A Place Filled with Ominous Mist.
Hundreds of poles were stuck in the ground like gravestones.
A wind carrying the dampness in the air swept through every few minutes, bringing with it a faint scent of blood.
Whoosh—
Yet, the poles did not fall, even in the wind. Though clearly made of wood, the poles that had appeared here from some distant time were still sturdy.
And they all looked similar. It was impossible to distinguish which was the weapon of the three heroes.
"..." "..."
Cara and Lotta were examining the poles that had been gathered from various parts of the Misty Plains. Nearby, the [Nameless Hawk] stood watch.
Even Lotta had stepped back to patrol in order to help Cara focus. Thus, the two remained in heavy silence.
"..." "..."
Even though they tried to identify them by the patterns described in the books... distinguishing the hundreds of patterns engraved on the handles of the poles was a monumental task.
So, they had chosen a different approach, sitting down after planting all the collected poles in the ground like gravestones.
Sitting with her arms crossed, Cara spoke, trying to guess which pole might have belonged to the [Flag Bearer of Rebellion].
"...By the way, what kind of people were the hero and the flag bearer?" "Tweet... I'm sorry, but I don't know much either..." "You don't need to give a precise or sharp insight. Just tell me even the trivial details. After all, aren't you the one here who knows the most about them?"
The [Nameless Hawk] reluctantly nodded.
"Tweet... That's true." "Then please, tell me."
Cara tied her long hair back and closed her eyes. The wind had been bothering her, making her hair flutter.
"To be honest, I don't fully believe that I am destined to succeed the [Flag Bearer of Rebellion]... nor that all three of us were fated to be heroes. We're not such grand figures."
"..."
"The achievements we've made so far were all thanks to the cooperation of our seniors and fellow students. Frankly speaking, we've just been lucky to receive the fruits of their labor. I'm nothing but a young rascal with a bit of a rebellious streak."
"..."
"So no matter how much I try to imagine the true nature of the two heroes who raised and led so many warriors, I just can't. All I know is..."
Cara recalled a story her adoptive father, a dwarf craftsman from a shabby village, had told her just before bed.
It was a story she heard along with the feeling of a blanket being tucked around her by a hand that smelled of shoe polish. A story always told to comfort her, the adopted half-giant girl.
-"Once upon a time, in an age when dwarves and giants lived together as one..."
There were two righteous and bold young girls.
Both girls possessed special powers and helped people by defeating countless monsters.
And they were given splendid weapons by the races they helped.
The [Warrior of Lightning] wielded a shining sword, Saving the fairies who lived under the trees and the human race.
The [Flag Bearer of Rebellion] raised a flag high, Commanding the steel giants who lived in the mountains.
The two heroes eventually saved the land that would become the academy city, and one day, they vanished at the same time. Along with their disappearance, all the steel giants also disappeared.
Surely, because they were as close as sisters, they must have ascended together that day. That was what people presumed.
Upon hearing this, the [Nameless Hawk] wore a bitter expression.
"...Ascended, huh? In a way, that's true. They left their fate to the future and sacrificed their bodies to defeat the beast gods. In that sense, you could say they became gods."
"Are you saying the monsters in the fairy tale were the beast gods?" "Tweet... Originally, this world was ruled by beasts born from the chaos connected to the roots of the World Tree. Among them, the strongest were called the beast gods."
And at the end, the most powerful beasts left were the wolf, the serpent, and the dragon. They used their powers to reshape the world.
The [Nameless Hawk] murmured, lost in memory.
"In that process, chaos inevitably arose. Many people suffered. Since I was the weakest who claimed 'Order'...”
Cara waved her large hand dismissively, still with her eyes closed.
"Anyway, the story is that the three heroes and the saint met and were helped by each other. And somehow, through their sacrifice, the academy city was established."
"..."
"What I want to hear about... is not the [Golden Witch] who might have encountered their traces, but about the other two."
"Tweet..."
Girls who couldn't even leave their names behind, And were only remembered by the title of 'heroes.'
The girl called the warrior was truly righteous and free-spirited. And the girl who bore the fate of the flag bearer...
"She was a fool." "..." "Tweet, she once said she thought that if she covered her own eyes, others wouldn't be able to see her either... I still can't forget how shocking that was."
