Inside the Jewel.
When I sent my consciousness into the Jewel during a break from work, a door had appeared behind the chair I was sitting in.
The doors behind the chairs of the Successive Heads were what we called the Room of Memories — a space where the memories of each successive head were preserved. But...
"Um, why do all of you look so exhausted?"
When I tilted my head and asked that, the Third Generation, seated at the round table, explained.
"Actually, this door showed up a little while ago. I took a peek inside, and..."
Had he just freely snooped through someone's memories? I wanted to retort with that, but the Third Generation's expression was dead serious, so I held my tongue for the time being.
Then, running a hand through his hair, the Third Generation continued.
"...Even with all four of us looking, each of us saw something completely different. What's more, what I saw couldn't possibly have been from Lyle's memories. I went in a few times, but I'm not even sure they're memories at all. In my case, I saw a vision of my older brother — Dewey — alive. No, I should say he was there."
The Third Generation looked exhausted, which was unusual given his usual demeanor. I shifted my gaze to the Fourth Generation, who was wiping his lenses with a cloth after removing his glasses.
"In my case, my wife was standing there with her arms raised in a menacing pose. I was too scared to go in."
Hearing that, the Fifth Generation shook his head.
"What's there to be scared of? You're the only one who hasn't gone in, you know. Anyway, when I opened the door, it was a child's room. Every time it's a different children's room, but my kids are in there, glaring at me."
I heard the Fifth Generation's account, but I had no such memories.
After all, the Fifth Generation and I had lived in entirely different eras.
The Seventh Generation spoke.
"...Mine was even worse. I saw memories — no, scenes that even I didn't know. But Lyle wasn't there."
He was saying that a scene of remembered events had appeared, even though I wasn't in it. Everyone wore expressions full of doubt as they stared at the door to my Room of Memories.
I stood before my own door, and slowly opened it.
From behind me came the voice of the Fourth Generation.
"You'd better prepare yourself. You're not likely to see anything pleasant."
Heedful of his warning, I slowly opened the door. There, I saw the back of Ceres. As I stared in surprise, she slowly turned around and flashed me a radiant smile.
She clasped her hands adorably in front of her chest, tilting her head as her shimmering golden hair swayed in the breeze——
"Go die, you worthless scum."
——she said that to me.
In the next instant, I slammed the door shut with all my might, then fell backward, landing hard on my rear. My breath came in ragged gasps, and a cold sweat broke out over my skin.
The Fifth Generation crouched near where I'd fallen and spoke to me.
"What did you see?"
I forced myself to catch my breath.
"Ce-Ceres was there. She looked at me, smiled, and told me to die... But I have no memory of that. No, perhaps I've simply forgotten it."
Grasping the hand extended by the Seventh Generation, I pulled myself back to my feet. Standing before the door to my own Room of Memories, I couldn't help but wonder why I'd seen Ceres of all people.
The Third Generation spoke.
"...The other rooms only replay memories, right? They can do a few things on their own, but it's difficult without our intervention. But, when I came in here and investigated a bit..."
He sat down at the round table, gazing up at the ceiling.
"It's like... she's alive. If you say something, she'll respond. It was just like talking to the real Dewey, brother."
Why did it work like that?
We couldn't understand. It was after the blue stone had become the Jewel and the memories of the Successive Heads had been restored.
But even those Successive Heads didn't understand everything about the Jewel.
The Fourth Generation adjusted his glasses.
"I've been curious about this for a while now, though. Is the Jewel really a tool that memorizes Skills and passes everything on? There's also the matter of Ceres. And Ceres treated the blue Jewel as a failure."
The Seventh Generation touched his chin and looked down.
"If it doesn't just copy memories but also personalities... then Skills might not be the main point. I've considered the possibility that it's the personality itself, on more than one occasion."
The Fifth Generation settled into his chair and clasped his hands behind his head.
"Why would anyone do such a thing? Were they planning to try for eternal life or something? Constantly copying memories and personalities, then seizing control of whoever holds the Jewel... I suppose that could be called a form of immortality, but I don't see how that would have any meaning."
It was terrifying to think that such a dangerous tool had been sold off hundreds of years ago. The First Generation had purchased an unpopular stone, and from there, House Walt had passed the blue Jewel down through the generations.
Unlike the yellow Jewel Ceres had possessed, this one appeared to be a failure.
