―― When he first heard Old Man Rom's plan, there was a slight snag.

"Alright then, Felt. If you fall into the enemy's hands, our defeat is certain... It's only natural, but the opponent will aim for that, as it is the easiest victory condition to achieve."

"I'm the head here. While I get the reasoning, I'm not going to sulk and refuse, but if you want me to just stand in the back or sit idly in a corner, I decline, alright?”

"In a battle, it's not uncommon for the commander to sit tight and wait for the outcome... Ah, stop growling like that!"

As Rom proposed a role that could only lead to frustration, Felt growled sharply, while Rom patted his bald head with a face that seemed troubled. That troubled expression was familiar to Felt, and she knew well that when Rom did that, he wasn't as troubled as he appeared. When Rom stroked his head with that expression, it was to guide the conversation in the direction he wanted.

What Old Man Rom wanted to discuss here was—

"Alright, alright, alright. Then, I won't tell you to watch in the back or to cower at the edge. — Sequentially, follow the helmet guy's footsteps."

"…You mean tail the helmet guy? What’s the point of that?"

"I want to pinpoint the helmet guy's location in the forest as much as possible, and after the squad clashes with the enemy and is breached, I want to retrieve survivors and use them as ambushers from the rear."

He understood that Old Man Rom's proposed strategy was to trap and crush the helmet guy by blocking any escape routes. For that purpose, dividing the five hundred men into several squads and knowing that the squad that first encounters the enemy might become sacrificial pawns was essential.

And Felt realized that, knowing all this, she would have a position from which she couldn't interfere.

"——"

"Felt, as long as this is a battle..."

"I know. Unlike that Reinhard guy, I'm not carefree enough to think no one will die wherever they’re sent. I just don’t like it. Acting on the assumption of death, that is."

Even if she's often treated like a child because of her appearance, Felt has no intention of naïvely dreaming immature dreams because of how she looks. This philosophy is deeply rooted at her core, developed from being raised in the slums of the royal capital, where life is not valued highly. Human life is light and fragile, and that's exactly why she would say: —Live strong.

"—That's right. I too do not like wasting life."

"Even without that, those in the underworld live by risking their lives with their own sense of aesthetics. If that weren't the case, they wouldn't gather like this just by being summoned, so it's complicated."

The reason the ruffians swore to strictly adhere to Old Man Rom's plan is due to a code of blood rooted in the underworld, which varies from the slum's philosophy. Finding a way to manage without excessively rejecting their different ways, respecting them, is the key to dealing with them successfully. But even so, as Felt has been entrusted with leading this group, they all need to follow Felt's philosophy here. Therefore—

"—I'll do it. As myself, I'm going for the win in this contest."

Even if it differs from the victory conditions set by someone else, Felt decided to do so.

△▼△▼△▼△

At the last moment, when Old Man Rom closed the lid on the "Communication Mirror" connected to herself, Felt, of course, felt an ominous premonition come true, and quickened her running pace.

"The old man said there was a final push..."

Those were the words of Camberley, who was bleeding from every hole on his face. Despite wanting to say something about his battered condition, Felt snatched the "Meteor" from his hands, entrusted the care of Camberley, who had been freed from the helmet guys' restraints, to a comrade, and ran. And then, running the fastest in her life, as she broke through the woods, she encountered it.

—Old Man Rom, along with the helmet guys, was there, aiming the "Divine Dragon" at himself.

"—No way!!"

In a frenzied state, she wielded the 'Meteor'—the 'Star Staff'—and aimed it at the incoming 'Dragon.' She was well aware of the 'Dragon's' toughness from witnessing its clash with Reinhardt when he visited the Pleiades Watchtower with Ezzo and the others. The durability, however, had nothing to do with the reason for aiming the 'Star Staff' at the 'Dragon.' It was simply that, even when making a sarcastic remark, Felt had no option to hit Old Man Rom.

"――Ouch!!"

The released strike, imbued with the starlight, grazed the side of the 'Dragon,' eliciting an unseemly scream that lacked any majestic presence befitting the 'Divine Dragon.' Its breath changed direction aimlessly, flattening a deserted, uninhabited grassland with its force, but that was of no concern. Perhaps it ruined Old Man Rom's most earnest strategy, but that was fine.

"When this bad feeling comes true, it's this. Having the resolve to die and wanting to die immediately are totally different things, Old Man Rom, you idiot!!"

