Inside the Jewel.
The meeting room where the round table usually stood, and where the successive heads gathered.
In its place, the round table had been replaced by a circular ring.
Along the walls, the weapons of the First Generation and Second Generation floated in place.
The successive heads had each retreated into their own memory rooms. It seemed they had decided to postpone explaining the situation for now.
"Ha, we could've just gotten this done on the side. But I can't exactly go charging ahead on my own, can I? Still… what a sight!"
I turned around to take in the surroundings, and spotted Novem and the other women making their way onto the ring.
Novem had her hand raised.
"L-Lord Lael? Um, what exactly are you planning to do here… I mean, I think I understand what you want to say, but what even is this place?"
She probably had a mountain of questions, but all those minor details could be explained later at our leisure.
"Don't worry about the details. We'll just hash it out with our fists. Simple, right?"
Novem wore a conflicted expression as she looked around the room.
It was Monica who was warming up.
"I don't know what reason brought me to a place like this in my consciousness… but if I'm told to do it, then I, Monica, will participate—even if I have to drag my feet about it!"
She seemed quite eager, despite claiming otherwise. I flashed a smile at my adorable Monica, who always gave my orders her all no matter how reluctant she felt.
"That's the spirit! If we each have something to say and our fair share of grievances… and if there are things we simply can't put into words… then fighting it out is the answer!"
Clara, her face bright red, was clutching the staff she normally carried and came up to ask me.
"Well, the thing is… when Novem and the others clash for real, it could get really ugly."
I gave Clara a smile, then raised my right hand to shoulder height and summoned my weapon.
Novem looked at that.
"That's Sir Raier's... I heard it was destroyed?"
"This space is convenient. That's why this is fine."
I sliced deep into my left arm, and blood flowed out. The pain was less than usual.
Seeing that, Aria—
"What are you doing?! And besides, you just—"
Aria, who had only been putting up a show of resistance, protested—perhaps still unable to forgive me for the kiss earlier. She'd been in a state of confusion until just now, but seemed to have pulled herself together.
"No problem. It'll heal right away. See?"
As the wound vanished and the blood disappeared, May gazed at the door leading to the Fifth Generation's memory room.
"Huh, so this is a space that can do that. Must be convenient, I guess. But why drag us into a place like this and tell us to fight each other?"
May still didn't seem convinced.
Eva, for some reason, had a dazed expression on her face and was swaying about.
"The pent-up
frustration
should be released somewhere. Besides, I can't very well punish Novem and Miranda when they're acting on my behalf. If you both have grievances, just settle it with your fists in this space. You can ignore the rules and go at it until you feel better."
Miranda turned toward me with one hand on her hip while keeping a watchful eye on Novem.
"Then Novem and I keep going as before? Just so you know, I don't trust Novem. My distrust has only grown since before, you know."
At those words, I smiled.
"So what? As long as I trust you two, there's no problem. Relax—I trust both Miranda and Novem. So Miranda, all you have to do is trust me. I'll make sure you're happy."
When I said I'd make her happy, Miranda let out a sigh as though thrown off balance. But when I noticed that her cheeks had turned slightly red...
(Man, I'm something else... No matter what I say, the other person falls for me all over again. I'm starting to scare myself.)
Novem asked me, looking a little sad.
"...There should have been a message from Octo. My name came up too, didn't it? Lord Rael, you still believe in me even then? You've never even met Octo, and you trust me on a single word?"
It was probably true that I'd met Novem's brother, but to me it was just a chance encounter between siblings. Besides, there was no way Ceres would go through such a roundabout scheme.
(I mean, she's the type who gets bored easily. She doesn't have the patience to play it cool like me. I don't even need to think that hard about it — if Novem wants to hide something, then that's fine by me.)
However, there was something I had to tell Novem.
"Octo has nothing to do with this. I'm telling you I trust you. And unfortunately, I have no intention of meeting Octo."
"...Eh? Ah, um..."
Seeing Novem flustered, I brushed my hair back and looked up at the ceiling.
"A Dungeon with over a hundred underground floors... The only kind that exists is one managed by a city or similar authority. In other words, the moment we break through to the innermost chamber, we become wanted criminals. And to top it off, my objective is to defeat Banseim, who's brandishing Ceres's name. I don't have time, so I have no intention of meeting him. It's a shame — I would have liked to meet him at least once."
I shook my head with a weary look, and Novem had her hand pressed to her cheek, looking slightly downward. It seemed she'd assumed I intended to meet Octo.
