Chapter 2
Part 3
After that, following the usual courtesies of greeting everyone of import, the gathering came to an end.
I had thought that they might have brought the Princesses of Gold and Silver down to introduce them to everyone, but in the end it never happened. After all, being that close to someone who was so _____ may have cost the gathered magi to lose their minds for good.
Many of the magi who had come went on their way after the gathering was finished, but since my train back home wasn't until tomorrow, I instead went across to the Tower of the Sun. It seemed like the Tower of the Moon was for members of the family, and the Tower of the Sun was reserved for guests.
As expected of such a family, the beds there were of phenomenal quality. Just lying down on it felt like you were in a space with no gravity. On the other hand, that feeling of weightlessness made the weight I felt within myself seem all that much heavier, and I unconsciously ended up sighing.
"...my my."
Gently I brought my fingers to my eyelids.
My eyes were burning. Thanks to this particular trait of mine, I wasn't particularly fond of social gatherings like this one. Since the wavelengths of each of the gathered magi's energy was different, my eyes had overheated trying to match to each of them. Times like this made me feel like my skills and quality as a magus were lacking, but my brother told me it was the kind of thing that calmed down as you got older. Personally though, the one thing I liked about these Mystic Eyes was the tiny bit of jealousy my brother exhibited in regard to them.
(...however.)
Covering my face, I sighed again.
"Not just a Grand, but a Lord as well?"
As expected, the event was too much.
Not just my eyes, it felt like my brain was overheating as well. I thought I had predicted the general scope of the event beforehand, but I had been too naive. Not just that it was Lord Valueleta of all people, but the rumored Grand was Touko Aozaki.
I had so many things I needed to think about, I had no idea where to even start.
"...but I'm glad no one decided to attack us." Suddenly, a voice came out from beside me.
Not yet lying on her bed, it came from Gray, still sitting on a nearby sofa.
Maybe because she had been high-strung for so long, it seemed like she hadn't been able to calm down yet as she sat fidgeting on the sofa. As she moved her interlaced fingers back and forth, her movements reminded me of some sort of Buddhist hand seals, or maybe some African form of Cat's Cradle. Come to think of it, I remembered hearing in my brother's lectures that similar games to Cat's Cradle were used among the Maori by storytellers for telling myths, and the Inuit related it to Curses...yes, the fact I was making connections like this at all was proof of just how tired I was.
In short, my control over my own thoughts was lacking.
"Though there were a few people who looked like they wanted to start something. For the most part, it seems like people kept their malice in check for today's debut. Something like that is a kind of weapon in itself."
"...I wonder why they went so far as to create a person that beautiful," Gray spoke, voicing a deep thought.
It seemed as if being such an unsophisticated person as she was, the Princess of Gold had left a deep impression on her. Though I fully understood that feeling.
"My brother said so as well, but that is within the scope of magecraft too." After applying some eyedrops, I replied.
Though it was faint, I could feel the heat in my eyes soften a little. Once my eyes had calmed down, I could be sure the rest of my body would follow suit. Well, my nature as a magus aside, that was the kind of process and time it took for me to do so.
"You mean, beauty is?"
"Of course. Like he said, the beauty inherent in mathematics is necessary for the construction of things like Magic Circles and Workshops, but for families like Iselma and Valueleta, it's an even more fundamental part, and as such is highly valued."
The shock of that experience had also reminded me of something I had almost forgotten. "Do you know what it is that magi are aiming for?"
After a moment of blankness, Gray replied with a difficult expression. "Umm...I heard about it in class. What was it...the Spiral of Origin?"
"Right. The Spiral of Origin, or more simply the Root. Sometimes it's referred to as 「 」, the thing for which there can be no reference. It is the source of everything, the 'zero' from which all matter and phenomena flow. Ah, but now that I'm trying to put it into words, I'm realizing that's not a good idea. After all, even the idea of 'zero' has baggage that makes it unsuitable as a comparison."
As I played around with my words, I narrowed my eyes.
