The week had passed since that day.
The weather in Academy City was getting cooler, and the recent events had caused quite a stir.
As soon as the second semester began, several news items captured everyone's attention:
The awakening of a new "Unique Aether" ability user.
Student Council President Brynhildr's defeat and injury.
The Chaos Insect attack on Divine Alfheim High School.
...And the Prophet's official emergence.
Whew, so much has happened. But most ordinary students, except for the first two items, seemed to adopt an attitude of "it's been resolved, so what's the big deal?"
*Actually, the last one is overwhelmingly more significant.*
...
Ah.
I'm not saying our Pretty Cutie MBTI-T Hilde getting injured isn't a big deal. Um... I just mean I'll take good care of my injured lover, so there's a solution for that. I visit her at the hospital every day.
Safe since I didn't say it out loud.
If I mentioned this anywhere else, she'd definitely get upset.
"Phew—â What a situation."
Anyway...
What I'm trying to say is that even though the second semester has started, the students in Academy City don't seem to feel any sense of crisis about Ratatoskr.
*I can understand why.*
Even I couldn't fully grasp the reality of a world-ending catastrophe approaching in a few months, despite knowing it was coming.
-This world is destined for destruction.
"..."
Even if you understand it intellectually and prepare for it, it doesn't feel real until it's right in front of you.
Originally, we should have suffered severe damage from the Ratatoskr priests appearing one after another, from the weakest boss, the "Priest of Fantasy," to the strongest, the "Priest of Corrosion."
Students rising up after experiencing pain.
Schools that had tasted the bitter experience would gather under the leadership of Central Prism Academy, which had always been at the center of incidents. Then they would solemnly begin to unravel Ratatoskr's conspiracy...
*Hilde was supposed to start taking action in earnest from that point...*
But everything changed completely.
Hilde and I have become so close that we do all sorts of things together.
We've even become comfortable enough to bathe together.
[All characters appearing in this scene are over 19 years of age.] Logo properly displayed, so we're safe.
The bathroom in a wealthy home was certainly nice and spacious.
The echoing acoustics made it perfect for vocal practice.
But were we neglecting our preparations to practice school idol dances together? Not exactly.
There literally wasn't much we could physically do.
*The truth is, preparations against Ratatoskr followers have been in place since the beginning of the story, so everything's just running smoothly on its own.*
In this changed reality, each school was receiving information and preparing on their own. No students were falling for the followers' wicked schemes.
The juniors were on an auto-hunting treasure quest for the last of the "Three Heroes" treasures amid their peaceful schedules. Now it would take at least rainbow-tier strength to stop them within Academy City.
And Kara still didn't realize that the last treasure was her own weapon.
*Is she just stupid, or excessively humble?*
Honestly, it's the "flag" of the "Standard-bearer of Rebellion."
How has she not made that connection yet?
Shouldn't she be having an "Oh, is it me?" moment by now?
...
Still, she's a good kid, so I could forgive her generously.
Setting aside the Prophet's solemn vow, Ratatoskr hadn't shown much movement, so our schedules continued as normal.
*Maybe the Prophet's strategy changed because he's not the scheming tactician type but more of a cowardly mastermind who safely controls things from behind.*
The Prophet's conspiracy had become a mystery again.
People with such shady intentions live tiresome lives.
Pink-Haired Bitch surprise worship.
People should really live honestly.
Those with hidden agendas don't last long.
But that's not the important part. As I mentioned earlier, the news of a new "Unique Aether" ability user had become quite the topic within Academy City.
That's why we were contemplating:
First year.
Resolved major troubles since the beginning of the semester.
Has connections with many seniors from major schools.
These were the perfect qualities for a leader.
How could we best utilize Alvitr as Academy City's next leader?
I was personally visiting my friends via Bifrost to ask about this concern.
*
Under the vast blue sky,
Strong winds were still blowing across the northern wilderness.
Sizzle—!
The smell of grilling meat wafted across the wilderness. Eir created a small fire wheel in her hand and responded indifferently.
"So basically, you want to know how to make your kid into a leader, right?"
"Hey, she's not a kid—â"
"Well, the way to raise juniors is obvious. Want some meat?"
"Yay~â I do!"
"...Here."
Sizzle—
She transferred a piece of well-cooked meat and placed another raw piece on the fire wheel.
The raw meat danced as it cooked on the scarlet aether.
"Nom nom nom—â"
The properly seasoned grilled meat was delicious.
The spicy seasonings popped within the sweet sauce, effectively masking the gamey smell of the meat. With a bowl of rice, it would have been perfect.
I'm happy eating delicious foodâ
Bad memories, go away~âª
Glancing at me, Eir held up a piece of meat dancing like a ballerina in her scarlet aether.
"Want another piece?"
"Yay—⪠Meat—â"
"Here."
"Nom nom nom—â"
Delicious! The best—â
Eating tasty food makes me happy!
"..."
What was I thinking about again?
Oh right, right.
The plan to groom Alvitr as a leader.
