Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: Great Magic: Celestia (3)
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Lua Polaris, an official mage of the Blue Tower.
In her mind, the tasks assigned to her within the Celestia Secret Society were quite substantial.
Sorting out papers to present at the society every day.
Processing magic devices to supply to the Tower every day.
Analyzing the status of the magical mech Sirius and exploring improvement options every day.
Such days had continued without end.
Was it because she had lived so busily up until now?
At some point, a thought like this began to surface in Lua's mind.
‘Am I actually doing more work now than I did as an apprentice mage?’
Perhaps she was handling even more work now than during her apprentice days.
Such doubts lingered in Lua's head.
Of course, she hadn't been given this much work from the very beginning.
Back in the early days after the secret society was founded, Johan had promised to lighten her load someday.
She would be busy only in the early stages—
Under that premise, she had taken on more and more work each day.
Without Johan's promise, Lua never would have accepted such a packed schedule.
“…….”
Of course, Johan had never once reduced her workload up to now.
If anything, the tasks had only increased, never decreased.
With the endless pile of duties mounting every day, Lua was starting to accumulate some resentment.
If she kept working even while falling asleep, she might one day slump over and stick to her desk like a limp rag.
That was why, attending this regular meeting, Lua had resolved in her heart to protest to Johan today no matter what.
She would no longer remain his apprentice mage—
With such ambition burning in her chest, she had intended to boldly voice her own story.
“From today onward, let's delegate all Sirius-related duties to the new member.”
“……Pardon?”
But sadly, Lua's ambitions went unrealized.
Before dissatisfaction could burst from Lua's own lips, Johan had preempted her by offering to lighten her load.
Blink, blink—
His words echoed in her ears.
Stunned by the unexpected statement, Lua looked at Johan with wide eyes.
If she hadn't misheard, Johan had clearly just said he would take some work off her plate himself.
“I mentioned handing over the magical mech duties to Acheronar, but is there something about that you don't like?”
As the flustered Lua turned her gaze to Johan, he met her eyes with his usual impassive expression.
Seeing his demeanor, Lua hurriedly denied it.
“Ah, no! It's not like that……?”
“Then there's no issue. Acheronar is more skilled with magical puppets anyway, so it makes sense to leave Sirius in her hands.”
With that, Johan nodded and quickly jotted something down on a blank sheet of paper.
Acheronar was one of the Seven, and a mage who ruled over the Doll Citadel.
Having her take charge of magical mech matters was, in a way, only natural.
Yet even so, Lua felt a subtle unease at Johan's offer to reduce her workload.
‘Having less work is definitely good, though—’
Perhaps her head had malfunctioned from the constant influx of tasks up to now.
The sudden reduction brought with it a strange sense of guilt.
Overwhelmed by the nagging feeling in her chest, Lua looked up with a bewildered expression.
‘Why does it feel like my work is being cut because I did something wrong……?’
Perhaps even this was the result of some terrifying spell cast by the archmage before her.
The thought crossed her mind.
Did Archmage Johan notice Lua's subtle reaction?
A faint smirk.
With a light smile tugging at his lips, Johan soon addressed her again.
“What's wrong? Disappointed that your workload is shrinking?”
“Ah, no, I'm not?! I'm not disappointed at all……!”
“For someone who says that, you don't look too thrilled.”
“Hah, going from working 22 hours a day to 19…… I'm just so happy……!”
“That's a relief.”
Right after those sincere words spilled from Lua's mouth.
Johan finally withdrew his gaze from her.
But was there something off about her statement?
Swish—
Creighton's gaze, which had been watching Lua, had shifted to one of pity, as if beholding a tragic figure.
“……Mr. Creighton?”
As Lua's eyes turned to him, Creighton awkwardly averted his gaze with a troubled look.
“Ahem, ahem—”
He then tilted his glass to wet his throat.
Gulp, gulp—
As Creighton downed a hearty swig of beer.
From Johan, who was gazing at his book, came an order regarding the library's newest member.
“Acheronar. Give her a chance to prove her worth. Have her craft the finest magical puppet possible within reason.”
“……Got it. But I'll need some time.”
“That much is fine. What we have on hand should suffice for the time being.”
Lua's gaze now shifted to the elf mage seated across from her.
Was it because she had lived for such an incredibly long time?
She exuded an aura of profound depth.
“I'll need materials. Skilled artisans too.”
Several requests flowed from Acheronar's lips.
Things necessary for crafting a magical puppet.
“You can get the details on that from Lua Polaris.”
“Understood. We'll talk after the meeting.”
Johan readily accepted Acheronar's requests.
It seemed that after this meeting ended, she would have to share a tea time with the somewhat melancholic elf.
Once the directives for Acheronar had been issued.
Johan returned his eyes to the grimoire and casually spoke as if his business was concluded.
“And the Doctor says he has something he wants to tell you all directly.”
Rustle, rustle—
The pages of the grimoire, filled with indecipherable incantations, turned one by one.
This time, every member's gaze turned simultaneously to the Doctor.
Whenever the Doctor conducted a special experiment, he would share his thoughts on it.
This time would likely be no different.
“Well then— let's discuss the descent ritual a bit.”
Hee hee hee—
The Doctor's distinctive laugh spread across the table.
Hearing the eerie chuckle, Acheronar furrowed her brow and glared at him.
“In my view, the results of this experiment weren't bad at all, but the problems seem much the same as in the previous one.”
“Still, this time we succeeded in a brief descent, didn't we? Last time, some unrecognizable monster showed up and wreaked havoc on the borderlands.”
“Yes, indeed. Thanks to feeding it the World Tree's fruit, the stability for containing the soul improved dramatically.”
The Doctor recounted the failed experiment.
A body crumbling away, magic sweeping across the land.
