The Archmage's Final Experiment
"The Dragon Slayer of the Joman Mountains, the slaughterer of giants and monsters, the interpreter of all mysteries, the companion of spirits and fairies, the terror of the seven continents, the archmage of the Hero's party..."
—Excerpted from The Association of Descendants Praising the Great Archmage, Trevalier of the Rainbow.
My great master.
To be honest, the modifiers used by the world to praise the Archmage Trevalier are countless.
Actually, there are other famous ones besides the ones mentioned above.
But since my diary doesn't have enough space to write them all down, I'll stop here.
Honestly, since he is a person who achieved such great deeds, that kind of treatment is only natural.
But from my perspective, my master—that is, the great Archmage, Duke Trevalier—is just a somewhat immature, curious old man.
Crash!
"Rian! Are you here?"
"...Yes, Master. But I would appreciate it if you would please knock."
"No, such trivial matters aren't important right now. I just returned from another dimension, you see? Ha! But would you believe it, my other self over there was an absolute lump of incompetence. No talent, and lazy to boot. Do you remember the law I mentioned last time? The Law of Conservation of Entropy."
"Hmm, 'The entropy existing in all dimensions is fixed, and if an existence in one dimension uses a large amount of entropy, their counterparts in other dimensions suffer a corresponding disadvantage,' was it?"
"Yes! Exactly! I knew I hit the nail on the head. The me in that other dimension is so incompetent. Absolutely useless, I tell you."
Carefully placing my experimental tools on the table, I turned my head slightly to look at Duke Trevalier, whose face was flushed with excitement.
With snow-white eyebrows and hair, he was an old man well over a hundred years old. Yet, his face was completely wrinkle-free, and his eyes sparkled like a young boy's.
I saw my master's energetic display every single day, but it was still a marvel to behold.
"But did you actually succeed in the dimensional travel magic that was blocked all this time?"
"Hmm? Huhu, I succeeded in that ages ago. It's quite stable now. I've already visited five places."
"Congratulations. Another new achievement to add to your name."
The Mage of Space and Dimensions. The Great Archmage Trevalier. Another modifier had been added to describe my master.
While I was cooped up in the lab like a proper mage, fighting with magical reagents all day, my great master, Duke Trevalier, was personally experimenting with legendary magics that were thought to be possible only in imagination.
He casually tossed a book onto my desk—a compilation of his dimensional magic. I wondered if it was truly alright to leave a magic book capable of overturning the seven continents lying around so carelessly.
"Ahem, well, you can publish it to the academic community as you see fit. Now that I've finished teaching you all the magic theories I need to pass down, I'm thinking of challenging a new magic."
"What kind of absurd thing are you planning to attempt this time?"
I wondered if there could possibly be any magic more dangerous than dimensional magic, but Duke Trevalier merely scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly.
"This magic is a bit dangerous, so I've written a will in advance. Want to read it?"
"...Pardon?"
I stared at my master, utterly bewildered. What kind of magic would make a monster capable of crossing dimensions prepare for death?
Seeing my expression turn grim, my master grinned and placed a single sheet of paper next to the dimensional magic book.
"I'm thinking of going to a higher dimension, one level above this one."
"...A higher dimension? Do you mean you are going to the realm of the gods?"
Could a normal human even enter the divine realm? No, for my great master, who was already hailed as the God of Magic, it might actually be possible. He was a man whose talent defied all comprehension.
But...
"The divine realm is not a higher dimension. It's just somewhat difficult to access from the same dimension due to a difference in phase. I can go there whenever I want. In fact, I've already been."
"...To the divine realm?"
"Of course. I even met the Goddess Aionia. She got extremely angry when she saw me and kicked me out. I was even banned from entering."
"Is... is that okay?"
"Should be fine, right? I did apologize."
Was he joking? But his face was far too serious for it to be a jest. At any rate, I needed to study the dimensional magic book on the table as quickly as possible. Shaking off my bewilderment, I asked, "Then what exactly do you mean by a higher dimension?"
"Well, literally, a world where the laws are similar to ours, but entirely different rules exist. Right now, the distance is too far, so I'm only making vague predictions. It will be a world where the entropy of all dimensions operates in a completely different way than here. If I go there, even I might have a pretty hard time."
For a man who was the very definition of self-confidence to speak so humbly... I was astonished. "Does such a world truly exist?" I had only meant to think it, but the words slipped out of my mouth.
"Probably? But since it's barely observable from here, we won't know for sure until we go. But I'm certain it exists. Now, I just have to go see for myself."
"But if you go to such a world, your power will be restricted. Aren't you afraid?"
"Hmm? Why would I be afraid of that?"
