"Honestly. That Bell kid really is impossible to stop. Isn't that right, Liliruca?"
"Haah, tell me about it. It's something Lili can't even begin to imagine. One idiot is more than enough, and that's Bell already."
"Hey, hey."
As expected, Bell Cranel's declaration had spread to everyone nearby through the communication of the skyborne command tower.
The reactions around him fell into four broad categories.
Some cheered and enjoyed it like gods.
Some remained suspicious and wary like the jealous.
Some stayed calm and indifferent like confident strongmen.
And some, like the boy's acquaintances, could only smile wryly.
"More importantly, what are we supposed to do now? You know it too, right? There's no answer if we keep going like this."
"There was never any answer sheet to begin with. But... yes, you're right. We can't keep this up. We need some other way... Uuu, An is really something. Why did you have to make such a mess of things...? Bell and An, both of them are completely impossible!"
"Um, excuse me..."
"And you are?"
Lili eyed the woman who had suddenly approached her with suspicion.
The woman who had come up to her was none other than Cassandra.
"You're the 'Mirabilis' of Apollo Familia, right? What do you need from Lili?"
"Ah, um, well..."
Cassandra thought.
She thought, and thought, and thought again, until she finally reached a conclusion.
No matter how she looked at the current situation, she could not handle it alone.
She understood that most of the metaphors in the prophecy pointed to Hestia Familia.
But beyond that, she had no way of knowing exactly what those things were referring to.
So she came to only one conclusion.
She had no choice but to ask the people involved in the prophecy directly.
That was the only way she could escape this crisis.
"H-has anyone in your Familia... been, um, orphaned?"
"Huh? Orphaned?"
"Why are you asking that all of a sudden?"
"W-well, I mean, I, um... I need to send that person somewhere..."
There was only one problem with this one and only answer.
"Send them? In this situation?"
"What on earth is this girl talking about?"
"A-ah, um, so, that is... ahh..."
Cassandra herself was not the type to speak smoothly or boldly with a thick skin.
So when the two of them looked at her with confusion and suspicion, she was immediately intimidated and could not continue speaking properly.
Just as the two of them, who were holding back and waiting, were reaching their limit.
"I-I have to send a young orphan beneath the collapsed sun."
With no other choice, she ended up revealing part of the prophecy to them.
And then came the response.
"Hah? What kind of nonsense is that? This isn't the time for that, is it?"
Bellf's immediate, negative reaction.
As if she had expected it all along, Cassandra shut her eyes tight with a despairing expression.
This was it.
This was the biggest, most fundamental reason Cassandra could never casually tell others about her prophecies.
The curse of disbelief.
A strange curse unique to her, one that appeared whenever she mentioned anything related to prophecy, even though she was fine otherwise.
No matter how accurate her prophecy was, even if she explained it in other words or interpreted it in a different way.
If her story had even the slightest connection to prophecy, other people simply would not believe her.
Even if it was a childhood friend she had grown up with since they were little.
Up until now, there had never been a single exception.
Because of this, she could never casually speak prophecies to anyone.
And whenever she brought up something truly serious, no one believed her, so she gradually crumbled under her own despair and disappointment.
And in the end, that had turned her into the timid, introverted person she was now.
'So it really won't work after all.'
Once again today, she was about to surrender to fate...
"Wait. Could you tell me more about that?"
"Huh?"
"Liliruca?"
At that moment, Lili looked at Cassandra with a grave expression.
That unbelievable reaction, one she had never seen before and never expected or hoped for, left Cassandra completely stunned.
And Lili, as if finding her extremely frustrating, pressed her again.
As though every second truly mattered.
And in fact, the situation really was urgent.
"What are you doing? Can't you see we're busy? Tell Lili quickly what the prophecy is about!"
"Huh? Ah, y-yes!"
At that unfamiliar urging, Cassandra panicked, but she still told Lili the prophecy she had received, exactly as it was.
As they listened, Bellf and Lili gradually frowned.
But their reactions were completely different.
Bellf's attitude remained negative, of course.
"Hey, Liliruca. You actually believe that weird nonsense?"
"Well. Lili doesn't really know."
On the other hand, Lili's feelings were extremely complicated.
Her head told her that she absolutely should not believe those words, that it was nothing but nonsense, and she could only think negatively about it.
'My back is tingling.'
