Chapter 81
Chapter 81
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: The Apenbru Cave
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81
10
Rumble...
Pressing the hidden switch on the wall caused the edge of the coastal cliff to collapse with a groan.
The pile of stones that fell away in neatly squared chunks clearly bore the marks of artificial processing.
The cave revealed inside the crumbled cliff was composed entirely of rectangular forms.
"Oh ho, have you been here before?"
Carolina peered into the coastal cave and marveled.
I had indeed come here once before, but I saw no need to confirm it outright.
"The places where people hide things are all the same. I even searched the mayor's office, you know."
"Well, that's true enough."
Seemingly satisfied with the explanation, Carolina nodded.
Louis, lighting a lantern, quietly added,
"There's no such thing as a thief among thieves."
"You did a good deed, so call me a righteous outlaw."
"Righteous outlaw, huh? How about pirate?"
"I'll pass."
Don't try to bait me into rhyming like that.
Exchanging casual banter, we ventured into the cave.
The path was neatly maintained, so it wasn't difficult.
Moreover, the cave was so short that we soon reached a dead end.
"Is this Apenbru?"
In front of the dead-end wall.
Carolina spoke toward the several Apenbru resting on a squarely carved stone slab.
Her voice was noticeably excited.
It was no wonder.
These were Apenbru the size of billiard balls.
Selling just one would leave enough money to buy a galleon like the Going Thunder and still have plenty left.
"They are beautiful. No wonder they're called the treasures of the sea."
"This is the thrill of treasure hunting! Let's grab them and go!"
Excited Carolina—and even Louis—let out sighs of admiration.
There was something mesmerizing about the deep, mysterious blue glow of the Apenbru, like it had been carved from the ocean depths.
A treasure that could make you lose track of time just staring at it...
But originally, in Broken World, this cave had only one Apenbru.
And it wasn't neatly placed on a stone slab—it was hidden among a pile of rocks.
This coastal cave itself was an artificially created secret space.
The perfectly arranged Apenbru made it obvious someone was managing it.
They probably still were, so we should grab them quickly and get out.
"You shouldn't touch that."
My body reacted first to the sharp voice that suddenly came from behind.
Instead of the Apenbru, I gripped the hilt of my magic sword and turned around.
Behind us stood a slender woman, standing calmly.
"You're..."
She had sharp features and a lanky but tall build.
Her dark purple hair, grown wild as if untended; eyes mixed with indefinable colors; and the sword at her right waist.
Putting all the elements together, the answer came.
"Elrigor."
She was the opponent who arm-wrestled Memphis in Riverflow.
The reason such an opponent had suddenly appeared was obvious.
This woman was one of the Precursors.
However, a subtle sense of familiarity from when we'd brushed past each other earlier nagged at my mind.
Was there a named Precursor with that face?
She didn't seem like an ordinary extra, so I reflexively searched my memories.
No face came to mind easily.
But faintly, a portrait surfaced.
A portrait of a cardinal ousted in the Precursors' internal strife.
That vague painting and the Elrigor before me... they looked remarkably similar.
Could Elrigor be the subject of that portrait?
"...A cardinal."
"You noticed quickly."
I'd only been probing, but instead of denying it, Elrigor grinned.
My fingers stiffened at her killing intent, which seemed to pervade the very space.
Each of the twelve cardinals at the pinnacle of the Precursors was a monster beyond common sense and rules.
Even in the game, facing a cardinal required consumables, gear, and skills.
Thanks to that, memories of any cardinal I'd faced were seared into my brain...
But I knew nothing about Elrigor, who only appeared as a portrait after being ousted in internal strife.
Clashing head-on now would be dangerous.
"I didn't expect to see you so soon. Or for my identity to be exposed. You really are interesting."
"Only you lot would hide a secret space in a place like this."
I gripped the hilt but didn't draw.
Just as Dariel Ung, disguised as the vice-captain of the Ironwall Knights, had only watched me before withdrawing, Elrigor wouldn't be able to kill me recklessly either.
In that case, the best move was to plan an escape while extracting information.
"Why gather Apenbru?"
"They're pretty."
But it seemed she had no intention of answering easily.
"This is my managed area. How about leaving quietly?"
"I need the Apenbru, so that's impossible."
"Then I'll have to use some force to drive you out."
A chill ran through me at Elrigor's smiling words.
In the tense standoff, Carolina stepped forward.
"This island falls under Bayford's jurisdiction. What right do you have to manage it?"
"Seems like that's none of your business."
"You're defying public authority right now, aren't you?"
Carolina drew her hand cannon and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
Bang! The bullet flew cleanly toward Elrigor.
"Pirates don't talk—they act!"
Didn't you just mention public authority?
Faced with Carolina's extreme shift in stance, Elrigor extended her hand.
She caught the bullet between her index and middle fingers, shrugged, and gripped her sword hilt.
But only for a moment—she sighed and dropped the caught bullet.
"I was planning to seal this place anyway, so I'll let it slide. I can't kill you either."
It was all so natural and casual.
But catching a bullet barehanded had long surpassed common sense.
"Personally, I'd love it if you killed all the other cardinals."
"No need to hope—I or Leon will take care of it soon enough."
Not me, but Leon would.
Elrigor would retire on her own due to internal strife.
"You're so interesting. Here's a little hint in return: Esterro Academy will be attacked soon, so defend it well."
