Chapter 165
When I woke up, the first thing I did was fumble around in my pocket.
Morning sunlight streamed in through the window, and I could even hear birds chirping -an environment surrounded by nature.
And yet, what I took out was a smartphone, something I’d almost completely stopped touching since coming to this world.
“Haha… I used to have a habit of checking this first thing every time I woke up.” (Shizuma)
I operated the smartphone, which I had barely touched lately -to the point that even the feel of it in my hand felt unfamiliar- and checked the current battery level.
Displayed on the screen were the characters [71%]. In other words, the battery had decreased.
“It must be because I was wearing it on me when that wish was granted…” (Shizuma)
Once I was convinced that Shire’s speculation had been correct, I stored away this electronic device -the thing that made me feel the strongest connection to modern society, to Japan- into my menu screen.
I probably won’t take it out again.
“Well then… I’ve got to head to the castle.” (Shizuma) —————–
“Have a safe trip!” (Melt)
“I’ll be heading out, Melt.” (Shizuma)
“I’m going to the guild this afternoon!” (Melt)
After seeing Shizuma off as he headed for the castle, Melt went straight into tidying up the living room.
Once she put away the dishes and cleared the table, she began laying out various pieces of equipment on top of it.
“I’ll process it while I have time.” (Melt)
Melt took out a single material.
[Quartz Dragon Heart-Silver]: an extremely rare material that could be used both for smithing and alchemy.
It was also the reason she ended up participating in the blacksmithing tournament in Izbel, and a material Melt herself had long desired.
“…Such incredible purity. It must have been taken from a fully matured individual… I absolutely can’t waste this.” (Melt)
She placed the blue-silver mass into a beaker and poured in various medicinal solutions.
Amid strange noises, odd smells, and copious amounts of foam being produced inside, she used her equipment to filter and distill the contents.
She carried out the difficult-looking procedures smoothly, occasionally checking a book as she worked.
“…If the residue turns transparent, that means success… Right.” (Melt)
When the series of operations was finished, what remained was a powder like glass sand, sparkling with a blue glow, collected at the bottom of the container.
Melt carefully transferred it into a small vial, sealed it tightly, and stored it away in her storage magic tool.
“That makes one for now… This is going to take a while…” (Melt)
It seemed this processing work was being done to prepare ingredients for a medicine Melt was aiming to create.
Normally, it would have been a continuous series of painstaking, cautious steps, but the model Melt had learned from was her grandmother, a once-in-a-generation alchemist.
Because of that, the precision and speed of her work were far beyond those of ordinary people.
“That leaves Darkness of the Water’s Depths, Light of the Azure Sky, and Hamchu Soul; the last three are even harder.” (Melt)
Those were the ingredients listed in the recipe for what was called a “medicine that can make matter house a soul.”
Melt had been secretly attempting to create that medicine.
“Maybe it could become a hint for housing everyone’s hearts”. That, and that alone, was her reason.
After finishing the processing of the materials, Melt headed to the General Guild as planned.
Hoping to see her friends after so long, and wanting to test the feel of her new weapons.
Now that she had set a major goal within herself, she truly felt fulfilled.
—————–
When I spoke to the gate guard at the entrance to the castle, he clearly remembered me, perhaps because my black hair and black eyes were rare in this world.
“I’ll immediately inquire with someone inside the castle. You were summoned by Kokuri-sama, correct?”
“Yes, that’s right. Please do.” (Shizuma)
“Understood. Please wait a moment.”
I watched him head into the castle after switching out with another guard, and waited for a short while…when once again, the gate guard came running back at full speed.
Would it be too nitpicky to think that they really ought to make more use of short-range communication devices, at least within the castle?
The returning guard informed me, “Kokuri-sama is waiting in the research institute,” and promptly guided me there.
When I revisited the place I’d been shown once before, it was immediately apparent that the flow of people and objects coming and going had clearly increased.
Though it was located within the castle grounds and should have been a place far removed from bustle, the research institute, with people busily moving about, felt somehow out of place.
At the same time, considering the current situation, I found myself accepting that it couldn’t really be helped.
Lighting fixtures that illuminated the interior as a matter of course, even during the daytime, in a facility that felt oddly modern.
An array of tools you wouldn’t see in the city, and people uniformly dressed in white coats, so orderly that the word “methodical” came to mind.