It probably wasn't impossible, but it would take time.
It would take over ten years of preparation. So, I wouldn't be meeting Octo.
Looking around, I spotted Shannon standing around in a daze. At the very last moment, she'd asked for a kiss, so I'd kissed her, but now she was looking all around in confusion.
Miranda, her face slightly flushed, looked at Shannon.
"What are you looking around so frantically for? If you're not hurt, why don't you join in too?"
Looking at Miranda's face, Shannon spoke.
"...It's the first time I've seen Big Sister's face. Well, I had a rough idea of what she'd look like before, but..."
Miranda, surprised, grabbed Shannon by both shoulders and peered at her face from close up.
"Shannon, you can see?!"
"V-vision, or rather, visual information is coming in like it didn't before... Also, there's someone beyond the door? Who on earth—"
I walked over to Shannon and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"That's great, Shannon. You can see. And... don't you think it's fine not to know everything in this world? Otherwise, next time it won't be a 'French kiss', but a deep kiss."
As Shannon's face flushed red, I grinned and started back toward the center of the ring. Miranda called out to my back.
"Lyle is hiding something too, isn't he?"
I only turned my head.
"Everyone has secrets. Someday, when the time is right, I'll tell you about it over a pillow. When you've steeled yourself, come talk to me."
Miranda looked at me, took a step back, and fell silent, covering her face.
Laughing as I returned to the center of the ring, I spread both arms wide and declared:
"Now then, let's set a time limit before we begin. Let's go until lunchtime. Go at each other to your heart's content. However, I'll be stepping outside the Jewel to watch over everyone's physical bodies, so this is where we part ways. It'd be harder to fight with me here anyway. So..."
Aria reached out toward me.
"Wait!"
Waving a hand, I shifted my consciousness from the Jewel back to my own body.
――Inside the Jewel. The Memory Room.
Slei, the Third Generation, watched as Lyle slipped out of the Jewel ahead of him.
'...Lyle-san fled with a smile on his face.'
The door was locked and wouldn't open, but he could still see the state of the conference room from the Memory Room.
Right now, it was more like an arena than a conference room.
Marks, the Fourth Generation, had also come to the Third Generation Slei's Memory Room.
'If he knows what he's doing, he deserves credit, but... eh? Are we really going to watch Novem and the others fight all the way to the end?'
The bewildered Fourth Generation stared at the arena, which now felt suffused with a taut tension now that Laiel was gone.
A gnawing unease settled in his stomach as the women faced off in silence on the circular ring, each warily probing the others.
The first to move was Monica, who had been warming up.
The Third Generation spoke up.
"That Automaton just made a move on little Novem!"
On the screen, Monica was shown pulling a massive hammer from beneath her skirt, hefting it overhead, and bringing it crashing down on Novem with a look of pure delight.
"I strike first and I win! With the Chicken's permission, there's no way I'll face sanctions for dealing with you, you little vixen!!"
Novem turned to face Monica, thrust her right hand forward, and summoned her staff — the very same treasured heirloom of House Foxes.
"Monica… I wanted to see what you look like when you're fighting seriously, at least once."
With that, Novem smiled and transformed her staff into a great scythe, then cast a spell.
"Freeze, and shield."
With just those words she unleashed her magic, and a wall of ice and rock erupted from the ground in front of Monica.
Seeing this, Monica declared:
"Quite impressive! But how naive! Against this Monica Full Option Version, that level of trickery is nothing but a sponge!"
Flames erupted from the head of her massive hammer, and with renewed force she shattered the wall of ice and rock. Monica drove the hammer down toward the floor — but Novem was no longer there.
The hammer hovered in midair, stopped before it could touch the ground.
"What?! That beast got in my way!"
Looking closer, it was May who had caught the hammer with a single hand.
"I can't let you go after Novem. Look, I do enjoy your cooking, but Novem comes first in my book."
At those words, Monica…
"Correct yourself! As if I, Monica, would lose to that vixen... Whoa—"
Eva loosed an arrow at Monica, who was locked in a struggle with May. The arrow struck the arena wall, burst into light, and vanished.
"I missed! Even though I shot from a blind spot!"
Seeing Eva looking frustrated, Monica gripped the hammer with both hands and shifted to the edge of the ring.
As she swept her gaze around to keep tabs on all three of them, Novem stepped forward.
"I hear damage to your real-world body won't carry over in here. That means I can push myself a little."
Novem smiled as she readied her staff—but threads snared her right arm before she could swing.
Novem's right arm had been seized. She turned her gaze toward the end of the threads, and there stood Miranda.
