From Ancient Times There Were Two Swords - 7
"Th-the Abyss?! What on earth does that mean?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. Darkness with no end in sight."
"Do you actually know what that means?"
"Hahaha!"
Master Chester answered with nothing but a hearty laugh. For a moment I brightened, hoping he might actually understand the meaning of the Abyss—
"I haven't the faintest idea. To be perfectly honest, this is a first even for me, and it's rather frightening."
The sage shook his head and took a step back.
Was this the usual way people treated a body-possessor? Hard to say—especially when the man could read personalities so thoroughly yet still landed on "Abyss" as his conclusion. It left a sour taste. They say a good interpretation is better than the dream itself, but this wasn't even an interpretation I could work with.
"No need to fret over it too much. At the very least, of all the Abysses I've ever laid eyes on in my lifetime, yours was the cleanest and purest."
"Is that supposed to be a compliment?"
"Depends entirely on how you choose to take it."
"…Fair enough."
Maybe it was pure evil. In the end, the fact that I was wicked didn't change. One look at Chaos, currently wagging his tail inside my shadow, was answer enough.
Strange. My position was supposed to be the supporting protagonist who'd fled the academy. Yet my identity kept drifting closer and closer to that of a Demon King.
"At any rate, crafting clothes and armor that suit you will take roughly a day. Come back later."
"Ah—wait a moment…!"
"Something else you wished to ask?"
"Yes. It doesn't have a clear name, but it's a power once used by an ancient demon…"
An image similar to the Abyss rose in my mind. During the mock battle with Leviathan, I had witnessed a power that created something from nothing. She had claimed I was favored by the very being that was the root of that absolute force, and I wanted to know more. Leviathan, however, kept putting me off, saying I would come to understand in time. I had no choice but to dig it up myself. A well-read sage might know, so I explained what I had seen and asked.
"Unfortunately, nothing springs to mind."
"I see…"
"That said, it isn't as though I have no inkling at all. In my prime, when I traveled the world with my companions, we happened upon an ancient ruin. I recall hearing that a stone tablet inside bore the words Domain of Nothingness."
"I'd be grateful if you could tell me more about that story!"
"Sadly, someone else interpreted the tablet. I'd love to share the contents, but without the person who actually read it, it's impossible."
"Do you know who that was?"
"Morks. An elf who loved the forest, and a barbarian warrior of the great Earth Mother Goddess."
For a second the image of an elf and a barbarian warrior refused to match. Then I remembered what the elves of this world were actually like and nodded. Considering the average build of the elven women, calling them barbarian warriors wasn't far off.
"Ask Morks about the tablet. After all these years she should be resting comfortably in a side building, just as I am."
"Understood."
Looks like I'll have to visit the Elf Forest again soon. I wonder how Marianne is doing. The day of our reunion wasn't far off now.
"Anything else you're curious about?"
"Ignite… no, the Red Dragon. You wouldn't happen to know its weaknesses, would you?"
"About ten centimeters above the wing joint, among the red scales, there's a reverse scale that turns a soft pink. Strike or stab that and you're set."
"Ah! Right…"
Master Chester knew a suspiciously large amount about the Red Dragon. Maybe that was simply what came with being the Sage of Truth. But if he could rattle off a Red Dragon's weak points so easily, why was analyzing me impossible? Truly an indescribable world.
"Ask whatever you like."
"Then do you know the locations of the Four Evil Beasts as well?"
"Two of them left this world long ago, as far as I know. Gung-gi is secluded in an undersea cave beneath the southern ocean of the continent. As for the last one…"
Master Chester lowered his gaze, stared steadily at my shadow, then let out a quiet snort of laughter. He clearly knew where Chaos was. I almost asked how much he actually knew, then thought better of it and held my tongue.
"It's hidden so perfectly I haven't the slightest idea where it is."
"Ah…"
He almost certainly knew, yet he deliberately looked the other way. I realized he had grasped my circumstances and chosen to show consideration. He must also know that Chaos was the one who had slaughtered his own kin. Even if every truth came out right here, I would have nothing I could say—and Master Chester simply let it pass. I wanted to ask why, but doing so now would only trample on his kindness.
