Chapter 659: Conviction is for those who cannot live without leaning on it.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 659: Conviction is for those who cannot live without leaning on it.
They say a rumor with no legs travels a thousand miles. Not even the thick walls of the Ice Castle could stop one from spreading.
News that some incident had occurred within the Celsius family spread far and wide. In particular, those who had been captured in the Ice Castle and had barely escaped with their lives boasted of their miraculous survival.
It’s one thing not to raise your fist at all, but to raise it only to quietly lower it is a far more pathetic sight. There’s a reason for the saying, “Once you draw your sword, you must strike.” No one fears a blade that is silently sheathed without cutting a thing.
The prestige of the Celsius family was on the verge of collapsing.
So, they decided to perform a little trick with the sword they had drawn.
An exchange event, where the Floating Castle in the sky above would interact with the great magical houses of the surface. It was originally scheduled for an earlier date, but a battle between two Tower Masters within the Floating Castle had postponed it. Now, as if to make up for the delay, the event began with far more splendor than planned.
Fireworks made of ice exploded in the sky.
The notion that fireworks needed fire was nothing but a prejudice. The scattering shards of ice were calmer than flames, but they glittered for much longer as they drifted down.
Unlike fireworks that could only be set off at night to avoid competing with the sun, the ice, which shone by reflecting the sunlight, sparkled beautifully even in broad daylight. It wasn't dangerous, either. The glittering powders, exuding a sweet fragrance, settled gently upon the people below.
“It looks like fireworks. What did they use?”
“It’s not hot. It’s not gunpowder, nor is it Fire magic.”
“What in the world did they do? What kind of trick is this for a bunch of surface mages?”
Mages from the Floating Castle also participated in the exchange. Those busy with their own work passed on it, but the majority would come down to gain new experiences and inspiration.
Of course, the magic of the surface world was usually so inferior it wasn't even a momentary amusement, but this time was different.
“There’s no way we, the elite of the Floating Castle, wouldn’t be able to figure it out.”
“Block the firework’s mana and use a preservation spell to bring it here! Don’t even think of coming back until you’ve analyzed this!”
For a mage, failing to comprehend a spell was tantamount to defeat. The mages who couldn’t solve the surface world’s magic didn’t even consider returning, instead immersing themselves in analysis.
Meanwhile, another event was unfolding on the main stage.
A mage from the Celsius family brought out something thin and shimmering like silk. It was a cloth woven from threads of chilled wheat starch. Technically, it was just dough, but thanks to a secret Celsius technique, the dough was so thin and delicate it was nearly transparent.
Hundreds of layers of this dough, on which magic circles had been drawn with sugar, were stacked on top of each other. The Celsius mages gathered before the stack, which reached their calves.
“Freezing Point Control.”
As Elcia, the one who held the key to the family’s treasured techniques, chanted the spell, the dough swelled and transformed into a grand castle of confection.
The magic circles drawn with sugar and chocolate began to glow. The circles were a blueprint; the mana dwelling within the sugar crystals altered the shape of the pastry.
The walls puffed up like bread, and melted chocolate coated them. Sugar that sparkled like stars became chandeliers. Whipped cream, filled with air, was gently placed on top to form the roof.
The onlookers, captivated by the fantastical and enchanting sight, swallowed their saliva without realizing it.
A magic circle made of dough for paper and sugar for crystals.
It was a magic that was less grand and more fantastical, one that stimulated the innocence of childhood.
To put it unkindly, it was like child’s play, but the Mage King seemed to enjoy it as if he were a child himself.
“Bread baked cold! What a novel idea!”
The Mage King, who had descended to the surface with casual grace, was still dressed informally. He walked calmly across the ice barefoot, his shirt unbuttoned like a sailor's.
“Cooking is essential for human life. It may not seem like much, but it’s an act that has melted into daily life. My disciples in the Floating Castle, who find even eating a bother, would never have thought of such magic! Hmm. But I wonder if they’ll even eat this. They’re the kind of people who can’t even be bothered to eat milk crystals.”
The Mage King’s demeanor was that of a neighborhood elder. In truth, that was likely his mindset. He had flown in on the day of the exchange without any prior notice and was now wandering the grounds alone, without an entourage.
It would have been a major issue if he hadn't been spotted. Realizing this belatedly, Elcia inwardly cursed her blood relative.
Elisha, you became the Blue Tower Master, yet you couldn't even tell us when the Mage King was arriving? Do you intend to make no contribution to the family at all?
However, Elcia was an outstanding mage and, at the same time, the scion of a great house. Betraying none of her inner thoughts, she placed a hand on her chest and bowed.
“You are too kind. I am merely ashamed that we can only display such trivial tricks.”
“Trivial tricks? Hardly. Wasn’t handling ice crystals both your fear and your long-held desire? You’ve embedded them in the fireworks and the pastries. Are you telling me you didn’t do this to show off to me?”
