Chapter 39 - The Magic Otaku Solves a Riddle
...What is this?
Here I was, in a corner of the first-floor archives of the Talgum Magic Academy's Great Library. I had stopped in front of one of the bookshelves lining the wall, staring at it intently. At first glance, it was an ordinary shelf, identical to the ones on either side. But from this particular shelf, a tremendous density of magical particles, visible only to me, was gushing forth.
The back of this bookshelf was against the wall, so it was unlikely there was anything behind it. However, the magical particles suspended in the air really did seem to be passing through the bookshelf, emerging from the other side. What in the world…?
"What is it, Saki?"
Ruria's voice from behind me pulled me back to reality. That's right, we were just visiting the Great Library during our free time before dinner. This suspicious bookshelf was incredibly intriguing, but unfortunately, I didn't have time to investigate it thoroughly right now.
"Oh, it's nothing important. Come on, let's borrow our books and head back to the dorm."
I replied to Ruria, turning my back on the blatantly mysterious bookshelf to cut off my lingering curiosity. It's fine, the bookshelf isn't going anywhere. I'll let it go for today, but I'll be back to investigate it first thing after class tomorrow.
I urged Ruria, who was looking at me with a slightly suspicious gaze, and hurried to the reception desk to complete the borrowing process.
The next day dawned. I felt a sense of simmering anticipation as I diligently worked on my morning lectures and afternoon practicums. My mind was completely filled with thoughts of the mysterious bookshelf in the Great Library, but even so, a few noteworthy things happened.
First, Yuli Adoni Katzir, a.k.a. the “idiot marquis’s son,” would be leaving the academy for a while to return to his family home. Professor Azadh announced this to the entire class during the morning briefing before classes began. Normally, first-years are not allowed to leave the academy grounds, but special permission was granted this time due to a death in the family.
Come to think of it, his older brother was the mastermind of the recent assassination attempt and was already dead. With everything that had happened, it felt like it had occurred a long time ago, but it had only been three or four days. I had heard the news about Oz Adoni Katzir's death in the capital on the very same day from Grandma, who was directly involved. That was the abnormal part; it was only common sense that the news of his brother's death would have reached Yuli here at the academy just yesterday or so.
The Katzir territory is apparently quite far away, so it would be a long time before Yuli returned. Or, with Oz—who was said to be assisting his father the Marquis and the eldest son, the heir—now gone, it was entirely possible he might not return to the academy and instead remain in his domain. The thought left me with a strange mix of loneliness and relief.
Incidentally, one of Yuli's cronies, the short one with the snide way of speaking, was also returning to the Katzir territory with him. However, he was said to be withdrawing from the academy and going back to his family home. That's when it clicked. He was probably the student who had acted as Oz's contact within the academy during the assassination attempt. It seemed he didn't get off completely scot-free, and the path to becoming a mage was now closed to him.
From now on, he would be treated as a commoner, with no connection to the academy. He wouldn't lose the magic he had learned, but he would not be permitted to use it. Upon his withdrawal, he would be made to swear an oath to atone with his life if he ever broke that rule. It was a pity, but he would have to accept it as his fate.
With his boss and brother-in-arms gone, the other crony, the large, round one, looked rather forlorn. But I felt no sympathy. He would surely become arrogant again as soon as Yuli returned. For now, he should get a good taste of the harsh realities of the world without the protection of his master's house.
During the afternoon practicum, Roche and Isak finally mastered their third spell. They had been neglecting their new spell practice in favor of training Spell Gesture Omission, but for some reason, they tried it today, saying, "I feel like I can do it," and succeeded. Could it be that the gesture omission training influenced the acquisition of a new spell? Seriously, what are the rules for mastering spells?
I offered my wholehearted congratulations to Roche and Isak as they rejoiced, holding hands. Ruria... showed no reaction. She just watched them with an indifferent gaze. I think the two of them, having known her for a long time, understood that this was just how she was, but I thought she could at least say a word. Should I do something about it?
Miss Elisha was also happy that the two had mastered a new spell, but I could see a hint of loneliness in her expression. Well, it made sense. Among the five of us, she was the only one not directly connected to our family, the Arcalai. At times like these, it was perhaps unavoidable that she would feel a step removed.
That didn't seem right either, so I decided to teach her the Triple Circle Method. Without it, it would be extremely difficult to use Spell Gesture Omission, even if she knew about it. Since the five of us always practiced together, it seemed cruel to leave only Miss Elisha out for so long.
