Retire 237

237 Jewel Rune (3)

Among the eleven mages, three belonged to the Nantes Magic Society, those often called Noah Michel’s fanatics.

[Pierre Millet]
[Jacques Mathis]
[Henri Cézanne]

The only information the magic watch’s database could provide was their names, nationalities, affiliations, and a brief biography. If they were domestic mages, I could have found out more, but with foreigners, even that much was difficult…

Still, there were ways. Fortunately, the reports left behind by the Management Bureau’s staff remained. There were no obscure Hunters like Alex Hope, but if a mage was a disciple of Noah Michel or worked under him, there was a chance we’d work together someday, so we’d recorded points to be aware of. The world of mages was so convoluted that it wasn’t uncommon for someone to refuse to collaborate just because you’d hired a mage they disliked.

Honestly, I didn’t understand why we had to concern ourselves with such childish squabbles, but what could we do? There were never enough mages—especially skilled ones. Besides, I didn’t want to get on the wrong side of anyone under Noah Michel, so we had no choice but to pay attention to these things.

I never imagined those records would come in so handy.

It just goes to show: write everything down.

Of course, all three mages in question were French. Noah Michel herself didn’t discriminate by nationality, but since she was French, she was especially popular in France.

These three mages hadn’t done anything particularly noteworthy. Each had fewer than three runes registered under their own names, and all of them were of questionable utility. Naturally, as mages, they hadn’t produced any results that would draw attention from a country halfway around the world in Asia.

The only reason their names appeared in the Bureau’s records was Noah Michel.

If it were me, I’d be insulted by that, but those fanatics would probably be delighted… Well, even if it seems trivial, the very act of recording information about foreign mages could be problematic, so not many people inside the Bureau even knew about it.

“Hmm… Can you show me the rune’s effect again?”

“It’s this, but…”

[When the rune is placed on the floor, it reduces noise within a 30cm x 30cm x 30cm cubic space centered on the rune.]

What are you supposed to use this for?

It didn’t even list a primary use.

Every year, the Rune Association publishes things like the Top 100 Runes Most Used by Hunters or the most useful runes for each dungeon type. But fundamentally, the Rune Association defines a rune as “a geometric figure that, when drawn by a mage or with a magic pen, produces an artificial effect.”

So, as long as the geometric figure’s effect is verified—even if it’s not particularly useful—it can be registered as a rune. The runes of these three mages were like that.

Hong Seok-young’s expression grew as dubious as mine.

“Do you think a rune like this is useful?”

“I suppose you could find a use for it if you tried, but…”

Hong Seok-young tilted his head.

“Seems like it’d be more useful in daily life than in a dungeon.”

“In daily life?”

He pointed to Jacques Mathis’s rune, the one that reduced noise. Hope had drawn it, saying Noah Michel used it often.

“If you drew a bunch of these and stuck them on the ceiling, it’d be great for preventing noise between floors.”

“Hmm…”

“And the others. Sam Bloom’s rune seems perfect for keeping coffee warm.”

“You’d use a rune for that? Aren’t there products for that already?”

“Maybe mages prefer using mana to electricity. They are mages, after all.”

“Is that really the issue…”

“You have no idea how many old mages insist electricity is bad for mana.”

Of course I did.

If you think about it that way…

“Noah Michel was said to dislike humans, right?”

“She might hate anything made by humans.”

“She must have way too much time on her hands.”

I shook my head.

Still, in the times I’d spoken with Noah Michel at conferences or whatnot, I’d never gotten that impression.

Listening to Hope, she sometimes sounded like an idiot who couldn’t even handle her own subordinates… But someone like that couldn’t have become the pride of France, leading the Nantes Magic Society. Whether it’s a society, an association, or a government office, anyone in charge of a group has to have a certain level of competence—even if it’s just in name.

If I consider that Noah Michel achieved her goals, then she must have had a trump card or two up her sleeve.

I pulled up the runes attributed to Noah Michel instead of those three mages.

[28% match]
[22% match]
[35% match]

There were other runes with similar match rates, so I couldn’t be sure these were Michel’s, but…

“These at least seem to have clearer uses. What about the other runes—not Michel’s? Do they have similar effects?”

“No, not really… Well, maybe sort of.”

“Hmm. None of these seem dangerous, at least.”

“Except for this one.”

“Except for that one.”

Hong Seok-young glared at the sheet I’d discarded—the one with the problematic rune.

[Stores mana in the rune. The amount stored varies according to the diameter of the rune, and the exact quantity can be calculated with the following formula. To use the stored mana, a mage or another rune is required.]

Even though he wasn’t yet used to runes, Hong Seok-young saw through it sharply.

“Isn’t this basically a backup battery? The mention of a mage or another rune is key. What if the rune gets damaged? What happens to the stored mana?”

After pointing out several suspicious points, Hong Seok-young suddenly turned to me.

“What? Why?”

