Eclipse Gate 3

Outside a side entrance to the palace.

Two knights clad in heavy armor stood with stern expressions, crossing their spears to block the approaching Heartfilia convoy.

"Halt."

The young knight in the lead strode forward. His gaze swept over the group inch by inch before settling unerringly on Blanc, who looked suspicious at a glance:

"...Lady Heartfilia, who might this be?" The young knight's tone was guarded.

"Sir Arcadios, he is here to help open the Eclipse Gate."

Layla stepped forward half a pace. Her voice was gentle, but carried the authority of a great noble house:

"There have been some complications with the ritual. I need his strength. I will take full responsibility for any consequences."

"The palace is a restricted place. You cannot simply bring someone inside on the strength of another person's claim that they will 'take responsibility.'"

The young Arcadios refused to budge.

"Forgive my discourtesy, Lady Heartfilia, but this man conceals his face and identity. He is deeply suspicious. I must seek permission..."

Blanc silently gave him a thumbs-up. If he were on guard duty, he would not have let himself in either. Unfortunately, today he was the one who needed to get inside.

"Then please inform His Majesty at once." Layla nodded slightly. "I will explain to him myself."

After a somewhat drawn-out exchange of messages, Layla's party was finally permitted into the palace's inner hall, where they met the current king of Fiore-Toma E. Fiore.

However, the king before them was a good deal shorter than Blanc had imagined.

He barely reached Jude's waist, and his whole body was round and plump.

He had been trotting out to welcome the head of the Heartfilia Family, but the moment he spotted Blanc radiating suspicion from head to toe, he came to a comical halt and even instinctively retreated half a step.

Apparently realizing this did little for his royal dignity, he steeled himself, puffed out his chest, and shuffled back into place.

"Oh, oh! So this is... this is the... the one helping behind the scenes... what's-his-name?"

The king cleared his throat, desperately trying to restore a kingly air to his face.

"What should we call you?"

"Night." Blanc's voice, altered through magical vibrations, sent a low echo rolling through the spacious hall. "You may also call me the 'Outside Advisor.'"

The moment the words "Outside Advisor" left his mouth, Blanc wanted to slap himself.

That was impulsive. Why did this damn teenage urge to sound cool suddenly get the better of me? But there was no helping it. He could hardly change his answer now. Once that aura of mystique deflated, there was no pumping it back up.

Still, they probably don't know what the term means, so it's fine.

What Blanc had not expected, however, was that the alias would work remarkably well.

King Toma's eyes instantly lit up. He nodded repeatedly, his mustache quivering with excitement:

"Outside Advisor! Hmm, a fine name, a fine name! It has that... that air of a reclusive master!"

"Your Majesty!"

A tense-looking middle-aged minister seated to one side finally could not hold his tongue any longer. He stared straight at Layla, his voice cold and hard:

"The mission handed down through generations of the royal family states only that the Heartfilias are to fulfill the agreement made four hundred years ago, while the royal family guards the Eclipse Gate."

"Nowhere does it mention a third party! Allowing a man of unknown origins, who dares not even show his true face, to take part in opening the gate is simply absurd-"

"Lord Darton." Layla turned and bowed to the minister, her conduct beyond reproach. "Your suspicions are entirely reasonable, but..."

"Then you should understand, my lady-"

"But we have no time left." Layla raised her head, her gentle eyes filled with the resolve of someone staking everything on one last chance.

"The appointed moment on July 7 is almost here. That day is our only opportunity, and we have yet to gather all the Zodiac keys. We have no choice but to take a gamble and put our trust in him."

Darton's expression tightened further. He was clearly not a politician who could be persuaded so easily.

"Lady Heartfilia, that agreement from four hundred years ago is your family's destiny, not the Kingdom of Fiore's obligation! The royal family's duty is merely to guard this gate!"

His words grew heated as he pressed her relentlessly. "The kingdom's safety cannot rest on a stranger's goodwill. If this needless additional variable causes some terrible disaster, who will bear the responsibility? You?!"

"I will."

King Toma's voice was not loud, yet it instantly silenced every competing sound in the hall.

The short man who had just trotted out to greet his guests, and had even recoiled half a step in fright, now stood with his hands behind his back and his mustache slightly raised. In that moment, he truly possessed something of a king's commanding presence.

"Your Majesty-"

"Darton, hear me out." The king waved a hand, cutting off the minister's remonstrance.

