The Asterisk War, Vol. 7: Festival Symphony

by Yuu Miyazaki

  So Orphelia was the only success…?

  Ayato finally understood.

  Hilda’s shoulders slumped. “The results are completely meaningless if they aren’t reproducible. In this world, we don’t have the luxury of accepting things that can’t be controlled.”

  “Things that can’t be controlled…?”

  Hilda lifted her head. “Oh my, you hadn’t realized?” Her mouth twisted into a self-satisfied grin. “Among people with abilities, such as Stregas and Dantes, there are those who have incredibly beneficial ones. People who have the power to contribute to more diverse fields than merely fighting it out against one another in an arena. But the integrated enterprise foundations who control everything don’t see that as a good thing. Why do you think that is? It’s simple, really. People’s abilities are ultimately individual qualities, and they can be extremely unstable depending upon one’s way of thinking. And being individual qualities, they’re guaranteed to be lost one day. If worse came to worst, it would be a great calamity if someone were to put the wrong gear into this machine we call society, only to have it break down, don’t you think?”

  “…Are you saying the integrated enterprise foundations don’t trust Stregas and Dantes?”

  “Strictly speaking, they don’t trust Genestella in general. After all, there’s never been so much as a single Genestella to reach an important executive position in any of them.”

  Even Ayato understood well enough how Genestella were perceived in the wider world. That said, being reminded of it like this, he couldn’t help but feel a vague sense of discomfort welling up in his chest.

  It probably had something to do with the fact that he had visited Lieseltania just the other day.

  “The same thing goes for Orga Luxes—or rather, for urm-manadite. Take your friend the Gravisheath, for example. Even the most advanced meteoric engineering technology has only been able to partially control its ability to manipulate gravity. But there are only a few people capable of drawing on the kind of power necessary to control an Orga Lux. And given that the power of Orga Luxes can’t be replicated, and that there’s always a risk of them having a violent episode, the integrated enterprise foundations only tolerate them to a certain extent. Which is why once they’ve finished gathering as much data as they can from them, they’re loaned out to the academy under their management as toys. That’s what Orga Luxes are.” Hilda paused there for a moment, slowly spreading her hands, before continuing. “If Genestella are going to be accepted in this world, it’s vital that everything about them be carefully explained, that every concern that people have be addressed, and that people understand that it’s possible to control them. My research should help bring that forward.”

  “…So that’s your goal?”

  “Yes, exactly. Oh, this won’t do, not at all. I’m afraid I’ve strayed from the topic at hand. So, will you give me your answer?”

  Ayato pondered it all for a brief moment, before staring straight into Hilda’s erratic eyes. “I can’t accept.”

  “Oh?” Hilda stared back at him in surprise. “Would you mind telling me why?”

  If he was being honest with himself, Ayato thought, it was hard to imagine a more appealing offer than what Hilda was presenting to him.

  Having finally found Haruka, there was now nothing he wanted more than to be able to wake her from her endless sleep. There were so many things he had to tell her. He wanted to hear her voice again. And more than anything, he wanted to see her smile.

  But if that came at the cost of repeating the tragedy that had befallen Orphelia… Not only would he be unable to face Julis; he wouldn’t be able to explain himself to Haruka, either.

  If he understood her situation correctly, Hilda was presently unable to continue her research. If that were the case, he couldn’t afford to let her free.

  “To put it bluntly, I don’t trust you.”

  “…I see. That’s a shame.” Her shoulders slumped, as if she truly were disappointed. “I understand. In that case, I’ll leave it at that for now. However…” She paused there, her voice assuming an air of deep importance, her expression deathly serious. “Remember this, Ayato Amagiri. You will ask me for my help, sooner or later. I’m sure of it.”

  “…”

  Ayato stood in silence, meeting her gaze head-on.

  “Well then, we’ll meet again,” she finished with that characteristic laugh, dry and snappish like clothes rustling in the wind.

