The training in the mana-gravity field was simple.
In a place where gravity five times normal or greater bore down on us, they had to defend against the woodsteel I controlled using manipulation-type magic.
“Urk!”
Reilly seized the woodsteel with the advanced spell 「Earth’s Orbit」, but I broke through her magic with the steel’s rotation. The resulting resonance generated a shockwave, and Reilly was flung away.
“Whoa! I surrender, I surrender!”
Reilly, who had slammed into the ground, raised both hands. Sweat had beaded on her face as if she were flustered.
“Why are you so strong? Wow~ you’ve changed a lot.”
“Next.”
Next was Epherene. She nodded and stepped forward.
“Begin.”
“Yes.”
I immediately moved the woodsteel.
Epherene took control of the surrounding woodsteel with the spell 「Magnetic Domain」, but the moment I amplified the output of 「Telekinesis」, it shattered like glass.
“Hup!”
But perhaps this was what they called talent.
Epherene showed quick thinking by manipulating the atmosphere. Air resistance surged in an instant, and in the already heavy gravity, the woodsteel tumbled over one another.
“How was that?”
“A good response. However—”
I applied a “wave” to the woodsteel’s 「Telekinesis」. The wave advanced through the heavy air resistance as its medium, and in the end struck Epherene’s entire body.
“Aaagh! Ugh, ah, it hurts! It hurts so much!”
Epherene rolled across the ground. I said without delay.
“Next is Maho.”
“Yees~ yesyesyesyesyes~”
Maho approached with a bright laugh.
“Kyaaaaaaaak!”
Then fled while crying, and the last one, Grand Prince Kreto, assumed a fist-fighting stance with a face full of tension.
It was 「Distant Fist」.
A ranged fist, exactly as the name implied. It was a rather unusual manipulation-type magic that infused mana into one’s fist to strike.
Swish, swish— swish, swish—
Kreto moved his fists here and there as if trying to defend against the woodsteel with martial arts, but—clang!
“……”
The woodsteel rammed into his shoulder. At that moment, Kreto’s arm dangled loose.
It had been properly dislocated.
I asked.
“Kreto. Are you all right?”
“……”
Kreto glared at me with eyes that seemed rather resentful. Then he sat down without a word. It was surrender.
……At any rate.
That was how my training went.
I did not know whether it would be of any help to them, but at least it seemed certain to help me.
* * *
“No. I heard everything, but what kind of training is that?”
The mansion on the lake island. Upon my return, Yeriel spoke to me bluntly. Primienne beside her agreed.
“Yes. Injuring Grand Prince Kreto was the worst possible outcome.”
Yeriel and Primienne were sitting on the same sofa, eating ice cream.
……I had no idea how or why those two had ended up together.
“It’s fine. The rest will be handled by this textbook anyway.”
I placed the textbook on the desk. Its name was [Yukline’s Manipulation-Type Theoretical Text V2].
It was the book I had once given to Yeriel as well. It was the result of compiling only the essence of manipulation-type magic, and since there were no plans to sell it commercially, its value went without saying.
“Furthermore, I intend to support the four mages who chose me for this training with volume three, volume four, or even magical texts for the advanced course afterward.”
“Oh, really?”
Yeriel’s eyes went round. I nodded.
Writing was, in any case, a hobby on par with reading. I would likely continue writing steadily in the future, and considering the progress of later quests, it would be right to support only those who would use magic properly.
I had no particular desire for many people to read them.
“That is certainly attractive.”
Primienne added with a perfectly innocent expression. She was not even a mage, yet she had been interjecting since earlier.
“Well, then, the training is fine. What are you going to do?”
Yeriel lifted and shook a book. It was “Blue Eyes.”
“That is correct, Professor. As Lady Yeriel said, the issue lies elsewhere.”
Primienne seemed to have settled on a concept entirely. Something like Yeriel’s plover.
Yeriel said,
“They say this becomes reality. They say you’re the one who gets a blade driven into your heart at the end.”
“There is still time before the ending, and it may not be me.”
“As if.”
The middle section of this book was the protagonist’s—Sylvia’s—growth. Harsh trials and hardships. It was a genre novel in which she climbed mountains, killed magical beasts and enemies, stood at the “Round Table,” and grew at a mad pace.
Her reunion with Damian (Deculein) came after that.
“Only time remains; the ending is certain. The mage whose heart this blade pierces is you, Professor.”
“Exactly~”
Yeriel nodded at Primienne’s words. I was dumbfounded.
“Primienne. Yeriel. Have you two known each other since before?”
“No. We met for the first time today. But she somehow feels familiar. Right?”
“Indeed.”
“……”
In any case, it was bothersome.
