Chapter 209 - Chapter 208: The Path to a Scientist
The 2nd Month of Fire, Week 5, Day of Saturday.
After school, before special training, to Paraleira's room.
The reason was, of course, what Adelriese had told me yesterday.
It had been about a month and a half since I last visited the dormitory, but as soon as I arrived, I was caught by the Cafeteria Lady.
Apparently, Paraleira's condition was strange.
She usually did as she pleased, but this time she seemed aggressive, or rather, not normal at all.
"Even when we tell her things, she won't listen...."
She consulted me with a troubled expression like that.
The Cafeteria Ladies were truly worried about Paraleira.
They also knew that Mika had been doing something with Paraleira.
So, they begged me to go and tell her to stop.
"I didn't know it had come to this, but I came to stop Paraleira-san as well. I'll have a little talk with her."
When Mika said that, the Cafeteria Lady's expression showed a slight sense of relief.
Although stopped at the entrance, for now, I proceeded to Paraleira's room as originally planned.
Knock, knock.
However, no matter how many times I knocked, there was no answer.
(...Is she collapsed inside?)
Thinking that, I turned the doorknob, and the lock was not engaged.
Peeking inside quietly, Paraleira was in the middle of creating some magical tool.
She seemed to be concentrating so hard that she didn't hear the knocking.
Mika entered the room and went straight to Paraleira.
Timing the moment she let go of the magical tool between movements, he grabbed her hand.
Paraleira, who hadn't moved for a while, slowly turned around with sluggish movements.
(Scary...)
What can I say, Paraleira was a mess.
Her hair being messy was usual, but her expression was terrible.
The area around her eyes was pitch black with dark circles, and her eyes were bloodshot.
She probably hadn't slept properly for quite some time.
"...Let go of my hand."
Paraleira muttered in a low, hoarse voice, and Mika let go of her hand as instructed.
Then, Paraleira reached for the magical tool again, trying to continue her work.
"No, no, no, that won't do. You're a guest, you know."
He turned his body along with Paraleira's.
Paraleira grimaced and clicked her tongue.
"You're getting too carried away. It feels like you're on the verge of ruin."
"...None of your business."
I had heard about the fate of those who got too obsessed with alchemy before, but this was a textbook example.
Shouldn't I take a photo and hang it in the magical tool shop?
Before touching alchemy, After touching alchemy, like that.
It should be posted for comparison.
Mika noticed the blueprints on the desk.
He lightly checked the amount of magical power output written on the blueprints, which was the final output.
"It's nowhere near enough."
"............Huh?"
Not understanding the meaning of Mika's words, Paraleira spoke in an irritable voice.
"The amount of magical power. Probably, 'Orichalcum' starts to be generated from an output of 1.8 million."
"Hya...hundred...thousand...!?"
Paraleira twisted her face and was left speechless.
The assumed magical power of the magical tool Paraleira was currently creating was 500,000.
The circuit diagram of the prototype Mika had shown was around over 100,000 magical power.
She must have multiplied it by five, but nothing would happen with that.
Mika hadn't measured it strictly either, but 'Orichalcum' started to be generated from around over 90% of the assumed output of the magical tool for stabilizing magical power.
Working backwards from there, he could understand that roughly this much magical power would be needed.
"What good is making such a magical tool? There's no way such magical power exists."
"...You, with such a vast amount of magical power... how are you...?"
Paraleira said it like a mutter.
But Mika did not answer that.
He couldn't possibly show off 'Absorb Wing'.
"In the end, my magical tool couldn't withstand it and broke. It was a wearable type, but I got seriously injured."
Mika deliberately sidestepped the story.
He pulled a nearby chair closer and sat down.
"Paraleira-san. Can you see the problem clearly? I'll state it clearly, even if the problem of magical power is solved, you absolutely cannot create rare metals."
When Mika pointed this out, Paraleira bit her teeth in frustration.
Unfortunately, Paraleira's problem was not just about magical power.