"Three against one is just cowardly, you know. Besides, if there's no need to hold back—"
Seeing that scene, the Third Generation and the Fourth Generation sat with their mouths hanging open, struck dumb.
The spectacle in the arena was nothing so tame as a mere catfight——.
I brought my consciousness back to my body and, for the first time in a while, brewed myself some tea.
I'd carried all eight of them into Porter's cargo bed and laid them down side by side.
My previous earnings had been good enough that even doing nothing for the rest of this run would still turn a profit, so I was taking it easy.
"The annoying thing about officially commissioned parties is you can't just drop out midway. Well, nothing's likely to happen for a while anyway, so I'll just relax."
I brought a table and chairs to the back of Porter, sipped my tea, and enjoyed a leisurely time.
But from inside the Jewel, I could hear the screams of the successive heads.
The Third Generation, unlike his usual carefree demeanor—
'My arm! Wait, even for you that's—GYAAAAH!'
The Fourth Generation was muttering under his breath.
"Blood... arm flew off... pounding them while mounted... that's something girls shouldn't do..."
The Fifth Generation said, worked up.
"What did that piece of junk do to May?! I'm gonna go over there and wreck 'em right now!"
The Sixth Generation, as if remembering something.
"Stop it already. Such a merciless attack... damn it!! Mireia was always so kind, so why is Miranda like this?!"
The Seventh Generation let out a dry laugh.
"Ha ha, ah ha ha ha... Fifth Generation, don't get so worked up. What, once in a while you need a serious battle like this. Probably... definitely..."
The Successive Heads were being noisy.
The cargo door was open, and from within came voices that sounded like the women murmuring in their sleep.
Aria's voice.
"Just once, I want to beat that face to a pulp..."
Clara.
"...There are plenty of ways to fight even as support..."
Eva.
"At close range, I have my dagger... this way, the vitals..."
May.
"...I'll turn everything... to cinders..."
Monika.
"...Saying even a full-load assault wasn't enough to finish it... now it's time for my trump card..."
Miranda.
"Now, the legs..."
Novem.
"...at this level... from here, a little more seriously..."
Listening to her sleep-talking, I smiled and sipped my tea while reaching for the tea sweets I had brought.
Looking up at the sky, the weather was fine.
"What lovely weather."
Then, from inside the Jewel, I heard the accusatory voices of the successive heads. Starting from the Third Generation.
*"What do you mean lovely weather?! It's raining blood over here!"*
*"Why did you run away! Come back, Laiel! No, come back, Laiel-san!"*
*"Stop that walking disaster! And the inside of the Jewel has become a complete mess... AAAAAH!!"*
*"Laiel, don't tell me you knew about this and fled on purpose?"*
*"Answer us, Laiel! No, Laiel-san!"*
Listening to the incessant voices of the successive heads, I drained the tea from my cup and smiled. There were still several dozen minutes until the deadline.
They seemed to be truly going at it, which gave me a small sense of relief.
"They really ought to have a good, heated argument once in a while. Well, if I were there, both Novem and Miranda would hold back."
Who would ever want to watch the women they love fighting each other like a blood feud?
I only did it because it was necessary.
"Well, their mood should lighten up a bit. Besides, this time I also discovered the effect of Shannon's eyes being visible, so no complaints there. And the biggest treasure of all this round is that I completed the kiss collection with everyone."
As I said that with a smile, the Third Generation's voice came from inside the Jewel. His tone was as though he had just witnessed something terrifying.
*"He knew everything... just how terrifying are you, Laiel-san... if you'd shown even half this much courage back when you were Laiel... no, that won't do. It's the contrast with your usual self that makes it interesting. But this time... GYAARGH, now my neck! My neck!!"*
I was spending the elegant time before lunch while listening to the Jewel's voice.
Shannon's voice could be heard coming from the cargo bed.
"...Remember this, Laiel... getting dragged into all of this and suffering through it... I will have my revenge..."
It was a resentful muttering.
I responded to it with amusement. I knew she couldn't hear me, but I couldn't help saying it out loud.
"Yeah, I'll remember it for as long as I live. Including the part where you covered your face, stood on your tiptoes with your eyes shut tight, and kissed me."
I found it genuinely puzzling that I hadn't thought of such a simple solution until now.
"Seriously, what was I even agonizing over? It was just a kiss. I'm starting to feel like a real idiot."
Growing tired of my old, introverted self, I resolved that starting today, the new me would take the lead and pull everyone forward.