Chapter 178 - Chapter 158 The Backstory I Didn't Want to Hear
"…That's pretty much it."
I explained the situation so far to Argenta-san, the silver dragon. She was a good listener, never interrupting me mid-sentence, yet asking questions at key points, which made it easy to talk.
"So the passage to the Control Room remains blocked…"
"I think if there was a map of the area beyond the collapse site, we could bypass it."
"A map… I might find one if I return to the Dragon Capital."
The Dragon Capital. So a place like that exists.
"Are you from there, Argenta-san?"
"Yes. Now that you mention it, I haven't spoken about myself yet."
Saying that, Argenta-san began her explanation. The Dragon Capital was once where ancient civilization flourished most, but it became a ruined site due to the rampage of a magic facility, she said. The promise with the Goddess was that in exchange for the Dragonkin being allowed to do as they pleased with the land, they would manage the remaining magic facilities to prevent such an event from ever happening again.
"I regularly patrol the Dragon Capital, and I noticed that a Transfer Magic Circle, which should have been inactive, was re-activated."
"Ah, is that because I put mana into that emergency device?"
"Likely."
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"No, no. Thanks to you, I was able to find this place."
Argenta-san replied with a smile (?). A Transfer Magic Circle of this size requires unlocking to activate, and apparently, my infused MP initiated that unlock. Well, if you're transferring something of this size, you'd probably need safety mechanisms like that.
"What kind of room is this, anyway?"
"I suspect it was for large-scale material transfers. As for what was being transported, I do not know."
"I see. That's why it's so spacious…"
Was something being made and sent from here? Or vice versa? What was it again? I remember something about a 'Mana Recycle System'…
"What about the skeletons and ghosts in this room and the upper passages?"
"They were likely people who fled during the magic facility's rampage."
So they used the Transfer Magic Circle to escape, but… If they could have opened that 'unlock code', they might have been saved…
"What happened during the rampage?"
"According to the Goddess, they were building a facility to collect surrounding mana and crystallize it. However, its rampage drove this planet's mana to the brink of exhaustion."
It was a rampage far worse than I imagined… I mean, if that happened, in-game, you'd run out of MP, get stunned, and then starve to death without natural recovery? Too scary.
"So that's how ancient civilization fell…"
"Indeed. Aside from species strong as a race like the Dragonkin, nearly 90% of the human race likely perished."
That's probably why magic became a lost technology. Seth (Miki) once mentioned that places like the Royal Castle use remnants of ancient civilization, so this seems to connect the dots.
Shou-kun. Ask about the possibility of someone coming here.
Ah, that's right. Not only was there a huge Transfer Magic Circle, but also a normal-sized (?) one, and it would be a problem if someone used it to come to this island. …Though it's not really 'my' island.
"Will anyone else come through this Transfer Magic Circle?"
"No, that is unlikely. The Dragon Capital, the section where the magic facility was located, is forbidden to all but Dragonkin. We have also instructed allied races like the Giantkin and Winged Folk not to approach."
Hm? Eh? Giantkin and Winged Folk?
"Right now, on the continent, Winged Folk and Giantkin are making contact with people from the Kingdom and Empire…"
"Oh. Where did you hear that?"
"It's difficult to say 'where.' Should I say 'in another world'?"
How do in-game NPCs perceive things outside the game? Players themselves are treated as 'Blessed Ones', but…
"I see, in the world where the Goddess resides, then. Indeed, the Ancient Ruins north of the countries that humans call Kingdoms and Empires, within the White Dragon Mountain Range, are also under Dragonkin jurisdiction. Just recently, there were signs of a monster flood there, so I instructed the various races to assist the humans."
"Assist?"
"It was the Princess's instruction. Regarding this, I can only say it was a whim."
'Hii-sama' is such an archaic way of saying princess. No, putting that aside, where did the "instructions to assist" get twisted? The Giantkin seemed to faithfully follow those instructions, but why were the Winged Folk so arrogant…?
Shou-kun?
"Um, this is just something I heard, so I think it's better if you properly verify whether it's true or not…"
I spoke about the Winged Folk who appeared in the Amiera Territory of the Kingdom, where Club President Bell, Seth, Leona-sama, and the others were in the settlement. Argenta-san's 'Winged Folk' probably refers to those Winged Folk. They certainly helped, but I think their attitude was a bit much.
"I see…"
Saying that, Argenta-san closed her eyes and rubbed between her brows. Even as a dragon, her movements were very human-like.
"I didn't see it directly, so…"
"No, no, it's easy to imagine. That race is indeed excellent, but they tend to be very proud and look down on those who cannot fly…"
Since the magic facility's rampage, elemental magic-based transfers became lost technology. With that, the Winged Folk, capable of flying at considerable speeds, suddenly gained a significant advantage. At first, they were a bridge for the survivors, but gradually… that's how it seemed to go.
"I wish they would realize that it wasn't they who abandoned humans, but humans who abandoned them."
"Haha…"
She's a dragon, but she seems to have it rough.
"But the Giantkin seemed quite humble."
"They carry the burden of being the race that caused the magic facility's rampage."
"Eh?"
Apparently, the one who triggered that rampage was a Giantkin. There was an individual born a Giantkin who was treated poorly for their small stature, and that person supposedly intentionally caused the facility to run wild. Whether it was an act of revenge is unknown, as that individual also died…
"They fear interacting with humans. They worry they might repeat the same mistake."
"That's a rather sad story."
According to Mion, the Giantkin apparently returned curtly after helping the Empire's people, which must be due to them still being affected by the past.
Shou-kun. It's almost time…
"Sorry. I have to go back now."
"No, no. I, too, must return soon and report to the Princess. I will contact you again at a later date."
"Ah, yes."
I heard a lot about this world's background, and I might even get information about these Ancient Ruins?