The Flawless One

"This is no place for you."

"I like humans very much, but when it comes to someone as flawless as you, even I can't help but feel repulsed."

"So—don't stay here."

Somewhere unknown.

Beside a rippling lake.

The blue surface reflected the dazzling sunlight. All kinds of creatures swam around the lake, brimming with vitality.

But upon the person standing with his back to the marvelous mage, there was nothing but a flickering white light.

It was somewhat dazzling.

The boy's mouth opened and closed, as if he wanted to say something—but he didn't understand words or language.

Fortunately, the mage could understand what he meant without words.

"Huh? You mean you've been here ever since you opened your eyes?"

"And you don't know how to leave, either?"

The mage, having grasped his meaning, turned around in astonishment and finally looked at the flawless one for the first time.

He was clearly just a boy.

"Heave-ho—"

The mage jumped down from the rock. After landing, he brushed off his robe, and flower petals seemed to drift down with his movements.

"I understand. You want to learn about something, don't you?"

"You're a pure-white being who understands nothing and knows nothing, like a baby, yet you want to actively take on the colors of this world?"

"I see, I see. How interesting. I should hate you, but now I can't help taking an interest in you."

The mage circled around the boy several times, then—came up with an idea.

"In that case, I'll weave you into a strand of what may already be a predetermined fate."

He placed one of his own flowers on the boy's head and said with a smile,

"Outsider who doesn't belong to this world, can you bring me the kind of amusement I'm looking for?"

The mage placed an iron sword in the boy's hand, then turned to look at the Holy Lake behind him.

"Great Mother, who taught me Magecraft, could you grant this flawless one, who came from who knows where, a small blessing?"

"Nothing more is needed. Just protect his frail body."

The lake's surface remained still as it listened to his words.

After a long while, the shadow of a person appeared above the lake, accompanied by faint ripples.

"Merlin. His body isn't frail."

"And what exactly are you thinking? He's a pure-white being. He shouldn't be stained by any color—at least, not yours."

She was a woman with golden hair and a youthful face. She looked at the mage called Merlin with resignation, and at the flawless Anno with—mostly curiosity.

She wondered why such a being had appeared here, in this world.

Her words sounded like a refusal, but—

She raised her slender, pale hands and grasped a ray of white light shining on Anno. After kneading it in some inexplicable way, it finally became—

A suit of armor?

"Take it. I'm leaving. I have no interest in taking part in your experiment."

She tossed the white armor to Merlin, then the fairy called the Great Mother sank into the lake and vanished, as if she had never appeared.

Only a little dust remained on the surface of the lake, and the white Treasure Armor in Merlin's hands proved that she had been there.

Wearing the white Treasure Armor and holding an ordinary iron sword, the flawless one called Anno left the lakeside.

The mage meant for him to go and see for himself, to go and act for himself.

But the mage had also pointed him in a certain direction, with a mischievous smile on his face.

At least, Anno thought it was a mischievous smile.

He wasn't sure.

"Go see what's happening there, then do whatever you want to do. After that, come back, and I'll teach you what you need to learn."

That was what the mage had said—

Anno walked until he came to a place that felt somewhat unstable.

"The fairies of the Earth Clan are good at building all sorts of structures, but some of them have terrible habits. That's simply the nature of fairies. Once they've tasted the pleasure of cruelty, they develop a liking for it."

"So, what do you want to do?"

The mage's words reached Anno's mind from far away.

Anno saw it.

He saw those short fairies rampaging through a village of people who looked much like him.

The fairies killed humans and toyed with their corpses, their faces bright with joy.

"Why are they doing this?"

Anno felt no particular emotion.

He was simply curious about why the fairies would do such a thing.

"There's no reason. If I had to say, it's just their preference."

"Well? Now that you've seen this, what do you want to do?"

"Will you join the fairies in playing with those remains, or—will you help your kind?"

"Are they my kind?"

Anno sent another thought toward the mage and asked him.

Judging by appearance alone, humans were indeed his kind.

Anno had seen his own reflection in the lake.

But the mage's voice did not come again.

He left the entire scene before Anno, the flawless one.

He was curious to see what choice the flawless one would make.

Meanwhile, among the rampaging green fairies, a few seemed to notice Anno standing at the edge of the village, young but wooden-faced. They shouted words he couldn't understand and waved their arms in gestures he couldn't make sense of.

Then they charged at Anno with their weapons.

Splurt—

Anno's body was cut open by a sharp blade, and blood flowed out.

For the first time, he tasted pain.

He wasn't angry. He simply found it novel.

"The thing flowing out of your body is red. It's called blood."

"If you let your blood keep flowing like this, you'll die."

The mage's amused voice rang out again.

Die?

That meant he couldn't keep letting this happen, right?

Following his instincts, Anno drew the iron sword from his waist and swung it out, expressionless.

This thing was probably meant to be used like this.

No skill, no strength, and no aura released.

Crash.

Blood and entrails spilled onto the ground before him.

The several Earth Clan fairies surrounding Anno were cut in two in an instant.

The mage had asked what his instincts were, so—

At the very least, he couldn't watch his companions get killed, right?

Should they be called "humans"?

Red blood spattered across Anno's white Treasure Armor as he walked toward the fairies in the village.