Treasury

Although Eugene now possessed Wynnyd, he could not summon a spirit right away. Spirit magic might consume little mana, but it still required a minimum amount. Having never trained his mana, Eugene did not have even a speck of it in his body.

That was a problem even he had to give serious thought to.

The Bloodline Succession Ceremony was over. Eugene could now wield real blades without restriction and train his mana.

With Vermouth the Great as its ancestor, the Lionheart family possessed a mana-training method far superior to those practiced by other martial families, knights, and mercenaries across the continent. It had been developed and refined over three hundred years.

The Lionheart collateral branches were families that had split off from the main family. Naturally, the mana-training methods passed down among them shared only their roots with the main family's method. Their quality was so much lower that there was no comparison.

That difference made the main family superior to the collateral branches.

'My family's mana-training method... I haven't learned it, but it can't be anything special.'

Eugene was certain of that. His family had split off from the main family centuries ago, and since then it had never produced anyone capable of raising its standing.

'Father's abilities weren't anything special, either.'

He had not engaged in those childish sparring matches since he was ten. But Eugene recalled Gerhard's thick belly, his sluggish movements, and the way he panted after swinging his sword just a few times.

["I had no talent."]

Whenever the Bloodline Succession Ceremony drew near, his father would wear a melancholy expression and say that over and over.

'... Still, it's a training method derived from the main family's. It can't be complete crap.'

Even if it was too crappy for him to find remotely satisfying, he was not without options. Hadn't he been the Hero's companion, even if that was three hundred years ago? The mana-training method he had learned in his previous life should still be fairly useful in the present.

'If it really isn't enough, I'll try combining it with my family's method.'

With his past experience, it should not be particularly difficult. Eugene was certain of that. Besides, this body's natural gifts were incomparably greater than those of his previous life.

'In my last life, I moved beyond sword aura ages ago and went around unleashing sword force. There's no way I can't do that with this body.'

Sword aura was a blade formed from mana. Sword force was a level above it. How old had he been when he first produced sword force in his last life? He thought he had been over twenty... Eugene smacked his lips and sank into thought.

The mana-training method Hamel had learned in his previous life was a cheap one commonly practiced by mercenaries. At twelve, he had lost his hometown to a monster attack and become a mercenary, declaring that he would take revenge...

It was a past he would rather not recall. In any case, he had worked hard at that cheap training method and made quite a name for himself. Of course, he had not followed it unchanged; he had made modifications of his own.

He had met Vermouth. Then Senya, Anise, and Moron. They had given him all sorts of advice, too. Vermouth in particular offered advice even when Hamel hadn't asked, and Senya...

["You paid money for this garbage? Are you a fucking idiot?"]

["Isn't that a little harsh?"]

["Moron! Come here and sit down."]

["Why?"]

["When I tell you to sit, sit! Now, show me that garbage you paid for, right from the beginning. I'll overhaul it for you!"]

... He had received a great deal of help.

He parted ways with Gilead at the main house. Gilead went straight to find Lovellian, while Eugene returned to the annex. Dezra, Gargis, and Nina were waiting at its training ground.

"Show me!"

Dezra made a fuss the moment she saw Eugene. She bounded over and stared intently at Wynnyd hanging from his waist.

"... Why didn't you choose a spear?"

"Because I didn't want to."

"But you're good with a spear!"

"What the hell were you watching earlier? I'm good with swords, too, not just spears."

Dezra looked sulky at his reply. He was so irritating and obnoxious that she wanted to argue, but the image of Eugene defeating the minotaur lingered in her mind, leaving her unable to do so. He really was good with swords as well as spears.

"It looks too light."

Gargis spoke as he stroked his chin.

"With your strength, a bigger, heavier sword would suit you better. A weapon like a hammer or an axe would have been good, too."

"It's my choice."

"Well, being light doesn't make it a bad weapon. It came from the main family's Treasury, after all... So, what do you think?"

"What do I think about what? Where did that come from?"

"My family's muscle-growth medicine. Now that the Bloodline Succession Ceremony is over, come home with me. I'll speak to my father and make sure you get as much of the medicine as you need."

"I told you, I don't need it."

"It works best when you take it while you're still growing. Combined with that insane training of yours, you'd see results in no time. No, better yet, train with me."

He was not saying this without a reason. Gargis wanted to forge a close friendship with Eugene. This was the first Bloodline Succession Ceremony in Lionheart history in which a collateral branch had defeated the main family.

"You said it yourself. Your family in Gidol has no knights you can ask to teach you. But my family has plenty of skilled knights. Of course, my father is the best of them. If you come with me, he'll teach you, too."

"No thanks."

"Stop talking to that fat bastard and draw your sword."

"... Nina."

Eugene let out a deep sigh and gripped Wynnyd's hilt.

"Tell the chef to get dinner ready."

"I've already told him."

