Chapter 72

The Truth Behind the Scenes While Nick was fighting Garos, Karan faced an unusual crisis of her own. “Okay, we’re heading out. Take good care of the agency, Karan,” Tiana said. “The idols will be safe with me,” Karan answered. The Survivors had established a work routine for while Nick was away. From morning until noon, Tiana, Zem, and Bond would protect the idols as they went out for events, and Karan would stay at the agency to watch over the idols while they diligently trained and attended meetings. Then from noon until night, all except Nick would join up to help with concert security. Karan honestly wanted to go with Nick and help him, but she was well aware she didn’t have the knowledge or experience required to search for a person. She would only get in the way. Shortly after she renewed her resolve to help by doing what she could, she heard Daffodil scream in the training room. “What?! You can’t reach one of the dancers?!” “We went to her apartment, but it was deserted… We may not find her before the show,” Joseph informed her apologetically. The idols in the room listened with concern. Karan did her best to avoid looking at them and pretend like she wasn’t listening, but she sensed trouble. “No… Dragonian dancers are so valuable,” Daffodil lamented. “We will have to look for a substitute in the meantime. It would not be hard to find a human dancer, but…” Joseph trailed off. “I want the backing dancers on both sides to be a race with a big tail, like a dragonian or a vulpinian. They should be able to make full use of the stage,” Daffodil said. “Do you have anyone in mind?” Joseph asked. “Hmm… I know of some dancers from the wind dragon clan, but their people don’t get along with my family… Hey, do you all happen to know any beastmen who can dance?” Daffodil turned and asked the idols who were stealthily listening in. “I know a squirrel girl, but she’s not athletic…” “I have a cat beastman friend, but she has a thin tail. She’d probably be too self-conscious.” “The beastman receptionist at the Adventurers Guild is super athletic. Ah, but they can’t have side jobs.” No one had a good answer. Karan shut them out with all her might. Now might be a good time to slip away to the bathroom. “The choreography isn’t that difficult, right?” Agate asked. “Yeah. We would only need them for the beginning and end of the show when everyone is onstage. Hmm… We need someone brave enough to go onstage with this little warning,” Daffodil said. She and Agate glanced at Karan. “…No way,” Karan said bluntly, sensing everyone looking at her. “Hey, Karan. You wore a costume the other day!” Agate said. “I’m not doing it!” Karan insisted. “Don’t say that, Karan. Nick said it looks good on you, remember?” Agate said. “Wh-what does Nick have to do with anything?! I’m working as a bodyguard!” Karan declared, flustered. She turned away, determined not to get dragged into this, but she had already fallen into Agate’s trap. She had no chance of winning an argument against a group of idols, all of whom were skilled in the art of conversation. “Being with us will make protecting us easier. Pretending to be an idol will let you jump in at a moment’s notice,” Agate argued. “I’d feel better about you filling in than someone I’ve never met. We’ve seen how hard you work,” Amber agreed. “I just want to see you dance!” Topaz said. “Why are you asking me?! I’m an amateur!” Karan cried. “No you’re not. You danced a lot until you turned thirteen or so,” Daffodil responded. “That’s true, but that was a long time ago!” Karan was getting upset. Joseph intervened to calm them down. “Don’t worry, Ms. Tsubaki. We are not asking you to actually go onstage. We just cannot visualize the show in practice unless we have the proper number of dancers. All you would need to do is fill in until we find a replacement.” Karan knew she couldn’t outright reject a request from her client. If only she could turn to her absent party members for help. She had been through many hardships and grown as a person, but she had no choice but to comply. And so Karan danced—and it was more fun than she expected. She was getting into it, actually. She stepped and turned to the music, matching her movements to those of the surrounding idols. There was a large mirror on the wall, and she couldn’t help but think they were beautiful as they all danced in unison. She even found herself singing and giving advice to new dancers. Nearly an hour had passed before Karan returned to her senses and realized just how long she had been slacking from her guard duty. “No more idoling!” she shouted. “But you were so good… Shockingly good,” Daffodil said. “I know you’re not being serious, Daffy!” Karan responded. “I was joking at first, but… The dancing came so naturally to you that I ended up training you like you were already a member of the team,” Daffodil said earnestly. The other idols, and even Joseph, seemed to see Karan in a different light. She realized they were becoming serious about this and panicked. “I’m warning you, I’ll—!” “Sorry, sorry. I’m not going to use you in the real concert. You have the potential to be a good dancer if you keep working, but it would be a big mistake to think you’re on par with fully trained idols,” Daffodil said. “When did this become a competition…?” Karan complained, but secretly, she was relieved. “How are you this good, though? Is it because you used to be a dancer?” Agate asked. Karan was unsure of the answer herself. “Maybe because the choreography resembles dragonian dancing. It felt natural. I also sometimes see idols dance at parks and outdoor events.” “Hmm…” Agate smiled meaningfully. “What do you want?” Karan asked. “Do you wanna take a quick break?” Agate asked. “I’ll buy you a drink.” “I’m working,” Karan said. “I’m gonna borrow her for a bit!” Agate announced to the other idols and guards. They said not to worry and encouraged the break. It was true that Karan hadn’t taken much time to rest. She was the kind of person who didn’t get tired from waiting and standing around, and the other guards and idols had come to trust her for that. “I don’t need a break!” “Yeah, yeah.” Agate brought Karan to a break space on a staircase landing near the roof of the agency. There was a bench set before a large window with a sweeping view of northwest Labyrinth City. The cityscape was orderly and clean, and the tallest building in the city, Teran Hall, was visible in the distance. Schools with young students, knight training facilities, trading posts, and other spacious buildings could be seen as well. Seeing this side of Labyrinth City affected Karan more than she would have thought. “Do you want a coffee?” Agate asked. “Sure, but is it really okay for me to slack off like this?” “It’s important to take breaks.” “…Are you not scared of me?” Karan asked timidly. “Why would I be scared of you?” “I often scare little girls and kids.” “Oh yeah, some people are scared of dragonians. Daffodil complains about that sometimes.” “Hmm…,” Karan answered wordlessly. The truth was that she was scared of Agate. She felt an immeasurable…something from the girl that she couldn’t figure out. “That’s true, but adventurers probably scare people, too.” “A lot of them act like ruffians, but I like everyone from the Survivors.” “What about the false paladins?” “I am scared of them. But I won’t let them break me.” “Can you continue working as an idol, knowing they’re out there?” “Oh… Yeah, that is scary. I don’t want to be followed by anyone dangerous. I also worry about how long I’ll be able to maintain my skin, my voice, and my back. There’s always a chance my fans could lose interest in me.” Agate laughed with an embarrassed smile. Still, her fear wouldn’t stop her. “But you’re still going,” Karan said. “Honestly, I never set out to become an idol. It just kind of happened. I feel a little inferior compared to the girls who came to this agency with the goal of going down this path,” Agate admitted. “Really?” “Don’t say that to the other idols, of course. Some might use that admission to pick on newcomers or bully me. Everyone here works so hard, which leads us to have complicated feelings toward each other. We all act cute, but we’re bursting with ambition. Especially the top idols and managers…” Karan froze, wondering for a moment if Agate herself was plotting something. “Oh, don’t get the wrong idea! That’s not why I brought you here!” Agate shook her head. She must have sensed Karan’s unease. “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that. What did you bring me here for, then?” Karan asked. “I wanted to make something clear. I’m not ever going to date Nick,” Agate said. Karan choked on her coffee. “Wh-what are you talking about?!” “Huh? Are you not his girlfriend?!” Agate asked. “No, I… I’m not!” “You just hesitated. You seem closer than normal friends or coworkers. You look bored without him here, too.” “I’m not bored!” Karan realized how flustered she was and began to nervously explain herself. “Nick saved me. I want to repay him for that. I want to be helpful and do more things with him. But…” “But what?” “Nick has been lying to us recently.” “Let’s go punch his teeth out,” Agate said, shocking Karan speechless. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to say that out loud. Go on.” Karan laughed and continued speaking. She was touched that Agate was understanding enough to make that kind of joke, and before she knew it, she was pouring out her heart. “He’s not really lying, I guess. He’s just not telling the truth… And when he does lie, he does it for my sake or for the rest of the party. I was happy when he told me that but also a little sad.” “It’s good he was willing to listen to you and share that,” Agate said with a smile as Karan searched for the words to say. “I always want to say something to Nick when he keeps his worries to himself. I get angry wondering why he won’t rely on us. Then we get angry at each other and fight. I prefer that to not talking at all, but I want to understand Nick without having to get mad at him,” Karan said. “So you want to know what he’s thinking without having to beat it out of him?” Agate asked. There was pain in her voice as if she was remembering something from her own past. “That’s all I know how to do. I want to help Nick without bothering him. I’m tired of getting worked up and then thinking about how stupidly I behaved. But I don’t really know why I feel that way. I might’ve grown a little, but I’m still an idiot,” Karan said. “You don’t know exactly what you’re feeling,” Agate responded gently. Karan nodded. “I think you’ll understand someday. If you’re brave enough to listen to his true feelings and share your own with him, you definitely will.” Karan was growing a little offended by Agate’s responses. She sounded like an adult speaking to a child, acting like they knew everything while saying nothing at all. “Hey, it’s not fair if I’m the only one who has to open up this way. Do you have anything embarrassing to share?” Karan asked. “Not really,” Agate said, gloom coming over her face. “My job is a lot of fun right now. I practice, go to events, perform at concerts, hit a wall, realize how much I need to improve, then practice some more… There’s so much I can’t do that I want to become capable of. So right now I just want to focus on work.” The gloom faded as she spoke. She reminded Karan of an adventurer facing the dark depths of a labyrinth. “There was a person I…used to depend on. I convinced myself that their dream was my dream, when I was really just hiding from my own emptiness,” Agate said. “I know what you mean…” “I feel like if I find someone to replace them with, I’ll end up making the same mistakes. I want to grow and become an adult so I can be part of a supportive relationship, rather than just depend on someone… I want to share a dream instead of committing myself to someone else’s.” Karan was afraid for a second that Agate had read her mind. Her words reminded her of when she’d relied on Callios. “Don’t you think it would make you happy to pursue a dream together with someone like that?” Agate asked. Her smile was so bright, Karan had to look away. “What is your dream? To become the most popular idol?” Karan asked. “Hmm. I do want that, but only to help me accomplish my