Ch 207
“An hourglass…”
It was filled with mysterious silver sand, reminiscent of the stars in the night sky.
The young mage took an interest in the mysterious artifact, and soon realized the power contained within it.
Event observation.
It occasionally showed attempts to display events from a time period outside the present.
And, those events usually took the form of desire.
As if tempting the owner.
“This language… I’ve never heard it before?”
The fragment of the event that the hourglass first showed the young mage was related to ancient, forgotten ruins.
If the young mage only wished, she could observe the complete event, find the location of the ruins, and explore the ancient mystery.
“Well, I’m not interested.”
However, the young mage was not dominated by that temptation.
At a young age, she was already being described as great, as she was already forging her own path.
“Ancient mysteries? Compared to the mysteries I pursue, it’s nothing.”
The young mage’s arrogant pride was too noble to succumb to wicked temptation.
“What happens if I use this power to observe events?”
The young mage instinctively knew.
That if she accepted the hourglass’s abnormal power, she would surely pay a price.
Therefore, the young mage tried to lose interest in the hourglass.
It was then that the hourglass showed the mage a different kind of event than before.
“This is…”
It was the beginning of a tragedy that would occur in the future.
If she observed that event in its complete form, she could prevent the tragedy from happening in the future.
It was a feat that even the power the young mage sought could not accomplish.
A very empty feat.
If she prevented a tragedy that had already happened, she would become a hero.
However, if she made the tragedy itself as if it never happened, who would acknowledge that merit?
“Show me.”
Nevertheless.
The young mage succumbed to the temptation.
She observed the future event and thereby made the tragedy nonexistent.
Without knowing it, those saved from the tragedy naturally could not offer her any gratitude.
Nevertheless, she continued her observations, and thereby was able to make countless tragedies nonexistent.
The young mage’s secret observations and interventions were repeated over many years.
Until the young mage became an archmage, receiving the respect of many wizards.
It was one day.
Her observations came to an end.
All the sand that had been piled up above flowed down.
“This is…”
The hourglass no longer showed her events.
Instead, it began to demand payment for the observations that had been made.
▶Fate 37: Hourglass
✦✦✦
『Title: Why the Wandering Star isn’t revisiting, dammit』
Content: I told you I’m ready now!!!!!!!
-: A person I rejected at the first meeting of a blind date
『I’m ready now. Let’s meet again.』 What would you think if someone sent you this text?
-『Author』: Damn it
Am I doing this just to hold a woman’s hand?
This is all because I’m trying to save her, you know?
If I leave her to wander outside, she’ll die.
-: 『We have to meet again. Otherwise, you might die.』
-: So, the author sent that text to the blind date woman?
-: What a creepy bastard, dammit.
-: I think I know why the Wandering Stars around the author aren’t revisiting, lol.
-『Author』: Ah, dammit, just get lost.
-: Is that the first time the Wandering Star visited, and she still hasn’t come back?
-『Author』: Yeah. Do you know why?
-: Goodbye.
-『Author』: Where do you really live?
-: Roughly speaking,
it seems like the Wandering Star has been ‘forced to settle’ outside?
（Roughly speaking, it means she died）
-『Author』: No, dammit.
It’s not a Wandering Star,
it’s a Wandering Ocean Sunfish?
How easily does someone with a star die?
Did they fight another star?
-: That’s about right.
-『Author』: Really? Which star did she die to?
-: The Wandering Star.
-『Author』: ?
-: It evolved into a star that commits suicide. ㅠ
-『Author』: What the hell?
Is it roughly like the end of a common dopamine addict?
-: It’s true that you’ll be screwed if you stop dopamine, yeah;
-: Roughly speaking, this guy has an hourglass,
and he has to reverse all the sand below within a certain period.
He failed at that and just committed suicide.
-『Author』: What happens if you fail?
-: You have to do what the hourglass tells you to do, yeah.
-『Author』: What the hell does it tell you to do that you commit suicide?
-: Hourglass: Visit the author’s base.
Wandering Star: Yeah, I’ll die.
-: What the hell did you do on your first blind date?
-『Author』: Yeah, I’ll kill you.
-: That hourglass
is the key that connects to the （self-proclaimed） Fate Guardians,
and they’re just insane.
They can see the future and the past to a limited extent,
and because of that, they think they have to control the flow of the world.
They tried to make Lumiere their pawn,
so she chose death, yeah.
✦✦✦
Lumiere regretted her youthful recklessness.
Even knowing that the hourglass would demand payment for observing events, she had the recklessness of thinking that she could easily pay the price.
No matter how great the ‘stimulus’, the momentum of the refluxing sand was minimal.
