“Hmm, now that that’s over, it’s time for a break!” A few days after Euphie officially moved into the detached palace with me, things had finally settled down. Meanwhile, everyone over at the royal palace seemed to be in a state of panic because of the broken engagement—at least according to Ilia, when I asked her about the situation. The instigators of the whole incident, Allie and the sons of the other nobles, had been suspended from school and brought in for questioning, and that had resulted in a great commotion. I couldn’t help but wonder what would happen to them, but we here at the villa would be unaffected. While all that was going on, I had decided to busy myself in my workshop to take a breather. My workshop was filled with blueprints and prototypes of new magical tools. I didn’t even let Ilia in here without my permission, so the room often got rather messy. I wasn’t intentionally trying to clutter it; I would hardly even notice the mess building until Ilia started expressing her disapproval. I knew she didn’t mean anything by it, though—she was simply more tidy than I was. “Now that Euphie’s here, why don’t we try a new experiment? What should we make…?” Hmm… I pulled out the notebook I used for jotting down ideas and diagrams of things I remembered from my past life. I was a foreigner in this world. Ever since I had regained memories of my past life, I had felt my thoughts and values shifting closer to what they used to be. But while I might suddenly remember things from my past life, those memories could drift away just as easily. That was why I had my notebook—to make as detailed a record as possible while I still could. I wanted to leave as huge a mark on this world as I could during my time here. Fortunately, I doubted I would be departing anytime soon. “Hmm… We should at least refrain from any experiments that would draw too much attention, given the circumstances. So we’ll have to hold off on anything that requires a lot of materials… Maybe I should ask Euphie, make sure we’re on the same page and all…?” Alone with my thoughts, my brain was turning in circles, when there came a knock at the door. “May I come in, Your Highness?” Ilia called suddenly. I was startled out of my sea of thoughts and called back to her, “Yes?” “Excuse me.” With my permission, Ilia stepped foot into my workshop. Euphie entered a second later, her eyes opening wide as she took in her surroundings. “Welcome, Euphie. This is my workshop.” “Pardon me… So this is where you work, Lady Anis?” “Yes. There are quite a few prototypes lying around, so make sure you don’t accidentally touch anything, all right?” After my warning, Euphie tiptoed into the room with trepidation. I doubted we would have any problems, as I kept all the really dangerous items in a safe place. It was just that sometimes, when I pulled an all-nighter, I let myself get carried away and ended up producing some rather inelegant items. I had placed an extra seat on the other side of my desk. Euphie sat down there while Ilia began to prepare some tea. It was practically business as usual for this workshop, except for Euphie’s presence. “Everything all right?” “I just thought, seeing as I’m your assistant, maybe I could help with something…” “Ah, so you’re feeling better now? Have you settled in? It must be hard getting used to a new environment.” “I’m fine, really. I’d rather be doing something than sitting around idly.” I’d been seeing Euphie’s troubled expression a lot lately. But I suppose it was true that not having anything to do might be unsettling. If she said she was ready, then it was probably time to involve her! “All right, then. First of all, I’d like to make sure we’re on the same page.” “The same page…?” “Yes. You know I can’t use magic, right?” Euphie seemed unsure how to respond at first, but she slowly nodded. Most nobles in the Kingdom of Palettia were capable of using magic. Essentially, it was one’s magical aptitude, rather than talent or skill, that tended to determine one’s social status. I was completely useless in that respect. I did possess magic, but I was incapable of wielding it. According to my research, that was an inborn trait of mine, not something I could change with hard work. “Well, I have a working hypothesis as to the underlying cause, but still…” “…Huh? H-hold on, Lady Anis.” “Hmm? Yes?” “A working hypothesis for why you can’t use magic? I’ve never heard that before…” “Of course not. I haven’t had a chance to present it yet.” Euphie was staring across at me in suspicion. I had no intention of actually publicizing my theory. It would probably only cause yet another uproar. That was why only a few people, my father being one of them, knew about the results of my research. I had also discussed them, to some extent, with the directors of a few institutions that studied spirits and magic. “In other words, what seems like common sense to one of us might be totally foreign to the other. You see? That’s why we need to share our ideas, to make sure we understand each other. We won’t be able to proceed otherwise.” “…I see. I understand.” Euphie nodded, her expression difficult to read. I was so pleased to have an attentive listener that I leaped to my feet, brimming with energy. I quickly pulled up a movable blackboard. I was so excited that I felt like a cram school teacher. As I prepared to dive into my explanations, Ilia started pouring out some cups of tea. Well done, Ilia! “Now, then. Let’s