Chapter 39
e at night
After Ive confirmed that the child group fell asleep, I quietly slipped out of the room.
As a precaution, Im having Melby sleep in the room in the unlikely case of a patrol coming.
The childrens room is at the back of the nest, so without a trolley people cant go in and out of it.
I heard it was so they could protect the children better if it came to it, but I can only think that its like this to keep them from running away.
With the trolley, if you dont send signals with a certain rhythm via the speaking tubes placed here and there, then the rail switches wont get switched and you cant get to your destination.
Also, since the trolleys cant be moved without 2 people see-sawing, one person cant get it to move.
Of course, in my case, I can move it forcefully by using [Physical Magic].
But, if I were to move the trolley at night it would make a sound, so its not like I can move it willy-nilly.
Then, you might think, I should just walk on the rails, but its built in a way so you cant do that.
In several places in the tunnel, there are deep holes that were dug out with narrow railway bridge above them so you can only get over by rail.
Some agile emissaries perhaps could make it over, but in anticipation of that, there are many clappers placed on the railway bridge.
Its set up so barely any amount of weight placed on it triggers a sound, so if you carelessly try to cross over, you will be in deep trouble.
When I just arrived I also triggered it and in the end, I had to stick to the ceiling in a cavity and watch until the emissaries who came to check the situation passed by.
Fortunately, the clappers apparently mistakenly go off from the slightest vibration, so the emissary who came over went back without much investigation.
Anyhow, measures like these that prevent the members from leaving the nest on their own accord are set up in double or triple layers.
In my previous life, cults also isolated their believers in religious institutions in remote areas so they wouldnt have any contact with people from the outside.
Because by getting hold of information from the outside they realize how their religious organization is viewed objectively, and their brainwashing sometimes breaks..was the reason I think.
Most likely that is also the reason why Yatagarasu has their hideout in a remote place like this.
I sneak in the trolley room, then I confirm with [Night Vision] that there is no one watching, then I set foot in the inner part of the tunnel on top of the lain down rails.
I proceed for a few hundred meters in total darkness.
I stray from the rails where there is an opening of a natural cave and slip into a hole that is barely 1 meter tall.
Inside the hole, there is a somewhat open space.
Even if I say thatits only true for me who is about 1 meter tall, if a grown adult were to come in, they might hit their head even in a bent posture.
Inside that hole, there are 3 more holes.
Beyond that stretches a 1 meter tall, about 80 cm wide rectangular passage.
Its a secret passage I excavated with [Earth Element Magic] when I had the time.
I call this secret passage Duct.
Its not like its a ventilation shaft, its simply about the ambiance.
In the morning during the excavation work, I also employ a little trick.
When Im using [Earth Element Magic], I also dig inside the earth and create cavities that serve as marks for when Im digging out the duct.
After that, when I finish digging near it at night, I put my ear against the wall of the duct and use [Keen Hearing] to determine the position of the cavity from the reverberation of the sounds and dig the tunnel aiming towards that.
Its troublesome, but if by chance I punch through the floor or the wall, even if I fix it by magic, there would be distinct marks of it remaining, so it cant be helped.
Uhmm.I guess I finished the mapping of the 4th level yesterday.
Today is the 5th floor I wantto investigate the floor where the excavation site and the private rooms of the top brass of the religious organization are.
However, of course, Gazaine is also on the floor where the top brass is.
Gazaine has the Master class Skill [Sense Danger].
Therefore, even if Im lurking inside the earth, there is a possibility of getting detected.
In light of that, until the level of my [Sense Danger] exceeded Gazaines, I couldnt start investigating the floor where the top brass is.
As I was heading towards the downward slanting tunnel, the Necklace of Loyalty that was put around my neck made a sound.
Oops.I have to change the numbers.
I touch the Necklace of Loyalty with the tip of my fingers.
The collar resembles the lock used for bicycles in my previous world.
Its the combination of a durable ring made from an unknown material and a number type padlock.
The combination consists of 5 digits.
The emissary who put this around my neck,
You are free to try and remove it, you know? However, if you mess up the number you will be in so much pain that you will faint.
said this.
