The Youngest Hides a Lot - Chapter 137

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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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Chapter 137
Kalid sat cross-legged, his gaze fixed intently upon a small, weathered stone tablet.
I crouched beside him.
“There’s a crack in it.”
“Yeah.”
The stone tablet, its upper portion jaggedly fractured, bore countless geometric patterns carved in relief.
And filling every crevice within them were inscriptions in an incomprehensible language.
“This… doesn’t it look like a magic circle no matter how you look at it?”
The young mage boy asked, squinting one eye.
“I honestly have no idea what it says.”
I rolled up my sleeves with practiced ease.
“This is my specialty.”
Closing my eyes and calling upon Wizeria, my mind began to spin and drift.
The sensation of plunging into a vast ocean.
Borrowing from that sea of wisdom, I could instantly comprehend the structure and mechanics of even unfamiliar magic circles.
‘Huh?’
My eyes widened as I examined the magic circle.
“…Ah.”
A book suddenly beginning to deteriorate.
Wood that held mana, and a cracked stone tablet inscribed with intricate magic circles.
‘I see.’
“Objects deteriorating is proof that time is passing. People age every single day, don’t they?”
Uliophe Molton’s words came back to me.
Only then did I understand everything.
“…This magic circle was halting the passage of time for the ancient manuscripts.”
“What?”
“These books probably weren’t in very good condition to begin with.”
Books that should have crumbled to dust long ago. Someone had magically preserved them.
“Such magic… exists?”
Kalid asked carefully.
“Since it’s written in ancient languages, it seems to be a magic circle used in very ancient times.”
I trailed off. Did that mean the one who carved this magic circle was an ancient being?
“In any case, to prevent the books from deteriorating… someone used time magic here.”
Of course, this was no ordinary high-level magic. Therefore, it naturally required abundant mana.
Perhaps constructing the Ancient Manuscript Archive near the Seal Spring was inevitable and necessary.
“But it seems the magic circle itself couldn’t escape wear and tear…”
I gently touched the cracked stone tablet.
No matter how powerful a force, nothing lasts forever.
Perhaps over the long ages, this power too had gradually eroded away?
Kalid carefully nodded in agreement.
“The books began deteriorating suddenly because something went wrong with this magical circle. Time caught up with the books I’d been holding back.”
“Probably. Until now, thanks to the mana saturating the books, they were manageable even outside the Ancient Manuscript Archive.”
Uliophe Molton had said he often transcribed ancient manuscripts in his Research Room.
In other words, he was accustomed to carrying ancient texts outside the Library on a regular basis.
“Anyway, as the fundamental magical circle weakens, it can’t hold up anymore.”
“So what do we do?”
I placed my hand on the stone tablet again.
“First, I need to repair this magical circle.”
The moment I tried to move my mana, Kalid pulled my hand away from the tablet.
“No.”
His smooth face was deeply furrowed.
“I don’t know magic as well as you do… but I know this much.”
The serious-faced Young Boy continued speaking.
“Magic that touches time isn’t ordinary magic.”
“….”
“Just hearing it sounds ominous.”
Kalid muttered.
“So let’s learn a bit more first….”
“Listen, Kalid.”
I opened my mouth carefully.
At my call, Kalid fixed his gaze directly on my face. When our eyes met, my reflection gleamed clearly in his grayish-blue irises.
After hesitating slightly, I let my voice flow slowly.
“Actually, there’s something that’s been bothering me since earlier….”
“What?”
“My eyes.”
“…Your eyes?”
“Why are they still blue?”
Then Kalid’s brow twitched slightly. I moistened my dry lips and spoke softly.
“I thought I’d used Wizeria’s power to figure out what this magical circle was….”
For some reason, my voice sounded unfamiliar, like it belonged to someone else.
“But when I looked at it, I just understood it?”
As if I’d known about this magical circle from the very beginning.
“What do you mean….”
“Let me try it first.”
Before Kalid could protest, the surrounding mana vibrated.
As it harmonized with the mana within me, a circular magical circle materialized and azure light bloomed brilliantly.
Only then did my irises shift to crimson.
I was a Mage with an unusually modest amount of innate mana.
To use high-tier magic with what I possessed, I had to modify the magical circle to achieve maximum effect within the limits my mana could handle. It was possible precisely because I possessed extensive knowledge of magical circles.
‘In other words, power-saving mode….’
This time was no exception.
I had subtly twisted the structure of this magical circle in my own way to repair the monument.
