Chapter 118. Hanging Around with Two Fools
A chilly silence hung over the humble office.
— “Are you… a grimoire?”
It was nonsense I couldn’t make heads or tails of.
‘So, wait, what did he just call me?’
A grimoire?
What is a grimoire? Literally a grimoire. In other words, a book. Don’t ask me why a grimoire is called a grimoire. I don’t know either.
Anyway, a grimoire may be called a transcendent artifact or whatever, but in the end its essence is nothing more than an object. So if I were to rephrase the librarian’s question, it would be this:
‘Are you a book?’
Now, if we’re asking whether it makes sense or not, then sure, it makes sense. At least it can come out of someone’s mouth. But if we’re asking whether it can be interpreted? That’s another story.
And then what else?
— “How could a grimoire possibly don the mask of a man?”
Not a beast with a human face, but a grimoire wearing a man’s mask?
I was dumbstruck at the absurd words. I swear, if Shine or Rayleigh had said such a thing, either I or one of them wouldn’t have lived to see the morning sun. Because, more often than not, an intelligent remark that makes you chew it over is more grating than raw insult.
I unclenched my fist and looked straight into the librarian’s eyes.
With only faint breaths filling the space, I pushed aside the absurdity and thought calmly.
‘…Why a grimoire, of all things?’
It was hard to dismiss it as mere nonsense.
If the librarian were just a senile old man, or otherwise a twisted character who hurled personal attacks at strangers, then fine.
But why would he, of all the words he could’ve chosen, bring up “grimoire”?
‘…Does he know something?’
Naturally, my thoughts turned to the Fire Seal. The bizarre glyph that had once been one, but became two after defeating Destrou. The one that showed no clear change, whose meaning remained unknown.
While I was thinking that, the librarian, who had been studying my expression for a while, spoke.
“First… have a seat. I don’t know what business brings you here, but I’d prefer we resolve it through conversation.”
“Yes, then…”
I took the librarian’s suggestion and moved to the sofa. Even then, his gaze followed me as if his eyes saw clear as day.
Before the conversation could begin, I felt the need to correct the librarian’s misunderstanding.
“First of all, I am not a grimoire.”
“…Not a grimoire? Don’t try to deceive my eyes. The letters that compose you are plain to see.”
What do you mean, something shows?
It was a contradiction.
Like Shine the death knight lecturing about ‘life,’ or Rayleigh discoursing on ‘loyalty.’ Nonsensical.
But, though taken aback for a moment, I answered calmly.
“I don’t know what you think you see, but I’m not a grimoire. However, if you’re asking about my business, then it’s not unrelated to a ‘grimoire.’”
“…Go on.”
Just as I had given up trying to persuade him, the librarian seemed to give up pressing me to speak.
At this point, I had to sort out my thoughts.
‘Let’s see…’
It seemed he wasn’t simply a crazy old man. Then it must be true that he was seeing something. Which meant this was a good opportunity to glean information about the veiled Fire Seal.
But there was a snag.
‘Should I really reveal the Fire Seal?’
That was the dilemma.
The Fire Seal. That is, the grimoire. Should I open up about it to the librarian?
If I wanted any information, I’d probably have to mention the Fire Seal. He had been introduced by my senior, so he was probably discreet… but.
‘I don’t have the same certainty as I had with Riheim.’
And what is a grimoire? A transcendent artifact that the great houses scour the world for with bloodshot eyes. Depending on how it was used, it could overturn the balance of power, a force asymmetrical in the extreme.
Could the librarian really hide his greed before such an artifact that could raise a minor noble family into a great house?
Hard to say. In this, I was pessimistic. Strictly speaking, it wasn’t distrust of the man, but of the situation.
For a short moment I weighed it: the risks of speaking, the potential advantages. Was the gain worth the cost?
Then suddenly, a word flashed through my mind that might draw out information without exposing the Fire Seal.
That word was… Heaven’s Reversal .
The term Destrou had used for the Fire Seal.
“By any chance…”
I cautiously uttered the word. And the librarian’s reply made all my agonizing meaningless.
“…Do you know of Heaven’s Reversal?”
“…Heaven’s Reversal? Did you just say Heaven’s Reversal?”
“…?”
The librarian started in shock. His eyes went wide as they could go.
“Heaven’s Reversal, Heaven’s Reversal? Did you really say ‘Heaven’s Reversal’?”
“…? Yes, that’s right.”
“No, how can this be… Wait, if it’s Heaven’s Reversal? Could it be, then? Yes, if it’s Heaven’s Reversal, perhaps…”
Muttering to himself, the librarian suddenly whipped his head toward me.
“Are you… the master of Heaven’s Reversal?”
* * *
The librarian held his breath, waiting for my reply. As if determined not to miss a single word. His clouded eyes rippled with confusion. I slowly nodded.
Then, realizing too late, I tried to lower my voice, but the librarian’s reaction was faster.
“Ho… So you truly are the master of Heaven’s Reversal? I see. Those letters… they are indeed Heaven’s Reversal. Heaven’s Reversal it is.”
