EP.81 The Unobserved Story. A Room Without a Window.
When the Synchronization Magic is released, a sensation of drifting far away descends. It feels like pulling out backwards from a long, narrow tunnel. As the lonely body tugs at its consciousness, the connection between the golem and Aby stretches like a spiderweb at its limit—
and snaps.
Captain Aby returned to reality.
Aby opened her eyes on the mat. She’d placed it in the room in case she fell and hurt herself during synchronization.
It was also there for her stretching exercises.
“Hoo.”
Exhaling deeply, Aby wrapped her arms around herself for a moment. Beneath her uniform, she felt her own soft skin.
Her senses were fine. This was definitely her real body, not the golem. When using Synchronization Magic frequently, she’d sometimes confuse which was which, so this simple test was necessary.
Having confirmed it, she crawled out of the soft mat on her knees.
Stepping out of the room, she was greeted by a cramped, dark, cluttered office. A room stripped of everything but mission necessities, all else banished to a pathological degree.
On one wall, palm-sized ‘windows’ clung together like a honeycomb. Most of them were dark, as if reflecting the night. Only two ‘windows’ held any trace of light.
One showed a blue sky and a vast wilderness; the other was dark and murky, as though veiled by storm clouds.
Aby pulled a key from her bio-terminal and inserted it into a slot next to the murky ‘window.’ Gray storm clouds churned, then gradually formed a scene…
Eventually, the window revealed the dining hall of Tantalos. Through it, she could see the interior, still hazy as the darkness hadn’t yet fully lifted.
“The Founder… what on earth is she thinking.”
She couldn’t guess the intent. But what was certain was that the Founder was still in the Abyss and wanted to learn cooking.
The very fact that she wanted to learn cooking implied she’d be staying in the Abyss for the time being. For now, there shouldn’t be a problem.
More pressing was the fact that the golem inside Tantalos had been restrained and needed to be dealt with. Aby moved on to her next task.
Sitting before the ‘window,’ Aby closed her eyes and focused her mind. The air trembled, and another set of laws began to overlay the world around her.
She was a soldier of the Military Nation, but the magic she wielded was unlike standard-issue spells. It was a manifestation of her own world, requiring no incantations or chanting to reshape reality.
Innate Magic Art. Morning Glory.
A flower that blooms only in the morning and withers by day; an annual.
Vines of morning glory, woven from magical power, wrapped around her entire body and slowly bloomed. It looked as though a beautiful climbing plant was gently embracing her, or as though a hungry serpent coiled up to swallow her whole.
Either way, it didn’t matter. As long as it could fulfill its purpose.
Aby drew upon her magic, and the morning glory, fed on that power, formed a bud beside her cheek. Soon, it blossomed beautifully in a fresh violet hue.
Preparations complete. Opening her eyes, Aby spoke toward the pistil of the morning glory.
“This is Military Nation Communications Officer Captain Aby. Aby calling Yuel.”
Words no one would hear.
Words that, spoken in this remote, isolated place, could never reach anyone.
Yet the morning glory, carrying the power of ‘Synchronization,’ delivered that message to another flower blooming somewhere in the world.
As if waiting for it, a voice flew in from some distant place.
「Aby! I’ve been waiting!」
The lively voice was no different from a few days ago. Aby responded to the voice coming from the other side.
“Yuel. Connection confirmed.”
「It’s been so long! Exactly 6 days, 21 hours, and 34 minutes! If you’d been a little later, it would’ve been a full week! Don’t make me worry, Aby!」
“I appreciate your concern, but there was nothing to report. The only ‘window’ inside the main building was restrained, so there’s been no updated information.”
A clapping sound came from beyond.
「Ah, right! You said almost all your ‘windows’ were broken, didn’t you? Did the last two break as well?」
“Negative. However, the final unit monitoring the inside of Tantalos has been restrained. Could you perhaps supply me with another ‘window’?”
「Mm. Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait. As you know, our ‘windows’ are incredibly difficult to make. They’re not easily produced… and even less so when they keep getting broken so easily.」
Aby had originally possessed a total of forty-nine ‘windows’—her handling limit, and a number the Military Nation had generously supplied considering the special nature of the Abyss, Tantalos. The idea was that the lawless inmates of Tantalos, who could tear a human apart with ease, wouldn’t leave the golems alone, so she’d need spares.
