Please, Just Read It

Please, just read it!

Chapter 36

Their Circumstances (5)

After listening quietly to my words, Riley finally responded after a moment of contemplation.

“I can just learn it, right?”

[Huh?]

“I’ll learn ancient magic.”

[…….]

No.

What on earth did she hear from my words?

[What are you talking about? Ancient magic is useless now that the war is over!]

“It’s okay.”

Riley said in a flat voice.

“I’ll endure until the war breaks out again, and someday ancient magic will have its day…”

[Stop with the nonsense.]

“Yes.”

I wasn’t in the mood to entertain absurd jokes.

“Still, it’s a bit disappointing.”

[What is?]

“If I could part the seas with a single spell, that would be amazing.”

[…….]

Well, that’s true.

It would indeed be impressive.

[But wake up.]

“Why?”

[Ancient magic isn’t something you can just learn and use in an instant, you know.]

To master ancient magic, one must put in immense effort.

You need to study ancient runes for effective 「incantation」, memorize various prayers, and even modify the magical circuits inscribed within your body…

This meant Riley would have to reset everything she had built up until now and start from scratch.

‘…You’re saying I have to reset everything and start over?’

[Yes.]

Of course, the magic Riley had learned up until then would be rendered useless.

Pathfinding, Magic Missile, and Dispel—everything.

[You’re erasing your greatest strength, your magical affinity, back to zero. Will you be okay with that?]

‘Ugh…’

Riley clicked her tongue and shook her head.

“I don’t want that. I guess I’ll have to learn ancient magic in my next life.”

[I’ll cheer for that.]

If there is a next life, that is.

*

Did we travel for about two more hours?

Finally, we came face to face with the Golden Golem for the first time.

‘…There are others, too.’

Riley, who had been hiding behind a pillar, silently pointed ahead.

As she said, there were some candidates who had arrived long before us.

“……”

“……”

Three magicians were sitting in a circle around the fallen golem, keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings.

From their exhausted expressions, it seemed that the operation to capture the Golden Golem had been incredibly tough.

“Those guys… They subdued the golem but didn’t extract the core?”

Becky whispered to Riley in a quiet voice.

Hearing her words, we focused again on the Golden Golem.

[…It’s true.]

As Becky said, the observers had not extracted the Golden Golem’s core.

Instead, they were using a magical net to bind the golem.

“Grrr!”

It struggled—twitching and writhing!

One of the magicians, unable to bear the sight, used electric magic to knock the beast unconscious.

“Gah…”

“……”

Riley, watching the situation silently, asked in confusion.

‘Why bother capturing the golem? They could just kill it and take the core.’

[I don’t know.]

I was curious about that too.

Was there some special reason they couldn’t kill the Golden Golem?

[……Huh?]

At that moment, something caught my eye.

The torn leg of the golem revealed a familiar scale-like skin underneath.

[Ah.]

I instantaneously recognized what that skin was.

[It’s dragon skin.]

‘Huh?’

[Dragon skin. See that scale peeking out? Right by the golem’s leg wound?]

‘Oh.’

Following my words, Riley examined the golem and her eyes lit up. She seemed to have also noticed the exposed scale on the leg wound.

‘If it’s dragon skin… That’s a top-notch artifact that can even ignore most “magical detection” spells.’

[Yep.]

‘That explains why the core’s magical energy felt faint even with the Golden Golem so close by.’

Riley nodded, as if now understanding.

‘So if they extract the golem’s core…’

[The core, which has been hidden under the dragon skin, will reveal its presence.]

Riley’s expression distorted.

‘Then the observers who sensed that magic will swarm in, and another battle will ensue, just like before.’

[Yep.]

‘That’s why they deliberately didn’t kill the golem, they’re holding off until the last moment to extract the core before the trial ends.’

[Exactly.]

Given that Riley was a student of Lutemis, it made sense that she grasped the implication so quickly.

[Anyway, those guys from the Five Great Towers sure are crafty.]

Although it looks as if luck is a factor in the selection trial, upon digging deeper, that’s hardly the case.

Think about it.

If a team with insufficient skills lucked out and captured the Golden Golem, what would happen?

Surely, they wouldn’t have the slightest clue and would extract the core.

Then other candidates, sensing the core’s magic, would come rushing in, and the team that discovered the Golden Golem first would be overwhelmed and likely lose their lives.

‘No matter how lucky they were to find the Golden Golem, it means that teams lacking strength would still get eliminated.’

[Exactly.]

And thinking in reverse…

[We need to be careful of them, Riley.]

“……”

I continued while looking at the candidates who had captured the Golden Golem.

[Those folks haven’t fallen into the traps set by the Five Great Towers. That means they’re quite skilled magicians.]

Hearing my words, Riley took a deep breath and slowly nodded.

‘I understand. I’ll be careful.’

After finishing her response, she turned to her group and started explaining everything I had just said.

