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Vol 04 Chapter 134-2: Arcana

「It’s been a while, Griffon-sama.」

After the Triumph, I visited the Forest of Romalia, where Griffon-sama resides. Today, all the members from the original village came along.

Everyone was carrying a jar of wine.

Julia and Tetra, however, were not holding wine but were cradling babies—Ankus and Fiona.

「Ron, Soyon, get everything ready.」

「Yes!」

Ron and Soyon placed a large, shallow bowl in front of Griffon-sama. We all poured wine into it.

「We have three types of wine this time.」

「Hmm… quite lavish. But just wine isn’t enough…」

Griffon-sama expressed his dissatisfaction.

Don’t worry, I’ve brought snacks as well.

「Please enjoy, Griffon-sama. This is a deer I hunted down.」

「And I hunted this boar.」

Roswald and Gram, who had been carrying lumps of meat on their backs, placed them in the bowl. They sprinkled some salt and spices over the meat and presented it to Griffon-sama.

「We also have fruits, not just meat.」

Lulu arranged the fruits she had been carrying on her back and offered them to Griffon-sama.

Wine, meat, fruits—a lavish meal indeed.

「Ha ha, you do understand what’s needed!」

Griffon-sama laughed with satisfaction.

He is laughing, right?—since his face is that of an eagle, it’s hard to tell the changes in his expression.

「Are those babies your son and daughter?」

Griffon-sama turned his attention to Fiona and Ankus, whom Julia and Tetra were holding.

Julia and Tetra approached Griffon-sama.

「This is my daughter… Fiona.」

Julia said, showing Fiona to Griffon-sama with a somewhat tense face.

She isn’t very familiar with Griffon-sama, so she’s probably nervous.

On the other hand, Tetra was smiling.

「This is my son… Ankus.」

Griffon-sama leaned in close to the peacefully sleeping children and gently tapped their cheeks with his beak.

「Whether it’s a human, a boar, or a deer, babies are precious. Raise them well.」

「I understand.」

If they live until three years old… they should be out of immediate danger. But that’s something only the gods can decide.

「Now, tell me about your recent events.」

◇

After that, I shared recent happenings with Griffon-sama—not only about the war and politics but also about our daily lives. As a king, I normally can’t chat casually with Ron and the others like I used to.

But today, with Griffon-sama joining us, we drank wine, ate food, and talked freely.

During our conversation, someone suggested we all go swimming in the lake. It was the same lake where I met Julia.

Griffon-sama, being part cat and part bird, was not fond of water. As a result, we called it a day.

Ron and the others packed up Griffon-sama’s dishes and headed toward the lake. Only Julia, Tetra, and I remained.

「Griffon-sama, do you know something about Merlin, the one we discussed earlier?」

「I don’t mind, but shouldn’t we wait for Ron and the others?」

I’ll explain it to them later. Ron, Roswald, and Gram aren’t fond of complex discussions.

Blessings, fairies, immortality, eternal youth, other worlds… They have little understanding of such topics.

They would likely find it boring, and explaining everything in detail would take too much time. It’s better they’re not here.

It would be more efficient to discuss everything together later.

「Griffon-sama, were you close to Merlin?」

「Close… Well, you could say we were close, though not as close as I am with you. I met her frequently about five hundred years ago. But for me, she was simply the companion of the young Etzel…」

「Who is Etzel?」

「He was the chief of the Harifa Tribe. They called him the great king.」

「The Harifa Tribe?」

I tilted my head, puzzled. I had never heard of them.

「They are the ones you call the Flat-Faced Tribe. They came from the far east and conquered Gallia, Germanis, Hespania, and eventually the entire Adernian Peninsula. They were a nomadic horse-riding people.」

The Flat-Faced Tribe… Right, the ancestors of the Alvans, Mutzio and his kin, who conquered the Adernian Peninsula five hundred years ago.

「What kind of person was he?」

「Someone like you.」

「「I understand.」」

Tetra and Julia exclaimed in unison.

