Chapter 78

I let go of the frozen Duke Ruthius and Alex.

And for good measure, I gave their shoulders a pat.

When I put my mind to something, I do it perfectly.

[System: Mission <Immediate Reaction Go Go> <Double Down> successful.]

[You have acquired 2 high-grade potions.]

[Acquired items can be found in your inventory.]

The potions in this world were even more effective than the miracle drugs of my past life.

They could pull you back from the brink of death.

That must be why the emperor dangled the bait of free potions for guild members.

So I had to collect potions whenever I had the chance.

But that was only for high-grade potions; the others weren’t as important.

It was far more efficient to have a healing-rank Hunter treat most injuries.

‘I need to check the shop before I meet the High Priest. If the item I’m thinking of isn’t there, meeting him will be pointless.’

The time had come to start the task I’d been putting off because I was so busy.

I was organizing my plans in my head when I suddenly looked up.

Duke Ruthius, Alex, and Johan were staring at me blankly.

“What are you doing just standing there? Aren’t you leaving?”

The three men quietly turned and left the bedroom, looking somewhat dazed.

“What’s with them?”

I shrugged and went into the bathroom.

There were only two days left until guild recruitment.

* * *

After finishing breakfast, we moved to the drawing room for a simple tea time.

To be precise, the three men were drinking tea while I was wandering through the shop.

Alex and Duke Ruthius kept checking my complexion.

“Astell, are you alright?”

“It looks like your eyes are about to bleed. I saw you had a headache earlier, too. Why don’t you get some rest?”

“Don’t talk to me. It’s confusing.”

I quickly scanned the sea of formulas spread out before me.

“Not here, not here. No. Not this one either. This one… Aaargh! Dammit! Where is it!”

As I tore at my hair, the three men cleared the teacups from the table.

“Astell, maintain your dignity.”

“I told you to rest! You’ll get another nosebleed at this rate!”

“Lady Astell, what on earth are you looking for? I’m worried.”

“Hoo…”

I sighed and turned my gaze to Johan.

Bloodshot red eyes, brimming with tears. Johan flinched for a moment upon seeing my face.

“Are you… alright?”

“I’ll be fine with some rest. Anyway, I just can’t seem to find what I’m looking for.”

“What is it? If you tell me, I’ll help you look.”

“The formula for a Gate detection artifact.”

The three men’s eyes widened. Johan stammered with a look of surprise.

“D-Does such a thing really exist?”

“I don’t know.”

“…What?”

“I said I don’t know yet. How am I supposed to know what exists among countless items, like grains of sand in a desert?”

Alex sighed, a look of pity on his face.

“So you were just blindly searching without even knowing if it exists?”

“What else am I supposed to do? It’s the only way.”

“You’re relentless. I get motion sick just entering the shop. You’ll pop an eyeball out if you’re not careful.”

“If you’re not going to help, then stay out of it.”

Johan asked cautiously.

“Lady Astell, what about using commands and sorting functions?”

“I’ve already tried that. I’ve sorted by magic formulas, by highest points, by lowest points. I’ve probably scanned through almost the entire magic category.”

“Perhaps it’s not magic?”

“…!”

I entered the shop again.

‘Sort, divine power, formula.’

The swarming letters all moved at once, creating a single list.

This was the first time I’d searched for items related to divine power, and there weren’t as many as I’d expected.

<Formula: Gate Pre-detection Sensor> — 1,000,000 points.

“Found it!”

I shot to my feet, and Alex stood up with me, grabbing my shoulders.

“Really? Such a thing actually exists?”

“Yeah! Yeah! But, ah…”

When I suddenly became sullen, Alex’s expression grew serious as well.

“Why? What’s wrong?”

“…I don’t have enough points.”

“How much is it?”

“A million.”

“A mill—? Wow…”

“Alex, how many points do you have left?”

“F-Fifty…”

“Five hundred thousand points? Oh, perfect. I have about 500,000 points too.”

“No… just fifty.”

“…”

I told you to save your points, and you blew them all already?

You broke bastard.

“Hey! That’s your older brother you’re talking to!”

Huh? I only mouthed it, but he read my lips.

Anyway, even combining Alex’s points with my remaining ones, we only had 550,050 points.

It was a far cry from the amount needed to exchange for the item.

I sat down dejectedly, and Alex hesitated before sitting down too. The mood in the drawing room sank.

“I would like to give you mine… but I used them recently to exchange for a special move. I apologize.”

“It’s alright. I would have refused even if you had offered, Sir Johan.”

Just then, Alex’s eyes widened.

“Gasp!”

“What is it?”

“I’ll give you the points!”

“What? You said you didn’t have any!”

