Nido Tensei Shita Shounen wa S-rank Boukensha Toshite Heion ni Sugosu ~ Zense ga Kenja de Eiyūdatta Boku wa Raisede wa Jimi ni Ikiru ~

Episode 79: Forbidden Crystal

“Well then, let’s go.”

After finishing our information gathering in the archives, we decided to resume our exploration.

“Hmm, I suppose there’s no other choice.”

That being said, Ramise-san still seems to be captivated by something in the archives, as her gaze is still fixed on the books.
She really is a true researcher.
Well, if she wasn’t, she wouldn’t have jumped into a dangerous ruin willingly.

With Ramise-san being dragged along by Lisou-san, we leave the archives.

“There were various books about magical creatures in the archives, but there were also many materials about chimeras.
Considering the encounter with the giant chimera in the courtyard, it would be correct to assume that this ruin was a facility for studying chimeras.”

“If that’s the case, we might encounter chimeras like before.”

Upon hearing Ramise-san’s words, Foka-san looks in the direction of the courtyard with a slightly stronger gaze.
The church is strict when it comes to chimeras.
But studying chimeras is also useful for the field of magical medicine, so even church officials can’t deny it outright.

“But more importantly… listen, Big Game Eater.
Protect the magic bag no matter what!”

Ramise-san suddenly says such a thing.
The reason is that my magic bag contains several valuable books that we found in the archives (according to Ramise-san).
Ramise-san’s magic bag is already filled with materials from the giant chimera in the courtyard, so the books and materials we found in the archives were entrusted to my magic bag.
That’s why Ramise-san can’t help but be concerned about my magic bag.

“In the end, this was just an ordinary archive.”

Rodi-san mutters as he looks at the hidden wall in the archive.
Right after we left the archive, the wall protruded from the side and the door was hidden again.

“Indeed, there seemed to be many valuable books, but that’s only in our time.
Most likely, they were just ordinary books at the time.”

Ah, Lisou-san and Rodi-san, who are not researchers, wouldn’t understand that.
The books stored here are not that kind of books.

“No, there were not only books here.
Along with the books, there were also various research materials that seemed to be the results of some kind of research.
However, unfortunately, the research content is beyond my expertise, and there were many specialized terms that I have never heard of, so I couldn’t understand most of the content.
And I think the mechanism of the wall was to prevent these research results from being taken by intruders.”

Yeah, I agree with Ramise-san.
Research results are usually kept in the library, but they usually get mixed up with materials brought in from outside.

This room was probably originally just a room to hide research results.
But lazy researchers probably brought in materials and it ended up like this.

Why do I know that? Because we were like that in our past lives! It’s just too much trouble to go back and forth between the library and the archive, you know?

Well, still, the defense measures of this research facility are relatively mild.
If it were the research facility I belonged to in my past life, they wouldn’t bother with hidden rooms and would gladly use newly developed research results under the pretext of intruder countermeasures.
They would say things like, “If the intruders are the opponents, it’s perfect for practical experiments at the combat level.” Huh? Of course, I would politely ask them to leave using mild measures.

“Hmm, there are many monsters ahead.”

As we resumed our exploration and walked, Ramise-san stopped everyone.
It seems that the detection magic picked up the presence of monsters.
By the way, I can also use detection magic, but because of the incident with the chimera in the courtyard, I was instructed to conserve my magic power.

Ramise-san seems to be skilled in large-scale magic, so she decided to focus on support in this exploration.
It makes sense, as this is not just a building, but an underground space.
Powerful magic could cause the cave to collapse.

“There are multiple groups of monsters relatively close by.
If we fight one group, there is a possibility that the other nearby groups will come to their aid.”

“Should we take a detour?”

“No, there is a large magical energy reaction further ahead.
It’s a bit concerning to ignore it.”

Ramise-san responds to Lisou-san’s suggestion.

“If it’s a large magical energy reaction, it could be a magic item powering the ruins or perhaps the master of the ruins.”

Ramise-san nods in response to my words.

