Fate: How About a New Savior?

The Princess of Gold and the Princess of Silver left the terrace after only a fleeting appearance.

There was no interaction between them and the other Magus.

After all, if they stayed any longer, some of the younger ones might lose their minds just from sensing something so close to the Root.

Take Caren, for instance.

She wasn't a top-tier Magus, and her troublesome "Masochistic Spiritualist Constitution" didn't help.

Under the protective runes cast by Shiomi, that condition had been suppressed as much as possible—externally, at least.

"I didn't expect them to break through from the inside. I underestimated the Princess of Gold and the Princess of Silver," Shiomi muttered as he gently brushed aside Caren's bangs to reveal the bruising beneath.

Caren lay with her head on Shiomi's lap, several similar marks visible on her cheeks and body.

The bruises at the corners of her eyes and mouth looked so real that anyone unfamiliar might've thought she'd been beaten.

But these weren't wounds—they were stigmata.

In a sense, they were proof of her qualifications to be baptized by the Holy Church.

"I'm fine," Caren said softly.

She had collapsed not long after Shiomi had left the hall. Fortunately, Gray had been nearby, and she was quickly brought to a guest room in the Tower of the Sun.

The Tower of the Moon, by contrast, was reserved for the Iselma family.

Now lying on a bed so soft it felt almost weightless, Caren didn't feel too bad—especially with Shiomi still at her side.

The overwhelming beauty of the Princess of Gold and the Princess of Silver had delivered a shock akin to the Swirl of the Root itself. Without meaning to, it had placed a burden on her body.

"I misjudged how deeply Iselma's results could affect Magus," Shiomi said as he placed his hand on her head, channeling the gentlest magic to ease the strain from her condition. "I'm sorry you had to go through this."

It would take some time for the deeper marks to fade completely.

"It's alright. I was a child who should've been abandoned, but Father kept me by his side." Caren shook her head gently. "You did everything he could for me. If even a small oversight like this deserves blame, how many parents in this world could be considered praiseworthy?"

Still, it was unexpected—the first time her Masochistic Spiritualist Constitution had flared up wasn't from a spiritual source, but from the sheer beauty of the Princess of Gold and the Princess of Silver.

"It's fine. I'll stay here with you," Shiomi said, taking her hand. "I'll leave after you fall asleep."

"Mm." Caren shifted a little closer into his arms. "Even though I'm already this old, let me be spoiled just this once."

Shiomi chuckled. "You've got a lot of nerve. You've never acted spoiled, not once growing up."

"Because..." Caren smiled too. "There was never any need. People act spoiled to get things they normally wouldn't have. But back then, neither Sakura nor I ever had to."

She turned her head to glance at Gray, who was sitting nervously on the sofa. The gravekeeper was fidgeting with his hands—anxiously clasping and shifting them in patterns that looked like Buddhist mudras or intricate string figures.

"Don't just focus on me—there's still a child who needs your attention," Caren murmured. Wrapped in the gentle flow of Mana surrounding her body, the heaviness eased, and the pain began to feel like nothing more than a fleeting dream.

"No, really, I'm fine," Gray said quickly, shaking her head. "It's just... ever since I saw the Princess of Gold and the Princess of Silver, I've been feeling unsettled. Why would anyone create people so beautiful?"

The beauty of the Princess of Gold and the Princess of Silver was obviously unnatural—anyone could tell it was something only achievable through Magecraft.

"Because beauty is the domain of Magecraft," Shiomi replied. "Mathematical harmony is essential for magic circles and workshops. But Iselma—or rather, Valualeta—approaches it from a more fundamental perspective."

Caren added, "In the end, Magecraft is just a by-product of the pursuit of the Root. The joy of touching the supernatural, of becoming something beyond human, is its own reward. It's because humanity is so weak that we yearn for things beyond reason. But that's not where the ultimate goal lies."

Most modern Magus understand the Root is out of reach. Magecraft has been in decline since the Age of Gods, and those who move backward in time find no reward. Today, even the Fifth Magician—perhaps the last—has emerged in the Far East, and the door to the Root is all but closed.

"But Mr. Shiomi seems completely unaffected," Gray remarked.

"Well…" Shiomi opened his mouth to answer, then hesitated.

The Land of Shadows.

A place that existed outside the world itself, different from the Throne of Heroes and the Counter Force, yet still capable of reaching the Root.

To Shiomi, the Root was as natural and close as the air he breathed.

As someone whose essence belonged to the Age of Gods, he simply couldn't be interested in something always within reach.

"It's just not something he could care about," Caren said with a knowing smile. "Or rather, if he were interested, that would make him a fraud."

Gray nodded, not quite grasping the meaning.

"As for Valualeta, they believe that by pursuing ultimate beauty, one's soul can be elevated instantly to a higher dimension," Shiomi continued, returning to the earlier topic. "It's a Magus's way of expressing the idea that the appreciation of beauty can elevate the soul."

Even something incomplete—beauty approaching perfection—can stir a Magus's soul with overwhelming intensity.

Caren's Masochistic Spiritualist Constitution had been triggered by just such a stimulus. Her soul had been touched, and the reaction came from within.

Just as Shiomi was about to explain more to Gray about the aesthetics of Magecraft, he sensed two unfamiliar presences drawing near from outside the room.

"May I come in?"

A vaguely familiar voice called out.

"Come in," Shiomi replied, recognizing it as the voice of one of the maids who had introduced the princesses earlier.

The door opened a crack, revealing the hallway.

One of the maids who had accompanied the Princess of Gold and the Princess of Silver stood there.

"My name is Carina," she said, holding a lantern in one hand and offering a polite curtsy.

"No need for formality. Please, come in."

Shiomi looked past her toward the shadow behind and extended the invitation.

He assumed it was the head of the Iselma family come to pay a visit and thought little of it.

But when that figure stepped out of the darkness, even Shiomi was caught off guard. For a moment, he couldn't think of a reason for the visit.

"The Princess of Gold… To what do I owe the honor?"

...

(90 Chapters Ahead)

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