Even so, she forced herself to think rationally through the negativity filling her mind.
What was on her back was Falna, the gods' blessing that replaced a mage's magic circuits.
And just now, the moment Cassandra's prophecy began to be discussed, it had reacted differently than usual.
A faint heat and a slight pain had started to spread, as if resisting something invisible.
And what the Magus had once told her about this phenomenon was...
"Beneath the collapsed sun. That is the stage behind the curtain."
Recalling part of the prophecy once more, Lili hurriedly looked around.
Then, as if dissatisfied with something, she frowned and quickly ran off somewhere.
Bellf and Cassandra, still confused, hurried after her.
What the three of them climbed to was the top of a pile of rubble, one of the highest points in the area.
"Hey, Liliruca. What exactly are you looking for...?"
"Found it."
Lili's expression brightened slightly.
Something that had been impossible to see from the chaotic mess below was now clearly visible.
At last, having found where she needed to go and what she needed to do, Lili called out to Cassandra and Bellf.
"Cassandra, from now on, please tell those two exactly what I say. And the rest, do whatever you can to carry it out exactly as I just told you. Bellf, come with me over there. Right now!"
"Eh? Ah, y-yes. I-I will."
"Huh? O-okay."
The two of them were still dazed, not fully grasping the situation even after hearing her orders.
But Lili had no time to worry about them one by one.
The situation was too urgent and too precarious for her to be gentle about it.
So without waiting for their proper reply, Lili ran ahead.
Bellf followed after her, confused but trusting her anyway.
"We found it at last, An."
As she ran, Lili smiled at the corner of her mouth.
At last, a way forward had begun to appear in this maddening problem.
It was time to land a blow on that nuisance of a teacher with the worst taste in the world.
*
- Guaaaaaaah!
"Kuh!"
The giant roared and swung its fist, stomping the ground.
The impact turned the battlefield into a miserable wreck, shaking everything and collapsing it from side to side.
Amid that chaos, the white-haired boy, Bell Cranel, kept dodging without rest, circling around the giant.
What he held in his hand was not his usual favorite short dagger, but a large axe he had picked up somewhere on the battlefield.
Without hesitation, the boy swung it into the giant's ankle.
Small, but still, one hit.
Thud!
"Ugh, not yet...!"
As if sensing even that faint sign, the giant stomped again.
Bell was knocked back slightly by the impact, but he forced himself to ignore it and got back up.
Then he attacked the giant again with another weapon he had picked up from the ground.
He chipped away at the massive body little by little.
Because this was all he could do right now.
Because this was the only way he had to resist the Magus's power.
So he picked up the Apollo Familia weapons scattered around him and attacked the giant before him again and again.
- Uwaaaaaaah!
"[Firebolt!]"
Boom!
In the midst of it, the boy's magic shot straight into the giant's face with a short incantation.
Its power was absurdly weak compared to that massive body, but the smoke from the explosion still caused the giant's movements to delay for just a moment.
...Or more accurately, it only felt like that.
Still, it was far better than having nothing at all.
"No matter what, get its attention on me...!"
Unlike at the beginning, Bell had given up on rescuing everyone else.
That alone was far too little to break through the current situation.
But he had not given up on saving them.
So he changed his role instead.
Just like Ryuu, he decided to become bait.
While he prayed that his companions, or the others they had already rescued, could help the rest escape together in the meantime.
The boy kept up an attack so reckless that even he thought it was absurd.
Boom!
"Kuh, ha!"
But naturally, the difference in strength between them was overwhelming.
It was as impossible as an ant trying to beat an elephant.
But that did not mean he could simply give up and collapse.
"Still... not yet...!"
The boy used a half-broken greatsword as a cane and forced himself back up.
The Magus applauded that steadfast spirit.
As if truly impressed, as if truly pitying him.
[Excellent, boy. To endure this long by yourself. It's worthy of praise.]
He praised him, mocked him, and tried to tempt and break his spirit.
"Haa... haa..."
[But it looks like you're reaching your limit. What do you think? It's hard, isn't it? You've done enough already, haven't you? I'd say it's about time to give up.]
"Kh... tch! Not... not yet!"
[You really are stubborn. You don't even understand when someone's worrying about you. The more you keep this up, the more I'll get scolded by the goddess later.]
"Haaahhhhh!"
