Hanneman the Broken Arm, who had been causing such a massive ruckus, had been completely knocked unconscious in a single blow.
As if he had lost all interest, Thousand Heavens, Ten Thousand Flowers made a grand sweeping motion with his cloak and turned his back. Countless gazes were fixed upon him, yet his bearing remained utterly majestic. He was no ordinary person.
Every single gesture of his was refined, and honestly, he just looked incredibly cool.
That was when I finally realized—Krahi Andrich. Wasn't he on Eva's list?
Entering the Martial Emperor Festival meant he was truly an elite of elites. There couldn't possibly be more than one of me as the genuine article, so this had to be him.
"Thousand Heavens, Ten Thousand Flowers... Krahi Andrich. Could you be the one from that rumor about entering the Martial Emperor Festival...?"
"............That's right."
Standing in awe at the sight of a legend, I murmured in shock. Citry, for some reason, responded in a completely flat monotone.
At that moment, Krahi happened to glance our way.
Through the holes cut in his mask, I could see that his irises were different colors. The gold-and-silver heterochromia gave off an eerie glow.
At some point, Citry had taken off her mask. Krahi glanced at me and Citry, then walked over toward us.
And then, to me, who was tensing up in nervousness, Krahi spoke in a clear, carrying voice: "That's a nice mask, young man."
"Ah—thank you."
The more I looked, the more he resembled the genuine article. That there could be someone who looked so much like me despite being so different in so many ways—this world really is vast.
Come to think of it, apparently there are three people in the world who look just like you. Though honestly, it's more likely that I'm the one who looks like him. We don't even look that similar.
The reason I could stay so calm in front of someone who could kill Hanneman in one blow was probably because Krahi had such an easygoing demeanor.
Krahi said with an apologetic look: "Ha... sorry about that. I couldn't help overhearing your conversation. So... could it be that you two are... my fans?"
"!! Yes! Could I get your autograph as a memento?"
"Hmm............"
"Of course!"
We weren't really fans, but when there's a strong person out there who looks like me, I had no choice but to become one. Once we got back to the capital, I'd brag about this to everyone. Citry let out a small, exasperated sound beside me.
Krahi nodded magnanimously. If it were me, I'd be making some awkward smile, but the real deal truly operated on another level.
He pulled a pen and a signing board from inside his cloak and signed with a smooth, effortless flourish. I was completely impressed by his polished mannerisms. He was so good at it that I couldn't even aspire to imitate him.
"There you go. It's my first time visiting this town, so you're the first fan I've had here."
"Thank you! Actually, my name is Kurai."
Citry's eyes went wide. Kurai and Krahi—what a strange coincidence.
Krahi Andrich drew a sharp breath at my words: "What—what an incredible coincidence!"
He looked absolutely thrilled.
What kind of reaction would Krahi have if he learned that even our last names were similar? As I thought that, I kept hyping up the hero who resembled me.
"So, I've been curious about you, Krahi—"
"Wonderful! A toast to this strange fate! I'd love to introduce you to the members of the Lamenting Evil Spirits while we're at it, but—unfortunately, they've already headed ahead to the venue for the Martial Emperor Festival."
"What a shame. By the way, what kind of Party are they?"
"Ah. It's true that my companions aren't all that well-known—but there's no need to keep it a secret, right?"
Krahi placed his hand on his chin in a hard-boiled pose and declared with absolute confidence: "First up is—a swordsman of extraordinary intellect who coolly corners his enemies, the Foresight, Cool Saikou..."
I couldn't help but widen my eyes. That was... not necessarily a straight upgrade over Luke, but it was cool as hell.
Citry was trembling. It had been a while since I'd seen her like this.
Actually, Citry loved comedy. She always seemed so calm, but she had the weirdest pressure points.
"Second is—a Thief with lightning-quick thinking and a slightly cunning streak who has saved the Party countless times, the Breathtaking View, Elizabeth Smyat! Her nickname is Zuri!"
That was kind of cute... ah, so that's why she's called Zuri.
Apparently, my lookalike's companions were also lookalikes. What an incredible coincidence. Well, I guess stranger things happen—like crashing into a Treasure Hall while flying on an airship... Come to think of it, what was so "breathtaking" about her?