"My great-grandfather studied that gate. My grandfather investigated it as well. Before my father passed away, he even had himself carried on a stretcher into the underground palace to see it one last time."

"Generation after generation, we have guarded it without truly knowing why. The ancestral instruction passed down through the royal family consists of just one sentence-guard this gate and await the arrival of a Heartfilia Celestial Spirit Mage."

He turned, regarding Layla with a solemn gaze.

"For four hundred long years, this destiny has endured until my reign, and at last, the person we have awaited has arrived."

Only the king's low voice remained in the hall.

"If we fail to open it this time, wouldn't the Fiore royal family's four hundred years of unwavering vigil become an utter joke?"

The king coughed again and rubbed his nose, letting that solemn air fall away. "I won't have that."

Blanc marveled inwardly.

This short king looked rather comical on the surface, but at that moment, he was quite imposing.

"Your Majesty, please allow me to finish."

Darton took a deep breath and yielded a step, as though making a compromise.

"Even if he is allowed to participate, his movements must remain entirely under our control. Until the appointed day arrives, he must not act alone."

"Then allow me to take charge of that."

The young knight waiting outside the doors stepped forward, the plates of his armor clinking sharply with the movement.

"Sir Arcadios?" King Toma blinked.

"From this moment until the Eclipse Gate is successfully opened."

Arcadios turned, fixing Blanc with his piercing gaze.

"I will remain at his side without fail. If he makes the slightest suspicious move, I will apprehend him on the spot. Should I fail in my duty, I will pay with my life!"

Blanc could not help giving this stubborn knight-who would one day "throw himself into lava" for the princess-a sidelong glance.

Fine, then. That "pay with my life" rolled off your tongue a little too easily. But if I really were up to something, you wouldn't stand a chance.

"Excellent, excellent!" The king clapped his hands, his mustache quivering happily. "Then it's settled! Mr. Night, I'm afraid you'll have to stay in a guest room in the west wing for the time being."

After a pause, he suddenly leaned half a step closer like a child overflowing with curiosity. He lowered his voice, an excited gleam in his eyes:

"By the way, since you're a mage-could you show me your magic later?"

"Your Majesty!" Darton's voice nearly cracked.

The night deepened.

And just like that, Blanc settled into the royal palace of Fiore.

He had to admit, the royal guest room was absurdly large. The luxurious, soft bed could fit four Blancs lying side by side, and the ceiling was painted with an entire expanse of some sort of winged creatures.

Outside the door, Arcadios remained at his post like a stone statue; at the end of the corridor, two royal guards stood at the ready.

There was even a covert guard crouched in hiding on the roof outside the window-though to Blanc's senses, the man's concealment was riddled with holes.

Yet Blanc's first problem quietly arrived at dinnertime.

A young maid wheeled an elegant serving trolley into the room, neatly arranged plate after plate of exquisite royal cuisine giving off enticing steam, then withdrew respectfully.

Blanc sat at the dining table, looking at the deliciously fragrant food, then at Arcadios, who blocked the doorway with his arms folded and his eyes fixed firmly on him.

"Mr. Arcadios."

"Yes."

"I'm going to eat."

"Please do."

"...I'm wearing a mask."

"I can see that."

Silence fell at once. The two stared at each other across the room for a full two or three seconds.

"My people have an ancient, inviolable law: we must never reveal our true faces before others." Blanc began spouting nonsense with a perfectly straight face.

"My duty requires you to remain within my sight at all times." The knight's reply held no trace of emotion.

Fortunately, Blanc had prepared plenty of practical little spells in his spare time, inscribing them onto cards for emergencies.

Under Arcadios's startled, uncertain gaze, Blanc calmly reached inside his clothes and drew out a card.

The instant he activated it with magic, a cloud of black mist appeared out of thin air and enveloped his entire face with perfect precision.

Then, with the black mist concealing him completely, Blanc deftly pulled down his mask and finished his dinner at a leisurely pace.

Arcadios stared at that cloud of black mist throughout the meal. A vein at his temple twitched despite himself, and his expression darkened by degrees.

"...Forgive my discourtesy. What magic is that?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just simple Phantom Magic."

The knight gave a cold snort, then actually took a small notebook from inside his clothes. With a solemn expression, he scribbled away, recording who knew what.

Blanc was inwardly speechless. He felt he had been too hasty; he should have waited until the final day to come.