Festival (8)
Today was the day Tembris received official recognition as an academy team.
Three members had taken part in the external subjugation and mopping-up campaign against the Canolatl, while the remaining two had distinguished themselves in the defense against the Orthoptera. Their substantial contributions were deemed more than enough to grant royal sanction for the team's formal establishment.
Standing before them as team leader, Goden gathered everyone to deliver the news, and the entire roster raised their glasses in celebration. By sheer chance, the date coincided with the campus festival. It felt as though the entire world had conspired to bless the founding of their team.
Yet who could have predicted it?
The time they were allowed to laugh and toast one another on such a fine day would last scarcely a few minutes.
Indeed, far from enjoying the festivities, the group now sat trapped beneath an atmosphere so thick with discord that it had utterly soured.
Good grief... How on earth did things turn out like this?
Up until the moment Goden announced their promotion to an official team, the mood had been wonderful. The sudden shift in currents was caused entirely by a proposal their leader raised shortly thereafter.
"I'm sorry, everyone. I should have chosen my words more carefully. Here I went and ruined everybody's mood on what should've been a great day."
There had been nothing inherently wrong with his suggestion. Seeing their team leader bow his head and apologize as though the fault were his alone, Michel found herself unable to simply sit in silence.
"No, Goden! The truth is—"
"Michel. That's enough."
"...Senia."
Senia shook her head firmly, warning Michel to stand down. For now, it was a truth only the two of them were permitted to know—and for his sake, it had to remain hidden. She had intervened specifically to prevent Michel, in her rush to absolve Goden of guilt, from blurting out the reality of who that certain someone truly was.
Her heart weighed down with conflict, Michel respected Senia's judgment and forced the words back down her throat. In truth, Senia hated holding Michel back just as much. Yet she endured because, looking at the situation rationally, keeping silent was the right move. If anything, as the very first person to have uncovered the truth, Senia was itching to speak more than anyone else in the room.
Charlotte, too, appeared suffocated by it all, though for reasons of her own. The beloved youngest member, who maintained the warmest bonds with everyone, excused herself early today for the very first time, claiming she was tired. That alone was an extraordinary turn of events. Though mature and composed on the surface, Charlotte was still an adolescent who blossomed under the affection of her teammates. For their youngest, who treasured every waking second spent with the party, to say she wanted to head back early was clear proof of an emotional tempest brewing inside her.
So why had such a dreary pall fallen over a team newly elevated to official status, on their very first day, and in the middle of a grand festival?
It was all because of a single man.
The moment Goden took an interest in him and floated his name as a potential recruit, the room had fractured.
"Is that kid Junon really such a problem case...? Hmm..."
Goden rubbed his bristly chin, wearing a look of complete bewilderment.
The three who had readily cast their votes in favor knew full well who Junon was—and knew with absolute certainty that there was nothing wrong with him.
On the other hand, Erika, who had vehemently protested the moment the team leader asked for thoughts on scouting Junon, felt as though her chest were ready to explode.
Him again.
That failing student who couldn't cast a decent spell to save his life, mocked until recently as the weakest vanguard, the good-for-nothing dunce of Class E. A frontliner whose only asset was rudimentary barrier magic, and an awkward one at that, making him nothing but a nuisance wherever he went. The most useless, abhorrent man in Tembris, who had eventually lost even that meager power and degenerated into a dead weight that dragged everyone down to their graves.
And now, Junon was scheming once again to worm his way into Tembris.
So all of it was just an act. You're finally showing your true colors, Junon.
Not long ago, she had caught him whispering poison into Michel's ear, stopping him before he could brazenly wedge himself into the party. Judging by his reaction back then, she had assumed he had abandoned the idea. She had convinced herself that whether he finally recognized his place or was weighed down by guilt, he had lost any intention of joining Tembris, meaning she wouldn't have to spare him another thought.
Yet here they were. The instant Junon's name left Goden's lips today, Erika had immediately raised her voice. To bring the man who stood by and watched his comrades die—who had practically guided them into the jaws of death—back into Tembris, the beacon of hope for this entire principality? It was utter madness.
If Goden and the others only knew what that bastard would do in the future, none of them would dare breathe a syllable in his favor. Erika cursed the cruel fate that made her the only person in Tembris cursed with that knowledge.
Damn it all. If only one other person knew, we could have cut this off at the roots instead of putting the discussion on hold.
For some infuriating reason, several members had leaned noticeably in Junon's favor today. To accept an outsider into their ranks without a second thought—they had come within an inch of letting that piece of human garbage back into Tembris. Though Erika had slammed her hands on the table, raised her voice, and rattled off the team's core founding principles to emphasize her refusal, the votes in favor had been overwhelming. Three people, completely ignorant of the truth, had simply given their consent.
At least Aris bought us some time.
While the three who voted yes might have fallen under whatever spell Junon had woven, Aris, thank the heavens, had not. She had argued that Junon's abilities remained largely unverified and that they possessed far too little information about him. More crucially, she pointed out that Tembris was a team forged of people working toward a shared ambition; without understanding Junon's purpose, bringing him aboard was reckless. Above all, she suggested they ought to ask whether the man himself even wanted to join.
Had Aris not stepped in to mediate, a catastrophe would have unfolded right then and there under the influence of three members who had completely abandoned their usual neutrality. In the end, the team had agreed to revisit the matter later and disbanded, which was a blessing in disguise.
At any rate, there was still time.
"...Erika? What is it?"
"I need to speak with you in private, Aris."
So long as she laid out the facts to Aris, who currently occupied the middle ground, and secured her vote against him, they would be safe.
