Chapter 69
The Flower That Bears a Sword - Chapter 69
Translation: godsn
April 10, 1629.
It was the day of the Agenka Military Academy cadet selection exam. As Yurien passed by the administrative office, he heard a commotion. The clerks were chatting animatedly. When he asked what was going on, one clerk squeezed his eyes shut and explained.
"There's a rather peculiar applicant, so we were just joking around!"
"Peculiar?"
When he questioned further, the clerks quickly stepped aside and pointed toward the window.
"Over there... You'll understand the moment you see it."
Yurien approached the window and looked outside. There was a large crowd. Out of habit, he activated his True Sight. The moment he did, his gaze became fixed on one spot. His vision locked onto her as if caught in a trap.
There was the sun. A soul burning dazzlingly bright amidst the ashen shadows. A solitary flame-like radiance. A nearly white, faint violet glow surrounded her like a halo—an overwhelming fire that seemed like it would never be extinguished.
He recognized her at a glance. He knew this woman. He would have recognized her even if she'd been wearing a sackcloth.
She existed. The person he'd doubted might have been just a dream, the one he'd feared might not have been real—she was here, right now. More dazzling, more beautifully radiant than in his memories.
At that moment, the emotions that surged through him were indescribable even to himself. In those few seconds, feelings too complex to define shot through his entire body. It became difficult to stand properly, so Yurien tightened his grip on the windowsill.
Memories he'd tried to forget came flooding back in a torrent. Nightmares drenched in blood, corpses, and malice. And even within those nightmares, her figure—unyielding to the very end, until the final moment. The last sight he'd held in his eyes before drawing his final breath.
That tiny seed, rather than withering away in the face of evil, had burned and become a flame. The woman who never crumbled had now reappeared before him as a brilliantly shining sun. It was dizzying. His stomach churned. Then came a fierce conviction—the certainty that all those memories couldn't have been just a dream.
Her existence, the emotions that erupted within him the moment he saw her—they were that powerful.
"I never expected to see an applicant wearing a dress at Agenka's cadet selection exam."
The clerk's muttered words reached his ears very slowly. Only then did reality sink in—the feel of the windowsill clenched in his hand, the murmuring crowd outside, the wind brushing against his cheek, and her soul reflected in his True Sight.
But what had they called her?
"...Applicant?"
"Yes. What does she think the Military Academy is...? Seems like a spoiled young lady."
An applicant for the Military Academy? An applicant?
While she shone so brilliantly, the clerk beside him spoke as if her failure was a foregone conclusion. He felt a sudden surge of anger at their dismissive tone. No one had the right to look down on her. She didn't deserve such treatment. Before he realized it, his question came out slightly sarcastic.
"You think that woman will fail?"
"Huh? Well... Isn't it obvious?"
Yurien deactivated his True Sight. With his naked eyes, he watched her go through the preliminary rounds. According to the future he knew, this was around the time she should have turned into a demon and gone on a killing spree. Yet here she was, drawing her sword while wearing a dress—just as he'd first seen her at the banquet hall.
"I would have bet on her passing the exam as the top student."
She swung her sword. Neither a soul wailing in the grip of malice, nor a disheveled figure with tangled black hair. Though the distance was great, to him as a Master, everything was vividly clear. Pale, unblemished skin, over which soft pink hair fluttered. Violet eyes shimmering with vitality. Rosy lips curling slightly.
A body in perfect harmony with its soul.
The true her he had always longed to see stood there. Even without activating his True Sight, she was dazzling. His body leaned forward of its own accord beyond the window frame. He wanted to face her closer. To hear her voice. He had never once heard her speak. Not the growls of one tainted by the Magic Sword, but her true voice carrying meaning—he burned with curiosity about how it might sound.
Yurien belatedly realized he was leaning out the window and startled, hastily averting his gaze. In any case, she would pass the military academy's entrance exam as easily as child's play, whether he watched or not. She wasn't an illusion that would vanish somewhere. Moreover, she was an examinee. Once she became an officer cadet, she would remain close to him.
Instead of a soul thrashing helplessly beyond iron bars, a living, breathing her would exist in his city. His heart stirred strangely. Suppressing the turbulent emotions with difficulty, he turned from the window. About to leave, he suddenly had a thought and commanded the clerk:
"Bring me her application."
Until now, he had avoided investigating her, fearing it might be dangerous. Indeed, a single glance had already caused trouble, proving his fears weren't unfounded. But reviewing an examinee's application posed no issue. This was Agenka, his domain, not the Empire.
While the clerks rummaged through piles of documents to find her application, he appeared utterly indifferent. Inside, however, a storm raged. It was only natural. He would soon know her name.