It was content already familiar to the secret society's members.
Most of them, including Lua herself, regretted not witnessing the scene firsthand.
“However, even the vessel we made this time seemed insufficient to hold even a fragment of that great one's power. The body that contained such immense might began collapsing in an instant.”
“So even with that precious World Tree fruit, it's still not enough to contain your power, Lord Johan…….”
“Precisely. We achieved better results than before, but there's still much we need to experiment with.”
Lua's eyes, brimming with curiosity, turned to the Doctor.
“Are you hoping to create a new vessel with different materials, Doctor?”
“Well, wouldn't we have to? If one World Tree fruit isn't enough, we'll just have to add materials with good affinity for it.”
With that, the Doctor picked something up.
A thick stack of documents densely packed with scribbled notes.
They appeared to be materials he had brought from outside.
“We need something to make the body more stable. So this time, I'd like to make a new request of my dear friends here—”
“Judging by your reaction, it looks like we'll have to procure something ridiculous again.”
“There are elixirs out there that can help stabilize an unstable body. Everyone, do you know about elixirs?”
—Elixir.
At the word from the Doctor's lips, the secret society's members all wore stunned expressions.
They reacted as if hearing something utterly absurd.
“E-E-Elixir……?”
“Wait, isn't that the legendary potion? The kind said to be craftable only by alchemists who have reached the pinnacle of their art—?”
As the society's members erupted in voices.
The Doctor merely faced them with his usual playful expression.
Facing the bewildered members, the Doctor vigorously flapped the documents in his hand.
“According to my old friend Bartov, elixirs have existed since the forgotten Golden Age. The Magic Research Society once moved to acquire one themselves.”
“…….”
“So, I assume you all know what I'm getting at.”
A bright smile spread across his face.
“We need an elixir. For the time being, we'll have to search ancient ruins for records or related artifacts.”
The search for the elixir—
That was the moment the Celestia Secret Society faced yet another task.
* * * * * *
Long ago, there was a mage who sought to reach beyond the heavens.
Acheronar, the exile of the Great Forest.
An archmage who had piled up magic over countless ages.
Humans feared her existence, and her own kin viewed it as shameful.
And so, Acheronar fled from the world.
She flew toward the unreachable heavens, vowing never to return to the earth.
“Is this setup okay for you, Ms. Acheronar?”
“……That should suffice.”
And now, the legs of that very Acheronar were once again treading the ground she had so despised.
She, who had already escaped the earth once, had plummeted from the lofty skies.
Her long-held resolve crumbled along with the fall of the Mobility Citadel.
But that wasn't the only change.
Acheronar was no longer alone.
The Celestia Secret Society—
Somewhere in this world, there were those who embraced her.
“This magic device looks like it can be installed without issues.”
Acheronar's eyes turned to the mage standing before her.
A Blue Tower mage with tousled hair that caught the eye.
She had set up the magic device Acheronar had modified and was preparing to launch a new one into the sky.
The genius mage, Lua Polaris.
The human mage worked at Acheronar's side without a trace of wariness.
“…….”
And she herself, standing before Lua, was a half-elf exiled from the Great Forest.
A connection that never would have formed in the past.
Yet now, the two stood in the same place.
That was the nature of the secret society she had newly joined.
Their positions facing each other differed.
The dreams they harbored in their hearts differed.
Some had turned heretic, abandoning even their faith and flesh to defy the church; others were wanted fugitives pursued by the Empire.
People with no apparent common ground now faced each other daily in some library.
—‘Do you have a wish you want to fulfill?’
And the one who had created this entire scene was a transcendent being pursuing great magic.
Acheronar found the sight utterly fascinating.
The daily library scenery she encountered felt filled with a uniqueness she had never seen anywhere else.
But it wasn't a bad feeling.
The library of her dreams was a decent place.
Perhaps she had even grown a little fond of it.
“Ms. Acheronar, everything's ready.”
“……Got it.”
“The rest is up to you, right? Once this is done, I'll introduce you to Tuga, the dwarf artisan.”
A faint smile graced Acheronar's lips as she heard Lua's voice.
Yes. It wasn't a bad feeling.
Perhaps the forest of grimoires packed with books suited her better than the dense woods she had dwelled in for ages.
Swish—
Acheronar, facing Lua, raised her hand.
Her fingers moved toward the translucent screen floating in the air.
“What did you say this was called?”
“I named it Polaris 0, but if you'd prefer something else, Ms. Acheronar, we can change it.”
“……No, this is fine.”
Tap—
Acheronar's magic activated the buoyancy function of ‘Polaris 0’.
It was a device modified from the Mobility Citadel's levitation magic.
Whummmmm—
With the hum of vibrating air, Polaris 0 began rising toward the sky.
“That's a relief. Since we won't be attacked by the Mobility Citadel this time, I think it'll succeed in one go.”
“…….”
“I was worried we'd run into it until recently, but now that one of the Seven is on our side, it feels reassuring……!”
Lua's tired eyes, smiling, turned to Acheronar.
It was her first time crafting a magic device alongside a human.
Even so, she felt confident they had produced a decent result.
KABOOM—!
With a violent roar, their magic device pierced the heavens.
The two mages' eyes followed the trajectory of the device soaring skyward.
“With you here, Ms. Acheronar, you'll surely be a huge help in Lord Johan's descent to the earth.”
Lua Polaris reached out toward the magic device crossing the sky.
Naturally, her hand would not touch it.
Hah—
A cold breath escaped Acheronar's lips.
As Lua's hand cut through the empty sky, the blue expanse reflected in Acheronar's eyes.
“I hope it helps—”
The open sky where clouds drifted by.
No one remained in those heavens any longer.
It was the conclusion of the dream an ancient mage had cast upon the skies.