The Last Guardian
“What other magic can you use?”
“Shadow and Fire. I can also use Fire Tail.”
“Then it would be quicker for me to see it for myself.”
The boy unfurled the spells he knew, one by one.
“You learned them on your own?”
“Yes. I kept practicing until I got used to them.”
“Excellent. I can tell from the quality of your magic alone how much effort you must have put into it, even without seeing it for myself.”
“Thank you.”
The reply came out with perfect politeness.
Before he knew it, the hostility he had felt toward Acheron was gone.
“That leaves Shadow Spear. There’s no suitable place to use it, so cast it at me.”
“That’s far too dangerous.”
“Do not worry. I am not so frail that I would be harmed by a mystery just now awakening. Or perhaps you lack the vision to seize a chance that has been placed in your hands at last? If so, I am disappointed.”
“...All right. But I’m warning you.”
Lawrence cast Shadow Spear.
First, he tried to reduce its power as much as possible.
After all, Acheron must not be injured.
“Put all your strength into it. Pour in every last drop of mana.”
As if he had seen through the boy’s intent, the guardian said as much.
“Please be careful.”
The form that had shrunk expanded again.
Before long, a Shadow Spear of tremendous size formed, the same kind he had thrown at the mercenaries.
He had forced it to grow with all the power he had.
A pain as though his chest were being torn apart shot through him.
Now he understood.
This was mana. The strength needed to handle magic.
He could not hold it for long.
Lawrence hurled the Shadow Spear.
It was obvious Acheron could dodge it.
He had deliberately thrown it wide.
The Shadow Spear flew with terrifying momentum.
But then Acheron stomped the ground and moved straight into its path.
“Acheron...!”
He’ll be hit.
Just as Lawrence was about to cry out in warning, thinking the danger too great, something incomprehensible happened.
The Shadow Spear that reached Acheron’s front seemed to distort, and then, as though its fire had been snuffed out, it vanished without a trace.
“......”
Lawrence was struck speechless by the phenomenon he had never seen before.
What had that been?
Could magic, even if not cast by the person who used it, be dispelled by someone else?
And this after the Shadow Spear had already been released.
“How did you do that?”
“The question is strange. If a man can use magic, then surely he can also undo it.”
“But... Shadow Spear isn’t like Fire or Shadow.”
“You mean to say its power is greater?”
The boy nodded.
Whether he knew it or not, it was clearly a far higher level of magic.
At the very least, the Lawrence of now could not call back a Shadow Spear once it had left his hands.
“Indeed, you are making a grave mistake.”
A grave mistake?
He did not understand what that meant.
“What you handle is magic, and yet it is not magic.”
“What?”
Lawrence’s confusion deepened further.
“A beloved child is drawn to contact with the spirit world. You have not noticed it, and yet you must have some dim awareness of it.”
Acheron called one of the neighboring spirits over.
“It will be easier to understand if you experience it yourself rather than if I explain. Come, make your request.”
“A request for what?”
“The same as you did with the spirit in the Shadow Forest. Ask a neighbor for help. As I have said many times, a neighbor of the spirit world cannot refuse a request made by a beloved child.”
After a brief hesitation, Lawrence spoke to the rabbit-like spirit.
“Sorry. Can I ask you for a favor?”
“A request from a beloved child? Sure. What do you want to do?”
The rabbit with four ears readily agreed to the boy’s request.
“I want to use magic.”
“Magic? Magic! Causing miracles is fun! If a beloved child wants that, then let’s make one together. Listen closely to what lies beyond mystery. The world will surely answer your will!”
The rabbit climbed up onto Lawrence’s shoulder.
It looked much like the fire lizards from the burning mountain.
“Now cast Shadow Spear again.”
“Shadow Spear.”
This time, he cast it at Acheron again.
But the moment he did, he realized something was wrong.
“Magic is happening. A miracle is coming. Picture it in your mind. The laws of the world answer us! You can make anything you want happen, beloved child!”
Just as the spirited rabbit had said.
The original shape of the Shadow Spear, formed only in his mind.
It resembled the Shadow Spear used by the red eyes, almost exactly.
It lacked the visible flame, but in shape alone it was fair to say it was nearly identical.