“Hmm…”

Listening to Riley’s explanation in silence, Becky gave a mysterious smile.

She casually threw a glance at the others and said,

“In other words, they’re strong, so be careful when fighting them, right?”

“Uh…”

Riley, who was swallowing her words, reluctantly nodded.

“Well… It does seem like a lot has been left out, but yes. That’s the general idea.”

“Then it’s nothing special.”

Becky wore a confident expression.

“Fighting strong opponents is something we’ve been doing all along.”

Without even waiting for her words to finish, she sprang out from behind the pillar.

“W-what…!”

Becky’s sudden attack startled the opposing team, making them jump to their feet in surprise.

“Here I go!”

Regardless of what they thought, Becky began to channel her magic.

A strong magical energy emanated from her hands.

Whoosh─!

“Wahahaha!”

Just as Becky dashed at her opponents with a burst of excitement…

“Submit!”

“…Huh?”

An unexpected voice rang out.

“Submit! I surrender!”

Before the words were even over, a middle-aged magician, likely their team leader, threw himself to the ground.

“…Eh?”

“…Huh?”

[…Huh?]

Confused voices echoed around.

“What the hell? Are you kidding? Get over here and fight, you bastards!”

“……”

Becky stopped in her tracks, shouting in disbelief.

She looked so bewildered that her pupils began to tremble.

She wasn’t the only one taken by surprise.

“H-headmaster? What are you doing…?”

“Shut up and get down! If you don’t, we’ll all die!”

“……?”

The trembling voice of the apparent team leader quivered as he urged his team to comply. One by one, they began to look around nervously. Eventually, one of them dropped to the ground, followed by another who reluctantly followed suit.

Thud─.

“……”

“……”

In an instant, the battle was over.

[What?]

I muttered in disbelief, staring at the opposing team that laid prostrate without any resistance.

[…What even is this?]

Why are they surrendering without even fighting us?

“Riley.”

A puzzled Becky cautiously spoke up then.

“Those guys were supposed to be strong right? But they just surrendered without even a single exchange!”

“Um…”

“Are they really that strong?”

After thinking briefly at Becky’s question, Riley came up with a new hypothesis.

“Could it be because of Becky?”

“Because of me?”

“Yes. Your reputation is well-known in the magic community. So the moment they saw your face, they surrendered immediately.”

It was a plausible assumption.

If a notorious serial killer appeared before you, it’d be perfectly normal to be swept with fear.

It wouldn’t be surprising for any will to fight to vanish in such a situation.

Preconceived notions can be that frightening.

Sometimes they can even be more powerful than anything else.

“P-please!”

To prove my point, the leader of the opposing team was groveling on the ground, begging…

“Oh, Lady Olivia!”

[…Huh?]

However, the one he was pleading for mercy from wasn’t Becky.

“P-please don’t use torture magic on me!”

“……”

“I-I’ll willingly hand over the Golden Golem’s core. Please… I beg you, don’t use torture magic!”

[…Huh?]

With a swift motion, our gazes collectively turned to one spot.

“O-oh, um… I mean…”

Olivia stammered as usual, fidgeting with her fingers.

With an awkward smile, she muttered,

“Um, um, that person is the one…”

“……”

“He was the one who helped me pass the first examination…”

Hearing that, both Riley and I let out a simultaneous sigh.

“Ah.”

[Ah.]

Goodness.

What a coincidence.

*

“Gurrr…”

“Shhh, stay still.”

Riley placed the Golden Golem on her lap and gently stroked its back.

A warm touch.

The golem, which had been resisting intermittently, eventually relaxed its guard.

Soon, it began to make happy sounds as it snuggled closer.

‘It’s like a dog.’

[What?]

“No, I mean, it feels kind of like a puppy.”

[…….]

It sounded a bit odd, but there was some merit to it.

Yeah, well.

The Golden Golem had many similarities to a puppy, as Riley said.

It definitely resembled a cat-like sphinx in appearance, though.

‘I’m thinking of naming it Toby.’

[……?]

You do you.

“Gurrr.”

“Hey, let me pet it once. It looks really cute and…”

“Grrr!”

“Ah! Ouch! That little brat bit me! Ah! Blood! It’s bleeding!”

Becky started making a fuss over what was just a minor injury.

Riley looked at her in exasperation and asked,

“Are you okay?”

“I’m not okay! Gah! It’s biting! It really hurts!”

[…….]

So noisy.

Really, loud.

‘What a chaotic team.’

Riley sighed and ignored Becky. After spending all day with the golem, I guess she was getting used to such antics.

“Gurrr…”

“……”

While she continued to pet the Golden Golem, Riley quietly changed the subject.

‘I’m really glad we secured the Golden Golem without any fighting.’

[True.]

As Riley said, it was a real blessing that the opponents handed over the Golden Golem so willingly.

As I always said, avoiding unnecessary fights was the best course of action.