"Regardless, the goal of magi is to eventually reach that place. Of course, there are also those who simply derive pleasure from touching the supernatural, or from being superhuman. Because we are weak, we fall to that diversion. But in the end, that's not our ultimate goal."
For modern magi, most understood that reaching the root was something that just wasn't possible for them. After all, even though magecraft itself had been in a state of continuing decline since the Age of Gods, there were no reports of anyone facing that past and trying to return to it. Likely, the appearance in the Far East of the fifth - and often called the last - Magician was the same as the gate to the Root being all but closed to everyone else.
Even so, we didn't give up.
Anyone who would give up in a situation like this would never have become a magus to begin with.
"In order to reach that place, the Valueleta family chose 'beauty' as their path."
"...path."
"Right. Maybe you've heard of it before, that recognition of beauty was originally a function in humans used to perpetuate their survival." Putting a finger to my temple, I tried to remember the contents of my brother's previous lectures on the topic. It was a skill most lecturers probably had themselves, that just by remembering the beginning of the material, the following information would come pouring out of its own accord.
"Similar to how our sense of smell and taste developed to detect poisons, and our vision and hearing were honed to avoid physical danger. But even apart from those five senses, before humanity had developed to the point of conscious thought, beauty existed as an internal drive to 'seek pleasure.'"
For example, the cave paintings of Lascaux, France.
For example, the naked stone figurines excavated from the ruins of Willendorf.
These works, known as primeval art, were clear proof that the concept of beauty was insuperable from humanity.
"As far as using beauty as their path, magi thought something along these lines: 'if one looks upon beauty, one becomes more beautiful.'"
"...you become more beautiful yourself?" As expected, the explanation seemed to have gone a bit over Gray's head, as she furrowed her brow.
"Heh, what a strange story, right? But even those magazines over there will tell you that art and literature are the food of the soul."
"...Ah, I see. In that case..."
"Fundamentally it's the same thing. According to my brother, beauty is like a type of sympathetic curse. As we appreciate the beauty of art, our souls and spirits are purified - that is the true nature of the feeling we express with the term 'beauty.'"
After nodding in a way that reminded me of a small animal, Gray pondered my words for a moment before speaking.
"Then, if we were able to witness something of extreme beauty..."
"...then we might be able to push our soul up into a higher plane of being all at once. What do you think? Feel like you've become a better person? Well, I guess you already have quite the pretty face."
"...please, don't talk about my face."
For a small moment, there was a strange pause in her speech. It looked like I might have stepped on a landmine.
Dragging that story out of her seemed like it would be a nuisance, so I decided to let it be for now.
"...well, once you start talking about beauty in this context, you get a result like 'her.'"
I was really quite impressed.
It was like hearing a single poem from a single book read aloud, and having your entire life changed because of it. Even the most famous of works read by the most skilled of performers could hardly hope to produce such an effect, but if you could produce that effect on demand - that was doubtless magecraft. In a way, it wasn't exaggerating to say it was within the realm of True Magic.
"...I see." Gray sighed deeply. "Is everyone in the Faculty of Creation like that? It feels like they are on a terribly long journey..."
"The Iselma family, and the greater Valueleta family that they are a part of are some of the most distinguished bloodlines in the Clock Tower after all. Enough to be numbered one of the Great Three Noble Families at least."
Barthomelloi.
Trambellio.
Valueleta.
These were the Three Great Noble Families of the Clock Tower.
This is a bit of a digression, but there is a distinction between what are called the 'big' and 'small' Lords of the Clock Tower. The 'big' sense, referring to the Twelve Lords, probably doesn't need explaining anymore. There was also the 'small' sense, however, referred to as the
, most of whom belonged to the Three Great Families.
Of course, the second sense was an entirely unofficial one.
It was a custom developed before the power of the Twelve Lords had been solidified, but paying respect to the old was a natural instinct for magi. As such, the power struggles and underlying animosities that supported that system still survived rather robustly to the present day. It really would be better if magi just died off as soon as possible, wouldn't it?
