The Red Hand

Chapter 142 – The Gift of Magic and The Elf’s Realization.

Just over a week later, the time finally came for Naomi and Mika to undergo the procedure to generate their own magic circuits. Mizumi took a bit longer than expected to resolve things within Omara, as the Council seemed to be causing her further headaches. Akagi was still reluctant to go along with this whole idea, but Mika and Naomi's insistence eventually broke her down. However, she made some conditions. First, they'd need to remain at the Estate for at least the entire weekend to permit monitoring. Second, any anomaly must be immediately reported to her, Mimi, or Mizumi. Third, magic is not permitted to be used outside of training until Mizumi signs off on things. And finally, they are not permitted to disclose anything about how they got magic.

The girls easily agreed, seeing the terms as reasonable, and arrived ready to go. Everyone gathered in Mimi's clinic where Mizumi would perform the procedure and there was a degree of excitement in the air. Once things were finished, Mimi would monitor the girls, while Akagi would watch for any abnormalities during the process.

"Are you two sure you want to go through with this?" Akagi looked at the two girls who were lying on separate beds. "We have no clue if this could be dangerous, and there is a risk that your bodies might not take well to being manipulated like this." She wanted to be certain they understood the risks. "I cannot guarantee that I can undo any damage, and it's possible you might become disabled permanently or even killed. Knowing that, do you still want to go through with this?"

{These two are either incredibly brave, or naïve. Perhaps a mix of both?} (Akagi)

"Yes." Mika smiled. "I always wanted to be a magical girl, and this will be the closest thing to it!"

{Of course that's what Mika's mind goes too...} (Naomi)

"I also want to go through with this, despite the risks. My dream is to unite magic and medicine, and being able to use magic myself is a necessity." Naomi nodded. She'd really taken to this idea and it became her long term goal in life.

"Fine, don't say I didn't warn you if things go wrong." Akagi sighed. "I'll be staying to watch, and if I see anything strange, I'm pulling the plug."

"Your such a worrywart." Mika laughed.

"Yeah, well. My paranoia and skepticism have been more of a boon than a demerit, so I'll keep it." Akagi chuckled. She was actually extremely nervous inside, but was keeping her cool so to not worry the girls. "Mizumi, if anything happens to these two, consider your people eaten." She glared at the Spirit, who started sweating. "So, no pressure!"

{No pressure she says...} (Mika x Naomi)

"Yeah..." Mizumi sighed. "I doubt there will be any issues. I've done this many times before, and I see no reason why humans from this world would react poorly to being granted magic circuits."

{We shall see.} (Akagi)

"I'll start with Mika." She walked over to the blue-haired girl. "It will take around one hour to complete the procedure, and please try to limit movement as much as possible. You will feel some pain and discomfort, but nothing too severe. If anything feels strange, please alert me immediately. Are you ready?"

"Yup!" Mika smiled and Mizumi extended her hands out over her and channeled magic, creating a blue magical pattern over top of Mika.

"I will now begin." Mizumi said as she started waving her hands around in some type of pattern. Akagi stood back and watched. She didn't understand the technical parts behind the magic, but could detect magical fluctuations and changes within Mika as Mizumi proceeded.

Things went smoothly, until around twenty minutes in, Mika made a noise.

"Ugh..." Mika complained. "I see what you mean by pain or discomfort... It feels like I have a stomach ache."

{I'm glad I didn't eat much today...} (Mika)

"That's normal." Mizumi said without missing a beat. "It will calm down in a bit, so just bear with it for now. Once we're done, you'll be sore for about a week as your body adapts to the circuits."

"Anything else strange?" Akagi asked. She couldn't detect any issues.

"No, just the stomach ache." Mika replied.

Besides the slight discomfort, nothing else happened during Mika's procedure, and around forty minutes later, Mizumi waved away the magic circle. Akagi could see some magical energy flowing within Mika's body as the circuits began to form.

"Alright, we're all done." Mizumi smiled. "I detected no issues, and it appears to be a success."

{It looks like I was right, the humans of this world are the same as humans from our old world, with the only difference being the lack of magic circuits. I wonder if humans from this world crossed over like we did?} (Mizumi)

"My whole body feels warm and sore." Mika groaned as she sat up. "Also, what's this buzzing feeling in my arms and legs? Is this what Kana was talking about the other day?"

