God's Shadow (4)
Stang Kingdom.
Located at the southernmost tip of the Central Continent, it was also a place that had suffered relatively little from the demon incursions.
"Because of the Element Bomb project, most of Hell's armies poured into Vashka's Flower Field," Rampa said, and Amy took up his words.
"Then they were baptized by Shirone's light and scattered to the south," she added.
"Yes. They hit the southern continent like a shotgun blast. But unlike the Central Continent, the south doesn't have densely packed nations, and the demons there had already been thinned out, so it avoided catastrophic damage."
Shirone spoke.
"And the southern continent… is the only region where a demon legion's gate did not open."
It was also the territory governed by Fermi.
"Call it luck, I suppose. But the Stang Kingdom on the Central Continent was truly the lucky one of the battlefield. Because the demons spread out from Tormia, the western Stang Kingdom took almost no damage. For reasons like that, it's being eyed as one of the candidates to seize world leadership in the coming crusade."
In other words: it meant they were likely to stand out in the upcoming holy war.
"This is the Stang Kingdom from here," Shirone said. As he looked, walls built along the border stretched to the horizon.
'The lucky one of the battlefield.'
Just having intact fortifications spoke to how blessed the place was.
They'd left before dawn, and when they crossed the border the morning sun was already up.
At the border checkpoint, the Stang Kingdom's chief chamberlain was waiting.
"O Star of the Ivory Tower, it is our great honor that you have come to the Stang Kingdom," the official said, bowing deeply as he handed Shirone the king's personal letter with both hands.
Shirone skimmed the letter; inside was an apology for the king's inability to greet them in person.
'Certainly… not an ordinary person.' No amount of flattery could change the fact that a mere king had slighted a Five-Star.
"His Majesty wished to meet you personally. But currently migrants are pouring in from foreign lands—"
"Enough."
Political words had no value here.
After all, the only reason they had come was about the Wizard, and it was better to handle that quickly.
"I'd like to do a tour first."
The chamberlain, who'd already been briefed by Rampa, bowed as if he'd been waiting for that.
"Yes. Carriages have been prepared." They hadn't used magic for travel because, officially, it was a 'tour.'
They arrived at the Stang Kingdom's newly established Stang National Magic Academy.
While the official processed formalities, Shirone heard the full situation from Rampa.
"The Stang Kingdom, having suffered extraordinarily little in the war, accepted immigrants and aggressively recruited top talent from around the world. Wena the Wizard was one of those recruits."
"So being discovered only recently means a duke in Stang must have been involved," Shirone said.
"Yes. It was kept strictly secret and it looks like they paid handsomely to scout her. Our investigation suggests they even conditionally guaranteed her the position of chairman of the kingdom's magic association."
Chairman of the Magic Association… it wasn't an offer you made to a mere seven-year-old mage.
'What kind of child is she?'
Half curiosity, half expectation, Shirone stepped into the academy, where many students were engrossed in training.
True to their selection, the trainees were in rigorous drills and varied in age.
They were looking for the youngest child when the official, having finished the tour procedures, brought over a stack of papers.
"As the Five-Star requested, we've removed all identification. The students and teachers have been told an inspector from the kingdom is visiting."
"Thank you." The comprehensive analysis had already been completed by the Ivory Tower's Ten Mages.
'Let's observe from a distance.'
If she was a seven-year-old who would have to carry such terrible burdens, it was wiser to approach cautiously.
Rampa pointed to Training Ground No. 2000.
"That child is the Wizard."
Where Shirone and Amy turned their gazes, a young girl was fighting grown trainees.
She had a quick, clever face and blonde hair braided into twin plaits. She was smaller than expected.
'At first glance, just an ordinary child.'
But her movements showed she was beyond ordinary.
"How fun! How fun!" she cried, excited, as she flung magic at the older trainees with everything she had.
The strangest thing was that fourteen students were all targeting the Wizard at once.
Amy fell silent. If she merely evaded attacks well, you could call her an excellent mage, but…
"What is that?"
She was using a concept called "movement" — something humans are deeply familiar with — in a form no one had seen before.
"Ultra-logic," Shirone said.
"It completely defies our causal common sense. It's not something you get through training. It's not merely talent. To put it precisely…"
"It's how she was born," a voice announced from behind the group.
"Our analysis agrees," said the Ivory Tower's Ten, flanked by five first-rank residents and two satellite mages standing in two lines.
The sudden appearance made the chamberlain flinch and instinctively bow.
'Thirteen stars gathered in one place? This is unprecedented in our kingdom.'
It was probably about the Wizard's value.
Ignoring the chamberlain, the Ten of the Ivory Tower approached Shirone to pay their respects.
"We pay our respects to the Five-Star."
Shirone, who had been watching the Wizard for some time, finally turned back.
"Yes, good to see you. I saw you at the Ivory Tower's general assembly. I'm sorry about Mr. Frid."
Leader Bartok shook his head.
