Volume 21 Chapter 3 Exploration Part I
The next day, Al arrived at the location where he could see the ancient ruins almost simultaneously with the sun rising.
'"Fly", "Magic Sense", "Shield", "Floating Eye", "Detect Magic", "Magic Resist", all good. I don't think I'm forgetting anything. Should be fine, right?'
"Yep!"
Glee answered cheerfully.
Al was quite excited.
He'd meant to get a good night's rest, but he'd barely slept the previous night, and had left the village he'd spent the night in before dawn.
Tempest's tomb, beyond the city of Lester, a previously explored ancient ruin (though magic tools remained underwater), a research tower, and a warehouse district for magic bags──this was the fifth ancient ruin, the one they were finally reaching.
And, based on his advance research, a significant number of magic tools were known to remain there.
'Let's calm down. Ally, at least take a deep breath!'
At Glee's words, Al took a deep breath.
He slowly exhaled.
Then, he took off again toward the ancient ruins on the mountain ridge using 'Fly'.
Al first approached the dome-shaped building where the Furless Big Grizzly Bear had been.
The biggest threat he'd detected during his reconnaissance was still the Furless Big Grizzly Bear.
He should deal with that first.
As he neared the building, 'Detect Magic' started reacting more and more strongly.
There were a lot.
But, some magic tools that he'd seen a reaction to with 'Magic Sense' weren't reacting even when he was within the range of 'Detect Magic'.
Large temperature control magic tools were like that.
They were probably out of mana.
There were also several other magic tools that seemed to have run out of mana.
Considering this, it seems that the number of magic tools and mage devices obtained after ensuring the safety here will be quite substantial.
Al cautiously approached the dome-shaped building's ceiling crack while observing the reactions.
Peering inside, he couldn't help but wonder if it was brighter than he had expected.
That was the first impression Al had.
Of course, light was coming in through the hole in the ceiling, but that wasn't all.
He cautiously entered.
Floating in mid-air, he scanned the area and noticed something he hadn't seen from the outside: the ceiling was somewhat translucent, allowing sunlight to filter through.
Returning to the crack, he took a closer look and realized that the ceiling was made of a semi-transparent material with a yellowish tint, covered in a layer of dust that had previously gone unnoticed.
It felt as hard as stone when touched.
Using the 'Analyze' spell, he discovered it was soda-lime glass, similar to the transparent panels used on the front of flying carriages.
However, this seemed to have a lower transparency and appeared more cloudy.
Then again, if he adjusted the precision options on the 'Analyze' spell, he should be able to get more detailed information...
'Ally, don't get too absorbed. Stay alert,'
Al was busy examining when he heard Glee's voice.
That's right.
Now wasn't the time for leisurely investigation.
He anxiously scanned his surroundings.
There was no sign of the Furless Big Grizzly Bear inside the dome.
Had it fled?
Or perhaps it had gone out to find food?
Inside the dome was just as he had observed with the 'Floating Eye' spell yesterday: the building's floor was mostly ordinary ground with trees growing, except for some pathways paved with stone.
Nevertheless, it didn't seem like there was a place for such a massive creature to hide.
The walls were made of ordinary stone, but there were some large collapses that looked like they could accommodate the Furless Big Grizzly Bear.
Upon closer inspection, he found giant bear-like footprints near one of them.
It was probably the footprint of a Furless Big Grizzly Bear.
It seemed quite fresh.
Probably less than an hour old.
Al temporarily climbed out through the hole in the ceiling and looked down at the crack in the wall where the footprints had been left.
If the Furless Big Grizzly Bear had moved downwind, simply following its footprints could alert it to their pursuit, placing them in danger of an ambush.
Magical beasts were far more dangerous than ordinary animals in that regard.
Keeping an eye on the wind direction, they tracked the footprints at a distance.
After a while, they heard rustling sounds as something pushed through the trees ahead.
Was there only one?
Just to be safe, Al activated 'Sensory Boost,' landing and placing a hand on the ground to sense vibrations.
There was only one set of footsteps.
And they were large.
The distance was about 300 meters.
The footsteps had stopped.
They were downwind, but had it noticed the sound of their landing?
There was a loud rustling sound as something forcefully pushed through the foliage, and then the sound of heavy footsteps charging straight toward Al.
Al quickly ascended.
They caught sight of a massive, hairless bear.
It was closing in fast.
Standing over 4 meters tall and weighing more than a ton, the creature barreled toward them with its arms spread wide, embodying pure terror.
Yet, Al's ascent should be faster.
'Quick Magic Missile'
Al cast the spell to create space as they rose, sending the magic missile flying.
However, although the pale blue arrow struck the Furless Big Grizzly Bear, it merely bounced off its thick hide.
The bear dropped its front paws to the ground, bent its body, and jumped straight toward Al in a powerful leap.
In that instant, it swung its gigantic claws.
The attack was deflected by a shield of light shaped like a hexagon.
The Furless Big Grizzly Bear fell to the ground after being pushed back.
'Piercing Spear'
Al thrust their palm down toward the rolling Furless Big Grizzly Bear below.
This time, a pale blue spear-like projectile pierced into the bear's back.
The Furless Big Grizzly Bear let out a growling roar and then collapsed to the ground.
The pale spear immediately vanished, and the black-red blood gushed out with a splat, quickly forming a pool around the area.
Floating above the Furless Big Grizzly Bear, out of reach, Al waited for it to completely stop breathing.
When the creature stopped breathing and death was confirmed, the spells 'Retention' and 'Packing' were cast on the corpse.
Most bear-type magic beasts were edible, but this particular Furless Big Grizzly Bear was exceptionally delicious, as noted in the hunting records.
Ideally, Al would have liked to bleed the carcass, but processing a magic beast of this size required proper equipment, and besides, the area hadn't been secured yet.
After applying preservation spells to the carcass, Al decided to store it in the magic bag for now and return to exploring the ancient ruins.
The condition of another dome-shaped building with a broken ceiling was similar to the first one.
The only thing that stood out was the number of unfamiliar plants, which was a bit unusual for Al.
Then again, Al wasn't well-versed in the Mehtabel Mountains, so this might be the norm.
Any magic tools that seemed safe to collect were added to the magic bag whenever Al found them.
Some of them had unknown uses, but Al decided to figure that out later.
The last dome-shaped building had intact walls and ceiling.
It had a regular entrance.
Al pondered which to explore first, the 3-story building or the domes, but decided to check all the domes first.
Al wondered if there were any traps set.
Carefully checking the door,
Al found nothing suspicious.
The door was locked, so Al used the Open Lock spell.
Click.
The key made a sound as it turned.
With a silent prayer to the goddess of fate, Ruud, Al slowly opened the door.
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