By Zephyria 
I scanned the murmuring knights with a glance.
Seeing Mac Weaber and Matt Nico side-by-side was somehow amusing. Their names were so similar, yet one looked like a blazing flame and the other like a grubby sewer rat. I overheard them bickering, but it was just trivial chatter.
The other knights were busy learning how to use their newly distributed Artifacts. They looked affectionate, attaching short-range Communication Artifacts to each other’s collars. I chuckled briefly, watching a male and female knight, who had argued just days before, test their Artifacts.
By the way, where were the gods?
I grabbed Boulder and asked about the gods’ whereabouts. As expected, he, who loved to follow Spiritus around, gave me an answer in an excited, cheerful tone.
“This morning, before dawn, the one who noticed the continent’s mana flowing in reverse was Spiritus! He subtly tipped me off while we were staying in the next room! He said he was going to see the Second Prince right away, didn’t you see him?”
“…Hmm.”
He wasn’t in the office.
Servants and retainers brought the backpacks that each knight needed to carry. While Mac Weaber checked the headcount and Samantha Andrei and Bailey Barton helped her, I just stood there blankly.
If I had known, I should have stayed by Ruben’s side a little longer.
Even now, as it was nearing nine in the morning, the sky was still dark. It was astonishing that the world remained intact beneath the turbulent sky, which looked like it could unleash a massive lightning strike at any moment. A few of them still glanced at the sky, but they showed no signs of fear.
Just then, Ruben arrived.
Spiritus and Gano Paquin stood beside the child. I had been worried, having all the useful talents assigned to my side, but seeing ten Imperial Knights and two Imperial Wizards in long robes following Ruben, a total of twelve, put me at ease.
Ruben gestured, and I immediately stood by the child’s side.
Ruben’s gaze briefly swept over the Artifact worn on my wrist. Seeing him check on me, even while pretending not to, made me feel pity and pride, and I took a breath.
Ruben calmly commanded in a low voice.
“One hour from now, at ten in the morning. You will cross through the portal to the reservoir in Gaea. The first objective is to dismantle the magic barrier covering the vicinity of the reservoir, and the second is to dive underwater and find the source of the Oasis.”
“…”
“Teams Alpha, Beta, and Gamma will enter the water to dismantle the barriers on all sides and find the source of the Oasis. Gamma Team and I will defend the perimeter of the reservoir to protect the safety of the teams that have entered.”
“…”
“After dismantling all barriers, proceed according to the situation, but if the Oasis awakens normally, we request that its source be moved to allow other gods access.”
“…”
“Immediately after, with the help of the two gods present, seal the Ninth God and apprehend the suspects Wesley and Richard. If the suspects resist, they are to be shot on sight, and I, Rubel Anti Searon, will take responsibility for it.”
“…”
“That is all. Questions.”
The child’s calm but weighty voice settled in the hall. The knights, standing at attention, focused their gazes without a single stray look. Even those standing at the very back stood straight and behaved quietly, just like those in front.
Mac Weaber, standing nearby, raised his hand playfully. As soon as Ruben nodded permission, he asked without hesitation,
“Will Your Highness also participate in the battle?”
“If there are enemies I can face. Don’t worry about me; I’ll take care of my own safety.”
“Yes.”
Ruben continued without further comment.
“These Spirits will be responsible for the breathing of the team entering the water. During the remaining time, get acquainted with the Spirits. If there is nowhere to run in case of an emergency, trust these Spirits and dive into the water to take refuge.”
Nereid, a familiar face, and an unfamiliar Undine floated above Ruben’s left shoulder.
Seeing that, I also mentally summoned the Sylphs and Undines I had let play among themselves. No matter what they had been doing, my Spirits’ hair was all disheveled. What reason could there be for Spirits to be so unruly? It was utterly baffling and suspicious.
Yeldidus’s Nereid, with a gentle wave of her hand, helped groom my Spirits. If I kept them with him, my little Spirits wouldn’t get lost. I told them to be well-behaved and careful, and all the Spirits nodded in agreement.
While the knights were busy showing their faces to their respective Spirits, I asked Ruben what I had been curious about.
“Does Ruben need to personally lead the expedition?”
“Yes. It seems I’ll need to adjust the mana concentration locally.”
“Yes…?”
Ruben lowered his voice slightly.
“Since this morning, the mana concentration across the entire continent has been rapidly increasing. The Divine object of the Sierran Empire can regulate the mana concentration within the borders, centered around the capital, but since we don’t know the current situation in Floyd, there are clear limitations.”
