By Zephyria 
I thought I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on the play, but that wasn’t the case at all.
The figures embarking on the pilgrimage were five knights, one wizard, and five mercenaries. A total of eleven people.
The figures who obtained a Divine Revelation through earnest prayer at the Goddess’s statue headed to the Temple of the Sun God.
All the actors portraying each character performed excellently. The lines they exchanged were urgent and rapid, conveying the critical situation to the audience, and even the occasional jokes or brief moments of vulnerability were left with a thoroughly calculated resonance.
The sight of them facing enemies disguised as monsters was quite interesting.
At a glance, the actors’ martial arts skills weren’t even at the level of third-rate martial artists. I wondered how they would fight, but they had pre-arranged their offense and defense, taking turns in groups of two or three, using large, flashy movements to leap around the stage and mimic combat. It was closer to a lion dance than a Sword Art.
The movements, embellished with various Magic effects, looked sufficiently impressive even to my eyes. How much practice must they have put in? Their rhythmic movements were so endearing, I even felt proud of them.
Throughout the not-so-short journey, the actors playing the mercenaries defeated monsters and rambled on about their personal lives and their patriotism for the Empire. In between, the actor playing Elvin kept time with the sound of the desert wind. The sound of instruments mimicking the desert maintained a calm atmosphere throughout the play.
Then, at the moment a sharp, high-pitched string instrument sounded, figures clad in crimson-black attire burst from a corner of the stage. Simultaneously, all the actors drew their weapons. Reflected in the spotlight cast from high above, their weapons glinted as if imbued with an aura.
Were they finally going to showcase a proper sword dance?
Wanting to see more closely, I used Telekinesis to draw back the curtain draped across the terrace.
Just then, one of them, wearing a light pink wig, stepped forward half a pace.
And instead of swordsmanship, he suddenly began to sing.
I was so taken aback that a laugh escaped me with a gasp, but only Michael and I were laughing. For Asdel, who was deeply engrossed in the play, I managed to suppress the laughter that kept trying to escape.
I hadn’t realized it, as he maintained a dignified demeanor throughout, but the actor imitating me had a surprisingly strong voice.
Actor Michael, whose voice was sweet and captivating, sang of his anger towards the Ninth God who turned people into zombies, and Actor Rubel, standing beside him, added harmony with his sorrow and pity for the humans who were unwillingly turned into zombies.
Watching the scene where enemies fell one by one to the phantom swordplay accompanying Actor Michael’s singing, I wondered if I was dreaming. After each line of the song, the figures in black clothes would fly away on their own, tumble, or swing through the air suspended by ropes.
As if in agreement with Actor Michael’s anger, the other members of the troupe began to sing the chorus.
Around that time, the zombie actors, who had been rolling around some distance away, crawled towards the center of the stage and then stood up one by one. Each time their fake weapons clashed, one of them would be flung away with an exaggerated motion, which was quite amusing.
I had misjudged. They had at least surpassed the third-rate level. Still, they weren’t the type to drop their swords. Watching the twenty-odd figures move in perfect unison, I couldn’t help but nod.
By this point, watching Michael, who sang so well, had become commonplace. What wouldn’t a storyteller do to liven things up? I only hoped my companions wouldn’t ask me to do anything as bizarre after seeing this.
Benjamin had done the sword inspection, but there was so much missing, apart from the order of events.
The zombies fell with just a feigned cut. There was no depiction of them being dismembered or anything of the sort.
The Sun God, who came out to greet them, welcomed the party warmly from the start, sharing food and drink. The mock Makrir fruits, the size of human heads, were amusing, and the sight of children dressed as Makrir running around the stage was cute.
In the scene where they fought Black magicians on the Indus Canyon, they seemed to have used Illusion Magic, as the stage floor bubbled and boiled, and I quite liked the sight of the troupe members precariously unleashing fake Sword energy from high structures.
As the floor collapsed, my last act was to pull Rubel into my arms and fall with him to the floor. The grand music that had played throughout gradually faded until it disappeared completely. Similarly, all the lights, which had been dimming, suddenly went out.
After exactly three seconds of silence, the entire world suddenly became boisterously bright.
“Attention, audience members. We will now have a 20-minute intermission. Please note that entry may be restricted after the intermission. Please ensure you have your tickets with you when exiting and re-entering the auditorium during the break. We repeat, from now on…”
“Hooaaah…”
For Asdel, who let out a long sigh, I once again used my powers to block the gazes that were turning towards us. Then, the child looked up at Ikyun and asked in a small voice,
“Is it real?”
“What is?”
“When you fought the Black magicians, did the floor really boil like that?”
Was it?
I remembered the memory of blood pooling, but…
Still, lava seemed better for children to see than blood. I nodded.
“It did.”
