Disciple to Master, Master to Disciple (2)
Disciple to Master, Master to Disciple (2)
"If it isn't the Gold Tower Lord. It's been a while."
The senior librarian of the Imperial Palace archives bowed his head with a hearty laugh. Leaving the books he'd been sorting behind, he spoke.
"What brings you here?"
"Are there any books on teaching?"
"Teaching... Would this be about the new disciple you've taken on? In that case, head to Archive 7. I'll give the attendant there a heads-up."
"Thank you."
Watching Melina walk toward Archive 7, the librarian murmured quietly.
"They said she'd changed..."
Her eyes had softened, ever so slightly. Considering that a person's temperament tends to ossify with age, this was an astonishingly large shift.
Melina navigated the labyrinthine archives without hesitation. Vast as the interior was, the only people present were the librarians stationed at each archive.
In a sense, that was only natural. This was the Imperial Palace archive. A repository for every historical record and magic book on the continent, it was a place that most people lacked even the authority to access.
One visitor a day would be a busy day.
[Archive 7 - Occupied]
But today was different. Surprisingly, someone else was already here.
"Who is inside?"
"Princess Aria is inside."
"...Her Highness?"
Melina's interest went no further than that. There was no need to actually go inside the archive. The librarians had already categorized and brought out every book containing the keyword 'teaching'.
Melina picked up the topmost volume from the mountainous stack. It had been written by a scholar from a now-ruined old kingdom.
[A master must be able to open new horizons in a disciple's life. They must become a light upon the harsh journey that is life...]
Melina turned the pages rapidly. She practically flipped a page every ten seconds. That didn't mean she was skimming. She was memorizing that vast quantity of information in real time.
'New horizons, huh...'
Melina closed the book for a moment and thought.
When she had obtained the second Clue toward the Truth, she had felt an emotion that cut deep into her heart.
She still didn't know what that emotion was. But she had realized one thing.
Teaching like this was wrong.
Olivia had clearly said, "It's in return for teaching me for three days."
But Melina knew.
She hadn't taught Olivia anything. The lessons had been a half-hearted pretense, and even those were mostly self-study.
To be honest, she had been busy.
Strictly speaking, it would be stranger if the Empire's protector weren't busy. And Melina had no experience properly teaching anyone. Inexperience was inevitable.
Yes, those were all just cowardly excuses.
What did a hollow title matter in the face of the Truth? She should have kicked it away and stormed out immediately.
But Melina had not. Olivia’s condition was so outrageous that, despite herself, she felt tempted.
And yet, Olivia let it pass without a word. She handed over a Fragment of the Truth without any compensation.
That, more than anything, provoked Melina.
The Truth should not be obtained like this. Enlightenment attained without having achieved anything for oneself was utterly worthless.
Now it was no longer simply a matter of pressure.
Her pride would not permit it.
Now, simply becoming a master was not enough.
She had to sincerely become Olivia's master.
It would certainly be difficult and grueling, but...
At the very least, it would not tarnish the value of the Truth to be gained later.
Melina opened the book again. To become a master she would not be ashamed of, and to face the Truth with dignity.
How long had passed?
"...Hoo."
Melina closed the final book. Judging by the sun rising, she appeared to have been at this for a full seven hours.
"Please tidy these up."
"Ah, understood!"
The librarians, who had been nodding off through the night, rushed over.
Melina rose from her seat, leaving the mountain of books behind. As she made to return to the Gold Tower, something caught her eye.
[Archive 7 - Occupied]
Princess Aria was still in the archive. Even more surprisingly, the other librarians knew this fact and were leaving her be.
As Melina couldn't take her eyes off Archive 7, one librarian spoke cautiously.
"You need not worry. Her Highness sometimes sleeps in the archives, you see."
"...Has His Majesty permitted this?"
"Yes. Though it is limited to Archive 7."
The door to Archive 7 was firmly shut. A sturdy magical barrier forbade entry to outsiders.
But that statement, at least, did not apply to Melina.
Tuk.
She spread her mana before the door, and her vision cleared as the interior became transparent.
Contrary to expectations, Aria was wide awake. A thick old tome rested in her hands. Fwip! Its pages flipped past in an instant. When she reached the last page, Aria put it straight back on the shelf.
Then she took out the next book and repeated the exact same process.
Ten seconds.
