103. Heroes (5)
103. Heroes (5)
- 1 -
Dalkak.
Right after arriving at Libertas's private room, Evangeline took out three sets of tea utensils from the cupboard.
Those were portions for three people, excluding Shue.
Of course, that wasn't because they were ostracizing Shue.
It was simply that Shue had taken out wine instead of tea.
She preferred alcohol over tea. Originally, she couldn't drink alcohol at all, but the only difference now was that she had become able to drink it.
Though it was amusing that even then, it was tea spiked with alcohol.
Dalkak.
"Since when?"
Their master began her questioning only after everyone had emptied a cup each.
"From the moment I met you, Master."
"From the moment I was born from the core, Your Highness."
"From two years ago..."
The three answers to the question were each different.
"Two years ago?"
Among them, what was particularly unexpected to Libertas was Shue's answer.
Her arrival in this world and the summoning of Evangeline had happened on Day 1, exactly 136 days ago. Ran and her core had also appeared in this world only 3 months ago.
Even just hearing it, that was a significantly longer time than the other two.
"I needed more time than the others... But don't worry. It's not like I suffered more because of it. I just needed time to prepare."
"Prepare..."
Libertas looked at Shue with a heart seeking more answers, but she closed her mouth without giving any other reply.
Because she couldn't tell their master any more.
That reticence was ultimately due to the agreement they had made among themselves.
If their master, Libertas, strongly demanded it, they naturally—Fate(connection) willing—intended to explain everything, but they still hoped she wouldn't.
"If we were to inform you of what happened before."
"It might create hierarchy or prejudice among us..."
"We promised each other. Not to speak of it until everyone has gathered."
So for now, they had no choice but to ask for her understanding.
Their loyalty to her was, of course, the zeroth priority, but their loyalty to each other was also important.
"In order to give each other the most objective explanation possible... I understand, broadly."
Still, that at least told her one thing. That, aside from them, there were still a few more 'predestined retainers' remaining.
Libertas decided to be satisfied with this much.
Her curiosity had grown, but she didn't want to make things difficult for them.
Besides, she had already obtained nearly all the answers she needed, anyway.
"Then I'd like you to tell me this. How many are left?"
She had also grown curious about the remaining people.
The fact that they were keeping faith with each other like this meant that, at the very least, they weren't 'bad' people to her.
Wasn't it only human nature to be curious about such 'good' people?
"Two."
And judging by Shue's answer, there weren't that many of them, either.
Thinking that it was worth the wait, then, Libertas nodded.
"I don't know where they are or what they're doing, but I hope we can meet as soon as possible."
"The meeting itself, at least, you should be able to accomplish without much difficulty."
"Really?"
At the welcome news Evangeline delivered, beyond what she had expected, Libertas raised one eyebrow and pressed her finger to her lips, tilting her head to the side.
The reaction was immediate.
Tuk.
Ran pressed down firmly on her chest.
Jjoreureuk...
Shue pointlessly tried to drink from her already empty glass, realized it was empty, and poured again.
"..."
Evangeline put on a deliberately expressionless face.
Their master's usual atmosphere was certainly one of 'elegance' and 'nobility,' but these occasional unconscious gestures of hers had a way of making their hearts pound.
And in a way that was particularly hard on their hearts.
"What's wrong?"
"It is nothing, Your Highness."
The first to escape the panic was Ran.
Originally, the most level-headed one in such flustering situations was Evangeline, but she was also the one most utterly doting when it came to their master.
Feeling a subtle sense of victory at that, Ran continued with what she needed to say.
"However, unlike us, you must go to meet the other two, my lord."
At Ran's words, Libertas looked at her once more as if puzzled, then soon nodded, understanding the meaning.
"I don't know how you came to have memories of me, but unless they meet me or grow close to me, the condition won't be fulfilled."
"That is correct, Your Highness."
"And that's why you didn't keep it secret to the very end."
"You are, by Fate(connection), truly wise and perceptive."
Listening to Ran's flattery-laced answer, Libertas briefly sorted through her schedule.
There weren't many fixed engagements immediately after this, so moving right away shouldn't be a problem.
"After the talks with the queens are finished, and after we raise Shue and Fortuna to elite grade—around then would be good."
However, at her decision, Seth made a troubled face.
It was true that meeting the remaining two wouldn't be difficult, but there was another obstacle.
"Of course, your safety comes first, Master, so it is a good time..."
"But... even then, it will be difficult."
"Why is that?"
At Libertas's question, the three women looked at each other awkwardly.
Evangeline soon gave the answer.
"Because neither of the two is in this region, Master."
