The next day, when Yuto woke up, Sariel thrust a map in front of him.

“Here, take a look, little one.”

“What's this all of a sudden?”

“What does it look like? A map of Callisto. Do any of the place names catch your attention?”

Yuto lowered his gaze and studied the map.

“This world, Callisto, is divided into three major continents.”

Despite the early hour, Sariel casually uncorked her liquor bottle.

“Vermira on the left, Averan in the middle, and Kusuar on the right. Vermira is mostly forest, with bitterly cold snowfields stretching above it.”

Sariel placed her finger on the word Vermira.

“The World Tree stands at the heart of this vast forest, and the elven kingdom is nearby. We are roughly here.”

Her finger traveled down from Vermira, passed over the word Valistera, and stopped at the borderlands below it.

“The frontier of Valistera, Callisto's mightiest and most savage empire. This is where Averan, the central continent, begins. A little farther from here lies the Kingdom of Ristal.”

Ristal.

The moment he heard the name, Yuto's heart began pounding wildly. He hurriedly controlled his breathing and clutched his chest. Sariel watched him for a moment, then gave a small chuckle.

“You say you cannot remember, yet you react unconsciously. Hmm. Are you from Ristal?”

“N... no.”

Yuto forced the words out in a trembling voice. At his unequivocal denial, Sariel's lone eye widened.

“You aren't?”

“No. Ristal... It isn't Ristal.”

“Then what is this reaction? You did not react like this when you heard Valistera's name.”

“I... don't know.”

Panting, Yuto glared at the map. Vermira, Averan, Kusuar. Across the three named continents, only three kingdoms were marked.

“There are... only three kingdoms across all these vast continents?”

“Kusuar is a land where barbarians and orcs live in tribes. There are no kingdoms there,” Sariel answered, taking a drink.

“Vermira is mostly forest, with only a single kingdom built around the elves. And most of Averan is ruled by Valistera...”

Her finger stopped over Ristal's name on the map.

“Ristal is the only kingdom in Averan that remains independent, unconquered by Valistera. The other lands exist as city-states and have no royal houses.”

“No. That can't be right.”

The words came out between gasps. Still glaring at the map, Yuto extended a trembling finger.

“There should be a kingdom here.”

There was no name at the spot he indicated, but he spoke with conviction. Sariel narrowed her lone eye and studied the place beneath his finger.

“Why do you think so?”

“I... don't know. But I feel... that there is a kingdom here. That there should be.”

“Are you certain of that?”

“Yes. I'm certain.”

“Hmm...”

Resting her chin on her hand, Sariel raised her lone eye to Yuto's face.

“How curious. But you are right, little one. There was once a kingdom there. Though it can no longer even be marked on a map.”

THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.

As Yuto listened to her, his heart raced as though it would burst. He clutched his chest, struggling to catch his breath.

“What... do you mean... it can no longer be marked on a map?”

“It is simple enough. It fell three years ago.”

Yuto's face turned deathly pale. His heartbeat echoed deafeningly in his ears.

“It... fell...?”

“Yes. Little one, as recently as three years ago, a kingdom named Belkain stood where you are pointing.”

Belkain.

The name dredged up Yuto's memories. Before his return, he had been in Belkain. He had lived in Belkain. He had ruled Belkain.

'I was... the king of Belkain.'

There was no doubt. Belkain was the name of the kingdom he had ruled in his dream two nights ago. The name he had been unable to recall then now felt so clear, so familiar.

“Why... Why was Belkain... destroyed?”

“I do not know the details,” Sariel replied, watching his ashen face.

“They were never made known. Belkain was a prosperous kingdom just three years ago. Allied with Ristal, it shared control of Averan with Valistera—and it fell in a single night.”

“...!”

“It was a natural cataclysm. Lightning rained down through the night, the earth overturned, and lava boiled over. That was how it fell. Only a tiny fraction survived that night of calamity, and not a single member of the royal family lived.”

Impossible. That couldn't be true. The denials he could not utter echoed in Yuto's throat.

CRACKLE. CRACKLE.

As his emotions surged, aether began spilling from his body.

As the pitch-black aether threatened to engulf him, Sariel reached out.

SMACK.

She caught his wrist, and warm aether flowed into him from her hand. The black aether on the verge of running wild retreated into his body, and his heart, which had been pounding fit to burst, began to settle.

