Chapter 28: The Light of Despair – 2
Arlia hurriedly spoke.
“Couldn’t we exclude your house? You’ve always stayed there as the gardener. There hasn’t been anything strange yesterday or today, has there?”
“Yes. However, the mana that gathers into Kanesella’s core is sothing even a mage can’t detect. That spell’s primary goal is to remain hidden until the mont it activates.”
“……”
“You must use the spell ‘Contens,’ which allows one to see the flow of mana directly. Let’s begin right away.”
Perhaps because he had already admitted to being a mage, he began preparing without hiding it any longer.
I was curious what a mage’s preparation process would look like, but it wasn’t particularly impressive.
He rely closed his eyes and moved his lips a few tis.
I couldn’t sense anything at all, but Aina shivered for so reason and muttered,
“That old man suddenly turned into soone else.”
“What do you an?”
“Just what I said. It’s more of a gut feeling... but it’s like he’s not the sa person I knew before. More precisely, he’s beco sothing not human.”
I had no idea what she was talking about.
At that mont, Berseum opened his eyes and said,
“You’ve got quite the sharp instinct.”
“Huh?”
“Mana—the source of a mage’s power—is an alien energy that doesn’t originally belong to this world. To control mana is akin to stepping one foot away from humanity itself.”
“……”
“Of course, that’s not what’s important right now. Hold on.”
He murmured another spell, then covered and uncovered his eyes with his palm.
Then he suddenly sprang to his feet.
“T-This... this is far worse than I expected.”
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s hard to explain in words—see for yourself.”
Before I could even respond, he pressed his palm over my eyes.
Monts later—
I witnessed a sight I had never seen before.
The world was overflowing with blue energy.
Like countless thin threads, they spread through the house like spiderwebs.
The only difference from actual webs was that these threads were violently trembling.
Berseum covered and uncovered Arlia’s and Aina’s eyes as well.
“I’ve cast the Contens spell on you, too.”
“These blue threads... are they mana?”
“Yes. Normally, mana doesn’t gather so densely in one place. The fact that it’s condensed to this overwhelming degree is proof that Kanesella is on the verge of exploding.”
“That’s fortunate, at least. The spot where these blue threads are most concentrated must be the source—and the core will be there. It might be easier to find than we thought.”
“Or will it?”
Berseum replied skeptically, then opened the door.
We followed him outside.
“Ah...”
“This is going to be difficult.”
“Difficult? More like impossible.”
The world was filled with blue threads everywhere.
Their density was almost the sa no matter where we looked—it seed nearly impossible to pinpoint the location of the core.
Berseum said,
“To use an analogy, we’re standing inside a giant typhoon. From high above, you can tell where the typhoon’s center lies—but soone trapped inside can never find it.”
“……”
“Mana is so thickly gathered within this confined space that it’s almost impossible to locate the origin. Still, we should try. We’ll observe from the highest point in this territory.”
He put on his coat and turned to Arlia.
“Will you co with ?”
“Of course. That’s not even a question.”
“Thank you.”
“We’re the ones who should thank you.”
Alright. The plan was roughly set now.
It was ti to move faster than my thoughts.
But then—
As if there was still sothing left, the Diary Book suddenly opened.
Huh?
An unexpected quest? Not a hidden one?
[Hidden Quests occur only during Magireta’s quest scenarios. Since this is happening in your daily life, it’s an Unexpected Quest.]
‘How the hell does this count as daily life?’
[Anyway, good luck! Fighting!]
‘Wait, but why is Berseum included too? If he’s ntioned alongside Arlia and Aina, that must an he’s also worth 100 points?’
[Correct. Sharp as ever.]
The Diary Book leisurely explained, completely out of sync with the urgency of the situation.
[Berseum is also a valid candidate, after all.]
‘Huh? Then why didn’t a Hidden Quest trigger back during the First Quest?’
[Because back then, Berseum wasn’t showing his real face.]
