TCHB 30

Chapter 30

“What does being the owner of the Holy Sword have to do with black magic?”

“Black magic is the direct opposite of white magic.”

At that moment, something I had just read in the book flashed through my mind. A single hypothesis slowly floated to the surface.

No way.

When I looked at him, he seemed to be thinking the same thing.

The Holy Sword can heal people. Healing power comes from divine energy, in other words, white magic. And since black magic and white magic are opposing forces, plus and minus cancel each other out into zero.

If I think along those lines, the owner of the Holy Sword possesses immense divine power. That owner is me. Which means it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume that I myself possess an enormous amount of divine power.

“But… there’s a flaw in that logic. If having white magic makes you immune to black magic, then that would mean all priests are immune to black magic too. Has there really never been a single case of a priest falling under black magic?”

Even if it’s massive divine power, that still felt questionable. At my words, Ventus made a peculiar expression. He pointed at the Holy Sword hanging at my side.

“Do you know what the owner of the Holy Sword is called?”

Suddenly? Feeling puzzled, I still thought carefully about his question.

“…Is there a specific title? I don’t think there is.”

“One who is loved by God.”

As he spoke, Ventus stepped closer.

“One who walks with God’s blessing.”

Another step closer.

“One who is loved by all things. That is who you are.”

He murmured in a low voice, standing so close our noses might touch. Something about his voice felt dangerous, almost displeased, and I instinctively flinched.

He reached out and grasped a lock of my hair. When he opened his hand again, srrk—not a single strand remained in his palm.

“Why….”

Why are you looking at me like that? As if I might disappear if you look away for even a moment…

Before I could finish, Ventus cut me off and continued.

“Well, anyway. That’s how it is. I think it’s related to that title too. And I’ll look into the black magic as well.”

It was as if everything from his gaze to the earlier atmosphere had been a lie. He stepped back and spoke in a playful tone. All the tension drained from me at once.

“Su~ure.”

I replied in an equally obnoxious tone. The two of us acted as though the atmosphere and situation from just moments ago had never existed.

As if by unspoken agreement.

“One more thing. Since I was born, black magic has only been used once.”

The black magic that had been cast on the ship’s captain.

After that, Ventus and I parted ways. As soon as I entered my room, a headache set in. A single remark from the Holy Sword had tangled my thoughts into knots. One unresolved thread after another. I ended up staying awake the entire night.

* * *

“Miss!”

“Huh? What is it, Heather?”

When I pretended not to know and asked what was wrong, Heather’s face filled with disbelief and exasperation. I must have been shameless beyond reason.

“You look terrible, and you’re trying to go out alone! And you just arrived yesterday!”

“…I’m not going alone.”

—Right, you’re going out with me!

Yeah. I’m going with the Holy Sword. Not a person, but still.

I knew I’d get an earful if I said that out loud, so I quietly rolled my eyes. Unfortunately, Heather’s suspicious stare didn’t fade.

“You’re lying, aren’t you?”

“Heather, this is one of those times where you just let it slide.”

When I shrugged nonchalantly, Heather pressed a hand to her head. She looked like I was giving her a headache, but today, I absolutely had to go out.

Because today was the day Vermance’s Garden, a dessert café, released their limited-edition cake!

When your mind is full and stress is piling up, the answer is always something sweet.

“What are you even saying….”

Heather wore the face of someone who had completely given up.

If she was worried about me going alone, I could go with Ventus, but that place probably wouldn’t suit his tastes.

Actually… not “probably.” Definitely not.

Vermance’s Garden was a dessert café filled with cute miniatures and lace decorations. Most of the interior was pink. No, calling it “pink-themed” would be an understatement. It was practically wallpapered in pink.

A lot of people wondered why it was so popular, but once they tasted the cake, they understood.

I was one of those people.

I guarantee it—the cake is incredible.

“Miss, then at least take me with you! I can’t stand the thought of you going alone!”

“No.”

I answered swiftly and firmly, putting on a solemn expression.

Heather glared at me with narrowed eyes, clearly dissatisfied, but I had no intention of backing down.

“…Fine. Then what time will you be back? The lady of the house and I are both worried about you.”

“I’ll be back before sunset. Probably before dinner.”

Alright!

I immediately bolted out of the room.

“Miiiss—!”

I heard her calling after me, but I pretended not to hear.

I could feel the servants’ gazes on me, but since none of them spoke up, I managed to escape the mansion fairly quickly.

“Driver! Take me to Street District!”

Inside the rattling carriage, I gazed out the window.

The weather’s nice. Today’s the perfect day for cake! Absolutely!

—I want cake too!

“You can’t eat it.”

—Hiiing. Rel wants to eat it too.

I lightly ignored the Holy Sword’s whining.

I’ll take a quick nap until we get there…

After staying up all night, the warm sunlight made sleep wash over me. I drifted off, and when I came to, we had arrived at the street.

The driver was hesitating, unsure whether he should wake me.

—Did you sleep well?

