Chapter 112 : Chapter 112
Chapter 112
“……Excuse me? Are you saying it cannot be repaired?”
Heinen stared at the bracelet in the merchant’s hands with a startled expression.
The merchant snapped his head around at once.
As if he had been waiting for that very question.
“That is exactly what I am saying! Look here—see these astonishing formulas that appear when mana is infused! Ignorant, half-baked mages might think this is a tangled mess, but anyone who knows even a little—Ahem! Well, someone knowledgeable would immediately recognize that the formulas within form an extraordinarily intricate order!”
Speaking rapidly, the merchant thrust the cloth-wrapped Communication Bracelet forward.
His eyes sparkled.
“Order within chaos! This is the very essence of the ‘Beirets Hurbel’ style of formulas……!”
He continued rambling on, clearly delighted to speak of the achievements of such a remarkable figure.
The Beirets Hurbel style was not merely a topic among magic tool artisans; even mages discussed it.
That was only natural, as Beirets Hurbel had also been an extraordinary mage.
To be precise, he was closer to a “formula researcher” than a traditional mage, but in any case, such accomplishments would have been impossible without profound magical knowledge.
“But! I do not know what happened, yet the formulas have become distorted, and to restore them—I simply cannot determine how. Engraving them again is another issue entirely…… Oh, it makes my heart race, yet its brilliance leaves me despondent.”
The merchant, who had been praising Beirets Hurbel, suddenly grew gloomy and began sniffling.
He marveled at the great achievement, yet as someone walking the same path of a magic tool artisan, he knew he could never become like Beirets Hurbel, and tears welled in his eyes.
“……I had only heard rumors about him, but I did not realize he was so remarkable.”
Porzelin spoke in genuine admiration.
She, too, had been astonished when the Two-Way Mana Communicator first appeared in the world, but she had never imagined that a magic tool artisan would be this awestruck.
Beside her, Heinen wore a complicated expression.
Having stood beside Ianpel, he had seen what kind of man Beirets Hurbel was.
“It seems you have misunderstood something.”
Aquila, who had been standing there with a slightly exasperated look, finally opened his mouth to correct him.
“I asked to borrow tools. I did not ask you to repair this.”
Even in Heinen’s earlier words, there had been no request to fix it.
They had only asked for tools that would allow them to repair it themselves.
Unwilling to listen to the merchant any longer, Aquila took the Communication Bracelet back from his hands.
“Just lend us the tools. That will be enough.”
“Ah, ahh……”
Whether or not the merchant groaned at the loss of the masterpiece from his hands, Aquila concluded firmly.
The merchant’s fingers twitched regretfully several times.
“And what do you intend to do with the tools? Even if you take them, there is no one who can repair it.”
Then the merchant shifted his gaze to Heinen’s attire, and once more to the ornament woven of beads and flowers hanging from Porzelin’s scabbard.
“‘Aiana’s Talisman.’ If you received that from the forest dwellers, it means you are on close terms with them. But even they are the same. That is a tool only Beirets Hurbel can repair.”
Aiana was a small flower the size of a bead, cultivated by the spirits of the forest.
Wearing it on a scabbard signified one’s connection to the forest dwellers even more clearly than Heinen’s clothing did.
As Porzelin belatedly examined the ornament on her scabbard—
“I am not entrusting it to anyone. I will repair it myself.”
“……What?”
“Excuse me?”
At the sudden declaration, all of them turned toward Aquila in surprise.
He merely shrugged as if it were nothing.
“I know how to handle magic tools.”
In one of his previous cycles, he had lived as a magic tool artisan. Aquila knew not only how to repair magic tools, but also how to craft them.
Moreover, he had grown sick of seeing Beirets Hurbel’s works.
That meant he knew precisely what shape the distorted formulas had originally taken—and exactly how to restore them.
‘……As much as I hate to admit it, that man is indeed a genius. All I did was spend an absurd amount of time memorizing it.’
In any case, there was not a single lie in Aquila’s words.
“What are you saying……?”
Porzelin, who knew him from before, looked at him in disbelief.
His body had always been frail; he had never studied anything for long, and there were even instances when he had fainted from using magic.
Aquila made a subtle gesture behind his back, signaling her to remain quiet.
“I-I cannot believe it. You look so young…….”
“By that logic, Beirets Hurbel is twenty-four. I have no desire to continue this idle chatter. Either lend the tools or refuse.”
As he grew increasingly irritated, Aquila lifted his chin slightly.
If the merchant refused, he could simply find another magic tool artisan among the long line extending beyond the entrance—or, if none were available, they could head to the village.
Now that they were here, they had options.
The merchant stared at him in disbelief for a moment longer before nodding, as if coming to a decision.
“V-Very well. But I did not bring the kind of equipment needed to repair that. You will have to go to the village for that. The same would apply even if you found another artisan.”
The machine used to restore magical formulas was rather bulky, so it did not seem to be a lie.
Though he might have simpler repair tools on hand.
Aquila knew that, yet he fell briefly into thought.
They needed to enter the Black Forest Dungeon to subjugate the Demonic Dragon, but it seemed unlikely that they could enter at the moment.
With this many people, it would take quite some time just to get inside.
When Aquila turned to Heinen and Porzelin, they nodded at once.