“…Well…”
“The Divine object of the Sierran Empire works by storing excessively overflowing mana in an unknown space and then retrieving it later. If they can’t control the mana surge in Floyd, they’ll try to lower Floyd’s mana concentration by channeling it to Sierran, even if it means diverting it. Since I can’t send Lucilla for something like this, I have to go.”
“…”
“Don’t worry. I’ve come with seasoned knights, so it’ll be fine.”
How could I not worry?
If I were to fight with all my might, I didn’t know how much capacity I would have left to look around. I was greatly concerned that the child might be harmed by a stray sword.
However, if Ruben were to drastically lower or raise the mana concentration in the capital to regulate Floyd’s mana, that too would be dangerous.
Without mana, Sword Masters and Wizards were no different from ordinary people. If someone tried to harm Ruben the moment the mana levels changed rapidly, it would be difficult to stop them in time, so perhaps it would be better for me to be nearby…
“…Haa…”
But how could I endure the scratchy sigh from within?
Distressed, I couldn’t ask or listen further and looked into the distance. Then, cool fingertips gently tickled and slipped between my index and middle fingers.
Ruben, who had carefully taken my hand without anyone noticing, tilted his head and examined my expression.
I slowly read what was in the child’s dark eyes. There was no worry or apology, only strong trust and affection directed at me. His slowly blinking eyes looked like those of an affectionate cat.
“It’s okay.”
“…”
“It’ll be fine, Mika. It’s only been moved up by a day. We’ve made various arrangements in the capital, so all we need to do is awaken the Oasis. You’ve already managed to unseal the God of Records.”
Where did Ruben’s confidence come from?
Even though I knew Ruben was intelligent, I felt ashamed of myself for constantly worrying and clinging to him like a child, despite my age. And I felt pity and sadness for Ruben, who comforted and appeased me, acting far more like an adult than his age. After a moment of thought, I nodded.
I forced down another sigh that welled up. As I looked at the child with concern, Ruben suddenly blushed.
“…Not now.”
“…Huh?”
What? What was it?
Greatly flustered, I followed Ruben’s gaze and looked around. Not a single person was looking this way. Some bewildered knights were pulling at each other’s collars, diverting their gaze from me and Ruben.
Only Matt Nico, hidden behind Mac Weaber’s broad shoulder, covered his face with both hands as soon as our eyes met.
…What did I do?
Feeling greatly wronged, I was speechless. Spiritus, who had been staring at Ikyun as if he were watching something pathetic, asked in a slanted posture,
“Are we leaving on the dot? If you’re ready, we can go now.”
Ruben wiped his still-flushed face with his hand. Seeing him like this made me feel as if I had truly done something shameful, and my tongue tingled for no reason. Clearing my throat, I stood up straight.
“Is everyone ready?”
“…Yes!”
Ruben’s voice was as dignified as before, but the spirit of those answering was more relaxed than at first. I didn’t bother to point it out. As we lined up in two rows by team, waiting for the portal to open, my ears felt hot.
Golden mana bloomed from Spiritus’s fingertips, and the air opened.
I was the first to set foot on the new land.
❖ ❖ ❖
It was quiet in all directions, as if on the way to a temple. Fallen leaves crunched underfoot for every person.
It was already November, and winter was just around the corner. In the capital of Sierran, being a city, one couldn’t feel the change of seasons much. The ornamental trees, protected by magic, shone green even without flowers. With at least one greenhouse attached to every mansion, the surroundings were always fresh even in late autumn and early winter.
However, the place we had suddenly leaped across space to arrive at was not like that.
The tallest trees were about half a span higher than my eye level. The low trees had shed all their leaves, and the cold wind whistled through their bare branches. We were about to go into the water, and while I was fine, I worried if the others wouldn’t be too cold.
But there was a bigger problem than all of that.
“…Kk.”
“Hah, S-sorry…”
Unaccustomed to the rapidly rising mana concentration, some knights, halfway through the portal, were taken aback, clutching their heads or chests and falling to their knees. Since the portal could only stay open for a very short time, no one retreated.
“The current mana concentration is.”
“This is almost comparable to a Magic Territory. The ambient mana concentration must be around 70mp. Wow, look at that! That vortex in the sky, the center seems to be near the Gaea reservoir. It’s not that the mana concentration suddenly surged, but it rolled in like a wave from over there and then… and then…”
I let Boulder’s babbling wash over me.
The entire first team passed through the portal, then the second, the third… When about half the group had emerged,
A dragging sound was heard from afar.