  Likewise, her white gown fluttered as she spun around and disappeared into the darkness.

  “…I see.”

  As Ayato finished his tale, Julis let out a slow, deep sigh.

  The red curtain of dusk had fallen over them, and the trees nearby cast long, dark shadows across the courtyard.

  “I understand the situation. But are you sure you’re okay with it?”

  “Huh?”

  While Ayato paused, taken aback, Julis continued, “Of course I’ll never be able to forgive Opus, but those are my own personal feelings. I can’t allow anyone else to suffer what Orphelia has. However, one might call that no more than me being self-righteous.”

  “But, Julis, that’s—”

  “No, I understand. I couldn’t have been happier than when you said you’d turned her down. But at the same time, I can’t help but feel guilty about it… Because of me, you can’t do what you want…” She flashed him a weak, forced smile, before casting her gaze to her feet. “When it comes down to it, even my own wish is just me being selfish. So, if you really want to wake your sister up, I won’t blame you for it, no matter what you do. Just remember that.”

  “Julis…,” Ayato murmured.

  He had never expected her to say such a thing. It was strangely touching.

  “Thank you. But it’s okay. I understand, now that I’ve met her. Magnum Opus can’t be trusted.”

  They had only spoken for a short time, but it had been enough for him to catch a glimpse of a level of repulsiveness he had never before seen.

  “Although she probably wasn’t lying about being able to wake your sister.”

  “…Yeah, that’s what I thought, too.”

  There was no mistaking the fact that she couldn’t be trusted, but she also didn’t seem like the kind of person to come out with such a bald-faced lie. On that point, she wasn’t unlike Dirk Eberwein, the student council president at Le Wolfe. But there was an air of danger about Hilda that went far beyond that which surrounded Dirk.

  “I’ve confirmed it with Director Korbel. On a theoretical level at least, it certainly seems possible that her method might be able to wake Haruka. And she’s probably right about being the only one who would be able to do it… Not that the director wanted to admit it…”

  Which meant she wasn’t lying about that, at least.

  But that didn’t necessarily mean there wasn’t any other way of waking Haruka.

  “I’ll find another way to wake her, one that doesn’t mean relying on Magnum Opus. We’ll have to win the Gryps to be able to do that, though.”

  Even if it were impossible for him to do anything for his sister alone, with the help of the integrated enterprise foundations, it should be possible. That wasn’t to say he could fully trust them, either, but they were better than Hilda.

  “I see… I guess that explains your enthusiasm.”

  Perhaps she was remembering their discussion in the student council room, when Ayato had told them all to clinch a win.

  Julis nodded in understanding. “Okay. In any case, I’m dead set on winning, too. So let’s put everything we’ve got into it.”

  “Right.”

  Truth be told, he had been fretting over his interaction with Hilda ever since their discussion outside the hospital, but now that he’d told Julis about it, he finally felt that he had made the right decision.

  Now, he just had to keep moving forward.

  The following day, in Claudia’s exclusive training room:

  “Now then, we’ll be fac
ing off in the Gryps as a team… But we still have to decide on the most important thing,” Claudia said, glancing at her assembled team members—Ayato, Julis, Saya, and Kirin—in turn.

  “The most important thing?” Saya repeated, cocking her head.

  Claudia nodded, her expression grave. “The name of the team, of course.”

  At that moment, Julis, who had been leaning forward in anticipation, suddenly lost her balance. “How is that important?!”

  “Oh, but we’ll be introduced to the whole world under that name. It wouldn’t do to enter under something silly now, would it?”

  “That might be true…but there’s still plenty of things more important than that,” Julis muttered.

  Kirin, standing beside her, timidly raised a hand. “Um… What kind of names are the other teams using?”

