A few hours later, on the road…

With Straf splayed on one of the benches in the back, Cycelia is riding on the cart in its driver's seat. Her head perks up when they drive over the crest of a hill, and she sees a man waving his hand their way while heading towards them. She glances over her shoulder at Straf, then looks back at the man with her brows furrowed.

「Straf?…」

Cycelia calls out, glancing over her shoulder again.

「Yeah?…」

Still covering his eyes with his forearm and lying on his back, Straf lets out a sigh, then acknowledges her.

「…There's a man coming our way and he's waving towards me. What do I do?」

She asks while looking at the man on the road.

「For fuck's sake… Does he look like trouble?」

Straf asks back after a large sigh. She tilts her head, sizing the man up.

「…Not really. He looks unarmed and alone.」

Cycelia glances at Straf again, then returns her emerald gaze back to the traveler.

「Whatever… Your choice, Lia. If he gives you trouble, he'll regret forcing me to get up…」

Straf shrugs, and sighs once more.

Cycelia nods, then gently pulls on the reins to slow the horse when the man draws near. He jogs up to the driver's side.

「Hey! Are you coming from a village down this way?」

He asks, pointing down the road from which Straf and Cycelia came.

「Yes, we stayed over the night in their inn. Why?」

She nods, then briefly glances back in the general direction of the village as the cart rolls to a stop.

「Don't camp out at night around the Blackmorrow Woods! I'm coming to warn the rest of the villages around it!…」

The man exclaims, pointing at the large swathe of the forest in the distance.

「Huh? Why?」

Lightly confused, Cycelia tilts her head.

「…There's a werewolf! It ate some 15 people from another village, and 8 or so from mine!」

He frantically explains while waving his arms about.

「A werewolf? In those woods? Are you sure?」

She asks, furrowing her brows. Cycelia glances at Straf, but he doesn't seem to have anything to say, being more content with just lying on the bench in the back.

「Yeah! A hunter from my village shot a silver bolt at it, that paranoid bastard! He ran off and warned the rest, and we all kept watch through the night with torches out!…」

The peasant rapidly nods his head, gesturing with his hands as he tells the story.

「Um…」

「…He said that he might have hit it, because he saw it recoil and it didn't chase him! He's not a man to tell tall tales! He said it's as big as a house! I need to warn the others!-」

Cycelia gains a tight-lipped grimace and tries to gently interrupt the man, but he continues anyway.

「Hup… Spare yourself the trip, it's dead.」

Straf declares as he brings himself up to sitting and leans over the side of the cart, staring at the man with a bored face.

「What?… Dead?…」

Confused, the peasant shakes his head.

「Yeah. Dead. Did you not hear me the first time around?」

「But… How do you know?」

Straf nonchalantly shrugs, and the peasant quizzically points at him with his brows furrowed.

「'Cause I killed it myself. Ahhhhh… Man, I still feel like shit. I've been doing nothing but lying on this fucking seat, and it barely helped.」

With another shrug, Straf replies, then lets out a groan as he stretches and winces while looking at his bench.

「Are you feeling better, at least?」

Cycelia looks at him over her shoulder with her brows a lightly concerned expression.

「A little bit. I'm still aching all over and feel like I have a hangover that just won't fuck off…」

Straf replies with his mouth aslant, then lets out a fatigued sigh.

「…What do you mean you killed it yourself? Alone!?」

The peasant walks up to the cart and pulls himself up slightly onto its edge to talk to Straf.

「He really did.」

「Yeah… Well, co-op with the help of sound money and the local service economy. But I delivered the killing blow, if that's what you're asking.」

Cycelia nods in response for Straf, and he clarifies for the peasant, only leaving him even more confused.

「What?…」

Still confused, the man looks at them both with his brows heavily furrowed.

「Um… The werewolf has been dealt with either way. There's no need for you to rush there… Do you have any other reason to go to that village?」

Cycelia chimes in and asks the man, tilting her chestnut head. He takes a takes a few glances towards his destination, then looks back at her.

