──She had felt it coming in.
(……Stop)
The Archbishop's magic—his thoughts. She felt them breaking through the walls of her mind, shattering even the barriers she had unconsciously erected as a fellow wielder of the same affinity, and pouring in.
(……I don't want this)
Even understanding this, even being aware of it, she had no way to resist any longer. Because—
'Ahahahahahaha!'
The Archbishop's thoughts were invading, ravaging. His magic power, his spells—far, far too powerful.
'Now then—it's time to end this, little wench! Kneel and submit! Become a servant of God! Become a cornerstone of the Kingdom of God, built from this very place!'
Archbishop Johann von Kantabel.
A man possessed of tremendous will, terrifying thoughts, and an utterly unshakeable wish. Regardless of its nature, he was without question the kind of person worthy of having risen to the very pinnacle of the Church.
'Give up. No matter what you do, no matter how you struggle! I will never stop until I have fulfilled my ideal. Don't for a moment think that someone like you could stand in my way!'
She didn't have something like that. She couldn't find it.
And so she couldn't deny a single word the Archbishop said. She found herself thinking—he was right.
……There was no way she could win against someone like this.
Against his strength, against her own weakness—for her, whose heart had already been broken… she no longer possessed even a shred of will or means to resist.
'——It's over.'
As if sensing her understanding—
The Archbishop tore through Niina's mind piece by piece, and at the very last, was about to rip asunder the girl cowering in the deepest recesses of her soul—
──It stopped.
"...Huh?"
(...Eh?)
As if by coincidence, both Archbishop Johan and Niina voiced the same question.
The Archbishop's hand, extended to destroy the very core of Niina's heart, was mere inches from her—
──By a faint
emerald
wall, it was blocked.
"...What is this?"
Paying no mind to the Archbishop's thoughts becoming further tinged with suspicion, Niina raised her head and extended her hand.
The moment she touched that translucent, somehow warm barrier, she understood what it was.
After all ── it was the magic she knew best.
(──'
Dream Palace of the Fairies
')
Her Bloodline Magic, the magic of charm and enchantment. It had been
cast upon
herself.
The question of "by whom" was answered immediately. After all, to her knowledge, there was only one person besides herself who could use it.
(El's, '
Dream Palace of the Fairies
's Dream Palace of the Fairies.' But when!? How did it slip past the Archbishop's precognition──!!)
There was only one possible moment. He realized it immediately.
—It was when he had confronted Liliana.
Back then, the princess had been able to use Ermes's Magic through that mysterious black crystal Magical tool. The powerful '
Spirit veil
'—unmistakably his—along with the multitude of other spells he had recreated.
Then it wouldn't be strange at all if, among them—'
Dream Palace of the Fairies
'—had been included as well.
During the battle, Liliana had quietly cast it, slipping it in among other spells.
Any other offensive spell, even a covert one, would never have escaped her magic power perception... No, even if it had been '
Dream Palace of the Fairies
', if it were the kind that dominated one's actions, she would have noticed.
Because, just as Ermes had told her before... she was terrifyingly sensitive to any magic that could cause her harm.
But this spell—
This '
Dream Palace of the Fairies
' was entirely different. It harbored absolutely no ill intent—only the diametrically opposite emotion. It had no intention of restricting her actions, having extracted nothing but the effect of "pure fascination alone," and so, without Nina even realizing it, it slipped into her heart and placed
fascination
upon her.
And then.
The second law of mind-altering magic.
——"
The one who casts first
holds
an overwhelming
advantage.
".
Preemptive enchantment—applying the law that overwriting is extraordinarily difficult.
That meant only one thing.
(...He understood everything. He was protecting me.)
Ermes had seen through it all—that the Archbishop's brainwashing magic was abnormal, and that its fangs were overwhelmingly likely to be aimed at Nina.
In that gravely limited situation dictated by precognition. Even though he occupied the most disadvantageous position—the one the Archbishop could read most easily of anyone.
Within those constraints, he had exhausted every option. He set his preparations in motion at the precise moment when precognition became distorted, and had the only person the Archbishop couldn't read at all—Liliana—carry them out, slipping past the Archbishop's gaze perfectly. By ensuring even he himself remained unaware, he eliminated any possibility of detection entirely.
And so, at this moment.
In the most critical situation, he shattered the Archbishop's most lethal move. To protect Nina, he had shielded her heart through preemptive enchantment.
...Nina remembered.
The words he had spoken to her when they parted at the academy.
"And yet—if your wish is sincere. If your feelings are something beautiful that you need not fear anyone seeing—"
"Then please, rely on me."
"Then I promise you—when that time comes, I will without fail stand by your side with all the power I can muster."
