It's been awhile since I came to this world. I died in Academy City, and woke up as a baby in a hospital room. Four years of peace with parents who actually loved me. Then Fuyuki burned, and they were gone.
Grandpa Sougen taught me magecraft, opened my circuits and gave me the family crest.
He left right after. I mean, he still calls me but I don't get guidance from him anymore.
Now I'm nine, working for a Sealing Designate named Touko Aozaki, cleaning up her messes in exchange for ley line access. I've captured fairies, built a flying beetle from clay and chipmunk parts, and spent way too many nights in this workshop.
Dark Matter's still out of reach. But I'm getting closer. I might not have to actually create a pseudo personal reality to get it back.
I learned a bit more about what origins are.
From what I dug up, an Origin is the starting point that defines a person's existence, the driving force that comes from the Root itself and takes material form. Everyone has one. It's not something you choose; it's the fundamental direction that's been with you since before you were born, carrying through every reincarnation.
Most people never awaken to their Origin. They live their whole lives with it as background noise, an unconscious compulsion that shapes their choices without them ever knowing . But if someone does awaken, through the right ritual, they become something else entirely. The Origin overrides everything. That hundred-year personality you built? It gets consumed by something that's been running since the beginning of existence.
I think that makes sense with my obsession with dark matter before I died. I must have had an origin awakening of some sort before I died. When I was fighting Accelerator and Mugino, I couldn't care less about anything else except how far it could go. When I get my dark matter back I might get consumed by it entirely. But that's just speculation right now. I'll come to it when the time comes.
But today I'm asking for something way more bold.
"Touko, is there anything you could teach me at all?"
Touko frowned, putting down the papers she was holding.
She was looking at me with a quizzical expression before replying.
"Teach you what?"
"Honestly? Any magecraft at all. I don't mind exchanging secrets in exchange."
Touko's eyebrow arched. She set the papers down fully now, giving me her complete attention. "Kakine, don't overstep and just stick to stacking boxes. You haven't even done your general fundamentals at the clock tower yet." She replied before going back to her papers.
"100000 yen a month." I reply with a flat voice.
She set the pen down and turned to face me fully.
"You're trying to pay me. To teach you magecraft."
"Yes."
"Give a higher price and I'll consider it."
"240000 yen a month and I'll throw in some family secrets of mine."
This piqued her interest. Her eyebrows arched higher.
"Family secrets." She tapped her cigarette. "From the Kakine line? Your ancestors research on mineralogy?" I didn't confirm or deny the statement. She studied me for a long moment before she let out a sigh.
"You're either very confident or very reckless." She said while pondering. "Two forty a month. Access to your family notes, you keep doing the grunt work when I call and you call me master."
…
Is this woman serious? She's absolutely infuriating and I can't even do anything about it. I sighed, before holding out my hand. She shook it with a firm grip.
"Lessons start next week," she said, already turning back to her papers. "I'm a strict teacher, so don't be late."
"One more thing," Touko called.
I stopped.
"If your 'family magecraft' turns out to be lackluster I'm doubling the payment."
I glanced back. "They're not."
"Good. Get out."
I slammed the door again and accidentally ran into that woman that gives me the creeps. The one that wears a red jacket and a blue kimono everyday. I'm surprised that it doesn't smell bad. She looked down on me with those piercing black eyes that felt like they could see through me. Before ignoring my presence and walking into Touko's office.
Fuck, she's scary. I don't know why but I get this intense feeling whenever I see her. I've personally seen her fight before and she's extremely quick. She can tear through steel with a mere butter knife and pretty much cut through anything. I don't intend to get on her bad side anytime soon.
I got back home and brought out two knives made out of minerals. They were two daggers made out of different stones of all kinds.
The first one was made by our original ancestor. I can't bother to remember his name, but this dagger itself is pretty interesting.
I unsheathed it and pulled out the invisible blade.
You heard me. The invisible blade.