start with the basic premises behind magic. Magic is performed with the help of spirits. Isn’t that right, my clever young Euphie?” “Clever— What?” “Just play along!” “Er…?” At first, Euphie seemed puzzled by the ease with which I had adopted the mannerisms of a professor, but she soon regained her composure. “Um… Magic works through intermediary spirits that exist all throughout the world. It’s essentially a trade—you give your magical energy, and they produce a magical effect. I was taught that everyone has different levels of affinity with different spirits, and that determines one’s overall aptitude for using magic.” “Indeed. That part is common knowledge.” An exemplary response—as expected of a renowned genius. She must have been an enthusiastic student at the academy, I thought with a pang of sadness. She was such a good person at heart. Right, back to the matter at hand. Euphie was correct in her explanation of how magic functioned. In this world, magic was conducted through spirits, and there was a rich diversity of different spirits. First, there were the primordial spirits, the spirits of light and darkness that were said to have been in existence since the creation of the world. Next came the four great spirits of fire, water, earth, and wind, which were said to have been born when the creator gods forged the world. After that came various other types of spirits that were generally described as subtypes of the aforementioned four. These innumerable spirits were what gave the nobles of the Kingdom of Palettia their status and power. “By magical aptitude,” I said, “you mean one’s compatibility with those spirits, yes? In other words, that’s the criterion that decides one’s skill at wielding magic?” “Yes. That’s what we learned at the academy.” “Excellent! But here’s the thing. I’ve delved into the topic a step further!” “What do you mean?” Euphie asked, tilting her head to one side. Her understanding of magic was essentially the commonsense one. But I was a more unconventional scholar when it came to magicology. With a nod, I raised a finger into the air for emphasis. “Let’s get to the heart of the problem, Euphie. Do you know what precisely determines one’s affinities with spirits?” “…That’s… I don’t know. Wouldn’t that be one’s physical and mental constitution? Or their bloodline?” “Hee-hee-hee. Sorry, sorry. That was a mean question.” She was right; one’s overall affinity was unique to them. In some cases, people did inherit their abilities from their parents, but that wasn’t guaranteed. As such, no one had a clear answer when it came to explaining precisely what determined one’s spiritual affinities. “But why can’t I use magic? I had to investigate and find the underlying reason. So I began my research trying to get to the heart of magical affinities.” “…Forgive me for asking this, but is it really true that you can’t…?” Euphie asked awkwardly, having worked up her resolve. That topic risked derailing the conversation, but I couldn’t afford to not answer. It looked like she hadn’t wanted to broach the question, probably trying to be sensitive. “I can’t. Not one iota. I can’t sense any indication of spirits at all.” “…I see.” “I know other people can sense the presence and existence of spirits, and that’s what we mean by affinity, but I have no idea what it feels like. I’ve been this way since I was born, so there’s nothing I can do about it.” I couldn’t know for certain, but it seemed that the magically able could sense the presence of spirits nearby. And if you could sense them, you could channel them to use magic, for good or ill. All that was to say that seeing as I couldn’t sense spirits, I couldn’t use magic. I remembered being told that the true cause for all this was that I hadn’t offered sufficient prayer to them, so they were refusing to lend me their power, or something like that. That was also how people here understood it. The element of prayer was especially significant when it came to using magic. “To use magic, it is important to pray to spirits. You need to convey to them a clear image of what kind of magic you want to use. Isn’t that right?” “Yes. It’s recommended to try chanting at first, to deepen your awareness of their power. Experts can often skip that step, but you do regularly see chanting in large rituals.” I nodded with satisfaction at this response. To activate magic, the first step was to sense the presence of spirits. Next, the magic user had to convey an image of how they intended to use the spell. Finally, they had to direct sufficient magical energy to activate the technique. That was the entire process in a nutshell. And since I had stumbled at the very first step, I couldn’t cast anything. In other words, the problem was that I couldn’t sense spirits. “So why can’t I sense the presence of spirits? If we want to find the answer, we have to ask ourselves, what are spirits?” “…They simply are, no?” Euphie asked with a frown. Technically correct, but that wasn’t what I meant. I smiled weakly. “People say they’ve been around since the beginning of time, but are they living creatures? Or are they embodiments of natural phenomena? What do you think, Euphie? Can you explain the logic and reasoning behind the existence of spirits?” “That’s…” “Spirits have existed for so long that people take them for granted. No one questions them. But for me, spirits are a mystery. That’s why I set about studying them.” My research