Volume 2: Chapter 041: Lord Medite: Conversation Over Morning Drinks
Author: かっぱ同盟／友麻碧
Link: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n3862be/
Translated by Zzonkedd
Edited by Gumihou
Gumihou: Did my best to cultivate dialogues that match the character… haahhh.
Edit: change all ‘Sacred Treasure’ to ‘Sacred Artefact’
“You actually came home in the morning without telling me anything, are you looked down on me?”
“Oh my, you’re awake, Giselle?”
As soon as I returned to the Medite family home, [1] I was greeted by my dear Giselle’s glare.
I took off my hat and changed out of my thick robes into lighter clothing before sitting down on the couch.
“Now, now, dear, what is it? You always tell me to leave early and come home late. [1] Goodness, you must have been feeling lonely without me, eh? How adorable~”
“Get out of my sight.”
Giselle stood tall with her arms folded, glaring at me. She was also dressed in a light blue negligee. I smiled and said, “Well now, I guess I’ll go take a look at little A-chan~”
“A-chan~”
I found the tiny little child in his bed in the next bedroom and looked down on his innocent sleeping face. “Ahh, how adorable! Why is my child so adorable~”
“Stop it, you’re going to wake him up.”
“He looks just like me~”
“Well, I can’t deny that. That’s what worries me…”
“Fufun~”
I gently stroked Acreos’s forehead and stood there, just staring at him for a while. No matter how much I looked at him, I didn’t feel tired at all. He’s so tiny and cute and interesting.
“It was a truly tough day for me today, Giselle. When I saw Prince Ulysses and the Shrine Maiden today… I had the sudden urge to see you.”
“You say that, but you’re probably stalking them anyway.”
“That is so, that is so, Giselle.”
“You certainly sound like you’re in a good mood.”
My dear wife was as cynical as ever. Even so, I slipped my arms around her shoulders and guided her out of Acreos’s room. To appease my wife, let’s open a good bottle today.
“You’ll be attending the Four Nations Conference later in the afternoon, right? How brave of you to start drinking now.”
“That’s right, pour me a glass now, won’t you?”
That’s just how Giselle was.
She was annoyed by me, but still shoved a glass at me and even poured the fine wine for me.
I took both glass and bottle, pouring the wind into her glass. Then, we toasted each other in the quiet glow of the morning sun.
“Looks like Prince Ulysses will be relinquishing his right to the throne for good. He had just proposed to the Shrine Maiden.”
“How nice for them. Were you the one who recommended the match?”
“No, no, that role was taken up by the Shrine Maiden’s brother. It was a very good punch.”
“…What are you talking about now?”
For some reason, Giselle’s glare filled me with happiness.
I took a sip of wine and chuckled.
“Now that I think about it, I heard a series of strange explosions this morning. I believe it came from the direction of the sea,” [2] said Giselle dryly.
“You’re right about the explosions. I happened to witness a one-on-one duel between Demon King Class mages! The excitement~ the passion~ the explosions were incredible! Someone once said that White Magic doesn’t have much of an explosive offence, but if you can churn out as many magic circles as you please, there’s no need for an army. It was quite extraordinary.”
“Phun, sounds like you had a lot of fun,” [2] Giselle said as she poured more wine into her glass.
She’s a very strong drinker. That said, I know that she would still be sober enough to listen to my talk.
“Now that the young master of Holy Nation has returned, I believe things will only get more interesting from now on. I feel like all the [Keywords] are coming together.”
“What keywords are you talking about?
“Well, there are all kinds~ such as [Magic Circuits], [Sacred Artefact], [Demons], and [Residual Magic Space]… what else? Ah yes, the Black Demon King suggested something very interesting. He said something about using the untouched Residual Magic Spaces by the church as a power source. With Thor’s help and the cooperation of those Twilight fellows, we could embark on an entirely new magical project. Who knows, we may even have the opportunity to dabble in Black Magic.”
“That’s the grey zone with Magic Circuits, isn’t it?”
“Perhaps.”
I swirled the wine in my glass and imagined all the exciting connections between various Keywords and different Demon Kings.
Thus far, it was only a guess, but I do believe it is all connected.
After all, they were the beings who started the world. The ones who kicked start time and space. There is no way that the Keywords of this new era are not related to them.
“Looks like things are going to get a little heated up again. [1] With Prince Ulysses engaged to the Shrine Maiden, Ruskia will certainly be in for an exciting time. Other countries would most likely sit up and take notice. Before that happens, people from the church would have to acknowledge the White Sage at the groom. Which shouldn’t be a problem since Eska will do his utmost best to make that happen.”
For all that he appeared to be wild and reckless, that fellow would never cut corners once he made up his mind on something. Especially when it came to the wishes of the Green Shrine Maiden, his blood sister.
“His Highness Ulysses made a manly decision. Not many could give up their right to the throne just like that. That said, this new role does come with its own set of responsibilities. The Green Shrine Maiden must give birth to the next generation of shrine maiden… now, how should we encourage them…”
“Try saying something like that in front of them, you will be sued for sexual harassment.”
I smirked as I stroked my chin, nodding agreeably as Giselle stared at me with a shocked look.
After all, it’s not like I had said anything wrong, right? Securing the next generation’s Green Shrine Maiden is very important to the church.
It’s not like this uncle is actually sexually harassing anyone.
