Sitting at the very top of a bleacher, I gazed down at the crowd of people cheering and snacking on food. The joyous mood was infectious, making me want to jump down to the crowd and cheer with them, but the cupcake I was snacking on right now made me rethink that plan.
“Damn, the venue is packed. I’ll be honest, I had my doubts we would be able to bring in more than two hundred or something. They are really making noise for this concert,” I said out loud.
“Dude, you’re enjoying yourself, too, Tatsuya,” Kyouya replied back with a wry smile.
Today was LightDay, the 10th of HarvestSun in the year 2679 after the descent of the Origin Gods; the second LightDay of the month, actually. To the followers of the Light Goddess, Aurena, it was a day of celebrations and festivities to show their thanks to the sun and their goddess — the Sun Worship Festival.
Technically, the festival was just an excuse to further celebrate Aurena, since the Sun was attributed to her in her religion. The care and mercy of the sun as it shines its invigorating light onto the planet, was similar to the miraculous healing Aurena could perform with her spells. The white grace — healing magic — was named as such.
As a result, the Sun Worship Festival was a day reserved for praising Aurena only. There could be no work outside of festival preparations or contributions to the celebration itself. In fact, if we were in Aureolis or any other highly religious city or town, people wouldn’t be allowed to make a profit from today, but had to donate all proceeds to the local temple or cathedral in exchange for a blessing from the clergy.
But, most of Artorias wasn’t super religious to the point they would enforce that. They knew if merchants could be further incentivized, they would do all they could to make the festival inside a major city a success. Outside of the Olivus duchy, every other duchy and Griffonpeak only recommends that you donate.
So, considering the person hosting this concert right now, wouldn’t it be considered a bit unethical to earn money from it? Shouldn’t the church be against it?
Apparently, not as I thought.
“Tatsuya, we already spoke with the local cathedral and came to an agreement. Any tickets sold are considered a ‘donation to a saint candidate and champion’ and Hestia-san will share this money with the cathedral. All the pastries and merchandise Sensei and the seamstresses made will go through the Sarlenzia company, and we will get our ‘cut’ from it. So, don’t worry, it’s all handled,” Kyouya explained to me.
“The advertisement for this promotion was handled phenomenally. It would have been a disappointment if we had gotten less of a responce.” From his seat behind and slightly above me, four-eyes Nishio began explaining. “We got the local duke, the cathedral, and the Sarlenzia company on our side. With Hestia-san’s reputation and how she and Asaka performed a [Prayer] by themselves at the beginning of the day, of course they would draw in the normal folks. Attracting the nobles was never a problem; they all wish to get close to Hestia-san and Asaka-san, after all.”
I nodded and looked over to Asaka with Elrick behind her, speaking to nobles with a bored expression. She was making the nobles she spoke to uncomfortable, but thankfully she hadn’t blown up in their faces yet. It happened once when we visited the Olivus duchy when we first entered Artorias, and it sure was awkward afterward. I’ve been nervous ever since.
I sighed in relief before looking into the sky. The sun was still up, and it should be lunchtime right now. On this day, everything began the moment the sun dawned and it would all end the moment the sun disappeared below the horizon. People were supposed to rest and let the day end, but we all knew that just wouldn’t happen.
Just before this concert started filling up with people, a moment of prayer was held near the cathedral, with Hestia and Asaka performing various rituals with the aid of the local clergy. Hestia and Asaka both performed the rituals phenomenally. They’ve had practice, after all. While Hestia kept up her smile like a professional, however, Asaka looked like she wanted to die.
Sure was something.
I then looked behind me and to the people sitting next to me on this bleacher. The Misfits and the Magical Biscuit were once again reunited after the latter used the nexus to teleport here. The girls of the Biscuits — Misaki, Kazumi, and Kohaku — were eating and sharing their shortcakes while Nishio was speaking with Barathan, a butler of Ellaine’s family, to learn how his attendants were doing and if the nobles were satisfied.
