'It can't be helped. For now, for today, let's just end up looking for the cause of the demon outbreak.

　Alfazul regretted his incompleteness in failing to engage in the battle, but he regained his composure and moved on to the next phase of his work.

'Well then, Eil, I'm asking for the usual.
Copy that!

　After getting into the spirit of the game, Ail throws his long gun over to me, spreads his free arms and repeats his incantation-like muttering.

'......, ......, .......'

　He couldn't hear the murmurings well, but even if he could, he wasn't sure he could understand them.

　A ripple of magic power floated at Eil's feet, and it surrounded Eil and spread out in three dimensions.

　Eil's role in the Wild Hunt was logistical support - I had heard about that before, but I hadn't yet grasped the specifics of his work.

　The ripples of magic power that enveloped Eil in a spherical shape rippled across the surface in response to his muttered chanting.

　Eventually, the ripples drew out a geometric pattern, and the sphere of magic power and the sphere of magic power popped without a sound and disappeared.

''How's that?''
The first thing that comes to mind is the fact that you can't find that kind of magic power stagnating in the ...... building. Or rather, the conduit is dead and there's no magic power flowing through it. Maybe he wandered in from somewhere else after becoming a demon?
Then there must have been some sightings in the vicinity. This time the information was along the lines of 'a powerful guy appeared in a place where no demons had ever appeared before'.

　Alfazul thought about it often, then looked down at his face as he thought of something.

'...... underground, right?'
Underground?　I'm pretty sure there are no basement floors in this building.
Yeah. But the magic tube that runs under the building might be alive.
'It's possible that, well, ...... it's possible that only the branch that runs over here is stopped and the big conduit is still alive. There's a lot of ruins around, but it's possible.

　Hyang-ri woman (Kaga-hime) lightly questioned Alfazul and seemed to agree with him.

　The other members didn't seem to have any objections, and they would have to turn back from the top floor to the bottom floor at once.

'Phew, phew, I wish the ...... elevator had lived.

　Gandalf replies coldly to Ivaldi, who is gasping for breath in the middle of the stairs.

'Carrying around such a large hammer is the cause of your fatigue. You could change to a weapon that is more portable, or you could learn magic to make it easier to carry.
"Don't be ridiculous. I'm going to hit you with a massive wallop, plain and simple!　There's no more reliable means of attack than this.
He's totally ...... not sure if he's conservative or innovative.
It's called "two wheels on a wheel. Out with the old, in with the new!
'It looks to me like you're having a hard time with one wheel being overweight.

　Gugnu, and Ivaldi let out a frustrated voice.

　This might be the first time I've ever seen someone really regretful with such a voice.

　When he didn't mention the option of learning magic, is Eivaldi unskilled in learning magic?

　Of course, magic in this case is probably not magic as a skill known to modern humans, but rather magic in the original sense that supported ancient magical civilizations.

(......) "By the way, an elevator is an elevator, right?　(I couldn't find anything like that. ......)

　Come to think of it, I think there was a door on each floor that no one had bothered to check inside.

　I wondered if there was an elevator on the other side of that door by any chance.

　While I was vaguely thinking about that, before I knew it, I had gone down all the stairs and out the back door to the building.

'If you didn't notice it when you came in the front door, it's probably this way: ...... How's it going, Eil?'
'The deteriorating conduit caused a magic leak, and it lodged under the road, and that's where ...... would be. But it's not as large as I thought, and would a cat go under the ground?
Are you sure it's not a rat?

　It was Fraxinus who said that.

''The first ones to be affected by the magic power reservoir were rats, and at this stage, each one of them probably didn't have much of a magic power accumulation. A rat could get in through the slightest gap.''
It's possible. The cat that kept on eating those rats must have had his magic condensed in his body. It's a magical version of bioconcentration. Let's just rip up the road surface and repair the conduits.
Wait a minute, Alfazul!

　Eir and Hyun-ri woman both take a vigorous distance from each other.

　They may not have made an agreement, but they are breathing together beautifully.

It's the one with the mouse that comes out with a bang, right?
Warding!　I'll put up wards!
"Aye, aye,

　Alfazul paused for a moment with a dumbfounded look on his face and waited for the two girls to prepare for the appearance of the rats, then swung one arm into one of the back alleys.

'Creation Technique, activate. Vertical perforation.

　The next moment - the road surface was suddenly hollowed out in a circle and a large hole was drilled in the sharp surface.

　The soil and pavement in the area where the hole had been created did not disappear.

　A portion of the road that had remained cylindrical emerged, high enough to look up, casting a large shadow over the back alley.

'......?!'

　I was the only one who was speechless with astonishment, and the Wild Hunters didn't react in any way to Alphasul's immense skill.

　Eil and Hyunichi Woman screamed at the swarm of rats that flooded out of the vertical hole, Gandalf glared uncomfortably at their reaction, and Eivaldi immediately jumped into the large hole using the ivy rope that Flaxinus had created.

'What do you think, Eivaldi!'
'We hit the jackpot!　The conduit's completely finished!　But this guy is ...... umm, if you simply fix it, you'll be right back on track!　It would be quicker to contact the authorities and have them close it from the source!

　Can't you fix it, even if you're an alpha cheat who can do that?　What about my [restoration]?

　I look into the big hole, thinking about ...... and I'm immediately convinced that Eavardi was right.

　It would be more accurate to say that he was once there, rather than that he was there.

　Over my head, Alfazul also looked down at the hole and muttered in a dumbfounded voice.

'This guy is awful. It's not so much that magic power is leaking from the conduit, it's that magic power is blowing into the hole where the conduit used to be. But ...... no matter how many years it's been neglected, how many years it's been neglected, would it collapse to this point?
Hm?　Hey!　Nameless!　There's something weird about that!

　Ivaldi at the bottom of the big hole throws something the size of a palm.

　I think he was actually going to throw it over to Alfazl, but Alfazl happened to be behind me, so the what(...) settled down to fly into my hand.

　A distorted solid that is neither metal nor stone.

　It's like a magic crystal, but it also feels like a completely different object.

　Alfazul placed his hands on both my shoulders and looked at it over his head.

'What's this? It doesn't look familiar. ...... Okay, Luke. Take it home and check it out.
'Yeah!　Oh, me!
"Have you been working hard on the gold technique lately?　I heard that the full licence is coming soon. Think of it as a test of your skills.

　No - I didn't learn alchemy.

　If that was the case, then it must have been the master of memory who was originally present at this scene.

　Some unidentified person who had learned alchemy - oh, that must be, without a doubt - a person who had learned alchemy.










　My vision is distorted like a sandstorm and my hearing is painted over with noise.

　Even the smiling Alfazul is swallowed up by the gray sandstorm and is no longer visible, the voice of expectation for me (or someone else) fades away, and then - a new memory scene begins to replay.