Shouting in accordance with the surge of emotions welling up inside her, Felt clenched her teeth tightly. For a moment, Old Man Rom and Helmet Man, who had become difficult to see, and who had likely engaged in an incredibly sophisticated intellectual battle far beyond Felt's imagination, were looking over in surprise. Feeling quite vindicated, Felt, though tearful, maintained a defiant expression.

"That idiot Reinhardt will be forever troubled by this."

Without choosing how to win, Felt and her companions held the power to defeat anyone. Precisely because of this, they would choose their way of winning, even if they were deemed arrogant for doing so. If not, they couldn't attain a victory of true value. For that reason, Felt remained true to her philosophy. Namely—

"Live strong, Old Man Rom. If that's not upheld, even if we win, it's our loss."

△▼△▼△▼△

"――Right now, I was defeated."

Uttering the undeniable truth, Aldebaran was overwhelmed by a sense of defeat. The recent strategy of Valga Cromwell was targeted completely at Aldebaran, who possessed authority, and was perfect in even incorporating the time limit of the 'Divine Dragon's' return.

To end the battle, Aldebaran's threatful breath.

When it turned into an inescapable trap, Aldebaran endlessly repeated the matrix leading to an endless "death," eventually wearing down the soul completely.

The terror was not just Valga Cromwell's ingenious plotting that turned the "Demi-Human War" into an infernal civil war; no, that outcome was not caused by just that checkmate.

"Five hundred people, all together, cut down my options."

Undoubtedly, that was Aldebaran's downfall.

The incessant wave attacks of five hundred people, each one desperately challenging with all their might, gradually eroded Aldebaran's mental strength, impairing judgment. Numerous scenarios were restarted due to simple judgment errors, but they kept breaking through with brute force in sheer number of attempts—and at the very end, they misstepped.

Losing composure at Valga's words, Aldebaran misjudged the update point of the matrix.

Perhaps even that was a trap set by Valga.

He fell for it utterly, almost closing off all possibilities.

—No matter what the trap or the enemy, eventually, I can always be overcome.

The arrogance of Aldebaran was ruthlessly exploited by the cunning grand strategist.

He should have known. Even if the power was invincible, Aldebaran who used it was ordinary.

Failing to win at the point of truly necessary victory, Aldebaran betrayed the many who had expectations of him, and drifted here.

Because Aldebaran was wasting a treasure unfitting for his stature—

"—Priscilla..."

At the moment when he was about to speak the ultimate self-reproach with a hoarse breath,

"Everyone, don't move!!"

A high voice rang out sharply, breaking the stagnant air enveloping the battlefield plain.

It was the red-haired maid, Yae, who claimed leadership at the gathering place of the main figures of this battle, where the grand strategist's plan that wreaked havoc in the "Demi-Human War" failed with the summoning of the "Divine Dragon."

Delayed in assisting Aldebaran due to interference by Grassis, Yae had tied up Grassis at the forest entrance and rolled Manfred in a corner of the plain with steel threads.

And on top of that—,

"—This damn thread was tying up Rachins and the others?"

Felt, who had dropped the "Star Staff" at her feet, clicked her tongue resentfully. Felt herself was bound hand and foot, immobilized by steel wires. In other words, the tables were turned.

"I humbly apologize for the grave disrespect towards the noble, Lady Felt."

"Being noble ain't my style. ...Why are you siding with the helmet guy?"

"Isn't it perfectly natural to obey the scariest opponent?"

Yae stuck out her tongue playfully and responded in her usual manner to Felt, who was pinned and helpless. Watching their exchange from the side, Aldebaran stepped back a bit to distance himself from Valga. However, Valga, whose plan had backfired, remained on his knees, unable to move.

His life-risking strategy had failed. It was only natural for him to be disheartened, but what lay currently in the eyes of the wise old giant was a color more earnest than defeat.

"...I don't care what happens to me. Just don't lay a hand on Felt."

"That's what I wanted to hear. But I didn't want to see that look on your face."

Aldebaran sincerely responded to Valga's pained plea and expression. It was convenient for those who initiated the conflict to demand no further action. However, if it could set the stage to end this fight, relief outweighed anger. Of course, fixing the derailed plan made Aldebaran's seven days even more precarious. Still, at the moment, the feeling of ending a battle with the first opponent to ever defeat him, other than the 'Witch', was stronger—

"—Hey, looks like I was in quite some trouble there."

