45 – Pressing This Button (1)
“Oh, thank you for your hard work.”
“Huh? Thanks.”
“Who are you?”
“I am the dormitory supervisor. I heard there was a major incident on the 11th floor this time?”
“They say there was a fight between lawless individuals. Was one of them the ‘Black Star’?”
As I revealed my identity as a member of the Ministry of Life, the security mages guarding the 11th floor relaxed their guard and nodded.
Beneath their feet, the signal of the location note faintly rang.
I imagined the gallery’s blocking function being disabled, and even though I had never learned anything like smoke when I was on Earth, my voice trembled as if I had gone crazy.
Seeing blood splattered on the obviously worn-out bricks, I looked like a timid magician who was afraid.
“Goodness! A lower-class person like me being a black magician in such a place! I shouldn’t do anything around here for a while.”
“Don’t worry. It’s already over.”
“Soon, the electricity will be restored, and the 11th floor will be included in the new base being prepared by the security department.”
“So that’s why you’re guarding this place! Thanks to you, I’m alive!”
“hehehe, something like that.”
“Hey, Deren, that hasn’t been officially announced yet. It will be proposed at the upcoming round table meeting…”
Their posture faltered slightly at the awkward praise.
Taking advantage of that moment, I put my hand into my backpack.
They quickly pulled out their wands at my sudden action, but what came out was a transparent drink in a bottle.
I handed them the “Traphaga Lake Pure Ice Water” that I got from the vending machine and said,
“You must be tired from working continuously. Please have a drink.”
“It’s okay. We’re just doing what we’ve been ordered to do.”
“No, I really hope you accept it. It’s such an honor for me to have had a conversation with two great wizards like you.”
“Well, according to the instructions….”
“It felt like receiving magical teachings just by exchanging greetings. The phrase ‘We are the beacon that illuminates the tower’ had this meaning!”
“Frederick, it’s not good to disregard the kindness of our juniors too much.”
“Ahem, well then….”
It was like scratching an unreachable itch, a refreshing candy coating.
With my dazzling tongue play, the corners of their mouths twitched under the hood of their robes adorned with metal plates.
In fact, since the security department did not intervene in this incident, they were simply dealing with the aftermath.
I heard that the report was missing for unknown reasons, so they didn’t receive any orders from their superiors.
Anyway, the wizards stood satisfied, reciting the motto of the security department, and opened the lid of the water bottle.
By the way, the motto of the information department was “Pursuing omnipotence by using omniscience as a stepping stone.”
From Noble mtl dot com
The motto of the living department was “Don’t run in the hallway.”
“Gulp, gulp. By the way, you said you’re a dormitory supervisor. Which dorm are you referring to exactly?”
“Ah, well….”
“Oh, this water is deliciously… De? Cough!”
“De…ren? Cough, cough!”
As soon as the water, enchanted with ‘supercooling’ magic, touched them, the two of them froze solid in an instant.
After the incident with the vending machine, Bina devised a spell fueled by anger.
Thanks to that, the Epsilon Hospital was flooded with statue patients, and even though the items were now discontinued, she had secretly kept a few bottles when replacing the vending machine’s internals.
Because of that incident, Bina was scolded and shed tears by Christina. She was then summoned to Niflheim’s headquarters and was absent for a while.
It wasn’t to the point of losing her life, so she would regain her composure within an hour.
Magicians of the third hierarchy or higher have magical resistance in their bodies, so they might be faster.
I pushed Deren and Frederick aside and took a step back from where they were standing, assembling the window.
Then, pulling the lever and aiming at the floor, I threw the spear with three deadly tips with all my strength.
Kwa-a-a-a-ng—!!
Bricks and concrete collapsed together, creating a small hole.
Inside, a red-headed magician was trembling, tightly clutching a location note in her hand.
I lowered the rope I had prepared, but the six-layered curse was so overwhelming that she couldn’t climb up alone.
Unable to help it, I went down myself, hugged her, and climbed back up.
Being isolated in the labyrinth for six days without eating or drinking had made me extremely weak.
I put the intact “Traphalga Lake Pure Ice Water” from my backpack into her mouth.
As greedy as Niflheim was, it was just plain water, but it had additional effects like mana and fatigue recovery.
“Are you okay?”