“You’re saying runes like this aren’t used much?”

“Well…”

I shrugged.

“Would you go into a dungeon without a mage?”

“Ah.”

Hong Seok-young scratched his head sheepishly.

“If you’ve got a walking power plant right next to you, what’s the point of a backup battery?”

It’s not that you couldn’t find a use for it. For example, runes used in construction require ongoing management by a mage, since they need a steady supply of mana. Even if they draw on ambient mana, sometimes that’s not enough.

In those cases, using this as a power source would be convenient. But in the end, you’d still need a mage. At that point, it’d be easier for the mage to just do it themselves. Maintaining runes is more hassle than just casting a spell. And the amount of mana stored depends on the diameter?

I briefly opened the formula, then closed it. I may not have mentioned it, but I’m a liberal arts major. After high school, the only time I’ve dealt with numbers was calculating expenses.

“Should I get Irok a math tutor?”

Hong Seok-young gave me a sly grin.

“If he finds something he wants to do, he’ll handle it himself. Don’t worry.”

“What if what he wants is to be a mathematician?”

Him?

“No way.”

“You can’t say for sure Irok will turn out just like you.”

I blinked.

That’s true.

…That’s right.

I kept thinking Irok would grow up differently from me, so why did I keep projecting myself onto him? I never had a cat, never took taekwondo.

So he might want to be a scientist and go into chemical engineering or whatever, instead of majoring in film or double-majoring in political science like I did…

But still, that’s not likely.

“Let him do what he wants. He’s even started dating, you know.”

“Don’t bring that up.”

“Why not? Does it remind you of an ex-girlfriend?”

“I never… had one.”

“Don’t be shy.”

Hong Seok-young laughed so hard he nearly choked.

Yeah. It must be fun for him. I’d probably find it funny too—if I weren’t Woo Irok.

Leaving his raucous laughter behind, I turned back to the runes. Hope had said Michel used these often, right? Judging by the other runes Hope drew, they’d certainly improve one’s quality of life in all sorts of ways. Though I doubted Noah Michel ever suffered from noisy neighbors.

I looked again at the mana storage rune. Compared to the others, it did have some suspicious aspects, and as I’d told Hong Seok-young, it wasn’t all that useful.

I thought back to something Hong Seok-young had said.

This guy had a knack for sharp observations, so rather than just letting it pass…

‘If the rune is damaged, what happens to the stored mana?’

Of course, I wasn’t a genius of magical engineering, or a rune prodigy.

But runes were easier to understand than magical engineering, and dealing with troublesome mages forced me to pick up some magical theory. If you want to get the better of slippery mages, it’s much easier to beat them with theory.

So…

I stared intently at the rune.

A rune is a collection of geometric shapes. Each shape, though it might seem meaningless, has its own significance and function.

If I had no clues, it’d be one thing, but now I knew what effect this was supposed to have. So if I put my mind to it…

“…Explosion.”

“Hm?”

“It’ll explode.”

“Explode?”

“This rune.”

Hong Seok-young stopped laughing.

“If the rune is damaged while mana is stored, it’ll explode.”

“…There’s no safety mechanism?”

“Unless you add another rune, no. It just goes boom.”

A serious expression came over Hong Seok-young’s face.

“An explosion, huh. Sorry, but…”

“Yes?”

“The rune’s description says it stores mana, right?”

“Yes.”

“…That mana.”

I stared blankly at Hong Seok-young. He clicked his tongue lightly and continued.

“What’s the definition of mana?”

“……”

My eyes widened.

“You’re asking me a question like that out of the blue? The definition of mana is different for mages, magical engineers, and Hunters—which one do you want?”

“Still not unified, even twenty years later?”

“If it was going to be, it would’ve happened ages ago.”

“Everyone’s so stubborn… Anyway!”

Hong Seok-young forcibly steered the conversation back on track.

“My point is… isn’t the definition of mana a bit broad, at least as mages use it? And Noah Michel is a mage, right?”

“That’s right. Most mages consider magic itself to be a form of mana.”

“Exactly. So wouldn’t this rune store not just mana, but magic itself?”

“……”

If that’s the case, then it wouldn’t be a rune anymore… would it?

“If you could store magic in this rune, wouldn’t that let non-mages use magic? No mage would ever allow that.”

“When was this rune registered?”

“……”

“If Michel is using it now, she wouldn’t have published it right away. If it was registered early, mages would’ve had plenty of time to analyze it.”

I pulled up the rune’s detailed information: its structure, its creator, Michel’s biography, the people who’d confirmed it worked. And then—

Registered in 2040.

Even if it was just a meaningless string of numbers, there was one world-shaking event in 2040.

The death of Sandra Gamble of the Paros Company.

And we knew exactly what clauses were tied to Sandra Gamble’s death.

“Also, I hope this is just my imagination…”

Hong Seok-young wasn’t finished.

“The flames you create with that sword—do you think you could store those in this rune?”