Mireia

We were heading back after completing the request.

I was sitting in Porter's cargo bed, idly staring up at the ceiling.

The request this time had been to subdue a Hippogriff. Or rather, on the way back, we'd made a detour to knock out a miscellaneous errand-type request.

In the cargo bed of Porter, Aria was calculating the profits from this job's reward by lantern light, tears in her eyes.

Miranda was keeping watch—supervising, really—and drilling all sorts of things into Aria, who hadn't experienced the document hell back at Zayin.

She was faithfully following through on a promise she'd made before: to teach her until she got the hang of it.

(She looks like she's having so much fun teaching. More like...)

"No, Aria. That part's wrong. It's a simple calculation mistake."

Aria had made a mistake early on, meaning everything had to be redone from scratch. Upon hearing this, Aria began recalculating.

"Then you should've warned me at the start!"

Miranda was smiling at Aria, who was using a wooden crate as a makeshift desk.

"Huh? Why? I did say I'd check it after you finished. I taught you the method, and I never said I'd correct you halfway through."

The cargo bed of Porter rattled and swayed gently—it had become much less bumpy than before. In that cargo bed, Miranda was having Aria work through simple calculations.

They were simple, but complex enough that a single mistake threw everything off. Aria repeated this process endlessly in Porter's cargo bed.

The task was—calculate the reward from this request, derive the net profit, and then figure out how to split it among the party?

Those who were clueless about the party's finances included Aria, May, and Shannon. Eva, having traveled on her own, was actually surprisingly competent when it came to money.

She seemed to have struggled quite a bit as a Bard.

But she couldn't do paperwork.

Watching Miranda smile at the tearful Aria, I thought.

(...Miranda's personality is definitely similar to Mireia's.)

Just as I was thinking that—

'...Laiel, you looked at Miranda and thought she was similar to me, didn't you?'

A voice came from within the Jewel, Mireia's voice carrying the unmistakable tone of someone who'd found her next target for teasing.

I startled, glancing around before quietly rolling the Jewel between my fingertips. I was trying to deny it, but did Mireia already have her mind made up?

'It's fine, you know. Being told you resemble your great-granddaughter makes me happy. But it did shock me to realize how you see me.'

And then Third Generation piled on as well.

'Aaah, poor little Mireia.'

Was Fourth Generation bored too?

'How cruel, Laiel.'

However, Fifth Generation and Seventh Generation were the only ones on my side. Well, rather than being on my side, it would be more accurate to say they understood Mireia's personality.

'When you consider how scheming you are, it's only natural that Laiel would think that.'

'Even if dear Auntie were to cry, it wouldn't be endearing. Just because you become young again inside the Jewel, does that mean you think your heart has become young too? Please stop—just thinking about it gives me chills.'

At that, a jolt of impact ran through the Jewel.

(...Huh?)

Third Generation explained the situation to me. For some reason, her voice was slightly trembling.

'...Seventh Generation will recover after a little while.'

'Well then, let's go ask Septem all sorts of questions again. Last time, Septem was the one who created the Jewel, and we asked about Skills, remember?'

Facing Mireia, who wore her usual smile without a shred of change, I darted my gaze toward Seventh Generation over and over from in front of the door.

Seventh Generation sat in her chair, completely drained, making sure not to look in my direction.

Third Generation grinned as she teased Seventh Generation.

The interior of the Jewel had always felt rather masculine, but Mireia's arrival had subtly altered the atmosphere.

"So, what are we going to ask about this time?" Mireia asked.

Mireia pointed at me.

"About Raille, of course," she said.

"Me? Uh, Miss Septem and I are from completely different eras, though?"

At that, Mireia gave a resigned shrug and shook her head.

"You still don't get it, do you, Raille? The Jewel has been accumulating information about the outside world ever since its creation. And Miss Septem's memories are of the one who actually made the Jewel. She's sure to know all sorts of things. Besides, she's probably curious about the story of your other half, isn't she?"

Mireia smiled at me, and I nodded in agreement.

Once before, Septem had told me that the dormant half sealed within me was beginning to stir. And that the time to confront it would come.

I wanted to know exactly what that might mean.