By the way, the name Lord El-Melloi originally held that meaning as well, but that was something of the distant past now.
"...I feel like my head is going to split open," Gray confessed, pressing her fingers into her temples.
"Oh, did I try and pile a little too much in?" With a small laugh, I stroked the blanket.
As I did so, Gray's cloak began to stir near her right hand.
"More like she's been cooped up for so long, she completely misjudged the Golden Princess or whatever!"
With a small noise, the hook holding Gray's cloak came undone, and out popped a small bird-cage looking object. From the inside of that cage, Add slipped his opinion in with a smug expression.
"That lady is scary, right? Even though I was properly hidden and everything, it was the first time I came so close to being found out!"
The eyes and mouth engraved on the box inside worked busily.
It was a bit of a recurring thought, but seeing Add move like that reminded me of the CG you see in movies. The expression morphing bewilderingly on his face was so overly detailed it was like it was trying to express a different opinion than Add's itself.
"Touko Aozaki?"
"Yeah, that one. The hell is she, some kind of monster?"
"In that case, the fact you weren't found is actually quite the feat."
Probably because Add's concealment was done entirely without the aid of magecraft. That might lead one to ask why such a paper-thin defense was set up to keep him hidden, but both Add and Gray were silent on that front.
"...I was interested in her, too."
"What?! In that four-eyes?!"
"Yes. Why did someone like Touko Aozaki decide to show up here-"
As I made to explain further, I suddenly felt a presence beside me.
"Trim?"
Though I had thought she had already returned to her place in my suitcase, she was now beside me staring intently at the door.
"I have detected two unknown persons within the vicinity."
Both Gray and I were suddenly overflowing with tension.
About ten seconds later, a knock came at the door.
Meeting Gray's eyes for an instant, I swallowed before nodding.
In short order, she took hold of the cage sitting on the table and returned it to its place tucked away in her cloak. No matter how many times I saw her do it, it still felt like I was watching the cage get sucked into an alternate dimension, but for now my most urgent concern was on the other side of the door.
As I reached my hand to the remaining Mystic Codes in my suit case,
"May I come in?" A voice called out from the other side of the door.
"It's open," I replied.
I could hardly hope to trust the lock on a door in someone else's house, so it was all the same to me if it was left open. As long as I was in someone else's territory, it was little different from being locked in a labyrinth strewn with traps.
The thread-like gap in the doorframe slowly widened, exposing the hallway outside.
Standing there was one of the maids who had been attending the Gold and Silver Princesses.
"My name is Caleena," she greeted us, the lantern in her hand forcing her curtsy into an informal style.
"How polite. Reines El-Melloi Archisorte. May I help you?"
At my frank response, the maid turned to look behind her. It seemed as if there was another person behind her. Her twin, perhaps?
"Please, come forward."
At the maid's invitation, another figure appeared beside her.
I literally couldn't believe my eyes.
At times, ones awareness surpassed even the laws of physics. With an acuteness that rivalled magecraft itself, I could feel the nerves connected to my eyes and the part of my brain that governed them exploding all at once.
"Princess of...Gold...!"
****************************
Honestly, I thought I had gone crazy.
Even if we were both women, her beauty was one that transcended the limits of gender. My mind was so completely overwhelmed that it needed a few seconds just to start working again. Her beauty felt so removed from reality that if someone had told me the place I had been standing had been swapped into a different world, I probably would have believed them.
"Pleased to meet you," a voice spoke.
Even just the sound of her voice felt like it was directly shaking my brain.
"...y-yes," I managed to squeeze out.
As expected of the second meeting, it lacked the extreme impact that the first had had, but if it hadn't I might have just passed out on the spot. At that moment I learned that beauty was violence.
"Lady Diadra has said she wishes to speak to you," the maid who had called herself Caleena spoke up again.
"To us?"
"No. Would it be acceptable to ask your attendant to take her leave?" she asked, the lantern in her hand illuminating the still-hooded Gray.
"...Umm..."
