——The Great Sage, Flügel.
"Huh? What's with the reaction? Did I say something weird?"
"Well, I mean, right?"
Shaula blinked in puzzling innocence at their lukewarm response. She showed not the slightest doubt about her own words, radiating confidence, but the name "Flügel" carried a weight for Subaru and his companions that was anything but simple.
The Great Sage Flügel.
The title prefixed to his name was regrettably different from the one Subaru was familiar with, but he recognized it all the same.
It was the name of someone whose fate had crossed his own just once since being summoned to this otherworld. He had never actually met the man, though—he bore nothing but a one-sided "debt" toward him.
After all, it was thanks to this man's accomplishment that Subaru's life had been saved.
"Flügel of the Great Tree… that Flügel, right?"
Subaru's utterance of that keyword drew chin-down nods from everyone except Shaula. Meili, however, appeared not to know it, tilting her head in confusion. "What's that?"
"I've never heard of it. A tree, you mean?"
"Yeah. There's this enormous tree growing in the Lagunica Kingdom's Rheifaus Plains, and it's called Flügel's Great Tree. I'm talking so big it might touch the clouds—the kind of thing that gets the heart of any man stirring."
"Hee, really? When you put it like that, I want to see it."
"Sorry. I cut it down."
"You big meanie!"
Subaru snuffed out Meili's wish in record flat, earning himself the treatment of a monster.
Strictly speaking, Subaru wasn't solely responsible for felling the Great Tree. That said, he was the one who had proposed cutting it down and putting it to use, so when it came to bearing the heaviest share of the blame, that would be him.
——Flügel's Great Tree had been the trump card in the
In bringing down the Mabeast known as the White Whale—a creature wreathed in fog—the Great Tree, whose towering bulk exceeded even that of the leviathan, proved invaluable. Ultimately, they felled the tree and pinned the White Whale beneath it, immobilizing the beast so they could deliver the killing blow. It was nothing short of the decisive blow.
"I feel bad for the Flügel who planted it, but… I never imagined I'd run into his name at a place like this."
"After the White Whale subjugation debrief, we went to see the stump, didn't we? I heard the felled wood was put to various uses…"
"Currently, only the stump remains, preserved as 'the site of Flügel's Great Tree.' It's protected as an important historical landmark, though it would take several hundred years before it looks anything like before."
Shortly after the White Whale subjugation, there had been the attack by the Sin Archbishop involving
The discussions had centered on the feats against the White Whale and Sloth, but naturally, compensation for the resulting damage was also on the table. The efficient use of the felled Great Tree and the preservation of the remaining stump were part of that settlement.
Incidentally, the White Whale had no practical use; its massive torso was burned with considerable manpower, and only its skull was presented to the Royal Castle as proof of the subjugation.
Regardless of the Great Tree's fate, what about the Sage himself?
"Now that you mention it, I've heard him called the 'Sage' Flügel."
"But he's a 'Sage' whose accomplishments are awfully unclear. …And calling someone a 'Sage' when that's the case—that's odd in itself, isn't it?"
"Strictly in terms of achievements, though, his results genuinely aren't unworthy of the title. He must have been incredibly good at promoting his own exploits… like Barusu, in other words."
"When have I ever exaggerated my own achievements?!"
Subaru bristled at the unfair assessment.
Listening to their exchange, Anastasia spoke up with an "I see." She nodded to herself in satisfaction.
"Going by what's been handed down, Flügel-san might not have enough to his name to be called a 'Sage'… but then again, if the person treated as the real 'Sage' turns out to be someone like Shaula, I reckon that tells you something."
"Which would mean?"
"The accomplishments attributed to him are either the reverse… hmm, no. Not the reverse, but skewed. No—I'd say they were deliberately assigned to someone else, with a higher probability."
"So you're saying Flügel made it look like Shaula was the one who did everything he did?"
Emilia's eyes went wide at Anastasia's deduction. Anastasia nodded and turned back to face Shaula.
