CH 31

“Come in.”

Kelturi’s voice came from inside the room in response to Lou’s knock.

When Lou had visited the Vice Principal’s office with Adelaide and Fran, Kelturi wasn’t there.

Therefore, this was the first time Lou had entered the her office.

When he opened the door, the sight of the room jumped out at him.　

It was about half the size of the Chairman’s office.

It would be about 10 tatami mats.

There was a desk and a chair at the front. 

On the right side of the door was a chic reception set, and on the left side was a bookshelf with spell books.

Kelturi was sitting in the chair at the desk, but she stood up and…

She advised Lou to sit in the chair at the reception.

The expression on her face was completely different from before, and she had a soft smile on her face.

She was full of nostalgia, as if she had met an acquaintance for the first time in a long time.

“Long time no see, Lou.”

“That’s my line, Kelly.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I was worried about you when you suddenly disappeared five years ago. Well, I’m glad you’re okay.”

Then Lou smiled serenely.

Kelturi was infected and smiled, too.

“You might say, I had a lot on my mind. That aside…I heard the news. I heard that Schulvestre-sama has passed away.”

“Yes, unfortunately. That’s why I got out of my village.”

“………”

“Grandpa said I should take over Sowell, but I’m too human to take over him.”

Kelturi shrugged upon hearing Lou’s words.

All those who excelled in magic in Arlv aimed to become the head of the clan, Sowell.

But ultimately…

The Sowell was to be decided with the recommendation of the current Sowell.

But of course, nobody had ever refused.

Kelturi was one of those who aspired to become the Sowell.

She could recall…

Ten years ago, Schulvestre…

When he suddenly picked up a ‘human boy who had lost his memories’ who was wandering in the forest…

She thought, What were you thinking?

But even among the Sowells of the past, Schulvetre’s vision, which was considered exceptional, was not a fluke.

Lou Brandell, a boy of less than ten years old, had risen to prominence.

The Arlvs were exclusive to begin with.

Except for those who left for human lands, everyone lived in the clan.

They disliked others’ interference.

At first, Lou was shunned and completely ignored.

However, he didn’t seem to mind much and treated everyone in the village cheerfully.

In addition…

He completed the tasks that Schulvestre gave him one after another.

Then on Lou’s third summer in the village…

That day finally arrived.

The true essence of the magic that the Arlvs wielded was earth, wind, water, and fire…

It was Spirit Magic that exercised the power of the Four Great Spirits.

Once in a lifetime, the Arlvs would undergo an Epiphany Ritual to receive the blessings of the spirits.

In human terms, it was the confirmation of attribute aptitude.

It was easy to understand with that analogy.

That day of the ritual…

In addition to Lou, there were ten people who were said to be candidates for the next Sowell.

Through his Foresight Magic, Schulvestre had predicted the appearance of a great one who would receive the blessings of the spirits.

However, no one with such immense talent had ever appeared.

Incidentally, Kelturi had also undergone the ritual before, and had received the blessing and protection of the Earth Spirit, Gnome, and the Water Spirit, Undine.

Eventually…

The ritual commenced…

Spirits of various attributes appeared and went on to give each person a blessing and a token of blessing.

…Finally, it was Lou’s turn.

The sight that occurred that day…

Was one that Kelturi would never forget.

It was a sight!

The Fire Salamander, the Wind Spirit, Sylph, the Water Spirit, Undine, and the Earth Spirit Gnomide all appeared simultaneously.

As Lou closed his eyes, the spirits danced around him in a friendly, playful manner, as if they were happy to see an old friend again.

As the Arlvs looked on…

Lou received the blessing and protection of the Four Great Spirits, ‘All’.

It was the birth of a great all-attribute magic user, an all-rounder…

At that moment, everyone realized.

The great one that Schulvester had foretold was Lou.

Since that day…

Lou’s talent for magic had blossomed in an instant.

After four years in the village…

Schulvestre devoted all his time to Lou.