[Well, that's what makes playing with you so fun.]
- Guaaaaaaah!
Boom!
The boy fought without pause.
He swung until his arms felt like they would break, and ran until his legs felt like they would give out.
By then, dozens of weapons around him had already been shattered and ruined.
That lofty spirit was certainly worthy of praise.
But.
"Haaahhhhh!"
Boom!
[It's getting boring.]
As expected, that alone was not enough to break through the current situation.
They needed some other way.
Something stronger, something more effective.
A reversal that could break through this impossible situation...!
[Oh? Look at this.]
He even had the leisure to look away in the middle of battle.
[Maybe I was too kind?]
"Huh?!"
Bell felt a chill run through him for an instant.
And before that sentence had even finished, his vision was violently shaken.
Boom!
"Aaagh!"
Up and down, ceiling and ground, above and below all flipped over again and again, and agony raced through his entire body.
Without even knowing what had hit him, he gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand back up.
Above his head loomed a huge, dark shadow.
"Damn...!"
Thud!
With the giant foot that had come crashing down, Bell hurriedly moved to dodge.
But the pain surging through his body at that very moment resisted him, interfering with his movements.
Just as his face was about to be painted with confusion and fear at the unexpected turn of events...
"Huh...?"
Before he knew it, his body had safely escaped from beneath the giant's foot and was far away.
Someone had grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him out of danger.
Realizing what had happened too late, Bell let out a sigh of relief.
"Ah, thank you. You saved me...?"
The moment he tried to thank the one who had saved him.
When he confirmed that person's identity, a strange bewilderment appeared on Bell's face.
An unidentified adventurer armored from head to toe in silver plate.
At the very least, he was not one of their companions.
Then was he one of Apollo Familia's members after all?
But Bell did not remember hearing about anyone like this among them.
'Come to think of it, this person has been the only one helping rescue others this whole time.'
That meant this mysterious adventurer still had some room to spare compared to the others.
Bell began to think that this adventurer might be stronger than the rest.
Wanting to get even a little help from him in the battle against the Magus, Bell tried to say something.
"Ah, um..."
Clink, clink
The armored adventurer merely confirmed that Bell was safe and immediately went off somewhere else.
Then he resumed rescue work for those buried nearby.
Bell stared blankly at the scene for a moment, then shook his head and looked away.
For some reason.
The cursed lament and tearful desperation of some nameless adventurer he had helped earlier kept flashing through his mind.
It seemed they still had not earned the trust of the others.
"Can't be helped."
It was disappointing, but it was still disappointing.
What needed to be done had not changed.
Only... something about it.
When he had clasped hands with that adventurer earlier, he had felt some kind of indescribable unease.
But with the urgent situation right in front of him, that feeling quickly vanished.
There were still many people left to save, and the Magus's giant was still standing strong.
"Bell-kun!"
"Mikoto?"
Just then, someone called Bell's name and ran over.
One of the comrades who had changed Familias to help them.
Former member of Takemikazuchi Familia, Yamato Mikoto.
"This is a message from Lili, relayed to me by someone from Apollo Familia named Cassandra."
"From Lili?"
Bell's mind flashed with confusion at her sudden words.
But after hearing the message Lili had sent, he nodded with a hardened expression.
That method would definitely work...!
"But as you know, Mikoto, using that requires quite a bit of time. In a situation like this, how are we supposed to get that time...?"
"Ryuu-san and I will handle that somehow."
"No, that alone isn't enough. We need some other way..."
Then it happened.
Waaahhhhhhh!
"Ham... mer?"
Their eyes both moved toward the source of the sound at the same time.
Far away, they could see a slender fairy drawing the giant's attention all by herself once again.
Her assault was faster and fiercer than anyone else's, but at the same time it looked far more precarious.
And beneath that, what could be seen was...
"Ah!"
A bright smile appeared on the boy's face.
His "meeting" had not been in vain.
Hope had finally begun to show itself on the dark battlefield.
*
Rewinding time slightly, to just a few dozen minutes earlier.
[Isn't this a bit too much for someone else's family business? It's hard to watch.]
"Mind your own business, you philanderer."
[Ahhh, how sad. And here I was, worrying about you out of concern for once.]
"I don't appreciate it at all, you perverted villain."
[Hey, now, that's getting harsher and harsher?!]
