Chapter 10 – Magecraft

With both the cookies and the tea gone, I, who had eaten but a single cookie, was now preparing more tea, when the Prince called out to me as though he had suddenly recalled something.

“Speaking of which, you said that you remembered your past life, but what kind of person were you, Sakura? And you said that you were fifteen, but that technique you used on the bandit chief was pretty good. Where did you remember it from?”

When the Prince had said that, the Squad Captain froze, and turned this way like a machine whose gears needed oiling.

What’s the matter with him? This person freezes up a lot, don’t they?

While thinking this, I looked at him and found that the Squad Captain was looking at me with movements like a robot in need of a good oiling. He opened his mouth.

“Fif-…teen…?”

You’re going to bring that up too? Everyone is surprised when they hear my age, but do I look that different? Being fifteen means that I’m already a fine lady, yet you all say things like this. How rude. After half a year I’ll be sixteen, and at sixteen I can even get married you know? I’m already a fine adult.

While thinking something like this, the Squad Captain started muttering something.

“Fifteen she says…? To think that this child was… But if she’s fifteen, then she’s already an adult but… But however I you look at her, she’s only seven or eight…”

OIOI. Certainly even I’m aware that I’m underdeveloped and stopped growing at eleven, but I have no recollection of being mistaken for a seven year old. Despite how I seem, when I was in primary school I was quick to develop, and was even said to be developing prematurely, yet to think that now I’m being called underdeveloped, or a primary schooler of the like…

No, no, now’s not the time to be thinking about that. Right now I have to properly convey to them that I’m a fifteen year old.

“Just who’s a child? I am fifteen years old. In a world where there are 24 hours a day, and 365 days a year, I am fifteen. In just half a year, I’ll be sixteen. I’m already a fine adult. Ah, this world has days comprising twelve double-hours, so the flow of time is the same. So, even in Alselia, I’m a fifteen year old.”

Indeed; time and physics in Alselia is basically the same as on earth. The writing system and counting system is different, but all the fundamental things are the same.

Up until now, there’s been almost no place where the knowledge of my previous life has been useful; on the contrary I thought it was a bother, but now, finally, it’s helped me. Rather, it’s playing a huge role, isn’t it? It’s wonderful, my previous life.

“It seems that in my previous life, I was called a person called a “magus”. It seems that I was a “Court Magus” or something, you see. Incidentally, my martial skills were learnt at a dojo I’ve frequented since I was a child. It seems that the cause of death in my previous life was because I was stabbed from behind with a sword, so I felt that physical combat skills were necessary for self protection. I’ve been training for about ten years. In the other world, I couldn’t use magecraft at all, so I put the effort I would have spent in magic into martial arts as well, you see.”

After replying, I took a sip of tea.

“A magus you say? Hmm, but you couldn’t use magic in your world, Sakura? Even if you couldn’t use it in that world, can you not use it in this one?”

The Prince seemed somewhat desperate. Well, even in my knowledge of my past life there were very few people who could use magecraft, let alone somebody talented enough to be called a magus, who would be a precious human resource. If things haven’t changed since then, then it’s not as though I can’t understand wanting to pull over magi to your nation’s side, but…

“I haven’t tested it in Alselia yet. At any rate, the moment I came to this world I was in that kind of situation after all.”

I haven’t had the time to do something like test out magecraft you know. My life was suddenly thrown in danger, after all.

“Then won’t you try it out now? If it’s a simple magecraft, even doing it here isn’t a problem, right?”

Well, I did need to try it somewhere, so there shouldn’t be a problem.

“I understand. Then I will try using the basic ignition spell.”

The ignition spell is… well, speaking simply, it’s basically a lighter or a match I suppose. It’s a spell that lights a fire at the tip of your fingers. It’s the very basic of the basics that you learn when you first begin learning magecraft, so there’s hardly any danger.

“Well then… What I desire is a small flame.”

I concentrated and chanted.

By the way, the chant is for the sake of solidifying the user’s mental image, so honestly speaking, just about anything will do. When I first began, my shishou in magecraft taught me what was easiest to form a mental image, but the person themselves said that if you could imagine it, any chant was fine.

Once you understood that and could construct your chants, then you could be called a elementary class magician, and once you could use elementary class spells without chanting and invoke it using only mental imagery, you were called a magician.

And once you surpassed this level and could construct new spell theories by yourself, you were called a 『magi』.

In other words, those up until the magician level used only spells whose compositions were publicly available, whereas magi could use spells of original compositions.

Magecraft is the act of transforming the energy inside you into power, and by giving it an image, an effect like the image appears. However, no matter how strong your image is, this is something that ignores the laws of the world; in other words, things that aren’t a match for reason will not be able to be invoked as magic.

For example, “creating a sword from nothing” is impossible, but placing a lump of iron before your eyes and “changing this lump of iron into a sword” is possible. And when it comes to spells where the target is something inorganic, as long as the magic itself doesn’t fail, it will succeed. However, magic used on organic targets (such as humans or animals; things that have will), because of their will, the effectiveness will drop remarkably (even when they are unconscious).

In other words, spells like “boiling the opponent’s blood” is has an extremely difficult level of difficulty, and will almost never succeed.