I rose from my seat and stood by the window. The snow had already stopped, and the sky was clear. It was a common climate for Hadekain.
Since more than nine months of the year were this clear, it was impossible for the entire territory not to develop.
“Deculein.”
Before I knew it, Yeriel had approached, murmuring my name. Standing beside me, she simply looked up at the sky in silence.
“……”
Seeing that Yeriel, suddenly—
Quite abruptly, a very simple memory came to mind.
That I, too…… had once had a younger sibling.
That I had once had family more precious than myself.
“Hm.”
I placed my hand on the crown of Yeriel’s head. Her small head seemed as though I could grasp it with one hand.
“……?”
At that, she looked up at me blankly. Her face was slightly dazed.
“Why did you call me, Yeriel?”
“……Huh?”
She blinked as if utterly flustered.
Blink, blink— blink, blink— fidgeting dozens of times in a single second.
“N-no. I didn’t call you…… sir. I didn’t……”
Then suddenly.
“More importantly, seriously! I checked how much money you spent on this training! Huh?!”
She shrieked.
I was at a loss.
“Thirty million elne! Thirty million elne?! The cost of hiring mentors was thirty million elne!”
“……”
“And the thing I gave you, that diamond mana stone—why does that old geezer Gindalf have it now! Sir!”
After shouting like that, she let out a huge sigh—ugh!—and turned around.
“I’m leaving, sir!”
The sight of her needlessly huffing as she stormed out was cute. There were no thoughts beyond that now.
She was simply cute.
Primienne said,
“You are a doting fool.”
“Be quiet.”
I glared at Primienne. I had not liked the way she had been siding with Yeriel since earlier.
Ahem. Primienne cleared her throat and shrugged.
“……I am curious.”
“About what?”
“When you became so close with your younger sister.”
“That is none of your concern. You leave as well.”
“Yes.”
Primienne sprang to her feet. Holding even the ice cream Yeriel had left behind in her arms, she left the mansion.
……And then.
The very next day.
“……Good to see you. Did you rest well?”
In the garden of the lake island, I faced the four tired mages. They seemed afraid of the remaining training schedule, but I showed them the books.
“Take them.”
Four hardcover volumes. Using 「Telekinesis」, I placed one in each of their arms.
“This is Yukline’s Manipulation-Type Theoretical Text, which I have written this time.”
At that, Kreto’s eyes widened.
Kreto quickly opened the book. Starlight entered his eyes as he read the first page.
“The remaining training will be theoretical. For four days, we will study that book together, discuss it, and if there is any magic you want to learn, I shall guide you.”
The four, who knew the value of Deculein’s theories, looked at me in astonishment.
At last, their reaction was somewhat positive.
“……Everyone, begin by reading carefully.”
“““Yes!”””
“Yeees~”
Everyone except Reilly shouted vigorously. I used telekinesis to snatch Reilly’s book away.
“Ah! I’m sorry! I’ll work hard!”
I returned it.
* * *
……After four days of training ended.
Epherene and Allen, who had returned to the university, were following someone’s back.
A flawless suit. Long legs. Broad back.
A man who stood out more than anyone else on the street—Professor Deculein.
“……”
Epherene still had something to say to him.
There were many words she had not said. The words she wanted to say lingered in her mouth.
“That’s right. Professor. What will you do about this public support mission?”
Assistant Professor Allen spoke first. Epherene secretly pricked up her ears.
“The North. It will likely be firepower support.”
The North. The region mages avoided the most.
In truth, the farther one went from the Empire, the fewer mages there were, but even so, the North was still harder than the South.
A frigid climate teeming with magical beasts. Since demonic energy sometimes flowed through the air, it was the worst possible environment for mages who did not train their bodies.
The ratio of knights to mages was not even 1:10.
“Are you afraid?”
“Huh? No. You’re there, Professor!”
“I’m not afraid.”
At Allen and Epherene’s words, Deculein nodded. Just then, they arrived at the Magic Tower’s parking lot. As Deculein got into the car, he said,
“Allen. Organize all the materials related to class.”
“Yes!”
“Epherene.”
“Yes. Yes.”
“Your thesis was unsatisfactory.”
“Ah……”
His words rushed at her like an awl. Epherene bowed deeply.
“I’m sorry.”
“I will return it, so write it better and submit it again.”
“……Yes.”
Whirrrr—
Deculein closed the window. The luxury automobile, a rare sight even in the Empire, started up and left swiftly with the sound of its mana stone engine.
Epherene pouted her lips and murmured.
“I wonder where he’s going?”
“Well, it’s obvious. Seeing how he’s dressed, wouldn’t it be the Imperial Palace?”
“Ah……”
At that answer, Epherene nodded without thinking, then flinched and turned to the side. The voice of the person who had answered was no ordinary one.
