Twilight Overture (Premium)

by Yuri Kitayama

  She wanted to sleep over it for a night before proofreading, but for now, she read over it again to make sure there weren’t any glaring problems.

  “...It’s done.”

  Celia breathed deeply and put her quill down on the desk. She stretched her arms and stood up from the chair, heading for the door. When she opened the door and moved to the living room, Rio and Aishia were sitting on the sofa, chatting. The two of them immediately noticed Celia’s presence.

  “Did you finish writing your letter, Professor?” Rio asked Celia. She nodded.

  “Yup, for now. I’d like you to read it to make sure there’s no issues with the contents...” she said timidly.

  “Sure, I don’t mind doing that.”

  “Thanks. Here you go.”

  Rio accepted the letter from Celia and ran his eyes over the text. “Your writing is as neat as expected, Professor,” he said, breaking into a smile.

  “G-Geez. Don’t look at that... Are there any problems with the contents?” Celia asked with red cheeks.

  “...No, nothing I’m seeing. It’s a very warm letter.”

  “I-I see. Thank you.” Celia accepted the letter with embarrassment.

  “We were actually just discussing the journey to Count Claire’s territory. I was thinking of setting up base in the outskirts of Amande for a while and departing the day after tomorrow, but there’s somewhere I’d like to stop by on our way back,” Rio said.

  “I don’t mind. Where do you want to go?” Celia asked.

  “Marquess Rodan’s territory — the capital of Rodania.”

  “The headquarters of the Duke Huguenot faction, which has Princess Flora right now... You’re going to check on the background of the hero that was summoned, aren’t you?” Celia asked, immediately making a guess as to why Rio was heading for Rodania.

  “I’m glad you’re quick on the uptake.” Rio grinned widely and nodded.

  Yesterday, he had heard from Celia that there were four kingdoms that had sacred stones which summoned heroes: One in the Kingdom of Beltrum, one with the Huguenot faction that had been exiled from Beltrum, one in the Kingdom of Galarc, and one in the kingdom of Centostella. Out of these four, the only one whose name had been identified was the hero of the Beltrum Kingdom, Rui Shigekura. Thus, Rio was considering confirming the name of the hero from the Huguenot faction on their way to Count Claire’s territory.

  “I’m sure there’s no need for me to say anything to the two of you, but be careful, okay?” Celia said, timidly peering at Rio and Aishia’s faces.

  “We will. For now, our goal is to simply confirm the hero’s name, so we won’t do anything too dangerous,” Rio agreed readily, trying not to worry Celia.

  “...In other words, you won’t approach the Rodania hero even if they turn out to be the hero you’re looking for?”

  “If that turns out to be the case, I’ll make a careful decision based on the situation of their security. I don’t know if they’ll be willing to listen to the words of an intruder appearing out of nowhere, and if the worst happens and a battle occurs, I don’t know what kind of abilities the hero might be hiding. They’re a complete unknown.” It wasn’t as though he was visiting an acquaintance, so he wasn’t about to go looking for trouble.

  “The hero’s abilities, huh? You might know this already, but there’s a legend... That they had Divine Arms of the gods and could defeat a demon army of several thousand in a single blow. Or so it’s said,” Celia said.

  “...Did the hero summoned in Beltrum’s castle, Rui Shigekura, have a power like the legends?” Rio asked curiously. A legend was just a legend — there was no guarantee it was true. However, heroes of legend were actually appearing in the present, so it wasn’t impossible to find out.

  “I don’t know the details, but he did have a Divine Arms. In Rui Shigekura’s case, his took the shape of a weapon — a bow. One that can control lightning, or something.”

  “Divine Arms in the form of a lightning bow...” Rio muttered quietly.

  Don’t tell me the attack he launched that time was...

  Something familiar came to Rio’s mind. When he was acting as a diversion for Celia to safely escape the capital, the boy had fired a shot at him from the top of a steeple.

  “Is something the matter?” Celia looked at Rio’s face curiously.

