Mine was a bitter triumph.
Yes, it was an inevitable victory. In the first place, as long as the enemy was a practitioner of magecraft, that was to say, they used mana to fight, it was impossible to achieve total victory against me. My disposition allowed me to dismantle any spell midcast, steal, improve, and then lop it right back at the caster in less than a fraction of a second.
I freely admitted it was straining for my brain to process all that information, but it was not impossible.
Yet, my victory against Touko was hollow. It was evident that the fight had ended on her terms, and not on mine. She'd analysed my 'self' thoroughly, and decided to win a battle of will instead of a conflict that would've ended with me stealing every single one of her runes.
In surrendering, she easily deprived me of both satisfaction and growth. Then, as if that annoyed her, she went a step further. The Grand aired out my skills in front of an audience. While the incident at Adra had been salvageable, because all parties involved were trustworthy or easily silenced, the audience this time held both Inorai of the Twelve Lords, and Byron Iselma, along with his household.
Touko Aozaki knew what she'd done. There was no doubt. That grated on my nerves fiercely.
She knew she was losing, so she messed up my victory, and then as revenge for having to lose and me stealing a couple of her runes, painted a target on my back that was going to get me bent over a table by the Clock Tower sooner rather than later.
"What a rotten person... just like me." I shook my head, stepping up to join my Professor and his little posse, consisting of an indignant Reines and a confused Gray. "Professor, was that all you wanted from me?"
Waver suddenly shivered and I realised I'd interrupted one of his thought sessions, the sort that made him forget about everything else. He was probably trying to decipher the function of my magecraft. No, that was definitely what he was doing. He just couldn't help himself.
"Uhm, yes." He cleared his throat. "Thank you. Well, if you have somewhere to go, you can leave."
"Nah, your sister's still in danger, right?"
"Define danger." Reines narrowed her eyes.
She reminded me of my temporary partner... except Caren was always on demon time with her words. This one just looked like a petulant child.
"Yes." Waver spoke over her, eying the Democratic Lords. He opened his mouth to say something, but seemed to decide against it and simmer down with a clenched fist.
"Then I'll stay."
I had a sister too. So, I understood his frustration at her being accused of murder. If my little Ellie ever faced such a situation, I doubted I'd be able to hold back from murdering all involved people.
"And, as long as I'm here, they're not going to even touch your sister so you can play detective in peace, Professor."
"What makes you so confident?" Inorai cut in, a curious smile playing across her lips. "That you'll be fine if all of us decided to... I shouldn't have to say it, right?"
"I'll be fine. After all, you're all weak~"
Nice, that one was on my bingo list. I offered a silent thanks for the opportunity she provided.
"Maybe bring a dozen, no, at least a hundred, if you want to do something."
"My, how confident. Well, I've new matters to attend to. So I think I'll take my leave." The Lord of Creation easily floated away, not the least bit bothered by my proclamation. Touko shrugged and followed right after the old woman.
When they were gone, the Professor addressed me again, a slight tremble to his form, "I... thank you, Henry."
I couldn't help but smile. This person was quick to put up a strong front, but beneath it all, he was just a big softie. Stubborn, annoying, and extremely curious to the point of being disrespectful, but a big softie nonetheless.
"It's nothing. You've helped me a lot more."
That was the truth.
"Are you going to kiss now?" Reines said, a noticeable lilt to her words. "I don't judge."
Gray let out a startled yelp and started looking between us, red-faced.
"Don't say such careless things, Reines."
Leaving them, I approached the still-frozen Byron. The poor man was still reeling, somehow. To ease tension, I slung an arm over his shoulder, throwing my weight against him.
"Yo Byron old buddy, old pal. You can host me, can't you? I mean, you wouldn't say no to me at this point, right?"
It was inconceivable for him to disregard a request from someone who'd toppled a Grand-ranked magi in front of his very eyes, no matter how bloated his ego was. The older magus trembled, lowering his gaze, "What? Ah... I mean, yes, of course. The Iselma welcome you with o...open arms."
