episode_0102

After returning to my research lab, Mariel visited our house again in the evening.

“This is the magic compass. Originally made for the purpose of finding gold.”

“A compass?”

Mariel handed me a palm-sized circular compass.

She sighed and shook her head.

“If it only worked properly, I wouldn’t have to worry about research funds. But for some reason, it detects trash instead of gold. I ended up creating the most useless magic tool in the world… sigh.”

“But this compass doesn’t have a needle pointing in a direction.”

“Oh, that! Of course, since it’s a magic tool, it won’t work unless you infuse it with magic. But who would want to waste magic on such garbage.”

The magic I had was limited in the magic charger, so it wasn’t worth wasting.

But I was the source of magic that Mariel found wasteful.

Since using a bit of magic wouldn’t deplete it, I immediately infused the compass with magic.

“Hmm…”

Zap-

Suddenly, a crimson needle made of magical energy appeared on the previously dull compass.

The compass trembled as if trying to search for something, then pointed to a specific direction.

“Marie, what is this pointing to if it’s not gold… Could it really be trash?”

“Well… I don’t know what this compass is looking for. I’ve tried various things, and it seems to find something different each time.”

“What have you found?”

“I found a torn doll buried in a dusty attic, a rusty old spoon, and an abandoned watering can.”

Truly trash.

As a test, I examined what was in the direction the compass was pointing to.

At the end of the compass was… a notebook that Sharie’s mother had written, which I brought from Ainblad.

What is this?

Mariel lowered her head with a gloomy expression.

“It’s really difficult to make magic tools. There’s a reason why magic tools are expensive. Anyway, should I consider the promise to give you this magic tool fulfilled?”

“No, it’s not like that.”

“What!”

“It was just trash anyway, right? I just wanted to have one as a commemoration of the magic tool you made. You must make a proper one for me later.”

“Well… that’s true…”

The narration said that the compass pointing to this trash had a purpose for me, but there was no need to tell Mariel about it.

Since it was an item to be discarded, it wouldn’t matter if I took it, and it would be nice to bring a better item later.

“By the way, can I improve the magic charger as I said?”

Taking the compass, I asked Mariel.

According to the narration, this compass was still a useful item.

Although I couldn’t know its usefulness yet, it was an item acknowledged by the narration.

There might be a need to give Mariel magic again in the future.

To prepare for that, I needed to make sure the magic charger was safely improved.

“Of course! As I said, if it’s just an improvement, I’ll have to recharge the magic again!”

“Well, as long as the improvement is certain. I don’t want to lie down for another week.”

Mariel promised with enthusiasm to receive my magic.

After she left, I took out this mysterious compass again.

What is this compass pointing to exactly?

It was said to be an item I needed right now…

“The compass Mariel accidentally created had a strange characteristic.

Basically, this compass had the function of finding the oldest item in the vicinity.

Moreover, being a magic tool, it could adjust some functions depending on the user’s skill level, such as expanding or reducing the range.”

Finding the oldest item?

Perhaps, that’s why she pointed to Shari’s mom’s note that she used at home.

It must be the oldest item in this house.

Mariel must have used it inside the Bellaforte mansion, so it’s understandable that she’s picking up all sorts of trash.

Fortunately, it seems that this magic tool is not for finding ‘garbage’ as Mariel put it.

But… what should I use this for?

* * *

Despite initially being destined to be discarded by Mariel, I did end up taking the magic tool.

But I still didn’t know how to utilize it.

It seems to have a function of finding the oldest item…

And if the proficiency increases, can the range be expanded or reduced?

“Yunoa failed to utilize the magic tool due to insufficient application and intelligence, despite having enough information.”

Noisy, I’m trying to figure it out now.

Ignoring the narrator’s criticism, I pondered on how to make use of this magic tool.

I was trying to prevent the kingdom and humans from heading towards destruction.

What do I need for that…?

It would be nice if there was a way to meet or communicate with the goddess, but that’s too far-fetched.

To make good use of the magic tool for finding the oldest item… is it still excavation?

But what, where, and how? Just finding the oldest thing around was not enough.

If I could precisely specify what I wanted to find, it might be quite useful.

To confirm the potential of the compass, I decided to conduct some tests.

The magic tool can adjust some functions based on the user’s proficiency.

