Chapter 13

Chapter 13

 

SO, WE BOARDED A SHIP that was hanging from a giant jellyfish that flew in the sky.

Saying it out loud sounded ridiculous. Pure fantasy.

I personally had a lot of experience flying using my Phantom Horse and Fly spells and was pretty used to being high in the air. Even so, this situation far exceeded anything I could imagine. My heart was racing.

When I looked overhead, the jellyfish creature emitted a gentle purple light that took over my entire view. The left-hand and right-hand vistas were also mostly crowded by tentacles. The Moonlight Ship we’d boarded and the jellyfish (or “nocturnal monster”) were quite different sizes.

It was this size difference that allowed the jellyfish, swimming leisurely in the atmosphere, to carry a twenty-meter-long ship. I mean, I’m sure there was sorcery or magic or something involved, too, but the thing was huge.

“This is amazing. Really amazing. Beyond amazing!” Sedam remained consistently excited. He kept asking all kinds of questions of Canberils and the others, who were supposedly controlling the ship. Sedam scuttled around this way and that to look over every part of the ship he could reach.

“Since we’re all the way up here, it’s a shame we can’t enjoy the scenery.” The Moonlight Ship had no cabin. I stuck my head out from the ship’s bow and looked down at the ground below, but I couldn’t make anything out in the darkness.

“Ahh, Lord…are we there yet?”

Reyha tugged at the hem of my robes. She was sprawled on the floor in her sensational leather armor, a rare sight for her. Even so, she kept her bottom flat on the ground and her legs tucked in demurely.

Her purple eyes looked up at me, moist with tears. Her pointy ears slowly drooped.

“What, you’re scared? Just from being in a high place?” Lade asked provocatively, wearing his normal, unfriendly expression.

“S-silence! You would not see me thus, were I to fly with the lord’s magic! How could you ever think I would feel secure swinging around in jellyfish tentacles?!”

Reyha shot back her excuse defiantly, but she only clung to me more and more tightly. Her indignation had no impact whatsoever. But I had to admit, it was cute.

 

***

 

“I apologize to your servant, but it will take another three or four days before we arrive. We’ll land during the daytime for rest.”

Canberils spoke to me as I was lowering Reyha (still clinging to me) onto a nearby bench. One of the guards stood at what looked like the helm—though I had to wonder if nautical terms still applied.

“Three days…that’s fine.”

I had no idea how fast the jellyfish was traveling, but the destination must be much closer than I’d originally thought.

“The castrum is in Shrendal right now,” Canberils explained.

“Oh, is that so? Wait…hold on a second.”

I cocked my head to the side, but Canberils continued, not noticing. “I’ll warn you in advance: The elders want to meet with you as soon as we land. Until then, please don’t speak to any other members of the clan.”

“You mean, don’t talk to anyone about the prophecy, right?”

“Thanks for making it easy. The only people who know about this are the mystic, you, three elders, two warlords, two warchiefs, and those two guards over there. This topic is just too dangerous for the warrior clan as a whole.”

Canberils’s stony face looked like it had endured the weathering of wind and rain. I could tell he was under a lot of stress. The foresight of the mystic, or rather her authority, was that important to the warrior clan.

I nodded and started to ask him a question. “By the way—”

“By the way,” Sedam cut in, suddenly right beside me, “why does the warrior clan live in this castrum or whatever? Isn’t it normally called a town, or a base, or a village?”

“That’s because it’s not a town or a base, and no one would ever consider it a village.” Canberils let out a little sigh. He sounded exhausted, like an elderly man approaching death. “The warrior clan doesn’t belong anywhere in this world. We only have places where we must be…and they are where the daemons are.”

 

***

 

Three days later, high noon.

The plan was to walk from the Moonlight Ship’s landing spot to the castrum. They called this landing spot their harbor. We were surprised again to see that there were three more ship-and-jellyfish setups that had “anchored” there.

We walked along the rocky mountains for a few hours. The winding mountain path eventually approached a valley, surrounded on each side by high cliffs. At the entrance to the valley was a simple defensive wall and gate made of logs, as well as a watchtower.

“So, this is the warrior clan’s castrum?” Sedam said, really seeming to enjoy himself.

“That is correct,” the mystic replied, smiling. “We welcome you, and give thanks to you for coming all this way.”

We waited there for a time, and before long, the gate opened, and many boys and girls came running out at us.

“Oracle!”

“Oracle, welcome home!”