had uncovered that while different spirits had different attributes, spirits were commonly found floating in the air. As far as could be measured, they had no physical substance. In other words, they were born from nature itself. They had no will of their own—at best, they reacted instinctively, as certain other organisms did. But it was safe to say they didn’t act consciously. “The important thing to remember is that spirits feed on magical energy.” “You mean they can’t live without it?” “Exactly. That’s what’s interesting about them. They operate on instinct. They don’t have a sense of will, as we do. Just as we require air and food to live, they rely on magical power.” Euphie’s jaw was dropping as she listened to my explanation. I chuckled; it was really quite funny. So why did spirits require magical power? Why did magical techniques activate when they were fed? With that question in mind, I began to investigate the activation itself. “So we’ve established that spirits feed on magical energy. In that case, what is magical energy? Euphie, any ideas?” “…Magical energy is magical energy… I assume that’s wrong, isn’t it?” “Indeed.” “Can I ask something? What do you think magical energy is, Lady Anis?” “An excellent question. I like your enthusiasm. So what is magical power? To use a metaphor, I would say that it’s like…intangible blood spilling out from the soul.” “…Intangible…blood?” “It’s just an analogy, but it should make it easier to visualize.” Why did spirits require magical power? The conclusion I had reached was that it was their source of sustenance. The next question to come to mind pertained to the nature of magical energy. I regarded it as an intangible blood of sorts. “How did you come up with that idea…?” Euphie asked with wonder. Yes, well. I’d had a hint. Or rather, it was precisely because of who I was that I had come to this conclusion. I mean, I had been reincarnated. This body of mine was a product of this world, but its contents weren’t. That was the secret behind my research here. Perhaps it was precisely because I had been reincarnated that I couldn’t use magic? That had been my initial working hypothesis. I felt a little nostalgic thinking back to it all. “Each person has different affinities. Sometimes they are inherited, sometimes they aren’t. So if each person has an individual form of magical power, where does it come from?” There were no rules when it came to one’s affinity with spirits. Yes, blood played a role, but that wasn’t the whole story. In that case, there had to be a more fundamental reason. If the reason was that I was effectively alien to this world, that led to only one answer. “We can say, then, that the deciding factor for spiritual affinity lies in the soul.” Euphie listened to my theory, her expression serious. I drew a simple diagram on the blackboard to explain. This was turning more and more into a lecture, and I was perhaps letting myself get carried away by the moment. “Magical energy is an invisible spiritual force emanating from the soul. And spirits are incorporeal beings that exist out in the world. If we assume that spirits feed on magical energy, we can hypothesize that mental images and prayer are important to invoke magic.” “Is this your theory of exercising magic?” “It is. Why does magic work as magic? Perhaps spirits are converted by magical energy? Or so I started wondering.” “Converted into techniques, you mean?” “Yes. In other words, we can define magic as giving shape to an incorporeal spirit.” I wrote this down as a heading on the blackboard, then turned back to Euphie with a grin. For her part, Euphie was astonished, as though she had just had a firsthand encounter with something she’d never seen before in her life. In fact, this probably was all completely new to her. I had only been able to explain this theory to a very select number of individuals, and they had received it all with equal wonder. “So spirits are converted into magic…? You’re saying that magic isn’t the result of spirits manifesting our prayers…?” “That’s the general belief. But I think my theory is more likely. Spirits don’t have free will, they simply float through the world. Feeding them energy makes them transform, and that’s what we call magic.” “But then, what happens to the spirits after they become magic?” “They turn back to normal, I guess? Spirits are supposed to disappear after you cast anyway, right?” Spirits had incorporeal bodies, so even once they lost the magical form given to them, there would be no problem. They never had any real physical substance to begin with. “That makes sense, but still…,” Euphie murmured, sinking deep into her own thoughts. Well, it was about time we took a break. I needed a drink, and the tea Ilia had brewed would be getting cold. Incidentally, I had already made a hypothesis about how much magical energy was required to produce an effect. Magical energy was like the blood of the soul and was necessarily modeled after the soul. By my definition, magical energy was a form of power that spilled out from a vessel that we called the soul. There had to be a source of that power inside the soul. And if we thought of the soul as a vessel, then the purpose of magical power had to be to ensure that the soul didn’t become depleted. The soul never emitted more energy than it required, but any excess power could be expelled from the body. This surplus was what people recognized as magical energy. One’s