In the ruins, you should minimize even the slightest variable.

Of course, it seemed that Becky, who loved to fight, found that fact disagreeable…

But well, that wasn’t our concern.

“Hey, dimwit.”

Just then, Becky had finished dressing her wound and called out to Olivia grumpily.

“Looks like you’ve got quite the knack for torture magic, huh? Just look at how the leader fell flat on the floor the moment he saw you?”

“Hehe…”

Olivia replied sheepishly.

“The only ancient magic I can practically use is that one, but I’ve practiced really hard.”

“You’re a doggone scary one. Is it really that exciting to learn torture magic?”

“Either way, it’s still a type of ancient magic.”

With a prideful look on her face, Olivia continued brightly.

“I love all ancient magic!”

“Seriously, you’re a real weirdo.”

I couldn’t tell who was calling whom a weirdo.

If there’s a hierarchy of weirdness, Becky wouldn’t be far behind. She’d rank among the top I’ve ever met.

“By the way, hey dimwit. You’re from the southern region, right?”

“…Y-yes?”

Becky continued with a seemingly out-of-the-blue question.

Upon hearing that, Olivia’s expression turned surprised.

“Um, how did you know?”

“Can’t you tell? You can see it just by looking.”

Becky pressed on.

“Every time you speak, there’s a slight southern accent mixed in.”

“R-really?”

“Yep. Especially when you’re panicked, you tend to mutter in dialect. Didn’t you notice?”

“T-that…”

I interjected, having been silently listening to their conversation.

[Well, I think Olivia seems like someone from the south too.]

‘Why do you think that?’

[There tends to be quite a few crazies in the south. If you look closely, many of the truly odd ones turn out to be from the southern region.]

Riley looked uneasy.

‘Isn’t that a statement of regional discrimination?’

[…….]

No.

This was just data I’d gathered over thousands of years.

The southern regions of the Empire tended to house quite a few oddballs.

There were various reasons for this, but if I had to pinpoint one, it would be the geographical environment of the southern Empire that played a big role.

The endless plains and the occurrence of phenomena like polar days can quite easily mess with people’s minds…

‘That’s clearly regional discrimination.’

[No, I’m serious? You’ll see for yourself as you age. Just observe how many nuts come from the south.]

‘I’m disappointed. It’s morally wrong to casually make such statements.’

I responded incredulously.

[When exactly did you start caring about morals?]

I couldn’t even come up with a reply.

Right at that moment…

“Oh, interesting. I’m from the south too.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m from the south, just like you.”

“Oh! R-really? Nice to meet you! I didn’t know we were from the same place!”

As soon as Becky declared she was from the south, Riley’s expression slowly began to decay.

‘Magician.’

[What?]

‘Did you know that there are crazy folks living in the southern region? I just learned that today.’

[You’re kidding me.]

That was just something I told you earlier!

[And just a moment ago, you were saying not to make regional discriminations. Why the sudden change when it’s you saying it?]

‘I never went around saying not to discriminate! When did I say that?’

[Wow.]

Seriously.

The audacity is astonishing.

[…Is this the work of The Thieves’ Guild’s children’s fairy tale?]

Honestly, I don’t know why Uncle Robert wrote rubbish fairy tales that ruin kids.

I’m willing to bet that Riley was influenced by stories like “Pinocchio who Became Happy After Growing a Nose.”

Otherwise, there’s no way to explain her tendency to fabricate stories at any moment.

‘How did you know? One of my favorite storybooks is “The Joy of Pinocchio Growing His Nose.”’

[What?]

That trashy book actually existed?

‘Of course not. I was just saying something silly.’

[…….]

‘I’m sorry. I think I’ve gone a bit crazy being stuck in the ruins all day long.’

[…Yeah.]

Perhaps The Thieves’ Guild really did pick Riley up from the southern region of the Empire.

*

It has now been 20 hours since we entered the ruins.

Four hours until the examination ends.

Having secured the Golden Golem, we were hiding in a corner of the ruins, waiting for the trial to end.

“Zzz….”

“Zzz…”

Becky and Olivia were exhausted and asleep.

The sight of them using each other’s shoulders as pillows looked so peaceful.

Riley was looking at them while deploying 「Pathfinding」, scanning for the approach of other candidates, just in case.

“Yawn…”

Yawning with a tired expression, Riley slowly petted the Golden Golem resting on her knees.

‘What a long day it’s been.’

[Yeah.]

It really felt interminably long.

That was just how exhausting it was.

[But you only have to hang in there a little longer, right?]

Four hours.

Just hold out for four more hours.

Then this dreadful trial would be over.

Recalling that fact, I let out a sigh of relief again.

[Huff……]

Yes.

It seemed this second selection trial would go smoothly without any hiccups.

As long as other candidates don’t ambush us…

CRASH-! CLANG-!

‘…An ambush is incoming.’

[…….]

I really should have just kept my mouth shut.