Why Hide It in a Place Like This?!
Why hide it in a place like this?! Big trouble!
Something happened that didn't match the future I knew. I couldn't figure out why the incident had popped up in a completely different spot from the original story, but whatever the reason, this was a huge problem by comparison.
And now, I was about to get pinned as the culprit behind this mess!!! I'd decided from the moment I arrived in this world that I wouldn't get involved in the original plot events. But what was this situation crashing down on me now? It wasn't just involvement—it was me getting fingered as the mastermind!!
I mean, why wasn't the stuff that was supposed to happen going down, and instead, some crisis erupted in the forest?
Haa…
Truth be told, I might've been a little too complacent.
Magic stones are used to craft all sorts of magical devices. Inevitably, some fail in the process. Those defective ones have to be handed over to the Mage Tower's affiliate, the [Mana Waste Disposal Agency].
But disposing of them costs money.
1,000 nyang per beginner stone, 10,000 nyang per intermediate, and 100,000 nyang per advanced.
Let me say it again… it costs money!
Of course, that's the fee for handling the stones that need disposal. Normal ones are a source of profit.
To confirm if they're defective, you need an appraisal first. Appraisal costs 1,000 nyang per stone.
That's why magical devices are so expensive, why common mages without cash can't easily dabble, and why nobles are the main ones making artifacts or devices. Non-mainstream stuff, sure.
Mages short on funds sometimes take the risk and experiment in secret. Accidents happen now and then.
Most of the time, though, no big deal. Beginner stones don't cause much havoc. The real issue is when they mutate.
Mutated stones mess with the local ecosystem—turning animals and plants ferocious, poisoning the soil into barren wasteland, sparking plagues… In the original story, several incidents stemmed from that.
Anyway, the stones I took in for research had already been appraised. And stones rarely mutate during processing.
That's why I didn't think fusing mana crystals would produce mutated ones. Hehe~☆
I mean, it's not like the game pops up a label saying [Mutated Magic Stone]! How was I supposed to know?!
And I didn't have the cash for appraisals anyway! Who'd expect 29 of them to turn out defective?! Appraisals alone would run nearly 30,000 nyang! If they all needed disposal as advanced stones, that's 2.9 million nyang! Whose dog do you think I am? How am I supposed to cough that up?!
What about my professor salary? Oh, that goes straight into Master's pocket… He's my registered guardian, and I'm technically a minor, after all.
Man, that's kinda unfair? I've got 35 years of memories, at least! Didn't matter. No one cared.
Point is, I'm living off an allowance now.
Yeah… Master's the one at fault for not giving me any pocket money.
So, I had zero cash.
My solution for dealing with the stones? "Bianca~ Go dump these somewhere out of sight~"
And that's how they ended up abandoned in the quiet outskirts forest of Amalthea Forest. Five days later, it boomeranged right back at me.
"Guess they really were advanced stones? Turning a normal forest into a demon realm in just five days?"
Haa… What now…
I called it a demon realm, but it probably wasn't that bad. Just five days, after all. At worst, maybe a goblin chief shows up?
The protagonist's party could handle that easy. No reason for me to step in.
The real problem was this.
The culprit behind the incident gets handed to President Jania for brutal interrogation. You might say, "What's the big deal when Master—better than her—spanks you all the time?" But Master's spankings are half-playful. This? Criminal punishment. Not something you brush off lightly.
No guarantee this was a substitute for that event, but…
Right? I'm not some enemy faction, and originally, this was supposed to be the work of the villain group [Salvation of the End].
Jania's been hunting those villains. She caught their scent in this incident too, apparently. So she personally dug in with an interrogation… Gives me chills just thinking about it. Interrogation by a four-attribute Archmage? Terrifying.
Haa… No helping it? Gotta check it out.
I glanced at Bianca, floating idly nearby.
"Bianca. Wanna go check it out?"
Bianca shook side to side in refusal.
Sigh. Never mind.
"Guess I should go?"
There was no direct evidence I was the culprit. Just suspicion.
So I could stay put, no problem. But it nagged at me.
"Just a quick peek? Let's go, Bianca."
Bianca protested with her whole body. Tough luck. You're the only one who knows where you dumped them…
Amalthea Forest lay south of Laomedeia. The exact spot was outside the city.
Too far to walk, so I opted for sprawling atop Bianca and letting her carry me.
Not the ideal shape for riding, but the spherical form gave decent comfort. Well, "decent" if you count flopping face-down with limbs dangling.
Anyway, faster than walking, and no fatigue for me. Score!!
"Good job, Bianca."
I gave her a pat to show my appreciation. Meaningless on a round orb, maybe, but she liked it, so that was fine.
With that, we headed deeper into the forest.
The woods were eerily still.
Only sound: my footsteps crunching dry leaves.
Crunch, crunch—echoing around.
Leaves piled so thick I couldn't see my feet. Predictably, my toe caught a hidden root.
"Ack!!"
I nearly face-planted, but Bianca's quick support saved my nose.
"Whoa… that was close."
With her help, I stood straight. She buzzed excitedly around me, claiming credit.
I lightly ignored her. Offended, she body-slammed me in rage, but—
I considered whipping up wind with mana, but noped out. The forest was big, and worse, academy investigation teams were around. Any magic would draw them straight here.
Couldn't trek this treacherous path on foot either…
Sudden brilliant idea. Did I have to walk? Nah. How'd I get here? Not on foot, not flying with mana. Piggyback on Bianca. So I eyed her, and she tried sneaking away.
"Where you going?"
I flopped onto her mid-escape. Belly-down, technically, but whatever…
"Forward ho~ And no shaking!!"
She wobbled wildly in protest, but soon gave up and moved.
Forest stayed quiet even after relying on her fully.
Makes sense. Monsters in a forest right by the academy? Disaster. Most animals were hibernating anyway…
Not entirely empty, though. Spotted deer and rabbits here and there.
"No aggression yet…"
Herbivores showed no odd signs.
Did Master get it wrong?
Doubt crept in.
Pretty deep into the forest now, and still no sign of the first episode's traces. Master's mistaken, clearly.
Hey, he's old—easy to mix up forest and mountain. Sure. Good me'll let it slide.
Where the heck did Bianca dump them? We should've arrived by now. Don't tell me you forgot?
If not, no way it'd take this long. Strong hunch.
Then Bianca stopped.
"Hm?"
I hopped off cautiously. Dense thicket. Dank vibe, nothing like the entrance.
Bianca tried slipping into vine-choked trees, but they snared her instantly.
Aigoo… really affected by the stones? Why dump them here of all places!!! Bianca!!
I gathered mana at Plutoid's tip. Pure mana blast—no chant needed. Once enough pooled, I thrust it forward.
The orb of mana shot out, slicing the vines. Beyond…
"An entrance?"
A stone archway, moss-covered.
"Why's this here…?"
I stared, dumbfounded. Bianca bobbed for praise. Enraged, I yelled.
"No!! Why hide it in a place like this?!!!"