"That's just my read on it, but what do you think, Shaula? Your master—did he seem like the type who'd do something like that?"
"Hmm~ Well, I don't really get into the complicated stuff…"
"You—"
"No, no, no! You're jumping to conclusions! There's more, I swear!"
When Subaru narrowed his eyes at her lackluster answer, Shaula waved her head side to side apologetically. Then she raised both hands, opening and closing her palms idly.
"Honestly, even I don't really understand Master's thinking most of the time. But Master was never the type to stand out. So deflecting troublesome rumors onto me and running—yeah, that does sound like him."
"A person who doesn't want attention wouldn't go around planting a tree named after himself, I'd think…"
"Subaru, that's a misconception. Even Flügel's Great Tree wasn't always a great tree. It grew over the years, and through that growth attained its current grandeur. The planter's name survived, and it's natural enough that later generations began using it."
"……Can't argue with that."
At Julius's correction, Subaru pursed his lips in reluctant concession.
So the tree had originally been nothing more than part of a reforestation effort. Over centuries, it grew into something magnificent, and naturally someone had to give it a name—so borrowing the name of the person who planted it was the logical step.
That said, it did feel like a lapse on Flügel's part for letting his name stick around.
"If you actually wanted to hide it, you'd think you'd avoid leaving a name like Flügel in the first place. Was he surprisingly careless?"
"I read in a book that the reason we know Flügel's name is because he carved 'Flügel was here' at the top of the Great Tree."
"Careless doesn't even begin to describe it! Was he on a field trip?!"
Subaru was stunned by the revelation, which exceeded even his worst expectations of self-promotion.
He recalled having felt the urge to do something similar when he'd visited the stump, but actually going through with it was another matter entirely. Besides, when Flügel had left that mark, the tree wouldn't have been so great yet.
"So the name took on a life of its own, and as a result, 'Sage' Flügel was handed down as a mysterious figure whose only known act was planting a tree."
"Then we didn't even have solid proof that Flügel was the one who planted it?"
"And that uncertainty was confirmed centuries later, by the mouth of a different 'Sage.' When you think about it that way… hmm. Standing at the scene where a gap in history gets filled is rather exhilarating."
"Stop sounding like a history otaku…"
Having learned the truth behind centuries of historical record, Julius looked somewhat moved.
Julius tended to be long-winded when explaining things related to his deep knowledge of magic, but perhaps he did have a bit of a knowledge-otaku side to him after all.
The suspicion Subaru had held for some time deepened further, and he let out a groan.
"But even if we learn that the ancient 'Sage' was really Flügel… that doesn't exactly change anything big, does it?"
Having reached a consensus on Flügel, Emilia looked around at everyone with a lack of confidence. Subaru nodded in agreement.
As Emilia said, the revelation that the true hero behind the ancient deeds was Flügel carried little practical weight in the present situation. —Or at least, it shouldn't have.
"No, Emilia-tan. Actually, there's a huge problem."
"Huh?"
"Think about it. Originally, our goal was to meet this all-knowing 'Sage' and have him tell us all sorts of things. But if the legendary 'Sage' turns out to be someone else, and the only one left is this empty-headed lady right here…"
"Ah, Master~ Please don't shake my head. It rattles."
When Subaru shook Shaula's shoulder, she answered with a playful grimace.
To put it bluntly, she was the furthest thing from omniscient.
"Our original objective is unachievable. If the 'Sage' isn't here, then coming here was all for nothing."
"……"
At Subaru's conclusion, Emilia and the others fell silent.
As he watched their reactions, Subaru himself gritted his back teeth at what he'd said.
Over a month of time—Subaru himself had died four times already.
After enduring that much hardship to reach the
The truth of history, the reality of the "Sage"—none of it held any value for Subaru.
What Subaru wanted was simply a way to save the people who mattered to him.
"Shaula. I know it's a long shot, but let me ask this one thing. Your master—the real 'Sage,' Flügel—where is he?"
