Hourai Island, a solitary island floating in the Blue Marine.
It served as the base for the Magi Craft Meister, Jin Nidou.
Managed by the ultra-high-performance magi-brain Laojun, the island was an inviolable stronghold.
Only Jin and his family were permitted to set foot there without authorization. They were known collectively as the Jin Family.
One member of the Jin Family, the storyteller Vivienne, was currently pursuing a certain legend.
It concerned the nations and technologies that existed before the Great Magic War.
The Great Magic War, which broke out roughly three hundred years ago, ended with the trigger of the Ether Stampede. That catastrophe claimed the lives of a full sixty percent of all magi.
As magi were also the primary bearers of culture, their sudden loss caused a significant disruption in the transmission of cultural heritage.
While various archaeologists and historians have since tried to reconstruct this "lost" culture, their efforts have been far from sufficient.
Consequently, the role of the storyteller has been gaining renewed attention.
In the private sector, there is a specialized profession of storytellers who pass down traditions through oral history rather than writing; it is suspected that buried within their narratives lay fragments of historical truth.
Vivienne had been gathering and compiling folklore in the Shouro Empire when she had an unexpected encounter.
She met Lucol, an archaeologist and former member of the Unifilar.
Following the Gigas rampage incident, Lucol had fled to the Celuroa Kingdom.
There, utilizing the knowledge he had gained during his time with the Unifilar, he secured a nobleman as a patron. With his research funding guaranteed, he had returned to the Shouro Empire on an investigation trip.
"Hoh, I see... So such things happened before the Great Magic War..."
Vivienne was deeply impressed by the knowledge she had obtained from Elena, the former Golden Destruction Princess, regarding the Great Magic War and the era immediately preceding it.
Similarly, Vivienne's incredible memory and wealth of knowledge proved extremely beneficial to Lucol.
Thus, the two of them had departed from the Shouro Empire and traveled to the western region of the Kingdom of Egerea.
＊ ＊ ＊
Back on Hourai Island, Jin was discussing matters with Laojun.
"I see, so that's what Vivienne is up to... Laojun, keep monitoring her to make sure she stays out of danger, okay?"
"Yes, My Lord. Please leave the remote operation of the Fellowship Bracelet to me. I have also assigned a Secret Mobile Unit (SP) to provide protection."
The Fellowship Bracelet.
It was an artifact-class item Jin had created.
In addition to its barrier generation function, it featured communication via manacam and an authentication system for members of the Jin Family. As a minor utility, it also possessed a light-emitting function that could serve as illumination in dark places.
The barrier generation could be operated remotely by Laojun, allowing for protection even if the wearer was asleep or caught off guard.
Of course, remote operation would be impossible if she entered a location that Laojun could not perceive.
To prevent that, a single unit of the Secret Mobile Unit (SP) had been secretly assigned to her as a guard.
"Yeah, that should be fine then."
Jin felt a sense of relief for the time being.
"Even so... the period after the Predecessor and before the Great Magic War, huh..."
"Yes. It is a blank period in history."
To be sure, history books did exist. However, they were more akin to basic textbooks; while the broad strokes were known, the finer details remained elusive.
Specifically, even if the end result of an event was recorded, the path leading up to it could only be guessed at.
"Since we found the records of the Magus and the Predecessor, the circumstances from a thousand years ago are finally becoming clear, but..."
The period from the Predecessor's death until just before the Great Magic War remained a void.
"Given how technology develops, it wouldn't be strange if people had made further advancements based on the Predecessor's techniques..."
Jin wondered if the answers might lie within the records of the Predecessor that he had yet to read.
"Even No. 700672 claimed to know nothing about it."
Indeed, although No. 700672 had been on the planet Ars since before the current human civilization, he had never interfered with humanity. Having spent the majority of those centuries asleep, he was entirely ignorant of those specific historical circumstances.
"It seems we couldn't glean much information from Jack on the moon, either."
Ars's moon, Uni, was not a naturally occurring satellite; it was an asteroid that the Progenitors—the ancestors of humanity—had steered into its current orbit.
Jin had taken over management of Jack, the magi-brain that oversaw the facility.
However, while Jack had observed the humans on the ground, he had remained indifferent to their activities.
"Then there's Lady Milowina..."
Milowina was the last surviving member of the former Leonard Kingdom's royalty.
Two hundred and thirty-five years ago, a plague known as magical consumption fever had ravaged the former Leonard Kingdom. To escape it, a group of people had used a teleportation magic circle to flee to Uni.
Ultimately, however, they had carried the pathogens of the magical consumption fever with them. Most of the refugees perished despite their flight.
While some records of the former Leonard Kingdom had been brought to the moon, providing a few clues, the information was still undeniably scarce.
In the first place, the former Leonard Kingdom seemingly did not engage in active trade with its neighbors.
"Are we at a dead end...?"
"The rest depends on what Vivienne discovers, I suppose."
"Yeah..."
Jin doubted that every single record had been destroyed; they had to exist somewhere.
He hoped that by finding them, he could use that knowledge to further the world's development.
＊ ＊ ＊
"In the first place, why is it that almost no technology from before the Great Magic War remains? That is the question I cannot answer."
Inside their dedicated carriage, Lucol was engaged in a debate with Vivienne.
"I understand. Folklore also decreases sharply once you look back past that three-hundred-year mark."
Not long ago, Jin and his companions had visited foreign tribes in places like Fusou and Mitsuho. During that time, a young man named Goose had come to visit, and Vivienne had listened to many of his stories.
Vivienne couldn't help but think about how the foreign tribes had passed down their cultures almost without interruption.
"We will arrive in Nikarai shortly."
The coachman's voice called out from the front.
Currently, Vivienne, Lucol, and two assistants—a total of four people—were traveling through the western region of the Kingdom of Egerea as an investigation team.
"I hope we find a clue this time."
"I agree. No matter how much patience is required for archaeology, I think it's about time we found something."
The two shared a wry smile.
The town of Nikarai was a small settlement with a population of about a thousand.
The party checked into the more expensive of the town's two inns, where each of them had their own private room.
"Good grief, we're only here because our research funds are being provided for us."
Lucol and Vivienne were currently eating dinner in the dining hall.
"By the way, who exactly is this nobleman?"
Vivienne asked belatedly, realizing the name had never come up.
"Ah, did I not mention it? He is a man named Baffle Nosie de Yancy of the Celuroa Kingdom."
"Is that so?"
Even though Vivienne was originally from the Celuroa Kingdom, she had never heard the name before.
"He is someone who wasn't discarded under the new king's policies, so I imagine he is quite capable."
Ever since Cesar's coronation in February of that year, many nobles and high-ranking officials had been purged or demoted, yet this man had managed to maintain his status.
Perhaps he's just good at political maneuvering, Vivienne thought, but she had enough self-restraint not to say it aloud.
In any case, it was thanks to this Baffle-someone that they were able to travel for their research without paying out of their own pockets.
"We'll start our inquiries first thing tomorrow."
"Indeed. Searching for documents, visiting the town elders... there is much to do. Let's split up as we've been doing."
"I have no objection."
The two toasted with wine, praying for the success of their research.