“This is why I have no choice but to call you little one. Calm yourself. Your power is far too susceptible to your emotions.”

Sariel clicked her tongue and continued.

“Judging by your reaction... I suspect you are a survivor of Belkain. I suppose surviving that hellish night could well leave your mind shattered by all manner of trauma.”

“Hah, hah...”

Yuto steadied his ragged breathing. His entire body was damp with cold sweat. Sariel's aether had quelled his rampaging power, but the shock and emotions of moments ago still lingered in his chest.

“Three years since Belkain's fall. I do not know what you went through in that gap, but you said your memories begin inside the colosseum's prison, correct?”

“Yes... According to the jailer, I was found lying naked in a forest.”

“With your mind already damaged, even a small shock might have thrown your memories into confusion. Naked... Naked, hmm. Had you become some perverted noblewoman's slave?”

“But... I didn't have a slave brand on my body.”

“There are plenty of perverted nobles who refuse to brand their slaves because they find it unsightly. With that pretty face of yours, I imagine you were used as that sort of slave.”

Sariel chuckled and released his wrist.

“At any rate, I have a rough idea of your past now. How, then, are we to restore all your memories...?”

“Belkain,” Yuto blurted out.

“I need... to go to Belkain.”

“No. We are not going to Belkain.”

Sariel's answer was immediate. Yuto had never expected her to refuse, and could only stare at her in utter bewilderment.

“Why...?”

“Isn't it obvious? Little one, merely hearing Belkain's name nearly sent you into a frenzy. If you saw those horrific ruins for yourself, your mind would collapse completely.”

Her words were cold, but Yuto could only nod. He still had not recovered all his memories. If he went to Belkain in his current state and witnessed the reality of his kingdom's destruction—he had no confidence that he could accept what he would see there.

“Besides, even approaching Belkain is difficult. Ever since its destruction on that night of calamity, the land within its walls has been infested with every manner of curse.”

Sariel's finger returned to the map.

“So we will go to Ristal first. It is closer than Belkain, and you reacted to its name as well. Whether we go to Belkain—we will decide once we reach Ristal, depending on what you remember.”

Yuto chewed his lip and nodded. Whatever else might be true, Sariel was looking out for him.

“The reason for its destruction... Is it really unknown?”

“Not entirely unknown. Merely uncertain.”

Sariel folded the map with a bitter smile.

“A calamity that erased a prosperous kingdom in a single night could hardly be ordinary. In this godforsaken world, who could do such a thing?”

Her smile vanished. Her lone eye gleamed coldly as she pointed upward.

“The constellations.”

Her voice was chilling.

“They created this world, Callisto, and look down upon everything in it. They do not treat all equally. They are self-righteous and capricious, faithful only to their desires.”

“...”

“The constellations destroyed Belkain. The reason is unknown... but people commonly say that Belkain defied their will. And so it was judged.”

Sariel drained the rest of her liquor in one gulp and rose.

“That is all there is to the story. An unpleasant, dreadful tale however you look at it.”

The constellations had destroyed Belkain.

That story did not feel unfamiliar to Yuto. He had returned to the “past.” Before his return, he had been Belkain's king—and...

'The Belkain I ruled... was destroyed too.'

That dream of stars cackling mockingly in the sky. Yuto clenched his fists. The more he thought, the more his memories returned, little by little.

'I was betrayed.'

By whom?

'The constellations... No, not just the constellations. There was someone else.'

The blond man holding a bloodstained sword. He still could not recall that face or name.

'It doesn't add up. The destruction of the Belkain I ruled should be decades from now... Why has Belkain already fallen?'

He tried to think harder, to remember, but a pain deep inside his head blocked his thoughts. Groaning softly, Yuto clutched his head. Watching him, Sariel clicked her tongue quietly and rested a hand on his crown.

“Do not force yourself to remember. If a memory truly matters, it will come to you someday. So, little one, think of the present rather than the past—and of the future.”

The warmth flowing from her palm soothed Yuto's mind once more.

“You have much to learn from me on our way to Ristal. First, we must straighten out that unstable, damaged mind of yours. You start trembling and releasing aether at the slightest provocation. Honestly.”

Sariel clucked her tongue and tousled his hair.

“A mind like a clear mirror and still water, and the means to control your aether. I must also correct your instinct-driven swordsmanship and teach you to use that black hand and those steps efficiently. After that—we will need to establish an identity for you.”