"And the bathwater?"

"That, too."

"Excellent."

Eugene nodded and drew Wynnyd. The smooth metallic sound of it leaving the scabbard made the corners of his mouth twitch. He gazed at the long, silver-blue blade.

It looked sharp enough to cut him with the slightest touch. A sword that could summon wind spirits if he fed mana into it. Eugene knew very well how powerful it was. With the aid of wind spirits, he could create blades of wind without even coating it in sword aura or sword force.

A swing like that would slice through most things as though they were sheets of paper. It could also send wind slashes at distant enemies and block most attacks.

Of course, those features were unavailable to him now, while he could not summon spirits.

"What kind of sword is it?"

"It's called Wynnyd."

Dezra asked with sparkling eyes.

"The family head told me it carries the Wind Spirit King's blessing. Apparently, once I've trained my mana, I'll be able to summon spirits."

Eugene answered using the explanation he had heard from Gilead rather than his own memories. Dezra looked at him with eyes full of envy, then pouted.

"... It's a wonderful sword... but there must have been plenty of spears more wonderful than that. I thought you'd bring back a spear."

"There were a lot of spears."

"Did you see it? That one? Carbos, the Dragon Spear! They say it unleashes a breath attack with just one thrust. They said it can even wipe out mountains!"

"I don't know what it looks like."

"Wasn't Ruinthos, the Demonic Spear, there? That's my favorite spear. It's the strongest of Vermouth the Great's weapons!"

Dezra's eyes grew dreamy. Perhaps because she used a spear as her main weapon, she was very interested in Vermouth's spears.

"I know Ruinthos, too. It's the spear the Demon King of Cruelty used, isn't it?"

Gargis nodded as well. Without answering, Eugene returned Wynnyd to its scabbard.

'... The Demon King of Cruelty.'

The second Demon King of Helmuth they had faced. He vividly remembered how horrifying and powerful that bastard had been.

Three hundred years ago, there had been five Demon Kings in the demon realm of Helmuth.

First in rank, the Demon King of Destruction.

Second in rank, the Demon King of Incarceration.

Third in rank, the Demon King of Fury.

Fourth in rank, the Demon King of Cruelty.

Fifth in rank, the Demon King of Carnage.

Vermouth and his companions had begun their campaign by killing the weakest Demon King, the fifth-ranked one.

Hamel had died in the Demon King of Incarceration's castle.

Ruinthos, the Demonic Spear, had belonged to the Demon King of Cruelty. After killing him, Vermouth became its new master. Hamel had actually wanted it for himself, but true to its name, the Demonic Spear held such horrifying demonic energy that no one except Vermouth could use it.

"... It's wrong to say Ruinthos, the Demonic Spear, is the strongest of Vermouth the Great's weapons. The strongest is Jigollath, the Crushing Hammer."

"The Demon King of Cruelty was stronger than the Demon King of Carnage."

"The Demon Kings' ranks don't determine the ranks of their weapons."

'Come to think of it, the Crushing Hammer wasn't there, either.'

Of all Vermouth's weapons, only the Demonic Spear and the Crushing Hammer had been the favored weapons of Demon Kings.

'Well, they're too sinister to keep in the Treasury. Maybe they've been sealed somewhere else. No one but Vermouth could use them, anyway.'

He had coveted those weapons in his previous life, so he was not entirely free of lingering regret.

"The Demonic Spear is stronger."

"The Crushing Hammer is stronger."

Gargis and Dezra began a childish argument. Eugene shook his head at them and headed toward the center of the training ground. Nina trotted after him.

"Dinner will be ready soon."

"I'll be done soon, too."

He could not summon spirits yet, but Wynnyd was a fine sword even without them.

'It's also the first real blade I've held in this life.'

Perhaps that was why he was already growing attached to it. Eugene looked over Wynnyd's blade after drawing it from its scabbard. He reached out and lightly touched it, and the icy chill of the metal sent a shiver down his spine. A real blade felt different from the moment he took it in hand. It was far lighter than an iron-cored wooden sword, but the very fact that it could cut someone dead gave it a different kind of weight.

"I said the Demonic Spear is stronger!"

"The Crushing Hammer."

They were still at it. Eugene gave them a look of contempt before returning his attention to Wynnyd. The Demonic Spear and the Crushing Hammer were indeed such remarkable weapons that it was difficult to decide which was superior.

But if he had to choose the finest of Vermouth's weapons, Eugene would not hesitate.

'The Moonlight Sword.'

Ruin in the shape of a sword, kept sealed even within the demon realm. Eugene remembered that horrifying blade. Vermouth had used the Holy Sword to kill the fifth-ranked Demon King of Carnage, but after acquiring the Moonlight Sword, he had barely used the Holy Sword in battle.