Does he really see something?
The librarian, scrutinizing me more intently than before, seemed to sink back into thought, as if he had already heard my answer.
I sat silently, watching him.
‘So Heaven’s Reversal was the key?’
Honestly, it was unexpected.
After hearing the clue ‘Heaven’s Reversal’ from Destrou, I had planned to look for leads about it in Lafiter. But my hopes weren’t high.
After all, how many meanings does the word Heaven’s Reversal carry?
Often used as a euphemism for rebellion, or to describe acts that go against the natural order.
Yes, tying grimoire and Heaven’s Reversal together narrows it down. But that could still be just Destrou’s own naming. Even if it was called ‘Heaven’s Reversal’ in that era, names change with time.
So, I hadn’t expected much. But the librarian’s reaction now stirred an unlooked-for sense of anticipation.
Why wouldn’t I be curious?
Regression.
I had turned back the flow of time. This incomprehensible phenomenon. My thirst for its truth never left, even if I didn’t voice it.
And now, before me, lay a clue. With a rare flutter of excitement, I waited for the librarian’s slow mouth to open. Time dragged on.
At last, with a deep exhale of “Hoo,” the librarian broke the silence.
“First, forgive me. I made a ridiculous mistake. A grimoire wearing a human mask, ao absurd.”
“Not at all. But more importantly…”
“You want to know what Heaven’s Reversal is?”
He pierced my thoughts with a single phrase.
I answered.
“Yes.”
“The question is wrong. You already know what Heaven’s Reversal ‘is,’ don’t you?”
…True.
I did know what Heaven’s Reversal was. Heaven’s Reversal was a grimoire. A relic long stored, useless, in Dekulan’s vaults because no method to wield it was known.
Then what I needed to ask was something else.
I paused to consider.
‘What is it I need to learn?’
My head was in a tangle.
When I had no clues, I chased blindly after a single lead. But now, with the stage set, everything was murky.
I knew so little I couldn’t even tell what I didn’t know.
“Your mind seems cluttered. Then, why not start from the beginning?”
“The beginning…?”
“What sets Heaven’s Reversal apart from other grimoires.”
“…!”
Shine and Rayleigh. Hanging around with those two fools, had I become a fool myself?
How had I not thought of such an obvious question?
“How much do you know about grimoires?”
“Just the common knowledge.”
“Transcendent artifacts forming the foundation of the magic great houses. The source of immense power for their wielders. Correct?”
“Yes.”
In truth, not every magical family owned one.
At present, the number of grimoires known to exist on the eastern continent was barely ten or so.
But one thing was certain. Every family that called itself a great house of magic had begun with a grimoire.
“Simple, but straight to the core. Now, do you know why a grimoire is called a transcendent artifact?”
“…”
I shook my head.
I had only heard of their reputation, never witnessed their power. It was generally said that “they amplify the wielder’s strength,” but even that wasn’t confirmed. All that existed were the legends of those who had wielded them.
As I thought this far, the librarian began to explain.
“A grimoire grants the caster the summit of ‘laws.’”
“The summit…?”
“Why do you think some magical arts are superior to others?”
…Ah.
With that, I immediately grasped what he meant by ‘laws.’
It went like this.
Magic is the study of the laws of mana. Every art contains its own ‘law.’ The higher the law it embodies, the higher its classification. That is why Red Flame is a lower art than Blue Flame.
― “A fire that burns alone.”
The independence contained in Red Flame. Compared to…
― “A fire that burns eternally.”
The perpetuity contained in Blue Flame, which stands higher.
At the same level of mastery, the flame of Red Flame can never overcome that of Blue Flame. Even if both are fire, the laws they contain differ.
Just as a sword of base iron can never match one of steel.
“But if one is granted the summit of ‘laws’…”
“Now you see? Why a grimoire’s master rules over all other magi? How the great houses were born?”
“…Yes.”
Magic bearing the summit of laws.
It was both a spear that pierced anything, and a shield that blocked everything. The spells cast through a grimoire’s power would rend apart any barrier with ease, while its wards could block any spell.
The only thing that could pierce them was one thing alone.
‘…Another grimoire’s wielder.’
“Of course, it isn’t absolute. Magic has affinities, and against an opposite affinity, one or two steps of law’s superiority mean little.”
Still, the point stood. Unless an opposing affinity backed by more than a step or two of superiority came into play, nothing else could stand against it.
But then…
A sudden unease made me look at the librarian.
“Then, are you saying Heaven’s Reversal is different?”
“Indeed.”
The librarian nodded.
“Why do you think it is called Heaven’s Reversal? If other grimoires embody the summit of laws, then Heaven’s Reversal…”
The meaning was this.
“It stands outside the laws. Cause and effect. Sequence and flow. Universal order. Free of all such fetters, and further… in the end it shatters the laws themselves.”
Thus, Heaven’s Reversal.
The power that defies the heavens.
“…”
Which meant…
“It can be called the summit of all grimoires.”
