Chapter 958 – Progenitor’s Arrangement

000

“Good! Cleon’s victory!”

After confirming that it was Melusine who laid down the sword first at the end of the close fight, Laila stood up from inside the room where she was watching and raised her voice.

＂Ugh… I can’t believe Melusine is losing…!”

And, the fairy king Vivian decomposes next to him.

There wasn’t really a bet on anything, but the end result was that if Cleon didn’t win, he wouldn’t be able to pass the test.

That’s that, this is this.

Vivian must have been hoping that her sister would win, but it didn’t work out that way.

Looking at Vivian holding his handkerchief in his hand and putting the end of it in his mouth, making a stereotypical angry gesture, Lila smiled.

Kuon, looking at the two people’s childish appearances, sighs with relief that Cleon is now safe.

When the battle between the two became more intense, they held their breath and kept their mouths shut to the point where they could barely make a sound.

As her breathing echoed, Sasha, who was sitting next to her, raised her voice in excitement.

＂Amazing! For both of you, it was a fight that you couldn’t follow with your eyes!”

She nodded as if it was the same for Amelia.

“… I guess it’s because I was wearing that special sheath. In that case, it might be a good idea for me to always have a tool to add weight…”

“Because you don’t have to do that!”

Towards Amelia, who still believed that Cleon’s bluff was real, Lila raised her voice to stop her.

Really, even innocent children are fooled.

Even if you tell an appropriate lie, children whose trust in Cleon has exceeded the final limit will immediately believe it.

If I don’t properly resolve the misunderstanding later.

But first, join Cleon.

Lila turns to Vivian and speaks.

“Okay, then it’s time to call the two of you over here, right?”

“… Yes. There are no trials prepared for you anymore. Everyone, you’ve passed safely, so let’s get out of the labyrinth. Compensation must also be provided.”

“Huh?! Reward!? “

As soon as the word reward came out of Vivian’s mouth, Lila’s eyes lit up.

“Well, for now it’s treated as a dungeon. Those who pass the final hurdle must be rewarded accordingly. Well… I also had fun in many ways while watching you guys.”

Thinking that she had done something fairy-like for the first time in a long time, Vivian nodded her head.

“Furthermore, if I don’t pay the appearance fee, I won’t be able to make any excuses if I get accused by you…”

＂… Appearance fee?＂

Kuon tilted his head at Vivian’s words, but Vivian just shook her head.

“Oh, no! It’s nothing! Anyway, I’ll call the two of you!”

As Vivian said that, he closed his eyes and stretched out his hand in front of him to create a transfer magic circle.

Then, the illusion of the place where Cleon and Vivian were standing before your eyes will disappear, and instead, an illusion like a large map that will allow you to understand the entire underground labyrinth will appear.

While looking at it, Lila spoke with her hand on his chin.

“By the way, it’s an amazing place. If we mobilize all the magic of the fairies, we can create such a huge facility.”

＂Huh…? Ah. But it’s not true either. With equipment of this level, it is difficult to create it using magic alone.”

Vivian responds to Lila’s monologue and continues to move her hands.

“You would know because you deciphered our magic book through the records left by Sophia. The existence called ‘Progenitor’ appears in that book.”

＂…＂

At Vivian’s words, Lila opened her eyes wide, then closed them for a moment – then folded her arms and tilted her head –

“Father? I don’t know…”

＂…＂

Even Kuon, who had been quietly listening to the two people’s story next to him, reacted to the point where he almost fell sideways from lack of energy.

“Well, you read and understood the book properly, right!?”

“Of course! However… I guess I should say that I only skimmed over the parts that didn’t seem to have much to do with magic. It could be said that we focused on theory rather than history…”

When Vivian raised her voice in embarrassment, Lila nodded her head, but acknowledged that she had overlooked something.

＂How can this be… Then, you really only understand the magic of the fairies without even properly understanding the relationship between the progenitors and the fairies!?＂

＂Ah…＂

In response to Vivian’s question, Lila let out a long voice and then-

＂Yes.＂

He answered briefly and smiled.

