."
Ren and Licia were the only ones there. Ren sat on a bench while Licia leaned against the rooftop fence.
He wondered which was his true reality: this peaceful student life, or the extraordinary ordeal he’d faced just days ago. Having lived through so much, he found it hard to tell the difference anymore.
"Ren, you said you were still exhausted yesterday… but how are you today?"
"I’m back to my best. How about you, Licia?"
"Me too. I’ve finally regained as much energy as I had before the festival started."
It hadn't been a matter of physical wounds so much as the massive drain on their mana and mental fortitude. A great deal had happened since the battle, and it was only a few days ago that they had finally found the time to rest and enjoy a quiet moment like this.
"Shall we try going to the Lion Sanctum today? It’s been a while."
"…It might be about time."
By "about time," he meant they had rested long enough. Though the battle in Roses Kaitas had only lasted a few hours, the experience had been incredibly dense.
He thought back to what happened after the battle with the Sword Demon ended—after the two of them had fallen into the abyss.
◇ ◇ ◇ ◇
As the terrain around the abyss began to collapse, using Nature Magic to root themselves and climb back up had proven impossible. They plunged into the darkness, Ren cutting through countless falling rocks and debris, wondering how long the descent would last.
The fall, which felt as though it would continue forever, ended seconds later. Their bodies slammed into an underground lake, which fed into a fast-moving underground water vein.
Licia’s Holy Magic shielded them from falling rubble as they were swept away by the current. They surfaced for air, only to be dragged back down, over and over, for several minutes.
"—Pwah!?"
"—Cough! Cough!"
As the darkness gave way to light, Ren was the first to break the surface. Licia followed a moment later, coughing up the water she had swallowed.
"Ren! Can you swim!?"
"I’m fine, but Licia, don’t tell me you can’t—!"
"…Don’t get the wrong idea! I just don’t have any experience!"
"I-I see. For now, just hold onto me!"
Ren didn't think he had much experience swimming either, but it didn't seem to matter. They eventually washed up somewhere outside Roses Kaitas, in the river that flowed along the bottom of the canyon beneath the great bridge. The current was gentle here, the water so clear it was almost pristine.
"Licia, your hand."
"Yes. Thank you."
Wading through the shallows, Ren helped Licia to the riverbank. Licia wrung the water out of her skirt while Ren summoned his Flame Magic Sword to cut down a nearby tree. Even though the wood was green, the heat from the magic sword ignited a fire instantly. Licia looked uncomfortable as her wet clothes clung to her skin, but she managed a small smile.
"Hehe. To think the time would come where I’d be grateful for a bonfire in the middle of summer."
They intended to rest for a while before heading back, but then Licia looked up.
"—Look over there."
High above, the bridge leading to the mountain of Roses Kaitas was visible. But higher still—where the plaza had once stood—the space was empty. The Time Cage had vanished. Even from this distance, they could faintly hear the cries of surprise from the people above.
"It really is gone, isn't it?"
"We wouldn't have been able to get out otherwise, so I figured as much. I’m more curious about how much time has passed."
"You mean since we entered the seal?"
"Yeah. I’d check my watch, but…"
It was shattered. The glass was cracked and the hands were missing.
"I’d like to give the Elfen Church a piece of my mind, but that would probably make this a bigger deal than it needs to be."
"True… It would be a hassle if they started asking why only we were caught in it. They might even suspect us of being part of the Demon King Cult. It’s probably best to consult Lord Ulysses or Radius."
"You’re right. But if things get too complicated… shall we just run away together?"
"Good grief… we’d be full-blown fugitives at that point."
They were both joking, of course. They even shared a laugh. They didn't truly expect to be in danger, and besides, they believed no one knew they had been inside the seal.
Unable to find an answer, they sat on the gravel and stared into the fire.
"My body feels like lead. Let’s rest a bit longer."
"Yes… I feel like I could fall asleep right here."
Perhaps because the tension had finally broken, an extraordinary lethargy had washed over them. While Licia could have healed them with Holy Magic, Ren didn't want to place any more burden on her. He decided they would simply stay there until they recovered their strength.
