04

Before Gaus sat Sophia, her posture straight, and beside her a mysterious man who deftly cut his food with his single left arm and brought it to his mouth.

The man before him paid Gaus no attention at all, instead savoring the breakfast prepared by the knight order’s exclusive chef.

What an incomprehensible pairing—one unlike Sophia at all, Gaus thought to himself.

“First, regarding how I came to bring this gentleman here—”

Without slouching in the slightest, Sophia began her report.

A man—Ains—had appeared at the sacred site bearing the holy mark, the Great Tree. Finding him suspicious, Sophia had drawn her sword, only to be repelled instantly by a form of magic she had never seen or heard of before. And this, from Ains, who had lost his left leg and right arm.

As Sophia recounted Ains’s words, she realized he was speaking of events that predated even the founding of the Autonomous City of the Ains Domain. And furthermore—

“…He knew of Tas Village, whose existence is known only to a select few. And he addressed the Saints Evan and Silica without honorifics.”

With a bitter smile, Gaus judged that this still did not go beyond the realm of wishful thinking—yet there was also a part of him that wanted to cling to that hope.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Gaus stood up and slid his massive desk aside.

Beneath it was a square hatch embedded in the floor, its surface painted with a magical formula in white pigment. When Gaus touched it, a sound of unlocking rang out, and he retrieved an aged book from within.

Holding the old volume—bound in reddish-brown hard cover—Gaus returned to the sofa.

“Commander… that is—”

“Yes. The Original.”

Sophia swallowed reflexively.

The ancient book Original radiated immense magical power.

It had been written over two thousand years ago by the sorcerer known as Ains of Silver Snow, the very foundation upon which the Santia Kingdom’s Autonomous City of the Ains Domain—and the Silver Snow Knights themselves—were established.

Regarded as the pinnacle of sorcerers, even called a Demon God, he was a figure shrouded in mystery, with only scant records remaining. Because the Original contained such vast magical power, only a handful of individuals with exceptional reserves of mana could even open its pages.

Sophia could not open it.

Even Gaus, the knight commander, and only a few others could barely manage it.

“…This may be a grave sacrilege, but it’s the quickest way. Sophia, please do not speak of this.”

“Understood. This was my selfish decision. Any blame should fall on me alone, not on you, Commander.”

“No. I share your desire to cling to hope. I’m just as guilty.”

The Autonomous City of the Ains Domain had repeatedly escaped annihilation thanks to the magical tomes and knowledge left behind by the sorcerer Ains of Silver Snow, developing into a culture of great convenience and stability. For that reason, the city as a whole revered him—making the Original something akin to a holy scripture. Among the Silver Snow Knights especially, reverence for Ains of Silver Snow ran deep.

Thus, the value of the original manuscript, said to be written by Ains himself, was beyond measure.

With many resolves weighing on him, Gaus asked,

“…Ains-kun. Do you recognize this book?”

Up until then, Ains had been focused solely on his meal. Only now did he pause and look toward Gaus.

“Hm? That book?”

“Yes.”

“Well… no, I’ve never seen that cover before.”

Ains tilted his head as he answered.

“…I see.”

Though he had clung to hope on his own accord, Gaus’s murmur carried a hint of disappointment.

“May I take a look inside?”

““—!?””

Unaware of the weight of their emotions, Ains casually extended his left hand.

Time seemed to stop.

Gaus hesitated deeply at the thought of handing this original manuscript to someone who might be nothing more than an outsider.

Unconsciously, Gaus looked to Sophia.

Sophia, as if fully resolved, wore a calm expression and rested her hand on the pommel of her sheathed sword—

Prepared, if necessary, to take Ains’s head.

“…At this point, we’re in it together.”

At Gaus’s murmur, Ains looked utterly puzzled.

“Very well. But this is extremely important to us. Please handle it with care.”

“Got it.”

After wiping the crumbs from his hands with a cloth, Ains accepted the Original from Gaus.

“Hmm… yeah, I really haven’t seen a hardbound book like th—ah!”

Looking at the cover, Ains suddenly realized something.

“Did you figure something out!?”

Gaus leaned forward eagerly.

“No, it’s not that I recognize the book itself. But the lettering for ‘Original’—this handwriting is Silica’s.”

““What?””

Gazing at the letters, Ains smiled nostalgically.

“Man, that takes me back… You can really see her strong-willed nature in her writing.”

Beside him, Gaus and Sophia were left stunned by this completely new revelation.

Ignoring them, Ains naturally opened the Original.

Gaus was shocked once more.

Even he could barely open the pages, and doing so left him drenched in cold sweat from the overwhelming mana and the incomprehensible, almost poisonous knowledge within.

Yet the one-armed man before him read it calmly, as if it were just a novel lying around.

He’s no ordinary man—Gaus understood.

With Sophia still gripping her sword pommel and Gaus watching with bated breath, Ains continued reading.

After finishing, he finally spoke.

“I get it now. Both of you.”