Looking at this place from an overall perspective, I truly felt that this research institute was a space one step ahead of this country -a place closer to the modern age.
“Shizuma-kun! Ah, I’m glad you came! I didn’t expect you to arrive this quickly.”
“It’s been a while, Kokuri-san. I heard from Seimu-san when he came by the main force. You had business with me, right?” (Shizuma)
Kokuri-san, looking great as always in her white coat, was bathed in the indoor lighting, and today her flaxen hair seemed tinged with a faint yellow-green hue.
Her fur changed color depending on the type and angle of the light, and I felt it suited her mysterious nature remarkably well.
Her words and actions seemed bright and easy to understand, but with her, it always felt as though her true intentions were hidden somewhere else.
“…You really are something, you know. I can feel you turning things over in your mind from just that brief exchange. Are people from your world all so perceptive, even at a young age?” (Kokuri)
“I wonder? Though…people sometimes call our world an ‘information society.’ It’s a world overflowing with information. There are probably quite a few people who are conscious of that.” (Shizuma)
“I see. Truly fascinating… Just having knowledge and a way of thinking on par with yours is enough…” (Kokuri)
Kokuri-san made that assessment of me as we walked.
Descending the stairs, heading toward her laboratory on an unoccupied level.
“…That alone is enough worth to keep them alive.” (Kokuri)
She finished those words while confirming the figures of my former classmates confined inside the laboratory.
This, I think, is Kokuri-san’s true nature.
A person who moved entirely to satisfy her endless curiosity, inquisitiveness, and thirst for knowledge -and who could temporarily erase humanitarian considerations and ethics from herself. A somewhat broken, almost mad kind of person.
“…I see. When you put it that way, there certainly is value. Though, apparently, there was one person who didn’t qualify, right?” (Shizuma)
Unlike before, the cages were now furnished with reasonably comfortable beds, chairs, and tables.
The cages themselves were spacious; about the size of a business hotel room.
Inside them, one person per cage, were Hishida-san and Kazunuma.
…Yes, just the two of them. Muraki was likely being treated or studied elsewhere, but Samie, who had frequently displayed problematic behavior, was nowhere to be seen.
“Ah, you are talking about that. After repeated warnings, we were putting the three of them through various tests at the training grounds for experimental and verification purposes, but it attempted to escape. We disposed of it on the spot.” (Kokuri)
“That idiot really was beyond saving. Like I said earlier, there are big individual differences in our world.” (Shizuma)
“It seems so. The two who remain obedient now are quite impressive. Especially the one called Hishida. Her knowledge, calculating nature, and intelligence are rather valuable.” (Kokuri)
“Yeah. She ranked at the top of her class at the school she attended… At that educational institution.” (Shizuma)
“Is that so? According to her, though… ‘The one who’s truly outstanding is Shizuma-kun.’” (Kokuri)
“That’s not true. I always lost to her grades. I was stuck in second place year after year.” (Shizuma)
That was the truth. There was no way I could beat someone who actually studied. Those results proved the existence of effort.
“We’re blocking both our voices and theirs right now, but would you like to talk to them?” (Kokuri)
“Hmm… Yeah. There are a few things I want to confirm.” (Shizuma)
I asked her to lift the soundproofing magic placed on the cages, so I could ask about what had been discussed with Shire and the others in the roundtable chamber.
“Looks like your treatment’s improved since last time.” (Shizuma)
“Shizuma… Samie… Samie…” (Kazunuma)
“I already heard.She was beyond saving to the end. She didn’t even understand that she was a war criminal.” (Shizuma)
“…Yeah. I guess so.” (Kazunuma)
Kazunuma reported on our classmate, but his expression seemed to mix both grief and resignation.
Somewhere deep down, he must have known Samie was a hopeless fool, and that it was her own doing.
“Hishida-san, don’t talk me up too much. It feels like it’s just raising the bar for future cooperation. You’re the outstanding one -the top student of the grade.” (Shizuma)
“I went to cram school and studied at home every day. But you were working part-time and didn’t even go to cram school, right? It’s quite a shock, you know; to put in that much effort and still have someone right behind you who isn’t investing nearly as much time.” (Hishida)
“Huh… I guess that makes sense. For the record, I only opened my textbooks at home during exam periods.” (Shizuma)
“…I take that back. You’re not outstanding; you’re abnormal. I don’t mean that in a bad way.” (Hishida)
What a terrible thing to say.