Vivian was unable to respond to the answer that was so neat and seemed to have no other bad intentions, but in the end, she turned to Lila and spoke as if she would explain.

“… An ancestor is a being who can be said to be the creator of our fairies. Or, he is also called the first fairy king.”

“Creator? Are you saying that fairies are also beings created by someone?”

Vivian nods her head in response to Lila’s question.

“A creature that is fixated on a concept, repeats its previous life forever, and its magical powers become stronger each time. It is a creature that would be strange to exist in the natural world unless someone designed it, right? Unless someone intervenes in that way, there is no explanation.”

＂… That’s right.＂

Lila nodded her head at her words as she recalled what she had read in her magic book.

It is written that if a wizard’s talent is determined by the quality and capacity of the magic organ that was determined from birth, he has modified himself over a long period of time to change that.

… Then at least someone would have had to discover the theory and test it.

And the first person to succeed… Is that the ‘progenitor’ of the fairy that Vivian speaks of?

“The founder was a magician who trained with those who had weak magic skills. At that time, he was a human and not a fairy. For humans at the time, there was a huge difference between non-magicians and wizards, and to reduce it even a little, they had to overcome their natural talents.”

“So, like a fairy, he used a method of changing parts of his body that weren’t magical organs?”

That part was something I read in the book.

Vivian nods her head and continues answering Lila’s words.

“That’s right. Shijo discovered the method she discovered – a method you’ve probably read about in those magic books – and along with other practitioners like herself, she transformed her entire body into a magic organ. However, the more I did it, the more my humanity faded, and I became more of a concept. She was the first to create a system, and she was leading a path that no one knew how far she would go.”

At least, if you can see the end, if you can show the way for others to move forward.

With that in mind, Sijo continued to transform her body into a magic organ without looking back at herself.

“… In the end, she even lost her memory of who she was. As a result, if her consciousness was not stabilized, she would not be able to maintain a given physical form.”

When Lila heard the story, she felt that it was a bit familiar.

The avatar magic she uses is also a powerful magic that transforms her own body into elemental magic, so she needs a strong bond with others that can return her body to its original state as a key.

She said, “So she isolated herself in a space and hid with her creations to prevent herself from completely losing her identity and going on a rampage and becoming a disaster to the fairies and humanity. After that, she put herself to sleep and would never wake up.”

That space is Fairy Fragrance.

Fairy Hyang is a prison to protect the outside world from the progenitors.

“That’s Sijo. And this labyrinth is a space created by storing the power that flowed from the founder.”

That is why the place is called ‘The Trial of the Fairy King’.

Here, the Fairy King refers not to the current Fairy King, Vivian, but to the first Fairy King, who is the source of the power to create this place.

After hearing the whole story, Lila nods her head as if she understands.

“… I see. So, the ridiculously massive illusions and construction magic that unfold here are all made using the power of the progenitor?”

“That’s right. Even after falling asleep, Sijo operates as a kind of willless control device to maintain the basic system of our Fairy Village.”

However, Vivian further explained that it is the founder’s blessing to be extremely vulnerable to events that occur inside.

Of course, as an unconscious progenitor, he would not have been able to know who was on the earth where he was sleeping.

“What happens if the founder wakes up?”

“Well. I don’t want to imagine it, but Fairy Incense may collapse.”

At her calm words, the others fell silent for a moment.

Probably because she is confident that that won’t happen.

“There must be a reason for thinking that way, right?”

“Of course. When the founder fell asleep, he talked about when he would wake up.”

As she said that, she spread her index finger and spoke quietly.

“The past life of a fairy is incomplete. One day, when someone with a soul who repeats previous lives forever comes to this earth, I will open my eyes. “

After Vivian said that, she smiled and waved her hands.

“But there’s no way such a person would suddenly appear, and at least you all seem like ordinary people. The secret to living a long life and reducing stress is not to worry about things that are not immediate.”

She smiled while saying that –

After hearing those words, Layla, Kuon, and Sasha’s faces turn pale.

＂… Hmm…?＂

Vivian tilts her head as if she doesn’t understand after seeing their reaction, but then turns her head to focus on her illusion again.