The elf maiden smiled beatifically. “Did you all stay healthy?”

“Yeah! We’re all fine!”

The mystic spoke to them gently, as if they were her own children. The rest of the warrior clan looked at her with respect, affinity, and a little fear.

“Okay, everyone! Back to work. We have important things to discuss with our guests!” Canberils spoke, and everyone bowed obediently and went back inside the gate.

“Aye, Warlord!”

“Let’s prepare a feast!”

Even the warlord had spoken gently to the children for a few minutes. My impression of the clan had only improved.

 

***

 

Guided by the mystic, we stepped into the castrum.

“Look at this…”

“Mmm.”

The first thing to catch my eye was the living quarters. There were a variety of very simple residences lined up in neat rows at the bottom of the valley. They were adorned with cloth and leather depicting geometric patterns. Except for some elaborate decorations, they were the same designs used by the warriors staying in the Castle Getaeus courtyard.

So those weren’t just what they used for camping or temporary housing…

As we proceeded along the bottom of the valley, everything we passed shared the same sort of simple, portable design. Actually, it seemed that even the watermill shed on the small river in the valley could be struck down. The small barns and pens were likewise collapsible.

“Do you mean the warrior barracks—”

“It’s not that surprising, is it? There are clans who follow sheep and cattle. We follow daemons.” Canberils spoke dispassionately.

Now I understood. That’s why he’d mentioned where the castrum was “now” on the Moonlight Ship. They moved from one land to the next, stopping where daemons were expected to appear—probably based on prophecy.

“Just like the name implies, this really is a war camp.”

“Yeah.” Sedam looked around, nodding.

The people in the clan who weren’t wearing that weird armor sported clothing that resembled the Japanese kimono. While their initial appearance was different, they lived like completely ordinary villagers in this world: spinning thread, washing clothes at the edge of the well, cracking wheat, and so on.

But these people’s lives centered on a never-ending hunt for daemons. Even Sedam watched them with both curiosity and sympathy.

 

***

 

Next, the mystic guided us to a larger but still simple residence in the center of the barracks.

It seemed the warrior clan didn’t have a culture of sitting in chairs. The interior of the wide space was floored with planks of wood, and we were prompted to sit on beautiful, embroidered cushions. This made me want to take off my shoes at the entrance, but it seemed that was unnecessary.

At the back of the room hung a tapestry of massive, threatening birds with their colorful wings spread wide. It was the warrior clan’s coat of arms.

“I am a warrior clan elder, Eads.”

“I am Caraon.”

“I am Dalegilo.”

The three elders sat, their backs to the tapestry. The mystic sat on her knees in a higher position than the elders, facing the tapestry.

The elders were not the geezers I’d imagined. They did show signs of aging, like thinning hair and crow’s feet, but all three had maintained strong physiques. They were wearing loose, dark red robes, like monks. While they did bow their heads in respect to us, the dignity in their eyes was that of seasoned war veterans.

“I am the wizard and lord of Castle Getaeus, Geo Margilus. Thank you for your invitation.”

I remembered how to act humble, and somehow got through our introductions in a dignified manner, even if I was a nervous wreck inside. At least, I think I came off dignified. Reyha and Sedam seemed uncomfortable behind me.

“Now, Margilus. Getting straight to the point, there are a number of things we want to confirm with you.” Elder Eads began speaking, but a soft voice interrupted him.

“Wait.”

“Yes, Oracle?”

“What is it?”

“What is it, you ask. But this wizard has suffered a great deal of inconvenience due to our disdain. Not only did he generously forgive me for this, but he also traveled a great distance to be of assistance to us.”

“Er…”

The mystic continued to scold the three elders (albeit in a kind and gentle voice). “Should we not start by providing refreshments and expressing our deep gratitude to him? Should we not also ask his forgiveness before stating our requests? When did you forget your manners? When you were young you were most conscientious. My heart aches, wondering if perhaps my teachings of love were insufficient.”

“Eh…eh heh heh. Excuse us.”

“Oracle, w-we humbly beg forgiveness…”

We sat silently.

Just as a reminder, the mystic looked like a beautiful, black-haired teenager. This seeming girl was scolding battle-hardened elderly warriors, and the elders were cowering and bowing in apology like schoolboys.

It was extremely awkward for us. Canberils and Lade were likewise sweating bullets.

In all, the scolding took about five minutes.

The elders did what the mystic said and dropped their posture very low while serving us tea and sweets and apologizing profusely.

