Ren felt nothing but bewilderment at the sudden turn of events.
Was this Mascheria’s—that woman? He was no longer even sure whose name he was thinking of.
He had woken up as usual, finished getting ready, and departed Clausel with Licia. It was that season right after summer break when the heat still lingered, and he was supposed to spend a normal day talking with her about the new semester.
Surely, he had just been hit by a sudden bout of lightheadedness.
Ren offered an apologetic smile and looked at Licia, who still wore a worried expression.
"I think I just got a bit dizzy."
"If that’s all it is, then fine, but..."
Still worried, she reached out her fingertips toward Ren and delivered the light of holy magic with practiced ease. Ren relaxed at the comfort of it and immediately gave an apologetic, bashful grin.
"It really was just for a second, so please don't let it bother you."
With that, Ren continued walking forward, and the Academy gradually came into view.
As they passed through the academy gate and walked a short distance, he saw Sera and the other descendants of the Seven Heroes talking in a corner. Noticing the two approaching, they came over and spoke in their usual manner.
"Morning, you two," Sera said.
Vane, the protagonist of The Legend of the Seven Heroes, was not there. Only the girls, Sera and Nemu, along with Kaito, were present. In other words, the protagonist’s eyes would never see the sight of Ren and Licia arriving at school together.
Though, things like the legend or being a protagonist were concepts Ren didn’t quite understand.
"Oh? Is it just Sera and the others today?"
"Vane said he had to attend a meeting with some nobles because of the previous disturbance. We were planning to go too, but apparently it was short enough that he’d be fine on his own."
"Wasn't he having an audience with the Emperor the other day as well?"
"That’s a separate matter. Besides, it seems the Emperor and the others are very busy lately with official business at the Great Mausoleum."
"Hmm... I didn't know there was official business to do there."
"The First Prince is becoming the Crown Prince, right? It’s a tradition that those who become the Crown Prince visit the grave of the Lion King to pay their respects."
He recalled reading about such a ritual in his textbooks. Since a Crown Prince was only appointed once every few decades, many people would likely never know about it unless it was mentioned in class.
Sera suddenly let out a yawn.
"I still can't shake the summer break mood. By the way, Licia, what were you two doing during the break?"
"It was almost the same as usual. I was always training or working... Oh, but I did get to have my swordsmanship checked by my teacher more than usual."
"That teacher was, if I recall—"
"You don't have to act like it's hard to say. Just as you're thinking, Sera, it's my mother's younger sister. My aunt."
Sera had hesitated to speak, thinking of Licia having lost her mother at a young age, but when Licia said that, she smiled and said, "Oh, that person."
"Hey, hey, is Licia’s teacher a Sword Saint too?"
"She’s a Swordmaster. Her sword is much more beautiful than mine; I think even you’d be surprised if you saw it, Sera."
Listening to their voices, Ren thought to himself. He had also been going to the Lion Sanctum almost every day, just like before summer break started...
Wait... why did I think of the "Lion Sanctum"?
Without understanding why, he stopped in his tracks and looked down at his feet with unfocused eyes.
"Ashton? Hey, Ashtoooon?"
Kaito and the other descendants of the Seven Heroes looked at Ren, wondering what was wrong. However, Licia’s expression changed, reflecting their exchange on the way to the Academy. Once again, she took Ren’s hand with a worried look.
"Ren, did something really happen after all?"
Ren immediately forced a smile instead of saying nothing was wrong. Then, he looked at Licia and spoke to her in his usual voice.
"I felt like I forgot something," he lied. Immediately after, he added, "So it’s okay, Licia."
Licia, Sera, Kaito... even the students walking nearby...
Suddenly, as if the air itself had frozen, Licia’s skin abruptly flushed as she stared at Ren.
"Wh-wha-wha-wha...?!"
Flustered like never before, she gazed at Ren as if she couldn't believe her ears. The surrounding commotion no longer reached her.
"M-My goodness! What was that all of a sudden?! It’s not that I hate it! But...!"
Then, Sera and the others, who had been silent until then, opened their mouths.
"Ren?! Why did you suddenly call Licia by her name without an honorific?!"