The other elders took over the training of Kelturi and the others, but…

The difference in the way they were treated was obvious, and many of them abandoned their training.

However…

Kelturi continued to train for two years.

On a normal level…

Kelturi was more than enough and was rated as a Senior Wizard.

But, Lou was too out of the ordinary.

Kelturi was troubled, and after much deliberation, she made up her mind.

She hoped she could provide for herself…

She traveled to the human world to learn a different magical system.

Abruptly, without telling anyone.

She knew that she had caused a lot of worry by leaving her village without telling anyone.

That was what had happened…

Kelturi didn’t really dislike Lou.

She thought Lou was cute, like a little brother, and genuinely admired his abilities.

She just gave up on winning.

With rivalry at its best, she set a grand goal to hone her skills in the human world.

“Lou, you owe me for that.”

When Kelturi said ‘owe me’, she was probably referring to Lou’s cow follow-up comment.

As a matter of fact, there was no such thing as a Cow-Goddess belief in the Arlv.

So, you want me to help you with some of your classes…

Lou chuckled slightly.

He was a little concerned about Fran…

But it was something he should try and rethink.

“I get it.”

When Lou nodded with a smile, Kelturi nodded in satisfaction.

However, she immediately frowned and questioned Lou.

“You…If you’ve been named successor by Schulvestre-sama, you must have been through a lot, haven’t you?…What did Ryu say?”

“Well, she said she’d definitely make me Sowell.”

“I knew it!”

Kelturi chuckled and shrugged again.

The one she called Ryu, was Ryudia Eltvara.

She was Kelturi’s sister, who was also training to become a Sowell.

She idolized the head of the clan, Schulvestre, and would obey his every order and ideas.

“Yeah, it’s because of me that everyone got into that fight.”

Ryudia and some others wanted to respect Sowell Schulvestre’s dying wishes…

But other elders adamantly opposed, saying that he couldn’t be Sowell for being human!

The two sides quarreled fiercely, and at the end of the day, the atmosphere was such that everyone was ready to resort to force.

Lou couldn’t stand seeing the struggle between the two sides.

So he firmly made up his mind to leave his village.

He was originally a human, just a gentile who appeared in the village ten years ago.

He thought that because of his presence in the village of Arlv, a meaningly battle would occur.

Naturally, he told Rydia how he felt and entrusted her with the rest.

If he didn’t, she would have come after him.

… In the end, Ryudia reluctantly accepted Lou’s order.

In her cognition, Lou was already Sowell, and his orders were absolute.

Thus…

Lou quietly disappeared from the village on the night exactly one month after Schulvestre’s death.

Lou’s like this…

Kelturi thought after hearing his story.

Even for the ‘proud and noble’ forest dwellers, Arlvs…

They, too, had greed like humans, such as greed for power, for succession, and more.

But…

As far as Kelturi could tell, Lou had no such desires, not to mention his gentle nature.

I’ll be Sowell!

It sounded sweet to all Arlvs.

Kelturi would have loved to be one if she were nominated.

Yes, even Arlvs…wanted to enhance their talents and boast about it.

They wanted the best, but also wanted the honor to match their talent.

When Adelaide invited Kelturi to join the Magical Girls Academy…

After much worrying, she accepted, partly because she hoped to become the chairman of this school, which was said to be comparable to the royal court magicians.

But then, Lou had abandoned Sowell’s nomination.

Now that she came to know this, she Kelturi thought that she could return to her village with better ability and aim to become Sowell again.

What she was curious about was the relationship between Lou and Francesca.

“So how did you end up being the servant of that absurd Princess?”

“Who’s the absurd Princess? Oh, you mean Fran?”

Laughing wryly, Lou told her hows and whys of the circumstances unobtrusively.

At the end of it…

“I want to protect Fran,” Lou said.

Kelturi felt as if a small thorn had pricked her chest.

What is this hazy discomfort…all about?

Kelturi listened to Lou’s story with a complicated expression.