"If I said 'right in front of me,' I feel like you'd get mad! But I'll say it anyway! Master Flügel is right here in front of me!"
"I knew you'd say that."
At Shaula's irrepressibly cheerful declaration, Subaru could only sigh.
In truth, Subaru's current mental state was a ravaged wasteland—enough that he wanted to lash out at the spirited Shaula. It was fair to say that his only lead had been crushed.
The bright light of the "Sage" had been extinguished, and he was back to groping in the dark. That much was true, but the darkness that followed a glimpse of dazzling light carries a different weight than perpetual night.
Hope gives you the strength to walk forward, but when that hope is blotted out, the ensuing darkness can be more suffocating than one that was never dispelled in the first place.
And yet, to Subaru—.
"Subaru, listen. About that—it's not actually a complete dead end."
"Huh?"
Emilia's voice came as she placed a hand on his shoulder, addressing his downcast profile. He turned to face her, and in her violet eyes he saw a definite spark of hope.
Tilting her chin down, keeping her hand on Subaru's shoulder, Emilia continued to Shaula, "Just like before."
"She barely told us anything before, but now that you're talking—maybe you could share a little more?"
"Sure! I don't like being lectured by Master either. Plus, I've been alone for so long, I love chatting."
At Emilia's pointed follow-up, Shaula responded with the same easygoing smile, her attitude unchanged. Sitting cross-legged, she swayed her body back and forth, then raised her right hand to the sky and pointed above her.
"I've told people besides Master a bit, but this is the tower's bottom floor—the Sixth Layer, 'Asterope.' Going up, the Fifth Layer is 'Celaeno,' the Fourth Layer 'Alcyone,' and the very top is the First Layer, 'Maia.'"
"They have individual names for each floor? Isn't that a pain?"
"Master named them."
"The taste isn't bad, but I'm not in the mood to discuss that right now. So?"
Seeing the hope in Emilia's eyes and feeling his own spirits lift from the conversation's momentum, Subaru pressed on. Whether she caught the shift in his expression, Shaula beamed with delight.
She then extended her left hand—the opposite direction from where she'd been pointing above—and showed her five fingers.
"The Fifth Layer 'Celaeno' is right above us—it's the floor with the entrance and exit connecting to the outside. The Sixth Layer 'Asterope' is below that, so it's technically underground. If you mess up, you'll be buried alive, so I wouldn't go around trying to break the walls."
"By the way, the walls and floor may look like stone, but their durability is extraordinary. I should mention that not even a scratch could be inflicted by magic—Lady Emilia's included."
Julius supplemented Shaula's explanation. None of them had been planning to smash through, but Subaru nodded anyway.
"So the Fifth Layer is the exit. What about above it?"
"The Fourth Layer 'Alcyone' is easy to get in and out of—it's basically my living quarters. I've let it get pretty messy, so it's embarrassing if people stare…"
"……"
"Master, your eyes are scary! …So, normally I watch the sand dunes from there. And anyone who approaches the tower gets shot, shot, shot!"
"So it really was you."
He'd more or less already known, but the confirmation from her own mouth finally cemented it.
The white beam of light from the Pleiades Watchtower that had killed Subaru twice in the dunes and contributed to the team's split—that culprit was, indeed, Shaula.
"You owe me big for that. I went through hell because of you."
"What do you mean, big? I was just following Master's orders. If you're going to blame me for that, you're just nitpicking what I've been doing for the past several hundred years~"
When Subaru fixed her with a harsh stare, Shaula crumpled her face and shrank back. There was no malice in her expression—if anything, no remorse either.
Rather than being devoid of guilt, it was more that the very concept of guilt didn't exist for her.
It wasn't an emotional deficiency or anything of that sort—it was—.
"Subaru, it's pointless. She has no guilt, no remorse. She was simply ordered around. Questioning a tool about how it was used is meaningless."
"Exactly! I'm Master's tool! The little one sure knows how to talk!"