"My apologies. Let me correct that, you first-class piece of trash."
[Elves are scary! But that's what makes it thrilling! I admire that!]
At first glance, it sounded like nothing more than teasing between close acquaintances.
But when that became a back-and-forth exchange between a 20-meter giant and a level 4 adventurer, the story changed.
Above all, the adventurer side, Ryuu, was in a very murderous mood.
From her perspective, the Magus was truly the worst villain in the world.
She might ignore him and pretend not to know him.
But there was no way they could ever be on friendly terms.
[Still, don't push yourself so hard. I don't want you getting hurt too badly for no reason. It'd hurt both your body and your heart, you know.]
"Is that because of the hostess?"
Ryuu's question came with a mocking tone.
The Magus's answer was:
[Well... that's part of it too. No, maybe both are scary. If possible, I really don't want us bumping into each other for no good reason.]
For now, anyway.
At that answer, Ryuu merely snorted.
"In the end, this is all your fault!"
[Hmm, is that so?]
Boom!
Like a bird flying through the sky, she darted freely across the giant's shoulders, and the giant's hand lashed out at her.
But when the hand was pulled away, she was nowhere to be seen on the exposed shoulder.
Immediately after, one of the giant's fingers crumbled and fell away under some kind of impact.
[Looks like the boy's side has reached a conclusion, so I'll chat with you for a bit instead. I've wanted to have a serious talk with you at least once.]
"I refuse politely."
[Ha! I refuse your refusal.]
The giant's two hands swept over its own body.
Ryuu, who had been running over the giant's body, was thrown off by the movement, but fortunately the impact was not too severe, and she managed to land safely.
That brief lull in the battle followed.
Unlike her, who was watching his every move, the Magus remained extremely relaxed as he opened the conversation.
[Shop clerk, what exactly is justice?]
"Are you trying to mock me right now?"
[No, not at all. It's a serious question, actually.]
His tone was unusually serious.
Before Ryuu could even respond, the Magus began his story.
This was a story from another world, one known only to him in this world.
[I'll tell you a little story from the past that only I know. It's about a man who called himself an ally of justice...]
There was a man.
He wanted to eliminate all the pointless conflicts in the world, all the meaningless sacrifices they caused.
He wanted to save one person, and then as many people as possible.
He wanted to become an ally of justice.
Along the way, the man had no choice but to compromise with reality in certain ways.
If there were 600 people and 400 people both hoping to be saved, he would save the 600.
If there were 400 and 200, he would save the 400.
If there were 300 and 100, he would save the 300.
And then again...
[And so, the man finally succeeded in saving 100 people.]
By sacrificing 900.
The Magus smiled as he spoke the result.
Then he raised another question.
[Eventually, the man was once again forced to choose. All of humanity in the world, and his own family.]
Now, here was the question.
[What do you think the man chose?]
Even without saying it, the answer was obvious.
So Ryuu deliberately did not answer.
She only glared at the giant with cold, silent anger.
[Now then, question time. Shop clerk, was he really an ally of justice?]
"Nonsense. There's no way that kind of thing could be justice."
[Even though there were certainly people who were saved because of it? Even though it surely saved more people?]
"I will not accept justice that is built on sacrifice."
[I see. Then let me give you another example. This one is also about an ally of justice... no, about a young man who aimed to become one.]
There was a young man.
Like the man from the previous story, he too wanted to become an ally of justice.
Above all, he wanted to save people... more people.
He wanted to see more people smile.
He wanted to become an ally of justice.
[And so he did.]
A guardian who protected people, humanity.
And so the young man saved people.
He protected them.
And just as much, he killed "evil," the wicked...
He killed "people."
With his own hands, he killed those he had wanted to save.
He stole the smiles from those he had wanted to see smiling.
Enemy or ally, good or evil, it made no difference.
The "ally of justice" killed people and saved people.
He killed those he wanted to protect in order to protect them.
What a contradictory story.
What a vicious joke.
[In the end, he was executed under the accusation that he had brought chaos to the world.]
By the very hands of those he had saved and protected.
[Those foolish idiots. He could have ignored them all and shaken them off to run away, you know.]
But the young man did not do that.
He simply... quietly.
Accepted the price of his own sins.
Because the smiles of the people had also faded for him.
[Shop clerk, was he truly an ally of justice?]
"That..."