aptitudes and affinities were determined by the kinds of spirits that preferred that type of magical power, and that in turn determined how much energy was required to produce the desired effect. “This is still just a hypothesis, but since spirits lack consciousness, they’re instinctively drawn to magical energy. That’s also why they submit to the will of the entity providing them with that power. So basically, according to my theory, spirits don’t consciously respond to one’s will or anything like that.” Euphie was more subdued now. But I had expected this kind of reaction and smiled. The Kingdom of Palettia had a long history of belief in our friendship with spirits. That was where the people’s belief system had been born—their faith that spirits were our neighbors and that we owed them our reverence. My ideas were heretical to such believers, so I seldom shared them with others. Because there were a great many people who believed, at one level or another, in the basic principles of spiritualism in this country. And yet if Euphie was going to help collaborate on my research, this was something she needed to know. “…I always considered magical energy and spirits to be facts of nature… I’ve never really given them much thought before.” “I only kept investigating out of necessity, but that’s how I came up with this theory. If I could figure out how magic works, I could try to come up with a hypothesis as to why I can’t use it.” To put it simply, my conclusion was that spirits didn’t like my specific type of magical energy. There was no doubt that I did possess magical energy, but I couldn’t use it. Which brought me to my hypothesis: Spirits require magical energy as a form of sustenance. They unconsciously seek out energy compatible with their own constitutions. This was what people understood as aptitude. For instance, an individual whose energy was favored by water spirits would have an aptitude for water magic. Essentially, one’s aptitude was determined by the preferences of the various spirits. “I should add in passing that I think the rise of the nobility and the royal family all began with contracts with spirits.” “Spirit covenants, you mean?” That term carried some weight here in the Kingdom of Palettia. According to my hypothesis, spirits didn’t have their own free will. That said, there were exceptions to that rule: Elementals, great spirits that were born from accumulations of countless smaller ones. There were those who called such existences gods. There were many stories of those who had entered into such pacts with great spirits and had been granted tremendous power in return. The noble and royal families who had founded the Kingdom of Palettia were said to have done precisely that, as was the first great king. Lore and legends from various regions seemed to contain similar descriptions of Elementals conversing with people and acting according to their own free will. This, naturally, was inconsistent with the results of my research into the nature of spirits. That was why I came up with this additional hypothesis. Elementals weren’t simply a higher level of spirit; their existence had become so definite that they had developed their own will. Of course, I would have liked to confirm all this with solid evidence, but those who entered into spirit covenants generally had extremely unusual values and a tendency to seclude themselves in remote parts of the world. I once asked my father to introduce me to one, but he turned me down. They received the protection of the state, but they wanted to be left alone except in emergencies. “Those who enter into spirit covenants with Elementals supposedly possess powers beyond those of ordinary magic. That’s why all countries have taken in such individuals.” “It is said that the Kingdom of Palettia was founded by nobles with such connections, too. The fact that our nobles can use magic is a remnant of the spirit covenants their ancestors entered into.” But that had all happened a long time ago, so there was no way to uncover the truth for certain, short of digging up some ancient records. Uncovering long-forgotten history was the dream of some, but my dreams lay elsewhere. Given the kingdom’s origins, the ability to use magic was incredibly highly valued—which was stifling to someone like me, who couldn’t. “I’m not sure if it’s the bloodline of the ancients who entered into those covenants or the affinities of their magical energy that they’re attuned to, though. But maybe we’ll leave it at that for now. Shall we get back to the topic at hand?” “We did get sidetracked, didn’t we? Yes, please continue.” “I’m the one who went off topic. Well, spirits don’t like my magical energy, and because of that, I can’t call on them.” “Is that why you developed your magical tools?” Now that we had returned to the main topic, Euphie’s expression reverted to its prior tense state. I took another sip of the tea before continuing, “I do have magical energy, so I have to find a way to make effective use of it. And I’ve always wanted to use magic. I don’t mind if that means doing it in a nontraditional way.” As an aside, the reason commoners couldn’t use magic was that they possessed no vestiges of ancient spirit covenants. In the rare event that a commoner was born with the ability, the most likely explanation was simply that they were the illegitimate child of a nobleman. On top of that, the Kingdom of Palettia had a long history. There