#63
“I understand it’s a mineral that can store magic power.”
“That’s right. The emergence of Clum revolutionized people’s lives. A dying village was able to walk the path of prosperity precisely because of this Clum.”
I recalled a village that had overcome difficult times thanks to a single Clum. The village’s success story has continued to this day and is known to many people, but there are no specific details about exactly how Clum was discovered. I had suspected that the Duke might be related to this Clum somehow, but before I could find out about that fact, other incidents happened, pushing it down my priority list.
“There have been several cases of Clum going berserk until now. Clum goes berserk when magic power exceeding its storage limit is inserted, or when a power other than magic power is introduced.”
“That means…”
“Yes. Mana. Clum goes berserk when mana is inserted and used.”
If that’s true, this empire was extremely vulnerable to demon attacks. If demons inserted mana into the Clum scattered all over the place, it would cause berserk reactions and create chaos everywhere. Did the royal family distribute Clum knowing all this? Despite its numerous uses compared to other minerals, this seemed wrong.
“I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering if we’re too exposed to demon attacks, right?”
Ramtel seemed to read my mind, pointing out exactly what I was concerned about.
“You don’t need to worry about that. Clum already has safeguards to prevent it from absorbing mana. It has a special spell that repels mana when they meet. Even if a demon intentionally tries to insert mana, it’s not only impossible, but the moment they attempt to insert mana, an attack spell is triggered against the demon. So the concern you have won’t happen.”
“Well, that’s a relief then.”
I recalled the strange dizziness that hit me as soon as I entered the garden of the hall yesterday. Perhaps my magic power had entered the Clum then. For some reason, it seemed the magic power in my body had induced the Clum to go berserk. This meant that if someone other than me had entered the garden, the Clum would have exploded too.
The Clum in the garden attracted the surrounding magic power for some reason, and the magic power in my body entered the Clum. While I might have pressed the button that caused the Clum to go berserk, yesterday’s chaos wasn’t because of me.
I felt truly relieved. If it had been because I was somehow different from ordinary people, I would have had to rethink all the plans I had made.
“Then was yesterday’s chaos caused by a sudden influx of magic power?”
I decided to confirm exactly what happened yesterday with Ramtel. If it matched my prediction precisely, I had nothing to worry about.
In response to my question, Ramtel let out a deep sigh. Then he moved a bit closer to me and lowered his voice. Even though there was no one around to eavesdrop on our conversation, he seemed concerned that someone might hear.
“That’s not the case either. There was no change in the amount of magic power in the Clum, they say. It’s because of something else, but the reason hasn’t been discovered yet.”
“You mean there’s some other reason?”
“Yes. That’s how it is at present.”
I nodded, softly murmuring, “I see.” I tried my best not to reveal my inner thoughts.
My heart, which had calmed down after hearing Ramtel’s words, began to fluctuate again. I had thought it wasn’t my fault if it was a magic power outburst, but now I thought it might be. If it wasn’t mana or magic power, what could it be?
Or was Ramtel mistaken? The Clum might have gone berserk by receiving other magic power without changing its own magic power level. There might be other aspects he hadn’t fully discovered.
“Clum is a mineral whose research isn’t yet complete. This incident might also be due to reasons we haven’t yet uncovered.”
It would be nice if what he said was true. I had thought a knot that hadn’t been untied was finally being loosened, but it felt like it was being tied even tighter for a different reason.
My stomach was getting increasingly uncomfortable. One wrong move and my expression might completely fall apart. I decided to get up, having obtained all the information I could from Ramtel. I thanked him for telling me so much and stood up.
“If you’re curious, I’m planning to go on an exploration this weekend. Would you like to join me?”
Ramtel, who stood up with me, suggested that we go together on an exploration to the village where Clum was first discovered.
The village was surely near the Duke’s territory. Moreover, it was also Kara’s hometown. If I went along, I might find other clues, but it seemed dangerous to move to a distant place without knowing exactly what was happening with my body. It would be a disaster if I caused another Clum to go berserk.
“No, thank you.”
The more I learned, the more questions arose.
At this rate, it seemed faster to gather Clums and check if I really could make them go berserk. Just as I was about to leave the room, my steps halted. Though it was a method born out of stubbornness, I wondered if I should really try it.
Turning to Ramtel, who was about to see me off, I asked about the first condition needed to realize this absurd method.
“Is there a place where I can obtain raw Clum?”
I pushed away the image of Persis’s worried face. If no one would help me, I’d have to figure it out myself. What else could I do?
***
As I opened the door to my dormitory room, a dark scene greeted me. It was the same as usual, but with one difference. I didn’t hear the sword’s voice, which would usually call out to me as soon as I entered.
“I’m back.”
I tried calling out, just in case, but there was no response. Anxiety welled up. It was strange that the sword wouldn’t answer me, no matter how upset it might be. I hurriedly entered the room and stood in front of the sword.
The sword seemed more quietly subdued than usual. As I carefully touched its surface, the cold blade brushed against my palm. Anxiety took precedence.
I didn’t know how to call out to the sword. I didn’t know the sword’s name, and I hadn’t even asked if it had one. It was just a sword, and it had always been by my side since it was given to me.
“Can you hear my voice? Hey?”
My mouth went dry. I was afraid something might have gone wrong. There had been no issues with the sword itself recently. The only thing different from usual was that I had asked the sword about myself yesterday. It didn’t make sense that the sword would suddenly be unable to communicate just because of that. Perhaps someone had entered the room and tampered with the sword while I was asleep or attending class?
I hurriedly picked up the sword and stood up. Regardless of the reason, it was clear that something was wrong with the sword. But I didn’t know where to go with the sword. Even though I knew there was nothing I could do by going out, my feet headed outside the room.
“Yawn. What, you’re back?”
At that moment, a familiar voice echoed in my head. As soon as I heard that voice, the strength left my legs. Holding the sword tightly, I slumped down right there.
“Huh? Andelion, why do you look like that? Did something happen?”
I suppressed the urge to shout, “Is that what you should be saying right now?” With a sigh of relief, I rested my face against the sword’s hilt.
“What is it? What happened! What is it! What happened, I said!”
“What about you? Why did you suddenly not say anything?”
“I was sleeping.”
It’s the first time I’ve heard that the sword sleeps. I wanted to press further about what was going on, but decided to keep it brief. I couldn’t even verify if the sword’s words were true, not knowing how it worked in the first place.
“I was worried. I thought something might have happened.”
“Why? Afraid I might go somewhere?”
Hearing the sword’s playful voice, I felt foolish for having worried and been anxious. With a hollow laugh, I nodded.
“Yes. I was scared because you seemed unwell, and I couldn’t help you.”
Hearing my honest answer, the sword seemed at a loss for words, uttering a small “Uh” as it chose its words. After briefly stammering, the sword spoke to me rapidly.
“No, I’m really fine. I’m perfectly okay! Ah, I can’t even show you. There’s nothing wrong with me. I was really just sleeping for a moment. There’s nothing wrong or problematic. So don’t worry too much.”
“What if…”
It was a problem I had never considered. I had unconsciously believed that there would never be an issue with the sword itself. But the situation was becoming increasingly unpredictable. This meant that something could go wrong at any time.
“If something goes wrong with you, who should I look for?”
“That won’t happen.”
“But what if it does? Who should I ask for help? Or, is there a way I can handle it on my own?”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
