Behind the door that stood wide open was a storeroom filled with weapons, just as Soph had said.
“There are a lot of swords.”
Where Magreta pointed, swords were lined up.
“There are plenty of spears, too.”
“These are hammers and clubs.”
As Tom and Clerk Lee said, spears and other weapons were mounted on the other side as well.
On top of that, though I had no idea what kind of hide it was, there were leather armors too.
Just then, Hanna, who had been looking around a corner of the storeroom, hurriedly ran over there.
“Arrows!”
Several piles of arrows were stacked there.
Sergeant Woo went over beside her and examined the crossbows and bows.
Unlike Sergeant Woo, Hanna gave the crossbows and bows a quick glance and immediately lost interest.
The bows and crossbows there were ordinary training weapons.
They were not the kind of weapons that would interest her when she already had an artifact bow.
I had thought a weapons storeroom in a world of magic might be different somehow, but the weapons inside were ordinary.
[It is the weapons storeroom of a training center. There is no way there would be magic weapons in a place meant for training. Besides, they would never have left anything useful in a sealed facility.]
I had expected a storeroom full of artifacts, but reality was different from novels.
Unlike me, Magreta looked thoroughly satisfied as she gazed at the weapons lined up in the storeroom.
“David will be happy. The forge has been making weapons for us, but we’re still very short on them.”
Unlike my spear, other melee weapons were consumables. Whenever people came back from hunting, there was always a broken spear among them.
Naturally, as time went by, our stock of weapons had dwindled.
Since it was difficult for ordinary iron to hold energy, people would surely be pleased if we took the weapons from this storeroom back with us.
Hanna, who had obtained a great supply of arrows that had always been in short supply, looked simply delighted, and Sergeant Woo tested several crossbows, looking for something usable.
Tom, who had wanted artifact weapons, seemed disappointed, but he too examined the hammers and clubs one by one.
Seeing even Clerk Lee looking around at the weapons, I asked Soph.
[You didn’t bring me here just to show me these weapons, did you?]
Although he had helped me through the helmet, the reason Soph had brought me here was because of my magic.
[I remember. It should be here somewhere... First, go over there.]
I frowned when I looked where Soph was pointing.
Unlike the rest of the storeroom, that place was piled high with miscellaneous junk.
A heap of scrap, stacked with broken weapons and armor.
If I took it to Smith, it looked like it could be recycled.
[Search through there. There should be at least one left.]
I had never imagined I would end up rummaging through a pile of trash after coming to these ruins.
But I dug through the scrap heap as he told me.
Dust rose, and broken weapons and armor rolled this way and that.
Even after the others, who had approached out of curiosity, backed away from the dust, I continued digging through the junk.
When I had nearly searched through all of it, Soph stopped me.
[Wait. As expected, one was left.]
I lifted up the item he indicated.
“Don’t tell me this is what you were looking for.”
It was a pair of gloves that had been buried under the scrap.
Thin, fingerless gloves made of an unknown material.
Compared to the flamboyant gauntlets the fighter had used, they were utterly ordinary gloves.
I could only stare at them with suspicion.
[They may look like that, but those are magic gloves.]
‘This is a magic artifact?’
No matter how I looked at them, they were just ordinary fingerless gloves.
The gloves that had been buried in scrap had neither black stones nor patterns.
Soph knew as well that these gloves did not look impressive.
[Rather than explaining a hundred times, it would be better for you to try them yourself. Put them on.]
I shook the gloves out thoroughly and put them on.
They were large, so my hands slipped right in.
The moment I put them on, I felt energy flowing into them.
‘So they really are artifacts.’
I had doubted them because of their appearance, but just as Soph said, they seemed to be artifacts.
Srrrk.
The gloves shrank and clung tightly to my hands.
I narrowed my eyes and glared at the gloves.
But there was no other change.
I tried pushing energy into them as well.
But the gloves remained the same.
They did not glow, nor did their shape change.
I asked Soph.
[Don’t tell me this is it?]
[Of course not.]
Fortunately, that was not the end.
[Try casting magic with that hand.]
I snapped my fingers with the gloved hand.
