Kays Translations

Chapter 26: The Anomaly at That Place.

Around the same time Ren left Elendil.

In a valley several hours away from the Imperial Capital by magic ship.

Vayne and the others had come to a valley where many monsters appeared.

There was a reason they had to come specifically now, when Demon King cultists had begun appearing.

One of the Seven Heroes was Shishir Meldaeg, ancestor of Squall Meldaeg, who had entered the Imperial Military Academy that year. After the war against the Demon King ended and Shishir returned to Leomel, he established three hidden sanctuaries within the country.

They were no larger than ordinary houses.

Using various barriers, they were concealed so that they couldn’t be seen or detected under normal circumstances.

Within them rested the sacred power left behind by Shishir Meldaeg.

If the Demon King ever returned and brought his power against Leomel again, Shishir had laid down an enormous magic circle so that his descendants could draw on a portion of his power. The circle would take effect after rituals were performed at all three sanctuaries.

Activating it, however, required enormous mana and exceptional talent. Perhaps because Shishir Meldaeg’s blood had thinned over the generations, no member of House Meldaeg had managed to activate it for many generations. Even in eras when the Demon King cult was inactive, the family always tested it so they would be ready in an emergency, but the result had never changed.

However, Squall Meldaeg was different.

Squall had performed the ritual at one of the sanctuaries and successfully activated its magic circle. He had first become capable of doing so not long after entering the academy, and some thought the appearance of Hero Ruin’s descendant might have influenced it.

—They were standing near a massive waterfall in the valley.

With scattered large rocks as stepping stones, they crossed the river and stood near the waterfall’s basin.

The reason for the small group of seven was to keep this hidden place concealed. Deus, the magic ship, was also being discreet to avoid detection by enemies.

Squall took a deep breath, placed his hand on his chest, and offered a prayer.

“In the name of the Meldaeg family…”

The waterfall split to the left and right, revealing a rocky surface further in.

They crossed the exposed rocks. When Squall touched the pale-blue rock face, it flashed several times, then turned transparent and vanished as though it had never existed, revealing a passage deeper inside.

“It worked.”

Squall said, smiling, his body swaying.

Vayne hurriedly supported him from the side. 

“Squall!?”

“I-I’m…sorry. Just opening the door is quite taxing… But I’ll give my all for the ceremony.”

“Are you really okay?”

“Please trust me. As a member of the Meldaeg family, I’ll definitely see this through to the end.”

The matter had been explained before the seven left the Imperial Capital.

The current head of House Meldaeg had told them that activating the magic circles Shishir Meldaeg left at the three sanctuaries should have a major effect against the Demon King cult.

The protected area spread widely around Windea, Where Water and Wind Sleep, and included nearby settlements. Windea had been chosen as the center because it was a birthplace of water and wind—natural forces vital not only to Leomel but to people across the continent.

The three magic circles formed a triangle around Windea. Once activated, tradition held that they could almost completely neutralize the power of the Demon King’s army within that area.

Shishir had intended to leave other defenses as well, but creating this enormous magic circle exhausted the power he had left. Afterward, he devoted himself to spreading the teachings of Main God Elfen.

Shishir Meldaeg had spent many years walking the land himself and building the circle with his own hands until it covered an enormous territory. Like the defenses Mirim Altia created for the Imperial Capital and Elendil, it was not something that could be mass-produced.

“I’m sorry,” 

“Don’t worry about it. We’re here for times like these,” 

Vayne supported Squall, and they continued down the hidden path.

This was the adventure leading toward the climax of Legend of the Seven Heroes II, Chapter 1.

They had not activated the circles before the enemy appeared because doing so would only waste their effect. The routes to the sanctuaries also had to remain secret, and sending Squall alone was out of the question. Vayne and the other Hero House descendants were therefore ideal escorts: few enough to preserve the secret, but strong enough to protect him.

There were no monsters inside. After a little more than ten minutes along the cave-like passage, they reached the underground sanctuary.

The enormous chamber resembled a limestone cave with a broad pool of water, and pale-blue light suffused the entire space.

By the time they found the sanctuary, Squall had regained his strength and was walking on his own.

The seven stopped before the sanctuary, and torches along the walls lit themselves.