Those were the words he had continued to support her with.
But at the same time… they were words he had believed impossible. In this extraordinarily disadvantageous situation for him, where not only speaking to her but even meeting her was close to impossible—he had resigned himself to the fact that he could do nothing to help, and so had Niina herself.
But that wasn't the case.
He had kept his promise. Even though he couldn't speak to her, he had thoroughly deduced her circumstances, and then, true to his declaration, had done everything within his power. He had prepared a singular piece of magic to protect her right here, right now—at the very, very last moment—from the devastating cruelty of her own heart.
She touched the green wall once more.
And then… she felt something being conveyed.
—I'm sorry I could only do this much.
—I'm sorry for making you struggle through such a terrible situation for so long. But… don't lose.
She felt she could truly hear those words—the feelings he had poured into this magic.
(—So… that's it.)
And then, the girl understood.
Where her heart truly resided. What lay beyond her own feelings.
What it was she should be holding onto.
It was then that the Great Bishop's consciousness screamed.
"Ha! What is this—some kind of joke?!"
Once more, the arm rose. This time, he would pour everything he had into destroying the green wall that was interfering with the destruction of her heart.
…That was right. The Great Bishop's brainwashing magic—combined with ordinary methods, its power was beyond all standards.
It had pierced through every rule: the law that no excessive alteration was possible, the law that it was ineffective against those who possessed magic of the same system.
Then there was no reason this latest rule—one where casting first gave the advantage—could not be pierced through as well.
"It seems this magic power is being hindered by Ermes again! But I told you—don't think something on that level can stop my advance!"
Furthermore, Ermes's mastery of mind-altering magic was not yet that deep.
Compared to the Great Bishop, who had harnessed brainwashing magic for years on end, the gap in ability as a practitioner was still vast. No matter how advantageous it was to cast first, overturning that and destroying his magic was entirely possible.
"Now—this time, it's truly over!"
With that conviction, the Great Bishop's will swung his arm once more—the third time, truly.
……However.
That was only the case if the Great Bishop's magic could exert its full power—if ordinary brainwashing methods were still effective. In other words.
——
Nina's
heart
still
broken—
if it
remained
that way. That was the premise.
"……Wh-why…"
The Great Bishop stops once more.
Not because he was blocked by Ermes's emerald wall—
It was the power that filled this entire space... yes, nothing other than the original owner of this heart, attempting to expel the intruder.
Understanding this, the Great Bishop's will turned forward. There—
"……What—what are you?"
The girl rose to her feet, wearing an expression utterly unlike anything seen before.
What gleamed in those beautiful golden eyes was a radiance of longing... the very kind the Great Bishop despised most.
"Why do you look like that! You, of all people—now?!"
With loathing plain to see, the Great Bishop's thoughts screamed.
"What good does standing do you now? What dream are you dreaming? What could someone like you possibly accomplish? You who just drift along, who are worthless, who have no wish at all—"
"
I do.
"
But then, from there—
With a will stronger and more certain than anything she had shown before, she answered simply:
"I do. I had one all along."
Nina von Froditte remembered.
The words that had broken her—the very origin of it all. A curse, just now released once more, borrowing her late brother's lips.
"'Twist the heart of someone you love? Someone cursed with such ugly Bloodline Magic—how could you ever hope to become anything worthwhile?'"
That was what had bound her.
She hated this magic. Even though she believed she didn't possess it, she hated herself for being the kind of person who might unconsciously use it and nearly bring about a tragedy. With that pathetic excuse, unable to fight for anything, keeping everyone at a fixed distance and simply drifting through life—she hated herself for it, hated it more than she could bear.
……But the truth was.
That was precisely why—in truth.
"I had one. Even I had a wish."
She had always believed it was because she couldn't hold a grand wish.
She had convinced herself it was because she lacked something magnificent—something worth staking the world on. That was surely why she had always drawn a line and told herself she could never stand in places like that. She had given up.
…And yet.
Even so, it was fine now. She could feel that now. His magic had made her feel that way. So.
"It's not as grand as yours. It's not as magnificent as Lady Katia's. It's not something I can pour everything into, like Sarah can."
She defined what she felt.
She pulled out once more that primordial wish—the one that had been buried under the curse that began on that day, forgotten beneath the weight of too many things.
"It's small. It's trivial. It's not even worth comparing to any of yours.
—But it's the kind of wish every girl has."
It was a strange feeling.
Just moments ago, she had been so despairing she felt like the world was ending. She had been utterly convinced that nothing would ever work again, that her heart had been completely broken.
And yet with a single spell, a tiny little message, her feelings had flipped entirely to the opposite extreme. She felt like she could do anything now—so much so that she laughed at herself for being so simple.