The one who called out to Aldebaran, flapping wings and landing on the ground, was 'Aldebaran'. To be honest, there was a bit too little shame for almost ruining everything with a misfire, but the attempt to distract the kingdom's attention was abandoned in half a day and he was called back. Regarding their mutual shortcomings, they decided to overlook it this time.

"So? It seems you had a run-in with Miss Felt and the others unexpectedly—what was all that just now?"

"It's a trap to make my other self mistakenly shoot me. It feels like I've been completely cornered on a chessboard. ...In fact, it almost happened."

"That brings back unpleasant memories of being thoroughly beaten by the teacher."

In Aldebaran's words shared through the "Book of the Dead," Aldebaran is reminded of the 'witch' who had given him all sorts of knowledge and had mercilessly obliterated him like a child in a chess game, making him feel unpleasant.

That said, comparing a board game to a battlefield where Aldebaran used his powers is a fundamentally different matter. Truly, Valga was a terrifying enemy.

"No, what was scary was the personal magnetism of Felt, the girl leading you."

"...We do not follow Felt."

"That's true, I suppose."

Even among the royal election candidates, there is a distinct difference in how Felt and Priscilla shine. If the brightness of the sun they look up at is different, the way their eyes are burned by it must be different as well. It's not about which is right, but about what light they choose to look up at.

And the one who decided to look up to Felt was Valga, and--

"...Is that the case for all of you?"

In Aldebaran's view as he looked back, there were ruffians crawling out from within the forest—five hundred of them, injured in battle, supporting one another, yet still not losing their fighting spirit.

"------"

As Valga threatened, unless their lives were taken, they would push their injured bodies to stand up again and challenge Aldebaran. In their determined expressions, Aldebaran feels once again the impact of having chosen to walk a path that the rest of the world would not support.

"But the situation has changed since just a moment ago. There's no way for you to win now. It's the same as with the 'Sword Saint' or the 'Witch of Envy.' --'The Divine Dragon' overturns the very nature of the game."

The irrationality called 'The Divine Dragon' is like a direct punch thrown in the middle of a chess match without using any pieces. In this world, there are a certain number of entities that exist outside such 'frameworks.'

One of those entities has been sealed, one has been halted, one has been utilized, and one has been enlisted as an ally. --Aldebaran will use that advantage without hesitation.

Therefore--,

"I'm sorry, but this is where we forcefully call the game. So that you can't follow us any further—"

"—Lady Felt, could you please not move?"

"—?"

Suddenly, a quiet voice from Yae interrupted Aldebaran's surrender proposal. Glancing in that direction, Yae was standing behind Felt, who was restrained by steel threads, casting a sharp gaze in warning. However, Felt prefaced her response to Yae with, "I won't move."

"—Look at me."

She quietly spun her words.

"——"

At that utterance from Felt, both Aldebaran and Yae, even Valga, furrowed their brows. Unable to understand the intent behind her words, Aldebaran suspected some kind of tactic that worked by entering their field of vision, but Felt herself was captured by Yae, literally unable to move a muscle. In such a state, there shouldn't be anything she could do—yet, her fiery red eyes held a strength of will that didn't let them think so.

And then—

'Oh, we've got a bit of a problem here, me.'

It was 'Aldebaran' who was rubbing the cheek struck by the 'Star Scepter'. The target of his somewhat complicated call was none other than the Aldebaran who shared his memory and personality—however, 'Aldebaran' spoke without looking at him. It wasn't a matter of bad manners. This 'dragon's eyes were fixed on Felt.

—As if saying he couldn't take his eyes off her, they were intensely focused.

Before Aldebaran could scrutinize what that implied, 'Aldebaran' made it clear that a definite problem had arisen: rather than rubbing his cheek, his habitual hand missed while attempting to manipulate the fittings of an unused helmet.

'Somehow, I don't want to refuse Miss Felt's request from Farsale.'

In this way, the emergence of a definite issue was revealed.

△▼△▼△▼△

'—Farsale, we too, along with everyone else, are exhausted by your recklessness.'

The one who addressed the 'Divine Dragon' in this manner was Felt, during the time she aimed for the usefulness of Meili Portroute, crossing the Augria Sand Dunes to reach the Pleiades Watchtower.