Squall stepped forward first into the sanctuary’s main chamber.

“This is the sanctuary I came to check in the spring.”

The interior of the sanctuary was simple, made of stone, with few decorations. There was only one room with a large floor where the magic circle was laid out. In the center of the magic circle was a pedestal, and on it rested a polished white gem.

Squall placed his hands on the gem and closed his eyes.

The gem began to tremble, and the magic circle on the floor began to fill with light.

Vayne and the others, who could only watch, held their breath.

“I can’t really fight like the other six of you… That’s why—!”

Brilliant white mana poured from Squall’s entire body. The magic circle blazed until the whole sanctuary was filled with light. With the circle beneath the seven asserting its presence more strongly by the moment, large beads of sweat formed across Squall’s brow.

A crackling sound like running lightning came from the white gem between his hands.

“Gu…uh…”

Squall struggled beneath a drain of mana far greater than any of the other six had imagined.

As he had said, Squall was not much of a direct fighter. Instead, he had supported the others with healing magic.

Even so, he felt guilty remaining in safety while his companions fought.

That was likely why he was so determined to complete the ritual no matter what.

And—his determination succeeded.

The blinding light gradually subsided, and the gem detached from Squall’s hands and floated in the air.

Squall wiped the sweat from his brow and said with a bright smile.

“We did it, everyone.”

The other six had been worried. Two sanctuaries still remained, yet Squall was far more exhausted than they had expected.

With two sanctuaries still left, his depletion was severe enough to make the others wonder whether he truly needed to push himself this far when Leomel’s military and powerful fighters could also engage the cult.

Their concern was understandable. This time the Demon King cult was being led by exceptionally powerful figures, so there was no reason to hold anything back. If the enemy appeared inside the magic circle’s range, there was every reason to use it.

The same sanctuaries had been visited in Legend of the Seven Heroes, but the circumstances differed somewhat. In the game, one of the reasons was that Ulysses Ignat had tried to revive Asval.

As they returned to Deus, which had been hidden, Squall drank a potion and looked at the others with determined eyes.

“Only two more to go. Let’s finish this quickly.”

◇　◇　◇　◇

In the evening, as battles erupted in various places,

The sky, which should have been crimson, was covered in dazzling clouds.

Those clouds descended like snowflakes, carrying glittering crystal lights.

Slowly and peacefully.

These changes transformed the battlefields in various locations.

…What in the world!?

…I-I don’t know, but it’s convenient for us! Look at them!

The magic circle left by Shishir Meldaeg had activated.

The battlefield, already prepared by Radius and the others, tilted even further in Leomel’s favor. Glittering crystals of light rode the wind downward and weakened the Demon King cultists.

Because the light’s true nature was a state secret, the knights were never told what it was. They assumed it was an allied attack and quickly subdued the weakened Demon King cultists. Unlike the corresponding events in Legend of the Seven Heroes, there was almost no collateral damage.

Watching from the deck of Deus as it flew in the sky, Vayne and the others exchanged high fives while feeling the wind.

“All right! This should help somehow!”

“I’m not so sure, Kaito. We shouldn’t let our guard down. Grandma also said that.”

“Yes, please be cautious.”

“I agree. Let’s continue to stay vigilant.”

“Understood… But good job, Squall.”

Squall, who was exhausted, leaned on Kaito’s shoulder as they stood on the deck. Kaito extended a fist toward Squall, who looked puzzled. 

“This is what you do…”

Kaito showed him how to bump fists, and Squall copied the gesture. The sight of Kaito’s broad grin made Squall smile too.

“That was cool!”

“…Yes. I’m glad.”

Vayne watched the others smile and celebrate, content at the sight.

Sera came to stand beside Vayne.

“Now the battle situation will tilt heavily in our favor.”

“Yes. All that remains is that priest.”

“Yes… Where could he be hiding? He must be lurking somewhere.”

The battle would not truly be over until Orphide was dealt with. They could not relax yet, but successfully activating the power Shishir Meldaeg had left behind was still cause for celebration.

As the two of them conversed, a voice came from the magic device on the deck.

The voice belonged to Nemu, who was still alone in the control room.

“Everyone! It’s time to come back! I’m going to change our course a bit!”