"Anything else you wish to ask?"
"Would it be possible to learn the locations of the dungeons where the ancient demons live?"
"I'll have Rewen send you a map later."
"Then could you also mark the locations of the split magic swords?"
"Certainly possible—though there is one place I was never able to pinpoint. You'll have to find that one on your own."
Disappointing, yet simply knowing the locations of the other magic swords was already a huge gain. Shorter travel routes meant more time I could spend training myself.
"I'd like to know the exact blooming period of the moonflowers."
"If you're using them for medicine, five days from now is the best time."
"Open mind?"
"There's a doctor in Florence Village whose skill with matters of the mind is unmatched. Go get yourself checked."
Master Chester swatted my lighthearted joke right back with ruthless precision. There was no winning a battle of words against this man. I had planned to leave after neatly clearing up every remaining curiosity. Instead Master Chester stopped cutting leather, raised a single finger, and showed it to me.
"By custom, this will be the final question. Choose carefully this time."
"The last one…?"
"It would violate the truth too severely otherwise. Nothing to be done."
The final question. What did I want to know most?
A way back to my original world? A means to become stronger than Ignite? A shortcut to living happily?
There were many things I wanted to know and few chances to ask. I agonized over which question would help me most, then finally made my decision and opened my mouth.
Please let this choice not be a mistake.
The time had come.
Every preparation was perfect. After more than a dozen hours of work she had obtained a body so flawless that not a single problem area remained. The only regret was that she had already shown him a new form just a day earlier—but even that had been nothing more than a taste. Frach could move past it without a second thought.
The real pleasure began now.
I can sense my Contractor's presence beyond this door.
A reunion that made her heart tremble waited on the other side of a single door. Frach took a short breath to shake off the tension, then gripped the handle and turned it.
Creeeak—!
Before the door had even fully opened she squeezed through the gap, arms flung wide.
"Applaud me, Contractor! This body has returned having obtained a human form!"
But Bern was nowhere in the room. Even the presence she had felt so clearly a mere ten seconds earlier had scattered like mist. Frach was still reeling from the unexpected emptiness when—
Clap clap clap—!
Applause rose from behind her. She turned. Beside the half-open door, Bern stood clapping.
How had he erased his presence, and when had he moved there? Frach was curious, yet that was not the important point.
"Contractor, are you prepared?"
"Prepared?"
"Until now you have borrowed countless powers from this body without ever paying a single price. Do you know why this body never demanded payment? Precisely for this moment—the moment our gazes finally stand on equal ground!"
Now that she had become human through polymorph, Frach had been carefully banking every unpaid debt so she could collect it in another form. As part of that plan she intended to push him onto the bed, even if the hour was still early.
"…Yeah. I had a feeling you were scheming something like that."
"You knew?"
Bern nodded without a word and stepped closer. Once he was right in front of her he caught her chin and pulled her in sharply.
"You planned to use the wish you won from our bet to override my refusal, didn't you."
"So you saw through even that. Still, Contractor—today your atmosphere, your very temperament, seems rather different…"
"I learned a truth I wasn't supposed to know."
"What exactly did you hear that has you like this?"
"The method for becoming a Grand Sword Master."
Bern released her chin and walked toward the bed.
"Throughout history only five people have ever been called Grand Sword Masters. Honestly, it always puzzled me. Looking purely at Rin's level, it wouldn't have been strange to call her one already—yet she still remained a Sword Master. I wanted to know why. And the answer I got was nothing like what I expected."
Bern paused for a beat, then let out a long sigh and spoke the story he had been told.
"Shingeomhapil. It isn't about some lofty realm. You have to spend one scorching night with your beloved sword. That was the prerequisite."
"…Exactly so."
The reason there had been so few Grand Sword Masters was simple and clear. Every one of them in history had possessed the particular fetish of loving only their sword.
"The fact that you brought it up means I can take it as you being prepared, yes?"
"If you can't avoid it, you might as well enjoy it, right?"
"Excellent."
That night, it was said, the continuous sound of swords clashing could be heard from the inn where they were staying.