episode_0175

Episode 175

The new owner of the Book of Enekra is… me?

I don’t know how grimoires choose their owners, but I can guess. In the process of unlocking Mystilia, I made a promise to her.

The reason Enekra’s Book chose me may be because it wants me to properly uncover its owner’s secret.

But I don’t have any mana?

Since he has magic vision, his sensing ability is excellent, but he doesn’t actually have the mana to use magic. Even if you obtain a grimoire, you cannot use the things written in it.

Well, it would be meaningful enough just to keep it out of Carmel’s hands…

“I understand. But I don’t have the talent to manipulate mana. But is the condition for the existence of a witch still met?”

– yes. It’s enough just to be recognized as the master by the grimoire. But who told you that you don’t have the talent to manipulate mana?

“…Yes?”

I think that’s what most people I met said… including Carmel.

Moreover, I can’t actually see any mana flow from my body. He has no choice but to calmly admit that he has no talent.

– You don’t have a talent for manipulating mana. On the contrary, I can say that it is very excellent. However, since they are born with a constitution that cannot produce mana, they simply have no mana to use.

“Then even if you have talent, it’s useless.”

– You could use magic if you drew mana from somewhere other than your own body. I’m sure you’ve actually seen something that works that way, right?

Ah… I did.

Earthyong’s Gauntlet was an item that worked in that way. Rather than using a magic stone that emits its own mana, it absorbs and stores the mana of the earth.

Does that mean I can use the same method? But how?

“How can I do that?”

– I think it would be difficult for me to say that much. The reason I called you here is to prevent the world from heading towards destruction, not to provide you with unnecessary help.

‘It’s cruel…’

Well, it’s enough that I presented the possibility of using magic. Moreover, it even gave a hint on how to solve it. It would be extravagant to expect more from the Tree of Knowledge.

“I understand. So what do I need to do to become the owner of the Book of Enekra?”

– Follow Von Gerard, a member of the Guardian clan. He will guide you to the Magic Library and to where the Book of Enekra is located. Oh, I should warn you about one more thing.

“What is it?”

– Just because you are newly qualified to become a master does not mean that Carmel’s qualifications are abolished. So keep the Book of Enekra out of her reach.

“What happens if it touches you?”

– The Book of Enekra will be your choice. You or Carmel, which one is more suitable as a master? I guess that’s all I can say.

After that there were no more messages from the Tree of Knowledge. I don’t know if he was listening, but I turned around and said hello to the tree.

* * *

It seemed that von Gerrard had already received a revelation from the tree. As soon as I said my first words, he immediately led me to the magic library.

Unlike the basement of the mansion where the Tree of Knowledge was, which was quite ordinary, the sight of the Magic Library soaring into the sky was truly spectacular. It’s a bit ironic, considering that the Tree of Knowledge felt almost like a deity.

“This is the magic library. This is another mission of our Gerard family that goes hand in hand with the history of Lustier. A total of 31 types of grimoires lie dormant here, waiting for their owners. One of them may have an owner soon.”

Von Gerrard’s voice conveys pride in his clan’s mission. I listened to him quietly and then asked a question.

“If I obtain the Book of Enekra here, will that fact become known to the world?”

“We do not separately announce that the owner of the grimoire has been determined. However, if there is an inquiry, I will respond. Of course, that also depends on the will of the Tree of Knowledge.”

So, this means that I can keep the fact that I have become the owner of the Book of Enekra a secret to some extent. If the Tree of Knowledge cooperates with me, I can keep the secret a little longer.

No, no.

If Carmel is still unable to let go of her attachment to the Book of Enekra, it is highly likely that she is continuously making inquiries about the Book of Magic. If so, you might get caught pretty quickly.

“Dear Mother, has Queen Carmel recently inquired about the Book of Enekra?”

“I cannot answer that. Because we, the Gerard family, must always remain neutral.”

“Hmm, that’s right.”

Von Gerard placed his right arm against the organ installed in front of the Magic Library. Magical energy like tree roots covered his hands, and then the door to the magic library opened majestically with a screeching sound.

As I entered, I saw a place that looked like an altar. In the middle of it, a book was placed on a pedestal made of straight-cut stone.

This is a huge waste of space. Is one floor devoted to one book?

I followed von Gerrard up to the altar. As I got closer, I saw the cover of an old and worn book. There was something written there in unreadable letters.

“Is this the Book of Enekra?”

“No, this is ‘Song of Fire and Stars’. The Book of Enekra is located on another floor.”

So how do you get there? There are no stairs in sight. Although it is difficult to walk up a tower so high in the sky.

“You may feel a little dizzy. Be careful not to fall.”

