274 271. The ceremony begins.txt
I can smell the morning dew.
Not only is it fresh, but also the scent of grass and earth tangled together, filling my nostrils. But even as I listen closely, I don't hear the sound of rain. After taking a guess that it must have fallen once in my sleep, I open my eyelids, fogging away the thin film of sleepiness.
Naturally, what I see is the dimly lit interior of the temple.
I looked at the windows that lined the walls and saw a dark indigo sky. At the edge of the sky, a pale moon was floating in the sky, as if it was about to disappear.
A faint moonlight streamed in through the window, coloring the drifting dust white.
The sun isn't up yet, but it's not night yet - it's an ambiguous, ambiguous time of day.
Perhaps because of the circumstances of waking up inside the temple, there is a strange sense of mystery.
I look around the unlit temple with my eyes.
There are a few things that are different from yesterday.
First of all, Lagune was leaning his back against the wall of the temple, just as I was. He was in the opposite corner from me, looking at the podium as if he were looking at a painting. A magnificent magic circle had been finished writing on the platform, and in the center of it, Rastiara was clasping her hands together in prayer.
While bathed in the pale light that shines through the stained glass of the temple, which is neither moonlight nor sunlight, he is slowly pouring his body's magic power into the magic square.
Perhaps it's because the magic power is too dense, her white clothes and golden hair shimmer as if they have life in them as she prays.
It wasn't brightly colored by any means, but there was enough beauty there to take away Ragne-san's eyes.
If an ordinary person with no tolerance for magic power looked at it, they would mistake it for a figure of God's holy light incarnate. They would be unable to move their bodies to interfere with this solemn scene, and would refrain from making even the slightest eye movement as blasphemy.
He captivates all, young and old, men and women, with his physical charms alone. That is Rastiara.
Rustyala stops time in the temple with one body and continues to envelop it in silence.
However, it's a charm that has little to do with me, so I lightly break the silence with a greeting as I wake up from sleep.
''I just woke up. How are you feeling, Ragné-san?
Ragnet-san, who was far away, shook her body with a jolt.
Then he answers me, scratching his head. He seems to be ashamed that he was fawning and neglecting his security.
''Ah, ah, ...... perhaps it's almost morning? Ah, it's morning. In the meantime, all the preparations are already done, and now I'm letting the magic power of the young lady sink into the magic square.
'Looks like it. The plan was to have Lady Tiara's body and Emily inside the temple in the morning. ......
Hey, it's all over! I'm waiting for you over there so that you don't accidentally mix your magic with it!
The two girls were on a couch near the entrance to the temple, in the opposite direction to the platform.
'Good morning. Mr. Reiner.
First Emily, who was sitting in the chair, makes sure I'm awake and bows her head politely. With her knees as a pillow, the other girl is asleep - or is it slightly different than sleeping? After all, that body's heart has stopped, so the girl is dead with her knees as a pillow - which is correct.
The corpse of the 'Magic Stone Human (Jewelculus)' that had been moving vigorously as Tiara's body until yesterday was lying there.
Seeing the two of them, I confirm that the preparations are in full swing.
And that's where the unexpected third morning greeting flies in.
'Good morning, Rainer.'
Rastiara on the platform, in her prayer position, spoke up without turning to me.
I thought she couldn't talk while she was praying, but that didn't seem to be the case. She seems very light and gives instructions to us over her back.
It's time to proceed with the ceremony now that everyone is here. We've finished building up our magic power ahead of schedule. Emily, come over here!
Yes, Lady Rastiara.
When Emily is called, she tries to move over to hold Tiara in her lap. Before I can do so, I jump a foot to move next to her and offer her a replacement.
'I'll carry that 'Jewelcrus' over there. You go about your business.
'Yes ....... That would be helpful.
Even though Emily is a talented explorer, she's small and wizard-leaning in status. I receive Tiara's body, thinking that it would be difficult to carry her with me.
Then, I walk behind Emily, who is advancing on the carpet that leads up to the platform, while staring at the face of the 'Magic Stone Human (Jewelculus)' in her arms.
She's not breathing at all.
Her expressive appearance until yesterday seems to be a lie.
If this ritual fails as we had intended, I feel a little sad when I think that I'll never see that Tiara-san's strangely irritated face again.
However, if I expressed those feelings, Las Tiara and the others would be suspicious.