"Eh? I always call her Licia, don't I?"
Licia hurriedly interjected.
"No, you don't! When I asked you to before, you said you couldn't, so why now?!"
"Exactly. That’s why she came to consult me about it before."
"Eh?! Was that true, Licia?!"
"Sera, you don't need to say unnecessary things! Regardless, Ren! What's come over you so suddenly...?!"
As he was cornered by a panicked Licia, Ren’s vision gradually grew hazy. The same happened to their voices. As he was struck by a sharp headache, the sight of Licia looking embarrassed yet happy faded away into the distance.
As he watched it go, Ren began to realize the nature of the incongruity.
No. That just now was...
That just now was not reality. He had merely been pulled into a recollection of events from somewhere else, not as a bystander this time, but as a participant.
In the unfolding scene, Ren remained in that sensation—but in the next instant.
"...Licia?"
The Academy’s Great Auditorium. On the stage.
Two people were there, illuminated by blinding lights. As Ren felt the girl he held in his arms gradually grow cold, his heart was draped in a negative emotion he had never felt before.
The Iron Magic Sword lay fallen on the floor. When he looked at Licia’s chest, there was a mark where it had pierced her.
Before he could even think, the doors of the Great Auditorium burst open, and Vane and the others rushed in, seeing the scene on the stage.
"Wha—Ren?! You, what have you done?!"
It was that specific scene from the illustration. Except now, Ren had become one of the people within it. In that moment, Ren’s mouth moved almost naturally. Even though he wasn't conscious of it, the same words from the vision spilled from his lips.
"Can't you tell? I’ve just killed her."
The world transformed dizzyingly. Eventually, the faint warmth he held in his arms vanished, and the Great Auditorium disappeared. Just as scenery he remembered seeing began to spread...
This time, he was standing in the same place as he had been before he lost consciousness. Unlike before, God's Haze was wavering gently. And now, it was responding to his voice.
"Micel, I will take your trial. That is why I—"
He spoke, and the world finally vanished.
When he next opened his eyes, Ren worried about how much time had passed, but in reality, not even a few seconds had gone by. Looking at Ren, who was glaring back at her, Mascheria remained silent for a few seconds.
Then she laughed. She let out a loud laugh from the bottom of her heart.
"Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! I see, I finally understand! You spoke so much about me being a monster, and yet—"
Mascheria had not seen the world Ren just experienced exactly as it was. Even so, she declared:
"The one who is more of a monster than anyone... is you!"
She would kill him here. No matter what, even if she had to throw away everything she had. She felt that Ren Ashton had to die right here, right now.
This time, as she poured even more of the Forbidden Book's power into a single greatsword—a crimson one—it changed its appearance into a golden greatsword under the book’s influence.
Yet Ren did not even grimace; he took his stance.
Something hurt because Mascheria had tried to peer into his memories. Deep in his head... even deeper... A brilliant scene flickered behind his eyelids. It hurt. His heart hurt so much he felt like he wanted to die from the pain.
"—Because, okay? Ren."
"Al—with this."
Though he almost collapsed from the sheer agony, Ren listened to that voice. He should know it. It was surely that girl’s—the White Saint’s—voice. But whenever he heard that voice, he felt like crying, as if he would be crushed by an unbearable sense of loneliness.
Even so, he—
"—So... it’s a promise."
Hearing that voice one last time, he shook off all the suffering. While listening to her voice repeating inside his head, he threw his eyes wide open. If he gave up here, it felt like everything would vanish... like he would lose something precious.
"I will never... give up!"
"Tch... You still don't fear death even after that!"
"Yeah! There isn't a single thing more terrifying than giving up!"
He met the golden greatsword head-on.
The Forbidden Book was an especially rare and powerful magical object in this world. Even against the Sword Demon's blade, produced with its borrowed strength, he managed to hold his ground. However, the momentum did not stop, and Ren’s body was gradually pushed back.
"Mascheria denies your philosophy. However, I will acknowledge your way of life that even deceives the providence of God."
"You’ve been saying nothing but nonsense for a while now...!"
"It doesn't matter if you don't understand. After all, it's something incomprehensible. No matter who you told this to, they wouldn't understand."