The Mage King nonchalantly chewed on an ice pastry as he got to the heart of the matter.
The fireworks and the pastries were a deception.
The key was the ice crystals within them.
The ice crystals only maintained their form for a very short time before reverting to a gaseous state. The resulting explosion was used to create a pseudo-fireworks display.
The same principle made the dough rise. Though extremely difficult to handle, if used correctly, it could make bread rise without fermentation.
Since it vanished into gas, it left no evidence. The mages from the Floating Castle, now huddled together and racking their brains, would likely not reach the truth even in several years.
The ice crystals were created with magic, but the crystals themselves were not magic. That was why, distracted by the brilliant fireworks and the fantastical pastry castle, they failed to grasp the core principle.
But the Mage King had seen through it with ease.
For a moment, Elcia felt a dizzying sense of distance. The Mage King. The king of all mages. A master who had learned and handled all manner of knowledge, a teacher who bestowed and taught it.
There was no distance with him. Despite living in the Floating Castle flying in the far-off sky, he would suddenly appear in a domain and then vanish again.
Spatial magic.
A magic that was truly close to omnipotence, allowing one to freely leap across and control space, an absolute barrier.
And so, Elcia was suddenly struck with fear. Was the Shrine of the Divine, which sought to challenge the Mage King—even if not through direct rebellion—engaging in an act of utter recklessness?
As Elcia’s worries deepened, the Mage King spoke nonchalantly.
“I commend you for mustering the courage to handle ice crystals. Taking a step toward the unknown is the very attitude an explorer must possess.”
“…Thank you.”
“However, if you’re holding an event in the name of an exchange, you should explain it to your visitors. Is that not the proper way?”
The exchange was, in effect, an event to present magic to the Mage King. That was how one proved their worth. Naturally, Elcia should have done so, but this time, it was a bit difficult.
Ugh…! He was the one who developed that magic…!
The Celsius family had been busy repairing the facilities of the Floating Castle while simultaneously dealing with the Standard Magic incident in their domain. They had made preparations, but they were unfinished and needed to be adapted to the newly changed rules.
She had passed the work on to the Shrine of the Divine, partly to mess with them. But all she had expected from them was a bit of advice and some variations…
They developed magic by handling ice crystals with ease. I knew the Shrine of the Divine was an infamous group even in the Floating Castle, but… was it to this extent? Is the gap between them and the Celsius family really this wide?
They had carved a crystalline structure into the ice and filled it with ice crystals to create fireworks that exploded without heat.
They had sprinkled finely minced ice crystals into dough to make it rise without yeast.
They had used the coldness of the ice crystals to freeze and shape all sorts of things besides snow and ice.
Since they had decided to work with ice crystals, the main event of the exchange had to be magic that highlighted them. And since the final product was so outstanding, it had taken center stage.
Ice crystals may be an unfamiliar concept, but we’ve been encountering them and accumulating knowledge for over a hundred years. So why is it that he handles the Celsius rules and the ice crystals better than we do? Just what kind of fight have we gotten ourselves into?
“I can hear the gears turning in your head from here. Tsk. Do you think staying silent will hide your stupidity?”
Far away, Lankart shot Elcia a look of contempt and berated her.
“What’s the big deal? A little stupidity is what makes them cute.”
“Is that why you only chase after stupid women? No, wait. There are no smart women to begin with, so every woman in the world must look cute to you. That explains why you go around meeting all sorts of them.”
…As I always say, this is Lankart’s personal opinion. I wish to state that I do not agree with Lankart’s words.
I decided to give him a chance to correct his statement and survive.
“Why? All five Tower Masters are women.”
“They’re figureheads like the Tower Masters because they’re stupid. Look at the Green and Black Tower Masters. They claim to be the Mage King’s disciples, but they’re just bitches begging for his attention. What have they contributed other than ignorantly swinging around their useless Unique Magic?”
Listen to him talk. If I lived like you, I’d be stabbed to death in a matter of days.
“Besides those two, there’s the Red Tower Master.”
“I consider the Red Tower Master a man. There’s no way a mage that brilliant and magnanimous could be a woman.”
Isn’t this just denial? Alright then.
“What about the Blue and White Tower Masters?”
“Those two are…”
Lankart frowned for a moment. A slight conflict arose in his mind. Conviction and knowledge were clashing. Though I’m not sure if misogyny is grand enough to be called a conviction.
Lankart spat out, displeased.
“They’re a bad case of being born the wrong gender. I acknowledge the Captain’s abilities. But in the end, the Captain is just a bitch. A cowardly and fickle one.”
“Fickle? You mean because she left the Shrine of the Divine? Isn’t it strange to call her fickle for just that? People’s minds can change as they live.”
“No. It’s fickleness. Her conviction didn’t change; she got scared and ran away. If she had just held her ground for a few more days, the Shrine of the Divine would have been hers.”