“I-I just got them!”

“Really? Did you get a sponsorship?”

“Huh? Uh… y-yeah!”

“Did you or didn’t you! Can’t you speak clearly?”

“W-Well, the important thing is that I have them now! So what do I do?”

“You can either select me from the Hunter rankings and sponsor me, or just take the amount out of your inventory and give it to me.”

“Got it!”

[System: Hunter Alex Ruthius has sponsored you with 1,000,000 points.]

“So you can be useful sometimes. Live long enough and you’ll see everything.”

“You always have to talk like that, don’t you? Give your big brother a proper reaction.”

“Oh, big brother, thank you so much. Pouty-wouty, cutie-patootie, wink! Love bullet!”

“…Look here. Just look at my arm! See these goosebumps?”

I ignored Alex’s outstretched arm and exchanged the points for the item.

[System: You have acquired <Formula: Gate Pre-detection Sensor>.]

Only after confirming the formula was in my inventory did I down the half-cold tea. My throat was parched now that the tension was gone.

Duke Ruthius glanced at me and ordered Frank to bring some ice.

“I don’t know what on earth you two are doing, but tell me when you’re finished.”

“We’re finished. Did you have something to say?”

Frank brought the ice and placed it on the table.

Duke Ruthius filled a glass with ice water and pushed it toward me.

“The leader of Bluebird has changed.”

“…To the First Prince?”

“Yes. I hear the atmosphere isn’t very welcoming.”

“Why?”

Alex smirked.

“Why do you think? They’re unhappy because their leader isn’t a Hunter. And some people were probably disappointed by His Majesty’s appearance at the party.”

“So, has anyone quit yet?”

“Not yet. The mood suggests a wave of departures, but surprisingly, it’s been quiet.”

“People don’t easily leave a group they belong to. They’ll naturally drift away over time.”

“I’m just worried a Gate will open in the meantime. We don’t even have any guild members.”

“It doesn’t matter. I can just clear it by myself.”

Duke Ruthius and Alex looked at me at the same time.

“Astell, you mean by yourself?”

“…What if you get hurt like you did the other day?”

“I’ll just get treated. We have Sir Johan here, and I have potions. What’s there to worry about?”

Johan stared at me with a peculiar expression.

“Lady Astell… you seem accustomed to being alone. Even a heavy burden can be lightened if it’s shared.”

“Why share something I can do by myself?”

The three men exchanged subtle glances.

‘What are the three of them doing, leaving me out?’

I didn’t much like the feeling of being excluded.

Johan fiddled with his teacup, a thoughtful look on his face.

“This Gate was far more difficult than the previous ones. I could even feel a strong pressure before it had opened.”

“I felt it too. It was definitely different.”

As Alex chimed in, Johan’s expression darkened further.

“I never imagined such a powerful monster would appear. Moreover, a strategy that required only the number one ranker to face it… No one could have predicted that.”

I knew that the higher the Gate’s level, the greater the sense of pressure, but for the people of this world, it must have been a frightening and unfamiliar experience.

It was understandable that Johan was flustered.

“Above all, it was truly difficult to watch you struggle, Lady Astell, and be unable to help.”

“Ah…”

Was that what he meant?

Johan gave a faint smile and rubbed the corner of his eye.

“How many more bosses of this level will appear in the future?”

“Who knows.”

“The Constellations told me this: ‘It could happen every time, or it might never happen again.’”

In other words, it was random.

I already knew, so I was unfazed, but the others seemed shocked. The drawing room fell silent.

“What would happen if Gates similar to yesterday’s were to open one after another?”

“We’d have to clear them somehow.”

“By yourself, Lady Astell? Are you planning to get hurt again?”

I couldn’t say anything in response to Johan’s question.

Until now, I had cleared almost every Gate by myself.

Getting injured while clearing them was a matter of course. I didn’t understand why he was making an issue of it.

“We need a more fundamental solution than just clearing Gates.”

“For example?”

“Making it so the Gates never open again. Returning to the time before the black spire appeared over the Gray Forest.”

Duke Ruthius, who had been listening quietly, rested his chin on his hand.

“You mean we should focus on the apocalypse itself, not the Gates. Sir Johan, please elaborate.”

“The Temple calls this situation a trial from the gods. But think about it. Once you find the right answer, the test is over, isn’t it?”

“Hmm, so you believe clearing Gates isn’t the answer?”

“Clearing Gates is just one of many problems. That’s why when one Gate closes, another one opens.”

“Then what do you believe the right answer is?”

“I can’t even begin to guess yet. But one thing is certain…”

Johan said in a confident voice.

“Once we find the right answer, the apocalypse will end.”

“…!”