Zzz— Zzz—— Zzz————
Efrin fell into a deep sleep at once. I planted a “Dream Connection” in the kid’s head.
It was quite a difficult spell, and it didn’t suit my aptitude, but thanks to the link called Mokgangcheol, I didn’t fail.
Fwhiiiiing…….
With the sound of wind whistling hollowly, the magical connection was completed.
Afterward, I looked at Efrin’s face, deeply asleep.
“…….”
If only she’d keep her mouth shut, she’s not without her charms. Everything she does is reckless, and she’s a fool who doesn’t even know what her own talent is yet.
This much is probably the emotion I feel as Kim Woojin.
“……You idiot.”
I picked up the book again.
These days I’ve been studying knight-related subjects. Swordsmanship and physical arts, training methods and breathing techniques—almost all of it. By now, don’t I know more, and more accurately, than your average knight?
Rustle…… Rustle…….
I turned the pages, waiting in case Efrin had a sweet dream. If Dikailren appeared again, I would know through the “Dream Connection.”
Rustle…… Rustle…….
Before I knew it, I’d read one book, and next, I opened a Quick Sword manual.
Then.
“……You know…… Professor…….”
A voice suddenly rang out. I lowered my eyes from the book.
“I told you I met Dikailren in a dream, didn’t I…….”
Efrin, who had been asleep, had woken up before I knew it. She was looking at me with bright, round eyes.
“…….”
I closed the book. I waited for the kid’s next words.
“But you see. It’s like, you know. That bastard…… no, the professor’s father—”
“Call him that bastard.”
As Deculin, and as Kim Woojin, Dikailren is someone I don’t want to call father. Right now, Deculin even has a history of leading the charge to kill Dikailren.
“……Yes. Do you know what that bastard said to me?”
Efrin narrowed her eyes as if nothing was wrong. However, beads of sweat formed on the kid’s forehead. Her heartbeat soared too.
“He said my father hated me! As much as he hated you, Professor, he hated me too.”
“…….”
“That’s absurd, right?”
I simply looked at the kid. I didn’t say a word.
In truth, Keigan Luna had hated Efrin. To the point of naming the child “Fall.”
I still don’t know the reason.
No, I think I have a vague idea.
It’s the unconscious use of “Comprehension.” Even facts I don’t know are pieced together like a puzzle in this head.
“Stop babbling and sleep.”
Efrin doesn’t have a mother. The kid has never seen her mother.
Whether she died giving birth to her, or if there’s another story.
The reason Keigan hated Efrin is surely because of that, but…….
“It’s dawn.”
I didn’t want to tell this kid that.
“…….”
Then Efrin’s expression sank low. The kid lowered her eyes for a moment. She clutched the blanket tightly.
Then, she smiled faintly.
“……Yes.”
She closed her eyes again.
Fwhiiiiing—
A wind gusted at that moment. An ominous echo resounded.
“It came.”
I asked thus, and as if answering, the world flipped upside down. “The Voice” swallowed me in an instant.
“…….”
A darkened space.
An empty cavity.
In this place reminiscent of the deep sea, only one person.
Young Efrin was there.
—Waaah, waaah, waaah.
Watching the kid cry before she could even walk, I intuited it. “The Voice” is trying to show me Efrin’s past.
—……Keigan. Efrin is your daughter.
A voice flowing in from somewhere.
I looked around that place.
—Hmph.
Keigan Luna and his mother—that is, Efrin’s grandmother—were together.
—She’s that woman’s daughter too.
Keigan spoke. Glaring at his daughter crawling on the floor as if to kill her.
—I hate that face, and those damned ashen hairs too.
The child, misunderstanding that gaze, simply giggled. She reached toward her father. Asking to be held.
—…….
She looked more than deserving of love, but Keigan instead clenched his fist. His face twisted and he spat out harshly.
—Kill her or let her live, do as you wish. I’m not raising that bastard.
* * *
……Did my father really hate me?
Efrin thought blankly. Such doubt rose in her head like fog.
Even knowing it wasn’t true, even thinking it wasn’t, constantly…….
Why did he hate me?
What did I do wrong?