The fact that the narrator mentioned this meant that proficiency was necessary to make the compass useful.

The next day, I brought Shari’s mom’s note, the oldest item in the house that the compass responded to, and went to the adventurer’s guild early in the morning to find someone to help with the experiment.

“Oh, Sylphy! Just as I thought. Can you help me out?”

Meeting Sylphy, I immediately asked for her help.

Sylphy smiled widely at my request and nodded.

So, we found a secluded forest near Cubel and started testing the compass’s functions.

It seems that the compass only responds to ‘items,’ as it still pointed to Shari’s mom’s note even in the forest.

“Alright, can you take a step back while holding this?”

Handing Sylphy Shari’s mom’s note, I asked her to slowly move away from me, trying to determine the effective range.

Sylphy started moving away from me, holding the note close to her chest.

“Let’s see… it’s still… it’s still…”

“Senior! Should I go further?”

“Go a little further!”

“Yes-!”

Even though the distance was quite far, and we had to shout to communicate, the compass still pointed towards Sylphy.

But as Sylphy moved almost out of recognition, the compass suddenly pinged.

Finally, it started pointing in a different direction, not towards the note.

“The range is wider than I thought.”

Is this the basic range?

Next, I will test whether I can expand this range with magic.

Focusing on the magic injected into the compass, I imagined the range expanding in my mind and changed the flow of magic.

As a result, the magic needle of the compass, which was pointing elsewhere, now turned towards Sylphy holding the note.

The range had indeed widened.

The narrator was right after all.

Now, all I had to do was confirm if I could arbitrarily determine the age of the item I wanted to find.

And if that was possible, it was because there was something I really wanted to find.

“Hey! You can come back now!”

I waved my hand widely to signal Sylphy to come back.

After receiving the compass, I laid out the notebook, my Dragonyte sword, and Sylphy’s bow on the floor in order.

Then, I focused my magic on the compass again and tried to chase after one of the items in front of me.

“Hmm, as expected, this won’t work.”

Regardless of how old the item was, it was impossible to chase after a specific item.

If that were possible, Mariel could have found gold or treasures as she wished.

No matter how I adjusted the magic imbued in the compass, it seemed that I couldn’t change the inherent nature of the compass.

I confirmed that I could narrow or widen the range…

“Sylphy, your bow was custom-made, right?”

“Yes? Oh, yes. Large bows like this are not commonly found as ready-made items.”

Shari’s mother’s notebook, the Dragonyte sword, and Sylphy’s bow.

Among them, Shari’s mother’s notebook was the oldest item as it was brought from Ainblad, the Dragonyte sword was a custom-made item to prevent magic outbursts, and Sylphy’s bow was made after changing weapons based on my advice, making it the most recently made item.

I couldn’t directly ignore the compass pointing to the notebook and instead point to the less old Dragonyte sword.

But if I could indirectly adjust the compass’s limit for finding old items to point to the Dragonyte sword…

“Senior… But what are we doing right now?”

“Explaining it would be complicated. But it’s something I absolutely need to do.”

The narration told me that I needed this item.

If this is the item I need right now, it must be an item that can help me find clues to prevent destruction.

And since this compass can find ‘old items,’ I had no choice but to focus on that.

When I first learned that the kingdom was heading towards destruction, everything seemed dark.

Even after deciding to find a way to prevent destruction, it was still daunting.

But if I could use this magic tool as I envisioned, there was something I could do.

The Mushroom Grandmaster of the Underground World, Eldevorn, had said that there was a time when there were no demons or heroes in this land.

I didn’t know how long ago that was, but… I wanted to find out.

Was there a time in this kingdom when there were no demons or heroes, when the goddess first created heroes to stand against demons?

If I used the compass to find items from that time, I might be able to find something deeply hidden in the kingdom.

Information about demons and heroes related to this kingdom has been distorted over the years.

I infused magic into the compass and recalled the time when the item I wanted to find was created.

I imagined as vividly as possible the time when Algot sent ore to a blacksmith he knew to make the Dragonyte sword.

And I strongly wished to find an item made around that time.

After a while, the compass needle, which had been fixed in the direction of the notebook, suddenly spun around.

And it pointed directly to where my Dragonyte sword was located.