were accounts of aristocrats choosing to abandon their noble status—and of others who had eloped to live with commoners. Considering all that, some exceptions were bound to occur. Those factors could pose a bit of a problem, but that was a matter for another time. “I don’t have much natural talent, so I had to work hard to discover everything I have and get to the point where I am now.” “And that’s how you developed your magical tools?” “Exactly. I started by looking for ways to use magic that didn’t have to involve spirits.” Excess magical energy ultimately dissipated upon being released from the body. If it wasn’t consumed by spirits, it was essentially wasted. So I decided to research whether I could put it to any other use. “I started by focusing on spirit stones. Of course, you already know about them, right?” “Yes. Spirit stones are crystals of concentrated spirit power, found in places with lots of spirits or granted by a great spirit.” “Right. So I decided to try to figure out what they really are.” “Huh? Are they not what they seem?” “I mean, they aren’t just regular old stones, right? You can’t understand them without knowing how they were created or the basic principles behind them.” “…I see. You approach everything with an analytical attitude, don’t you, Lady Anis?” Euphie nodded in admiration. I didn’t think I had done anything special, though… Well, back to the topic at hand. Spirit stones were crystalline rocks filled with spirit power. With these, even commoners could call on the power of spirits, albeit to a limited degree for limited results. For example, a fire stone could only be used as a substitute for a fireplace. Water stones could produce water, but that was it. Wind stones could create wind, but they weren’t powerful enough to enable flight. Earth stones could enrich the land, but they couldn’t trigger tremors or earthquakes. In other words, their magic was relatively degraded. “So the question is—how do spirit stones come to be? To put it simply, I think they’re like the corpses of spirits.” “…Huh?” Euphie was unable to reply again—this was happening a lot today. I hadn’t been trying to elicit a reaction—I simply thought that comparison would be the easiest analogy to understand. “Spirit stones are the end result, when a spirit solidifies into a material form, becoming a shadow of its former self. So in biological terms, they’re like corpses…” “…That may be a great discovery, but if you put it like that, people won’t take it well,” Euphie said dubiously. I couldn’t say I didn’t understand, but I just couldn’t think of a better way of phrasing it. Even calling them fossils didn’t exactly make sense, as spirits had no physical form to begin with. And calling them clumps of spirits wouldn’t exactly help people to understand, either. Did describing them that way really sound so terrible? I suppose the elite magic users at the Ministry of the Arcane had frowned when I had explained it to them—although a few of them did hear me out. “When I tried to dig down into the core of my ideas, I found that reality could be quite unforgiving. Unlike living organisms, the concept of death doesn’t really apply to spirits, and they don’t bear any grudges or resentments. Although, that might not necessarily be the case for Elementals, which do seem to have more of a conscious will.” “I see…” Euphie looked rather uncomfortable. Well, that was a fairly normal reaction for one from this country. The important thing to note was that spirit stones were masses of materialized, concentrated spirits. It was easy to locate spirit stones in places rich in nature and abundant in life. The Kingdom of Palettia had just the right balance of nature and human settlement for spirit stones to be found. In essence, it was an environment ideal for spirits, rich with humans who could sustain them with magical energy. There were high-purity, high-quality spirit stones to be found in abundance in the countryside, but even without going out that far, you could easily mine enough to improve people’s daily lives just outside regular villages and towns. That was why they were indispensable for the Kingdom of Palettia, both as everyday tools and a primary export. People were immensely grateful to have them. “Ah, how nostalgic. I remember when you used a huge pile of wind stones and crashed straight into the castle wall,” Ilia murmured all of a sudden as she prepared a fresh pot of tea. I frowned at this. There was no need to say that, Ilia…! Now Euphie seems scandalized, too! “You crashed into it…?” she asked. “I thought my whole body would fall apart,” I replied. “It makes for an amusing story now, but it really did cause quite a stir,” Ilia added. Yet that mistake had helped me learn once and for all that I had zero aptitude for magic, and it cleared up my doubts about spirit stones. So in the end, everything turned out fine. I had figured out how spirit stones worked, and I would need a great many to freely use the kind of magic I wanted. “So that’s where my quest of trial and error began. It took me nearly a decade, but I’ve finally reached the point where I am today.” “Is that why people started calling you Princess Peculiar…?” “Indeed. I really wanted to use magic. Even now, I’m still not satisfied. I can use some of the energy being released by my body through my magical tools, but I still need to develop more of them.” “I see… So why did you want me to become your