Step.
Hop, hop.
Step, step.
Hop. Hop-hop!
“.....?”
As Ceres walked down the temple corridor after leaving the spring, she turned at the sound of something following her. Yet there was nothing there.
Only when she lowered her gaze did she realize why.
“...A rabbit?”
A baby rabbit was staring up at her. It seemed to have been following her all the way from the forest surrounding the spring. Did it live there?
“Go on. Go back home.”
Ceres turned and continued on her way.
Step.
Hop.
“......”
But the moment she took another step, she heard the soft patter of footsteps behind her again.
Ceres finally sensed that something was off and stared at the rabbit in silence.
“No way...”
Her gaze fixed on the rabbit’s deep green eyes as she slowly spoke a name.
“Airien?”
It was the name that had been imprinted in her mind when she touched the spring earlier. The name was bound to the bracelet—Airien.
[Pii!]
At Ceres’s call, the rabbit shot both tiny paws into the air.
“.....”
The first time she had called that name, a warm breeze had swept past her, so she had assumed this Tamer Relic lacked a physical form. After all, the powers contained within Tamer Relics varied wildly.
But...
“...It’s a rabbit.”
Just what was this little thing? Considering it had made flowers bloom earlier, it seemed to possess some affinity with nature.
“Could it be that you’re a spirit too?”
[Pii.]
The rabbit shook its head so hard that its ears flopped wildly, then crossed its paws into an X.
This one certainly gets its point across.
“If you’re not a spirit, then what are you?”
Ceres looked quietly at the rabbit, which continued to gaze up at her with bright, sparkling eyes, then let out a short sigh.
Why does it feel like I’m surrounded by more and more animals these days?
Then again, can Sooty really be called an animal?
Ceres held out the bracelet on her wrist and spoke to the rabbit.
“Come in.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, the rabbit’s body blurred and vanished in an instant. In its place, the gem set in Ceres’s silver bracelet shimmered, its green hue growing noticeably deeper.
I should ask Jubelios about this later.
She needed to figure out what this thing really was. If anyone would know, it would be Jubelios, the King of Fire Spirits.
I wonder how the kids will react.
No one knew about the Tamer Relic yet. She hadn’t told anyone, after all.
Remembering that, Ceres scratched her cheek.
Still, I never imagined I’d end up becoming the relic’s owner.
Since she hadn’t thought it was something the others needed to know, she had kept today’s events to herself, including from the butler Colin.
Clicking her tongue softly, Ceres glanced down at the bracelet around her wrist. How was she supposed to explain this rabbit to everyone?
“Maybe I’ll just say I found a rabbit in the mountains.”
At Ceres’s muttering, the green gem began flickering furiously. Apparently, it wasn’t pleased with that explanation.
Step, step.
Stop.
By the time Ceres reached the end of the corridor, she stopped in her tracks.
“So, about what our temple plans to do this time...”
“Yes, I think that would be best.”
Several priests were walking ahead of her, chatting amongst themselves.
“......”
Ceres stared blankly at one of them. Her lips slowly parted. She even rubbed at her eyes, doubting what she was seeing.
No way...
This can’t be right.
Why is he here?
As she watched one of the priests disappear farther down the corridor, Ceres nearly called out his name.
Enoch...
The name of her disciple who should’ve died long ago.
***
Bang!
The door to Kainel’s room slammed open.
Ever since Grace had gone, Kainel had shut himself away in the Grand Duchy, rarely leaving his room. Stretched out on the bed like a corpse, he didn’t even bother checking who had barged in.
There was only one person left who would throw open his door without knocking.
“Hey.”
Right on cue, Artia’s annoyed voice rang out.
“Get up.”
Kainel didn’t move an inch.
Thud!
“...You got a death wish?”
Only after being kicked did Kainel finally speak.
“If you don’t want another one, sit up.”
“Get out.”
When Kainel tried to lie back down, Artia immediately fired off a spell without hesitation. Kainel shot upright and seized him by the collar.
“You really want to die?”
Even faced with the killing intent blazing in his eyes, Artia merely chuckled.
“Why? Do you think Grace might be lonely, so you want to send me to her too?”
“......”
When Grace’s name was mentioned, the strength left Kainel’s hand. He slowly released Artia.
“...Doesn’t it bother you?”
“What does?”
“That Grace isn’t here.”
How can you still smile? No matter how much time passes, it only gets harder for me.
Artia had looked heartbroken at Grace’s funeral as well. But unlike him, he had never seemed hollow.
For someone who cried at the drop of a hat, he hadn’t shed a single tear. Instead, there was something resolute in his expression, as though he had already made up his mind about something.
“Funny. If anything, I should be the one taking it harder than you. After all, I’m the one who’ll never get to see her again.”
“What?”
Kainel’s frown deepened at the sight of Artia’s bitter smile.
“Enough of that. You still have the key, right?”
“What key?”
“The black key.”
A new wave of exhaustion suddenly washed over Kainel. He dropped back onto the bed.
Why is he bringing up the key all of a sudden?
“You know it too. The key only serves its true purpose when all three are gathered.”
“...You’ve lost your mind.”
Artia already knew that Grace had died with her key sealed away in subspace. There was no way the three keys could ever be brought together again.
“I gave my key to someone else.”
“...Someone else?”
“To someone Grace would definitely want to meet.”
“What nonsense are you spouting this time?”
Kainel let out a long sigh. Artia took a step closer.
“You need to find them.”
“Find what?”
“The keys. Make sure all three end up together.”
“.....”
Kainel stared at Artia as if he were looking at a lunatic, then lay back down on the bed. He had no desire to entertain him any longer.
“I don’t know who you’ll meet first, but...”
Artia continued speaking in riddles until the very end.
Covering his eyes with an arm, Kainel once again tried to force himself to sleep, though sleep remained stubbornly out of reach.
***
“Hmm.”
Ceres sat deep in thought with the two keys laid out before her. Earlier that day, Kainel had handed her the black key.
“I think Arti would’ve wanted you to.”
“He left a message.”
What exactly did Artia tell Kai? What could he have said to make Kainel hand over his key?
After staring at the two keys for a long while, Ceres finally picked them up. She turned them over in her hands for a moment, then pressed them together.
Flash!
Something hazy appeared in front of her. It was a map formed from magic, and one spot on it glowed like a red marker.
“Where is that?”
If the map was pointing to Artia’s key, then that meant the key was there. Ceres studied the map closely and soon had a rough idea of the location.
“The temple?”
Assuming it didn’t change much from what she remembered, that was where the temple should be.
“Why would Artia’s key be there?”
Ceres stared at the glowing red point on the map in confusion.
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