TSHF 19

Chapter 19.

Inside the shelf were countless potions I had made over time, all neatly displayed.

Among them, my gaze fell on a glass bottle containing a sinister, blood-red liquid.

It was a poison that tampered with human nerves, capable of erasing fragments of memory.

Of course, it can’t conveniently erase just the memories I want gone.

Some side effects were to be expected…

“Wait, wait.”

A faint breeze stirred for an instant, and then Hist appeared right beside me.

With an awkward smile, he reached out his hand, blocking the shelf and my line of sight.

“Your Highness, you’re having some scary thoughts all by yourself again, aren’t you?”

“Of course not.”

“You are. My instincts just screamed danger.”

After saying that, Hist scratched his cheek a little and bowed his head slightly.

“All right. First of all, I’ll apologize to your spirit. I didn’t mean to startle it.”

[Hmph!]

“Then why did you grab Modeway?”

[Yeah! I was flying to my master when he suddenly showed up and grabbed my wing! I was shocked!]

Modeway, apparently indignant, popped out from between my hair and began kicking Hist’s head furiously with her tiny feet.

Hist’s hair instantly turned into a mess.

He accepted the kicking without protest, though he wore a somewhat aggrieved expression.

“Come on, think about it, Your Highness. I’ve been stuck in this boring imperial palace because of this whole new contract issue, and then suddenly a half-transparent bird appeared right in front of me. How could I not look?”

“So you followed Modeway here out of curiosity?”

“Something like that.”

“And how did you know Modeway was a spirit?”

“Before I answer that, let me ask a question.”

Hist smiled brightly despite his hair being completely disheveled.

“So, those over there—the fish and the lizard—are all your spirits too? You’ve contracted with all three?”

[I have a name, you know—Marin! How rude~]

[You scoundrel! Get away from my master! How dare you act so arrogantly!]

“And why is this one breathing fire at me? Is he trying to show off that he’s a fire spirit or something?”

Hist chuckled awkwardly and reached his hand toward Nesgal.

That only made Nesgal angrier, and he spat flames from his mouth.

Watching them, I quietly gauged Hist’s intentions.

He calls it a question, but he’s already certain.

He’s already concluded that all three are my spirits.

How he could tell they were spirits at all was baffling.

Even spirits themselves struggled to explain their own nature.

As my wariness rose sharply, a thought flashed across my mind.

Perhaps this encounter could be an opportunity.

I’d gathered every scrap of information about spirits that could be found in this capital.

But all I had learned was that spirits were related to the gods—

and that their power was the polar opposite of dragons.

Having never left the capital in my entire life, I knew far less than someone like him, who roamed across the entire continent.

Whether he’s trustworthy is another matter…

But he wasn’t of the Empire, and we had no enmity between us…

So it might be worth hearing what he knew.

“Nesgal, stop.”

[…Tch. I still wanted to teach him a lesson.]

With a reluctant grunt, Nesgal returned to my side.

Hist erased the scorch marks from his white robe with magic and looked at me again.

“Your answer?”

“Yes.”

I nodded lightly.

“Modeway, Marin, and Nesgal. All three are spirits under contract with me.”

“I knew it.”

Hist’s burns vanished completely, and he looked at me with interest.

“Isn’t that favoritism? The current Child of God seems way too special.”

“Child of God?”

“Oh, maybe Your Highness wouldn’t know. You were raised here in the Empire, after all.”

Hist flicked his finger.

At his gesture, one of the single chairs scattered around the greenhouse floated over to us.

He sat down casually, as if this were his own home.

“Do you believe in God, Your Highness?”

I, too, slowly took my seat.

“…Somewhat.”

I didn’t deny the existence of gods.

My mother believed that the goddess Dalia had appeared in her dreams, and the early parts of the original story written in her journal hadn’t proven false so far.

If not for that, I wouldn’t even know about Agatha’s existence.

Besides, I had spirits connected to divine power myself.

But to say I was a devout believer—that would be an exaggeration.

When I gave a small nod, Hist grinned.

“A Child of God is someone born with the love of the goddess Dalia. They always form contracts with spirits and eventually become the next Pope.”

“The love of a god…?”

It sounded like something out of a myth.

“Is there a pattern to when a Child of God appears? A cycle or something?”

“It’s up to the goddess’s will.”

“Any chance it’s hereditary?”

“Also up to Her will.”

“So, completely random.”

“How could humans ever understand a god’s will?”