dream,” Agate answered. “Which is?” “I’m just one small person without physical strength, mana, or lineage. I’ve lived a pretty weird life compared with most people. Not that I can say that to my fans. But…” “Yeah?” “I want my wonderful songs to reach into people’s souls!” Agate declared, reaching out her hands as if she could literally touch the hearts of her fans. “I may be small, but my words can impact the world. I’ll help great people like you and Nick recover from hardship and find the energy to work hard tomorrow and the next day. Even lowlifes will hear my songs and be inspired to change and do good.” “I wonder if that’s true,” Karan responded with a cynical smile. She wanted to support Agate, but the discussion was bringing down her mood. She didn’t share that faith in humanity. People were too dishonest by nature. Karan wondered if part of her reaction was born out of jealousy. She couldn’t compete with Agate as she spoke confidently about her ambitious yet clear dream. Karan was well aware of her own ugly flaws. Even so, Agate smiled at her. “It is! Just you watch!” she said, clapping her on the back so hard it hurt. Karan was so surprised by the violence that she just gaped wordlessly. “Everyone who hears my songs will be heroes and saints! That goes for you, too!” Those words shocked Karan. “…The dragonian mission to serve the hero.” “Oh yeah, Daffodil said that once.” “Did she say anything else?” “Uh… Well, she was drunk at the time,” Agate said evasively. Karan smiled bitterly. “She probably said it was stupid to let yourself be tied down by that mission. She’s always felt that way.” She had never liked that about Daffodil. Karan was always proud that dragonians were known for their bravery, but her cousin didn’t think that way. She thought it was ridiculous that they should have to commit their lives to supporting someone else. She said everyone should be the main character of their own life. That opinion had always irritated Karan. She was aware of her own strength, but never thought she had what it took to save the world or lead other people. Her idea of the hero didn’t involve ability, talent, or motivation; she thought they would be an intelligent and just person who lived to guide the people of the world. She thought that by giving her strength to the hero, she and the dragonians would become just people as well, despite being known for nothing but their strength. But she’d learned something after being deceived and hurt, becoming hopelessly addicted to gourmet food, and getting back on her feet. There was no single intelligent and just person who would rise up to lead humanity. The world consisted only of fools who searched for that hero person only to be deceived, fools who were ensnared by suspicion after being deceived, and fools who chose to deceive others. Living an entirely just life and committing yourself to one person was not realistic. Karan was beginning to think if there was a hero, they would be a person who was conscious of their own flaws and insignificance but persevered in the face of hardship anyway. Karan knew a person like that, and he didn’t allow her to remain ignorant of the world. He kept telling her she wasn’t an idiot and encouraging her to learn and grow as a person. When he made a mistake, he listened to his party members. Karan had acknowledged that he was a regular person and not a hero. That was an important decision for working alongside him, and she would never forget saying those words. But it felt like a sad ritual she had to perform to grow up and leave her naive dream behind. An epiphany struck Karan. Maybe you didn’t have to be an all-knowing hero to do good in the world. Maybe you weren’t born intelligent and just; maybe you reached that point by fumbling in the dark and making mistakes until you became the kind of person who could make a difference. If that was true, anyone who had people to support them and admonish them when they messed up could become a hero. Even Karan, despite how foolish she was in her past and how foolish she still was. “Ah, they’re back,” Karan said. “Where are they?” Agate asked. “Over there,” Karan responded, pointing out the window at a carriage. There was a silver-haired boy lounging on the roof. It was Bond. He had the bearing of a cat that could inexplicably land on its feet if it happened to roll off. He called out and waved when he noticed Karan and Agate, and they responded by turning to each other and laughing. “Be careful at the concert this evening. Topaz’s fans are pretty unique,” Agate warned. “You can count on me. I’m a hero, after all,” Karan responded. Take care of the horses. Travel. Watch for threats. Wait. Take care of the horses again. That was the typical loop the Survivors’ bodyguard jobs followed. “I’m exhausted,” Tiana silently said to her party members. Working behind the scenes to protect the extravagant world of idols was more monotonous and boring than she could have imagined. “Was the job this morning hard?” Karan asked. “Not really… It was just really slow. I thought it would never end,” Tiana answered. Tiana, Zem, and Bond had been placed in charge of security at an event in the morning. As per usual, the job consisted of transporting the idols to the venue by carriage, watching for threats, and waiting for the event to end. It was a quiet event at which the idols had been tasked with promoting a clothing brand targeted at mages, and it passed without incident. The attendees were all either mages or people who worked with the brand, so no one was there to see the girls, and there were no false paladins. That made for a slow, boring job during which they spent more time guiding lost guests than actually protecting anyone. It was now evening, and Tiana, Zem, and Bond had joined up with Karan to run security at a concert. Tiana realized her desire to go home was showing on her face and rubbed her brow. “I think you would’ve handled it well, Karan… I just can’t deal with all the standing around. It makes me too sleepy,” Tiana said. “Now, now, Tiana. Don’t say that… We can take a break once all the fans have entered the venue,” Zem responded. “The staff meals are delicious. They’re using a quality caterer,” Karan said. “Eating a meal backstage really makes me feel like a celebrity,” Bond added. Tiana refocused on the scene before her after getting a little distracted by their conversation. She was standing by the entrance of the venue, watching as staff tore off fans’ ticket stubs and ushered them inside. The venue was Labyrinth City’s southern public hall, and Topaz was performing there tonight. The evening had been surprisingly peaceful so far despite the significant traffic. Nearly all the attendees were men, which was typical of idol concerts, but there were even fewer female fans than Tiana had seen at other shows. Topaz’s mature and tolerant nature, combined with her youthful playfulness, had captivated many of the opposite sex, resulting in an even greater percentage of male fans compared with the percentage at other idols’ shows. No small number of fans had actually allowed themselves to fall in love with Topaz, and her groupies had taken on the personality of a vigilante group. They often dealt with rude and misbehaving fans before venue security could act. This radicalization had caused many headaches for Topaz and her managers, but it made the Survivors’ job as newly hired guards easier, and Tiana thought their intensity would help her stay awake, too. Even if it was a bit much. Tiana hoped nothing would happen as she watched the idol audience stream into the venue with tickets in hand, but she knew how unlikely that was. “Excuse me, sir. Would you mind showing me your seat number?” “H-huh? Just let me in already!” A staff member and a fan began to argue. The staff member must have had a good memory and realized that the fan had the same seat number as someone they’d admitted earlier. The customer was clearly suspicious—he was already agitated when he was called forward. It was only seconds later that his ticket started to burn and black fog coiled around his body. He was a false paladin. “Everyone! Grab the buckets! Quickly!” Tiana yelled. The nearby security guards and staff working at the entrance quickly followed her orders and splashed the man with buckets of water that had been set nearby as if they were for a fire. “What the hell was that for?!” “Gah, that’s cold!” The water drenched other fans near the man, too, eliciting complaints, but Tiana shut them up with a glare. The realization that something weird was going on spread through the crowd. “W-was that really enough?!” one of the staff members asked nervously, but Tiana could see that it had worked. “Wh-why’d you do that?! I-I’m f-f-freezing…!” the man whined. When he was drenched, Tiana cast the spell Freeze with very little force. That lowered his body temperature and froze the wet ticket, weakening its effect. The man then finished it off by accidentally crumpling it in his hand, causing the black fog to disappear immediately. The transformation had failed, leaving the man with nothing but a counterfeit ticket. “Now where did you get that fake? You’re going to tell us everything!” Tiana demanded. The man realized he was at a disadvantage and used what little strength he had left to get up and attempt to run. Tiana was worried he would harm other members of the audience, but he didn’t make it far. “Did I hear ‘fake ticket’? How dare you try to get into one of Pazzy’s concerts that way!” “H-hey, you’re on the blacklist! Have you learned nothing?!” A group of surprisingly macho men wearing orange-tinged red jackets surrounded the man with the counterfeit. The Topaz groupies seized him. “H-hey! Go easy on him! I want to question him later!” Tiana shouted. “I underestimated you. You seem to be an adventurer of some renown,” one of the groupies said, bowing his head to Tiana. “Huh? Y-yeah, I suppose,” Tiana responded. “Wait a second… You’re Lady Tiana from the Survivors. What are you doing here?” Tiana didn’t remember the man, but he seemed to recognize her. “U-umm… Have we met at an Adventurers Guild?” she asked. “I’m Willy. Oh, I never gave you my name, did I? I go to a lot of concerts with Nick… Wait. Is he working as a security guard here, too?” the man asked. Tiana nearly cursed, but she held herself together and thought of an excuse. “I’m working a part-time job because we’re taking a break from adventuring. There’s no way they’d hire Nick, ah-ha-ha!” “I guess so. Well, good luck. The show’s about to start!” Willy gave her a bright smile and a thumbs-up and gladly handed over the man with the counterfeit ticket. Tiana breathed a sigh of relief that everything had worked out. “Hey, what’s taking so long?! Let us in already!” The fans at the gates grew impatient and began to complain. While Topaz did have a lot of diehards, ordinary fans still significantly outnumbered them. They needed to reopen the gates and restore the flow of fans into the venue. Unfortunately, the staff were taking a while to recover from the confusion of what had just happened. Fan admission wasn’t part of Tiana’s job, but if someone else with a counterfeit showed up right now, she wouldn’t be able to handle them. “THIS IS AGATE, HERE TO SUPPORT TOPAZ! THERE IS PLENTY OF TIME BEFORE THE CONCERT BEGINS, SO PLEASE BE PATIENT!” A loud voice echoed in the venue, causing the area around the entrance to go quiet. Tiana looked toward the voice and saw Agate holding a voice-amplifying magic item. She had emerged from a staff passageway and used it to speak to all the fans in attendance. “Hey, it’s Aggie. She came to watch the show.” “I love Aggie, too. She’s grown so much since her debut.” “Didn’t you say Pazzy’s the only one for you?” That one statement was all Agate needed to calm the angry atmosphere at the entrance. She’s good, Tiana thought before thanking her. Topaz addressed the crowd after singing a number of songs. The day’s security work was about halfway done. A false paladin in possession of a counterfeit ticket had already been caught, and now that the show had started, it was unlikely any more fans would arrive. The entire staff was relieved. “There are no problems at the entrance. What about you all?” Tiana asked the others using Telepathy. “Everything