Perhaps that prediction was spot on. Out of so many ‘windows,’ forty-seven had been easily shattered, leaving only two.
Still, Aby had something to say.
“That is technically under my jurisdiction, but the full responsibility is not mine. While it was not uncommon for trainees in Tantalos to break ‘windows,’ no one did it as meticulously and paranoiacally as ‘him.’ Originally, the fault lies with General Patraxion, who didn’t even disarm the criminal during the arrest…”
「Ahaha. You’re saying something dangerous. No matter how we’re not under their direct command, you shouldn’t speak of a general like that~.」
Yuel cut her off at just the right moment. Having nearly vented her feelings at the innocent Yuel, Aby took a deep breath to calm herself.
“…I’ll correct myself.”
「No, no~. That can happen! We’re communications officers, not emotionless vampires! Though, given that we don’t get any sunlight, there’s not much difference!」
A self-deprecating joke slipped through. It was Yuel’s effort to lighten the stiff atmosphere.
Feeling a renewed sense of having troubled the other, Aby changed the subject.
“How goes the supply of magic herbs I requested last time?”
「Yeah! It looks like they’ll be shipped out soon! But, you know how it is? Communications officers must absolutely never use magic herbs! A supervisor will be dispatched to confirm this aspect!」
Yuel, who was always gentle, rarely used a strong tone with Aby. For her to emphasize ‘absolutely’ meant it was truly something to be avoided.
But Aby knew. The truth was that Yuel, who said those words, had gone to great lengths to supply Aby with the magic herbs.
That was why she couldn’t bring herself to say that, since the convict had betrayed them, the supply should be canceled. She could vividly imagine how happy Yuel must have been when Aby made the request.
While she hesitated over her words, an alert sounded from Yuel’s end. An order had been received. A perplexed voice came through the morning glory.
「Oh. Just a moment. An urgent order has come in.」
It was too long for a report and too short for personal talk. The time for just the two of them to talk was over.
Adjusting her clothes, Aby said, “I apologize for disturbing you while you’re busy, Captain Yuel.”
「No. It was nice to hear your voice after so long. Later… let’s talk again.」
The voice tinged with longing faded away, and the petals of the morning glory began to droop listlessly. Through the lingering, poignant afterglow, Yuel’s voice echoed like a reverberation.
「This is Military Nation Communications Officer Captain Yuel…. Your request…」
A fading voice. With that, the morning glory that had bloomed on Aby’s shoulder withered. The vine-like tendrils snapped strand by strand as if dried to brittle.
They fell to the ground, dissolving into the air like mist.
Innate Magic is innate. A single person’s mental image differs from another’s.
This is the fundamental truth that emerged from the moment the mystery known as magic took root in the human body.
However.
If you gather those with similar aptitudes and hone their mental images through rigorous, standardized education…
Couldn’t they learn the same magic?
The Military Nation had made it a reality. Communications officers, specially selected from upper-level military schools and trained through a specialized curriculum.
Their magics, of course, took different forms, but they shared a common trait.
Synchronization.
With this magic, a communications officer could communicate with others without mechanical devices or magic circles, and could connect to specially crafted golems using bio-terminals and keys.
Given that even the most shoddy communication equipment was as massive as a building and astronomically expensive, communications officers were a success for the Military Nation, greatly easing such burdens while granting mobility.
However, those possessing such talent were few, and so communications officers, regardless of age or experience, became captains upon commissioning.
Becoming a captain only meant they could control golems, making them more akin to low-ranking soldiers than officers.
“Thank you for your hard work, Yuel.”
Wishing happiness for her dearest friend, Aby turned her head.
A single small lamp illuminated this suffocating space. A cramped desk, with documents and cipher texts scattered messily atop it.
With uniform packets, she didn’t even need a closet; with cans of beans, she needed no other food. All items necessary for survival fit into a single cupboard.
Other than that, there was nothing to adorn her life.
No comfortable sofa to rest her body on for a moment.
