Sarasa's consciousness finally awakens.
　The regular shaking I feel over my back.
　The sound of footsteps.
　My left shoulder was slightly hot and I felt a hard chest.

''Uh......... Umm.........''

　I lift my eyelids.
　A brilliant sunset sky jumps into view.
　I can see the shredded clouds flying from west to east.
　A breeze, still a little chilly, combed the blonde hair of the elf girl.
　The way the petals of the peach-colored spring flowers rise up against the red sky is truly breezy.

　But what Sarasa saw was the face of a boy.

　Soft black hair.
　The will in his black eyes is strong, yet he has a pretty face like a little angel.

　The girl fell in love with that profile.
　Then, she suddenly realized.

　She realized that she was being carried in the arms of a princess...!

Oh, my God!　I'm sorry, Mr. Lacelle.

..........

　Lacelle didn't answer.
　He just stared at Sarasa.
　She had beautiful eyes, he thought.
　Is it because of the sunset?
　I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on.

　--I'm not going to be able to get it right.

　That's what I was thinking about.
　But.....
　No way.
　The one in front of me is, for all intents and purposes, Lacel Singh Stark.
　There is no one else who can blow away the students of the school so mercilessly and without mercy, except him.

'Huh?'

　I found myself walking behind an unpopular school building.
　Lacelle entered the deep colored shadows hidden by the sunset.
　It was as if he was completely enveloped in darkness.

　It wasn't a dormitory, nor was it the infirmary.
　Where in the world would he take her?
　Sarasa gripped the hand on her chest tightly.

　Eventually, Lacelle stopped.
　I put down Sarasa when I noticed.

　After all, Lacelle doesn't utter a single word.
　I'm afraid to say that I'm getting more and more scared.
　The profile that looked so robust looked like a mask made of ice.

Who are you?

　The moment he asked the question, Lacelle slowly approached.
　He drove Sarasa towards the outer wall of the school building.
　The girl can only back away.

　Eventually, she can feel the cold outer wall on her back.

　The back of the school building.
　Dusk.
　A boy and a girl.

　The conclusion that fits this golden pattern is a confession of love.

　However, Sarasa's emotions are far from being in that mood.
　She was just desperate to suppress her screams.

　Lacelle's hand reached out.
　He tapped the wall next to Sarasa's ear with a thump.
　She winced.

'Stop----!'

　Sarasa reached out her hands and tried to push away.
　A moment later, she softly lost her senses.
　The feeling of the wall she was carrying was gone and the girl was dropped into the air.
　Eventually, she slipped away.

　Suddenly, poof, she was in a bright spot.

'Where are we?'

　I look around.
　It's just a wide, perfectly square space.
　There were countless magic circles drawn on it to amplify the magic power.

Yo. Sarasa, are you okay?

　I hear a familiar voice.
　I shake my blonde hair and turn around.

　It's Lacelle.

　Black hair and black eyes.
　Still an innocent, pale face.
　At first glance, I knew immediately.

　It's the real thing.....

　For a moment, I wondered what I was talking about.
　There is nothing real or fake about Lacelle Singh Stark....

'That's a tough one. Well, just relax for now. Do you want a cup of tea?　Brought in by that chairman. That's pretty good.

'What?　Ah......... Yeah.

　I nodded at the momentum.
　What was it that I had been seeing?

　A dream.........?

　No, it seems terribly real for that.

You see..... Lacelle, I was having a strange dream. I'm not sure what it is, but it looks exactly like Lacelle-kun...

　The smell of tea is in the air.
　I offered the whole saucer to Sarasa.
　It was Lacelle who handed it to him (I wish I could have been there).

Thank you, Lacelle-kun.

　Salasa takes it.
　I need to take a breath for now....
　Once I calm down, I'll be able to collect my thoughts.
　Take a sip first.
　I included the tea.

　.........

　.........

　--Huh?　Huh?

　Sarasa looked at the front first.
　She sat down in her chair, resting her elbows on the armrests and looking at us.
　The corners of her mouth were up and she was smiling.
　The confident expression on her face is the usual russell.

　But it's funny.

　It was definitely Lasser who handed the tea to Sarasa, too.
　In the meantime, Lacelle, seated in her chair, has not moved a single step.

