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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Dolphin
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*Clomp, clomp.*
With steps neither slow nor rushed, Axel reached his destination, lifted a cup full of water, and held it out to me.
“Drink. It seems we have a long talk ahead of us.”
I eyed Axel suspiciously as I took the cup he offered.
*This kid, Axel, is the type to have water poured for him, not the type to offer such kindness.*
But on second thought, he had always been rather kind to children.
During our expedition, whenever we met children, he would share his snacks with them.
At times like that, he would shed his stiff, unpleasant demeanor and even smile first.
Recalling that image, my suspicion faded a little.
*Even if I have memories of my past life, right now, I’m just a kid!*
Which meant I was qualified to receive Axel Elpinade’s kindness.
Axel waited quietly as I gulped down the cool water. The moment the cup was empty, he spoke with perfect timing.
“To be honest, I don’t believe in gods. Mages are usually like that.”
I nodded to myself.
Though Axel and I clashed on nearly everything, we saw eye to eye on that point.
“But if the voice of a god you heard revealed the truth about the incident my comrade was caught up in… that’s a different story.”
It felt strange to hear Axel so casually refer to me as ‘my comrade.’
We had always been at each other’s throats, never using such affectionate terms.
I stood on my tiptoes to barely place the empty cup on the table, then planted my hands firmly on my hips.
“I don’t bewieve in gods either.”
“…Weren’t you called a Saintess?”
“Dat was what the quack pwiest said.”
At the words “quack priest,” Axel’s eyes widened slightly.
Only irreverent mages like us—me and Axel—would ever call the esteemed Cardinal Bael, who was revered by all in the empire, such a name.
While I was at it, I started spilling stories that only a fellow expedition member would know.
“The quack pwiest is a thief. The spiwit user sleeps wif socks on. The dumb white mage…”
With each mention of a party member, Axel’s eyes grew a little wider.
“The dumb white mage has athlete’s foot.”
“Nonsense!”
Axel’s face turned red as he quickly retorted.
Of course, his rebuttal was justified.
The pristine young nobleman had likely gone his whole life without knowing what athlete’s foot even was.
I just wanted to see him fuming like that again after so long.
Seeing the same old Axel made me realize that this was, in fact, reality.
As he watched me giggle, Axel took a deep breath and asked.
“Why haven’t you mentioned Kirke?”
Kirke was the Sword Master Prince who had acted as the leader of our expedition.
Though he was the emperor now.
“Awe you cwazy? Messing wif woyalty is a pain. You shouldn’t say his name so casually either.”
My cockiness had its limits, and that limit was Axel.
No matter how reckless a black mage I was, I knew to fear the power of the imperial family.
“…”
Clearly feeling a sense of déjà vu, Axel frowned, his eyes filled with a complex mix of emotions as he looked at me.
He seemed to realize I wasn’t just spouting nonsense.
“What in the world… are you?”
Yes.
This was the question I had been waiting for.
If he was asking who I was, the answer was quite simple.
“Greslin. And Lesia.”
“What…?”
“I weincarnated.”
“Whaat…?”
“Well… dat’s how it happened.”
“…”
My nonchalant tone left Axel speechless again, his mouth hanging open.
I waited patiently for him to sort through his thoughts.
Reincarnation.
I understood it was hard to believe at first.
Even I was dumbfounded when it first happened to me.
“You…”
Lost in confusion, Axel pressed a hand to his head and began to speak seriously.
I braced myself, determined to answer any question perfectly, my eyes wide.
“If you’re really Greslin… why do you talk in such a half-witted way?”
That was a point I found deeply unfair myself.
Ultimately, the brain determines thought and action.
Isn't the brain of a kid one month shy of five closer to a dolphin's than a full-grown human's?
No matter how adult my mind was, everything got downgraded passing through a brain at the level of an immature dolphin.
Even when I tried to articulate an incredibly high-level thought, what actually came out was fragmented and simplistic.
Therefore, what I wanted to say was, ‘Because I’m four, my brain is at a dolphin’s level, so I can’t help it. It’s a problem of my body not being able to support my mind and thoughts!’ But what actually popped out of my mouth was…
“I’m a dolphin. Cuz I’m four.”
…this kind of gibberish.
And my lisp just made it sound even more idiotic.
That I, a mage who had reached the pinnacle of black magic…
That I, an intellectual acknowledged by the entire world!
Had become a complete moron making a random dolphin declaration.
*Sob.*
Even Axel, who had been grilling me for being half-witted, was so taken aback by my absurd words that he just blinked his wide eyes, then burst out laughing.
“Haha! A-a dolphin?”
Laughter from this fussy nobleman was a rare treasure.
He was the kind of guy who always wore a stiff, serious expression, as if life held no joy for him.
To make someone like him laugh so hard was quite an accomplishment.
It was almost an illusion, as if the handsome man’s smile brightened the entire room, but I felt no sense of pride.
“Stop laughing…”
I warned him through gritted teeth, but a warning from a four-year-old’s body carried no weight.
“A-a dolphin!”
Seeing Axel roaring with laughter, muttering “dolphin” over and over, I could only sigh and surrender.
* * *
After a long bout of laughter, Axel finally managed to compose himself, his face returning to its usual solemn expression as if he had never been laughing at all.
Having clearly seen him laugh until his face was red, I could only marvel at his two-faced nature.
“Alright. Now tell me the details.”
“So…”
I calmly recounted everything that had happened.
How I had grown suspicious about the Mad Dragon’s death and returned to the site of the final battle.
How I was caught in a mysterious power there and lost my life.
How I was reincarnated without my memories, adopted into the Elpinade family as a Saintess, and then recalled my past life along with a strange message window.
After listening to the whole story, Axel responded curtly.
“It’s a hard story to believe. But I have no choice but to believe it.”
His words mirrored my own feelings exactly.
It was hard to believe this situation, but since it had already happened, I had no choice but to accept it.
“As you probably know from the books, if your identity is revealed, you’ll be immediately arrested for devouring the Saintess with vile sorcery. Right now, the black mage Greslin is a public murderer.”
“I didn’t do it.”
“I know.”
His tone carried a rather firm conviction.
I was almost touched…
“You’re a cunning black mage who only does things that benefit you. What benefit would there be in killing your disciple and fleeing? If not for that, you could have been hailed as a hero and lived in luxury for the rest of your life.”
Touched? Forget it.
That sliver of emotion was shattered by his scathing assessment.
He really was the type to not give you even a second to feel moved.
Axel shrugged as he watched me silently seethe.
“It would be best not to use magic until you’re fully exonerated. Your magic formula is quite unique, so you’d be easily found out. I thought it was strange back in the warehouse, too.”
“What are you talking about? Not just anyone would notice. Maybe someone on your level, but that’s it.”
Unless one was as perceptive as Axel, it would be difficult to read the flow of mana and identify the caster.
Still, there was no need to take unnecessary risks, so it was probably best to refrain from using magic.
