Chapter 52
Chapter 52
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: Shadow Cloak (3)
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That was how the strategy meeting began—not just to obtain the Shadow Cloak, but to prevent the Occult Research Club from being disbanded.
Lily spoke up cautiously first.
“……Do you know anything about the occult, Jeron junior?”
“I know a little, but not much.”
In truth, I knew all about it.
I’d gone through this event countless times in the game and heard the explanations each time.
But pretending not to know made progressing the event smoother right now.
The occult.
A word derived from the Latin “occultus,” meaning “hidden” or “secret.”
It refers to the study of supernatural phenomena or magic that cannot be explained by science.
That was the definition back on Earth where I lived.
But in this world where magic truly existed, the occult carried a rather different meaning.
“Then let me give you a simple explanation of the occult.”
Lily clasped her fidgeting fingers together and began her explanation.
“While magic studies and black magic studies research proven and systematized laws… the occult delves into the unknown, phenomena shunned or unexplained by mainstream magic circles.”
She gave a few examples.
“For instance, ancient curses whose mechanisms are unknown, or relics whose principles of operation can’t be figured out with modern magic theory.”
Then, a bit glumly, she added,
“Those things usually aren’t that great in performance, or they’re overhyped compared to reality, so the occult isn’t all that popular….”
Even in this world, the occult was a niche field of study. Pretty similar.
I knew all this up to here.
But then.
“…Still, the stories about the ‘Mythic Era’ are so fascinating that it was a hobby I was totally obsessed with for a while.”
“The Mythic Era?”
My eyes widened slightly as I listened leisurely to her words.
This was dialogue that didn’t appear in the game.
On top of that, the term “Mythic Era” had come up again.
“Yes…. That’s right. The Mythic Era isn’t officially recognized, so it falls under the occult. D-Do you have any interest in the Mythic Era too, Jeron junior?”
“Yeah. It’s recent, but yeah.”
Interest? You bet.
The quest for the unidentified Myth-grade skill was tied directly to the Mythic Era.
“I even bought a book like this.”
So I pulled [Tales of the Seven Demons] from my Subspace Pouch (Rare).
Lily took the book, examined it for a moment, and said admiringly,
“…This is a book about the seven demons? It’s an old tome, but it’s in really good condition. What I prepared to prevent disbandment is related to one of the demons in this book.”
She pointed to one page in the book.
It was the shortest entry.
“…The Demon of Sloth?”
It was the page about the Demon of Sloth.
The one that seemed most connected to my trait [Sin of Sloth (Myth)], and the demon that intrigued me the most, so I showed great interest.
Seeing my enthusiasm, Lily seemed pleased and started rambling on without being asked.
“Hehe…. Yeah. Truth is, out of all the demons, the Demon of Sloth is my favorite. The others all committed evil deeds, but the Demon of Sloth didn’t really do anything bad. If anything, it feels kind of benevolent toward humans…? I know it’s weird to say a demon is my favorite….”
As she went on, Lily’s face flushed slightly, and her voice grew quieter.
Had she realized she’d been excitedly chattering to herself?
“A-anyway, that’s why I’ve been investigating locations rumored to hold the Demon of Sloth’s relic for a while….”
With that, Lily pulled out a massive stack of papers.
It was a bundle of worn, faded, tattered parchment.
“I gathered these over years of research… These are the compiled data on the most likely locations. After enrolling in the Academy, I focused more on black magic and stopped investigating.”
‘These are….’
They were familiar.
Lily’s research materials, absolutely necessary for obtaining the [Shadow Cloak] in the game.
‘…So the Shadow Cloak is the Demon of Sloth’s relic, huh.’
This was extremely intriguing information.
In the game, there was no such detail; it was just presented as an occult-related item.
Anyway.
“Then if we find that relic, achieving results shouldn’t be a problem, right?”
“Yes…! Of course, given the nature of occult research, we can’t be sure it’s really the Demon of Sloth’s relic… But if we find something plausible, it should be enough even for a full year’s club achievements.”
But Lily soon looked worried.
“The problem is, even after narrowing it down as much as possible, there are still so many suspected locations…. We’d have to check each one, and I was worried it’d be too hard on you, Jeron junior….”