I—
"Is the current Ceres being possessed by a legendary beauty from three hundred years ago? Novem seemed to be saying something different, though."
She didn't seem possessed yet. Right. Not yet.
The Third Generation stepped down from the round table and turned to face me.
"In any case, with this many personalities already present, there's no room for anyone to be taken over. Besides, I can't imagine it would be interesting even if someone tried. In truth, we're nothing more than recorded presences — not the original people. Eternal life is nothing but an illusion."
I nodded, and the Third Generation clapped his hands once.
"Well then. The mysteries surrounding the Jewel have only multiplied, but that's not what matters right now. The real question is how Lyle plans to defeat Ceres. We'll address that in due course, but next up is the Serba invasion."
I crossed my arms and made a complicated expression. Everything on our end was prepared — we could deploy at any time. The same was true for Rolfis.
"That's actually what I wanted to talk about. We can leave right away. However..."
The Fourth Generation prompted me to continue.
"However?"
"Is it really true that we don't need to do anything?"
The next day.
From early morning, the Holy Knights had been lining up in formation, and as the soldiers took their positions, Lady Aura emerged onto the plaza before the temple.
It was to hold a departure ceremony before the invasion of Serba.
She was wearing a white dress that showed off the lines of her body, and I found myself wondering whether she actually liked it as I watched her.
Lady Selma and Gastone were both standing at attention a short distance behind Lady Aura.
"Brave soldiers of Zayin! The time has come to bring the iron hammer of justice down upon the wicked deeds of Serba!"
The crowd that had gathered to watch the departure ceremony was cheering in response to Lady Aura's voice.
From within the Jewel, the Third Generation's voice rang out.
"Having a righteous cause is all well and good, but when you know what's going on behind the scenes, it's hard to get fired up about it. Well, we can't move forward if we don't win, though."
We were trying to crush Serba for our own purposes. Suddenly, I recalled the words of the Holy Knights' commander—Alman.
*"Fall into hell, huh."* Indeed, it was hellbound I'd go.
But even so, I had no intention of stopping.
Lady Aura, drawing everyone's gaze in the plaza, spread both her hands wide.
"I hereby appoint the Grand Commander of the Holy Knights, Lyle Walt, as the general of this army. The blessings of the Goddess shall grant you and the soldiers victory."
I knelt on one knee in a prominent place and accepted the appointment as general. Not that there was anyone else in Zayin suited for the role at this point.
"Ha! I will absolutely live up to your expectations!"
The applause of the crowd and the war cries of the soldiers echoed through the capital.
Lady Aura smiled, then brought her right hand to her chest.
"I have high hopes for you, Holy Knight Lyle."
That was what she said. As cheers erupted all around me, I understood perfectly.
*"This woman—she's planning to make 'Holy Knight' my title. How devious!"*
Those who didn't really know Aura's true personality would probably think I was genuinely being hailed as the Holy Knight because people had high expectations of me.
But I understood. Before, I had once told her that I felt resistance toward being called the Holy Knight.
I stood up and raised my right hand toward Aura.
"The true Holy Maiden of the reborn Zayin — I swear I will live up to your expectations, Lady Aura."
That's what I said. Seeing her cheek twitch, I grinned. She was clearly furious at the words "true Holy Maiden."
The Zayin army, having departed the capital, was heading toward the border with Selva.
Rolfis had already moved his forces to the area where Rolfis bordered Selva.
The reason for deploying a two-front operation was that it reduced the travel time compared to gathering in one place. At first, we had planned to move together as one force, but since Rolfis hadn't budged, it was taking far too long.
Riding alongside me on horseback was Alette, clad in hastily made red armor and carrying a spear. Novem, Miranda, Clara, and Monica were resting inside a porter.
Behind me trailed a line of porters, and Eva was riding horseback alongside them.
But her movements were completely stiff.
Alette called out to Eva.
"Hey, you look like you're about to fall off any second. Get it together!"
Eva, trembling on her horse, glared at Alette.
"I've never ridden a horse before! It's not like I can help it!"
Alette sighed, exasperated.
"Maybe instead of singing during your downtime, you should've practiced your horsemanship."
Eva fired back.
"You were stuffing your face with snacks too, you know! You think I don't know about you running around with Shannon?!"
Watching the two of them bicker, I muttered in a low voice.
"Whatever you do, do NOT tell Novem, Miranda, or Clara about any of this. Got it? Absolutely not! We've had a rough enough time as it is!"