In the first place, even if one had that much magical power, they didn't know what to do with it.
(...I know that a hundred times over.)
Probably, Paraleira was running away.
Overtaken in generating rare metals, the hint was a magical tool to stabilize magical power.
For reasons unknown, she just threw herself into making magical tools, thinking that maybe if she had a huge amount of magical power, something would work out.
Even though she knew she wouldn't reach it that way.
She was looking away.
Watching Paraleira bow her head and twist her face, Mika sighed.
Truly, a born mad scientist.
No, should I call her a crazy alchemist?
"I told you to call me if you wanted to hear the answer."
When Mika said that, Paraleira turned her face away.
Perhaps her pride was in the way, and she couldn't honestly say "Teach me."
Maybe she also wanted to figure it out herself.
Mika shrugged his shoulders with a "well, well" expression.
"I told you that you need to know the composition of matter, didn't I?"
"Ah, ah...."
Mika then looked around the room.
"...? What are you looking for?"
"It's the data I lent you before. Here, I borrowed it last time."
"Hmm? Ah... that one. If it's that, it should be around here...."
With that, Paraleira searched for the data piled up in the corner of the room.
But it wasn't there.
"Huh? Where did it go?"
"It's not over here?"
Mika pointed to another pile of data.
And so, the two of them searched for data for about thirty minutes.
"Let's clean up the room."
"...................."
Mika said it as if he was dumbfounded, but Paraleira maintained her silence.
When I said it before, she retorted with "None of your business," but this time she couldn't retort.
Putting the finally found data aside for a moment, Mika thought a little about how to start the conversation.
"If you keep cutting iron into smaller and smaller pieces, what happens?"
Starting with such an irrelevant-sounding story.
"No matter how small you make it, iron is still iron, right?"
"That's true, but even iron has a minimum unit that makes it iron."
"Because it is iron...? Minimum unit?"
Paraleira made a suspicious face.
Even so, her face was somewhat more normal than when I first saw her.
"What I meant by the composition of matter is that kind of thing. It's not limited to iron, but no matter what object you keep cutting smaller and smaller, what happens in the end?"
"What happens...."
The minimum unit of matter, the atom.
First, one needs to know that concept.
"What is matter? First, think about its true nature. This is the same for any matter. Iron, copper. Of course, 'Orichalcum' as well."
When Mika said that, Paraleira's eyes widened.
Mika took a deep breath and looked straight at Paraleira.
"The true nature of 'Orichalcum' is copper. It is one of the broad categories of the substance called copper. ...Or should I say that?"
Paraleira was surprised, blinking without realizing it, and looked at Mika.
"...Copper... ...broad category?"
Paraleira muttered in a hoarse voice.
Mika nodded firmly in response.
He opened the data he had put aside.
"From here on, it's my hypothesis. As a result, I succeeded in generating 'Orichalcum', so it's probably correct, but I haven't verified it one by one. I skipped over such things and just got the results."
That was reckless talk in itself.
If possible, I would like Paraleira to help solidify the foundation of the hypothesis.
Mika opened the page with the atomic model in the data.
"I thought this represented the minimum unit of matter."
"This is...?"
Paraleira blinked and looked at the diagram.
She must be thinking "What is this?".
"This is what constitutes that minimum unit. And this is what constitutes the thing that constitutes that minimum unit."
"Huh?"
Paraleira made a gaping expression.
Mika quickly skimmed through the pages of atomic nuclei and nucleons.
"No, no, no, wait, wait! It's the minimum unit, right!? Why is there something smaller than the minimum?"
Well, that's the normal reaction.
Really, I think the person who first noticed this is crazy.
...Of course, I'm praising you?
"If we could confirm matter down to one hundred millionth, one hundred billionth, one trillionth of its size, wouldn't we understand how matter is made?"
"Billions, trillions...?"
Mika smiled at Paraleira, who groaned.
I wanted Paraleira to become not a crazy alchemist, but the world's first scientist.