"She is a trustworthy person," I immediately spoke. The reason I had brought a bodyguard was exactly for moments like this. Having her step out would certainly be inconvenient. I had no confidence that Trimmau herself would be capable of handling the job, after all.
Diadra, who had been quietly watching until now, finally opened her mouth.
"...in that case, it will be enough if you step out alone, Caleena."
"As you wish." With a quick nod, Caleena dutifully stepped out of the room and was gone. As if it was her duty as a mere attendant, the sense of her presence had completely vanished.
Only the two of us and Diadra were left.
"My apologies for impinging on you so suddenly."
"...not at all." Even as her voice alone threatened me with a dizzy spell, I managed to reply.
Though, now that I was this close, I was able to discover something.
"...by any chance, would you happen to be deaf?"
"So you have noticed." With a faint smile, the Princess of Gold - Diadra pressed her hands to her ears. "Yes, hearing loss is a hereditary problem in our family. However, I am still able to manage most conversations by reading lips, and through magecraft learning how to speak myself was no major obstacle."
"...Ah, I see."
Though it was still trailing in the dust of modern science, there were still some areas where magecraft had the distinct advantage. What the Princess of Gold was speaking of now - the use of magecraft to teach a deaf person the proper way to pronounce spoken language - was certainly an example. In short, it was like directly pounding the information of how to pronounce each utterance directly into the brain of the recipient. This made it a rather high class act of magecraft, but if you brought along someone who was capable of telepathy, most of the problems could be resolved. Even if they were only part of the Valueleta family temporarily, arranging something like that would have been trivial.
Though to be honest, if you gave it another ten or twenty years, modern science would likely be able to manage something of a similar effect as well.
For a moment, I stopped to take a breath. Then, switching my head around, I spoke as my ordinary self.
"Thank you for the entertainment tonight. To have you come here in person as well is such an honour I feel I may faint." I wasn't exaggerating.
Diadra gave a faint smile. It felt more flower-like than a real flower.
"Thank you. I've been told about the El-Melloi family from my father. He says the entire Clock Tower has eyes on him, thanks to his creation of new magecraft. It seems like to the New Agers, he is something of a saviour."
Of course the conversation would go back to my brother.
It wasn't a boring topic by any means, but I had certainly gotten fed up with it. For someone from a family as renowned as the Valueleta family, even bringing up the New Agers was a way of saying that the two of us had nothing to do with each other.
This time, however, it was different.
"I would like to make a request," Diadra spoke.
"Oh? For someone of your beauty, I would be elated to do anything within my meagre abilities."
"You are too kind," the Princess of Gold said with a nod before continuing. "...I would like to request asylum."
"A...asylum?" Unconsciously, my eyes went wide.
"Yes. We would like to seek shelter with the El-Melloi faction."
For a moment, I stood speechless.
A defection.
Requesting asylum was a lot more accurate a term than it might have seemed at first. Even setting aside the El-Melloi family itself, the Aristocratic faction that the El-Melloi family was associated with had the resources and combat strength to qualify as a small country. Of course, that meant the Democratic faction that the Valueleta family was associated with had a similar amount of strength at their disposal.
Knowing all this, I could do little more than swallow loudly in response to her request. While Gray, having no idea what the implications of her request were, simply stood staring at us blankly, that may have been to her benefit.
"...may I first ask the reason?"
"I want to protect my sister - the Princess of Silver, Estella - I want to protect the two of us." Diadra spoke clearly and plainly.
"Protect? But surely Lord Byron thinks of the two of you as most precious, does he not?"
For a short time, Diadra was silent. Not that she was obstinately refusing to answer, but more like something of overwhelming gravity was keeping the beautiful woman's mouth shut. For a while, Gray and I joined her in her silence. Without pressing, we waited for her to get past that weight on her own.
Finally, she spoke.
"...I've become a little tired," she whispered. Putting a hand over the chest of her beautifully embroidered violet dress, she continued. "Though he was the one who created our bodies, surely you can imagine what kind of pain he has put us through."
