Chapter 99
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 99
Chapter Title: Falling Flowers (1)
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After switching shifts with Miles and stepping outside, the sun was already high in the sky.
It felt like I'd gone in just last evening. But since I ate all my meals in the sealing chamber, time slipped by unnoticed.
Just one more month, and you'll be like me, Miles had cackled, his face popping into my mind and sending a chill down my spine.
It had been about two weeks since the delegation returned to Prion... probably.
I hadn't heard of any incidents on the way, so they must have arrived safely.
I hadn't really noticed it on the trip here with Father, but there were moments when I suddenly missed my parents.
Whenever that happened, I'd fiddle with the Eternal Crest Mother gave me and focus back on sealing chamber duties.
From the outer corridor, I could take in the garden and training grounds at a glance.
A cool breeze rustled through the blue trees in the garden, carrying the faint echoes of the knights' shouts.
Beyond the walls, the Magos Traveling Troupe's music drifted over as always.
That troupe... The timing never lined up, so I'd never gone to see them.
They'd been performing near the branch for weeks now, their music popping over the walls whenever I started to forget.
I should have gone with Clemence at least once.
I'd shortened the strap on the Lucremia necklace Clemence gave me and turned it into a bracelet. Wedin wore his as a necklace, and Shuren had it on his belt.
Leaning against the corridor railing, I watched the knights throw themselves into afternoon training.
I spotted Shuren, Wedin, Belpons, and Regnit. There were also about a dozen knights from the Silver Moon Knight Order attached to this branch.
Normally around thirty were stationed here, but half were out on missions.
The knights practiced the same moves repeatedly amid booming shouts, then paired off for spars.
Wedin was now sparring with other knights besides Shuren.
It wasn't so much improved skill as getting used to training. He said himself he'd grown numb to getting hit and built up toughness first.
Working as an apprentice holy mage at the branch clinic, he was just as swamped as I was.
The Silver Guard Knight urged sealing chamber mages like me and Miles to join training when possible, but it wasn't easy.
The work didn't drain physical stamina but consumed massive focus and mental energy, leaving us exhausted after shifts.
A door creaked open behind me.
Turning slowly with my weary body, I saw the Silver Guard Knight standing there. I bowed my head in greeting.
"Good morning, Silver Guard Knight."
A rare flicker of surprise crossed his stoic face.
"Liberic, it's afternoon now."
"Ah, r-right, yeah..."
I mumbled good afternoon and leaned back on the railing, thinking how even a brief waist rest stabilized body and mind.
"Focusing on duties is good, but taking breaks in between matters too."
He let out a small sigh and approached my side.
I nodded, forehead pressed to the cool railing pillar.
He's right.
I wanted to hold the pose, but straightened up beside him. My legs, stiff from disuse, trembled faintly.
"I'm heading to Kingdom Knight Order HQ with the knights shortly. You should stay and rest a bit."
He spoke calmly, ignoring my posture entirely.
"Kingdom Knight Order HQ?"
"To operate in Lesion, coordination with the Kingdom Knights is essential, so we have these meetings occasionally. This one's on Kaela Hermes's interrogation and dragon search."
"Ah. Finally."
I breathed a quiet sigh.
It felt like progress on the task the White Guard Knight left for the Silver Guard Knight.
Lesion Kingdom had refused Kaela's interrogation and the dragon hunt until now, but they seemed ready to formally request Prius assistance.
"Still just agenda stage. How much access depends on future talks. We'll need three or four more meetings. Planning to bring the new knights too, but you don't need to attend."
Even Kingdom Knights' affairs tangled with noble interests.
It had taken nearly a month to get here, and more meetings loomed.
Anyway, I had no speaking rights, so I gratefully accepted his offer to rest.
"Yes, Silver Guard Knight. I'll do that."
"The meeting will run late into the night. Report anything now if needed."
Late night... Does that mean drinks too? I scratched my chin with a hum.
"No issues. The dragon vein anomaly scouting and logging I mentioned before is going smoothly. If we find patterns and convert to a ritual, management gets way easier."
"I see..."
I doubted he grasped it all, but he tried his best.
"What about the thing you wanted to try before?"
He at least remembered everything I reported or consulted on.
So I answered earnestly, in terms even non-mages could follow.
"Going well. Using the stable dragon vein sections first to build a ritual. If it succeeds, it'll handle sealing chamber management for us."
