Interlude: On the Continent (2)
The tower that observed the stars and recorded the constellations.
The scholars of the Grey Tower were infamous for their leisurely, lazy ways.
They rose late in the evening, yawned their way through a bit of constellation-watching, then went to bed early in the morning—a routine they repeated without end. As a result, their sleep schedules were thoroughly inverted, and with so little real change in their duties, their lives were profoundly static, even boring.
Stars and constellations were simply like that. Nothing dramatic happened overnight or over a couple of days; you had to observe them for years at the minimum before any real shift appeared. Which was another way of saying that forgetting to observe for a day or two hardly affected the work at all—and that the workload itself was never heavy.
Money-eating hippos.
Wouldn't a massive budget cut be fine?
If you want a taste of Grey Tower Master Naiyuta's Meteor, go ahead and try it.
Work little, earn a lot.
I want a job at the Grey Tower too.
How to freeload your way through life.
For that reason, the Grey Tower's reputation within the Empire was never particularly high. A place where lazy geniuses went to work. The ultimate job where you did almost nothing and got paid handsomely. That sort of assessment dominated—until roughly two years ago, when it flipped completely.
The one who pulled Excalibur appeared. Arthur's constellation and Merlin's constellation thrash in the night sky. The celestial sphere realigned, and in that chaos even the Calamity Star began to move.
Great events that ought to have been spaced centuries apart erupted one after another in rapid succession, and the Grey Tower scholars could only scream. On top of all that, the birth of the youngest two-star constellation—who had seized two stars at once—pushed their workload past the breaking point until it overflowed.
It was around the time the scholars who had applied to the Grey Tower hoping to freeload through life and make easy money, now racing through frantic days without a moment to breathe, finally finished recording the realigned heavens.
"Huh?"
A gift arrived for them.
A gift sent by Najin from the Outer Land.
"Uh, uhhh…"
"That—th-that thing, why is it falling?"
"Huh?"
"S-Senior? Four stars are suddenly dropping."
"They're eroded stars, sure, but… they'd held their places for over a hundred and fifty years. This suddenly?"
One month after Najin left for the Outer Land.
Four stars fell.
They belonged to the Holy Fire Guardian Knights—to Schlein.
"Uh, uhhhhhhhh!"
"Here! Over here!"
"A star is falling here!"
"No—it's rising?"
"What star is that? I've never seen it… no records…"
Two months in.
Six stars that had fallen long ago suddenly rose, flashed once with tremendous brilliance, then scattered as if exploding.
"Oh."
"…"
"Good heavens."
Between them, a single star rose.
It was the third star Najin had set into the sky.
The moment they confirmed that star's master was Najin, the Grey Tower scholars clutched their heads. And when they realized Najin's star was connected to the earlier falls, they clutched their heads and screamed.
The fall and birth of stars made a wreck of the celestial sphere. The laws had to be recalculated; the positions had to be remeasured. In other words, the sky they had spent the past year so diligently observing had to be observed from the beginning, all over again.
They screamed not so much at the birth of the youngest three-star constellation as at the fact that an entire year of their lives had been wiped clean. Just as the Grey Tower was receiving, almost for the first time since the Empire's founding, praise for actually earning its budget, they once again began cutting sleep to work.
And four months after Najin had left—
"Hahahaha."
A Grey Tower scholar looking up at the sky burst into laughter. If the Revelry Emperor had been at their side, she might have clapped on pure impulse at how thoroughly refreshing that laugh was.
Scholars who had been staring at him with looks of What's wrong with that guy? began peering into their telescopes one by one, and before long they too were laughing.
The fall of eight stars. The appearance of the Revelry Emperor, who bore ten. The intervention of the Holy Blood Church's principal deity, who held eight. The descent of dozens of constellations in response. Constellations thrown into disarray. Falling stars. A battlefield of stars. And a rising star.
Observing the celestial sphere turned into a complete mess, the scholars let out hollow laughs and muttered, "Fuck."
And then—a flash.
On that battlefield where countless stars were falling, Najin claimed his fourth star. And right beside it, a fifth star already shone as if it might complete at any moment.
"…"
The first to receive the records the Grey Tower released were the Imperial Household and the court historians who chronicled history.
The Emperor burst out laughing.
