「I don't intend to take you prisoner, though…」

Cycelia says to the battlemages with her brows gently furrowed.

The entire group of robed mages gasp in shock. Straf furrows his brows in surprise at Cycelia, while Lily gently raises hers in both surprise and mild approval. Interpreting her wishes, the plumed guards step away from their spots by the pillars, and approach the Federation remnants with stone faces.

「Aah! Don't misunderstand!…」

Cycelia quickly raises and shakes her hands at the guards and the increasingly nervous battlemages to stop the commotion before it begins. The guards stop, and both groups look at her.

「…What I meant was, we have no facilities for holding you all prisoner, nor do I think it's really necessary!… Really, I don't think you need to be taken prisoner.」

She adds, explaining herself. The guards exchange confused glances with each other and the battlemages, then awkwardly shuffle back to their positions. Lily scoffs quietly.

「Then?…」

The emblemless mage says with his arms inquisitively spread.

「If I simply release you, will you promise to no longer wage war against Redwing Empire?」

Cycelia asks as her dainty hands return to the scepter in her lap.

「…I don't think we even have the means to wage war against the empire, let alone the will. We just wish to make our way to the Academy of Magic, and to figure out what comes next…」

The mage replies, and briefly glances over both of his shoulders at the rest.

「…I think I speak for all of us if I say that we have no intent or the ability to resist you. We simply want our knowledge not to fade away.」

He adds, and shrugs his shoulders. The battlemages grimace nervously.

「Very well. I will take it as a promise, then. Be warned I do not take kindly to promise-breakers.」

Cycelia nods her crowned head, then warns the group of battlemages with an ominously low voice.

「Ah, er… Understood, your highness…」

The mage at the front shrinks and glances nervously at the rest while they grimace heavily.

「I do not know why the Federation decided to attack but let it be known, I am not a warmonger. I had no intent to war the Federation, or any other kingdom.」

Cycelia proclaims with a serious gaze, and the Listener faction members glare at the Action members.

「…A chain of poor decisions assuredly lead to this, your highness. I believe the late grand master was concerned that you would, and were using the grimoire to expand your domain, but…」

The emblemless mage replies, awkwardly scratching the back of his head.

「…After what happened, I'm certain the grimoire's power has been dwarfed by whatever that was. If someone had told me this morning that the battle fortress would be taken out in one hit…」

He shrugs, spreading his hands while Cycelia listens.

「…I would have laughed. I don't feel like laughing now. That power… Can I ask what it was?」

The battlemage straightens out of his slouch and looks up at Cycelia in her throne with a serious expression on his face.

Her gaze briefly flicks aside, before returning the other way up to Straf's bored face.

「…I'm afraid that will have to remain a secret.」

She simply replies after returning her emerald eyes to the mage. He nods, bowing his head slightly.

「I would expect nothing less. I was just curious, that's all. Word spreads fast, and word about magic spreads doubly fast amongst mages. We've heard about your magic weapon advancements…」

The mage shrugs, peeking over his shoulder. The mages exchange worried glances as well.

「…We've dubbed your campaign in Telas Kingdom「The Loud Autumn」and such, after the thunderous weapons that were used. We've also heard about an armor that swallows up spells…」

As the mage continues speaking, Cycelia exchanges a slightly concerned, knowing glance with Straf's nonchalant, bored eyes.

「…Really, the information was all there. I believe the grand master simply interpreted it all wrong. With this kind of power, the empire could easily devour everyone else.」

He adds, and helplessly shrugs his arms. Cycelia's chestnut head and her crown perks up at his words.

「…Like I said, I am not a warmonger.」

Cycelia replies with insistence printing on her beautiful, serious face.

「I believe you, your highness, but others might not. With the bulk of the Mage Federation being wiped out… Well. We will surely live to see interesting times, your highness.」

「Hopefully more peaceful ones… Though I wonder if that will be the case with the demon lord's return in the east.」

The mage says, and Cycelia quickly ripostes.

「…Yes. Either way, I hope you fully appreciate the fact that today is a historic day. It would not be at all out of place to call it the dawn of a new era.」

The emblemless battlemage solemnly nods, bowing slightly.

「That would be a rather short era…」

Cycelia replies with a troubled grimace and gently furrowed brows.

「A short era indeed… Are we free to leave then, your highness? We'd like to get to the Autonomous Zone before it's dark.」

The man nods in agreement, and spreads his hands as he asks.

「Yes, of course. If the Mage Federation as a body has effectively been destroyed, then you are simply individual mages. We have no more quarrel.」

She nods back, and shrugs her shoulders.