So the quest only triggered once I’d seen his true face, huh.
Either way, that ant Berseum was also soone I had to save—
If I wanted to extend my lifespan beyond three years.
Crack.
I flexed my fingers and muttered,
“Let’s give it a try.”
The tallest building in Deut Territory was the bell tower.
Of course, there were guards stationed there, but Aina gracefully knocked them out under the pretext of an ergency.
We sprinted all the way up to the top.
Naturally, first place went to Aina.
Second, .
Surprisingly, Berseum ca in third. For soone who looked around sixty, he was incredibly fit.
Embarrassingly enough, Arlia ca in last.
She panted heavily, her expression showing pure humiliation.
“Haah... Even after tree climbing, now I’m last at stair climbing too...”
“That’s why I told you not to compete in things like that, Your Highness.”
“Anyway, how’s the situation?”
Aina, who had already been peering down, replied,
“No idea at all. Co look.”
“...I see. It’s nothing but a huge ball of threads.”
“A squirming ball of threads. From up here, it looks like a blue slug.”
We stared at the mass of blue slugs—or rather, condensed mana—until our eyes nearly went bloodshot.
After about ten minutes, one by one, we began to give up.
“I guess it’s impossible.”
“This is strange. I can’t figure out where the center is at all.”
“Old man, are you sure the mana’s gathering toward the core? It’s moving around too much.”
That’s when it hit .
“Sir Berseum.”
“What is it?”
“As Aina said, the center keeps shifting. Just when I think it’s here, it suddenly moves over there.”
“……”
“Could it be that there’s more than one core?”
Berseum shook his head.
“Kanesella’s core can never exist in two places at once.”
“Then there’s only one answer.”
“What answer?”
“The core is moving.”
At that, Arlia tilted her head.
“Moving? How could that be?”
“It’s not impossible. Berseum said the core could beco anything. That doesn’t necessarily an it has to be an object.”
“If it’s not an object, then what could it be?”
“Maybe it’s a stray cat or a passing carriage. Or perhaps—”
I hesitated, then continued.
“It might be a person.”
“……!”
“That’s just my guess.”
“No. As always, your insight is exceptional. Mason, could you draw a map of this place for us? Like the one you showed before.”
“That’s easy.”
I spoke to the Diary Book.
‘Please help out.’
[Easy, huh? When you’re not the one doing the work.]
Despite its grumbling, the Diary Book soon began to draw a map.
anwhile, I climbed even higher than the rooftop of the bell tower—
using the excuse that I needed to draw from the highest point possible.
I took out a pen and notebook, pretending to sketch sothing.
The group watched for a while, then, thinking it wouldn’t end anyti soon, turned their attention back down below.
[It’s done.]
‘Good work.’
[Please, be gentle when you tear it out.]
‘Yeah, I’ll really be gentle this ti.’
I carefully tore out one page from the Diary Book.
When I was about halfway through, it spoke again.
[Just rip it out already. That should be fine.]
‘Really?’
[Yes. I can’t stand the suspense.]
Alright, then. No holding back.
Riiip!
[Kyaaaagh!]
‘…….’
[Ahem. Cough. Cough.]
Embarrassed, it quietly disappeared.
I brought the torn page down with and handed it to Arlia without a word.
Everyone looked at my map and showered with praise.
“To think you could make sothing so detailed in such a short ti. Truly impressive.”
“Unbelievable. You’d go far in this line of work. No—you already have.”
“You really can do just about anything, huh.”
I rely shrugged.
Arlia spoke in a serious tone.
“I’ve decided. Once Magireta’s quest is over, I’ll make sure you’re appointed to the Imperial Capital. Rember that.”
“Uh... thank you?”
“Now, may I borrow your pen?”
“Here.”
Arlia began drawing sothing over the map with her pen.
Aina asked,
“What are you doing?”
“Analyzing the movent patterns.”
“Huh?”
