In the Garden of Beginnings

In the Garden of Beginnings

In the Garden of Beginnings

As soon as I closed my eyes, my sense of balance went haywire. It felt like I was tipping forward, and a floating sensation soon overtook me. I thought I was going to collapse, but someone pulled me close and said, “Stay focused, fool...” in a quiet, hasty voice. It was Ferdinand. His arm was right there, so I clung to it without a second thought.

For a moment, I was convinced that everything was okay—and then we hit the ground. The impact was only as jarring as if we’d tumbled out of bed, so we couldn’t have dropped very far, but I was still too disoriented to break my fall. I slammed straight into something hard.

“Guh!”

I opened my eyes and saw nothing but armor. I must have fallen on top of Ferdinand.

“Ouuuch...”

“Quit your whining and get off me!” Ferdinand barked.

Before I could even try to move, he pushed me aside and onto my back. Then he stood, already holding his schtappe at the ready.

Listen, buddy. Don’t get mad at me! You pulled me to you in the first place!

My head was spinning from being wrenched to one side, dropped, and then rolled over. I stumbled to my feet as well and suddenly realized we were in the Garden of Beginnings. Erwaermen was standing in place of the massive white tree that normally sat in the center of the circular room. Judging by the furrow in his brow and the mana radiating from him, he wasn’t in the best mood.

Well, Erwaermen looks ticked. I wonder what happened.

As I cocked my head in confusion, Gervasio let out a murmur of surprise. He was here with us, apparently. I turned to see him get to his feet, having fallen as we had, and then promptly kneel before Erwaermen, who continued to look thoroughly displeased with us all. Ferdinand was still gripping his schtappe, ready for combat, whereas I was doing my best to stop the world around me from spinning.

“What in the world are you three candidates doing?” Erwaermen demanded. “Yurgenschmidt must be replenished with mana posthaste.”

The pieces were falling into place. He must have summoned us here so that he could complain. That also explained why he had taken his humanlike form; he wouldn’t have been able to converse with us as a tree.

“You in particular, Quinta,” he continued. “I gave you Mestionora’s wisdom in spite of the bizarre, disrespectful entrance you made. Yet you never came back to finish the transfer, nor did you even attempt to dye the country’s foundation. Then, when I thought you had returned at last, my visitor informed me they were someone else entirely. I instructed said person to kill you and complete the Book of Mestionora, but they flatly refused. My next visitor actually did intend to dye the foundation, but my relief was short-lived, as both the light of wisdom and their way to the foundation were blocked. Why do you interfere, Quinta? Do you not see that Yurgenschmidt is on the verge of collapse?!”

In short, Erwaermen was mostly frustrated with Ferdinand. He was actually directing his anger at us both, but I suspected that was because he still couldn’t tell us apart due to our nearly identical mana.

Ferdinand was unfazed; he casually made his Grutrissheit and started to look through it. “Erwaermen—though you claim that Yurgenschmidt is on the verge of collapse, Rozemyne extended its lifespan by roughly two decades when she filled the country gates with mana. That may seem like nothing to someone who has watched over the country since its inception, but from our perspectives, that is long enough for a child to be born and come of age.”

“Really?” I asked. “We have plenty of time, then. I wish my Book contained information like that.” I wandered over and asked to see his, but he slammed it shut as soon as I got close. “Oh, come on! Let me read it for a little while! Don’t be selfish!”

“Rozemyne, do you understand where you are and what is happening around you?”

I took a second to inspect Erwaermen, who wasn’t any less outraged, and then Gervasio, who was still on his knees. Even I could tell this wasn’t the best time to nag him, but...

“I do, but I don’t want to miss one of my few chances to read your Book!”

“Then I understand completely. You are in the way. Step back.” Ferdinand gave me a flick on the forehead and jutted out his chin as if ordering me to move aside. “We have already lost dozens of mana-producing citizens as a result of Gervasio’s actions. An invader from Lanzenave is not fit to become the Zent when he will destroy the country from the inside.”

“The rules of your human society mean nothing to me,” Erwaermen replied. “Yurgenschmidt is the place of my atonement and a shelter for those in Ewigeliebe’s sights. Its collapse must be avoided at all costs. I have waited long enough; I will not allow the birth of a new Zent to be obstructed. You who refuses to dye the foundation—disappear.”

Erwaermen leisurely raised a hand and pointed in our direction. Ferdinand took in a sharp breath, then stepped in front of me and shouted, “ Geteilt! ” An orb of mana as strong as anything he could produce slammed into him without a shred of mercy.

“Eep!”

There was a loud screech as Ferdinand’s shield exploded and one of the three charms on his arm burst. The blood drained from my face; this was unlike anything we had ever faced before.

“Go forth, Terza,” Erwaermen instructed. “Replenish this country’s foundation.”

Gervasio stood up in silence. “Terza” must have been his name as a child if all those mentions of “Quinta” were anything to go by.

“ Rucken. Water gun, ” Ferdinand said. Then he shot Gervasio as soon as the man’s back was turned.

The Lanzenavian king had run out of charms during his battle atop the altar, so the bullet went straight through his leg. He dropped to the ground with a subdued grunt.

“I told you not to interfere, Quinta.”

“If you claim not to care for the world of men, then I do not care about your orders. I shall crown a new Zent, revive prayers, abolish the royal family, and ensure that future kings and queens are chosen from among those who can obtain the bible on their own merits. I must ask you not to interfere.”

Erwaermen had been looking in Gervasio’s direction, but he once again pointed at Ferdinand. I rushed to intercept the attack, poured all of my mana into forming the God of Darkness’s cape, and then spread it in front of us. It absorbed Erwaermen’s strike, replenishing my mana. The entire amount I’d spent on that massive waschen was restored in the blink of an eye.

This is bad. There’s way too much!

I scrambled to compress my mana, but there was too much for me to keep up with. My body started to feel warmer and warmer until, at last, I yelped in pain, feeling like someone had just dumped me in a pot of boiling water. Nostalgic though the feeling was, it wasn’t something I’d ever wanted to experience again.

So hot... It hurts... Someone, help...

“Don’t absorb it all, Rozemyne! Release it!”

Help me, gods!

I raised my arms high and shot out mana, which caused a bright pillar to appear in the Garden of Beginnings. I didn’t know if my desperate plea counted as a prayer, but light began shining down from the open ceiling as if responding to my mana.

The light dominated my vision like it was the only thing in the world, and a new woman stepped out who looked just like me. She had hair the color of the night sky, eyes like golden moons, and a neatly symmetrical face. It was like when I first caught sight of my reflection after my sudden growth spurt. We weren’t completely the same, though: the woman’s hairstyle and clothes didn’t match my own.

“Anwachs seemed pleased with his work, but I must admit, we look very much alike,” the woman said. “As one with the Devouring, your mana should be pliable; do allow me to borrow your body for a moment.”