Bappe (1)

"Wow..."

Trie clasped her hands together, gazing around in every direction and letting out cries of pure wonder. Just watching her made my breath catch. Had she always been this beautiful?

The multicolored lights blooming outward painted her in their hues, illuminating her with an almost blinding radiance.

The fireworks lasted barely three seconds before the forest plunged back into darkness. It was so black you couldn't see an inch ahead, so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I pulled out a luminous artifact and lit our surroundings. Only then did Trie turn to face me.

"Schlus! That thing just now! How did you do that?!"

"Whoa."

Crash.

The excited Trie came sprinting toward me, caught her foot on a tree root, and tumbled right on top of me. Her forehead slammed into my solar plexus, sending me sprawling backward.

When I opened my eyes, rubbing my throbbing skull, Trie was straddling me.

"Ah... sorry!"

"It's fine."

"Never mind that! Tell me how you did it!"

"I'd appreciate it if you got off first."

"Eek!"

Trie, who had been leaning in so close her chest pressed against me, sprang up in alarm. The heavy sensation of those two weights against my chest had been getting increasingly awkward.

"Ehehe. Sorry. But seriously, how did you pull that off? Huh? Tell me!"

"I simply dismantled the spell formulas."

"All of them at once? How? How is that even possible?"

"The landmine formulas are extremely simple. Once detected, destroying multiple simultaneously isn't that difficult."

"Even so! Who on earth could shatter hundreds of spell formulas in one go? I've never seen anything like it in my life!"

Trie grabbed my shoulders and shook me vigorously as she spoke. This was the first time I'd seen her this worked up.

That said, there weren't any humans in this world with a calculation stat of 48. Even most Ma-in failed to break 30, save for a handful of exceptions. Moments like this made the calculation stat feel downright broken. Of course, it became completely useless the moment close combat began.

"I'm more surprised by you. I didn't expect you to complete the formula so quickly after nothing but a verbal explanation. Honestly, I thought it would be impossible even if you pulled an all-nighter..."

"Hey, I didn't stay up all night."

"I'm not exaggerating. I'm genuinely impressed."

I had underestimated Trie's talent for magic. According to the original story, she should have only been capable of basic spells. She shouldn't have been able to understand, let alone craft, such advanced formulas. Especially since the original work kept her at that level even in the later volumes, yet here we were in the early chapters. No matter how I looked at it, it didn't add up. This world had followed the original faithfully until now. It was unlikely to suddenly insert original settings.

"Hehe. It's all thanks to you, teacher."

"Teacher?"

"Yeah. You, Schlus. You told me, remember? Don't try to understand it—just accept it. When I emptied my mind like you said and simply accepted everything, the formulas started flowing out on their own."

"......"

So a single piece of advice anyone could have given her had triggered sudden enlightenment? In the original, no one had offered that simple guidance, so she'd remained hopeless at magic all along?

Ha. Unbelievable.

I was so dumbfounded I couldn't help but laugh.

"Ha... haha... ahahaha!"

"What? Why are you suddenly laughing like Professor Sergei?"

"It's just funny. That it was something so simple..."

"What? What is?"

"Nothing."

"Hey! You can't just leave me hanging after making me curious!"

"Hahaha."

Maybe Trie had possessed a talent for magic all along. It simply hadn't manifested in the original story. How far that talent reached was something I'd have to discover going forward.

Which meant there was no reason for her to abandon magic now. It might sound absurd, but as Trie herself had said, becoming a magic knight wasn't entirely out of the question. If she reached the pinnacle in both magic and swordsmanship, there would be no more reliable ally than her.

"All those magic instructors who came and went only ever called me hopeless... but today it feels like my eyes have finally been opened. That advice you gave me tonight can count as full repayment for teaching you the sword!"

"Stop talking nonsense. As soon as midterms are over, we'll begin magic lessons immediately."

"Huh? Really? Then I'd be more than happy."

"My lessons can be quite harsh. You'd better steel yourself."

"Ah..."

Now that we'd discovered her talent, there was no way I could let it go to waste. I'd have to test its limits thoroughly. The thought of teaching Trie used to fill me with nothing but dread, but now I actually felt excited.

"Hehe. Guess I should start calling you teacher for real?"

"I don't call you master either, do I?"

"Doesn't matter. I'm still going to. Schlus, my teacher!"

"Don't cling to me..."

"Hehe."

Trie laughed as she hugged my arm. Silly girl. Any guy would misunderstand and think she had feelings for me if she kept acting like this. As expected of a noble lady raised in luxury...

Chatting and laughing, we soon reached the dormitory.

