Please, Just Read It

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Please, just read it.

Episode 10

Purpose and Revenge (3)

Yan Irantes.

The master of the Irantes Magic Tower located in the southern city of Gorobis in the Empire.

He was the magician who first completed the immortality spell at the age of 72.

Having escaped the fate of mortality, he is now 343 years old and is said to still be alive.

Recalling this fact, I picked up the book again.

Immortality.

This book states that Marta Parhelis dreamed of attaining immortality all her life.

[That’s wrong.]

This was not true.

Of course, it was true that Marta Parhelis studied the immortality spell for her entire life.

But that was not her wish.

[To be precise, it was my wish.]

“…Huh?”

[I asked Marta Parhelis to create the immortality spell for me.]

“Why?”

[It’s simple.]

I continued.

[If the contractor doesn’t die anymore, I won’t need to raise a new magician.]

If the contractor doesn’t die, I would be able to research magic with them for eternity.

I wouldn’t have to worry about finding new contractors every time.

It was like changing my life from a constant roguelike game to a steady RPG.

I had found a loophole in this damn phase system.

From the moment I realized this, I made various attempts.

I turned a contractor into an alchemist to create a potion of life.

I explored ancient ruins in search of a legendary artifact that grants immortality.

Eventually, I even turned one contractor into an undead Lich…

[But nothing worked.]

All my plans always ended in failure.

[So, I decided to create a spell that would make users immortal.]

That was the “Immortality Spell.”

It was the fruit of my research that I had developed with several disciples even before Marta Parhelis.

Well, as you can see, the research was a failure.

In the end, Marta Parhelis died of old age.

And I ended up locked away in Lutemis’s library for 300 years.

[And then I met you.]

“…”

[But when I finally got out of the library after 300 years, some weird guy claimed to have completed the immortality spell.]

Not only that, but he was also impersonating Marta Parhelis’s disciple.

It was a situation that left me dumbfounded.

Marta Parhelis had never left behind a disciple.

Yet this guy, Yan Irantes, used her reputation to establish a tower.

And he claimed to have completed the immortality spell and is still alive.

Seeing him made me boil with anger.

[Let’s go to the tower.]

“Huh?”

[Let’s go to Irantes Magic Tower.]

I didn’t believe that Yan Irantes had completed the immortality spell.

He was definitely using various tricks and lies to pull off a scam.

There was no way a mere human could solve a problem that had stumped a master of magic for thousands of years.

“What do you plan to do at the tower?”

[What else? I’m going to confront that lying old man.]

343 years is long enough, isn’t it?

So now it’s time to hold that old man, whose life has been painted entirely with lies, accountable.

*

Dawn arrived.

Before I knew it, Riley had fallen asleep.

The fierce wind and waves outside could be heard loudly in the cabin.

But Riley remained motionless, deep in her sleep on the bed.

She seemed to be in a very deep slumber.

Thinking about it, she must have been really exhausted.

In fact, Riley hadn’t slept a wink since last night.

She snuck into the library looking for me, returned to the dormitory to talk with me, got stepped on by her roommates in the morning, quit school, fought with her roommate again, went through a secret passage to the storeroom, and there she stole treasures…

[Huh.]

I couldn’t believe all of this happened in just one day.

Did I push her too hard?

Hmm.

I’m not sure.

Since I’m raising a magician after 300 years, I’m out of touch with it all.

Plus, I’ve lived as a magic book for so long.

In fact, I had long forgotten at what point humans feel fatigue.

[…….]

Suddenly, I pondered that fact.

Yeah.

Once, I was an ordinary human without bounds, but now I’ve completely lost my humanity.

Every time I realize this fact, a thick and dark unpleasant feeling rises in my chest.

The entity that has made me this way.

My hatred for those damn people.

Rage.

Indignation.

Fury…

[Ah.]

Emotions that rose up without my control.

I tried hard to suppress them.

—You have a purpose for raising a magician, right?

Suddenly, Riley’s earlier question popped into my mind.

Purpose.

What was my purpose in raising a magician?

*

I’ve lived as a magic book for thousands of years.

During that time, I raised countless great magicians and helped their names adorn the pages of history.

Their great achievements.

The mysterious magic they created.

The efficient mana control methods they developed…

All of these were established through me.

What if I hadn’t existed?

It’s a sad statement, but none of them would have achieved their accomplishments on their own.

This wasn’t arrogance.

It wasn’t the pride or haughtiness stemming from a petty confidence.

This was an objective truth born from countless experiences and my sincere belief.

The vast truths of magic that all magicians long for.

The essence of mana that mana engineers study and explore throughout their lives.

The fundamental exploration of the nature of the magic with which spells are formed.

And many other elements.