It seems that the presence of Reinhardt, who went with them, startled the "Divine Dragon" Volcanica, who was supposed to guard the tower, and in a panic, attacked Felt and the others.

The fierce battle, almost half of the dunes being blown away, was undoubtedly the most spectacular and large-scale fight in Felt's life.

Ultimately, the fight between Reinhardt and Volcanica did not reach a conclusion. This was because, upon seeing Felt, Volcanica withdrew its enthusiasm and the fight ended abruptly.

The one remark from the dragon at the unsatisfying conclusion of the battle was the one at the beginning.

"Who the hell is Farsale, you've got to be kidding me."

Felt was annoyed at the disrespectful case of mistaken identity by the "Divine Dragon."

However, while she was annoyed, Felt was not so ignorant that she wouldn't recognize the name Farsale, which Volcanica had spoken.

In the Lugunica Kingdom, if Volcanica referred to someone as Farsale, that could be none other than Farsale Lugunica, known as the last "Lion King" and the one who led the covenant between the kingdom and the dragon.

In other words, Volcanica had mistaken Felt for the last "Lion King.”

Since Farsale Lugunica was undoubtedly a male king, Felt was irritated at being confused with him. In the year and a half since the start of the royal selection, due to a dramatic improvement in her nutritional status from her slum days, Felt had grown significantly.

Her physique was somewhat better than the frail body that didn’t clearly appear male or female.

This injured her pride, making the encounter with the "Divine Dragon," whom few had met even in the Dragon Kingdom, an unpleasant one for Felt.

Even so, that encounter did not end merely as an unpleasant experience.

Perhaps due to an incredibly close relationship with Farsale, Volcanica was extraordinarily friendly towards Felt—in other words, extremely attached to her.

To the extent that, despite being almost completely absent-minded like a senile old person, it would quickly and unhesitatingly comply with Felt's words.

"Lugunica royal family and the promise with Volcanica, huh..."

Since there are no specific records, it is not clear in detail what kind of relationship the 'Lion King' and the 'Divine Dragon' had, what words they exchanged, or how they made promises. However, it was clear to Felt that something existed between them that was neither a simple master-servant relationship nor mere friendship or affection.

Furthermore, Felt was not so heartless as to feel nothing about Volcanica's misunderstanding her as Farsale and trying earnestly to uphold their former covenant.

Besides, Felt thought it unlikely that Volcanica confused her for Farsale just because of the color of her hair and eyes. While Felt had reached a tentative conclusion about what it all meant, with Reinhard not at her side right now, she had no intention of putting it into words.

What mattered was that Felt could serve as a replacement for Farsale in Volcanica's eyes. In other words—,

"—Look at me."

The moment she made this declaration, the reactions from the helmeted guy and the ninja maid, who looked at her suspiciously, were distinctly different from Volcanica—or rather, the 'Divine Dragon.' The Divine Dragon's reaction was unmistakably evidence that he felt a compelling force in Felt’s words, something others did not and found hard to ignore.

And this was the unique method that Grandpa Rom had set in advance to counter the wild card of summoning the Divine Dragon to the battlefield by the helmeted guy.

The moment she was certain this method worked, Felt shouted.

“Everyone, support the wounded and fall back! This fight is over!”

“What the…?”

“The Divine Dragon can't ignore me! This is where we pull back!”

The helmeted guy was left speechless by Felt’s assertion that surpassed his expectations. While feeling a hint of satisfaction at his dumbfounded reaction, Felt looked at Grandpa Rom beyond him.

Grandpa Rom's face was tense, his deeply wrinkled face growing even more lined as he said,

“Felt, I...”

“I told you so, Grandpa Rom. If the Divine Dragon came back, I’d do this. Grandpa Rom acted on his own. My independent actions were properly discussed.”

“Ugh...!”

Old Man Rom was at a loss for words in response to Felt's straightforward remark and fell silent. Both Felt and Old Man Rom had considered the possibility that the "Divine Dragon" might return. However, the strategies they had planned for that situation differed between the two. According to their discussion, Felt, who had properly conferred, was undoubtedly more reasonable.

"Hey, were you serious about what you said earlier?"

Beside the exchange between Felt and Old Man Rom, Helmet Guy, having recovered from the shock, asked the "Divine Dragon" that was perched up high. To that question, the "Divine Dragon" exhaled a deep, large breath and said,

"Serious? Absolutely deadly serious. I'm showing some serious restraint by not just flipping over to Felt's side right here. If it weren't for me, I'd betray you in a heartbeat."