As she said that, Lily glanced at me cautiously.
Maybe because I’d only ever shown her my usual lazy, lounging-around self, she didn’t quite trust me.
‘Sure, it’d be a hassle. If we had to check every single one of these places.’
But.
“It’s fine.”
There was no need for that anyway.
Because as I dug through the piled-up parchments, I found a particularly familiar map.
“Hmm. This map has a good vibe to it….”
I picked it up and said,
“How about we start here?”
This was veteran knowledge right here.
***
Lily had actually been worried when she first brought up the club disbandment.
Jeron, who hated hassle above all and loved lounging around.
The moment she mentioned needing to produce results, she feared he’d quit the club without a second thought.
‘I don’t want Jeron junior to leave….’
That terrified her, so she preemptively said he didn’t have to help.
But Jeron insisted on helping no matter what.
He even teased her reassuringly, saying, “If the club gets disbanded, my lounging spot disappears, so I’ll help.”
She was thrilled, but when she showed him the vast materials gathered over years, worry crept back in.
Words were one thing; seeing it in person was another.
There had been a few cadets who approached her out of curiosity or to help.
But they all fled in horror upon seeing her weird personality and her mana that kept running wild out of control.
Jeron might change his mind once he saw this mountain of data.
Even she felt daunted by it.
‘He might get mad and say, “How are we supposed to do all this?”….’
Her timid heart whispered unbidden.
But he didn’t seem bothered at all.
“Hmm. This map has a good vibe to it—how about we start here?”
On the contrary, he picked one map without hesitation and wanted to start right away.
Of course, he had no prior info; he was just volunteering to dive in headfirst.
‘Ah….’
Today, Jeron looked so reliable and trustworthy.
To the point where she felt ashamed for doubting him.
‘He hates hassle so much, and yet….’
Her junior, who came all the way to this out-of-the-way spot to escape other club activities because they were annoying.
For someone like that, this would truly be a tedious task, yet he wasn’t showing it at all and was willing to do it for her sake.
Just that filled her heart.
If she were alone, it would’ve been too overwhelming and tough.
She might’ve given up and accepted the disbandment.
But now was different.
“Yeah…! Let’s do that!”
She answered, mustering her courage.
‘We can do it. If Jeron junior is with me….’
With him by her side, it felt like she could accomplish anything.
***
***
The map pointed to a region called Gern. It was quite a distance from the Academy—even by carriage, it was a long ride.
‘As expected, this is the spot.’
Information matching the game exactly.
I was certain the [Shadow Cloak] was here.
No need to drag it out any longer.
Since the next day was the weekend, Lily and I agreed to set out in the morning.
‘Packing lightly should be fine.’
I’d already bought all the necessary skills and items from the Sloth Shop, so what else did I need?
It was a path I knew the answer to, so a day trip should be easy.
Just in case I got hungry, I stuffed a few loaves of bread into my Subspace Pouch, along with ‘that item’ I’d borrowed from Lily for the ruins, then went to sleep.
The next morning, I headed to the meeting spot.
But Lily looked a bit off.
She was huffing and puffing with a massive backpack as big as herself strapped on.
“No way, senior. What’s with all that luggage?”
“Oh, Jeron junior, good morning…. Well… just in case! This is emergency rations, this is a first-aid kit, and this is black magic potion and….”
Panting, she spent a good while explaining the contents of her bag.
She’d even packed for me, anticipating I wouldn’t bring anything.
“…Here, let me take these.”
I pulled out the heaviest-looking items from her backpack and transferred them to my Subspace Pouch, lightening her load.
“Th-thank you.”
Now much lighter, she finally looked relieved.
We boarded the carriage amiably and set off.
‘…Ah.’
I ended up genuinely grateful for her thorough preparation.
Because.
Bump, bump, bump!
“…Ugh.”
“Junior…! Are you okay?! Take this potion—it’ll help with the motion sickness!”
The road there was historically rough.
The carriage shook wildly, incomparable to the trip to Ether City to deal with that old guy.
Lily seemed fine, used to this world’s ride quality, but it was pure agony for me.
Thanks to her potion, I barely held back vomit…
‘Damn it…! Transportation…! I’ll get some no matter what!’
The entire way to Gern, that’s all I could think about.