is fine in the waiting room,” Zem answered. “There are no signs of trouble in the stands, either,” Bond said. “And nothing in the hallway,” Karan answered. Tiana heard Topaz’s sweet and kind voice reverberate throughout the stadium as they spoke in their minds. She wondered what kind of singer Agate was. Tiana had been watching the girl practice while on guard duty. Agate was so much more lively than when they first met, and she seemed to emanate a strange passion. Maybe I should go to one of her shows… Tiana thought, just before she heard a voice. “Why…? Why did the show have to start already…? I finally got a ticket…” The sun had set, and the streetlights around the venue were popping on to illuminate the area with warm color. A man emerged from the darkness beyond, his dimly lit face the picture of anguish. He was drenched in sweat as if he was being roasted over a fire, his eyes were bloodshot, and his breathing was shallow. “Someone is approaching the entrance, and he looks dangerous. Karan, Bond, hurry over here for support,” Tiana said. The tension in her voice sent a wave of nervousness through the others. “Could you please show me your ticket?” she asked, holding her staff ready for a fight. The man looked like he was too far gone to hear her. His eyes were unfocused yet hostile. A black fog began to wrap around his body, and this fog was much more distinct. “Get down, everyone! Rushing Stream!” Tiana yelled, warning off the staff members who had sensed trouble and begun to approach her. A torrent of water rushed from her staff. The false paladin didn’t even try to dodge it. He went down easier than I expected, Tiana thought with relief, but that thought turned out to be premature. “DON’T GET IN MY WAY!” the man shrieked. “Wha…? It evaporated?!” Tiana exclaimed. A tremendous heat protected the false paladin, turning the water to vapor before it could drench the ticket. The air turned as humid as a sauna. Each step the man took was accompanied by a sizzle as the heat beneath his feet burned the dust on the ground. The black fog had now manifested into a set of armor that seemed just as formidable as White Mask’s. A fire spell also protected his body; it was as if his armor was made from the black flames of hatred itself. “Take this!” “Hi-yah!” Karan and Bond raced toward the false paladin and attacked him while protecting Tiana. “Be careful! There’s something weird about this guy!” Tiana warned. The false paladin caught Karan’s and Bond’s blades in his hands, and Karan was astonished by his strength. “Where is his ticket?!” Bond asked. “Hidden under his armor!” Tiana answered. “Then we’ll have to tear the armor off!” Karan shouted. The dragonian let go of her sword and grabbed the man with her hands. Meanwhile, Topaz’s concert had reached its climax. The man’s strength seemed to grow in proportion to the audience’s excitement. “Grk… It’s hot…!” Karan groaned. “Karan! Don’t hurt yourself!” Tiana yelled. “Zem can just heal me later!” Karan yelled back. She appeared to successfully lock the false paladin’s arm, but then he flung her off. “I’M GONNA MISS THE SHOW!” he screamed. He grabbed a pillar to try to climb to his feet, but he broke it when he pulled on it and lost his balance, falling back to the ground. Tiana realized that he couldn’t fully control his impossible strength. “He can’t handle his armor! Don’t let him get up!” she ordered. Karan and Bond teamed up to keep him occupied with attacks. The false paladin’s defense was so great that not even the sharpest strikes could scratch him; their swords might as well have been hammers. They couldn’t afford a stalemate. Tiana didn’t know why, but this man was significantly stronger than any of the false paladins they had encountered thus far, and he was growing stronger still. They couldn’t let this stretch on any longer. “Urgh… No, I’m…” Fortunately, the false paladin’s strength suddenly began to bleed out. Bond and Karan realized that something was happening and stayed their blades. The protective flame vanished from the armor, and the armor itself dissolved into smoke and disappeared. This left a defenseless would-be concertgoer lying on the ground. “What happened…?” Tiana said. She realized belatedly that Topaz’s final song had ended and the crowd had quieted. Fans were streaming out of the venue to return home. Tiana was confused, but she pushed that aside; they needed to clean up. “I do not know what happened, but we have him…,” Bond said with a melodramatic and tired shrug. He took the ticket from the false paladin; it was blackened, just like the previous counterfeit ticket they’d obtained. Tiana thought it looked even darker. The man was lethargic and unmoving. He resembled the Survivors when they dispelled Union. This was how people reacted when released from certain types of trances. A thought occurred to Tiana. “…Hey, Bond. You were telling us about minstrels before. Something about how they could perform special ritual magic.” “Yes, I remember,” Bond responded. “Can you explain that again?” Tiana asked. “Hmm. Minstrels fulfilled a support role by granting strength to their companions through song or by placing a crowd in a trancelike state to…gather mana…” An expression of surprise came over Bond as he spoke. “Are you saying this man is a minstrel?” “Do you disagree?” “…You cannot cast ritual magic without a ritual. The ritual is necessary for collecting mana. We can omit much of that process when casting Union, but normally a ritual requires preparation. You need a ritual implement for gathering mana, an altar for presenting offerings, a crowd of participants to offer prayer in unison, and a shaman or minstrel at the center of the ritual to ask for prayer…” “Can someone steal mana that is being collected?” “From where?” “The concert.” Bond said nothing. “I don’t know what a ritual implement is,” Tiana continued, “but the rest of the factors are in place. The venue is decorated with wreaths and other gifts in celebration of the concert. The fans are wearing jackets of the same color and waving magic glow sticks while the idol calls on them to sing and cheer. How is that any different from worshippers and a priest gathering in a cathedral and singing hymns?” “…The idols in this city are performing rituals. And one concert gathered enough mana to give this man strength rivaling White Mask’s,” Bond said. A chill ran down Tiana’s back. A strange conspiracy larger than they could have imagined was occurring just underfoot. It was big enough to consume everything if they let down their guard. “We need to do something about this before something truly terrible happens,” Tiana said. “Garos killed the counterfeit-ticket seller right in front of you, and you were questioned at a Sun Knight station?! That’s way too much information for me to process at once!” Tiana exclaimed through Telepathy. “Don’t worry, they didn’t hold me for long. Let’s gather at a place called Woods Credit Check Office,” Nick responded, leaving the station. Watching Garos silence Eishu had made Nick a material witness in the case, and to make matters worse, Alice, a Sun Knight captain, was there, too. He was preparing himself for the possibility of going a few days—or even a week—without seeing the light of day, but he was released from the station surprisingly quickly. When he tried to leave, thanking his luck for avoiding days of questioning, a slender yet muscular arm wrapped around his neck. “Bwah,” Nick gasped. “Oh dear, Nick. Were you trying to leave without saying good-bye? You’ll hurt my feelings.” “What the hell?! You can’t just sneak up on people and put them in a chokehold!” The person let go. It was Alice. “I’m guessing you’re surprised by how quickly we let you go,” she said. “Yeah, I am,” Nick responded. Garos had killed Eishu, who turned out to be the counterfeit-ticket seller. The murderer was Nick’s former party member, and a knight witnessed the incident. Nick would not have been surprised if they’d confined him at the station and questioned him all day and night. He’d decided to tell Alice everything except for the truth about the Sword of Bonds in the hopes of avoiding that. “You’ve told us everything you know, so there’s no reason to hold you. Our time will be better spent investigating. Oh, don’t mention that to the other Sun Knights. I’m not really supposed to tell you any of this,” Alice said. “You’re a rotten knight,” Nick commented. Alice ignored the jab and continued. “Let’s review the case. There’s no doubt that White Mask is Garos. He’s continuing his job even after losing his holy armor. We also learned Eishu was a fellow demon-god worshipper.” “Yep. Their conversation doesn’t make sense unless we assume they had the same employer,” Nick said. “But Garos killed Eishu.” “Eishu was getting carried away with his hobby and endangering the demon-god worshippers. His carelessness enabled us to track him down.” Alice nodded. “Eishu let his guard down…and that’s why he had to go. You’re good, Nick. I was surprised when you broke his illusion.” “I had no idea you were behind me hitching a ride, though,” Nick said. “I helped you, didn’t I? You would’ve died if you’d had to fight them alone,” Alice replied with a flirtatious wink. Nick sighed. “I know. Thanks.” “Anyway, Garos is our biggest problem now. He stole the rest of Eishu’s tickets,” Alice said. “I don’t know much about the tickets, either. Garos reacted to the word shaman, for some reason.” “We’ll have to look into that. I’ll start by putting Garos on the Wanted list. We need to speak to the rest of the members of Combat Masters, too.” “Go ahead. This is their own fault. I told you about the safe house Argus and the others use. But…” “Yeah, the odds of finding them there are slim.” Nick had no choice but to accept that he had been deceived in a major way. He hadn’t caught even a hint of Garos’s true identity during the near decade he’d spent in Combat Masters. Argus almost certainly knew about it and kept it from Nick. It was even possible that Argus himself was a hit man for the demon-god worshippers. “Discovering the truth is often painful. Do you still feel like working on this case? There would be no shame in leaving the rest to me or your friends,” Alice said kindly. Nick shook his head. “I’m not backing down. They need to pay. Not for deceiving me, but for all their killing and thievery.” “Then there’s something I can do to make things a little easier for you. Read and sign this,” Alice said, offering him a stack of papers. The top page was an application to become a temporary Sun Knight employee. Alice and this station’s commander had already signed it. The rest of the pages detailed the conditions for the contract. They said he had to obey the law, refrain from overstepping his authority, and follow the orders of superior knights while on duty. His work hours and wages were also written in detail. Nick actually recognized this document. He had seen fellow adventurers flaunt it before. It actually wasn’t uncommon for the Order of the Sun Knights to temporarily hire adventurers. Assisting the order and gaining their trust to land a job as a Sun Knight was one route to success available to adventurers. Former adventurers couldn’t rise as high in the order as Sun Knights who entered on the fast track to leadership, but they could gain plenty of money and prestige. Alice wouldn’t have been able to offer Nick this contract if he hadn’t gained a decent reputation among the Sun Knights. He would have been honored under other circumstances. “I thought you’d made this a competition, Alice,” Nick said, confused. “Martha Canning,” Alice responded. “Huh?” “She was originally laid to rest in the morgue of a public cemetery in the Garbage Heap. I heard what happened from the gravekeeper. He’s a funny man. He was terrified, but he insisted that I donate because it would mean trouble for him if someone of my station didn’t. I like him.” “You went there?” Nick clearly remembered the gravekeeper’s face. He was a strange man; he was timid, yet strict with anyone who didn’t follow the rules, status notwithstanding. “I’m sorry for not understanding you,” Alice said quietly. “…Okay.” “Anyway, sign this.” “Hold on,” Nick protested. “Let’s just say I lost our competition. This is your victory trophy,” Alice