The historians quietly pinched the bridges of their noses. They no longer had the stamina left to scream, and no hair left to clutch, either.
Four months after Najin had departed for the Outer Land.
The Empire was facing chaos for the who-knew-how-many-th time.
Najin unfolded the newspaper that had been handed to him.
Najin — Just Who Is He?
19-year-old Sword Seeker claims one star a mere two months after setting foot in the Outer Land, then another only two months later.
Shatters the records for youngest one-star, two-star, three-star, and four-star by enormous margins.
"Age is just a number."
Grey Tower scholar: "This is inhumane treatment. Working conditions must be improved."
Imperial historian Durek, at a drinking party: "That bastard—what, is he going around dueling Sword Masters? Does he have ten lives?" Sparks controversy with drunken rant.
Grey Tower asserts: "Without precedent. Without parallel."
Large-scale descents of constellations observed; confirmed to be related to the Dawn Star as well…
Sensational headlines stretched across the page, and Najin read through them with faintly weary eyes. Why all the fuss? Every article was stuffed with superlatives—historic, impossible, astonishing, wondrous.
Do they really have to go this far…?
To the person in question, the words were rather burdensome. Watching him from the side, Merlin shot him a look of pure disbelief.
-Do you even know how long you were in the Outer Land?
About four months?
-And what did you do in those four months?
Got two stars.
-Right. So how do you think that looks to people on the Continent?
Najin thought it over carefully.
Even two stars had been enough to turn the Empire upside down. Common sense said that the more stars you had, the harder it became to gain a new one—yet in his case, the pace was only accelerating.
Two stars in a mere four months.
Hmm. Najin nodded.
Yeah. Fair to be surprised.
-"Surprised" doesn't even begin to cover it.
As Najin finished scanning the paper, Yuel spoke. As always, her expression was flat.
"At present, your standing within the Empire is equal to mine—or higher."
"Pardon?"
"Wherever I walk, the citizens scream and cheer, do they not? It will be much the same for you. Your face may not be as widely known as mine, but there will be no shortage of people who recognize you."
Wherever you walk, people scream, sure—but it doesn't sound much like cheering. Najin nodded slowly for the time being.
"If you enjoy the commotion, I will not stop you. Still, it would be wise to be careful when you go outside."
"Thank you for the advice."
"Yes. Rest well, then. I still have a few matters to handle."
Yuel rose from her seat.
She turned to leave the room, then suddenly stopped mid-step and looked back toward Najin.
"I gave it a moment's thought."
She stroked her chin with her remaining hand.
"I possess no personal subjectivity, so I view the world with extreme objectivity. Speaking from that objective perspective: it appears I saved your life. The situation is such that I could reasonably be called your 'lifesaver' without it sounding strange."
Najin nodded slowly.
It wasn't wrong.
Yuel alone had not saved him, but it was true that her help had made it possible to escape that situation.
"To save you, I expended a great quantity of starlight and even sacrificed one of my arms. Oh dear. My arm aches. It throbs. It is extremely inconvenient."
She looked neither pained nor inconvenienced in the slightest. Without even pretending to act, Yuel spoke in a dry, textbook monotone.
A sidelong glance.
Yuel flicked her eyes toward Najin. Sensing what she was angling for, he opened his mouth with reluctance.
"Thank you. I will repay this debt."
"I recommend repayment in a material fashion rather than a spiritual or ideological one. A duel or sparring match, for example."
"…I'll consider it."
"Yes. I shall be waiting."
2.
About a week later, Najin was able to rise from his sickbed. His body was not fully healed, but he had recovered enough to move. Rising from the bed, he made his way to the warehouse where his belongings were stored.
There lay the items the Holy Blood Church's combat priests had recovered for him.
A longsword, the Cross-Star Spear, and the military banner he had been clutching in the moment he collapsed. For a long while Najin stood there, gazing at the banner embroidered with the emblem of the Golden Horn Knights.
I am Najin. Disciple of the Imperial First Horn, Alderan Basaglia… and apprentice knight of the Golden Horn Knights.
He had said as much before Alderan.
Now that Alderan Basaglia had become a jester, Najin was the sole remaining member of the Golden Horn Knights. Looking at the banner Alderan had bound most tightly, closest to his own heart, Najin kept his silence.
Expressionless. Silent. Still.
