The emperor and his clones swarmed their foes, eliminating two-thirds of the monster force at once. Lyse hardly had a chance to help before it was all over. Only the smug emperors and the gobsmacked knights were left standing on the battlefield.
“Good teamwork from all of us, I must say,” the real emperor congratulated his doubles.
“I really must be dreaming...” groaned a nearby female knight. Lyse felt the same way.
“Before I return to the palace, my dear knights, I thank you for your service. I hope to have the chance to fight alongside you all again,” exclaimed Egbert before taking off on his raptor as quickly as he’d arrived.
His subjects could only stare blankly as he took off into the sky. Everything unfolded so quickly that they had no time to process their undoubtedly complex feelings before they had to return to their duties.
“We’d better go too, Lyse,” said Sidis.
“Very well,” she agreed.
And so the couple followed the emperor(s) back to the palace.
More confusion awaited Sidis and Lyse when they arrived at the palace. The imperial raptor handlers were still slack-jawed as they touched down immediately following Egbert and his two dozen clones. The jaws of the servants, knights, and court ladies who were awaiting the emperor’s return hit the ground as well. Abject disbelief was writ across their faces. Even Lyse and Sidis, who had seen it all before, deeply empathized with their bewilderment. While the knights kept quiet (likely because they were accustomed to Egbert’s shenanigans), the servants were much more apprehensive. Nervous murmurings could be heard amongst them.
“They all flew out of the Villa of Light, right...?”
“I never expected so many copies of His Majesty, that’s for sure.”
“Are you sure they’re not monsters? You don’t think that the anomalies with the Light caused this, do you?”
Lyse was worried such speculation might lead to trouble, but in short order...
“Welcome back, Your Majesty,” pronounced Alcede as he and Lasuarl arrived on the scene. The two dukes then took a knee before Egbert, apparently able to pick him out from his clones. Confusion remained in the crowd, but this gesture silenced the servants’ chatter.
“I appreciate the warm reception. So, what do you think? My clones sure came in handy, didn’t they?” replied Egbert, projecting his voice. It was obvious he was speaking so that everyone could hear him.
“They certainly did, Your Majesty,” Alcede loudly agreed after raising his head. “Never did I expect the Light of Origin to make Your Majesty the Emperor even more capable on the battlefield. Truth be told, I was worried about the aberrations at first, but it seems there’s a silver lining after all.” Then, raising his voice even more, he added, “Perhaps the Light is growing even stronger than ever too.”
An audible gasp could be heard from the knights and ladies-in-waiting—and also from Lyse.
I see... Alcede is driving His Majesty’s plan home for everyone.
The original plan had been to make it seem as though Egbert had grown stronger with the aberrations, but now they were suggesting that the Light itself had become stronger. That should be easier for people to accept. Many palace servants had grown horns, fallen ill, or otherwise been put out of commission because of the aberrations. Worse yet, the aberrations were drawing monsters in by the drove. But if that was all happening because the Light had grown in strength, it would actually make a great deal of sense.
Perhaps because he’d seen how effective his improvisation was on the crowd, Alcede was all smiles when he waved and hailed Lyse and Sidis. “Shall we return to the Villa of Light to dismiss the clones, Your Majesty? Do come with us, Sidis and Miss Lyse.”
And so the three of them retreated from the courtyard alongside the gaggle of Egberts.
“That was quite the performance, Duke Alcede,” Lyse offered in praise after seeing the positive reception.
Egbert, who was walking behind them, chuckled. “No one’s craftier than Alcede, mark my words. His spiel was exactly what I’d hoped for and more.”
“Indeed, Alcede really outdid himself. The excuses we’ve sown now can be reaped if or when the Light normalizes or diminishes in power. We could even say that it sensed a surge in monsters, hence the temporary spike in power,” added Sidis.
“We can fool the people for another few years at this rate if the situation drags on. I mean, a few years might be pushing it, but still.”
“Agreed. That said, I have a proposal I’d like you all to hear,” began Sidis.
And with that, he moved into an explanation of his plan to invoke Lyse’s memories of her death. It was no surprise that she could recall so little of it after all these years since her reincarnation. But by the same token that childhood memories could be recalled with the right prodding, Sidis believed Lyse should be able to remember something from even further back than that.
Alcede was immediately in favor of the idea. “If there’s even a chance it may work, then we ought to try it. Let’s do so at once.”
That left the question of where the experiment should take place.
“We’ll need to conduct it somewhere we can have privacy. I would suggest the villa, but I’m afraid the Light’s interference may prove problematic,” reasoned Lyse.