“In any case, Sir Raymond would most likely be disappointed by this outcome. Now that the three-way fight had reduced to two, the First Prince’s camp may gain some strength from this, haha~”
“He did not have much of a presence prior to this.”
“Well, with Sir Raymond as viceroy and Prince Ulysses appointed as a Magic Advisor, both garnered the most attention and expectations. I believe the First Prince is reasonably capable, but the Queen is… at any rate, let’s see how things turn out, eh?”
“Sound like you’re having fun, Ur,”
“Indeed. It is all very fun. Ruskia had been stagnated by peace for too long, things were finally moving. Though it may not be inappropriate for me to say this, a sense of crisis is the best way to speed things up.”
Am I a little tipsy now? No, I have always been like this. I can’t help but feel a sense of anticipation of what’s to come.
“Speaking of which, I had a little theological chat with them earlier. It started out as a way for me to feel them out a little, but I ended up learning something interesting.”
“What is it?”
“The Sacred Artefacts! After realising that Demon King Class beings are reincarnations of Maydea’s original creator gods, I did some research into Sacred Artefacts and found that they were indeed related to Demon King Class beings. These treasures were also intimately tied to Demon King Class beings as far back as 2000 years ago. I wonder if there is something tying these beings to their Sacred Artefacts?”
I laughed to myself.
“But, you know what? Miss Makia was the missing point.”
What do you mean by missing a point, you ask me?
Well, through the various creation myths and old legends, nearly all significant Demon King Class beings have a connection to a specific Sacred Artefact. These Sacred Artefacts were the ultimate factor for determining a being’s connection with the divine.
“It is unclear whether it was whether the goddess possessed no Sacred Artefact, or that the Sacred Artefact never reached her or for other reason entirely was a mystery. In short, the Crimson Witch’s existence was quite mysterious in many ways.”
“Young Lady Makia… is a good child though…”
“Oh my, protective aren’t we? Well, she is our child’s godmother after all.”
“… …”
Giselle sulked as she took another swallow of her wine. She is quite an impressive drinker. Look, she’s pouring herself another glass again.
“One other thing, His Highness Ulysses mentioned that he would be returning the son from his previous life, the child that had been placed inside the ceremonial casket, back to earth. I believe this should be fine since that casket was doing what it was supposed to anyway… Still, I wonder what the Church’s response would be.”
“…I supposed they’re worried about leaving that casket vacant.”
“Indeed, Eska had always been particularly concerned about the Crimson Witch. Hmm… yes, Lady Makia will have a hard time thanks to this…”
“Isn’t it a given that Demon King Class people would leave some great deed behind?”
“That’s right. Under this situation, that blond man should be the ‘Collector’, also known as the Hero or General Kanon now. As for Eska, he was the Archbishop of Holy Ashes, which makes sense for him to want to complete the Green Curtain as soon as possible,” I said with a smile.
Goodness, I must be a cruel person for taking delight in the crisis of the people I have known for a while now. What good man would feel schadenfreude over their friend’s misfortune?
[1] “How exciting! I mustn’t miss a single thing…”
“… …”
“Don’t you think so? Rather, their lives reflect Maydea’s condition. They are the protagonists of this world, the ones whose battles, love, hatred and every action influence this world without exception. They were the weavers of stories, the ones who determined the course of this world. Be they gods, heroes, demons or ordinary people… not a single one escapes life’s struggle and suffering. Even with their immense power, things don’t always end well for them.
Well, in the end, I am but a mere reader of the stories they tell. That said, I do not wish to be a mere reader, so, I shall appoint myself as a writer, a recorder of stories who writes down all that I see and hear, and leave a record of it in this world.”
“That’s not what being a reader is about…” Giselle narrowed her eyes at me and sighed.
It was the same expression she made whenever she gave up on things. Indeed, it was an expression that I often encounter.
“Really now, don’t get too carried away and get yourself killed. Compared to a Demon King Class individual, you’re nothing but an ordinary person.”
“Oh my, are you worried over me, Giselle? I am touched…”
[2] “Loath as I wish to remind myself, you are the father of this child. It would be quite troublesome if you go off and off yourself. Did you not say that you went through a difficult childhood growing up without a father?”
“Well, that’s because Grandmother’s incredibly strict education started…”
“… …”
In fact, I do believe that my twisted personality must have been due to my unfortunate childhood.
Well, I suppose it can’t be helped. It was almost impossible for a normal child to survive to become the Head of Medite family. I understand that Grandmother’s incredibly strict way of educating me was her way of showing her love.
Even so, I do not want my child to go through such hardships from a young age.
“Well, let’s do it in moderation.”
“It would appreciate that,” said Giselle as she rubbed her eyes and yawned a little.
As for myself, I was not sleepy at all, still filled with excitement from the night before. Still, I have that meeting later, so let’s try and get a little sleep.
“… …”
Giselle started dozing off on the couch, so I grabbed a blanket from the bedroom and put it over her. It was starting to get chilly now.
I leaned back on the sofa next to her and breathed in deeply before slowly exhaling the breath I had gathered.
Just then, my little Acreos, who was supposed to be sleeping cried so.
Giselle and I jumped off the couch and rushed to his room immediately.
[Gumihou: The author has some odd choice of wording…]
[1] Lord Medite-like dialogue and thoughts
[2] Add dialogue tags for Giselle
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