"That's a tough joke, hey..."

While fiddling with the metal fittings of his helmet with his fingers, Helmet Guy hung his shoulders at the Divine Dragon's answer. Witnessing their conversation, Felt was left with a sense of discomfort—obviously concerned about the Divine Dragon's behavior, which was markedly different from before. However, there was no room for her to intervene right now. What she needed to do at this moment was to take advantage of her presence serving as a countermeasure against the Divine Dragon and ensure the safe retreat of the defeated Old Man Rom and the others—

"—You're quite persistent, aren't you, Lady Felt?"

“…!”

No sooner had those words been whispered in her ear than a thin pressure was felt on her neck. Upon closer inspection, a thread so thin it could almost be overlooked had dug into Felt's neck, causing a slight trickle of blood. Of course, this was the work of the ninja maid who had restrained Felt with the thread.

"Yae, stop it! Remember my instructions..."

"I say this knowing there will be punishment, Lord Al. Lady Felt should be dealt with here. Even I can see that the current negotiation with Lord Divine Dragon is not going well."

"That is..."

“—That's not happening, Yae. I won't let it."

It wasn't Helmet Guy, who was at a loss for words, but instead the one who threatened the ninja maid—Yae—was the Divine Dragon, who had slightly lowered its head. The Divine Dragon's anger could be felt as though the very skin were searing with pain from its glare alone. Nevertheless, Yae, bathed in that anger, calmly returned the Dragon's gaze.

"I'm sorry, but the one I'm afraid of is Al, not 'Divine Dragon.' Even if you glare at me, I'm not scared at all."

"Yae...!"

"Both of you, stop it! Don't fight recklessly, or you'll be taken advantage of!"

Intervening in Yae and the 'Divine Dragon's' confrontation, Helmet Guy remains wary of Felt and Ol' Rom. In reality, although bound, Felt is unable to do anything, yet Ol' Rom has not stopped looking for an opportunity to cause trouble, even in this moment. Acknowledging this fact, Yae and the 'Divine Dragon,' who are cautious of Ol' Rom, temporarily ease the tense atmosphere.

"Still, the problem hasn't been solved. The fact that Felt is in danger remains."

"I know... Am I really unable to do anything?"

"Ah, sorry. It's not like I'm bound by some force or restrictions or vows. It's just that I absolutely hate it. I feel like my mind is going to split."

With Yae's remark, Helmet Guy and the 'Divine Dragon' reach an impasse in their opinions. Helmet Guy has his own motives to follow, and Yae and the 'Divine Dragon' are in a position to adhere to them, but at the core, they don't seem to have completely unified their intentions. In the current state, it's a situation that could swing either way. If that's the case—

"Let's settle for a draw here. You let my group escape, and in return, we'll let you go too."

"That's too convenient, isn't it? Even if luck was on your side, we've thwarted Felt and her group's plans entirely. So why a draw?"

"You already know, don't you? Our fight had a time limit until 'Divine Dragon' returned. But if 'Divine Dragon' isn't going to help either side, that time limit disappears. If it disappears, we'll just end up fighting with five hundred people again."

"——"

While speaking, Felt carefully observes Helmet Guy, whose facial expression cannot be seen. Because the face is hidden, Felt must gather and thoroughly interpret the chest of Helmet Guy's intentions through his breathing and small gestures—through every small piece of information.

In Felt's current argument, there is a decisive flaw that even she is aware of. Up until now, the situation has been sustainable because Helmet Guy happened to choose not to kill anyone.

If Helmet Guy whimsically breaks that premise, Felt and her group are finished.

Even if the movements of "Divine Dragon" are limited, just as Yae's thread is around Felt's neck, their 500 comrades will be strangled one after another and wiped out. Moreover, there's no way Helmet Guy isn't aware of this. Therefore, Felt uses all her strength and wholehearted effort to carefully choose and refine her words to resonate with his soul to prevent Helmet Guy from making a rash decision.

—To make him feel that continuing the fight here is not worth it.

"I'll say this, my grandpa Rom's schemes aren't just this. If the fight continues, they'll just come up with the next devious plan."

"…That's scary. But wouldn't it be the same even if we let it go here? If it's treated as a draw now and we come at it again, it'll just be a never-ending game of cat and mouse."