I instinctively understood these difficult and high-level pieces of knowledge.

Based on that perfect understanding, I generously shared my teachings with my contractors…

And thus, those who formed contracts with me easily rose to the ranks of great magicians.

Of course, it hadn’t always been like this from the start.

I also had a beginning.

Just like others, my beginning was clumsy and immature.

It was still vivid.

My first contractor, Feindal.

He was a boy wandering the slums, struggling to survive day by day, and that day, he stole me from a store for a single piece of grain bread.

At that time, I was still in a state of disarray.

Only five years had passed since I reincarnated from an ordinary person to a magic book.

My mental state was very confused and precarious.

I was busy denying reality every day, thus squandering my time.

That boy named Feindal was like a ray of light to me.

“Um, excuse me…?”

[…….]

“Excuse me? Didn’t you just say something?”

[……Yeah.]

“What was that? Was the book… talking to me?”

The first conversation I had with someone after five years of being reincarnated as a magic book filled me with emotion.

The most delightful fact was that someone could hear my words.

And for some reason, I could communicate in a language I had never heard before.

After that, interactions with Feindal continued.

As our communication deepened, I regained my stability, and my chaotic inner self slowly began to find peace.

There was nothing special about the conversation.

Meaningless chitchat.

Even light jokes just to pass the time.

To me, who had spent five years locked away in the musty corner of a shop, it provided great comfort.

As weeks went by.

After spending time with Feindal, my heart completely calmed down.

I was able to accept the reality that I had reincarnated as a magic book.

“Master, by the way…”

[Yes?]

“Now that your mind is much more stable… how about choosing a new name?”

[Name?]

“Yes. A name. It feels stiff calling you ‘Master’ every time.”

[……It’s not stiff at all.]

“Come on, let’s take this opportunity to choose a name. Hmm… how about Grim’war, based on the ancient name for ‘magic book’? Sounds good! What do you think of Grim’war?”

[Grim, what? Just call me Master.]

“Ah, no way. I’m going to call you Grim’war. Grim’war!”

[…….]

“Why? Don’t you like it? Is the name not to your liking?”

[Fine. Do as you wish.]

I wanted to repay him.

I wanted to give something to this boy who had restored a normal life to me.

I wanted him to smell the fragrance of freshly baked bread, instead of the rotten food he ate every day while living in the slums.

I wanted him to enjoy a comfortable and stable life instead of barely surviving by stealing someone else’s belongings.

Even if it wasn’t something grand…

Even a tiny thing would be fine.

I wanted Feindal to lead a better life, no matter what.

[……]

The one thing I could give to Feindal was to pass on the magical knowledge hidden inside my cover.

“Is this how it’s done?”

[Yeah. Just think of pulling the mana you feel in the air into your mana heart from that state.]

“I can’t feel anything…”

[Just wait a little longer.]

But why hadn’t I realized this then?

“Oh? It’s true. I think I can feel a tickling sensation.”

[Good. Slowly guide that energy into your mana heart using your mana circuits. Very slowly.]

If anyone could easily learn magic this way, everyone on this continent would be a magician.

Why is it that in reality, only a select few can become magicians?

“It’s working… a little painful though.”

[That’s normal. Just hang in there and keep going.]

“It’s hot! Grim’war, it’s starting to get really hot!”

Why did I overlook this fact?

“Grim’war! It’s hot…! It’s really hot! I’m going crazy…! Grim’war! Grim’war!!!”

[Huh? Wait a moment! Hey! Don’t rush! If you rush…! Hey!!!!]

“AAAH!!! AAAAAAH!!! Grim’war, my heart is burning…!”

Boom─.

Bang!

Plop.

A small explosion.

Flame.

Splattered blood.

The small boy’s body fell limply.

[…….]

“……”

[Feindal?]

“……”

[Fe, Feindal?]

Why.

Why hadn’t I known?

The path to becoming a magician was one only afforded to those with a minimum talent.

Those who were highly attuned to mana, those with excellent mana control, those with strong mana heart circuits.

In other words…

Those blessed by mana.

The qualifications to become a magician were granted only to these chosen ones.

And among these individuals, the geniuses could forge their own difficult path, while the average talents could walk the paths created by those geniuses and gradually refine them.

[……]

However, for the untalented dullards,

They weren’t even granted the qualification to walk the path of magic.

To walk this path of magic, they would need a perfectly crafted road, one that is sophisticated and detailed from the very beginning to overturn all these concepts.

[……Feindal?]

I…

I learned that fact in the most difficult way.

*

[……]

Swoosh.

Lost in thought, I quietly looked ahead.

The sun began to rise over the horizon. And the faint sounds of ship horns could be heard.

Amidst the brightening scenery, the grand imperial capital slowly revealed itself.