Chapter 256 - Administrator
"Just a short break..."
Even after putting in nearly 80% of my MP, over 300, it was still just over 10% of the extra-large [Magic Crystal Stone]. Well, if I do it one more time, it'll probably exceed 20%, but...
Are you okay?
"Yeah, I'm fine. But it'd be bad if my MP runs out, so I need to take a break."
While I was pouring in MP, the Fairies were flitting around the room, checking if anything had fallen. And then,
"Woof."
"Oh, is that still the [Collapse Site]?"
"Woofn."
I should've checked there first, I thought, as I peered down the passage leading to the back right. A massive rockfall had completely blocked the passage, and the sight was unmistakably,
"Beyond this..."
So, the south wall of the room should lead out to the [Observation Deck]? If the map's scale is correct, opening a hole in the room's south wall might lead us out to the edge of the [Observation Deck].
"~~~!"
"No, no, it won't recover that quickly..."
Sweee was urging me to replenish the mana quickly, but it just doesn't recover that fast.
"Woof~"
"Ah, Lupi, thank you. I feel like I'm always receiving MP from you."
[Mana Aid] should reduce Lupi's MP by that much, so I don't want to push him too hard. I have small [Magic Crystal Stone]s for a centipede and two Roopagumas, so maybe I should just carry those around regularly. Or rather, if I wear that [Azure Star Ring] I found in the previous room, my MP recovery will more than double...
I took the [Azure Star Ring] from my inventory and appraised it again. There was nothing particularly strange about it, and I was starting to feel like it was fine.
Are you going to try the ring?
"Yeah. I think it might be okay. Oh, Lupi, does this seem weird?"
I showed it to Lupi on my palm, and he placed his paw on it like he was giving me a hand, squishing it. Lupi's paw pads feel really good, but now's not the time to enjoy it.
"I want to recover MP faster, so I'll put it on."
Y-yes...
I wondered about ring sizes, but I slipped it onto the middle finger of my left hand, where it wouldn't get in the way. Yeah, it seems to have that mysterious game-specific size-changing property.
Are you okay?
"I'm fine. I don't feel sick or anything... and I can take it off properly."
Cursed equipment usually can't be removed, after all. I'll ask Bell-san tomorrow if such things exist or how to identify them.
After waiting a while, my MP returned to 90%, so I poured it into the [Magic Crystal Stone] again. And when the charge rate exceeded 20%, the ceiling suddenly brightened.
"Phew... But doing this every time is tough. How many days will this last, I wonder?"
[Emergency mana charge confirmed. Terminating [Preservation State] and [Restarting].]
"Eh?"
The ceiling? After those words, the lights flickered two or three times. I have a bad feeling something dangerous is about to happen...
"Let's get out of the room for now! Everyone, stay close!"
We went out into the passage we came from, and as I watched the room, the lights brightened further and stabilized,
[Restart complete.]
said a voice.
What's a 'restart'?
"Hmm, this [Ancient Ruins] was said to be a [Mana Recycle Facility], so maybe its system restarted?"
Ah, that's right. Perhaps... it was shut down due to the calamity?
"Ah, so that's it."
The calamity happened, mana became scarce, it couldn't operate normally, so it went into a [Preservation State], something like that.
"~~~?"
Sweee poked my cheek, urging me with a "What now?"
If it just simply restarted, nothing strange should happen. Probably...
"Let's go take a look."
"Woofn."
Entering the room again, I saw a complex magic circle floating and glowing on what had been a side table... so this itself was a magic tool, no, a [Magic Facility].
"That's really something. Is this what 'over-technology' means...?"
It's very mystical.
I had no idea what it meant, but as I was casually gazing at it from the side,
[Welcome. With the ring on, please place your hand in the designated spot.]
"Whoa!"
I was startled when that voice suddenly echoed as I reached the center of the table. As if indicating the 'designated spot,' a palm-sized round frame near my hand on the table was blinking rapidly...
"This is it, right?"
Is that particular ring okay?
"Probably? When I appraised it earlier, it said 'worn by the highest-ranking administrators of ancient magic facilities'~"
You're going to try it, aren't you?
"At this point, yeah."
I felt a bit more resolute after the ring challenge earlier. Even if this ring turns out to be wrong now, I shouldn't suddenly get an electric shock. After telling everyone to be careful, I gently placed my left hand down,
[Checking... Complete. Administrator information has been initialized, performing administrator registration.]
I heard that, and since the round frame stopped blinking, I removed my hand. If I had to keep it there, it would still be blinking.
What's 'administrator registration'?
"It's probably the administrator of these [Ancient Ruins]."
Eh? Does that mean Shou-kun is...
"Yeah, I guess so."
I have no idea how it works, but if the administrator information was erased after a restart, does that mean it decided to make the person who restarted it the administrator? Isn't that a security risk...?
[Administrator registration complete. Please set the administrator's designation.]
"---'Shou'."
[Administrator registration complete. Welcome, Shou. This facility is currently undergoing post-restart component inspection. If no specific instructions are given, inspection will be complete in approximately 15 minutes.]
〖[World's First Ancient Ruins Administrator] has appeared!〗
[World's First Ancient Ruins Administrator: Acquired 10 SP]
[Ancient Ruins Administrator: No SP acquired]
"Ugh... I really messed up here..."
This is definitely a [World Announcement].
Shall I check the Official Forum?
"No, it's fine. I doubt anyone will understand what it means anyway."
Y-yes, that's true.
Still, I was registered as an administrator without any problems. If there had been more prompts beforehand, I would've had a chance to think or discuss it...
"Somehow, I feel like Argenta will be mad if I tell her."
I don't think that's the case. She said you could do whatever you wanted with the magic tools on this island, didn't she?
"Hmm... Anyway, when I get back, I'll write a letter to Argenta."
That's a good idea.
If she gets mad, I'll send her some new sweets to get her to forgive me...