Gakusen Toshi Asterisk - Volume 17 - Chapter Ep

EPILOGUE

In the Lieseltanian royal capital of Strell…

“Wow! Your Highness…no, Your Majesty! You’re beautiful!”

Flora, dressed in her maid’s uniform, clasped her hands together in front of her chest in astonishment as she stepped into the room.

“You are speaking to the queen. Conduct yourself accordingly,” an elderly maid helping Julis dress chided Flora, but Julis raised a hand to stop her.

Looking in the mirror, she was struck by the pure white dress that had just been fitted for her in preparation for the evening’s party. It was much more elegant than her ceremonial attire, and it made her long, lush rose-colored hair stand out even more than usual. People said that she looked much more beautiful than she once had. She’d been so desperate a few years back, maybe she had indeed lost her rugged edge.

“A-apologies…,” Flora said, cringing.

Julis flashed her a soft smile as the older maid backed down. “Don’t worry about it, Flora. I owe you an apology, keeping you so busy even though you’ve just returned.”

“N-not at all! It’s my duty to serve you, Your High—Your Majesty!”

“I’m relieved to hear you say that. Anyway, I’m just tired today.”

Julis sat down on the sofa and sighed, careful not to wrinkle the dress that she had just changed into. After all, she had had a busy day—from setting out in a horse-drawn carriage around the lake to greet large crowds of people, to attending the rituals in the cathedral, where she had taken the oath of office in front of the archbishop. She’d been given a ring, a scepter, and a crown, and consecrated with holy oil. Then she’d returned to the royal palace by carriage again and greeted the people once more from the building’s balcony. The silk dress and velvet ceremonial attire that she had worn for the coronation ceremony had been difficult to move around in, and the long hem had to be carried by several servants. On top of that, her hair was done up elaborately, too. The whole thing had been unbearably stiff and formal.

But she was still only halfway through the day’s schedule. After this, she had two more dinners to attend before delivering a speech to the nation. She had been waiting all day for this chance to catch her breath.

“So is everyone here?”

“Yes! They’ve all arrived. It’s just…” Flora lowered her gaze with a pained look. “Everyone except Master Amagiri…”

“…I see.”

After graduating from Seidoukan, Julis had moved to a two-year university in England to study comparative politics and other subjects and, upon returning to Lieseltania, had assisted her older brother Jolbert in ruling. During that time, she had often spoken with her friends from Seidoukan, with whom she had shared so much joy and hardship, and she had even continued to interact with Sylvia and those from the other schools. But she had rarely heard from Ayato. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that she had hardly ever been able to reach him. Apparently, it was the same for the others, too. Once a month, sometimes once every few months, her mobile would ring, and they would speak for a few brief minutes. According to Saya, that was likely because he was supposed to keep his mobile switched off wherever he was, or else because there was no reception, or perhaps it was simply broken. But even so, Julis couldn’t help worrying about where he was and what he was doing.

“I wanted to talk with him about something, too…,” Julis mumbled, rising from the sofa to stare out over the gardens beyond the glass doors. “There’s still a little time before the first dinner party. I’m going to get some fresh air,” she announced.

“Yes, of course,” Flora answered with a reverent bow.

Leaving her behind, Julis stepped out into the garden that stretched between the royal palace and the smaller detached palace. This was her favorite place, a garden that she still took time to tend to herself.

It was still a little too early for spring, but some buds were beginning to bloom in their flower beds, the first hints of their fragrances wafting through the air.

The sun was setting, but she could still feel the lingering traces of its warm light.

All of a sudden, a strong southerly wind blew through the garden.

On reflex, Julis reached out to keep her hair in place, closing her eyes.

And then—

“Hi, Julis. It’s been a while.”

She heard a voice, nostalgic and familiar. Then she opened her eyes, and there he was.

“Ayato…”

Before she knew it, the figure of a young man had appeared before her.

Did his face leave a stronger impression than before? Perhaps it was his slight tan that lent him a more mature look. He’d put on some muscle, but he’d also grown taller, which softened the impression. All in all, he retained the same gentle, calm atmosphere that she remembered. If she had to nitpick, the long hair tied tidily behind his head didn’t suit him very well.

For a moment, Julis stood there stunned—but it wasn’t long before she regained her composure, fixing him with a glare as a smile rose to her lips.

“Looks like you’re making a habit of trespassing.”

“Ha-ha… Sorry. Security took one look at me and tried to stop me from entering.”

Ayato was dressed in a worn-out coat that hid his body, and his boots had clearly seen better days. It was a far cry from formal attire, and certainly not the kind of clothes that would allow one access into a royal palace.

“I’m not surprised… Still, you could have just called someone to let you in. It wouldn’t even have to be me. Claudia or one of the others would have been able to clear things up.”

“Well…,” he began, showing her his mobile device—it was completely destroyed.

No, not just destroyed. Those rough marks were unmistakably the work of a blade.

