Perilous Festival (6)
Unlike the first day, the second day's haul ended up being rather modest. No matter what I asked Fiore afterward, she dodged every single question. What was I supposed to do about that? Dwelling on the past wouldn't change anything, so I headed to the meeting spot early to keep today's plans running smoothly…
"Oh my, you're out early, Chrome."
"……."
Why was this imperial princess already here like it was nothing? We still had an hour left. To my silent question, she answered as if it were obvious.
"I was curious how quickly you'd come out and wait. This much is a passing grade, I'd say."
"Are you that free?"
"Well, compared to a certain someone who switches women every single day and runs around like a madman, I suppose I am."
There was definitely a thorn in her words. Was she still holding a grudge about me using work as an excuse when I turned down her invitation? That was obviously just banter! This is unfair!
Anyway, since we'd met earlier than planned, there was still some time before the event I originally intended to join began. While I was wondering what to do in the meantime, my eyes landed on Lyla's outfit.
A modest dress based in black and red. When I say "modest," I mean compared to the kind of dresses she usually wore—the ones that screamed, 'I'm the highest quality. If you stain this, the cleaning bill will empty your wallet.' She seemed to have chosen something with minimal decorations for the festival, but honestly, it still looked the same to me.
Besides, even if you dressed her in rags, would her appearance and presence really fade into the background? The stares would probably be about the same. Hmm. What to do.
Inside the academy, the students created an invisible wall and kept their distance on their own, but the festival had plenty of outsiders. Walking around like this might cause a commotion. At the same time, I couldn't just charge ahead recklessly like I did when I was with Ligret or Fiore.
"Chrome?"
"Ah, that should work."
"Pardon?"
I spoke to the bewildered imperial princess.
"Lady Lyla. Since it's our festival, how about we throw a masquerade?"
Back when I cleared the Ancient Astronomical Observatory, I obtained three main types of items.
One was the cube set. That had provided me with an enormous amount of funds and also let me acquire useful objects like the cube generation device, the message earring, and the blood-stained stake.
Another was the weapon set. The performance wasn't bad, and because of their high historical value, I'd stored them in the Midas Cube and was using them thriftily as merchandise. Customers who learned the weapons had serial numbers engraved on them went absolutely crazy trying to collect complete sets.
And the last one was this.
Although it was called a transformation potion, it didn't actually affect the body, and since it was an illusion that couldn't be freely customized, impersonation was impossible. Still, it was quite suitable for changing your looks and having fun.
When I suddenly suggested heading to the mansion built in the special district, Lyla looked puzzled. But once I showed her the potion and explained its effects, her expression shifted to one that said it sounded interesting.
"It's quite amusing that even non-magic users can change their appearance just by drinking it. There are many ways it could be applied, too."
"Would you like to try it?"
"If I get poisoned by this, your name might end up recorded in the history books, Chrome."
It was a rather chilling joke to laugh off. Seeing my expression, the princess looked strangely satisfied, as if she'd finally landed a hit. Then, without hesitation, she downed the potion.
The change was dramatic.
Her hair, which had burned like flames, instantly turned pitch black, and her eyes shifted to a clear blue. The size of her nose, the angle of her eyebrows, the line of her jaw—every element that made up her face shifted ever so slightly. Individually, none of the changes were drastic, but when they all happened at once, her entire impression transformed completely.
Unless someone touched her face directly, they probably wouldn't notice that the real positions of her features and the illusory ones were subtly misaligned.
She looked at the black hair flowing down her shoulder and rubbed it with interest.
"The effect is incredible. With this, I won't be recognized easily."
"It's a rare festival. If we're going to enjoy ourselves, it's better to do it without worrying about prying eyes. Ah, the mirror is over here."
"Thank you."
Following my guidance, Lyla looked into the mirror and her eyes widened in surprise. She reflexively moved to cover the area around her eyes with her hand, but then stopped as if realizing something.
"Is there something wrong with your eyes?"
"No, Chrome. I was just startled by the changed appearance and reacted without thinking."
She seemed genuinely flustered for someone who claimed it was nothing. Her eyes—those usually sunset-red irises—were now a jewel-like blue. Something felt like it was on the tip of my tongue, yet remained hazy like fog.
As if cutting off my train of thought, Lyla asked,
"Now that I think about it, shouldn't you use one too, Chrome? You attract attention almost as much as I do."