Both the Demon King of Cruelty and the Demon King of Fury had died to the Moonlight Sword. The Crushing Hammer and the Demonic Spear that Gargis and Dezra were prattling about had been unable to withstand the light of ruin it unleashed.

Eugene pushed the Moonlight Sword out of his thoughts and began swinging Wynnyd.

SWISH.

The slowly swinging sword cleaved the air. Its blade gave off a soft glow. Eugene felt elation at the thrill surging up from the tips of his toes.

"... Wow..."

Nina exclaimed in admiration at the slowly flowing sword dance. Even with her scant knowledge of swordsmanship, she could tell that Eugene's sword dance was extraordinary. Gargis and Dezra's childish argument abruptly stopped as well. Both watched him with entranced eyes.

It was neither especially fast nor filled with astonishing flourishes. But Wynnyd's eerie gleam suffused every movement of Eugene's sword dance, flowing majestically without interruption.

'I have to bring him home with me.'

Gargis swallowed hard as he thought that.

'... What can I say to get him to come? Should I ask him to visit my house? My birthday is still so far away...'

Dezra was thinking along similar lines. If only her birthday were closer, she could invite him on the pretext of a birthday party... Her lips jutted into a pout.

* * *

"... It's an ordinary necklace."

Lovellian opened his eyes and returned the necklace in his hand to Gilead.

"I've examined it carefully, but there is no magic of any kind on this necklace."

"... Is that so?"

If anything, those words left Gilead bewildered. An ordinary necklace without any magic on it. In fact, even calling it an ordinary necklace was absurd. Wasn't it merely a worn-out necklace with no value whatsoever?

Why on earth had such a necklace been in the main family's Treasury? Eugene had said it was tucked deep into a corner of a shelf. Gilead had entered the Treasury several times himself to look for various weapons, yet he had never once seen a necklace like that.

'And it wasn't even registered with the Treasury's magic in the first place.'

That meant someone else had put it there. But who? The deceased former family head was not the sort of person to play a pointless prank. Then had one of their other ancestors done it? What reason could they have had?

"Was this necklace really in the Treasury?"

"Yes."

"... Could that boy Eugene have been playing a trick?"

"He would have no reason to do that."

"Ahem... When we watched him in the labyrinth, he did show a cunning, mischievous side. Perhaps he slipped one of his own possessions inside, intending to make a good impression on you."

Lovellian spoke cautiously, clearing his throat.

"In fact, Lord Gilead... I'm sure you felt considerably more fond of Eugene when he brought out a worthless necklace."

"... I can't deny that."

Gilead smiled wryly.

"But he's only thirteen. I don't think Eugene would read my mind and devise a scheme like this."

"Certainly, it would be a considerable risk. It worked out because you were generous, Lord Gilead, but he could easily have lost the chance to claim a treasure he otherwise would have received."

He was merely raising a possibility. Lovellian himself did not believe Eugene had devised such a trick. After a moment's thought, he reached toward Gilead again.

"Let me examine it once more."

"Hadn't you already finished?"

"I've confirmed that no magic has been placed in the necklace. But it concerns me as well, so I'll delve a little deeper."

"How?"

"Hmm... How should I explain this? Put simply, I will read the memories lingering in the necklace."

Lovellian continued with a wry smile.

"Mana exists everywhere in the world. Communicating directly with mana is impossible, but among the spells I know, there is one that can read its 'memories.' It was devised by Senya the Wise, the grandmaster of our school."

An unmistakable, deep pride underlay Lovellian's explanation. The spell was remarkable enough to warrant it. In all the history of magic, Senya the Wise was the only mage who had interacted with mana to this extent.

"... Then please do."

Rather than joining in his admiration, Gilead handed the necklace to Lovellian. Feeling inwardly disappointed, Lovellian accepted it. Then he focused his consciousness and began resonating with the mana.

Mana existed everywhere in the world. It resided in most objects, too. Even if it was too faint to produce supernatural effects, its memories could still be read.

"... Hmm..."

A low groan escaped Lovellian as he concentrated hard enough to break into a sweat.

"... There's nothing much. It appears to be roughly a hundred years old. This is... the capital? A street... It was purchased there. And... hmm... I can't read anything beyond this point. The Treasury's magic seems to have stopped the mana's memories."

"A hundred years ago..."

"Roughly."

That meant going back several generations. By now, no one remained whom they could ask about the necklace's origins. In the end, all they could offer was the vague speculation that a family head from several generations ago had played some inexplicable prank.

"What will you do with this necklace?"

"Since it contains no magic, I intend to give it to Eugene. He wanted it enough to forgo a treasure, after all."

"You needn't go that far. You must be quite fond of the boy."

"There's no reason not to be."

Gilead answered with a gentle smile. Lovellian smiled back and returned the necklace.

Lovellian, the Red Tower Master, did not know that this was the necklace Hamel had possessed three hundred years ago.

The mana he had read had told him a lie.