Seismic Shift (3)
"You must be Lord Swen. Welcome. Allow me to show you to Lady Reika's chambers."
"Ah — before that, might I see Lord Zinor first?"
"The master, you mean? I'm not certain he's available at the moment… Please wait a moment."
After a brief wait:
"He says he is about to leave on an outing… If the matter is important, perhaps another time would be better?"
"It's fine. This will only take a moment."
I made my way to Zinor's chambers and offered him a light greeting.
"What is it, Swen? I was told you asked for me."
"Nothing complicated. I'd like to take Miss Reika outside the castle."
"…What did you say?"
Reika was the first mage to appear in this game — and the most powerful one, remaining active until the very end. For reasons I still didn't fully understand, Zinor had confined her to the estate and kept her from going outside. Judging by the fact that she had slipped out on her own before, the surveillance wasn't airtight — but he had still asked me, too, to refrain from taking her beyond the mansion grounds.
Winning someone's favor was simple enough. You gave them what they wanted. And what Reika wanted was freedom. Cultivating her goodwill could only work in my favor.
"…May I ask why?"
"It's simple. Mana concentrates far more powerfully in places where the terrain is rugged and nature remains largely untouched. I want her to meditate in the company of the wild. Whether it will actually work for a true mage like Miss Reika is still an open question — but in my own case, the results were unmistakable. If the ability I've been sensing truly is mana, then shouldn't she benefit as well?"
"…"
Zinor fell silent for a moment, lost in thought. Then he murmured something under his breath — so quietly that it still reached my ears without difficulty.
"…Swen. With you, it may not matter."
?
I had no idea what he meant by that, but I didn't press him.
"Very well. However — you may not take her beyond the territory of Valharat Castle."
"Even outside the castle, I only plan to climb the small hill just behind it. Going too far and landing in danger would only create unnecessary trouble."
"Anything else?"
"Nothing."
"Then I'll take my leave."
Just as Zinor was about to go —
Ah. Right.
There was something I'd meant to ask him.
"One moment."
"What is it?"
"What we discussed at the fortress. I recall you said there was something you wanted to ask of me."
"…"
Without answering, Zinor turned his head away again.
"I'll tell you when the time is right. Farewell."
And with that, he left.
When the time is right, he says…
I had no idea what the request might be — but I'd already told him in advance that I wouldn't grant anything unreasonable, so it hardly mattered.
With that thought, I headed for Reika's room.
And the moment I stepped inside, Reika greeted me with an intensity that was almost alarming.
"A-ahhh, a-ah, hello…! L-L-Lord S-Swen! T-today the wea… the weather is…!!"
"Please calm down."
I rested a hand lightly on her shoulder.
"Hyaat…!"
Several minutes passed. When her expression had finally melted into something softer, I asked carefully:
"There. Feeling a little calmer now?"
"Ah? A… y-yes, y-yes, yes…!"
Once she'd settled, I glanced around her room. Cakes that looked delicious at a glance, sweet breads, milk — all of it laid out and waiting. Had she prepared everything herself?
"You really didn't need to go to all this trouble."
"B-but… it's been so long since I last saw you, Lord Swen…! A-and I heard you fought for our country…!"
"I was only with the rear units. I don't know how to use a weapon, after all."
"Is that so…? B-but you're wearing such a fine sword at your side…"
"Ah, this?"
I drew the rapier at my hip. Come to think of it, Reika had been the first person to notice it. The cloak I usually wore tended to hide it from view.
"It's basically just for show."
"For show…"
"The real hard work fell to the generals, their officers, and the soldiers."
Reika hesitated at my words. Then she gathered her courage and forced the next ones out.
"E-even so…! Even so, e-even if you were with the rear units… I-I don't really understand these things, but… you still risked your life to protect us…! I-I think you must have worked very hard…"
She bowed her head deeply as she said it.
Well. What glory was I going to win by arguing her down?
"I suppose you're right, Miss Reika. Thank you."
"N-no…! I-I'm the one who should… thank you for protecting us…!"