Were my father’s smiles, his letters, those sentences filled with affection and sincerity—all lies?
If he really hated me, why didn’t Deculin say anything?
Because he thought I wouldn’t believe it?
Well, I suppose so.
I wouldn’t have believed it. I would have rushed at him in a rage instead.
……If that’s not it?
Efrin recalled something Deculin had once said. She reflected on the trigger that made her start magic again.
Her father’s death.
From that day, she resolved to become a mage. With the single-minded focus of taking revenge on Deculin.
……If so, could it be?
Did father pass the revenge against Deculin down to me?
Did he dump his unfinished business onto me?
Did Deculin accept me even while knowing that?
Why?
How come?
“Efrin.”
“!”
Then Efrin opened her eyes. Her whole body was drenched in cold sweat.
“Uh…….”
Deculin, he was sitting in a chair. Outside the window, the sun had already risen.
“Did you have a nightmare?”
Deculin asked. Efrin stared at him blankly.
“No…… It wasn’t a nightmare…….”
She answered blankly and shook her head.
“……I was just thinking. Professor…… have you been here the whole time?”
“Magic must be maintained at close range.”
“Ah…….”
“Your condition looks quite serious, so from now on, sleep where I can see you.”
“Ah, yes…… wait, no?! What did you say?!”
Efrin bolted upright.
She flinched in surprise at that moment. Her sweat-drenched clothes were half see-through.
“Oh my!”
She quickly covered herself with both arms—smack! Deculin looked at her as if bewildered.
“Ah, u-uh, where are you looking?!”
“……Before I kill you.”
“Wh-what did you say?!”
Thwack—!
Deculin flicked Efrin on the forehead. A burning pain rang through her skull.
“Uwaaack!”
“Get up.”
“Aack! Aaaaack!”
“Starting today, I have much to do with you.”
“……Ack. Aack.”
Deculin got up abruptly and left the room, and Efrin followed behind him, rubbing her swollen forehead.
“Right. What about ‘the Voice’? I slept comfortably.”
“And you say you slept comfortably while sweating that much cold sweat?”
Efrin quickly retorted to Deculin’s words.
“But it wasn’t a nightmare.”
“I went to ‘the Voice’ alone.”
“……Huh? Why? Weren’t we going together?”
“The Voice showed me your past. You can’t enter your own past.”
“?”
She tilted her head, not understanding what that meant for a moment.
“…….”
But soon her face flushed red, and she grabbed Deculin’s suit tightly.
“Ack! What the! How much did you see! Wh-why are you peeping!”
“You’re noisy.”
“How much did you see! How muuuch——!”
Deculin ignored this beastly kid.
* * *
Recordeak, having taken in the mountain villagers, had become something akin to a city.
Every morning, the smell of cooking rice rose fragrantly, and the place was full of human vitality and laughter. Not just the guards and villagers, but even the prisoners smiled.
They were all people who would die if the walls fell.
“Are the automatic ballistae all installed?”
I patrolled the walls from early morning. The path atop the walls was deeply cold, but with cotton clothes supplied, it seemed bearable.
“Yes! We’ve installed a total of five hundred ballistae on the walls. Additionally, since the villagers mine firewood and ore every day, we should be able to replenish arrows without difficulty.”
The guard spoke energetically. Secretary Ruina asked.
“Oh my. Was there a mine here too?”
“I suppose so.”
Efrin, the second secretary, also looked curious.
“Haha. We didn’t know, but the villagers knew incredibly well. We found out thanks to them.”
“Aha~”
The two nodded at the guard’s words. Then Efrin asked.
“Then, could I try shooting one of these ballistae too……?”
That kid seemed to have a lot of curiosity, so I looked down at the ground.
Yulri was in the training grounds.
—Hup! Hup!
She was running crudely.
With the Wave not far off now, her routine seemed to consist solely of training and sparring…….
That training is bad.
For Yulri, who has a weak heart, there is a better training method.
Furthermore, observing her sparring until now, there is a problem with her swordsmanship as well. To be exact, there’s a “habit.”
Her kind nature manifests as a very bad quirk—habit—in sparring and duels.
“…….”
I want to convey that fact and correct it, but a suitable method…….
