The Sixth Creation: Arima

Arima. Member of the villain organization Seven. Self-proclaimed magician and the world's greatest illusionist.

In a world overflowing with every kind of superpower and heroes who could casually surpass human dynamic vision, the art of magic—tricks that fooled the eye and scrambled the senses—had become a half-forgotten genre. After all, when superpowers already existed, how could mere sleight of hand and technical skill possibly astonish an audience?

Yet Arima had achieved the near-impossible. And so he became the world's greatest magician.

After watching his performance videos online, I finally understood why people called him that.

—Hmm? Hmmmm★?

The apple Arima had bitten into and set down ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠suddenly returned to its original, untouched state. He tilted his head in apparent confusion, then took another bite. A crisp crunch rang out, yet the apple remained perfectly whole.

Startled, he next gulped down water from a bottle. Even as liquid overflowed his mouth and streamed down his jawline, the bottle refilled itself completely, not a drop missing.

While the audience practically fell over in shock, Arima invited a spectator onto the stage and let them experience the same phenomenon.

It wasn't simply a showcase of tricks. It was closer to theatrical performance—a magical musical. Arima possessed not only flawless technique but an impeccable sense of entertainment.

Just how the hell is he doing that?

After watching the entire show, I let out a low whistle while analyzing the performance. I knew perfectly well that the unwritten rule of magic was to enjoy it in the moment and then let the secret stay secret. But wasn't it human nature to want to peel back the curtain?

I slowed the video down to a crawl, hunting for the trick. Yet no matter how closely I looked, I couldn't spot any sleight of hand or mechanical gimmick.

The apple just... regenerated? Is that even possible?

In the footage, the bitten apple was clearly inside Arima's mouth. One frame later, it had returned to its original form. I wondered if the piece in his mouth had simply flown back into place, but that wasn't it either. Within a single frame, both the apple in his mouth and the fully restored apple existed simultaneously.

At that point I started wondering if it was less a magic trick and more some kind of superpower. But even that didn't add up. The sheer variety of effects he demonstrated couldn't possibly stem from a single ability.

"Not a magician... but a wizard, huh."

"Enjoying my video, are we?"

"...You scared the crap out of me."

I frowned at Arima as he suddenly poked his head into view. That pretty face of his irritated me every single time I saw it. Knowing he kept up the act purely because he enjoyed fooling people ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠only made it worse.

"What do you want, Arima?"

"Oh my. Look at you getting all cold now that you know I'm a man♥."

"It's not like that. So? What is it?"

"Ufufu. I suppose I should be understanding. After all, there's that old saying about how being beautiful is a crime, right?"

"There is no such saying."

When I stood up—making it clear I had no interest in listening to nonsense—Arima quickly grabbed my shoulder to stop me.

I was already scowling, not wanting to spend another second with this man, when his next words froze me far more effectively than his hand ever could.

"The boss told me☆ You're the same as me, right?"

"The same? What are you—"

"Truth is, I'm a non-powered person too. Completely without any superpowers whatsoever."

I kept tilting my head, unable to process what he meant. A non-powered person? Did that mean every miracle he'd performed on stage was accomplished through pure technique and misdirection?

But that wasn't what he meant at all. The word "same" carried a far more layered meaning.

"Nice to meet you, Earthling."

"...Pardon?"

"I'm an otherworlder from Ardenia... The same kind of otherworlder as you."

Surprisingly, Arima was an otherworlder just like me.

Even though we hadn't come from the exact same Earth, the simple fact that there were only two otherworlders in this entire world was powerful enough to wash away every bit of previous ill will between us.

We talked about everything. How we'd each fallen into this world. What our lives had been like back in our original homes.

"I was a promising archmage. The entire world knelt before a single word from me..."

"I see."

"What about you? From what the boss said, you don't seem like you were exactly ordinary."

"I was just an ordinary graduate student. Extremely ordinary."

"Ahaha! So people from your world call someone like you ordinary?"

I also finally learned the secret behind the magic I couldn't decipher no matter how long I stared at the footage.

"It's magic. Real magic."

"Magic... Like the kind Magical Girls use?"

"No? Please don't compare my art to that barbaric nonsense. My magic was a legitimate scholarly discipline. The so-called magic these kids use here is practically primitive. It offends me to even have them mentioned in the same breath."

"Ah, my apologies. I sometimes feel the same way about certain things, so I understand completely."

So that's how it was. I'd wondered how he'd restored a bitten apple and swallowed water back to their original states. It had all been magic. An even more absurd concept than superpowers, but then again, I existed. There was no reason magic couldn't exist too.

Besides, according to Arima it was a properly established academic field. Compared to superpowers—where everything was decided at birth and the room for growth was nearly nonexistent—it was something worthy of genuine respect.

"How long have you been here?"

"Hmm— I think it's been about five years now?"

"Five years... I thought your executive number was Seven."

"I didn't become an executive immediately. When I first arrived, I had no trouble making a living. I wandered the world for a while, happened to meet Young Lady Regalia, and she scouted me."

"I see."

I couldn't help letting out a small sound of envy. To fall into another world with nothing and still have no problems surviving... Compared to science, which became completely useless without infrastructure or facilities, it was an utterly astonishing discipline.

Just in case, I asked.

"Could I learn this magic too?"

"No. Ah, it's not that I dislike you or anything. It's simply impossible."

"Impossible?"

"People from this world lack the ■■■ that Ardenians need to use magic. Since you're not even from this world to begin with, there's no way you'd have it either..."

"Ah, I understand. It's like superpowers, then."

After all, I couldn't use superpowers either, unlike the natives of this world. It was simply because I lacked the organ required to manifest them.

Even if I consumed a Leviathan gene sphere, it probably wouldn't awaken anything. Unlike the people here, who were born with the genetic machinery for superpowers, my DNA contained no such organ whatsoever.

The same logic applied to magic. If it required a specific biological component, then it made perfect sense that no magical civilization had ever developed on Earth. Without the proper organ, how could anyone possibly cast spells?

"That's a shame. I would've liked to try using magic at least once."

"Ahaha. Unfortunately that's not a problem I can fix."

"If it were fixable, you would've already built your own personal mage army instead of joining a villain organization."

My words must have struck a nerve. Arima fell silent for a moment, staring at me with an unreadable expression. His eyes held layers of meaning I found difficult to meet directly, so I quickly changed the subject.

"Five years, though... You must miss your homeland, Arima."

"...I do. I miss it terribly. If I close my eyes right now, I can see it so clearly. It's strange that it feels like I could cross over at any moment, yet I can't."

"I still dream about it sometimes... but I don't miss it that much yet. Maybe because this place looks so similar."

I laughed lightly, trying to brush it off, when Arima pulled a necklace from inside his shirt and began fiddling with it. A sky-blue jewel that seemed to hold clouds within it sparkled brightly.

"This is the only thing I have left from Ardenia. A Dragon Heart."

"...A Dragon Heart?"

"Yes. The heart of a dragon I hunted back in my youth. It contains vast amounts of mana, and its symbolic value is enormous—"

At the mention of something from Ardenia, I carefully accepted ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Dragon Heart. Surprisingly, even though it looked like nothing more than a small gemstone, I could feel an overwhelming surge of power flowing from it. If I focused, I could even sense a pulsing heartbeat, as if it were still alive.

After handing it back, I recalled the technology I'd developed while studying Sten. The method I'd created to return to Earth. Without any connection point to Earth, it had been useless to me, but...

If I had this—

Wouldn't it be possible to travel ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to Ardenia, the world where Arima had once lived? A fantasy realm of swords and magic. His homeland.