The woman kicked her feet up on the table within the bakery, swirling a lollipop in her mouth and surveying the rest of the shop. This was a popular place in a small town on the continent of Faux. It was an experimental business that opened up a while back, and the idea ended up being a massive hit. The whole point behind this joint had been that it was a bakery that specialized in creating only custom-made things. Cakes decorated in sweets dipped in chocolate before being turned into a smoothie.
Muffin-cupcake hybrids to go with a footlong chain of candy. Whatever you could think of, as long as you could express that request, it could be made. This place was one of the more popular chains in the world, and it also happened to be the original, which sparked this wave of "custom loadout bakeries" all around the world. If she was being honest, the place deserved the popularity and the following it got.
The food was amazing, and the care put into ensuring each order not only lives up to what the customer requested but also makes sure that things remain personal and individualized. It was a revolutionary idea mixed up with care, and it blew up because of that.
It was unfortunate that this would be the last day of this restaurant's service.
From behind the counter, the on-duty manager walked out with her order. "Ms. Phi. Your cake."
Despite the massive room for creativity that this place provides, when opting for her order, Phi went with something simple. A pink strawberry cake, decorated with the words ,Happy Birthday. The cake was doused in sprinkles and covered in slices of strawberry. The cake was beautiful.
The one custom request that Phi had made, however, was to remove the center of the cake completely. That left the cake with a massive hole in the center. in which strawberries spelled out the word ,void.
The manager set the cake down on the table and clapped her hands twice. At that moment, all of the employees as well as all of the customers currently within the store burst out into song, chanting loudly.
Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy Birthday, Dear Phi! Happy Birthday to you!!!!"
The room erupted into enormous applause as people laughed and shouted out how they loved her. The manager lit the candles on the cake and gestured for Phi to make her wish.
Leaning forward, Phi stared at the flame on the candles for a brief moment. The way it burned fiercely despite being tiny, and the warmth that it gave off despite being so tiny.
Closing her eyes, she blew out the candle on the cake after making her wish. Leaning back in the seat, she turned to the congregation surrounding her. "Thank you all."
She swirled the lollipop in her mouth once more. She then directed her glance outside, where she saw a shadow moving. Someone was going to enter the store.
Ding!
The sound of the entrance bell chiming silenced everybody in the room. Standing in the doorway of the store was a man dressed shadily, with a large hat. Peeking out from under the shadows that covered his face were bright red eyes.
The manager turned to look at the mysterious figure with a welcoming smile. "Welcome to our humble little shop here, the number one bakery in Faux! How may we help you? We handle all sorts of custom requests here, so your only limit is your imagination—"
The red-eyed man ignored her and took a step into the store, pushing past confused customers. "Envoy of the Witch."
Phi did not take her eyes from the cake in front of her. She reached out her hand, and slowly, the manager handed her a knife to cut the cake with. She held the long silver blade in her hand, inspecting it, before raising it into the air and cutting the cake. "Happy Birthday, Aura..." she muttered to herself. A single tear slid down her face.
An employee handed her a tissue that Phi accepted but did not use.
The man in the suit attempted to get closer, but in that moment Phi swirled the lollipop in her mouth once more. In an instant, customers rocketed up from their seated positions and placed themselves between Phi and the man.
The red-eyed man came to a stop, eyeing the people warily. "I bring a message. From the Peacekeeper"
Phi finally turned to look at the man. "Peacekeeper? Could that be?" She turned her gaze to something that was just beyond the red-eyed man. Instantly, the man froze as a chilling aura descended upon the room. Just in his peripherals, he took notice of a figure in white standing behind him.
Not moving a single inch, he turned his red eyes back to stare at Phi. "She wishes to maintain neutrality and inaction in the matters of others. Therefore, she will only watch. However, she requests that 'the heart' be transferred to her hands. If that request isn't met before the end of the Seven Star Magic Academy tournament, she will take action herself."
Phi glanced at the figure in the white dress, the Witch of Vainglory. "That's a lie. The Peacekeeper has already revealed her true form. She's already taken action. The witch says, "She will not abide by any suggestions made by a coward hoping to play God."