“It would be better to leave for now. We stayed in the forest for quite a long time…….”
It had been three days since they left Senetalia, where the Blue Scale Descendants resided.
The provisions given to them had already run out, and in any case, they needed to return to a village—by one means or another.
More than anything, the two knights had no desire to remain amid the ominous auras pressing in from all sides.
On their way here, they had already received several sharp looks, as if people had assumed they were newcomers aiming for the dungeon’s first clear.
In the end, Aquila nodded.
“Very well. How much will it cost?”
“No. You need not pay. However, there is a condition.”
“A condition?”
“You must allow me to observe the process of repairing the Two-Way Mana Communicator.”
The merchant’s eyes suddenly blazed with fervor.
“I fear you may damage it further, but to witness even a glimpse of such a process…….”
“There is another one anyway, so it is fine.”
“W-What?”
“If it becomes truly irreparable, that one will be easier to fix. In any case, both need to be repaired.”
When Aquila turned to Heinen, he nodded and retrieved his own from within his clothing.
Heinen’s bracelet was also one of Beirets Hurbel’s early creations, though it was less delicate than Aquila’s.
After all, Aquila’s had been personally crafted by Beirets Hurbel for Ianpel.
And the reason Aquila prioritized repairing his own bracelet was because it bore Lexenbert’s unique numbering.
‘If my guess is correct, Lexenbert and Ianpel are together…… I will know once I make contact.’
Aquila fastened the bracelet back onto his left wrist.
“Th-This is……!”
Watching the merchant thrust his face eagerly toward the bracelet in Heinen’s hand, Aquila swallowed a sigh.
***
The merchant’s name was Merdin.
In short order, Merdin packed up his stall in front of the Black Forest Dungeon and loaded all his items onto a cart.
He had a single horse, and Heinen and Porzelin suggested that, if possible, Aquila should ride either the horse or the cart.
Since the two of them had surpassed the level of Sword Expert, they could run faster and longer. If they arrived at the village sooner, it would only be advantageous.
Merdin readily agreed.
However, he could hardly seat the tall, black-haired young man in front of him, so he rearranged the cart to make space.
Though Aquila wore a dubious expression, three pairs of eyes were fixed upon him, and he had no choice but to squeeze himself into the cramped space.
Ding!
[Note from Joreumi: Baggage!]
The Great Spirit fluttered down from Heinen’s head and settled on Aquila’s lap.
“Be quiet.”
“Hmm? Are you speaking to me?”
“……No. I am not.”
As Merdin whipped his head around, Aquila hurriedly denied it.
The merchant gave him a curious look before mounting the horse.
Aquila silently glared at the Great Spirit.
“Then we depart! I will increase the speed, so speak up if you cannot keep up.”
“You may ride without concern.”
Heinen and Porzelin lightly loosened their limbs.
They had been matching Aquila’s walking pace thus far, so it had been some time since they could run at full speed.
“Aquil—no. Quill…… sir, if you are uncomfortable, please say so.”
Seeing Aquila curled up in the narrow space, Porzelin stumbled over his assumed name.
When introducing himself to Merdin, Aquila had given the name “Quill,” as a precaution.
He had also asked that they not speak too formally.
As a result, Porzelin kept malfunctioning and mispronouncing his name, but Aquila simply nodded vaguely.
If he admitted discomfort, he would likely be carried in Heinen’s or Porzelin’s arms. Although Cahena had carried him several times before, he had no desire to repeat that experience here.
Neighhh!
The powerful cry of a horse—something he had not heard in a long time.
With that sound as the signal, they left the vicinity of the Black Forest Dungeon and headed toward the village.
It was roughly a day’s journey away, but on horseback it would take only half the time.
Heinen and Porzelin kicked off the ground powerfully.
Before long, they were glancing at each other as if in competition, and Merdin, delighted, urged the horse to go even faster.
***
The eastern settlement called Banahan was, strictly speaking, too large to be called a village and slightly too small to be called a city.
It was something akin to a small city.
Here, dungeon byproducts from the Black Forest Dungeon were sold, along with crafted goods made from them. The most famous of these was the black metal.
As such, there were many blacksmiths and artisans who forged weapons mixed with black metal, as well as shops specializing in potions and an adventurers’ guild that managed the dungeon.
It was a midway resting point for those heading toward Washerd Forest.
Recently, Banahan had been thriving.
Because the Black Forest Dungeon was relatively easy to clear, hunters specializing in dungeon byproducts and novice adventurers frequently traveled back and forth.
Due to recent events, however, an unusually large number of adventurers had been passing through.
Those who established Banahan as a base while traveling between here and the Black Forest Dungeon, aiming to clear it.
Thanks to them, the inns had no vacancies, and the streets were teeming with people.
In any case, as Merdin and Aquila’s group entered the streets, they gradually slowed.
“There are still quite a lot of people. Ahem. This way.”
The horse let out a short sound and began walking at a measured pace.
After a moment, Merdin glanced back.
“By the way, Quill, was it? Is that young man all right?”
His gaze shifted to Aquila, who had his head buried against a crate.
“Ugh…….”
Aquila barely raised a hand while covering his mouth.
He waved as if to indicate he was fine, but his face had turned pale.
‘Damn this motion sickness…… I forgot…….’
It seemed that his time in this place would be anything but peaceful.