And then—the Mithril Magic Sword shattered into pieces.
However, he forcibly twisted his body to avoid being skewered. Though his flank was sliced open, Ren yielded to the momentum and retreated a great distance. Next, what the Forbidden Book read out was Asval’s flame.
Ren naturally looked back on bitter memories and knitted his brows.
"...I figured as much! But to think you could even produce those flames...!"
"Heh! These are flames from the age of gods! Why is the Dragon King’s power inside your memories, I wonder!"
"That’s obvious—because I fought it!"
Dispelling the Shield Magic Sword, he summoned the Water Magic Sword and swung it upward. A Holy Water Veil connected to the divine manifested, covering the cobblestones and blocking the surging flames. The two powers were neutralized in that instant.
He thrust the beautiful blue sword into the cobblestones and, holding a newly summoned Mithril Magic Sword, said,
"It wasn't like this."
Ren spoke through ragged breaths. The drive dwelling in his voice would never vanish.
"That thing’s flames weren't this weak! Mascheria!"
"You truly never give up, do you."
"Yeah!"
Mascheria touched the Forbidden Book, intent on finally taking Ren’s life.
It was then that footsteps other than those of the two of them echoed from the top of the stairs. As silver sword pressure and intense cold air burst forth, the princess of the lost country held up one hand and repelled it all.
"...You all are."
Mascheria directed those words toward the people who had appeared at the top of the stairs.
"You won't say it's unfair for it to be three against one, will you?"
"There’s no way we could say that. After all, you’re always attacking innocent people."
The White Saint and the Black Priestess. They spoke from the stairs and immediately landed beside Ren. Licia leaned in, emitting a silver light. It melted into Ren’s body. While the pain and exhaustion didn't vanish completely, his wounds closed in the blink of an eye.
"Wh-Why are you two here?!"
When Ren spoke to the two of them while standing up, they let out deep sighs. Their expressions even conveyed a sense of exasperation.
"Are you a dummy?"
"Yes. Truly."
"N-No! I’m being serious!"
"Haa... If you're serious, then you really are a dummy."
"...That’s right. Please don't underestimate us."
They stood a step in front of Ren and said as they glanced back at him:
"You still have us, Ren."
"Right. Now, let’s finish this quickly and go home."
The heart-wrenching sadness that had remained since Mascheria used the Forbidden Book of Memories on him vanished completely, and he was simply captivated by the radiance of the two of them. As they faced forward again, Mascheria sensed something and muttered.
"No wonder he sought power even at the cost of throwing everything away."
Ren had been cornered like this when he fought Jelququ, when he fought Asval, or when he fought the Sword Demon. Each time he had been on the verge of death, but he felt this situation was no less dire than any of those.
The Forbidden Book of Memories began to glow with light again, and the girls fixed their eyes on Mascheria as she held her hand over it. Ren told the two of them, "That thing has the power to read the opponent’s memories."
"—She was summoning the Sword Demon’s blade and Asval’s flames."
For a moment, the girls’ cheeks twitched, but they quickly regained their composure. They were surprised, but there was no hesitation or flinching whatsoever.
"Like Jelququ’s summons?"
"And the curse Orphide used."
"She hasn't used them yet, but—I think she can."
It stood to reason. If she could replicate the powers of the Sword Demon and Asval, then powers inferior to those would be child's play.
"But we should be able to manage," Fiona said, as an intense cold air emanated from her. "Because we’ve overcome all of those before!"
Countless ice blades produced within the underground space sliced through the air. Aimed precisely at Mascheria, several of their tips gleamed as they headed for the Forbidden Book in her hand. However, flames incinerated them in mid-air.
A vortex of flames, similar to the breath Asval had unleashed, was fired toward the three of them. To counter it, a wall of light from holy magic appeared. Ren had been protected by it many times before, the first being when he fought Jelququ.
However, it was on a different level compared to back then. No matter how much Ren said it was weaker than the real Asval’s, it completely blocked the replicated breath.
When Ren, whose steps felt heavy, nevertheless stepped forward with vigor, the White Saint was right beside him. Ren from the front and Licia, who had circled to the rear, both swung their swords upward.