I tried to keep my face expressionless and carried Tiara-san up to the stage. Following that, Ragnet-san also climbed onto the stage and began to be cautious of her surroundings.
Rath Tiara was also starting to get a little nervous. Everyone knows that this is the real thing from here on out.
The real ceremony begins now.
'Well, ....... We're really going to get stuck from here, so ...... guys, please.
Turning to me and Ragne-san, Rustyala asks for a favor.
The two of us knights nod back strongly to that.
''You can leave it all to me. I'll definitely work for the rest.
I'm starting to get a little sleepy, but I'm going to try my best: ......!
Unlike me, Ragne-san has been guarding the temple since yesterday. As he said, his eyelids were almost falling asleep. It seems that he is not very good at staying up all night. I'm sure you'll be able to see that I'm not the only one who has a childish constitution than I thought.
I'm sure you'll be able to see that.
You can't blame them for that, since Lagune-chan worked hard at night. It's Ryner's job from here on out. Well then, Ryner. Place her body in the center of the magic circle.''
Yes, sir.
I carry Tiara's body to the magic circle, followed by Emily.
''Emily, just sit there. I'm sure you'll feel your magic being sucked out on the way, but don't be surprised.
Yes. I have the procedure down to a tee.
Great, great.
Thus, the three 'Demon Stone Humans' (Jewelculus) were gathered in the Demon Squadron.
Flopping down, Emily sits down on the platform. Next to her, Tiara-san lies down next to her, and with her hands on her body, Rath Tiara begins to build magic.
''The two of you who aren't 'Magic Stone Humans (Jewelculus)' should stay away ...... and get within the magic effect range and don't want to get mixed up with magic power and all that. ......
Following Rastiara's instructions, me and Ragne-san leave the magic circle. Furthermore, I move away with plenty of time to avoid any accidents that might occur.
Hmm, that kind of distance is okay. Now, everything is ready. Today is going to be a big day for us. You won't want to miss it, guys!
After lightly joking around, Rustyala starts the ritual magic in earnest.
The drawn magic circle emits light, and the magic power of the three people mixes with it.
''The 'fresh blood consecration formation' is activated. The convergence of the Souvenir Technique begins. The ceremony begins. --Holy Magic Revive
A magic name was muttered and the cathedral pulsed like a heart.
At the same time, a fog of magic power begins to leak from the three "Magic Stone Humans (Jewelculus)". The red mist mixed together, melted together, and at the same time it was also the blood that activated the magic.
The blood circulates in the air and emits white light.
Now, I'm convinced that the "re-birth" ceremony has truly begun.
With this, Rath Tiara can't move.
Of course, Tiara-san couldn't move either.
According to what I heard yesterday, this magic called "Rebirth (Revive)" is a resonance magic that works from Tiara-san's side.
This sacred magic, Revive, not only requires all of your nerves and magic power, but it also requires all of your blood to activate it. The most important part of magic, the expenditure of blood, also means that you can no longer cast another magic during this ceremony.
In other words, it's not only Rath Tiara but also Tiara-san who will be unable to intercept the enemy due to exhaustion.
What's more, this is a great magic unprecedented in history.
The legendary saint Tiara-san of a thousand years ago spent everything on it, and the modern saint Rastiara, who was born for this day, also spent everything on it, and it is the ultimate in 'affinity' magic that can finally be invoked - that's what Tiara-san told me.
As a former student of the Academy of Eltralieu and a former Knight of Revanism, he would be glad to see this great magic in person.
However, I know that this great magic will surely fail.
If this technique mistakes the target for Rainer Helvirshain at the last minute - it's absolutely because Tiara-san, who is leading the ritual, has decided to do it.
I'll be very careful not to miss the timing of that last mistake.
The plan was for Rastiara to be puzzled by the fact that Tiara-san didn't wake up even after the ritual was over, and I would take advantage of that opening to touch her.
It seems that just by doing that, Tiara-san's side activates a magic and sends all of her power to me. In short, she said it's easy because it's like a sacred magic "level up", but my nerves are rising at the first time of working on it.
The two knights continue to watch over the three of us who continue to emit a faint light.
I am standing on the right side of the magic circle and Ragnet-san is standing on the left side to guard them. The two of us are keeping an eye out for any surprise attack at any time.