Roche and Isak looked at me with expressions that said, "Are you sure?" but I gave them a reassuring nod. I was going to spread it eventually anyway. She had been helpful to us, and I believed she could keep a secret. Miss Elisha herself looked incredibly apologetic and bowed her head repeatedly, but I told her not to worry about it. I did, however, warn her not to teach it to others without permission. Finally, Ruria was employing the advanced technique of letting displeasure seep through her expressionless face, but that was just because she didn't like me being nice to Miss Elisha.
Ruria was in a foul mood, but when I finished the practicum and announced, "I'm going to the Great Library with Ruria again today," her mood instantly improved. What an easy-to-handle childhood friend.
Now, for today's main event: exploring the library's hidden room.
Just like yesterday, we greeted Ayala-san, who was sitting at the reception desk, and entered the first-floor hall of the library. Following my memory, I navigated through the bookshelves and confirmed that magical particles were still gushing out from the same shelf as yesterday.
"...Is something wrong with this place?"
Unlike yesterday, Ruria didn't pick up any books and followed me straight to this spot. She must have sensed that I was acting differently than usual. Ruria has sharp intuition about many things, but it seemed even she couldn't feel that this place was different from the others.
"Just watch for a moment."
After telling Ruria this, I stood directly in front of the bookshelf from which the magic was emanating. Hmm, no matter how I look at it, the magical particles seem to be passing right through the shelf and the books from the other side. On a whim, I tried reaching out my hand toward the bookshelf.
"!"
I was stunned. My hand, which I expected to touch the shelf, passed right through and fumbled in empty space. From my perspective, it looked as if my hand was buried halfway into the bookshelf. I hastily pulled it back, and in doing so, my eyes met Ruria's. She was looking at me in shock, her usually half-lidded eyes wide and round.
I called Ruria over and had her touch the bookshelf as well, but to her, it seemed to be a normal shelf. Her hand traced the surface of the wood and didn't pass through. Was I the only one who could ignore the bookshelf's existence? What was going on?
Alright. I steeled myself and decided to charge through to the other side of this bookshelf. But first, I should perform a little charm.
I straightened the index and middle fingers of my right hand and, with them, drew a cross from my forehead to my solar plexus, and from my right shoulder to my left. I visualized a pillar of shining light piercing me in a cross shape and whispered, "Ateh, Malkuth. Ve-Geburah, ve-Gedulah, le-Olam, Amen." This was the fundamental magic ritual, the Cross of Warding. My extended fingers were a substitute for the [Fire Short Sword] I usually use.
Next, I prompted Ruria to perform the same Cross of Warding. With this, we should both be protected to some extent from negative magical influences. Whether magic could counter something that was presumably caused by sorcery was an unknown, but it was a comfort, at least. It would have the effect of calming our minds.
I took Ruria's hand and extended my other hand toward the bookshelf as before. I stepped forward, and my hand sank into the shelf, then my elbow, then my shoulder, and then—
We passed through the bookshelf and stepped into a room that was invisible from the outside.
It was a small space, about five meters square, filled with magical light. The three walls were smoothly plastered in white, with large patterns drawn on them in red and black pigment. Looking back, the bookshelf we had passed through was gone; there was only a short stone passageway. Beyond it, I could see the rows of library bookshelves. This meant we hadn't been teleported but had simply walked into this room.
In the center of the room stood a stone pedestal about chest-high, and on it rested a single book. An incredible amount of magical particles were being generated from this pedestal, filling the room and leaking out into the library through the passageway. This was undoubtedly how I was able to notice the entrance to this room.
"Saki, what is this? It's amazing."
Ruria, still clutching my hand, looked around with her normally half-closed eyes wide open. Oh my, her eyes are sparkling. I get it, I totally get it. Finding a hidden room like this inside a library is enough to send anyone's excitement levels through the roof.
"This is an interesting room. Let's investigate it for now. Be careful not to touch the pedestal or the patterns on the walls."
After cautioning Ruria, I examined the room again. The central pedestal was extremely intriguing, but first, I would look at the three walls. Each wall had a similarly designed figure drawn on it. Letters were arranged between the lines of a double circle, and within the inner circle, several symbols were inscribed. They weren't geometric shapes like circles or triangles, but more like pictograms combining straight and curved lines.
"They resemble the signs carved on a talisman used in magic... no, they are the same. Is this related to the magic of this world after all?"
I was trying to act calm, but it seemed my own excitement was getting the better of me. I had unintentionally spoken my thoughts aloud, but Ruria didn't seem to mind and was gazing at the wall patterns with interest. Well, I plan to teach Ruria the proper knowledge of magic eventually, so it's not a problem if she knows.
"Saki, these letters."
"Yeah, they're the same as on Grandmother's scroll. The vowels are omitted."