"Not here?"
Hearing Evangeline's answer, Libertas's face once again wore that familiar expression of inquiry.
Thanks to the inoculation they had received a moment ago, the three barely managed to avoid being stunned.
"Ah. I see. You didn't say I could meet them quickly."
"Right. The two of them aren't within this kingdom right now."
"Where are they?"
Evangeline, Shue, and Ran exchanged glances for a moment.
Still, reaching a conclusion didn't take long.
The conclusion was that, now that they had started talking about this 'bit of the future,' they had to go this far.
"One will be in the Holy See, and the other will be in the Kingdom of Buran."
Libertas's face was tinged with a degree of bemusement.
"They're on opposite sides, then."
"That is correct, Your Highness."
For the two places Ran had named were lands that existed on exact opposite sides, with this Kingdom of Haisen at their center.
If she were to move to meet one, she would inevitably grow farther from the other.
And since they had said they had no memories, she couldn't even expect them to come find her—whether it was a her or a him.
"The fortunate thing is, the times when they reach this vicinity are separate."
"I get the gist. Then, at the very least, we must firmly secure this area first."
"That's the priority."
Nodding, Libertas tallied up the work ahead.
At that, they were finally able to let go of the worry they'd harbored—that their master might say she would leave this dungeon and go all the way to those distant places to find them.
- 2 -
After Seth, who had eagerly agreed to hold a small Fate(connection) gathering among themselves, went out to prepare the meal.
My eyes, left alone in the room, were chasing the open magic tome, but in truth, I couldn't concentrate on it at all.
'I've roughly figured it out.'
The answers needed to understand the situation had all been obtained from today's conversation.
Because they had given answers that made it seem certain that the three of them had, in some manner, returned to the past or transmitted their memories to their past selves.
If only memories had been transmitted, their attitudes wouldn't be explainable, so at the very least, it was surely 'regression.'
'They probably thought that even if they hid just that much, I'd just consider it within the realm of possibility.'
To them, regression was something possible but ordinarily unachievable due to lack of time and materials. To me, it was something originally impossible that had become possible within this world.
If the possibility of regression had originally been 0.00001% for them, for me, it was something where a possibility had arisen from zero, however slight.
The fundamental difference between the worlds we had lived in created this difference in thinking.
"The problem is..."
They hadn't given me the most important answers.
The two answers of 'why they had to come to the past' and 'what they sacrificed to return to the past like this.'
Still, the reason for the first question was easy to guess.
'They clearly came to protect me.'
Seth had actively tried to move toward me, their master.
Eve, who had returned to the moment of summoning, Shue, who could move proactively, and of course, even Ran, whose very existence had been practically restrained.
On top of that, the other two—I didn't know what they were doing, but they were said to have a system where they'd only gain their memories if I went to them.
It meant they had invested all the members among the five who could send their memories intact to be placed at my side, for peace of mind.
What else could the reason be? It was 'protection,' or some other reason that included it.
'The fact that only Seth came through intact was... probably due to a lack of power.'
They must have added specific conditions so that meeting them would amplify the power's potency or efficiency.
It was a trigger commonly seen in any medium.
I couldn't know how powerful the force used for the regression had been, but it must have been insufficient to send all five back to the past intact.
The problem was the method of regression and how they had made up for the insufficient power.
'In the worst case, it could be the "Outer Plane," but there's no way they touched that—it's a monkey's paw.'
But whether what they touched was 'time,' or 'soul,' or broadly, the 'world'—
It was clear that having caused the colossal phenomenon of regression, the price would not be small.
And unless it was the 'Outer Plane,' the sacrifices that made this magic possible could be drawn from within the domain of knowledge.
'Magic is ultimately the application of the inner world. For sacrifices toward that end, the more "valuable" it is to the caster, the more powerful it becomes, and simultaneously, materials with high mana efficiency must be selected. Yes. That much is correct.'
The knowledge of necromancy crammed into my head affirmed this.
Necromancy was, in the end, the study of handling souls.
Within it, research on regression—'overwriting the soul onto one's past self'—existed, so it wasn't difficult to guess that far.
However, what came next was the domain of leaps in logic and imagination.
If I were to ponder what material would be most valuable to Seth, with mana efficiency high enough to activate grand magic at least five times...
"...Ah."
After a brief contemplation, I lowered my head and looked at my own body.
There it was.
The material most valuable to the five who were the casters, with the highest mana efficiency in this world.
The body of the future 'Dungeon Lord Libertas,' who had probably reached a far higher realm than now.
"I died."
'Probably for certain.'
I felt my lips press together into a hard, straight line.