Chapter 133

First off, let's engrave a single magic formation into a clay board.

Then, pressing iron made soft by way of using [Create Golem] on it—to be more accurate, by operating it so that it would accurately fill the grooves—I completed a magic formation template.

Following that with another one softened by [Create Golem], I went to make a [Prototype].

There was a magic formation's grooves left behind when I separated the template from the [Prototype].

After that, I just normally melted a magic stone onto it to complete the formation.

"Aaand it works."

"Uwaaah~..."

It actually worked when the magic stone finished filling it. I'm saved.

Seeing the magic formation be completed, Nerune was surprised.

"There was a method like that... amazing~, how many could we make like this~?"

"Right? One or two hundred easily."

To put it simply, it's a stamp... eh, I guess it's more like a printing press? Its size makes it so that I could mass produce however many I want.

"But master, no one but you can do this~"

"Nn? That's not true. It's troublesome making the molds, but so long as you have the mold you could do it with things like clay. You'd only need to bake the clay to improve its longevity too... as for it being weak to impacts, well, there's a lot of clay... Right. I'll make a [Mold to make molds] to produce clay molds. You can use the iron magic formation to mass produce clay molds, so if the clay molds break... get it?"

When I said that, Nerune solidified for a bit.

She was probably thinking if that was actually possible in her head.

... Rather, there's even stuff like sealing letters with stamped wax, so I don't think it should be strange for someone to have an idea like this. Maybe people kept it a secret to enhance the value of magic tools? That's definitely a possibility.

"Master, that's... I can do that right~!? This is a revolution you know~!?"

"While we're on the topic, why not combine the idea with making different letters and symbols into stamps?"

"No way~!? My master's calmly using his ideas to repaint history~!? Please wait, I'll take notes~!!"

Nerune noisily pulled out a notepad and took notes. You don't need to panic so much...

Well, with this, gargoyle mass production's looking closer than ever.

Then again, Rin is going to be defending us, so it's only in the one in a thousand chance... but that saintess' serious mode might be enough to defeat Rin.

I can't seem to get that seal thing out of my head and haven't felt like sleeping. That's why I thought it'd be a good idea to kill time and look into mass producing gargoyles.

It's a rare occasion, so I decided to seriously try doing it together with Nerune.

*

The first day that the saintess was taking it seriously. It was the first day, but she wanted to settle it that day.

Smoothly making her way through the dungeon, she moved to just before the room that the black wolf resided in. She was familiar to the area. Moreover, due to the effects of [Treaty] she had invoked through ceremony, the dungeon was weakened. She was able to advance all the more easily, she felt.

Weakened dungeons wouldn't have things like an increased number of new traps or new rooms. It was limited in that there was a three day time limit, but even so it was very useful for capturing dungeons.

In particular, the weakening would also cause boss monsters to be unable to revive. The black wolf was likely a boss monster for this dungeon, so it shouldn't be an exception to the rule.

So she only needed to beat it once. So long as she could kill it, even if she died as well, it would be alright. She now only had to watch out for traps and look for the dungeon core.

... Perhaps, she was certain the black wolf was a dungeon boss simply judging by its strength. With dungeons whose deepest floors hadn't been captured, dungeon bosses would occasionally make their way up and appear on higher floors. It would happen from time to time.

The stronger and more warlike the dungeon boss, the more likely it would happen. Seeing as how the black wolf preemptively attacked the moment it laid eyes on intruders, that was almost certainly the case.

... Slap!

She fired herself up by clapping her cheeks. She then began to circulate her magical power as began to enter the room.

While continuing to mumble an incantation, she first looked looked inside. The black wolf turned its attention towards the entrance... the saintess clicked her tongue in her mind.

(As expected, it can notice even whispers?)

She entered the room immediately before the incantation completely.

The black wolf dashed towards her in response. Despite its tail wagging adorably, it bared its fangs as it opened its large mouth, brimming with the desire to eat.

[Rooooar!]

The wolf bellowed. However, something to this extent wasn't enough to cause the saintess to cower. She knew that if she froze now, she would die.

She pulled away from the first attack, dodging it. With a snap, the wolf's fangs stabbed through the place she had just been... She continued the incantation, not stopping. Seeing the base of its left leg twitch, the saintess dropped into a crouch. Immediately after, its right foreleg swept towards her from side. The wolf's paw sliced through the air just above her head, so fast that the air rang. It would have been dangerous if she hadn't dropped even a fraction of an inch lower. A few strands of hair fluttered through the air, the attack barely grazing the top of her head.

A cold shiver ran its way down her spine. A cold sweat worked its way down her forehead, but she knew from experience that it still wasn't over. The black wolf would soon rush towards her, forcefully bringing its right foreleg down to collapse on her. Despite its reckless attacks and successive attacks, it was still adorable.

The saintess used the momentum of dropping into her crouch to roll towards the left, avoiding it.

Just then, she finally completed her incantation. Conveniently, the black wolf's flank was right in front of her.

Thrusting her right hand forward, she shouted.

"—[Ray of Judgement]!!"

The instant she spoke the last piece of her incantation, a flash of light surged forth from her. After barely a moment's delay, the black wolf's body was penetrated by the beam. Passing entirely through its body, it rammed into the ceiling, leaving a crater-like mark behind.

—Their fight was decided. The saintess grinned.

But the black wolf did not fall.

The saintess' vision flickered as her consciousness dimmed. By draining her magical power dry, she blacked out.

By the time she came to, she was already back at the inn, laying in a futon. She was the simple altar.

"Alka-sama, are you awake?"

"... Yeah."

(What happened?)

The saintess tried to think about it, despite the complaints coming from her head after just having returned from death.

The light-attributed emperor class magic: [Ray of Judgement]. Greater than upper and top class magic, it was an offensive magic that could wipe out an army with a single attack, something that could be called a tactical class magic. A blow of justice that would smash evil to bits. It couldn't not be effective against the black wolf that was obviously a wicked existence... in truth, it had been able to open a large hole on the wolf's body.

It was a large hole, enough to see through to the other size. It was about large enough of a hole that a child might be able to go through it. However, despite such a large hole being opened on its body, the wolf still snapped through her. It bit off the arm she was holding out, followed by her head.

She was only vaguely able to remember it, but that was how she had died this time.

"Did you use [Ray of Judgement]?"

"Yes, it drained my magical power. Emperor class magic's consumption is as intense as ever."

(I used one of my trump cards, but I was still eaten?)

The saintess sighed.

".. However, I opened such a large hole in it, it should be dead about now...! This match is my win."

In the end, as she was able to continue on no matter how many times she died, she would win in due time. She thought that she might not have been able to gain victory this time due to her pressing time constraints—but she won.

She decided to report the commission's completion to the adventurer guild after confirming its corpse. With that, one of the reasons she had come to this dungeon would be accomplished.

The saintess sighed, contended.