Chapter 402 – The Mouse and the Magic Circle

We descended the dark staircase and proceeded forward.

“Judging from the condition of the floor, there are no signs of anyone having entered. The construction is solid and it was sealed, so there isn’t much dust accumulation to begin with… but still, there are no footprints,” Sheila said as she examined the dust on the floor.

“So that means… no one has entered for over thirty years, right?” Irmhild murmured in response to Sheila’s words, and Princess Elham nodded.

“That’s correct. If my mother had known about this, she would have told my father or me.”

“If that didn’t happen… then it means no one was able to enter,” Princess Stephania replied, and Princess Elham nodded again.

The dim, long corridor seemed to slope downward while making slight detours. The possibility of traps being set in this passageway was low… but we proceeded carefully, just to be safe. Not just for traps, but also to search for any other hidden passages.

I used my monocle to search for magical reactions, while leaving physically unnatural or fragile spots to Sheila and Seraphina as we continued downward.

And then—we emerged into what seemed to be an open space. We launched several magical lights to illuminate the surroundings.

It appeared to be… a large dome-shaped space. The first things that caught our eyes were the altar set up immediately upon entering, the large crystal enshrined there, and the three-dimensional magic array drawn across the entire dome from floor to ceiling beyond the altar.

Pillars stood at various points within the magic array, with crystals placed atop them.

“This is…”

“Hmm. This appears to be an extremely elaborate spell formula,” Old Sigmund groaned as he saw it.

“However… the magic array itself doesn’t seem to be activated,” I observed.

Looking through my monocle… the magic array itself was probably drawn by crushing magic stones and using them to create the lines. I could tell that the patterns drawn on the inner surface of the dome were faintly imbued with magical power.

But the magical reaction was too weak. An active magic array would have a much stronger magical reaction.

“Could this be related to the barrier maintained by the Nahalbia royal family?” Valentina said while examining the magic array at her feet.

“Probably so. Using this might allow us to deploy the barrier again.”

“But we won’t be able to activate it without knowing the ritual procedure,” Auria pointed out.

She was right. To activate it, we would need the corresponding spell formula. Since both oral traditions and documents have been lost, we have no choice but to leave it as is for now.

To confirm the activation method and the purpose of this magic array, we really have no choice but to visit the forest sinners and hear what they have to say.

…Just in case, I should create an accurate three-dimensional model. This would make it easier to handle any future need to analyze the meaning of this magic array or its spell formula.

“…Hmm?”

At that moment—Sheila raised her gaze.

“Something’s… here.”

Following Sheila’s line of sight, I could see some strange creature sitting there.

“A rabbit-like… mouse?”

Sheila tilted her head. Her question was understandable.

It had large ears and long hind legs. It possessed V-shaped hind legs suitable for jumping. Its tail was slender compared to its body size, with the tip covered in fur and swollen into a round shape.

“Is that… a jerboa?”

My apologies for the classification based on Kagehisa’s memories.

“What an unusual creature…”

“But somehow, it’s cute,” Ashley said admiringly. Charlotte seemed somewhat restless.

“No… Somehow, it doesn’t seem like a normal creature. It has strange magical power.”

From what I could see through my monocle, it appeared to possess considerable magical power. It would be better not to approach it carelessly.

Considering it was in this place where supposedly no one could enter… it might be a magical creature. If so, what is its role? To eliminate intruders, or perhaps—

The jerboa hopped closer to Princess Elham. I stepped between them and took a stance with my dragon staff to show I was on guard. The creature stopped at a slight distance, then bowed its head as if making a greeting.

“Um. Does this mean you’re an ally of the Nahalbia royal family?”

When Princess Elham asked, the mouse bowed its head as if nodding. Seeing this, everyone couldn’t help but exchange glances.

The jerboa… showed no signs of trying to harm us, Princess Elham’s companions.

Even while I was creating a detailed model of the dome’s magic array using earth magic, the situation remained the same. If anything, it seemed more interested in Princess Elham than in what I was doing.

In that case, rather than guarding the magic array, they might have placed magical creatures as escorts for when using escape routes. In other words, they’re guardians of the Nahalbia royal family.

Be that as it may. I should focus on my own work. This magic array had many strange aspects. There were decorations and depressions that didn’t seem related to the spell formula… yet they appeared somewhat meaningful. I carefully reproduced them accurately in the model.

“The model is complete.”

After finishing the scaled-down model, we all returned to the surface together. When we moved toward the passageway, the jerboa also followed Princess Elham, hopping left and right with small jumps.

“Um. Are you going to guard me?”

When she asked this, the mouse nodded.

“What should we do?”

Princess Elham looked at me with a slightly troubled expression.

“Well… How about we go outside and ask what it can do? If it has reliable capabilities as a guard, it would be helpful for us too.”

During the exploration of the sacred land and negotiations with the sinners, Princess Elham would need to take the lead. The more combat power we have, the better.

“Understood. Then, outside.”

With the jerboa in tow, we retraced our path and emerged outside.

When we reached the courtyard, we decided to test the jerboa’s abilities right away.

“This isn’t exactly a mock battle, but how about we have it demonstrate its abilities against a golem?”

I created an earth golem and had it face the jerboa.

“Now, please show us your abilities.”

When Princess Elham gave the command, the jerboa nodded.

Under everyone’s watchful eyes—the change appeared immediately.

“Sand…?”

Even though there was no wind, the surrounding sand showed unnatural movement.

The rapidly spinning sand, swirling like a vortex, formed a cone shape as if it were a single living creature. Like a cobra raising its head, the sand spear took aim—and was unleashed toward the earth golem’s torso.

It easily gouged out the earth golem’s torso, creating a large hole.

Through my monocle’s vision, I could confirm that magical power extended from the jerboa’s body, manipulating the sand.

“So essentially… it’s a magical creature with the ability to manipulate sand.”

“We fought a demon with similar powers before,” Grace said, and Marlene nodded emphatically. That’s right… it was the demon accompanying Alvelinde. He called himself Belzerius of the Dust Fang.

“In that case, its capabilities and weaknesses might be similar,” Rosemary commented.

“Near water, its sand manipulation ability might decrease.”

But this is a desert. Given the location, it could be considered a quite powerful ability.

Similar to earth magic systems, it can create obstacles on the spot, and if you get buried in sand, armor probably won’t help much. I get the feeling this ability is stronger in defense than in attack.

Plus, its body is relatively small, so we could probably have it accompany us secretly anywhere. This aspect also makes it suitable for guard duty.

“What do you think?”

Princess Elham looked at me.

“As a guard, it seems quite useful. If it can accompany us, it would be reassuring.”

When I gave my honest opinion, Princess Elham showed a happy expression.

“Then it’s decided. Do you… have a name?”

The jerboa nodded, then manipulated sand to write its name.

“Ramriya?”

When Princess Elham read the characters aloud, the jerboa nodded emphatically.

…Ramriya, huh. Since it already has a name, we probably can’t form a familiar contract… but it must have originally served the Nahalbia royal family.

“Do you know the procedure and purpose of the ritual that was conducted in that hidden room?”

Since it could communicate by writing characters in sand. In response to Princess Elham’s question, Ramriya closed its eyes and shook its head regretfully.

Whether it doesn’t remember, or doesn’t know. Or perhaps there are restrictions preventing it from speaking.

…Considering its role as a guard, it can’t be helped if we can’t get detailed information about the ritual. But we could say that before exploring the sacred land, we’ve managed to strengthen our combat forces.