"Well then, shall we go?" Mireia said.

We passed through the door together. But what awaited us on the other side was a scene different from usual.

It was a large city, yet it seemed utterly desolate.

In many shops, someone was present, but they weren't trying to sell the goods on display. They didn't even call out to passersby.

Moreover, the surrounding buildings were dilapidated, clearly showing signs of neglect and disrepair.

"This is..." I began.

"My, what a grim sight today," Mireia remarked as she started walking.

I walked alongside her. Since this was our third time, I understood where to go, so I didn't strictly need to follow, but I did anyway.

Suddenly, a man dressed in fine attire came striding toward us, completely ignoring his surroundings.

I stepped forward and positioned myself in front of Mireia, walking as though shielding her.

"My, how chivalrous. You're nothing like you were a year ago."

"...You know what I was like a year ago?"

"A year ago? I told you already — I'm the guide the Jewel chose. I need to know all sorts of things if I'm going to guide anyone, don't I?"

Her golden eyes seemed to gaze at something far away. And then the finely dressed man collided with a passerby.

"...What do you think you're doing? I'm a mage! You worthless trash, don't you dare block my path!"

"P-please forgive me—"

The finely dressed man aimed his right hand at the man he'd bumped into and released a spell without hesitation.

"W-wait—"

Mireia stopped me just as I was about to lunge forward.

"Lyle, this is a memory. You can touch things and react to them, but nothing here is going to change."

And then the man who'd been bumped into was engulfed in flames.

All around, people watched the scene with fear in their eyes, but no one moved to stop the finely dressed man.

"...Let's go."

My hand was taken and I was led away from the spot. The acrid stench of burning and the screams of the dying felt far too real.

Was this kind of scene what the Jewel's memories were like?

When we arrived at Septem's room, it was different from before.

Septem was sitting upright in bed, but the room was draped in cobwebs and left completely untended.

There were no Golems in the manor, and no people either.

"Oh my, you came at just the right time?"

Septem's slightly troubled expression was indescribable. It was something between embarrassment and sorrow.

I pulled out a dust-covered chair, brushed it off with my hand, and prepared one for Mireia as well.

Once we both sat down, I spoke with Septem.

"Today, Mireia wanted to ask about me — um, what did you mean by my 'other half'?"

The other half sealed by Ceres.

That had been weighing on my mind.

Septem spoke, bathed in the light streaming in from the bed. Looking at the tattered curtains, I couldn't help but feel a tinge of sadness.

'The other half — those are Laiel's memories. You can't remember them clearly, can you? Laiel, can you recall your past self? And Ceres's face — not the present, but the Ceres of the past.'

I was about to say what kind of nonsense is that — then I remembered how hazy my memories were. Thinking they had all been overwritten by the intense memories from age ten onward, I pressed my left hand against my head…

Mireia looked out the window.

'Oh my, they look so happy.'

I heard the voices of a family playing outside. I quickly stood up and looked out the window. There, beneath the shade of a tree, a family had laid out a sheet and was enjoying themselves.

Surrounding them were guards — knights — and the parents were watching over their children.

The one making the most noise was a young boy.

Both parents were looking at the boy, and a girl nearby was also watching the boy — her older brother.

A cold sweat broke over me. It felt strangely nostalgic, yet I couldn't quite recall.

When I reached my hand toward the window, the girl who had been looking away turned toward me. But in an instant, outside the window stretched the desolate garden of the manor.

The memories vanished, and even with the window open, nothing could be heard.

"That memory just now—"

As I stood there in confusion, Septem spoke.

'Riel's memories, I see. I told you... that you were about to awaken, didn't I? Those around you obeying Ceres isn't because of her Skills. Riel, remember this well. Ceres's Skill is to take. She took your mana, your experience, and your parents' love. The memories she couldn't take at the end were sealed away, just like this.'

It was the first time I learned that Ceres's Skill involved taking things from others. And that what influenced those around her wasn't her Skill either.

'To be precise, Ceres's Skill is imitation of others. And then, following the seal, outright robbery. The reason you were kept alive was surely because she was siphoning the mana you had polished. But naturally, even Ceres had her limits.'

