The Meaning of Revelation
Revelation. One of the core concepts in the Aindium series, and the sort of ability that even the most hardcore fans couldn't definitively explain. It was one of those stale, ancient pieces of bait that neither the author nor the production team ever clearly defined. I hadn't memorized every single setting, but I'd consumed the entire series along with all the spin-offs—manga, novels, games—and bought them with enthusiasm. Of course I knew what Revelation was. Or, to be precise, I knew that it was something inherently difficult to define.
It first appeared with Hazes, the main heroine and one of the protagonists of the third installment, Return to Galaxia. The leading theory was that the production team had thrown it together in a panic after overhyping Hazes and creating plot holes. Still, it kept being referenced in later works, and in the sixth installment, Newel Requiem, the heroine was outright called the Saint of Revelation.
That said, Shamoa, the Saint of Revelation, displayed a completely different form of the ability than Hazes. The moment she saw an Aindium—even one she'd never encountered before—detailed data would automatically unfold in her mind. She instantly analyzed the specs and weaknesses of an enemy new model attacking the protagonist's fleet, feeding the information to Ired and allowing him to rise as an ace player. Because the ability was so different from Hazes's, fans lost all consensus on what Revelation actually meant.
Yet after endless debate, the most convincing theory they arrived at was this: the ability to access the Akashic Records of the Aindium series itself. Hazes, who casually obtained information impossible to know at that time and place. Shamoa, who could rattle off technical data as if she'd memorized an official Aindium reference book. Some viewed it negatively, but I believed this explanation fit the concept of Revelation better than any other.
Which is why I never expected to hear the word "Revelation" from a native after being hurled into Galaxia.
The Countess saw my face freeze in confusion. She studied my complexion and murmured softly, "It seems you don't know after all. I suppose it can't be helped."
"Ah, no. I do know. Roughly, at least."
"Really?" Her gaze carried a sting of suspicion.
"It's like... information just flows in automatically from somewhere, right?"
I'd drawn from the common traits of the two most famous recipients—Hazes and Shamoa—but the Countess's expression turned strangely wry.
"Hearing it described that way feels oddly unpleasant." She let out a small sigh. "My entire life has been haunted by a bizarre phenomenon, and you've just summed it up in a single sentence."
The Countess spoke with quiet detachment. She lowered her head, stayed silent for a moment, then slowly lifted her eyes to meet mine.
"Would you listen to a story from my past? Consider it nothing more than an older relative's complaint."
"Yes, gladly." I had no reason to refuse. The chance to hear it directly from someone who actually received Revelation was too valuable to pass up.
While I scanned the bulletin board, the Countess began recounting her past.
To summarize what the Countess revealed to me, her ability took the form of dreams that glimpsed the future of specific individuals—specifically, the protagonists of the series. From the fourth installment twenty-five years ago, Warrior of the North Wind, to Newel Requiem fifteen years ago, Ash Frontier eight years ago, and even the currently ongoing Wing of Union.
The Countess would occasionally see these protagonists in her dreams. When she was young, she had excitedly told others about a strange dream featuring Muraka, the protagonist of North Wind, and his Aindium, Lancaster. That decision had cost her dearly.
"That barbarian—no, pardon me. That man from the Empire was apparently a fresh recruit back then. Yet everything I described about his exploits came true exactly as I had spoken of them."
She shivered, saying that if she hadn't been a daughter of the Empire's imperial bloodline and a count's family, she might have been secretly abducted. After taking another sip of tea, she continued.
After that, the dreams came only rarely—once every few years—but she never breathed a word of them to anyone again. Having witnessed battles between the Empire and the space forces in her dreams, she fled to Alitus as if escaping. There she met a good husband, gave birth to Yvette, and lived happily.
"Then, not long ago, a certain boy began appearing in my dreams."
"...Was it Senior Rendell, by any chance?"
"How did you know?"
The Countess looked startled. Instead of answering with the obvious—Because he's the protagonist—I mentioned what I'd observed earlier that day.
"You seemed far more tense when you saw Senior Rendell than when you looked at me."
