"What's wrong with the way I'm dressed?"
A white-haired high school student wearing purple shorts and a yellow tank top, with a basketball tucked under one arm, looked at the woman in sunglasses standing by the roadside with obvious confusion.
"Who taught you to dress like that?"
"I picked it myself. Yellow and purple are my two favorite colors, so of course I wear them together. I've even got a yellow-and-purple jacket, yellow-and-purple pants, and matching socks!"
"Change."
"Huh? Why?"
"Because yellow and purple look awful together!"
"I think they look fine. Besides, I'm free to wear whatever I want! Who are you, anyway? Why do you get to tell me how to dress?"
"I'm Aglaea, the current ruler of Amphoreus and the person responsible for restarting and organizing the Flame-Chase Journey. Young man, you're coming with me to save the world. But before that, change those clothes."
"I think what I'm wearing is perfectly fine. And even the ruler doesn't have the authority to force someone to change clothes, does she? What kind of law would that even be?"
"I told you ages ago that your yellow-and-purple outfits were ugly. I knew someone would call you out on it eventually. Looks like someone finally did."
"Hah! Mydei, you've got some nerve saying that! You dress like a delinquent every day and cover yourself in flashy gold accessories! If anyone here dresses strangely, it's you!"
Cyrene stepped out of the vehicle in a formal outfit and sighed as the two of them somehow started arguing again, just as they had in so many previous cycles. With an amused smile, she said, "You two really do get along well."
"Who gets along with him?!"
"Well, whatever. Get in first. Your classes have been suspended. Amphoreus is facing a major crisis, and the Chrysos Heirs are needed to save the world. More precisely, it's finally time for you to fulfill the duty that comes with your golden blood."
The conference room inside Okhema's administrative palace was currently filled with people. They were all Chrysos Heirs from across Amphoreus who were still alive in this era. Before Caesar's reforms, some of them might have become heroes, monarchs, or military commanders.
Now, however, they were workers, students, merchants, and ordinary people from all walks of life.
There were also a few who had used their golden blood to commit crimes.
For example, the little cat currently tied obediently to the table.
"Cipher, nineteen years old. You've traveled from place to place and committed approximately one hundred and twenty-four thefts of varying severity. They call you the Black Cat Phantom Thief. Catching you certainly wasn't easy."
"Mama Aglaea..."
The pitiful little cat put on her most miserable, teary-eyed expression in an attempt to win sympathy from the woman staring down at her.
"Stop trying to look pitiful, Cipher. When you do something wrong, you face the consequences. That's only fair. The fact that I haven't thrown you into prison and am instead allowing you to make amends is already a reduced punishment, and you're only getting that much because you returned what you stole afterward."
"Meow, my liege~"
A bizarre phone ringtone suddenly rang out, plunging the room into silence. A middle-aged man dressed like a farmer, complete with a straw hat, flushed in embarrassment as he hurriedly pulled out his phone and ended the call. He then lowered his head and pretended nothing had happened.
"Ahem. I think we should return to the matter at hand. Allow me to explain the prophecy of the Black Tide, which first appeared a thousand years ago."
Taking advantage of the sudden silence, Cyrene began explaining the ancient prophecy of the apocalypse.
After the inexplicable meeting finally ended, Mydei slung his schoolbag over one shoulder and returned to his current home in Okhema.
It was an ordinary little house tucked away near the very edge of the city, so inconspicuous that almost no one would give it a second glance.
"Teacher, I'm home."
"Mm. How did it go? Are you joining the Flame-Chase Journey?"
When Mydei opened the door and stepped inside, he found his teacher, who had looked like the same young man for as long as he could remember, reclining in a chair and reading a book.
Caelus did not even look up before asking the question.
Mydei had long since stopped finding it strange that his teacher always seemed to know everything. After thinking for a moment, he leaned against the wall and said, "Teacher, you've been trying to raise me into someone who fights evil ever since I was a kid. Back then, I thought you just wanted me to join public security. But when the Black Tide appeared and the old prophecy became reality, I realized you probably knew this was going to happen all along, didn't you?
"So what exactly are you, Teacher? Some kind of prophet, or one of the Titans who disappeared long ago?"
"I once had another student ask me the same question. My answer hasn't changed. I'm not one of the Titans or gods you know. I'm only a traveler."
"...Teacher, people today live peaceful and stable lives. This Black Tide suddenly appeared and is destroying that peace, so that makes it evil, doesn't it?"
"That depends on how you look at it. To some people, this sudden chaos is an opportunity to break the existing order. Ambitious people may see it as their chance to declare independence and restore the age from a thousand years ago, when Amphoreus was divided among countless city-states and rulers. Your own ancestors, for example, once ruled Castrum Kremnos."
"That was over a thousand years ago. If someone wants to parade around the accomplishments of some distant ancestor as though they were their own, they should be embarrassed. I'm embarrassed for them. Maybe this crisis is an opportunity and a good thing for people like that, but to me, anything that destroys the peace everyone fought so hard to build is evil. That includes the Black Tide."
Mydei paused before continuing.
"You raised me from childhood. You paid for my food, clothes, and everything else I needed. If you want me to become a hero, then I'll become a hero."
"No, Mydei. You can't become a hero just because I want you to. You need to find your own dream and your own purpose."
Mydei shook his head and decided not to bother with his teacher's usual riddles. If Caelus looked a little older and grew a longer beard, he could probably set up a booth on the street and make a living telling fortunes.
Ever since Mydei was young, Caelus had constantly talked to him about fairness and justice, telling him to fight for what he believed was right. It all sounded like the sort of overly dramatic nonsense a child obsessed with heroes would say.
But there was nothing Mydei could do about it. Caelus had taken him in, given him a home, raised him, and taught him countless skills and all kinds of knowledge.
To repay him for that kindness, Mydei had gone along with his teacher's wishes and done his best to become someone who fought for justice. His original plan had been to join public security, arrest criminals, settle disputes between neighbors, and help people who needed it. That still counted as fighting for justice.
He had never expected an actual apocalypse to suddenly arrive and force him to become some genuine hero of justice.
Mydei put on an apron, and as those thoughts crossed his mind, he could not help wanting to complain.
Why did his life suddenly feel like something out of a superhero comic?
At this point in his youth, Mydei's understanding of the word justice still existed only in theory.
(To be continued.)
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◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)