{It feels like I'm sitting in a massage chair.} (Mika)

"Yeah, that's the magic." Mizumi nodded. "It will go away once you get it under control, so don't worry about it. As for the other symptoms, those are all normal. Just take it easy for now and rest until your body finishes generating the circuits and filling them. I'd also advise eating around one and a half times the amount of food for the next few weeks since your body will need the extra energy to generate the magic and the circuits."

"Rather than eat. I kinda want to sleep." Mika yawned.

"Yeah, that always happens after the procedure. Do you have somewhere we can move her?" Mizumi asked Mimi.

Mimi thought for a moment before turning to Akagi. "My Lord, would one of the guest rooms in the main house be ok?" Mimi asked her. "I feel like that would be best for her."

"Yeah, I'll get on that." Akagi went into the hallway, pulled one of her people aside, and instructed them to have two rooms in the main house ready for the girls. "Alright, that's taken care of. Now on to Naomi."

"We'll take Mika to her roo.," Suzu said, referring to herself and her sister.

"No funny business, you two. She needs her rest." Akagi laughed, and the sisters rolled their eyes.

{Hey, jumping her while she was in that state wouldn't be that crazy of an idea.} (Akagi)

"Come on, Mika." Yuzu picked her up princess carry style. She was too tired to complain, and her girlfriends took her out of the clinic.

"Those two were very worried about her." Mimi chuckled. "I think they might have been even more nervous than you, My Lord."

"Good, that just shows how much they care." Akagi smiled as she looked at Naomi. "You're up."

Naomi's procedure went as well as Mika's and there were no obvious issues. She complained of the same stomach ache and was sore and sleepy afterward and was taken to rest in the guest rooms. Mizumi was content with how things went, but would regularly monitor them for now. Akagi had asked them to stop by each day for the foreseeable future in order to give them regular checkups.

Once Naomi was taken to one of the guest rooms to rest, Akagi sat with Kana, Mizumi, and Yumi in the living room to go over things. Naturally, Akagi had turned into her shadow form and wrapped around Yumi, something normal by this point.

"Everything seems normal." Mizumi said while sipping tea. "Now we just need to wait. It will take a bit of time before the circuits are complete and filled. Once that happens, it's just a matter of training. With Momo's help, I suspect Naomi will acclimate to magic much quicker than Mika."

"Kinda crazy we're all going to be able to cast magic." Kana gave a wry smile. She'd come back from her errands to check on her two sleeping friends.

"With all the insanity of the last year, it's not the craziest thing to happen. And that's saying something." Akagi laughed as Yumi pet her. "Once things settle down with them, I'd like the three of you to practice magic together. I know it's very strange for me to say this, but you need to respect the power and not misuse it." Her statement caused Yumi to choke on her drink as she started laughing.

"I can't believe the Demon Lord is pleading for restraint and moderation." Mizumi laughed. “What's next? Cats and Dogs living together happily?”

{Well technically that's already happening since we've got dog and catkin living here.} Kana held back the urge to retort.

"I just think it's for the best. I'm a very special case, but you must agree, right? It's best to make sure they don't go using it irresponsibly." Akagi looked at the Spirit.

Mizumi nodded. "Yes, unfortunately too many people in our old world let magic get to their heads. They'd start to act better than other people and lord their magical prowess over people's heads." Mizumi as she said this, Kana began to stare more intensely at her sister, who flicked her in the forehead.

"I don't act better, Kana. I am better." Akagi laughed, and Kana and Mizumi rolled their eyes. "Hey, I'm just sayin."

_____________________________________________________________________________

<Shinlua POV>

Shinlua was unique among the Council as its only member who was not a Spirit. Born and raised in one of the many Elf villages of her world, she spent multiple centuries as a wandering adventurer, honing her skills in her pursuit of knowledge. Eventually, her travels led her to the home of the Spirits, a strange race of people who were very different than the other residents of the continent.

Their language, architecture, and culture were radically different than any of the other races she'd visited. To her, they almost seemed alien, a theory backed up by their mysterious origin, as even they didn't have a concrete explanation of where they came from. Intrigued by these people, she opted to stay in their country and learn from them, and as she did, Shinlua became fascinated by their tales, their history, and their unique magics. Before she knew it, nearly three centuries had passed since she'd arrived, during which she'd become close with them. As magical disasters broke out around the world, and the different races pointed fingers at the Spirits, Shinlua was one of the few voices that defended them. She visited the Elves and tried to convince her people's King that the Spirits were not at fault, but was in turn exiled for treason. Her attempts to speak with the Humans, Demons, and Dwarves resulted in a similarly hostile reaction.