　You'll be able to see that it's the same.

　It was still Lasser standing there.
　The tray he used to bring the tea was tucked under his arm.
　But it's definitely Lacelle.

　--There are two Lacelle-kuns!

　Sarasa gulped.
　Is he still dreaming?
　There are two Lacelle's.
　That means double the price....

　--What am I thinking about? Oh..... If this is a dream, wake up!

　But the girl's nightmare continued.

　I hear a noise.
　She turned around and saw Lasell there again.

　Kasa!

　I look back in the opposite direction.
　Lacelle was standing there again.

　Four people in total -.

　Sarasa's spirit reached its limit.

''Kyaaaaaah!　Four Mr. Racel!　Heaven......

　With one last mysterious word, Sarasa loses consciousness again.

　But for some reason, her face looked happy.


　◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆


"Sarasa..... Sarasa......

　In front of me, Cecil was waking up Sarasa.
　After a moment, her eyelids lifted.
　I take off my glasses, rub my sleepy eyes once, then put them back on.

　A moment later, Sarasa screams again.

'Cah!　Lacelle-kun is full!

　Sarasa retreated with her hips attached.
　In her pale green eyes, she could see the faces of multiple Lacelle Singh Stark faces.

''Calm down ... but no? I can't believe it either.

　Good grief, Cecil let out a sigh.
　He looks at me, a little resentfully.

　What is it?　It's almost as if it's my fault.

　I cowered my shoulders.

'You're right to be surprised, but calm down a bit. I'm the real Lasser Singh Stark. And the one behind me is my--


　A duplicate...


A duplicate?

　Sarasa makes a barefaced noise.
　She alternated between the duplicate and me, comparing them over and over.

'Hey, Lacelle. Why don't you just demonstrate to them specifically?

　It was Rowan," he said.
　He crosses his arms and cowers his shoulders, looking half-amused.

　I see. It's a good idea.

　I immediately activated my magic.

　[Reflection Magic Mirror]

　A mirror made of magic appears.
　As its name suggests, it's the magic of the [Cleric] who reflects the power of magic.

　I place it in front of me.
　I activated more magic.

　[Duplicate]

　It's the magic of the [Blacksmith (Blacksmith)] that is used to increase the number of demons (although its usage is also different from the original...).
　This magic is called cross-target effect and is limited to objects and creatures other than yourself.
　However, there is a secret technique to remove its effect.

　It's the magic of the 【Reflective Demon Mirror】.

　I hit the effect of 【Duplicate】 on the mirror made of 【Reflective Demon Mirror】.
　I'm going to be able to get the best out of it.
　It's not an exception, even for the 【Duplicate】.
　It's the same as the original.

　It's not a bad idea to have a good time.

　He is exposed to 【Duplicate】 magic.
　Immediately the effect began to appear.

　From my arm, my arm....
　From my legs, my legs........
　From my head, my head.........

　Like a cicada moulting, I was born from inside of me.

Wow......

　Sarasa just marvels.

　Cecil also gulps.
　Even Rowan, the older one, peeled his eyes away, unable to move an inch at the unrealistic sight.

　But my work doesn't end there.
　I held up my hand.
　I chant the third magic.

　[Denaturation]

　It's a spell that changes the nature of an object.
　It grants it to me when I'm still unconscious from the duplicate.

　This magic is an insurance policy.
　I was born through a duplicate, and my appearance, physical ability, magical power, and intelligence - all made exactly like the original.
　I'm not going to be able to get it right.

　To be specific, the lack of linguistic ability other than magic utterance.
　Limitation of the purpose of action.
　Furthermore, it is under the control of me, the original.

　Nevertheless, even if it went out of control and the duplicate attacked me with its own ego, if I died, its magic supply would be cut off and it would die.
　There would be no harm to the original, in the unlikely event that it would cause harm to the original.

　But this duplicate is definitely Lacelle Singh Stark.

　Since it was my copy, I decided that a certain amount of detuning was necessary.

'--and, well, that's about it.

　I'll finish my explanation.
　Everyone was silent.
　They looked pouting and opened their mouths disheveled.

