Chapter 174
Chapter 174
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 174
Chapter Title: Metagate
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Shirone was right. Judging by the difficulty of the Room of Achievement and Sacrifice, it was clear the Kerg people weren't looking for just anyone.
Someone who could prove their strength in Miro's Spacetime or open all eight gates simultaneously. Without that level of skill, they couldn't even enter the autonomous region, let alone Heaven's Gate.
-Canis, I think it's time to bring that out. If Shirone doesn't go, we can't get to Heaven either.
-Still, this is unexpected. I didn't think he'd be this scared.
-To put it nicely, you could call it insight. It seems his intuition is working based on the information he's heard. Anyway, let's get started.
Taking Harvest's opinion, Canis looked around at everyone. Then, extending a hand, he casually brought up the subject.
“What if… I had a way to return here?”
2. Guffin’s Gate (1)
It was as if a current of electricity ran through the room; a glint appeared in the eyes of Shirone and his friends. This was a new development.
The reason Shirone perceived Heaven as a danger was the remarkably low probability of return. But if there was an escape route, that was a different story.
“Explain in detail. What is this method of return?”
“As you know, the Magic Association confiscated the inheritance our master left us. We were thrown out onto the streets. We didn't want to ask Alpheas for help, either. Anyway, while we were trying to figure out what to do, Harvest dredged up an old memory. You traveled with Arin while you were at the academy. She found a secret place that the great mage Viltor Arcane never wanted to be revealed. Because he erased our memories, even the Magic Association couldn't find it.”
“And this method of return was in that secret place?”
“No. It's much more than that. I'll show you directly.”
Arin took a cube-shaped box from her clothes.
Patterns were engraved and embossed on its surface. It was nearly black, but it shimmered with a rainbow iridescence depending on the angle of the light. It had seams like a puzzle cube, looking as if it could be twisted by hand.
Tess had never seen the object Arin was holding. But she had heard endlessly about the iridescent colors that caused diffuse reflection and the inimitable patterns.
“That’s an ancient artifact. It’s made of a metal that doesn't exist in this world, and its surface is engraved with patterns imbued with magical power. I heard you can't use them until the seal is broken because of a powerful locking mechanism. Am I right?”
“You are. And to add to that, this one’s lock has been released. We can use it right away.”
Tess’s eyes flashed.
The Eljain family collected information on ancient weapons because they possessed enough power to shake the foundations of a nation.
As far as she knew, breaking the seal on an ancient artifact was an international taboo. If any nation were to unlock an artifact's seal, it would be tantamount to a declaration that they were prepared to wage war against the world.
“Can I take a look?”
When Shirone asked, Arin handed over the ancient artifact. His friends crowded around his bed.
Shirone rubbed the surface and examined the seams. As he was turning it over and over, he must have triggered some mechanism, because the cube split open along its central axis, revealing a glass tube.
Startled, Shirone tried to press the cube shut, but it seemed to have locked in place and wouldn't close.
Inside the glass tube, indecipherable characters appeared. Since they didn't know what the object was used for, they couldn't rule out the possibility of it exploding.
“Wow, it’s beautiful.”
Tess, on the other hand, had sparkling eyes. Having grown up listening to tales of artifacts instead of fairy tales, her heart was pounding.
Taking the cube from Shirone, she asked Canis.
“So what is this for? I can’t figure out how to use it no matter how I look at it.”
“I don’t know the details either. Arin found it. Toss it here.”
Tess held the cube reverently and passed it over carefully. But Canis, who had apparently already experimented with it, tossed it to Arin without any tension.
Watching Arin handle the cube, Shirone realized she hadn't just gotten lucky and figured out how to use it.
Most people, upon seeing an ancient artifact for the first time, would try to reason based on objects they already knew. Shirone himself had thought of a puzzle cube or a bomb. But without being bound by preconceptions of its form, she was able to find the object's unique properties.
Realizing the power of such hyper-perception, Shirone listened intently to Arin's explanation.
“I don’t know why, but it seems to activate when I press certain things. After doing this here… I think you press this part.”
A red light shot out from the glass tube, bathing the room in a blood-red hue. When Arin placed it on the floor, Amy covered her face with a pillow and shouted.
“What? Is it going to explode?”
It was unclear how useful a pillow would be in stopping an explosion, but as if she had completed all necessary preparations, she peeked over the pillow and waited for a reaction.
A beeping sound grew faster, then merged into a single tone as the red light vanished.
Picking up the ancient artifact, Arin pointed to the spot on the floor where the cube had been and continued her explanation.
“That was the spatial input. It remembers the place where the cube was set. Now, I’ll do it again.”
When she touched the cube, the glass tube now emitted a blue light.
Arin looked around for a suitable spot and placed the ancient artifact near Shirone.
The glass tube turned a brilliant white, and a large, black sphere materialized in the air above the cube. A sphere of the same shape and size was also floating over the spot Arin had pointed to a moment ago.
“Huh, this is?”
Shirone was astonished.
It was the black hole he had seen in Miro's Spacetime. The ability to compress and penetrate space. The objective of this ability was obvious.
“Now I get it. It’s a portal. A portal that penetrates spacetime.”
“You got it. It’s a device called a Metagate. This will be our trump card. First, I’ll demonstrate with Harvest.”