said. She was so overwhelming that Nick retreated a step. “This contract will allow you to maintain your reputation, no matter what happens. You can stay the night if you don’t want to sign it. You need a shower.” Alice gave him a look that said he would be confined for much longer than one night if he didn’t sign. He could be stuck here for a week or even a month. Despite her easygoing attitude, she was passionate, and that passion didn’t prevent her from calmly looking ahead. Nick found her terrifying. “Tch… Guess I’ve got no choice,” Nick said. “Hmm-hmm, don’t worry. I won’t restrict you in any way, and you’ll be paid for your work. Moving on… Garos took Eishu’s stock of counterfeit tickets. He must be plotting something. Let’s stay focused and resolve this case quickly,” Alice said. Nick quickly read the contract and the conditions as he listened to Alice. There was nothing that would cause any immediate problems, and the period of his employment was expressly stated. “Come on, man. Didn’t you hear me say ‘quickly’? I guess you’re the type to actually read contracts,” Alice complained. “I don’t sign anything without reading it first,” Nick said. Once he decided there was nothing problematic about the contract, he signed it and returned it to Alice. “Excellent. Make sure you tell me anything you learn. I assume you’re going to meet up with your party members?” Alice asked. “Yep. I’m the party leader, after all. I can’t just leave the whole job to them,” Nick said. “I could learn from you. I’m always shoving stuff I don’t wanna deal with on to my subordinates.” “Don’t send anyone to follow me. You might be able to pull it off, but I could easily lose most Sun Knight captains.” Alice smiled. She must have tailed Nick when he was tailing Eishu. There was no way she could have been there to join the fight otherwise. And given her position in the Order of the Sun Knights, it was likely she had subordinates nearby ready to follow her orders. “You’re a member of my team for now. I wasn’t lying when I said I want to recruit you… You’ve impressed me,” she said, putting a finger to her chin and laughing. “Thanks,” Nick responded flatly. “I truly mean that. You’ve proven yourself capable of pursuing the truth without being flustered by your former party member’s crimes or carried away by resentment. I thought you would be more hot-blooded, but you’ve surprised me with your maturity,” Alice said. “That’s…” Thanks to Karan, Nick thought. If not for what she said, it was entirely possible he would’ve acted rashly when he found Garos and gotten himself killed. He might also have failed to break Eishu’s illusion. Nick felt that Karan did more to watch his back rather than the other way around. “I’m the party leader. I can’t make a fool of myself just ’cause my companions aren’t around,” Nick said. “You have a good party. I think I might be jealous. All right, I’ll look forward to hearing good news from you,” Alice said. With that, they parted ways. Nick intentionally passed through busy shopping districts, slipped into back alleys, and annoyed people by occasionally taking the Steppingman’s road—fences and rooftops—to shake off whoever was likely following him. He continued through the city in this manner until he reached his destination—Woods Credit Check Office. Nick had entrusted Hector with investigating Garos. Now that he knew Garos was a demon-god worshipper, he needed to tell his detective friend to look into him more thoroughly and carefully. Also, Eishu was acquainted not just with Garos, but with every member of Combat Masters; they needed to investigate Nick’s former party as well. Nick considered the best course of action until he found himself in front of the detective office. “Sorry I took so long, Tiana. A lot happened,” he said. “Same here. I need to fill you in. Keep in mind this is all still conjecture,” Tiana replied. She repeated what she’d told Bond during the concert. Nick was astonished by what he heard. “So you’re saying Jewelry Production is performing some kind of ritual,” Nick said. “There’s no other way to account for the strength of the false paladins. What do you think?” Tiana asked. “I think you’re right. It lines up with what Garos said,” Nick said with a pained expression. “Nick…” Karan seemed worried. Nick smiled to set her at ease. “I don’t care about that. Jewelry Production has been suspicious this whole time… If they’re performing rituals, though, one thing doesn’t add up.” “What are you talking about?” Tiana asked. “If they’re performing ritual magic to gather mana, what are they using it for? If they’re not using it on the spot, are they storing it somewhere? Is mana so easy to store and withdraw later?” Nick said. Tiana didn’t have a reply. She hadn’t figured that part out yet. “They must have an artifact that can store a colossal amount of mana,” Bond said. “If anyone would know something about that…it would be Coleman or Diamond,” Nick responded. Nick remembered Diamond’s words. I’m counting on you, my bodyguard. He now wondered if it was the rituals she was telling him to protect. “But the idols take their singing so seriously. They’re not acting like they’ve been roped into a conspiracy,” Karan said. “It is possible they are being deceived, or that information has been concealed from them,” Bond replied. Karan’s expression stiffened. Anger flashed across her face; she probably wanted to make whoever was deceiving the idols pay. “…Anyway, it’s that place with the sign. I hope Hector’s learned something useful,” Nick said, pointing to a sign that said WOODS CREDIT CHECK OFFICE. Tiana eyed the building suspiciously. “It looks fishy… Is the detective reliable?” she asked. “He seems skilled. He can immediately search an entire bookshelf just by saying a word or name,” Karan said. “Why is a person with librarian skills working as a detective in Labyrinth City? That’s really difficult magic,” Tiana said. “He said he was run out of the capital after he seduced someone’s wife,” Karan answered. “I suddenly feel an affinity with this man. We could be friends,” Zem commented, earning a weak laugh from Nick. The party reached the door to Woods Credit Check Office. The lights were off, suggesting Hector had already closed for the day. “Should we go in?” Tiana asked. “I’ll drag him out of bed if he’s asleep. He might not be here, though,” Nick answered. He reached for the doorknob just as someone opened it from the inside. “Oh, sorry, didn’t know you were there, Hec— Huh?” “What? Nick?” “Daffodil?” Unexpectedly, Daffodil opened the door. She was holding someone over her shoulder—Hector. He was clearly unconscious, and she didn’t appear to be going to find medical attention. Daffodil was wearing a completely black outfit that resembled dance clothes, Hector was on her right shoulder, and she was carrying a bag of books in her left hand. By all appearances, she was robbing and abducting Hector. “Huh?! Wh-what the hell are you doing?!” Nick shouted. Nick and Karan had asked Hector to look into Daffodil, but he didn’t think for a second that she was dangerous, like Garos. He was simultaneously shocked to find someone connected to the enemy here and angry that she’d betrayed Karan’s concern for her. “I could ask you the same thing! What are you all doing here?!” Daffodil shouted back. She grabbed the doorknob and pushed with tremendous force, and Nick reacted by grabbing the opposite doorknob and trying to keep her from leaving. “Grk,” Nick grunted. Daffodil pushed as hard as she could, turning the doorknob in the opposite direction. Karan’s cousin had the strength advantage, and it felt like he was taking a beating through the doorknob. “Dammit!” “You stubborn little…!” Nick and Daffodil both gripped the doorknob as hard as they could, entering a stalemate in which neither could let go. Whoever did would get immediately slammed by the door. “You’re stronger…than you look! You must be…using some kind of spell!” Daffodil shouted. “And you’re way too strong…for an ordinary dancer!” Nick yelled back. They pushed the door back and forth slightly, as if being pulled by a magnetic force, neither making much progress. Either one would be knocked back the moment they let up. The hinges groaned loudly in the midst of the battle. “Bond! Go around the back! Break a window and jump in!” Nick ordered. Bond immediately moved to circle around the building, and Daffodil realized her disadvantage. “Aaaarrrrggghhh!” she screamed, using brute force that matched—or even surpassed—Karan’s to rip the door off its hinges. Twisted bits of metal went flying through the air, and Daffodil charged forward, using the door like the shield of a heavy infantryman. “Gah…!” Nick yelled. “Sorry, but you’re in my way!” Daffodil shouted. Zem rushed over and used a healing spell on Nick, who had been knocked backward. Nick immediately jumped to his feet and chased after Daffodil. Daffodil dashed through a back alley to avoid being seen. She seemed strangely accustomed to these kinds of escapes; she whipped garbage can lids at the Survivors as they pursued her, jumped over chain-link fences, and even ran across verandas. She quickly left Tiana and Zem in the dust, who both had to stop and pant. Karan and Bond couldn’t jump over the obstacles, forcing them to leave the pursuit to Nick. “Be careful, Nick!” Karan shouted. “Got it!” Nick called back. But as impressive as Daffodil’s flight was, Nick was perfectly capable of keeping up. His combat experience and newfound skill with Stepping gave him agility that surpassed an ordinary human’s. “Wha…?! You’re so weird!” Daffodil shouted, glancing back at Nick. “Whaddaya mean, ‘weird’?! Let Hector go!” Nick yelled back. “This crappy detective is your friend?! I misjudged you!” “He may be an adulterer, but his detective skills are hardly crappy!” Nick had caught up enough to speak to Daffodil. He was well on his way to stopping her and being able to ask Hector himself what had happened. But just when Nick was about to catch her, something strange happened. A strange tingling sensation ran through his head. He thought he was receiving a telepathic message, but no one said anything. “Bond, did you say something?” Nick asked. “No, I did not,” Bond answered. “It felt like someone was speaking to me…,” Nick said. He didn’t know what was happening, but he had a bad feeling. “Th-that’s bad, Nick! Cut off Telepathy now! It might be too late, but…!” Bond yelled telepathically. “Huh? What’re you—?” Nick was interrupted when the assault began. “GAAAH?!” The tingling strengthened in intensity until it felt like an earthquake in his brain. Like lightning had split the heavens and struck him directly. Nick was so confused that he actually thought some kind of natural disaster was occurring, rather than an assault on his mind. “OooAAAOOOAAAOOOAAA!” The noise grew to a thunderous roar, throwing off his sense of equilibrium. He instinctively reached up to plug his ears, but that did nothing to quell the disturbance penetrating his brain. He couldn’t think. The voice he heard contained such rage that it left no room in his brain to even let his life flash before his eyes. He screamed for help, praying desperately for it to end. “Looks like we caught a rat. They always appear when I’m busy. I wonder who they’re working for?” Nick faintly heard a familiar voice amid the roar, and it reminded him that he was holding a magic item for this. He had been told to use it if anyone directly assaulted his mind. “Grk… Discommunicator…!” he gasped after weakly pulling an orb out of his pocket. The orb activated, and silence fell immediately. It was as if the roar had never happened at all. The silence felt wonderful, but Nick quickly remembered what he was doing. He reflexively grabbed a hand as it reached toward him. “Grk…!” Daffodil grunted as he grabbed her with a locking technique. “What are you doing?!” Nick shouted. “I should ask you the same thing! I thought you were on our side!” Daffodil yelled back. Hector had been laid down on the ground beside them. Nick was both relieved to see he wasn’t dead and worried that there had been a terrible misunderstanding. However, the odds of Daffodil working with Garos had definitely increased. He struggled to decide what to do until he heard a familiar voice. “Umm… Is that you, Nick?” A