Etude of the Mischievous Mask | Chapter 6

[healingbonds]

Chapter 5 << | index | >> Chapter 7


Chloe: I want to learn transformation magic too... Can I?

Shylock: I can teach you now, but transformation magic is difficult, so it might take you some time to learn.
There’s also another problem. If your desire to change and dress up as something else is what fuels your magic, Chloe....
Once you learn transformation, your magic skills involving clothes might stop improving.

Chloe: Eh!? I can’t have that....

Akira: So it’s not as if all your magic skills will improve overall.

Shylock: Magic is used with the heart, after all. There was a young girl who wanted to win the heart of a youth, worked to become beautiful, and went on to become the star of society....
But she forgot her love for the youth because she learned the joys of being loved by the people. Just like that, magic and the heart tend to wander easily.

Chloe: Then.... I don’t want to learn transformation just yet. It can wait for when I learn how to make more beautiful clothes.
I don't want to forget how it feels just yet—the joy when I create wonderful clothes for someone, hoping that they’ll like them....

Rustica: I think that's fine. Chloe, the clothes you make are already like a special kind of magic.
Because you cannot become a bird, you're able to make clothes like the wings of a beautiful bird... That's not a tragedy, but a story of happiness.

Chloe: Yeah.. I feel the same!

Chloe laughs happily. Because you aren’t capable of something, you’re able to do something else. It’s an interesting story that suits wizards.

Murr: So what are we doing for class today then?

Shylock: Well then, why don’t we learn how to see through a guise of magical transformation?

Chloe: Seeing through a guise.... So you mean we’re going to use magic to search out what it originally was?

Shylock: Indeed. It’s easier than learning how to transform. You simply have to discover the true nature of the target.

Chloe: And how do I do that?

Shylock: You sense it with magic. Something that isn’t in its original shape usually seems uncomfortable and cramped.
Alternatively, it may seem strangely unnatural. It might be too haughty, or it might seem to be straining itself; you need to listen to the voices that speak without a sound.

Chloe: Voices that speak without a sound....

Akira: Can humans pick up on that sort of thing too?

Murr: Some people with sharp instincts can! Also, if a certain place is familiar to someone, their instincts can be more powerful than magic.

Akira: Umm... So, you might not notice it if it were part of the scenery along an outdoors path, but you might if it were in your room?

Murr: Yup yup. Or stuff you’re really interested in.
Also, shining bottles on the side of a muddy road, cats that don’t flee when they see you, and dogs that are too well-behaved — these things might be under a spell as well.

Rustica: But sometimes wizards transform into a bottle that’s too dirty, or a cat that’s too aggressive, or a dog that’s too naughty.

Akira: This sounds difficult....

Shylock: But ultimately, it is definitely out of place. The moment you utter a magic spell, what was already unnatural becomes even more unnatural.
Once you get the hang of it, I think you’ll be able to see through a transformation in no time. Shall we try putting it to practice first?

Chloe: Practice? What are we doing?

Shylock: The three of us will transform into each other, so try to figure out who’s transforming into whom.
Look the other way. Sir Sage, if you’d like, you should turn around after ten seconds as well.

Chloe: Got it.... I wonder if I can handle this....

Shylock: It’s essentially observation and speculation. When you want to get close with someone, you observe them closely and think, right?
When you’re designing clothes for others, you stare at them closely and try to discover their true nature, right? This is the same; you simply have to do what you’re good at, Chloe.

Rustica: I'll go easy on you; don't worry.

Murr: I'll get serious! Do your best!

Chloe: Yeah!

Chloe responds, full of energy. He and I turn around together.
I smile, observing how nervous Chloe is. At the same time, I feel slightly jealous.
Because I can’t use magic, I can’t utter a spell and make the unknown even more unknown.
I feel both admiration and loneliness as I support Chloe from the bottom of my heart.

Akira: (I’m jealous.... Good luck, Chloe.)

Chloe: ....3, 2, 1, 0. I’m turning around now. Is that okay?

Shylock: Yes, go ahead.

Chloe and I turn around at the same time. From left to right, Murr, Rustica, and Shylock have lined up respectively.
But they’re supposed to be different people on the inside. They’re all slightly smiling, but they don’t open their mouths to speak.

Chloe: Can I try talking to you?

Chapter 5 << | index | >> Chapter 7