「…If that's the case, not really. I set out really early to make it there before the sunset, but I guess if it's dead, then I might as well just walk back-」

He shrugs, then looks the other way towards the cart's heading.

「Would you like us to give you a ride? If you're from the village up ahead, we're going there too.」

Cycelia asks the man, tilting her head with a smile.

「Huh? Er… Um… Would you be so kind?」

Visibly taken aback by Cycelia's offer, the man takes a step away from the cart. She nods, and he glances at its rear.

「…Then, pardon me.」

He says as he climbs into the cart from the back, and takes a seat on the other bench. Straf watches the man with a bored expression on his face.

「Hup hup!」

Cycelia whips the horse with the reins, and the cart begins moving again.

With a tight-lipped grimace on his face, Straf and the man stare at each other in silence, with only the clopping of hooves serving as a constant background noise.

「…So, uh… If you killed the werewolf, are you an adventurer, then?」

The peasant asks in an awkward tone, glancing forward down the road past Cycelia while anxiously tapping his fingers together.

「Sorta. Not really. Right now I'm just trying to buy shit.」

Straf shrugs, then lies back down.

「What are you buying?」

The man tilts his head.

「Shit.」

Straf replies bluntly, and covers his eyes with his forearm.

「Alright… Uh… Forget I asked…」

The extra passenger nods, though Straf can't see it, and he turns his eyes back towards the road ahead while Cycelia silently drives the cart with a light smile on her face…

…

A few hours later, in the Mage Federation's battle fortress…

Mages in blue robes are kneeling all around a large magic crystal in the center of the circular room.

「…Watcher, give us a sign, tell us but a whisper, guide us how to deal with the Redwing grimoire…」

Aldrei says in a hushed voice over and over like a repetitive prayer, likewise kneeling around the crystal just at the edge of its magic circle. Alexander enters the room, and Aldrei stands up.

「Alexander.」

「…You should have just kept going. No need to pay me any mind.」

Alexander replies to Aldrei's acknowledging nod as he approaches.

「I assume you came back for a reason?」

Aldrei asks, lightly tilting his head.

「To check if you're still busy… But since you're no longer occupied, I suppose I can now tell you the state of things.」

「Do tell.」

Alexander says with a shrug of his blue-robed shoulders, same as his. Aldrei nods in reply. The two turn their eyes to the crystal.

「…The action faction is trying their hardest to get the situation to unfold further. The grand master is surprisingly reluctant to humor them.」

Alexander explains while the mages kneeling around the circle incessantly whisper something to themselves.

「So he is siding with us?」

Aldrei asks, and Alexander shakes his head.

「He's merely trying to please both sides. Unless something drastic happens, he won't change his mind so suddenly. He sent out a letter to Straf Katastrof Vindict…」

「Threatening him?」

「Humf…」

An amused huff escapes Alexander's nose in response to the younger mage's question.

「…He granted him the rank of an archmage, and voiced his concern about the kingdom's actions in the same letter. That's very much like our grand master, isn't it?」

Alexander asks with a light, cynical smirk as he glances at Aldrei. He then returns his eyes back to the crystal, and briefly looks over the kneeling mages.

「So the relations aren't as bad as we thought?」

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

「They are, Aldrei. I feel that it's almost an inevitability that the battle fortress will be activated.」

「But you said-」

「I know what I said. The grand master is simply the kind of person to stoke a fire stick by stick. Give him enough time, and he'll build a large bonfire by himself.」

Alexander says, and Aldrei falls silent. The two watch the slowly pulsing crystal in silence while mana continues filling the already sticky air.

For a prolonged moment, neither the older mage nor the younger one speak. Faint whispers coming from the mages and the faint chime of the crystal are the only sounds left in the room.

「…But to what end? To threaten them?」

Aldrei asks, furrowing his brows in concern.

