Chapter 119
＊ Emperor of the Leff Magic Empire ＊
Land enclosed by sheer cliffs—that was the territory of the Leff Magic Empire.
The Leffs lived there, but because the habitable land was so limited, they had developed advanced high-rise construction techniques. The Empire had an unusual number of buildings five stories or taller for this world, and even ordinary citizens could use them. That was something only the Leff Magic Empire could offer.
The Emperor, the head of the Empire, also had his residence in the city. To be sure, it occupied a vast tract of land and had high walls, but it was completely different in character from the royal castles of other countries.
If Reiji had seen it, he might have said, "It looks like the home of a wealthy landowner in some provincial city."
At the center of a spacious garden stood a nine-story building. It was called a building, though it was wider than it was tall.
The ninth floor was the Emperor's residence.
"—That concludes the reports on the progress of Labyrinth Strategy Divisions 1 through 3. All of them appear to be having difficulty with the labyrinth. However, we have received no report from Labyrinth Strategy Division 4."
In a windowless room, a Leff finished giving his report. A fan rotated in the ceiling, ventilating the room.
The crimson wallpaper covering the walls was soft and highly effective at blocking sound.
When the reporter took the last seat at the long conference table, the Leffs seated around it all spoke up at once.
"What's this? Is Division 4 slacking off?"
"Even Divisions 1 through 3 aren't doing well, either."
"She's only a Human hybrid, after all."
"Wasn't Lulsha appointed because she could use a Talent?"
"No, I hear the chief of Division 4 can't use Talents..."
"That's probably just so they can use it as an excuse if she fails."
"One can clear a labyrinth with Magic Gear without relying on Talents. Wasn't that what this expedition was meant to prove?"
"And now you're calling in adventurers from outside?"
The room was filled with murmurs, but those present were all high-ranking figures in the Empire. They were the heads of its administrative departments.
The only one who seemed uncomfortable was a fat man—the director of the Labyrinth Management Bureau.
"—Silence. His Imperial Majesty is about to speak."
At the very back, opposite the reporter, stood a staircase of nine steps. The old man seated at the top was none other than the Emperor of the Empire.
His red jacket resembled a kimono, and it was densely embroidered with gold thread. Resting his cheek on one hand propped against a plain iron armrest, the Emperor gazed into the room with sleepy eyes.
"It was I, and no other, who selected Lulsha. Do you object?"
The room fell silent as if someone had poured water over it.
"If not, good. But the lack of a report from Division 4 concerns me—many merchant houses were supposed to have wished to participate this time. What is the situation?"
"Well? What's happening?"
Prompted, the reporter stood up again.
"Five merchant houses are accompanying them, and there have been no particular developments. ...Ah, no, one more application was submitted as of yesterday, making six merchant houses."
"As of yesterday?"
The Emperor knit his brows unhappily, and the reporter hurried to explain.
This large-scale expedition had been announced more than a month earlier. Applications from renowned merchant houses had flooded in immediately afterward, and the accompanying slots for Divisions 1 through 3 had quickly filled. Division 4 was unpopular because it was led by Lulsha, a chief with Human blood in her lineage, so its accompanying slots had remained open until the very end.
"W-we were told they had been away from the Empire for a long time with a caravan..."
The Emperor stroked the beard extending from his chin. His golden eyes were characteristic of the Leffs, but their skin color varied from person to person. The Emperor looked much like a rock python, with ocher skin mottled with black.
"...Could that person be connected to the outside world?"
The Leffs attending the meeting all stared in surprise at the Emperor's words.
The Emperor was referring to the stolen magic airship. The Moonlit Beauty, stolen about two months earlier, was still being searched for relentlessly. The pursuers were using another magic airship of the same type, but it could not match the Moonlit Beauty's speed, so it was believed to have crossed the national border long ago.
Every Leff living within the Empire was managed through a system called the "Imperial Citizens' Basic Information Registry." The comings and goings of every Imperial citizen were checked, and by now the theft of the Moonlit Beauty had been judged to be the work of a foreigner—especially since something resembling magic had been used during the theft, making that conclusion almost certain.
That said...
It was difficult to imagine that a mere caravan merchant had helped steal the Moonlit Beauty, but the meeting's participants were intent on currying favor with the Emperor.
"It is certainly possible. As expected of Your Majesty—what insight."
"And you allowed such suspicious people to accompany this expedition? What were you thinking!?"
"Let us investigate the 'Labyrinth of Awe' at once!"
"We had no idea they were traveling with a caravan."
Whether he was listening to their obvious flattery or not, the Emperor narrowed his eyes and then raised one hand slightly. That alone was enough to silence the room.
"The Moonlit Beauty is an advanced high-speed magic airship, a long-cherished dream of all Leffs, passed down to me by my father, the previous Emperor. The purpose of this expedition is to make progress toward building something that surpasses the Moonlit Beauty, but recovering it is absolutely essential as well. You understand?"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Their voices of assent rang out in unison.
"Each of you, give it your all. Then a path forward will surely reveal itself. —Now go."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The participants filed out of the conference room. After seeing them off, the Emperor let out a deep, deep sigh.
"...Director, will the expedition succeed?"
The only person left besides the attendants who cared for the Emperor was the director of the Labyrinth Management Bureau, who oversaw the Labyrinth Strategy Divisions.