Me? Nah. I didn't think my face was that bad, but it was hardly comparable to a princess. Besides, I had a separate use planned for the remaining potion.
"I'm saving it to examine later during alchemy class."
If I could create a potion with the same effect—or even one slightly inferior—it could be a huge hit. Even if it only changed hair color, I could sell it as a dye substitute and make decent money. Plus, since it only altered appearance, it didn't take long to make and had no side effects.
I briefly considered asking if she wanted to change her clothes too, but quickly shook my head. It was wiser not to comment on a woman's fashion choices. She was still stunningly beautiful, but at least now far fewer people would recognize her as the imperial princess.
"Then shall we go, Lady Lyla?"
To participate in the highest-difficulty, most generously rewarded event of the entire festival period.
Court Mage of the Barhart Empire.
An elite group of only ten members that every magic user who specialized in spells dreamed of joining at least once. Valkius Andex, one of those members, let out a deep sigh.
'They told me to do it, so I'm doing it, but isn't this a bit much?'
He stared down at the object on the table before him. It was a wooden board about one and a half times larger than a standard chessboard. On it sat a complexly intertwined maze model and various pieces—and those pieces were moving on their own in a constant, intricate dance.
Miniature golems and floating spheres of light wandered through their designated zones. At a glance, it looked like an exquisitely crafted toy. And it was a toy. With the minor caveats of being 'insanely dangerous' and 'magic-user exclusive.'
"Maze of Delusion Game Board"
⟨ Ancient Archmage's Prank Artifact ⟩
This game board, created long ago by some bored archmage, was an astonishing magical tool capable of manifesting the model maze and even the monsters inside it by pouring in vast amounts of mana. The maze created through magic synchronized with the physical model in real time, and interventions on the model could affect the real maze. Using this, the owner of the board became the master of a grand game, able to pull every dirty trick imaginable against intruders who mistook the board for a real dungeon or labyrinth.
To Valkius, it was a mystery how anyone could create something so absurd, why someone with that level of power would waste it on pranks, and why he of all people had to use this incomprehensibly brilliant-yet-stupid artifact for a festival event.
The court mages had grumbled.
"His Majesty is working hard to liven up the festival atmosphere, so we should do something too."
"Can't we just write words or draw pictures in the night sky with spells?"
"We're already busy with research every day. Ordering us to participate in a festival to raise the mood feels too harsh."
"Do we really have to play the part of clowns?"
The chief mage silenced all complaints with a single sentence.
"If the results are good, His Majesty said he would increase our budget."
After that, an endless stream of insane, over-the-top "ideas" poured out—until the Prime Minister's dry remark that they would give all the civilians heart attacks and kill them all led to the selection of this game board. The reason was that it provided a thrilling, near-real experience while ensuring no casualties as long as the administrator paid constant attention.
"Damn it. Easy for them to say."
Cursing his own weak position as the most recently joined court mage, Valkius moved the pieces of participants who had been cornered against the wall and surrounded by golems out of the maze. The pieces created on the spot by the game board upon detecting 'intruders' vanished the moment they left the model maze, and the golem-shaped pieces that had been approaching them began returning to their original positions.
By now, the participants who had lost their minds were probably standing at the maze entrance set up in one corner of the festival shopping district, receiving a "challenge failed" verdict from the guide.
"Do these people think golems are just wooden dolls? What the hell are non-magic users doing charging in with nothing but swords?"
It was a good thing he had intervened several times to adjust the level of violence. Otherwise, there would have been multiple deaths. On the other hand, he couldn't just remove all the monsters guarding the maze—the prize for a full clear was far too valuable. If that was the case, they should have offered a more reasonable reward from the start, but the court mages had insisted that putting their name on the event meant the prize couldn't look cheap.
The items placed in treasure chests scattered throughout the maze could be used as motivation and minor rewards for participants, but since a full clear was impossible, appropriate intervention was essential. He couldn't be too harsh and cause accidents, nor too lenient and let people pass. Whenever participants did something stupid and put themselves in danger, he had to respond instantly.
"This isn't a game. It's labor."
As Valkius sighed, he noticed two new pieces appearing at the entrance of the model maze. A black-haired woman and a golden-haired man. Just another ordinary couple, probably. He prayed desperately that they wouldn't do anything reckless.