“Heh heh. It has been a while, hasn’t it?”
The lower half of a face revealed beneath a robe. A shaggy beard and green eyes. The grin of an old man.
“Rohaka—”
Rohakan quickly clapped a hand over Epherene’s mouth.
“Good grief. Why is it that every time you see me, you try to announce it to the whole neighborhood? Quiet, quiet.”
Epherene looked at Rohakan with widened eyes and nodded repeatedly. Rohakan smiled brightly.
“Keke, it has been a while, hasn’t it?”
“……”
“Miss Epherene. I’ll be going first……? Hm? Who is that beside you?”
Allen, who had noticed them then, tilted his head.
“Haha. I am Epherene’s great-uncle. How do you do?”
“Ah~ yes. I see. But you came all of a sudden.”
“Hahaha. This old man is rather quick on his feet.”
As Rohakan introduced himself to Allen, he whispered to Epherene.
—Act familiar. Act familiar. You know how it is. We haven’t exactly met only once or twice.
“Ha. Haha, yes. Yes…… that’s right. Great-uncle.”
“Ah! Then I’d only be in the way! I’ll go first~ have a good time~!”
Allen hurried into the Magic Tower, and Epherene waved with a bitter smile.
Tap—
Rohakan placed a hand on Epherene’s shoulder. Epherene quickly asked,
“Ah, you scared me. Why are you here this time?”
At that, Rohakan’s face grew quite serious.
“……I came to speak of a demon. One called ‘the Voice.’”
* * *
The atmosphere in the Imperial Palace has not been particularly good lately.
It is probably because of the power struggle between Sophien and her retainers.
Even I, who came and went once every two weeks or so as the Emperor’s instructional mage, could clearly sense that current, so the inside must have been festering quite badly.
“We know everything.”
The Hall of Learning. Sophien answered my concern.
Today, she was wearing a gonryongpo.
“We can hear the sound of their minds turning from here. Truly bothersome fellows.”
On Earth, it was the attire of an eastern emperor; in this world, it was the traditional clothing of the chieftains of the Archipelago.
It seemed likely that some family had offered it as tribute, and surprisingly, Sophien obediently wore such garments she received.
Whether it was because choosing clothes was bothersome, or because even this was a political stance.
The fact that her outfit changed every time I met her was rather admirable.
“What is it? Are you about to lose your senses before this overwhelming beauty?”
Sophien said to me as I examined the gonryongpo. A confident smile rested at the corners of her mouth.
“That gonryongpo is fascinating. It suits you very well.”
“Hmph. Honest of you. In any case, do not even bring up those damned ministers in front of us. It raises our blood pressure.”
“Yes. I won’t.”
At that, Sophien snapped her fingers as if something had just occurred to her.
“Ah. I heard a rumor that you took in a disciple this time.”
“Do you mean Epherene?”
“I did not know the name, but I am curious. How did a fussy professor like you manage that?”
“I will introduce her to you sometime.”
“······.”
Just then, Sophien’s movements stopped.
For an extremely brief moment, as though the image had cut out. A mere instant of 0.1 seconds.
Immediately afterward, Sophien laughed softly.
“Deculein. Just now, we went somewhere else.”
“Somewhere else, you say?”
I asked back calmly.
“Yes. Your voice led me there.”
“······It was the ‘Voice,’ then.”
I understood at once.
The demon that marked the midpoint of the main quest, the “Voice.” If the “Demon’s Mirror” I had faced before had wanted to become the world, then this “Voice” was probably the world itself.
I asked,
“How many minutes did you stay there?”
“Hahaha. Deculein. You truly think the same way we do, don’t you?”
Sophien laughed. Then she spoke in an analytical tone.
“This fellow must be quite a high-ranking demon. However, judging by its one-off nature, it is not yet complete. We remained there for about five minutes.”
“Five minutes in the ‘World of the Voice’······ Are you certain of the time?”
“It is our biological clock, more perfect than anything.”
I nodded.
The “Voice” is a world. Its entrance is formed from someone’s voice, and once one enters the world of the “Voice,” one is cut off from the existing world for that duration.
Fortunately, five minutes was still within the safe range.
“There are no statuses there, either. No, they pretend there are none. Even though they clearly know our face.”
“Is that so. I will prepare countermeasures. Please do not worry, Your Majesty.”
“······Hmm. You truly do like and worry about us, don’t you?”
Sophien narrowed her eyes. I answered lightly.
“It is merely the most natural duty of a subject.”
“No matter how we think of it, it seems to be more than that······ Enough.”
The Emperor fluttered her dragon robe. Then she took out some sort of casket from beneath the desk.
It was a gleaming box.
“Receive it, Deculein.”