When it came to bodily modification through magecraft, there was one particular school of thought that remained fundamental. Hard training from a young age, the transplanting of a Magic Crest, and the administration of a variety of drugs were all common, but even tampering with the brain and internal organs wasn't all that rare. There were even rumors of some magi that had dozens, if not hundreds, of magically crafted insects that lived within their bodies.
Naturally, the Princesses of Gold and Silver must have followed the same path.
To achieve this level of results, no matter what level of pain it must have caused to the recipients, no magus would have difficulty accepting that cost. No matter how dazzling they may have looked, the Iselma family were disciples of magecraft. The driving force that pushed them to such extremes was none other than that they were a family of magi.
However, not everyone was willing to martyr themselves for the sake of their family's policy.
"Please don't misunderstand. We are of course magi. We have resolved ourselves to the offering up of our bodies. However, our father's methods have presently become inefficient...no, it would be more accurate to say the stage at which his methods were effective has already passed. As such, we have decided we have an obligation to defend ourselves."
Once again it was our turn to be speechless.
What she was talking about was something quite rare. The point where, after progressing to a certain point, the methodology that brought you there suddenly becomes useless. There were stories of families with centuries of history being brought to an end by a misjudgement of that kind.
"In short, Lord Byron's methods have become dangerous enough that you feel the need to defend yourselves from them - and he isn't willing to listen to your thoughts on the matter?"
"Correct." Diadra emphatically confirmed my summary. "If the current situation remains as it is, sooner or later one of us is sure to die."
It made me want to scream.
If one were to do something as blasphemous as try to rank art itself, these two would handily take the top spot. Were that the case, the runner up would be so overwhelmingly below them that they may as well be swimming in the Earth's mantle. Nevermind just being a loss for humanity at large, the number of people who would rather the complete destruction of the British Museum to the loss of these two could not be small.
With a sigh, I spoke again.
"In that case, would it not be more proper to seek help from Lord Valueleta?"
"Lady Inorai is certainly a kind person, but the head of the magi of the Faculty of Creation is no different. As head of the Iselma family, Father has no small amount of clout, and I find it hard to believe she would be willing to overrule him."
It was exactly as she said.
No matter what one's individual personality was, as long as they were a magus, it made no difference. There was no way someone who was capable of becoming the leader of an entire faction within the Clock Tower would have been able to maintain a humane way of life. In the same vein, one who had made it to such a leadership position would never be capable of robbing the results of another's work.
"However, you are members of the Barthomelloi faction. As long as it provides an advantage to you, neither Father's nor Lord Valueleta's intentions are of consequence. We believe we can be such an advantage for you."
In response to Diadra's words, I could do nothing but nod.
Whether one was a magus or not, but perhaps even more if they were, one such as her would be rabidly sought after. In a word, these two were the pride of the Faculty of Creation.
"If that's what you believe, then you can't expect that our side will treat you any more gently, can you? It's not like I can provide you any guarantee your life with us would be any more bearable than your life here."
"...however, there is the possibility of making an...exchange," the Princess of Gold stated plainly.
We can still stipulate conditions, can we not?
Like a terrorist, offering cooperation and information in a plea bargain.
"...I see." For a moment, it seemed I had run out of things to say.
Take her lightly and you'll regret it. Of course, she had gathered together the resolve necessary just to come and talk to me. Beyond knowing just how outrageous what she was saying was, she also knew she would have to pluck the necessary fruit from the tree while she was at it.
A deep breath.
Switching my consciousness, I designated my opponent as a piece on the board.
Of course, I was yet another. On the chessboard known as the Clock Tower, there were countless pawns. After all, the factional dispute in the Clock Tower was nothing more than the positioning of pieces on this board. Given the proper time and circumstances, pieces could even change allegiance. Perhaps rather than chess, the Shogi of the far east was a more apt metaphor.
"But as you know, I am only at the extremes of the Aristocratic faction. Even if they were to accept a request from me, there is no way I could guarantee you anything."
"That is acceptable. If the famous El-Melloi family were to take us in, then none would be able to ignore us."
