Chapter 16: The Purpose of the Fantasia Melody
"To start with my tale Atsuko Kagari you must know that I am Merlin Ambrosius— also known as Myrddin Emrys. The ancient wizard and the councilman of the Kingdom of Camelot. I have lived for generations my practices as set the path for witches and wizards of this generation. The world that you know would not have existed if it were not for my research."
"H-hold on… you THAT Merlin? The same one from the stories? Y-you're a vampire!?"
Merlin laughed softly, and the cat Lilith matched his laughter with her own. Akko fearfully stared at the two undead beings as they continued to gain amusement from the girl's shock.
"The very first vampire to ever exist. This immortality that was given to me was a showcase of my resolve. The result of centuries and centuries of research. I turned myself into a Creature of the Night— an Avatar of the Planet to become closer to the goal of Fantasia!"
As he said those words, Merlin stood up from his chair and opened his arms wide to the air while shouting with great joy. Akko, who was still very confused, became frustrated and growled at the old vampire.
"But what is Fantasia!?"
Merlin looked back at Akko and chucked softly once more. The old man sat back down and finally began his explanation.
"…Fantasia is an almighty spell crafted by the elves long ago. Do you know what elves are?"
"…aren't elves those small long-eared creatures that work in Santa Claus's workshop?"
"No. Those are not elves. The elves are as tall as humans, and while they do have long ears they are most beautiful and handsome. Old age could never hold them and they remain youthful even after centuries. And their power and knowledge of magic is unrivaled! Even witches who have lived for two hundred years could only dream of reaching the level of an elf!"
Akko could not help but be amazed by the explanation of the immortal race. The Japanese girl then recoiled back in surprise as Lilith jumped onto the table and began speaking to herself.
"Elves lived within a grand kingdom by the name of Phantasia—"
"Wait, Phantasia is a kingdom? I thought it was a spell!"
"Phantasia spelled with a "PH"," Lilith replied. "It would be more accurate to say that the spell of Fantasia was named after the elven kingdom itself."
"The home of the—w-wait a minute! T-that place—!"
"Correct Atsuko Kagari, the abandoned and ruined kingdom which you had entered was the home of the elves. The corpses you saw were the unlucky ageless beings who could not escape death, and the spirits that attacked you were the elves that still remained. Yet…that have since lost their sanity and have become beings…far beyond comprehension…"
The Old Master looked down at the table with a sad look in his eye. Lilith had rubbed his fury head on his leg, seemingly trying to comfort Merlin which worked. The old vampire regained his composure and proceeded with the tale of his origins.
"My mother, Cassiopeia, was a princess. She was soon to be queen and inherit the throne of Phantasia. But one day, she left the Fair Realm and walked among humans. And there was one human that she got greatly connected with— a human farmer who would be my father, Roland. The two fell in love and lived out their lives in Phantasia. My mother gave birth to me but I had never once seen my father. Elves were beings who lived without the fear of getting old. They could live for centuries without even gaining wrinkles or gray hair. And me, a half-elven child, took longer to be born than nine months. For elf babies, it is usually between twenty and forty years."
"T-TWENTY AND FORTY YEARS!?" Akko recoiled back and nearly fell off her chair, but she managed to grab the edge of the table before that could happen. "T-THAT'S RIDICULOUS!"
Merlin chuckled softly while nodding in agreement.
"I do not blame you for saying that. Twenty years is simply ten minutes to elves so it was no problem but my father Roland was already an old man by the time Cassiopea's stomach was starting to expand. He died four years before I was born so I was raised without a father. But my mother never failed to tell me stories about him and explain the human race to me…"
The old vampire dug into his pocket and took out a single seed. Akko looked at it closely and raised an eyebrow when she realized it was just a plain old seed. She looked up at Merlin who smiled warmly.
"This seed," Merlin said as he pointed at the very tiny object, "Was one of my father's which he would plant in the gardens of the castle. However, that seed there was never planted as father met his end before he could. My mother kept it as a way to remember him, even as the years went by. The mind of an elf could easily lose itself. The possibility of my mother even forgetting that her human love even existed could have happened after two hundred years which she held onto the seed as a way to force herself to remember."
"Wow…that's like one of those forbidden love type stuff…w-wait a second— we're getting off-topic! What are you trying to do with the Shiny Rod Merlin!?"
Akko leaned across the table and pointed her index finger right at the face of Merlin who stared at her unfazed.
"We are not getting off-topic. The story of my parents was important for you to know because it put in the perspective of elves and humans. Understanding the fundamentally two different lifespans the races have."
The old wizard cleared his throat and continued.
"The elves were one of the first beings born when the world came into existence; they immediately began to study the workings of the planet. They were the first intelligent life forms to master the power of mana and create spells that the witches, wizards, and all other forms of magical beings would begin incorporating into their catalog! And as centuries of research carried on, the elves discovered something terrifying…"
"Something terrifying?"
"It was about Yggdrasil— the World Tree. The Yggdrasil Tree was the first tree ever born from the planet and was the source of all life. From there, mana was at its core and without its existence the manipulation of magic would be impossible. So the elves knew that if they wanted to continue utilizing magic Yggdrasil must live on. But the elves noticed a horrid truth about the tree. Despite its power, it was not immortal and eventually died in centuries to come."