"Yeah. So, let's do it this way. —I'll be your hostage."

"—!"

Slightly gasping in surprise, Helmet Guy showed a reaction to Felt's proposal. Feeling encouraged by this, Felt calmly and carefully began to draw in the light.

"If I'm with you lot, my people won't be able to interfere. It's the victory condition we were aiming for to win this fight, right?"

"That's out of the question. To deliberately take along a volatile element. Such a proposal would lose its meaning if Lady Felt were to escape—"

"Then just don't remove this thread. Even if your 'Divine Dragon,' I try to escape after breaking my promise and die, that's my responsibility. No need for you to get angry."

"Hey, hey, hey, that's not fair, Farsale."

"I'm not Farsale."

Yae interrupted and the opposing "Divine Dragon" contemplated Felt's words. While doing so, Felt stared intently at Helmet Guy, who held the same decision-making power in this situation as she did.

"What'll it be? Whether to continue or not is up to you."

"…I don't want to carry any extra baggage."

"——"

"However, it's also true that this is no time to be at odds with oneself. I can go along with Miss Felt's hostage plan. But—"

Quietly and thoughtfully, the man with the helmet carefully wove his words. At the end of his words, as if savoring the moment, the conversation was left hanging—and in that instant.

"Uwooooo—!!"

Interrupting the flow of conversation, Old Man Rom let out a roar and reached out with both arms to grab the man with the helmet from behind. His thick arms clutched the man’s neck and waist from behind, creating a situation where both representatives, much like Felt restrained by Yae, were caught by each other—

"Dona—"

In that moment, the stone left arm created by the man with the helmet’s incantation sharply struck Old Man Rom's jaw. An unexpected blow from the man with the helmet, who had an artificial stone arm on his only arm, jolted Old Man Rom’s brain violently, causing his massive frame to collapse onto the plain with a loud thud. As Felt, on the verge of rushing over, recalled the sensation on her neck, she held back. In response, the man with the helmet who knocked out Old Man Rom sighed and said,

"But let it slide just this once for hitting the old man."

Thus, he added that condition to the terms of ending the conflict and accepted Felt's proposal.

△▼△▼△▼△

—The unconscious Valga was being carried off by Grassis and Gaston.

Watching the awkwardly unbalanced physiques, Aldebaran remained vigilant to the end, seeing off the five hundred ruffians—or rather, tough opponents—as they retreated. He made sure thoroughly that no formidable foes lingered beyond the horizon, nor did anyone sneakily plan to follow them, and had 'Aldebaran' double-check for any such intentions.

'There’s no one left, they’ve all retreated.'

"Really? I can trust you on that? You’re not going to betray me?"

'In manga, it's a common trope for someone to betray themselves, but rest easy for now. Currently, I'm equally aligned between favoring myself and favoring Miss Felt.'

"Isn't that dangerously close to the brink...?"

It is frightening to consider how seriously one should take the statements of "Aldebaran."

Although it was understood, "Aldebaran" remains "Aldebaran." Even if it shares memories and personality, it cannot become Aldebaran itself.

While it is a highly reliable ally in achieving Aldebaran's goals, it is also true that it cannot become more than just an ally.

"—Al-sama, we've finished inspecting Felt-sama's belongings—"

As Aldebaran pondered this in its heart, Yae came waving her hand back. She was ordered to thoroughly investigate Felt's body, considering that Valga Cromwell might have given her something. From Yae's demeanor, it seemed nothing was found on Felt.

"How was it?"

"Well, she had a 'communication mirror,' so I went ahead and broke it."

"There it is! Hey, Felt girl!"

"Shut up, I told you myself. It's not like I was hiding it, so it's fine, isn’t it?"

Felt, sticking her head out from behind "Aldebaran," retorted unhappily to Aldebaran, who had raised his voice. Since it was an extensive plain with no shade, Felt's body inspection was conducted on the other side of the large "Aldebaran."

Anyway, when Yae was glared at after Felt's response, she stuck out her tongue playfully and remarked,

"It was just a playful joke from Yae-chan~."

"You—"

"Please, don’t take it so seriously, Al-sama. You don’t really listen to what I have to say anyway, right?"

"—. My apologies."

"I can't hear, so I won't forgive you."

"I'm sorry!"