“Everything is going as planned, Lord Nishio. As Lady Amelia perfectly anticipated, serving the ordered sun weaver’s cake right now elevated the nobles’ moods. Those who weren’t able to order ahead of time are ordering the newly made batches at a higher price right now. The attendants aren’t facing any problems outside of their tea making being too slow.”
“Good, thank you,” Nishio nodded, satisfied. “Please, inform Lady Amelia immediately and have her prepare more cakes and other pastries. Considering the order size and popularity, it seems we underestimated it a bit. People will order even more after the performance is over.”
His parents might be talent managers and own an agency, but it’s clear he would have become a better CEO than them. Well, at least he knows how to manage a promotion like Hestia-san’s. Alleviates Sensei’s need to do it.
“How are the merchants?”
“Elated. The most wealthy of them are sharing seats with magnobles and the duchy’s greifnobles, giving them all the chance to network. Thankfully, this is Equevanna, so the nobles do not mind wealthy commoners sitting with them.”
We were able to invite the nobles inside Equevanna to come, but asking foreign nobles to come wasn’t possible. They had to celebrate in their own duchies.
After the report was done, Barathan left and Nishio sighed, looking annoyed that Kazumi was having fun while he was working. They were supposed to work together to manage the concert, but it seemed that one of them was more focused on eating cake.
While those two were now arguing, I chuckled slightly before returning my gaze back to the concert stage. The curtains were still down, but it honestly looked like any other concert stage from Earth. Hestia really had people make a faithful recreation of it in Peolynca.
Sure, it was missing some modern amenities that we needed to replace with magitech and magic, but it was about the same. It was all about setting the mood.
Speaking of the mood, it was clear to see that all the merchants and nobles sitting on the bleachers had spent some money to have the perfect outfits for today. Everybody was wearing ceremonial suits or dresses with Aurena’s religious symbol stitched on them.
Our two groups were also wearing them, although ours were tailored by Sensei and Tasianna. All made from Sensei’s mana threads. Honestly, considering how much she had to do already, it’s crazy how she found enough time to make these for us.
“Hey, hey, quiet! It’s starting! Hestia-sama is performing!” Daichi called out. I don’t know what Hestia said to him, but he has been acting less depressed ever since, although he was still pretty much an asshole.
Still, he was right. The curtains were moving and suddenly, music began to play. I could hear the sound of a synthesizer and also a drum machine. Electronic instruments. Something Peolynca doesn’t have. There was only a single person who could recreate them this perfectly while keeping the melody flowing.
And then, her voice reached us all.
[Music Resonation (Minor)] inflicted on [Human, Tatsuya Nagata]
“Is this not the day, are you feeling down? ♫
Wanna smile so much, but can’t lift up the frown ♫
Is the world so bleak, all is going wrong ♫
Like a raging stream, dragged through it all along ♫
Do you ever want to break apart that wall? ♫
But every try rings hollow, and all that’s left is emptiness ♫
But let me tell you this, you gotta raise your head ♫
‘Cause there is more to life ♫”
The moment the curtains rose, a dragonewt girl dressed in a colorful outfit was revealed and began singing as waves of flames moved around the stage like clouds. The loud music, her angelic singing voice, and the special effects, instantly drew everybody’s attention. There was no need for an announcement.
Hestia stole everybody’s focus in the very first moment of the song!
“As there will be a chance to shine ♫
It will appear ♫
So grab it tight! ♫
Your GREAT light of hope! ♫
‘Cause you’re the center of your stooooory! ♫”
The moment the chorus began, multiple small flames shot from Hestia’s wings to the ceiling, before exploding into crimson red, purple, and white flowers. A massive “woaah!” came from the crowd below.
“Don’t let others say it’s not ♫
Aim your sight up, up, up ♫
You gotta let yourself shine, shine, shine ♫
‘Cause you’re the center of your story ♫
Burst into a thousand colors ♫
Leave them all to gasp, gasp, gasp ♫
So rise up to be your own star, star, star ♫”
As the song continued, the special effects continued to fire off as Hestia sang. Noticing this was all part of the show, the crowd transitioned from being flabbergasted to pure excitement. The colors captivated them, but that wasn’t all.