Pulling myself together, I asked the two of them what I wanted to know.
“There’s something I want to ask you both. After you left that mansion in the forest, did you stop by the bus? Like to retrieve any belongings?” (Shizuma)
This was what had been bothering me.
If that bus was an ‘existence severed from a world without information applied to it’, then the things inside it would be the same. That was why the food inside hadn’t deteriorated.
So if they retrieved something from the bus, there’s a high chance that its time is stopped.
“The bus? In that case, I retrieved my smartphone, and Muraki-kun…I think he retrieved a multifunctional wristwatch. He said it had a compass function, even if it might not work.” (Hishida)
“Ah, Muraki’s army watch. He usually keeps that thing clipped to his backpack.” (Kazunuma)
“And those items have already been collected here, in this country.” (Shizuma)
“That’s right. Kokuri-san should be examining them.” (Hishida)
“I see. Thanks. I’ll have the soundproofing put back on.” (Shizuma)
Once again, the voices from the cages were cut off.
“Kokuri-san, could you show me the belongings recovered from those people?” (Shizuma)
“Of course. There were many interesting items, but I refrained from disassembling them. Hishida-san stopped me.” (Kokuri)
“That was the right call. Things like ‘this’, once you disassemble them, it’s almost impossible to return them to their original state.” (Shizuma)
I said that while holding Hishida-san’s smartphone.
…I operated the device, whose lock had already been removed under her instructions.
And just as expected…the battery still read [100%].
“…Just as I thought.” (Shizuma)
“Did you figure something out?” (Kokuri)
“Yes. Actually…” (Shizuma)
I explained, leaving out the finer details, that this device was in a state where it would never deteriorate or run out of energy, and at the same time advised that if Hishida-san were to be released and utilized in the future, letting her use this could be highly useful.
“I see. Those two do have high utility value, and depending on their future attitude and contributions, I’m considering granting them a certain degree of freedom. If you say so, then I’ll place Hishida under my supervision in an assistant-like role.”
“I think that’s fine. As for Kazunuma…well, just implement some kind of escape-prevention measure and have him serve as a soldier of this country. He’s got a strong sense of responsibility and rationality, all things considered.” (Shizuma)
“Yes, I’ve been sensing that as well. And he was quite worried about the subject…the one who transformed.” (Kokuri)
“Oh, right. What happened with that?” (Shizuma)
“Thanks in part to the materials Shilent-san recovered, we’ve been able to gradually reverse his bodily transformation. It’ll still take time, but it looks like we’ll be able to return him to being human in the not too distant future. At the very least…in appearance.” (Kokuri)
I see… The research materials recovered from the Golda Castle were being put to good use.
In that case, Kazunuma probably wouldn’t betray this country.
“So then, you had business with me, right? I ended up prioritizing my own matters.” (Shizuma)
“Ah, that’s right. Actually, there’s something I’d like to ask of you.” (Kokuri)
“A request…?” (Shizuma)
“Yes. About that berserk Dungeon Core you obtained from the artificial dungeon. I’d like you to try using it, via the terminal at Seimu-san’s house, on this country’s artificial dungeon.” (Kokuri)
…Sorry. I’d completely forgotten.
And when I examined that core with [Appraisal Eye], there was a line like that.
[Rather than returning it to the land, its use in stabilizing an unstable dungeon is recommended.]
Something along those lines.
I promised to head back and try using it as soon as today.
“Then, on your way back, could you stop by the former site of the artificial dungeon -the headquarters of the Explorer Guild- and inform them? Tell them: ‘There’s a possibility of a major change occurring in the dungeon, so please refrain from entering or approaching it today and tomorrow.’” (Kokuri)
“Understood. I’ll let the guild master there know.” (Shizuma)
And with that, I finished my business with Kokuri-san and headed for the Explorer Guild.
—————–
“—Ma!”
“Hm?”
“—Zuma!”
Just as I was about to exit through the castle gates, I heard someone calling from far behind me.
Turning around to check…
“Shizuma! Long time no see. Have you been well?”
“Whoa! Commander Kres!?” (Shizuma)
There stood the knight commander, Kres-san, wearing an oddly cheerful smile.
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