Shaula grinned ear to ear at
Her expression and mood shifted on a dime, and her understanding of her own current state—Subaru's values were simply different from Shaula's. That was probably why their conversations kept missing each other.
In short—.
"Talking with you is exhausting."
"Master used to say that a lot! It's been a while~"
"Yeah. I used to get told the same, back in the day."
Subaru still felt he heard it on occasion, but he let that point pass.
Regardless, now that he understood the white light from the watchtower had been Shaula's doing, he recognized there was no point in demanding an apology or reflection from her.
Then there was no reason to interrupt the conversation. He'd simply press forward.
"The Fourth Layer is your living space—well, 'living quarters,' I guess. What about above that?"
"From the Third Layer 'Taygeta' onward, it's exam territory. —To earn the right to enter the Library."
"…Library?"
Subaru furrowed his brow at the word. Shaula didn't even register his shift in demeanor and simply replied, "Yup," with breezy nonchalance.
"The Library. From the Third Layer 'Taygeta' up, there are exams and corresponding libraries. As long as you meet the conditions to enter, you can read whatever books you want inside."
"Books—what kind of things are written in them?"
"How should I know?"
"You don't know?!"
After working herself up to this point, to answer with "How should I know?" was maddening. Subaru's expression twisted, and Shaula shook her head and hair with a "Well~."
"I can't read or anything, you know? I was only told to guard the tower, nothing beyond that."
"That was Master… Flügel's doing too?"
"Yep!"
She answered with pride, but Subaru had no response to that.
Still, even as Shaula shrugged cluelessly, Emilia and the others maintained their serious expressions. The hope that shone in their eyes hadn't dimmed.
"Subaru, the books in the Library—their content might be knowledge."
"Knowledge… not in the literal sense, but…?"
At Beatrice's words, Subaru asked the obvious question.
Books typically contained either stories or knowledge. What one gained from books should be inspiration or the fulfillment of wisdom.
But what Beatrice was getting at surely went beyond that.
On Subaru's lap, Beatrice shook her head.
Her long vertical twin tails swayed in sync, and Subaru's gaze idly followed them.
"This place is where the knowledge of the being called the Omniscient Sage sleeps. The Pleiades Watchtower is merely what the structure is known as from the outside."
"That's right. If Master has returned, this place goes back to its original purpose. A great library where you can search for anything you want to know, anything you want to find—Pleiades."
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ "So to break it down—the Third Layer is beginner, the Second is intermediate, and the First gives you access to advanced information. The exams are basically clearance-level qualification tests?"
"Oh, nice one, Master! Even I'm starting to lose track of what's being said! But I think that's probably the right way to put it!"
——The Great Library Pleiades.
The watchtower's name had shifted from something intimidating to something almost cozy, even a touch dubious. Leaving the Sixth Layer behind, the party set out for the upper floors and began climbing the stairs.
The spiral staircase wound around the tower's circumference, carrying them upward, but with no handrails, the height made Subaru's stomach drop when he looked down.
"Scary…"
"Subaru, want to hold hands? You're still recovering from being sick—you might get dizzy and fall…"
As the Sixth Layer's floor receded below them and Gian and the dragon carriage shrank to small shapes, Emilia called out to Subaru, who had been peering over the edge and holding his breath.
Truthfully, he'd love to take her hand and savor the feel of her white fingers, but—.
"Thanks, Emilia-tan. I'm okay for now. The stairs have enough width that falling off seems unlikely, and I'm feeling restless enough to keep going."
"Okay? But if it gets too much, tell me right away, okay? If it comes to it, I could carry you on my back."
"That's… a situation I really don't want to end up in."
Being carried up the stairs by Emilia—the visuals would be too terrible.
Rather than do something so utterly unfit for a man, he'd rather owe Julius a favor.
"What is it?"
"I didn't say it was ideal either, just that it was better. Nothing important. Go, go."
Subaru waved his hand dismissively at Julius, who had noticed his gaze and turned his head. Julius shrugged and, taking Anastasia's hand, resumed leading the way.