Canis knew that no one would willingly throw themselves into the black sphere. The inanimate Harvest was perfect for such experiments.
As Harvest put his hand into the black hole, a hand emerged from the other one.
Amy and Tess leaped onto the bed.
The distance between the portals was three meters. Harvest was now stretched across both, separated by three meters. If they had experimented with a person, it would have created an even more bizarre scene.
“Kekeke, this is fun every time.”
“Harvest, it’s dangerous. Come out now.”
Arin said worriedly. According to their experiments, the portal only remained open for one minute.
After Harvest pulled back and the portals vanished, Canis picked up the cube again and said triumphantly.
“How about that? It’s a warp device that remembers the location of a specific point and connects spacetime. If we record this location and then use it in Heaven, we can return anytime we want.”
An impossible situation had become possible, sending ripples through the hearts of Shirone and his friends.
Tess spoke, her voice trembling with excitement.
“This… this is incredible, isn’t it?”
It was an ancient artifact that the great mage Arcane must have possessed because he had risked his life to visit Heaven. That alone was enough to make it a top-tier national secret.
What was even more amazing was that its seal was broken.
If the existence of this object were revealed to the world, it would undoubtedly cause diplomatic friction.
This was on a completely different level from the magic circles used by the Parrot Mercenary Corps.
What would happen if a single spy infiltrated a royal castle and activated the Metagate? Troops would pour in like a flood, and the kingdom would be on the verge of being overthrown. That was the nature of ancient artifacts.
Amy reached the same conclusion. Its use was one thing, but its monetary value was beyond imagination.
She didn't know how much of an inheritance Arcane had left Canis, but there was no doubt that this one item was worth several times that amount.
“Can we… sell this?”
She knew it was a ridiculous thing to say. But she was also curious.
Honestly, she was dying of curiosity. Ten billion? A hundred billion? If they could sell it, her great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-granddaughter would bow before Amy’s portrait every night. She could see why Canis had kept it a secret.
Tess thought about it seriously. Stroking her chin like an appraiser, she examined the Metagate before shaking her head.
“Honestly, no one could buy this. It would have to be at least a nation. The money is one thing, but the repercussions would be enormous. Aside from nations, the most ideal buyer would be the Ivory Tower.”
Any mage residing in the Tormia Kingdom could not be free from the Magic Association. And other countries had their own Magic Associations as well.
But the Ivory Tower was not a place you approached with that kind of thinking. They were people who researched magic regardless of the world's political situation. They were a supranational organization, and their military power was such that they wouldn't be pushed back even if they fought the entire world.
“The Ivory Tower is called the pinnacle of the world. I don’t think they’d make a move even for an ancient artifact.”
“From a mage’s perspective, you might think so. It’s just an object, after all. But it’s entirely possible. You can see it just from the Ex Machina incident 70 years ago.”
“Ex Machina?”
“It’s the name of an ancient weapon owned by the nation of Cortria. I heard from my father that Cortria was trying to strengthen the security on Ex Machina and was moving it. It was a simple operation to move it 30 meters from its original location to a newly built bunker, but the international community went into an uproar. The atmosphere was as if a world war was about to break out at any moment. Do you see what I mean? Such a thing happened just because an ancient weapon moved a mere 30 meters.”
“That's terrifying. What kind of weapon is it?”
“The Eljain family participated in the espionage, but we couldn't find out anything. We don’t know its shape, how big it is, or even its activation principle. But judging from the reaction of neighboring countries at the time, it’s highly likely a map weapon.”
“A map weapon?”
“It means it’s not a weapon used on the battlefield. It's a name given because the highest command makes decisions over a map. They say the seal hasn’t been broken yet, but who knows. It’s been 70 years, after all.”
There was nothing human about a map weapon. Because nothing is marked on the map. It doesn't show who lives there, what culture they enjoy, or what things they hold sacred. It was a world calculated with nothing but set squares, compasses, and pencils.
Canis just listened as they appraised someone else's property.
He had no intention of selling his master's artifact. The reason he'd kept quiet was to imprint the weight of his sacrifice. It was a testament to his will, showing he wanted to go to Heaven so badly he was willing to reveal an ancient artifact.
“Hmm, Ex Machina. And this is a Metagate.”
Shirone muttered to himself before turning to look at Canis.
“Wait, but how do you know its name? You said Arcane erased your memories?”
“It was written on a note. It was just a list of words. He probably did it so that even if the secret place was discovered, no one could deduce what it was about. That’s just like my master, so meticulous.”
“What else was written on it?”
“Nothing particularly special. There was no explanation about Heaven at all. That’s how much he didn’t want to reveal it. But we can explore it. Because we have the Metagate. So, what do you think? Is this enough for a deal on the Immortal Function?”
There was room for consideration. The fact that Heaven, which had only seemed like a source of terror, was now tinged with a small bit of excitement proved it. With Canis, the probability of survival would increase dramatically. But… what did he stand to gain?
“Why are you trying to go to Heaven? Just because Arcane went there isn’t a convincing reason. And it's not like you have any detailed information. I think I need to hear your motive for wanting to go to Heaven before I can make a decision.”
Seeing Shirone scrutinize the possibility of a trap to the very end, Canis felt a sense of trust. If he had to venture into a dangerous place, it would be several times more efficient to go with Shirone than with some half-baked mage.