Magic Stones and the Demon's Grimoire
Perhaps it was because the dungeon's core had vanished. The traps installed throughout the interior no longer functioned, and the undead that had once drifted through the corridors were nowhere to be seen.
Isolin and I wandered the maze of hallways for a long while before we finally found our way out.
"Hah..."
Outside air, after so long. It was hot and humid, yet far better than the mold and dust that had choked the dungeon.
I leaned against a massive boulder and slowly caught my breath.
"Whoa... it's night already..."
Isolin, emerging a moment later, tipped her head back to look at the sky. She was right—the forest lay blanketed in darkness. Insects wheeled overhead, their flight a striking sight. The ones that glowed of their own accord sparkled like stars against the night, for all the world like fireflies. It was quite a beautiful scene.
I sank weakly to the ground, using the pack on my back as a pillow. With the tension gone, every ounce of strength drained from my body.
"Shall we set up camp?"
"Please."
Isolin began preparing the campsite in my place. She used magic to fell long branches, drove them into the earth, and stretched cloth over them to form a simple tent. For bedding she gathered the large leaves that grew everywhere nearby.
Before sleep claimed me, I used the magic stones we had found inside the dungeon to draw Kalbein's mana into myself once more.
The next morning.
My eyes felt gritty from a night spent half-awake. Isolin had taken the watch, but the strange cries of monsters that drifted through the dark kept me from true rest.
I packed our gear while staring at the dungeon entrance. Even though the dungeon's functions had shut down and the undead should have vanished with them, Luna's party still had not returned.
"What are you looking at so hard?"
"Nothing. We should get moving."
Not receiving the commission fee was a bitter pill, but what could we do? Our client had gone missing inside the dungeon; there was no one left to blame.
I forced my gaze away and rose to my feet.
Thick fog blanketed the forest path in the early morning. When I waved a hand through the haze, cool droplets beaded on my skin. Our clothes were soon damp through—an inevitable result. The farther we walked toward the forest's edge, the denser the fog became.
At last, when we could not see a single step ahead, Isolin began to cast. Mana gathered at her fingertips, stirring a faint breeze that pushed the mist aside. As the gray veil rolled back and the path reappeared, small monsters that had been hiding along it startled and fled.
"Are you heading straight back to the Magic Tower, Ceris?"
"No."
"Hmm... so the mission isn't finished yet?"
"Something like that."
We talked as we walked toward the forest's edge. Isolin, still under the impression that I was a mage of the Tower, treated me with growing familiarity. The distance between us had narrowed beyond comparison with before.
Finding the way out proved easy. The cold winter mana flowing in from beyond the trees guided us like a compass.
The moment we stepped free of the forest I drew in a deep lungful of cool air. The chill wind dried our fog-soaked clothes in no time.
One swordsman had remained outside to watch the carriage and horses while the rest of the party entered the forest. He was still waiting. When he saw us approach he sprang to his feet.
"Did the job go well? But the rest of the party..."
Isolin and I gave him a brief account of what had happened inside the dungeon—omitting, of course, any mention of the special items we had claimed. He let out a small sigh and nodded.
"Then the commission fee..."
"We probably won't be getting it."
"Damn..."
At Isolin's words the man sank back down, disappointment plain on his face. He heaved a long breath.
"Still, let's wait one more day. If we haven't confirmed they're dead, they might still come back, right?"
In the end Isolin and I had no choice but to spend another day on the forest's outskirts.
Even after that extra day, Luna's party never returned.
"Nothing but wasted time..."
The man glared resentfully into the trees, then began packing his things. The loss of the fee clearly rankled him.
I climbed onto the carriage and said, "Then why don't we just take the carriage?"
"The carriage...?"
"The client is gone. We take it in place of the fee—horses included."
I looked over the carriage and the team. I couldn't name an exact price, but if we sold them and split the gold three ways we would likely walk away with more than the original commission.
"Not a bad idea... better, even..."
The man began to smile at my suggestion. Isolin, however, shook her head.
"I'm fine. You two split it."
"Y-you mean it?"
So the proceeds from the carriage and horses would be divided between the two of us. The man was so pleased at the larger share that he hummed under his breath as he took the driver's seat. Thanks to his careful tending of the horses, the carriage soon raced along at a fine clip.