No frivolous magazines with content that would draw a sneer rather than a laugh.
Not even a window to look outside, even briefly.
Nothing.
This was a room without windows. There was no door leading outside. Even if there were a window,
opening the curtains to greet the streaming sunlight, opening the window to let in the breeze—such things were impossible from the start.
For Captain Aby, the communications officer, the only ‘window’ permitted, the only aperture through which she could glimpse the outside world, were the golems.
A communications officer’s room must be sterile. If there were anything to catch the eye, it would surely lead to negligence in communication.
To receive supplies, to handle work, or even to observe the world for a change of mood, she had to go through their own windows: the golems.
That was the only way to interact with the world.
The one solace she was allowed… was conversing with another communications officer. But even that wasn’t easy.
She went to the washbasin and washed her face. After drying her face with a towel packet, Aby looked at herself in the mirror. A neat uniform and cap, with a clean-cut bob that swayed softly. Perhaps from lack of sunlight, her skin looked white even in the dim light.
It had once had a slightly yellowish hue, but that had vanished recently thanks to the unintended stretching exercises.
Not that she wanted to feel grateful for that.
Her thoughts once again turned to the ‘windows.’ Sitting back in her chair, Aby looked out through them.
The golem on the ground, watching drifting clouds and a distant wilderness.
And the golem in Tantalos, sitting in a corner of the dining hall, quietly observing the murky interior.
Staring at it vacantly, just like the golem, Aby suddenly murmured.
“…Shall I go back?”
As if entranced, Aby reached out. Among the two remaining windows, she hesitated briefly before picking up the key for the golem inside Tantalos.
And before she knew it, she had begun stretching. Her body remembered the stretches she’d done endlessly over the past three days to achieve synchronization.
As she loosened her legs, Captain Aby suddenly recalled a certain fact.
“Ah. It had come undone.”
Clenching her teeth, Aby recalled her past humiliation.
The synchronization rate increases the more similar you are to the target. That was why synchro-type golems were made in human form and possessed human-like senses.
Naturally, to perform synchronization, one had to take a posture as similar to the target as possible.
Even if that meant doing the splits.
When she inserted the key into the bio-terminal, the Synchronization Magic resonating with her informed her that she had to do the splits. At that, Captain Aby had to clench her fists, tremble, and spread her legs.
There’s a saying that if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back into you. Captain Aby’s body, used to controlling the rigid golems every day, had at some point become as stiff as they were. Holed up in her room controlling golems, it was inevitable that her flexibility would vanish.
The new trial given to her—inflexible as she was—was far too cruel. But for Aby, trapped in a windowless room, overcoming it was the only choice.
The first day.
She pressed both feet against the wall and pushed her body forward. Holding her breath, she pulled at the wall, and Aby’s two legs formed an awkward obtuse angle.
For the golem, doing the splits was mere component arrangement. Only Aby’s real body felt pain. Experiencing the novel sensation of her real body hurting more than the golem, Aby screamed.
The second day.
Perhaps thanks to a full day of something resembling stretching. Her range of motion had increased from the previous day. As a side effect, she couldn’t close her legs from that morning on, but that was truly trivial. In any case, the synchronization rate was relatively high, allowing her to maintain the connection.
After such painstaking effort, what Captain Aby saw first upon connecting to the golem was…
a speaker placed just barely out of reach of the golem’s hand.
Crack. Something inside Captain Aby snapped.
The third day.
Some things can’t be achieved through effort alone. Repeated stretching made the body more flexible, but spreading her legs wide while lying flat—that wasn’t a level attainable in just a day or two of effort. The body is honest and does not allow cramming.
But she couldn’t give up. If she remained trapped like this, not only would the mission fail, but the complete closure of a ‘window’ was a terrible thing.
So Aby, thinking of him who had bound her, continued her vengeance-fueled splits.
“You petty criminal… I won’t forget this disgrace.”
Though it was the Founder who had now restrained the golem, that was nothing compared to what she’d accumulated against him. No, if it hadn’t been for him in the first place, she wouldn’t have been restrained like this.
Aby vowed revenge as she connected to the golem in Tantalos.