Ch.353Chapter 353 – The Alchemist’s Note

# Maria Medimaker

The name of Sera’s grandmother.

She was presumed to be the one who recreated the Philosopher’s Stone.

‘From what I heard from Rubrum, Sera’s grandmother had been searching for other seals…’

I never expected she would have come to such a difficult place to reach.

I couldn’t help but wonder how she even knew about this place and managed to enter.

“Based on what we heard at Rubrum’s lair, there was a possibility she had been here… but this is quite surprising.”

Eve seemed to share my thoughts, speaking with a slightly bewildered expression.

After talking with each other and calming our shock a bit,

Sera quietly said:

“Well, shall we read it?”

“Let’s do that.”

I nodded immediately in response to Sera’s question.

Soon, Sera began reading the note.

“‘To whoever reads this note, those who have reached this place will likely first question how I arrived here.'”

Since everyone had been thinking exactly that, all eyes focused on Sera.

Then, Sera’s expression became a bit strange.

“‘To get straight to the point, I have never physically visited this place’…?”

What is she saying?

“…Keep reading.”

I thought she might be joking, but I held back and spoke calmly.

Sera nodded and continued reading the note.

“‘My discovery of this location was merely the product of thorough calculations and deductions from various circumstances. Since confirming it would require venturing into the deep sea with all its dangers, I decided to use an alternative method. Rather than sending my physical body, I chose to send only my consciousness to verify this place because I had a sudden flash of inspiration….'”

“Sera, skip the self-praising parts.”

“Yes.”

It might have sounded rude to her grandmother, but fortunately, Sera seemed to agree this was unnecessary and paused her reading to skip ahead.

Taking advantage of the pause, I asked Beatrice:

“Is it possible to send only one’s consciousness?”

“It is possible… there’s a method magicians jokingly call astral projection.”

“Is it safe?”

Beatrice fell into thought for a moment at my question.

Then, with a faint smile, she said:

“…I’ve heard sometimes the consciousness becomes permanently detached.”

“…Has it been improved now?”

“No.”

Beatrice replied with a sour expression.

“To explain the principle, it’s called astral projection, but in reality, it’s a magic that temporarily summons a ghost-type monster, infuses it with your consciousness, and controls it. It consumes a lot of magical power, takes a long time to cast, yet only lasts for a short duration. All you can do is pass through walls to see what’s inside, and since you’re using a ghost monster, you might unfortunately encounter a passing priest who could hit you with holy magic. It’s inefficiency incarnate… Who would bother improving such magic…?”

“……”

Beatrice muttered quietly that if the time runs out or the ghost monster is destroyed by holy magic, you could end up as a vegetable.

“It’s the kind of magic you’d only prepare when you’re bored out of your mind and want to play an elaborate prank. Honestly, I have no desire to try it.”

Beatrice added that precisely because it was such a spell, she never would have thought of using it to investigate this place.

Still, thinking about it, it was a method that allowed movement without interference.

‘But she accomplished something seemingly impossible.’

Using astral projection could solve the problem of entering rapids or deep sea.

However, we were able to find this exact location thanks to Chris.

Sera’s grandmother wouldn’t have had such help.

‘So she really did calculate everything to find this place.’

She even relied solely on calculations and used a dangerous method to confirm this location.

‘…That person was slightly unhinged.’

It would be very disrespectful if Sera heard this, but considering these absurd actions, it doesn’t seem like an inaccurate description.

Considering her raid on Rubrum’s lair as well, her grandmother should be described not as strong-hearted but rather as someone slightly unhinged.

Finally, Sera seemed to find where the self-praising part ended and resumed reading.

“‘…To return to the main point, my calculations fortunately proved correct. Though it took several days, I found the exact location. I even determined the coordinates. However, there was a problem. Inside the seal, there were spells installed to block entities without physical form. Perhaps to prevent shortcuts like mine. It seems they allow you to reach this far, but… I also discovered that warping anything above a certain weight is directly interfered with by holy power.'”

“That’s something you’d notice once you enter this place. Normally you can’t detect it because of the rocks.”

Beatrice mentioned that it was even more severe inside the seal.

So they thoroughly blocked it, not just relying on the difficult journey to get here.

“‘…Therefore, while I could confirm this location, I couldn’t properly examine its interior. At best, I could barely send a few notes inside using warp magic. My plan to use astral projection to scout the location and dangers before using warp to enter came to nothing. Still, an alchemist learns through failure. I’ve made progress in the sense that I now know never to use such a damned method again.'”

Judging by the slightly grinding expression at the end, she clearly didn’t want to try it again.

Moreover, her attempt at positive thinking suggested she was quite frustrated.

Then, Sera’s expression changed.

“‘However, although I couldn’t examine the interior, and there may be no clues about the Philosopher’s Stone here, the fact that my calculations about the seal’s location were correct also serves as evidence for one of my hypotheses.'”

The atmosphere, which had lightened somewhat due to Sera’s grandmother’s reckless methods, changed.

Everyone focused on Sera’s words.

“‘According to my hypothesis, I found it more surprising that a being called a god would think this way. Of course, I cannot read a god’s mind. …No. Perhaps the goddess Evgenia, as described in ancient texts, sensed something. Perhaps it was precisely because it was her that she thought of doing this. In any case, while I cannot read a god’s mind, even I, who am not a god, can guess at a god’s intentions by observing and reverse-engineering the results they left behind.'”