This dagger can send out invisible slashes, wind blades that travel through the air without any visual distortion. No flash, no distortion, nothing. Just a sharp edge you can't see coming until it's already hit you.
I swung it lightly toward the wall. A thin line carved itself into the plaster five meters away.
Perfect.
The second dagger was simpler. Denser. Made from compressed obsidian and reinforced with enough structural spells to cut through concrete. But there is another aspect to it. This one can absorb the malignancy of evil spirits. It could turn said malignancy into powerful slashes that can let out extremely harmful curses to an opponent. Or you could just use it for rituals like how most of my family used it. The problem is that there's no limit to how much you absorb, so it could consume you if you're not careful.
I set them both on the workbench, side by side. I'll probably send the obsidian one to Touko. I don't plan on sending the original to her anyway.
I then look through my shelves for any books or grimoires we might have. I pulled out like six of them that we kept there. A lot of these are based on summoning familiars that my family doesn't use anymore. Or I don't use it anymore, to be corrected. In all honesty a lot of these old books are quite worthless. Magi stick to tradition too much, all of these old books I've refined into newer and more modern methods.
I flipped through one, it was dusty, leather-bound and the diagrams of summoning circles took like three hours to draw. For what? A familiar that can deliver messages slightly faster than a pigeon?
I've already built a self-sustaining beetle that runs on ambient light. These books are relics.
Still, Touko doesn't know that. To her, old grimoires mean value. She'll take one look at the dates and the author names and think she's getting something rare.
I pick up the box and check the clock.
Honestly, it's kinda late tonight. It would be better for me to just go tomorrow. But I also don't wanna leave this errand until later.
I let out a sigh before leaving my workshop and heading out the door. The night air hits me immediately. My scooter's still parked where I left it. Sadly, I'm forced to walk there because I can't carry this box while riding.
Great.
I adjust my grip on the box and start walking. The streets are empty this late, just streetlights and the occasional distant car. My footsteps echo off the buildings.
About twenty minutes in, I'm deep into the city when I see her. Shiki. The creepy one in the red jacket and blue kimono. She turns into a narrow alleyway without looking back.
...
What is she doing out here this late? Honestly, I really shouldn't be following her down and just focus on my own task, but my own curiosity is telling me to just check. But honestly, this setup is looking really bad for me if I go down there. I mean, I'm a child holding a box going down a dark alley at night time. I can tell that's a recipe for disaster. So I decide to just turn the other way and continue, until I get to the shop.
Twenty more minutes of walking and I'm there. The lights are still on in Touko's office. I climb the stairs, knock on the door, and push it open without waiting for an answer.
Touko looks up from her desk, cigarette dangling from her lips.
"You're still awake," I say.
"So are you." She eyes the box. "That for me?"
I set it on the nearest clear surface, which takes some effort, given the clutter.
"I'll let you look at these in the meantime, but there's a dagger that can absorb evil spirits and a ton of grimoires on summoning familiars." Touko raises an eyebrow. She sets her cigarette down and pulls the obsidian dagger from the box, turning it over in her hands.
"Absorb evil spirits," she repeats. "That's specific."
"It can also turn that absorbed malignancy into cursed slashes. No limit on absorption, so it might consume if you don't use it cautiously."
"Decent craftsmanship. The property is interesting, not something you see every day." She sets it down and pulls out one of the grimoires, flipping through a few pages. "And these?"
"Summoning circles, but honestly those are worthless if you ask me. But some bum at the clock tower might pay a pretty price for them."
Touko snorts, flipping through another page.
"Worthless is relative." She holds up the grimoire, showing the faded diagrams. "The Clock Tower has collectors who'd pay decent money for originals like this. Even if the mystery itself is outdated, the historical value matters to some people."
I shrug. "Then sell them. I don't care."
She sets the book down and picks up the dagger again, examining it under the lamp light.
"You're really just handing these over? No conditions?"
"We already made the deal. Two forty a month and you teach me." I meet her eyes. "These are just the first installment."
Touko studies me for a long moment. Then she laughs quietly.
