WeD - V2C12 - Makia Creates a Terrible Bio Weapon with Tooru (Patreon)

This is Makia.

The students of the Magic Research Institute have been relentless since this morning, especially the girls. The reason for this is that Tooru had come to school with me.

“... …”

“What is it? You look like you want to complain.”

“Complain? In what way, I wonder…? I’ve been coming to school for a while now, but it never gets this noisy.”

“Don’t worry about it. The girls are being open about their reaction… think of that as a good thing. Ignore them.”

Wha?? Just look at this guy’s face. He’s showing me a pitiful look, but at the same time, acting all high and mighty at the same time. How irritating.

Ever since he came to the Royal Capital, opportunities to meet pretty ladies have increased and this guy is getting too carried away by the fawning attention.

Still, why the heck is he so popular?

Isn’t he just a completely blackened character with a somewhat good looking face?

Unlike actual Ulysses who is an actual prince, he barely even has money of his own!!

“...why are you looking at me like that?”

“Nothing…”

I’m getting more annoyed as I look at him, so I decided to look away.

What’s the difference between me and this guy anyway?

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“Right, right, right, we’re all making poison today, you know? Those poison spirits happen to be a bunch of tsunderes, but they are also unexpectedly simple. Hahaha, just like my lovely wife!!”

We’re now in the Poison Magic Class, a compulsory class for all Miradreed Mages. Medite-sensei was as cheerful as before. [1] Speaking of which, White Mages without proper contracts with any Spirits could borrow their powers through the ‘Grace of Name’.

However, it is kind of troublesome [1] to borrow a Spirit’s power this way, which is why everyone wants to have their own Spirit Contracts.

One begins by worshipping and praying to the appropriate Spirit and giving them proper offerings in order to borrow their powers for a limited time. It is basically like a ritual. Honestly, the Spirits don’t really care about it at all. Though, I did hear that this kind of ritual will increase a certain Spirit’s rank.

“The venomous spirit Scorra Pion, has the appearance of a scorpion, a venomous scorpion of course. Well, teachers don’t actually know what it looks like, but what’s important is the image! Everyone try to imagine it!”

Medite-sensei is casting his eyes at the back of the room, where Tooru and I are seated.

I exchange a look with Tooru.

“That Scorra Pion was a troublesome one, wasn’t it?”

“Of all the Spirits contracted with the White Sage, he was fairly bad, I guess.”

It is a nostalgic name for us.

Nobody knows where this Scorpion Spirit is now, so I have to wonder, just where did they get the illustration for the Scorpion Spirit image in the textbook?

“Right, right, right, does everyone have the image in their mind? It’s a Venomous Scorpion. The great Desert Spirit of Death… the Crimson Eyed Star…”

On the table were figs and red wine, which serves as ceremonial offerings for Scorra Pion. The offerings are placed on a piece of cloth with a magic circle drawn on it.

These are all part of the Magic Research Institute’s tools.

“O Hundred Spirits in the name of the White Sage, Red Scorpion Lord of poison of the North, Northeast, lend me the power on your name… the name of Scorra Pion!”

The chanting was just that, a bunch of fancy words strung together to… [1] help people focus, I guess? Anyway, the only meaningful bit of the chant is the name. The long chanting is to help people establish an image in their mind of what a Spirit looks like. However, once you’ve become skilled with magic, such long chants become unnecessary. [2] Well, chanting does help for more difficult magics.

In my case, as well as Tooru and Ulysses, we don’t need to borrow the power of chanting.

If this ritual is successful, the red symbol of Scorra Pion would float above Medite-sensei’s table.

I think [2]?

Well, the conditions for borrowing a Spirit’s power through their name varies depending on the Spirit [2]. With this level of offering, Scorra Pion will lend its power for about a month. If you want to keep using its power, you’ll have to do the ritual all over again a month later.

Mages without Spirit Contracts would have to think about such troublesome things everyday.

Tooru and I somehow managed it, since we know what the spirit looks like. The other students seemed to be having some trouble, since they don’t have a clear image of the Spirit.

“Right, right, right, everyone. Have you managed to contact the Spirit yet? It’s the real deal from here on, so don’t let your guard down. We’ll be making an ancient Miradreed poison, the ‘Scarlet Sand’. It doesn’t kill but causes red blisters to appear all over the body. The blisters will be filled with pus, it’s really painful when the blisters pop so watch out… it’s a favourite among queens and royal concubines against their rivals. Non-fatal but causes ugliness, hence why it is a favourite among the royal ladies.”

“... …”

Most of the students gulped at the description of the poison.

“We have antidotes for ‘Scarlet Poison’ now, so there’s no need to worry. Still… you should always be careful when making poisons. You could end up hurting yourself, you know.”

The advice was given with a little smile, as though he is laughing at us from the inside.

“Should he really be so frivolous with his ‘advice’”, I muttered to myself.