assistant?” Euphie tilted her head to one side quizzically. You could probably say that Euphie and I were complete opposites. The spirits had turned their back on me, yet they adored her. She truly had a high level of aptitude for magic in every sense. “To see various kinds of magic in use. Also, because you seem to have a knack for every kind of magic there is without any impediment to your physical abilities. It’s an unfair advantage. It’s like you’ve broken the rules. You’re a mystery.” “Broken the rules…? A-am I that strange?” “I mean, there’s something really strange about the fact that you even exist.” In fact, my research results showed that possessing too much magical energy could cause all kinds of harm—like diseases that were unique to this world. Those diseases were all related in one way or another to one’s magical energy. For example, there were cases where the sufferer’s body couldn’t release excess power, which placed a tremendous strain on their mental and physical health. Magical energy could affect the body or mind in a wide range of ways, such as abnormal transformations when the balance was broken. When I told this to Euphie, her face turned deathly pale. She had a ridiculous number of aptitudes and tremendous magical energy reserves, too. Such maladies occurred because magical power emanated from the soul, so if the balance between body and soul became unstable, either or both could suffer considerable damage. From what I could tell, there seemed to be some similarity to what had been called mental illness in my past life. In this world, humans were more prone to these difficulties, which I assumed was the result of coexisting with spirits. That was why a great many nobles here seemed to suffer from mental illness or physical ailments—because they were unable to properly release the magical energy building up inside their bodies. And when such power wasn’t able to escape, it could cause symptoms almost like root rot in plants. When that happened, the soul could no longer withstand being saturated in magical energy. And of course, when that warped the soul, it brought about mental instability, while also putting excessive strain on the body. This was a monumental discovery. However, I had yet to widely publicize it, nor had it taken off on its own. I couldn’t afford to take it for granted without further evidence, and I wasn’t a doctor. I was afraid that if I tried to pull back the curtain too soon, the rumors might get out of hand. As such, this was one of those matters I had left in my father’s hands. In fact, I had heard that my father had ordered further research be carried out to confirm whether my hypothesis was correct, and I was being credited for the initiative. “But aren’t you worried, if spirits are drawn to my magical energy? Couldn’t I pose a danger?” “The opposite is true, too. Those spirits could end up consuming too much of your magical energy, depleting what you need to stay healthy. That could end up causing illness or disability. You must be adored by the gods, because you’ve achieved a miraculous balance, Euphie. You could be the kind of genius who appears only once in a hundred—no, in a thousand years!” “…I’m more surprised to hear that magical energy can cause illness than to be called a genius…,” Euphie murmured, her complexion pale as she hugged her trembling body. I was truly grateful to Duke Grantz and Duchess Nerschell for bringing up such a healthy young lady. “In summary, it’s best to have a good balance when it comes to magical energy. I’m sure you’ve heard they’ve started to examine your magical energy levels during routine health checkups, to see how much you have and how skilled you are at using it.” “Ah, so that’s why they introduced those measures in magic classes at the academy…” It was possible to prevent certain outcomes even without revealing the intent behind those measures. A few years after I had devised this theory, I heard that the academy had begun to measure each student’s total level of magical energy and their skill level, too, to collect data and start measuring any abnormalities. Of course, magical energy wasn’t the only thing that could break someone’s mind. If you went around blaming magic for everyone’s ills, you would only invite persecution from those who possessed magical abilities in abundance. As such, my father was proceeding with this matter using great delicacy, I had heard. “There have been cases where even wild, out-of-control children have become calmer and more stable after learning magic and increasing their skill level. But that doesn’t solve every problem, and they still tend to take out their anger on others when things don’t go well. So magical energy is just one contributing factor there.” “But it must be a big step forward to discover the cause.” Euphie nodded in admiration. I was genuinely happy to see that reaction. I was really getting into this lecture, but Ilia’s stern glance told me to keep myself in check. “So is this magicology? Investigating things like that?” “No. This is just a by-product. I’m not a specialist, either, so most of what I do is conjecture. We’ll need an expert to confirm it. After all, I may study magic, but I’m not a magic user or a doctor.” Ultimately, magicology was a discipline I had created to try to find a way to use magic, seeing as I had no other way of doing it. I drew knowledge from my past life to try to reproduce that science through my magical