"..."
"She also tried to push the ground away while standing on her hands, and despite being made of flesh, she said she wanted to drink oil like the steel giants. She did every strange thing you could imagine."
"..."
The fate of the [Flag Bearer]... Was it really a good thing?
That thought crossed Cara's mind for a moment.
"But because her distinction between herself and others was so blurred, she was welcomed and loved by everyone. If there was food, she would always share it with others, and if anyone was subjected to an unfair order or tyranny, she would stand up for them as if it were her own problem."
"..."
"Tweet... That's all I can tell you. It's truly pitiful. If I were to return to my original form, I could recall more from my memories of the battles."
"..."
Hearing those words, Cara sat there in thought for a long time. Long enough for the wind to pass through the place several times.
Whoosh—
Finally, Cara stood up.
"I understand."
She reached out and picked up one of the hundreds of poles.
Then, placing it on the ground, she declared,
"I've found it. The flagpole." "R-Really?! Tweet?!"
The [Nameless Hawk] waddled over and closely examined the pole. Seeing this, Cara chuckled.
"Even if you look at it, the pattern won't match the records." "Tweet?" "In my view... Would such a fool really have bothered to check her pattern and carry it around as her exclusive one?"
"What...?"
"I suspect she just picked up any pole she found lying around and used it... It was probably such a minor difference that everyone mistook it for the same item."
Cara looked at the pole she held.
"The one recorded was probably just the last thing she held before she died. Well, we'll find out if we give it a swing, won't we?"
Who knows?
Maybe the ancient steel giants that suddenly disappeared will reappear...
Muttering to herself, she tied the flag she had hidden in her clothes and raised it.
"Hup. Come out, steel giants."
She swung the unimpressive branch-like pole.
Flutter—
The flag fluttered in the damp wind, but the Misty Plains remained silent.
"..." "No, no matter how you think about it, that's not it, right? Tweet."
After all that speculation, a cold splash of water. It seemed her dramatic words were off the mark.
So Cara, trying to cover up her embarrassment, shouted,
"Then please, remember something! Aren't you supposed to be a god? It feels like the goddess Urd has been more helpful than you!"
"Tweet— Even so..."
Cara, in a fit of frustration, activated her ether skill. Following Urd's advice, it had evolved.
"[Comrade of Revolution]—!"
Suddenly, from the ground where nothing had been, a dwarf-shaped robot emerged. It stretched out long arms from its short torso.
Click—!
But it was different from the previous [Comrade of Revolution]. It had a round head and a square body... a robot in the shape of a dwarf.
Cara, feeling stifled, tapped the robot on the ground with the pole and complained.
Thud! Thud!
"See! By following the goddess's advice, I've been able to summon a robot without any catalyst! This is the kind of advice I need!"
"Tweet... Even if you say that..."
The [Nameless Hawk], feeling down, drooped its plump head and wings.
"..."
Seeing this, Cara felt a pang of guilt for having scolded it too harshly. After all, they were gradually becoming part of the <Central Prism Academy> family.
"Ahem... Uh, well. I'm sorry for yelling." "Tweet, it's fine. I also apologize for being so useless after being revived in this incomplete form." "Anyway, instead of standing around here, let's go see Comrade Lotta or our senior comrades. If we put our heads together, maybe we'll come up with something, right?" "Tweet! Agreed."
So, the one person and one bird began to move.
The [Nameless Hawk] suddenly paused and looked at the [Comrade of Revolution] that Cara had summoned. In the dim light, it seemed as if a dwarf was standing there, staring blankly.
"But that... Is it okay to just leave it there?" "Ah, well. It doesn't matter. It doesn't cost anything now... It's just a summoned creature that takes the form of a dwarf comrade."
"Tweet— I see. You really care about the dwarves as a race. To think you would create a doll that looks so similar... even though the races are so different."
Hearing that, Cara suddenly recalled her adoptive father's warm words.
-"Once upon a time, in an age when dwarves and giants lived together as one..."
That sentiment still remained in her memories.
Cara smiled and said,
"The important thing is the heart, isn't it? If you have a heart, even if you're made of steel, you're a person. And if you don't have a heart, even if you're made of flesh, you're just an empty doll. It's easier to see it that way."