Perhaps as the price for awakening Bifrost, I'd become quite forgetful lately. My thoughts often wandered off-topic like this.
It seemed that great power indeed came with great consequences.
I finally recalled the subject I wanted to discuss.
"So~ Tell me how to raise a junior—â"
"For raising kids, I don't think there's anything better in Academy City than this."
Eir, still sitting awkwardly, pointed to the spine-shaped sword placed beside her. It was certainly a unique sword.
*In the game, it was obtained through a limited gacha that had probability manipulation controversies, but here she had it from the beginning.*
Weapons of fate.
Some students naturally possessed uniquely shaped weapons or talents, as if it were meant to be.
As if they were born to fight.
And through fighting, they would come to understand the name of their "Fate" connected to that weapon.
Weapons.
Fighting.
Combat.
These were the basic aspirations of students living in Academy City. They lived as if they were born to fight.
That seemed to be what Eir was saying.
"Hmm—â Come to think of it, the fighting tournament is coming up soon..."
"Yeah, I'm thinking of participating..."
"...Thinking?"
"...Are you planning to enter too, Spiral?"
"Umm..."
I found it surprisingly difficult to answer.
An unpleasant situation.
Hilde, who had been the strongest among us until recently, was injured and had her weapon of fate destroyed by the Prophet.
*Even if she participates in the tournament, she probably won't be the fighter we expect her to be.*
If Hilde either forces herself to participate,
Or gives up and forfeits...
"..."
Honestly, I had no real competition now.
*There are strong second-years like Bell, Sieglinde, or the Gray Knight... but they're not on our level...*
Even among the rainbow-tier fighters, the ability I had awakened broke all balance.
A rainbow-colored vision that could observe the future within minutes.
Bifrost, which allowed me to see into and travel anywhere in Academy City.
These two abilities were simply too unbalanced for one-on-one combat.
Since these were unprecedented aether skills,
Many students still didn't understand them fully...
But I didn't want to crash their playground and cause trouble.
"...It would probably be difficult."
"..."
While the battle-loving Eir might have been angry,
The Student Council President Eir seemed to understand.
Fighting only has meaning when opponents are of similar levels.
And Eir knew too well that she couldn't defeat me now.
"I see. So our generation's battles... end like this."
"It's not the end—â We can meet again after graduation~â"
"Either way, the rainbow-tier fighters of the 'Golden Generation' won't have a chance to test their skills against each other in Academy City anymore."
"...That's true."
Eir said this while chewing her meat.
"Well, it wasn't bad. Thanks to that, I found a new sense of purpose... Thanks to you all, school life wasn't too terrible."
"...I see."
We grilled meat under the blue sky.
After saying goodbye to Eir, I rode Bifrost to the library of Public Vana Boarding School.
A rainbow-colored spiral wrapped around my body, and in an instant, I was inside the library where research-oriented students were passing by. Outside, the noise of reconstruction work was still loud.
Even inside the library, animal sounds filled the air. Cats, dogs, foxes, and mice glowed in various colors as they moved around.
-Meooow—!
-Woof, woof!
-Awoooo—
-Squeak squeak!
"..."
All sorts of summoned creatures carrying bags with books or food,
Or holding letters in their mouths, busily moving about.
Through this, I headed to Freyja's private reading room like a cockroach. Located at the far end of a dark corridor... the gloomiest place possible.
Creak—
Amidst books scattered everywhere,
A purple-haired girl was sleeping face down in a shabby nightgown. A posture she'd regret once she turned 25.
The sun was high in the sky, yet she was still sleeping in that position...
"...Grrrr. Cough. Hmph..."
Well, it's normal to sleep a lot at that age, isn't it?
"Hehe, sleep wellâ"
After fondly looking at the sleeping Freyja, I took out some delicious snacks from her drawer and ate them. The snacks from this neighborhood were still excellent.
"After meat, sweet snacks are the best—â Don't you think so too?"
"Crunch, munch... sniff... grrrr..."
"Yes⪠That was delicious! See you later!"
"Zzzz..."
After saying goodbye to Freyja and grabbing a few more snacks, I left the library via Bifrost.
Back at Central Prism Academy.
I felt nostalgic about these Academy City memories of visiting friends' rooms and getting treats... knowing we didn't have much time left.
*I wonder who among the rainbow-tier will win the tournament...*
Eir.
Freyja.
Astrid.
Anna.
And Helina, the hidden powerhouse from Hel Annex High School.
I wouldn't be surprised whoever among them won.
*
A few days later.
Student Council President Brynhildr declared before numerous press club students:
"I am retiring as the United Student Council president due to my injury."
"..."
"And the next president will not be someone from Aesir Girls' High School... but will be determined solely by strength."
"...You don't mean."
Brynhildr nodded.
"I intend to pass on the position of United Student Council president to the winner of the next fighting tournament."
"..."
"This decision has been approved within Aesir Girls' High School as well."
"..."
The announcement spread quickly,
And Clara was shocked when she heard the news minutes later.