PROLOGUE


    – The Last Hexe


    She introduced herself as ?The Last Hexe?1


    to me.


    She was clad in black clothes like those worn at a funeral and had dull grey


    hair that looked as though it were covered by ashes. Within her eyes dwelled


    mystery, and she certainly looked the part of a ''witch''. However, she was a


    surprisingly sociable and friendly person.


    "It''s a pleasure to meet you, Lyle Waldstein."


    Upon my grasping of her outstretched hand, the ?Hexe? was all smiles, and


    my anxiety all but vanished.


    And to Erl—of course, the ?Hexe? had a real name and also a pet name—


    "Are you really a witch?"


    I asked.


    Erl did not live in a dwelling deep in the forest but rather in a mansion out in


    the open, widely exposed to the sun. The people that worked there had


    never seen any fiels2


    or automata3


    like those from the fairy-tales of the past.


    At that time, I did not know the reason why ?The Last Hexe? was known as


    a rare prodigal scientist . To the childishly innocent me, Erl had said,


    "Well, well, what should I say? The ''answer'' is not something that is given,


    but earned, don''t you know?"


    while smiling in delight.


    1


    Hexe means ''witch'', in German. To be exact the author used ''Hex'' (not in furigana, it''s


    written right at the end of the book), but I took the liberty of correcting it.


    2


    Faeries, basically.


    3


    Moving puppets, similar kinds of existences.


    2


    Carrying a lamp, I entered the basement, and promptly shouted for joy.


    There was the ''witch''s room'', the existence of which I had both been


    skeptical of and was eagerly anticipating, where glass specimen containers


    and old books were piled up.


    And, on top of the table was, that which was considered to be the origin of


    magic, the mysterious magical stone—[Amber].


    Taking one of the amber stones, I raised it over my head... but, nothing


    happened. No flames, not even a faint light, was given off.


    Avoiding detection, I stayed inside the hidden room. Parchment scrolls,


    handwritten ancient documents, Erl''s research notes, I read everything