"Good to hear it's progressing. Hard to believe it'd replace chamber management, though. That magic... what do you call it...?"
"Spirit. Magic to create a dragon vein spirit."
I looked at him, brimming with hope.
⚙ DRAGON VEIN SPIRIT ⚙
"Gaaah!"
Miles's overly dramatic scream jolted my head up.
Moments later, he bolted out of the mirror barrier.
"What happened?"
Miles groaned in pain, rubbing his right arm nonstop. It looked fine.
"It bit me again! That thing's dangerous!"
'I just woke it since it was sleeping.'
Ashy strolled out of the barrier, utterly nonchalant.
I stifled a laugh, calming my surprise.
"Wasn't it sleeping?"
Not that surprising. Miles thrust his arm at me, aggrieved.
"This hurts like hell. It bit me. I... I need the clinic."
"Looks fine... Half your shift left; can't sleep on duty."
"No, it bites even when I'm awake sometimes! Did you train your pet right? Too fierce for a dog, and that pitying look it gives me—sometimes seems human!"
Despite the accusations, Ashy yawned lazily and flopped belly-up.
Miles had Ashy pegged, honestly.
I laughed and soothed him.
"What, think it'd eat you? I'll tell it you're valuable staff—no eating."
"One day it'll take an arm."
"Observation and inference: Ashy shows no intent to consume Miles."
A clear, crisp voice echoed through the sealing chamber.
I turned to the glowing orb floating before me.
Miles's eyes widened in awe. "Ooh!"
"It speaks so perfectly! Amazing!"
Good—he missed the content amid the wonder.
Miles approached the orb, awestruck.
"Wow, never thought it'd really work. Hey, light blob. Know who I am?"
"You are Miles."
The orb replied in a flat, emotionless tone.
The voice manifested from within but resonated as if from the whole chamber, powered by dragon vein mana.
"Good. Then how old am I?"
"Observation and inference determine 56 years old."
"Wrong! I'm a spry thirty-something!"
Miles yelled, indignant.
"Liberic, this is busted. Totally broken."
His flushed face whipped to me; I sighed softly.
"Still learning. Analysis ritual incomplete, so it judges by appearance. That's accurate enough."
"Wait, what? You saying I look 56?!"
With startling speed unbefitting 56, his arm hooked my neck.
"M-Miles...!"
My throat tightened; I gagged. Ashy lifted its head, glaring murderously at him.
Seeing it, Miles instantly backed off.
"No, I just meant the light blob's off."
I coughed, catching my breath.
The orb twinkled in response.
"No errors in current functions. Reference prior errors?"
"No, it's fine."
I chuckled and told Miles too.
"Miles, don't confuse it with weird questions. Accelerating learning now. Don't teach it nonsense."
"What'd I teach?!"
He grumbled, sat, and predictably pulled a stick snack from his pocket, munching away. Sugar scattered again.
I watched wearily.
"Like how to make stick snacks..."
Why was the dragon vein spirit memorizing stick snack recipes?
Last night, hearing it stored the recipe as key info left me dumbfounded.
I told it that wasn't important—forget it—and it seemed confused.
"That's important. Gonna send it into the mirror barrier later. Want a room piled with perfect replicas—endless supply, no cost, no health issues! Dreamy."
My expression must've soured badly mid-fantasy.
Finished, he glanced at me, panicked, and backpedaled.
"O-Oh... I mean, could happen someday."
"...Pretend I didn't hear. Anyway, prioritize barrier and sealing learning first. Not trivial stuff."
"Right, as Barrier Lord says."
Slightly sulky, he quieted—perfect.
I ignored him and instructed the spirit to continue environmental learning.
The orb shimmered, rose higher, and vanished. But it hadn't gone—just invisible.
The dragon vein spirit roamed the vein area: Elgrace Branch of Prius Knights and surrounding streets, observing nature, buildings, people, plants, animals.
Learning life from nature, speech from conversations.
Grasping vein mana and ritual construction by watching me and Miles.
Honestly, using the Rendike family's life creation secret didn't appeal.
Past attempts mostly ended in miserable failure. Massive sacrifices, then sealing them myself—or disguising those I couldn't kill.
Grand name "life creation," but all I made were world-devouring monsters.
So for this mana-born spirit, no body.
An imperfect non-life existence—just enough intelligence to guard and manage barriers and seals. That sufficed.