Outwardly Najin seemed unaffected, but Merlin, who shared his inner world, felt the turbulence within. Najin was quietly furious. That fierce flame and murderous intent were aimed squarely at the Revelry Emperor.
I will kill her. Without fail.
Another purpose he had to fulfill had been added. Turning that purpose over in his mind, Najin let out a long breath. He would not be swallowed by rage. He suppressed the emotion, waiting for the day he could unleash it.
Come to think of it, Merlin.
Najin suddenly asked her a question.
Why do I still have my memories of Alderan Basaglia, my master? Every piece of information related to him seems to get distorted.
Even Yuel Razian, a transcendent, had been unable to escape that distortion. So why was he fine? Had Merlin intervened the way she had in the Outer Land? Najin wondered as much, but Merlin shook her head.
-I intervened back then, but I haven't since we returned to the Continent. You're simply remembering on your own.
Then how?
-I don't know the exact principle… but if I had to guess, it has to do with the stars you've obtained.
The stars of Breakthrough and Indomitable Will.
Those two stars were deeply bound to Kruenbel, Alderan Basaglia, and the Golden Horn Knights. Pointing to them, Merlin said:
-A star is something no one else can interfere with—yours alone. And a star is also you yourself. Their stories are held within the stars you possess, so they aren't forgotten.
Kruenbel. Alderan Basaglia. The Golden Horn Knights. The Imperial First Horn. Ramming. The Triumphant Sword. And more.
Their traits and their stories were melted into Najin's stars. Things no one could touch—his alone. Najin clenched the star that floated above his palm together with the banner of the Golden Horn Knights.
Commander of the Golden Horn Knights.
Imperial First Horn, Alderan Basaglia.
Recalling the days spent with the knight in the helmet, Najin swore. No matter what happened, he would kill the Revelry Emperor and restore the man's honor.
"…"
Packing his things, Najin rose from his place.
There was someone he needed to meet.
Someone who still held memories of Alderan Basaglia. There was only one such person on this continent.
Imperial First Horn Gerd.
He needed to see that old Sword Master.
3.
Najin did not head straight back to the Outer Land.
His body still needed time to recover fully, and there were people he had to meet on the Continent as well.
Wanting to arrange a carriage bound for the Imperial capital, Najin walked the city with his hood pulled low.
Feels a bit excessive…
Be careful—someone might recognize you? Honestly he still wasn't sure, but Merlin had recommended covering his face for now, so he did.
As he wandered the city, Najin suddenly looked down at his own hand. He was absently turning the ring he wore on a cord around his neck, pulling it from inside his clothes—a habit he had developed of late.
The artifact Dieta had given him before he left for the Outer Land. Holding it in his palm brought a gentle warmth, so he often found himself toying with the ring without thinking. He was doing it now, and looking at it brought a brown-haired girl to mind.
Since I'm back on the Continent, it wouldn't hurt to visit once.
While he was thinking that, a flicker of blue hair stirred at the edge of his vision.
-Mmm. Mmm…
With a thoroughly dissatisfied expression, Merlin was staring at the ring in Najin's hand. When he asked what was wrong, she only muttered in a snippy voice, "It's nothing. It's nothing, but…"
Merlin being like that was nothing new, so Najin paid it little mind. Searching for a carriage to the Empire, he caught sight of a familiar emblem in his field of view.
The crest of the Dieta Trading Company.
There was a building flying that crest. Why would a Dieta Trading Company office be in a remote city this close to the Outer Land? Najin tilted his head and stepped inside.
Creak.
He opened the door and entered. There were few employees relative to the size of the building, and even those few were busy with their own work, showing no particular reaction to a customer walking in.
"Hey."
Najin rapped the employee's desk with the back of his hand. Only then did the man look up and answer in a bored drawl.
"Pick up your order at the window over there. For new orders, use counter three. Requests are handled in the next building."
He waved a dismissive hand as if the whole business were a nuisance.
Najin suddenly remembered what Dieta had said: If you ever need to find me, just show this to an employee. He took the badge from his coat.
A badge carved with a brilliant golden flower.
He set it down in front of the employee. The man glanced at it with the same indifferent look…
"…!"
He shot to his feet with a clatter.
His eyes flicked between the badge and Najin. When he confirmed the face hidden under the robe, the employee's eyes flew wide.