"You're weird, kid." She sets the dagger down. "Most magi your age would hoard every scrap of family knowledge like it was their last breath. While you're practically giving away a fortune."
I shrug. "I could recreate half of this old shit, in a month and better."
Touko raises an eyebrow. "Old shit?" She holds up the dagger. "This 'old shit' could buy a small house."
"Then sell it. I don't care."
She sets the dagger down and studies me with that sharp, assessing gaze.
"You really don't, do you?" She leans back. "Most kids your age, hell, most magi your age, would kill for this kind of inheritance. And you're practically handing it over."
I meet her gaze without blinking. "It's not like I'm losing anything."
Touko tilts her head slightly. "Is that so?"
"If I understand the structure, I can reproduce the function. If I can reproduce the function, the original doesn't matter."
Silence lingers for a second.
She taps ash into the tray and leans forward again, elbows on the desk.
"You talk more like a researcher than a magus."
"Magus are researchers at heart. Strip them of their bloodlines, mystic codes and superiority complex and they're researchers to their core."
"Say's the nine-year-old with a superiority complex."
To her it sounds like I have one, but I'm genuinely just better than any nine year old there is. Most magecraft itself, can be outdone by simple modern weapons. I mean, what the fuck is a bounded field gonna do if I shoot you with a railgun?
She flips open another grimoire, scanning the summoning formulae. Her eyes move quickly. Faster than most people would think possible.
"These aren't as outdated as you think," she says. "They're inefficient, yes. But the base theory is solid. You've modified them, haven't you?"
I don't answer.
Her lips curve slightly.
"Thought so."
She closes the book and stacks the grimoires neatly.
"I'll appraise these properly later. The dagger too. If I sell them, your payment decreases accordingly."
Wait what? I thought the books were part of the payment. I guess she's just feeling generous.
"Um... thanks?"
"Don't thank me yet. The appraisal might come back lower than you think." She stubs out her cigarette. "Now get out of here. It's late, and I'm about to close."
I nod and turn to leave, but pause at the door.
"Hey Touko?"
"What?"
"Death is something that manifests from the body and is imposed over the soul right?"
Touko doesn't answer immediately.
That alone tells me I've asked something interesting.
She leans back in her chair, studying me through the thin curl of cigarette smoke.
"That's a very loaded question for this hour of the night."
"Humor me."
She clicks her tongue softly.
"Death isn't something that manifests from the body," she says. "It's a phenomenon imposed on the body. More accurately, it's a boundary condition."
"A boundary condition," I repeat.
"The point at which a system can no longer maintain its structure." She taps ash into the tray. "When the body collapses, the soul detaches from it and the World records the result."
"So it starts with the body."
"Usually."
I narrow my eyes slightly. "Usually?"
"There are different types of death," she says flatly. "Biological death. Spiritual death. Conceptual death. Curses that define 'ending' as a property."
"Ok, here's another question, would you say someone's body is connected to their origin then?"
Touko's eyes sharpen slightly at that. She studies me for a moment, then exhales slowly.
"Yes," she says. "But not in the way you're thinking."
I stay quiet, waiting for her answer. "The body is built along the blueprint of the soul," she continues. "And the soul carries the Origin. So in that sense, yes, your body is aligned to it."
"Aligned."
"Your tendencies. Your instincts. The way your circuits develop. Even the kind of magecraft you're naturally compatible with. All of it leans toward your origin."
"So the body reflects it."
"To a degree."
She taps her finger against the desk.
"But the body is still just a vessel. It limits expression. It filters it. An awakened Origin bypasses that filter."
I don't like the way she says that.
"Bypasses how?"
"You stop bending toward it subconsciously," she replies. "You become it consciously. The personality you've constructed gets overridden."
"So if someone's Origin was… let's say, something destructive."
"They'd destroy without any restraint."
A silence settles between us in the room.
I look back at my hand, then at Touko.
"Hey?"
"What."
"Is there any way to grow back limbs?"