Shining light on the parts people had overlooked because the existence of God was there.
A pioneer of science.
And while at it, it would be nice if she clarified magical power itself.
"I've been thinking for a while. Everyone neglects the basics too much. They use it normally, but in the first place, what is magical power? What can it do, what properties does it have, and how is it produced? They don't know anything, they just use it."
Well, that was the same for Mika too.
"It's the same with matter. What's the difference between bread and stone? Why does water freeze or boil? Why does fire spread when you bring it close? In the first place, why is fire hot? Can you explain it?"
"That is...."
Paraleira was left speechless by Mika's rapid-fire questions.
"Before alchemy, let's focus more on what's right in front of us. You can't be chasing dream stories when you don't even understand the things right in front of you properly."
"Then, do you understand it?"
"Yes, I understand."
Paraleira had no retort to Mika, who stated it casually.
She blinked and looked at Mika.
"..........................Under...stand...?"
"Yes."
Well, Mika didn't know about magical power either.
Atoms and atomic nuclei were just things stuffed in as knowledge.
If asked too deeply, it might show his flaws.
"I don't claim to know everything, but at least arriving at the rare metal hypothesis wasn't an accident. If you go back to that time and look at that data again, you will arrive at the same hypothesis. No matter how many times."
This was something he could say with confidence.
Every time, thinking it was ridiculous, he would arrive at the same conclusion.
Paraleira stared at the confident Mika with a surprised expression.
It must have been surprising that it wasn't a whim or a flash of inspiration.
Maybe she wondered why Mika could have a flash of inspiration while she couldn't.
That might have been frustrating too.
"I think alchemy is interesting too. Why don't we try to clarify the phenomena surrounding this world itself and the things that compose it?"
"This world...."
So-called, the principles.
Whatever it was, physical laws or anything, one should establish the fundamental theory first.
"First, please sleep slowly. Then, think carefully about the next goal."
Mika proposed to Paraleira, who looked as if a possession had left her.
In such a tired state, her head wouldn't turn properly.
But even though Mika spoke to her, Paraleira bowed her head and fell into thought.
(...For now, will she stop making the magical tool with the unreasonable magical power?)
It seems like a disaster where the dormitory gets blown away can be prevented.
Well, even with scientific experiments, a big accident will probably happen sooner or later.
(I'll just prevent it while I'm attending the academy.)
I don't know what happens after that.
In fact, isn't it time to really need a laboratory somewhere other than the dormitory?
(Going back to the Court Magic Institute would be best, but considering the circumstances, it's absolutely impossible.)
It's quite a troublesome problem.
Still, for now, Mika had achieved his original purpose and sighed with relief.
■■■■■■
The 3rd Month of Fire, Week 1, Day of Tuesday.
An abandoned mansion in the Royal Capital.
Weeds grew wild in the garden, and the mansion itself seemed quite old.
"Ooooohhhhhhh!"
"Gaaaaaaah!"
Mika was fighting a Wraith at the entrance.
Although called a battle, for Mika, it was almost a game.
Wearing a magical tool for stabilizing magical power, he could now freely manipulate a vast amount of magical power.
By deploying 'Absorb Wing', he could instantly expand a high-concentration magical power range and instantly annihilate all Wraiths within the range.
But that wouldn't pass the time, so he deliberately wrapped himself in magical power and defeated them one by one, grabbing their magic stones.
Still, he had 'Absorb Wing' deployed just in case.
He would need it anyway with 'Auto-Dispel'.
While Mika was playing around, Fee floated over from the back.
"Oh, did you find it?"
When Mika asked that, Fee's light brightened for a moment.
Seeing that response, Mika instantly defeated the remaining three Wraiths.
Then, as Mika opened both hands, magic stones that had no use fell onto the floor one by one.
"Are there Wraiths in the back too?"
Fee's light brightened for a moment.
It seems they were still there.
Since discovering that Fee had the power to see curses, Mika had Fee handle the curse identification work.