The fat Leff let his eyes wander nervously as he said,
"I-I don't know. But I believe Lulsha will surely pull it off."
"I see. That is enough. You may leave."
"Y-yes, Your Majesty."
As the director hurried out, the Emperor let out another deep sigh.
"...Your Majesty, why entrust such an important bureau to someone like him?"
A woman who cared for the Emperor and also served as his secretary asked the question.
"His bloodline. What else could I do?"
"...His bloodline?"
That director's father had been the head of one of the Empire's five leading merchant houses, a guild that brought together Magicraft artisans. Since magic tools would determine the Empire's future, it was only natural that the merchant houses capable of inventing new devices and producing them in large numbers would hold power.
At times, that power even surpassed the Emperor's.
"Lulsha is the same."
Lulsha's father, Carl, had been in charge of the department overseeing magic-tool trade. He had been exceptionally skilled at negotiating with foreign countries—and many Leffs had been astonished when he brought home a Human wife.
Lulsha was often compared with Carl. To make matters worse, she looked almost entirely Human while inwardly she was a Leff—in other words, she could not use Talents, leaving her with the worst of both worlds in this country.
That was precisely why the Emperor placed his hopes in her. Carl had long since passed away, but people still spoke of him. Lulsha must have heard more than enough about her father. The Emperor believed that the fighting spirit to overcome his legacy was exactly what she needed to solve a difficult problem.
(That applies to you as well, Your Majesty.)
The Leff secretary thought this as she bowed respectfully.
The Emperor before the previous one was the first to complete a magic airship. His successor had brought great wealth to the Empire by selling that airship abroad.
The current Emperor had no notable achievements and was criticized with remarks such as, "He merely uses the logs for the Maika mushrooms his predecessor cultivated." If there were logs, more mushrooms would grow. Finding new logs was the Emperor's job, after all—but...
＊ Lulsha ＊
"Ready your Magic Bows!! ...Fire!!"
The soldiers raised their crossbows and fired their bolts all at once.
"Hit!!"
In a huge hall so vast that its ceiling could not be seen was a giant Automaton equipped with caterpillar treads. It came charging toward them, its treads spinning.
Its body was modeled after a boar, but the vehicle itself was made of metal and had no fur. The only things attached to it were spikes and needles that injured anyone who touched it.
The fired bolts pierced the Automaton. Wires extended from behind their fletching, running all the way back to the soldiers' hands.
"Activate Magi-Lightning!!"
The wires ran from boxes about the size of lunchboxes. The soldiers pressed buttons on the boxes and threw them forward. Immediately afterward, bluish-white electricity traveled along the wires and electrocuted the Automaton. A painfully loud crack rang out, but the effect was decisive.
A high-pitched kiiiiii sounded as smoke poured from inside the boar—but the treads did not stop, and it continued charging toward them.
"Scatter! Scatter!!"
The soldiers fled, but several were caught by the boar and flung away. The Automaton slammed into the labyrinth wall and bounced back from the impact—but it no longer moved.
"...Has it stopped?"
"Chief! It's dangerous! Don't approach it!"
Ignoring the warnings, she approached the Automaton's massive body.
Her deep blue hair was loosely tied back. She wore hard-fabric coveralls, and tools were attached to the belt wrapped around her waist.
She looked nothing like an office worker; she looked as though she spent every day on a factory floor. She was Lulsha, chief of Labyrinth Strategy Division 4.
She was eighteen years old. Her eyes were the same amber color as her grandfather's.
"It has gone quiet, is it...?"
A female member of the Labyrinth Strategy Division who had come up beside her answered. Everyone except Lulsha was a Leff.
"Yes. But since we used Magi-Lightning, the magic inside it has probably burned out."
"It couldn't be helped. If we hadn't used it, there would have been casualties... No, there are already several injured."
Behind them, the merchants who had followed along were making a fuss.
"—This is useless!"
"—Come on, it's not worth getting hurt just to pick up scrap metal."
"—The only ones getting hurt are soldiers anyway."
"—What a waste of time."
They were buying the spoils from the Labyrinth Strategy Division's battles on the spot. An Automaton that could be captured without damage would fetch a high price, but that was impossible. If it was undamaged, that meant the Automaton was still operational.
Automatons had weaknesses, too. One of them was electricity. Magic-powered Automatons used metals with high magical efficiency, and those metals conducted electricity. When that happened, the magic burned out and the Automaton fell silent. But the rare catalysts and magic stones were destroyed as well, leaving only a lump of metal. A lump of metal was not worth much.
"Chief, that's not our only problem."
"What is it?"
"...We have no Magi-Lightning left."
Lulsha clicked her tongue when she heard that.
"What in the world is going on with rear support!? How many times have I sent reports and requests for assistance!?"
She had led a hundred-person Labyrinth Strategy team into the labyrinth, and ten days had passed since then, yet not a single reply had come from the outside world. They had enough food and water, but they had consumed more catalysts than expected.
Magic Gear could be used by anyone and was powerful, but it consumed catalysts.
"Retreat..."
Just as Lulsha gritted her teeth,
"Chief!! There's an enemy!"
The scout had returned with the information they least wanted to hear at that moment.