"My master enjoyed fighting strong enemies. Since the opponent was Imir, I don't think he had regrets."
Satisfied with the formalities, Bartok explained.
"As the Five-Star assessed, the Wizard is a mage based on super-synaesthesia. It appears to stem from congenital awakening—acquiring synesthesia even at the fetal stage."
Rampa added, "She sees sounds as colors and hears tones from shapes. Other mages can have synesthesia too, but the Wizard's uniqueness is that even her mode of thought is synesthetic."
The leader elaborated.
"To use the Eastern game of go as an analogy: humans play one move and then predict the next. Even if you visualize the whole board, your line of thought is sequential and logical. But the Wizard—"
"She ignores causality," Shirone finished.
"Yes. It's not that she thinks in reverse or starts from the middle. She takes the whole at once. Simply put, where a human develops the game move by move…"
The leader drew a deep breath.
"The Wizard experiences the beginning, the end, the entire match — every game unfolds in a single sweep of perception."
Rampa pointed at the Wizard.
"No matter what moves the students make to attack her, no matter what spells they cast, the instant a change occurs the entire picture completes in her head."
Shirone watched the Wizard's fight.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" she rattled off the basic air-gun magic at the older boys and girls.
"No power," one observer noted.
"She's facing the students using only the minimum-damage setting allowed on Training Ground No. 2000. To bring down one person takes roughly two thousand hits. Even so…"
Under the scattered air-gun shots, the fourteen students simultaneously groaned and collapsed.
"This is how it goes."
"...I see. Unless you reduce the opponent's mental strength almost to one, simultaneous suppression is impossible."
"Yes. The fact she can tune herself to this degree means tens of thousands of victory patterns form in her head. If only the outcome—victory—needs to be produced, she could beat two hundred attackers even if they all swarmed her. And if she's willing to accept taking a certain amount of damage in the process…"
Rampa fell silent.
He felt uncomfortable voicing that, in theory, she could handle more than four hundred attackers.
"Hahaha! I won! I won again!" the Wizard threw her arms up and ran among the students still reeling from shock.
She approached one girl who was grinding her teeth, stuck out her tongue, and blew a gust of wind at her.
"Puuuu! Puuuu! I won, didn't I? I won, didn't I?"
The girl's eyes widened.
"Damn it!" she spat.
But seeing the seven-year-old's face drained her of the energy to stay angry and she bowed her head.
"Puuuu! Puuuu!"
The Wizard trotted among the defeated trainees, finding each of them and sticking out her tongue to tease.
"I won, didn't I? I'm stronger, right?"
Shirone commented, "She seems to tease the girls more than the boys."
"She tends to be more attached to the older brothers. There's no malice—she simply likes winning and showing how strong she is. From an adult's perspective, sure, it's exactly the sort of conduct you'd want stamped out."
Amy frowned.
"That's my point. This is a magic academy where skill is supposed to be tested regardless of age. Why are the teachers just standing by? At this rate, how miserable will the other students feel—"
"Hmm, hmm."
At the chamberlain's quiet throat-clearing, Amy realized.
'Ah, I see.'
Even if Amy were the monarch, she wouldn't punish the Wizard.
Protecting one Wizard was far more profitable than provoking an exodus of students.
'At only four she was already sixth among Ivory Tower candidates. At that time I was fourth. Three years have passed.'
Rampa said, "Miss Amy's right. Leaving the kingdom's circumstances aside, this is a matter for all humanity. If the Wizard grows at this rate for just ten more years, the world might be able to drive out the armies of Heaven and the demons and secure peace. Whether those ten years will be granted to us is another question."
The leader added, "With capability spanning from sixth to fourth rank across eras, she's classified as a nation's top-priority asset, so even the principal treads carefully."
Shirone nodded.
"That's only natural. Without someone of that caliber, you couldn't stand against Satan."
Conversely, it meant the price the Ivory Tower would have to pay to take her would be enormous.
'Now I understand why the king is stubborn.'
When Shirone turned, the chamberlain—who'd been wearing a soft, smiling expression—gave a stiff salute.
'Once the tour ends, negotiations will begin in earnest. Money alone probably won't settle this.'
Even wielding royal authority wouldn't be enough to persuade a seven-year-old.
Shirone continued, "It might not be good to leave her vanity unchecked. Right now she's just playing for fun, but once she learns that victory brings more, her head could get clouded."
Magic skill was secondary. The Wizard's true value lay in her purity.
Rampa said, "You have a point, Five-Star. But who can control that tomboy? Most children that age watch their parents, but the Wizard is different—she has no restraint. Her skill is already the kingdom's best, and her potential the greatest of humanity. If you handle her clumsily, you could do more harm than good."
"So don't be clumsy—"
The Wizard's voice floated over to them.
"Teacher, are those big brothers and sisters also mages? Can I go say hello? Huh? Huh? Huh?"
Shirone's gaze, which had been watching her, calmed.
"She'll need overwhelming instruction."