“Really… What on earth have you been doing?” she asked, half-worried, half-shocked, and more than a little angry.

Ayato averted his gaze and smiled. It looked like he had no intention of answering her.

“…At the very least, couldn’t you have cleaned yourself up first? Don’t you have any common sense?”

“Well, er… I’m ashamed to admit it, but I didn’t have anything else on hand.”

Julis was at a loss for words, but when she paused to think about it, he had been wandering from place to place for the past three years. Perhaps it was inevitable. Of course, with his ability and fame, he should have been able to earn as much money as he could ever want or need. The fact that he hadn’t done so could only mean that he didn’t feel like it.

“Actually, I was planning to simply watch from a distance… But when I saw your face, I couldn’t resist the urge to see you again in person, Julis. And to congratulate you.”

“…!”

He was as sly as ever. When he put it like that, how was she supposed to respond?

“…Fine, fine. I get it,” she said, resting a hand in front of her eyes as she waved for him to stop. “…It looks like you’ve been busy, though.”

From between her fingers, Julis’s piercing gaze could make out his whole body.

It was easy to see from his mannerisms alone, but the tranquil state of his prana was extraordinary. It should have been impossible to hold that much power inside without showing the strain—not only physically, but mentally, too.

The Ayato in front of her was even stronger than before—incomparably so when she thought back to who he had been three years earlier. He might even be a match for Xinglou now. At his current level, he would have had no trouble at all sneaking past the guards to enter the palace grounds.

“A lot of it was luck. Xiaohui introduced me to a venerable old sage who taught me the basics of seisenjutsu… Though it doesn’t suit me all that well, and unfortunately, I wasn’t able to master it.”

“What…? You met Hagun Seikun?”

“During my martial arts training. I happened to bump into him, so he let me tag along for a while. He’s become quite formidable, too.”

“Oh? I heard he beat Kirin in their last duel…”

“Apparently he wasn’t very satisfied with the outcome. Actually, speaking of Jie Long, I ran into Fuyuka at Mount Emei. She was having an issue with some people from Azdaja and—”

Ayato, talking lightly as though looking back on fond memories, suddenly raised a hand to his mouth to stop himself.

“Hold on… Did you just say Azdaja?” Julis gave him a probing look.

“Er…,” Ayato responded with a wry, vague smile.

Azdaja, whose existence Julis had become aware of only after getting involved in governmental affairs, was, so to speak, the lingering ghost of various integrated enterprise foundations. Essentially, it consisted of the worst parts of two now-defunct organizations and was believed to have been involved in all manner of worrying incidents.

Any trouble with the likes of them was no small matter.

“…Just tell me one thing. You’re not trying to get involved with the integrated enterprise foundations, are you?”

“Well…for the time being…I’m probably fine…I guess?”

Ayato’s unconvincing response left Julis wanting to hold her head in her hands. If it came to that, her plans for the future would all have been for nothing.

“…Listen, Ayato. There’s something I want to tell you,” she started after regaining her composure.

Ayato straightened his back. “Oh, first things first—congrats, Julis. I didn’t expect you to become queen so soon.”

Julis flashed him an honest smile in response, even if the way he had cut her off just now had gotten a little on her nerves. “Hee-hee… Well, I suppose so. I didn’t either.”

Ayato blinked in surprise.

“Everything leading up to this, it was all my brother’s plan. I know he might act like he doesn’t know what’s going on, but he’s actually very astute. Frustratingly so, sometimes.”

Originally, Julis had wanted to change the country by assisting her brother, Jolbert. She had always known that she might eventually succeed him on the throne, but that time, if it ever came, would be a long way off, she reasoned.

But one day, he simply offered to abdicate. When Julis had reacted with mute astonishment, Jolbert had fixed her with a helpless smile while his wife, Maria, cuddled him on her knees.

“Julis,” he explained. “You must have noticed it. Thanks to you, the crown’s rights have been expanded considerably, and we’ve gained a certain amount of leeway. But unfortunately, I’ve reached my limit. I’ve been on friendly terms with the integrated enterprise foundations for a long time, so I can’t garner enough support for more reforms. So…I’m going to expose all the corruption and scandals that have taken place up till now, and blow myself up along with the dogs who run those corporate behemoths. I’ll need you to take care of things from now on.”

His expression, as he said all this, was one of quiet acceptance.

Naturally, the political and business spheres in Lieseltania had been thrown into chaos, so as soon as Julis ascended to the throne, she laid the groundwork to bring the integrated enterprise foundations to heel and succeeded in passing several important pieces of legislation.

“One of them was a bill to abolish the monarchy, which will transform Lieseltania into a republic during my lifetime.”

Lieseltania had been revived to serve as a puppet state for the integrated enterprise foundations, so it would have made perfect sense if it had simply ceased to exist. But so long as there were people who called the country their home, they ought to have the right to decide their own futures.

So Julis had become queen in order to prepare the state for that eventuality.

And that future couldn’t be achieved simply by bowing down to the integrated enterprise foundations.

