By the Grace of the Gods

Today, three chapters are posted simultaneously.

This is the third chapter.

“It’s good that things are going smoothly, but I didn’t expect there to be no stumbles during practical exercises so far,”

Lord Rosenberg said with a mix of admiration and surprise, then gave a wry smile, clearly troubled as an instructor... To be honest, I agree with him.

Even though cursed arts are still a form of magic, strangely, it feels more natural to me than the elemental magic I’ve used before. Last night, I was talking with Ms. Eleonora about how quick I am at grasping things, but this feels like it goes beyond that.

“I’m not doubting you, but have you studied cursed arts anywhere before?”

“My first time was when I received some instruction from Lord Remily Clemis. Because of my ignorance and careless actions, I ended up being cursed.”

Of course, it’s not just with curses—my experience with magic in general is quite recent. I also talked with Ms. Eleonora about this... including my past life, I’ve been exposed to fantasy works through Japanese manga and anime for decades, so I guess having that image in my head is my advantage.

“Since I was young, I’ve read various books owned by my grandmother. Some of them included stories involving cursed arts, so maybe that’s why.”

“Hmm... by the way, what kind of cursed arts were they?”

When asked what kind, the first thing that comes to mind is the ‘ox-hour visit’ curse I mentioned earlier. Other famous ones are ‘Gu Poisoning’ and ‘Inugami’—mostly dangerous kinds of cursed arts, I believe.

Gu Poisoning, also called Gu sorcery, involves placing multiple poisonous creatures into a single jar or container and making them kill each other. The last surviving one is then used to control others and kill targets.

Inugami involves burying a dog up to its neck, placing food just out of reach, and starving it nearly to death. When the dog lunges for the food, its neck is cut, and its spirit is either controlled or attached to someone to kill them. At least, that’s how I remember it.

Both have various methods and likely include some creative liberties, so I might be mistaken in details. However, both strongly give the impression of dangerous arts.

I gave this vague explanation, but as the conversation progressed, Lord Rosenberg’s expression grew increasingly serious.

“Could it be that these are forbidden techniques?”

“No, simply having knowledge is not a problem. Such arts weren’t uncommon in the past, and anyone studying cursed arts professionally would inevitably hear of them to some extent.

However, those arts—more precisely, cursed arts involving sacrifices, killing, or tormenting living beings—are taboo in modern times and must never be used.”

Lord Rosenberg went on to explain why these are forbidden.

Sacrifices are essentially “substitutes for magic stones.” All things contain mana, especially blood, which is rich in mana. Using the mana within the body of a killed living being allows one to replenish or augment their own mana, enhancing the effect of the technique.

Furthermore, torment before death is intended to convert mana. Just as you use magic stones that match your desired elemental magic attribute, filling a sacrifice’s heart with negative emotions through torment makes the cursed art easier to channel and further strengthens its effect.

“Hearing that, it makes sense that accidents like those the merchants spoke of could happen...”

“Indeed, many accidents occurred. That’s precisely why these methods are now banned. Still, some cannot resist the temptation of such immense power and use them regardless. There are also those who call inflicting pain on themselves ‘ascetic practices’ and perform them as part of their training to enhance their abilities.”

Sacrifices leave relatively clear evidence after rituals, and using them on others is a crime punishable even if the user isn’t a cursed sorcerer. But self-inflicted pain is by one’s own will. Starting from small steps and thinking of it as training, many end up accepting it as normal.