Just then, the hatch on Porter's roof opened, and Miranda popped her head out with a cheerful smile. She leaned her upper body out, looked at us, and waved.
Aria and Eva's faces went pale, and even though Miranda was smiling, her eyes were absolutely terrifying.
"Lyle is such a kind man. If it were up to me, I'd make you do some brutal work for a while. Shannon, how about limiting your travel to walking on foot for about six months? And you'll carry your own luggage too. As for Aria and Eva... hmm, let's study together next time. I'm sure Novem and Clara will be happy to help. ...I won't let any of you sleep until you've mastered it."
With that last part delivered in a completely deadpan expression, Miranda disappeared back inside Porter.
Then Shannon's thrashing, desperate voice could be heard, and the rear door burst open as Shannon came flying out.
Laden with luggage, she marched straight toward me.
"What did you people tell her?! Lyle, let me ride on your horse too!"
I recalled just how angry Miranda had been and shook my head.
"I'll carry your luggage for you. You walk. Besides, you need to build up your stamina a little."
Shannon started complaining at me.
"May was having fun too! That's not fair!"
I pointed up at the sky.
"Are you an idiot? May is on reconnaissance duty — she's working. Give it up."
Aria turned to me.
"Um, Lyle... Miranda wasn't serious, right?"
Eva chimed in too.
"I-I can manage music, but anything beyond singing and dancing is a bit much for me..."
Both of them wore strained smiles, so I grinned back.
"Don't worry. You can take breaks."
And so, both Aria and Eva hung their heads on horseback.
Rolfis's army had arrived at the border with Serba.
Having received an official declaration of war from Zayin and Rolfis, Serba recalled its second prince, Dario, and showed a resolute stance of total resistance.
Rolfis's forces surrounding the border fortress put Serba in a disadvantageous position, forced into a two-front war.
They had apparently gathered mercenary companies from the start as well, but now they had received declarations of war from two nations. They had no choice but to split their forces, and the garrison at the fortress was thin.
Alette, commanding one of the divisions, raised her greatsword on horseback.
"Defensive formation!"
At her command, the mages deployed Magic Shields to cover the unit. A massive shield blocked the spells flying from the fortress.
When the Magic Shield faded, it was their side that launched the next volley of spells, while the fortress defended with Magic Shields of its own. But the numbers were different — they didn't have enough shields.
Spells struck the fortress directly, and it gradually began to crumble.
Alette spoke.
"Tougher defense than I expected."
The officer riding beside Alette on horseback chimed in.
"We're at the front lines. It's only natural they'd prepare a fortress equipped for magical warfare. Still, they don't seem to have invested much. It's only been a few days and the fortress is already falling apart."
In the midst of the magical bombardment, they were even deploying siege weapons to assault the fortress. The enemy could only hold out behind its walls — that was the difference in numbers.
Alette surveyed the surroundings.
"The mercenary companies are fighting on our side too, putting us at nearly four times their numbers. Zayin's forces should have started their advance by now. I want to break through here no matter what."
It was Lyle Walt's behavior during the audience that had influenced Rolfis's decision to invade Serba — the dismissive attitude that treated them as beneath notice, and the fact that he commanded even the Kirin.
There were also ministers who held to the superstition that they did not want to oppose Lyle, bearer of the symbol of fortune.
But Alette was different.
It was simpler than that. They just didn't want to fight Lyle.
Facing Serba felt infinitely more manageable than dealing with someone as unfathomable as Lyle.
(I don't think they'd lose in a fight, but... what is this unease?)
With the Kirin at his side, Lyle was smiling even in that dire situation. And not just smiling — he was genuinely laughing with delight. It wasn't a facade.
He truly seemed to be enjoying himself.
(That kind of person is terrifying. He's genuinely enjoying the war.)
Rolfis had noticed that madness in Lyle too, which was why he had desperately convinced the Princess Royal, Anneline, to approve the invasion of Serba.
(Well, I'd hate to think I was being jerked around by love that fizzled out over something so trivial...)
Anneline approved the invasion with startling ease — as if all her previous struggles had meant nothing. She also issued orders to secure Serba's royal family before Zayin could.
(She could do it all along, if she just put her mind to it...)
The forces surrounding the fortress were firing spell after spell into it, reducing it to ruins.
To Alette, it looked as though the fortress itself was bearing the brunt of Rolfis's faction's frustrations——