“How about using our new home?” Sidis recommended their freshly built wing, as it was conveniently out of the way. With some guards to prevent any intruders from entering, it should be the most secure choice.
“Brilliant idea, Sidis! Let me summon a detail so we can be on our merry way,” chimed Alcede. It took him mere moments to make the arrangements. With only four people in their party, things were simple enough to account for.
The plan was to use a room on the third floor so that anyone who happened to waltz in on the ground level would be none the wiser as to what was going on upstairs. Furthermore, the group magically soundproofed the room so that no noise would escape through the windows or floor and reach the guards’ ears. They were also stocked with Donan stones they’d confiscated from cultists. Everything was in order—save for a small debate about who, exactly, should use the power of suggestion on Lyse. Whoever used the stones’ power on her would delve deep into her memories, beyond her childhood and into her past life. It required immense trust on her part. She trusted both Egbert and Alcede implicitly, but having no strong preference made it difficult to decide.
“Suggestion— I mean, psychological manipulation is your forte, isn’t it, Alcede?”
“But if this is a matter of trust, then wouldn’t you fare better, Your Majesty? After all, you knew Qatora personally, and it’s really her memories we’re after.”
“We can always keep trying if it doesn’t go well, although that’s something I’d prefer to avoid,” replied Egbert, worried that repeated failures would take too much time and put too much strain on Lyse.
“Worry not,” Alcede boasted. “I’ll be there for you every step of the way.”
“Fine.” Egbert clapped his hands together. “Then it’s settled.”
And so the discussion drew to a close as everyone began preparing for the task ahead.
With such a delicate ritual about to take place, the newly constructed wing was heavily guarded. Serious-looking knights surrounded the outside of the building as others carried a bed, some chairs, and a table to a medium-sized room on the third floor. With that, the preparations were finally complete.
As the sun started to set, Lyse and the imperial retinue assembled. The waning sunlight seeped through the windows, illuminating the room with the help of a magically burning lamp. At the center of it all sat the bed that the knights had brought in.
“First, I’ll have you lie down here, Miss Lyse. We can’t have you swooning and hurting yourself when you’re under the spell,” Alcede urged her.
As she reclined upon the soft mattress, Lyse finally understood the bed’s purpose in all this. “Okay, I’m ready,” she confirmed.
Egbert nodded repeatedly.
“Now, let’s have Sidis give it a shot and see if his magic alone is enough,” Alcede instructed.
On cue, Sidis cast his signature spell...and slowly but surely, Lyse surrendered herself to the haze swirling in her head.
“How far back does your memory go?” Sidis asked.
“To when I was three...” Lyse was barely conscious, and her response was more reflex than it was a thought-out answer. Nevertheless, she understood the question being asked of her—which was a most impressive feat for a target under the influence of Sidis’s confession magic. Lyse had to wonder if that was the work of the Light inside of her.
“I’d like to ask you now what you remember of your past life. Can you recall anything about the Light of Origin’s formulae?”
“I...can see glimpses. But nothing clear...” She couldn’t quite grasp the blurry lines of light that formed the spell circles.
“Try asking her about her childhood first,” Alcede whispered.
“What is your first memory from when you were three years old?” Sidis inquired on the duke’s advice.
“I revealed things from my previous life, but my father chastised me for telling tales...”
“Why did you do that?”
“Father was telling me about the empire... I thought I could tell him the truth.”
At the time, even reincarnated, Lyse had only had the cognitive ability of a small child. She’d believed that telling her father would please him, but unfortunately, the baron had thought she was fibbing. The sting of that experience discouraged her from sharing her memories of her past life again after that.
“Did you ever tell anyone else?” Sidis asked.
“My cousin Leon... He wanted to know more about the empire. When I told him what monsters were like, he called me a liar. I was frustrated, so I beat him in a duel.”
“Well done,” Sidis praised her.
“Oh, for the love of...” Alcede groaned in exasperation. “Would you please hurry it up? Try asking her about the Light again.”
“V-Very well. So, Lyse, do you remember anything else about the formulae?”
“It’s still...all blurry.”
“Can you sense or feel anything about the nature of the magic?”
“It combines water and earth magic...”
“I don’t think this is enough. The black stone, please, Your Majesty.” Alcede made the decision to expedite the experiment. Lyse then felt something cold and studded with stones in her hand—a black stone bangle. “Now, please repeat after me. ‘You’re slooowly becoming Qatooora. You’re becoming mooore and mooore conscious of when you were Qatooora.’”