person wearing simple workout clothes and with elegant pink hair that could not have looked more out of place approached with quiet footsteps. “Sorry, but could you please let her go? I think there’s been a few misunderstandings. You stand down, too, Daffy. You can let the detective go.” It was Diamond. “I had a feeling something was off about this,” Nick said as released Daffodil. “That attack—if it can even be called that—was you, wasn’t it?” “Yep. I set traps around the concert venue. They’re set to activate when a person who can use Telepathy passes through them. I told Daffy to hurry over here if she ran into trouble,” Diamond explained. “What happens when other people pass through those traps?” Nick asked. “They don’t hear Pop Song, my false Mantra. Shutting it out was the right decision. You wouldn’t have suffered at all if you had done that a little sooner, though, so I can’t give you a perfect score,” Diamond said. “False Mantra?” Nick repeated. That was an ominous-sounding term, and he raised his guard a little more. “It looks like you knocked out Hector the old-fashioned way, though.” “Don’t blame me. That was all Daffy,” Diamond said. “Diamond!” Daffodil protested, sounding embarrassed. “Ah-ha-ha, sorry. I told her to do it. But I can explain myself. That detective trespassed into a concert hall that’s under construction,” Diamond said. “That hardly excuses hunting him down at his detective office and abducting him,” Nick said. “You think so? Should I give him to the Sun Knights, then? Alice might take him,” Diamond said with a grin. Those words actually calmed Nick down a little. “That’s a pretty tame threat. I’m sure you have plenty of other ways to torment me.” “Hey, don’t assume that I attack people like that all the time. I kinda did just attack you, though…,” Diamond replied peevishly. Nick was even more confused now; he had half expected Diamond to flip out and try to chop his head off. “You have no idea how agonizing that was. I thought I was gonna die,” Nick said. “I—I said I was sorry! Please forgive me!” Diamond apologized, breaking under Nick’s glare. The danger seemed to be past, but this strange conversation had left Nick unsure what to do. His party members finally caught up shortly afterward. “Nick! Are you okay?!” Karan shouted. “Yeah, somehow. But…” Nick trailed off. Karan saw Daffodil and Diamond and tensed. Tiana, Zem, and Bond also assumed combat positions to support Nick. “Hold on, guys. Calm down. I don’t know what’s going on, either,” Nick said. “Really?” Karan said, confused. “Hector’s just unconscious, and all they did to me was rattle my brains. Can you heal him, Zem?” Nick asked. Zem cast a healing spell on Hector, who woke up in a state of confusion. He glanced around frantically at first, but he breathed a sigh of relief when he realized he had been saved. “So… What’re we doing? Don’t tell me we’re gonna keep fighting,” Nick said. Everyone responded with awkward expressions. They didn’t know what to do. “It’s late, so how about we pick this back up tomorrow? I don’t wanna stay up until midnight, and I don’t wanna keep my girls or you all up, either. Don’t worry, I’ll explain everything,” Diamond assured them with a smile. There was a quiet beauty to Diamond under the moonlight; Nick couldn’t believe it belonged to a simple girl who was a head shorter than he was. But the dark shadow over her face was certainly not part of her idol personal. All Nick could do was nod. They split up while still in a daze over what had happened and gathered again the next day for Diamond to explain everything. Unexpectedly, Diamond didn’t choose the Jewelry Production headquarters as their meeting place. Instead, she said to meet at a concert venue. Starmine Hall was its name, and it was the largest concert venue in Labyrinth City. It was funded in a joint project between the Organization for Labyrinth City Development, Teran Event Planning, and Jewelry Production. The venue’s opening concert was going to be none other than the Jewelry Production One Hundredth Anniversary Idol Appreciation Concert. “This place is almost finished,” Nick commented. “The acoustics and the lighting aren’t ready yet, but the construction is finished,” Diamond replied. The Survivors and Hector entered Starmine Hall from the back entrance. Diamond, Daffodil, and Agate were waiting for them there. Nick was surprised to see Agate, and when he opened his mouth to ask why she was there, Diamond cut him off and explained. “She wanted to come.” Agate bowed her head guiltily when Nick and the others approached. “You look like you know something,” Nick said a little sharply. “Um, honestly—,” Agate began, but Diamond stopped her. “Hey now, be patient. I said I would explain everything,” she said. “Oh, I wasn’t blaming her,” Nick interjected. “You overstepped, Nick. Let’s just hear her out first,” Karan said. “S-sorry,” Nick said, feeling thoroughly raked over the coals. The atmosphere relaxed a little, and there was less tension in their steps. Diamond led the group into an equipment storage room behind the stage. Magic items for casting Amplification and other strange machinery Nick didn’t know the purpose of were scattered about with no apparent rhyme or reason. “Here we go,” Diamond said, touching with practiced hands the control panel on a machine. A section of a wall opened with a loud thunk, revealing a hidden door. “We’re going underground.” Diamond walked through the secret entrance and started going down the stairs without explanation. Nick and the others hurried after her. The staircase went surprisingly deep; five minutes of walking later, they still hadn’t reached their destination. “Don’t tell me… Is this…?” Bond muttered, looking pale. “What’s wrong?” Nick asked. “N-no… It’s nothing,” said Bond. “I do not sense a trap. It’s okay to keep following her.” The room they eventually reached was remarkably orderly. The floor and desks were made of the strange, featureless material typical of ancient ruins. Nothing was more conspicuous, however, than the giant diamond in the center of the room that towered like a pillar. Nick and the others were mesmerized by its beautiful shine and austerity. They also glanced at a middle-aged man who was mopping the floor next to it, wondering what he was doing there. “Ah, my apologies. I’m still cleaning, as you can see. I’ll prepare the room,” he said. “What are you doing here, producer?” Diamond asked. “I hurried over to prepare as soon as I heard you were having a meeting here. You should have told me sooner.” The man cleaning was Joseph. He hurried over to the side of the room where a long collapsible table and foldable chairs were scattered about by the wall and began to set them up. The others jumped in to help, too. Once everyone was seated, Diamond began. “Thanks for coming, all of you. I’m sure you have loads of questions, but first… Hector.” Hector jumped with surprise when she called his name. He looked totally perplexed by the situation. “Y-yeah?” “I want to start by complimenting your investigative ability. You’re truly impressive. How much did you figure out?” Diamond asked. “…I had no idea this place was here. It appears to be an ancient ruin. All I learned is that you’ve been active nonstop for the last one hundred years and that you bought this plot of land with your own money,” Hector said. “One hundred years?” Nick said. “I looked through the old issues of that occult magazine you gave me and found someone who looks almost exactly like the current Diamond. It said she revived ancient idol culture, and that the people of the ancient civilization fled to outer space and have now returned to rule the world…or something like that,” Hector explained. Nick guessed that article was probably written by Olivia. Recognition dawned on the Survivors’ faces. “The content of the article was nonsense, of course. But a thought occurred to me—what if all the Diamonds throughout the last century have been the same person?” Hector continued. “All the Diamonds, huh…? There have been a lot of them. There’s the original Diamond and the one at this table, and I’ve heard of a Pink Diamond and a Black Diamond,” Nick said. Hector nodded in confirmation. “They were all active at different times with no overlap. The name is supposedly passed down, but I don’t think that’s the case. I believe one person has used different variations of the name over time to avoid people realizing the length of her life span,” he said, gaining confidence. “Why do you think that?” Tiana asked curiously. “I have a skill that allows me to say a term or name and search a collection of documents and relics at once. I used it to investigate species with long life spans, and I found something that matches Diamond. Elves who live too long and cease using the name of their tribe lose their identity and develop a memory disorder. Sentient magic items can’t change their name without it having an effect on their function. I thought Diamond could be holding on to her name for a similar reason… And I believed it was most likely that she’s not a person, but a magic item,” Hector answered. Everyone turned to Diamond. She began to clap. “Good job. I’m impressed you figured that out. But you got one thing wrong,” she said. “I did?” Hector responded. “The original Diamond, whose name was Hibiki Diamond, was my wielder. I borrowed her name and face. I mutated to appear like her, and another mutation would put not just my function but my life in danger. I’m limited in the variety of pseudonyms I can use because my name has to remain close to Diamond,” Diamond said. “…Your wielder?” Nick repeated. “That’s right. Hibiki Diamond was an adventurer who, just like you all, wielded a holy sword,” Diamond said. The Survivors—especially Bond—were unsure what to make of this. “What is your name?” Bond asked. “Hibiki Diamond named me the Sword of Resonance. It’s nice to meet you, Sword of Bonds,” Diamond said. The Survivors were astonished. Encountering another holy sword would have been surprising enough even if it didn’t work as an idol. “Hey, Bond… Is she an old acquaintance?” Nick asked timidly, but Bond was still too stunned to speak. He realized that Bond was surprised for a different reason than the rest of them. “Hey, what’s wrong?” “There is no Sword of Resonance. At least, not when I was forged. I did not even see it as a proposed project name,” Bond finally said. “As I said, that’s the name Hibiki Diamond gave me. I originally had a different name. You’ve grown so much. Grown cuter anyway. Though I only ever saw your sword form,” Diamond said. She sounded as if she were speaking to a relative she hadn’t seen in ages. That only made Bond more nervous. “My original name was Hizumi. I’m the Divinity-Class Mental Fortress, the Sword of Distortion. This place is the former site of Distortion… Which means you’re currently inside me.” There were two central figures in the war to subjugate Skiaprelli, the demon god. One was the hero, Setsuna the Swift. He wielded the holy sword called the Sword of Tasuki in the final stage of the war and inflicted the decisive blow to send the demon god into a deep sleep. The other was Hizumi, the Sword of Distortion and the director of Distortion, which was a facility built to distort Mantras. She rescued humanity from certain defeat at the beginning of the war. Not much was remembered about either one—their names were only known to select sages and scholars—but the former was always spoken of with awe while the latter was spoken of with revulsion. The reverence shown to Setsuna was because he defeated the demon god. The legends—while not necessarily completely credible—painted him as a noble person who everyone recognized as a hero. Hizumi earned her loathsome reputation from the misdeeds she performed after turning the tide of the war—namely exploiting young men and women and disposing of them when she was done with them. She gathered young people from throughout the country to offer prayer to her, and even transported beautiful young girls in lavish cages. The road she used was still called Maiden Highway today, though few remembered the origin of the name. “I needed to do that to prevent the entirety of Teran from being turned into a labyrinth. About half of the city consisted of research