Reincarnated as the Chosen One in My All-Time Favorite Fantasy Novel: IV - Speedrunning the Council of Heavenly Principles

Kamiael stepped down his stairs, the fog of sleep still swimming about his head. His bare feet made no sound as he ascended the smooth, polished marble, and his feathered wings ducked below the arches as he made his way to the gate. There, to his surprise, were two wagons, devoid of any horses. The eyes on both his wings and his face blinked, unsure whether or not if it was just sleep playing tricks on him. The Red Sage and the hunter leaned against the sides of the wagons, both smoking pipes. A strongman unloaded crates from the back of the wagon, while an elf and a dwarf seemed to be doing all they could to ignore one another.

A stone fairy flitted around, checking the contents of the barrels the strongman had unpacked, a pokkurin sat on top of one of the barrels, and two humans were working together to make a reasonable breakfast from their traveling provisions, one obviously doing most of the work.

“Momiji,” Kamiael said, approaching his friend and confidant, “what brings you to the Angelus? And without horses?” His back was to the hunter.

“Ah, Kamiael, please forgive the intrusion, but we have a matter of great import to discuss with you.”

“Come inside and have a seat. Your master Egonoki has been staying with us since midweek last. I do enjoy his company, but that creature he drags everywhere, Dr. Itachi, leaves much to be desired.”

The sage nodded. “Perhaps our news will hurry him on his way so you no longer need to suffer his entourage.”

“That would be admirable. Come, let us open bottles and break bread.”

“I believe the sooner we let my companion speak, the better,” said Momiji. “He said something about running fast. Please forgive me, he does oft speak in riddles, and it tangles my mind worse than my beard and hair.”

Kamiael smiled a warm smile. “Of course. You and your companions are welcome in my home.” He turned to enter back through his gates. With a careless glass at Ash he said, “if I can tolerate the trouble of Itachi, I am sure I can handle any additional persons, no matter how grating.”

They followed the Angelus inside, Marumi carrying a lidded pot. In the dining room, she set it down on the center of the table before removing the lid. With the released cloud of steam, the room was filled with the delightful aroma of her meal. It was a simple dish of noodles, herbs, spices, and some vegetables she had found in one of the crates.

Everybody, including Kamiael, enjoyed a sumptuous bowl of the food. When they had sufficiently broken their fast, their host looked at Kenichi with a serious gaze. “The Red Sage says that you have news of great import, Hero of the Shooting Star.”

“Yes, I do,” said Kenichi. “But you can call me Kenichi.”

“Very well, what is your news?”

“The time for defeating Kagamikurai is at hand. If we strike soon, we can defeat him quickly and with no problem.”

Kamiael mulled on these words for a moment. “The Dark Lord is strong,” he said at last. “And we are few. How do you suppose we are to defeat him with just a party of nine and the Angelus?”

“We should get the rest of the People of the Light on board, and then, in a great wave, we'll take Kagamikurai by storm, and defeat him.”

“What of the Kugonin?” said the Angelus.

“Master Kenichi has single-handedly slain four of them,” Ash said.

Kamiael frowned, not at the news, but rather at the speaker. “Is that true?” he said.

“Indeed,” said Momiji.

“Is what true?” said a deeper voice. A sage with silvery hair and beard, much like Momiji's, but much less tangled, entered, followed close at hand by a man with a face that greatly resembled a stoat's.

“Master Egonoki,” said Momiji, rising to his feet. “It is an honor to encounter you here.”

The Silver Sage waved a hand dismissingly while his man helped himself to some noodles. “The feeling is mutual,” he said. “But what are we plotting here?”

Kamiael spoke, “This hero,” he said, indicating Kenichi, “believes that we can topple the Dark Lord.”

“Hollyhocks,” said the old sage. “What of the Kugonin?”

“Our hero here has defeated nearly half of them,” said the Angelus.

The old sage screwed his eyebrows at Kenichi. “A charlatan, I'm sure,” he said, dismissively. “How much have you paid him so far?”

Kenichi stood, irate. “I am not charging anybody anything,” he said. Then he looked at Marumi. “Well, I suppose I would like some financial assistance rebuilding the Hopping Hare, but I don't seek to profit from this quest. I only want to defeat Kagamikurai.”

Egonoki made a sound in the back of his throat.

“But I see why you don't want us to succeed,” said Kenichi. “After all, if we defeated Kagamikurai, then you wouldn't have a fellow army to storm Velemir.”