Then, the efficiency became unimaginable.
Fee for curse search.
Dispel with 'Auto-Dispel'.
The part that used to take time was now smoothly handled, so now it was common to finish the work in ten or twenty minutes after arriving at the scene.
Very rarely, the cause was outside the mansion or there was a hidden room, but most requests were instantly killed.
Thanks to that, even on weekdays after school, he could visit two or three places a day.
Summer had come, and the days had lengthened, which was a big factor.
So, it was common for the travel time to be longer than the work time.
Fee led the way, floating forward.
Monsters like Wraiths strangely did not react to Fee.
Previously, I had been hit by something called 'Life Drain' from a Wraith.
Maybe 'Unclean Ones' like Wraiths react to that life force and attack.
Mika defeated the appearing Wraiths one by one and proceeded as guided by Fee.
"Eek."
Passing by a certain room, a sound accidentally escaped.
There was a Legion right there.
It was staying still near the ceiling.
(Rare. It's actually quite rare.)
I'm not happy about it.
Still, it had been two years since the last time.
Mika manifested 'Big Ear' and prepared for the Binding Voice.
Without stepping into the room, he manifested the [Exorcism] Miracle from the Court Magic Institute.
"Shining brilliantly, the Great God of Light that illuminated the whole world. ————."
He kept the magical power used to the very limit where magical power depletion would occur.
Even so, with just one [Exorcism], the Legion scattered various things from its whole body with a splat! and its limbs were torn off everywhere.
As always, gruesome...
Compared to two years ago, Mika's magical power had increased, so even though it wasn't an all-in bet, he could defeat the Legion in one shot.
Before, I had to take it several times, but was this one weak, or had I become strong?
Well, either way is fine.
I'd rather not see it again.
Arriving there, it was a place like a children's room.
Dolls and hair ornaments were scattered on the floor.
Fee floated inside the room, hovering around under the bed.
"Is something under the bed?"
Mika knelt beside the bed and peered underneath.
"What are you doing, Big Brother?"
"Hyaah!?"
At that moment, he was spoken to and his heart almost stopped.
Turning around, a girl of about seven or eight years old was peeking at Mika, who was trying to look under the bed.
"What were you doing?"
Saying that, the girl tilted her head.
Fee blinked busily, but Mika reached out and stopped Fee.
"...Big Brother came for work. Is this, maybe, your room?"
"Yes. It is."
The girl answered with a bright smile.
Seeing that smile, Mika felt sad instead.
Because that girl was a Wraith.
A being without substance.
Whether she realized it or not.
Seeing a girl who maintained her self even as a Wraith, Mika felt his chest tighten.
"Big Brother, are you an Apostle?"
The girl stared at the light wings on Mika's back and asked.
Well, how should I answer?
He hesitated for a moment, but Mika smiled and nodded.
"Amazing. You figured it out well."
"Because I can see beautiful wings. They sparkle and are really beautiful...."
Yes, the girl was staring at the wings with a dazed look.
"Oh my? Maybe you can see these wings?"
"Yes, I can see them. Very beautiful wings of the Apostle."
Mika said a slightly theatrical line, but the girl answered with a smile.
"Then, you must have been a very good child. These wings can only be seen by good children."
"Really!?"
The girl asked with an expression of surprise and happiness.
"Of course, it's true."
"Then, then..."
When Mika affirmed, the girl became a bit shy.
"What is it?"
"Did the Apostle... come to pick me up?"
The girl asked with a worried expression, as if checking Mika's face.
Hearing that, Mika's chest hurt tightly.
(...She knew...)
This child knew that she had already lost her life.
Mika almost groaned, but managed to hold it back.
And so, he forced a smile.
"Yes. I came to pick you up. So that you can reach the gods without getting lost."
"Waaah! The story was true!"
The girl's expression suddenly turned into a smile.
Mika released the magical power he was wrapping himself in and patted the girl's head.
The slight pain transmitted from the touching hand.