Deus had always been maintained by the Hero Houses, so it remained remarkably modern and well kept; even its control room showed little age. Nemu stood before the bank of magical instruments used to operate the ship.

“Nemu, what happened?” 

Vayne asked.

“You see, we were able to activate that magic circle, right? So, we have to report it quickly.”

Leomel’s military magic ships were stationed in nearby airspace. The plan was to approach one, remain airborne, connect a gangway, and deliver their report.

After everyone agreed, Nemu changed course toward the military airspace they had been told about before leaving the Imperial Capital.

After several dozen minutes, they reached airspace where a number of Leomel military magic ships were flying.

The sight surprised all seven. In Legend of the Seven Heroes there had been only a few magic ships here, whereas now more than a dozen filled the sky.

They approached one ship and connected a gangway.

“We were ordered not to ask what that magic was.”

It was the voice of the waiting knights.

The power of the magic circle was a national secret, so even their report could not reveal every detail. To the military, it was simply described as an allied attack.

“I guess all we have to report is that we completed our mission.”

“Haha… We’ll report that to the capital as well. And as for us…”

After about ten minutes of exchanging what information they could, there was nothing more to report. Fighting still continued in a few places, but it would likely end soon; the situation overwhelmingly favored Leomel.

As the seven of them left the deck and returned to the control room, Nemu spoke up.

“Still, it sounds like they haven’t found the person leading the Demon King cultists.”

Apparently craving something sweet, Nemu sucked on a piece of candy on a stick. She sat in front of the control panels filled with switches and gauges, twisted around in the chair, and folded her arms across its backrest in an odd posture.

“But, I don’t think it will end like this.”

“I think we’re all thinking the same thing. Right, Liz?”

“Of course. They suddenly attacked us, and after failing, it’s unlikely they’ll just give up.”

As they spoke uneasily on the way back toward the capital, a bell rang two or three times from the panel of switches and gauges used to operate Deus.

Nemu twisted her upper body while sitting.

She checked the numbers displayed on a nearby gauge.

“Huh?”

The candy slipped from her mouth. Nemu shot to her feet and checked the readings again and again, but the unease remained. She hurried to the bag she had left in the control room, pulled out another magic instrument, and returned.

“What’s going on?”

“Sorry Kaito-kun, please be quiet.”

Nemu, with an unusually serious expression on her face, folded her arms.

She checked the readings repeatedly. Still unable to shake the feeling that something was wrong, Nemu activated the additional instrument she had brought over.

It looked like a sheet of glass about the size of an ordinary notebook, covered in numerous graduated scales.

“It’s different… Right?… This won’t display these numbers. But the reaction is normal, and the fluctuation of magic power in the air is undeniable…”

Again and again,

“Calculations should be done here, not here… Yes, the correct numbers are displayed, but… with this, strange numbers are still displayed.”

Many times…

“It doesn’t seem like an error…”

Nemu suddenly looked out through the window.

Charlotte followed Nemu’s gaze and realized where she was looking.

“Why are you looking towards Windea?”

They were not far from Windea. Although the visible effect of the magic circle Squall had activated had long since faded, geographically they were still within its protected region.

Vayne, silent until then, noticed Nemu’s concern and remembered something Ren had told him.

“I’ve been thinking… what if Windea is a target too?”

He said it quietly.

“The Demon King cult has been collecting holy relics… Maybe that’s connected.”

Nemu vigorously approached a table where a map of Leomel was spread out.

Windea, Where Water and Wind Sleep—the place where legend said the Ring of the Goddess of Water rested. They had visited it only that spring.

Following Nemu, all six of them gathered around the table, examining the map.

“Nemu, can you tell us what unusual things you observed?”

Lizred asked while looking at the map.

“The mana in the air looked strange. I thought it might be an instrument error, but the flow itself was abnormal.”

“What kind of movement was it?”

“It felt as though the mana was gradually being pushed through the air from somewhere else.”

“So it looked as though something in another place was forcibly displacing it?”

As Charlotte listened to the conversation, she exhaled.

“That Orphide man was looking for the Ring of the Goddess of Water, wasn’t he?”

“It’s worth investigating. Going there wouldn’t be a waste of time, right?”