Mireia stood up and placed her hands on both of my shoulders. Without realizing it, my breathing had become ragged, and the cold sweat wouldn't stop.

Mireia said to me gently.

'Riel, you have been having things taken from you all this time. But you see... the one who was originally meant to become the monster was you, Riel.'

When I tried to turn toward Mireia, I was embraced from behind. I didn't understand what was being said.

At the same time, I felt something — just a faint flash, like intuition.

"Am I... the same as Ceres?"

Septem nodded. But at the same time, she added this:

'Those who could have become the next Septem were Riel and Ceres. But it was Ceres who wouldn't allow that. So she took everything she could from Riel. The Riel of now has neither Septem's memories nor any power. From my perspective, that's something to envy, but the current Riel is simply an ordinary person. That's precisely why Novem chose to side with you, I imagine.'

I didn't know what to say. Having learned that I was a monster like Ceres, and being told that I had been having things stolen from me all along —.

"Uh, wait? But when we met before, I didn't feel like anything was taken from me. In fact, does that mean Ceres's Skills don't work on me?"

— When I said that, Mireia pulled away from me and burst out laughing.

'I told you, didn't I? Even Ceres has her limits. Besides, she no longer has the leeway to take things and keep them for herself. Ceres is already complete. And yet, Riel, you've been positively influenced by the Successive Heads in the best possible way.'

When I tilted my head, Septem was smiling too. She had apparently expected me to despair here — this was a pleasant miscalculation.

Septem spoke.

'Riel, know yourself. If you do, you'll be able to go further than you have now.'

I nodded, and then sought confirmation from Septem.

"So, about that... I understand Ceres's Skill now. But if that's the case, then the Skills inside the Jewel that Ceres possesses — what exactly are they——"

Septem looked at me with a serious expression on her face.

'Only one Skill activates at a time. But you see, Septem is the goddess who created Skills? I can prepare as many Skills as I want. You could say that counts as a Skill too, in a way.'

I thought to myself.

*That's surprisingly lame. I expected something more vicious, being a goddess and all.*

But even knowing it was lame, that didn't change the fact that my opponent was terrifying. In truth, I couldn't lay a hand on Ceres.

"Then you're currently using a Skill that enchants those around you?"

At that, both Septem and Mireia shook their heads.

Mireia spoke.

'Listen well, Riel. Lady Septem — the goddess Septem — is the most revered among humans. Don't you remember seeing Novem?'

Being suddenly brought up about Novem, I tilted my head. Septem merely said, "As for the details, you can ask Novem sometime when she tells you about it."

And then, Septem spoke.

'It is because Septem, the goddess, was the one who created humanity in the past.'

Hearing that, I felt a question arise. I had certainly grown up hearing that a goddess created humans. But the goddess associated with humans was[Sextus].

The sixth goddess.

"Um, wasn't it Sextus — the sixth goddess — who created them?"

Mireia, letting out a sigh, said.

'That's a misunderstanding. But it's an understandable one. In truth, Lady Septem is treated as the goddess of wisdom. Rather, the wisdom aspect is merely Lady Septem's favor. Originally, Lady Sextus's role was that of the one who awakens humanity.'

I wondered if the meaning was different. But if she was the one who created them, the phrasing of "awakens" was certainly a bit different.

And the conversation was getting a little too fantastical for me to know how to respond.

*Even if you tell me about that kind of distant past... um, it's a bit of a problem.*

Mireia continued.

"It's the same reason why Novem is liked by the demi-humans. Novem is the one who once created the demi-humans, divine beasts, and even the Monsters. Novem inherited those memories deeply, so those kinds of influences manifest."

Septem gazed out the window and murmured.

"The one who made humans was Septem. And Sex, who held the role of awakening them... was killed by Novem. That child... Novem destroyed all of the plans."

What should I do?

*(Th-this is bad. What am I supposed to do...)*

I couldn't keep up with the conversation.

At the very least, I understood that Novem had betrayed Septem and the others.

*(Oh, come to think of it... Octo betrayed them too, didn't she? If I ask Septem about this, I really don't want to end up hearing all sorts of things about Octo...)*

I felt a little sorry for her, but I decided to pretend that I had no connection with Octo.