Chapter 79

Hikaru was led to a special room for viewing valuable old books.

The spacious room was barren, with nothing hanging on the walls.

In the center of the room was a single reading stand, and next to it, a small table and a chair.

"Food and drink are prohibited inside the room. Also, the use of quills is banned due to the risk of ink spills. Copying is only allowed with a special permit using a brush—"

The librarian glanced at the principal standing next to Hikaru as she spoke.

"Do you need to copy anything, Hikaru?"

"No."

"Then it's not necessary."

"Understood."

The librarian bowed respectfully and left the room.

At the only entrance to the room stood an armed guard, probably to prevent removal or damage.

On the reading stand was a lavishly bound book, about the size between A3 and B4. It was titled "Catalog of Artifacts Presented to the Allied Nations by Tsubura."

Flipping through, he found a preface. It seemed to be a catalog of artifacts presented to the Allied Nations government by Tsubura at the time of the nation's founding.

There was no table of contents; the catalog began immediately.

Most of the pages were filled with meticulous sketches, with the name, description, and owner of each item written below.

"Ha!"

Hikaru burst out laughing at the first item.

It was a mask. It had large, round eyes, and although it was not colored, the face was probably red. It had a long, stretched "nose."

(It's a tengu mask!)

In that moment, Hikaru was convinced that the creator of the artifacts was a "transmigrant or reincarnated person from Japan."

(But why would they make something like this...)

The catalog name was "Monster Mask." The description read, "A metal mask. The paint has mostly peeled off, leaving a dull brown color. Purpose unknown. No such long-nosed monster or race has ever existed," which only made him laugh more.

"Hikaru? Do you recognize this?"

"No, it's just that I laughed at the silly face."

The principal was standing next to him. He had to be careful.

"But why is this mask the first item?"

"Because it's the most commonly found Tsubura artifact."

"Really?"

"About 100 'Monster Masks' have been found so far."

What are you doing, transmigrants? Do you love tengu that much?

He kept this thought to himself.

Hikaru wanted to continue reading but glanced at the person standing next to him.

"Um... Principal, is it okay for you to be here? Aren't you busy?"

"Of course I'm busy, but I believe in treating someone who saved the lives of my relatives and notable figures from my hometown with respect."

"What do you mean?"

"Sir Sylvester and Sir League told me."

"Oh... I see."

Hikaru was a bit surprised.

Sylvester and League, who were from the small countries of Romania and Tsubura, respectively, and were close to the top leaders of those countries, had both spoken about him.

He hadn't expected them to be so open about being helped by an outsider.

"Hikaru, both Sir Sylvester and Sir League are remarkable people. Despite their youth, they have sound judgment and a strong sense of justice."

"Would someone like them be able to survive in the Allied Nations?"

Hikaru knew that Queen Makedo and Minister Sofiera were struggling with politics.

The core of the Allied Nations was a place of intrigue and power struggles.

"Oh, Hikaru, you're worried about Sir Sylvester and Sir League?"

"...Not really."

"You seem different. What happened? When you first came to apply for enrollment, you were like a boy with thorns that pricked everyone who touched you."

"An urchin?"

"...An urchin?"

"Never mind."

There might not be sea urchins in this world.

Hikaru understood what the principal was saying.

He had told everything to Ravia.

But had he changed that much in the eyes of others?

"Let's continue, then."

"Yes, please do."

The principal didn't press him further.

Hikaru continued reading the catalog.

Items that were clearly from "Japan" included "Buddhist statues," "bells," and "tea bowls (tableware)."

There was one item labeled "purpose unknown" that caught Hikaru's attention.

(This is a radio.)

It had an antenna and a dial for tuning frequencies.

It wasn't brought from Japan. It was made of metal and wood, not plastic. The catalog name was "Metal Box."

It was well-made, even with a speaker mechanism.

(What did they plan to do with this?)

If they could make a radio, a communication revolution would occur with the ability to transmit information via radio waves. However, a radio would require a transmission tower, and this world had almost no technology based on electricity.

Instead, there seemed to be a method similar to telegraphy using expensive catalysts and magic.

"Does this interest you?"

The principal spoke to Hikaru, who was staring intently at the radio.

"Yes... I suppose. It says 'purpose unknown' here, but what do you think, Principal?"

"This is truly mysterious. The pages that follow are all about weapons, but even weapons are not as complex as this. I believe the college's researchers have studied the 'Metal Box,' but they haven't had any significant results."

"Where was this found?"

"Deep in Tsubura. I think it was inside a 'tower' where many artifacts were discovered."

A tower... perhaps a transmission tower, Hikaru thought.

(If so, that's strange.)

"Principal, how old are these artifacts?"

"They are said to be 800 to 1,000 years old, before the nation of Tsubura was established."

Hearing this, Hikaru thought.

(Even if it's 800 years ago, if someone knew about "radios" back then, it would be the Kamakura period in Japan.)

The timeline didn't match.

(Then... does time flow differently in this world compared to Earth? Or is the connection of time random? ...That would be strange too. If I came to this world and then another transmigrant from Japan transferred to the "past," it would create a parallel world. The idea that time flows differently and is irreversible seems plausible.)

"Hikaru? Aren't you going to read further? I thought you were interested in weapons and military equipment."

"I will. —Why would I be interested in weapons?"

"Considering you came all the way from Ponsania, I thought you might be in the military, though I don't think you are. But you're said to be very strong, and it's natural for someone seeking strength to be interested in high-level weapons."

"I see. I can't say I'm not interested."

Hikaru flipped through the pages.

Weapons kept appearing.

Rifles, shurikens, pistols, cannons.

"The reason these weapons are excellent is that they are all magical devices."

"Wow..."

"This single-edged longsword extends when infused with magic. This four-bladed throwing weapon becomes invisible for a certain time when infused with magic."

The design of the katana was unfamiliar.

It was similar to the wakizashi Hikaru had bought.

(Maybe that one is real?)

He decided to investigate it properly.

"Principal, are the effects of these magical devices that rare?"

"They are said to be impossible to reproduce today."

"Really..."

Hikaru was impressed.

The transmigrants had really worked hard.

"What about this one? It says it's a weapon that stores magic in advance."

This was what Hikaru wanted to see.

The "revolver" he had obtained had a similar mechanism to the "pistol" and "rifle."

"This is considered a magical device that stores magic and releases it. There are many similar magical devices in this world."

"Really?"

"Yes. There are plenty of magical devices that store magic in advance for later use. There's no need for them to be in this form. They could be rings or staffs."

"I see... I understand."

"But the excellence of this magical device lies elsewhere."

"What do you mean?"

"Usually, the magic in a magical device is much weaker than when a spellcaster casts a spell. However, this weapon... the magic stored in it is said to be 'equivalent' or 'even more powerful' than the spellcaster's."

Hikaru was amazed.

This meant the conversion rate of "magic" energy was 100%, or even more.

"Is that... even possible?"

While 100% or close to it might be conceivable, over 100% seemed physically impossible.

"Yes. I found it strange too, but the college's researchers said it's made possible using 'Holy Magic' energy."

A familiar term came up.