[It was an incredibly shocking sight.]
[A giant piece of rock streaked across the sky, and its long fiery tail cut through the gathered dark clouds like a sharp blade, leaving its unique trail.]
[It was a beautiful moment, but you weren't captivated by it.]
[Because you knew what kind of destruction this beauty would bring to the nearby Roman army once it landed.]
"Your Majesty—!"
Ian shouted at Nero.
"Tell the soldiers to leave this place now!"
"..."
Although she didn't know what would happen next, as someone she trusted unconditionally, Nero never doubted what Ian told her.
"I understand!"
Nero drew her sword and swung it toward the rainy sky.
"Full retreat!"
[The Roman emperor's order was not to be disobeyed.]
[The army that was supposed to be fighting Britannicus began its second retreat.]
[But you didn't follow them. Instead, you moved in the opposite direction.]
[You ran toward the direction where the meteor was falling.]
Ian wasn't crazy.
He just realized that this might be the way to help Nero break Britannicus's offense.
After all—
The scene of the meteor falling was identical to the scene Nero saw in her dream.
This was definitely not a coincidence but a pre-arranged event by some unknown force.
He had to seize this opportunity for her!
However, despite his resolve, Ian couldn't help but feel a little worried about the approaching celestial fire.
This was something that had fallen from the sky... could he really handle it?
But this thought only lasted for a second before it disappeared completely.
It wasn't a question of whether he could, but how well he could do it!
This was a promise he made to himself. He couldn't give up for anything.
Ian raised the staff in his hand.
It was a weapon-like object specially made for casting spells.
In the hands of an ordinary person, it was just a more valuable stick, but in the hands of a magus like Ian, it was an extremely powerful casting tool.
The man pointed it toward the fire falling from the sky.
In an instant, a spell with complex patterns expanded from the jewel-embedded staff head as its center, creating a dazzling blue halo.
This was a spell that Ian had learned himself!
"Go—!"
The man injected "mana" (a necessity for casting spells, which he named this because of its heavy feeling of power) into it.
Boom!
The size of the halo expanded to several times its original size and then flew upward against the cold rain and lightning, like a woven net, stopping the falling meteor in mid-air.
Had he succeeded?
Ian's eyes lit up with excitement.
However, things were not as smooth as he had imagined.
After a period of stalemate with the meteor in the sky, the halo showed signs of fatigue.
Immediately, the boundary that had been hovering in the air began to press down toward the ground where the man stood.
Shit!
Ian realized that he had underestimated this meteor that had fallen from the sky.
If this continued... he would be crushed to death by it here.
He absolutely couldn't let that happen!
He still had to find a way to let Nero escape from the future of becoming a tyrant and being scorned by everyone!
The man used all his strength but could not change the current situation.
Just as Ian was about to run out of strength, a figure appeared not far away.
It was Nero, who was supposed to be leading the soldiers away.
When she realized Ian wasn't with them, she immediately turned back and witnessed the scene of him single-handedly resisting the meteor.
The young woman quickly realized that if this continued, her teacher would definitely be buried under the meteor.
Almost subconsciously, the young empress of Rome ignored how dangerous the situation was and ran toward the man she loved.
"Teacher, I'm here to help you!"
[This was an extremely absurd thing to do.]
[You have to know that Nero had not learned anything about magic and could be said to be completely ignorant in this area.]
[Even if she wanted to help you, she probably wouldn't even know how to.]
[You realized that this would only lead to both of you dying here.]
["Nero, don't come over!"]
[You shouted these words.]
[But they had no effect on the young woman who loved you deeply—she still rushed toward you without hesitation, hoping to help you in some way.]
[You were desperate.]
[You had intended to solve her problems for her, but you didn't expect it to turn into a situation where both of you would die here at the same time.]
[This wasn't the result you wanted.]
[But—]
[Things once again went in a direction you never thought they would.]
It worked.
Nero's help was useful.
Ian looked at her beside him, holding the staff with him, and his eyes were filled with surprise.
Her "mana" reserves were abundant—they should be several times more than his.
How could this be?
No, now wasn't the time to think about this.
Since Nero could help, he shouldn't have so many worries.
She had come here with a determination to die—he had to respond to that trust with all his might!
Ian quickly adjusted the way he was casting the spell.
The mana that Nero had poured into it became the man's confidence to fight back.
The situation was quickly reversed.
The celestial fire that was about to break through the halo began to slow down little by little.
Finally, it was completely stopped and then landed on the ground in a relatively less destructive way.
But even so, it still kicked up dust like a wave.
Ten minutes later, the rain stopped and the sky cleared.
Looking at the fallen meteor in front of her, Nero breathed a sigh of relief and then became curious.
"What is this?"
"It has already landed—but it's still burning endlessly, just like a flame that will never go out."
"..."
[You didn't answer Nero immediately.]
[It wasn't that you disagreed with her words, but that you were also captivated by the fallen meteor in front of you.]
[Mana.]
[Abundant mana.]
[This piece of fire that fell from the sky was constantly radiating an exaggerated amount of mana.]
[How could this be?]
[You looked at the meteor and couldn't think of an answer to this question for a moment.]
"Teacher? Teacher! Teacher?!!!"
It took three calls from Nero to bring Ian back from his contemplation of the meteor.
"What's wrong?"
"I stopped it with you. Isn't that something to be happy about? I'm confused why you're making that expression."
"..."
Since it was a scene from Nero's dream, Ian didn't hide it from her and told her all his thoughts.
"'Mana'?"