Sensing the impending conflict as more and more disasters occurred, Shinlua returned to the Spirits and warned them of the impending danger the other races posed to them, but it was too late. The other nations had already agreed to invade the Spirit's home and exterminate them in misguided retaliation at the direction of their gods. Wanting to protect the people that so warmly welcomed her, Shinlua joined in the Spirit's efforts to drive off the other races, lending her magical and battle knowledge to them. For a time, it worked, and it appeared that the Spirits might be able to force a draw. However, that was a false hope.

Humanity had been hiding a trump card, one they waited nearly ten years to use. Sensing danger, and wanting to protect their worshipers, the Gods had pooled their power and conducted a summoning ritual, bringing a team of four young heroes from another world to defeat the Spirits.

Using their incredible powers granted to them by the gods, these four heroes drove back the Spirits and pushed them to the brink. Shinlua attempted to engage them in combat but was easily defeated as their power was too great even for her. Fearing for the worst, she advised the Elders and other High Spirits that fleeing was the only way to save their people. The only issue was, to where? Leaving the continent was possible, but they would likely be hunted no matter where they went. Thus, it was decided that the Elders would use a secret technique passed down from their founders and flee to a world described in their records. It was a gamble, but it was their only choice. Shinlua agreed, and together, with many of the Spirit's best fighters, she fought to buy time for the ritual. It would take nearly five years to complete and cost the lives of countless Spirits, but in the end, it was a success, and for her part in saving their people, she was granted the privilege of filling the vacant Council seat.

Things hadn't been easy since the establishment of their new home, and Mizumi's declaration of a Demon Lord caused ripples throughout the Council and the Spirit political class. Shinlua was skeptical of such a claim, as she had a good understanding the historical accounts of Demon Lord Vikes and his destruction. Thus, when she met Akagi in the Council chamber, she initially dismissed her status as a Demon Lord, believing her to be little more than a powerful Demon.

Today, Shinlua sat in her study going over the information Mizumi had left her before she departed for Earth. Before the Elf sat hundreds of pages of memorandum and technical documents all drafted by the water Spirit, and provided after the incident in the Council chamber. Shinlua respected Mizumi greatly, and understood that the rest of the Council was attempting to undermine her authority in Omara, though that didn't mean she took everything she said as gospel. The Elf had little interest in political games and was more focused on building a home in this new world and she thought, not necessarily incorrectly, that Mizumi was part of this political dance.

"She really went all out on this research, huh?" Shinlua pinched the bridge of her nose. "Full linguistic analysis, historical comparisons via eyewitness testimony, and even a full breakdown of this 'Demon Lord ability' to consume souls." She sighed. "Either Lady Mizumi is off her rocker, or she's on to something." Shinlua was still on the fence as to whether Akagi was actually a Demon Lord. She'd spoken to several older Elves in her time who lived during Vikes rampage, and the image she got was of a being of pure malice and destruction. The Akagi she met the other day was rather calm and rational, showing no signs of the mindlessness that defined Vikes.

"This Akagi claims to be a Demon Lord and claims that she managed to expunge her predisposition to mindless killing. I admit that while that seems far-fetched, it is possible." She flipped through a few documents, before coming across the written sample of the Demon Language Akagi had given Mizumi earlier. At first, she pushed it off to the side, but a moment later something clicked in her mind.

"Wait!" She grabbed the paper and took a look at the words, comparing them to the few examples of Vikes's writings. Her mind turned as she tried to put all the pieces together, before she recalled that Mizumi had also given her the audio recording of Akagi's Demon tongue.

She picked up the strange metal device and inspected it before attempting to play the recording. "I just click this button, right?" She pushed on the device, causing an unholy sound to come out.

[@$@$#@$#$@$@#$@$@$#] Her entire body tensed, and she nearly threw the recorder across the room in fear.

"N-No... It can't be!" Her mind went back to one of the discussions she'd had with a man who heard Vikes speak and survived. At the  time, she'd used a type of memory sharing magic to witness the Demon Lord's destruction via his memories and within them was a few snippets of him speaking. "T-this is the same... the intonation, the spacing, that horrifying feeling just from hearing it. S-she really is the Demon Lord..." Shinlua's eyes went wide as she understood the truth. Akagi was a Demon Lord, and the Council was planning on attacking her in their ignorance.

"I need to speak to Lady Mizumi and the rest of the Council immediately!" (Shinlua)