  “Well now, let me see. The most famous would of course be Gallardworth’s Silverwinged Knights. They’re organized into two teams based on their ranking in the Named Cult: Numbers one to five make up Team Lancelot, and numbers six to ten make up Team Tristan. And I’m sure you’ve all heard about Queenvale’s Team Rusalka. It’s the same as the band.”

  Rusalka was an all-girl rock band famous throughout the world. While perhaps not as well-known as Sylvia Lyyneheym, they were extremely popular with the younger generation, with an army of dedicated fans. Even Ayato had heard of them and was familiar with several of their songs.

  “What happens to the teams that don’t register a name?”

  “When that happens, the name of the team’s representative is used. For example, if the representative’s name is Tanaka, they would be known as Team Tanaka.”

  “Isn’t that fine?” Julis blurted out. She seemed completely disinterested in the topic.

  “Oh my. I didn’t realize you were so taken by Team Tanaka.”

  “You know that’s not what I meant! I meant that seeing as you’re the representative, Team Enfield would do!”

  “If you’re all okay with that, I don’t mind… But we haven’t even discussed whether I should be the representative yet.”

  “You’re the one who asked us all to join, so it makes sense to me,” Ayato said.

  “…I agree.” Saya nodded.

  “M-me too!” Kirin chimed in.

  Though making a sour face, Julis nodded.

  “I see. In that case, I’ll presume to put myself down as our representative,” Claudia said, bowing her head.

  “Ah! Miss President, are you going to put yourself forward for reelection as student council president next year, too?”

  “That was my plan… Why do you ask, Miss Toudou? Are you interested in the job?”

  Kirin shook her head forcefully. “N-no way! I’m not cut out for that…! I—I was just wondering, it wouldn’t be too hard, would it? Doing both jobs…?”

  Claudia always seemed to be busy with one thing or another, and so Kirin, in her own way, must have been concerned for her.

  “There’s no need to worry about that.” Claudia laughed. “I enjoy being on the student council, after all.”

  “Well, I don’t think there’s anyone at Seidoukan more suited to it than you. I’d be surprised if anyone even put their name forward to run against you,” Julis added.

  Saya and Ayato nodded in agreement.

  Claudia was the kind of person who seemed able to handle anything that was thrown at her, and her accomplishments as student council president were recognized by everyone at Seidoukan.

  “By the way, I’d like to hear more about what you said yesterday,” Julis said.

  “And what would that be?”

  “You said that your wish might make an enemy out of Galaxy.”

  Everyone’s eyes swung toward Claudia.

  The discussion had been left unsettled, so Ayato was a little worried about it, too.

  “I see. You might be disappointed.” Claudia caught her breath before continuing. “My wish is to be able to have a little talk with someone who’s currently imprisoned.”

  “…That’s it? Just to talk?” Julis stared at her blankly.

  “Indeed. But it’s more difficult than you might think. The person I want to talk with was involved in the Jade Twilight Incident. Strictly speaking, they were the ideological leader behind the group.”

  “!” The four of them gasped in surprise.

  The Jade Twilight Incident was the largest terrorist attack in Asterisk’s history. Even now, the topic was considered taboo, and the truth behind what really happened was still shrouded in mystery.

  “The trials relating to the Jade Twilight Incident were all conducted in a special court at the behest of the integrated enterprise foundations, with the vast majority of them being closed to the public… Even some of the judgments haven’t been made public. The person whom I want to meet is one of those cases.”

  “Um, do you know this person’s name…?” Kirin asked.

  “Of course. I don’t think any of you know him. His name is Ladislav Bartošik.”

  Judging by their expressions, neither Kirin nor Julis had heard of him. Ayato wasn’t familiar with the name, either.

  But to his surprise, Saya slowly raised her hand.

  “…I know him.”

  “My, is that so? I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised, Miss Sasamiya.”

  “Oh?” Julis turned toward Saya, her curiosity piqued. “Who is he?”

