--Arena Spectacula outside, east.

　This area is further east of the spectacula that exists to the east of the royal castle.
　This area is still slightly undeveloped, with a few open spaces and woods, and is used by the nobles to enjoy the game of hunting.

　With bushes and trees, there is no shortage of places to hide.
　Gracial G. Gringott was hiding with a group of friends that he had gathered through his steady activities - military police and mages.

　The mask he wore as a precaution was somewhat suffocating.

...... It's about time.

　The glow of the spectacle was visible even from here.
　It was a little after six.

　Glacial exhaled a small breath as he gazed at the Spectacula towering over the hills of the lawn like a natural park.

　His initial goal was to slowly remove Richter L. Klingbloom, who had pandered to the princess, from the political scene.

　This act of terrorism was the result of a group of people who happened to have similar goals. I was not enthusiastic about it, but I had no reason to refuse.

　The reason why he didn't take a hard line was simple: the consequences would be too much for him. The evidence of his involvement and his history of forceful measures.
　The only reason he did not take action was because these would have a negative impact on his future political activities.

　If there is someone who can hold you accountable for your crimes, there is no reason not to do it. This is the reason why aristocrats go a long way in their political activities, because it is not easy.
　If it ends with a punch, so much the better.

　--But...

"...... Mirabelle.

　A mysterious person claiming to be my sister who I thought was dead.
　Her presence has thrown things a bit out of whack. Specifically, it became necessary for me to come out in this way.

　Why don't I just capture her and pull her out in front of me later?
　It would have been risky to tell him to "find Mirabelle" by order, since he did not know the characteristics of the person who called herself Mirabelle.
　There would never be many people who would need to find Mirabelle.

　Another factor was that Gracial himself was a mage who could fight.

I've heard that you've finished bringing in and setting up the gravestone.
That's right. All in good order.
All right.

　The one standing by is a mature court mage.
　He's a veteran who lost his position as head mage to Hura.

　He was a good pawn for Gracial.

　I know how he feels.
　Hura Walcott is a genius and a secretive one. This man has kept all his magic open for future generations.
　His methods, his beliefs. I'm sure he has a lot on his mind.

　That's why I believe that extracting his proprietary magic and acquiring its wisdom myself will lead to the development of magic in the future.
　He was both ugly and human in his insistence.

　I've done so much for him, and now he's taken away the top position.
　My spirit of service has been neglected. So I'm taking revenge.
　That's all there is to it.

　After that, you're back to spreading magic to everyone.
　Gracials have nothing to do with this!

"Report, sir!　The way in is clear. The only problem is that there's a lot of security.
"Thank you.

　The private soldier who just sent scouts to Spectacula came running up to me.
　Gracial is not the only one who thinks this section is a good place to hide.

　According to the map I took from Hammot's house, Hura had prepared a hidden passageway leading to the interior of Spectacula to the north of this section.

　This time, Gracials wanted to take advantage of this and enter.
　Their main objective was to take advantage of the chaos of the bombing and obtain as many nukes as possible from the broken magical devices. For Gracials, there's one more objective - but it's not something they should be told about.

"-You've started the second song. At the end of this one, the explosives will be activated!　Let's move!

　That's the order, that's the signal.
　We'll take the opposite direction from Viciedo and the others and head north to the entry point and move quickly.



"Hey you guys. You're the terrorists, aren't you?


　
　Gracial's eyes widened as he turned around.

"......, why are you here?
What?　You ...... know, I'm not stupid, I get it. When the escapees disappeared, I felt a breeze and ...... took the road to get here. There was a bunch of you out there. You're sure of it.
"You felt the wind ...... and ......?

　I instantly shake off the freezing thought, "What is this guy talking about? This is not the kind of question and answer I want.
　Gracial braces himself through his mask and looks at his opponent.

　With the bright lights of the Spectacula at his back, the young man easily carries a hammer and axe that is taller than he is.
　He is a contestant in the main round of the martial arts tournament, and the man who fought a fierce battle with the champion in what has been called the "de facto final.

　The name is Izuna Sienzan.

"Ha! ......

　Gracial snickered at him.


　I don't want to reveal my identity, but the people behind me do. He points to the back and tells Izuna to look at them.

"So what? This is the military police. We're not doing anything. If you're going to assault us, you're the one who's guilty!
"We haven't done anything"?　That's a "not yet" word.
That's the same thing!　Or do you think you're capable of that kind of foreknowledge, that we're going to do something?
"...... I see.

　That's right, Izuna agreed.
　In the event you're not sure what you're looking for, you'll be able to find a lot more information on the web.

