Chapter 169
I watched my companions for a while, and it seemed the barrier was working properly.
Looking back, I cast that barrier while I was still a little confused.
Once I realized that, I worried it might break, but it seems to have held up.
Thank goodness.
However, this incident left Core terribly depressed.
It seems being made to attack me came as a shock.
But it couldn't be helped, since Core had been manipulated.
Chai is always by Core's side, which is reassuring, but it'll probably take a while for Core to settle down.
Still, to think it could have this much influence... What in the world is hidden in the forest?
I've sent magic through the entire forest several times to investigate, but I couldn't detect any unusual magic.
That means it's hidden incredibly well.
I need to investigate the forest as soon as possible.
……
I can't believe Core stayed depressed for ten whole days.
Seeing Core cower when it looked at me hurt the most.
I'll find out what caused this, no matter what.
I turn my gaze toward the forest.
I've been thinking about it for the past few days, but I can't take on a huge number of manipulated monsters.
Manipulation... It's pretty much like brainwashing, isn't it?
Either way, I need to do something before I enter the forest.
I can't possibly protect every living thing in the forest with a barrier.
The best thing would be to identify the source and destroy or seal it, but I have no idea what this unusual magic is.
Last night, I tried casting a search spell over the forest to see if I could find anything, but I learned nothing.
I don't know what the source is, so I'll have to look for another way...
Phew... I feel like there must be a good way.
Come to think of it, when I imagined the barrier spell, I made the barrier absorb the magic that was manipulating them.
Could I figure something out from the magic it absorbed?
The barrier...
There should be one around me, too.
I close my eyes and focus on the barrier, realizing that a highly concentrated film of magic surrounds me.
"Amazing. So this is the barrier."
The barrier's film hugs my body, enveloping me from head to toe.
It's a little startling to see.
Wait, now's not the time to be surprised.
I need to find the absorbed magic that was doing the manipulating.
I should just look for magic that's different from my own.
As I examine the film of magic, I find a large number of tiny—really tiny—traces of different magic.
They look about two millimeters in size.
...Could this be it?
Can something this tiny really affect someone's thoughts and feelings?
I gather up the tiny bits of magic, but I don't feel anything.
Maybe they're too small—I don't even sense anything unusual.
Is this not it?
I inspect the barrier's film, but I can't find anything wrong other than the tiny magic in front of me.
And more of this tiny magic has been absorbed even in this short time.
Could this be a case of little things adding up?
It enters in such tiny amounts that neither the body nor its magic recognizes it as foreign, then gradually builds up until it has an effect.
Could that be what's happening?
But if that's true, it would explain why my anxiety gradually increased and why my thoughts changed without my realizing it.
To make the magic so tiny that it doesn't even feel foreign...
It's devious—or rather, whoever came up with this is really nasty.
But there's no doubt this tiny magic is the cause.
The question is what to do with it.
There are probably huge amounts of it mixed into the forest.
I want to remove this tiny foreign substance from the entire forest.
Purify it?
No, maybe I should gather it.
If I gather more, I should be able to clearly sense the magic.
I close my eyes and imagine a film of magic covering the forest.
I imagine the film catching the tiny foreign substances, then lower it over the entire forest.
I picture it catching the foreign substances floating in the air.
Then there's the matter of the monsters and animals in the forest.
I don't know how many there are, but there may already be monsters under its control.
If I get the foreign substance causing this out of their bodies, they'll probably be freed.
I carefully picture the film catching the tiny foreign substances inside the monsters and animals, then drawing them out.
I refine the image in every detail, making sure the film leaves no foreign substance behind inside their bodies.
I complete the image of passing the film through the forest's grasses, trees, flowers, fruit, and water, and finally through the soil, to catch the foreign substances.
Phew, I managed to do it somehow.
What should I do with everything I've gathered...?
If it covers the entire forest, there'll be quite a lot, right?
The safest thing would be to use the film as it is and seal it away.
I want to examine it... I'll enchant it so it reacts only to my magic, then harden it like stone.
To make it easy to distinguish from other stones, maybe I'll make it pitch-black.
All right, I've got the image.
So... what kind of magic spell would this be?
Something simple should be fine.
I infuse the image I created with magic...
"Foreign Object Catch!"
The entire forest is glowing... Isn't that a bit too intense?
Is this all right?
As I shield my eyes with my arm from the immense light covering the forest, I suddenly fall backward.
I land on my backside with a thud... Ow, that hurts...
As I writhe in pain, I can feel an incredible amount of something leaving my body.
Is this magic?
Whoa... That's amazing!
It feels like my insides are being emptied... Wait, is this okay?
I was a little worried, but when the light in the forest disappeared, the release of magic seemed to settle down, too.
That really scared me.
I've never felt my magic decrease this much before.
Feeling someone watching me, I look around... That was a mistake.
My companions have gathered around me, looking worried.
"I'm all right. My magic is coming back."
I can feel the magic I released rushing back into my body at an incredible rate.
Come to think of it, what happens when you run out of magic?
…………I don't die or anything, right?