It was a dream.
　It was a dream of an ideal that never existed in the distant past.

　My father, who is supposed to be quiet, is laughing happily next to his father, and my mother is smiling calmly beside him.
　Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew it was just a dreamscape that never existed.
　But even so, Hibiki slowly reaches out her hand, and then her consciousness is awakened.

Hmm...?　.........!

　Opening her eyes, she came back to herself and confirmed that she was safe.
　The last thing he remembered was losing consciousness with the sweet scent of something pressed against him like a cloth.

　I was just forced to sleep, and I still can't put my thoughts together, but I didn't feel any discomfort when I slowly moved my body.
　It is only the work of Yozora, and there is not the slightest intention to hurt us.
　One room, which could be considered simple, smells a bit musty, although there are signs of cleaning. A pair of luxurious-looking bedding is placed out of place in such a place.
　Harka was lying there.

　Yozora's an idiot!　What the hell is he thinking, that guy.........

　There was no way to tell how long she had been asleep, here where the light of day didn't reach her.

(Time...!　The big festival is coming up...

　It was at such a time when, along with frustration, the body that had been put to sleep sought moisture.
　Out of the darkness - a hand reached out.

''Whoa!''

　There was a person in the room that she thought was empty.
　In their hands was a warm, steaming cup of hot water, which was reverently held out towards Hyuki.

''..........''

'....There you are........Hanzo..............

　The man, who seemed to have assimilated with the darkness, nodded tacitly.
　Harka took the teacup from the proffered hand messily and swallowed the fragrant Japanese tea.
　A beat to calm his mind. Halka slowly opens her mouth.

''--And what on earth do you mean by this, Hanzo?

..........

　Hanzo, the first and foremost covert servant of the holly, was a taciturn man.
　The hiyuki rarely spoke properly either, and Hanzo is just as silent as ever.
　But that's not the only way to go.

''The big festival is scheduled to take place at the same time as the date changes tonight!　Before that, even the last Kagura.......you think you can do this and get away with it for free!

　Against the enraged hiyuki, Hanzo still maintained silence.
　You can't even spare time for a question and answer.
　You must get away from this place as soon as possible, but it's terribly difficult.

　The man in front of him was a top-notch shinobi who had served the holly for a long time and honed his skills.
　Of course, since he is a princess priestess, he is inferior to Haruka, who was once known as a genius in magic, but he has extraordinary magical power and can manipulate a wide variety of magic, but it is extremely difficult for Haruka, who is a novice in battle itself, to escape.
　You can see the future when you are not even given time to use magic and your consciousness is reaped.

You know what you're doing?　That's about as much as you understand what will happen to Kusatsu if the big festival doesn't take place, isn't it?
　The head of the covert who gives his life to the holly cannot be unaware of this.

''Well the mission will be fulfilled by Yozora-sama.
　A pouting, small voice finally sounded.

'You're telling me you kidnapped me for that kind of nonsense?　You're going to betray your master mother-in-law and her holly to get what Yozora wants?　You'll never get away with it and your house!

..........
　Hanzo's silence only increased Hinoki's anger.

''Answer me, Hanzo!
　In contrast to the enraged Hyuki, the man quietly muttered.



　The words spilled by such a man sounded eerily strong.

''As I have already left the clan, there is no need to worry about me.

"...　It's--

　In Hanzo's cold eyes, this time Hyuki is silent.
　The kidnapping of a princess maiden just before the Great Festival, no matter how you mend it, is a felony. It is so serious that not only the person himself, but also the clan members could be blamed for it.

　Therefore, Hanzo has cut ties with the clan, he said.
　A loyal vassal who had been loyal to the holly since his predecessor had sided with Yozora, even carrying the stigma of being a criminal.
　It was this resolve that made the hijuki hold his tongue.

'The readiness to give everything, the readiness to give one's life, is necessary in this country, sir.






◇






　Nacht, Aisha, Shtel, Filnelia, and Haruka were looking at each other in a hall that was lightly over 30 tatami mats in size.
　Aisha looks at the restless Shtel with a somewhat wary eye at Haruka. Haruka, who awkwardly turns away from her, and Filnelia, who remains self-conscious.
　There was a strange tension there.