“From earlier observation, the writhing of those mana threads had a pattern. If Mason’s intuition is correct and the core is really a person, then those movents might correspond to patrolling soldiers. By tracing their routes, we can narrow down who the core is.”
I clicked my tongue in admiration.
“Impressive. But are you sure there’s a pattern?”
“Without a doubt. I morized it.”
“Well, if it’s Your Highness’s mory, that’s enough proof for .”
“It’s all thanks to your excellent map.”
While replying, Arlia continued drawing lines across the map with ease.
Aina glanced at her work and muttered,
“There’s no way I could ever do that.”
Well, everyone had their own kind of talent.
After so ti—
Her pen suddenly stopped.
At the sa mont, the writhing of the mana threads ceased as well.
“The core stopped moving. Did the patrol return to base?”
“I’m not sure.”
“In any case, here’s the overall route. Berseum, since this is your holand, could you verify these buildings the core visited?”
Berseum took the map.
At first, he tilted his head.
Then, slowly, his expression began to change.
Soon his lips trembled as he spoke.
“Are you certain this is accurate, Your Highness?”
“Of course.”
“These buildings... they’re all private hos.”
“Private hos? If a patrolman visited houses, maybe it was for investigation?”
“No. It’s not a patrolman.”
He let out a long sigh before continuing.
“All the money I’d saved in my life was seized by the Empire. I kept my mansion, but living expenses were difficult.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Eris couldn’t find any decent work. So I arranged for her to do clothing repairs for the neighborhood.”
“……!”
“Today was the day she was to return the finished clothes and collect paynt.”
None of us could say a word.
At first, Berseum had said—
The core was usually placed at the very center of the explosion radius.
And at the center of this territory were a park, a fountain, a fruit shop, a performance hall... and Eris’s house.
Berseum spoke again, trying to sound calm.
“She must have finished her collections and returned ho. That’s why the movents stopped.”
“We—We can’t just stand around! We have to go release it right now!”
“Kanesella’s core prioritizes remaining undetected above all. If it’s using a person’s body as the core...”
“If it is?”
“Then the invisible part of Eris’s body has beco the core. For example... an internal organ.”
Grit.
He clenched his teeth and continued.
“To dispel the core, physical contact is necessary. If so part inside Eris’s body has beco the core... then we’ll have to perform an incision.”
“……”
“I have no skill in cutting into a human body without harming it.”
It wasn’t an explanation—it sounded like a confession.
It was a wonder he wasn’t already coughing up blood from despair.
Berseum staggered, leaning against the wall.
“...I’ll have to take my daughter and leave this territory tonight.”
“What?”
“To sowhere far enough that no one here will be hard.”
“So you’re giving up?”
“Do you have any other solution!?”
That’s when Aina suddenly spoke, her voice colder than ice.
“What are you doing, old man?”
“...What?”
“She’s your daughter. Your own daughter. How can you give up so easily?”
“Silence! Don’t speak so carelessly about soone else’s affairs!”
“It’s not soone else’s affair.”
She stopped mid-sentence.
For a mont, she sounded uncharacteristically emotional.
But Arlia nodded, as though she understood sothing.
“...It’s not soone else’s affair. I’m part of this territory too.”
“……”
“I’ll help you. With the incision.”
“What?”
“I’ll make the cut as carefully as possible, and once it’s done, I’ll stitch it back. You just focus on dispelling the core. Understood?”
Berseum nodded blankly.
I asked carefully,
“Do you have so special technique for that? The bleeding will be severe.”
“I’ll perform a transfusion. Magireta packed my tools in the bag, so I can manage sohow. Of course, I’ll check the blood beforehand.”
“How long do we have between the incision and the stitching? How much ti can we buy?”
“...Three minutes. No—five.”
Then Berseum said,
“I’ll finish within three.”
“Huh?”
“I swear I will. On my life.”
“……”
“So please—save Eris. Save my daughter.”
Aina rolled up her sleeves and replied,
“I can do that. Just don’t ss up, old man.”
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