Volume 2 Chapter 15 Reflections On The Past： Three Thousand Years Ago
Inside the dimly lit laboratory, young alchemist Rias looked up at a towering device, unable to hide her shock. "Zarif-san... why are you doing this?" she asked quietly, eyes fixed on the figure inside the oval-shaped transparent container.
Connected by countless tubes, the container held a pale green liquid in which a girl floated—naked, with pure white hair that contrasted against her tan skin. Her eyes were closed, and she curled up like a fetus. Though she appeared human, perhaps around fifteen or sixteen, the wolf-like ears atop her head and a tail betrayed her artificial nature. She was a Homunculus—an artificial life form.
Next to her, Zarif Elrahage, leader of the alchemist guild, stood silently, lost in thought. The once-proud guild had fallen into ruin, now nothing more than a subordinate of a suspicious cult worshipping the goddess Astal. The cult provided the guild with foundational technology, pushing them to create beings beyond human. The guild, desperate, repeated experiments on their own.
This project—the "Artificial Life Creation Plan"—aimed to create superior beings, but results were disappointing. The complexity was far beyond what the alchemists had imagined.
If they failed, the cult would cut support, and the guild would vanish.
That thought drove Zarif to gamble.
He used the bones of Sharna, a deceased shrine maiden of the cult, as material to birth a new Homunculus.
Sharna had innate high sorcery aptitude, and a rare ability—an extraordinary power to influence the minds around her. Zarif judged that a Homunculus based on her would become a powerful asset to the cult's goals.
Yet the new Homunculus had a fatal flaw: she looked exactly like Sharna.
Though Sharna had long since passed from old age, many portraits remained—white hair, tan skin, and blue eyes—the hallmarks of the beloved shrine maiden. She was revered by villagers, whose descendants now served as the Seven Wise—seven great magicians who effectively ruled the Holy Cretia Kingdom.
Handing over this Homunculus to the cult meant provoking their wrath. The copy of Sharna, and how her bones were acquired, were secrets sure to ignite fury.
Rias's voice trembled as she said, "Zarif-san, listen. There's no way we can deliver this."
"Hmm," Zarif murmured, still silent.
He believed the cult wouldn't allow it either.
Though their true motives were hidden, the cult sought powerful Homunculi and needed the alchemist guild's involvement.
If Astal were truly omnipotent, Zarif thought, she wouldn't need to entrust such work to others. There must be hidden priorities. Visible results were all that mattered.
Rias sighed deeply, tapping the semi-transparent board floating in the air. Data about the Homunculus flickered across it.
"Her ability levels are roughly ten times those of an average human," Rias explained. "She manifests two aberrant abilities—sword and magic—both on an advanced level. It's unfortunate the shrine maiden's unique ability didn't show, but it's still beyond expectations."
She glanced at Zarif. "There's no clear pattern for which aberrant ability appears. The temple's recent odd plan finally found a suitable candidate, though."
Zarif nodded. Among information accessible to him through temple authority, no rules about aberrant abilities had emerged. Not even Astal or the Seven Sages had deciphered them.
"Keep contact with the temple minimal," Zarif warned. "If we offend the Seven Sages, this guild could collapse easily."
"Then you understand this Homunculus can't be delivered, right? Ragius, the cardinal, was a pet of shrine maiden Sharna. If this leaks, the temple will swallow us whole—figuratively, of course."
"Don't worry. The process is already underway."
"The temple? When did that connection form?"
Zarif smirked slightly. "Do you really want to know?"
"N-no... then I'll proceed with the transfer to the Sorcery Academy as usual. Has a name been chosen?"
"Shadiya. Transfer her to class A, same as Rita."
"A fifth-generation Homunculus named Shadiya... I'll check on Lady Rita's condition, too."
"How's your daughter doing lately?"
"She's well. Just the other day, she said she wants to visit Evrall's Underground Garden. Even deep underground, it's a mysterious place where the sun rises like on the surface."
Zarif knew of the garden—built by Sage Evral, one of the Seven Sages, as a symbol of Astal's mercy. In truth, it was a trap to gather wealth. Zarif swore to himself he would never go there.
"The young lady's even looking forward to touring with me. Hehe..."
Rias smiled but eyed Zarif suspiciously. His cold indifference was unlike him. Usually, she'd threaten, "If you lay a finger on my daughter, I'll carve you up and feed you to the chimera," but today was different.
So, she said what she shouldn't have.
"It might already be too late... but I don't want to die yet, and I want you to live longer too, Zarif."
If this continued, something irreversible would happen. When that time came, neither would survive.
Humans deemed unnecessary by the temple weren't just disposed of—they were erased from memory, as if they never existed. Completely vanished from the world.
Zarif met her gaze coldly. "I'm not acting without thought. Now go back to work. There's still much to do."
Perhaps granted a brief moment of peace, Rias bowed silently and left the laboratory.
Zarif turned his gaze back to Shadiya, sleeping in the softly glowing tank. "Stop this foolish play. I know you're awake."
Slowly, Shadiya's eyes opened, a bold smile curling on her lips. She'd been pretending to sleep, listening to everything.
This Homunculus was unlike any other—not only physically resilient but cunning and self-aware. Without a doubt, Zarif's masterpiece.
Zarif stared at her and reconsidered the long-standing question in his mind: Why had Astal appeared before the people? For what purpose?
Was it to build a paradise for selfish desires? To celebrate beloved humanity? Or to create a dark world ruled by death and despair?
A presence stirred behind him in the shadows.
Notes:
• Ragius - The dragon who resides in the Inferno Pathway, a dungeon within a fiercely burning volcano. A powerful and enigmatic dragon, a follower of Astal-sama, who acts as a protector and advisor in the story. He possesses immense magical abilities, including teleportation, and intervenes in critical moments to aid the protagonists, such as disrupting Albain's attacks and providing cryptic advice to Ark
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