I watched the forest recede and pressed a hand to my chest. The forest's fierce heat still burned deep inside me. No cold wind would ever extinguish that fire.
A small smile touched my lips as I turned away.
Just as the journey to Kalbein's Forest had taken two weeks, the return to the Karuma Empire consumed another two. After more than a month of travel there and back, we were home again.
We went straight to the Adventurers' Guild and gave a brief report of everything that had happened. When a client who set out with a party goes missing or dies, the matter is treated as extremely serious and a lengthy investigation follows. In the worst cases an adventurer's license can be suspended for a week—or even a full month. It was no small affair.
Yet our investigation ended in less than an hour, all thanks to Isolin the mage. Freed from the guild without further ceremony, the three of us stepped out of the building side by side.
"We got off easy thanks to you, Mage. Thank you!"
The man bowed deeply to Isolin. In that short time she had handled a great many things, including the sale of the horses and carriage; her intervention made the whole process simple. A heavy purse always lifts the spirits, and he walked away wearing a happy smile.
Watching him go, I said to Isolin, "You never told them who I really am."
"You're on a secret mission, aren't you? We're both Tower mages—of course I help."
"Mm..."
A cold winter wind tugged at Isolin's large witch's hat. The moment of parting had arrived. I cleared my throat.
"Ahem... Well, see you later."
"Right. When you come back to the Tower, don't forget to look me up."
"I will."
"Promise!"
With that she hurried off in quick little steps.
At last I was alone. I let out a long breath and headed for an inn. After a month of sleeping rough, a soft bed was all I wanted. I rented a decent room, lay down, and was asleep the instant my head touched the pillow.
Early the next morning.
I had fallen asleep without even washing after the journey, and my body felt wretched. I immediately ordered bathwater prepared and scrubbed myself clean. The hot water turned a murky reddish-brown in moments.
"Mm..."
After the bath I stepped in front of the large mirror and examined my reflection. The deep brown dye had washed out of my hair, restoring its original color—a radiant, sparkling gold. When I ran my fingers through it, the strands slipped across my hand like liquid honey.
I had crossed the sea and reached foreign shores. There was no longer any need for dye.
I smiled lightly at the girl in the mirror. A bright, sunny smile spread across her face.
I threw on some outdoor clothes and stuffed the ogre-hide gear I had tossed into a corner into my pack. The battered equipment needed mending. Leaving the inn, I made my way to the leather workshop I had visited before—nearly a month ago now.
Inside, the workshop still reeked of raw hide. Anyone used to it might not notice, but newcomers instinctively wrinkled their noses. I approached the clerk I had met last time.
"Hello."
"Hello...?"
He tilted his head at my greeting, then stared at my face for a long moment before recognition dawned and his mouth fell open.
"Ah! Mage...!"
A mere change in hair color, and it took him this long to recognize me. I brushed a hand through my hair and nodded.
"You remember me, right?"
"Of course I do! Naturally!"
"I'd like to have the gear you made for me repaired."
"Repaired? Let's have a look."
I opened the pack and showed him the state of the equipment: tunic and trousers shredded by sword cuts, a torn cloak, and bracers that had burst under the shock of the Polar Convergence. The clerk let out a soft groan at the wreckage.
"This is..."
"Can it be repaired?"
"If we stitch it up you could use it again, but don't expect the same defense as before. Torn places tear again easily. For something as large as the cloak, the better option would be to recycle the material into new bracers."
"Hmm... So aside from the bracers, it'd be better to make everything new?"
"That's right."
"Then let's do that."
I nodded. I still had plenty of ogre hide left—enough, if I used it all, to craft at least two more sets of leather armor suited to me. I disposed of the ruined gear on the spot, then headed to the Swordsmen's Guild to retrieve the remaining hides. When I handed them over, the clerk asked,
"Shall we make them to the same measurements as last time?"
I looked down at my arms and legs. Children grow quickly. Even in a single month I must have gotten taller. I shook my head.
"Measure me again."
At my request he brought out a measuring tape and carefully took the length of my arms and legs, the circumference of my chest, and the rest. About three minutes later he spoke.
"Same size as before. We'll make them to those measurements."
I frowned at his words.