Part 2 — Custom

“Alright, then, once Noah’s all fixed up, we’ll all head to the king! ...Hey! Everyone but Pandora’s here!” Danua says, finally noticing that little detail. Those present can only shake their heads at her delayed reaction.

The Eight Sacred Treasures crafted by God... All of them, other than Pandora, currently utilized by House Disaea, are assembled in this spot. And further, it’s now been decided that Ukyou would continue to use five of them himself. If left alone, he could very well end up with six of the eight.

“...We understand you need Danua, the Silo of Plenty. However, to have you possess six of them...”

The King of Arcana wanted to secure Noah, at the bare minimum. Even if Ukyou needs Danua, letting him have both of them is a bridge too far.

“Mm... Yes, I suppose you’re right. Nothing good comes from being greedy.”

Danua, the Silo of Plenty and Noah the Ark. They’re both currently at this spot, and having both of them would solve quite a few problems. But wanting them both is just asking for too much. Scuttling the peace treaty would be self-defeating.

“I’m not going to make a move for Noah,” Ukyou replies, quickly accepting the Arcanian King’s words.

“Oh yeah?! Just how do you think I’ll get to the hungry folk if I don’t have Noah?” Danua retorts, disagreeing vehemently.

It’s not as though Noah is a particularly fast method of travel. Still, a ship that can travel without regard to terrain provides enormous carrying potential, and for Danua, that’s a hard thing to compromise on.

“To have nothing to eat for a day or two... You know what it’s like to be a babe who can’t eat anything but gruel, gruel that’s hardly no different from hot water?!”

“Now, hold on, Danua. I, Elixir, understand your feelings well. But you know full well that nothing good happens when there are too many of us in one place. No, if anything, you should know that better than any of us.”

“Errm...”

“Danua, trust in Elixir. Our master may have a bit of a mouthy streak, but he has the charitable heart you so love. The true calling of a tool is to serve a good master, and surely a man with a charitable heart will not do any harm to the hungry.” Elixir says soothingly, calming the vehemently protesting Danua. She quickly takes Danua from no compromises to compromising.

In truth, trying to take Noah home with them would likely end in war.

“We will make certain that Noah will choose a master of her own free will, so do not worry yourself. You may trade letters if you wish, and even visit from time to time. The countries are not so large, and as they’re right next to one another, no doubt you can walk the distance every once in a while,” Elixir continues, charging on ahead, but no one objects to her proposal.

The truth is, Noah’s conditions for use are quite lax. Perhaps it goes without saying, as her purpose is to collect the powerless masses and bear them until the disaster passes, but as Noah accepts people who don’t want to die as her masters, she’s essentially usable by anyone. Further, there are countless people in the Arcana Kingdom. Even if the King can’t make use of her, someone else can.

“...I’ll at least be here till she wakes up. You can allow that at least, right?”

“Yes, good, good. So that’s how it’ll be, my master.”

“Alright, thanks. Sorry to leave you to do it all.”

It’s a perfectly acceptable solution as far as Ukyou’s concerned. Based on the King’s expression, he seems to have no issue with it, either.

“Hahahah! My master, you are a man who became a king! In which case, it’s upon you to be confident! And I am a chalice, so leave it to me to help untangle the webs between people!”

“You really are oddly good with people. Maybe I should leave diplomacy to you... Wait, without Elixir I’d probably end up dead.”

“Oh, it was just a matter of converging interests, so it’s not any real feat of negotiation. Danua is a dedicated silo, so she will nod her head when someone needs her, and she doesn’t like conflict, so she is amenable to persuasion. Of course, that is why she doesn’t get along very well with the average Sacred Treasure.”

At the very least, the looks from the other Sacred Treasure are less than friendly. They must believe they need to deny her legitimacy given that she, in a sense, has moved beyond her role as a tool, of her purpose being the same as her functions.

“We have gained a Sacred Treasure unexpectedly... Eckesachs. Would you mind explaining Noah’s functions?”

Having essentially been given the right to make use of one of the Sacred Treasures, the King manages to ask this, despite his confusion. A flying ship in and of itself is extremely useful, but he needs to confirm the details.

“She’s tough and can fly. No other features to speak of. She cannot fly all that fast, either, but combined with that stick over there, you should be able to move relatively quickly,” Eckesachs explains, throwing in a barb in the process.

“I’m not a stick!” Vajra replies angrily.

“Then go turn into a spear next to the half-destroyed Noah,” Eckesachs retorts, rather coolly.

“...I refuse.”

Vajra subtly tries to position herself so that she and Noah aren’t in the same field of view. It seems she doesn’t like dealing with Sacred Treasures larger than she is.

“As Danua noted earlier, it’s a ship that won’t break unless you use me. Suiboku did, in fact, destroy her at one point.”

“Another thing about my Master I didn’t know...”

Sansui finds it refreshing to learn bits and pieces of the man his master once was. Even if it’s not as though he’s learning everything about him, it’s still a story that Sansui couldn’t imagine his current master participating in.

“So far as I’m aware, the only ones capable of destroying her are Suiboku, while wielding myself, and that mage over there. There were a few great warriors in the past that Suiboku faced who might have been able to destroy her if she weren’t flying. They were all Rare Arts users and were extremely aggressive. Still, the only ones at present who could ever hope to destroy her so thoroughly are Suiboku, while wielding myself, and that one there.”

Hearing those words, everyone present looks to Sansui, the extremely plain swordsman. He had always praised his master, but that’s starting to seem like it’s actually grounded in reality.

“Sansui, why don’t you go back to your master and learn a flashy technique or two?”

“Lady Douve, in that case, I’m afraid I wouldn’t return during your lifetime.”

“...Your Immortal Arts are quite a bother. Can’t you just pick up a quick move or two?”

“I’m afraid not.”

If Sansui says he can’t, then it’s probably not possible. And really, if Sansui were to gain Shouzo levels of firepower, that would pretty much leave the other Houses with no recourse.

“At any rate, that is all I’m able to tell you. Surely it’s for humans to decide how to use a flying ship. Out of the Eight Sacred Treasures, I’m the only one who is purely combat-orientated, and I know little about anything else.”

To the King’s question, Eckesachs more or less only explained just how tough Noah actually is. That was it. She essentially said that Noah was effectively indestructible, but that isn’t a particularly useful piece of information.

“You should ask the rest of her directly. She’s easy enough to push into answering.”

“We appreciate it. Still, there does seem to be quite a number of uses for her. The problem is... She is not an ace, in and of herself.”

The King glances to Noah. She’s currently in pieces, but ordinarily she’s a nearly indestructible flying ship. To make the best use of this in warfare would mean...

“Thinking upon it, Lord Caputo...”

“Yes, Your Majesty?”

“It is a problem that there is no reward for Caputo for your contributions to this war. No doubt you could make the best use of her.”

Noah is a flying ship and is equipped with powerful defenses. If Shouzo were to use her, he would literally become a strategic bomber aircraft.

“Have her decide on a master who’s someone other than Shouzo. That should solidify your position.”

Making Shouzo the wielder would create some problems on its own. After all, given his personality, he’s likely to do something reckless without thinking through the consequences.

“...Thank you. You honor us, Your Majesty.”