Children of the Rune – Winterer - Chapter 614

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 66.
The Velvet-Lined Invitation (27)
Professor Ostley and the other professors of Nenyaple had to meet with the Mages from Symbolion that night. Since it was bound to be a tedious meeting, there was no reason for Langie, who was merely a research assistant student, to attend. Of course, even if he went, he wouldn’t actually participate in the meeting itself—instead, he would spend his time leisurely in the auxiliary room adjoining the conference chamber, eating dinner with the other assistants and chatting idly before returning.
The assistants themselves had no real reason to go either, but compared to sitting scattered about in the Rabbit Burrow—a place where coziness was as scarce as rabbit droppings—eating cold sandwiches, they all gladly chose to go where they could enjoy warm food and lounge on plush sofas. Besides, they didn’t have to be in the same room as the professors anyway.
And so, with all the professors and assistants absent, the Rabbit Burrow looked like a ruin where ghosts might emerge. In daylight, one could imagine it as a mystical place worthy of ancient ballads, but spending three hours alone in this desolate winter night—a notion that even Professor Nenyaple found difficult to comprehend.
Once the footsteps faded, Langie looked down at Snori. Snori looked back up at him. Langie gazed into the dog’s eyes for a moment, then smiled bitterly and spoke.
“Yeah, you’re not so bad.”
Then, tilting his head curiously, he said,
“Want to be comfortable?”
With that, he removed the leash. Professor Ostley had activated the security magic that covered the entire Rabbit Burrow as he left, so there was no risk of anyone suddenly entering. The dog wouldn’t be able to escape either.
Snori, born between a wolf and a shepherd, had an appearance closer to a wolf and fierce eyes that made many people recoil even from a distance. That’s why Professor Ostley always kept him on a leash during walks.
At first, Langie had found it difficult to approach this dog. But once he grew accustomed to him, Snori was like a dog with many thoughts. He didn’t easily befriend people, nor did he act aggressively without reason.
Once freed, Snori began wandering through the interior, sniffing about. Langie returned to the workbench.
All the professors’ research was currently suspended, so none of the other assistants were conducting any experiments. They were overwhelmed just purifying the items brought from Nenyaple.
But Langie was neither an assistant nor particularly knowledgeable about magic, so he had nothing to do in Nenyaple. Thus, he was gradually becoming a full-time student of the Rabbit Burrow.
Being full-time didn’t mean he had much to do—he simply answered when professors or assistants who had gone out and returned asked who came and went and when.
Having stayed long, he had come to know the various spells installed throughout the Rabbit Burrow and which of the haphazardly placed items were dangerous and which were merely junk.
Even in circumstances where complaints would become routine, Langie did not enjoy idle conversation. The reason he continued his research, ostensibly because there was nothing else to do, was undoubtedly because it was convenient to avoid talking.
On the workbench lay artifact number 1507, brought from the Land of Mortals. It was a number assigned only to mechanical-form artifacts that Professor Ostley took interest in.
Artifact 1507, when roughly assembling its thirty-eight pieces, resembled a gun stretched lengthwise, so it would be apt to call it a “long gun.” Of course, such a term didn’t exist.
Working in Professor Ostley’s research lab, Langie came to understand that the people of Ganapoli used far more machinery than one might expect. However, their machines contained components whose nature remains unknown to modern people, and all traces had vanished without a trace from every artifact. Thus, even when the form remained quite well-preserved, there was ultimately no way to make it function.
Professor Ostley’s greatest research goal was to compare and analyze these artifacts to determine what the problematic component was.
Guns were a rare case where the operating principle had been clarified relatively early, and thus had been popular among craftsmen since ancient times, but ultimately none could be properly fired. At best, they could spray perfume or eject light toys.
Langie picked up the tweezers again and immersed himself in arranging the artifact piece by piece. Once the arrangement was complete, he would sketch it. Snori continued exploring various corners of the Rabbit Burrow without barking even once.
About an hour had passed when he suddenly looked up and saw snow falling silently beyond the arched entrance.
The interior wasn’t cold thanks to the temperature-regulating magic the professors had cast, but the profound silence caused his body to shiver involuntarily. Langie made no effort to shake off the feeling.
The silence brought him a sensation of being nowhere, of becoming a transparent shadow. It was strangely peaceful.
For a moment, he lowered his hands and sat quietly, motionless, gazing at the stone chairs of the chapel. Suddenly, strength drained from his hands, and the tweezers he held in his right hand slipped and fell.
Thud.
With it came an unfamiliar sound at his ear. A soft sliding sound, as if something were being pushed. It sounded like the scraping of something crawling across the stone floor on its belly. Since it occurred only once and didn’t repeat, Langie called for the dog.
“Snori?”