She said it with a faintly foolish smile blooming across her face. She had a more expressive face than I'd expected.
"Anyway — how have you been while I was gone?"
"Ah! That's right!"
Reika clapped her hands once, then came toward me with her eyes shining — like a child about to show off a toy she'd been hiding.
"Th-there's… something I want to show you…!"
We were in the garden behind the mansion. Reika spread her hands and, just as before, conjured a sphere of flame. But this time was different —
"Ohh."
With practiced ease, she transferred the completed fireball onto the palm of her other hand. She repeated the motion several times, then launched it toward a scarecrow standing some distance away.
Fwoooosh!
Boom!
The fireball struck the scarecrow — one I had no idea when she'd set up. The destructive force wasn't great, but the achievement itself was enormous.
"I-I don't get as winded as I used to, either… and I can control it somewhat freely now…!"
"You've improved a lot."
"Yes! Just as you told me to, Lord Swen… every single day… I did the Buffett test? — whatever it was called — without missing a day…! So I can read mana so much better now, or… well…! Anyway, it was an incredible experience…!"
So she'd diligently performed that pointless exercise every single day. Well — it was good for her health, so there was no need to feel too guilty about it. My instructions almost certainly hadn't been what improved her mana sense. Her abilities had simply been blossoming with time. Still, for someone who had spent so long stuck against a wall, this must have felt deeply meaningful. I could tell without difficulty that the way she looked at me had changed.
"It's just that all the hard work you've put in is finally showing results, Miss Reika. I didn't do anything special."
"That's not true…! After meeting you, Lord Swen, I've become so much stronger…! R-right now I feel like I could do anything…!"
"Is that so?"
I spoke in the most natural tone I could manage.
"Then shall we move on to the next step?"
"Th-the next step…?"
"Yes. I think it's time we went outside."
"Outside…?"
The moment she heard the word, she looked up at me in startled wonder. Her pink eyes shimmered as though they held a galaxy within them. And then — the instant she heard what I said next — starlight flashed across those beautiful irises.
"Let's leave the mansion. Let's go out into the world."
"Waaah…!"
This was the hill behind the castle — not far from the walls at all. She looked around at everything she encountered as though greeting long-lost friends, unable to stop marveling.
"It's been so, so long… just walking outside like this, like a normal person."
Come to think of it, she had been an orphan. In those days she would have spent every waking hour searching for food and protecting herself — with no leisure to simply look around. And after Zinor took her in, she had been effectively confined, forbidden from going outside. Given all that, her delight at nothing more than climbing a hill made perfect sense.
"I'm glad I brought you out."
"Did you… bring me out on purpose, Lord Swen…?"
I spun a smooth lie without missing a beat.
"Mana is more abundant the closer you are to preserved nature."
"Ohh…!"
She nodded at my words, then closed her eyes. After a few deep breaths, she fell silent as though meditating… and then, suddenly —
"…Hah!!"
Her eyes snapped open, and a fireball bloomed in her hands — more than twice the size of the one from earlier.
…!!
Even I was startled. A moment later, the fireball slowly faded from her palms.
"Waaah… it's true! Just like you said, Lord Swen… being here, I can feel unbelievably rich mana flowing vividly through every part of my body…!"
…It's true???
Really? Why? Why was this actually working?
I had just strung together some plausible-sounding words and thrown them out. So why had she genuinely grown stronger in an instant? Did mana truly concentrate more richly near nature?
Well — it had been a shot in the dark, but thinking about it, the premise felt entirely natural. The idea that a mysterious force like mana would be abundant near the natural world was practically a golden rule of fantasy settings.
Either way, standing here looking dumbfounded was out of the question. I put on an expression that suggested I had predicted all of this and nodded.
"Didn't I tell you? After meditating in a place like this, I, too, hear the voice of the heavens far more clearly."
"I see…! As expected, Lord Swen is amazing."
Reika looked up at me with eyes full of pure admiration.
…Feeling the weight of that innocent gaze pressing down on my shoulders, I was reminded once again — no matter how many lies I told so many different people, I still hadn't gotten used to it.
