Project Necro is an official initiative by Re:Library.

Come to think of it, Olga once told me something during a break in practice. She said her grandmother was a huge fan of Her Majesty the Empress Dowager.

*“Once, when she overheard some people on the street talking about Her Majesty the Empress Dowager, Grandma actually ran back to them and asked, ‘Is what you just said true?’ Even though they were complete strangers. And if she ever heard anyone speaking ill of her, she’d start crying and say, ‘She’s not that kind of person at all.’”*

I remember thinking that was pretty intense… but turns out she wasn’t just being a fan. It was a deep friendship!
If she had actually known Her Majesty personally, those words—“She’s not that kind of person at all”—make perfect sense.
If you were friends with Her Majesty the Empress Dowager, wouldn’t you normally brag about it or ask for favors when the opportunity arose? But Irina never told even her family about it; she simply prayed for Her Majesty the Empress Dowager’s happiness from the shadows.
Amazing. What a beautiful friendship… Irina must have remained, right until the end, a selfless and pure person, like a little bird.

Olga also told me the story about how someone in the family plays the piano she received every day, and the whole family sings along. She said everyone learned to play from their grandmother. That’s a lovely story, too.
I’ve always loved music, too. I am happy. May my singing voice, my feelings of happiness, and the sound of the piano reach you…
Perhaps those feelings were what she was conveying.

The Prince had already informed His Majesty the former Emperor that today’s visit to the imperial villa was intended to prevent the revision of the Seleznyov family’s domain laws. Naturally, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager was aware of this as well. Or rather, she had told Olga-chan, “I heard there’s a piano at your house.”
It was a surprising coincidence that Olga-chan happened to be Irina’s granddaughter, but I’m sure Her Majesty the Empress Dowager had been fully intent on stopping her family from making the revision ever since she found out about it…

If I hadn’t come here today, and the revision to the feudal laws had gone into effect, and Her Majesty the Empress Dowager had found out about it later… w-what on earth would have happened?
I don’t know, but it’s scary! No wonder Lydia-chan turned into a haniwa!

Despite everything, Ekaterina couldn’t help but worry about Lydia, but the Empress Dowager seemed to be intentionally leaving her alone. She exchanged friendly words with Olga and shed tears upon learning that Irina had already passed away.
But she quickly wiped away her tears.

“Knowing that Irina was happy makes me happy too. Today is a good day…”

Then the Empress Dowager looked around at her young guests and smiled.

“For the first time in a long while, I feel like singing. A song Irina taught me long ago… Would you like to hear it?”

.

Then the Empress Dowager stepped onto the stage and sang.
The Song of the Moonlight Flower and the Warrior Butterfly. It was the song Olga had sung at the musical evening. But the voice of the Empress Dowager—a genius who had been invited to the Garden of the God of Music in her youth and had continued to pursue the finest songs ever since—was otherworldly.

*Full moon blooms like flower in the night, lake full of blossom for a night full of plight.*
*Now is the time of death, the time of love.*
*Steel wings tremblings,*
*The warriors take flight————……*

In an instant, I was carried away. Into the world of song.
My body remains here, in the theater of the imperial villa. Yet, vividly before my mind’s eye, I see the warriors’ battle.

Strangely enough, they were not warrior butterflies with black wings. They were young men.
Sparks fly from clashing swords. Blood spills like blooming flowers. Repeatedly, across various eras.
Falling countless times, yet never ceasing to seek what they desire, they take up their swords.

Their fervor, their pain, their sorrow—all of it presses upon my heart.

*Breaths still drawn.*
*Arm to arm.*
*Hearts yearned and sought but one.*

*Yet their lives plucked, scattered, done.*

—This is the scene of the rebellion in Seleznyov, as implied by the song. The image of young people who have risen up against oppression in search of freedom, only to be suppressed time and again. The lyrics speak of a butterfly with wings of steel, yet the true meaning of the song spreads vividly across the listener’s mind.
How is such a thing possible?
Even that question was pushed to the back of my mind, and before I knew it, I was shedding tears.

When the song declared that the last warrior had finally reached the flower.
In my mind’s eye, the dying warrior was embraced by his lover and fell asleep. Forever.
That pitiful yet beautiful scene was the last I saw.
As if waking from a dream, the song came to an end.

.

Five-colored lights shimmered around the Empress Dowager as she stood on the stage. The God of Music was bestowing his blessing.

The Empress Dowager’s gaze fell upon Olga and Lydia.
The Empress Dowager sang as a gift to the young girls who aspired to music.

I bet both Olga and Lydia are dying to practice right now. To reach this level of mastery.
With that thought, Ekaterina wiped away her tears and smiled.

It was a strange situation indeed: the Empress Dowager, a member of the Seleznyov family, singing this song, while Olga and Lydia—young ladies from completely opposite backgrounds—listened together.
Yet, Ekaterina had a feeling that today would surely lead to a better future someday.

.

A short while later, a carriage from the Temple of Music arrived, and Olga and Renat departed, escorted by priests who bowed respectfully.

“It’s all thanks to you, Lady Ekaterina. I don’t know how to thank you enough…!”

Olga said tearfully as they parted, but Ekaterina smiled and shook her head.

“It is all due to your own talent and Lord Selezar’s, Lady Olga. If you did not possess such a wonderful singing voice, I would have done nothing at all. My heartfelt congratulations.”

Olga burst into tears and threw her arms around Ekaterina, and the two girls embraced for a moment.
Beside them, Renat also offered his heartfelt thanks to Mikhail, but each of them was distracted by the girls standing next to them.

