[92] The Genius Who Lost the Light (1)
"Your name is Harvist."
At Arkein's words, the black orb vibrated. As molecular bonds loosened, the black substance billowed up like smoke. The creature born of darkness spoke in a hoarse voice.
"I am Harvist."
"I'll run a few tests. For now, stay inside the glass cylinder."
Arkein pointed to a three-meter-high glass cylinder. Narrow enough that a human wouldn't last ten minutes, it didn't matter to a magically made lifeform—such beings had no concept of time's permanence.
That night Canis and Arin sneaked into the lab. They hadn't received Arkein's permission, so they were visibly tense. But that tension vanished the moment they saw Harvist.
A two-meter-tall humanoid shadow.
A narrow waist and dynamically broad shoulders made Canis's heart skip.
"This is the master's…."
The pinnacle of arcane biology the archmage had perfected over a century and a half. And on top of that, a magical lifeform that had inherited Arkein's memories and thus possessed intelligence.
Unlike Canis, Arin shivered as if she had seen a monster.
"Ugh. It's really strange. I thought it would look more human."
"Who'd be afraid if a magical lifeform didn't look terrifying? To me, this form is amazing. It looks built for combat."
"Still, it unnerves me…."
Canis didn't mind. If Arin disliked it, all the better.
'Wait, Harvist. I will be your master.'
Arkein had said he would pick Harvist's master between himself and Arin. Of course Arin was a dear friend, but he wouldn't concede here. Through a fair contest he would prove his worth.
"Canis, let's get out. The master might come."
"Huh? Oh—right."
Arin turned off the lights and followed Canis out. She then paused and glanced back, startled. Harvist's vibrating, explosive emotions reached her.
"Oh my god!"
Arin fled the room and avoided the lab after that day. But having spent her childhood locked in a Radum warehouse, she couldn't just leave Harvist like that.
When everyone else slept, Arin mustered her courage and returned to the lab. Harvist remained confined in the glass cylinder, unchanged.
"Feeling cramped, are you?"
When there was no reply, Arin searched the cylinder's mechanism for a switch.
"I can let you out for a little while."
"Why would I feel cramped?"
Arin stepped back. The voice was grim in a way that naturally inspired fear.
"You've been trapped a month already."
"Feeling discomfort from being unable to move is a human sensation. I cannot perceive time. I don't care if I remain trapped like this forever."
Arin tilted her head as if she didn't believe it. The resonance she felt from Harvist was full of suppressed, stifled energy.
"…But perhaps, you might be right."
"Something occur to you?"
"Hmm. Curiosity, perhaps? That's not quite the right word. I was created to learn from the moment I existed. But now that is impossible."
"That's what I meant by 'cramped.'"
Harvist fell into thought. Was that really the case?
"How can you read my emotions?"
"Hehe. I don't know how it happened. I lived in Radum a long time."
"Radum. The slums of Vashka, the capital of Tormia. A refuge with high concealment and extreme population turnover—presumed to be a den for Ain who lost their territories on the continent."
Even Arin, who had lived in Radum, had never heard it described that way.
"You know a lot, Mr. Harvist."
"What information do you have?"
"Are you suggesting we talk?"
"I see. Then we must talk. I have no master to share my mind with yet."
Arin talked with Harvist all night. Having spent most of her childhood alone, she had never conversed with someone like this before.
After two months of experiments, Harvist was finally granted freedom. Arkein opened the glass cylinder. Harvist still did not move.
"Come out. You will resonate with Canis. But you will not be bound by the constraints of subordination. I'll explain why later."
Harvist didn't reply. It was surprising that an arcane lifeform with superhuman computation speed was slow to react, so Arkein tilted his head.
"Why? Is something holding you back?"
"Why Canis?"
"Hmm. You don't like him? It's odd that someone who won't engage in mental resonance already has a preference."
"I see there's no merit in me—who inherited your memories—being subjugated to you. But Canis is stubborn and proud. I don't think he'll heed my advice. Those traits would be weaknesses in combat."
"Of course."
"On the other hand, Arin is different. She lived in Radum for ten years and met no one but Canis. As a result, her mental receptivity is extraordinarily sensitive."
"You mean the 'novel-perception' pattern—chogyeong?"
Chogyeong was a unique brainwave pattern that perceived any object as if seeing it for the first time. Arin had grown up from infancy seeing nothing; her brain had locked into that state.
So she couldn't distinguish things the way ordinary people do. Yet when it came to sensing the feelings contained in things, she was absolute. Despite many inconveniences, to mental-type mages it was the greatest talent.
Arkein knew Arin's gift was more special than Canis's.
"Arin won't do. She's too soft-hearted."
"I don't understand. Chogyeong more than compensates for other weaknesses. She could maximize my ability."
Arkein forced a bitter smile.
Even sharing the same memories, different forms led to different judgments?
"Maybe you're being more rational. But Arin won't do. You will go to Canis."
* * *
"Kukukukuku!"