Yurien took the application into his hands. Among all the details, one stood out clearly, boldly written:
—Echinacea Roaz.
The name of a pink flower. An ornamental plant that thrived even in wild fields. The moment he read it, the name etched itself deep within him.
The name he had always wanted to know—but couldn't uncover—so he had secretly hoped that one day, if she overcame everything, he would hear it from her own lips. The name he had resigned himself to never knowing as he watched her take her last breath.
"Echinacea......"
He savored it quietly. Rolling the name in his mouth made his heartbeat quicken slightly. She had a name. She was truly real. The woman from his memories...
'...What happened to the Magic Sword?'
In the "future" he knew—the memories he had thought were a dream—she had never been an officer cadet. She had been a demon. But now, no trace of the swamp-like malice clung to her. Moreover, her essence had transformed—no longer the ember he first saw, nor the flame at the end, but an overwhelming sun.
Where was the Magic Sword now? Why had she appeared here with such an intensely radiant soul?
"She's different."
"Pardon?"
"Never mind. Carry on."
Everything had changed. His mind was in turmoil. Yurien returned the application and left the administrative office.
The Holy Sword Langiosa awoke late the following night. Yurien had spent the entire day organizing records of the "future" he remembered and was poring over them in his bedroom when Langiosa's call reached him.
"[Master.]"
"......Langiosa?"
[What day is it now?]
"It's April 11th, 1629. Have you been asleep all this time?"
[More like unconscious. I was busy untangling the memories tangled by the flow of time...... Even though it's the second time, I still can't get used to it.]
"Second time?"
[I mean the reversal of time.]
Yurien momentarily held his breath. That was the only explanation for the discrepancy between the present and his memories, so he had suspected as much. But there was a stark difference between vague conjecture and hearing such a matter-of-fact confirmation. He steadied his breathing and asked in a trembling voice:
"So... time really was reversed? By three and a half years?"
[Three and a half? No, it should be fifteen...... Ah, I see.]
"Fifteen?"
An incomprehensible number surfaced. Yurien repeated the question in bewilderment, but the Holy Sword remained silent for a while, as if deep in thought. Yurien posed another question instead.
"What do you mean by 'second time'?"
[The reversal of time isn't the first occurrence. Several hundred years ago, time was also reversed once before. It was the power of Kairos Giosa.]
The Divine Sword Kairos Giosa is a blade forged from time itself. As the Captain of the Azure Sky Knights, guardians of the Giosa, Yurien immediately recalled the legends of the Giosa upon hearing this—the legend that if one gathered the ten Giosa forged by humans, the Divine Sword would lend its power. A strange premonition stirred within him. He wiped his face dry and spoke.
"Explain in more detail."
[Wait a moment. I've only just awakened myself. I'm not yet certain how much I should reveal to you.]
"......Are you saying there are things you must hide from me?"
[Hide is not quite the word......]
The Holy Sword hesitated. Then, with clear reluctance, it continued.
[I'm uncertain whether it's right for you to learn of events that occurred after your death. This situation is unprecedented, so it's ambiguous. The last time time was altered, I had no master, you see.]
Events that occurred after his death. Not three and a half years, but fifteen. The legend that gathering the Giosa would summon the Divine Sword's power. Kairos Giosa.
The Holy Sword's scattered words began forming eerie connections in his mind. Surely not— Yurien let out a low groan.
"After I...... died, someone gathered the Giosa and used the Divine Sword's power to reverse time."
[Precisely. The Giosa bear the imprint of that reversed time. Thus, those whose souls are bound to an awakened Giosa can retain their memories.]
"You mean my memories were preserved through you?"
[Yes. The other Giosa also remember the erased timeline, so even without me, awakening another Giosa would allow you to retain those memories. On the other hand, those who haven't awakened their Giosa remember nothing. So if you discard me, you too will forget that time.]
Langiosa's explanation brought sudden clarity. Even excluding Dietrich, who wasn't yet a Giosa Owner, the reason why Teresa and Baron—who were Giosa Owners in 1632 and still are now—remain completely unaware of the reversal: they failed to awaken their Giosa.
"I suppose I'm among the fortunate ones."
Langiosa is a Giosa perpetually in an awakened state. As long as one refrains from evil deeds, no separate awakening is necessary. Understanding Yurien's implication, Langiosa responded bitterly.
[I wonder, is remembering truly fortunate? I can't say for certain. Wouldn't forgetting be better?]
Implying that some memories are better forgotten? Yurien stared down at his palm with a bewildered expression. Langiosa, as if resolved, continued.
[Forgetting is simple. Discard me and take up another Giosa. As Captain of the Azure Sky Knights, you're more than capable of it.]