Currently, Subaru's party was ascending the tower at a normal walking pace. Since there was no rush, their speed remained moderate despite Subaru's restless feelings. Julius and Anastasia led, followed by Ram and Emilia, then Subaru and Beatrice. At the very rear were Shaula and Meili—.
"Oh no, big sister, please don't bounce around so much~"
"Huh? The little one riding on someone else's back sure is bossy~"
"I'm tired! We've been walking non而且ally, and climbing up and down this many stairs is too much~"
"Then why am I the one carrying you… Ah! Don't pull my hair!"
They were noisy and lively, but there was no edge to their exchange.
The Shaula-and-Meili duo at the very back had taken on a curious arrangement: Shaula was carrying Meili on her back as they climbed. When they'd decided to head upward, Meili had complained about tired legs, but it was Shaula herself who volunteered to carry her—so the initiative had been left to her.
"In terms of raw physical ability, Shaula really is probably the strongest of us all…"
"Can't argue with that. —Subaru, don't let your guard down. She might bare her fangs at any moment, for all we know."
"She would? From that vibe?"
"If Subaru turns out not to be Flügel, there's no telling how she'll react."
"That's true…"
Subaru faltered at Beatrice's quiet warning.
It wasn't that he hadn't thought about it—it simply wasn't a problem he could afford to leave unexamined. The fact was, Shaula was being friendly to the group—to Subaru specifically—only because she was mistaking him for her master. Once that misunderstanding was cleared up…
And Subaru and the others knew full well it was a misunderstanding. They'd denied it verbally numerous times, but Shaula just smiled and brushed it off. "Brushed off" wasn't quite right—it was more like their words had no effect on her at all. Either way, nothing got through.
So one could take Shaula's attitude as guaranteed to remain unchanged—or—.
"The question is, what will it take to break that?"
"If she turned hostile, it'd be a nightmare for certain. Emilia, that knight Julius, Betty, and Subaru—nothing short of all of us at once."
"Shaula's strength, huh…"
Subaru glanced back, watching Shaula frolicking with Meili.
Her appearance was disarmingly friendly and unguarded. —Given how they'd first met and the things that followed, judging her was genuinely difficult.
In truth, Subaru hadn't formed any strong negative feelings toward Shaula despite his reservations. Even though it was all based on a case of mistaken identity, it was harder to dislike someone who treated him with such open, guileless warmth than to feel bewildered by it.
But those soft feelings and his lack of proper vigilance shouldn't be conflated.
"……"
Watching Shaula's carefree demeanor, his gaze drifting to her unguarded form, Subaru thought.
She was the one who had fired the tower's beam at them in the dunes, as she herself confessed. The rapid-fire speed and pinpoint accuracy of that light were extraordinary, giving ample cause to reckon with her strength. Subaru still couldn't tell whether that had been magic or something else.
Then there was the final moment underground.
In the moments before his consciousness faded—in a state of profound, hazy awareness—there should have been the confrontation between Shaula and that grotesque centaur-like creature.
The beast that seemed the very embodiment of irrationality or injustice had been crushed and obliterated by a superior force, as he had witnessed firsthand.
He didn't want to admit it, but in a direct fight, he couldn't envision a scenario where he beat Shaula.
Regulus and Petelgeuse—that lot was far easier to deal with.
"…Thinking about those guys puts me in a bad mood. Well, it's only natural, but they feel even worse by comparison now."
"I don't know what Subaru's thinking, but we do need to be careful."
"Yeah. So then… might as well ask her now."
"Huh? Ask what?"
Beatrice's vacant voice and Subaru's full-body pivot happened at the same time. With his back to the stairs, Subaru faced Shaula and Meili directly behind him.
Shaula stopped and tilted her head.
"What's wrong, Master? Did Master get tired too? I can carry you if you want, but my back is full, so it'd have to be a princess carry~"
"That'd be way too ridiculous a look, so I'll pass. Ah, sorry to interrupt you and Meili having a heartwarming ponytail moment, but—"
"It's not a ponytail, it's a scorpion tail."