"How are we even going to get back up?"
"Let’s see… maybe there are stairs somewhere?"
"At the bottom of a canyon?"
"…Now that I’ve said it, that seems unlikely."
"Which means we’re climbing the mountain."
"A-Again…?"
The thought was depressing, yet it paled in comparison to the joy of being alive.
Ten minutes later, Fiona and Chronoa arrived. Fiona, who had been waiting in the Sky Garden to watch the tournament with them, had rushed to the site with Chronoa as soon as the anomaly was reported. Chronoa had tracked their presence to the bottom of the canyon.
『—You two, let us move to a safe location first.』
Fiona didn't know the details, but she understood instantly that they were involved in the disturbance. For various reasons, "safety" meant being by Ulysses’s side.
On the way back to the Imperial Capital, Chronoa dropped a bombshell.
『The more I hear, the stranger it is… To the people outside, it looked like the seal just suddenly vanished. I don’t know why you two were trapped inside, but…』
『Chronoa-san, what do you mean?』
『Only you two were trapped in a space where time didn't pass.』
When they finally saw a clock, they were stunned. Less than two hours had passed since they had heard the choir’s song. In other words, the collapse of the Time Cage was perceived by the outside world only after the battle within it had ended. No one had any way of knowing what Ren and Licia had truly been doing.
◇ ◇ ◇ ◇
They told the truth only to those closest to them. The only people who knew what had happened inside the Time Cage were the Clausels, the Ignats, Chronoa, and Radius. Radius had personally imposed a gag order regarding their story.
"Leave the rest to me," he and Ulysses had said, their voices heavy with both resolve and indignation.
The sound of a bell interrupted Ren’s thoughts on the rooftop. Usually, it signaled the start of afternoon classes, but the academy was closed for the rest of the day to allow the faculty to handle the festival’s aftermath.
"Shall we go?"
"Let's."
They left the rooftop, the door creaking as they re-entered the school building. The halls were bustling with students preparing to leave or chatting with friends. Upperclassman Leonard spotted them and called out. Licia stepped back slightly to give them space.
"Yo, Ashton! Want to grab a bite?"
"Sorry. I was planning on heading home."
"Oh, well. I’ll catch you next time!"
As he turned to leave, Leonard suddenly spun back around.
"I haven't seen much of you lately, so I didn't get to say it, but thanks for everything during the festival! I had a great time thanks to you!"
"But the semifinals and finals were canceled, weren't they?"
"Well, that’s my only regret. But it couldn't be helped. Everyone was panicking because the seal at Roses Kaitas broke. The sixth and seventh days were basically a wash because of it."
Ren scratched his cheek with a wry smile and looked away. Licia, standing a short distance away, shared the same expression.
"I heard it was incredible up there. The state of the ruins, I mean."
"In what way?"
"The damage from the battle. The Plaza of the Divine Statue is gone—nothing but a massive hole that goes deep into the earth. There must have been one hell of a fight there in the ancient past."
"…Yes. That might be true."
"The Elfen Church is still investigating. They still have no idea why the seal suddenly broke."
Everything Leonard knew was based on the aftermath. Since the truth about Ren and Licia was a closely guarded secret, the public knew very little. Leonard said his goodbyes and headed off.
"Ren."
Licia trotted back to his side. She hesitated for a moment before asking with a mischievous smile, "If we told him that we were the ones who did that, how do you think he’d react?"
"If it's Upperclassman Leonard, he’d probably just laugh and tell us not to talk nonsense."
"Hehe—you’re probably right."
The aftermath was still being handled by Radius and Ulysses. It had been many days since Radius promised to contact them if anything developed.
I guess there isn't anything to report, Ren thought.
Radius hadn't shown his face to Ren since that sixth day when they had disappeared into the seal. Mirei had visited the academy once to explain that he was simply overwhelmed with the investigation.
They left the school building and passed through the gate. They had planned to head to the station and return to Erendil, but then they saw a familiar figure waiting for them.
Radius stood just outside the gates. He looked at the surprised pair and spoke abruptly.
"—I’m sorry, but could I have some of your time now?"