But, when I tried using [Appraise] on it,
Collar of Subordination: When the registered keyword is spoken, the ring will contract. The current keyword is Repent. If someone tries to forcefully remove it it will absorb 20 MP.
Saying that its for Loyalty is a big fat lie, its a slave collar.
But, its effect is surprisingly not that big of a deal.
In short, if someone with less than or equal to 20 MP tries to release it and fails, then that persons MP will be exhausted and will simply faint.
No..depending on how you look at it, its something amazing after all.
Because even if someone has an MP amount comparable to Julia-kaasan, they can only try the numbers 10-something times each time.
With only 10-something tries each day, its very much hopeless to find the correct number out of ten thousand possibilities.
That being said you probably know it already.
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To me, this is nothing more than a toy.
I got it off in a week.
The reason why it was making a sound just now was because I left the combination on the padlock as the release combination, so the padlock of the collar was almost opened from the shaking as I was walking.
In the pitch black darkness I change the number by relying on the feeling on the tip of my finger and make sure to close the lock on my collar.
By the way, the release number is 91122.
I was thinking that the first digit shouldnt be a low number so I tried them in the sequence of 7,8,9, so I managed to hit the correct one sooner than I thought.
Furthermore, while they were sleeping I examined the other kids collars and unexpectedly the release number is the same 91122 for everyone.
Reusing a password like that, if Koike-san from General Affairs heard of that he would flip out.
Well, if they were to leave a password management table as a written document then there would be a possibility of someone taking a look in some instances.
If its a number that is impossible to find, then its not like I dont see the advantage of only keeping it in the heads of the leaders.
With this they can take the collar off the children if it comes to that for some reason.
That being said, the children have another collar on them and its much more troublesome.
Brainwashing.
Even if I removed their collars, they, who received the religious organizations education focused on brainwashing, starting with the Sin Examination, ever since they were ripped from their parents, would not even think of running away from the religious organization.
Rather, there is a possibility they would instead report me to the religious organizations side.
So, before removing their visible collar, I must remove their invisible collar.
I want to save the children who are here.
For that end, while I make these ducts, map the nest, and investigate the release number for the collar, at the same time during the day I diligently work to gain their trust and also scheme to increase my information sources within the religious organization.
At night, the reason Im telling tales to the children is not just to have a good time.
To undo the brainwashing, first I have to get them to trust me.
For that end, I need to have fun with them and have them think of me as a comrade.
Also, through those tales, Im thinking of putting the teachings of the religious organization in perspective.
The set of values of this religious organization is terribly one-sided.
Therefore, if they get a chance to experience a different set of values, then they will get a feeling of out of place for sure.
And if that out of place feeling piles up further and further, then the children could perhaps triumph over the curse of the religious organization with their own power.
I know that this requires a bunch of patience, but if I just outright deny the teachings of the religious organization then all I will get is a backlash.
Im thinking of making the best use of [No Fatigue] and keep at it tenaciously.
Well then, late at night is the time for raising Skills.
First of all, its fastest if I show it.
Don.
Edgar Chrebl Forth Son of Viscount Chrebl, Noble of Santamana Kingdom,Baby Scarlet,Bottomless Orochi
Level 32
HP 67/67
MP 3178/3178584
Skills
Mythical class
[No Fatigue]
[Instant Interpretation]
Legendary class
[Psychokinesis] 1
[Spirit Magic] 2
[Appraisal] 9 (MAX)
[Database]
[Telepathic Communication] 3
Master class
[Throwing Techniques] 2
[Shuriken Techniques] 2
[Physical Magic] 9
[Fire Element Magic] 1
[Earth Element Magic] 4
[Enchant Magic] 3
[Mana Control] 7
[Letterless Invocation] 8
[Mana Detection] 1
[Magic Language] 3
[Sense Presence] 4
[Dark Vision] 2
[Sculpting] 3
General
[Throwing Spear Techniques] 5
[Flying Sword Techniques] 5
[Shuriken Skills] 9
[Throwing Axe Techniques] 2
[Knife Throwing] 5
[Steel Thread Skills] 4
[Assassination Skills] 5
[Jump] 4
[Fire Magic] 9
[Water Magic] 4
[Wind Magic]
[Earth Magic]
[Light Magic]
[Lightning Magic] 7
[Telekinesis Magic] 9 (MAX)
[Mana Manipulation] 9 (MAX)
[Simultaneous Invocation] 9 (MAX)
[Mana Perception] 9
[Cryptanalysis] 2
[Keen Hearing]
[Farsight] 4
[Night Vision] 9
[Stealthy Steps]
[Wood Carving]
[Cooking] 2
Blessing of a Benevolent God +1
First, lets take a look at my nickname.