“Hmm. Now…may we get started, Lord Wizard?”

“Let’s,” I said. “You’ve been very welcoming. I am quite interested to hear what you have to say.”

“Most kind of you. Now, before we get to the point… I am very sorry, but I would like to try just one more time to see if you have a reaction to daemons. We would like you to undergo another inquisition.”

“What?”

In fact, I had expected this.

Previously, Canberils and the diviner he’d brought to my castle had conducted an inquisition. They’d used a crystal ball with daemon blood sealed inside to judge whether the holder was influenced by daemons based on its reaction.

In other words, the elders still suspected me. Naturally, when the mystic heard this, she raised her green eyes and was ready to scold them again. The elders saw this and desperately tried to appease me.

“Granted, we know it is impolite! Please, indulge us. This is our way!”

“You’re right. It should be done, just in case. I will feel more at ease, too, if you inspect me carefully.”

I’d never intended to refuse, so I quickly agreed. I had to defend them from another tongue-lashing!

 

***

 

The crystal ball they presented was much larger than the Daemon’s Sight used in the previous inquisition, but luckily, it ended with the same result. The lump of reddish-brown blood in the crystal ball seemed to dislike being near me and went berserk.

“It is just as reported…”

“I’ve never seen such a response before.”

“Indeed… You are certainly not a leeched one, nor a daemonist.”

“You’ve seen it,” the mystic intoned, a touch dire. “Now hurry and apologize to the wizard.”

“Well, er, that’s not important,” I said. “I understood that this was necessary.”

I somehow managed to soothe the mystic, who sounded like a mother scolding her children for mischief. After that, we were finally able to get into real discussions.

“As the clan elders, we desire to ensure our oracle’s prophecies return to normal.”

“We need your knowledge for this, Lord Wizard.”

“Lord Wizard, if you don’t mind, we hoped you would take a look at the principal icon used to channel our prophecies—in other words, the daemon corpse that our ancestors secured five hundred years ago.”

“I see.”

They were still unaware of my magic’s principles, as well as the gate that made it possible. And they probably supposed that I had some sort of connection to an Epicenter (even if I wasn’t a daemon myself).

“In the end, we may ask you to participate in a ritual of prophecy directly.”

“As a matter of fact,” I said, “that is my strongest hope.” Researching the prophecy offered an important chance to learn about the King of Daemons. If they hadn’t brought up my being involved in the ritual themselves, I probably would have asked.

And beyond that, there remained the ultimate mystery about myself. What was a Watcher? Why was I transported to this world? I wondered if I could get a step closer to finding out.

 

***

 

As his title suggested, Rimeydal the Creator had made this world from nothing.

According to myth, Rimeydal first created the heavens and the earth. He created humans, and let them live upon the earth. Then he created elves and dwarves to help the humans.

The people dwelled in prosperity, and for a time, things were good. But the people were fertile and multiplied. When their numbers grew too large, divisions took hold, and they fought with one another. The fighting continued without end.

Thus, Rimeydal created death…and the netherworld, where all the dead were sent to dwell. Rimeydal, satisfied with the world he had created, granted the authority to rule over all nations to one superior group, and disappeared on a journey to a place unknown.

The group to whom he’d granted his authority now reigned as the royal family of Shrendal.

This was the creation myth the way I’d heard it. Since it justified the rule of the Shrendal royal family, it was unclear how much of it was true.

In any case, we couldn’t afford to neglect this type of background information in our quest to sway the fate of the world. There had to be something hidden somewhere in the myths of Sedia about daemons and Watchers.

I decided to start by asking the warrior clan. “Do you have any information about creation myths? Knowing the truth behind them would be ideal.”

“Mmm. We do know about the Divine King,” answered Caraon, a white-haired elder with a bit of a belly. The other two nodded.

“The Divine King? You mean the one that became the first Epicenter?”

And if the legends were true, that king was also an ancestor of Diane and the Schultz clan. Information about the Divine King was connected to the Epicenter and therefore the mystery of all daemonic phenomena.

“It seems that some things have been left out of the creation myth as espoused by the royal family of Shrendal. Among the missing details is any mention of the Divine King that the warrior clan knows. They say the Divine King was an aristocrat with the blood of Rimeydal.”

“Well… The lineage of Rimeydal is a big deal.” Sedam slid up closer until he was sitting next to me. His eyes were sparkling.

“Well, how about the true elf, our mystic, created by the hand of Rimeydal himself?”