“That’s a high possibility.
Most likely, the monsters further ahead are guardians protecting something important or… ”

“They could be undead guarding an ancient civilization.”

Rodi-san continues the conversation from Lisou-san.
Undead refers to the reanimated corpses of humans whose souls remain attached to their bodies for some reason.

“Undead… do you think they have no intelligence? Or do you think they have intelligence?”

“Intelligence or lack thereof refers to the rank of the undead.
Undead with no intelligence are called mindless because they truly lack any intelligence.
They wander aimlessly and attack any living creature they come across.
They are literally moving corpses, so they eventually decay and become skeletons, and when the flesh is gone, they become skeletons.”

And when even the bones weather away, they finally become ghosts, which are called spirits.
Even ghosts can’t be considered intelligent, and they are troublesome beings possessed by delusions from their past lives, attacking humans indiscriminately.
Moreover, ghosts don’t have physical bodies, so only energy-based magic, enchanted weapons, and holy magic work against them, making them even more troublesome.

On the other hand, undead with intelligence, as the name suggests, refers to undead that retain their intellect.
Because they have intelligence, communication is possible.

And for some reason, their connection to their bodies is strong, so their corpses never decay.
That’s why they are called the symbol of eternal youth, as they maintain their appearance forever.
In the past, there were even studies intentionally turning themselves into intelligent undead.
Well, the church officials were extremely angry about it though.

And undead with strong instincts and intelligence tend to crave blood.
Such undead are called vampires, and undead with weak instincts that don’t crave blood are called liches.
Therefore, undead with intelligence and not being controlled by instincts are recognized as higher-ranking undead.

“If they have no intelligence, there is a high possibility that they can be wiped out with the holy magic of a saint.
But if they have intelligence, it could become troublesome.”

It can’t be helped that Lisou-san says that.
Even in the adventures of the great swordsman Lighard, Lighard and his companions were almost wiped out by a lich that used powerful ancient magic hidden in an ancient ruin.

“But if there is a possibility of them having intelligence, it’s all the more reason for us to investigate.”

“It’s our role to conduct preliminary investigations…”

Rodi-san’s words make Lisou-san sigh.
That’s right, our purpose is to investigate this ruin and find out the cause of the sudden appearance of monsters.
If there are dangerous undead, it’s our job to defeat them.

“Well, there’s no helping it.
If there is a possibility of them having intelligence, let’s hope they can be negotiated with.”

“Oh, that’s a story from Lighard.”

“Don’t make fun of me.”

What Rodi-san said refers to the outcome of Lighard’s battle with the lich.
Unable to defeat the lich, who possessed overwhelming power, Lighard managed to negotiate his way out of the pinch.
He appeased the angry lich and successfully obtained the knowledge he sought by offering a gift that pleased the lich and apologizing.
And Lighard, who returned triumphantly, gained a reputation as a warrior who not only fought but also had wit.
From this story, it became known even in the country’s knight order that avoiding battles that cannot be won is also important for a warrior.

“Then, let’s defeat the monsters and investigate the power source.
Our goal is to reach the destination, there’s no need to engage with every enemy.”

“Alright, everyone, let’s go.”

Everyone nodded in response to Foka-san’s words.

To determine the nature of the reaction, we decided to forcefully pass through the passage guarded by the monsters.
To prevent the enemy from preparing themselves, we attack them from a distance with magic.

“Chase Lightning Lancer!”

“Freezing Lancer!”

The barrage of lightning and ice spears that Ramise-san and I unleashed disappears into the darkness, and screams of the monsters can be heard from the depths.

“Next! Wind Arrow Rain!”

“Yes! Thunder Arrow Call!”

Since we can’t see the enemy, we don’t aim for precise hits.
What we’re doing here is simply dealing damage to the enemy from a distance.
Lisou-san and Rodi-san handle the surviving enemies.

Instead of monsters, what came towards us wounded was a chimera.
It’s smaller than the chimera in the courtyard, but its appearance is still an unnatural structure for a living creature.