Her singing was already entrancing, but her swift dance moves led people’s eyes. The special effects were nice and all, but Hestia made sure everybody’s attention was on her alone. I could tell, I couldn’t keep my eyes away from her. Her dancing was like water, flowing pure and without any ripples. Her singing was like divine melodies coming from an angel.
It was ravishing.
“Oooooooooh!” Kyouya shot up from his seat like a bullet. “Let’s go! Hestia-chan!”
The only way anybody could take away my attention from the stage right now was a fanboy cheering so loudly in my ear, it was obnoxious. And Kyouya did just that.
As if he was wielding lightsticks, he swung his arm around, looking like an absolute clown right now. Our group couldn’t help but look at him with our mouths agape. Only Asaka, who returned to her seat with Elrick, was laughing her ass off. Amidst all the flustered nobles, confused merchants, and us, his weirded-out friends, Asaka was the only one enjoying Kyouya’s fanboy moment.
“‘Cause you’re the center of your story ♫
Burst into a thousand colors ♫
Leave them all to gasp, gasp, gasp ♫
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
So rise up to be your own star, star, star! ♫”
After we started ignoring Kyouya, the show returned to being quite enjoyable. We already had a taste of how Hestia could sing during our stay in the RV, or from overhearing the girls’ bath over the hotspring’s wall. What a joy, every night.
Nevertheless, Hestia was an extremely good singer. I had no idea about music in general outside of knowing when it sounds good, and Hestia could really hit the notes. You give her an anime opening and, if she knew the lyrics, she could give a wonderful cover for them. But seeing her on the stage singing while dancing, it was a whole other experience.
“Thank you very much for coming today, Ullistar!” Her voice resounded throughout the venue with her [Aerokinesis]. “If you have attended the festival opening at the cathedral today, you might already know me. But, in case you couldn’t somehow, allow me to introduce myself! I am Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor. An idol and your performer today! There is no need for titles or status during this concert, so if you all want, you may just call me with Hestia today~”
She formed a heart with her hands and grinned so brightly it seemed her teeth were reflecting the sunlight. She then pointed up to the sky, drawing everybody’s attention to a giant white magic circle forming up there.
“I have already given those who came to the cathedral my blessing, but those who only learned my name now shall also receive it. As such, I hope all of you may enjoy today’s festivities! Prayer!”
The second the circle finished forming, Hestia cast her spell, causing it to pour down warm light onto us all.
[Blessing of the Goddess of Light (Major)] inflicted on [Human, Tatsuya Nagata]
“Wooooah?! Another blessing! Thank you, Lady Hestia!”
“May the Goddess bless you, Champion Hestia!”
I don’t think that’s what Hestia wanted to hear…
Still, Hestia didn’t look too perturbed by it, simply waving and thanking everybody before leaving the stage to prepare for the next song. During this break, the pastry shop manned by the other members of Aurora and those who weren’t sitting here with us — Tamae and Haruka — went back to being busy.
The nobles and merchants also began ordering while talking to their peers about the performance. As if they wanted us to hear them, they spoke loudly, praising Hestia and how well coordinated this event was. Nishio nodded, having expected this to occur. Excited people spend more, he commented.
After this small break, the curtain once again rose, but this time, Hestia wasn’t the only one on the stage.
“Ooh, the moment our eyes met, ooh, my heart couldn’t stop beating ♫
Badump, dump, dump, it’s like you used a skill on me ♫”
Tasianna, in a clear blue dress, sang and danced as the curtain fell, using her hands to gesture the beating of her heart on her chest. Although her voice was not as strong as Hestia’s, Tasianna singing was clear and cheerful, setting up the song’s theme.
“Ahh, but don’t you even think I’m so easily swayed ♫
Can you prove to me that you can set my heart on fire, pal ♫”
The next singer was Ellaine, continuing the verse where Tasianna left off from. Dressed in a green and yellow noble dress, she drew people’s attention with incredible hip movements.
