I Get the Intention

The interior of Magrid's Legacy was surprisingly familiar.

It even stirred a sense of nostalgia.

Feels just like a modern building...

The architecture naturally brought back memories of my hunter days.

It wasn't purely modern, but it wasn't from this world either.

Somewhere perfectly in between.

Still, it was a welcome blast from the past after so long.

But to Lena and Camilla, it seemed like a fresh thrill.

"Theo-nim, look at this smooth finish! Not even a hair could slip through!"

"Lena-unnie! Check this out! The magic lights look so weird!"

"Oh? You're right... The mana circuits are... simplified like this? And all high-grade too!"

Lena and Camilla had already forgotten about being chased by the undead.

They were fully immersed in the moment.

Fortunately, there were no crude magical traps or pitfalls.

I was expecting a mage's dungeon or labyrinth... but this isn't that kind of place.

My memories as a slave-trading mage included common knowledge about high mages' dungeons and ancient labyrinths.

Those special sites always came with traps or life-threatening hazards.

But Magrid's Legacy had none of that.

If anything, its confidence shone through.

No need for that crap if no one can even get in the first place? Impressive.

The sturdy entrance made ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠petty traps or deadly gimmicks unnecessary.

A bold statement of faith in their technology.

And it was justified.

The undead forces and holy knights knew this location but couldn't breach it.

Impressive. But... hostile merger? What's that?

The message had gone silent after its last line.

It felt like someone was frantically typing and deleting.

Guess I'll explore a bit first.

With no new system messages, I started checking out the facility.

It was a sizable place.

Lots of technicians must have worked here together in the past.

This... is a goldmine.

My heart raced.

It was called a magi-tech workshop, but scale-wise, it was a full factory.

"Theo-nim, look at this! Every workbench is connected to the mana circuits!"

I examined the mana circuits Lena pointed out.

They spiderwebbed out from a single workbench.

And the workbenches themselves linked up like a conveyor belt.

Make a prototype on one bench, and it replicates the process for mass production?

In other words, churn out identical items en masse.

Honestly, finding one ancient relic in Magrid's Legacy would've satisfied me.

But this was beyond that.

Its strategic value was too immense to utter aloud.

Mass-producing Purification Rings alone...

The calculations didn't even compute easily.

Sure, the rings sold well, but crafting them daily by hand was grueling.

Time sink, massive mental drain.

With this setup, that headache vanished.

More free time meant more research—pure win.

"Master! Something here too!"

Camilla's voice echoed.

She'd found what looked like a massive metal storage vault.

Hidden discreetly, but nothing escaped her eyes.

"Wait... could it be..."

Tension spiked.

Magrid's Legacy itself might be inside.

My pulse quickened.

Click.

The huge metal vault opened easily, no fancy lock.

A black object inside revealed itself.

Armor.

Full-body plate with a subtle purple sheen.

I glanced at the others, just in case.

Lena and Camilla were both entranced, admiring it.

Jackpot. This level of perfection...

I hadn't seen many knights' gear, but this was no ordinary piece.

Intricate engravings everywhere, dozens of visible mana circuits.

Then, the messages finally kicked in.

But different from before.

Magrid had something like a system too? This is beyond expectations...

Magi-tech advancement was insane.

Even in my modern hunter era with the Hunter System, we never built our own.

Yet Magrid created and used something similar.

Though it got wiped and overwritten instantly.

Shame. Would've loved to experience Magrid's system...

Regret flickered, but new messages flooded in.

Info on the new item.

"Le-Legendary! It's legendary! Legendary! Lena! See? Camilla, you seeing this?!"

Party or not, I couldn't help shouting.

First legendary-grade item I'd ever found.

But after reading the full description... tsk.

This was useless.

"Theo-nim... isn't this too dangerous?"

"Master, even I... my prosthetics are enough for me, hee-hee..."

"Not telling you to wear it. Don't worry. I won't either."

The base effects were insanely tempting.

But the specials? Way too risky.

No—this was armor only for those ready to die.

Final Magi-Armor... lives up to the name.

Once equipped, you'd lose your mind and fight till death.

No distinguishing friend from foe was fatal, but Blood Regeneration took the cake.

Not healing the wearer—sucking life force to repair the armor?

Wasn't even designed for the user.

Pure combat prolongation machine.

That was the final armor.

My take differed from the others, though.

A bitter taste lingered.

Great minds think alike? Got similar commission requests back in hunter days...

I never made them.

Intentions too transparently desperate.

But someone did, and the results were horrific.

The hunter who wore it killed more allies than monsters...

Hunters, monsters, even civilians massacred.

No sane person would equip this junk.

But I got the intent behind it.

Magrid must've been that cornered.

Humanity pulled similar stunts when on the ropes.

And armor in a facility like this... basically 'if we go down, everyone does'?

Plan to mass-produce at the absolute end.

All die together.

Good thing it failed.

Did fail... right?

Suddenly, I questioned the outcome.

Ancient history—maybe they succeeded.

But ancient woes weren't my problem now.

Modifiable state, though... research material later?

If not, salvage materials for a remake.

Not bad spoils.

Can't use now, but worth keeping for later.

Tuck it away...

I stowed the armor deep in my spatial backpack.

Lena and Camilla looked subtly uneasy.

Then, a system warning chimed as new footage appeared on the wall.

"Th-Theo-nim, anomaly! Battle stations!"

"Whoa? The wall painting's moving! Wait... holy knights?"

"Everyone, calm down."

The messages explained the wall display.

Live feed from underground level 2 combat.

No CCTV needed. How advanced was Magrid?

Nearly matched my modern era.

Maybe surpassed it.

Sad all that tech vanished, leaving traces.

But no time for pity.

Things looked dire below.

"Theo-nim, the holy knights are getting pushed back."

"Those idiots! Think they're immortal 'cause they're ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠human undead? Run already! God, they're so annoying!"

"Camilla? Seems like the holy knights have nowhere to retreat..."

"Lena-unnie, I scouted with a doll—there's a path behind them... huh? It's blocked? Why's it blocked?"

The passage was sealed.

Like something exploded.

"Screwed. Damn it."

Flame explosion mines had detonated, blocking their escape.

Unintended mistake on our part.

"Theo-nim, outside..."

Lena spoke cautiously.

Her face, checking via mirror structures, was pale.

"What happened?"

"Undead..."

"This is nuts. When'd they swarm like that?"

Undead packed the door outside.

Not targeting us specifically, but milling around the entrance.

And below, holy knights on the brink of annihilation.

One survivor left.

But no hope for him.

"Kuhuhu. Seras's dogs are done for."

A voice came through the feed.

Sounded like nails ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on steel.

A skeletal mage, apparently.

"Once I claim Magrid's Legacy... our era begins! You'll thank me, wench! Kuhuhu."

The speaking undead dragged a holy knight away somewhere.

I sighed at the sight.

"How... do we get out?"

We'd gotten in, but no exit now.

Planned to grab loot while holy knights distracted, but it backfired.

Badly.

But the system had my back.

Empowered by Magrid's Legacy, it offered a breakthrough.