"Frondier, hello. It's been a while."

Then a familiar voice was heard. It was Elodie.

I turned my head at the welcome voice to greet her back,

"...Wait, what's wrong with your face?"

I couldn't finish my sentence.

Elodie's complexion was visibly pale and haggard.

"What are you talking about? It's the same as usual."

"No, your eyes are bloodshot, you have dark circles, your skin is super dry, and your face is overall dark."

I had never seen Elodie de Ines Rishae in such poor condition.

No, I didn't even know she was a character capable of being in low spirits.

Elodie is the epitome of perfection in the game Etius. Of course, that's not about her personality, but about her stats.

She didn't join the protagonist Aster's party, but if you were to choose the best among the named characters, she would definitely be among the top two, and the remaining finger would be Aster, the protagonist.

The general consensus was that 'she's too perfect to be in the protagonist's party'.

Elodie sighed and replied.

"That's what I said."

"What?"

"It's the same as usual."

So, this level of poor condition has been going on for a while.

What happened while I was away?

"I'm not the only one like this."

Elodie said, pointing somewhere with her finger.

Following her gaze, I saw Aster there.

"...Aster?"

"...Ah, yes. You're here. Frondier. I should have greeted you first, I'm sorry."

Aster spoke in a dying voice. He looked even worse than Elodie.

The fact that he was apologizing to me even though he was in bad shape himself was very Aster-like, but this state itself was not like Aster at all.

"What? What's wrong with you too?"

"...Well, just, a little."

Aster seemed to be holding back his words.

Could it be that the reason these two are in bad shape is the same?

"Are you sick? Or is it an enemy? Are you stressed because there's a tough opponent that's hard to deal with right now? I might not be much help, but should I join in? I might be able to land a hit or two."

If there's an opponent that the current Elodie and Aster can't handle, I shouldn't be underestimated either.

Moreover, if it's an enemy they haven't been able to deal with for a long time, all the more so. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to assume it's a 'Zodiac' level threat.

A formidable enemy that's giving these two a hard time? For the future of this world, I need to step in and assess the situation right away,

"Hey, Frondier."

Just as I was thinking that, a dumbfounded voice came.

Sybil was looking at me with her eyes half-open.

"Are you planning to slap yourself in the face?"

"What do you mean?"

"They're like that because of you, aren't they?"

"...Me?"

What is she talking about?

I've never fought with these two. Would I be crazy enough to harm these precious friends?

"They're pushing themselves because you're ahead of them. Both of them have a lot of pride."

"...Ahead?"

I didn't understand what she meant, so I looked at Elodie and Aster.

"That's not it."

"Right. Of course not."

Elodie and Aster each spoke.

I looked at Sybil again.

"They say it's not."

"Would they say it is?"

Well, I couldn't expect to hear an honest answer.

But it didn't make sense. Honestly, I'm confident that I could win even if I fought Aster or Elodie right now. They haven't finished growing yet.

But that's just my thought, I haven't shown them all of my abilities.

Even at the beginning of the second semester, when they had some idea of my strength, Aster and Elodie weren't this broken down.

After that, I fought in Constel's fields and the Imperial Palace, places completely unrelated to them. Their image of me wouldn't have changed that much unless they witnessed that.

"...Frondier, you. Didn't you hear the news? No, shouldn't you be the first to hear it?"

Lunia, who had been quietly watching my confused expression, spoke up.

"News?"

"A few days ago, we got a call from Constel. Ah, you were probably still at the Imperial Palace cleaning up the aftermath."

Is it about what happened after sending Satan back? It's true that I stayed at the Imperial Palace for a while after the incident ended.

The deaths of some Shadow Unit members, the scene of blood indicating it, the destruction of the Dragon Heart. I had to coordinate with Philly to cover it all up.

It was supposed to be something only Philly and I knew, but we couldn't leave the scene as it was.

More than anything, I didn't know what the other Shadow Unit members would smell and approach me with, so I shared the same lie as Philly.

The information they asked me and the information they asked Philly had to match so they wouldn't be suspicious.

Basically, I was in the position of a completely unrelated party, and based on that, Philly adjusted the information about the Shadow Unit situation and the loss of the Dragon Heart.

But what happened in the meantime?

"I heard two Zodiacs have their eyes on you?"

"...What?"

"They said they would provide you with unsparing support if you come to their side after graduation, and they even came all the way to Constel to ask us to tell you that. The rumor spread, and now everyone knows except you. Now you know too."

"...If it's two Zodiacs, are you talking about Lily and Monty?"

When I asked with a light guess, Lunia's eyes changed. Not just hers.

Most of the students in the classroom, who seemed to be half-listening, looked at me with fire in their eyes. They swarmed towards me in an instant.

"You, you were pretending not to know!"

"What! What did you talk about with those two!"

"How can you get on the good side of two Zodiacs?"

"It's because of the pro experience, right? What did you do there? You must have talked about that!"

I was completely overwhelmed by the sudden barrage of questions. I tried to say something like, "Hey, wait, that's..." but it didn't work at all, and I was pushed back by their clamor.

You guys, why are you asking questions if you're not even going to listen!

"Ha, I'm envious. You met the Zodiacs. All twelve of them."

"I'd have no regrets if I could see even one person."

Following that, lamentations continued one after another.

I was dumbfounded and retorted,

"What are you talking about? You guys can see the Zodiacs too if you want."

"What? Are you kidding me? Where and how can we see the Zodiacs?"

"Well, that's..."

Just as I was about to open my mouth.

Just as I was about to explain...

...at that moment.

I finally understood the true nature of the discomfort I felt when I entered the school gate today.

That discomfort had now transformed into immense fear, permeating through my entire pores.

I tried to disguise it with a playful expression and blurted out some random words.

"...Well, if you're lucky?"

"This guy!"

I made a light joke and laughed appropriately. After a brief commotion, things calmed down a bit, and I returned to my seat.

'...Right, I can't believe I didn't realize it until now.'

The attempted assassination of the Emperor.

Mei's act of attacking the Emperor under the control of her will was a horrific act that should never have happened in this Empire.

The Emperor's life takes precedence over any other situation in the Empire, and regardless of the level of the actual threat, the Empire takes the utmost precautions.

That's why all the Zodiacs were summoned.

The 12 Zodiacs. If someone dies or retires, their vacancy is always filled by someone else. The people may change, but the number remains the same. The number 12 is always, invariably maintained.

...And.

There is also a Zodiac at Constel.

'Headmaster Osprey.'

Osprey is undoubtedly a Zodiac. He is said to be the closest person to a Archmage on this continent.

I received a lot of help from him, and we cooperated with each other when we brought down the organization 'Indus'.

'That Osprey.'

He didn't come to the Imperial Palace.

In that situation where all the Zodiacs were summoned.

Even though Osprey wasn't there, the number of 12 people was maintained.

'One of them was a fake, and no one noticed?'

Moreover, it wasn't that someone impersonated Osprey, but the perception that the number was filled was there from the beginning, even though he wasn't there.

The reactions of the students around me just now. Their words as if it was natural to feel that meeting a 'Zodiac' was impossible.

What I felt when I entered the school gate wasn't that I sensed something.

It was the confusion I felt because something that should have been sensed wasn't. No matter how much you try to find something that doesn't exist, you obviously can't find it.

Neither my mana detection nor my sixth sense reacted. They can't react to something that doesn't exist.

Everything is clear.

'Osprey has disappeared.'

Not dead, not missing.

He vanished as if he never existed in the first place.