“An... identity?”

The remark came out of nowhere. When Yuto looked up in puzzlement, Sariel chuckled.

“At present, you have nothing but the name Yuto. Thankfully, you have no slave brand, but that does not establish your identity. You will need one to live in this godforsaken world.”

“How can I establish an identity?”

“Simple enough. Register with Ristal's adventurers' guild. Since you are penniless, with nothing to your name but your own body, I shall lend you the registration fee.”

The hand tousling his hair withdrew.

“Your debt to me keeps growing. I truly look forward to collecting my due someday. Now, you seem to have gathered your thoughts somewhat. Come outside with me.”

“Are we leaving right away?”

“No. First comes morning training. Then we must eat.”

When Yuto followed Sariel out of the cabin, he found two swords planted near the remains of last night's campfire. Sariel crooked a finger toward them, and the swords pulled themselves free of the ground and flew to her.

“Since this is sword training, I shall deign to wield a sword myself.”

“You know how to use a sword too?”

“Hmm? Ahahaha! What a funny thing to say. Little one, there is no weapon in this world that I cannot wield.”

Laughing loudly, Sariel swung the sword in her hand.

SWISH!

It was only a light swing, but there was not a trace of wasted movement in its arc.

“Since I have no contract with a constellation, I have trained in every martial discipline this body can perform. As I am already boasting, allow me to boast a little more: I could hold my own even against a constellation.”

“... Really?”

“No, that was a joke. Half of it, anyway. Those constellations high in the heavens will not come down to fight me.”

If half was a joke, that meant the other half was sincere.

“That is how remarkable I am. Unfortunately, however, I have no intention of teaching you my martial arts.”

“Why not?”

“Because there is no time. Can you even begin to imagine how long I have devoted to martial training? Instead, I intend to focus on refining what you already possess... the things you cannot remember.”

Sariel crooked a finger, and the sword hovering in midair flew toward Yuto.

“That alone should be enough for you. The swordsmanship I saw yesterday relied on instinct, but if your instincts allow you to swing a blade so well, considerable skill must lie dormant in your unconscious mind.”

Yuto knew that too. In the “past,” he had been the king of Belkain and a hero of Callisto.

Why had he been called a hero? To earn that name, one had to achieve feats worthy of it.

Vaguely, Yuto knew what feats he had accomplished. Crimson Ringmistress. The monster who had killed everyone in the colosseum with a flick of her finger, who reigned over the Arena of Blood and whom even kingdoms could not stop—Yuto had slain her in the past.

'Not just Crimson Ringmistress.'

Yuto grasped the sword suspended in the air.

'I... killed Eclipse. All seven of those monsters.'

It was hard even for him to believe, and anyone else would have dismissed it as nonsense. Yet Yuto was certain he had accomplished those feats. He simply could not remember how.

'Crimson is alive, even though I killed her. I have clearly returned to the past. But... this past is different from the one... I remember.'

He would have to discover how this past had changed. Resolving to do so, Yuto spoke.

“Sariel, are you... stronger than Crimson Ringmistress?”

“Hmm. An interesting question. What do you think?”

“Honestly, I don't know. I don't feel the same oppressive presence from you that I felt from Crimson Ringmistress.”

“Ahaha. That is because I am being considerate of you. Besides, oozing menace everywhere like she does is far too vulgar for my tastes.”

Sariel chuckled and stroked her chin.

“Since you do not know, I shall answer. I am stronger than that wretch, Crimson Ringmistress.”

“Then why don't you kill her?”

“Why should I?”

Sariel countered with a smile, leaving Yuto momentarily speechless.

“... Wouldn't killing that monster be for the good of Callisto?”

“Then I have all the less reason to kill that wretch.”

Sariel burst out laughing again.

“I have no desire to do anything for Callisto.”

Her laughter gave way to a quiet voice.

“The only thing I care about is my own cherished wish.”

Sariel's lone eye turned briefly toward the sky. Then her gaze shifted back to Yuto.

“Little one. You already have a sword in your hand. Why are you still standing there? Must I come and cut you before you move?”

The moment he heard that, Yuto charged forward. Watching him approach, Sariel clucked her tongue and muttered,

“There is no end to the things that need correcting.”

He clearly possessed a vast and deep well of skill, yet most of it was going unused.