6-3 The Price
I finished reading the [Record] in my room. Despite the book’s considerable thickness, the pages with text didn’t even fill half of it.
No matter how much I flipped through, no more of his messages appeared.
The book, impervious to any interference, repelled even my tears, which slid off its surface.
Of course, reading the [Record] doesn’t allow me to remember Marius.
It’s just a vague feeling that “someone like that might have existed.”
However, his presence completely filled the hole in my heart.
The other visitor besides Father, the reason I could easily master magic, the missing book, the hazy memories of a friend…
The image of Marius’s gaze, which shouldn’t be in my memory, flashes in my mind. Eyes that purely cared for me, overlapping with the way my attendants look at me.
Even in my previous life, I wasn’t completely alone. There was at least one person who cared about me.
Why wasn’t I satisfied with that? Why did I seek more?
I was foolish.
I only wanted to become a queen, but I had nothing I wanted to do as one.
Yet I clung to the position of the crown prince’s fiancée and lost my only precious friend.
I’m not worth Marius sacrificing his very existence to save me.
In comparison, Marius was a magician with a promising future.
…I must bring Marius back to this world.
Magic demands a price. If so, I should offer something to the world in Marius’s place.
Preparing a substitute person is easy enough.
About a week has passed since I read the [Record].
My wavering heart has finally found peace. You could say I’ve made up my mind.
To bring Marius back to this world, an appropriate magical ritual must be performed, but it’s difficult for me.
There are two types of magicians: those who unleash magic as violence, and those who study magic to benefit people. I’m a typical example of the former, so I’m not suited for ritual magic.
However, among my attendants, there’s a capable magician who can handle both types.
Alice. An expressionless bookworm, the embodiment of thirst for knowledge. She possesses an astonishing memory that allows her to remember everything from books she’s read. Her vast knowledge enables her to use a wide range of magic, and she’s even recommended for the Seven Stars.
I summoned Alice to my room.
The red-haired magician wore her usual faint expression.
“Alice, I want to bring back someone who offered their existence to the world as a price for magic.”
“Yes.”
I didn’t want to mention that I’m living a second life, so my explanation was quite vague, but Alice responded simply. I wonder if she really understands?
“Do you understand? To bring back someone lost as a price for magic, we need a substitute person?”
“I understand, Lady Selina. You want a ritual to replace the price, correct?”
Her quick understanding is helpful, but I wish she’d show a bit of surprise. I’m talking with quite some resolve here.
“The magic this person used… the price can’t be just anyone. We also need the person’s willingness to become the price, but…”
“Presumably, since this magic affects the world, it doesn’t just require existence, but also a directed will.”
As expected of Alice. With just a little information, she can predict what comes next.
“I want to bring back the person who became that price. Do you know the specific ritual?”
“I do.”
It was an immediate answer. Alice started learning magic at ten years old. Much later than me. Yet, her knowledge of magic is incredibly deep. Is this what they call a genius? She might even surpass Marius.
“What should we do?”
“The most difficult part is that we need a catalyst related to the person who became the price. Without something to connect us, we can’t reach that person. Moreover, since they offered their existence as a price, there should be no trace of that person left in this world.”
I see, that is indeed difficult. Under normal circumstances.
“I have a catalyst.”
I took out the [Record]. The unique artifact created by Marius. It should be sufficient as a connecting catalyst.
“Don’t read the contents. It’s precious to me.”
Alice received the [Record] respectfully and used magic to examine its nature without opening the book. It’s a magic used to check the authenticity and history of objects.
“…An artifact in the form of a book. By fixing the time axis, it completely excludes external influences. It might be difficult for most to understand, but magically, this is an extraordinary book. Indeed, this could continue to exist even if the world changed. If this book belonged to the person who became the price, it will serve as a catalyst.”
She’s worthy of being a Seven Stars candidate. She easily saw through that it was an artifact.
“What else do we need?”
“Magic demands a price. We’ll need a person to serve as a substitute. Who will you choose as the substitute?”
“…I haven’t decided yet.”
If I ordered it, my attendants would unhesitatingly become substitutes. As proof, Alice in front of me shows no hesitation about substituting someone.
“How long will it take to prepare for this ritual?”
“Since we have the catalyst ready, if you give me about a week…”
“A week? That soon?”
I was surprised, thinking it would take at least twice that long.
“A week will be fine. I’ll proceed with the ritual preparations, so please select the substitute, Lady Selina. Even if it’s me, that’s fine. Our lives exist for your sake, after all.”
“………..”
I couldn’t respond to those words, and Alice, as if it were proper etiquette, quietly left the room without waiting for an answer.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
Although I had various doubts, I decided to tell my attendants about the ritual. According to Alice, the more magical power, the higher the success rate, so we’d need collaborators anyway.
Besides, they’ve been following me for eight years, always keeping a close eye on my every move. It’s not uncommon for them to predict my actions. That’s how they’ve been trained.
They’ve probably already sensed that I’m trying to do something. There’s no point in hiding it.
I gathered all my attendants and gave them the same explanation I gave Alice.
“If this person is important to Lady Selina, we would gladly become the price.”
Oscar said without changing his expression. I thought they might have other questions, but my attendants accepted it calmly, without any particular inquiries.
In the end, cowardly me hid the fact that I’m living a second life. I didn’t want them to know that I was executed for worthless reasons in my previous life. I didn’t want to disappoint my attendants and lose their loyalty.
“Does it have to be a human? How about capturing some monsters to substitute?”
Richard asked a casual question. It’s not a sacrifice but a price, but I suppose they might be similar.
“For the world, there isn’t much difference between monsters and humans, but the premise requires a willing intention to become the price, so it would be difficult with monsters. Also, based on the legend that humans were created in the image of gods, other races can’t be an equal exchange for a human. Multiple substitutes would likely be required. It’s probably impossible to prepare multiple monsters willing to become the price.”
Alice clearly rejected Richard’s suggestion.
“Hmph, even though there’s not much difference between humans and monsters, humans seem quite overvalued. I think humans should be at the bottom.”
Oscar sarcastically commented on humans being highly valued as a price.
“Why not choose someone suitable from among the academy students? Since their very existence will disappear, there shouldn’t be a problem, right?”
Isabel made a rather cruel suggestion.
“We don’t know how loyal the chosen person would be to Lady Selina, and in the worst case, there’s a risk of information leaking out. In that case, it could tarnish Lady Selina’s name, so I wouldn’t recommend it.”
Alice opposed this idea as well.
“Then I’ll do it.”
Louis raised his hand.
“I’m the least useful among us, so I’ll do it.”
There was no sense of tragedy in his words; he even had a smile on his face. Louis isn’t useless at all. He’s a first-class priest with a promising future.
“No jumping the gun, Louis.”
Richard approached Louis with a scary face.
“You’re not the only one who wants to be useful to Lady Selina. I’ll do it.”
“No, I will.” “No, I will.” From there, a competition of volunteers began. Even though their existence would disappear, meaning I wouldn’t even remember if they were useful or not, why would they want to become such a thing? I can’t understand it at all.
“I will decide who becomes the price. I won’t allow any objections.”
Saying that, I put an end to the fruitless discussion.
TLNOTE : While waiting, I implore you dear readers to read other masterpiece novels that also written by the same author :
- When the Monster Meat I Ate Led Me to the Throne
- Who killed the Hero?
- The Suspects of Necromancy
- The Exiled Merchant Saves the World with the Power of Gold (translated by my friend meerkat)
Also check out my friend Localizermeerkat for more LN translations!
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