"What would happen if the tree died?"
"…magic would fade away forever."
Akko yelped as she stood up from her seat.
"M-Magic would fade!? F-forever!?"
"Yes, Atsuko and the elves knew that."
"But why was the tree dying!?"
"At the time, the tree was not dying yet but the elves predicted it would die. The source of Yggdrasil's long life was the power of belief which stemmed from the populace on earth. Despite the elves being the most powerful mages in the world, the humans made up most of the planet which meant that Yggdrasil's health would be fully dependent on the faith of humanity. And ever since humans started walking the earth their faith was not very strong…
"Humans were a weak race that could barely use magic and so when the power was first introduced they were deathly afraid of it. They ran away and even attacked or killed anything or anyone relating to the power of magic! Centuries later, beings like the Nine Olde Witches come along and teach the wonders of magic to the foolish humans. The Golden Age started a period where magic was used everywhere and the Yggdrasil Tree was at its strongest! But then another few centuries and humanity began to see magic as obsolete. They turned to technology and threw away all the texts of spells believing them to be garbage."
Merlin held up his right hand and using his magic summoned a small sphere of glowing water. As Akko leaned in closer she could see very small fishes swimming around in it.
"Wow…"
Akko said to herself as she observed the small water ball, but Merlin's expression was terrible and filled with a strange type of anger and sadness.
"And now we live in an era where Yggdrasil is basically gone and the magic of the world is weak and slowly fading away. The elves wanted to avoid this so they constructed a powerful spell that was meant to save the tree— the Fantasia Melody!"
The water sphere then exploded which spooked Akko. Water sprayed everywhere and then stopped midair as it flew. They then came together, forming four massive musical notes. Each carried its own blinding light as if it held a sun in each one.
"The spell itself is split into Four Acts which is activated by the blending of magical fumes from other dimensions and using the power source of the Seven Stars of Arcturus. It would channel the mana flow and return the planet and all living beings back to its original foundation. Which in turn would save the planet and magic."
"Return it to its foundation?"
Akko repeated the words of Merlin as she raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, but what the elves were trying to accomplish with Fantasia was technically forbidden so there were powerful forces in the world who acted to stop them."
"What forces?"
The old wizard clasped his hands together, destroying the notes made of water. He then opened his hands again to showcase an image of a giant and intimidating being seemingly made of wood and carried off an evil aura. And behind it were millions more and Akko cowardly in her seat as she felt like an ant ready to be squished by the humongous foot of a human.
"WOAH! W-what is—"
"Titans," Merlin answered, his voice deeper and menacing. "The ancient race of supreme magical power. The former guardians of the Yggdrasil Tree. This magnificent race is mostly extinct now but back then their power was unrivaled. When the elves refused to give up on their scheme, the Titans came down on Phantasia and destroyed it with their divine power! The elves were crushed like helpless ants and the entire kingdom was cast off into the "Fair Realm" so that no other race would find the research of the elves and continue where they left off."
"I thought…the elven kingdom was destroyed by a cockatrice."
Merlin shook his head.
"No, it was the Titans. However, the divine beings failed at one thing…"
"What was that?"
"Destroying one small halfling…"
The projection changed and before Akko's eyes, she saw the image of the Kingdom of Phantasia being destroyed. The grand castle of the elves that rested under the grand moonlight and the garden of stars being trampled by the Titans flooded the palace with their evil energy. Elves ran all over the place but many of them had failed to escape. Akko covered her eyes and ears as she witnessed the gruesome deaths of the immortal people. But once the screams of horror had ceased, Akko had opened her eyes again to see the silhouette of a young child. His face and clothes were covered in shadows and he could not be seen, but there was something in Akko's soul that told who that person was.
And the answer became clear as Merlin stared at the shadow child with a sorrowful look.
"I was raised in the Kingdom of Phantasia by my mother, the princess, Cassiopeia, and her human husband Roland. I had to watch in horror as my parents were trampled by the Titans but I alone escaped with the four grimoires that held the knowledge of Fantasia."
"T-that's…nuts!"
"I hid away in Britain for years and crossed paths with King Uther. I gained his favor by perfectly predicting the future and showcasing my magical prowess. The human ruler was impressed and made me his councilman of the new kingdom he was soon to build. I stayed in Camelot and proceeded with the research to one day activate Fantasia, and for the process to fully work one must be an entity close to the earth itself…"
"Which is why you became a vampire, right?"
"Indeed Atsuko! Great job for figuring that out! I turned myself into a vampire so that I could harness the Seven Stars and turn them into the staff that could control Fantasia! But I ran into one little hiccup…"
"H-huh? And what was— BAH!"
Dark clouds covered the entire kitchen and a powerful wind blew down the chairs and tables. The walls began to peel and crack away by the pressure of the literal hurricane that appeared, even Lilith used her claws to cling to the floor to avoid flying off.