“[2] I guess it’s because poison doesn't work on that person, yeah?”

Tooru is already busy looking through the materials on the table.

There is a red turnip, some kind of brown powder as well as a bowl of mysterious black liquid.

I stir them into a pot per the instructions from the textbook. Once the fire is extinguished, we are supposed to cast the spell using Scorra Pion’s borrowed strength over the pot. The work is time consuming with a lot of fiddly details like proper temperature range etc.

It is a great hassle for someone like me who solves all magical problems through the power of command.

I guess a White Mage is kind of like a researcher?

“Ahh, I hate this. I wonder what would happen if I dropped some of my blood into this.”

“Oi, stop it. What kind of biological weapon are you trying to make?”

Tooru seems to be taking the exercise seriously as he keeps checking his work against the textbook. It looks like he’s much better at White Magic than me. That’s right, Tooru’s magic is all physics and calculations and… other troublesome things.

“O-oi, it’s starting to boil.”

“Aack!! No!! Wh-what should I do…”

“The fire! You must extinguish the fire! It’s getting too hot [3]!”

“Wait, so we need to cool it down right, it’s fine, I’ll just command it to cool down [3].”

“[3] W-wait, should we really do this?”

[4] As I frantically tried to get the bubbling poison back under control using my blood and command magic, things somehow got out of control? I mean, we ended up not following the rest of the direction in the textbook and… more importantly, instead of a ‘bright red, clay-like mass’, the thing in our pot turned into a shiny black, rather spiky crystal.

“... …”

Yes, no matter how I look at it, it looks like a vicious bio-weapon. Thank you very much!!

“[3] Wait a minute, wait a minute, what is going on here? This is…?!”

“... I’m not sure…”

Realising the horror that we have created, Medite-sensei immediately sailed through the gap between the tables of excellent students with the proper finished product on their table. He looked perplexed and on the verge of laughter at the same time.

“It can’t be helped, we’re really bad at such detailed work…” [1] I begin, but Tooru immediately interjects.

“No, no, if I had been working on this alone, things would turn out fine. This is the result of your sloppiness.”

“What’s that? Didn’t you cast some weird magic just now? Look, it’s crystallised, that’s totally your fault.”

“Well, the weird spikes are definitely your fault. It reflects your brutish nature. I’m sure of it.”

While Tooru and I keep pushing the blame at each other like children, the other students have long since turned pale.

As for Medite-sensei, well, he’s currently busting a gut laughing at us.

Just what’s so funny?

“Teacher, I don’t think we can undo this. What should we do? How does the Institute deal with magical wastes?”

“Ah, it’s fine, it’s fine, just give it to me. I’ll take it home and study it.”

“Medite-sensei, please be careful. It contains this person’s power so it could be a bomb. Your mansion could turn into a pile of junk before you know it,” [1] said Tooru solemnly.

“Excuse you? Nothing will happen unless I command it with my magic.”

Medite-sensei’s eyes are practically shining as he stares at the spiky crystal, “This could be a completely new type of poison!”

As he is marvelling over the crystal, a middle-aged teacher with glasses rushes into the classroom. He came to our table and whispered something into Medite-sensei’s ear.

In a flash, Medite-sensei’s expression changes.

“...what was that?!”

“Well, it’s the Shrine Maiden…”

Tooru and I catch a few words and exchange glances with each other. Lord Medite suddenly looks serious, which is already a rare enough phenomenon by itself. Then, he suddenly walked out of the dispensary room.

“Magic Advisors, if you could come with me.” Medite-sensei called out as he was just about to leave. I guess at that moment, he did not see us as students but Magic Advisors.

The three of us hurry out, leaving the dispensory room filled with curious students to the glasses-wearing teacher.

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“What happened, Lord Medite?” asked Tooru.

“... It seems like the Green Shrine Maiden has disappeared from the Holy Country,” Medite-sensei answered in a low voice.

“Percelis has…?”

Just what is going on?

Isn’t that kid always in the Holy Nation?

[2] I have never seen her anywhere else. Wait, Tooru did say that he saw her in the Royal Palace Garden during that fateful ball [1] where I first saw Ulysses again in this world.

“The Shrine Maiden is not allowed to leave the Holy Nation. Her existence has a symbolic meaning within the Sanctuary…”

“... …?”

“On top of that, Miradreed is currently unstable. If the Shrine Maiden somehow got caught up in some kind of incident… such as being kidnapped by some fool…”

“Don’t tell me… Eska…?” Tooru’s expression tightened as he places a hand on his sword.

It looks like he has a great enmity against Eska.

“Regardless, this is quite serious…”

“Seriously?! This is the emergency that ends all emergencies! How on earth did those bishops not notice it at all?!” Medite-sensei snapped, his long robes snapping along with him as he paces in front of us for a few strides before walking briskly towards the Holy Nation.

“Teacher, does Ulysses know about this?”