“Until you show me the flames in you ♫
I will smile and keep these three words for myself! ♫”
And then the leader of this unit appeared. Bright light shone on Tasianna and Ellaine before it showed Hestia right in the middle, leading the song with her powerful vocals into the pre-chorus.
“““I can’t wait! ♫”””
“Just watching you makes me feel so anxious ♫
I dream of the day that you will hold me ♫”
“““You are it, my Fireheart! ♫”””
“““Say those words! ♫”””
“Don’t just stand there and keep your mouth wide, dummy ♫
Can’t you feel the rhythm of our heartbeats ♫”
“““Say those words, my Fireheart! ♫”””
Perfectly choreographed, the three girls sang and danced without any issues, switching their positions and who was singing fluidly. Their practice showed.
“Holy shit!” Kyouya cheered! “Damn, I thought Hestia would be the center of attention with how good she was in the first song, but she’s adjusting to her members amazingly! Yes, that’s what you should do! Performing solo and in a unit are two different situations! You can’t overshadow your other members but you can’t let yourself get outshined either!”
Kyouya, being a K-Pop stan, was analyzing everything they were doing, down to the way they were singing and to how meticulous their dancing was. We had finally managed to persuade him not to fanboy around too much, but now he was acting like a total know-it-all.
“Ah, but Ella-chan just made a mistake in the notes right there! Oh, but she can really dance! Did Hestia teach her those moves?! Hmm, but Hestia isn’t as good with the sexy moves. Oh, she just overperformed her dancing right now. Did she get too caught up in the mood? Hmm, Tasi-chan is really good but she’s not taking as much space when it’s Hestia-chan’s turn. She should be more assertive!”
Why are you calling all of them by nicknames now, Kyouya?!
But, disregarding that, Kyouya’s analysis was catching onto me. I’m not too good with this stuff, but when he pointed these flaws out to me, they become far more noticeable to me. It didn’t sully the experience one bit, but I guess it meant that the girls could still improve on their teamwork and practice.
“Mother, isn’t that Lady Ellaine? From House Helvas? She’s performing with Princess Hestia?” I heard a noble lady speak with her mother.
“Yes, dear… I wonder what her parents are thinking with her daughter performing up there? Haaaa, but this performance is… entrancing. How could Greenveil be so lucky to find such an ally so soon?”
“Shush. Quiet.” The noble lady’s husband silenced the two of them. “The times have changed and they will continue to change. Greenveil might have taken the lead, forcing the rest of us to play catch up. And all of it will hang on the actions of our auspicious guests. Pride will not help us if we are to suffer. Equevanna is required to adapt. Do not think of the young Lady Helvas’s appearance today as a challenge, but rather a call that we should change. To embrace this as a new opportunity.”
Although I had already spent a good amount of time in Artorias, I wouldn’t say that I'm knowledgeable about its political sphere. All I’ve been doing is acting like an adventurer. I kill monsters, stop bandits, and then get money to upgrade my gear. Just like in an RPG.
I wasn’t 100% sure what the nobleman was thinking or talking about. It made me wonder if I should have focused more on my father's business. Learn his trade more, instead of simply being content with my situation. Even in Peolynca, all I've been doing is being obsessed with coffee and fulinoe tea and just doing Quests.
What would Hestia change in the future? Was the nobleman also talking about us? Well, all I knew is that I couldn’t do anything in my current state. I could only fight, and that was about it, while everybody else was starting on taking up roles. Even that bastard Daichi was doing something.
After the song ended, I turned around to my classmates and asked them a question we already talked about before.
“Hey, guys… what are your opinions on Aurora and our inclusion?”
“Hmm? Didn’t we deal with this after our first company meeting?” Asaka tilted her head.
“Yeah, I mean, we did talk about it back then. But we’ve now spent two weeks now with Hestia-san and seen how she works. We already knew about Sensei, Tasianna, Ellaine, and Grimnir, but you have to admit our leader is quite impressive.”
“Magic, fighting abilities, arcane ingenuity, entertainment, and also presence during discussions. Not to mention, she has status being a princess of the dragon empire and also the champion of an Origin God,” Misaki pointed out.