"What is it?　Didn't you understand?　Again, I want to explain--

'Good!　I don't think you'll understand after hearing it a hundred times.

Like Cecil...

　Cecil waved his hand in surrender.
　Rowan, who stood beside him, nodded strongly.

''I kind of get it, but why did you decide to make a duplicate of yourself?''

　Salasa stares at the duplicate standing beside her.

　The more she looks at it, the more it looks exactly like it.
　But compared to the original, it is somehow colder.
　It's impossible to tell them apart other than by atmosphere and impression.
　From someone else's point of view, it's definitely Lacelle Singh Stark.

　My [replication] was a complete success.

'It's the homeowners' association's business. It's the homeowners' association's job. I've heard that this time of year they get into a ruckus every year for gathering parties. I hear that there's a constant stream of threats and extortion, like the ones you've met, forcing people into parties and other things.

　It wasn't just Salasa.
　Cecil and Rowan were also blackmailed to bring me in.
　I couldn't see it, and I brought them into this magical space that I created in secret.

''Hey, Lacelle-kun.''

What is it, Sarasa?

　Salasa didn't open her mouth right away.
　Her face was slightly upturned.
　Her body was fidgeting.

'What, are you going to the bathroom?　Then we'll put it on the side of the room--

No!

　It was Cecil who smacked me on the head with a benign smack.
　He then tugged on Sarasa's arm, bringing her closer to me.

'Come on, Sarasa. You need to ask me clearly...

　I pushed back gently.
　Sarasa's face came closer to mine.
　After blushing more, the girl boldly asked.

''Rah Rasel-kun, I mean, who are you going to party with?

　My voice echoed with dignity.

　A slight lingering sound lingered on the walls of the equilateral cube space I had magically created.

　Eventually I replied.

'I have no intention of teaming up with anyone.

'What?　So, yeah....

'I'm not really interested in party activities to begin with. Unless there's someone out there who's worthy of my abilities, but unfortunately I don't seem to have any in the primary department.

..........

　Sarasa turned over.
　Her eyes, behind her glasses, look a little wet.

　I open my mouth further.

'But this is a schoolhouse. We can't get out of the curriculum just because we're not interested. If I don't get my adventurer's license, I won't be able to move on to the next step.

Well, then...

　Instantly, Sarasa's eyes lit up.

''Well the best thing to do is to form a party with someone who is worthy of my abilities. But as I said before, that kind of person isn't in primary school. Those who rely on my abilities to make things easy for me are out of the question. So I think it's best to have a guy who has a good grasp of your abilities and is...................a kindred spirit.

You're not being honest, Lacelle. Why don't you just say it?

Quite so....

　Cecil and Rowan cowered their shoulders at the same time.

　Ugh, shut up........!

　Also, you guys are too close!

　I scratched my dark hair once.
　I inhale and take a deep breath.

"So, that's why, that's why......... Sarasa..... I was wondering if you would be willing to have a party with me.

　Sarasa's face glowed like an open flower.

'Yes!

　A pleasant reply came back.
　There were tears in her pale green eyes.

　Then, this time Cecil takes my arm and hugs me.

''Of course, I'm okay with that.''

'It's no use. The party is supposed to be for four people or more.

Well, why do you want me in there?

　Rowan strokes me on the head.

'Hey!　Stop it. No, Rowan!　It'll make your hair crusty.

You know, your hair, it's just like your brother who left you in the country. Your hair is just like my brother's, whom I left behind in the country. Your hands are in just the right place.

　Didn't you--
　Didn't you say the same thing to Cecil?

　Clank!

　Suddenly there was a sound behind me.
　We had just turned into a party and we turned around at the same time.
　A duplicate of me, holding the tea, had fallen.

　The cup cracked and the red liquid slowly spread out.

　I scratched my head.

'Apparently there's a limit of four people who can control the duplicates.

　The replication is powered by my magic power.
　It has to send a constant amount of magic power at all times, so it requires subtle manipulation.

　Rowan laughs.

''Haha........although four is great enough.

Good for you. Salasa.

What?

Lasell threw us a party. If we hadn't come up with the idea, he'd be working with a duplicate of himself.

　Sarasa turns blue.

　I'm honestly impressed by that.

　I see. That's an idea.