  Rio shook his head. “No. Did that Divine Arms really have the power to defeat a huge demon army, like you said?” he asked. He didn’t want to say that he had possibly crossed swords with the hero, since Celia would just worry.

  “I don’t know. Even if he could release a shot with that much power, it isn’t something you can use just anywhere...”

  “Well, that’s true,” Rio accepted with a wry smile. At worst, the landscape could change.

  “Yeah, but...” Celia paused with a frown, causing Rio to urge her to continue.

  “But?”

  “Do you remember how I was developing an artifact that could measure the essence stored inside a person?” Celia suddenly changed the topic with a question for Rio.

  “Of course.”

  “I actually succeeded not too long ago.”

  Rio’s eyes widened. “...Congratulations. That’s amazing... quite a historic achievement.”

  The development of a magic artifact that could measure the amount of essence within a person was a challenge that had yet to be accomplished, until now.

  Celia shyly burst into a wide smile before immediately looking troubled and continuing her story. “Thank you. Because of that, I actually used that artifact to measure the magic essence of the hero and his friends that were summoned along with him...”

  “How was the result?” Rio asked with a serious expression, matching the mood of her story with his own enthusiasm.

  “...They all had so much essence, it was immeasurable. The artifact broke. Even though I made it capable of measuring up to ten times the amount of essence required to use wide-scale annihilation magic of the highest grade...” Celia said with a conflicted look.

  The type of magic she had brought up referred to the super-powerful grand magic that was mainly developed with war in mind. If used in a crowded area, it had enough power to take the lives of several hundred people. However, on top of the compatibility rate of the spell formula contract being low, it also exhausted a ridiculous amount of magic essence, requiring more essence than the average sorcerer could use.

  “I see. Not only the hero, but his friends were also unable to be measured in essence...” In that case, Miharu and the others might have quite the amount of essence too, Rio thought.

  “I’ve never seen wide-scale annihilation magic used before. Is it as much as your essence, Professor?” Rio asked about Celia’s essence amount to gain an idea of how much a genius sorcerer would have.

  “Without any essence recovery potions, I can cast it twice, at most. Just so you know, I’m the sorcerer with the most magic essence in the Beltrum Kingdom, okay?” Celia sighed, answering with a bitter smile.

  “So even for you, the limit is two...” Rio tapped his hand against his mouth in contemplation.

  “Haruto’s essence is limitless,” Aishia murmured quietly.

  “...Really?” Celia’s eyes widened as she looked at Rio’s face inquisitively.

  “No... I wonder? I’ve been told I have a lot, but I’ve never measured it properly.” Rio scratched his head, troubled.

  “It’s an endless supply, so it’s limitless. If Celia’s essence was a single bucket of water, then Haruto’s essence is like an endlessly large lake that can never dry up. Miharu, Aki, and Masato have lots, too, but not as much as Haruto,” Aishia said, using a metaphor to explain the scale of Rio’s magic essence.

  “A-Ahaha... That’s incredible.” Celia’s smile twitched in spite of herself.

  If that was the truth, then it was absurd for her to compare herself with him. The statement was slightly hard to believe, but despite their short time together, she knew Aishia wasn’t the
type to lie without a reason to do so.

  “...Huh? Wait a minute. Why do you know how much essence Rio has?” Celia suddenly questioned out loud, looking at Aishia.

  “Spirits can tell how much magic essence a person has by diving into them. Haruto and I are connected by a spirit path, so I can read his essence amount more accurately than I can with others. Even so, I can’t see his limit.”

  “...You mean even you can’t measure his essence amount accurately?” Celia confirmed timidly. Aishia gave a short nod.

  “Yes.”

  “Ahaha. Rather than talking about my magic essence, let’s talk about Rodania’s hero instead. And about the letter to deliver to your home, Professor.” Rio smiled wryly and redirected the wandering conversation back on track.

  “...Right,” Celia agreed tiredly. “I have an idea with regards to the letter. There’s a hidden passageway from the back of the estate to the main house... If we use that, we should be able to place the letter and return without a problem.”