Lagune-san, who had said earlier that he was sleepy, is now concentrating like a different person once the work begins in earnest. He doesn't seem to be willing to cut corners because of his sleepiness.
And from the sharp look on his face, you can also tell that he is a powerful enemy to be on guard against.
Though she seems droll, she is a very strong person. At all times, she remains calm and continues to choose the best that is within her reach. She goes about her work without pride or carelessness, and she goes about her business with ease.
That is the knight Ragne Kaikwola.
A prime example of this character is what happened after the final game of the "Battle Royale".
Even now, I can recall that moment clearly. On that day, I successfully snatched away Rowen's sword. I'd like to congratulate myself on my performance. I wasn't taking my guard up against the most formidable enemy in my life, Christ - and yet Lagune easily snatched Rowen's sword from the side.
Probably, except for that timing, I wouldn't have had my sword taken from me.
Even if it was Glenn-san, who was famous for being the 'strongest', he had no intention of losing against any of Christ's party members.
Only Ragne-san was the only one who tried to scratch through that vigilance.
Anyway, he's a person who is patient and good at catching them by surprise at the best possible time.
That would be the talent of attracting victory by 'numbers that don't appear in numbers' that Tiara-san was talking about.
And Lagne-san, who possessed that talent, had an expression on her face that she had never seen before while looking at Rowen-san's sword. It was something that stood out because she usually wore a small animal-like loveliness.
Ragne-san looked at the sword, a deadly weapon, and laughed with a twisted face.
He didn't laugh merrily, nor did he laugh out of happiness.
I was the closest to him at the time, so I can be sure of this. Without a doubt, Ragne-san was leaking killing intent. He was admiring the sword, inadvertently releasing a killing intent, and his mouth was hanging up.
Even now, he was in danger of extending the sword to its limit with his signature 'magical materialization' and swinging it sideways towards the audience. I still think that if Elmirad Siddharth hadn't taken the sword from me right afterwards, I don't know what would have happened.
Also, here's the difficulty, but I've heard from my brother that during the early days of the Seven Knights of Heaven (Celestial Knights), Ragne-san was good friends with the guy from Palinkron. That alone would be worthy of the greatest caution.
Because of these experiences - I don't trust Mr. Lagne.
Hence, I pay the most attention to Lagune-san, who is pretending to be on the platform to be on the lookout for a surprise attack from the outside, while muttering right near me.
''Ah. Nee-mu-isuu. I'm getting hungry too.
'I know you're sleepy, Mr. Lagne, but please don't sleep. I'll be patient until noon.
I'm just going to sleep after lunch. But I've decided to go to bed after lunch. ...... Ugh, I'll be patient and patient until then.
Recalling Tiara's lessons until yesterday, I sharpened my sixth sense, which could be described as intuition, while chatting with her standing on the other side of the magic circle - monitoring her.
''Come to think of it, Rath Tiara said that after the ceremony is over, we'll all have a feast together in celebration.
Yeah. I heard the young lady is going to cook for us. I'm looking forward to it.
'Is this supposed to be a welcome party for Lady Tiara: ......?'
Isn't that right?
Time moves forward as I talk lightly with Ragne-san.
Naturally, both the magic in front of me and its power increases.
Visibly, the ritual progresses, and at the same time, Rastiara's magic power is extremely reduced. The magic power is probably being rushed into the magic <
Ragne-san and I watch that with our hands on the sword at our waists.
Although we are mostly tense in the silence, we occasionally exchange banter to dispel our sleepiness.
Gradually the sun rises and light shines through the temple. The fresh morning light makes the darkness disappear.
The three "Jewelcrus" were illuminated by the sunlight, but none of them moved a single eyebrow.
They must be concentrating on the ritual.
Only the three of them seemed to be standing still in time.
The quietness of the room proved that the ritual was going well.
And gradually, the angle of the sunlight coming in through the window changed.
With the passage of time, the sun was about to rise to the heavens.
Then.
On the way to the sun rising - there was one oddity.
''--Uh, ugh.''
Suddenly, Emily inside the Demon Squadron started to moan.
If you look closely, she was sweating from her forehead and breathing heavily.
Likewise, Rustyala, who is building magic next to her, is also sweating an unusual amount. But this one is a symptom that was known beforehand. The fact that Emily, who just sits and cooperates, is sick is not in the plan.