At the same time, a magic circle appeared in my mind, and formulae unfolded.
Next, sparks were supposed to leap between my fingers.
As expected, sparks between my fingers—
Crackle!
“Whoa!”
Along with a blinding flash, electric current surged between my fingers.
Flames flared up, and I nearly fell backward.
The startled others looked at me.
“Are you all right?”
Hanna and Magreta hurriedly ran over, and I had to send them both back.
[What is this?]
[I told you, it is an artifact. Magic-enhancing gloves. They were a groundbreaking tool that assisted with the activation of magic.]
At those words, I tried casting magic again.
This time, I cast it as weakly and carefully as possible.
Pop, papak, pop, papap.
Sparks several times stronger than expected leaped up without even the slightest delay.
My eyes widened on their own.
Both the response speed and the power were on a completely different level from before.
These were gloves every mage ought to carry.
[They’re really good. An incredible artifact. Why is an artifact like this in a heap of junk?]
It was strange that they were in this training center at all.
[When they were first created, we also thought an incredible artifact had been made. As you can see, the response and the transmission of magic were both outstanding. However, there was a problem.]
As expected, there was some flaw.
[Try firing lightning forward.]
As Soph said, I extended my gloved hand forward.
Then I recalled the lightning magic I had practiced until now.
I imagined the electric current flying out and striking the wall.
A magic circle appeared in my head, and formulae unfolded.
Magic unfolded from my hand.
After electric current formed in my gloved palm,
Cracklele...
The magic simply vanished.
[That is the problem. Once you put on the gloves, they discriminate regarding the medium through which magic is transmitted. To put it simply, magic cannot be cast into the air.]
This explanation was not complicated. I understood it at once.
[Don’t tell me the magic only transmits if these gloves are touching something?]
[Correct.]
According to Soph, that meant I could not make ranged attacks while using these gloves.
[The parts considered advantages are rather ambiguous for a mage as well. No matter how good the response is, it cannot activate until the formula calculations are finished, and mages tend to dislike performance that deviates from their calculations.
Setting everything else aside, the fact that it discriminates by medium was the biggest problem.]
Certainly, for a mage, it was a truly fatal drawback.
[So that’s why they were handed over to an artifact training center?]
[When using magic through an artifact, there is no need to calculate formulae. The issue of being unable to make ranged attacks remained the same, but there were many artifacts meant for close combat, so they were often used to amplify artifacts.]
I felt like I understood why Soph had given me these gloves.
[Until you learn magic properly, use those gloves to compensate for your ambiguous magic.]
For me, who used magic through sensation, these gloves were an ideal artifact.
Because of the gloves, I could not use my clumsy ranged magic, but that was something Soph could handle.
[The day will come when I won’t need the gloves, right?]
[They are only a stepping stone anyway. I will make it so.]
I was not in a position to be picky like mages.
With the gloves on, I gripped my spear in both hands.
Though I was wearing gloves, the feeling was no different.
I recalled magic in my mind.
[Lightning Magic]
The moment I recited the casting phrase in my head,
Crackle.
Electric current surged over the entire spear.
Looking at the sparking spear, I asked Soph.
[It’s fine as long as the medium isn’t air, right?]
[That is true, but...]
Then there was a way to use magic without having to touch things with my hand every time.
**
After finding the gloves, I stuffed everything in the storeroom into boxes.
Weapons, armor, arrows, and even the scrap heap.
They were not artifacts, but the others were satisfied with the unexpectedly large amount of supplies.
A new monster had appeared, but it was not as strong as the scout, so no one was too worried.
Everyone relaxed and left the ruins, but I could not do the same.
I asked Soph.
[You said combat soldiers are created by that thing called the control entity, right?]
[I did say that.]
[Then these humanoid monsters were probably made by the control entity that woke up this time, correct?]
[Most likely.]
[Then that means there are other combat soldiers as well.]
[Correct.]
After hearing Soph’s answer, I looked at my companions walking with me.
[Then how much time do we have left?]
[I think there is still time, but as expected, it depends on when the base is discovered.]
In truth, even if the base was discovered, even if combat soldiers came rushing in, I would be fine.