“Then the current Pope is a Child of God?”

“There’s only one Child of God per era. If the Pope were the Child of God, Your Highness wouldn’t be able to contract with spirits. Only the Child of God can perceive spirits, apparently.”

“Wait—then that means you’re not a Child of God either. So how can you see them?”

“Me? That’s because I’m a once-in-a-lifetime genius!”

“…”

I stared at him silently, unimpressed, and he burst out laughing.

“Hahaha! Well, maybe it’s because I was once a candidate for Pope when I was little!”

Crossing his legs, he opened his palm.

A sphere of mixed gold and violet light formed above it.

“Mana and holy power are completely different elements, but I was born with both. Maybe that’s why I can see spirits!”

“What? But that shouldn’t even be possible. A child with both powers would normally die before they could grow.”

Hist just smiled, completely confident.

“Didn’t I say? I’m a genius.”

He really thought that one word explained everything.

As I looked at him skeptically, he continued.

“You know I spent my childhood in the Holy See, right?”

I did. It was a well-known story.

Hist Natern had been an abandoned infant, left at the doorstep of an orphanage run by the Church of Dalia.

He had shown exceptional intelligence compared to other children and was recommended by the orphanage director to study at the Holy See.

Then the previous Tower Master discovered him and took him as a disciple, if I recall correctly.

That was about all the public knew of his past.

When I gave him a look urging him to go on, he smiled faintly.

“While I was studying at the Holy See, my holy power suddenly awakened—tremendously strong, too! Thanks to that, I received secret lessons to become the next Pope.”

“And then your mana awakened later, and you moved to the Mage Tower?”

The coexistence of both powers was incredible enough, but for them to be so immense that he could’ve been either Pope or Tower Master…

It was a miracle he was still alive.

Reading my expression, Hist puffed out his chest proudly.

“That’s right! Both the Pope and my master were astonished. They said the two forces in my body balanced each other perfectly. Proof that I’m the greatest genius alive!”

“If you were a candidate for Pope, then you must’ve had access to top-level information at the Holy See.”

“Of course. That’s where I learned everything about the Child of God.”

He was a far greater source of intelligence than I had realized.

Being both the Tower Master and a former student of the Holy See meant he knew the inner workings of both.

And the two organizations—the Mage Tower and the Church—were on good terms.

If they’d been enemies, his life story would’ve been far more tragic.

Seriously, what kind of creature is he?

Maybe he’s the one blessed by the gods, not me.

My spirits seemed to share the sentiment.

[Tsk, what a fancy way to call himself a freak of nature.]

[Hmm~ but I think he’s kind of fascinating~?]

[No! He’s weird! Totally weird!]

Hearing their chatter, Hist’s eyes gleamed.

“Oh? What did they just say? What are they saying?”

“Looks like you can’t hear them.”

He nodded readily.

“Right. I’ve only ever read about spirits in documents—this is my first time seeing them in person! I never imagined I’d actually be able to see them! My heart’s racing right now, though you can’t tell, right? Haha! I’m good at keeping a poker face.”

Nonsense.

He’d been broadcasting his excitement the entire time.

As he chattered on, I watched him quietly and said,

“For someone who’s supposedly seeing spirits for the first time, you were very sure from the start that they were spirits.”

“Oh, the Holy See keeps detailed descriptions of their appearances.”

Hist smiled and reached out to the spirit hovering near him—Marin.

“For example, the water spirit ‘Marin’ is described as a tiny fish made entirely of water.”

[Hmm~ don’t touch me~]

Marin flicked her tail, smacking his finger away.

He laughed softly, clearly amused by her sass.

Leaning slightly on the nearby table, I summarized,

“So basically, normally only the Child of God—chosen at random by the goddess Dalia—can see spirits. But since you were born with both mana and holy power, you might be an exception?”

“Seems that way.”

“You can see them, but not talk to them or form contracts?”

“Unfortunately, yes. That part’s beyond my reach.”

[Of course! Only my master can make contracts with us!]

[Yeah! I only like my master! I’m staying with her forever!]

[Me too~ though~ I kinda like that guy too~?]

[You traitorous fish!]

[It’s not betrayal~ just honesty~?]

[I still like my master the best! She’s the greatest!]

“Whoa, why are they suddenly bickering? Do they do that often?”

“Yeah.”

I brushed off the question and fixed my gaze on him.

He looked right back, shamelessly smiling.

“I know, I know. I’m handsome.”