First of all, the most recent Ragnet-san ran up to Emily.
In response to the unplanned situation, she urgently entered the magic circle. I watch it. Naturally, I keep my hand on the sword at my waist and keep an eye out to see what Lagne-san will do.
''Emily-chan, are you okay? I'm sweating like crazy--
'Yes, I'm fine. Everything is fine. Everything is going as planned. ......
Emily shook her head and then smiled at Ragne, who put a hand on her shoulder and worried about her.
'Then fine, but ......'
Don't worry. Everything is going to be just as it should be.
Then he took Mr. Ragne's hand from his shoulder.
The magic Sleep Mist.
A magic that wasn't needed for the ritual was activated.
A purple haze crawled out of Emily's hand and invaded her body through Ragne's arms.
''What--?''
Ragne let out a word and broke his knees.
Once I had confirmed that much, I ran out.
Like Lagune-san, I too was slow to react. Because I was too wary of Lagne-san, I failed to see Emily's initial reaction.
After I finished casting a spell on Ragune-san, Emily also moves.
We're both headed to Rastiara.
The distance between me and Rastiara was a few meters in numbers, but there was not a meter between me and Emily. We were right next to each other.
The difference in distance between us was the difference between light and dark.
Emily put her hand on Rustyala's neck as she continued to pray after Ragnet-san.
She shouted as if to slam her hand with magic power in it.
''Please stop! I don't care if I kill Rastiara-sama and only get 'blood'!
-What?
Zero-distance magic on the neck of the defenseless Rustyala - even improvised magic can be deadly.
That's just not good.
Because it's a life more important than my life--
--I stop.
It was bad enough that I was reflecting and thinking too quickly. In a split second of thought, I remembered the mission I had been entrusted by Christ to 'protect Rastiara'. I thought that if the enemy told me that Rastiara would be safe if I gave him the Blood, the worst is not going to happen.
When I stilled, I could hear Ragne's voice in the distance a bit.
''Ummmm ......--''
He collapsed onto the platform, closed his eyelids and fell asleep. The sleep-inducing magic from earlier must have pierced his all-night body.
It was inevitable before he felt unworthy.
Originally, Ragne-san is a knight with low magic power. Her magic resistance was at the lowest level, and her opponent was a searcher who specialized in magic to the point that she was close to the 'Seven Knights of Heaven (Celestial Knights)'. It would be an impossible task to ask him to play that sleeper.
But the one who seemed to be able to do something about that impossible task was Lagne-san - so I was wary of it, but ...... it was Emily who won this ritual scene.
Then, leaving me behind, the two people in the magicians' camp begin to speak in a whisper.
''Excuse me, Rastiara-sama. I will use the magic you have constructed.
'E, Emily ....... Why ......?
'I'm really sorry ....... Now that our bodies are connected through the ritual, I have a chance to win. I'll take your magic and let you pour the art of sabotage in reverse .......
I don't know how it works, but Emily had taken control of the ritual.
Rastiara and Emily's magic power should have continued to flow into Tiara-san's body, but now she's trying to suck it all up.
Unable to overlook the stone, I call out to her.
"Wait. You, do whatever you want--
Mr. Reiner!
However, he is blamed for calling me names so strongly.
Darkly confronted with the earlier words "If you move, I'll kill Rastiara", he can't say the next one.
It's something that precisely hits my weaknesses.
I have no choice but to shout the safest thing to do at the moment.
"Okay, Emily. I'll stay away. Instead, I'm going to ......--Rastiara! You strangling the motherf*cker! You may not be able to use magic, but you can do it with your prowess!
I may not be able to move, but not Lastiara.
Even if you're too exhausted to move, you're not completely immobile. I ask him to break at least one of his neck bones with his spirit.
''Bah, stupid liner ......! I would never do that to my sister. ......!
But Rustyala won't take that safest option.
'd*mn--'
If this doesn't work, there's no other way to get out of the situation with no risk.
While I was swearing, Rustyala spoke to Emily. That idiot, instead of carrying out my plan, was staring worriedly at his enemy.
'Hey, let me ask you something, Emily. Why are you ......? If you talk to me, I'm sure I can help you with that ......?
It sucks.
Rastiara has a soft spot for the 'Magic Stone Man' (Jewelcrus).
