Fragnt: An Apple, Flowers, and the Passed Stone?Blade
“I don’t understand what’s going on with that Book seller.”
Mirepoc said.
She was in Bantorra Library’s on-site hospital wing.
A week had passed since the battle with Cigal Crukessa. Mirepoc had been admitted to the Library’s hospital. Both Mattalast, who was in the next room, and Hamyuts, who was in the next room after that, laid down their wounded bodies.
Mirepoc had no injuries, but she was forcibly admitted due to the fear of her having contracted Dragon Pneumonia. She was dissatisfied to have been hospitalized over nothing like that.
Other Ard Librarians headed for Toatt Mining Town. Due to Shiron’s cure, it seed that there were no casualties.
Mirepoc, who had nothing to do, thought back and tried to reason about the past events.
Her conversation partner sat next to her on a chair and peeled an apple.
“You an that person who gave Shiron-san’s Books to Colio Tonies-kun?”
“Yes. I just can’t understand what’s going on with him.”
“He certainly is a strange person.”
Mirepoc was talking with Ireia Kitty, an aged Ard Librarian who was in active duty.
Her age was probably around sixty years old. She smiled towards Mirepoc as if she were her grandchild.
She was an elderly woman, slightly plump and dressed in an elegant apron dress.
She was Mirepoc’s senior, but due to being friendly she was able to easily strike up conversation with anyone.
She was a woman who people trusted in a different sense than with Hamyuts.
“There are plenty of odd things here. Just him having the fragnts of Shiron’s Book was odd by itself, but he even passed those to Colio Tonies three tis.
That is too much to be a re coincidence.”
“Was that Book seller involved in sothing important?”
“I believe so. There’s no doubt.”
Mirepoc strongly nodded.
“But, I don’t think he’s an enemy. He indirectly helped save the Director and kill Cigal. He’s a third party aware of the situation but not an ally…”
“It might have just happened to be that way. Even God couldn’t have expected Colio-kun to beat Cigal.”
“Still, there should be sothing here.”
Mirepoc held up her hair while thinking. Ireia was cutting an apple with elegant hand movents.
“What did Hamyuts-san and Mattalast-san say?”
“They didn’t say anything. Mattalast doesn’t know anything. And when I asked the Director about the Book seller she only said ‘Really? That’s strange’.”
Mirepoc said while imitating the tone of Hamyuts.
“When I’m discharged from here I think I’ll pursue that Book seller. There’s definitely sothing going on with him.”
“This apple is delicious.”
Ireia passed the plate to Mirepoc. Mirepoc obediently received it and the two of them started grabbing the slices of the apple that was cut into eight parts.
When only one apple slice remained, Ireia opened her mouth.
“Lascall Othello.”
“Huh?”
Mirepoc’s hand that extended to grab the apple was stopped when she heard that unfamiliar na.
“Children right now may not know of it, but when I was young there was a fairy tale circulating in the Library.
The Book seller Lascall Othello.
He was a Book seller that found the ones dead people desired and gave their Books to them. Such was the rumor whispered around.
Girls in love called the na of Lascall Othello so he could pass their Books to the boys they couldn’t confess to.”
Mirepoc, who had no interest in love stories, answered coolly.
“…What is that supposed to be?”
“Aren’t you interested?”
“…I’m not a romantic person.
But it does add up.
In order to grant Shiron’s wishes, this Lascall Othello carried her Book to Colio.
Certainly sounds like a fairy tale.”
“…Mirepoc-san. Did Hamyuts-san really not say anything about Lascall?”
“She didn’t.”
As Mirepoc answered, Ireia put a hand on her cheek and thought with her eyes closed.
She had assud a serious expression at so point.
“A while ago, there were suspicions that perhaps Lascall Othello actually exists.”
Mirepoc didn’t know of this. It was probably from before she beca an Ard Librarian.
“If he were to actually exist, he couldn’t be allowed to trade and traffic Books. The previous Acting Director ordered so Ard Librarians to investigate him. I was also involved.”
“…What were the results of that investigation?”
Ireia shook her head.