“Cough, cough…! C-Clark, sir!”
“Why?”
“I’ll listen well! I won’t do anything bad! I won’t secretly infiltrate the mountain climbing club, take the list of famous mountains, and burn it! Please don’t send me back down…!!”
As her blurry vision cleared and her body replenished with moisture, Isagele, who immediately sent her away with her eyes.
It seems like I’ve reflected quite a bit in the dark.
I supported her and took her to the lounge of the Haejuhak faction.
In Martop, I was an outlaw and a wanted criminal outside, a member of the Black Star who was hunted by the law enforcement. There was only one place to go.
The narrow staircase had been smoothed out through some construction, allowing for things to be placed on it. Inside, there was a small office.
The hidden room, converted from a storage room, was perfect for avoiding people’s gaze.
Even if there were people staying on the training floor, besides Tobey who occasionally wandered around for cleaning, it would be safe since it was mostly just me.
As for food, I could just bring in the occasional meals that came to the dormitory.
“You’ll stay here for a while.”
“Um… What’s the reason for confining me?”
“Don’t you like it?”
“Oh, no!! Actually, I’m the type who likes being obsessed with someone, so I’m completely thrilled!!”
“Alright, forget it. This is what you have to do here.”
I threw the location note in front of the babbling sorcerer.
I glanced at the wand of Rupert, which was placed on the bookshelf, and he was startled and dropped it on the floor.
“We have to create a magic together.”
Why did I have to bring in a criminal from the Black Star?
That was because I needed to pass the trial of the 20th floor.
*
The trial of the 20th floor, called the Corridor of Spirits, is a test where one is tested by the spirits residing in the corridor with the magic they have created.
The passing criteria for the capricious spirits vary, but generally, the more unique the magic is compared to the existing ones, the higher the score given.
Mariel, while slacking off, must have calculated to stay in the lounge as long as possible.
She had no school of thought, and all the magic she used with her own mystery was independent.
On the other hand, unlike the high-ranking magicians who competed with curse names, my academic achievements were minimal.
I only used the training room in the lounges of Meteor and Glaesia, which were equipped with various facilities.
Unlike those who were stuck in the training floor for months studying magic, my goal was to quickly climb the tower.
For that, I definitely needed a supporter to back me up.
“What? But I’m not a professor or anything. When I came out of Matap, it caused a stir even in the school, so I can’t even use magic….”
“Instead, you’re a master of extreme magic, right?”
Santaeugi was a magician who made a name for himself on the continent with just extreme magic.
I, too, had a basic understanding of the field by taking Vina’s classes.
The characteristic of extreme magic is that both the structure of the spell and the operation principle of magic are based on the caster’s thinking.
And because you have to endure two contrasting states, you have to be proficient in interpreting and integrating extremely unstable and complex spell structures.
“Do you know what this is?”
“I have a rough idea. It used to be just a simple booklet, but I heard it’s quite popular these days? Rumor has it that even a lot of people in the Black Star use it, so the officers officially banned it. It’s definitely the witches’ mischief. Those magicians who are only inside the tower have definitely never met real witches….”
“I made it.”
“What…?”
I was a unique human who, unlike others, possessed a part of “thinking” in the form of a book.
When I first learned extreme magic, and when I obtained the curse name.
It was no coincidence that new features were added to the gallery.
Then, it should be possible to create magic using the functions of the gallery, which is the basis of my thinking, in reverse.
I had thought of delegating that design to Isajel… no, entrusting it to her.
“This is for administrators. It’s different from the notes that the other wizards in the research department tear apart and dismantle every time.”
“You want me to interpret this?”
“I don’t know how to do coding stuff. I’ll give you a rough idea of what I want to create, so try your best.”
“Coding… what?”
I almost called her a coding slave in that moment.
Fortunately, she was focused on holding the notebook and surveying the gallery.
In the meantime, I took out a piece of paper from the drawer and wrote down a handwritten text similar to the UI of a post.
When Isajel saw it, she tilted her head and asked.
“What is this?”
“A big, red button that looks tempting to press.”
—–
[Pressing this button will cause an innocent explosion to hit a tactical nuclear weapon.]
Will you press it? – 5P
—–
“How about it? Doesn’t it seem cool if it actually works?”