I glanced at Smyat, who was hunched over and trembling beside me, and asked Krahi: "By the way, do you have an Alchemist too?"
"You've got a sharp eye! Of course we do! The Lowest Mountain Range, Kutory Smyat!"
My eyes went wide. I had no idea what any of that meant, but since Krahi was so confident, she must be a wonderful person just like Citry. Kutory and Citry.
............Nine and four, huh.
I poked the trembling Citry's shoulder.
"That's amazing, Citry. Just from the name alone, she's got more than double what you have."
"............The Lowest Mountain Range... I need to... try harder..."
Little Citry let out a squeezed-out voice and punched me.
§ The commotion soon subsided. It turned out the thieves had been after a Treasure Weapon that was being kept under strict guard at the town's museum.
They had unleashed fire and caused total chaos, but with Luke and the others joining the fight (and of course Krahi's performance as well), there were said to be no casualties. The Treasure Weapon was also safely protected.
If it was a Treasure Weapon important enough for thieves to target, I wanted to go see it later, but I probably wouldn't have time.
I waved goodbye to Krahi, and when Riizu and the others caught up with us afterward, they heard about the interesting experience we'd had and raised a clamor.
"Whaaat!? That guy wasn't even one of our fans!?"
"Tch. He was so boring I actually considered cutting him down, but Riizu said he might be from one of our subordinate organizations, so I held off..."
"............Indeed."
Luke clicked his tongue in disappointment, and the bigger Smyat let out a growling sound of agreement. We don't have subordinate organizations...
Lucia sighed exasperatedly and looked at Citry, whose face was still bright red: "By the way, why is Citry's face so red? Leader, you didn't do something, did you?"
"She seems to have hit some kind of pressure point..."
"Because... the Lowest Mountain Range... it's complete gibberish, isn't it? That's just an outright insult! What on earth do you have to do to earn an epithet like that?!"
"Yeah, yeah, you're right..."
But it was kind of funny, so oh well! I also felt oddly satisfied at having witnessed Citry's rare punch.
I was looking forward to Krahi's match.
§ § § A black cloak. A man of medium build and height, wearing a fox mask, facing off against a Hunter of concern.
The moment Gaf Shenfelder—the Nine-Tailed Shadow Fox, Nanami, the Thief King—saw that figure, he thought his heart would stop.
Everything had been going according to plan. The diversionary unit and the unit tasked with seizing the Treasure Weapon. They had even planted people inside beforehand—there wasn't a one-in-ten-thousand chance of failure. And indeed, the theft of the Treasure Weapon had been completed. No one had noticed that it had been swapped with a fake.
Then why was the Fox Mask over there?
Among the organization, only certain members knew, but the Fox Mask was the mark of a supreme executive—a being who stood at the pinnacle of the massive organization. Gaf had seen one once with his own eyes.
Impossible... For them, who were supposed to lurk in the shadows, to appear openly in broad daylight—it was unthinkable.
But that mask was undoubtedly genuine. A real Fox Mask had a presence that was unmistakable at first glance.
A chill he hadn't even felt during the operation raced down his spine.
He had absolutely no idea what it could be about. The only thing he could think of was that brute Hanneman being taken out, but that possibility had been factored in beforehand.
No, wait...
The Boss had been talking with that high-level Hunter whom even the organization regarded as dangerous—Thousand Transformations.
Thousand Transformations. A dangerous man of unknown methods. There was also intelligence that Still Water and Dragon Caller had both lost to him.
Could it be that he had come personally to test their strength?
It was hard to believe that a supreme executive bearing the Fox Mask would appear on the front lines, but the Nine-Tailed Shadow Fox's executives were generally combat-oriented. There were even rumors that they possessed strength on par with a Level 10 Hunter. It was an audacious move, but not inconceivable.
To Gaf's eyes, the Fox Mask's stance was riddled with openings, but conversely, that could be taken as a sign of supreme confidence.
He quietly observed for a while, but reached no conclusion. The supreme executive was conversing with Thousand Heavens, Ten Thousand Flowers in an unhurried manner. Thousand Transformations, for his part, didn't seem to have noticed the true identity of the man before him.
"............I need to confirm..."