“I will leave it to you.”
“Then I shall excuse myself for now.”
Saying that, the court mage swiftly made his exit. Felmenia closed the door to her private quarters, and making sure there was no longer anyone nearby, muttered to herself.
“Suimei-dono, just what are you doing...?”
It was a question that would go unanswered for now.
★
“About the hero’s good friend, you say?”
It was now a few days after Felmenia had witnessed Suimei’s mysterious behavior. Currently, she was in Royal Castle Camellia’s audience chamber before the king. The reason for their meeting, quite naturally, was Suimei. After seeing him in the ritual chamber, Felmenia had thoroughly observed him and was now reporting her findings to the king. She was bowed before him on one knee, but the king looked puzzled.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Do you mean Mizuki Anou?”
“No, sire. What I wish to tell you concerns the other one, Suimei Yakagi.”
When Felmenia said his name, the king frowned.
“Hmph. So far as I have been informed, he still hasn’t left his room after the scene he caused.”
“I’m afraid that’s not so, Your Majesty. In truth, Suimei-dono has been seen walking around the castle on many occasions.”
Felmenia had determined this from her investigations over the past few days. After witnessing him sneak around for herself, she’d used all of her free time to dig deeper into what he was doing around the castle. From there, she’d discovered that sequestering himself was a complete farce. In reality, he was quite active and likely had been this whole time. Hearing this news, the king gave Felmenia a probing gaze and his tone grew stern.
“I have not heard any such reports prior to this.”
“He is maintaining the facade that he’s locked away in his room, and moving about behind the scenes.”
“Without being spotted by anyone?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. It seems that only a handful of people, myself included, actually know about this.”
The king managed a perplexed frown at Felmenia’s explanation.
“This makes no sense to me. How can he be going around the castle, yet so few people have noticed?”
“That I happened upon him walking around was complete coincidence. My theory is that in order to avoid the eyes of others, he is using some sort of magic.”
“Magic, you say? Did you teach him?”
“No, sire. I have taught him nothing.”
“Then what? Did another court mage?”
“No, sire. I believe that Suimei-dono was somehow able to use magic from the very beginning.”
The king had been hesitant and puzzled so far, but with those words, he now looked outright baffled. Felmenia had expected as much.
“Felmenia, I have been told that magic does not exist in the world the hero hails from. The hero himself said that they had technology in its place, and that magic was a mere fantasy to them.”
“I understand, Your Majesty. I have personally spoken to the hero on that matter, but nevertheless, I can say with certainty that Suimei-dono can use magic.”
“Are you saying that the hero lied?”
“No, there is absolutely nothing to suggest that, Your Majesty.”
Reiji hadn’t lied. She could say that definitively. Reiji’s aptitude as a mage was quite high, but when it came to the fundamental knowledge of magic, it could be said that he had absolutely none at all. The king also seemed ready to trust in Reiji’s honesty.
“Yes, I believe in him myself. However...”
“You wish to know why there is an inconsistency with Reiji-dono’s statement and Suimei-dono’s ability, correct?”
“Indeed. Either that young man personally requested that his power be concealed beforehand, or the hero is not even cognizant of the fact that magic does actually exist in the world he’s from. How mysterious.”
Even the king was puzzled over this. Magic was a technology in its own right. Even here in this world, it was able to protect people and improve their quality of life. Magic was inherent to the universe, and therefore to all intelligent life that inhabited it. Humans were unable to sever their bond with it any more than they could with their own history.
So how was it really that the hero’s world—one of such advanced technology—was without magic? No matter how developed and superior their science may be, it wasn’t the same thing as magic. It was simply impossible for magic to be rendered completely obsolete. How then had Reiji been able to declare so honestly that his world thought it was just make-believe?
“Your Majesty, I’m sure the world the hero comes from is a complicated one indeed. But for now, the pressing matter at hand...”
“Is the young man who is skulking about the castle, right?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Despite them being new to this world and outsiders, I placed no restrictions on their movements within the castle. There’s no issue with him walking the grounds freely, so he should have no reason to hide it...”
Suimei was a guest, the same as the hero. Concerning their stay in the castle, the king had decreed that they were free to roam and do as they pleased, and the castle staff was to assist them if there was anything they needed or wanted. In a demonstration of his hospitality and consideration, the king had placed no restrictions on them whatsoever. And after pondering this strange situation for a moment, the king gave his answer concerning Suimei’s movements.
“Ultimately, I don’t believe there to be a problem.”
“I’m afraid, Your Majesty, that the places that Suimei-dono has been visiting do indeed make it a major problem.”
“The places he’s been visiting, you say? Just where has he been?”
“First would be the library. He goes every day to retrieve several books and take them back to his room.”
“You don’t say... I thought he had been spending his time idly, but I am quite impressed that he has been visiting the library. Since he cannot return to his world, he is likely trying to amass knowledge on ours.”
The king had a surprised look on his face and a twinkle in his eye as he voiced his approval of this piece of news. He nodded repeatedly, seemingly touched by the story of the young man who was summoned against his will, but refused to be defeated by it and immersed himself in studying. And he wasn’t wrong about that part, but there was more to the story yet.
