[134] What Comes First (5)
In short, the intensity of emotion was beyond what could exist in reality. If that unbreakable composure wavered even one percent, the shock to their nervous systems might stop their hearts.
But Amy wasn't worried. It was called unbreakable precisely because not even that one percent would shake it.
Shirone finally shoved his men back to the table. Seeing that sight, Palkoa's face twisted with anger.
"What are you doing! Cut his throat right now!"
The men drew the longswords at their waists in unison and charged.
"Damn it! How humiliating that a kid gets to use a blade on us!"
At that moment light flashed from Shirone's body. The flare in the confined space blurred the attackers' vision.
"Ugh! What the—!"
True to those trained in ocular techniques, their dark adaptation was faster than normal human limits. Still, they did not move. Neither the men nor Palkoa; they simply stared at Shirone in stunned silence.
"What is this? What do you think shining light is going to do?"
Shirone turned his palm over and levitated a sphere of light. Golden photons compressed at incredible speed until the glow went pale.
"Shirone, you wouldn't—"
Faced with the raw force of photons trembling too wildly to measure their frequency, Amy finally realized.
A spell that accelerates mass to near-light speed to create a shockwave. A photon cannon.
"Shirone! That—!"
Avoiding a photon cannon in a sealed room was no easy feat. Someone would inevitably take the brunt, and if that happened there would be fatalities.
Before Amy could finish speaking, Shirone raised the white sphere and drove it into the floor with all his strength.
The instant the flare struck, a tremendous roar like thunder erupted, shaking the room.
"Ugh! Wh-what is this!"
Those in the room clapped their hands over their ears. The shockwave spread along the ground and the underground structures trembled. Dust rained from the ceiling.
The men panicked as if they'd survived a natural disaster. The echo of the blast trapped below still rang in their ears.
Only after a long while did the crew examine the spot where Shirone's magic had hit. Surprisingly, the floor wasn't deeply gouged. But the flattened area exceeded four meters in diameter.
"What is this place... isn't this underground?"
They couldn't believe their eyes.
This was a temple that could be called the toughest structure in Galiant. Creating an underground chamber required construction methods focused on durability. Thick steel plates covered the temple floor.
If those plates were pressed flat like this, it was no wonder the whole underground had shaken. In short, it was a force no human could withstand.
The veterans didn't break down in tears. Still, they kept their distance and watched Shirone warily.
Seeing that, Palkoa's expression soured further.
Not only had Shirone withstood ten attackers, but the magic he had just used was something even Palkoa—who had seen countless battlefields—had never encountered.
"You... who the hell are you? What line are you from?"
The vast network of mages that spanned the continent was called a line. But Shirone didn't use the jargon of mage society; he simply revealed his origin with calm pride.
"I'm Shirone. I attend Alpheas School of Magic."
Jis flinched and stared at Shirone. For a noble, origin was a golden thread, but in some situations it could become a shackle.
They'd been roughed up at the harbor, so Jis knew Shirone couldn't be unaware of the consequences. Why, then, would he openly state his school?
"Student? You've got to be kidding. So you're just a student causing trouble? Hey, you know what? If I report you to the school, you're finished that day. They'll probably expel you."
"Report me if you want."
Palkoa's eyebrow twitched at the unexpected reply.
"Discipline or expulsion—I don't care. That sort of thing won't dictate my life. Of course, the school matters to me. But there are things in the world that matter more. And Amy..."
Shirone stared at Palkoa and continued.
"Comes before everything I set as a priority."
Amy blinked. The increasing flutter of her eyelids seemed to match the quickening of her heartbeat.
"I don't mind any punishment. Sue if you want. But Amy won't stay here for even a second. If you bring my friend into a filthy place like this again, I'll really tear you to pieces."
Rian's greatsword slid free with a rush of air. The mere sight of a blade as tall as a person pointing forward was intimidating.
"Just as I thought, Shirone. I wasn't wrong."
Rian realized why his sword had hesitated to be drawn until now. Like a small crack that brings down an iceberg, the minor obstacle of potential discipline had rattled his resolve.
"You're right, Shirone. You wouldn't put your friend at risk because you're afraid of punishment. Rian has never lived like that."
Tess followed, drawing her twin blades.
"Hohoho! Tess Elazin is the same! You can't leave Shirone's mascot Amy in a den of thugs like this!"
Rian looked at Tess incredulously.
"Since when is there a Shirone faction?"
"Oh, for once just let it slide. You're hopeless."
Tess shot back, then turned to Amy. She was still lost in thought, but her cheeks were brighter than before.
A gentle smile played at Tess's lips.
'Lucky girl, Amy.'
Since Tess was also a woman, she could guess what that meant.
To Shirone, Amy wasn't some insignificant dot viewed from an omniscient distance. She was an irreplaceable friend. Or perhaps something more.