tools. At least, that had been my original goal, but it had led to a lot of secondary outcomes. “For me, magicology is just another way of thinking about the world.” There were other researchers of magic, but their approaches were more like theology or religion, quite different from my own. Still, the findings I had announced had been well received by practicing magic researchers. In fact, they had seemed rather impressed. My theory about imbalances between the body and one’s innate magical energy was an eye-opener for them. I had even received personal thanks for my positive influence on other studies and the education of future researchers. Hah! Thanks, I guess? Was I supposed to feel grateful for the praise of regular magic users? All that time, they had treated me like a troublemaker, like an idiot! Just looking back on it made me so angry! They had mocked my magical tools relentlessly before! It was infuriating! I was still mad about it, really. I would never forgive those fools at the Ministry of the Arcane! I knew that not everyone there was like that, but honestly, I just hated those highbrow elites. I didn’t want to have anything to do with them. “…Lady Anis?” Euphie called out, sounding worried and pulling me back from the pool of dark emotion. Whoops, that was close. I had to maintain a sense of normalcy. The Ministry of the Arcane was a major political faction in the kingdom and had a powerful voice. That said, I really didn’t like them. They regarded magic as a privilege of the nobility and looked down on commoners and everyone else who couldn’t use it. I really hated the idea of a chosen few individuals possessing special powers. I understood that being able to use magic was a symbol of status, but there had to be more to life than that. That might sound strange coming from someone who had always adored magic and dedicated herself to making tools with it, but in the end, what I did was also partially a hobby. “Um, did we get off topic again? What was I saying?” I asked. “You were talking about reconciling our understanding of magicology,” Euphie responded. “About how we need to start with a clear understanding of the subject.” “Right. Somewhere along the line, we started talking about spirits and magical energy rather than magicology as such. Well, it is all kind of intertwined, though.” “The outside world might have heard the word magicology, but they don’t know anything about what it really involves, right? But I’ve heard that you often go out to construction sites? Sewers, roads, highways, and the like…?” “Ah. Well, that’s kind of my father’s fault…” I had revealed to my father my hazy knowledge of sewers, and he had carefully considered the notion. Before I knew it, he had assigned me to the role of adviser and assistant on-site supervisor, all because I had told him that if we had underground sewers, we would be able to improve sanitation and the quality of the cityscape. Also, I had argued that wastewater was a major cause of illness and disease. My father had listened to my account of the memories from my past life, and he gave it all serious deliberation. Several years later, after I completely forgot everything I had said to him, I was appointed to this project. Why now of all times?! This work was keeping me from my research! I had been so indignant that I had devoted all my energy to the development of new magical tools that could speed up construction. I wasn’t at all sorry. “The underground sewer system came as a complete surprise to me, too. I suggested the highway project because that’s where I can find monsters, though. Well, materials from monsters, to be precise. So I’ve been hunting monsters under the pretense of surveying.” “Our princess has been doing all that…?” Euphie exclaimed in amazement. She was staring at me in consternation, and it was quite intense. I couldn’t hold her gaze, even though I knew it would seem suspicious. “No, I mean, the thing is… It’s more like I wanted to be allowed to survey the area… I suppose?” “There’s a world of difference between that excuse and your true intentions!” “Her Highness has run off countless times, leaving behind nothing but a farewell letter,” Ilia remarked. “In the end, I said to her that if she was going to go exploring, she should at least do something constructive at the same time, which is how this highway business all started.” That brought back fond memories. I had been so much freer in the past. Indeed, I had settled down in recent years, all because my research was taking shape. My main concern at the moment was to verify my theories and make any corrections! Any attempt to leave the royal palace now would result in a heated chase from the knights of the Royal Guard and the newly formed corps of warrior maidens. From what I could tell, the Royal Guard treated me as target practice in their exercises. “Well, that went longer than I anticipated. Let’s call it a day for our first lesson. Make sure you don’t forget anything!” “Yes, I understand,” Euphie responded with a soft chuckle. Only when I stared back at her did she seem to realize she had just laughed, quickly covering her mouth and returning to her usual expressionless countenance. That gesture was so amusing that I barely suppressed a laugh myself. Euphie glared back at me, but that only made me chuckle even harder. If she was slowly getting used to life here, I could hardly ask for anything more.
Chapter 7
34 min read