"That no good succubus— Vivian! She cast aside my heart and took advantage of my weakness! That witch took all my knowledge for herself as I was sealed within the earth for years! It wasn't until I was saved by my own daughter that I…I…I!"
The form of Merlin had changed into what Akko could only describe as a demon. His hair was wild and his eyes were pitch black. He opened his horrid mouth to reveal rows of fangs and the literal solar system in the back of his tonsils. And from the bottom reaches of his mouth, Akko could hear the sound of humming that made her heart quicken in pace.
"I SWEAR SHE WILL PAY! FOR BREAKING MY HEART AND LEAVING ME ALONE IN THE DARKNESS TO TURN MAD! I SWEAR ON MY MOTHER AND ALL THE ANCIENT BEINGS OF THE GREAT DIMENSIONS THAT SHE WILL KNOW THE MEANING OF SUFFERING!"
"O-okay…c-calm down…"
Akko said quietly as she took a few steps back, afraid of what the mad wizard would do to her. Lilith had also approached Merlin slowly trying to ease his anger.
"Yes, master, calm down. Your magical aura could destroy the entire mansion."
The old vampire was hyperventilating, like a ravaged beast. But then Lilith rubbed her furry cat body on his leg which seemed to slowly chip away at his irritation. Merlin closed his eyes and started to take a few deep breaths. He opened his eyes and returned to his normal appearance.
"Y-you're right, Lilith. I apologize for my emotional outburst…now you understand Atsuko?"
Akko, who was at the far end of the kitchen, shook her head.
"N-not really? What exactly does Fantasia do? What do you mean by it returns the planet to its "foundation"?"
"…Like I said, Yggdrasil is powered by the belief of the masses but it's already been ordained that such a power will not last. To save Yggdrasil and keep it strong the Fantasia Melody is meant to physically manipulate the mana of the planet to flood the earth and cleanse from the inside and outside."
"C-cleanse…?"
"The planet will overflowed by mana that would go on for eternity and all the living beings that walk on the planet…will be cleansed with everything else."
"W-what!?"
Akko screamed as she ran up to Merlin.
"Before Yggdrasil was fully grown, the earth was nothing but a sphere of black water holding itself together in the void of zero gravity. Fantasia Melody will return the planet to that one point with the Yggdrasil consuming the water and sprouting into even greater heights."
"W-wouldn't that kill everyone!?"
"Oh don't worry!" Lilith interjected. "No one will die!"
"N-no will die?"
"Yep, the cleansing cannot physically push the beings off the earth. All it would do is wipe away the free wills and emotions of others. Making them empty husks with no feelings, memories, or desires."
"WHAT THE HELL!?" Akko grabbed Lilith and began shaking her. "YOU WANT TO ERASE THE FREE WILL!?"
"Of course!" Merlin grabbed Lilith from Akko's hands and stood over her like a massive tower. "All living things are made of mana and so are our souls! The souls are the power source that fuels Yggdrasil but it's our emotions that constantly hold it back! To stop that, the soul must be cleansed of all unnecessary things and become simply what it is…a sphere of clean and boundless water meant to make the World Tree flourish—"
"Stop it! That's insane! You're INSANE!"
Akko took out her wand and pointed it at Merlin.
"I'm not going to let you wipe away people's emotions! I'm stopping you right here and now! And I'll be taking the Shiny Rod back!"
Merlin sighed, the gems of the Fantasia staff letting off a powerful light.
"I do not blame you for not agreeing with this plan. You are a mortal who is destined to live a short and worthless life. But perhaps, when you become a full-fledged vampire and have lived for a thousand years you will understand the need for this."
"I don't need to understand anything— you're Fantasia Symphony Crap is crazy! And I'm not gonna live for a million years— maybe just a hundred— I'm gonna find a way to turn back into a human too!"
"Ha!" Lilith cackled. "That's too many wishes there kid! Do you really think you can accomplish all of that?"
Akko put her right hand on her chest.
" "A believing heart is my magic!" As long as I believe there is a way to break this curse and there is a way to stop you undead monsters from destroying the world!"
"Belief? Child…belief is the problem…"
Lilith's form exploded into a puff of smoke and in place of the cat was a woman with short black hair, cat ears, and a cat tail. She took out a long black whip covered in spikes and grinned evilly at Akko.
"You're Elizabeth's familiar so we won't kill you. But perhaps we should break your bones, pull out your tongue, and crush some parts of your brain! Leaving you a vegetable!"
A single trail of sweat flowed down Akko's forehead.
"So much for the simple escape plan…"
Author's Note:
Akko goes crazy in the next chapter! Also, check out the new cover design by an amazing artist named SYPHON!
Please check out my own original web novel, "The Branded Hero Volume 1: Baxter the Failure". The tale of a hero who has been outcasted by the world since releasing The Demon King: /series/The-Branded-Hero-Volume-1-Baxter-the-Failure/info
And please check out my webcomic, "The Curse of Gringerfield" on Webtoon and Tapas!
Webtoon: https/en/canvas/the-curse-of-gringerfield/list?title_no=970667
Tapas: /series/The-Curse-of-Gringerfield/info
Next Chapter: Hell Sing