Come, Spring (3)

When Kardia finished climbing to the second floor, the king raised his voice so all present could hear.

“Hyuetos Magic Count. For your peerless achievements in magic, you were granted rank as our nation’s first Magic Count. Your art, called the magic of the edge of the heavens, reaches beyond the sky; even now, far off over Hyuetos, a great island continues to float in the air.”

A stir swept the hall. Hyuetos was a remote backwater isle; unless they had pressing business, nobles did not visit. None of them had truly believed the absurd tale that the island floated.

“It was eighty years ago that you set the island aloft, yet that it remains afloat even now can only be due to your matchless magic. —Then, Hyuetos Magic Count, mage at the edge of the heavens: with your one-and-only magic, call winter to this place.”

It was the height of summer.

Any way one looked at it, it was far from winter.

“As you command.”

The fake Hyuetos Magic Count grinned and began weaving a magic circle. The onlookers, buzzing, nonetheless watched with amusement. To them, it hardly mattered who was real—it was only a diversion.

When he finished, the fake Magic Count conjured ice on the spot—about as big as a child’s head.

“Behold, he created ice!”

“And quite a large piece.”

“Look how beautifully clear it is.”

Preening amid the murmurs, the fake Magic Count held his head high.

But while the crowd admired and the fake thrust out his chest, the king regarded him with a cool eye.

“…This is what you call winter?”

“Yes, of course.”

“It’s nothing but ice.”

At the king’s words, someone snorted.

As soft chuckles spread, the shamed fake Magic Count declared boldly in a loud voice:

“…Then you would have me make it snow? Such a thing is impossible for any human!”

To make snow fall required a complex magic circle.

Whether one gathered moisture from the air or began by creating water, either path demanded multiple stages of procedure and the delicate interweaving of several spells in just the right balance.

Nor would a single flake be acceptable. It was a large-scale and exceedingly difficult magic.

“The king presses me with impossibilities only because he was at odds with my grandfather!”

Noble gazes converged on the fake Magic Count.

Even so, the king did not spare him a glance.

“Mage at the edge of the heavens, Hyuetos.”

“Do you see? My bride is dressed so lightly.”

“Hyuetos!”

The king called the title in a great voice. Kardia let out a long sigh.

“All right, all right, I’ll do it. My bride asked so sweetly for me to show something dashing, after all.”

Thoroughly put-upon, Kardia thrust out both hands and began twisting fine, stout threads of mana.

From that alone, every mage present would have acknowledged him as the Magic Count—his technique was that exceptional.

In mere seconds, a magic circle large enough to cover the ballroom unfurled. Cold sweat beaded on the king’s brow.

“Hyue—ffbff!”

Snow blasted into the king’s face.

The entire hall was struck by a blizzard.

This was beyond “making it snow.” A raging whiteout howled so fiercely nobles screamed.

“Kardia—!”

Just as Noi was about to shout that he was overdoing it, the snow stopped. It melted where it fell, whirled on the strong wind, and flew off sparkling.

As people stared, mouths agape, there was a soft pop—and a suddenly appeared bud opened.

“Eh?”

Pop, pop-pop-pop—flowers bloomed all over the hall: from the chandeliers to the tabletops, even in the king’s beard blossoms burst forth.

—Tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet…

And though it was night, birds fluttered into the ballroom. On closer look, the birds were folded from the napkins on the tables. The flowers twirling down onto Noi’s head were origami, folded from paper.

As the birds winged freely about the hall with a light song, one guest murmured:

“…It’s spring…”

Noi caught her breath.

After snow fell, the first spring wind blew, flowers opened, and birds sang.

Kardia had summoned spring to complete winter.

“Will this suffice?”

To Kardia’s courteous query, the king plucked a bloom from his beard and let out a great sigh that carried assent.

Seizing the moment while all were still dazed, Kardia hopped down from the second floor with long, easy strides.

Then, finding Noi standing alone and gazing blankly up at the ceiling, he lifted her as usual.

“Honestly… you.”

“Well? Was I so dashing you had to reevaluate me?”

“No. I was in the middle of falling for you all over again.”

When Noi shook her head and said that, Kardia went stock-still with a snap.

“What incredible magic… I’m humbled. It was very beautiful.”

But oblivious to Kardia’s freeze, Noi breathed a soft sigh at the blossoms drifting from above.

Kardia touched the nape of his neck, exhaled, and gave a small shake of his head.

“Such a thing is not worthy of praise.”

He looked with a cool gaze at the people laughing together, delighted by the whirling flowers.

“Every human living in this world is unfortunate—because none has ever seen what truly beautiful magic is.”

Though everyone else was giddy with spring, Kardia alone at the center of the hall spoke in a voice so unsteady it was as if he had been left behind in winter.

“A magic so gentle and warm that tears spill over just by being near it—and above all, beautiful—”

Since crossing a hundred years, Noi had seen many beautiful magics.

A magic that linked earth and sky with water; a magic that swam with the night stars. The crystal fireflies that crossed the sky were breathtakingly lovely, and the magic that called spring until even the mountains seemed to smile was splendidly beautiful as well.

All of them were magics wrought by Kardia.

“Have you ever seen one?”

Magic that surpassed this—so Noi asked. Kardia lowered his eyes slightly and smiled.

“I have.”

The gentle smile he wore looked to Noi somehow very lonely.

“That alone is the reason I, greedy as I still am, remain standing here.”

Though he was right beside her, he suddenly felt terribly far away; Noi clenched a tight hold on Kardia’s clothes.

“—Hyuetos!”

Just then, a voice called to Kardia from the second floor. He and Noi looked up at once.

There stood the king, surrounded by many nobles, searching for Kardia. “Ah!” Noi let out a small cry.

“Kardia! If you knew the king, you could have just told me so!”

For all her worrying, when the lid was lifted the fake Hyuetos Magic Count had been hauled off far too easily.

“Hm? You don’t remember?”

With eyes upon them, Kardia swept up the stairway carrying Noi. Advancing along the path the crowd opened, he came before the king.

“You’ve met him once.”

At the whisper in her ear, Noi tilted her head.

Then she stared intently at the king of the Esria Kingdom standing before them.

“—Ah!”

Noi covered her mouth with one small hand and pointed at the king with the other.