"……"
"It's a scorpion tail."
For some reason insistent on the distinction, Shaula repeated herself in Subaru's silence.
Holding her ponytail's lock with one hand, Shaula thrust her face forward.
"Scorpion tail…"
"I get it! What's with the obsession? Anyway, sorry to interrupt you and Meili, but I've got a question."
"Sure! I'll listen to anything Master has to say! Master actually having a real conversation with me—I'm so happy~"
Shaula swung her ponytail—no, scorpion tail—happily about, much to the distress of Meili on her back, who was being battered by the tail strikes. Subaru had personally experienced that it was surprisingly soft and pleasant, but setting that aside—.
"You'll actually do what I say?"
"No hanky-panky allowed, though~"
"Don't open with that check! Are you trying to kill me with stupidity?"
"That's rich coming from Master, who's even worse. We're even~"
Subaru felt thrown by Shaula's easy composure. Normally, most people who entered the rhythm of his conversation style would stumble, and he'd use that to find a thread to pull. But with Shaula, it was hopeless.
This particular difficulty was different even from abnormal people like the Sin Archbishops. Their problem was that conversation couldn't be established at all; Shaula's was something else entirely.
It was the sense that the other person knew him, while he knew nothing about her.
As if, true to form, Flügel and Subaru really did share a lot in common.
"Anyway—a request and a question. Be as honest and straightforward as you can."
"That doesn't sound very commanding. You should just order me."
"I don't exactly come off as that imposing. So—my question is. You attacked us from the tower, right? What was that about?"
"That was sniping to keep pests away from the tower—Hell's Snipe."
"…What?"
"Hell's Snipe~"
Shaula cheerfully delivered the foreign-sounding term, and Subaru grimaced.
How to put it… well, the name made a certain kind of sense.
"Actually, looking back, it's a good thing Hell's Snipe didn't hit Master. If the Dimension Gate hadn't been dispelled, I might have kept firing until Master was hit~"
"Wait, wait, wait, wait—too many new words! Dimension?"
"Dimension Gate. It's a little trick to keep people from reaching the tower."
From the way Shaula spoke, Subaru understood that the "Dimension Gate" was the spatial distortion that had severed the path to the flower field via the sandstorm, and which had ultimately been undone by the effect of the E.M.T.
"But thanks to that, I figured out Master was really Master, so it all worked out. If I'd actually hit Master, even you would have been mad at me, right?"
"Well, I don't know. Whether anger would have been the right word…"
In fact, he'd died twice from those shots, so he wasn't sure he'd have made it to the stage of anger.
It was rare for him to face the perpetrator of his deaths without fury surging up. One reason was that he recognized it as an accident and knew it was pointless to hold Shaula responsible—but still.
"But wait, big brother—if that stuff had hit, wouldn't you have died? I don't think being angry or not would even be a conversation at that point~"
It was Meili on Shaula's back who chimed in, with Subaru in a half-forgiving state. At her words, Shaula laughed—a grating sound completely devoid of femininity.
"What are you talking about, little one? Of course Master wouldn't die from that. Master is someone who either can't die or dies—either way, totally beyond understanding."
"But the sand wormies all got attacked and died…"
"Sand worms and bears, who cares? The important thing is: my Master doesn't die. —If he died, he wouldn't be Master."
Shaula grinned and gazed at Subaru with bright, happy eyes. That innocent smile sent a chill down Subaru's spine.
She was as innocent as a child, offering trust in its most unguarded form. The ideal she held toward Flügel was, beyond imagination, a bedrock conviction that ran to the core of who she was.
If, as Beatrice feared, there was a mismatch between that and the Subaru standing before her now—.
"Oh, and I'm sorry I was late coming to the Sand Palace to pick you up. While I let Master's group into the tower with another group, Master's team pushed too far inside, so I panicked."