“Yeah.”

I answered softly and stepped onto the street. Flowers were in full bloom, making the scenery even more beautiful. As I stared blankly at the blossoms and reached out, my fingertips brushed against something.

It was a tiny being that looked just like a pink flower.

“…A fairy?”

—I’m not a fairy. I’m a spirit.

The Holy Sword corrected me.

A spirit? Why can I see it?

Pretty aside, I had never seen a spirit before in my life. And now, all of a sudden, I could. I had no idea what was going on.

—Shuri, has anyone ever told you something like, “You’re loved by all things”?

Hmm. Something like that… Oh! Yesterday!

“Yeah. Ventus asked if I knew what else the owner of the Holy Sword is called. We ended up talking about it. What does that have to do with this?”

Rel didn’t answer. It just made a thoughtful sound. Come to think of it, Rel really hides a lot.

What exactly are you?

—The owner of the Holy Sword bears the title “one who is loved by all things,” and it’s true. Aside from the very first owner of the Holy Sword, no one else knows that fact.

“Huh? Why?”

—Because it’s supposed to be a secret! Actually, I messed up and let the first owner find out. Hehe.

“…Stop acting cute.”

—Hehe. Hehe. Hehe.

Telling it not to only made it worse. Such a contrarian.

When I glared at the sword, perhaps sensing my killing intent, it hurriedly continued.

—Anyway, once the owner of the Holy Sword realizes this, things get kind of troublesome. You’ll start by seeing water spirits, earth spirits, wind spirits, fire spirits, and eventually every living being in this world. They’ll all be very friendly toward you. Things that ordinary people can’t see. You’ll also be able to communicate with all living things.

“Then does that mean people will be friendly toward me too?”

—Nope! The owner of the Holy Sword is loved by all things and all beings, but being loved by humans is conditionally difficult, so you don’t have to worry!

Rel said it was fine, grinning.

Whew. My head’s already a mess because of black magic. If weird people started swarming me too…

I shuddered at the thought.

Just imagining it is awful.

“Then why is it hard to be liked by humans? And why don’t you tell anyone?”

—Ugh, explaining is annoying! But since it’s you, Shuri, I’ll tell you specially! When God made me, He created me with the idea that all things would love me. But there was one mistake. I’m made of good intentions—justice, goodwill, consideration, things like that. Think about it. Can goodwill and hostility coexist? Can they like each other? They’re opposites. So the answer is no. If something doesn’t align with my true nature, then even if they know my title, they won’t be influenced by me.

“Then why say ‘loved by all things’?”

—Hmm. It’s a bit complicated. When God made humans, He created a man and a woman. They had no darkness—no hostility, no anger. But God told them to keep one rule, and they broke it!

This… isn’t this the story of Adam and Eve from the Bible?

I tilted my head in confusion, but the Holy Sword continued without caring.

—So God sadly punished them. They were the ones who broke the promise. They became ashamed of their bodies, and alongside joy and love, dark and sinister feelings were born. Things like anger.

“What does that have to do with being loved by all things?”

—Before they broke the promise, they truly were loved by all things. Animals, plants, spirits—everything. So I was created based on what they were like before they broke the promise.

After finishing, I heard the Holy Sword mutter something very quietly, but when I asked again, it refused to answer.

I had no idea the owner of the Holy Sword’s title came with abilities like this, or that there had ever been such a precedent. It felt like I was studying history.

[Gift!]

The moment studying crossed my mind, chills ran down my spine. Just as I was about to move on, the spirit I had seen earlier flew over and handed me a pink flower.

The scent of the fully bloomed flower was sweet.

“Um… thank you.”

When I smiled and gently tapped it with my index finger, the spirit giggled. Its pure, innocent laughter made me smile too, and the spirit spun around me.

“Thank you.”

[Yeah! Friend! Like!]

After waving goodbye, I resumed walking. Seeing such a bright smile made me feel like today would be a good day.

“Oh! I need to hurry! The limited-edition cake!”

I dashed to Vermance’s Garden and joined the line. Since reservations weren’t possible, it was a race against time—and today, I was late because of everything that happened.

Getting caught by Heather, oversleeping, meeting a spirit.

It was incredibly cute, though!

As I recalled the spirit again, I found myself grinning.

—You’ll see spirits when you touch things you’re connected to. Like soil or water. Be careful. Seeing things others can’t isn’t always a good thing. And I’m cuter than spirits anyway!

“Thanks for worrying, but it would’ve been better if you hadn’t said that last part.”

I said bluntly. The Holy Sword snorted, and I realized it was about to ask for praise.

“Of course you’re cuter, Rel.”

—Right?!

Damn it. How did this happen…?

“Shuri…?”

While muttering miserably to myself, I heard a soft, low voice.

I turned toward the sound and saw Kiel, drenched in sweat, staring at me with wide eyes. When our gazes met, his eyes curved into a gentle smile.

…What?!

Why is he here?! You’re supposed to be on the island!