「Thank you, your highness… Well then… Let's go.」

The mage bows one last time, then turns to the battlemages and gestures for them to follow him out. The guards that escorted them in now move to escort them out.

「Ahhhhhh… It hasn't been longer than two hours since Straf woke up, and there's already talk of a new era because of him…」

First waiting for the mages to clear out, Cycelia lets out a large, fatigued sigh and takes the crown off her head. She places it on the young guard captain's pillow, and stands up.

「Hmpf… Naturally. Why are you surprised, Redwing girl? I was long awaiting the day Straf would wake up.」

Lily chimes in with her arms crossed and a smug smirk on her pale face as Cycelia places her heavy scepter on the red pillow.

「You mean you missed me, Lily.」

Straf says, glancing at her as he helps Cycelia take her mantle off.

「Hmpf… M- Maybe a little… I'm patient…」

Lily turns her pout aside, turning her puffy dress shoulder towards them.

「…Well? Are you going to announce this to the citizens, Lia? Surely they deserve to know that they almost became extras for a movie reference?」

Spreading his arms, Straf asks with a little smirk on his face as he descends the throne's steps.

「I suppose I should… The mages especially deserve to know this… But there's also the question of the people who were displaced from the battle fortress…」

Cycelia nods as she steps down from the throne towards Straf.

「Could you not send those people in Straf's invention there?」

Lily asks with her brow raised.

「Yes, that's a good idea Lily- Ah! Straf, there's a lot I need to explain!…」

Cycelia nods, and her chestnut head abruptly perks up as she turns her raised brows to Straf.

「…Lily, could you come along with us? Just to show the citizens that the announcement concerns the vampires too?」

Her attention returns to the golden-headed vampire as she asks.

「Hmpf… Very well.」

Lily lets a huff out of her small nose, and shrugs.

「Let's go then, Straf. I don't think I can cover it all in time before we get there…」

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Cycelia gestures her chestnut head towards the door.

With his hands in his pockets and a bored grimace on his face, Straf nonchalantly shrugs his shoulders, and the three leave the throne room…

…

Roughly half an hour ago, in the Academy of Magic, in the headmaster's bedroom…

「Gah!」

Corvus clutches at his chest as he shoots back up to sitting in his bed. The glowing runic circle of red wax below fades to a dull, whitish-gray color as the glow subsides.

「Corvus!?… Are you okay?」

Aria rushes in to his bedside from the circle's perimeter, looking at him with her brows greatly furrowed. The old mage is dripping with sweat and panting heavily.

「I'm fine… I'm fine, Aria, it's just lingering pain… That fool! He wouldn't hear a word of it! He forced me out!…」

Corvus replies, and after some half-blind grasping, grabs his glasses from the nearby table. He jumps out of his bed and rushes past Aria back to his office.

「…What will you do, then? Corvus, you've already done more than you reasonably could have.」

The big-hatted professor says as she squeezes her hat through the doorframe back into the office, chasing after the headmaster.

「…I can still warn the empress!」

…Fwoopff!… Clanklanklanklankk…

Corvus declares as a powerful blast of wind rattles the windowpanes behind his chair. He sits down, hastily pulls a drawer out, a quill with an inkpot, and begins scribbling a letter in haste.

「The empress?」

Confused, Aria asks.

「Yes!… The student in question was none other than Cycelia Redwing, and the matter was concerning her family's grimoire, which contains knowledge on demon contracting!…」

「…The empress!? We were teaching the empress!?」

Corvus begrudgingly admits with a nod of his head as he continues writing the letter with barely legible script. The big-hatted professor echoes his words, leaning onto his desk with her hands.

「Yes, Aria! It's not odd at all! Queens, princesses, princes!… Even kings and other influential figure come to study here!… Her situation was unique, but that's not the point!…」

He nods again as he writes down the nature of the emergency, and the grand master's intent.

「…The point is that Straf Katastrof Vindict, her bodyguard, will not take kindly to their invasion! I specifically warned them not to do this! Those utter idiots!…」

Corvus scribbles some more, clenching his teeth in desperation. He then haphazardly throws the quill aside and hastily searches through his drawer for something.

He produces a small length of a thin cord, rolls up the letter, and ties it into an ugly bow.

「…Aria! You can run faster than me!… Send this directly to her majesty! Direct it either to her, or her guards, or her maids… Just get it into her hands, and quick!」

With a gravely serious face, the headmaster holds the tied letter out for the professor and adjusts his glasses. Though taken aback a little, she nods and snatches the letter.

…Ffffwooooopffff!… Clankclankclanklclankclankkk!…

Clutching onto her massive hat's brim, Aria turns around and rushes for the door to the office. Another powerful gust of wind splashes against the window, loudly rattling its panes…

…

Less than half an hour later…

「…He did fucking what!?」

Straf exclaims with his brows raised, and his lips pressed together in veiled frustration.