The quest had definitely been to escape the Wist Forest before sunrise... and this was the difficulty for a five-star quest? If I'd used my full abilities, I could have cleared it even more easily. The system's method of determining difficulty was starting to feel questionable.

"Don't approach the Wist Forest again tonight."

"Understood, teacher."

"Use either casual or formal speech. Pick one."

"No thanks? Good night, Teacher Schlus!"

"......"

Trie flashed a playful grin and disappeared around the corner of the hallway. I sighed, pretending to head to my room before quietly slipping back outside. No one had seen me. My sharp senses hadn't picked up any presence, so I was certain.

The moment I left the dormitory building, I broke into a run toward the Wist Forest.

There's not much time.

I had to secure the fortuitous encounter—Bappe—tonight without fail. Since Trie had already seen the map, she'd head for the rocky mountain tomorrow at first light, even if it meant detouring around the minefield. I needed to retrieve it before she could.

The problem was that the concentration of Mana Energy would soon grow thicker. The monsters posed a greater threat than the corrosive energy itself. Even with Selection and Concentration, I could only maintain explosive power for five seconds. Taking on one or two was manageable, but I had no way to fend off a continuous swarm.

I needed to grab Bappe and get out before the monsters could surround me.

I'm making better time than expected.

Thanks to dismantling that large cluster of mines earlier, a sizable clearing had formed in the minefield. I could cut straight across instead of circling the forest. I'd cursed our luck when Trie and I got trapped inside, but it seemed her presence had ultimately worked in my favor. I felt just a tiny bit grateful. Very tiny.

"This must be it. Hoo..."

After running at full speed, I finally emerged from the dense forest of towering trees. Before me stretched the rugged ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠face of a rocky mountain. The slope was steep, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠numerous outcroppings made it look like I could scale it quickly, almost like rock climbing.

"More manageable than I thought."

I'd done some rock climbing as a university club activity. This wasn't nearly as brutal. There were plenty of footholds. It felt more like hiking up a narrow mountain path.

The trail was roughly half the width of my foot. After climbing until my hands were raw, I reached the summit. It hadn't seemed like I'd climbed very high, but looking down revealed a dizzying drop. Getting back down was going to be a nightmare.

"...This is the spot."

Right in front of me was a fissure in the rock. The gap looked wide enough for two people to enter, but its depth was impossible to gauge.

"Ah!"

I shouted, but no echo returned. Something down there must have absorbed the sound. Regardless, I was certain Bappe lay somewhere below.

It felt ominous, but descending was the only option.

"Hup..."

I clenched the luminous artifact between my teeth, braced both feet against the walls, and slowly lowered myself. One slip and I'd tumble to my death.

After descending about twenty meters, I spotted a hole punched through one side of the wall. That was it. My instincts screamed the moment I saw it. The original description had only mentioned descending through the crack to retrieve Bappe, so I'd assumed I'd have to reach the bottom. I never expected a cave halfway down. The world had implemented even the parts I hadn't described with impressive flavor.

The more I saw, the more I liked this world. Of course, I'd have liked it even more if I could have observed it from outside...

"There."

I swung myself into the cave. The interior was surprisingly spacious compared to the entrance. The smooth walls and ceiling made it clear this was no natural formation. As I ventured deeper, even more artificial features came into view. Stairs. And murals.

Bappe had originally been the weapon of an ancient Ma-in. When the tide turned in humanity's favor, he had sealed it away to prevent it from falling into human hands. This was that sealing ground.

"Oof."

As expected, I walked straight into an invisible barrier. It was remarkably sophisticated. Sealing a weapon would warrant that level of care. But its creator apparently hadn't been very skilled in barrier techniques.

Crack...!

I focused on the formula, and the barrier shattered in moments. I hadn't even needed Selection and Concentration. In the original story, Hurtlocker, Eric, and three intelligence agents working together could have broken through it.

"Oh."

Beyond the barrier, the cave gradually narrowed until it ended at what resembled an altar. A hollow circle with six candles placed on its rim. I used ignition magic to light each candle one by one.

Rumble...!

A vibration shook the entire cave as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠something rose from the center of the circle. A black sphere. Or rather, something that seemed to devour all light, as if a piece of space itself had been cut away with scissors.

Just to be safe, I used Inquiry.

This was Bappe? It looked far more ominous than I'd imagined. How had that idiot Hurtlocker tried to grab it without even knowing what it was? What a crazy bastard.

"Hoo."

I took a deep breath and reached out to touch the sphere.

"...!"

The moment my fingers made contact, the sphere collapsed and began flowing into my fingertips like liquid. I fell backward in shock, landing hard on my rear.

"It was... absorbed?"p>

What? It got absorbed into my body? Why hadn't it transformed into a weapon?

I clenched and unclenched my right hand, falling into a panic.