He was like me… what does that mean? I still don’t get it.

「Speaking of which, I heard that Merlin was married to the chief of the Flat-Faced Tribe…」

「Yes, she was his wife. They were a closely bonded couple. It seems they didn’t have children, though.」

Hmm… I can’t quite picture it.

「But I heard that Merlin was the one who killed the chief of the Flat-Faced Tribe…」

「You won’t find an answer to that question in me; I was the most confused when I heard it. They were indeed a close couple, just like you.」

If Griffon-sama says so, there must be no mistake… Well, you never know what might cause relationships to sour among humans.

He might have cheated her. …Wait a minute? Considering I have two wives, am I at risk of getting stabbed someday?」

「The story of that old hag and her husband doesn’t matter now. We’re here to talk about Merlin’s immortality, aren’t we, Almus?」

「Yeah, we came to find a way to kill that grandma.」

Don’t call her ‘old hag’ or ‘grandma.’ She looks about seventeen.

「That blessing she has is just a powerful regenerative ability. She’ll die if you burn her or destroy her soul.」

「So, she’s not immortal?」

「Of course not. Immortality… that’s the realm of Arcana. Fairies don’t have that kind of power.」

…Arcana? Is that different from magic or magicraft?

「What are you referring to Arcana, Griffon-sama?」

Julia asked the question I was curious about.

「Arcana is what lies beyond magic… rather, it’s the ultimate destination of magic. Arcana can recreate the work of gods with human hands. Originally, magic was a failed attempt at using Arcana. Merlin systematized and made it practical. Today, magic is studied as a useful technology for people… but originally, it was merely a byproduct of Arcana.」

I remember Julia mentioning that magic was created by Merlin. She said Merlin was the world’s oldest magician. So that’s what she meant.

「Can you say for certain that Merlin hasn’t reached the level of using Arcana?」

Suddenly, the image of Merlin dressed as a magical girl in pink frilly clothes saying, ‘Actually, I’m Magical Girl Marilyn!’ flashed through my mind.

「Yes, I can say it with certainty. Arcana is a taboo that rewrites the laws of the world. If someone dabbled in it, I’d feel it in the air. …To my knowledge, only one person has successfully used Arcana.」

Griffon-sama’s gaze turned distant. A far, far-off look.

「That woman succeeded in ‘stopping time.’ Well, she died at the same time she completed the spell.」

So, it’s that difficult. At least we know Merlin isn’t immortal. She can be killed. That’s enough information for now.

「Well then, we should be going now…」

「Wait!!」

Julia and Tetra simultaneously cried out, stopping me.

What now?

「Griffon-sama! Tell us more about Arcana.」

「What exactly do you mean by ‘laws of the world’?」

Julia and Tetra were hooked. Both of them had their eyes shining with curiosity.

「Hmm, interested, are you? It seems all skilled magicians get caught up when this topic is brought up. It must be an instinct of the creatures called magicians… the desire to seek the truth of the world.」

I’m not interested though… What’s so exciting about it?

The person who created magic… a great genius spent five hundred years and still failed. It’s obviously impossible.

I think it’d be more constructive to think about tonight’s dinner menu than about such things.

「I don’t know much either. What I do know is… to use Arcana, one must know the truths of the world.」

「The truth, you say?」

「What is that?」

Julia and Tetra looked intensely interested.

「Everything about the world is written… in the Akashic Records. If one could access and read even a part of it, the doors to Arcana would be opened… that’s what I’ve heard. That’s all I know. If you wish to research, go ahead. As for me, I don’t care much for the world’s laws. Sleeping, eating, and occasionally talking with humans like you is enough for me.」

AN: Arcana list

• Resurrection of the dead
• Cloning of souls
• Stopping time
• Time travel
• Spatial translocation
• Predicting the future
• Immortality
• Creation ex nihilo
• Material conversion (like turning stones into gold)
• Perpetual motion machines
• Rewriting physical laws, etc.