However, while she was chatting for a moment, she saw that the illusion in front of her had disappeared, and she closed her mouth.

If she didn’t erase it herself, it only means she has a problem.

＂Um… By any chance, the soul that repeats its past life forever refers to a clan of dark demons with the past life factor?＂

And, Amelia will ask her questions carefully.

Vivian, who heard those words, said, “It’s a joke,” And turned her head to look at Amelia.

＂Cleon… Is the person with the eternally reincarnated soul… ＂

When Amelia spoke slowly and disconnectedly as if she was sorry, Vivian was unable to respond and fell down behind her.

＂Ra, Vivian?!＂

When Amelia sees her like that, she rushes over and helps her, and she talks to Amelia.

＂So, now… Are you saying that Fairy Village is in danger of collapse…!?＂

It was a fact I didn’t want to admit, but it was also true that there was no other way to say it.

001

When I came to my senses, Cleon was sitting somewhere.

Somewhere – because it was difficult to understand what kind of place this was.

First, he is sitting on a chair that feels a bit luxurious to him.

It was as if a skilled craftsman had measured each part and made it for him, and it was soft enough to comfortably wrap Cleon.

Cleon thinks he has never sat on such a soft sofa before, but then looks around.

It was a high place.

A very, very high place.

Inside the ivory-colored tower that was open on all sides, he was sitting with a tea table in front of him.

If you look far into the distance, you can see wide plains, forests, mountains, and rivers stretching out far and wide.

However, there is no way to go down.

How did you get up here?

Cleon placed his hand on his forehead, feeling frustrated that he was tracing vague and hazy memories but could not come up with a proper answer.

He can’t quite remember what he was doing.

However, one thing I can confirm is that I did not come up here of my own will.

Cleon tried to stand up as he saw a little steam rising from the teacup in front of him.

Because somehow, he tried to find a way down.

＂Wait a minute.＂

At that time, I heard someone’s voice.

It was a girl’s voice.

Cleon stopped getting up and turned his head to see someone sitting on a chair across from the table where he was sitting.

Until now – it seemed like no one was there.

And, there was a girl sitting there whose voice matched the impression.

She had light gray hair, and she was wearing a piece of gray cloth that looked somewhat tattered.

However, unlike her shabby clothes, her body was quite clean, and even her hair seemed to have a slight shine.

However, her eyes were unique.

No – it would be better to say it’s special.

＇…＇

Colorful colors were swirling within her eyes.

The color of those eyes changing as each second passed was beautiful and dreamy, but it also felt a bit bizarre.

She spoke to Cleon with a small smile.

“The car is getting cold. If not, do you like to drink it a little sweeter?”

As she spoke, she moved her hand as if she were adding a spoonful of sugar to Creon’s tea.

Seeing that, Cleon shook her head.

“No… I don’t like things that are too sweet…”

When I answered like that in a dazed state of mind, the girl seemed a little surprised.

“Oh my, you’re more mature than I thought. Then, wouldn’t it be a bit rude to deal with someone like this?”

She answered like that, and then Cleon blinked, closed his eyes, and then opened them.

From the appearance of a girl around 10 years old, she has grown to the appearance of a girl in her late teens.

Although there were many things that did not change, such as her clothes, she was at least a beautiful woman to everyone’s eyes.

＂… You…＂

Cleon thought to himself that he had seen her somewhere, and at the same time thought that she had no idea where it was, and he put his head to the side.

＂Shh… Don’t try to remember too much. That’s not your memory. This is a world where spirit and matter are ambiguous, so it is affecting you in that way…”

As she spoke, she brought her face closer to Cleon.

“Just… Enjoy a little rest here for now. If that happens, everything will have a happy ending.”

Even though it was clearly my first time hearing her voice, why did I feel like what she said was right?

As Cleon thought so, she nodded her head quietly.

Then, she smiled as she gently stroked Cleon’s head.

It looked like the smile of a saint.

There is something in the colors sparkling in her eyes, something that human wisdom cannot understand.

It was to highlight the wriggling of the long, hideous, hideous tentacles.