Who Will Guarantee My Peaceful Daily Life!
Beyond the stone door stretched a long, long staircase. It spiraled in a perfect circle. Bianca floated ahead of me, emitting a soft glow, and I followed her down the steps.
Clack, clack.
As we descended underground, the air grew heavier and more stifling.
A musty stench began to assault my nose.
"Bianca, you're pretty impressive, huh?"
How did you even think to hide it in a place like this?
Of course, I was the one who'd told her to. To stash it somewhere no one would ever find, safely and organically.
But I never imagined here.
At this point, even if they found out, they'd never suspect me... Should I just turn back?
The third prince had been ambushed on a forest path. But this place? Deep in the thick woods, far from any path, and way underground to boot. Even if it was my discarded [Corrupted Mana Stone], it shouldn't cause any issues here.
So...
"Let's just head back."
Even if they unluckily discovered the mana stone I'd dumped here, there's no way they'd trace it back to me, right?
So...
Right then, I heard footsteps from above.
"!!"
There was nowhere to hide in the middle of the stairs.
We're screwed.
I don't know who they are, but we're totally busted. This is a 100% encounter!
No choice, then.
"Bianca! Piggyback me and get us down fast!"
Bianca can do it! She has to!
And so, entrusting my body to Bianca, we plummeted down the spiral stairs at breakneck speed.
* * * * *
At the bottom of the stairs was a little nook where the steps met the floor. If I flipped my ash-gray robe over my head, it would be hard to spot. My small frame would blend right in with the stone if I crouched down.
But the price for that super-fast spiraling descent was steep.
And that price was...
"Urk..."
My stomach was churning.
The stairs were circular. We'd come down way too fast. The sudden spins had overloaded my semicircular canals.
I was just motion sick.
"Ugh... bleh!"
It felt like puking would make it all better. But the footsteps from above were getting closer.
No helping it. I huddled in the corner at the base of the stairs, flipped my ash-gray robe over my head, and had Bianca shrink down small beside me. I forced the acidic bile back down my throat.
Clack, clack.
The footsteps drew nearer.
Clack, clack—clack, clack.
By the sound, maybe four or five people?
As the noise closed in, I held my breath so they wouldn't hear me breathing.
"We found an [Arcane Stone]?"
A high-pitched woman's voice rang out.
"Yes! Lady Erika! We discovered an [Arcane Stone] in this underground ruin."
[Arcane Stone]? First I'd heard of it. Erika was a new name to me too.
"Oh? Not bad. The quantity's low, but... What about the Acheron ruins?"
"We found them, but the interior was completely destroyed."
"I see. That guy's handiwork again?"
"Yes, Lady Erika. That's our guess."
This conversation wasn't ringing any bells from what I knew.
Acheron ruins? What even were those? And already destroyed?
"Such a shame. There was a pretty powerful automaton in there."
Automaton—yeah, that meant automata.
"But it's still not enough. Not to take on the [Witch of Doom]."
[Witch of Doom]? What now?
"Then recover the [Arcane Stone]. Our [Salvation of Doom] will..."
[Salvation of Doom], huh? No clue what they're up to, though.
Whatever. The situation was turning out fine for me. I'd come here worried I might get suspected, but now the culprits would point to these villains instead.
In other words, once they leave, I can just saunter home and stretch out comfortably! Heh heh!
Urk!
Ugh, my stomach still feels off. When are these guys gonna go...?
"Lady Erika."
"I know. Looks like we have an intruder."
Eh?
Did they spot me? Nah, no way. This camouflage is perfect.
Sure enough, their conversation continued, proving me right.
"Hans, you handle things here. The rest of you, follow me."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Several sets of footsteps receded, heading deeper into the heart of the place—not up the stairs. No footsteps approached me, so it didn't feel like I'd been made. Was there someone else?
I peeked out from under my flipped robe to check. As expected, one guy remained. Under the dim light, he wore a brown robe hood.
Definitely [Salvation of Doom]. That's their signature brown robe.
And when they think they're about to lose, they spout their catchphrase: "Salvation for this false world!" or something like that?
Anyway, hooded up, but his gaze wasn't on me. It was fixed upward on the stairs. Someone coming down? I strained my ears, but still heard nothing.
Does he have Master-level senses like my teacher? I can't hear a thing... Or does reaching a certain realm change everything?
No way to know at my level.
More importantly, how do I slip out of here?