「Hopefully. The mere image of the battle fortress hanging over you would make most kings bow their heads, but its use would also have severe implications…」

Alexander replies with a shrug and a quick tilt of his head, grimacing lightly.

「…If they call our bluff, we have no choice but to back down or to use it, right?」

With a sigh, Aldrei turns his eyes back to the crystal.

「…Precisely. One way or another, it will be a paradigm shift. Either the great Mage Federation is toothless, or the Mage Federation will happily kill millions…」

The old mage nods in reply with a grim look on his face, lets out a sigh as well.

「…Magnus and his ilk would be pleased either way. We'd go from scholars to tyrants overnight. We could very easily see a return to pre-Federation savagery.」

He adds, glancing at the arched doorway to the room from which he came.

「With modern magic? With all the knowledge gained in the years of peace?」

With his concern growing, Aldrei furrows his brows.

「Can you imagine? Some are already dubbing what happened in Telas Kingdom「the Loud Autumn」and such. The demon lord would hide in terror of how much death we'd bring to ourselves.」

Alexander scoffs, then looks at the young mage with a dark smirk on his face.

「I don't like the mere idea of that. Magic weapons aside, mages everywhere would be killing each other on battlefields, the moment that kings realize the Federation can no longer be neutral.」

Aldrei matches the old mage's expression, though it's significantly more tinged with deep concern.

「I don't like the idea of that either, Aldrei. In the best case scenario, the queen would just surrender the grimoire, and it'd end at that, but…」

Alexander nods, turning his eyes to the crystal as it pulses faintly from soft blue to weak purple.

「…I just don't think it'll go that easy.」

The old mage adds, then lets out a large sigh…

…

In the evening, in the capital, in the palace grounds by the gazebo…

CLING! CLANK! CLANK-CLING!

With Greaves and his party watching, Lian deftly parries every skillful blows coming from Shien.

She swings her spear back for a riposte, causing her brother to shift his stance and prepare to block, cautiously watching the side it will inevitably come from.

Thwack!

「Hurck!?-」

Without him noticing until it's too late, as if it were a spearpoint, his eyes widen as Lian rams the first joints of her bodysuit-covered hand into Shien's throat.

He winces heavily and stumbles backwards, clutching at it. With Shien gasping for air with his guard down, Lian then finally swings her spear.

Clanggggggg!…

Missing his face by just a hair's breadth with her spear's blade, she continues whirling the spear around and impacts him with the blunt end instead.

Thud!

Shien is sent barreling through the air, spinning wildly as he loses the grasp of his own spear. He impacts the ground and rolls a few steps as Lian recovers from her violent pirouette.

「Hhhrack!… Khak!…」

With his face twisted into a grimace of severe pain, he continues choking and clutching at his throat while lying on the grass.

「…Is he going to be okay?」

Alicia asks with her brows heavily furrowed, perking up from over the gazebo's balustrade.

「…Hnnnngghhhhh!」

Still clutching at his throat, Shien finally manages to catch a breath as Lian stands over him.

「It seems… That I've lost again…」

He says through his labored gasps.

「Mhm. And I can still make a fool out of you. When will you learn, dear brother?」

Lian asks, tilting her head at him.

「…You seem… A little more vicious than usual, elder sister. Has something happened?」

Shien asks, rubbing his aching throat, wincing as he slowly picks himself up off the grass.

「…Did you manage to follow all that, Will?」

Lian ignores her brother's question and returns to the gazebo, smirking smugly at Will.

「Yeah… I'm not sure how, but I was kind of tracking what was going on. I guess I'm just getting used to the crazy speeds you two spar at.」

Adjusting his glasses, Will nods.

「Say… I'm kind of disappointed by how quickly Shien lost. How about you spar with me for a change, Will?」

Lian asks, tilting her head with a smirk.