If my impression that the drawings on these three walls were talismans was correct, then the letters arranged outside the double circle should be divine names or something similar. For now, I'll try to read the large letters written in red.
Let's see, what is this? M-C-H-E-L... Michael? Michael?! The head of the Four Archangels? Whoa, whoa, what is this? The similarities with my original world aren't just limited to divine names like Isis and Jefuty, but angel names too?! Wow, the suspicion that one of my great predecessors was reincarnated and brought magic to this world has just grown stronger. Or maybe it's the other way around.
I checked the other two walls, and they bore the names Gabriel and Uriel, respectively. Considering the relationship between the Four Archangels and the cardinal directions, it seemed likely that these talismans were for protecting the south (Michael), west (Gabriel), and north (Uriel). Raphael of the east was missing, probably because that's where the entrance was.
And what were these talismans protecting? The book on the central pedestal, of course. With great anticipation, I approached the pedestal in the center.
The pedestal was carved from white stone, its surface polished to a perfect smoothness. The stone had stripes of a color like orange or light tangerine here and there, giving it a marble-like appearance. On top of it sat a nameless book bound in sheepskin parchment. From its texture, it looked quite old, but I couldn't be sure without picking it up.
What caught my attention was the dome-shaped light of magic that seemed to cover the book. The dense magical particles floating in this room were being generated by this dome of light. It was clearly screaming, Something will happen if you touch this book. Is it some kind of barrier? It would be one thing if it just repelled anyone who tried to touch the book, but I could also imagine something far worse, something I'd rather not even mention, happening. I probably shouldn't touch it carelessly.
Below the surface where the book rested, several lines of text were carved into the pedestal. I carefully examined the text, making sure not to get too close to the book. Like the talismans, it was written in the old style with omitted vowels. At a glance, it didn't seem to be encrypted like the scroll was, so I turned to Ruria.
"Ruria, can you read the letters on this pedestal?"
Ruria nodded and, in a small voice, read it out smoothly and without hesitation.
"I am the book and the world.
I am the beginning and the end.
Without me, all things have no name.
By me, all things are brought into being.
Answer my name."
"Perfect. You're amazing, Ruria."
At my praise, Ruria puffed out her chest slightly and let out a satisfied huff. In fact, she had read it faster than I could decipher it in my head, so it was no exaggeration to say Ruria's thought process was astonishing. She's a truly reliable childhood friend.
Well now, a sudden riddle has appeared. If the tropes hold true, answering this riddle should allow me to safely obtain the book, but should I really solve it? The mechanism is quite elaborate and it seems to be heavily guarded, so it must be a very important item. What should I do?
"Saki, do you know it?"
"Yeah, I think I do."
"You do…"
The gaze Ruria fixed on me seemed to be burning with twice its usual intensity. Stop it, this isn't because I'm smart or anything; it's just a matter of whether you know it or not. Staring at me with such admiration is a little embarrassing, so could you please cut it out?
Ah, well, whatever. This is probably a question only I can answer anyway, so solving it now or later makes no difference. As long as I'm careful with whatever important secret I obtain, it'll be fine. Let the rest take its course.
I told Ruria not to move from her spot and first stood facing the southern wall (or what I assumed was south), the one with Michael's talisman. Since I was at it, I decided to answer with a bit of flair. I traced a cross in the air with my fingertips, performing the same Cross of Warding I did when entering the room, and then, in a voice that rumbled from the pit of my stomach, I said:
"Thou art A and Z!"
Next, I stood before Gabriel's talisman to the west, made the same sign of the cross, and spoke the answer. The trick was to make my voice vibrate from my belly, and to imagine the magic within my body vibrating in the same way.
"Thou art Alpha and Omega!"
And before Uriel's talisman to the north, I spoke in the same manner.
"Thou art Aleph and Tau!"
Finally, turning my back to the eastern entrance, I faced the pedestal, made the sign of the cross, and spoke the final answer.
"Thy name is AZOTH. That which signifies the beginning of all and the end of all!"
The moment I finished speaking, a blinding flash of light erupted from the pedestal. The light instantly bleached my vision, and I reflexively threw up my arm to shield my eyes. As I stood there with my eyes closed against the intense light, the calm voice of an elderly man echoed in my mind like a [Sending] spell.
Well done, young Neophyte, for breaking the Seal of the Four Archangels! I, in the name of Brother Shimon, a 9=2 Magus of the magic society, the Holy Magicians' Order, grant you protection and guidance on your path!
As the voice faded, the light vanished, leaving behind the pedestal, its dome of light gone, and the book resting upon it.
This is the thirty-seventh episode. In the final scene, Saki is called a "0=0