“Um… Good luck. I’m rooting for you.”
“Ah… thank you. I’ll do my best to be like you two.”

Hearing that exchange, Ekaterina tilted her head in confusion.
Wait, Prince, this is where you’re supposed to be cheering on the two of them, right? Why are you the one being cheered on? Are you actually planning to pursue music?

Once again today, Ekaterina proved herself to be the reliably disappointing girl.

.

Ekaterina, Mikhail, and Lydia also decided to leave the summer palace at that time.

“Please do come visit us again. We’ll be waiting for you anytime.”

Having received these heartfelt words—which were by no means mere pleasantries—from the former Emperor, the young men and women withdrew from his presence and made their way to the carriages.

Lydia had remained almost silent the entire time, and a concerned Ekaterina invited her to ride in the same carriage. Part of the reason was that she was still bothered by having excluded Lydia on the way there.
However, Lydia shook her head. When she explained that she wanted to be alone to think things over, Ekaterina couldn’t press the matter further. Besides, since their respective destinations were their imperial residences in the capital, it would be inefficient to ride together and then drop them off one by one.

Still, Lydia murmured,

“…I do appreciate your kind invitation.”

Though she said it without meeting her eyes, the slight blush on her cheeks suggested it was by no means meant sarcastically, and Ekaterina felt a little relieved.
So, they said their goodbyes to Lydia there, and just as they had on the way there, Ekaterina and Mikhail got into the same carriage, while Lydia boarded her family’s carriage alone.

.

“…It seems like there’s more people who’d intrude on us, now.”

At Mikhail’s muttered remark, Ekaterina tilted her head.

“Intrude on us how?”
“Oh, never mind. Anyway, today was truly an amazing day, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, I never could have imagined it would turn out to be such an astonishing day!”

At Mikhail’s words, her slight doubt vanished from her mind, and Ekaterina eagerly agreed.

“I’ve always thought both Lady Olga and Lord Selezar were wonderful, but I never thought they would receive an invitation from the God of Music in the presence of Their Majesties… And that Lady Olga’s grandmother is a friend of Her Imperial Majesty the Empress Dowager. Both the piano in her family home and Lady Olga’s future are now secure.”

“Yeah, as far as the piano goes, you could even say that the Seleznyov family has avoided a great fall. It’s all because you took action; the Seleznyov family now owes Jurnova a debt.”

Ugh.
Mentally, as a Japanese person, I want to say, “No, no, this was unexpected for us too, so please don’t think of it as a debt,” but… well, it’s just a fact… In power struggles among high-ranking nobles, you’re supposed to keep a strict ledger of debts and credits to keep your opponents in check, I suppose…
I-I need to get used to this so I can be of use to Onii-sama!

“Besides, while the Viscount Selezar and Baron Flurse families weren’t quite on equal footing—setting aside their titles—in terms of their relationship with the Marquisate of Seleznyov, the fact that they were both invited by the God of Music transcends worldly status. Those two will surely be happy. It’s all for the best.”

Hm?

“Um, Lord Mikhail. What did you mean by that just now…?”
“Huh?”

Uncharacteristically, Mikhail looked completely bewildered.

“Do you not realize? It seems to me that Selezar and Lady Flurse are in love with each other.”

Eh.
EEEEEEHHHH??!?!?!?

“I… Is that really true?!”
“Yes. The way they were talking just now made it pretty obvious.”

With that, Mikhail couldn’t hold it in any longer and burst out laughing.

“I always thought women were the ones who noticed these things first… but it seems you’re pretty clueless about romantic relationships, even when they don’t involve you.”

Thud.
Ekaterina was completely devastated by the shock.

Déjà vu!
This feeling is exactly like when I heard in a past life that so-and-so were dating, and I was like, “What?!” only to be met with disbelief or anger: “Why didn’t you notice?!”

B-but come on, Renat is clearly a drill sergeant—when did he start dating Olga?
Oh, wait, now that you mention it, I did notice something was off when Renat started calling Olga by her first name! Shouldn’t that be the biggest hint, me? B-but, I mean…
W-wait… the prince just called me clueless.
Waaah, but I’m the older sister!
What a shock!

.

Even when the carriage arrived at the Jurnova Duke’s family residence in the imperial capital, Ekaterina was still reeling from the shock. With Mikhail looking worried, she said her goodbyes and stumbled out of the carriage, looking completely worn out.

But.

“Ekaterina.”
“Onii-sama!”

Seeing her brother Aleksei appear at the entrance, Ekaterina instantly perked up and threw herself into his arms.

Aleksei held his sister tightly.

“Onii-sama, thank you for coming to meet me. But surely it’s not proper for the head of the household to be greeting a vassal.”
“I just wanted to see you so badly. The time apart from you feels far too long to me—it felt like a thousand years had passed since we parted.”

It had only been a few hours since the siblings had parted.

“Oh, Onii-sama…”

They say time apart nurtures love, but you’ve managed to cultivate a thousand years’ worth of sister complex in just a few hours. Just as I expected, Onii-sama!
Even the Jomon Sugi, estimated to be seven thousand years old, is no match for your siscon!
I need to nurture my own brother complex more!

“I’ve been longing to see you, Onii-sama. I had so many things I wanted to talk to you about today!”
“Ah, please do let me hear that beautiful voice of yours, my songbird.”

And so, escorted by her brother, Ekaterina returned to the duke’s mansion.