  “I see. Then it seems like it’d be better to have you guide us into your home, Professor.” Rio looked at Celia dependently.

  “Yup, leave it to me,” Celia agreed proudly.

  “Which only leaves the problem of sneaking into Rodania... Could you wait somewhere safe during that time, Professor?” Rio asked.

  “Yeah. If something bad happens, I’d only get in the way anyway. If only I’d mastered the art of self defense...”

  No matter how much magic she could use, Celia hadn’t trained for combat as a soldier. There was no guarantee she could launch offensive magic without hesitation against someone during a battle, and she was powerless in close-range combat. If someone closed in on her, she’d be no different than any other defenseless civilian.

  Rio thought for a moment. “Would you like me to teach you some simple self defense? Of course, Aishia and I will be the ones protecting you normally, but there might be a use for it if we’re walking outside,” he suggested.

  “...You’re right. It wouldn’t be good for me to stay shut inside, either. Would you, please?” Celia was more of the indoor type, but she agreed with his assessment.

  “Then once we get back from Count Claire’s, we can start the lessons along with the ones on sorcery and spirit arts.”

  Celia nodded. “Okay. You’ve also promised to teach me cooking. It’s like our roles have completely reversed... I was the teacher in the past, fufu,” she said, smiling in amusement.

  “You’re still my Professor to me, even now.” Rio said, beaming cheerily.

  ◇　◇　◇

  Two days later, after lunch...

  Rio carried Celia as he and Aishia flew through the air to visit the capital of Count Claire’s territory, Cleia.

  Cleia was located towards the east of the Beltrum Kingdom, a regional city that the main road towards Galarc Kingdom passed through. It was Rio’s first time visiting.

  With roughly 30,000 people, the regional city boasted a medium-sized population and functioned as an important trading point between the east and west sides of Beltrum.

  Rio entered the city from the eastern side, holding hands with the two girls as they walked down the main road. “Since we’ll be sneaking into the estate at nighttime, how about we go somewhere before then?” Rio asked Celia, who was walking on his right side.

  Cleia was Celia’s hometown; it was possible that she had memories that she wanted to revisit, Rio thought, but Celia shook her head.

  “No, it’s okay. There may be people who know me, so I’m fine with just looking at the town like this,” she said. Her cloak hood covered her face and made it hard to see her expression, but she looked somewhat downcast to Rio.

  “Let’s walk, then. I’m hungry. We should go eat something yummy.” From Rio’s left, Aishia looked at the two of them and pulled at Rio’s arm. She may have been trying to cheer Celia up in her own way.

  “...Good idea. How about that, Professor? If there are any local specialties, we can go eat that.” Rio smiled faintly and tugged Celia along by the hand.

  “Ah, wait! Hold on, you two.” Despite giving a verbal objection, Celia was smiling happily as she allowed the two to lead her forward.

  Thus, time passed in the blink of an eye. As they walked around and tried different foods, twilight eventually settled upon the city.

  At the moment, the three of them were drinking tea in a rather trendy cafe while taking a break. Sitting on the second floor terrace, they watched the people walking through the city with the sun setting behind them, eating their extra orders of dessert.

  “I may have eaten a little too much after all,” Rio said with a strained smile, holding a hand against his stomach.

  “Y-Yeah. It was delicious, but maybe this scone was a bit too much. There’s no way I’m eating dinner now. Ugh, I’ll have to go on a diet...” Celia agreed, hanging her head with guilt.

  “It was good,” Aishia said. As a spirit, she could change her food intake into magic essence, so she could easily eat as much as she wanted without ever gaining weight.

  “Just what kind of body does a spirit have? I’m so jealous...” Celia pouted, looking at Aishia.

  “The materialization of a physical body from a spiritual existence is a spirit art unique to spirits alone. I don’t know if I have the organs necessary for human life to function, but my general structure and physical abilities shouldn’t vary too much from a normal human,” Aishia said, giving a rather serious answer unexpectedly. Celia was left taken aback in surprise.