“... [2a] news has likely reached the Royal Palace, however, His Highness should still be in a conference with the Four Countries. It is unlikely that he would know. Moreover, it would be bad if the other countries somehow caught wind of things…”

“... ...” it is rare to see Medite-sensei with a serious expression, let alone looking so openly worried. My heart starts aching and I start to imagine bad things happening to Percelis. What should I do?!

“... I- I’m going to get Ulysses!!” [1] and run in the direction of the Royal Palace.

“Oi!! Makia!” Tooru starts chasing me.

However, I am too preoccupied with my thoughts. I must inform Ulysses! I must!

“Makia!!” Tooru manages to grab me by the arm and hold me back. “What is wrong with you? He’s at an important meeting right now. [2] Besides, he’s the prince, even without you running over to him, someone will bring him the news. He might already know…”

“But… but if something bad happens to Percelis… Ulysses will be…”

“... …”

Tooru appears to have sensed something odd in my strange impatience. I, too, felt that my sense of urgency is too weird.

“... hey you, aren’t you obsessing over [5] Percelis and Ulysses a little too much?”

“... …”

“Are you feeling guilty?”

“That’s…”

Tooru’s voice is filled with conviction. It is as though he knows what’s going on.

The one who was shocked was me.

I clench my teeth.

“Then… then, what should I do? I’ve caused nothing but suffering for those two. So… why… Why did Ulysses never openly blame me? [2] It’s the Crimson Witch’s fault that they are now suffering. [2] What if, the same thing happen again…”

“... …”

The guilt that had been lurking in my heart welled up. The terrible bitterness had hardened into a lump. Yes, I felt guilty. Guilty for Ulysses, guilty for Percelis.

I adore them too much to turn a blind eye to my own fault.

Ahh, the Crimson Witch has certainly mellowed out.

She was such a cruel being in the past, able to do such terrible things with no blip in her emotions at all.

How ridiculous is it to feel regret now?

“Well, I supposed it’s not unreasonable for you to feel like that,” said Tooru as he let go of my arm. “However, you should also try and understand why Yuri doesn’t blame you for this.”

“... …?”

“Anyway, I don’t think it’s bad to feel guilty. Even though you are no longer that Crimson Witch, and I am no longer that person from before… we carry the guilt of that existence with us. We may feel guilt for our past actions against each other, but it is also the thing that connects us. Such an odd relationship…” Tooru gave a little snort of laughter. He is gazing into the distance.

That’s right, he also carries a similar burden with him. Even so, he knows that certain relationships could not be changed.

“It’s the same for Ulysses,” [1] he continued. “I think he’s being stubborn about [1] keeping away from Percelis because of his guilt. That has nothing to do with you… that’s his own problem to solve.”

“... …”

“So, you should stop getting stuck in your head all the time and be a little more open minded.”

“... haah?”

Here I thought he is being cool, but what’s with that final bit? [1] Open my mind? To what?

“That’s right, don’t you have Percelis’ data? Can’t you find her with your magic?”

“... Ah, you’re right!”

Even as I bite the tip of my finger, Tooru manifests the 3D Cube to hover over the back of his hand. We imbue it with Percelis’ data.

“... …?”

It shows that Percelis is in…

“In the castle town?”

It looks like she is northeast of the Royal Palace, close to the harbour.

“Right, let’s follow this for now. We’ll find her soon.”

“... …”

“And… I’m sure he’ll come.”

“... right”

I nod, feeling complicated. Tooru removes a handkerchief from his breast pocket and takes my hand. He wraps the cloth around my finger. The bleeding has already stopped, so it is a pointless gesture.

“... aren’t you a conscientious one?”

“Well, I am your attendant after all.”

“You’re still going along with that…”

I laugh slightly. We look at each other and nod.

Then, we move towards where Percelis should be.

[Gumihou: This is so difficult to edit… the emotions and actions are so nuanced…]

[1] Add detail

[2] Deleted random ‘on the other hand’, ‘but’, ‘however’, ‘rather’ that makes no sense.

It just makes the sentences feel disconnected.

[2a] Deleted ‘news have already been sent to the royal palace’ because the message from the glasses wearing teacher is too short to contain any details. Change this statement to speculation

[3] Replaced ‘...’ with something else, because it just doesn’t reflect ‘natural’ dialogue styles.

Anyway, adjust the dialogue so that it sounds more natural

[4] Adjust the following text:

As I hurried things, everything ended up going in the wrong direction and what was inside the pot became completely different from what was originally in the textbook. It was supposed to be a bight red clay-like mass, but it became a bright, black prickly crystal.

So that it contains a bit more drama and details

[5] Too many emphases on ‘odd urgency’, making it repetitive instead of dramatic. Directly address the issue instead.

[6] Weirdly convoluted sentence: I bite my finger, then start dripping blood on the cube-shaped three-dimensional navigation that Tooru made on the back of his hand. It was then engraved with information regarding Percelis.

Fixed