"If you understand--
I'm sure. I may have misjudged the situation. Isn't there a park ...... with a nice lawn like this?　I don't know, but it's a nice field. The stars are too hazy to see, but ...... the most beautiful star is right in front of you today. It's perfect for a drink.
What's ...... that?

　What's ?" "Come on," said Izuna, sitting on the ground.
　Then he says.

"Don't worry about me, just get started. If you guys don't move from here, I won't do anything. Oh, I swear?
"......!

　But," Izuna says, his eyes sharp.

"If you move, including that weird masked bastard, I'll beat the shit out of you.
".......
Let's have some fun. Or would you prefer ......?　I'm not stupid, I know. I don't know what kind of big shot you guys are, but ...... aristocratic mansions are getting blown up one after another. I'm sure you'll be happy to know that I'm not the only one.　I'm not sure what to make of that.

　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

　I'm just sitting here and this is intimidating.

　A momentary thought runs through Gracial's head. There's no time left before the bomb goes off.
　Gritting his teeth, Gracial slowly raises his hand.

　They must have all understood what that signaled.

　As they brace themselves, Izuna senses the signs of war.

　At that moment.

"Kill ！！！！　--Some of you follow me!

　Under Graciel's command, a hundred or so private soldiers jumped out at once.

"That's what I'm talking about. ......!

　Izuna lifted the corners of her mouth and carried a hatchet.
　In the corner of her eye, she saw the shadow of Gringott running away.

I'm not going to let any of them escape if I can help it.
I'm sure that's greedy.

　I'm not sure what to do.
　I'm not sure what to make of it.

　I'm not sure what you mean by that.

Are you sure you want to let the leader go?
"Yes, it's fine. Are you sure you want to do this?
What?
The guards can't come out here.
What?

　Izuna raises the corner of her mouth and knocks down the attacking soldiers.


Staying close is not the only way to protect.


　Yes. If we let them all run in, Spectacular was in danger.

　The first gate doesn't have to be a watertight wall. We just need to dam up the majority and reduce the burden on our allies to the utmost. That spirit is built on trust in the rear.

You know. If it's just one mage, the people inside can handle it.

　I hope Mochisuke won't be harmed if possible, but she's good at what she does. I'm sure you'll be able to find something that works for you.

I see. ...... You may be right.

　Izuna's mission is simple.

Let's get this fight started!　


　--and then, a few moments later. A few moments later, a roar and a burst echoed from the direction of the spectacle.

















　--Outside the arena spectacula. North.

　The route to the hidden passage was already in Gracial's mind.

　The only drawback is that he can't use a horse, but he has the magic to strengthen his own body.


　There's a limit to the number of times you can use it. I don't like to use it.
　But it's necessary if we're going to escape Izuna Sienzan at all costs.

　And above all, the extraction of the magic nuke doesn't have to be done right after the explosion. At least checking on Mirabelle was a higher priority mission that needed to be done quickly in the midst of the commotion.

　--For Gracial, the most important objective was already accomplished when the Spectacular was blown up.

　That's why he decided to go it alone.

　The perimeter of the Spectacle was heavily patrolled.
　I ran further down the alleyway to the entrance of the hidden passage to the north.

　I had already been there once to check it out, so I didn't make the mistake of getting lost.

"Haha ...... haha ...... f*cking ......!　So you're alone after all. ...... Oh well. ......

　We finally arrived at the north side of the Spectacula.

　A large canal separates the Spectacula from the outside world like a water pond.

　The north entrance to the Spectacle is basically a back entrance, although a large bridge allows access.
　The corridor used to bring in equipment and supplies will continue to be used as a delivery route for instruments and other things.

　Since the number of spectators is smaller than in other directions, the entrance is rather intended for noblemen to enter by carriage.

　Against this background, it was a good decision to build the entrance to the hidden passage nearby. This is undoubtedly the least popular place in the vicinity of Spectacula.

　--so.

Well, they'll come here, won't they?
"Who the hell is ......?

　I turned around and saw a silver world.

　A cold beauty that makes you think that only where she stands, there is a snowy landscape.
　She was leaning against a nearby wall as if to mark the entrance to this secret pathway, waiting for a visitor - Her Royal Highness herself.

"Your Highness. ......
"Good evening. There's not much reason to come to this place, but how did you know about it?
"Ha, ha.

　I'm not sure why you're here, but how did you find me?

　I don't know who put this in my head, but...
　I see, it seems that Gracial's use of this route had been discovered.
　Richter must have crushed it. Either he passed it on like a will: ...... or this woman is really as sharp as Viciedo says.

　Either way, Gracial is masked now.

　Unless he is forced to take it off, he will not be exposed. No, even if they do, they can play dumb.

But alone... It seems that Izuna did better than I thought she would.
"...... d*mn. That's what I thought. We were supposed to be here. --But do you really think they're going to set off explosives?
"......