“Wait…are you saying we’re actually staring at the truth of the myth with our own eyes?”

Now that I thought about it, he was right. She’d said that when we first met her. If it was true, then we wouldn’t need to do any research or reasoning.

I sat up straight and asked the beautiful elf maiden point blank.

“I am very sorry,” she said. “Only the first generation knows a time when Rimeydal was really there. I am of the second generation. I am not even five hundred years old. The knowledge and magic I inherited from the first generation is incomplete.”

Sedam looked let down. “Hrmmm…”

I poked Sedam in the ribs for sighing. “Er, you really don’t need to apologize,” I assured the mystic, who was already bowing her head in apology. It figured things wouldn’t be that easy.

Sedam wasn’t discouraged in the slightest. “But the knowledge you do have must still be enormous! For example, perhaps you know the cause of why this Divine King, a descendant of Rimeydal no less, became an Epicenter.” He asked the mystic questions like he was a fish and she was a source of water.

“I heard about that in pieces from the first generation and the sage. The Divine King came into contact with Rimeydal’s knowledge.”

“Oh?”

Sedam leaned in more. He was eating this up. The elders didn’t look very happy, but I was curious, too. It was certainly an important point.

“I will tell you only what I know…”

She spoke in her melodious voice and told us the following alternative legend.

 

***

 

After Rimeydal left…

The people founded Shrendal and expelled the Divine King to the east. The Divine King built his own kingdom there, but in his heart of hearts, he hoped someday to follow after Rimeydal. He searched for the secret that would fulfill his heart’s desire.

What he found was Qadr Brueys, the great library from the age of gods, built by Rimeydal and left in the care of the first true elf. There, he ready many things—and the things he read drove him mad. The library housed all of Rimeydal’s own knowledge, stored so that it might be given to humanity in some distant future, when they might need his wisdom.

The two most important books in the library were called The Opening of the Universe and The Meaning of Life. In these two books were written opposing truths: the truths outside this world, and the truths inside this world. After reading The Meaning of Life, the Divine King acquired the power to control the world. Once he knew the truths outside of this world written in The Opening of the Universe, he became drunk with despair and hatred.

The hatred of the Divine King, a being descended directly from Rimeydal, was terrifying. The hatred grew and grew. It took hold of him, and became him, and he became hatred. He became an Epicenter, and drew hatred from a different world into our own.

 

***

 

“This is everything I know about the Divine King.” Having finished her tale, the mystic cast her eyes down, as if in mourning.

“Hmm…interesting. And after that, the first brood event occurred from the Epicenter the Divine King generated?”

I had already come across a plethora of new vocabulary since arriving here. And some long-standing questions had also been answered.

The library from the age of gods…placed in the care of a true elf, one of whom is sitting before us. So, it really existed…

Sedam was looking up at the ceiling, like he’d reached his maximum capacity for wonder. I’d heard once that before he was born, his father, a scholar, had been trying to prove the existence of Qadr Brueys. Most believed the library to be a fable. To be honest, I was excited, too.

If we knew the contents of the two books in the library of the age of gods, we would be able to determine the true reason why the Divine King had become an Epicenter. That might tell us how to completely rid this world of daemons forever.

But then again…

“Oracle, you must know where the library and books reside.”

“Yes. Although I am admittedly merely a vestige of the first generation’s magic. My knowledge and my powers are nowhere near the heights of the first generation.”

“That can’t be helped,” said one of the elders quickly. “And for it, you bear no shame.”

“The mystic has led the warrior clan and protected this world from daemons for five hundred years.” The elders were quick to speak in defense of the mystic, whose eyes were downcast yet again. Naturally, they looked accusingly at us, so I swiftly decided to apologize.

“As I mentioned before, you’re not the one who has anything to be sorry about. Rather, it is we who should apologize for our frankness.”

“Hardly…”

“You have shared your secrets with us, so I would also like to share what I know. Perhaps if we combine my knowledge with the knowledge of the warrior clan, we can discover some new truths.”

I corrected my posture and began my story. Although it did seem like we would have no choice but to find a way to go to Qadr Brueys in the end.

(If this was an RPG, there wouldn’t be any doubt about it. We were definitely going. That place had “plot-critical dungeon” written all over it.)

Before we went, we naturally needed to get as close to the truth as possible. The warrior clan and the mystic kept their promise and provided us with all their information without hiding anything. In that case, I needed to lay my own cards on the table.