I see. So you're first going to praise my brother.
She's got me there, I thought to myself.
Diadra had certainly put her own pieces in order before embarking on this game. Under the guise of pleasantries that were beyond ordinary, she swiftly crushed my hiding place. Of course it was the basics of the basics when it came to negotiations, but from someone this beautiful even the basics were many times more potent.
I keenly felt the weight of the words.
"Well, I did say I would exhaust what meagre abilities I had."
Making a careless promise here would no doubt spell destruction.
"However, if that is the case, then I must speak with the Princess of Silver - with Estella. Maintaining order in the world of magecraft is our goal as well. Though we are certainly on opposite sides from Valueleta, that is even more reason for us to step carefully around an issue that could provoke an all-out war."
Gently, I rejected Diadra's request. However, upon hearing my reply, she showed one more card she had had up her sleeve.
"...perhaps, a sufficient amount of compensation could be arranged?"
"Compensation?"
After parroting her words, Diadra nodded, slowly rising from her seat. Even that was enough for her golden brilliance to steal the eyes of everyone in the room.
Diadra spoke one last time.
"...early tomorrow morning, please come to my room. I will open the rear entrance, and the room is guarded with a Mystic Lock, so there is no fear of others interfering. We may speak concerning the Princess of Silver at that time as well."
With that, Diadra left the room.
As embarrasing as it was, I almost reached out to stop her. Even moreso thanks to the dim light of the room, parting from her was painful.
With desperate strength, I suppressed the impulse that tried to move my hands. Once she had departed, I allowed myself a sigh.
"...Reines," Gray spoke out. After remaining silent for our entire exchange, she finally raised her voice. Turning to look at her, I saw her sitting on her bed as she asked. "What do you intend to do?"
"I wonder," I replied to her question with a shrug.
To be completely honest, all I wanted to do now was fall over. Though the ordinary fatigue of the Assembly was sufficient to provoke that response, now I had this whole matter to deal with as well. If I had asked her to just go ahead and kill me, would anyone have been able to blame me?
"...do you think she's serious about defecting?"
"It's kind of odd, isn't it?"
Normally, this is where one would laugh. However, it seemed to me that her feelings were sincere. If there was one thing that had helped me survive in this world, then insight was the thing I could brag about. As imperfect as it may have been, my ability to handle the affairs of the El-Melloi family from my time in primary school was founded upon my ability to see to the heart of a person.
Probably because I had such a terrible personality.
Because I couldn't very well be vocal about how much I enjoyed watching people suffer, my ability to ascertain what and how people were thinking at a psychological level became rather refined. Skill comes from passion. Being that most magi are far too straightforward in their desires, there was no shortage of live cases for me to practice on.
"Or rather, she was quite meticulous in her pursuit, wasn't she?" I said with a snort.
Even if I were to plainly refuse her request here, no doubt she would seek help from elsewhere in the Barthomelloi faction at the very next opportunity. If her request were to be accepted at a later date, no doubt I wouldn't get off cleanly for rejecting her the first time.
On the other hand, our position here at Lord Byron's unveiling was far too weak. All it would take is the spreading of a rumor that the El-Melloi family had deceived the Princess of Gold and led her astray to cause serious danger for the family.
In the end, if I wanted to turn down her request, my only option was to pretend I had never heard her knock in the first place.
"What a pain. Trim?"
"Yes?" the quicksilver maid turned at my voice.
"Enter idle mode. Stand by in high alert status."
"Understood."
At my command, Trimmau disappeared into her suitcase. In this mode, her consumption of magical energy was effectively zero. She had already been set to consume the minimum amount of magical energy possible, but if I was going to be sleeping in another family's residence, I wanted to make sure everything was covered. Exhausted as I was, I didn't even want to think about having to negotiate with that woman again.
"...at the very least, I'll have to wait and see what compensation she plans to offer." Saying that, I at last closed my eyes.
As if sinking through mud, I felt my consciousness slip away into the soft bed.
Originally Posted by King of Uruk12
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