Chapter 110
Snap-.
With a cheerful sound, Franz arrived in the Western Region of the continent.
He realized it again; there really was no magic like Teleport. He could move to his desired location without spending time. It was arguably the most necessary magic for a man whose time was precious.
In fact, Franz was the only one in history to handle Teleport so freely.
Not only did the required mana increase exponentially depending on the distance, but it also required an overwhelming calculation ability to compute the magic formula in an instant.
It was truly an art that only an unprecedented Archmage could show.
Franz, however, was having trivial thoughts.
'A travel agency using Teleport magic would do well, wouldn’t it…?'
It would save travel expenses and time, and perfectly solve the threat of armed robbers. If he retired from being the Magic Tower Lord and really had nothing to do, it seemed like a pretty good plan.
'Anyway, is it right to call this a cave?'
At the end of Franz’s downward gaze, there was a hole. It was a hole large enough for an adult man to pass through comfortably.
But since that hole was pierced into the ground, it seemed more appropriate to call it a tunnel rather than a cave.
'Well, the name doesn’t really matter.'
Franz shrugged his shoulders and stepped into the large hole.
Inside the hole, the interior of the cave was not much different from what was commonly known. It was damp and chilly, and the way ahead was covered in darkness.
'That little kid came to a place like this alone?'
He was a kid who looked to be about an elementary school student at most. He didn’t know if the kid was too ignorant to be scared, or if his courage was simply commendable, but either way, it was impressive.
Snap-.
Franz snapped his fingers to create a bright light. Then, the darkness inside the cave brightened.
It was still close to the entrance so some light came in, but the deeper parts were covered in darkness, so light was indispensable to move forward.
Soon, Franz looked around and began to take steps, and that sound echoed loudly inside the cave.
How much time had passed like that?
It was around the time when the entrance of the cave looked very small.
Franz saw something on the wall of the cave. Something sparkling like a jewel was embedded in the wall.
'What in the world is that…?'
Mages generally have strong curiosity, and Franz was the foremost among them. There was no way he could suppress the curiosity aroused by an unknown object, so naturally, he was drawn toward it as if possessed.
Eventually facing the unknown object, Franz tilted his head.
'It’s definitely a magic stone for now, but…'
The thing in front of his eyes had a slightly different appearance from a normal magic stone. If it were a normal one, it should have a blue light, but this one had a red light. In addition, its mana conductivity and absorption rate seemed considerable.
There was no description of this thing in any literature in Franz’s memory. In other words, it was the first discovery.
'This is an innovation…!'
Usually, the larger a magic stone is, the greater the magic power it can produce. Wasn’t the size of the magic stone used in the new carriage comparable to the power core of a great siege engine?
But this thing could produce that level of output even though it was only about the size of a melon.
What this meant was…
'Flight might not be a dream.'
Would it just be airplanes? He would be able to make whatever he imagined.
Of course, he would have to go through a lot of trial and error. Along with that, a considerable amount of Red Magic Stone would be needed.
But the difference between absolutely no possibility and even a very small one was a world of difference. It was the difference between 0 and 1, existence and nonexistence.
'Let’s pull it out for now.'
Franz pulled it out very carefully with magic, in case the magic stone might get damaged. And he put it into the bag at his waist.
Later, when he returned to the Magic Tower, it would be good to throw it to the researchers and have them run various tests. Safety aspects, especially, would have to be checked very meticulously.
Franz’s expression was rarely very bright. Though there was a subtly wicked part to it, like a lord who acquired a coveted treasure under the guise of a trifle for a child.
After that, Franz moved deeper into the cave while examining its walls very meticulously. Naturally, it was to find a red magic stone.
But unfortunately, the thing did not reveal itself so easily. Then again, if such items were scattered around, they would have been recorded in literature long ago, so it was a matter of course.
How far had he gone inside the cave like that? He had gone so far that the entrance could no longer be seen.
Suddenly, Franz remembered a fact he had forgotten.
'I came to find a lake, didn’t I…?'