"All right. Let's begin training. We'll just repeat what we've always done. Ready?"
"Yes! I'm ready!"
Reika thrust her hands forward with full enthusiasm. Because she was wearing a sleeveless top, the smooth line of her underarm flashed briefly into view. I hastily erased the image and spoke.
"Then… let's start with meditation."
"Yes!"
And so we meditated together. After that we did some light exercise, and the day passed in thoroughly fulfilling fashion. Reika was in such high spirits from being outside after so long that she threw herself into everything with real energy — which made the day pleasant for me as well. Honestly, setting aside all talk of training and the rest — for the first time since the battle, I was able to let the tension go and spend time at ease. That alone made it a precious stretch of hours for me.
A few hours earlier.
Having just left the house, Zinor found his thoughts turning to the white-haired young man he had met only moments before.
It really was a surprise attack. That man… everything unfolded exactly as Swen said it would.
He remembered the way Swen had looked him in the eye and declared, with absolute conviction, that the Brans Army's strategy would be a surprise assault. To state one's opinion without a flicker of hesitation before the State Strategist himself — and for that opinion to prove correct.
After the battle, Zinor had thought long and hard. A man who claimed he was no mage, yet could sense the power of mana and commune with the heavens — the miracle-worker who had dropped a boulder from the sky. A man of that caliber had now also demonstrated a gift for tactics. On top of everything else, he had the nerve to ask the State Strategist of the Asius Army, without a shred of fear, why he remained with them at all.
In all his long years, Zinor had lived a life of constantly discovering how much he still did not know. But if there was one thing he prided himself on, it was his eye for people. And the more he looked at Swen, the harder it became to shake the conviction that this was not a man who would be content with a high post in the Asius Army.
It would be ideal if he remained with us — but in the long run, he could become an enemy of the Asius Army.
If that came to pass, it would be troublesome in any number of ways. Turning a talent of this magnitude into an enemy was not a wise course.
The public had fixed its attention on the knight Irene — whose fame as a turncoat was already considerable — and looking at the sequence of events, that focus was not entirely misplaced. But in Zinor's judgment, what the Brans Army had truly lost was not Irene so much as Swen. And indeed, the moment they made an enemy of this man, the Brans Army had begun to collapse as if by some cruel joke. Irene's prowess on the field was real enough — but it was Swen who had first seen through the surprise attack. Without him, Epinel's stubbornness would have led this side to defeat; of that, Zinor was certain.
So then — what is to be done?
Zinor currently served Yuuri, and he hoped, if possible, that she would be the one to unify the continent. But he was not of the mind that the Asius Army must be the one to achieve unification. So long as the ruler was not a tyrant on the level of Serpina — so long as they were wise and just — he was prepared to lend his wisdom to anyone. And for that very reason, he had no desire to become an enemy of a man like Swen, even if they ended up serving different lords.
Zinor recalled a military treatise he had read not long ago. One passage in particular had lodged itself in his mind.
"If you cannot defeat an opponent, join them."
A way to forge a bond with him that transcends faction…
In that instant, a figure flashed through Zinor's mind. His adopted daughter, Reika.
Looked at objectively? Twenty years old this year — exactly Swen's age. A young woman with no experience of men. He had taken her in when she was still very small, and she had scarcely ever been allowed outside; as a demure bride, she would not be a poor match.
Zinor was a man whose mind worked quickly. And as it happened, he already had one opportunity to make a request of Swen. If he was refused, so be it — but there was no harm in trying. The young man did not appear to have a wife yet, either.
Come to think of it, Swen has no family name.
The name Nighthart — though it embarrassed him to say so himself — still carried enough weight to be called a distinguished house on this continent. In an age of chaos, noble houses and aristocratic titles had lost much of their meaning… but to a man of common birth, it might still hold considerable appeal.
I should explain things to Reika as well. He is a young man in his prime, after all — there are surely things she can do.
Zinor Nighthart. Even in his advanced years, he kept turning the gears of his mind without rest — determined, somehow, to survive this age of upheaval.