Despite shouting the apology loudly, Yae conspicuously covered her ears with her hands. Though Yae's childish and immature attitude is understandable, given that Aldebaran imposes an ego-driven constraint on her that prevents her from utilizing half of her abilities. Despite this, almost not rewarding Yae's desires and disciplining her with fear leaves Al as nothing more than a thorough guy with no room for excuses.

"Damn it, it's obvious she'd be investigated, but there's no need to strip her naked outside."

Felt came out from behind Aldebaran, grumbling to herself. When Yae glanced at her at Felt's words, she continued to cover her ears with both hands, intending to evade the blame for her unnecessary harassment.

"…Well, swallow it as the fate of the defeated. Probably, I'm much more scared of that old man than you think, Miss Felt."

"Heh, is that so, is that so? Well, my Grandpa Rom is amazing. …But I won't forgive you for trying to outsmart me."

"That sounds like a deep-seated issue on your side. It's indeed a stalemate."

Aldebaran laughed wryly at Felt, whose mood was swinging erratically at the praise of Valga. At Aldebaran's words, she looked up at the smiling dragon's face and said,

"By the way, I wanted to ask, aren't you Volcanica?"

It's difficult to determine how much of the situation to share, but the doubt Felt harbored towards Aldebaran was natural if one knew the 'Divine Dragon' before the installation of the 'Book of the Dead.' Ignoring this and letting it cause an uproar would only add to their troubles along the way—

"The big brother at Emilia's place… That helmet guy talks like him."

"…The agency decided that wasn't marketable, so the character is currently in disarray. Also, let's stop with the helmet guy thing. It's Aldebaran."

"Aldebaran? Wasn't it shorter?"

"The agency decided that name was too long for a belt and too short for a sash."

Responding perfunctorily, Aldebaran postponed giving Felt a detailed explanation. In any case, if they were to continue taking Felt along from here on, Aldebaran—or rather 'Aldebaran'—would end up talking to her. About why the historically famous 'Divine Dragon' had turned into a frivolous and unserious clown.

"For now, we need to revise the plan. We only have about five days left."

The battle with Felt and the others forced significant revisions to the plan. However, having 'Aldebaran,' who was supposed to delay joining, could be seen positively as it helps significantly shorten the journey. While it's concerning that the kingdom's army, which was supposed to be gathered in the north, might not be sufficiently diverted from the plan—

"By the way, is there no option to bind and drag Miss Felt along here?"

'If they hadn't told me to keep an eye on her, maybe.'

"There's no coercive force, right?"

'No, there isn't. It's just that I have a strong desire to do anything they ask.'

Aldebaran felt like grabbing his head in response to such a rather severe answer. To think she has 'Sword Saint' Reinhard, 'Great Strategist' Valga Cromwell, and even the 'Divine Dragon' Volcanica on her side—just how many stars are twinkling over Felt?

"There's no way Aldebaran-san would lose to those stars."

Even if he couldn't deny feeling like he had barely won, drawn even, and carried unexploded ordinance, it was still true that Aldebaran had desperately overcome the situation up to this point. He must remember this fact and use it as a warning and guide to move forward.

"So, what do you all plan to do from here on out?"

"------"

"You can't even tell me that? If you don't feed the fish you've caught, you might end up being the one with a bad taste in your mouth, Aldebaran."

Calling him by name, Felt flashed a smile showing her fangs. A steel wire, set by Yae, wrapped around her neck, putting her in the hostage state she had suggested. Despite this, the fierce gleam in the girl's eyes showed no signs of her fighting spirit diminishing, causing Aldebaran to swallow any hesitation and declare his intent. The answer to the question Felt posed, that is, Aldebaran's destination—

"—The Mogolade Great Vent in the center of Kararagi. It's the only place in this world that connects to a space no one can touch. There's something there that I have to discard."

"…You're causing all this trouble just for that?"

"Yes, that's right. It's necessary—for me to be myself."

Aldebaran conveyed with the strength of his words that he did not intend to help Felt imagine beyond what the act might mean. In response, Felt narrowed her red eyes and stopped herself from saying something. --She understood that what she almost said was about someone who was no longer there.

"--! U-woah!? Wh-what's going on!? Hey! Aldebaran! Maid! What happened... Damn! My back hurts!"

Hearing Heinkel, who had finally woken up, noisily and awkwardly shatter the serious atmosphere of Aldebaran and the others, it felt like the end of that battle became real. It was surely an unwelcome gratitude for Heinkel himself, though.