That was how long it took Aria to reach the last page of a single volume.
"..."
Melina frowned. However famously empty-headed the princess was known to be, she hadn't expected her to go so far as to fool around with ancient texts.
It was astoundingly absurd.
"...Why Archive 7, of all places?"
Melina's question carried a note of reproach. The ancient books stored in Archive 7 contained the vast experiences and philosophies of past scholars. The librarians could not have been ignorant of this fact.
She was asking why it had to be Archive 7, when there were plenty of other places.
One of the librarians spoke with a face full of grievance.
"Do you think we just stood by? Naturally, we first opened Archive 1 for her."
According to the librarian's explanation, Aria had been shifting her sleeping place by one archive per month.
'...She's been at this meaningless mischief for seven months?'
The more incomprehensible one was the Emperor who had permitted it.
Melina shook her head.
This Emperor was apparently quite the doting fool.
Well, it was none of Melina's concern.
It was nearly time for her disciple to wake up.
*****
A week had already passed since Gold Tower Lord Melina appointed her new disciple. The mages of the Gold Tower struggled to adapt to the tower, which seemed to change by the day.
But the sight unfolding before their eyes was something they simply could not adapt to.
"You may praise me now."
At the Fourth Elder's words, Melina stepped forward.
"Well done, truly, Olivia. You improve by the day."
"It would be even better if you patted my head."
Melina nodded.
She obediently stroked Olivia's hair. Watching this, one of the senior mages shivered like a man afflicted with convulsions.
"Wh-what in the world..."
He had been dispatched to the Eastern Front for the past month and hadn't been properly informed of what had occurred in the meantime.
He'd heard that the Tower Lord had taken a disciple, but...
'This is truly... truly absurd.'
Melina's face looked expressionless at a glance, but upon closer inspection, the corners of her eyes were faintly curved like crescent moons.
He was a father with a daughter, so he knew.
That was a face that could not appear unless the feelings were genuine.
"The idea of combining frost magic and lightning was good. But let us first properly finish with the ice attribute. You can learn lightning magic afterward; it won't be too late."
"Yes, Master. I will."
Even giving a hundred concessions, he could understand the Fourth Elder giving Melina advice.
After all, the Fourth Elder was a man of impeccable character and well-versed in teaching disciples.
But...
"Unlike the other four prime elements, the ice attribute manifests only in specific environments. Just as one might find water in a desert but not ice. So, to improve efficiency, you must artificially create the surrounding environment with mana like this..."
That sight was simply impossible to adapt to.
She was even giving demonstrations and explaining with examples!
And not just anyone, but Melina, of all people!
The Melina who constantly spewed vitriol—calling people vermin masquerading as mages, telling them to get out of the Gold Tower immediately if that was how they intended to proceed—was nowhere to be found.
'What in the world...'
It seemed all of this was a change brought about by the arrival of that young mage called Olivia.
And that change was felt most keenly by Melina herself, more than anyone else.
...It was enjoyable.
For the first time, she felt the pleasure of teaching someone.
A sage wearing a girl's mask?
No. At least in this moment, Olivia was her disciple.
Olivia acted that way, and Melina believed it.
Of course, it was self-satisfaction. A resolve not to tarnish the value of the Truth.
Though it could not compare to reaching the Truth itself, teaching someone with all her heart was certainly a difficult task.
So she had no choice but to give it her best. Since the value of the Truth would be determined by her efforts.
She no longer hesitated to seek advice from those beneath her, and she learned how to stroke someone's head.
She learned to explain things at the listener's level, and she learned to speak kindly.
Putting what she had learned into practice was still difficult, of course, but she was improving regardless.
And...
"Master, what will you teach me next?"
Twitch.
An indescribable, unfamiliar emotion surfaced more and more frequently.
"The next spell I will show you is..."
It was strange.
Encountering these unfamiliar emotions should have clearly made her angry, but oddly enough, it didn't feel bad.
She couldn't determine the cause.
Perhaps she was simply nervous at the thought of receiving the next Fragment of the Truth.
Indeed, only three days remained until that day.
That must be why.
Melina resolutely ignored this unfamiliar feeling.
****
Olivia stretched. Uncharacteristically, she glanced around the bedroom before grinning.
[Remaining Time: 20:00]
It was time to check the results of her efforts so far.