Looking at my master, who genuinely seemed unable to comprehend the concept of fear, I suddenly remembered what kind of monster stood before me and nodded.
"I suppose you would actually enjoy it, Master."
"Of course! Starting from the very bottom is where the fun is."
I couldn't help but chuckle at his bright, innocent smile. Only someone with absolute confidence that they could reach the peak anytime, in any form, could say such a thing. Even if my master had learned swordsmanship instead of magic, he would have reached the peak of the world just the same. He was, after all, a master of the sword recognized by the Hero himself.
The man before me was an anomaly that defied all standards. I quickly nodded and spoke again.
"Still, if it's a dimension so distant that even you cannot observe it, it must be incredibly dangerous."
"Yes. It's impossible to observe with a physical body. So this time, I plan to discard my body entirely and attempt it as a soul—a perfect spiritual entity. I figured I need to drastically reduce my weight to travel further."
"Usually, we call that dying."
"That's why I wrote a will."
"Do you really have to go that far, Master?"
"Yes. This is truly the last one."
I knew there was no stopping him. He was a madman who would throw his life away for the sake of new magic. As I stared at him with a complicated expression, the great Archmage, Duke Trevalier, grinned at me with a distinctly unrefined chuckle.
"So, you are finally free, my disciple. Isn't that great?"
"...It is great, but..."
It was the freedom I had yearned for, yet for some reason, I felt a bit unsatisfied. Perhaps it was because I hadn't obtained it through my own strength, leaving a bitter taste in my mouth.
"While I'm gone, feel free to conquer the world or whatever. You can use my fortune as you wish. I've written it all in my will."
"Master, your debt under your name is already tens of thousands of gold due to all your experiments."
"What? That can't be."
"The gold was depleted long ago from making the elixirs and potions you ordered."
"...What should we do? Having no money is a big problem. Magic requires a lot of funds."
"Well, it's fine. I'll handle the debt myself."
"Oh! As expected of my disciple! You need at least that much capability!"
Looking at my master's excited face, I asked with a slightly annoyed expression, "So, will you ever return?"
"I probably won't be able to return this time, since I have to leave my body behind."
"Then I really will conquer the world. Without you, Master, who could possibly stop me?"
"Probably no one. Take this opportunity to become the Emperor."
"Ah, hearing you say it like that makes me really not want to do it. It sounds so trivial."
"Haha, it is trivial, indeed."
As I glared at him with a thoroughly sullen face, my master chuckled and patted my shoulder.
"My disciple. Have you forgotten what this great master has always told you? Compared to the process of realizing the truth, worldly honors are as light as a feather."
"If that feather is the seven continents, it's not light at all, is it?"
"No. It is not a single bit different, my disciple. Well, you'll understand someday."
With his characteristic, carefree laugh, my master kept patting my back.
"You've worked hard under me all this time. I've always wanted to tell you that. Out of all my disciples, you were the only one I could actually hold a conversation with."
"..."
"Perhaps because you're greedy, you're also quite clever."
"The world conquest I mentioned earlier. I wasn't joking."
I was serious. I really intended to conquer the world. Once my master, the ultimate deterrent, was gone, there would be nothing left to hold me back.
"Yes, go ahead. Do as you wish. Once you do, you'll realize you wasted your time on something lighter than a feather."
"You're completely killing my motivation before I even start. Thank you very much, Master," I said, grinding my teeth.
My master giggled at my response. I felt like I had lost before even starting. It was a bizarre feeling.
"All my knowledge has been fully passed down to you, so I have no lingering regrets here. I feel so light."
"Don't just dump everything on me and leave like this."
I tucked the dimensional magic book and the will into my robes, speaking grumpily.
"Whether it's a higher dimension or whatever, I hope you live well over there. Though I'm sure you will, even without your disciple's worries. Talking to you is really frustrating."
"If I succeed there, I'll summon you too."
"No thanks. I'll climb to the highest point here and live happily. Besides, didn't you say the rules are different there? You might not even be able to use magic."
"That's just a guess. I might be able to. If not, I'll just learn swordsmanship."
"Sigh, do whatever you want. By the way, once your will is announced, the pests will start crawling in. It's going to be a hassle for a while."
I shook my head in annoyance. My master tapped his staff a few times and spoke lightly.
"Then, I shall go."
"Have a safe..."
Stumble—
Suddenly, my master staggered and fell backward.
Catching his limp body in a daze, I clutched my throbbing forehead and shouted.
"When you said you were going, did you mean right now?"
Is this a joke? Just like this, so suddenly?
The greatest archmage in history. The God of Magic. Duke Fabius Trevalier. Thus, he officially met his death.