As a result, magical attacks are usually things like bringing forth flames, or attacking with a ball of water or a wind blade. Creating flames is giving the image of flames to the “power” itself, so it isn’t “creating something from nothing”. The ball of water is also “gathering the moisture in the air” so there is also no problem with this.

“It seems that it isn’t invoking.”

My chant did not invoke magic.

It seems that even with the knowledge, I can’t use magecraft.

“I see.”

The Prince said this a little disappointedly.

If I could use magic, I wonder if he intended to win me over to his country. I’m glad it didn’t become something troublesome.

As somebody who tripped into another world just like in a novel, I intend to follow the standard by becoming an adventurer. I have no intention of serving a country, you know? It’s troublesome after all.

But still, it’s a pity that I couldn’t use magecraft. Even though just the elementary spells would have made my trip so much easier… It’s a downer, isn’t it?

Well, even if I think about it, I can’t use what I can’t use. Let’s consider the future instead.

“Prince, you said that you would head to the capital tomorrow, but would it be all right if I stayed with you until the capital?”

First of all, I need to think about tomorrow. They said that it would take a day by horse to reach the royal capital from this village, so it would help quite a lot if I could ride the carriage with them.

“Mn? Ahh, that’s fine. You saved us as well, after all. I want to thank you. I’d be thankful if you came with us.”

Good, that settles my means of transport. But I don’t need his thanks. It seems troublesome after all.

“Thank you very much. But, there is no need for thanks. You have helped me as well, after all.”

I think it would be best to say it clearly now.

“No, as you’d expect as a member of royalty I need to think about my position when it comes to this. Let me thank you. And moreover, you just came to this world didn’t you, Sakura? You don’t have money nor connections, right? I don’t know about your plans from now on, but I think it would be better if you accepted my thanks, though.”

Hmm, certainly I don’t have any money, nor do I have a place to stay. Even if I work as an adventurer, first it’s essential that I guarantee myself shelter and food. If I sold some of my notebooks and stationery I could probably make enough money for my immediate living expenses, but even the place where I sell it could be trouble. If I sell it somewhere bad, then things seem like they could get complicated after all, and I think it would be best to avoid things that are potentially troublesome.

“I understand. I will humbly accept your thanks. I was thinking of registering as an adventurer. As long as I’ve registered, I think I can somehow handle the rest. I’m thinking of living as an adventurer while looking for a means to return to my old world.”

I have the knowledge I need to live in this world, after all.

“An adventurer, huh. You do have knowledge of this world, but returning to your old world? Is there such a method?”

I’ve more or less guessed that the reason I’ve arrived in this world is because I fell into that hole-like thing. I have knowledge of something like that in the knowledge of my old life. That hole-like thing appears to be a mass of power running rampant in this world. It’s extremely rare, but I have the feeling that I saw a record of something like that happening in the past. It seemed to be something from a few hundred years before my past life though.

“At the moment, I do not know of a way to return to my world. According to the knowledge of my past life, that I came to this world was probably a complete coincidence. A portion of the power overflowing in this world ran wild, and temporarily created a link to the world I was in. I have memories of seeing something like that in a book before. According to the book, something like this only happens every few centuries, or even millenia. The same thing will not likely happen, at least while I live. The possibility of returning is probably limited to using a new ritual magecraft. I don’t think that intentionally creating the same phenomenon is impossible. Only, without gathering dozens of magi, it would probably be impossible.”

I told him what I knew at the moment, just to be safe. If things go well, he might even help out when the times comes, after all.

“Hmm, you understand that much from this situation? It seems that you were quite the talented magus in your old life. How about it? Do you have no intention of helping this nation with that knowledge?”

I failed. He’s completely enthusiastic in recruiting me. Even if he’s like that, he’s a Prince huh. From our chat just now, he seems to think that my knowledge is quite something. And in fact, it goes without saying that the past ‘me’ or whatever had ability as a magus, but it seems that his knowledge was abnormally great as well. It seems that he was called ‘lord Sage’ after all.

But I have no intention of serving a country, and I’ve said this many times now, but it’s troublesome. Getting involved with a country will bring forth troubles in full force after all. Let’s clearly decline.

“I’m grateful that you expressly invited me, but I intend on returning to my old world one day. And the sooner, the better. I have no intention of serving a country. And moreover, if I live as an adventurer, I’ll meet various people and various things. I think that perhaps it will be of some use to me in being able to return home.”

“I see. Then I’ll stop with the invitations. If you change your mind, please visit me whenever. I’ll welcome you.”

Saying that, the Prince left his seat. It’s nice that he’s surprisingly understanding, isn’t it? I thought that he would complain a little more, though.

“It’s almost time for dinner. You two, let’s go eat.”

Oh? Is it already that time? The room has gotten quite dark, and if I look outside, the sun seems to have set. The sky is dyed indigo. As for the time, is it a little past 6 perhaps?

“You’re right. I’m hungry as well.”

I stood up from my seat as well. It seems that the Squad Captain did as well. He hardly ever speaks, does he.

I tidied up the things I borrowed from the inkeeper, and placed them on the tray. When I was about to leave the room with them in hand, a hand suddenly appeared from the side.

When I looked in that direction, I found that it was the Squad Captain. He moved his hands to the tray I was carrying. It seems that he’s going to carry the tray for me. He’s unexpectedly gentlemanly isn’t he.

“Thank you very much.”

I thanked him, and opened the door.