  “He’s a famous researcher of Luxes and Orga Luxes. He’s written several important theses on the latter in particular. Important enough that his name will probably be remembered throughout history. But I read somewhere that he went missing. And I think he was even a teacher here at Seidoukan…” Saya had been talking quite freely up to this point, but she suddenly fell silent, as if her own train of thought had taken her to something unspeakable.

  “That’s right, he used to teach at Seidoukan’s college, although it sounds like he didn’t take on many classes. He seems to have preferred shutting himself away in Galaxy’s laboratory whenever he could. The Orga Lux he created during that time was this very Pan-Dora,” Claudia said, taking the Orga Lux’s activator from its holder at her waist.

  “Oh, so he was the one who made the Pan-Dora…?” Kirin asked, impressed.

  Julis, however, was wearing a grave expression. “No, more importantly… If that’s true, it means the ideological leader behind the Jade Twilight Incident was here at Seidoukan…”

  “…That’s scandalous.”

  “Ah…! Th-that’s right! So that’s why you’re being targeted by Galaxy…?”

  “Probably.” Claudia laughed, as if to dodge the question.

  Julis, however, wasn’t about to let it go. “So what on earth do you have to talk about with him?”

  “I’m afraid I can’t tell you all just yet. If I did, there’s a high chance I would end up putting you all in danger. Even now, all contact with him is strictly prohibited,” Claudia said, rejecting Julis’s demand calmly yet decisively. “But like I told you all the other day, Galaxy is still probably only monitoring my movements. They shouldn’t try anything major until at least the summer.”

  “…”

  But Ayato, at some vague level, wasn’t entirely satisfied with her explanation.

  There was no doubt that the subject touched on some well-kept secret involving Seidoukan and Galaxy, something so dark that if it were to come out, it could cause quite a scandal. But even so, the Jade Twilight Incident had happened years ago. Even if there was a chance they might end up bringing something to light, was it really so bad that Galaxy would feel it had to move against them directly?

  And besides, it sounds like Claudia still hasn’t told us everything…

  There had to be more than she let on, Ayato felt.

  “Now then, let’s put that little digression aside and deal with the matter at hand, shall we?”

  “The matter at hand?”

  “Yes. Out of all the Festa events, the Gryps is said to offer the most surprises for a reason
, after all. Essentially, it’s possible to overcome differences in ability through a well-developed strategy. So we all need to have a good grasp of one another’s talents.” Claudia paused, activating the Pan-Dora in her hand. “On that note, it’s time you all knew about this one’s true power.”

  CHAPTER 2

  RECT LUX

  “The Pan-Dora’s true power…?”

  Ayato, Julis, Saya, and Kirin each caught their breath.

  The true power of Claudia’s Orga Lux, the twin blades of the Pan-Dora: precognition.

  But no one knew exactly how it worked—for example, exactly how many seconds into the future it could see. That was partly because Claudia was the only person who had ever been able to wield it.

  Of course, those who created it probably knew, but given that the development of Orga Luxes was a closely held secret even within the IEFs, there was practically zero chance that the information would come out that way.

  In the end, people could only grasp at rumors, its abilities remaining unknown to the public even now.

  “Let me start by laying out the facts. As you have all no doubt heard, the Pan-Dora’s ability is precognition, the power to look into the future. At present, I can see around three hundred seconds ahead.”

  “—?!”

  “Th-three hundred seconds?!”

  This revelation left the four of them speechless.

  Three hundred seconds… In other words, she could see her opponents’ moves five minutes into the future. The Gryps might not be comparable to the Phoenix, but some of Ayato’s matches there hadn’t even lasted that long. Which meant that Claudia would have been able to see everything, from beginning to end, before the match had even begun.

  If that was the case, it was hard to see how she could possibly have been defeated.

  “However… Those three hundred seconds are more of a stock than anything else.”

  “A stock…?” Kirin repeated, cocking her head in confusion.

  Julis, in contrast, nodded, her eyes opening wide as if suddenly understanding. “So that’s it…”