“Jeez, if you list all these categories out and then dive into them in detail, you have to admit, Hestia-san is overpowered as hell,” Kyouya nodded before looking back at the stage. “And holy hell, she’s a good idol, too. Average idols come and go and will capture people’s interests with looks alone, but the really good ones, those who will remain in the industry, not only are they good at singing and dancing, but they need this bright spark. Being able to conquer the stage by their presence alone. Damn.”
Nishio then suddenly cast [Air Shield] around us before talking, “I heard from Sensei that Hestia-san was constantly rejected during auditions in her past life. She auditioned for mostly Korean agencies. If you ask me, they lost a diamond in the rough. After all, that diamond is now shining on her own stage, performing to her heart’s desire. I don’t know how she was on Earth, but if I could, I would have even threatened my parents to go recruit Hestia into our agency.”
“Whew. Big compliment.” Kazumi whistled. “Then again, you mostly deal with film and theater actors. Expanding into idol entertainment wouldn’t hurt, I guess. Hmmm… then again, Hestia-chan told me personally that she thinks it had to do with her average dancing skills and how the other girls were cuter than her. If her singing was as godly back then as it is now, no way anybody would decline her, right?”
“True.” Nishio nodded. “Singing is valuable to sell albums and records, in addition, you need it for the initial push in your popularity and getting yourself trending. Songs are a powerful medium. Dancing can be further improved later down the line, when you transition from a trainee to a professional. Hmm, if I had access to my parent’s contacts, I could probably have asked around about—”
“Guys, guys, it doesn’t matter.” But before we could hear what Nishio said, Kohaku told us to stop talking about it. “It’s her past. Don’t think too much about it when we technically only recently became her friends. It’s rude. Besides, we are in Peolynca! Does it really matter?”
“I agree with Kohaku,” Misaki supported Kohaku. “Hestia herself mentioned how her memories were jumbled around and that she believes she isn’t the same person as her past self. That her reincarnation created a new personality on top of her ‘base’ memories. She thinks of herself now as a new person.”
“And this new person is amazing!” Daichi interjected himself into the discussion. “She’s a great listener, is willing to help when she can, and she’s the one to introduce me to Master Grimnir! Hahaha, imagine it! I will make a laser cannon in the future! Just watch me mow our enemies down with it!”
“… You seem to be enjoying yourself. Glad to see you found something to do, so you don’t complain all the time. Still, what will you do with your fire magic stuff?” I commented, feeling slightly annoyed that he chimed in. He usually doesn’t do this.
“Jeez, do you want another fight, you dick?” Daichi scoffed at me, prompting me to scowl at him. “I’ll think about it, okay? I still have no idea what to do with all the fire magic with Hestia-sama around. I should probably learn from her, but thinking about how I will never become as good as her makes me feel discouraged.”
“Then finding a way to turn fire into an everyday useful element would be better for you.” Kyouya grabbed one of Hestia’s grenades from his storage. “She can make this with [Trap Creation], earth, and fire magic. If you think about it, Artorias should be able to make more use of fire. It’s the perfect element with Earth to bring the industrial era to this medieval place.”
True, sometimes it does feel weird that fire mages aren’t more common. I guess Danterno really was a shitty god with a badly managed religion. If they only had one competent person, their church wouldn’t have taken such a dive in popularity.
“I think we deviated from the topic,” Asaka stated. “If you ask me, I’m fine with our situation, Tatsuya. Glad we got somebody like Hestia around, similar to how Yorshka protected us from stuff before. However, I can understand what you are thinking, dude. If you ask me, if you feel inferior to somebody, you either have to become better or find a different way to be useful.”
“Daichi has his smithing. What about you guys?” I asked everybody.
“Well, Kazumi and I are handling this promotion here. Making sure we have the marketing and financing correct. We will also probably handle more on the political side, aside from our combat training.”
“Nishio is a pretty strong mage, so he’ll be useful in combat, regardless. I’m better at multitasking since I can make a ton of clones. Maybe I can learn something from Sensei. But, my rogue skills aren’t that useful, so I probably have to handle a supportive position.” Kazumi pouted a bit, looking slightly sad as she explained her plans.