There was no answer. Langie stood up. It occurred to him that the dog might have gotten trapped somewhere while wandering. The Rabbit Burrow had a basement. The entrance was sealed, but true to its name, there might be another entrance somewhere.
“Snori!”
Still no answer. Langie decided he needed to find the dog and descended into the chapel. He circled the chapel once, but Snori was nowhere to be seen. He would need to check the other sections. It was his responsibility to find the dog. He was the one who had removed the leash.
“Snori!”
He passed through small arches and wound around boxes until he reached the far end of the eastern section, but the dog was still nowhere to be found and didn’t answer when called. He was beginning to worry. He was about to turn back toward the chapel to check the western section when Snori appeared from behind a pile of boxes like a ghost.
“Ah, there you are.”
Relief escaped him in an involuntary sigh. But then Snori approached and grabbed Langie’s collar with his teeth, pulling him toward the adjacent section. As if to say, come this way. Langie, bewildered, was dragged a few steps before he caught the dog and asked.
“What’s wrong?”
And he was startled. Snori was trembling. Had something frightened him? Langie sat down on the floor to calm the dog. That was when it happened.
Sssssss….
A sound suddenly surged forward. It was different from before. From all directions, waves of noise crashed in like ripples on water, swelling into something approaching a deafening roar. Langie stood frozen in place, eyes wide open. It took a moment to shake off the instinctive terror and think clearly through the cacophony.
It didn’t take long. The moment I regained my composure, I quickly settled myself. Perhaps because of my experiences before entering Nenyaple, I wasn’t easily swayed by magic’s surreal nature. Magic was simply a phenomenon, like nature itself. It only seemed frightening because I didn’t understand it.
The security magic placed here belonged to Professor Leomentiis. Across the entire Continent, there was virtually no Mage capable of breaking it. In other words, no one could enter from outside.
Then this sound was likely the result of something malfunctioning. Perhaps the dog had touched something.
Since multiple people used this place, switches had been installed to activate or deactivate the incantations depending on the situation. As far as I knew, they were at the entrance and below the circular window. Had they created another one somewhere else? Could the dog have touched it? It seemed unlikely the professors would be so careless as to leave switches exposed like that, but….
Then the noise began to fade like receding tide. Rather than feeling relief, I listened carefully and sensed the direction the sound was disappearing toward. One of the western sections—the area where the professors had stacked numerous boxes.
I descended and examined the boxes. And I discovered that the entire surface of one box bore fine cracks. It belonged to Professor Ostley.
I thought I should open the box and check inside. But it happened to be the box at the very bottom, with two heavy boxes stacked on top of it.
Of course, the weight might have caused the cracks, but I’d never seen this type of crack pattern on a wooden box before. It resembled crazing—the fine fissures that appear when glaze on ceramic surfaces ruptures.
I returned to the area below the circular window. Beneath it stood a hastily constructed large dresser. Nenyaple originally had excellent furniture, but in a situation where every item had to undergo purification before being removed, there was no magical energy to waste on furniture like dressers.
As a resident, I knew well what was inside. Opening the bottom drawer first, I saw all manner of tools. From among them, I found an elongated pry bar and tucked it into my belt. Then, lifting the lid of the top compartment, I found an assortment of miscellaneous items arranged in a line, as if by some mysterious criterion.
Rods, short wands, gloves, spectacles, orbs, pens, wooden figurines, chains, books, parchment scrolls. These were objects in which the professors had compressed practical magic usable in urgent situations. The variety of items reflected each professor’s preferences.
From among them, I picked up a right-angled metal ruler inscribed with levitation magic—used for moving heavy objects—and returned to stand before the box.
Holding the ruler in brief contact with the box I intended to move, I waited as the magic within activated, and a faint glow began flowing across the metal surface. Though the incantation was compressed within the ruler, the caster’s concentration was still required, so I watched the box intently for some time before stepping back several paces. Then I carefully manipulated the ruler in my hand and lifted the box into the air.
The box moved slowly, crossing the center of the Chapel toward the opposite section. Lowering it required even greater care. I couldn’t afford to damage the contents inside.
After moving two boxes in this manner, sweat beaded on my forehead and my arms and shoulders ached dully. I must have unconsciously tensed my arms too much while concentrating. I knew there was no need for it, but I still found it difficult to relax.
I wiped the sweat away with my sleeve and flexed my wrists a few times to loosen them, then approached the problematic box. Gripping the pry bar, I extracted the nails sealing the lid one by one. Then, removing the lid and peering inside, I flinched and furrowed my brow.
The items inside were mostly personal belongings, bearing the same fine cracks as the outer box, and they had been pushed forcefully against all four walls. Yet in the very center lay a single small, flat teal-colored box, sitting quietly without any sign of disturbance.
What was this box?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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