“Yeah, and it’s our ship. We’ve come this far; we might as well go all the way.”

As Sera agreed, Vayne gripped the hilt of his sword at his waist.

“Let’s notify the nearby magic ships and head for Windea.”

“Alright, that’s settled then! Change the course to Windea!”

“Got it! I’ll go and inform them quickly, so get ready!”

Kaito rushed onto the deck to notify the knights aboard the nearby military magic ships.

Most of the magical instruments aboard Deus had been made by Nemu, and their performance rivaled Altia-made equipment. She kept using them to check the anomaly as they flew toward Windea. Within minutes Deus accelerated past the other magic ships. Several followed behind, and Windea was only a few dozen minutes away.

“What do you think they’re trying to do on Water Saint’s Day?”

Lizred asked.

Water Saint’s Day was said to be the day the Goddess of Water was born. Tradition held that water-aspected mana throughout the world became stronger that night.

The Demon King cult had been collecting holy relics for some time. Their true objective this time might involve the Ring of the Goddess of Water, and perhaps Orphide believed he could obtain it on Water Saint’s Day.

Whatever the cult intended to do with the holy relics, they could not be allowed to have them.

About thirty minutes after changing course toward Windea—

“I can see it!”

They had come to Windea that spring to confirm Vayne’s power. As the fantastical landscape shone beneath the stars, Nemu compared the readings across Deus’s instruments.

“Is it because it’s Water Saint’s Day? The wind mana is unusually calm tonight!”

“Oh? So, does that mean we can stop up there!?”

“Yeah! I worked hard on Deus after our last trip to Windea, so we can push it a little harder now!”

“But, Nemu, we don’t even know if he really moved here. So, please, calm down!”

“I told you, it’s fine, Sera! I strengthened the barrier this time! With the mana concentration tonight, this’ll be easy—”

Suddenly, Nemu fell silent, and Sera looked at her with an anxious expression.

“…You’re not going to say it’s an emergency or something, right?”

“I-It’s not an emergency! But look at this!”

The others stared at the instrument Nemu showed them, which measured the quality and concentration of mana in the air, but none of them could read it the way she could. Several values fluctuated irregularly and seemed to point in a particular direction.

“Is it pointing upward?”

“Yes! I still think something strange is happening in Windea’s upper reaches!”

She pushed the control lever forward and sent Deus climbing sharply.

The nearby military magic ships could not match Deus’s rapid maneuver. Deus was simply the more advanced vessel, responding far faster even during abrupt changes in direction.

Deus signaled the surrounding military magic ships that it would climb farther and asked the knights aboard them to investigate other parts of Windea.

“Isn’t it obvious? We’re heading for the temple!” 

“I think so too! But we spent days traversing Windea! How are we going to get to the temple?!”

“Kaito and Liz, you both know there’s only one answer!”

Nemu slammed a conspicuous red button on Deus’s control panel. A magical barrier enveloped the huge ship, and a piercing high-pitched sound made everyone wince.

“We’re going to use brute force to break through as far as we can!”

Everyone seized whatever they could in the control room as Deus shook violently. The wind mana around them battered the ship.

And yet Nemu had never expected they could approach the temple this closely. If it had been possible, they would have done it during their spring visit. Something was clearly different. Even with the new defensive systems active, the resistance from the wind was strangely weak.

The instrument readings made that unmistakable, leaving Nemu with one obvious question.

“Maybe someone is suppressing the mana around Windea by force…”

It was possible. Powerful magic could weaken the wind mana in the area. If that was happening, could Orphide be responsible?

“Everyone! We’re almost stopping! Hold on to something and don’t let go!”

Even if she worried, there were no answers, and Nemu focused most of her attention on piloting Deus.

Only once they were quite close to the temple did Deus finally begin slowing. Nemu aimed for a relatively gentle rock face near a spot they had used for a break during their previous visit and threw the engines into hard reverse.

The strongest jolt yet hit the ship, but Deus managed to come to rest against the rock. Furnishings had rolled everywhere inside, and all seven passengers were sprawled across the floor.

Nemu wiped the sweat from her forehead and stood up.

“Well? How was that?”

Nemu grinned triumphantly.

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