Yet even more astonishing than that was the fact that he felt no pain in his chest at all.
It didn’t hurt.
Even as he maintained the Shadow Spear, Lawrence’s chest and mind remained perfectly at ease.
When he stared blankly at Acheron, the guardian nodded.
“You are not merely handling the mana within your body. Though the subject is your own will, ancient magic manifests by joining forces with the neighbors of the spirit world. That is what it means to wield the magic of the gods’ age.”
It felt as though he had been struck in the head with a hammer.
So this was magic.
Then what had all the magic he had used until now been?
“The magic you have been using up until now is closer to human magic. It simply places one’s own mana first. It is magic that ignores the neighbors who make up the world. Do you understand why?”
Compared with ancient magic, which borrowed the power of the neighbors, it did not even begin to compare.
Surely nine out of ten people would want to learn the latter.
But there was a reason that could not happen.
“A normal person cannot communicate with the neighbors of the spirit world.”
“Correct. Moreover, there are almost no neighbors of the spirit world left in the real world. Even if you wanted to borrow their strength, there would be no way to do it.”
With a lift of his hand, Acheron made the Shadow Spear disappear.
“And even when they are present, the neighbors of the spirit world are fickle. The only reason you are not at their mercy is that you are a beloved child bound to the Great Oath. Do you understand now? Why a beloved child is dangerous.”
The neighbors of the spirit world could not refuse a beloved child’s request.
That meant a beloved child could do anything, if they set their mind to it.
“Do not be overly concerned. There are few beloved children left now, and unless one is a neighbor of the spirit world, there are not many who even know of them. At least in the real world, there will be no one who can make use of you.”
As though he had taken Lawrence’s silence for something else, Acheron continued speaking.
“...Isn’t it dangerous to tell me something like this?”
“What do you mean?”
“What if I get a bad idea? For example...”
Lawrence let the sentence trail off.
“Not all neighbors of the spirit world are bound by the Great Oath. If you were to walk the wrong path, then I would do what must be done as the last guardian.”
“......”
For an instant, a cruel killing intent flickered in the guardian’s eyes.
In that moment, Lawrence understood.
Why Acheron had spoken with Veles the way he had.
Why there were so few beloved children left.
The last guardian did what he had to do.
No matter what the ending might be.
As if to thaw the frozen mood, Acheron changed the subject.
“To draw out the true meaning of ancient magic, you must possess all five Cognitive Concepts.”
Lawrence recalled the five Cognitive Concepts.
The boy had two of them: the Connected Head and the Seeing Eye.
The red eyes had said that a beloved child was born with the Connected Head.
Then how had he come to possess the Seeing Eye?
He did not know.
When he dreamed, he had already been able to see the neighbors of the spirit world.
“It seems you have something you wish to ask.”
“May I ask about it?”
“Ask freely. I will keep you company until your questions are answered.”
“Thank you.”
Lawrence offered his gratitude from the heart.
Until now, it had felt as though he were walking alone through darkness.
But after meeting Acheron, it felt as though he had finally found a lamp he could rely on.
“I’ve been told that I currently have two Cognitive Concepts. The Connected Head, which beloved children are said to have from birth. And the Seeing Eye, which I don’t know how I got.”
“I see what you want to know. But before that, let us first speak clearly about the Cognitive Concepts themselves.”
It will be a somewhat long explanation, Acheron said, and continued.
“The Cognitive Concepts refer to the five senses engraved upon the soul. More precisely, they are organs that allow contact with the spirit world. Though it has now become an old saying, there was once an age when one was not regarded as a mage until one possessed all of the Cognitive Concepts.”
The Connected Head. The Seeing Eye.
The Hearing Ear. The Smelling Nose. The Speaking Mouth.
The five Cognitive Concepts took shape.
The illustration provided to help him understand was oddly charming.
“However, the fact that they are engraved upon the soul means that even humans who never come into contact with the spirit world possess Cognitive Concepts. Unfortunately.”
“Unfortunately?”
“Usually, having a Cognitive Concept causes no problems. There is no way to come into contact with the neighbors of the spirit world. Many humans live their entire lives without ever becoming aware of it. Yet on rare occasions, there are those who are affected under the name of talent.”