I then turned to Atrum. "What about you, my friend? Are we going to have problems?"
Much to my surprise, he was the farthest thing from docile. The middle eastern magus scowled before stomping his foot on the ground, "I've lost interest in this matter. I'll find something else. And you, you better watch your step. Even a Grand is not infallible."
I responded to his threat with a smile so innocent it was sickening, "So, is barking a lot like a family secret passed down through generations?"
He growled.
"Woah, looks like it is."
His expression tightened considerably. For a moment, I thought he'd even attack me but I was disappointed. He simply... left.
"We'll see how you behave when a dragon comes knocking. I've decided. If I can't have a dragon slayer, I will have a dragon instead."
"I hope you succeed."
"Thanks-... no, I didn't mean that."
I cackled like a madman, finger pointed and all.
Indignant, Atrum stomped away.
With a gesture from Byron, the maid standing behind the silver-haired princess stepped forward and gave a polite bow. "If you would follow me, please."
Reines raised a brow at that, however her reason eluded me up until we actually started walking. At that point, the princess- Estella, joined us. In typical noble fashion, she held out a hand towards me. I knew she wanted me to escort her and I refused to comply.
After several awkward moments of silence, Estella retracted her hand. She tried to follow me but... tripped on the first stair. At that point, I had to do something. I grabbed her hand and broke her fall before the fall broke her face.
It was hilarious seeing someone dressed so pompously just trip.
"Forgive me. I was a bit... overwhelmed."
As she offered her apologies, I caught a glimpse of her white eyes. Clouded, white eyes. She was blind. I made fun of a blind person. Damn.
"Is it bad that I don't regret laughing?"
"No..." She said softly, slowly. "If anything... thank you."
This girl had some serious issues if she was thanking someone for effectively bullying her. I wasn't particularly in the mood for unravelling that particular mystery though, so I chose to investigate the mystery affecting my teacher instead.
"Can I ask about the murder?" I inquired as we walked.
The maid leading us trembled. I was sure I wasn't getting any information out of them until Estella gave a small nod. "Carina. You may... speak. I think it is unwise to withhold the circumstances from..."
"But my lady-..." The maid began to protest, turning around... to be faced with my innocent smile. I wanted to say she got charmed and decided to spill the beans, but it was probably from the nod Estella gave her.
"The lady Diadra was found dead in her room. The last person to speak to her was Lady Reines. And, Lady Reines was found at the scene of the murder as well."
Yeah... that didn't look good at all. They were Rival Factions. And, if the princesses were an issue, it wasn't out of the question that, being magi, drastic measures would be taken to bring them down. Magi were a terribly jealous lot after all.
"Then, the only person who could explain what had occurred was also found dead. My sister, Regina." Her breath hitched at that... and yet, something felt unnatural. She was... It was like she was acting, doing it by force instead of actual emotion. "Again, Lady Reines was with her."
...
"Something like, getting rid of the witnesses, is it?"
"It is not our intention," Estella interceded on the maid's behalf, tightening her trembling grip around my arm. "I fear there is no other... Please, forgive Carina. Her sister and mine had been together since childhood, the same as us. We grew up together, the loss does not come lightly."
Really, murder mysteries were my Professor's field of expertise. I just found them to be boring. Yet, now that I knew, I HAD to butt in. Otherwise, it would be most unlike myself.
"You know what, nevermind the room. Show me the murder scene. I'm sure you have it preserved."
They both tensed at that, only for a tenth of a moment, as I was sure they too were trained to hide their emotions. But, that was enough for me to notice. Something was really fishy here. I intended to find out.
-
"I should have expected that you'd end up heading here."
"I can say the same for you. Don't be coy, you're as curious as I am."
I stared down the Professor. Expectedly, he'd also been at the scene of the first murder, and showed no surprise when I waltzed into the room. It looked like he was learning. Surprisingly though, even Gray reacted naturally, as if my eventual arrival was an established fact.
"I won't deny that." The Professor broke our little staring contest by putting a cigar to his mouth. "I thought I might glean something others missed. This incident is..."
