With Baim's arrival imminent, we were taking our final rest.
We were resting at a spot slightly removed from the main road so that travelers, merchants, and adventurers wouldn't spot the carriage we were guarding.
I didn't think many people would recognize us at a glance, but you could never be sure, so we had moved a little ways off to rest.
(That's not the only reason, though.)
While keeping watch over the surroundings, I glanced toward the carriage under our protection. Its exterior had been badly damaged in the attack, but it should be usable once repaired.
Nearby, the horses belonging to the Holy Knights who had attacked us were resting, loaded down with the equipment taken from the assailants.
From inside the Jewel, the Fourth Generation spoke.
*'We'll have to board the horses somewhere, which will rack up expenses. Besides, if we sell off the equipment carelessly, information could leak from that end. We should store everything for the time being.'*
I agreed. It would be best if this all turned out to be overthinking things, but we couldn't afford to let our guard down — especially if the other party was persistent enough to have followed us all the way to Baim.
The Sixth Generation's voice came next.
*'That said, if someone really wanted to dig into us, there are countless ways to do it. Don't go thinking it's impossible for us to be found out. Now then, before we enter Baim — '*
"Craaah!!"
Before the Sixth Generation could finish, a scream rang out.
It was a woman's voice. Eva and I — who had been standing watch — immediately broke into a run. There, we found the man we had previously rescued, the one who had been injured and unconscious.
He was mumbling to himself, clutching a knife in his hand.
"...Aura... Aura..."
A shrine maiden who had apparently been tending to his wounds was cowering nearby, having fallen on her rear in fright. And behind her stood Aura herself, frozen in place.
"W-Why... you're here?"
Her expression was one of disbelief, and she didn't seem to grasp the situation at all.
(They must be exhausted from all the unfamiliar traveling—oh right, I need to focus on what's happening right now.)
We weren't the only ones who had rushed over.
Selma and Gastone had come too, trying to get Aura to flee.
"What are you doing?! Run, quickly!"
Selma grabbed Aura's arm and shook her, and Aura was starting to recover from her confusion. But then—
"Auuraaaaa!!"
A man lunged at Aura, and the shrine maiden stepped forward. The man flung her aside with brute force, and then Gastone moved in front of Selma.
"Guh!"
It looked as though a knife had been driven into his abdomen.
I sprang forward, seized the man's arm, and knocked the blood-stained knife from his grasp before pinning him to the ground.
The man seemed to be under someone's control.
"Auuraaaaa!! Auuraaaaa!!"
He kept screaming things like that. A Skill that interferes with the mind to manipulate its target. Was it the same Skill the Third Generation possessed, or something similar… Either way, he was being controlled through that Skill.
"Stay still!"
As I restrained the thrashing man, Eva rushed over to Gastone. Clara hurried over too, lending a hand to the shrine maiden who had been knocked down.
Aria and May were scanning the surroundings, on guard.
Selma ran over to Gastone and clasped his hand.
"Gastone!"
"S-Selma… thank goodness you're safe."
He was out of breath, and when Selma answered, "Everyone is safe except for you," his expression lit up with relief.
Aria slowly approached Gastone.
Gastone looked as though he was forcing a smile.
"Why… why did you shield me? I'm not even a candidate for the Holy Maiden anymore."
And then Gastone said:
"I'm sorry for getting you involved. But I'm just glad you're safe…"
When Selma pressed her hand against Gastone's chest, blood came gushing out in a steady pulse.
Gastone's clothes turned red.
Selma laid Gastone on his side and folded his hands together. Everyone gathered around, tears streaming down their faces, and Aria collapsed to her knees right where she stood.
I bound and knocked out the rampaging man, then stood and spoke.
"…We'll take a longer break. We'll help bury the body as well."
Selma said:
"Thank you."
And then Aria, still sitting on the ground, cried out:
"What the hell… this was your fault! You were the ones who didn't protect him! That's why High Priest Gastone lost his life! If you take on a job, you guard with your lives! What the hell… what the hell…"
Watching Aria break down in tears made my heart ache.
—Selma had been inside the carriage with Aria.
Selma sat on the right side, facing the direction of travel. Aria was seated on the left.
Layl and the others were preparing the burial for Gastone, and Selma had climbed into the carriage to calm Aria down.
"Aria, don't blame yourself."
When Selma said that, Aria was shedding tears drop by drop.
"But... but..."
From Aura's perspective, Gastone was certainly a High Priest who had tried to use her. But it was also true that Gastone had genuinely cared about Aura.
As for Selma, she had originally been nothing more than the daughter of a merchant family.
Aura had been born into a poor knight's household, lost her family, and been entrusted to the temple.
From the perspective of these two, the Holy Maiden was nothing more than a puppet manipulated by the High Priests. And yet, Gastone had served her wholeheartedly.