It seemed simple, but it required an incredibly diverse array of formulas and circuits. And since there were many formulas I didn’t understand, I had no choice but to borrow Wizeria’s knowledge.
‘I’ve always used magic this way.’
Except for the most basic spells.
The missing formulas found their places, and power gradually filled the aged magical circle. The surrounding air trembled violently.
‘Time….’
I rolled the word around in my mouth.
And suddenly, my awareness shifted to my lower back.
‘Even if I can’t erase the mark right now….’
Could this become an alternative solution?
Shhhhh—
The glowing blue light quickly faded.
The leaves of the seal tree that had been fluttering also stopped vibrating.
“Phew.”
I exhaled the breath I’d been holding and withdrew my hand.
“Repairs complete!”
This one was quite complicated….
As I wiped the sweat from my forehead and patted my shoulder, a weary voice came from behind.
“Ha, you really….”
“Hm?”
“…do this so casually every time.”
Kalid looked less amazed than tired.
“At least the Ancient Manuscript Archive problem is solved!”
Now I just needed to find clues about the mark in earnest.
I pushed off the ground and got to my feet.
“Professor Uliophe Molton won’t transfer now, right?”
“Uliophe Molton was planning to transfer?”
Kalid asked. Now that I thought about it, he probably didn’t know much since he had no real connection with Professor Uliophe Molton.
“Oh, yeah. It seemed like he was under a lot of stress because of this Ancient Manuscript Archive.”
“…I see.”
“Why? Are you interested in the professor?”
“No, well. Just.”
His grayish-blue eyes shifted diagonally to the side.
I dusted off my hands.
“But then…. What about the contents of books that have already been erased?”
“Well, that would be Professor Uliophe Molton’s job, wouldn’t it?”
It was difficult to recover all the contents of books that had already been lost at once.
For one thing, it was uncertain whether my magical power could withstand even an improved magical circle, and more importantly, the contents of lost books appearing overnight would be nothing short of magic itself.
“Now that the strange phenomenon has stopped, the professor will accelerate the recovery efforts!”
At my words, Kalid skimmed through the faded pages of the book, muttering to himself.
“Looks like I’ll be changing jobs soon…”
“Huh?”
“Look at this mess. How are you supposed to restore all of it alone?”
“I heard they’re hiring restoration specialists?”
“Oh, really?”
“We’re planning to hire restoration specialists from outside anyway.”
Recalling Uliophe Molton’s words, I let out a quiet laugh.
“I hope the Professor gets many good colleagues again, right!”
“…? Not my concern. Sure.”
Kalid answered dismissively.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he tilted his chin.
“But how are you going to tell Uliophe Molton that the Ancient Manuscript Archive problem is solved? Are you just going to let him figure it out naturally?”
“Hmm… I can’t exactly tell him I solved it with magic.”
I muttered with a troubled expression.
“But I can’t just wait around either.”
“Why?”
“Because if we do, they might end up calling a Mage, which would be annoying.”
It was best to let this incident end as nothing more than a minor happening.
‘From what I’ve gathered, it seems only Professor Uliophe Molton and Principal Odeli know about this for now.’
I instinctively felt that I absolutely could not let the Mages learn of this Ancient Manuscript Archive’s existence.
If Mages came here, they would sense the mysterious magical flow of this place, and naturally, word would reach the Mage King’s ears.
I wanted to protect this place no matter what. The sealed water, the monument… and that ‘time’ magic circle.
Because.
‘It might be the key to solving the problem of my stigma growing.’
If there were answers in this mysterious space that I didn’t know about…
‘Hm?’
At that moment, my head snapped up.
It was because Uliophe Molton’s words about mysterious blessings suddenly came to mind.
“I just thought of a way.”
“Yeah?”
“Fight mysterious power with mysterious power!”
As I clenched my fist and shouted, Kalid, who had been quietly watching, narrowed one eye.
“There you go again, running wild without me.”
Instead of answering, I let out a quiet laugh.
Behind the Young Boy’s face as he let out a long sigh, ancient manuscripts were densely packed like a backdrop.
* * *
Click.
As I was about to close the Ancient Manuscript Archive’s door and leave, Kalid suddenly turned around and spoke.
“Wait a second.”
“Why?”
“Your knee.”
Kalid furrowed his smooth brow and gazed down at the area around my leg.
“…I’ve been bothered by it since earlier.”
I blinked quietly.
How on earth did he notice?
‘I covered it so well with the dress!’

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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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