Ceremony?

　In the hall of the audience, as I listened to Mimis' report, I heard a word that caught my attention.
　A servant was already standing beside Mimis, holding a reverent, ornate tray.

　On the tray were two miniature sized swords, the size of paper knives, placed on top of the tray.

　I glanced at them and wondered if they had anything to do with the 'ceremony' or something like that.

'Elaborate on that.'
'Haha. Did you know that soon we will have the shortest day of the year?
Yeah.

　Daytime is longer in the summer and shorter in the winter.
　The days are the shortest in the winter.

　Incidentally, it's different every year, and the court astronomers of the kingdom calculate it out meticulously every year.
　I've heard that the remuneration is good and their status is on par with the nobility, but if they make a mistake in their calculations and the date shifts, they will be severely punished.

　...Oh, so that's why.

You want to have the ceremony on that date?
Well, it is a tradition that the nobility take turns every year in the ceremonies that are essential to the kingdom.
"Hmm.

　So that means you have to do it right.

'And this is what it's for, right?　What can I do with this? It looks like a form I've seen before.
The form is familiar to the master of the house.
Yeah?

　I nodded my head at Mimis's words and looked at the miniature of the sword once more - it looked like a model.
　I've seen this shape before after all, what is this........................ah.

　It's the reason I've seen it before.
　It's the Xyphos Cross, and it's the Xyphos on it.

That's Kousihos.
Goodbye.
How is it that there are two of them the same?
"On one side is Xiphos, the holy sword of protection, and on the other side is Xiphos, the magical sword of disaster. The other is for the demon sword of misfortune, Ksyphos.
You have the same name.
According to legend, the original was one, but Queen Selene, the founder of the Middle Ages, separated the evil from the good and purified the good and wielded it.
That's a common story.

　I smiled.
　It's a really common story.

　It's one in which good and evil are separated and good wins.
　It's a story that's found in a lot of fairy tales and fables.

You think it's a lie, don't you?
What, are you telling me it's true?
It was the founder of the Canó family, after all. And because of these accomplishments, the Canó family is now an Aegina nobleman.
...Heh.

　So that's what it is.
　Then ... the credibility jumps.

　It felt like the coin in the Cave of Trials that I carry under my skin (to avoid any nuisance) started casually claiming its presence in my pocket.

　The master of the Queen's sword, the first to be so good at building a gimmicky trial cave like that.
　I wouldn't be surprised if he said he was actually doing something of a fairy tale or fable ... or even a mythological grade.

'That's all well and good, but what am I supposed to do with this?'
"It's a simple matter. According to the lore, I will use the holy sword Xiphos to smash the magic sword Xiphos. That's all I have to do.
I see.

　I stand up and stand in front of the tray.
　I observe it up close.

　They are similar in form, but clearly one is good and one is evil.
　It's made and colored in such a way that even a child could understand it.

　No, no, it's a painful thing to assume that.
　Let's check it out.

"This is the holy sword and this is the magic sword.
Well, goodbye.
"Hmm.

　I lifted the holy sword to pinch it with three fingers.
　This one felt like just a model.

　I lifted it up with my other hand to pinch it the same way.
　The magic sword has something magical in it.

''........Do I have to do it?''
No one has ever refused to do so.

　Mimis raised an eyebrow and replied with a slightly troubled look on her face.
　That's right.

　It's a ceremony that takes place once a year, and it's a ceremony that the nobles take turns rotating through.
　There is no one who would refuse it, right?

''Is that ceremony, or rather ritual, something to be held in public?
No, we just need to send the holy sword and the broken magic sword back to King's Landing after we go there that day.
I see.

　Then I'll do it now.

　I held the holy sword and put the magic sword back on the tray.

''Hold on tight.''

　I said to the servant.

'What?'

　He put down the frightened fellow and swung the miniature holy sword down.

　Scene.

　I swung down with a reasonable amount of power, but it was not at all responsive.
　I see, is this the magical power I felt?
　Is this a technique that absorbs impact to the point where there is no response?

　Then you can go above it.

　I raise the holy sword again - and cut it down.

　Zuppah!

　I made sure to take care of it properly, and Trey was unharmed.
　I penetrated the magic sword technique and cut him in half.

''Okay, that's it. You can send it back........?

　Mimis turned around and was pouting with such force that her jaw came off.

''.......Did I do something again?''

　I have a bad feeling about this.
　I've got a bad, bad feeling about this.

　It's ... it's a dead giveaway.

'Oh, impossible. It's a mechanism that won't break no matter what until the day of the event........
So that's what it's all about.

　Maybe something happened on the shortest daytime, and it was an absolute class technique for the shortest daytime.............and I busted it up.
　In order to get in line I think I did it.