No—he may have done so only to protect Zayin, but neither Selma nor Aura could bring themselves to hate Gastone.
"He died protecting you, and I believe that was exactly what Gastone wanted. He was smiling, you know."
Aura replied.
"If those people had done their jobs properly! Then Gastone would have—!"
The day she became a Holy Maiden candidate.
Gastone had told Aura to call him by his name. To make it clear that from now on, they were lord and retainer.
That was how seriously Gastone had intended to serve Aura.
"Aura, it's not that Lord Layel and the others held back. Lord Layel... he sensed that this might happen. He even proposed keeping their distance as much as possible. But I insisted on—"
That's right—Layel had offered to take in the wounded themselves. Looking back now, he must have judged from that point on that there was a real possibility of this outcome.
"Then he should have said so clearly! If those people had—"
"Aura!"
When Selma raised her voice, Aura flinched and fell silent.
"...I'm sorry. But I knew this would happen."
"What?"
Selma lowered her gaze and spoke in a flat tone. Inside the carriage, the portion of her robe stained red, Selma clasped her hands together on her lap.
"That your life would be targeted eventually. That's why I fled. I thought the odds were low. But they went after you first. If things had gone as expected, only we would have been affected."
Aura stared at Selma with a startled expression.
"...If you let me go, what about you and the others, Selma?"
Selma kept her head lowered.
"We wouldn't be able to do much on our own. Even if we ran, they'd come to kill us. But I never imagined they'd make you their top priority."
Selma meant every word she said.
The one whose life was being targeted above all else was Aura.
The Sacred Knight Order — no, the one Zayin feared — was Aura.
Aura.
"Then it's because of me that Gastone..."
Selma.
"This was inevitable. Whether it came sooner or later — that's all there was to it."
Aura buried her face in both hands, clutching her hair. She looked ready to tear it out, so Selma took Aura's hand and looked into her face with a grave expression.
"Aura, once you reach Baim, you'll live quietly there, won't you?"
"Selma?"
"I intend to fight on with those who remain. Fortunately, there is a lineage behind Lord Rael. I don't know how far I can go, but I'll make sure Zayin's eyes turn toward me."
Selma's words were heavy with resolve. And those were no lie either.
Aura shook her head from side to side.
"Let's run! You'll die too, Selma. If that happens, I'll lose my benefactor all over again..."
Aura's eyes, already brimming with tears, fell upon the crimson-stained robe in her field of vision.
It seemed she had pictured the moment of Selma's death, for her face was pale.
(No matter how much you complained, you answered our expectations and became a Saint Candidate. You truly are a kind girl.)
They had urgently arranged for her to compete against the current Saint, Remis, as a rival. Given more time, perhaps she could have won.
However, Selma knew that Aura had become a Saint Candidate out of a sense of obligation to them.
"Aura, from now on, you must decide your own life."
"M-m me?"
"Yes. You are the one who must decide. If you wish to live quietly in Baim, then once you enter Baim, you and I will be strangers. I will ask Lord Rael to make arrangements for you to live there. But you must never have anything to do with us again. That is what is best for you."
"No. I won't accept that!"
Aura lunged at Selma, grabbing her with both hands. Selma pulled Aura into a hug.
"You may run away. If you choose to fight, the path awaiting you will be harsh... Both Gastone and I wish for your happiness."
Aura raised her head to look at Selma. Her eyes were red, and her mouth was closed. It seemed she was holding back tears.
"I... I don't want to leave. I don't want to lose my family anymore. Mother..."
Selma gently stroked Aura's head.
"I told you not to call me mother... You've always been such a spoiled child since you were little."
Selma gave a wry smile. Given the age gap between her and Aura, it was certainly possible for them to be mother and daughter.
In fact, she was only slightly older than Rael's mother.
She gently detached the clinging Aura from herself, then spoke with a smile.
"We will arrive in Baim by today. Aura, make your choice. It is your life."
Aura bowed her head for a moment, then wiped her tears and looked up.
"I will fight too. As a Saint Candidate, as someone involved, I will fight. So, please don't leave me behind."
Selma wore a serious expression.
"So that's what you've decided? You won't regret it? There are happinesses you can only grasp by living quietly, you know."
Aura's expression was resolute.
She had already made her decision, hadn't she?
Selma nodded and moved to step out of the carriage, speaking to Aura.
"...The work should be finished by now. Aura, come down and wash your face. We can't let Gastone see you looking like this. Besides, you need to let everyone know about your resolve."
Aura nodded and opened the carriage door, stepping outside.
Watching from behind, Selma smiled at Aura's retreating back. With the smile of a true mother.
However.
"...Huh?"
Once outside, Aura's cheeks tightened and she froze on the spot—
The carriage had two doors.
In front of the left door, we applauded as Aura emerged.
