And the day of the ceremony.

　After the opening ceremony of the ceremony, the faculty, the invited guests and some of the senior students saw us off, and me and Amu entered the Rodnea Forest with the parchment (scroll) in our hands.

'.....
....

　We both proceeded in silence.
　The path to the ruins of the temple was well trodden and easy to follow. It seemed to be regularly manned.

　The forest here in Rodnea is the site of the academy and is naturally within the walls of the fortified city of Rodnea.

　To say the least, it's a crazy urban structure to have a forest inside the city walls. The living area would be smaller and the walls would stretch out, making it hard to defend against enemies when they come.
　However, since the beginning of Rodnea was a study house built near this forest, it was probably inevitable.
　Besides, I had heard that this was a better place to live than the densely populated imperial capital.
　Just like the aristocrats of the previous age who were all eager to recreate mountain scenery in their gardens, maybe there's something good about having nature nearby.

　It's said to take two hours (*one hour) to get to the temple and back.
　We have to be back by the end of the ceremony, so we can't lean back too much.

'Hey.'

　Suddenly, Amu spoke to me.

"What do you think you're doing?
What?
I'm just saying, why would you go to an event like this if it was such a travesty?

　I smiled and replied.

I smiled and replied, "After all, this kind of thing has to be done by a person with a certain status, no matter how meritocratic the school is. No matter how much of a meritocracy it is.
Lies.
....
'The smile on your face is a lie. You think of the ceremony as trash.
Is that really what I'm supposed to look like?

　I mean, I don't think it's trash.

I mean, you don't usually talk to your squire like that. She's a little girl, and her self-assumption is quite deliberate.
So you're surprised to see us?
You two are always alone, and it's hard to stand out. You're always seen as two people who are goofy and sticky.
'I don't think so but...'

　No, this is really.

"What did you want to do by making yourself look bad all the way through that travesty?
I just thought it was too much, since all I've seen so far is Amu, and he's been a bad influence. He put his body on the line for us, and now he's fighting for us.
What?　Oh, my God. I didn't mean to...
The rest is just because I wanted to have a long talk with you.

　It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what to do with your own money.

"Is that big tit slave not enough for you, you are going to try your hand at the nearest classmate as well?
Wait ... that's a misunderstanding. Also, I don't have that relationship with Yifa.
Even if you're not in a relationship, you're still doing dirty things.
I didn't.
Weird stuff.

　Amu sniffed at that.

''I know. Lords have something called the wedding night rights, right? Aristocrats really think the worst of it.''
'That's practically like a marriage tax because if you pay for it, it's exempted. It's more difficult for a lord to be told he doesn't have to exempt you because you don't pay it.
Even so, you have access to all the women in your land.
It's a matter of life and death because if you do that, the territorial population will run away and the tax revenue will go down.
Hmm.
'I mean, why are we talking so much about the bottom line?
I don't know!　You started it, didn't you!
No, wasn't that from Amu's side...?

　I sigh and say, "Well, like I said before, I just want you to be my friend.

"Look, I know I told you before, but I just want you to be my friend.
Why me?
It was easy to talk to other floaters.
Don't you think it's pathetic that you're saying that?
So how is it that you're the strongest?
What's the use of me being your friend if I'm strong and you're weak?
I'm a lot better at this than you might think.
"So much?

　Amu pulls out the sword he carries at his waist.
　He swung it casually and then...

　Almost without preliminary manoeuvres, he unleashes a blasted blast at me.

"....

　The tip of the sword grazed my ear and pierced my back.
　The tip of the sword caught the nucleus of the slime that was jumping at me with precision.

　I look sideways at the slime as its nucleus is cracked open and melted into a sludge.

"I wouldn't say that being behind a small fry monster is so-so.
....

　I silently put away the tag for the door.
　I was going to try to sneak in and catch it, but no luck.

　I was more concerned about the ornamented sword Amu was holding.

'Is that sword a substitute for a staff after all?
The wand sword. Don't you know?
It's just that it's a weapon for wizards.

　To my mind, it doesn't make sense to be a swordsman and a sorcerer, but that's the kind of job we have in this world.
　They use both swords and magic. The staff sword is a weapon for such a warrior.

I've always thought it would be inconvenient to use it on a daily basis.　I mean, how could you bring that kind of stuff into the school?
What are you talking about?　Your wand is no big deal. I just want to use a tool I'm familiar with. Why not?
No, no.

　The truth is, it's not really a good idea to get hung up on the tools of the curse (seriously).
　Tools are not the essence. Wands and staff swords are fine without them, as are spell marks, signs and mantras.
　The essence of a curse is the words in your consciousness. That's all.
　Well, this kid will get there on his own.

I don't care if he hasn't soiled the parchment. I'm not here to babysit you, you know.

　Amu swung his sword to shake off the slime's bodily fluids and put it away in its sheath.
　And then his body wobbled.

　He held his head down as if he had a headache.

''Huh........''
You okay?
It's nothing.
'It doesn't look like much. Shouldn't you have been the one to decline?
I'm not feeling well, that's all. I don't need you to worry about me.

　After a bit, the headache has subsided and Amu walks off with a firm footing.
　Well, let's get this event over with for now.

　We walk in silence together again for a while.

　In time, when I thought that we would reach the temple soon.

　I felt a slight current of power and stopped in my tracks.

...What is that?

　Amu also seems to have sensed something.
　The tip of his gaze was directed quizzically.
　Behind the grove of trees, a faint pale color could be seen.

''I'll ... go check it out. Wait there.
Oh, hey!

　Off the road and parting through the bushes, there was an open space with a break in the grove.
　A large stump in the center had a magic circle painted on it in blue-white paint.
　It was close to the one I'd seen during the demon riot.

　The stump at the base was still fresh.
　There were many small white flowers around the stump, but in some places they were broken, as if they had been trampled.

　The space itself seemed to have been artificially created.

'What the hell is that? A magic circle....?

　Amu, who was following behind me, looked at the magic circle and muttered.
　He stepped out facing the stump.

'Hey, you can get close, but don't touch the magic circle.
I know what I'm doing.

　A puffy-faced Amu stepped into the square.
　At that time.

　

''What the hell is this!

　Amu raises a perturbed voice at the magic circle that suddenly appears under his feet.

　The flow of power becomes explosively large.
　Not good, this is.........

Amu!

　I quickly grabbed Amu's hand.
　One moment I'm caught in the range of the magic circle, and the next moment I'm caught myself.

　And the next moment.

　My vision went dark.