[V5C1] Searching Through Memories
Translated by Jodas 5: The Magic Battle— She had a dream of a time long ago.
Harpies had a tendency to forget things easily.
That was why she tried her best to remember as many fun things as she could, and why the things she didn’t like quickly faded from her mind.
Yet, that one memory would always cling to Tia’s mind.
Even now, she sees it in her dreams time and time again.
“Hello, little birdie. I’m Fiene!”
It was a young girl with straight, glossy black hair and pale skin. She looked to be around the same age, or maybe a little younger than Tia.
She was clothed in a pure white dress.
At the time, Tia did not have the words to describe the feeling of discomfort she felt when she saw that girl.
Now that she’d learned more about humans, she could understand it a little better.
— Everything about that girl was molded by adults to embody something. Her body, her thoughts, and her very existence.
It was different from the education that they received when studying in classrooms. It was a direct intervention that left no room for her to choose.
Like how one would put clothes and ribbons on a doll.
Or perhaps like a gardener carefully pruning and arranging their garden.
It was a girl whose every minute detail had been shaped by adults, in order to take the form those adults desired.
However, Fiene still had a sense of ‘self.’
While taking on the desires of those adults, she still maintained a tremendously powerful ego.
“I’m the daughter of God. I’m here for the sake of everyone’s happiness.”
God. Tia knew that word. It was a word that occasionally showed up in song lyrics.
Through songs, humans would make wishes to God. For blessings, for mercy, for salvation.
And humans would also beg God for forgiveness.
However, Tia had never seen this God, so she didn’t understand it very well.
Even though she knew its name, she couldn’t understand what it was. That was the extent of her concept of ‘God.’
“Because I’m the daughter of God, I can’t be friends with human kids. Because human kids are the objects of salvation.”
Tia couldn’t understand what Fiene was saying.
But she thought it to be disgusting.
“Since you’re not a human, it’s okay if you become my friend, right Tia?”
Disgusting.
“I love you, Tia.”
Disgusting.
“I should have been a boy instead. If I was, would you lay an egg for me, Tia?”
Disgusting.
(Who would ever lay an egg for the likes of you?)
Fiene was a being created according to the ideals of adults.
Nevertheless, she was twisting into something far different than what the adults had planned for her. Ever so slowly, and yet with certainty.
(I hate this place.)
Fiene’s room was immaculately clean and always kept at a comfortable temperature. But it did not feel like a child’s room at all.
The wallpaper was fundamentally white, the decor was delicate, and the fabric was pure — Everything was prepared to mold this girl into a pure and delicate object.
Yet, despite the room being arranged to perfection, for whatever reason this room had no windows.
“………..Pefupyo.”
When Tia woke up, she rolled over in her blanket and sat up.
It had been a while since she last dreamt of that girl.
For Tia, a few years ago was quite a long time. Harpies were famously forgetful to begin with. She normally would never remember that far back.
Regardless, every time she confronted the fact that she could no longer fly, the memories of that time came rushing back.
Again, and again.
Since coming to the Wedge Tower and coming into contact with all sorts of people, she’d thought that her memories of that girl would finally fade.
(I don’t wanna think about that. Not when today is the day of the magic battle.)
Tia brought her hands up and squeezed her cheeks. Then she tried squeezing her head. Sevil would occasionally do this to her, and it felt really good with the right timing.
After squeezing her head for a bit, she felt like her mind cleared up ever so slightly.
She peered over into the bottom bunk to see no sign of Sevil. She’d probably already headed off for her morning exercises.
Tia threw the window open and looked up to the sky.
A light blue tint spread across the autumn sky. Her Harpy’s instinct told her that the wind was going to be stronger today.
(That’s fine. I’ll show you I can fly well in any wind.)
After all, she was a Harpy who loved the sky and songs.
There were a number of Spires, dorms, and other buildings strewn across the Wedge Tower’s campus, surrounded by a castle wall. All of this formed the Wedge Tower as they knew it.
Julius Löwenich walked across the campus, following the inside of the wall. At sporadic intervals, he would stop for a second to pull out his map and identify any inaccuracies in it.
He’d made the map himself since coming here. He hadn’t quite filled it out to perfection yet.
Julius lifted up one hand and quietly whispered to his ring.
“Do you have any hints as to what places Samuel used to frequent?”
“I don’t understand human buildings very well!”
The Flame Spirit Agniol in his ring answered energetically.