The Hearing Ear drifted to Lawrence’s front.
“For example, one who becomes aware of the Hearing Ear will be plagued by the whispers of the spirit world whether they like it or not. Even with their eyes closed. Even with their eyes open. All day long, they must listen to whispers from the spirit world that they cannot understand.”
“That sounds... horrible.”
“It is. Sadly, humans who become aware of the Hearing Ear cannot endure the whispers of the spirit world and, in the end, their minds collapse.”
“You mean they go mad?”
“Generally, yes. Running around in every direction is pointless. Since this is not an ordinary illness, you should understand that there is no normal way to cure it either.”
“Then what should be done?”
At the boy’s question, Acheron shook a branch.
The Hearing Ear drifted away, and the Connected Head came forward.
“That is why the Connected Head is needed. It is the spine that allows one to retain a sound mind even under the influence of the spirit world. The Connected Head is the minimum condition for standing at the door of the spirit world.”
The Connected Head trembled, then scattered into blue butterflies.
“You said you had no idea how you came to possess the Seeing Eye. And yet, though you do not know it, there must have been some trigger.”
The Seeing Eye looked back at Lawrence.
“A powerful shock can sometimes shake even the very soul that forms the foundation of one’s being. Think back. What happened the first time you came into contact with the spirit world? Did you perhaps suffer a shock great enough to change your life, or encounter some event that put your life in danger?”
There was no need to think hard about it.
“It seems you have something in mind.”
“Yes. I once almost died from a plague.”
He remembered the fantastical landscape he had seen in the midst of his fever.
That had been the day he dreamed of the spirit world for the first time.
“Death is close to the gaps between shadows. Everything has cause and effect. Perhaps your aptitude for the void attribute was born from that event.”
The Seeing Eye dissolved into blue butterflies.
Now three Cognitive Concepts remained.
But Acheron let the remaining concepts scatter into blue butterflies as well.
“Veles said it himself. There is no such thing as coincidence. What is meant to happen will surely happen. Now even I think that your drifting into Dragon Valley was no accident.”
The tale came to an end.
The fragments of mystery he had so barely managed to grasp slipped away.
No. He could not let it end like this.
He did not want to lose the chance he had fought so hard to seize.
“Please, could you teach me more?”
Lawrence hurriedly prostrated himself.
What mattered was not pride.
He wanted to hear one more thing, and then one more after that.
He had to somehow hold the guardian there.
That was how badly the boy hungered for magic.
He was parched with an appetite for knowledge that could not be sated.
This was a chance that would not come again.
If he wished it, Acheron could surely lead Lawrence to the threshold of mystery.
The earlier exchanges had already made plain that he was a neighbor with that much knowledge and ability.
Had his sincerity reached him?
A small laugh came from above his head.
“Set aside such trifling manners. Did I not tell you? We cannot refuse a beloved child’s request.”
Ask, if you want to.
The nuance of those words made Lawrence shake his head.
“Didn’t you say that requests are bound by the Great Oath?”
“What of it?”
“What if I’m after something wicked? For instance...”
“If there is something you truly desire, then do not spare any means or method.”
As though to say, Is that not how your kind are?
There was a quiet anger in Acheron’s voice.
Lawrence’s body trembled before he could stop it.
But he quickly steadied himself.
Do not let fear take the place of resolve.
Do not be afraid.
He must not mistake this.
That feeling was not directed at him.
If Acheron had meant to refuse from the start, he would not have offered guidance in the first place.
“A person asking for instruction cannot also ask that the well be dug for him. No matter how little I know, I understand manners.”
“Then I have no answer to give you in return.”
“Then I am asking with complete sincerity.”
Lawrence raised his head.
“I want to be a mage. I want to become the kind of mage you were speaking of.”
The thirst for magic could only be quenched by magic.
Perhaps it was best described as an addiction.
There was no road back now.
The moment he had stepped onto this path, there had been no return.
All that remained was to cross the endless sea.
And yet was it too much to ask for a lighthouse to guide him?
That pure yearning to glimpse mystery.
At the boy’s earnest gaze, the last guardian smiled.
“Human beings who strive always wander. They suffer and fret and fall, yet they do not give up on rising again. Even if, after all that blood and pain, no reward is ever given in return. Perhaps that is why we are drawn to foolish, fleeting humans.”