But while the crown might have more power, Lieseltania would never be able to compete with the IEFs themselves. The only organizations capable of contending with them on that scale would be other IEFs.

“My experiences in Asterisk were enlightening. Its six schools all compete for supremacy, but ultimately, they achieve a careful balance. So I thought maybe we could try to replicate something like that here—and in fact, I’ve already passed a bill to do just that.”

Lieseltania would be no different from Asterisk—a playpen for the six integrated enterprise foundations to each seek supremacy in the form of profit.

The IEFs existed to pursue profit before all else, after all. To that end, they often joined together to cooperate on certain projects. They were like beasts seeking out ever-greater riches. Ultimately, their goals were to exterminate their competitor organizations and expand their own economic spheres to encompass every corner of the world. Instinctively, that was all that mattered to them, and any external cooperation or compromise was, as far as they were concerned, merely a means to an end.

Julis’s role was to soothe the beasts, at times to coax them, and occasionally, when need be, to chastise them.

“Of course, it’s a dangerous path to tread. One wrong step, and it could have serious repercussions for the whole country. And there’s no telling what might become of me,” she said with a sigh, turning back to Ayato, who had been listening in silence all this time. “By the way… Are you still… Are you still busy wandering the world?”

Ayato looked puzzled for a moment by this sudden change of topic, but he crossed his arms and fell deep into thought. “Hmm, yeah… Actually, I was thinking it might be time for me to settle down for a while…”

“W-well then…! Going back to what I wanted to talk to you about… Um… H-how about…you stay with me…?”

“Huh…?”

“N-n-no, not like that…! As a bodyguard! Right, I’m looking for a skilled bodyguard! Like I said, there’s no guarantee that something bad won’t happen to me or those I care about in the future… And as you know, I’m not a Strega anymore. It would be hard for me to protect myself, let alone anyone else.”

“Oh…” Ayato looked up sadly. It seemed as though he was about to say something, when Julis interrupted.

“Th-that’s fine, though. I’m not putting on a front here—I really don’t have any regrets.”

Ever since that day—since her championship match against Orphelia—Julis had lost her Strega abilities. The reason remained unclear. Maybe it was because she had pushed herself so far beyond her limits, or maybe it was because she had caught a glimpse of the other side. Her strength as a Genestella still remained, so she wasn’t completely powerless, but her combat proficiency had dropped precariously.

And yet—

“It’s true, I can’t make my fire flowers bloom anymore. But I have a friend who’s nurturing another kind of flower, one even more suited to me. That’s enough.”

With those words, Julis turned her gaze to the other side of the lake beyond the garden. There, tending to colorful flowers in a greenhouse by a small orphanage, lived a woman with white hair and red eyes—her best friend, and like Julis, a Strega who had also lost her powers. That was what Julis had wished for as the champion of the Lindvolus.

Noticing Ayato’s warm gaze, Julis cleared her throat. “So, back to the main topic… What do you think? If you still want to learn more about Genestella and regular people, in a sense, this country might very well be the best place to do it. After all, you won’t find anywhere else with a Genestella as the head of state,” she said with both pride and a hint of self-deprecation.

“What you’re saying is that you’re starting a new battle here, this time as queen?” Ayato asked.

“…Well, I guess so. Something like that.”

The enemy wasn’t the integrated enterprise foundations.

They were behemoths, beasts—but they were also a system. They were inherently neither good nor bad, but could be either when the moment called for it. If there was really an enemy here in need of defeating, it was the current state of the world and the people who had made the system what it was. And that, no doubt, was the same exact thing that Ayato was trying to uncover.

“Then I can’t say no,” Ayato said, his smile unchanged from that day. “I swore to protect you, Julis.”

“…!”

She could feel her face turning red, and she lifted a hand to hide her embarrassment.

“I’m queen, you know? Aren’t you supposed to kneel and kiss the back of my hand?”

“Heh-heh, that’s not a bad idea… But I can think of something else even more suitable.”

Julis wanted to be on an equal footing with Ayato. This wouldn’t make any sense otherwise.

“…Got it.”

Ayato lifted his right fist and gently pressed it against hers. Then, their gazes met—and they both began to laugh.

Just then—

“Oh, Master Amagiri!”

Flora’s high-pitched voice echoed through the garden as a group of familiar faces headed toward them.

“Oh, Ayato. You came.”

“Oh dear, we can’t have you holding a clandestine meeting with the queen, now, can we?”

“U-um, Ayato. You look really strong…”

“Ooh. No running off on your own, Your Majesty.”

“…Goodness gracious, it’s getting crowded all of a sudden,” Julis said, placing a hand on her waist and breaking out into an unusually relaxed grin.

“Let’s go, Julis,” Ayato said as he tried to step forward.

Julis, however, was determined not to let him go ahead of her, and so she positioned herself by his side.

Standing next to him. Walking beside him.

That was her wish now—and she would surrender it to no one.