"Yeah, no, that's fine—wait, did you say Sand Palace?"
"Yup. That place is really dangerous, so it's best not to go in. Even Master shouldn't approach without all the keys—that's reckless. The饿馬王 is lurking around in there too."
"Hungry Horse King… that horse-like monster?"
Sand Palace, keys, Hungry Horse King. There were too many concerning terms, but he latched onto the last one.
That had to be the centaur.
Shaula nodded.
"It wasn't there in Master's time, so I'm sure you were surprised. It mostly just wanders around inside the Sand Palace, so you won't run into it if you don't go in. The ones that occasionally come out—I annihilate them without mercy."
"There are a lot of them?"
"Scads of them."
Shaula's instantaneous, unwavering confirmation made Subaru feel truly, profoundly repulsed.
The Hungry Horse King's combat strength went without saying, but its appearance and biology carried a level of revulsion difficult to put into words. He'd wanted it to be a special individual, but apparently not. The way she said "scads" made that clear.
"Hungry Horse King… I don't know that name either. I might want to see one~"
"Don't! That's not something a child should see—"
"Big brother…"
Meili spoke lightly, and Subaru gave her a stern warning. It might strike a chord in Meili's Mabeast-collector sensibilities, but attempting contact with them for the sake of filling out a picture book was not recommended.
At Subaru's words, Shaula nodded in agreement.
"I think you should stay away. The Hungry Horse King is a Mabeast with a concept of regenerating its horns no matter how many times they're cut, so the usual rules for other Mabeasts don't apply. Kill on sight—that's justice."
"Fine, fine, I got it~"
Meili pouted and reined in her curiosity with an age-appropriate gesture.
Relieved by her response, Subaru turned back to Shaula as she asked.
"Master, is that all you wanted to talk about?"
"Yeah, for now—actually, no, there's one more thing."
"…?"
Still tilting her head, Shaula seemed to welcome whatever was coming. After she'd been this open with him, continuing to be guarded felt almost dishonest. But no matter how much it pained him, there were times you had to steel your heart.
If saying it might change anything, then better to say it.
"Shaula—this is a request from me. Do not harm me or my companions."
"……"
"Master's orders were to attack anyone who approaches the tower… right? We've already entered, so we're outside that scope. You don't need to attack anymore. Do not cause us harm. Under any circumstances."
"……"
When Subaru pressed the point once more, Shaula's eyes narrowed.
Looking at those narrowed eyes, he saw they were a deep, vivid green. The Shaula who had been wearing a rich, expressive smile at every turn had, for the first time, let that smile fade in thought.
A brief silence followed. Subaru, his breath held in a strange tension, finally broke and exhaled—and—.
"Mm, okay. I'll take that as Master's new order and commit it to memory~"
"……"
"Master?"
The instant her compliance was given, Shaula's composure crumbled into a wide grin. Subaru stared with round eyes at the sudden reversal, and Shaula leaned in close enough that her breath brushed his face.
Their eyes met at intimate range, and in those green irises Subaru found no trace of deception or mistrust—at least, not that he could discern.
"You sure?"
"Sure or not sure doesn't matter—it's what Master said. Besides, it's not difficult. Non-violence, non-compliance."
"You're complying by following the order, so how is that non-compliance?"
"Even if my body is obedient, you'll never have my heart!"
"Annoying…!"
Subaru flicked Shaula on the forehead, sending her back with a flick. "Ow~" Shaula retreated, and Meili on her back panicked, but no harm done.
Regardless, Subaru's request seemed to have been accepted without resistance. How much weight that carried was unclear, but at least—.
"As long as I don't betray her expectations, she'll keep the promise?"
"If that's the only condition, it'll be fine. Subaru always defies expectations, but he never betrays them."
"Super flattering, but in that case, the part about not betraying expectations is way too vague—what exactly is she expecting of me? Should I grow wings or something? Something German-looking?"
Incidentally, "Flügel" in Subaru's mind meant "wing" in German.