“That may be, Your Majesty, but there is evidence he’s gone into the forbidden archives as well.”
“Wh-What did you say?! No, that can’t be. Not just anyone could waltz into there...”
As the name indicated, the forbidden archives were off limits to most people. Since historic and important documents were stored there, entry to the archives was strictly regulated with magic. The king was rightfully startled to hear Suimei had gained access somehow.
“It appears he did so with ease, Your Majesty.”
“My goodness... So, is that the only place that young man has been visiting?”
When the king asked her that, Felmenia paused for a moment and shook her head. Digesting just how grave the situation was, she hesitantly gave her answer.
“Suimei-dono has also been going in and out of the ritual chamber, Your Majesty.”
“Preposterous... The only ones who should know the spell to enter are myself, you, and the other court mages.”
“I understand, Your Majesty, but I believe Suimei-dono was able to open the door through some kind of wile.”
With those words, an oppressive silence fell over the audience chamber. It was no wonder. The ritual chamber was specifically designed and built to prevent unauthorized access to it. That door had been sealed with such complex earth magic that not even a specialist in that attribute would be able to grasp it. To a degree, that in and of itself gave them a glimpse of Suimei’s abilities as a mage. And in that case, it went without saying what significance that had.
“What was he doing... is a foolish question, I suppose... That young man was investigating the summoning circle, was he not?”
“It did not look that way at all to me, but considering the circumstances, I do believe that was his goal, Your Majesty.”
“He wants to return so badly that he would go these lengths...?”
The king’s expression as he uttered those anguished words appeared to be melancholic at a glance. As expected, this weighed heavily on the king since he felt responsible for having summoned Suimei to this world. As a kind, considerate king, his heart went out to the poor boy who felt trapped here.
Even during the summit between all the nations, Felmenia had heard that the king was opposed to using the hero summoning ritual. He thought it was cruel to call on people who had no relation to this world at all and push such an outrageous task on them. Even if they succeeded, they would never properly be able to repay them for their service. They weren’t even able to return them home after calling them here.
Moreover, if the people of this world relied too heavily on the strength of others, they would never have the power to deal with a dangerous crisis on their own. And the weaker they grew, the more situations like this would present themselves in the future. Eventually this world would be brought to ruin that way too, the king had said.
And even though he’d declared that much, his voice would never be loud enough to reach the leaders of each nation cowering in fear of the Demon Lord. In the end, he was forced to agree to performing the hero summoning by an overwhelming majority vote.
As Felmenia recalled the bitter sense of powerlessness the king must have tasted as his noble heart was trampled on, he began speaking in a heavy tone.
“And so, Felmenia... Why is it that you’ve remained silent and waited until now to inform me of all this?”
“I judged that it was not a good plan to make contact with him by my own will and risk complications, Your Majesty. If it ended up becoming a scene and it reached Reiji-dono’s ears...”
“Certainly, we cannot ignore the potential threat of discord between us and the hero.”
“And the reason that I did not deliver this news to Your Majesty sooner is because I had not yet gathered enough information to make a full report.”
An incomplete report—or what amounted to speculation on the matter—was a dangerous prospect. Something like that was bound to produce misunderstandings and lead to mistakes being made. It was Felmenia’s wish to avoid that, which was why she hadn’t spoken up sooner.
“Naturally, if anything were to happen, you were planning to take action, I presume?”
“Yes, of course, Your Majesty.”
That much was obvious. That was why she was constantly keeping tabs on him.
“And so, have you discussed this with any others?”
“Aside from myself and Your Majesty, only a few of my colleagues are aware of this matter. Regarding Reiji-dono and Mizuki-dono, they seem to know nothing of it either.”
“Understood. Then see to it that word of this doesn’t reach anyone else’s ears. I shall speak with the other court mages myself. Also, you may not inform the hero of any of this. Understood?”
Felmenia respectfully acknowledged the king’s order. She didn’t understand his intentions in trying to keep this information from spreading, but she trusted him and had faith in his decision. She would obediently follow his lead. The only question on her mind now was how to proceed in the future.
“Your Majesty, what should I do from here on out?”
What exactly should she do with regards to Suimei? How should she deal with him? Felmenia was certain he shouldn’t be left to his own devices, even knowing he was the hero’s good friend. However, the king frowned at this unexpected question.
“Hmm? There is nothing for you to do. Are things not fine as they are? If that young man has no ill intentions, then there is no need to forcibly get ourselves involved. He’s been moving in stealth and clearly does not want us involved, so we shall respect that for now.”
“But Your Majesty, the forbidden archives...”
“If he has already entered them, then so be it. All that is stored there are records of historical significance and maps. Nothing will come of him learning their contents.”
That much was true. Felmenia wouldn’t be so trusting of someone from a foreign country having access to them, but Suimei was from another world and had no connections here. Even if he stole a document, he wouldn’t know what to do with it. She understood that much, but even then, she thought the king was being naive.