“Nothing ca out.”
“You found nothing?”
“No. The investigation was aborted.”
Ireia’s tone beca very serious.
“That investigation was cancelled five year ago. It was just after Hamyuts replaced the Acting Director.”
“…”
“Yes, Hamyuts stopped it. Imdiately after she assud office. She said it was due to it being a waste of ti and effort.”
Mirepoc made a bored answer.
“Then that settles it. Lascall Othello doesn’t exist. That’s it.”
“But is that really true?”
“What is?”
“I wonder if Hamyuts-san actually thinks Lascall Othello doesn’t exist.”
“What do you an?”
“Perhaps Hamyuts-san…”
Ireia stopped talking. Mirepoc waited for her to continue but she rely shook her head while smiling.
“Never mind. Forget I said anything.”
Ireia said and picked the last piece of the apple.
Around the sa ti, in a distant place…
The storm as well as the terrifying calamity created by Dragon Pneumonia and Cigal Crukessa have already passed away from Toatt Mining Town.
The Ard Librarians had already made the dicine for all the sick people and restored the various destroyed houses and shops to their forr state.
A single man stood in this town.
He was at a small vacant lot on the outskirts of town.
It was the place where Hyoue Janfus and Carthello Mashea, as well as Colio Tonies and Cigal Crekessa, have lost their lives.
The man looked at three flower bouquets left in the corner of that vacant lot.
They were three bouquets of the sa size with the sa flowers. It was probably the sa person that brought all three here.
The flowers were probably intended for Carthello, Hyoue, and Colio. The man knew that there was no person who would mourn Cigal Crukessa’s death.
So, who put those flowers here? He didn’t think Hamyuts would do such a sentintal thing.
Mirepoc? Mattalast? But they didn’t have any connection with those people.
It surely was Ia Mira, that kind-hearted escort lady. Recalling her face, he suddenly broke into a smile. It was rather considerate of her to leave flowers for Hyoue Janfus who she didn’t know at all, the man thought.
That man was called Lascall Othello.
He was the Book seller who passed Shiron’s Books to Colio before.
“Let’s get to work.”
Lascall muttered.
His tone was completely different than when he was dealing with Colio.
It was a polite tone that seed to also have unfathomable depths to it.
Lascall Othello leaned on the ground and pulled a dagger from inside his breast pocket.
It was a small dagger. It was of a size that probably made it convenient to be cutting fruits with.
Its hilt was made of oak, and it was shaped like a human arm. However, the shape of the hand was like that of a human who gasped in agony as their hand tried reaching the sky.
The blade extended from around where the elbow would be. It was a straight, double-edged blade around the sa length of the hilt.
Oddly enough, the blade was made of stone.
Lascall held that stone blade with a backhand grip and lowered it to the ground.
“morial Weapon – Passed Stone Blade Yor.”
Lascall called the na of the dagger. And then that dagger – Passed Stone Blade Yor – pierced through the ground.
As it did, the ground surrounding it hardened in the blink of an eye. When Lascall pulled out the dagger, the part of the ground gouged out beca a single Book.
It was supposedly an impossible phenonon.
Only Past God Bantorra could fossilize a person’s soul, and it could not be made artificially no matter what kind of Magic was used.
It was impossible for humans and even for Future God Orntorra or Present God Toitorra.
However, Lascall Othello made the impossible happen with Passed Stone Blade Yor as if it was natural.
The man took out a sticky label from a toolbox. That label was of the kind that Librarians and Book sellers used regularly.
He stuck that label and then wrote the na of the Book‘s owner on it with a charcoal pencil.
‘Cigal Crukessa’
The man took the Book from inside the soil and brushed it off.
He then muttered,
“I was surprised he managed to corner Hamyuts, but… it didn’t go well at all afterwards.”
He said while looking at the Book.
“However, it was good I was able to obtain it.”
Saying this, he put Cigal Crukessa’s Book inside his bag.
“The value of the Indulging God Cult had fallen.”
Then, after muttering sothing under his breath, he disappeared into the ground as if his body lted.
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