However, Mascheria’s gaze was not directed at the two of them.
"I wonder if you thought you could win just because there are three of you."
As she spoke, she instantaneously produced crimson greatswords around her to block them. She launched another one at Fiona, but it was stopped by a thick wall of ice. Flames, greatswords, and eventually even the holy magic Licia used and Fiona’s ice were replicated, and due to the Forbidden Book's characteristics, they raged with even greater destructive power.
There was no sign of fatigue, let alone exhaustion, from the sneering princess of the lost country. But the girls were different.
"Tch... What is this...?!"
"Because our power was read from our memories...?!"
The two of them occasionally stopped in their tracks from intense headaches. Like Ren, they continued to fight despite this... but to Mascheria, they looked utterly pitiful.
"God's Haze is the memories of the world."
Let’s end this now, the princess of the lost country declared.
"Mascheria only wants to know. Everything in the world, everything that lies ahead."
The Forbidden Book of Memories revealed its true essence. It possessed enough power to have sunk the Medil Dukedom deep into the earth in the past; there was no way it couldn't display even more against the three of them.
"I will erase you. From this world!"
Inscribed on the pages of the Forbidden Book were countless magic circles and letters from the age of gods. The mana dwelling there, the magic that had been memorized... was the very thing that had destroyed the Medil Dukedom.
"Tch—you two!"
Ren rushed toward the two who had just stopped from the headache and stood in front of them. If that was activated, it could never be stopped. If so, the only thing he could do now was one thing. He had to suppress that power with everything he had.
However, he wasn't alone now. The girls stood beside Ren and demonstrated their resolve.
"We don't need to worry about what happens if we can't hold it back, do we?"
"Of course. Let’s finish this quickly and go home."
"Yes. The three of us... definitely."
Just before the single, glowing page could manifest its might and explode, a raging silver and jet-black wave followed, along with blue-shining ice, and the Star-Cleaver acted upon the surrounding magic. However, against magic powerful enough to have destroyed a capital, it was still not enough.
"Like this...!"
Ren looked pained, suffering, as if he might collapse at any moment. Licia watched his side profile as he desperately endured. At first, he had tried to protect Licia and Fiona all by himself. And yet, what was she doing?
Because my strength isn't enough. Am I still not good enough?
She had crossed through life-and-death situations many times to reach this day. To think it could all be ended by the power of some old book.
"—As if I’d allow that!"
Should she just accept this? She had followed Ren’s back. She had wanted to become like him. And her eyes had always been captivated by his sword.
"Tch... We will definitely...!"
However, Ren’s voice was growing distant. Licia’s body was being pushed back by the shockwaves emitted by the Forbidden Book of Memories. Supporting each other with Fiona, who was also unable to fully endure, she gritted her teeth hard and looked at Ren’s back.
It was frustrating beyond words. She had been tormented by this feeling time and again, but to feel it once more was an unbearable humiliation.
"Am I still just a burden...?!"
She couldn't accept it. She must not accept it. As Ren’s back grew further away, she was forced to think. If she were to be separated from him now, she would never be able to stand by his side again.
She had to catch up... she had to go to his side.
Immediately after thinking that, Licia followed the emotion that rose from the depths of her heart.
"No."
Was it enough to just think about catching up?
"That’s definitely not it!"
She had harbored a similar doubt while fighting outside. To catch up. What she truly sought surely wasn't something like that. It couldn't be allowed to be that.
As she thought this, for some reason, a scene from the past flickered through her mind.
"Are you Ren Ashton?"
"Yeah... I’m Ren Ashton, but..."
Simply following him was not who she was. Wasn't that obvious if she remembered the first time she met him? Her focus began to shift, moving from his back to the space beside him.
She felt like she had already squeezed out every drop of strength she had. But there was still something she could stake.
"I am Licia Clausel—the White Saint."
The words she had told him long ago. The pride that had dwelled in those words. She staked everything on her sword, questioning the very value of her own existence. Her Enshroud responded, teaching her that what she thought she had squeezed out was a lie.
Then, more clearly than when she had first met him, she saw where her place truly was.