That meant coming clean about the Watcher, explaining the Gate of Magic, and revealing that I’d come from a different world.

“It’s a long story,” I said. “I’ll try to give you the short version.”

“Please tell us.”

I couldn’t help sounding a bit defensive from the beginning. The elf maiden cocked her head to the side and smiled as she listened calmly.

“I’ve been lying about this to everyone, but the truth is that I am not from this world. One day, I met someone called a Watcher, who transported me to this world. To put it bluntly: I’m a being from another planet.”

No one responded.

There was a possibility that they’d suddenly disdain me as something strange and foreign. An unknowable Other. I was scared and anxious, but I held on to hope. My trust in my companions provided support that held me up.

One of the elders looked deeply skeptical. “Suddenly, I have doubts.”

“Now, now. There is no reason for the wizard to lie to us,” said the mystic.

Although they looked puzzled, their expressions were not those of denial or disgust.

I turned to look at Sedam behind me (well, next to me, after all his scooting) on one side and Reyha on the other. When our eyes met, they both tilted their heads. Rather than anger or suspicion, the looks on their faces seemed to say, “And? Keep going.”

Excuse me, can you tell I’m taking a leap of faith and pouring my heart out here?

“Umm, well. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you both before.”

“Hmm? Well, yeah, I wish you hadn’t kept something so interesting from me for so long.” Sedam didn’t seem to care in the least.

“That’s not what I meant.”

Actually, part of me wondered if his interest in the unknown maybe went a little too far sometimes. But then, I’d met him several months ago. We’d built trust from working together all this time.

“That is the lord I know. It is a fitting history for our Orly. So, you were born a noble.” I’m not sure how Reyha got that out of what I’d said, but her eyes were sparkling.

“I’m…not a noble, though.”

I guess it wasn’t that strange for them to react like this.

But after they looked at me like that, it would be hard to break the news to them that in my former world I was just a normal company employee and not a wizard…While I was relieved at the reactions of my two friends, I felt bad that I was still hiding things.

“Given all your blunders,” Lade chortled, “they make more sense now that we know you’re not from this world.”

“And that’s why you’re so soft…er, why you can think in a different way than normal,” said Canberils.

I was surprised to hear the two of them pipe in on my origins so casually. Lade looked away, like he always did, and Canberils distorted his mouth into what I thought was an uncomfortable attempt at a smile.

“Thanks…” If I read them correctly, they were accepting and encouraging me in their own ways. Surprisingly, I felt some warm emotions.

“Go on, wizard.”

“E-excuse me. Anyway, this Watcher is capable of exerting extraordinary power between this world and other worlds. I’ve lately begun to wonder if it’s because he has some sort of connection to Rimeydal.”

“I have not heard this name in any myths I know… It certainly does sound like an existence similar to Rimeydal.”

So, the word “Watcher” didn’t bring up any hits. Well, I still had the worldly and cosmic truths hidden at the library of the age of gods to look forward to.

“Finally, inside of me, I harbor an existence very similar to an Epicenter. I call it the Gate of Magic. The difference is that it doesn’t connect to the daemon world, but rather, it is a gate to the chaotic realm.”

“Th-that…”

“Does that mean that the prophecy mistook the lord wizard’s gate for an Epicenter?”

The elders came to the same conclusion I had. It was only natural, since they desperately hoped to be rid of the possibility that the collective consciousness of the daemons had given them a false prophecy.

“There is a possibility of a misidentification. However, this prophecy mentions the wizard by name. This has never happened before in five hundred years of performing the ritual,” the mystic pointed out calmly. Then she frowned. “Did you say ‘Gate of Magic’? That is very similar to a prophecy that the first generation received from the sage. According to the sage, the art that connects this world with other worlds belongs to Rimeydal.”

“Rimeydal again…” After listening to the mystic, I started imagining that my theory of magic was something close to the library’s hidden truths.

“In the end, all roads lead to the library from the age of gods.”

“Yes…”

Once we finished our necessary tasks, we would have to start looking for the library.

With that established, we chatted with each other about our experiences with legends and what we knew. It took a while.

Once we were out of topics, the mystic nodded toward us. “For the time being, let us end this exchange of opinions here.”

“Agreed.”

“Very well. Now I would like you to actually witness my ritual.”

I was finally at the stage of verifying the warrior clan’s ritual of connecting with the daemonic overmind. Honestly, I wasn’t planning on just watching. I intended to touch the King of Daemons myself, at the same time.