Itachi gasped. “What a bold accusation!” he declared, spilling his noodles.

“Itachi,” warned Egonoki. The weasel-faced doctor sat back down again.

“Let him continue,” said Kenichi. “Let him tell us all about your secret ogre army, and the desecrated temples, and the hewn trees.”

Egonoki's eyes flared with fire. Just as quickly, they cooled. “Such large accusations,” he said. “But such little proof. Words are inexpensive, Hero.”

“You want proof?” Kenichi said. He stepped over to Itachi, pulled the small man up by his lapels, and produced a ledger from within his jacket. He tossed the book down upon the table before Kamiael. “Here is all the proof you need.”

The Angelus picked up the book and opened it. The room was silent as he flipped through the pages, his eyes absorbing the words and figures upon the pages. When finished, he closed the book and looked at Egonoki with pain in his eyes. “I am disappointed,” he said.

The Silver Sage lashed out, grabbing the small man. “You insolent fool! You brought the ledger here!”

Itachi squirmed. “My lord, I could not leave it in my room where it might be discovered.”

"Well, it has been discovered all the same!"

Kamiael sighed. He motioned for his guards to apprehend the two. Winged soldiers stepped into the room and bound the two, taking them away to the dungeons. The Angelus looked to Kenichi. “What is your plan, Hero?”

With that, a young woman stepped into the room. Unlike the fair hair and white wings of the other Angelus, she had dark hair, eyes as red as rubies, and a sole raven wing at her back. Ash shifted in his chair when she entered.

“Gertrude,” said Kamiael, “please, we are in the middle of something.”

“Yes father,” she said quietly, before leaving. As she left, Ash hurried after her.

“Don't worry about them,” Kenichi said. “They'll do just fine.” He stepped over to a large rock sitting on a pedestal at the far end of the room. “As for my plan, we'll use this to communicate with the other People of the Light.”

“My good hero,” said the Angelus, “that is a Speaking Stone. While it may be used to communicate across kingdoms, the Dark Lord has his own. Any plans we make we might as well announce to him using Momiji's fireworks and a troupe of singing pokkurin!”

Kenichi grinned. “But we have something to our advantage,” he said. He walked back over to the table and plucked Korrael up off the tabletop. “We have a stone fairy.”

“Is this one of those riddles the Red Sage warned me about?” said Kamiael.

“Oh, no,” said Kenichi. “It's just a fan theory I read online once.”

“Fan theory? On line?” Kamiael said. “Your words I recognize, but not in any order you've presented them to me. It sounds as if you were cooling yourself by the riverside when an enchanted fish asked you to tell its future.”

Kenichi was confused by this.

“Please, go on,” said the Angelus, “before my mind gets as tangled as Momiji's.”

Kenichi nodded. “Of course. See, the Speaking Stones use the same sort of magic as stone fairies. Korrael can act as an interceptor for the signal heading toward Kagamikurai, but let the rest of the signals through. Then, we can talk freely to all the People of the Light, come up with an epic battle plan, then defeat the dark lord in half the time T. S. Amagami had it happen, or less! Speedrun!”

The room was full of silence, then Kamiael spoke. “Korrael, can you do this?”

The stone fairy thought for a moment. “The theory is sound,” she said. “But I've never done anything like it before.”

“It's worth the risk,” Momiji said. The others nodded.

“Then let it be so,” said the Angelus. He stood, approaching the Speaking Stone. Korrael flitted down beside it. “Whenever you are ready.”

After a few breaths, the tiny fairy nodded. Kamiael waved his hands over the Stone. His eyes glowed and beams of energy shot out from the rock. Korrael focused on the beams of energy, bending one in particular before it shot out into infinity. Her tiny face showed the struggle of her effort.

With a booming voice, the Angelus spoke. He used the Deep Speech, words compacted so elegantly that it was possible to impart a depth of meaning into them. He explained the plan, then gave instructions as to where and when to meet. As one, the other People of the Light accepted his orders.

With that, the light faded, and the stone returned to its dull grey state. Korrael collapsed on the pedestal, and Oren hurried over to check that she was all right. She nodded weakly. He gave her a tankard of ale that, while it looked tiny in his hands, was larger than the fairy. She accepted it, drinking its contents in one go. Then she wiped her mouth, let out a little fairy belch, and fluttered off the pedestal. “I'm fine,” she said. But she clung to Oren, riding on his shoulder the rest of the morning.