Chapter 320

“It’s the magic of polymorphing animals into people.”
“Are you sure you want to use that now?”
Varen said, his voice full of confidence. Balus, standing behind him, let out a gasp of embarrassment. Ronan, his eyes narrowed, spoke up.
“Hmm—polymorphing an animal into a human isn’t exactly a great invention, is it?”
“Oh, how dare you say that! This is every ecologist’s dream. I’ve gone to all kinds of trouble to create it!”
“That’s not it, though. Those wicked sorcerers can turn people into frogs, right? Isn’t it similar?”
My heart sank at the lack of excitement. Turning opponents into animals or objects was even part of the curriculum at the Pileon School of Magic.
After all the anticipation, this is it. Varen, reading Ronan’s expression, threw up his hands.
“No, no. It’s not like that at all. Think of it as applying a dragon’s favorite polymorph to an animal. It doesn’t just change its appearance, it rebuilds its body based on the target’s self. It can even ‘talk’.”
“Oh.”
Ronan curled his lip. This was certainly interesting news. He couldn’t believe he could actually hear anything other than a sucking sound coming out of Sita’s mouth.
“You’ll understand better if you see it for yourself, can I try it now?”
“Well, that sounds like fun to me.”
Ronan nodded. It was worth a shot, he thought, to get back to normal once the spell was broken. He looked back at Sita and asked.
“Sita. Are you okay?”
“Bam!”
Sita flapped her wings in response. Her eyes sparkled with anticipation. Varen, smiling humanely, opened the scroll.
“Then it’s settled, Sita. Don’t move from there.”
Things unfolded quickly. Standing facing Sita, Varen muttered a few unintelligible words. A blast of light from the geometric magic circle enveloped Sita’s body.
“Pfft?!”
Sita’s eyes widened. The light grew stronger and stronger until she could barely see straight.
“Ugh.”
Ronan and Valus shielded their eyes. The magic was much louder than they had expected. The wind from the swirl of mana caused the papers scattered about the office to flutter with a frivolous sound.
“Shit, are you sure this is okay, is this an attack spell?”
“Just a little more to go!”
Ronan asked impatiently. Varen was just about to answer when the center of the lightning struck. A shockwave from the center of the flash struck the three of them.
“C’mon!”
“Yuck!”
Varen and Valus stumbled and fell with a thud. Ronan was the only one who didn’t fall, and then the glow that had obscured Siyaya’s vision vanished at once. Ronan’s brow narrowed.
“Huh?”
Sita was nowhere to be seen, and in her place stood a small child at the wide-open window. The child, whose head barely reached Ronan’s waist, looked to be ten years old at most.
“Ooh, ooh, ooh—!”
The little boy was staring at his hands and feet, exclamation after exclamation. His fern-like fingers were twitching. A venomous curse word escaped Ronan’s mouth.
“Holy shit. Sita?”
There was no need for subplots about the child’s identity. The race had changed, but the characteristics remained the same.
The fluffy feathers had become dark, rich hair, and the four wings were draped over his body in a curious robe. Ronan muttered to himself.
“—Assel slaps me.”
Its sharp features and pale skin made it impossible to tell its gender. If it was a man, it would be a formidable foe for Asel. Varen jumped to his feet, his body shaking with pleasure.
“Oooh, it worked! I never thought it would work on a dream bird!”
“Oh my God, are you sure—!”
Balus opened his mouth in admiration, but then Sita tore her gaze from his palm and looked up at Ronan. Ruby-red eyes sparkled beneath long, dark lashes.
“Uh—hello.”
Ronan waved his hand in disbelief. We’ll just have to get to the point. He scratched his head, then spoke.
“Well, it’s nice to meet you and—do you remember how you were born? I’d appreciate it if you could tell me.”
But no answer came. Sita said nothing, just stared at Ronan.
The intensity of his gaze was unnerving, and I wondered what was wrong with him, since he was usually so reserved. Ronan was about to say something when the door to his office swung open.
“Moo, what’s going on! Is there an explosion?”
“Miss Erzebet? The gentleman next to you is—.”
Varen arched an eyebrow at the familiar face. The first thing that caught his eye was the nicely tousled black-purple hair.
It was Erzebet, who happened to be in the same building. Next to her, now more mature, stood a girl who bore a striking resemblance to Schlieffen.
“It’s a lion—.”
The girl who had run into Varen ducked behind Erzebet. Her small face was pale and worn. It was Zion Siniban de Grancia, Schlieffen’s sister.
He still holds Erzebet’s hand as if they were still friends. It seems like only yesterday that he was sitting on Erzevet’s lap eating sweets on the day of Adeshan’s graduation, and he had grown so much taller.
“Oh, Professor Baren—, I was just introducing Miss Zion here to Phileon, she’s entering this year.”
“Ah, yes, I see,” said the headmaster, “you must be the Gracias de Grancia I’ve heard so much about.”
“Yes. I finished my apprenticeship at the Dawn Demon Pagoda three years early, and Master Aun Pilar recognized my talent. Hoo hoo, isn’t that great?”
Erzebet patted Zion’s head and smiled. She felt like a parent showing off her daughter. She looked at the mess in her office and spoke.
“Exactly. What were you talking about, anyway, and why is your office so—.”
“Heh, heh, it was no big deal, don’t worry about it. I was just doing a little experiment, and I’m sorry I caused you so much worry.”
