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I hummed in thought as I listened to Lord Felix’s story.
In order to break a curse, it was important to know what kind of curse it was, because the method of dispelling it varied depending on how it functioned. It was the key I needed to solve this puzzle.
But in my prophetic dream, Elvira probably didn’t have to care about any of this. Upon awakening to her new powers, she released an enormous amount of mana, blasting the curse away with her holy magic.
I expect no less from someone who’ll later be revered as a saint. In fact, if it hadn’t been for Saint Clarissa, Elvira would have likely become the most powerful saint in history. But alas, my past owner was such an extraordinary outlier that I don’t think Elvira will even come close.
All this was mere conjecture, however, since Elvira’s powers hadn’t awakened yet.
And even though the brilliant Saint Clarissa had shared her mana with me, it was only a fraction of all the mana I possessed. Naturally, despite having some of the required holy magic, I wasn’t going to be able to mimic Elvira’s brute force method.
That was why I needed to understand Lord Felix’s curse in order to be able to break it.
It’s possible that Lord Felix will meet Elvira before I figure out the solution, but oh well. If it happens, it happens.
Besides...if I’m being honest, my inquisitive side is itching to unravel this curse!
Spending my feline years doing fascinating things with my eccentric owners had turned me into quite the curious cat, and my interest was piqued for the first time in a long while.
I feel bad that I’m getting excited because of someone’s misfortune, but I’m going to do my best to help, so that’s okay, right?!
Reassuring myself with that, I returned to my original train of thought.
Lord Felix had told me about the curse, but he didn’t know why Leeuwenhoek had been inflicted with it in the first place. He and his ancestors had undoubtedly already researched it to death, but there was always the chance that an outside perspective could lead to a new discovery—especially in my case, since I possessed memories of a very long life filled with a variety of experiences courtesy of my owners. Perhaps something would ring a bell.
If I know the reason for the curse, I might be able to find the key we need. Then, I can try to break the curse with my vast store of mana.
I told Lord Felix that I wanted any information I could get.
In response, he said, “I have no idea why our family was cursed, but it may have happened around the time when Champions of Destiny stopped appearing.”
“The Champions of Destiny?”
He explained that the Champions of Destiny had been mentioned several times in one of his ancestors’ research notes regarding the curse. This ancestor had noted that the two events had suspiciously overlapped.
“Wait, the Champions of Destiny stopped appearing?” I asked.
I hadn’t even heard about them until coming to Leeuwenhoek, so obviously, this fact was news to me. However, it was apparently a well-known story.
For now, I decided to look into the Champions of Destiny. I needed all the clues I could get.
And so, I figured I would call on an expert.
“Big sister Lucille! You want to learn about the Champions of Destiny?! Leave it to me!”
“Yes! Thank you, Instructor Alice!”
Lady Alice had gladly come to my detached house right away. We were currently in the library room, because what better place could there be to do research?
“I-Instructor?!” she exclaimed. “H-Heh heh heh heh heh! Very well! I, Instructor Alice, shall teach you everything I know!”
She had brought a large stack of books with her. Apparently, it was only a partial selection from her precious Champions of Destiny collection, but even so, there was such a variety of material that I couldn’t help but smile at her dedication. She really loved the Champions of Destiny.
As I shuffled through the works, Lady Alice provided additional information about their contents.
Hmm, let’s see... “The Champions of Destiny were always accompanied by a holy white beast.” Lady Alice told me that too.
“It’s said that the holy beast disappeared during the time of the last Champion of Destiny,” Lady Alice explained. “No one knows if something happened to it or if the Champion of Destiny released it. But after that, there were no new Champions of Destiny.”
A question suddenly came to mind. “But the presence of the holy beast was how the Champions of Destiny were determined, no? What if there were new Champions of Destiny, and people just didn’t know because the holy beast was gone?”
Lady Alice nodded. “We can’t deny that possibility! In fact, there’s someone alive right now who people believe may be a Champion of Destiny! But personally, I am of the opinion that a Champion of Destiny cannot exist without the holy beast.”
“What?! Who is this person?”
“A great sage by the name of Elios. From what I hear, he’s an eccentric fellow; he built a very tall building called the Magic Tower and lives there by himself. He hardly ever mingles with others, so his age and appearance are unknown.”
“A great sage... That’s an impressive title.”
“I’m still surprised you haven’t heard of any of this. The Champions of Destiny and the great sage are pretty famous.”
Honestly, I found it strange too. Why had I never heard of these people?
“It’s because she was the prince’s fiancée,” came an unexpected voice.
“Why, if it isn’t Lord Felix!” I exclaimed. I hadn’t noticed him entering the room.
He came closer and peered at the book I had open. Apparently, the idea of Lady Alice teaching me about the Champions of Destiny had piqued his curiosity.
“What do you mean by that, Felix?” Lady Alice asked.
“The royal family does not recognize the Champions of Destiny or the great sage. They believe that the royal family reigns supreme and that they are the only special entity to exist.”
I see... That certainly makes sense.
I had been engaged to Prince Bernard for many years. It was possible that the people around me had deliberately shielded me from those stories, so that I would only respect and trust the royal family.
Not that I respected or trusted Prince Bernard at all, tee hee! I thought as I picked up another book.
Oh?
An odd feeling settled over me from it. Flipping through the book’s pages, I found that it was a sort of encyclopedia. It was fairly short, but it introduced each of the past Champions of Destiny with simple portraits, illustrations, and a few lines of text describing them.