Me, Aria, then Clara and Eva, May too — all of us together.
The shrine maidens who had followed along, and the other people involved, joined in as well.
Even the man who had been causing a commotion moments ago was clapping with a smile on his face.
Gastone looked delighted too.
"So you've finally made your decision, Lady Aura."
Seeing her in tears, some among those involved were shedding tears themselves.
But the person in question — Lady Aura — stood frozen before us, as though she had seen something unbelievable.
As Selma descended from behind, Lady Aura lunged at her.
"You tricked me!"
"How rude. I did no such thing! In truth, the fact that he was injured and lost consciousness was real, and the fact that he was subjected to mental interference was also real. It was Lord Laiel who negated that interference. Besides, you were the one truly being targeted, Aura. The possibility of me or Gastone dying is still very real. I was uneasy about continuing to drag you around without the resolve you needed. And if I hadn't done something like this, you would have found some excuse and never spoken what was truly in your heart. How many years do you think we've known each other?"
Selma had turned her gaze toward the man who had been thrashing about. He was scratching his head sheepishly.
I, meanwhile, was ignoring the voice coming from the Jewel. It was the Third Generation.
"My Skills are amazing, aren't they? After all, if I can interfere with someone's mind, then negating interference is possible too."
Using the Third Generation's Skills, we restored the injured man who had been turned into a human trap back to normal.
He had been asked to put on an act, and the blood-like substance had been borrowed from Monica's hobby box, which was stowed on Porter.
(Telling the injured man what was really going on, making him grieve the death of his comrade, and then having him join the act... That must have been rough on him too.)
After consulting with the Third Generation, we chose this course of action...
The Fifth Generation laughed.
"Your nasty personality is bleeding right into your Skills. It worked out this time, though."
The Third and Fifth Generations were grinning at each other in a vaguely threatening way.
The Seventh Generation addressed me.
"Well then, Laiel... time to explain everything."
At those words, I stepped forward and spoke to Lady Aura.
"I staged this whole thing to make you take it seriously, Lady Aura. For the record, if you'd refused, I was planning to step out the right-side door and stand in silent prayer before a fake grave—one we'd set up without Gastone ever showing himself—and while I did that, Gastone would slip ahead into Baim on his own. But you showed us your resolve! We'll support you with everything we've got from here on out!"
As I said this with a grin, Lady Aura approached me with a smile of her own.
The reason I had deliberately said things to provoke her was so she would direct her frustration at me.
If that anger had ended up aimed at Selma or Gastone instead, it would have been a problem.
From here on out, the cooperation of Lady Aura, Lady Selma, and Gastone is absolutely essential.
"So you're saying I was dancing in the palm of your hand all along? I thought you were unreliable, but you're starting to look a bit dependable, Adventurer."
Lady Aura and I shared a laugh with smiles on our faces, but then she raised a clenched fist and drove it straight into my midsection.
I had dismissed it as just a girl's fist, but it seemed I had misjudged. Her body moved smoothly, and the unhesitating punch sank deep into my abdomen.
"Gah!"
The impact hit my insides, and I exhaled sharply as I dropped to one knee.
(I thought she'd slap me once she found out I was the mastermind, but she went straight for a gut punch with a closed fist...)
Having received a magnificent strike complete with a twist of the hips, I forced a smile onto my face.
"Th-that was a magnificent body blow."
At that, Lady Aura looked down at me with her smile still intact and pointed her thumb downward.
"Fine. I'll join your little plan. You deceived me spectacularly, after all. And if you're capable of this much, I suppose there's some reason to have hope."
From within the Jewel, the Fourth Generation's voice came.
"That angle, that fist... it reminds me of my wife."
Then the Sixth Generation.
"Seems like you've finally got your resolve in place. Well then, that means all the cards you wanted are finally in hand. Laiel, this is getting fun."
(...I'm in more pain than anything right now.)
As I gave Lady Aura the best forced smile I could manage, Aria murmured quietly beside me.
"Laiel, you're trying too hard..."
It seemed she was sympathizing with me.
As for Eva—
"I think I'll cut this scene. I want to make it a really emotional moment."
I had been taking notes to turn it into a song. Clara, who overheard, spoke up.
"You should keep thorough records. Judgments like that are what confuse future scholars."
"I don't care about that. I want people to listen to the song. We don't need unnecessary truths. The audience won't enjoy it if we include everything."
"That's your judgment alone. You shouldn't decide things unilaterally. It's precisely because elves do things like that that so many scholars end up fighting over research into folk songs and the like."
It seemed Clara couldn't forgive Eva for wanting to cut this scene. Well, that was certainly like Clara. The two of them had been swapping notes while clashing over their opinions.
May looked at us.
"Humans are so troublesome, aren't they?"
That's what she said. But I also—
(I think so too)