Because he had become so fixated on a new toy, he had forgotten his original goal.
But it was fine. As long as he remembered it now, that was enough. Since it was a single path from the entrance, there was no way he could have passed it by.
Thus, Franz returned to his original goal. Of course, he didn’t forget to look for magic stones either.
Trudge, trudge.
Franz walked through the cave where ordinary magic stones were embedded here and there. The sight of the surroundings dyed in blue light was quite impressive.
The guys in the Hero’s Party had seen this kind of sight many times, so they wouldn’t be particularly impressed, but Arian might like it. She was a Mage in her own right, after all.
It wouldn’t be bad to bring her next time.
Franz continued walking while lost in such thoughts.
It was during that time. Suddenly, he heard the sound of flowing water.
Franz held his breath and listened closely, and he could hear the sound a little more clearly.
Water was definitely flowing not far away.
That meant it was not far from the lake.
Franz quickened his pace with a light heart.
The further he went forward, the wider the cave seemed to widen, and before long, a considerably wide space appeared.
And in the center of that wide space was the lake he was looking for. The red sunlight of sunset came in through a small hole pierced in the ceiling and was shining on the exact center of the lake.
'A ray of light, huh…'
It was a considerably beautiful sight, enough to make him momentarily forget about work and admire it. An exclamation naturally popped out at the dreamlike atmosphere.
Actually, he could have come straight here with Mana Detection and Teleport. Even so, the reason he went out of his way to find it on foot was that he somehow felt like going on an adventure.
When he went to subjugate the Demon Lord, he was just a little sensitive because his life was on the line; he didn’t particularly hate adventures.
Anyway, now that he had found the lake, he had to hurry to recover the sealed weapon.
'It’s under the lake.'
Franz immediately found the location of the weapon through Mana Detection. As Franz looked at its shape, this one seemed to be a sword.
Magic wouldn’t work until the weapon’s seal was broken, so he would eventually have to go down under the lake himself, but…
'Is that a big deal?'
If he didn’t want to get wet, couldn’t he just make the water disappear?
Snap-.
As Franz snapped his fingers, the water of the giant lake split in half. It was a sight very similar to what is commonly called the Miracle of Moses.
The sword was embedded very deeply in the bottom of the lake, and the light shining on it made it look exactly like a legendary weapon one would read of in ancient tales.
He who pulls this out shall become a legendary hero - roughly that kind of feeling.
Well, technically this was a legendary weapon too, so he figured it might be similar.
It was the moment Franz was about to go under the lake like that. He felt an obviously heterogeneous mana from behind. The sticky and unpleasant feeling meant it was a cultist’s, without a doubt.
However, if there were one problem…
It was ambiguous whether this guy was human or not.
“A guest after a long time.”
Her alluring voice echoed in the cave.
Franz immediately turned his head and looked at her.
She had black hair hanging down long to her waist, and pure white skin contrasting with it. Just like her ominous red eyes, her red fingernails were very long and sharp, as if she had attached fake nails.
Viewed just like this, she seemed like a slightly unusual person, but the bat wings attached to her back proved that she was something other than human.
'What should I do about this situation…'
Killing her would be easy. It was something possible with just a flick of a finger. But if he did that, he wouldn’t be able to find out about the locations of the other weapons and the Seven Great Evils, which was the problem.
So in the end, it meant he had to appropriately control his strength and beat her up…
'That’s surprisingly difficult, you know…'
It was no different from being told to catch a mosquito alive without killing it.
Well, what else could he do? He had to try, just like he had done so far.
Having made his decision, Franz snapped his fingers. Snap-.
Eight Magic Circles were drawn centered around her, and lines connected them, forming the shape of a cube.
Franz intended to trap her just like that. He was holding back in the sense that he didn’t take out the staff he received from the World Tree, but even this much seemed to be enough.
However
Shatter-!
The Magic Circles shattered right before his eyes, and she let out a sneer.
“Oho, so you’re a Mage.”
It seemed she was not an opponent to be taken so lightly.