I found a method.
“Sirio.”
“……Hm?”
A refined, handsome man leaning against the wall enjoying the breeze—the Quick Swordsman Sirio. He was deputy commander of the Illaid Knights but also Deculin’s classmate.
I spoke to him.
“As the person in charge of Recordeak, I assign you a mission.”
* * *
“Haa.”
Yulri was running. Since her biggest problem was stamina, she naturally focused on cardio.
“Haa, haa…….”
The training grounds of Recordeak Shrine were tremendously vast, but her daily goal was one hundred laps.
Sometimes even when her heart felt like it would burst, she endured through sheer spite. When spite wasn’t enough, she thought of Deculin.
That face glaring at her with scorn and contempt…….
“Hup!”
Using that anger as fuel, she ran one hundred laps.
“Kuk…… Huu.”
Rain-like beads of sweat. A clear wind blew in toward her, clutching her chest that felt like it would shatter.
“Yulri~”
Quick Swordsman Sirio. Welcoming his sudden appearance, Yulri first wiped her sweat.
“Yes. Sirio. What is it?”
“Want to spar?”
“……Spar, you say?”
“Yeah!”
Sirio answered brightly.
It shouldn’t be sparring time right now, should it?
Yulri blinked and asked back.
“Why suddenly…… *sniff sniff*.”
She sniffled instinctively.
A familiar scent lingered on Sirio’s body.
It was the scent of a noble that everyone in Recordeak knew.
“……You met the professor.”
“Huh?”
Sirio was greatly flustered. Having no talent for lies, he broke into a cold sweat.
Yulri’s eyes narrowed.
“You did meet him.”
“H-how did you know?”
“……A guess.”
She didn’t reveal how she knew. If she told him it was the scent, he’d fix it next time.
“So what does that professor want this time?”
“Well, it’s…….”
Sirio scratched the back of his neck and pulled out a sheet of paper.
“What is that?”
“Script.”
“Script?”
“Yeah. Everything Deculin pointed out about your swordsmanship is here.”
“……What. What does that mean? Swordsmanship critique?”
“Yeah. Ah, it’s not just you. Deculin gave feedback on the other knights’ swordsmanship too. Isn’t it amazing? He knows theory like the back of his hand—”
Swish!
Yulri snatched the script from Sirio. She read the contents written on the paper with wide eyes.
“[Yulri’s swordsmanship has a very crude habit. It’s a pathetic and disappointing habit. She’s little different from a stupid bear.
First, Yulri reveals where she is going before she even swings her sword. If you grasp this well, you can know her every path.
Moreover, she frequently shows the bizarre and unprecedented tendency to consider her opponent’s weaknesses instead, so pretend to be hurt on purpose. Very interesting results will appear.
So far these are problems of habit, and next are technical problems of swordsmanship…….]”
“Stupid bear…… technical problems…….”
Her expression sank coldly as she muttered so. A chill that froze the air spread. Sirio shivered.
“Someone who’s never even held a sword before…….”
Yulri gritted her teeth. Feeling dizzy, she pressed her fingers to her temples.
Sirio gave a bitter smile.
“Ha, hahaha. I-I understand. I’d be angry too if someone critiqued my swordsmanship. But if you read it carefully, it’s not entirely wrong—”
“…….”
Flames blazed in Yulri’s eyes. Sirio closed his mouth.
Crunch—!
Yulri crumpled the script and muttered through gritted teeth.
“Sirio. Are you in league with Deculin?”
“Come on~ In cahoots? We’re all from the same cohort.”
“That’s enough.”
She shoved the script into her pocket. Then, thud—bang— thud—bang— she began marching like a giant gorilla.
“Where, where are you going?!”
“If the professor is so remarkable that he can analyze my swordsmanship, then I ought to spar with him, not Sirio. Though I had no idea he had majored in swordsmanship as well.”
“……Huh?! W-wait, hey! You’re saying you’re going to beat up a mage?”
“It is a spar.”
Yuli began climbing up to the top of the wall where Deculein was waiting.
* * *
……The Imperial Palace, the Hall of Learning.
There, far from the north, in a cozier and warmer place, Sophien was still reading Deculein’s memorial.
