kscans

Chapter 76 - The Foreign Prince and the Little One

"Nīni, wake up!"

"What is it?"

A different person inside him answered nonchalantly.

"Not you!"

"Am I not your brother as well? We have been together since birth."

"Uh?"

At the smug words from this someone, the Little One was at a loss for words.

Together since birth?

It was probably the same way she had been with Fatima. If put that way, then yes, this person might also be her brother.

The someone controlling Chihaya’s body let go of the Little One’s hand and cradled her head as if to stroke it, then gently placed a kiss on her hair.

"A sister is to be cherished. Is that not so?"

His emotionless eyes curved in satisfaction. What was she to say? Could this, in a sense, also be considered her brother? As the Little One scowled in frustration, something slithered between her and Chihaya.

Huh? Before she could even process it, that something erupted in a pillar of fire.

"Get away from Chihiro!"

Two snakes writhed protectively around the Little One, while a third transformed into a pillar of fire right in front of Chihaya. Flames that seemed to have a will of their own crawled around Chihaya, licking at him.

"Uah?!"

Suddenly surrounded by searing flames, Chihaya panicked. Seizing that moment, the real Chihaya returned.

"You idiot! Don’t touch Chihiro!"

That’s your opening line, Nīni?

Chihaya gasped for breath, his body going limp. It seemed a fierce battle had just taken place within him.

"That wasn’t me, Chihiro!" he panted.

Though his actions weren’t any different.

But as the Little One smiled wryly, Chihaya’s body began to be enveloped in blackish-purple magic.

"Huh? No way, this guy’s still got fight in him!"

Ominous magic slithered around Chihaya. Just then, the Little One’s golden magic power burst forth.

"You just don’t know when to quit!"

Pan! The two magic powers collided with a sharp crack. The blackish-purple magic was absorbed into the Little One’s circlet, while the golden magic was sucked into Chihaya’s cuff.

"Fah?"

When the intertwined, clashing magic completely vanished, Chihaya let out a dumbfounded sound.

"Nīni, what’s wrong?"

"Ah, um… It’s nothing."

Chihaya smiled faintly, but his expression quickly turned to one of complex contemplation. It doesn’t look like nothing. The Little One thought, but she then turned to the person who had helped her by sending out the snakes to strike Chihaya.

"Marrow, thank you."

It was Marrow who had jumped out from behind the knights and saved her with his flaming snake. The other entity, whose attention had been on the monsters and knights, had not noticed the small boy.

"I’m glad I followed you. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Now then."

After thanking Marrow, the Little One glared at the giant scorpion and antlion. The giant insects flinched visibly, bikū. Their eyes, even their compound eyes, darted around wildly, and their front legs fidgeted restlessly, mosomoso.

"You two seem to know something about him, don’t you?"

As the girl stared at them with her sharp, narrow eyes, the two creatures peeked at her furtively before slumping their shoulders in defeat.

"The Golden King is one who knows the world. But she does not know this world."

"This is a borrowed world. …The gods can no longer interfere. Thus, the influence of the lord will spread."

Lord? Not Master?

What are they talking about?

As the Little One looked on in confusion, the two creatures sighed and began to tell an old story.

Long ago, when people could not yet use magic, one with golden magic power made a pilgrimage through the borderlands, bringing blessings to various regions. Though human in form, this person was a misshapen oni with a pair of horns on their temples. The oni traveled through many border regions, releasing the monsters it led into the forests.

Its purpose was to plant seeds.

"Seeds?"

"The blackish-purple magic stones. Those are not of Arcadia."

As the Little One looked on in surprise, the two creatures nodded and gazed out at the expanse of blackish-purple magic crystals.

"This is what the seeds have grown into. It is a magical power that can exist even without the laws of magic."

"The light that governs life, the golden magic, and the abyss that governs death, the dark magic."

The Little One’s eyes widened.

"Then, these magic crystals are…"

"Dark magic. The magic of destruction that can only be wielded by one who has experienced the abyss of despair."

A shiver ran down the Little One’s entire body. If that were the case, then the boy god Legion could be said to be one who had tasted the abyss of despair. He was a being worthy of commanding dark magic.

According to them, when they had received the seeds of life from the barely breathing Heizlep and humanity was born, humans known as guides were also sent from Heizlep. They were sent to impart civilization to the humanity of the new world. It was these guides who brought the dark magic stones from Heizlep. The guides traveled the borderlands, planting the dark magic stones they had brought as seeds.

As these divine customs were explained, a question suddenly crossed the Little One’s mind.

"Wait? If these guides brought civilization to Arcadia, why can they use golden magic? And the seeds of dark magic, too."

"Do you not understand?"

The Little One tilted her head.

"It is the same as you. One of the visitors sent as a guide was an O-saki of Heizlep."

"Whaaaat?!"

It was a shocking revelation.

"In other words, Legion is that O-saki."

Those who become O-saki gain eternity. Legion, the lord of the Flowers borderland, was one of the first humans and an O-saki of Heizlep. When his world perished and the boy god Legion lost his divinity, Legion, having returned to being a mere human, became a type of monster known as an oni. Until then, he had been a living witness to thousands of years of human history. The scorpion and antlion had apparently heard old tales about Heizlep from Legion.

"It seems it was a gamble whether a god of Heizlep would come here. …That guy was in on that plot."

The giant scorpion spoke reluctantly.

That plot must have been the one to destroy Arcadia and circulate its life energy to Heizlep.

"It was a scheme for in case that plot failed. The dark magic stones contain the memories of the god of Heizlep. He knew that if the plot failed, he would lose his divinity and be reduced to a human, hence the scheme."

I see. So the current boy god Legion is a soul that has been purified and reduced to a human. And the dark magic stones are a backup to help him regain his lost memories.

The noble one spoken of in the old tale’s apostle was likely the boy god Legion.

To think he’d go that far, Legion.

"The life of Arcadia was originally the life of Heizlep. To that god, it is like his own child. The only memento left to a god who has lost his world."

What a way to put it.

An intense stare settled on the Little One's face. He was planning to destroy all of Arcadia to feed his own world if he could, and now he calls it his child? A memento? How convenient.

But well, she could understand his reasoning. For him, who had lost everything, it was inevitable that Arcadia, which was connected to his lost world, would become his one and only. As long as it just existed, there would be no problem. Probably.

What she couldn’t overlook was that he could take over Chihaya’s body and wield dark magic. And what's more, it was the magic of destruction. This was no joke.

As his sister pondered in silence, Chihaya hesitantly spoke up.

"Um… He’s annoying. That guy."

"Honi?"

"That guy, he’s screaming inside me. ‘Let me out, I’m Chihiro’s brother too,’ he says…"

"Whaaaat?!"

Yet another problem had sprung up.

It seemed the boy god had developed a consciousness of his own within Chihaya.

Her head spinning with the constantly shifting problems, the Little One decided for the time being to form a pact with the two creatures and head for the Donautil royal capital.

She had to solve the immediate problems and get back to Frontier as soon as possible. The Little One of the present did not yet know of the future where a honeybee message would arrive to deliver the final blow to the flustered girl, and a fast horseman would come galloping from Frontier.

…Rest in peace.