A laugh tinged with resignation.
We cannot give up on humanity.
To Lawrence, it looked sad, and yet somehow joyful at the same time.
“I cannot be your teacher, Lawrence.”
The answer that finally came brought disappointment with it.
“And yet, as one who has explored mystery before you, I can guide you on the path ahead. If you truly wish to illuminate the laws of the world, then come with me.”
But the words that followed lifted the boy to his feet again.
The guardian did not look back.
And yet his steps moving ahead were utterly calm.
It was almost as though he were saying for Lawrence to follow slowly.
Lawrence brushed himself up and rose.
“Thank you, Acheron.”
“Your thanks are premature. Whether you can truly do well will be judged by the time that passes.”
Six footprints stained the pure white snowfield.
Following behind the last guardian, the boy’s steps were lighter than they had ever been.
* * *
“What? What did you just say?”
“I told you to go in.”
He had not heard wrong.
At Acheron’s answer, Lawrence stared at the valley.
The snowy valley was wrapped in cold.
On a day so frigid that his body trembled even while standing still.
To tell him to step into the ice-cold valley water was, by any sane standard, impossible to understand.
“Is it possible that the water is warm, and I just don’t know it?”
“No. It is as cold as it looks.”
“......”
It became even less comprehensible.
At Lawrence’s questioning look, Acheron spoke.
“You simply do not feel it because you have only just entered the spirit world. Mana is boiling over under the strain of excessive magic, and your body, having reached its limit, is beginning to collapse.”
“...That was true before I came here. But I’m fine now. What does that have to do with entering the valley?”
“The spirit world calls forth the form engraved upon your soul. Understand that what you see is not everything. For now, recovering your body is the first priority. If you wish to learn the laws of the world, then you had best hurry, no? Your time in Dragon Valley is not long.”
At the words not long, Lawrence snapped to attention.
He had to hurry.
This, too, was part of the preparation needed to learn magic.
Lawrence stripped off his clothes in an instant and entered the valley.
“W-what do you mean, not long?”
He was freezing.
His voice shook violently from how cold the water was.
It was not just cold; it hurt.
Still, there was no option to go back out.
“Even a beloved child can only remain in the spirit world in a body from the real world for about three months at most. The longer one stays, the more the soul begins to follow the laws of the spirit world, and in time that will affect the body of the real world as well. If you were more fully grown, perhaps it would be different. But for now, it is as I say.”
“Y-you mean a changeling?”
“If you do not wish to be seized by the spirit world, then you must prepare to depart on your journey before that time comes.”
“I understand.”
The time limit was only three months.
Short.
And yet he had no room to complain.
From the start, he had not been in a position to be fussy about cold rice or hot rice.
“The Connected Head and the Seeing Eye are already in hand. That leaves the Speaking Mouth, the Hearing Ear, and the Smelling Nose.”
“For now, I want to do something about the Hearing Ear first.”
The Hearing Ear was the minimum threshold for communicating with the neighbors of the spirit world.
He wanted the others as quickly as possible too, but of the concepts he did not yet possess, the most urgent by far was the Hearing Ear.
Even right now, without Acheron’s magic, he would not be able to understand what was being said.
“Recover your body today. We begin tomorrow.”
“That would suit me just fine.”
Had he grown used to the cold?
His voice no longer trembled.
No. At some point, he had stopped feeling the chill altogether.
The water in the valley was not cold.
It was not warm either, but something more mysterious.
It felt as if he were being held in a cradle, gently embraced as an infant would be. A tranquil sensation settled over him.
His eyelids gradually grew heavy.
As his tense body relaxed, a fatigue he had never known began to cloud his mind.
“Rest your eyes in peace, beloved child. This is Dragon Valley. The final resting place that bids farewell to the ancient dragon setting out on a journey long, long away. In the name of Acheron, the last guardian, I tell you this without hesitation. No one will threaten your safety here.”
His consciousness drifted farther and farther away.
He wanted to say something, but all he could do was move his mouth weakly.
The voice that never became words could not leave his lips.
Beware the dream within the dream.
Only the final words left behind by Acheron accompanied Lawrence as he sank into slumber.
---