Nero looked at the burning rock, and her green eyes showed a little more interest.
"Teacher, now that you mention it—I actually have some ideas too."
"Some ideas outside of the dream."
"..."
Nero's dream only went as far as the meteor falling. She didn't even know what happened after that.
"What ideas?"
"I—" Nero looked at the rock in front of her, and her eyes sparkled with excitement.
That was the look she got when she had an idea.
"I want to take this burning rock and forge a blade with it!"
"..."
[You were completely surprised that Nero would have such an idea.]
[After all, anyone who had witnessed the almost destructive scene just now shouldn't have had this thought.]
[But you knew that Nero was not someone who would make a request for no reason.]
[You decided to ask her what was going on.]
"Nero, why did you think of using it to forge a blade?" Ian asked.
"Well—"
Nero put her hands on her hips and answered this question very seriously.
"Because I think it's beautiful."
"Beautiful?"
"Yes," Nero reached out a hand and began to describe the scene of the meteor falling. Her eyes gradually became engrossed in the process.
"I have already engraved that sight in my mind."
"..."
Giggle.
Ian couldn't help but laugh, which made Nero a little unhappy.
"Teacher! What are you laughing at!" The young woman pouted. "Is my idea that funny?"
"No, I'm not laughing at you."
Ian stopped his laughter.
"I'm happy for you, Teacher—you've become an emperor, but you still have a heart that wants to appreciate beauty. This is a very good thing."
"This way, I won't have to worry about your eyes only seeing benefits."
"So, Teacher, you mean..."
"Of course I'll help you," Ian gently stroked Nero's head.
"When... have I ever refused you?"
[The fire on the meteor eventually went out.]
[Nero's plan to forge a sword also began at this time.]
[You were afraid that she would only have a three-minute passion, so you constantly warned her before she started that this would be an incredibly difficult process.]
[But you soon realized that this was meaningless.]
[You underestimated Nero's determination—she really wanted to forge this meteor that fell from the sky into a sword for her to use.]
[You stopped talking too much and silently worked with her.]
[A few days later, you completed the forging of this sword.]
"Teacher, what do you think of it?!"
Nero happily showed Ian the weapon in her hand.
"...It's very special."
The man looked at the blade in the young woman's hand and gave this evaluation.
This wasn't Ian just trying to make Nero happy—this blade truly exceeded his understanding.
It was entirely crimson, like a burning fire. The curved blade formed a unique streamline, reminding anyone of the fiery tail of the meteor on the day it fell.
It was no exaggeration to say that Nero had almost completely encapsulated the meteor in this weapon.
This was something that only she could have imagined, and now it had become a reality.
"Just 'very special'?" The young woman pouted slightly. "No other compliments?"
"I'm sorry, Nero. I don't know how else to describe it—but it is indeed very good. I didn't expect you to have this kind of talent."
"Hmm, of course~"
Nero puffed out her chest proudly.
"I am the emperor of Rome! I can easily master anything!"
"By the way, Teacher, the name of this sword is Aestus Estus (Original Fire)—I really like this name from my dream!"
"Also—!"
The young woman looked at Ian.
"I want to engrave both my and Teacher's names on it—how about we treat it as our wedding ceremony?!"
"Huh?" Ian came to his senses. "No, Nero. If others see this, it'll cause a lot of trouble!"
"What does it matter?"
"It matters," Ian looked at the young woman in front of him, and his eyes were full of affection. "I don't want to see you in trouble."
"Nero, will you promise me?"
"..."
Knowing that Ian was doing this for her own good, Nero was no longer being willful.
"I understand."
"In that case, let's engrave regnum caelorum et gehenna (Heaven and Hell)!"
"The place where Teacher is, is Heaven!"
"The place where Teacher is not, is Hell!"
"And—" Nero licked her lips. "Now that this masterpiece is complete, I've decided that I'm going to celebrate properly with Teacher!"
"No, Nero. At least let's go back to the tent first, okay?"
"No! I want it now!"
[You and Nero had a passionate and sincere exchange in front of Aestus Estus (Original Fire).]
[At her age, she didn't mind the environment when she got to know you more deeply—as long as you were with her, she didn't mind anything.]
[And compared to Aestus Estus (Original Fire), she seemed to prefer your "sword" more.]
[You felt that you were enjoying this very much, but in your heart, you were still afraid of that distant future of a tyrant.]
[If a god really existed, you hoped that they could erase such a result—even if you had to pay a heavy price.]
[The guidance from the dream was indeed very meaningful.]
[Aestus Estus (Original Fire) shone brightly in Nero's hands and began to play a role that exceeded everyone's imagination.]
[The young empress of Rome, holding this flame-like sword, began to counterattack the endless darkness that was swallowing the land of Rome.]
["I just have to burn it all away in an instant, right?!"]
[Against the resurrection of the skeletons, Nero came up with the most simple and crude method.]
[And because of the birth of Aestus Estus (Original Fire), this idea was realized.]
[You discovered that even though the Roman emperor didn't understand magic, she could extract enough mana from this blade to make herself shine.]
[Perhaps this was the privilege of an emperor.]
A few days later, with Nero leading the charge, the Roman army once again returned to Uliorum.
Under the completely rotten city walls, the soldiers saw a familiar figure.
It was Agrippina.
But what she was holding was quite special.
It was Britannicus, who was wearing a crown but was completely motionless.
The dark clouds swayed, and the sun reappeared in the world.
And at the moment when the light came in, some things floated away with the wind.
In the hands of the evil woman, only a white skeleton remained.