Falling, Harvist trembled.
"So that was it, Arkein."
One could only realize at the last moment. The reason Arkein had abandoned the immensely talented Arin and insisted on Canis now made sense.
'He's the same kind of stubborn fool.'
Harvist's fall carried no sense of weight. That made it look all the more pitiful.
"Harvist!"
Canis rushed forward. Harvist had shriveled like a thin sheet of paper; holes pockmarked his body, making it painful to look at.
"Why! Why did you do that! I didn't care if I died! If this was your plan, you shouldn't have betrayed me from the start! Why—why!"
"Kukuku. How should I know? You're my master, after all."
Canis closed his mouth as if something had clicked into place.
"A magical lifeform simply does what its master wants."
"Harvist…."
Canis's head dropped. Living felt bitter and unfair; he wanted to die. Yet another part of him wanted to live. Why wouldn't he? He was human. Harvist seemed to understand that. So Harvist severed the master-servant contract and triggered self-destruction.
"Sorry, Harvist. I…."
Harvist didn't care. A magical lifeform does what its master wants. Designed that way, death wasn't shocking. More interesting to him was Shirone's combat capability that had subdued the Canis–Harvist duo.
'Hmm. He uses strange magic. But it wasn't simply that magic overwhelmed him.'
He was certainly a strong opponent. There was no hesitation in subduing the enemy. He wasn't belligerent; rather, his ruthlessly result-oriented fighting style resembled that of a magical lifeform.
'The speed at which his emotions restore themselves is unbelievably fast. It must be superhuman insight. The time from problem to solution is so short he appears unshaken.'
Finished analyzing, Harvist split his mouth into a grin. He was absolutely specialized in something. Whatever it was, it wasn't a trait commonly found in nature.
'Kukuku. Arkein's in for some trouble.'
Arkein's expression was not good. No one was acting as he wished. Tired of the whole situation, he walked slowly and spoke.
"Pathetic, Canis. Even if you smear my name…."
"Shut up."
Shirone cut him off. His unusually harsh words made his friends' eyes widen. Arkein, however, turned his head as if intrigued. When something is too absurd, you don't even get angry.
"Gahahaha! What a spirited child. How about this? I'll make you an offer…."
"I told you to shut up. Can't you hear me?"
This time Arkein's face hardened as well.
"I'm holding my temper as much as I can. So shut up. Say one more word and I'll smash you."
Shirone's body glowed with a faint red light. A laser. Its power had already been confirmed. If it could make Harvist—who specialized in absorbing energy—explode from overload, then even an archmage might be at a disadvantage.
Their watching friends felt their blood run cold. The opponent was the archmage who had ruled the world; Shirone was merely a student. Such provocation was practically suicide.
"What is he trying to do? Isn't this going to cause something terrible?"
"No. It will be fine."
Nade and Iruki both looked at Etella.
"Teacher. What do you mean? Shouldn't we stop him now?"
"Arkein is in a tricky position. He's at a disadvantage in affinity. If Shirone's magic is the type that concentrates energy, the current Arkein cannot fend it off. Now that there's a chance he could be bitten, he won't act on emotion. Shirone knows this."
Nade turned his gaze back to Shirone. Even so, daring the archmage like this could only be done by Shirone.
'Clever little bastard.'
Arkein admitted it quietly.
"Right. At your current state you might overpower me."
For a moment everything fell silent. It was an unbelievable statement to come from the archmage. But it did not come from groveling. He wore a relaxed smile.
"Red Wave. It seems to work by vibrating particles; it's truly a nemesis to dark magic. And I am tired, so it may be rather hard to stop you."
Arkein watched Shirone's reaction intently.
"How do you like that? Hearing such a thing from the archmage?"
"What do you mean, how do I like it? I told you not to speak."
"Magic is fun, isn't it?"
Shirone frowned. He couldn't tell what Arkein was getting at.
"That's what magic is. Not fair, no rules saying how it should be. No limits, so you can't predict it. A mage who can level a city might be killed by some trivial mercenary mage. That's the world of magic. So it wouldn't be strange if I lost to you."
"So what do you want to say? Are you here to pay penance?"
"You could see it that way, but…."
Black smoke rose from Arkein's body. The whites of his eyes showed and his expression turned ghostly. A razor-sharp killing intent exploded outward.
"You won't know until you fight."
Shirone involuntarily stepped back. This was pure fighting spirit unrelated to skill or rank—the aura of death only someone who had crossed countless battle lines could radiate.
"No matter how good the affinity, it's useless if you cannot win. How about it? Will you face me?"
For the first time, Shirone—who had been confident until now—fell silent. In all honesty, he didn't feel like fighting. Arkein's fighting spirit was that overwhelming.
'Indeed, the thing is a real thing.'
He had relentlessly exploited weaknesses and, when they disappeared, shifted his posture immediately. No stubbornness. His thinking flowed like water and his vision was open in all directions. Shirone began to understand, at least a little, why Canis had been defeated.