"......"
The Countess drank her tea in silence. A long while later, when the clock softly chimed half past ten, she finally broke the quiet.
"Yes. That boy named Rendell has been appearing in my dreams since last year. At first I thought, 'It's starting again,' but then I saw him on television and nearly jumped out of my skin."
A protagonist from Alitus, belonging to neither the Empire, the Republic, nor the space nations. People who appeared in Revelation were inevitably swept into war. So it was only natural that the Countess, who had come all the way to Alitus to avoid them, would be shocked.
"I thought something terrible might soon happen to our country. And then my daughter ends up in the same club as that boy. On top of that, you've started appearing in my dreams recently as well. It might be hard to believe, but..."
"No, I believe you."
Revelation had always been an unreasonable ability. I didn't know why the production team had given it to the Countess, who was practically an extra, but this meeting too must have been intentional. In the original story, had Rendell ever met her? It wasn't even clear whether Ruwina had joined the CT Club or not.
"Thank you." The Countess's expression softened at my words of trust. "Then shall I tell you why I called you here tonight?"
"Yes, please."
"It's because of what I saw in Revelation. It worried me, so I wanted to speak with you."
According to the Countess, she could glimpse fragments of the future. This was closer to precognition—knowledge of enemies and the battles that would soon erupt. I swallowed dryly without realizing it and asked carefully.
"Will there be a battle soon?"
"It's not certain, but..." The Countess nodded slowly. "My daughter, her club juniors, and Rendell were fighting something. And..."
She furrowed her brows as if trying to recall the scene more clearly. Then she said something completely unexpected.
"Ruwina. You were there too, piloting a gray Aindium."
"Pardon?"
What I had brought was the Black Fairy. To anyone who looked, it was a sleek, beautiful black Nimust-class Aindium. Yet the Countess had called the machine I piloted a "gray Aind." Her own daughter, Senior Yvette, attended the Aindium Academy; anyone with even slight interest could easily distinguish Aindium classes. There was no way she had simply misspoken.
For a moment I wondered if the Black Fairy had been damaged beyond repair and I'd been forced to use a mass-produced model, but her next words dashed that possibility.
"Every time you appeared, you were riding that machine."
Had she seen the test scene? But whenever I operated alongside Rendell, I had always used the black one.
"A black machine? I've never seen that." She tilted her head. "Still, I'm relieved you look healthy. In the dreams, you appeared far too thin and in pain."
Something was off. There was a considerable gap between what the Countess had seen and reality.
"Could it be that you saw it wrong, or the dream has left the memory hazy?"
"Revelation is somewhat different from ordinary dreams. The images remain vivid no matter how much time passes. Only after a great deal of time has gone by do they begin to fade like ordinary old memories."
What could possibly be wrong? I couldn't guess, but at that moment the bulletin board rose silently before my eyes.
"Ah."
The hint had been right in front of me and I'd nearly missed it. A parallel-world version of myself. In other words, the original Ruwina might have piloted a mass-produced Aindium. The version of her who had quietly handed the Limpid Fairy over to Windsor, who—because of her rare dark attribute—couldn't have a custom Aindium built and simply used a standard model instead. Since the machine Ruwina piloted had never appeared in the volumes I'd read, it was entirely possible.
That didn't make the Countess's information useless. Events from the original story would still occur in this reality. Her warning that a battle would break out soon was something I could trust.
"Thank you for the warning. We'll have to prepare ourselves."
"Be careful. Don't get hurt."
Having shared her secret, the Countess had transformed back into an ordinary, worry-prone older relative. We chatted briefly about her and Yvette. When the clock struck eleven, I left the drawing room.
"I'll return to my room now."
"Go safely. And please get along well with my daughter."
"I will. Senior... my sister is always clinging to me, which can be a bit much, but I'll do my best."
"That child really..."
The mother's warm yet slightly sorrowful smile at her newly adult daughter's childish behavior was both heartwarming and a little sad. I returned to my room quietly reflecting on memories of Ruwina's parents, who had passed away several years earlier, and laid my exhausted body down to rest.