facilities, military arsenals, and wealthy residential districts, while the other half resembled today’s Garbage Heap,” Diamond said. “An entire city could be turned into a labyrinth…,” Tiana said. “I’ve heard of that but wasn’t sure if it was real.” Diamond nodded. “The demon god could create labyrinths and grow existing ones to expand the inhabitable land for monsters. Labyrinths also warp the minds and bodies of any people or protists who stay within them for too long. People and monsters are like pieces on a game board, constantly battling for territory, but the demon god has the ability to instantly end a game by turning a city or a village into a labyrinth. The more negative emotions and hatred a city has, the easier it is for the demon god to do it.” “So you created Distortion to combat the demon god and protect the city,” Tiana said. “Yep. I wanted to fight both socially and magically, and I made its residents worship me. I lacked the power to fix society’s flaws, but I could distort people’s hearts so they devoted themselves to me instead of to the demon god,” Diamond explained. “You were just as guilty of taking advantage of those flaws,” Bond said. “You idled away your days making beautiful men and women serve your every need, while firing them at the first offense.” “Uh… yeah. That part was just for fun,” Diamond replied, turning away with a bashful laugh. “So you admit it!” Bond exclaimed. “I can explain myself, though!” said Diamond. “When I started taking the ones who were about to be brainwashed by the demon god’s Mantras, people assumed I was doing so out of a fondness for attractive young people. I let that misunderstanding go uncorrected because it made gathering them easier. And I only ever fired the ones who tried to convert their life into mana… I can’t deny my fondness for beautiful boys and girls, though.” “Excuse me?!” Bond exclaimed, aghast. Diamond just shrugged. “I guess anything I say now will just sound like an excuse. I was destroyed in the end anyway.” “…Yes. As huge as you were, you disappeared without a trace,” Bond said. “I thought so, too… But it turns out that my core concealed itself underground while I was unconscious and began to repair itself. I remained there until about one hundred years ago, when a traveling adventurer excavated me and became my wielder. We traveled and sang together for many years. We spent most of our time singing and dancing, actually.” “It sounds like she was an unconventional person,” Nick said with a weak smile. Diamond smiled back. “She was. She stumbled across the Sword of Distortion’s core on her travels and became obsessed with songs and idols after discovering some data storage from the era of the gods. The silly girl thought minstrels were idols. She was also arrogant enough to say that the one who warped the lives of millions of people needed a cuter name than the Sword of Distortion, and she renamed me the Sword of Resonance.” Diamond began to speak of the adventurer named Hibiki Diamond. She had an unconventional personality and was tremendously influential. She devoted herself to rebuilding Teran, which had been destroyed by a large-scale Stampede, and the Maiden Highway. She also spread the word that it was possible to explore ancient ruins for artifacts and gathered adventurers to revive the defunct Adventurers Guild. She picked up ancient culture from the items she excavated, and even found some valuable documents that long predated the ancient civilization. Her incredible discoveries and insatiable appetite for more led many to call her a hyena. Hizumi was one of the items that Diamond the adventurer had found. She had no direct combat ability, but no matter how many times she insisted that her mana had dried up, she was still forced to take up a sword and fight monsters. Her wielder also ordered her to sing at banquets even though she knew nothing about music, to use a pickax to help maintain the highway, and even to wash dishes when she screwed something up. Those were all first-time experiences for Hizumi. Eventually, Diamond the adventurer had said, “The Sword of Distortion isn’t a fitting name for you. It sounds ugly. How about we call you the ‘Sword of Resonance’ instead?” Despite the gall of the proposal, Hizumi accepted the name change. The two of them continued to spend a lot of time together after that. They’d had more than a few fights over the years, sometimes hating each other, sometimes loving each other. Diamond’s story reminded Nick of a song. He almost quoted it right then and there, but he thought it would be rude. “Diamond later retired as an adventurer and claimed that she was going to become an ancient idol. I accompanied her on her new journey, since I had no real choice in the matter, and because she was a genius who excelled at anything she put her mind to, her songs became popular almost overnight. I, on the other hand, never improved, no matter how much I practiced,” Diamond said. “Can’t holy swords install the talents of their user?” Nick asked. “I wasn’t really made with imitating people in mind,” Diamond replied. “The most I can do is copy the form of my wielder; I can’t copy their skills.” Bond nodded in agreement. “You can tell that by looking at her. She is far too large for a human to pick up and wield. Her core is a monument, not a sword. In a way, this entire concert hall is her body,” he said, pointing at the shining gem in the middle of the room. Nick nodded and remembered the sight of Diamond practicing. She must have gained that skill entirely through her own training. “You’re amazing,” Nick said, eliciting a snort from Bond. “You might hesitate to say that if you knew how much she mocked other holy swords for being primitive and having to move their bodies all the time,” he said. “Hey, do you have to keep bringing up embarrassing things from my past?!” Diamond complained. “Anyway, we know your identity. But that’s not the problem,” Nick said, giving Diamond a severe look. “I want to know what you’re plotting, and why you’re involving us. You’ve roped your idols and many others into this, too.” “Yeah!” Karan agreed emphatically. “The idols are all working so hard! To them, their practice and promotional activities are just as important as their concerts! And…it’s all in pursuit of their own dreams! I’m sure that’s true of you, too, Agate!” Agate just balled her fists. “Yep. I’m using the dreams of others. I won’t deny that,” Diamond said. “Why?!” Karan cried. “I’ll explain. You can leave if my reasons aren’t enough to satisfy you. You’re even free to destroy this place.” Diamond stood up from her chair and put a hand to the diamond pillar behind her. She continued with utter gravity. “You sit within the newly constructed Distortion, which I have made into a holy jewel resonance facility renamed Jewelry Production. Its holy jewel will reverberate and stop the large-scale Stampede. Its final objective is to stave off the demon god resurrection that has been in the works for a millennium,” she said. “A-a large-scale Stampede?!” Bond repeated, shocked. “There have been signs of a Stampede recently. Did you not know that?” Diamond asked. “We’ve noticed the signs, but…you’re saying it’s going to be a large one? Not a small or medium one?” Nick asked, confused. “Yep. It could revitalize a great many labyrinths, causing tens of thousands—potentially hundreds of thousands—of monsters to spill into the outside world. It could even revive the demon god,” Diamond said. “Hold on, I thought those only happened once every few centuries…,” Nick argued, but even as he said it, he was starting to believe her. There had been an abundance of strange incidents around Labyrinth City, and they had noticed many abnormalities in the labyrinths. There was plenty of evidence for Diamond’s claim. “It’s been over two centuries since the last large-scale Stampede. Do you know what the signs are? One of them is the mutation of labyrinth bosses. They’re reborn into unprecedented forms that can deal with the attack patterns of adventurers. A giant, agile slime appeared last month in Gooey Waterworks and swallowed an F-rank adventurer, drowning them. A six-armed devil appeared in Thousand Sword Peak and wiped out a C-rank party. In Pot Snake Cave—” “A new pot snake specialized for attack appeared,” Nick finished for Diamond. “Exactly. The Adventurers Guild must have noticed the signs, too. I’ll bet they’re panicking and having round-the-clock meetings with the Sun Knights,” Diamond said. Nick grimaced, remembering how close they came to dying in Pot Snake Cave. “The demon-god worshippers have been working in secret for a long time to cause a large-scale Stampede and resurrect the demon god, and their efforts are finally paying off… But you gave us a chance in this crisis by defeating White Mask,” Diamond continued. “So you used the concerts to gather mana with ritual magic and moved to the execution phase of your plan. But fans started using counterfeit tickets to steal mana. Is that right?” Tiana asked. Diamond raised her eyebrows. “You figured out how they’re stealing mana? We had guessed it was the tickets, but we didn’t have definitive proof.” “A false paladin showed up late to the last concert. He arrived just as the show reached its climax, and his strength far surpassed any false paladins we’ve encountered so far. As soon as the concert ended, though, it was like he deflated. His strength was just gone,” Tiana explained. “Interesting… Joseph, how excited were the fans?” Diamond asked. “This was Topaz’s bestselling concert ever. This was as likely a concert as any to attract false paladins,” Joseph answered. “Were there any disturbances in the mana waves?” “Yes. They were diverted more than ever before.” Diamond asked a number of other questions before seeming to come to a conclusion. “The counterfeit tickets serve as a marker or an identification signal. They falsify the banned fan’s negative emotions as the center of the ritual and shift the location where the mana is concentrated. It’s not the ticket that’s important but the intensity of the owner’s grudge and the fans’ excitement. This is ritual magic of the cursed variety,” Diamond said. “Curse magic is prohibited in modern times. Even the spellbooks are banned… Can you do anything to stop it?” Tiana asked. Diamond’s expression was grim. “We’ll do everything we can. Repelling it entirely might be difficult at this point, though…” “Oh, yeah. I should’ve told you this earlier, but we figured out the identity of the counterfeit-ticket seller,” Nick said. “You did?!” Diamond exclaimed joyfully. Nick grimaced before continuing. “He was killed, though. The seller was a blacklisted idol fan named Eishu. He was a demon-god worshipper, and a partner of his named Garos murdered him to silence him. Garos stole the rest of the counterfeit tickets and vanished. The Sun Knights are looking for him, but I don’t think they have much chance of catching him.” “Eishu… Oh yeah, I remember seeing his name in the fan club report. He was a real pain who harassed our idols, but I never expected this,” Diamond said. Nick was surprised to hear she read the fan-club reports. “It seemed like he was more motivated by his obsession with idols than with his status as a demon-god worshipper. That’s how I caught him, but it seems like Garos and the other demon-god worshippers were worried he would expose them,” Nick said. “I see… Thank you very much for your investigation,” Joseph said. “We’ve been working on this project in secret for some time. We’ve managed to thwart all attempts by the demon-god worshippers to spy on us over the years, but I believe we essentially revealed ourselves to them when we began the experiments to restore Diamond in earnest. Rushing our plans forward backfired.” “Did you only start the mana-gathering rituals recently? …Oh, are you using the new magic lighting equipment?” Nick asked, remembering something that Jonathan had told him. Jewelry Production was using new magic items for lighting and production. What if those were secretly for the ritual? Joseph nodded. “That is correct. The new lighting equipment absorbs the heightened passions of the idols and the audience, converts it into mana, and sends it here. Much of the mana is lost on the way from other concert