Bottomless Orochi
The fact that I got this nickname probably means that Ive become a rumor among the Fellow believers.
Then, on the topic of Skills, there are many this time.
If you find it too bothersome, then there shouldnt be too much problem if you just glance through them.
Lets take a look starting from [Sense Presence].
I got this as a counter stop bonus from [Keen Hearing].
[Keen Hearing]s target was sound, but [Sense Presence], rather than sounds, can perceive the slight feeling of presence-like something that people and animals give off.
As the Skill level went up, its range and accuracy also increased and currently I can grasp the movements of other people if they are in the same building as me.
If all I want to know if someone is present, then I can probably do it with a radius of a few hundred meters.
With this it became unlikely to fall prey to a surprise attack like what happened in Fauno City.
Next, [Wood Carving] and [Sculpting].
In the midst of the literally bloodthirsty everyday life in the religious organization, emissaries are urged to take up woodworking as a way to relax.
Since it doesnt cost any money and they will also get better at handling knives.
There are circle type gatherings within the nest ranging from weekend carpenter types to art types. I belong to the wood carving circle.
Im annoyed that we can only carve statues of the Evil God, but the wood carving itself is fun, so unintentionally I get passionate about it.
Furthermore, wood carving has a skills attached to it.
A Skill is a blend of the persons own techniques and the Gift from the Gods, so overall its improvement is faster than the wood carving and sculptingfrom my previous world.
Also, thanks to the Skill, the current state of the wood and what happens if I use the chisel here, things like these become clear as day.
As a result Ive become able to create one palmtop sized Evil God sculpture in about 20-30 minutes.
Its so fun working with it that I inadvertently immerse myself in it.
Since I cant get tired because of [No Fatigue], once I immerse myself in it, I completely forget the time and I could keep doing it for half-a-day or even an entire day.
Once, I thought of doing it for a bit before Skill raising, but when I came to, it was already morning.
This can be said to be a harmful side of [No Fatigue].
But, thanks to that my Skill level went up quickly, so I managed to get the Master class Skill [Sculpting].
The difference from [Wood Carving] is that the Skill is not only applicable for wood, but for stone and metal too.
It should also come in handy in regards to repairing the junk we got from the ruins.
I managed to get the Skill Iaimed forfrom an unexpected source, so Im pleased with myself.
There are many Skills I got due to the training of the religious assassin organization.
[Throwing Techniques] was the counter stop bonus for [Shuriken Skills] and I got it at the same time as [Shuriken Techniques].
Its the Skill that Father Solow informed me about.
It has the simple yet useful function of instinctively knowing the trajectory and impact point when something is thrown.
Aside from those there is the [Steel Thread Skills] I used when training with Gazaine.
The [Stealthy Steps], [Jump], and [Assassination Skills] I got from the lessons of the instructor group.
The strange one is the [Cooking] I got from making okonomiyaki.
I thought Skills were only related to fighting, but I guess something like this exists too.
Also, I finally maxed out [Fire Magic] and got [Fire Element Magic], same as Julia-kaasan.
It seems I dont have as high of an aptitude for it like mom, but as someone who has the same blood flowing through his veins as mom, I wanted to gain this Skill for sure.
Furthermore, I got the Master class Skill [Psychokinesis] from maxing out [Physical Magic].
This Skill is able to release mana directly as telekinetic power, so compared to [Physical Magic] that works by converting mana to telekinetic power through magic, this has better fuel efficiency, better output, and its much more intuitive to operate.
