Chapter 8: First Teacher (4)

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A year had passed since I began learning magic from Roxy and swordsmanship from Father.

Through my magic lessons, I had become capable of using intermediate-level magic.

Strictly speaking, that was only because Roxy and I had painstakingly altered various aspects of magic circle structures until we finally worked out the knack of it.

Rudy, on the other hand, had already become so adept that he could casually cast advanced magic without incantations.

It was not exactly good news that he had casually used advanced fire magic in the garden as though he were breathing, only to be scolded by Mother.

Roxy tried to stop Mother as she furiously pulled down Rudy’s pants and spanked his bare bottom, but it was no use.

The beginner healing spell Healing could not restore a tree that had been completely burned to ash.

Thanks to using a magic circle capable of intermediate healing magic, I managed to save the tree, though it was not fully restored.

As a result, Rudy was spared a spanking.

Of course, there was no avoiding the scolding...

Sorry. This is all I can do.

There were various trivial incidents that could only make one laugh, but I was able to learn quite a great deal from Roxy.

Some days, rather than practical lessons, we simply attended ordinary academic lessons on the history of this world and the study of magic.

"Teacher, forgive my impertinence, but where did magic originate?"

"That’s right. Has magic only ever been used for battle?"

When our sudden curiosity arose, Roxy diligently answered us.

"I see. It would be strange to learn magic without knowing its history. Where should I begin? To start with, they say magic was created by the High Elves."

"What are elves?"

"Elves? Yes. Elves are a race that currently lives in the north of the Millis Continent."

According to Roxy’s explanation—

In the distant past, before the great war known as the Human-Demon War, when the Demon Continent was still chaotic and fighting never ceased, a race called the High Elves spoke with the spirits of the forest and manipulated wind and earth in order to fight foreign enemies.

And that was the first magic recorded in history.

"Wow, so it has a history."

"...I see."

"Of course it does."

Roxy raised her nose slightly and continued her explanation.

"Modern magic is what humans created by imitating elven magic and giving it form amid war. Humans are good at that sort of thing."

"Humans are good at that?"

"Yes. It is always humans who invent and create new things."

Humans always invent and create new things.

That seemed to be true in any world.

Well, intelligent beings naturally embraced new cultures and brought about revolutions.

"Besides, not all magic is for combat. With summoning magic, you can summon magical beasts or spirits with powers suited to your needs."

At the words summoning magic, Rudy’s eyes went round as marbles as he looked up at Roxy.

"Summoning magic! Will you teach us that someday?"

"No, I cannot use it. And since we are speaking of tools, there are also magic items."

"...Magic items?"

"What are magic items?"

"They are tools with special effects. Magic circles are engraved inside them, so even non-mages can use them. Though depending on the item, they may require a great deal of mana."

When she had explained magic circles to me before, I had heard something vaguely similar.

She had called them tools used as a medium for magic circles, had she not?

I already understood that part, so I asked a different question.

"Teacher, what is the difference between magical beasts and monsters?"

The Human-Demon War, elves, magical beasts, spirits, and so on—these were things I had heard about since earlier.

I understood there were many races, but were magical beasts and monsters not the same thing?

So I asked her.

"There is no great difference between magical beasts and monsters."

Basically, monsters were born as mutations from ordinary animals.

If they were fortunate enough to survive, increase their numbers, establish themselves as a species, and develop intelligence over generations, they were called magical beasts.

Conversely, it seemed magical beasts could lose their intelligence over generations, become ferocious, and degenerate into monsters.

"Then are demonkind evolved magical beasts?"

"Not at all. The word demonkind is a nickname given in ancient times, when humans and demonkind were at war."

"You mean the Human-Demon War you mentioned earlier?"

"That is correct. The first war took place seven thousand years ago."

That was an unimaginably distant past.

Perhaps the difference between the Edo shogunate era when I was born and the Heian era.

The history of this world might unexpectedly be longer than Earth’s.

"That is quite a story from the distant past."

"It is."

"It is not so long ago. There was a war between humans and demonkind as recently as four hundred years ago. Since humans and demonkind began fighting seven thousand years ago, they have continued waging war with intermittent pauses."

The fighting had not ended.

It had continued for seven thousand years and was still ongoing?

Even among humans, there had never been a war that lasted so long.

"...It seems humans and demonkind do not get along."