  “H-Huh... Really...”

  “The more a spirit art causes a phenomena that goes against the laws of nature, the greater the essence consumed. Taking on the physical nature of a form may be the most natural way of materialization, I believe,” Rio explained, adding on his own assumption.

  “That makes sense. Even in sorcery, phenomena that contradict nature’s laws will affect the essence consumption...” Celia murmured as she started to lose herself in her own thoughts. Figuring she wouldn’t be paying attention for a while, Rio smiled wryly.

  “It’s almost getting dark,” Aishia said.

  Rio thought for a moment. “...Let’s wait a little longer. There’re still lots of people on the streets, so at least wait until my stomach settles,” he laughed, deciding to extend their break time.

  ◇　◇　◇

  Nearly an hour passed after their visit to the cafe. With the exception of the main road, the streets were completely empty of people as Rio and the girls made their way to the Claire estate.

  The estate sat at the top of a small hill, its interior lit by torches as soldiers patrolled the area. Any amateur would easily be discovered by the security measures; however, Rio and Aishia blended into the darkness as they flew with their spirit arts, landing in a corner of the estate without being spotted by anyone.

  “Do you think we can make it to the hidden passageway without being seen? If not, we can always try sneaking in from the rooftop instead...” Rio whispered, letting Celia down as he observed the state of the estate grounds from between the bushes.

  “It’ll be fine — the entrance is located in an area hard to spot.”

  “All right. Then please lead the way.”

  “Okay. Follow me,” Celia nodded, bending down low as she began to move. Rio and Aishia brought up the rear while staying alert of the presence of any patrolling soldiers.

  Roughly one minute later, they stopped moving. “It’s the fountain over there. The ground behind the estate is the entrance of the hidden passageway,” Celia said, pointing to a fountain on the outskirts of the garden.

  “I see. It doesn’t seem like there are any patrols around, but just in case... May I hold you for a little while?” Rio asked, peering at the garden from the shadows.

  “Huh...?” Celia stiffened out of bewilderment.

  “There’s a chance we may be spotted while moving from here to that fountain, so I’d like to hide us with spirit arts just in case,” Rio expla
ined.

  “O-Ohh, that’s what you meant. Just like the spirit arts Aishia used when we were getting away from the capital, right? Sure, go ahead,” Celia said in understanding, having an idea of the spirit art that would be used. It seemed like Aishia had already used it on her once before, when Rio was acting as a diversion in the capital.

  “If you don’t mind, then,” Rio said, picking Celia up in his arms. Then he turned to Aishia. “Let’s go, Aishia.”

  “Okay. I’ll use the spirit arts, then.”

  “Please do. Thank you, Aishia.”

  “No worries,” Aishia said, activating her spirit arts. Immediately afterwards, a gentle breeze blew around them, completely enveloping Rio.

  “Let’s go,” he said, walking forward. Aishia followed behind him.

  “...Hey, Rio. You can see your surroundings, right?” Celia asked quietly, still being carried. She couldn’t see their surroundings at all — it was as though there was a thick fog in the air, distorting the space.

  “Yes. If you train yourself to visualize magic essence, you’d be able to see, too, Professor,” Rio explained.

  The spirit art Aishia was currently using was a wind-based invisibility illusion that weaved her magic essence into the surrounding air. It created a unique space that caused those within the space to appear transparent to the outside. Unlike with turning into spirit form, their physical bodies were still present, so it wasn’t possible to shut sounds and presences out, too. Furthermore, exterior interference and contact could easily shake the space, so they weren’t able to make any sudden or vigorous movements, like running and jumping.

  Other than that, people who could visualize essence could see through the spirit art’s activation and view the interior of the space, while people with high sensitivity for detecting magic essence could also feel the displacement, so there was a limit to its use.

  That being said, barely any humans in the Strahl region could visually detect magic essence, so it was a worthwhile ability to use.