　I'm not sure what's going on here.

　You will find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier.
　She seems to think she is about to launch a terrorist attack.

　--It was understandable that Gracial would think that.
　You can't think that the fact that the magic stone is being used to blow up the building has been exposed.

　That's what Lilac was leading us to believe.

　That's why we didn't take any action even after we found out how the gunpowder was used.

　It's going to be Richter's forces that get blown up anyway, or--

　We're all in this together.
　Indeed, it's worth the effort to appear to be on the back foot.

I don't know what this means, but I think we need to get him to talk.

　Lilac put her hand on the contessa.
　Gracial calmly observes the situation.

　If I can kill Lilac now, I'll owe Viciedo a lot, he thought.

　A chill ran down his spine.


"d*mn it ......, I knew it .......
"What's that?
You're a f*cking idiot. ...... Come out!

　At the same time as I shouted that.
　A young man emerged from the back alley and gritted his teeth at the worst of it.

　I had expected this from the time when Suiren messed up.
　But now that they were actually face to face...

"You knew, Master Lilac.
I don't mind. You were sharper than I thought. That's all I'm saying.

　--Futa Pomodoro is as intimidating as or more intimidating than Izuna Sienzan.

"d*mn.

　And yet, it's fortunate that Gracial was the only one to come here.
　I bite my teeth, wishing that my sister had died in the spectacle.

"So, Master Lilac.
"Right. As planned.
But...

　Gracile did not understand the content of this conversation.

　But Lilac smiled softly at Huta's hesitation.

I'll always be behind you. You can kill anyone who gets in your way.


"...... I understand.

　I bowed to her and told her so.
　You'll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the following article.

　Gracial was confused as to what was going on, but it was an uncalculated stroke of luck.

"...... Futa.

　Lilac looks at Futa as he runs away and shakes her head with a slightly melancholy expression.

　I'm sure that neither Gracials nor Futa know what that means.

　But for the latter, it doesn't matter to the former.

What you should have done, Your Highness, was to destroy me along with the Champion.
If you hadn't noticed, I would have finished you off quickly. But, well, it was going to be a long fight no matter how it went.
"......

　You'll be able to find a lot more information on the web.
　I'm not sure if you know who you are, or if you're just lumping me in with the mages.

　Either way, she's certainly right.
　The guards were busy deploying Spectacula, and there were no other soldiers around her. It's just lucky for Gracials that they don't know that she's slowing them down.


　Best of all.
　The only one who benefits from stalling is Gracial.


So let's hear what you have to say.
"Huh?

　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's a good idea.
　I'm sure you're right, the strongest in the kingdom is no mean feat.

　But...

It's time.
"What?

　While Lilac's eyes blinked in surprise, Gracial raised the corners of his mouth through his mask.

　The change came quickly.
　The joyful music that had been playing behind Graciela stopped.

　It meant the end of the "second song".


　In other words... --Time to detonate.




　--That moment. From the direction of the spectacle, a roar and a burst of sound echoed.





　The fighting spirit fades from Lilac.


　But it wasn't a lethargy tinged with despair.

　The air was relaxed because there was no need to perform.


　The bombing never happened.



"What about ......?

　It was rather Gracial who spilled the words with a look of despair - or incomprehension.

　I'm not sure what to say. ...... No.



　The sky above it.



　You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life.

What ...... are these fireworks?

　Gracial's words, spun in a trembling voice.

　If you turn around like a puppet with rusty joints, you'll see Lilac just enjoying looking up at the beautiful night sky as if she were admiring art.

　I know it when I see it. You're taking this situation for granted.

"Don't be silly!　What the hell is this?　This isn't on the set list!　It's not on the schedule!

　He shouted, but Lilac kept her eyes on the fireworks.

"Oh, this is it?

　I thought no one knew about this," she said, blithely. 　



"Well, there was an unscheduled delivery, so I thought I'd take advantage of your kindness.
"Now ......

　That's impossible.
　I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but it's a good idea. A lot of mages were involved in the production of the spectacle this time. But...

　There's no way he could have done this as soon as he found out.
　Then the word "unplanned" is just a lie.

　I've been trying to use these as "gifts" from the beginning.


"What do you think, Gracials (・・・・・)?　My spectacle is too good to blow up.



　The smile on the beautiful girl's face as she looks back at the fireworks leaves her previous performances behind--a cold smile for a clown.

　With the constant roar of the fireworks and the fields of light in the sky as a backdrop, her eyes are tinged with darkness.







Isn't it beautiful?







　The corners of the woman's mouth lifted as the man exclaimed.


　Her eyes are cold and cruel. She mocked the masked clown (Gracial).