I could return to Earth, or flee to other ruins.
But the people at the base, the exploration members, could not do that.
Soon, I would have to go to Earth.
Leaving aside the people at the base, I needed a way to protect the exploration members while I was on Earth.
[At the very least, I need to prepare a shelter for people to flee to.]
Instead of returning straight to the base, I decided to change direction slightly.
“The warehouse ruins are a bit closer, so we’ll return through spatial transfer from there.”
My words drew various reactions from the members.
“Then we’ll get back more than half a day faster.”
There were people like Hanna who liked it.
“Ugh. I hate the swamp.”
And there were people like Magreta who did not.
But I did not change my words.
Instead of circling back southwest, we headed directly south.
We hurried along while occasionally catching native creatures that appeared, and before long, we arrived at the swamp.
Dead trees, muddy ground, and narrow paths.
The people frowned when they saw the swamp.
“Is it just me? It feels like the air has gotten worse.”
I thought the same as Magreta.
From the interior of the swamp, off the path, something different from before, something like killing intent, was flowing out.
I urged the others on.
“There’s no reason to stay long in an unpleasant place. Let’s hurry.”
At my words, everyone hastened their steps.
After reaching the swamp, we were able to arrive at the warehouse ruins before half a day had passed.
They were ruins we had ended up visiting more often than expected, but perhaps because of the swamp, they did not feel particularly welcoming.
“Are we taking materials again this time?”
At Magreta’s question, I shook my head.
“No. Everyone must be tired, so we’ll simply return.”
“Phew, that’s a relief.”
The members and Clerk Lee looked pleased, but Magreta looked at me with puzzled eyes.
Ignoring Magreta’s gaze, I headed with the members toward the place where the spatial transfer device was located.
As always, the monster fossil watched us from one side.
Perhaps because they had seen a living one, the members were not frightened when they saw the fossil.
“Is that dead?”
Only Clerk Lee stared at the fossil with startled eyes.
The members pulled Clerk Lee along and went in front of the spatial transfer device.
Once everyone had gathered, I placed my spear against the altar and spoke to Soph.
[Please.]
Soph cast the magic, and a spatial transfer hologram was created.
A circular magic circle spread out beneath everyone’s feet.
Instead of entering the magic circle, I said to the others,
“As you know, we cannot spatial transfer while there are items inside the boxes. I will go separately, so please go first.”
At my words, everyone was startled.
“I’ll go with you.”
Hanna tried to step out of the magic circle, and Tom and Sergeant Woo also looked troubled.
I spoke firmly.
“As the exploration leader, this is an order. I have something else to take care of as well. I’ll tell you when I get back, so for now, please follow my instructions.”
At my words, everyone stopped moving.
Fortunately, Hanna obeyed me as well.
It seemed she could not see that light this time.
Soph cast the magic.
Light burst from the magic circle, and the figures of the people began to disappear.
Hanna, Sergeant Woo, Tom, and Clerk Lee.
Magreta, who disappeared last, was moving her lips with a smile on her face.
‘You have to tell me first.’
There was a lot I had to tell her.
She had endured a great deal until now. Judging from her expression, it seemed she was gradually reaching her limit.
After I returned from Earth this time, I would need to have a proper talk with her.
After the others disappeared, I said to Soph,
“Then, please stop the altar now.”
[Do you truly intend to move the spatial transfer artifact?]
“Yes. I won’t be able to carry this artifact around and use it, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be installed somewhere else.”
[That does not mean it can be installed just anywhere. It must be a place capable of gathering energy.]
“I know. I plan to install it in another ruin.”
I placed the altar Soph had stopped into a box.
Saying that items could not be placed inside boxes during spatial transfer meant that as long as there were no items inside, a box itself could be taken through spatial transfer.
Thinking of it the other way around, once the spatial transfer device was stopped, it too could be placed inside a box without issue.
[A ruin, you say... Where do you plan to take it?]
[A place where we can hide people. I’m going to install it in the terraforming ruins.]
If it was inside the sandstorm, we should be able to hide well enough.
I shouldered the backpack containing the box and left the ruins.