As if to say that the price of observing the future was that heavy.
Even after reversing and reversing it, the top of the hourglass showed no sign of filling up.
Every time Lumiere looked at that hourglass, she dreamed of a moment like this.
“Look at this.”
Whoosh.
A moment like now, when the sand was flowing back with tremendous momentum.
However.
Even though that long-awaited moment had come, Lumiere’s expression was not very bright.
“It’s flowing back quite refreshingly. Isn’t this good for you?”
“I’m not sure what’s going on, so I can’t be happy.”
As she told Pallag, it was because she had no idea about the cause of the reflux.
What Lumiere had to pay as the price for observing the future was a corresponding ‘observation’.
Every time she observed objects, events, and phenomena that affected the future, the sand flowed back-
and the momentum of the reflux was proportional to the scale of the observation.
An object with the power to make a vagrant a powerholder.
A huge event that changes the fate of many people.
A mysterious phenomenon that no one has yet been able to explain.
Lumiere had made countless observations so far.
Some were shocking even from Lumiere’s viewpoint as the Tower Master-
but even all of them combined were no match for the current reflux.
“Is that even possible? I observed something so amazing without even knowing it!?”
After confirming the reflux, Lumiere wanted to find out the cause somehow.
To purely enjoy the unprecedented joy of the reflux!
However, the reason that wouldn’t come to mind no matter how much she thought!
Thus, at this point, Lumiere came to Pallag to seek advice.
“So, Pallag. Do you have any idea?”
“…”
Pallag looked at the party he had been talking to before Lumiere arrived.
It was Master Melthas.
The two elders, who were in the midst of a lively conversation about ‘a common interest’, exchanged meaningful glances at Lumiere’s question.
“…Are you two hiding something from me?”
The Gray Girl made a strong impression from the appearance of the two.
“Let me tell you in advance, Lumiere. We haven’t hidden it from you. We even showed it to you in detail. Isn’t that right, Master Melthas?”
“That’s right, Duke Pallag.”
The two elders looked at each other and raised their eyebrows.
As Lumiere was disgusted by that sight, Pallag continued.
“Lumiere. Tell me about your routine today.”
“No, really, nothing special happened! All I did was hang out with Lisir.”
“That’s it!”
“That was it.”
“?”
Lumiere looked at the two as if they were senile old men.
“I haven’t said anything yet, what do you mean by that?”
“No, you’ve already said enough.”
“Tower Master. The answer to the problem the Tower Master wants will be with Lisir.”
“…Ah, I understand what you’re saying.”
Already?
To understand it verbally before even witnessing ‘it’?
The two elders looked at Lumiere in surprise.
Then, the Gray Girl sighed and continued the story.
“Let me make it clear. This has nothing to do with that guy.”
“Oh, on what grounds?”
“You’re talking about that mysterious spirit named Perin, right? Sorry, but the reflux from that observation already happened yesterday. This reflux is separate from that.”
“I see… So, the incident ends there…”
“Well, it can’t be helped…”
“It’s frustrating. I’m also annoyed. Let’s stop it and start revealing what you know, shall we?”
When Lumiere urged them impatiently, Pallag opened his mouth after a moment of contemplation.
“Tell me in detail about what happened while you were with Lisir. Even the trivial things.”
“…”
Lumiere followed his instructions, though reluctantly.
Lisir acted strangely, saying he was contacting his younger sister.
Lisir had a meal with an acquaintance named Eron who had come to see her.
Finally, even sleeping with a young spirit.
As Pallag said, she detailed even the trivial things.
“Lumiere. Today, you observed a living human descending to the Guardian Saint and dying as a Guardian Saint.”
“?”
“And, you observed a high-ranking demon who had become a young spirit by a power that cannot be explained by any law or reason that we know.”
“…”
Lumiere’s expression immediately became serious.
“Pallag, really-…”
Are you senile or insane?
A voice that could be heard from her expression without speaking.
Pallag burst into laughter at her reaction.
“Yes! That’s the natural reaction. Especially for an intellectual like you! For you, I’ll give you some advice! Lumiere. Don’t be too pessimistic. Even if Melthas and I were in your position, it wouldn’t be much different. That’s how it is at first.”
“Heh heh. Seeing the Tower Master, I’m reminded of when I first met Lisir.”
“Oh, I haven’t heard that story yet?”
“Actually, when I first saw Lisir, I thought he was a scammer!”
“What!? A scammer!?”
“It’s embarrassing.”
“But it’s better than me. I thought he was a High Priest hiding his identity!”
Hahahahaha!
Kekekeke!