"That's true... Tweet! That's a good story, somehow hearing that makes me feel energized. I feel like I could soar through the sky right now."
"Haha, but didn't they say the beast god of 'Order' can only fly after gathering all the weapons of the [Three Heroes]?"
"Tweet! That's right... It seems I got carried away by the heartwarming story! Haha! Tweet—!"
Cara and the [Nameless Hawk] walked through the mist to find their companions. Soon, only the sound of the wind could be heard in that place.
Whoosh—
In the dark plains where numerous poles were planted, a single summon resembling a dwarf stood silently.
A very small shadow formed underneath it. A very small shadow that only resembled a dwarf.
Groooan...
The shadow glowed faintly blue and expanded ever so slightly.
But the change ended quickly. And in the returning silence, there was only one person who witnessed that scene.
Oh. Jackpot.
While patrolling the Misty Plains in the opposite direction from Astrid and monitoring the academy city with [Find the Pink-Pink Vision☆], I realized something after seeing Cara's solution.
A true shift in perspective.
Instead of finding the flagpole of the flag bearer, You deduce the mindset of the flag bearer who used the pole.
Who would have thought that the answer was just any old pole... I didn't think of that...
In the game, it came out like some sort of chosen staff, something you could only get by sheer luck.
Even Urd spoke so cryptically, I thought it was a real luck test.
Come to think of it, Urd was essentially the 'Clara from the original story.'
In other words, She knew about the same parts I did.
Because like attracts like, biases only grew stronger.
Is this what they call confirmation bias?
Feeling deflated, my shoulders slumped.
...
No. It's something to think about positively.
Now I've gathered all the hidden pieces. Finally, I've collected the weapons of the [Three Heroes].
Who am I?
The one who hoarded all the hidden pieces—☆
Anyway, I've collected all the weapons of the [Three Heroes]—☆
To boast to the world, I spread my arms wide and shouted confidently.
"Tada—☆" "...?"
Astrid tilted her head. She had been patrolling with us, clashing repeatedly with Helena and isolating the echoes.
"...What’s going on?"
Astrid looked around, but all she could see through the mist were the remnants of protruding priests and chaos bugs.
"...Is there a show starting?" "It's not a show; it's a funeral—☆" "Huh...?" "Just kidding—☆" "D-Don't make such scary jokes..."
At that, Lotta, who was walking beside me, also turned her head. But, being accustomed to Pink-Pink’s antics, she soon nodded and brought up another topic.
"Senior, it looks like the priests over there are almost dealt with."
Her eyes glowed orange as she flicked her wand through the air.
[Memories of the evening, a warm bonfire, drifting off to sleep.]
And from beyond, the screams of <Ratatoskr> priests could be heard. It was like the cries of insects being crushed by a giant beast.
-Aaaargh—!! -Aaaargh—!!
Crash—!
Then came a massive explosion. An orange light flickered beyond the mist.
"Ooh—☆"
The scene that appeared before [Find the Pink-Pink Vision☆] was truly a red carpet...☆
Our kitty's a bit scary—♪
If I put it in game terms... she's at a level right before a true rank-up now.
The girl who had been humiliated and driven out of her school was now casting the most powerful magic, blazing a new trail.
Astrid, seeing this, smiled warmly.
"Oh~ Hohoho! The history of the academy city is also flowing! The emergence of future powerhouses is a blessing!"
Just as she was soaking in this sentimental feeling,
The ground shook.
Rumble—
"...!" "...!" "...!"
And a wolf's howl echoed through the mist.
It sounded like someone crying out in deep sorrow.
A howl like that.
"I will surely avenge you."
This world is not one... Ether is not order...
Numerous echoes reverberated. Voices emanating from the phantoms that took the form of students.
If you listened closely to those voices, you would be cursed by the World Tree.
"..."
Helena, clad in black armor, raised her greatsword and slashed through them.
Slash—!!
They dispersed like mist, vanishing somewhere. But the echo that passed by Helena whispered in a sad voice into her ear.
Death is not the end either.
"...Shhh."
Just as she was about to slice through that voice as well,
The ground rumbled.
Rumble—
And black energy seeped out from the cracked earth.
Helena saw that energy and murmured,
"...A dragon."
The king of the dead was awakening.