“Hmph!”

“Take this!”

The injured chimera’s movements are sluggish, and the two of them skillfully slaughter the chimera without any danger.
And within a few minutes, the chimeras stop moving.

“There are no more reactions of monsters in the direction we’re heading.
There’s no sign of the other groups waiting to move either.”

“Hmm, as I mentioned before, it seems they have been trained not to move from their territory they protect.
But well, it’s fortunate for us.”

“Thanks to the emergency request from the guild, we have unlimited mana potions.
It’s convenient to be able to continuously shoot magic without thinking about the consequences.”

“Thanks to that, I can also conserve my magic power.”

Foka-san says, having managed without using recovery magic.
But she seems a little disappointed that she didn’t have much of a role.

“Well then, let’s move forward.”

After overcoming the battle with the monsters, we went through the door ahead and entered a wide space.

“Where is this…?”

And not only is it just wide, but the height of the ceiling is also considerable.
After all, the magic lights couldn’t illuminate the ceiling.
There’s no doubt that the height of the ceiling is many times that of the previous rooms.
I wonder why they made the ceiling so high.

However, there was something even more surprising in this room.

“Is this… a chimera research facility!?”

As Ramise-san shouted, various equipment was laid out in this room.
And the equipment was connected to cylindrical crystals, inside of which were sleeping creatures, or rather chimeras, in forms I had never seen before.

“Gyuuuu…”

Mofumofu, who had been following us from behind, let out a growl upon seeing the chimeras.

But that’s not the problem.
The real problem is that this facility was moving.
The crystal pillars in which the chimeras were sleeping were faintly glowing, and the connected equipment was emitting low sounds and light.

And if this facility is moving, it means that the chimeras inside the crystal pillars are also alive.
If this large number of chimeras were to awaken and come out, it would undoubtedly be a big problem.

“So the mass appearance of monsters was indeed caused by this facility?”

Riso-san looks around cautiously.
Our goal is to investigate the ruins, but as Riso-san said, our ultimate objective is to find out the cause of the mass appearance of monsters.

“Everyone, look at that!”

As we cautiously proceeded further, Foka-san drew our attention to something ahead.

“What is that…?”

Foka-san pointed to a mass of cloth spread out on the floor.

“Is that… clothes? But why are there clothes in a place like that… no, could it be!?”

Because the only source of light was the magic lights, we didn’t notice it at first from a distance.
But when we approached the clothes, we understood its true nature.

“These are… the remains of an ancient person!?”

There, the body of a human was lying.
The body was cut from the back, and it seemed to be the direct cause of death.

“No, it’s not just a corpse.
It’s an undead.”

“What!?”

Everyone becomes cautious at Foka-san’s words.

“Look, the skin of the corpse is too fresh.
If it were the remains of an ancient person, it would have long turned into bones or a mummy!”

Indeed, now that it’s mentioned, that’s true.
This corpse looked just like a normal human who had just died.

But then, why is this undead lying here? If this undead is cut, doesn’t it mean that there is someone who cut it? When everyone had such a question in mind…

“No need to worry.
It’s already dead.”

“Wha-!?”

At the moment we heard a voice from the darkness, we immediately formed an outward-facing circle in response.

“Don’t be so cautious.
And congratulations on making it this far, humans.”

“Who are you?”

When Riso-san raised his voice, footsteps could be heard coming from deep inside the facility.
From the darkness emerged a man with tanned skin, silver hair, and bat wings, in other words… a demon.

“A demon!?”

Foka-san was the first to react.
The people of the church view demons, who invaded this world, as minions of the evil god.
However, even for the people of this world, a demon that suddenly attacks is an enemy, regardless of whether they are from the church or not.

“A demon!?”

“Seriously!?”

Riso-san and Rodi-san exclaimed in surprise, but Ramise-san remained calm.

“Hmm, there were no records of demons being defeated in the ruins we have visited so far, so I had considered the possibility, but I never thought I would be able to see one in person.”