"Then, what exactly defines demonkind?"

"Defining demonkind is rather difficult."

Roxy said that demonkind in the present era included even races that had sided with demonkind in the most recent war.

Demonkind did not get along with humans. And they were at war.

But there seemed to be exceptions.

"Oh, by the way, I am demonkind too."

"...I did not know that."

"Yes. More precisely, I am of the Migurd Tribe from the Biegoya region of the Demon Continent. Rudy and Lumi’s parents were surprised when they first saw me too, were they not?"

I had thought they were simply startled because Roxy was such a young-looking little girl, even younger than expected. But that was not it.

"They were surprised by my hair."

"...Your hair?"

Well, it certainly was an aqua color rarely seen on Earth without dye.

But was there something wrong with it?

"They say that among demonkind, the closer one’s hair color is to green, the more ferocious and dangerous their race tends to be. And when light hits my hair, it can appear green as well."

It seemed green was the color people were most wary of in this world.

On Earth, green symbolized safety and red was the color of warning. The concepts of this world were the opposite.

But—

"Teacher, your hair is very pretty."

"That’s right. Teacher’s hair is pretty~."

From my perspective, her hair was simply beautiful.

There was absolutely no reason to be afraid of it.

To begin with, Roxy herself was a young girl, so there was no need to be particularly wary of her.

"...Thank you. But save those words for when you have someone you like in the future."

"I like you, Teacher."

For a moment, I saw it.

The lecherous smile spreading over Rudy’s face, completely at odds with his innocent voice.

Hm.

Ever since Rudy was a baby, he had often worn that expression whenever he looked at Mother or Lilia.

At the time, I had been startled enough to wonder whether he really was an infant. But that expression had nearly disappeared, and I had thought it was simply some inexplicable behavior of a baby.

Yet the aura of a libertine radiating from that smile made my tongue click in disbelief.

Perhaps Roxy was startled as well. Her eyes widened for a moment, before she calmly replied.

"Is that so? If you still feel that way ten years from now, tell me again."

"Yes, Teacher."

Rudy’s words were easily brushed aside, but somehow, the corners of Roxy’s lips had curled up slightly.

"Now, to return to the subject, the belief that more vivid colors mean greater danger is a complete superstition."

"Huh?"

"...Is that so?"

So people were not feared merely for having vivid hair colors.

As I tilted my head, Roxy nodded and continued.

"Yes. There was a demon race in the Babinos region called the Speld Tribe, whose hair was green. They ran rampant during the war four hundred years ago, and that is how such stories began to spread. So hair color has nothing to do with it."

"How badly did they run rampant for such a superstition to arise?"

"Quite badly. In a war that lasted barely more than ten years, they ran so rampant that both enemies and allies of their own kind feared and shunned them. They were such a dangerous race that, after the war ended, they were persecuted and driven from the Demon Continent."

Driven out after becoming an object of fear even to their own kind... They were a rather pitiable race.

Though that must mean they committed terrible slaughter on the battlefield.

As I thought about them for a while, Rudy and Roxy’s conversation moved ahead.

"...Were they truly hated that much?"

"They were."

"What did they do?"

"Well, even I do not know... But when I was young, I heard many stories: that they attacked villages of allied demonkind and killed all the women and children, or that after annihilating the enemy on a battlefield, they annihilated their allies too. They said that if you stayed up late, the Speld Tribe would come and eat you."

At those words, a chuckle escaped me without my realizing it.

The treatment of the Speld Tribe resembled that of the Shinsengumi, who had been called the Wolves of Mibu in my former life and inspired fear among commoners.

"Look over there. It’s the Wolves of Mibu. The Shinsengumi."

"Oh, I cannot bear it. They scare me to death."

"They say they cut down not only loyalist rebels, but even women and children who pick a fight with them, without a second thought."

"Apparently they even set a draper’s shop on fire not long ago."

"Mother, look at the color of those haori coats."

"Shh! Keep talking, and the Shinsengumi will cut you down!"

We had merely guarded Kyoto under orders from the shogunate, with support from Aizu.

Our bloody battles with the imperial loyalists who sought to overthrow the shogunate became distorted in the telling, and even within the Kyoto streets we patrolled, we ended up branded no differently from ruffians.

Well, later on the shogunate did acknowledge our loyalty and send us into important battles... But all of that was long past.