The man with red eyes flinched slightly; however, he nodded.
"Understood. She also requested that you halt your escapades immediately. Using that power of yours to steal others memories. She wonders about your purpose and requests that you stop."
Phi let out a sly smile. "Do you know about love?"
The man's eyes widened. Phi took advantage of that shock. Removing the lollipop from her mouth, she stuck out her tongue. It revealed a long scar on her tongue that stretched its full length. The scar was glowing a bright pink, and it pulsed up and down as if it was alive.
They made the red-eyed man freeze. "A delusion?" And in that moment, the entire store attacked him.
Phi watched closely before turning around.
I could care less about what things they have going. It doesn't concern me.
She walked out of the back entrance, ignoring the sounds of chaos behind her.
She crushed the lollipop she was chewing, and the sound of blood splattering filled the air behind her.
She reached out to touch her scar.
"I only want to find the one responsible for this. Cure this curse. Then I can finally understand. And once I do, I can return."
She smiled as she stared at a picture she had.
A selfie of her and Aura.
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
As soon as I entered the student council room, I collapsed onto the desk, moaning in relief.
Everyone else at the table just stared at me as if I had lost my mind. All except for Yuri and Kami, who were laughing, and Suijin, who seemed more confused than anything.
"Sorry. It's just. These past few days that new teacher Credo has been putting me through the wringer. It seems like every lecture he gives ends up in him handing out some sort of test that just boils down to, "Beat the shit out of Raiden."
I huffed in frustration as I nursed my newest wounds, courtesy of whatever the hell Ayung had built this time.
"Yeah. unfortunately for you he said he's planning his biggest test yet tomorrow." Ayung said with a sly smile. "Maybe he'll just join in on the beating himself?"
I shuddered.
Suijin chuckled slightly, which made me want to protest, but I kept quiet. "You know, I'm grateful. That at the very least students aren't complaining about Credo anymore. They may not like him, but no one's vouching for him to be fired anymore." She sighed in relief. "It's one more thing off of my plate."
Everyone else sighed in relief with her. Over these past few days, with the help of Hikaru, we had been working on helping to get some tasks off of Suijin's plate. It had been working well so far, but it meant that the rest of the student council would have to take over her work. Even me, who technically wasn't even an official member.
Ariel: Forgive me for asking, but why do they even let you stay here? You have no official position, and yet you just waltz in here and sit at the table like you belong. A lazy student like you could never make the student council.
I ignored Ariel's ad hominem and focused on her questions.
If only I knew the answer. Things just kind of ended up like this. I originally started coming just because Kami was nervous to go alone; however, at some point, I just kind of started coming to every meeting. It felt like I'd be scolded if I skipped.
Ariel: How heartwarming. Maybe they pitied you for having no friends.
I have friends!
I directed my attention back to the meeting at hand.
"I mean, not only just Credo. It feels like things I've had to do in general have just been cut in half. No, more than that. I barely have a fourth of the work left to do compared to when we first came back from break." Suijin gave a smile. A sad one.
She placed her hand on the table. It was trembling faintly.
"You know. You guys don't have to take on so much responsibility on yourselves. I'm not going to shatter under pressure. We're a team, right?" Her voice was also slightly shaky.
She had already figured out way back that we were the reason her mountain of tasks had faded away. And as much as she was thankful, I could also tell that she was guilty. Realizing it now, it must have been my tired exclamation that made her decide to speak up about this.
"I understand that I couldn't have handled all of this on my own, so I'm thankful for the helping hands, and if you don't mind my selfishness, I'll request help again."
Next to me, Kami smiled. Not just that, her entire face lit up.
That made me smile, although I'd never let her see that.
"Still. I-I can't let you guys take on so much while I'm left with pretty much nothing. I won't. I-I just...." She was overwhelmed with thankfulness and guilt at the same time, the two sentiments warring for space in her mind.
At that moment, Genji spoke up. "So you finally understand how it feels then."
Suijin looked up at her in shock.