The sudden appearance of original-story unknowns had me rattled. No idea about their stats either. Best to avoid any clashes and bail.
If it comes to a fight, I'll call in my Master card. He's OP anyway, so it'd be fine.
Problem is, Master's not here right now...
As I pondered escape routes...
Blurp—
Maybe the tension easing up? My queasy gut finally rebelled.
"Guh-ehk."
The contents of my stomach surged up. No choice but to stand since I was crouched. Busted for sure.
"Who goes there?!"
Hans spotted me.
But I had no time to react.
"Urp-wehkk!!"
Once it started, the vomit wouldn't stop.
"A kid? No idea how you got here, but tough luck."
Ugh, seriously, who you callin' a kid—
"Urp-wehkk!!!"
Why is my stomach this messed up? Did it twist or something?
"Can't let you live now that you've overheard us. Sorry, kid."
Oh, really? Fine by me. You're gonna—
"Guh-ehk..."
"You look rough. Makes sense—this is Tetrama's domain, the disease-spreader."
Oh? That's why? Figures.
Tetrama was a magic beast that spread plagues. But the [Salvation of Doom] had it captive, exploiting its power to blanket areas in sickness.
Suddenly, an event clicked: the sudden plague in the city's south that canceled the fall festival.
No known cause, just "southern plague"... So this was it?!
Learning this backstory truth was absurd. Not that it affected me anyway.
Lost in thought for a moment, I saw Hans draw a dagger.
"I'll make it quick."
He closed in on me in a flash.
Clang—
His sharp dagger was blocked by Bianca.
"What? What's this orb? Oh-ho? So you're an architect, kid?"
Architect? He means magitech engineer? Spouting total nonsense.
Whatever. Bianca! Go all out and take him down!
I thought it, but she'd get the message.
She's my creation, after all. Automata respond to their maker's will.
And as I said before, automata were originally for combat. Even if Bianca's a failed prototype, her core is battle-ready! So...
Whoosh—
"What? How's a little thing this fast?!"
Bianca zipped around with incredible speed for her tiny size.
Thud—
"Argh!! Y-You little...!!"
Hans couldn't swat her away. He hurled his dagger and grabbed his staff instead.
Three magic circles formed in an instant.
Whoa... three attributes? Thought he was a grunt, but he's packing three? Mid-game level showing up this early... Oh right, this whole scenario's off-script.
My bad—
Hans was no slouch. The speed of his circles outpaced even Professor Layered Pilot. His fire, dark, and light spells slammed into Bianca, who couldn't dodge.
Boom—
A massive blast and billowing smoke, and Bianca vanished.
"Kuhahaha! Behold my power!"
With Bianca gone in the smoke, Hans confidently aimed his staff at me.
And me?
"Ugh..."
My stomach had finally settled a bit. I was leaning on Plutoid like a cane just to stand.
"Now, sweet dreams."
Three-colored magic circles spun toward me.
But hey, mister. Don't you know about double-taps in this world? Skipping 'em can bite you.
"Go, Bianca! Body slam!"
"Huh?"
Bianca burst from the smoke. Of course she did. If she can tank Master's five-attribute circles, what's three gonna do? I'd made her extra tough to avoid repairs, and look what happened.
Thump—thud—
"Argh!!"
Bang—
Hans went flying from Bianca's hit, smashed into the wall, and didn't move again.
"Uh... did I just kill him?"
No way, right? He can't die like that.
I rushed over to check. His chest was rising and falling—phew, alive.
"Whew, close call. Almost became a murderer~"
Now what... gotta bail...
But too focused on the scene, I missed the footsteps descending the stairs. And the cost was...
"Professor Miriel?"
A familiar voice from behind— the last one I wanted to hear right now.
The owner was...
"Ch-Chairman...?"
President Jania had appeared out of nowhere.
And she wasn't alone. Professors Layered Pilot, Daphnis, Jed, and other heavy-hitters—ten skilled ones in total.
This was really, truly busted.
"Ahahaha. Good morning?"
"It's afternoon... Care to explain what happened here, Professor Miriel?"
"Ahahaha..."
Looks like I'd gotten dragged into something annoying.
From President Jania's expression, no way she'd let this slide easy.
Haa... Life. How does my rollin'-tumble life end up like this! Isn't there a world where nothing happens and it's all peace and quiet?
Haa... Someone please guarantee my peaceful daily life!!!!!