'So, you see, Mom!　Oh, my God!　He's not here!　Hinoki-chan, as always, you're a great help!　Nowhere!　I've been looking for you!

　Shtel hugged Nacht and swooped down on Nacht and swooped in with an arrow.
　Nahato looked at Haruka while gently stroking Shtel's head, which was about to cry.

''Haha........Stel, I thought you were always gone, but I knew it........''

　Halka muttered as if she had half guessed Stel's actions and had given up.
　In fact, the disappearance of the princess maiden and other things such as the disappearance of the princess maiden would be a secret.
　Normally, it would be impossible to even know, but for the past few days, Shtel has been visiting and playing with Hyuki every day and coming back.

　When I went to play as usual, the all-important hijuki was not there.
　If that was the case, it wouldn't be surprising if Stel was distraught.

The culprit has been investigated, but it seems they haven't found him yet.''

　That's probably why Haruka and Kensei were so busy moving around.
　I don't know what happened, but it can't be that Stel's disrespectful hiyuki ran off irresponsibly.

''Does that mean she was kidnapped?''

'Eek!　Hyuki-chan, have you been kidnapped?

　Haruka nodded bitterly in response to Aisha's question.

'Don't say anything else, please.'
　Haruka said, right after.

"Then I've got to go help!

　Briskly, Nacht interrupted Shtel, who was about to run off, by holding him softly.

''Uhhhh, ma-ma-mah, hah-nah-tee!

　Shtel's arms and legs flapping and flailing about, but there was no way the still developing Shtel could escape Nacht's restraints.

'Well, calm down, Shtel,'

'Yes, you don't even know where you are Hinoki-san,'

　If Aisha said so, Shtel reluctantly stopped resisting as well.

''Well Kagura could probably fill in for Yozora, but we might have to postpone the big festival. --Hmmm, I'm really confused!

　What a slightly troubled expression on her face, Haruka glanced at Nahat deliberately.

''Well--it's not so hard to find out where Hyuki is, if you just want to find her.

'Well, well!　Really!

　The day that Shtel broke into the stage, the waveforms of Hyrule's soul had been confirmed.
　If she's trapped somewhere in Kusatsu, it's not that hard to find.

''Then--''

　He holds Shtel tightly as he tries to run again.

'So, relax, Shtel,'

Come on, come on!　Come on, tell me!　Shtel is going to save you!

Hmm, but Shtel. It's not always easy to get things done, and that's why it's important to do things in an orderly fashion. That's why it's important to act in an orderly fashion.

　What a lot of times Nahat, who often moves on the impulse of the moment, shelves himself and says

''.........Nacht-sama......aren't you thinking about something wrong again......?

　Aisha, who had a sharp intuition for Nacht, looked at Nacht with her zit eyes.

''Haha, that's too suspicious, Aisha--I'm just going to do Haruka a favor.

　What a deceitful way to avoid being taken advantage of, Nacht.

You mean, you're thinking about it.

　Aisha has grown up, and she doesn't let Nacht's words wash over her.

''Well ... yeah, well, I mean ... what's the point ... it's not like I'm not thinking about it.''

Which way?
　I couldn't bear Aisha's cold stare.

I'm just thinking about the fact that...

　Nacht is forced to confess.

'Well, what--it's okay, I'll never make it bad--'

They won't give me the weight, will they?

It's what's best for Shtel.

　Looking straight into Aisha's wavering eyes, Nacht assured her.



　Aisha says this in disgust, and Nacht laughs like a bad boy plotting a prank.

'Alright, then, let's divide up the roles - Aisha will go out with me, Haruka will ask Kensei to take a message and do some chores. Hey, Filnelia, how irrelevant are you acting, of course you'll have to help me with that.

"Well please don't get involved....
　Until now, Filnelia, who has remained uninvolved and irrelevant in the conversation, looks blatantly uncomfortable.
　Unfortunately, when I'm calling her here, I'm planning to get her to cooperate.
　There is no veto.

''And, Stel--''

Aye!

　Nacht laughs at Shtel, who replies cheerfully.

''-- It's what is quoted as the role of a knight to save a captive princess.

　Nacht says emphatically, respecting Shtel's wishes.

'Go rescue the girl you wanted to save, go rescue her!

Ah!

　With a shout from Shtel, who replied emphatically, Nacht's shenanigans began.