Barring the occasional visit from a sulking Charlotte complaining that the others had gone somewhere without her, it was rare for teammates to drop by one another's dorm rooms unannounced. That Erika had come all this way meant she had a specific agenda.
Namely, what Aris thought about bringing Junon on as a new member.
I need to tread very carefully here.
One wrong move, and the conversation could spiral in a direction Junon never wanted. Having let Erika into the room, Aris resolved to steer the dialogue so no stray sparks would ignite.
"Erika, I only have green tea and black tea. Which would you prefer?"
"Just cold water. I've got a fire burning in my chest right now."
"All right."
The porcelain clinked softly as drinks were poured, accompanied by a small plate of refreshments. Naturally, Erika didn't spare them a second glance; true to her word, she seized the cold water the moment it was set down and drained the glass in deep, furious gulps.
"Haaah..." Letting out a rough, unladylike breath as the chill doused a fraction of the heat churning inside her, Erika finally spoke. "Aris. How do you feel about what happened today?"
"What happened?"
"Goden suddenly talking about bringing in a new recruit."
Seeing Erika show up at her doorstep, Aris had suspected this would be the topic. Her guess had been spot-on.
Noticing Aris hesitate as though stalling for an answer, Erika began firing off words with mounting frustration.
"Don't you find it strange? Since when does our team accept new members so easily?! Aris, you joined most recently—you should know better than anyone!"
"..."
"You had to cross blades with Goden himself to prove your strength, remember? Don't you recall how Senia questioned your every motive? You had to lay bare your disillusionment with this principality, dredging up the days when people trampled on you just for being a titleless commoner, all to earn their approval!"
"Erika."
"Don't try to brush me off like that, Aris. It wasn't just you. Except for Michel, every single one of us had to bare our past and clearly state our purpose before we were allowed in."
Erika poured herself another glass of water and drank it down just as greedily. It wasn't Aris's imagination; the heat radiating from her seemed to have intensified. Yet the fury pouring out of Erika was clearly rooted in something far deeper than mere recruitment protocol.
"I understand your argument that we need to properly vet him," Aris said calmly. "So why come to me?"
Knowing the answer full well, Aris asked anyway.
Erika took the bait without a second thought.
"You might not believe me... but I know what kind of man Junon really is. Down to the very marrow of my bones, it disgusts me."
"...Is that so?"
"He's a bastard who abandoned his own comrades just to save his own skin, dragging countless other people into slaughter along the way! He's the one person we can never, ever let into this team!"
At first, Aris had thought the same.
She had believed Junon was a wicked man who sacrificed everyone else so that he alone might survive.
Yet after facing him in person, after catching even a faint, fragile glimpse of his past and the despair he carried during those dark days, not a shred of malice remained within her. All that was left was crushing guilt toward him, and bitter regret over her own shameful conduct. From the depths of that remorse, a single path toward atonement had taken root in her heart.
That was why this hurt so much.
To hear Erika revile Junon like this—wasn't she spitting on the very savior who had preserved their lives?
Aris knew better than anyone that she had to keep her silence for Junon's sake. But she knew with equal certainty that he was not a man who deserved to be cursed. A flare of indignation rose within her, and before she could stop herself, the words slipped out.
"Do you have any proof?"
It had been completely useless. She had hoped Aris, having maintained neutrality, might be swayed to vote against him, but the conversation had gone nowhere.
—"If you want to convince the others that he abandoned his comrades and sacrificed innocent people, you need concrete evidence."
—"How am I supposed to have physical proof of something like that?! It already happened, and the team doesn't even exist anymore!"
—"If they were a promising team, their names would have been recorded somewhere, wouldn't they? Or there would be official archives. Isn't that right?"
—"Th-that's..."
—"Without evidence, nothing is certain. I don't think it's right to corner someone and assume he's entirely at fault. If something like that really happened, there must have been internal problems within the party as well."
Infuriating as it was, Aris's points had struck home. Without evidence, claiming Junon had committed such atrocities sounded contradictory and hollow to an outsider's ears. Yet as the conversation wore on, Aris, much like the other members, had subtly begun radiating an attitude that leaned in Junon's defense.
In the end, Aris was no different.
Aside from Erika herself, every single member of Tembris had either welcomed Junon's recruitment or argued they should wait and observe.
"That bastard... What kind of poison did he feed them?"
If things continued down this path, Junon would bring about the exact same catastrophe as before. No—it might turn out even worse.
"I can't give up. Not yet."
The moment she surrendered, history would repeat itself. He might not be dead weight at this very second, but in the future, he would become an unbearable burden that dragged the entire Tembris party down to ruin.
The festival wasn't over yet. Sour as the mood had become, the other members were likely still gathered somewhere, discussing team matters. If they hadn't dispersed completely, there was still a chance to talk.
"I have to persuade them again."
Even if it meant resorting to lies, she had to stop this.
Steeling her resolve, Erika turned her steps back toward the plaza where the members had originally assembled. But halfway there, she ground to an abrupt halt.
Was it because she had arrived at the meeting spot? No. Had she crossed paths with one of her teammates along the way? Not that, either.
"...Hah."
Erika let out a cold, venomous breath. Grinding her teeth until her jaw ached, she marched straight toward a figure sitting alone on a nearby bench.
And then—
SLAP!
The crack of palm meeting flesh echoed sharp enough to shatter anyone's composure, wrenching their gazes into direct collision.
"Hey! What the hell was that out of nowhere—"
"You know damn well it wasn't out of nowhere, don't you?"
"...!"
A bright crimson handprint bloomed across the man's stinging cheek, yet upon recognizing Erika's face, the outrage drained from his features, replaced entirely by sheer, stunned bewilderment.