Varen gave a humanizing laugh. Erzebeth swept a hand across her startled chest. Sion’s eyes widened behind her.
“Huh? It’s Ronan.”
“Excuse me?”
Erzebet giggled. She took two steps to the side and raised an eyebrow.
“Oh, really, why are you here—.”
There stood the real Ronan. Varen had blocked his view. She was about to greet him, flushed with joy at the chance encounter.
“Huh? What about him?”
Erzebet’s eyes narrowed. Ronan was staring at a child. He recognized the upturned corners of her eyes and her jet-black hair. The child was beautiful, and her features were eerily similar to Ronan’s.
Relatives? Erzebeth’s mind was racing. Sita, still staring at Ronan, smirked.
“Dad!”
“—what?”
Ronan’s face crumpled. Erzebeth clamped both hands over his mouth. Sita lunged forward and fell into Ronan’s arms.
“Ehehe, Dad.”
“Yummy. Why am I your daddy?”
Ronan flushed with embarrassment. He had never flown like this before. I’ll be a father soon enough, but not like this. Suddenly, a familiar voice came from behind him.
“This—this beast—.”
“Huh? Erzebet?”
Ronan glanced back. Erzebeth was glaring at him, axe-eyed. Her hostility was palpable, and her voice trembled as she spoke.
“I believed—I believed he was the man of Adeshan’s choice—I believed he was the man of her choice—I believed he had a child!”
“Well, I think you’re firmly misunderstanding something, because it’s absolutely nothing like that.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, you can’t look like that unless you’re a child, Zion, and don’t even get me started on that scoundrel!”
“Ouch, that hurts!”
Erzebet shielded Sion’s eyes and pulled him closer. Blinded, Sion flailed his limbs. Ronan, who had been told he looked like her, looked down at Sita.
“—looks a lot like him.
Ronan’s face scrunched up in disbelief. It wasn’t unreasonable to mistake him for a child.
The raised eyebrows and overall appearance of his face resembled his own. Was it because of my influence when it was an egg?
“Daddy. Touch my head. Okay?”
Sita said in an affectionate voice. He was pressing his flabby cheeks against her breastbone, as he always did. I wonder if this is what it will be like to have a son–no, a daughter. Ronan, who had been blushing, stroked Sita’s hair and opened his mouth to speak.
“Hey, common sense says I don’t have a kid this big, let’s just calm down and—”
“Hmph, my poor sister!”
But there was no time left for an explanation for Erzebet, who was irrevocably traumatized. She burst into tears and fled the office, sobbing.
“Oh, goodbye!”
Zion didn’t miss a beat as he was led away. Ronan, who had been silent, tapped Valus on the shoulder.
“—Balus. Please.”
“Boo, what do you mean, please?”
“I don’t have the strength to convince her right now, and you’re still a gentleman, so go explain it to her for me.”
“What the—!”
“She can burn a mountain when she wants to, but she’s a good girl at heart, so don’t be too hard on her. I’ll make sure you get paid.”
His head throbbed with each echoing step down the stairs. Balus’s face went white with exhaustion. He fled the room, glancing back and forth between Ronan and the door.
“Eh, Erzebeth. It’s all a misunderstanding!”
“Shut up!”
The footsteps became more distant. If I regret anything now, it’s that I should have quit smoking yesterday. A day late would have been fine,” Varen said after a long pause.
“Sin, I’m sorry. I’m so embarrassed–I should have told Miss Erzebet it was a misunderstanding.”
“No, Varen. I can handle it.”
He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. Suddenly, Sita, who had been pecking him on the cheek, looked up.
“Dad. Let’s play tag.”
“Sneaky?”
“Yeah. I always wanted to try it when I became a human, because I’m big and I can’t hide–can’t you?”
His round eyes were glowing with a luminescent light. It was devastating how cute he was, even in the midst of his anger. Ronan looked down at him.
“Sita. Now is not the time for that—.”
“Catch me instead, and I’ll tell you what Dad and Varen have been wondering. You want to know how we were born, don’t you?”
“What?”
Ronan’s eyes widened. He hadn’t expected those words to come out of Sita’s mouth.
“Really?”
“Yeah. I remember every detail. Will you play with me?”
Ronan and Varen exchanged glances. Normally, it would have been impossible to catch a sitar that could fly faster than sound, but now that he was human, he had a chance.
On the contrary, it would be his first time running on two legs, so there was a chance that things would go very easily. Ronan nodded, trying to hold back his laughter.
“Okay. I’ll play.”
“Really? Really? Wow!”
“Yeah, I know, I’m just going to count to one and chase it, right?”
“Yes!”
Sita smiled brightly. For a moment, an unintelligible shiver of foreboding ran down the back of Ronan’s spine. He was about to say something. Turning her back on Ronan, Sita leapt out the window.
“Hey, that’s a window—!”
“Huh huh, Sita!”
There was no time to dry off. Varen’s mane twitched in alarm. SHIHK! The figure of Sita, who had briefly vanished from sight, reappeared.
“It’s a minute! You can’t cheat!”
He looked at Ronan and cried out. Four wings sprouted from the ground, flapping behind Sita’s back. They were so sleekly shaped that they seemed more specialized for flight than they had been as animals.
Sita laughed and turned his back. His wings moved and his body shot out at the same time.
In an instant, Sita became a black dot and disappeared into the blue sky. Ronan, who had just counted to fifteen seconds, muttered to himself.
“Shit.”