Agniol was originally Julius’ father Samuel’s contracted spirit. She knew some things about when Samuel was in the Wedge Tower.
However, both now and then, Agniol spent most of her time on standby in the ring.
That was because, whether she took a human form or a lion form, she was huge and rambunctious. On top of that, she was quite powerful, so it wasn’t hard to imagine her accidentally starting a huge fire.
With those considerations, Agniol didn’t know all that much about the Wedge Tower or its interpersonal conflicts.
“The Wedge Tower is full of places with barriers that spirits can’t get through, you know~. So any time Samuel had to go to those places, he’d have to take the ring off.”
“I see… I assume that’s primarily referring to the Offices that manage magical devices and grimoires?”
“Yes! Especially because I’m strong! If I touched a freshly made magical device it would go like ‘kaboom!’ and everyone would get mad at me!”
“Kuku… I suppose being too strong can be a curse of its own.”
His father, Samuel, never told Julius the reason why he was expelled from the Wedge Tower, all the way up to his death.
Without saying a thing, he fell to an illness, and just as he was about to die, he left Julius with these words:
“Kuku… I got too close to the darkness of the Wedge Tower… of the Empire… Damn. I did something uncharacteristic of me.”
Whatever ‘uncharacteristic’ thing Samuel mentioned was, Julius had no clue.
In fact, ever since Samuel was thrown out of the Wedge Tower and returned to his manor, Samuel didn’t act at all like his usual self.
Samuel was an underhanded man. If he’d been driven out of the Wedge Tower unwillingly, he definitely would have sought revenge.
Even if he suffered a great illness and was unable to move his body, he would get people to act with the power of money, and enact retribution on his enemies. That was who Samuel was.
And yet, Samuel showed no inclinations of doing anything of the sort.
Since being driven out of the Wedge Tower, Samuel lived out his remaining days in his manor, and quietly passed away.
Julius lightly shook his hand and glowered at the ring.
“Agniol. Answer this one question for me.”
“Okay! Okay! I can answer one question, or two, or three, or as many as you’d like!”
“When Samuel….”
Out of frustration, his fingers grabbed the ring more tightly.
Why had he not been able to ask this question when Samuel was still alive?
“When Samuel was driven out of the Wedge Tower…. Did he accept it?”
“I have no clue!”
“……”
What a useless spirit.
That said, Julius knew it was a very human thought to even assume that a spirit would even be useful to humans at all. Samuel had taught him as much.
— Money is more useful than spirits.
When Samuel said those words out of the blue, Agniol shouted ‘I lost to money!’ and Samuel just cackled in return… How nostalgic.
“Oh my, I see you’re getting your exercise this early in the morning. How admirable of you.”
The emotion drained from Julius’ face when he heard that voice from behind him.
Julius hid that feeling of sweet nostalgia of remembering those days gone by, and smiled with the slyness of a snake.
“Kuku… Are you taking a morning walk, Spiremaster Abel?”
As he turned around, he came face to face with a short, gentle-looking old woman.
Spiremaster of the First Spire: White Smoke, Augusta Abel. One of the leading authorities on the Classical School in the Wedge Tower, and an individual deeply involved in Samuel’s expulsion.
Samuel was once the Spiremaster of the First Spire himself.
And the one who succeeded Samuel after he left the Wedge Tower was none other than Abel.
“You all are having your magic battle today, yes? I’m looking forward to it.”
“Hmph… I cant imagine a Spiremaster would be very interested in mere Apprentices having a mage battle, are you?”
“The Guidance Office and the Apprentices all belong to the First Spire. You’re all under my purview, so of course I’d like to go see it. Not to mention…”
The wrinkles around her eyes deepened slightly, and with a casual tone as if she was just making small talk, Abel continued.
“I’ve heard Headmaster Möbius intends to attend as well.”
For a moment, Abel watched for his reaction with a gentle smile on her lips. He felt the distinct sensation of being searched.
Naturally, he was not foolish enough to allow his shock show through on his face.
He was the son of the conniving, underhanded Samuel Löwenich, after all.
“I see. Seems like people have high hopes for us Apprentices, then.”
“Yes, we expect great things from you. Julius Löwenich, son of Samuel Löwenich.”
— You have no right to say that name.
Preventing his hostility from showing through on his face, Julius cackled.
Just as Samuel had done on his deathbed. Like a proper villain.