Again, Ryuu could not answer easily.
As for the first man, she could at least say no, if only because of her instinctive disgust and personal resistance.
But as for this young man...
Even she found it extremely difficult to give an answer.
At first glance, the two of them seemed like equally foolish men.
And yet, for some reason, she could not choose the right answer.
[That's right.]
Because from the start, this was not a story with a clear answer like 1 plus 1 equals 2.
The Magus said that true justice was something like this.
[There is no clear line between good and evil when it comes to concepts like justice, conviction, and pride. There is no definite distinction between right and wrong there.]
The dazzling sunlight of a pure white morning was not simply warm.
And the darkness of a pitch-black night was not always cold and chilling.
[Everything changes depending on the one who accepts it, the one who understands and acts.]
You are the living proof of that story.
[You, who achieved revenge at the end of justice. The taste must have been terribly sweet.]
The Magus smiled as he declared it.
And the reaction of the proud fairy of justice, Ryuu Lion, was...
[Isn't that right, shop clerk?]
"Shut, up!"
Until just a moment ago, her quiet atmosphere had transformed into a roar of uncontrollable rage.
Because that was the kind of story the Magus had just spoken.
It was one of her worst taboos.
But he had no intention of stopping there.
On the contrary, he intended to dig even deeper, to stir it up even more noisily.
[You finished your revenge and satisfied yourself however you pleased. You were saved however you pleased. You were relieved however you pleased.]
Then you should have just stayed in that warm, kind place.
You should have forgotten everything and started over.
[What did you come here for? What did you pick up that weapon again for?]
"How ridiculous! Of course I came for my companions...!"
[No. Wrong, shop clerk.]
To the denying fairy, the Magus coldly revealed the truth.
As if it were inevitable.
Or as if it were only natural.
Hiding the smile at the corner of his mouth beyond the giant's line of sight, the Magus picked at Ryuu's wound.
[You realized it instinctively. You already knew it yourself.]
That there was still not enough blood to offer to the altar, to the grave.
That was the true heart of the fairy known as Ryuu Lion, as seen through by the Magus.
[For friendship, for a benefactor, for justice.]
Ah, what wonderful words.
There could hardly have been a more efficient excuse in the world.
[As expected, shop clerk, you simply needed a target.]
A target for the resentment still left inside you.
A clear "evil" upon which you could rightfully unleash violence!
[How about it? A villain like me is pretty suitable, isn't he?]
"Shut... up..."
[You should be happy. Your wish was just granted. An ally of justice needs a clearly defined "evil" to defeat, after all.]
"I said shut upppppp!"
Boom!
Ryuu swung her wooden sword.
Violently, furiously, and with utter savagery.
She swung her weapon more ferociously and cruelly than ever before.
As if facing the enemy of her life.
The giant met it head-on with an obsidian sword.
[Hmm~ that expression just now was pretty good. Really quite nice. Me, you see, I've always found that... expression annoying ever since our first meeting, shop clerk.]
It was strange why she was acting like that when she hadn't even finished, when she wasn't even satisfied yet.
And the Magus laughed.
He burst into a truly rotten, thoroughly wicked laugh.
This was provocation toward the poor fairy before him.
And at the same time, it was his own kind of "consideration" for her.
A useless thing the person involved would never want.
Something she would reject even in death.
"Maguuuusssss!"
[Oh dear, you've completely come to hate me. Well, that was our relationship from the start anyway.]
It was truly heartbreaking as a man.
But in the end, this too would not be so bad.
He sincerely thought so.
That was his judgment, and his decision.
[Now then, what should I use next... hmm?]
And then, in the middle of all that.
While the Magus was absorbed in his "game," using a trivial "warning" as his excuse.
[Huh?]
Waaahhhhhhh!
An anomaly occurred beneath the giant's feet.
The Magus's response was:
[Those idiots. So they finally moved.]
Honestly, there really were nothing but useless fools around.
As he said that, the Magus's expression remained cold.
As if he had expected things to go this way from the very beginning.
[Now then, time to start grading.]
While the giant held Ryuu at bay, he turned his gaze toward Bell in the distance.
Along with it came a strange ringing sound from somewhere.
[Is this the finale, or the third act?]
He sincerely prayed it would not be a disappointing failure.
After all, to him, both this and that were nothing more than a temporary "game."