venues to this location, however, and we were late to realize that the false paladins were stealing it,” he said. “Makes sense,” said Nick. “Man, you’ve got guts to perform this kind of ritual right under everyone’s noses…” “It was now or never. White Mask was defeated, the large-scale Stampede is approaching, and the Hundredth Anniversary Concert is the best chance we’ll ever have to gather mana. Diamond actually obtained permission to perform the ritual, which was a major gamble that we had many meetings about beforehand,” Joseph said. “Permission? From who?” Nick asked. “This is a top-secret project approved by the lord of Teran, the president of the Teran Department of Construction, and the president of the Teran Department of Magic Safety. I am actually the lord’s nephew. I was transferred from the lord’s manor to serve as an auditor,” Joseph explained. “Huh?! I didn’t know that!” Agate exclaimed. She was even more surprised than the Survivors. “My apologies. I was sworn to secrecy… I had to make a number of arrangements just to share this information with you here today. You are the first idol to learn these secrets, Agate. I will explain everything to the others by the end of the day, but please keep it to yourself until then,” Joseph requested, playfully putting his index finger to his lips. “O-okay,” said Agate. “You’ve been lying about your identity, too… Oh, I guess we should address you more formally,” Nick said. “Do not worry about my position. I would prefer you to treat me normally… Anyway, now that we have told you everything, let us discuss your job,” Joseph said. “Our job?” Nick repeated. “I would like you to handle security at the Hundredth Anniversary Concert,” Joseph said. Nick tensed at those words. He had a hunch that any battle that broke out there would decide everything. “We are going to unveil Diamond’s true form—the holy jewel in this room—to the audience during the concert. We’ll then concentrate mana at the highest efficiency to restore Diamond to her peak strength and activate Jewelry Production,” Joseph continued. “That’s your true goal,” Nick said. “The demon-god worshippers have only sporadically obstructed our concerts so far. All they’ve done is give counterfeit tickets to fans… And we were unsure of their intentions,” Joseph said. “Maybe they were experimenting, too. They might not have been sure if the tickets would work,” Tiana conjectured. Joseph nodded. “Yes, I believe so. But they will have no reason to hold back at the Hundredth Anniversary Concert. Please, protect Diamond… Protect our project and the idols from the demon-god worshippers.” Nick crossed his arms, stern-faced, then turned to Diamond. “Diamond. I’ll ask this question again. Why did you choose us?” he asked. “Nick…” “The more you tell us, the more it makes sense for us to help you. It’s not just about fighting the demon-god worshippers. One of our members is a holy sword just like you. If you said you want to work together as business partners because our interests align, I’d have no complaints,” Nick said. Diamond looked guilty. “That is part of why we trust you. But it’s true that we tried to use you.” “I’m not blaming you. I appreciate all you’ve done to help us,” Nick said. “We’ve done very little compared with what you all have accomplished… And your apparent willingness to remain on our side even after learning my identity and plan makes you very valuable to us,” Diamond said. “Really?” Nick asked. “There’s a chance that if I revealed myself to the Sun Knights or the Adventurers Guild and asked for help, they would treat me as property or a dangerous magic item rather than as a person. I might even lose my citizenship. I do have a team of lawyers and an ideological argument prepared for that scenario,” Diamond said. “That is a concern,” Bond agreed grimly. “And that’s far from the worst thing that could happen. I also need to consider the possibility of whistleblowers or saboteurs in a public organization. You never know where someone with the authority to order around White Mask could be hiding, too,” Diamond said. “Yeah, there are a lot of shady people out there. It’s probably not worth the risk,” Nick responded. “I’m not really one to talk, as someone who’s using an idol company for a plot, but I don’t want everything to fall apart because one person betrayed me.” Diamond gave a cynical smile, resting her chin on her hands. “What do you say, Survivors? I’ll pay you handsomely for your work. There are a lot of risks to taking this job, but I can offer you security in return. Bond is in a similar position to me. I can share the preparations I’ve made if I’m discovered as a holy sword… However!” Diamond raised her voice suddenly. The others in the room watched her in awe. “I don’t want to just entice you into doing this job with payment and promises. I want you all to protect me. Just like the paladin who fought to save an idol. You all are worthy subjects for my songs. I have no desire to sing about someone I detest. That’s why I’m leaving myself naked before you,” she said. “Can you not put it that way?” Nick quipped. “Then let’s say my organs are vulnerable. There are no walls and no mana protecting me. You could easily cut me apart with your dagger. If that’s not enough to satisfy you, I’ll bare this body for you as well.” Diamond took off her coat. She was stark naked underneath, leaving everyone stupefied. “H-hey!” Nick shouted. “I’m betting on you all. What do you want to do?” Diamond asked. She stood there in the nude—with no hint of embarrassment or coquettishness—and waited for their decision. Joseph ended the meeting by admitting that he and Diamond had been hiding a lot and that he would leave it to everyone’s individual discretion if they wanted to continue working together, though the others thought it was a bit late for that. Then everyone except for Diamond, Joseph, and Hector left the underground storage room and returned aboveground to take a break in a waiting room. It had been three hours since they’d arrived at this venue, making it a good time to eat lunch. They found Topaz and Amber in the waiting room with snacks; they had come to Starmine Hall to check on them out of concern. The girls handed out baskets with donuts and bread and magic bottles containing coffee and tea. “Wait, I just realized something. Isn’t this backward? As staff, shouldn’t we be providing food to you?” Nick asked. “I just realized something, too. You’re very nitpicky,” Agate said. Everyone else was quick to agree. Nick muttered for them all to shut up, then relented and drank his tea. “Oh yeah, what happened to Hector?” Karan asked casually. “He stayed behind with Joseph and Diamond ’cause he’s the only one who hasn’t signed a nondisclosure agreement. He’s gonna be treated as a temporary employee, too,” Nick answered. The room fell silent after their short exchange. Karan started eating, and the others followed her example, unsure what else to do with themselves. Once they were done eating, they all realized how much they needed to talk about everything. No one was sure where they should start or who they should speak to first, however, so they simply drank and refilled their tea in silence. “Haah. Can I say something? This silence feels depressing,” Daffodil said, finally breaking the ice. “That’d be great. I wasn’t sure where to start,” Nick responded. “I’ve been keeping this a secret, but I’ve been working for Diamond in pursuit of revenge. My husband—well, we were never married, so… My boyfriend, who was in the same party as me, was killed by White Mask. Oh, that makes it even more depressing in here, huh? Eh, whatever,” Daffodil said nonchalantly. The idols gulped and listened attentively; this must have been their first time hearing it, too. “You were a D-rank adventurer…right?” Nick asked. “Yeah. Dancing was my main job, though. I worked as an adventurer on the side to help me achieve my goal of dancing in large venues and gaining popularity… Then one day, my party found an ancient treasure in a labyrinth,” Daffodil said. “A treasure, huh?” Nick mumbled. Daffodil smiled bitterly. “I was so excited. I thought my life was made, and that I’d be free to pursue my dreams… But then White Mask attacked us on the way home. Our leader drew White Mask’s attention so we could escape, and when we got adventurer reinforcements and returned, we saw no sign of his body or the treasure. All of us who survived were heartbroken.” Nick remembered Leon telling him that many adventurers had lost companions to White Mask. It made sense for a person with a personal grudge against the demon-god worshipper to choose to cooperate with Diamond. “And as if that wasn’t enough, I learned I was pregnant when I returned to Labyrinth City… I was very conflicted over what to do. Should I forget the kid and seek revenge? Or should I live on for their sake? I even considered throwing everything away and ending my life,” Daffodil continued. “Daffy…,” Karan said. “That was when Diamond saved me. She said I didn’t have to give up on having my child, getting revenge, or my dream of dancing, and she helped me build a stable foundation in my life,” Daffodil said. She explained that Diamond revealed her secret and situation to her shortly afterward. Claiming she would eventually gain the strength to oppose White Mask, she had asked for Daffodil’s assistance. Daffodil agreed to help her, initially serving as a guard rather than as a choreographer or dance instructor. Eventually, however, Diamond saw the potential of Daffodil’s dancing talent and had her start teaching the idols. “Before long, I was teaching the girls and raising my boy, and I was actually enjoying my life. Diamond told me to become an independent dance instructor, and my desire for revenge faded… And then I heard that you all defeated White Mask. I thought I might be angry that my chance for revenge was stolen, but instead I felt great relief. I’ve wanted to thank you all this time, Karan. I’m sorry for keeping it from you,” Daffodil apologized. A solemn mood fell over the room. Noticing this, Daffodil hurriedly stuffed donuts into Agate’s, Amber’s, and Topaz’s mouths and urged them to eat. The idols protested, saying they weren’t in the mood to eat, but Daffodil insisted and offered them more bread and donuts. “Wait, we heard you were scammed when you opened your classroom,” Karan said as she took a bite. “I actually found out my broker was working for the demon-god worshippers, so I pretended to be deceived and—hold on, how do you know about that?!” Daffodil exclaimed. “You were keeping too many secrets, Daffy. And you looked into us, too,” Karan said. Daffodil averted her eyes—she had no argument for that—and changed the topic. “Y-you three already knew about Diamond’s true identity, right? What did you think of it?” “Uh, well, I honestly don’t understand any of the big picture stuff, and I don’t really care,” Agate admitted. “I get that,” Topaz responded. “Right?” Amber agreed. “Hey, you three could be putting your lives at risk. Are you okay with that?” Nick asked in disbelief. Agate quickly argued back. “My job is to sing and dance! I don’t know the first thing about Stampedes or holy swords or any of that stuff!” “Sure, but Diamond’s been using you! Don’t you care about that?” Nick asked. “Ah… About that. I don’t know if I should say this or not, but…” Agate hesitated and glanced at her fellow idols as if asking if she should continue. They seemed just as hesitant. “Whatever you say stays between us. You don’t need to hold back,” Tiana said. Agate made up her mind, still a bit nervous. “Okay, I’ll say it… Are we sure Diamond is doing all this for the just cause of saving the world and bringing about peace? ’Cause I don’t think so,” she said. Nick and his party members weren’t sure what Agate was saying. They might not have trusted Diamond completely, but she had won them over emotionally. They’d assumed she was mostly telling the truth. Daffodil was initially as confused as the Survivors, but then she said, “You…might be right, actually.” “Hold on, I don’t know where this is coming from. Does she have more secrets?” Nick asked. Agate rushed to calm Nick down. “I don’t think this is a big deal at all. I just don’t think everything she said was from the heart. She is