Sera took a moment to swallow.

Then her mouth opened again.

“‘If I were the goddess Evgenia, this place might contain important clues to understand her plan, or perhaps the truth. It might be evidence that my hypothesis is correct. Namely…'”

Sera paused briefly.

Then, slowly, she read the next sentence.

“‘The hypothesis that these seals are meant to remove gods from this world.'”

“What…?”

Kara looked at Sera with surprised eyes.

Sera paused her reading for a moment and looked at Chris.

“Chris….”

“Please continue reading. I’m fine.”

Chris said quietly.

Sera nodded and focused on the note again, while Chris gently approached me and took my hand.

When I squeezed her small hand slightly, I saw Chris smile faintly.

“‘To verify my hypothesis, I intend to go to Ferarius. There, I should be able to confirm my theory. If I’m right, Evgenia wouldn’t simply rely on careful concealment for peace of mind, but would surely have created or employed absurdly powerful guardians to protect the seals.'”

“She got that right too.”

I’m not sure what Sera’s grandmother’s standards were, but the priest and the red demon dragon Rubrum who guarded the first seal we visited…

It was certain that powerful guardians were protecting the seals.

“From here on, it’s addressed to the people reading this note… ‘Adventurer, traveler, explorer. I don’t know what to call you who reads this note. Perhaps you are a goddess, perhaps a hero.'”

“…A goddess and a hero.”

Did Sera’s grandmother believe those would be the ones to find this seal?

The term “hero” honestly doesn’t seem to have much significance, but at least the term “goddess” was accurate.

Because Chris is now a goddess.

“‘If I may make one request, please do not carelessly spread Evgenia’s secret. For the sake of your own safety, not anyone else’s. Do not spread it carelessly.'”

A warning or a plea.

Words left by Sera’s grandmother for those who might find this place.

Sera continued reading.

“‘Her enemy would at least be stronger than her. It is an enemy feared by one who once reigned as the most powerful god in ancient times. Such a being would never leave unattended anything they perceive as the greatest threat to themselves. They would never act honorably, and would try to extract information by force if necessary. So if you value your life, keep silent. Keep silent for the sake of the suitable person who will someday find this place.'”

It was an earnest request.

And a warning that if the secret of this place leaked, even the leaker’s life could not be guaranteed.

Of course, given that this note still remains, it’s fair to assume that besides Sera’s grandmother and us, no one else has noticed and reached this place, but the content was prepared for anyone who might discover this place by some chance.

“‘Until the day a suitable person comes here and breaks Evgenia’s seal. May this place remain safe until then.'”

Sera’s words ended.

Soon, Sia quietly spoke.

“…Considering Rubrum’s words, it seems Sera’s grandmother became convinced her hypothesis was correct after heading to the Ferarius seal.”

Rubrum had told us that she also said she would no longer be involved with the seals.

‘So chronologically, she came here before reaching Ferarius.’

And after reaching Rubrum’s lair, she became convinced her hypothesis was correct.

She had left these words to Rubrum:

“In the end, gods will cease to exist in this world…”

Judging from the note, this was the hypothesis she formulated to find this place.

And from here, it became almost a certainty.

Finally, she confirmed it at Rubrum’s lair.

Soon Beatrice spoke quietly.

“Let’s calm down. It’s still at the hypothesis stage.”

Beatrice’s words spread among the restless group.

“Listen. We’re not Sera’s grandmother. We don’t know yet what she noticed and what she calculated. But there’s something she left in that note, right?”

The message left in the note.

That was…

“She said the truth would be beyond there.”

“And the one who can confirm that truth is none other than our little nun.”

Beatrice looked at Chris.

“Whatever it is, we still don’t have certainty that this statement is correct. Confirming it is up to the little nun.”

“That’s right.”

Chris said quietly.

“What remains is to confirm it.”

This place exists for Evgenia’s successor like Chris.

Sera’s grandmother had only made predictions.

It was Chris’s role to properly confirm what was hidden.

Chris carefully released my hand.

Then she looked at me with a smile.

“I’ll be back soon.”

“Chris.”

“It’s okay. This isn’t something to be shaken by.”

Chris said with a smile.

“I’ll finish quickly and come back, so please wait for me, everyone.”

“Chris.”

“It’s okay, Kara. I need to go beyond this alone.”

After calming Kara, Chris smiled and said:

“Will you wait quietly with Kay and the others?”

“…Alright.”

Though Kara seemed slightly dissatisfied, she seemed to realize this wasn’t something she could help with.

Soon she stepped back, and Chris moved forward.

Then, with a heavy sound, the door opened by itself.

Beyond it, a stone bound by massive chains was visible.

‘That’s the fourth seal.’

Chris approached the seal without hesitation.

When she released the stone tablet from her hand, it flew up into the sky on its own.

Then she knelt before the seal and clasped her hands.

“‘This humble servant prays to the great Evgenia.'”

Chris quietly recited the Lord’s Prayer of the Evgenia Order.

The light from the stone tablet also began to intensify.

“‘O pure Goddess of Guidance, illuminate the path ahead for your little lambs.'”

As soon as those words ended, golden holy power began to gather around Chris.