A wind began to stir inside the cave.
Reflexively, I raised my arm to shield my face from the fierce gale.
By the time the wind died down, Elrigor had vanished.
Along with the Apenbru on the stone slab.
"The Apenbru...!"
Carolina cried out.
Ignoring her, I checked the surroundings and confirmed Elrigor was completely gone.
Whew, I never thought I'd run into a cardinal.
Especially one with so little info like Elrigor—I'd been worried about how to handle it, but luckily, things worked out.
The original goal, the Apenbru, was gone...
Taking a deep breath, I stood before a nearby pile of rocks.
Carefully removing the stones revealed a blue pearl.
As expected, this one was still here.
I had no idea why it was separate...
With this, the brief treasure hunt came to an end.
11
"Here, the Apenbru."
Kyriakos, who had come out to the Sothris Hall lobby, accepted the Apenbru with a somewhat surprised look.
This guy can be surprised too.
"How did you get it?"
"There's a way. Trade secret, so I can't say. Anyway, why did you want me to get Apenbru?"
"For decoration."
It really was for decoration.
As my head throbbed, Kyriakos calmly added,
His voice was calm, but his violet eyes glimpsed fragments of the past.
"My benefactor always decorated his room with Apenbru."
Kyriakos's benefactor was the boss of the Ballato Family.
I didn't know the full details of what happened in his past.
But I did know that the reason he and Leon had been together, even briefly, was to get revenge on Wipera, who annihilated the Ballato Family.
The Ballato Family was ultimately an illegal organization.
It couldn't be called a good place by any stretch...
But it was an important place for Kyriakos.
"You've fulfilled the condition I set, so I must assist."
Kyriakos, tucking the Apenbru into his bosom, stared at me intently.
His unwavering eyes still gave no hint of his thoughts.
But if he was assisting, that was enough.
"Looking forward to working with you, senior."
"We're fellow disciples."
Parting with Kyriakos, I left Sothris Hall.
One more recruited.
I wanted to call it a day and rest content...
But if Elrigor's words were true, the academy would be attacked soon.
I couldn't fully trust her, but preparing wouldn't hurt.
Entrusting it completely to Kyriakos still had too many gaps.
Inevitably, I'd have to get involved again...
Well, not for much longer.
A bit more preparation, and all these incidents would resolve themselves without me stepping in.
This was all an investment for a peaceful future life...
"But anyway, what about the attack?"
Was there an academy attack around this time?
With attacks happening so often, it was ambiguous...
For now, let's make the best preparations possible.
Leon and Ethan would handle themselves, and I could call Kyriakos.
One more person was needed here.
"Noel would round it out nicely."
Noel, with her animal-like intuition, shone especially during attacks.
She could detect enemy intrusions faster than anyone and snipe from long range.
The only downside was she couldn't yet be deployed in real combat.
...Or could she?
Why not throw her into the fray starting now?
12
"Ugh..."
Noel Snow shuddered at the sudden chill.
She briefly suspected a cold, but that was impossible.
Raised in a frigid region, Noel never caught colds, let alone felt the cold.
Catching a cold in Esset, far milder than her hometown?
It was utterly ridiculous.
"They say the capital's air is bad... Mom and Dad were right..."
Bad air weakens the body easily.
Rubbing her arms, Noel stopped her walk and hurried back to the dormitory.
"Noel!"
Amid this, someone called her.
Turning, she saw Theo Agrit striding toward her.
"...What?"
Even her curt reply didn't faze Theo.
He simply approached and stared at her.
Gazing into his pitch-black eyes, like they were mixed with ink, Noel observed him.
'He keeps talking to me—he's unusually peculiar.'
His impression seemed cold due to his neatly settled black hair, but he was actually intriguing and unique.
From the start, for someone like Noel who didn't mingle well, approaching first and praising her made him undeniably special.
Thanks to that, she could at least converse properly with Theo.
'Friends...? No, not quite. We haven't known each other long. Acquaintances...? Know each other...? Eaten together once...? What do I even call it...?'
What were they, exactly?
While Noel pondered terms, Theo slowly moved his lips.
"Wanna be a hero?"
"...Hero?"
It would be a lie to say her heart didn't race.
Noel Snow had admired heroes since childhood.
She'd spent nights immersed in tales of heroes who overcame hardships and trials, chosen by the world, achieving their goals, and reaching happy endings.
She'd even sung songs about becoming a hero once.
Of course, that was childish fancy—now grown, it was a dream tucked away in her heart.
That aside.
Suddenly asking if she wanted to be a hero.
At the baffling question, Noel instinctively raised her guard.
'He's definitely mocking me...!'
It was the result of deep-seated distrust of people.
The reason Theo kept approaching was surely to build expectations before betraying her.
Pretending to be a friend only to betray—that was classic bullying, wasn't it?
As Noel imagined all sorts of scenarios,
Theo smiled brightly and nodded.
"Looks like you do."
"I do, but... what are you suddenly talking about?"
"There's something. I'll explain the details later... but the key point is one: I'll make you a hero."
A joke?
Noel was puzzled, but Theo's expression was utterly serious.
So serious that doubting it seemed odd.
Thus, Noel was at a loss for words.
And sometimes, silence is affirmation.
In truth, she did want to be a hero, so all the gears meshed perfectly.
At that moment, no one knew.
That soon, a new rumor would spread: agonized screams echoing from the forest...