"I have heard that the Migurd Tribe is closely related to the Speld Tribe, so they had quite a bad reputation in the past. I think you will have a chance to hear about it from your parents someday."

Having said that much, Roxy broke off. Then, with a stern look in her eyes, she spoke again in a warning tone.

"Listen carefully. Never approach a race with emerald-green hair and something like a red gemstone embedded in its forehead. Even if you have no choice but to speak to one, never make them angry."

"What happens if we make them angry?"

"Your entire family might be killed."

Judging from the way Roxy said it, the Speld Tribe appeared to be an extraordinarily dangerous existence.

Of course, one could not know until one met them, but there was always a reason adults gave warnings.

I would take it to heart.

"Green hair and a red gemstone in the forehead, correct?"

"That is right. They can see the flow of mana with that thing in their foreheads. It is a third eye."

"That is an unexpectedly conspicuous appearance."

"Yes. If you see one, pretend you have somewhere else to be and leave. Do not suddenly run away, since that might provoke them."

Roxy looked exactly like a zookeeper warning kindergarten children that the lion in its cage was dangerous and they had to be careful.

The Speld Tribe... I would be extremely cautious around them.

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I turned five.

For the first time since being born into this world, a party was held to celebrate my birthday.

As I cooked with Mother, she told me that this country did not have a custom of celebrating birthdays every year.

However, it seemed customary for families to give gifts and celebrate when a child reached certain ages.

Five years old, ten years old, and then the coming-of-age ceremony at fifteen.

One received three celebrations over the course of one’s life.

At the small party held in our home, Father gave Rudy and me swords as gifts.

He gave each of us a real sword, long and heavy for a five-year-old child to hold, along with a short wooden sword.

But there was a clear difference between the sword Rudy received and mine.

Rudy’s sword was a Western-style blade, the kind Father mainly used. Mine, however, was a real sword and wooden practice sword shaped like Japanese swords, made by hand.

They were not things one would give a small child, but I was so delighted that a broad smile bloomed on my face.

"Father, this sword..."

"It seemed to me that Lumi preferred something thin and slender over the thick sword I use. So your father went all out and specially commissioned these from a blacksmith. The blacksmith was an Oni, and when I brought him the wooden sword you carved, he was amazed. He said it was a traditional sword used by the Oni, and that he was glad to see a blade from his homeland in a rural place like this."

So swords like Japanese swords existed in this world.

They were weapons used by the Oni.

If I ever had the opportunity to go outside, I would visit that blacksmith.

But for now, I had to thank Father for the gift first...

"Father, thank you so much. I truly love it."

"Ah, stop! If you say you love it twice, your father will die of embarrassment."

"Okay~."

"Ghh."

For some reason, Father looked so softened that he could barely manage an expression.

Perhaps he did not want to show me that face. Covering his face with the back of his hand, Father composed himself, then spoke with a solemn expression.

"Rudy, Lumi. A man must each carry a sword in his heart. To protect those dear to him—"

About two minutes after he began a very serious and unusually long speech, Mother scolded him for talking too long.

With a bitter smile, Father concluded, "So do not draw it except when necessary."

He had likely wished to teach us the meaning and weight a sword carried.

Next, Mother gave us each a book.

"Because you both like books."

What she gave us was a collection of recipes written by a cook.

My eyes widened as I received the book.

In this world, a book was more expensive than a sword.

Perhaps they had papermaking technology but no printing technology, because every book was copied out by hand.

The book I received contained illustrations of all kinds of ingredients and basic dishes, along with explanations of them.

I had recently wanted to learn more varied dishes, so this was something I truly needed.

I smiled brightly at Mother and thanked her.

"Thank you so much, Mother. This is exactly what I needed. I love you, Mother."

At that, she pulled us both into a tight embrace.

Finally, Roxy gave us small staffs.

About thirty centimeters long, each staff had a red stone set into its tip.

"I made these some time ago. Rudy and Lumi could use magic from the very beginning, so I forgot, but it is customary for a teacher to make a staff for a student who has learned beginner magic. I am sorry I forgot."

Was this something like a rite that bound teacher and student together as mage and disciple?

To think she acknowledged even someone as inexperienced as me as her student.

I could only be grateful.

"Yes, Master. I will treasure it."

"...Master, I will treasure mine too."

Roxy gave a wry smile at the answers from the two brothers.

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