Shirone shoved his men aside and walked to Amy. He reached out and repeated his initial words.
"Let's go home, Amy."
Having finished her thoughts, Amy lifted her head and answered.
"...Okay."
As Amy rose, Palkoa's face flushed. His bloodthirsty thugs swarmed and made a commotion, then left on their own.
'Has Palkoa fallen to this level?'
It had been five years since the whole organization had retreated to the island to escape the continent's trackers. Much had happened, but to him it was all merely boring.
Drugs had rotted his brain and the only thing he cared about was money. Yet five years earlier Palkoa had crossed the continent and cut down many people.
Back then he existed to slice others. Even as a leader, none could ignore Palkoa's skill, and so he had never been ousted.
"Hey, don't think you can just walk out of here in one piece."
Amy halted and turned to Palkoa.
"If you cause a scene here it'll be bad for you. Your underground customers are addicts and your main source of income. Sue if you want, but we won't stand by. That shop will probably shut down."
"You seriously thought that would stop me? Sorry, but nobody on this island can touch me."
"But the mainland is another story."
Palkoa frowned and stared at Amy. Her eyes flared red.
'Red eyes. Carmis, huh.'
Palkoa knew of the famous Carmis family on the continent. They could store a mental state at a certain point and restore it at will.
No drug could addict them, no substance could breach them. The Carmis family wasn't called mentally invincible for nothing.
'So she was meat you could never catch from the start? She knew everything and followed me here.'
Palkoa ground his teeth without expression.
If the Carmis family intervened—being top-tier nobility—his five years of work could collapse.
The funds from distributing loops were enormous. No matter how deranged Palkoa was, he was sensitive to money; without money he couldn't buy loops.
"Heh heh! Insolent girl. I'll repay this humiliation!"
"Try it if you can. But next time you'd better be careful. Since things are like this, I'm done worrying about the school—I plan to have some real fun."
Amy delivered the rebuke without hesitation, then returned to Shirone's group.
"Sorry for worrying you. Let's go."
They didn't want to stay another moment and hurried up to the surface. Staff watched at every turn, but no one stopped them.
Outside, the air felt noticeably different. Tess spread her arms and drank in the night breeze.
"Ah, this feels great. Thanks to Amy we got a real tour. We went all over the palace on Galiant Island, from the underground to the top."
"Hahaha! That's true. We even hit the white-sand beach, the harbor, and the commercial district—other than ruins, I think we've seen everything."
Hearing Rian, Amy snapped in surprise.
"What? You actually went to the harbor?"
"Yeah. Shirone said it was quicker to grab a crew member and question them. We ran like crazy. If not for that passionate coachman we'd have missed our schedule."
Amy glanced at Shirone, and when their eyes met she quickly looked away. She still didn't have the courage to look at his face properly.
She remembered what Shirone had said in the underground. Even without twisting it, he had said how precious a friend was, and that was enough.
Why hadn't she known? That when she fell from the cliff, the only person who called her name and held her hand was Shirone.
Amy was content with understanding the meaning of that.
"Amy, sorry I'm late. I'll tell you about it back home. There was something special on the way here."
"Hmph, I'm not that curious! Why should I have to hear about it?"
"Aren't you still mad?"
She wasn't—her anger had already eased. But Amy thought it better to keep acting angry for now.
"Let's make this clear. Don't tell me you're imagining weird things because of today—like some prince on a white horse saving the princess."
"Huh? No."
"I appreciate you helping, but I didn't get caught; I followed for personal reasons. Even if you hadn't helped, those guys would have been nothing to me."
"Haha! Got it. You're still in school and I'm about to graduate—who's worrying about whom?"
Shirone agreed readily and Amy felt her energy sag.
"Hmph, well... fine. Just saying."
Tess clutched her stomach and laughed. Finally Amy felt like her old self again.
Rian set off toward the commercial district and shouted, "I'm hungry! Should we grab a midnight snack on the way home?"
"Midnight snack? Yes! Love it! Yahoo!"
* * *
Jis didn't get home until after midnight, cleaning up the tavern.
Beaten, tense, and exhausted from work, his body felt twice as heavy as usual.
Still, he could endure it thanks to the relief that the feared outcome hadn't occurred.
Amy had escaped Palkoa's clutches unharmed. He himself hadn't suffered much either.
She had done the job she was assigned well, so no matter how much Palkoa wanted to beat her, he had no justification.
'If it weren't for that kid, I might have died.'
Amy's face came to Jis as clearly as if she were standing before him.
Of all the women Jis had met, none had been as strong and beautiful as she was. Why would someone so remarkable want to help him?
'Shirone? He said he was a commoner too, right?'
Jis remembered Shirone's words in the tavern without missing a detail.