“The company still needs an archer. I still have plans to become the best archer in this world, maybe even rivaling the Goddess of Hunting,” Misaki stated, showing off how competitive she was. She wasn’t an outspoken person, but she had confidence in her own abilities.
“Well, I don’t know yet, to be honest. Just like you, I’m better off just focusing on doing Quests,” Kyouya said disappointed in himself. “I think my goal should be to improve my tanking ability. Become a better knight or maybe even a paladin one day. It would help me protect you guys better, after all.”
A bro comment from a real bro.
Last but not least was Asaka.
“Tamae-san is working in the kitchen and she does it well. Haruka seemed quite overwhelmed with all the recent tasks she had to do, but I think she feels better off the battlefield. But, I don’t think she’s that satisfied right now. Hmm, me?” Asaka pulled out the catalyst holding the fenrir spirits on her belt and held it up. “Well, first things first, get rid of these four. I have to drag Segawa to the Belzac forest eventually, even if she doesn’t like it. I don’t want to be stuck with them. Hmm, until then? I don’t know; become a necromancer or onmyoji who controls these four spirits? Wroooo, ghost lady? Not funny? Okay, whatever.”
She then turned back to me after making her ghostly impression. “How about you, Tatsuya? Did you ask Hestia-san to give her some of your blood to get her bloodline?”
“W-What, fuck no, of course not! Especially not after you told her I was supposedly into beastmen girls! Do you know how conflicted she looked when she confronted me on that! She would think I’m a pervert if I brought it up now!”
“Well, Asaka-san isn’t wrong, Tatsuya. You do look at beastmen girls differently. Didn’t you stare at Dame Yorshka when she revealed her dragonewt form?” Kyouya landed a critical hit from the sides.
“Urk! W-What the fuck, dude?! H-How about you and Haruka-chan, huh?! Has that gotten anywhere yet?!”
“Well, things are going by quite fast, you know. Haruka and I still spend enough time together, but it’s not like I can ask her out right now. Do you know how filled up her schedule is, right now?” he replied.
“That’s an excuse!” I rebuked him.
“And you’re feeling slightly insecure that your druidification isn’t leveling up after using it so often. If you have a problem with that, maybe work with Asaka-san and get Sensei to help you. She’s a fenrir and a descendant of Belzac. Don’t try to excuse yourself from asking her.”
Grk!
“Wow, Tatsuya, you sure made Kyouya mad,” Kohaku commented before pointing our attention forward. “Let’s stop. The next song is coming up. I want to continue enjoying this concert, so let’s just say this discussion is done for now.”
And just like that, the concert continued with five more songs. Two of those songs were duets, Hestia singing one with Tasianna and the other with Ellaine, while the rest was done by Hestia alone. Despite how exhausting the dance moves were for every song, it didn’t look like Hestia had any problems with them. In fact, it seemed like she became better the longer the concert went on.
After the concert was over, it was time for the merchandise sale and fan meeting. Our group didn’t have much to do here, so the majority decided on going out and enjoying the city. The festival was still going on, after all.
However, what did I do? I went back into the RV. I took my spear and went to the training field. While others had fun, I decided I had to continue training.
Hestia and I had the same master in Yorshka. We both learned her spearmanship. While I was currently better than her in skill with the spear, I haven’t been able to beat Hestia in a spar once. It’s not just our stats being too far apart, but rather a huge difference in our overall battle experience.
I tried to overwhelm her with my techniques, but she adapted too fast. She would learn and then use it mid-fight, pushing me onto the defensive. Even if I used druidification, I couldn’t beat her. Attempting to beat her in a contest of Strength or Agility was just stupid.
But after the talk I had with my classmates today, all I could think about is how I should just get better. If I began sweating blood, I had to continue training. That’s what I knew I could do best. Grind. Grind. Grind.
That jerk Dachi might have given up beating Hestia with fire magic, but I won’t with my spearmanship. I’ll become a master to defeat the strong.