Probably 'Life Drain' was happening.
(Is 'Life Drain' something that happens naturally?)
He didn't feel any hostility from the girl.
Probably, it was a phenomenon that happened automatically when touched.
(...I feel a curse too. But it's weak.)
This child herself was in a state like a curse.
But, since it was a weak curse, it would be different from the mansion's curse.
(...A Wraith maintaining self. And a curse. What's going on?)
It was a first-time situation, and Mika was confused.
Still, he couldn't leave this child as she was.
"My name is Mika. What's your name?"
"I'm Lunesee. Apostle."
"Lunesee. That's a nice name. You can call me Mika."
Mika smiled, but Lunesee became shy and fidgeted.
(...I don't want to do the kind of thing like defeating a Wraith.)
It was just sentimentality.
Still, he didn't want to just wear it down with magical power.
(If I dispel the curse, can she return naturally...?)
Mika decided to try dispelling the curse.
"How old are you, Lunesee?"
"Eight years old. ...Almost."
"Ahaha, I see."
Mika deliberately acted cheerfully and continued a trivial conversation.
While doing that, he tried to dispel Lunesee's curse.
But, something strange happened.
(...Why? What's going on?)
No matter how much he progressed with the dispelling, it didn't move forward.
After dispelling a few, a pattern appeared where it said "I did this just now?".
(This... is looping?)
He didn't know the reason.
But the dispelled patterns would reappear, coming one after another no matter how many times.
Considering the strength of the curse felt from Lunesee, it shouldn't be that deep a structure.
Even so, although it was manual work, no matter how much he dispelled, he couldn't dispel it.
Mika continued the conversation while smiling, not letting his inner anxiety show.
While doing that, Lunesee slowly reached out her hand.
It seemed she wanted to touch Mika's wings.
"Do you want to try touching?"
"Okay!"
When Mika spoke, she raised a happy voice.
Mika extended his wings forward and enveloped Lunesee.
"Waaah!"
With a full smile, Lunesee touched the wings.
At that moment, the curse Mika had dispelled was taken away.
(What? What happened?)
There were many things I couldn't understand.
Trying to dispel it again, the part I just dispelled was taken away again.
Mika put his wings back on his back.
"Aaaah...."
Lunesee let out a voice as if a little disappointed.
"Sorry. Wait a little."
Mika said that and performed the dispelling, but this time he didn't feel like it was being taken away.
(Is 'Absorb Wing' absorbing it?)
If he left the dispelled part as is, it seemed to reappear.
But, if Lunesee was touching 'Absorb Wing', she might be absorbing the magical power of that part the moment it was dispelled.
By having the magical power absorbed, that part would not reappear.
(Just considering the situation, it's like that?)
It was the first time a curse would reappear so quickly, but it seemed that as long as the magical power was lost one by one, it was fine.
Mika extended his wings forward again.
Lunesee reached out her hand happily.
And so, he dispelled the remaining curses one by one.
When he had dispelled many curses,
"A...."
Lunesee muttered.
The curse could no longer maintain the curse, and it was completely dispelled.
"Thank you, Apostle... Mika-sama."
Lunesee said that with a shy smile, and then vanished with a whoosh...
When Lunesee's figure completely disappeared, tears overflowed from Mika's eyes.
"..................Why... such a good child...!"
How did she end up cursed!?
The circumstances, the reason, the background, everything was unknown.
Still, Lunesee, who had ended up cursed like that, was too pitiful.
"What is this curse...!"
Mika clenched his fist and just prayed for Lunesee to sleep quietly.
After that, he stood there for a while, then pulled out an incense burner-like object that was under the bed and dispelled the curse.
On the way back, he bought some tree wine and drank it.
Drinking wine he wasn't used to, Mika's feet immediately became unsteady, and he vomited.
Staggering, he somehow made it home, asked Kistil and Nerisfeene, who were worried, to "leave me alone for a little while," and without eating dinner, he fell asleep.
The next morning, he had a hangover.