Is that why His Majesty doesn’t want word of this to get out?
The king intended to continue to let Suimei do as he pleased. But letting someone off the hook after breaking the rules would set a bad example. It was an insidious poison to public order. But if the public didn’t know of the offense, there was no need to hand down a punishment for it for the sake of making an example. So was that why the king wanted to keep Suimei’s behavior hush-hush? Because he knew he was going to look the other way? As long as the only people who knew about it were in the palm of the king’s hand, he would have nothing to worry about.
Impartiality was required to be a king. Felmenia’s master had taught her of decorum, and she had always lived by her morals. She believed stoutly in the king and the proper way he should behave. And that’s why she grew irritated at this lax lapse in his judgment.
“Then... does Your Majesty intend to do nothing about this?”
“Are you opposed to that?”
“Suimei-dono is a mage, Your Majesty. I think that we should take some measures against him. It is true that we must be careful about this in regards to Reiji-dono, but if we let him run amok within Castle Camellia, then it will reflect poorly on Your Majesty’s good name. And in the unlikely event that something does happen...”
“...Personally, I am not concerned.”
The king flashed a completely disinterested expression at Felmenia’s proposal. Based on that, she could see his intention to put an immediate end to all talk of taking measures against Suimei. However, if she stepped down here, how could she call herself a court mage?
“Your Majesty, a light punishment... Yes, at least something like a punishment. I shall do nothing that would cause injury to his body. And if Suimei-dono informs Reiji-dono of it and something happens, then I shall persuade Reiji-dono.”
“Oh? It’s rather confident of you to suggest you could persuade him like that, is it not?”
“Though I may not look it, Your Majesty, I am still his instructor. I know that he will take my words to heart.”
Felmenia was indeed confident she could persuade Reiji if something were to happen. After all, she was the court mage who’d taught the hero magic. Reiji even called her “sensei.” And if his sensei told him that his good friend was doing something wrong, even if that friend had to be strongly reprimanded, she thought that things would work out. Even from their daily casual conversations over magic lessons, Felmenia could tell that Reiji had a just heart and believed in doing the right thing. There should be no issue there, meaning there was only one thing left to handle.
“All that is left is for Your Majesty to give the command. Please give me your wise sanction.”
As she made that royal request, the king shut his eyes for a moment in consideration, and before long, he spoke in a solemn tone.
“...You mustn’t.”
“Your Majesty! But...!”
“Felmenia, I have said that you mustn’t. Suimei-dono is, just like the hero, an important guest of my castle. I cannot allow you to think of doing him harm.”
“I would never think of doing that...! I would merely dress him down appropriately for having such a flagrant disregard for the rules. I-It is true that I do not think Suimei-dono is planning any mischief, but... Before he does something and it becomes a serious matter, we should put a stop to this. That is, um... I believe it to be my duty, so...”
&n
bsp; Seeing Felmenia cling so obstinately to the idea, the king made a curious expression. This was somewhat strange to him.
“You seem quite fixated on this.”
“Your Majesty?! Ah, no... That’s, um...”
“Is Suimei-dono that much on your mind?”
“N-No, sire! I am not particularly... It’s just, because of him... I thought it would be bad if he causes trouble for Reiji-dono...”
Having her unusual behavior pointed out to her, Felmenia’s thoughts scattered hither and thither as she tried to stay on track. Certainly if she said that she wasn’t fixated on this, it would be a lie. Seeing her like that, the king suddenly became quiet. She once more requested his consent, but...
“What mustn’t be simply mustn’t be, Felmenia. Understood?”
“...”
“Understood?”
“Yes, Your Majesty...”
When the king pressed her for compliance, Felmenia relented. She had no choice. Swallowing her chagrin, she bowed her head down deeply. Just how long had it been since she was so utterly shot down? Since the day she became a court mage, it had happened once or twice, but nothing in recent memory. The opponent she was focused on was a mage, and that only amplified her frustration at not being able to take him to task. She was unhappy with the king for not granting her permission to do so, but in the end, her anger was focused on Suimei. He was right in the crosshairs of her rage, which was now easily increased fivefold.
How had things gotten like this? Why did she feel so strongly about it? If Suimei had just kept quiet and stayed obedient, that would have been the end of it. But sneaking around the castle like some common thief was unacceptable. It was like he was mocking her. Taunting her. Felmenia knew that Suimei wasn’t a bad person, but knowing that only made her angrier over his present behavior.
No, not yet...
Though the king hadn’t granted her request, she had no intention of blindly obeying his order. This was the royal court, the king’s garden. Even cutting her personal feelings out of the matter, as a court mage, there was no way she could stand for some mage running amok in the castle.
And that being the case, the time to act was now. While there were still only a few people who knew of the matter, she would be able to act without scrutiny. This would be her only chance. Suimei still didn’t know that she was following him. And if no one else was involved, she would probably be able to bring the matter to an end without anyone ever knowing.
The Magic in this Other World is Too Far Behind! Volume 1 Page 10