"How we felt watching you continuously take on all of that responsibility and constantly push help away. Do you now understand how horrible it feels to watch someone you respect and care for continually do that?"
Realizing her point, Suijin nodded.
"Sorry. I really am. And thank you!" Overcome, she actually bowed her head. Of course, the context was completely different than in the case in which she would tell others to not bow their heads. Instead of doing it in deference to authority and status, she was doing it out of gratitude.
"Besides. You have more important things to worry about, don't you?" This was Yuri. His voice was just as shaky as Suijin's, but he had found the courage to speak. This was also a step within the strategy, 'help Suijin.' With Suijin having less work to do, it meant she could focus more on the other things that were really weighing on her.
Mainly Yuri, and
"The meeting between the 10 grand magic families....." Yuri finished. Suijin looked back at him in shock, and there was a small light in her eyes.
"Yeah. I do." Her eyes went distant as she thought about something relating to that.
"If you don't mind me asking, what is the whole point of this event between the 10 Grand Magic Families?"
It was Ichijo who posed that question, and everybody turned to look at him like he was crazy. That was a thing I had assumed to be common knowledge. But I guess not?
Riko gladly took up the role of explanation. "Essentially, the 10 Grand Magic families of Japan are connected by one leader. Ahead of the 10 Grand Magic Families, who oversees the alliance? I'm sure you know the purpose of the 10 Grand Magic families, right?"
Ichijo nodded. "After the split of the Grand Magic Alliance, the war between the continents began. It was then that the emperor of Japan decided upon 10 of his greatest warriors to serve as the country's defense force. Those people were chosen from all across Japan and the continent of Asia. Eventually, these warriors settled down, and the 10 Grand Magic families were created. Their role expanded from just military force to also having major sway in political decisions and other things." Ichijo patted himself on the back. "How's that for exposition?" He turned to look at Genji.
"Horrible. If I were enjoying a story, that alone would make me put it down." She replied.
"Cruel!"
"As Ichijo explained. The families all have conflicting goals and ideals, as well as political standing. So it's up to the head to bridge those gaps and act as the ultimate representative. That leader is chosen from one of the 10 Grand Magic families. Of course, those looking to realize their goals and come to power will push for their own heir to become the leader, and it leads to fierce competition. Hence the necessity of many different events to sift through and choose the most fitting candidate." Riko finished her explanation.
"Ah, I get it. And Suijin, as the daughter of the Hajimoto family"
"I will be participating in that ceremony as the heir presented by the Hajimoto." She said so in a sullen voice. "It's. A lot of pressure. I can't imagine what kind of people I'll meet and see. All I know is that I have to give off a good first impression and make sure not to disgrace my family in any way." She looked down at the table and clenched her fist.
Next to me, Kami was in a similar state. Kami had never been to any sort of event like this before, and neither had I. It would be a first for both of us and our first step in either honoring our family's name or disgracing it.
The weight of that was something impossible to describe.
"I mean, there are so many wonderful candidates. Shindo from the Miyamoto. Myra from the Kazuichi. Akira from the Mishigure. I'm nervous. I'm wondering if I'll be able to compete."
"But of course, that alone wouldn't make you so worried, Suijin. Is there something else?" Genji asked.
Suijin nodded, sighing deeply. "Remember that day when Shindo had first appeared? Well, it was then he informed us the 10 Grand Magic families were supposed to announce this event at the end of our culture festival; however, the Fangless Python interrupted that."
I nodded. Everyone else did as well.
"Well. The truth was, they were planning to announce a grand ball between the 10 Grand Magic families. That was the true nature of the "event."
I nodded. That wasn't much of a shocker, nor was it anything to be hung up about. But Suijin wasn't done.
"And well. They also planned to announce something new. The chosen heir will be allowed to bring one other family up to power along with them."
The breath left my body. That would essentially mean there could be two heads of the 10 Grand Magic family. But how?
"Through arranged marriage. An heir from one family could marry the heir to another. If one is chosen, both ascend to share the power of "leader" of the 10 Grand Magic Families.
"Huh?"
Kami and I were so shocked that we couldn't even hold in our reactions.