“Liar.”
“…Hm?”
“When you lie, you smile really subtly like this. It’s very obvious.”
“…Actually, there was that much monster blood spread out.”
“Ew.”
“See, you hate it.”
I was about to pat Asdel’s adorable head when I received an unwarranted scolding. He grumbled about how much time it took to style his hair, so I just smiled indulgently and turned my gaze to Michael.
“Only the actors playing Rubel and me wore masks.”
“Ah. That’s funny, too. The actor playing His Majesty the Emperor normally wears a mask like that to enhance his dignity. Even a five-year-old knows the Emperor’s portrait, so there were limits to finding an actor who resembled him.”
“Well… that’s true.”
“And for you, they couldn’t find an actor who resembled you either, so that’s why.”
“But they brought in someone who looked completely different for Marianne?”
“That older sister’s face isn’t widely known. So, as long as Marianne is okay with it, anyone is fine. But for you… no matter what actor they brought, they couldn’t capture the feeling of you, so they decided to find someone with a good voice and put a mask on him.”
“…Right, he sang well.”
“Do you sing well too?”
“No.”
I recalled the faces of the family knights who would tilt their heads like dogs hearing a whistle for the first time whenever I recited a few lines of poetry, and I shook my head. However, like learning to dance after a lifetime of not dancing, I might want to learn to sing someday.
“If this is the second story, what was the first story about?”
“The Birth of the Hero Michael! His extraordinary childhood, how he received excellent education at Shierun Academy and became a Sword Master, and after graduation, how he discovered the remnants of Black magicians in the Yuil Mountains and, led by fate, encountered the Oasis.”
“…No, up until his academy days, he seemed to have just lived a normal, good life.”
“I really like that my brother doesn’t care about what others think. Truly.”
“…Mm.”
Where had he learned such annoying things to say?
As I was teasing the playful child, I sensed movement approaching from the corridor behind the terrace seats. A polite knock, and I had the child open the door. A server, trembling, carefully placed a silver tray laden with three drinks and beautifully cut fruit on the table.
“Ah, ah, hello. It is truly an honor to meet you. We are beyond happy and grateful that you, who saved the world, have visited our troupe, and also…”
“Yes. I am grateful too.”
I thanked them, thinking they just gave this to anyone sitting in these seats, but Michael tilted his head and examined the drinks closely. The child held a card in his hand.
“This doesn’t seem to be the food we ordered.”
“Ah…! I should have said that first! They asked us to send drinks and sweets over to this side from the seats across the way. They said they were acquainted. Duke Yeldidus, over there.”
Duke Yeldidus?
Following the server’s trembling fingertips, I shifted my gaze. Across the stage, sitting in a terrace seat opposite us, was indeed a familiar figure. Hestia Yeldidus. The two or three women beside her were strangers to me.
Hestia was smiling brightly and staring intently at us. Even though the curtain was drawn, so she shouldn’t be able to see me, her gaze remained fixed on Ikyun, which was quite strange.
Just in case, I checked the fan. Indeed, only four ribs were visible on the fan in her hand. She needed a secret conversation. Really?
But still, it wasn’t like I couldn’t receive a plate of fruit. I nodded at the server.
“Well, tell him to meet me after the play. We’ll gratefully accept the fruit.”
“Yes! Yes, I will do that. Thank you!”
“It’s nothing, really.”
The server bowed deeply and retreated from the seats, closing the door. Asdel, who had poked a piece of well-cut peach with his fork and taken a bite, looked at me with wide eyes.
“Have you met Duke Yeldidus before too?”
“Ah, briefly, with Rubel.”
“By any chance… does that sister still like His Majesty?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Then why does she want to meet you two?”
“The two of us?”
“She was holding her fan like this.”
When you think about it, Hugh Benson signaling the number and size of monsters was not much different from Hestia conveying her intentions with her fan. It seemed to be a code that even this young child understood, so I resolved to learn it properly.
“…No. I have to go with you all.”
“Ugh, is that okay?”
“Of course.”
As we were chatting, the second act began. This time, I drew back the curtain as soon as the lights went out.
Next time, I should bring Rubel too.
The thought that Rubel had returned without being able to properly enjoy this fun play bothered me greatly. If he was sad because I wasn’t by his side, perhaps he could enjoy it if I were there. If I whispered that I felt like I had the whole world in my arms when I fell with him, would the child…
Can missing someone become a habit?
Even though we were together until morning, I miss him so much as soon as we part.
The second act began with the story of the companions lamenting the loss of me and Rubel. From this point on, I knew more about what I didn’t know than what I did.
Even knowing that dramatic license had been added, the scene where the injured troupe members rushed to meet the Sun God and bowed, and then instantly healed their wounds and stood up to discuss their next move, was very impressive.