「…He distributed your circlets. And that flying thingy had been flying around the empire and handling problems. They've stopped a kidnapping, various bandit gangs… So on.」

Cycelia explains and shrugs her shoulders while waiting by the address balcony and its tall, closed doors of glass. Lily listens with a disinterested expression on her face.

「…I didn't give him the fuckin' right to do that!」

Straf exclaims with his arms spread wide in frustration.

「Well, Straf… You were unconscious. It can't be helped. Besides, it did stop a lot of trouble… Roland was very helpful with his experience, even if they didn't have a factual leader.」

With an awkward smile on her pretty face, Cycelia spreads her dainty hands.

「Tsk…」

He clicks his tongue and turns his frustrated gaze aside, thinking.

《This fucking twerp. He came up with the concept of a quick reaction force all by himself? And used the circlets to form a centralized warning system?…》

Straf rubs his chin, furrowing his brows with his head lowered.

《…Maybe it's a bad idea to just leave all that magic trash lying around? Someone might abuse it… Or worse, steal it and reverse-engineer it.》

While Straf continues silently thinking, Cycelia looks at Lily's disinterested face.

「Ah! Straf, I almost forgot, and it's something fairly important!…」

Cycelia suddenly calls out as her chestnut head perks up.

「Yeah? What?」

Straf raises one brow at her, returning his hand back to his pocket.

「…There was an assassination attempt on Lily using the… Vampire lamp weapons?」

Cycelia says while looking at Lily's pale face. She scoffs in response, and with her arms crossed, turns her bored scarlet gaze aside.

「Huh!? When!? I'll kill the motherfucker-!」

Outrated, Straf's head perks up as well as he begins to roar. Lily's brows rise in surprise, and she blinks her ruby eyes at him with a tilted head.

「No, Straf, he's already dead… Well, the attempted assassin is…」

Cycelia interrupts him, shaking her head with her palm held out towards him, before correcting herself with a shrug of her shoulders as she turns her emerald gaze aside.

「…The attempted assassin is?… So there is someone else?」

Straf echoes back, angrily furrowing his brows.

「…He had a helper. It was a Ministry of Security armorer responsible for guarding the equipment throughout the night. He already had been sentenced to death…」

Cycelia explains while fidgeting with her thumbs, briefly glancing at both Lily and Straf for a few seconds each.

「…I would commute his sentence to something less severe, but he also tried to kill Will. The court decided that he's a hardened criminal and he must die. I'm inclined to agree.」

She adds, and shrugs her shoulders. Straf lets out a frustrated and disappointed sigh.

「…Wait, what does that twerp have to do with anything?」

He asks after a second, furrowing his brows with a tilted head.

「Who, Will?… Will has been very helpful. He solved the case practically all on his own. He was also helping me make things around the capital a little more manageable-」

Vzztzztztt…

Cycelia explains, but her explanation is interrupted by a bird of electricity zapping the air as it noisily flaps its silhouette wings. It grasps a tied letter in its talons, floating in front of the doors.

「Eh? A letter?… Delivered by magic, no less?」

She furrows her brows at the sight of the magic bird, and opens the balcony doors.

Fffwooooooooo…

A cold wind blows in, causing her to shiver slightly. She holds her dainty hands out for the bird, and it drops the letter into them before evaporating into specks of mana dust.

Cycelia unties the letter and begins reading through it with a focused gaze.

「What is it?」

Straf asks with his mouth aslant as he steps up to her side.

「Ah… It's…」

Cycelia grimaces as she reads through the letter, scrunching her mouth to the side slightly with a troubled groan.

「…It's from Headmaster Corvus. It's warning me of the battle fortress, their intent to reclaim the grimoire, and it's instructing me to order you to「perform a show of force」or such…」

She explains, and her shoulders slump as she stops reading with a large sigh.

「…He meant well, but this letter is way too late now. At least this means the headmaster dissented with the Federation's decision. Isn't that great, Straf?」

Cycelia shrugs, and smiles faintly at Straf.

「'Cause you can still go to a magic school?…」

Straf asks with his brows rising above his bored eyes.

「Mhm. I was hoping we could go together-」

「Your highness! The people are waiting!」

Cycelia nods, but a plumed guard abruptly stopping by the room's open door calls out to her, interrupting her.

「Ah… Yes, of course.」

She returns a nod towards the guard, who salutes and quickly departs the way he came.

「…Shall we?」

Cycelia asks as she glances at both Straf and Lily. Both of them shrug, and Cycelia enters the balcony, with the two of them trailing behind at her sides…