He didn't think that was where the name came from, but it was suspicious. This Flügel—especially including the connection to Shaula—was just too shady.
"Oh, right. Shaula, I have one last question."
"What~?"
Shaula, completely relaxed, was getting her cheeks squished by Meili.
Without turning around, Subaru casually recited.
"Maia, Electra, Taygeta, Alcyone, Celaeno, Asterope."
"…Subaru?"
Beatrice, beside him, shot him a puzzled look.
The words sounded, to the ear, like a string of unfamiliar syllables.
Four of them, he had only just heard, but they weren't the kind of thing one could easily memorize on the spot—unless they sounded familiar.
"Those are all the layer names of the Pleiades Watchtower—no, the Great Library Pleiades—in order from top to bottom, right?"
"Yep~"
"Then where is Merope?"
"……"
Shaula fell silent at Subaru's question. But this silence was different from her earlier contemplative pause—this was the silence of being caught off guard.
He caught a faint sound of her inhaling, and Subaru judged that he'd touched on something.
"Subaru, what did you ask? What's Merope?"
"The last of seven sisters. If this is Pleiades, there should be seven."
Six names were assigned to layers from the First to the Sixth. But the motif—the Pleiades—was originally seven sisters. There should be a seventh layer with a name.
"There's a Seventh Layer… or a Zero Layer."
"Zero Layer. Since Master named it, of course it exists. …But it was made after Master was gone, so I don't know where it is."
At Subaru's shot-in-the-dark guess, Shaula answered in a hoarse voice. Beatrice seemed startled, but Subaru licked his dry lips and narrowed his eyes.
There was no sense of discovery—he hadn't unearthed something hidden. For him, it had been hiding in plain sight all along.
"If the First Layer is advanced, then the Zero Layer is super-advanced? To enter…"
"No."
Shaula cut Subaru's question short with a rapid, firm voice. When Subaru glanced back at the force of her tone, her expression hadn't changed.
The same smile, the same look of trust. Only a faint loneliness lingered around her eyes.
"The conditions haven't been met yet. Master came back on the way, found me, and that's enough for me. So—the Zero Layer is a no."
"……"
Her tone hadn't changed, but behind it lay a barrier so solid it was almost bizarre.
It carried the danger of undermining the very promise they had just exchanged minutes ago, and Subaru felt the peril of pressing further keenly.
And so, he chose to let it go.
"Got it. I won't push. Just honor the earlier promise."
"Consider it done~ I'll keep it~ I'll super keep it~"
In an instant, Shaula's face lit up, and she bounced with joy as if their entire exchange had been forgotten.
Listening to her bright voice from ahead, Subaru exhaled deeply.
"Subaru, tell me if it's too much, okay?"
"Mm, I'm fine. Just… a lot to think about."
He gave Beatrice a thin smile at her concern and gently stroked her head. That rendered Beatrice speechless, but it was also a ritual to steady Subaru's own nerves.
What had emerged from the conversation with Shaula—Flügel's abnormality.
It was obvious, really. He was the same as Subaru.
Subaru, Al, Hoshin, and Flügel.
Knowledge that shouldn't exist in this world, brought here and ostentatiously displayed—undisguised self-promotion. Beyond any doubt, Flügel was from the same place as Subaru.
"Several hundred years ago, huh…"
Lost in thought across the vast span of time, Subaru scratched his head roughly.
What had this man thought in this otherworld? What had he pondered, what had he aimed for, what had he sought?
Abandoning the title of "Sage" to plant a tree—what had Flügel wished for?
Had he lived on in this world, Subaru wondered, as that question turned over in his mind.
And at Subaru's back—.
"Master."
"Hmm?"
Shaula called to him in a familiar tone. Subaru didn't stop walking—only flicked a glance backward—but Shaula looked up at him and gave a slight, bashful smile.
Her expression was truly a happy one.
"Welcome back, Master. —The return of the 'Sage' Flügel. I, Shaula, have awaited you from the bottom of my heart. …So."