「Huh?」「Eh?」「What? Are you serious, lady?…」

Will, Alicia, and Greaves all perk up at the same time. Shien's usually nonchalant face finally breaks into a look of confusion, and he furrows his brows.

「W- What!? No way! You'd kill me before I could even figure out what's going on! And you'd be going easy on me while at it!」

Finally parsing her words, Will frantically shakes his hands and head with a nervous grin on his face.

「Oh come oooon… I will be going extra easy on you. You don't get a lot of sword practice against someone who doesn't use a sword, right?」

Leaning forward closer towards Will, Lian rests her weight on her spear, smirking at him.

「T- That might be true, but…」

Will nods, shrugging his shoulders as he adjusts his glasses again.

「Go on, wimp. Let's see what you're made of.」

Greaves chimes in, grinning at him from the side.

「I won't hurt you. I'm just curious to see if you're any good with that…」

Lian reassures Will, then straightens out.

「…So? How about it?」

She asks again, tilting her head. Her silken black ponytail jiggles behind it. With his mouth scrunched to the side, Will glances at Greaves.

「…Alright. But I'm a mage, I don't really know how to handle a sword. At all. Keep that in mind. Please.」

Will lets out a resigned sigh, and leaving his staff behind in the gazebo, he walks out in front of it to Lian. She returns to the position where Shien usually begins.

「Okay! Tell me when you are ready! You can take as long as you'd like!」

She calls out with a smug smile, clutching her spear into both of her hands. With his spear resting on the ground, Shien watches on from the side.

With an unsure and hesitant expression on his face, Will draws his sword and points it diagonally upwards in her general direction in a very amateurish stance.

「…Well, I guess I'm ready. There isn't any more to this than just having your sword out, right?」

Will shrugs, adjusting his glasses one more time.

「Are you sure, Will?」

Lian asks, smirking at him from a few paces away, far enough to be out of her spear's reach.

「…I guess. I'm ready when you are-」

CLANKKKK!

「Wh-! Wh-!? Wha-!?」

Before Will can even properly finish his sentence, Lian's spear darts for his throat. Shien's head perks up when Will haphazardly throws his sword in the way, narrowly deflecting it.

「I'd die! I'd die for real! That was going to kill me!」

Will shouts with his panicked eyes wide open, shaking like gelatin.

「I'm holding back.」

Lian declares, and darts forward with a swing of her spear.

Clink!

Will stumbles backwards, once again narrowly placing his sword in the spear's path. Greaves watches on with a nervous, tight-lipped grimace.

「Lian, wait! Wait-!」

Clink-clang!

Visibly panicking, he tries to get Lian to stop, but the blows don't stop coming for even a fraction of a second.

「Lian, wait! I surrender! I can't!-」

CLANG!

Will shouts, and a forceful, just barely blocked slash from Lian throws his sword arm aside.

「Not everyone accepts surrenders, Will.」「What!?」

Lian nonchalantly says as she winds up for a thrust.

Clinkclinkclinkclinkclink!

「Eeek!」

Will yelps as a flurry of thrusts coming at him almost makes contact. He contorts his body to dodge a half, and blocks the other half.

CLINGGGGG!… Fwopfwopfwopfwopthud!

Lian swoops in and delivers a swing upward, making contact with Will's blade. He loses grip upon it, and the sword noisily whirls through the air before digging into the garden's dirt.

「Er… Um…」

He stammers with Lian's spearpoint poking his throat, threatening to pierce it with a smug smirk on her face.

「…I lost?」

Will says, holding his palms up. Lian lets out an amused huff out of her nose, and pulls the spear away.

「It seems that way. But it was a good effort. Keep trying, Will…」

She says with a smile, then turns for the glass doors to the palace. Shien furrows his brows further as his eyes dart between his sister, and Will.

「…I'm heading back to my room. You're not as bad as you think.」

Lian remarks as she glances at Will over her shoulder, and walks into the palace. Will lets out a large sigh of relief and wipes sweat off his forehead, still shaking slightly…