However, she was not alone. A dozen or so retainers were with her.
“It is a truly fine piece of writing.”
One historian said. Sophien glanced in his direction. Those three historians, who had said they would record Deculein’s memorial, had been doing nothing but exclaiming in admiration for some time now.
“Not only the prose, but the penmanship itself is truly beautiful. It is a harmony of masterful calligraphy and masterful writing, and furthermore, a memorial in a form never before seen.”
Dozens of pages in all. Each and every letter written fluently in his own hand.
They analyzed Deculein’s memorial through magnifying spectacles as if dissecting it.
Sophien muttered curtly.
“Is that so.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. There has never been a memorial like this. It shows Your Majesty unfiltered loyalty, lowers himself while still brimming with noble pride, and is filled with fresh and wondrous turns of phrase……”
At that moment, the old minister Romellock spoke.
“In addition, Professor Deculein has indirectly asked Your Majesty not to hate your retainers too much.”
Sophien glared at him. However, he was right.
Trusting one’s retainers too much was not good, but rejecting them too fiercely would not be right in the end either. She only needed to catch and kill the Altar’s pawns.
In truth, the reason she had summoned her retainers like this was, to some extent, because she had been moved by that man.
“Still, I am curious. Why is Professor Deculein trying so hard to defend Reccordak? For it to be merely for the chairmanship……”
A nameless retainer asked Romellock, as if talking to himself.
Romellock shook his head. Rumors were rife that it was because of Deculein’s obsession with the chairmanship and the astronomical cost of his investment, but he could not say that outright.
Sophien said,
“I have discussed the expedition to the Land of Extinction with Deculein.”
“……Pardon?”
Romellock’s eyes widened.
“Your Majesty! How could you discuss something so important with only that professor—”
“To carry out an expedition to the Land of Extinction, Reccordak is necessary.”
“……”
At that, every retainer gathered there looked up at Sophien.
All sound ceased, and silence settled over them.
“This man wrote all manner of things in his memorial, but his true heart was his resolve to be of use to me.”
“……Ah.”
“His defense of Reccordak must be an act that reveals that true heart. Deliberately, even though I never ordered him to do it. He truly is a foolish man.”
Sophien continued calmly.
“That man is not someone mad for power. Chairman of the Mage Tower? If I permit it, he could become that tomorrow. There is no need for him to throw away his body in Reccordak.”
“……”
The retainers were at a loss for words. They sank into solemn silence.
Only then did they feel they understood why Deculein had gone to Reccordak, and why he was so fixated on that place.
It was entirely different from the rumors of the world, which had been composed of words such as madness, honor, and advancement.
Rather, it was an exceedingly loyal intention.
“As I surmise it, he was merely trying to conceal my thoughts regarding the expedition to the Land of Extinction. He forced together the excuse of the chairmanship and spread the rumor that he was defending Reccordak solely for his own advancement. That man, too, is a political creature like me.”
Even in Deculein’s smallest words and actions, there was political intent.
That was what people in the Imperial Palace were saying these days.
Sophien felt proud that she had read Deculein’s mind.
“It is the heart of a true loyalist, Your Majesty.”
One retainer said in a voice damp with emotion. Romellock glared at him. For the ministerial authority had, for now, to keep Deculein in check.
“However, Your Majesty—”
“You may all leave now.”
Sophien gave the order of dismissal. Since Sophien’s order of dismissal could not be refused, the retainers had no choice but to withdraw.
“““Yes, Your Majesty. Please rest well……”””
With the retainers’ low bows behind her, Sophien, now alone, sat still and looked over the memorial.
The sentences she had already read dozens, no, hundreds of times today alone.
A mysterious letter in which new meaning was discovered each time she read it.
“……”
Letting out a small sigh, Sophien thought of Deculein. She recalled the man who had spent over a century together with her.
Of course, those hundred-odd years did not exist in his head now…… but Sophien was simply curious.
“Just what reason is it that makes you so loyal to me? That is what I wish to know……”
Murmuring softly, she picked up a pen and paper.
The emperor wrote without hesitation the reply she would send to her retainer in that distant north.