If you try to forcefully increase its output then its MP consumption increases more and more, so it should prove useful when trying to get rid of MP when expanding the maximum MP.
Another one thats related to magic, I also got [Mana Detection] from maxing out [Mana Perception].
It seems the training to acquire Melbys [Telepathic Communication] and [Spirit Magic] also became a training for [Mana Perception] as a secondary effect.
You can think of [Mana Detection] as a high performance version of [Mana Perception], but a simple yet important difference is that Ive become able to translate the amount of detected mana into MP values.
I can also say I acquired [Spirit Magic] if its for something simple, but it will most likely be much later when I will be able use it in fight.
I will tell you about the possible interesting uses for it at that time.
And finally, the star performer [Lightning Magic].
It was hard work to acquire this one.
Eh? Dont I have the aptitude for it, you ask?
Indeed, as Father Solow said, I probably have the aptitude for it.
However, I didnt know the magic letter for [Lightning Magic].
[Letterless Invocation] also cant be used if you dont know the letter.
[Lightning Magic] is a new magic, so its not in Abbadon Magic Compilation and Melby didnt know it either.
Melby showed me a handy trick of causing lightning by asking the wind and water spirits, but thats not what Im currently looking for.
In other words, I didnt have the least bit of leads.
Then how did I end up acquiring it?
My method was like this.
First I imagine Lightning, like when Im using other type of magics.
Next, I try to write the magic letter.
Of course, I dont know the magic letter for lightning, but as a general rule, magic letters are written from top to bottom and left to right.
Using that I move my finger from top left to bottom right in a random way.
And at the same time I sense the mana flowing through the magic letter, using [Magic Perception] and [Magic Detection].
With that, although I dont feel anything most of the time, but with a low probability, there are times when the mana flows partway.
In this case, it should mean that I followed the same path as the magic letter for lightning.
By using this theory, the magic letter gradually becomes clear from top-left to bottom-right with the help of trial and error.
Right. Its a perfect theory.
Is what I was thinking as I started working on it, but it wasnt that easy.
It seems that picturing the whole magic letter is a requirement for the invocation, so even if the mana flows you dont clearly know what part of the random curve was correct.
In the end, I ended up writing letters that somehow resemble it, confirmed how it feels, then compared and verified those that were a hit, it became a straightforward repetition work.
However, after 10 days of 3 hours a night work, I finally discovered the magic letter for Lightning.
(Thunder).
Of all things, it had to have a shape that was hard to find.
But, it was worth going through all that trouble.
Now that I actually used it, I can tell that out of all the magics Ive used until now, this fits me best.
I understand the flow of mana clear as day.
Julia-kaasan probably also feels this way when she uses [Fire Magic].
Its no wonder she got impatient with the way I did it.
I finally got it, so I decided to use [Lightning Magic] to deepen my relationship with the child group.
I borrowed a metal sphere that was excavated from the ruins, then I poured in some weak [Lightning Magic].
Then if I touch that metal sphere, thenoh how mysterious, my hair is moving here and there.
Its just a rip-off of a common science experiment, but it was very well received by the children.
Father Solow said that the people of this word cant really imagine lightning too well, but how about the children?
If they look like they will keep it a secret, I could perhaps teach it to them.
Thinking those things, I proceed forward inside of the duct while training my [Dark Vision].
This [Dark Vision] is the counter stop bonus for [Night Vision].
[Night Vision] is meaningless in places where there is no light at all, but with [Dark Vision], I have no idea by what logic, but even in this lightless duct I can more or less see whats around me.
Today my aim is the 5th level, so I start using [Earth Element Magic] from partway to dig a duct.
Probing for my current location using [Sense Presence] and [Keen Hearing] needs a lot of concentration, but its not difficult for me who has [No Fatigue].
By spending 2 hours on it, I investigated about a third of the 5th level.
Mainly the side where the ruins are.
Since it would be trouble if I wander into the floor where the top brass is while I dont know the situation.
Well then, lets head back soon and start the repetition work in the space I created for raising Skills.
Just as I was thinking that, I received a [Telepathic Communication] from Melby.