“…”
Lumiere was about to lose her mind at their lively banquet and hurriedly left.
✦✦✦
“Ah, you’ve come?”
When Lumiere parted from the two elders and returned to Lisir.
He was already awake from his nap with the spirit.
After taking a bath, he was drying his hair with a towel.
The signs of fatigue felt in his expression after taking a nap.
Lisir, watching Lumiere’s nunchi, said.
“After waking up, I conducted my usual routine training-should I have waited for Lumiere?”
“No. What I’m going to do is observation, not interference. Anyway, training. What kind of magic did you train?”
“Some Masters were curious, so I showed them a surge as a training exercise.”
“Surge? I’ve never heard of that magic… Is it your unique magic?”
“Yes.”
“To create unique magic at that age. Amazing.”
That was the extent of Lumiere’s admiration.
She didn’t think there was any reason to be surprised that a genius like Lisir created unique magic a little faster than others.
After all, Lumiere herself had created her unique magic at a similar age to Lisir.
“You must have overdone it.”
“Yes? Ah.”
Lumiere said, seeing the blood flowing from Lisir’s nose.
Lisir wiped it with a towel, smiling wryly.
“I’m sorry. I showed you an embarrassing sight.”
Lumiere looked surprised at Lisir.
To be so flustered by just a magic training session.
She thought that he also had the same clumsy side as other young mages of his age.
“Don’t worry about it. If you don’t overdo it when you’re young, when will you?”
Lumiere said, taking out the hourglass that was flowing back.
The unique magic training itself was nothing special-
but she felt the expectation that if the subject was a young mage like Lisir, it might become a small but worthwhile observation.
The violent reflux that had occurred before suddenly came to mind-
but Lumiere tried to shake off that memory from her mind.
Unexplained luck. In other words, an abnormal phenomenon.
It wouldn’t be wise to use that as a standard.
‘This should be enough…’
Lumiere checked the hourglass, anticipating a weak flow.
Whoosh!
The sand was flowing back violently, like a waterfall flowing backward.
“…!”
Lumiere was startled and began to look around the room.
“Lumiere?”
Lisir said, looking at her looking out the window and looking around.
“Lisir! Did anything strange happen around here? Did you feel anything like that━”
“Uh… not really?”
It was the same as before.
Lumiere ultimately failed to find the cause of the violent reflux.
✦✦✦
The next afternoon.
Lumiere sat alone in her office, looking at something on her desk with a serious expression.
Whoosh!
The hourglass was flowing back powerfully, showing no sign of fatigue.
Lumiere had already forgotten her original purpose of ‘looking for a reward for Lisir’.
It couldn’t be helped-
because during the process of observing Lisir’s ordinary and ordinary daily life, reflux occurred from time to time.
“Why on earth…”
The amount of sand that had flowed back in the past few days was more than the sand she had reversed while wandering the continent for the past few years.
The emptiness at the top of the hourglass, which had never shown any sign of filling up, was noticeably reduced.
At this rate, wouldn’t the top be filled soon?
She even had that thought.
It was then.
-Lumiere.
A voice calling Lumiere from inside the hourglass was heard.
“…”
Lumiere instinctively frowned.
A superior-subordinate relationship formed by the reckless mistakes of her youth.
Those who were the masters of that relationship were calling Lumiere.
The Gray Girl let out a deep sigh that didn’t suit her appearance.
Just as she was about to answer their call.
Knock knock.
-Tower Master.
This time, it was a voice calling the Tower Master from outside the door.
“Melthas? What is it?”
-Could you spare some time now?
Just as Lumiere was about to answer Melthas’s voice.
-Lumiere…
The voice from inside the hourglass grew stronger.
The Fate Guardians were urging Lumiere’s appearance.
For Lumiere, who was bound by their restrictions, there was nothing more important.
“No. Come back another time.”
Lumiere had no choice but to dismiss Melthas.
-Is that so? It’s just that Lisir said he wanted the Tower Master to attend-…
“…Lisir?”
Lumiere’s attention, which had been confined to the hourglass, was freed by those three words.
“Lisir is looking for me? For what?”
-Lisir is going to demonstrate his vision in front of the Masters now, and the Tower Master is asked to witness it and give advice!
“…Ah, is it that surge?”
-No! Today, it’s the application, Dark Magic Swordsmanship!
“What, what kind of swordsmanship?”
Wizard?
Dark Magic Swordsmanship?
At that violent sound, Lumiere could not help but get up from her seat as if hypnotized.
-Wandering Star Lumiere-!
Ignoring the voice that would usually easily suppress her.
✦✦✦
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