What do people call that?
She had known the answer for a very long time.
"My wish, you see…"
It was.
"—I want to fall in love."
"……"
"I inherited such a cruel magic—one that torments the heart of the person you fall for. It made me afraid of getting close to others. But even knowing all of that… I want to meet someone I can fall in love with, someone it's okay to love."
Motionless.
Paying no heed to the Archbishop, who had been confronted with a wish far beyond anything he could have anticipated, Nina presses on.
"Even someone like me, who can't bring myself to be serious about anything—if it were for that person, I'd do whatever it takes. A love where those feelings burn to life, where you'd offer up every last thing in that moment. That's the kind of wonderful love I want. I want to find someone who makes me feel that way. —No."
As though regarding a creature he couldn't comprehend.
Pointing at the thoroughly disrespectful gaze the Archbishop was directing her way, Nina—
"I already have. That's why—"
With firm resolve and an unshakable will, she declares.
"Step aside. I can't get to El like this, can I."
"Y-Your Highness—!"
The Archbishop erupts in fury.
"Over something like that? Over such trivial nonsense? My ideals—!"
"Nonsense... Well, sure. It's not on the grand scale you people deal in—I'll grant that much. No question. —But listen."
Pausing there, Nina... smiles.
Without even needing magic. A smile that could captivate everyone. One that would make anyone fall in love.
With that lovely smile, the girl declares.
"
An ordinary girl
would be willing to lay down her life for exactly that kind of trivial wish."
All this time. Even someone like me.
No matter how much hell she had seen, no matter how much her heart had been worn away—she had been able to move forward, for his sake, to save him. Pointing to that journey as her greatest proof, she made her declaration.
Having said this to the once-again dumbfounded Archbishop—"You probably wouldn't understand, but—"
"So I'll say it again. Get out of the way."
With a fearless grin. As if borrowing his feelings, his very way of being, she let them transform her.
"—That little trick of yours isn't enough to stop my love."
As if returning the favor in kind. She hurled her wish straight at him, head-on.
"—!"
Whether his fury had reached its breaking point, the Archbishop's thoughts surged at her without a single word. He sought to shatter the charm's protection and force Nina under his brainwashing control by sheer power alone.
But by now, she didn't have an ounce of fear left.
Block it. Hold it back.
The Archbishop's brainwashing magic was powerful. Once it had been allowed to breach her defenses, repelling it was no simple task. She would have had no way of doing so on her own—but.
Now she had his protection. Drawing the utmost confidence from that, she held her ground and continued to resist.
And then.
"Now, Er."
The day of the decisive battle.
What had happened that day was, in truth, nothing more than an exchange of thoughts conducted through the Archbishop's brainwashing magic.
Which meant the Archbishop had no way of discerning the actual contents—and she turned that to her advantage.
Had she simply repelled the brainwashing magic outright—if she had flat-out beaten it back, it would have been obvious she wasn't under its influence. So instead, she leveraged the fact that she'd allowed it to infiltrate once, making the kind of fine adjustments that only someone who possessed magic of the same lineage could pull off.
She let the magic run with a degree of freedom on the surface while keeping the innermost depths of her heart firmly guarded. In doing so, she maintained a state in which she "appeared to be under brainwashing, yet could break free of it at any time, at will."
If she could do that, and play her hand well from there—
She could force the Archbishop, who believed everything was unfolding exactly as he planned, to expose a fatal opening at the very last moment. Having foreseen and staked her certainty on this from the surrounding circumstances, Nina maneuvered through the decisive battle to ensure it would come to pass.
Things progressed along his instructions to a degree, and she allowed herself to be "penetrated" once in order to fully deceive the Archbishop's eyes—honestly, that was the hardest and most frightening part, but he understood immediately and accepted it without a moment's hesitation, and that, too, filled her with joy.
As a result, Ermes' magic erupted exactly as she had foreseen, obliterating the Archbishop's protective measures.
And so, the board was completely overturned.
The strongest piece was turned against its master, and the key piece reversed its allegiance.
And in that instant—
Check—
thrust upon the Archbishop.
"──Please."
"Mm."
With a nod of joy at his words brimming with trust, Nina fixed her gaze upon the Archbishop.
……Archbishop Johan does not believe in goodwill. He is the kind of man who must, at all costs, deny anyone who acts on such intentions.
──Then,
let goodwill—
be what defeats you.
That he couldn't understand it—that was his reason for defeat. With that unspoken declaration hanging in the air, Nina kicked off the ground.
At last. For the moment that would bring the Northern Rebellion to an end, the girl broke into a sprint.
Next time—the Northern Rebellion arc reaches its climax. Stay tuned!