“Of course.
There’s no way we demons would be defeated by the likes of you humans.”

Come to think of it, demons were treated as legends in the modern world, as their existence had not been confirmed.
Probably, the demons also couldn’t stand up against the monsters called the White Calamity, which were recorded in the archives, so they must have fled back to their original world until the threat was gone.

“However, if you’ve come this far, it means you’ve defeated the watchdog in the courtyard… Even though it was a failed creation, humans are quite capable.”

“Courtyard? Failed creation?… Don’t tell me, you created that giant chimera!?”

In response to Riso-san’s words, the demon sneered.

“That’s right, that chimera is one of the results of my research.
An experiment to create a controllable White Calamity! ”

An experiment to create a controllable White Calamity!? But that was supposed to be the research conducted by the ancient people who were studying in this ruins!

“I see… so you took over the research that was being conducted in this laboratory, the research that the researchers turned into undead to continue.”

Now I understand why there were undead corpses.

“That’s right.
When I was investigating the ruins of the past humans, I discovered this place.
When I found the undead still conducting research here, I was truly surprised.
Moreover, these undead have no interest in anything other than their own research.
Even though I, a demon, came, they treated me as a rare guest.
Isn’t it foolish?”

Saying that, the demon pointed to the undead lying on the floor.

“Because it was convenient, I pretended to be interested in their research.
And this undead, without being asked, told me various things.
Once I extracted all the knowledge I could, they were no longer useful.
So I decided to cut them from behind and take all their research.
It’s quite an honor for these undead.”

The demon’s face had a disgustingly selfish smile.
Taking credit for someone else’s achievements, it reminded me of my past life and made me feel unpleasant.

“So, is it you who is the cause of the mass appearance of monsters?”

“Monsters? Ah, you mean the monsters that were prepared as materials for the chimeras.
It seems that the monsters that were reused as food for the chimeras after leaking from the selection process have escaped.”

The demon seems to accept the serious situation as if it were nothing.

“You don’t seem to have any remorse.”

“Yes, why should I have any remorse for the inconvenience caused to mere humans?”

In response to Rodi-san’s sarcasm, the demon replied with a mocking laugh.

“But rest assured.
I no longer need food.
Because… ”

As the demon waved his arm, the facility lit up.

“The ultimate chimera is already complete!”

“What!?”

And then we saw it, behind the demon stood an exceptionally large crystal.
The imposing presence of that huge crystal immediately made us understand why the ceiling of this facility was so high.
Above all, we were fixated on the gigantic white chimera sleeping inside the crystal.
Despite being made up of multiple stitched-together lives, the color was unified, giving it the appearance of a pure white chimera.

“Now! With your lives, I shall herald the beginning of the collapse of the human world…”

“Sunlight Saber!!”

Upon confirming the presence of the giant chimera, I immediately unleashed a deadly strike against it.
Making a quick decision, a holy magical blade imbued with the power of the sun shot out from my sword, reaching towards the sky, and I swung it down without hesitation.

And in the next moment, the giant chimera was cut in half along with the crystal pillar, and it fell to the left and right with a rumble.

“……Huh?”

Riso-san, the demon, and the fallen undead all had the same expression of confusion.
They all wondered what had just happened.

“I have defeated the giant chimera.
Now, all that’s left is to defeat the demon and exterminate the monsters inside the ruins to complete the mission.”

The best strategy in battle is to strike first.
Especially when facing an unknown enemy, it is even more important to defeat them before they can attack.
That was the optimal solution in combat for me, who had fought as a hero in my past life.

“Wha-! Youuuuu!!”

“What the hell are you doing, kiddddd!!”

The demon and the fallen undead, who had come to their senses, stood up and became furious.
It’s too late to get angry now…

“Wha-what just happened?”

Everyone’s gaze unintentionally focused on the undead, who should have been dead.
Even the demon was looking at the undead.

“Oh no…”

The undead scratched its head as if saying it made a mistake.

…Um, what just happened?