After saying that, mana was released from Gerard’s body. I wondered if the altar was absorbing mana, and the magic spell engraved on the floor began to glow. At that moment, as he warned, my body briefly stumbled.

what? It’s not just about staggering. The surrounding scene changed slightly. It’s similar to before, but there seems to be a difference in the details…

“The current location is the 16th floor of the Magic Library. What is in front of you now is the Book of Enekra.”

A book with a green cover was placed on a pedestal above the altar.

The text is still unreadable. Even with the princess’ level of knowledge, she couldn’t even figure out what kind of letter it was. Compared to what we saw on the first floor, the state of preservation seemed relatively good.

“So what should we do now?”

“The princess has already been recognized as the owner of the Book of Enekra. All you have to do is do what you need to do as an owner.”

If I were to act as the owner of a book… it would be something like this.

I reached for the book on the stand with a slightly nervous heart. Even when I touched the book, there was no unusual phenomenon. I gathered more courage and lifted the book from the stand with both hands.

At that moment, a small amount of mana flowed from the book to me. It is black magic. It was similar to the deep, cloudy black mana that made up Mystilia. But there was hardly any ominous feeling. It feels like it has been diluted hundreds of times.

I looked at the cover again cautiously. This time I could read it.

‘A collection of dark magic to control people’s minds, painstakingly written by myself, the great witch Enekra, the master of the dark things.’

It’s long. Was it popular to title things like this in the old days? Let’s just call it the Book of Enekra.

I quickly flipped through a few pages to check the contents. As stated in the title, this was closer to a practical book that compiled the magic recipes created by Enekra. At least it didn’t seem like there would be much talk about Enekra and Luke the Great.

“Shall we just go down?”

“Ah, yes.”

Von Gerard used the magic from earlier again to return the altar we were on to the first floor. Because I knew it in advance, I didn’t really stumble this time.

“With this, the princess has become a proud holder of the grimoire both in name and reality. You can return the Book of Enekra that you are currently holding here and recall it at any time. Would you like to give it a try?”

“Revert it? Well, I’ll try.”

“In that case, hold the grimoire in your hand and try to follow along. ‘Insra.’”

“Insra.”

At that moment, the Book of Enekra in my hand disappeared in an instant. But somehow I was able to know its location. I’m back where I was before, on the 16th floor of this magic library.

“Thanks to their connection, the grimoire and its owner can instinctively know each other’s location. Would you like to call it again this time? ‘Outra.’”

“Outtra.”

In an instant, the Book of Enekra reappeared in my hand. It was my first time using magic and I felt quite amazed.

huh? You used magic?

“Well, where does the mana to use this magic come from? I am of a constitution that does not have mana…”

Von Gerrard looked very puzzled.

You don’t have “mana? But why were you chosen by the grimoire?”

“I don’t know. I just accepted it because the Tree of Knowledge said so. Anyway, it is clear that Enekra’s Book chose me, and it is also clear that I do not have mana.”

Von Gerrard nodded and said with an expression of understanding.

“Indeed, this too is probably the mystery of mana. okay. To answer the question you just asked, the magic was probably activated using the mana held by the grimoire.”

“Mana possessed by the grimoire…?”

Yes, indeed, when I touched the Tome of Enekra, mana flowed into me from the grimoire. That means the grimoire has mana.

So, this means that I can use magic by using the mana contained in the grimoire. Controlling my excited mind, I asked the question that came to mind again.

“I see. So what happens if you consume the mana from the grimoire? How do I refill?”

“Um… As far as I know, there is no such way. It consumes all the mana in the grimoire… This is a case that is generally difficult to think about.”

“Why?”

“Until now, the only people who possessed grimoires were excellent mages. There was no need to use the mana that the grimoire had. Compared to their own powerful mana, the mana contained in items is extremely shallow.”

“Hmm… But I heard that there is a magic in the world that allows you to recycle used magic stones. Can’t I use the same magic on the grimoire?”

“Generally, the mana contained in magic stones has inanimate properties. However, grimoires containing the author’s personality are different. If it contains mana with completely different characteristics, it will only be ruined. Unless the compatibility is very good.”

To summarize, is this the story?

Having the Book of Enekra allowed me to use magic. According to Enekra, ‘dark magic that controls people’s minds.’

However, the mana to use it is extremely limited. A small amount of mana contained in the Book of Enekra. Because that’s all I have. It’s like having a battery that can’t be recharged.

This means that even though he possesses a grimoire, he cannot show off his fearsome majesty like Carmel in the novel. Unless it’s a really, really important moment, it might be better to forget about magic.

Well, not much will change. All you have to do is do what you have done so far. The addition of the final card called magic can be said to be a sufficient harvest.