"Fishy as fuck." I finished.
"Yes. Exactly. And..." His gaze trailed off, particularly at the two Iselma servants watching our every move. Estella and her maid had excused themselves after bringing me here, saying something about how either of them was unable to stomach the sight. "This doesn't inspire much confidence."
The two servants were men this time.
Maio Brishisan Clynelles. A timid young man with a pudgy face in a white blazer and blue linen shortpants. His bright blonde hair was cut in a shaggy bowl, and he averted his gaze every time he noticed someone staring at him. Apparently, he was the family doctor, and also childhood friend to the princesses.
The other one was weird. Islo Sebunan. The only one that seemed genuinely grief-struck. Apparently, he was the seamster responsible for making the princesses' dresses. He had his dark hair up in innumerable braids that were dyed magenta at the tips and held together by beads of various colours from the rainbow. Since the guy was wearing a skirt OVER the dark suit, I assumed he was one of 'those' people... but then he vehemently denied it, saying his dressing was a fashion statement.
So I just assumed he was one of 'those' people, but still inside the closet.
Both of them were remarkably pale, like most magi tended to be.
Unfortunately, I couldn't find the time to bother them or find out anything else. There were more pressing matters to attend to.
"Take a look. Do you see something?"
Like say, the corpse of the Princess of Gold. Estella's older sister.
Perfectly preserved, she sat upright on her bed, hands folded gracefully atop one another. Her golden hair was covered by a veil, and she too wore a dress mirroring her sister's. However, she was considerably more beautiful, in an entirely different league even. It didn't matter though since she was dead now.
Yet, there was a puddle of blood dirtying the bedsheets and it was clear once I took off my glasses that one touch and her body would fall apart. It had been pieced up, cleanly, and then stacked over perfectly right after.
"Why's she prettier?"
"It's something like the... You wouldn't know." The Professor put a hand to his chin, "Because of the difference, she stands out even more when placed alongside her sister. Beauty enhanced by association. Like how a beautiful woman stands out even more if placed in a crowd of other beautiful women that don't quite measure up."
Humming, I took a step closer to the body. Maio blocked me off. The shy blonde gave me a fierce glare. The kind of glare you'd see from the protagonist of a romcom that hid their feelings until it was too late and then spiralled.
"D-Don't you disgrace her! Haven't you people done enough?"
The most infuriating kind of protagonist. The kind I had no patience for after the copious amounts of media I consumed.
"Simmer down, pipsqueak. You didn't say shit while she was alive and now she's dead. I bet if she lived, you'd have gotten ntr'd or something."
I pushed him out of the way, into Islo's arms, and carefully knelt down next to the corpse, raising my aviators.
"Well now... that's really interesting. This corpse is preserved artificially."
"You bastard-" Maio tried to lunge at me, but Islo firmly held him in place.
"Maio, calm down. Even if you want to, there's nothing you can do. Let them do their investigation..."
The Professor ignored the two Iselma servants. "What do you see, Henry?"
"Before that, when did they say she was murdered?"
Gray answered. "Last night. I was with Miss Reines when we found her."
"Yeah... someone did overwrite the original preservation spell. Tried to hide it." I glanced at the curious Professor, "Chief, this lady's been dead for over half a week now. And these wounds... they're not what killed her either. Even if you ignore that, the one who preserved her corpse is... well, let me just say it's interesting as hell. Hey Maio, is this why you were trying to stop me?"
"I-I don't know what you're talking about!"
Every single magus had a unique wavelength for their mana. This was clearly reflected in whatever spell or mystery they enacted. And the wavelength of whoever preserved her was one that I was familiar with because I had seen them in action before.
"Out with it. I know you can tell who did it."
"Well, it's faint. Someone did an expert job at hiding. But the one who made this lady look like she was only recently murdered is-"
-
Hope you enjoyed.
Please share your thoughts, ideas and suggestions for the story. I love comments.
You can find seven GIRTHY chapters ahead at patre0n.com/Bleap