“······.”
It was a sudden gift. I looked at Sophien in silence. Sophien said with a chuckle,
“Why are you staring like that? Open it.”
“Yes.”
For now, I did as I was told and opened the lid of the casket.
Inside lay an elegant glass bottle. The liquid contained within the bottle gave off a brilliant, extraordinary light.
──「 Dragon’s Soul 」──
◆ Information
: An elixir said to contain the soul of a dragon.
◆ Category
: Treasure ⊃ Consumable
◆ Special Effects
: Upon consumption, mana increases by ‘300.’
: Smoothly assists the circulation of mana in the body.
────────
After checking the information with 「Naked Eye」, I was at a loss for words for a moment. It was a treasure that raised mana by as much as 300, and even improved mana circulation—recovery speed.
[Side Quest: The Emperor’s Bestowal.]
◆ Complete: Receive one or more gifts from the Emperor.
◆ Shop Currency + 1
On top of that, even shop currency.
“······.”
I feel good.
It had been quite a while since I felt this emotion, so I was a little confused, but it seemed I was moved.
I slowly raised my head and looked at Sophien.
“We chose one from among the items being offered up by noble houses and kingdoms lately. It was sent by the Duchy of Yuren.”
“······Is that so.”
“It is. Such treasures as these have been stolen away until now by those damned ministers. Perhaps, among the tributes of the past, there may even have been a secret medicine that could have cured our illness long ago.”
I spent a moment choosing what to say. I intended to select the best words.
It was a treasure so perfect that it stirred even this fastidious nature’s desire for possession, one that was far too necessary to me, and one that did not even have any side effects.
“Your grace is—”
“Immeasurable, do not say that nonsense. We detest it most of all. Just take it and go.”
“······Yes.”
I put the casket away in my arms. Then I looked at the snow globe on the desk.
“By the way, is Sir Chiron not here yet?”
“He will arrive soon. We are not worried.”
“······.”
I nodded and picked up my pen again. It was time to resume the lesson.
“Then, the next word.”
However, Sophien changed the subject with a dissatisfied expression.
“You are going north this winter, are you not?”
“Yes.”
“You may meet Yulie there.”
“······.”
I did not answer. Sophien fluttered her dragon robe once more. It was quite large, so it seemed to keep slipping down.
“It seems you do not wish to talk about it. Then, how about this? We discovered a game more interesting than chess in the archipelago to the east.”
“How about Rune language games?”
“Shut your mouth. As you know, once chess reaches a certain level, the vast majority of games end in draws.”
“Yes. That is true.”
“But this is different.”
Sophien took out a wooden board from under the drawer. The surface of the wood had a grid pattern, and paired with it were bowls containing white and black stones.
“It is called ‘Go.’ It rarely ends in a draw. However, not many people know of it yet.”
“I see.”
“We find this Go interesting lately. We are even thinking of making it one of the national games.”
“Do so, then. If Your Majesty wishes it, anything is possible. To begin with, isn’t a national game itself simply ‘a game Your Majesty likes’?”
I already knew Go.
Of course, that knowledge was not deep, but even so, the difference between “knowing” Go and “not knowing” it was like heaven and earth.
That was especially true for my mind.
Because anything I had seen even once remained in my consciousness, and if it remained in my consciousness, I could elevate it through 「Comprehension」.
In that sense, the memory of at least glimpsing the match between AlphaGo and Lee Sedol existed in this head.
“Now, as for how this is played······.”
Sophien, excited, explained various things. The concept of “territory.” The problem of “life and death.”
It seemed she had not learned the Rune language she was supposed to learn all this time, and had instead been absorbed in Go all by herself.
“······We are getting tired of this. You may leave now.”
In the end, that was the conclusion.
I let out a dry laugh.
“Yes. I will return after conducting my own research and efforts regarding this Go.”
“Hmph. As if you could do anything. You know nothing and merely listened. The game is amusing, but there is no one to play against, so we are bored.”
“Am I not here, Your Majesty? Would it not be different in two weeks?”
“This is not a game one can manage in two weeks, Deculein. Your arrogance pierces the heavens.”
Sophien fluttered her dragon robe one last time and lay down.
“Go. We are tired of you.”
“Yes.”
I rose to my feet.
As I was stepping backward while maintaining proper etiquette, Sophien spoke.
“Ah. There are many treasures offered as tribute outside. Take any one thing you want.”
“······?”
I could not understand Sophien’s intention.
Whether this, too, was part of her paranoia. Or whether she was simply trying to look after her subject.
Either way, refusing a gift from His Majesty would be discourteous.
“Yes. Thank you.”
“······.”
Sophien fiddled with the Go stones in silence.
For some reason, her brusque figure looked lonely today.