Looks like there’s something more to learn about this part. I’ll keep it in mind.
“Ah, right. I haven’t met her yet, but there’s the White Tower Master, too, right? What’s she like?”
“…The White Tower Master? Ah. Right, there was that thing.”
That thing? Isn’t the White Tower Master one of the five Tower Masters?
“I heard she climbed her way up through the gateway. Isn’t her case similar to yours?”
“That one is strange. I haven’t figured it all out myself. She rarely shows herself in public.”
“A Tower Master? Isn’t that position made for appearing at such events?”
“She does appear. It’s not that she’s passive about events. She’s quite active in many ways. But despite that, nothing is known about her. Not even her Unique Magic.”
Another interesting person. The Tower Masters are all unique, but… she might become a variable. I should try to meet her once.
“You two. You dumped all the work on me and now you’re slacking off?”
Shei popped up from behind us.
Shei was wearing a white apron and a bandana. To anyone who didn’t know, she looked like she had just rushed over after finishing cooking, and in reality, it wasn’t much different. The only correction to be made was that the ‘cooking’ Shei had been doing was a dangerous act that could have resulted in a massive explosion at any moment.
“Some of us are about to lose our minds slicing and dicing ice crystals! And you’re sitting here comfortably eating pastries?!”
Tch. As if I’m resting because I want to. I popped the rest of the ice pastry into my mouth and said:
“Munch, munch. It can’t be helped. You’re the only one who can handle Chun-aeng and Pocket, Shei. You’re the only one who can process and transport the ice crystals.”
“Besides, Hughes used his head to design the magic,” Lankart added. “That means the physical labor is your share. Be grateful you can at least do that. If you couldn’t even do that, you’d have no reason to exist.”
“You didn’t do a single thing, so shut up!”
Shei threw off her apron and shouted.
“There’s just too much to do! You want me to finely chop and separate each ice crystal and then put them into the fireworks? What kind of magic is that? It’s just grunt work!”
“Highly concentrated grunt work is often indistinguishable from magic. Ancient ruins and temples look like magic, don’t they? In reality, they were all built by human hands, one by one, but the sheer amount of labor makes them seem mystical.”
“The problem is that I’m the one doing it all!”
The Celsius family still hadn’t found a way to handle the ice crystals. The only way to chop or separate them for use was with spatial magic.
That was why every piece of magic presented at the exchange had to pass through Shei’s hands. Without Chun-aeng and Pocket, they couldn’t have been processed or transported.
“Just wait a little longer. Now that they’ve seen your work, they must feel the need for spatial magic more keenly than ever.”
“You think so? They looked like they were about to have a heart attack every time they saw a shard of ice.”
“Well, if you touch it wrong, it can stick to your skin and freeze your flesh, and a large chunk will explode if it leaves the domain of the rules. But it’s all about how you handle it, isn’t it?”
“There’s a limit to ‘how you handle it.’ It’s too dangerous.”
“Is there anything in this world that isn’t dangerous? They rejected Standard Magic, saying it was dangerous, too.”
The attitude of the Celsius domain toward Standard Magic had solidified into ‘indifference.’ Since the limits of Standard Magic were clear, they wouldn’t go out of their way to suppress it.
It would probably only spread among the commoners on the outskirts who couldn’t learn magic properly. It might help them a little in their daily lives, but it wouldn’t be enough to turn the world upside down. It would just remain a useful tool.
For it to end so quietly like this.
It was such an anticlimactic conclusion that it made one wonder why they had gone to the trouble of imprisoning and killing dozens of people.
Shei took off her bandana and muttered.
“Even if they’ve changed their attitude, will the Celsius family really help the Shrine of the Divine?”
The Celsius family was quite conservative. That was part of their nature, and it wouldn’t change easily.
Perhaps they would even retract their declaration to help us. That’s what Shei was asking.
But I answered with a certain conviction of my own.
“Elcia will end up helping us.”
“How can you be so sure? She might suddenly get scared.”
“She will get scared. That’s why she’ll follow our proposal.”
Conviction is inertia.
Those who carry heavy burdens have heavy thoughts. A single decision becomes entangled with countless relationships and consequences, so they tend to stick with it and push forward, no matter what. Even if they don’t know where they’re headed. Or even if it leads to ruin.
But.
I don’t call that the courage to protect one’s conviction.
If anything, it’s closer to fear.
“Because that’s how she can shift the responsibility to us.”
She won’t choose us to overcome her problems.
She’ll choose us to run away, to be free.
Just as I said, Elcia knelt before the Mage King. Her voice, carried by a subtle decibel-enhancing spell, traveled far and wide.
“O, Teacher of Mages, who possesses all wisdom and bestows all teachings. A descendant of Celsius beseeches you. Please, grant the teachings of Rene to the House of Celsius.”