taking the project seriously, but I think it’s a means to an end, rather than her purpose.” “A means to what end?” Nick asked with some trepidation. “Basically, it doesn’t feel like she’s going through all this effort just to bring peace to Labyrinth City. I think she wants peace so that she can devote herself entirely to her idol career,” Agate explained. “There’s nothing she wouldn’t do to continue working in this industry,” Topaz said. “Right? I think she kept changing her name slightly and debuting over and over because she couldn’t stand not performing,” Amber agreed. “She’s not performing idol concerts for the plan. Gathering people, spending money, and building facilities has all been for the purpose of spreading idol culture… She’s not in it for the plan at all,” Daffodil said. Nick was confused at first, but their claims were beginning to make sense. “…Are Diamond’s songs—particularly the love songs—all about her past wielder?” he asked. “Probably. I think Diamond has made writing about her past girlfriend her thing. She’s not a villain who wants to destroy the world or a hero who wants to devote herself to society. Anyway, you have to admit it takes a real pro to write lyrics about a past love affair,” Daffodil said. “Hey, don’t say that out loud! I almost said it during the meeting, but I kept it to myself!” Nick shouted. “So you realized it, too!” Agate exclaimed. “That’s not a bad idea… I occasionally write poetry and send it to women. Perhaps I should try writing an idol song,” Zem said. “Oh now you’re interested, Zem. Do you ever stop thinking of women?” Nick said. The group began discussing rumors about Diamond and analyzing her lyrics for hints of romance. It was a very mundane topic they were getting excited about, especially given the magnitude of the stakes at hand. With every lyric they deciphered, the unvarnished truth about the relationship between the legendary S-rank adventurer Hibiki Diamond and the most popular idol in Labyrinth City became clearer. “Wait a second, I’m gonna look at the lyric sheet,” Tiana said. “I’ll reference dictionaries for ancient words and poetic terms. There might be even more hidden in her lyrics,” Bond said. “Oh my. These lyrics are steamy,” Zem commented. “I-I’m not listening!” Karan shouted. Bond and Tiana worked to find meaning hidden in the connections between modern and ancient words. Zem put his formidable deductive skills to use and periodically offered comments. (“The flower and the bird are a metaphor for the two of them,” “This is a passionate love song disguised as a graduation song,” “This song is unabashedly erotic.”) The idol Diamond’s love for the adventurer Diamond could not have been more obvious as they peeled back the layers of her lyrics. The group was getting a clear picture of the dense world the two Diamonds shared together. Karan blushed furiously and covered her ears; she even looked like she could faint. “Man, I’m dead tired… What should we say to Diamond after this?” Nick said when he ran out of steam. He leaned back in his chair and put his feet up to rest. “Huh? I thought we were having fun,” Tiana said. “This is fun, but I wanted to talk about what we’re doing next,” Nick replied. “Oh, right. I kinda forgot we need to discuss that.” “Sorry, I got too engrossed,” Zem apologized. Embarrassed, they both looked up from the lyric sheets and dictionaries they had been poring over. “So what are you going to do?” Agate asked. “Are you going to protect us at the concert or not?” Nick didn’t answer right away. He sat up, put his fingers together, and spoke slowly. “Joseph said we can break off our contract.” “Yeah, he did,” Agate responded. “But he didn’t say anything about exempting us from the penalty for not fulfilling the contract or paying us the reward we were promised, right?” “No, he did not,” Agate said. “I didn’t hear him say that,” Karan added. “Good observation. That man is crafty,” Bond said. “You’ve got that right. We have to talk about money before discussing quitting,” Tiana agreed. “This company is rampant with crafty people. I don’t think we can trust them,” Zem said. The Survivors all chuckled together. “There you have it,” Nick said. “Who knew our paladin was so distrustful?” Agate said, and everyone laughed. There were no more concerts until the Hundredth Anniversary Concert at the end of the month. Nearly all the agency’s idols were devoting themselves to preparations, and the managers and staff were very busy as well. This was Jewelry Production’s largest concert ever, and the agency was also busy with the secret plot to activate Diamond’s holy jewel resonance facility, also called Jewelry Production. Furthermore, now that the Survivors had uncovered how the counterfeit tickets worked, the agency was working feverishly to counter them. They had enlisted Thunderbolt Corporation—a magic item factory that supplied the agency—to work on a jamming device that would release mana to obstruct the counterfeit tickets. Joseph had to oversee all the company’s progress, and he was so busy, he barely had time to sleep. There weren’t many people who knew all the agency’s secrets and could handle the paperwork. As a result, the Survivors were roped into planning the concert’s security. Tiana had taken the lead in this matter and was spending her time working out how best to deploy the guards. Joseph had pulled some strings behind the scenes to recruit soldiers from the lord of Teran to help with security, but while they were capable fighters, there was no commander to lead them. That was where Tiana distinguished herself. During her aristocratic school days, she had taken a class called Siege Defense for pure interest and had earned good grades on her military simulation exams. She put this knowledge to use to give precise feedback. Given her natural disposition as well, she quickly earned respect from both the Jewelry Production guards and the lord of Teran’s soldiers. It could also be said that the Survivors were being taken advantage of. “Are you sure it’s okay for you to be slacking off like this?” “You’re the one who summoned me here! Can’t you use your authority as a Sun Knight to help me?” Nick was meeting with Alice again. They were at a window seat at the Knocker Donuts near Jewelry Production, which was where Nick and Karan had met Daffodil. It had begun to rain outside, and peddlers were holding bags over their heads and running down the street to find cover. “Don’t say that. I know I have the ability to help you. Security is our specialty,” Alice said. “I hate that you’re not lying,” Nick said regretfully, and Alice laughed. “By the way, have you found Garos?” “I was afraid you’d ask that. We’ve found no trace of him. I did find multiple documents that could be detailing murders Garos committed, though,” Alice said, passing him a brown envelope filled with documents. “Isn’t this the statement I wrote? Do I really need to review that?” Nick asked. “It wasn’t easy getting permission for this. There are comments from other people in there, too. Look it over when you have time,” Alice requested. “Sure. I appreciate it.” “Are you sure you don’t have any ideas for where Garos’s hideout could be? Has anything else come to mind?” Alice asked. Nick grimaced. “I told you all the places I could think of, and I don’t have any other ideas… But something else occurred to me.” “Give it to me. I don’t care how unlikely it is,” Alice urged happily. “You know how White Mask gave Nargava a phantom king orb?” Nick asked. “Yeah.” “The demon-god worshippers should have a couple other powerful magic items that were excavated with it. They’re called the Butterfly Sword and the False Root Staff. The Butterfly Sword is apparently a magic sword that can be used to perform illusionary attacks.” “What?” “Do you…think the round thing attached to Garos’s katana was a bell?” Nick asked. Alice nodded. “Yeah, it was an antique bell from Nozomi. They call them ‘suzu’ over there.” “I’ve been told the Butterfly Sword has a bell attached to both the blade and scabbard,” Nick said. “What?! Why didn’t you say that earlier, you dolt?!” Alice exclaimed, grabbing Nick by the collar with tears in her eyes. Nick shook her off, briefly worried she was actually going to cut off his air. “I’m sorry! That’s no reason to strangle me, though! That’s not the important part anyway!” Nick shouted. “What is, then?” Alice asked. “The False Root Staff. It’s a magic item that lets you manipulate magic dolls and golems at will.” “Okay.” “The Labyrinth of Bonds can’t be the only ancient ruin or sealed underground labyrinth in this city. The Labyrinth of Bonds is officially managed by the Adventurers Guild, but there’ve gotta be other ruins the general public doesn’t know about.” “The underground isn’t like the rooftop routes that are only accessible to Steppingmen. The underground passages and waterways are mapped out and managed by the Order of the Sun Knights and the Organization for Labyrinth City Development.” “Really? Then any ruins that we think are inactive could just be blocked by a golem masquerading as a door or something?” Alice didn’t answer. Her expression said the chances weren’t zero. “If we assume he’s using a secret ancient ruin as a safe house… Is searching above ground pointless?” “I wouldn’t say pointless, but…we’d have little hope of finding him. I think we’d be better off waiting for him to come to us,” Nick said. Alice sighed deeply. “Then we should focus our efforts on the concert.” Nick nodded silently. “But it was Eishu who was obsessed with idols, right? And Garos stole the counterfeit tickets. Isn’t it possible he’ll use them for a different purpose?” Alice asked. “The counterfeit tickets require a crowd’s worth of prayers to function. He’ll come,” Nick said. “Can you beat him? Garos has a whole stack of counterfeit tickets, and this is the biggest concert yet. He could send dozens of false paladins at once,” Alice said. “That won’t work,” Nick said, shaking his head. “What makes you say that?” “Jewelry Production is working on a device to block counterfeit tickets from activating within the venue.” “That’s great news.” “There’s one problem, though… While it’ll be able to block individual tickets fueled by a weak grudge, it won’t be able to stop someone with a massive grudge and dozens of tickets.” “A massive grudge, huh…? I don’t like the sound of that.” “I guess it’s also possible one of their leaders will reveal themselves for the first time and attack the concert directly.” “That won’t happen. They’re saving their strength for the moment of the demon god’s resurrection, so they won’t spend it early. Doing so would lead to an all-out battle, which I’m sure neither side wants. That’s why they’re having individual mercenaries like Garos and Eishu do their bidding for them. The leaders who truly desire the demon god’s resurrection won’t appear until they absolutely have to.” “Then don’t try to get the concert canceled. You’ve probably already gotten the directive from the lord, though.” Alice glared at Nick. “Ugh, who knew that girl could pull strings like that? That simple persona of hers really is all an act.” “That’s why I came to apologize and share information. You should know Diamond’s plan now, too,” Nick said. “I’m still upset about that… That was humiliating for the order,” Alice said. Diamond and Joseph had actually met with the Order of the Sun Knights and told them about her plan. The revelation sent a huge shock wave through the order, and there were many knights who vehemently opposed it, but Diamond had made arrangements beforehand to prevent them from doing anything about it. The presence of a certain captain and her temporary subordinate also helped to prevent the Sun Knights from trying to forcefully cancel the concert. “We got lucky, though. Make me look good out there, my temporary Sun Knight,” Alice said. “Does that mean you approve of our plan?” Nick asked. “If you succeed, I’ll have no complaints. If you fail, Garos will probably kill you. You’re no use to me dead or a coward.” Nick couldn’t help but laugh at her bluntness. “You’re ruthless.” “Don’t die out there,” Alice said. “…I’m not a betting man, but people who bet on me always win,” Nick replied. Nick got up from his chair, took a donut from Alice’s plate, and bit into it.