That was now proven to be a deadly sweetness.
''La, Rastiara-sama ....... Sorry. But I'm ......--
The deadly sweetness of the situation caused Emily's face to contort.
Then they were face to face at close range, and a moment of silence was interrupted between them. In that really short amount of time, Rustyala seemed to have figured it all out.
She seemed to be convinced, and she was paragraphing as the magic permeated from Emily's hand.
'Oh, that's what you mean ......? Well, I guess that's the way it goes... if you go to ......, then I guess I'll just have to... ......
As if asleep, Rastiara collapses on top of the magic circle. Together with Tiara-san next to her, the situation was as if two corpses were lined up.
Emily, who has taken those two in her hands, then glares at me.
''Ryner-san, you are now completely mine, Lastiara-sama. Please move further away.''
...... Got it.
I'm going to obey that order.
I'm not going to force myself to focus on the blood here.
Tiara-san and the rituals are important, but more important than that is the 'safety of Rath Tiara' that Christ asked me to do. If that is taken as a shield, I can't make a strong move.
And when I got some distance away, Emily took the sword from the sleeping Ragne-san's waist.
''First, we need to make sure that the corpse can't be used ....... As I recall, you can avoid instant death and stab him in the abdomen .......
Muttering to myself, I stab the tip of my sword into Tiara-san.
Seeing red-black blood pouring out of her abdomen, I mutter my master's name.
'Tiara-san--'
-- is honestly, I don't mind.
I may be thin-skinned, but I don't think the life and death of that body is that high of a priority.
I'm sure Tiara-san herself thinks so too. We've only known each other for a short time, but I can tell that much.
As I watch Tiara-san's body as it regains death, Emily continues to mutter to herself even more.
''With this, I'm the only healthy 'magic stone human (Jewelculus)' in this place ....... All I have to do is wait for the 'blood' to transfer to me and it's over ....... It's all over now .......
He sounded as if he was talking to himself.
He seemed to regret treating Rastiara's favor with impunity.
'......ch.'
Tongue in cheek.
For the record, it was easier to do it without regret. If you're an opponent like me, who only sees betrayal as a means to an end, you can do your best to crush it.
In the meantime, I'm going to listen to what Rustyala must have figured out.
I'm not going to be able to get away with it. There's a lot of things I want to say to you: ......
'As it is, you will watch until it's all over. We are almost there. If you stay still, I promise not to kill Lady Rustyala. ......
Apparently, they won't talk to me about the situation.
It's a cold response, unlike the time of Rastiara.
However, considering the interaction with Emily up to today, it's probably appropriate. I'm convinced, and I'm going to try to figure it out on my own.
...... It's not such a bad development.
Earlier, she mentioned that she was going to get 'blood'.
In other words, let's just say, Emily is doing my replacement.
If left unchecked, the personality of the magic 'Tiara-san' who practiced on me until yesterday will disappear. I'm not going to give up my body to Emily, and Tiara-san has no intention of taking over. I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most out of it.
You can call it a safe development.
However, as an emotion - I can't deny that I'm a bit irritated.
Tiara-san, by name, chose me as the heir to her power.
In a way, my gaining power is like an inheritance that follows a formal procedure, and Emily's attempt to snatch it from the side is - a robbery.
As a knight, I feel that I cannot overlook criminals who commit robbery. Following that sentiment, I first go to shake things up as best I can, though within absolute safety.
'Hey, Emily. What's your reason? Maybe you didn't have enough money?
I slowly listen to her motives, trying not to provoke her.
Emily relaxed her guard a little before shaking her head, as if she understood that I only wanted a dialogue.
'No? Then the Al guy knows about this too?
I mention Emily's partner's name. Then she looks impatient and defends herself.
'I don't know Al. If I did know, I would definitely stop it. This is my decision alone.'
If there is a sin, it seems that he wants to suffer it on his own.
From the way he looks at it, we can see his motives little by little.
In other words, Emily went into things for selfish reasons that Al couldn't let her know.
I'm a little disgusted to find out that it might be a love affair I've heard about somewhere.
If it's as expected, it's hard to convince. But it's also difficult to cooperate with them.
As I was wondering how to get the story out of my head, I heard the sound of the temple door moving with a squeak, and then I heard a third person's voice inside the temple.
And then a third person's voice echoed in the temple.