After examining it for a long while, Bello nodded.
"No doubt about it. This is a lost technology."
Jinhyuk, who had been sitting quietly, swallowed dryly.
A so-called lost technology.
The kind that often appeared in fantasy comics or movies.
Things made with this technology usually boasted absurd performance.
"It's not going to blow up a city the moment I use it, right?"
"Fortunately, it won't. It's not a bomb."
"Then does it fire a laser that erases a mountain when I press the button?!"
Bello lifted his head and met Jinhyuk's eyes.
Eyes sparkling fiercely.
It seemed there was some misunderstanding.
"Those do exist from time to time, it seems, but most lost technologies are cases where their utility gradually decreases until they're completely forgotten. This is the same."
The sparkle in Jinhyuk's eyes faded.
He must have had high expectations.
"Your eyes got big too, Bello-nim, so I thought it was something serious."
"I've been appraising for a long time, but it's been a while since I've seen technology this old. First, let me tell you the purpose of this sphere."
Bello rotated the sphere once and continued.
"It's restraint. It's wrapped in multiple layers to prevent the power inside from leaking out. Considering the material consumption and effort involved, it's extremely inefficient, but the intention to seal something seems to have been achieved."
"Can we open it?"
"Yes. I think it's possible. I have something set up for this kind of work. Come this way."
Following Bello, they arrived at a small square room.
In the center was a table that looked like a workbench, along with inventions resembling robotic arms.
"Oh. Did you make these, Bello-nim?"
"Huh? No. I'm terrible at inventing. These were received in exchange for appraisals. I'm using them quite handily."
"R-right."
He'd forgotten for a moment.
Roco's words that Bello was excellent at appraising but had no talent for inventing.
Bello placed the sphere on the workbench and spoke.
"It won't explode or anything, but some of the power inside might leak out. Is that okay?"
"Yes. We need to know what it is first."
"Understood. Then I'll open it."
Bello manipulated complex buttons and joysticks, moving multiple mechanical arms simultaneously.
Not only were the movements delicate, but various tools popped out as needed.
It reminded him of the gadget detectives he'd seen as a child.
Bello focused, manipulating the sphere for a long time.
With a creaking sound, a crack formed in the center of the sphere.
He carefully separated the core using the mechanical arms.
*Swaaaaaa...!*
A reddish gemstone appeared.
It wasn't just red; it was a vivid, blazing red.
Bello tilted his head and let out a murmur.
"What in the world... This is an unbelievable amount of energy. It seems that old, outdated technology worked properly. To hide this much energy without a trace."
"It doesn't seem mechanical."
"No. This isn't something that can be made with artificial technology. This is, how should I put it, something of a higher dimension..."
"Alchemy."
They turned their heads at the sudden voice.
Elia was staring at the gemstone with a strange expression.
She slowly approached and shrugged.
"Well, well. I've lost face in front of my owner, haven't I? Not recognizing something I made even when it's right in front of me."
Bello looked back and forth between Elia and Jinhyuk with a surprised expression.
Not only had they brought a Dokkaebi-nim, but they had also created such a terrifying energy source.
Just who were these people?
"Hmm. I can't believe this is still here."
Elia picked up the gemstone and wore a strange smile.
At the same time.
*Ding!*
[Through the excellent appraiser, you have enabled the Star Alchemist Elia Posen to discover the Philosopher's Stone!]
[The clear condition for Floor 18 of the Myth Tower has been achieved!]
[You may now enter Floor 19 of the Myth Tower!]
*Ding!*
[The Epic Promotion Quest of the Star Alchemist Elia Posen, 'The Timid Alchemist,' has begun!]
Elia Posen is the creator of the Philosopher's Stone.
Through a twist of fate, the stone has returned to its creator's hands!
The clear condition is achieved when the Star Alchemist faces the past she has been avoiding!
Elia quietly looked down at the stone, then nodded.
"So my promotion quest finally showed up, huh?"
"Yeah. It says to face the past you've been avoiding."
"I figured as much."
Elia smiled and handed over the Philosopher's Stone.
"You hold onto this for now, owner."
After handing over the stone, Elia stared into space with a strange expression.
"To move forward, I have to face it."
Muttering to herself, Elia hooked her arm around his shoulder.
"Then let's go. To face what I've been avoiding."
He nodded and looked at the quest inscribed in the status window.
The Timid Alchemist.
What could have happened?
* * *
[Entering Floor 19 of the Myth Tower: 'The Solitary House on the Hill']
A hill with a clear, open view.
A place that naturally brought the word 'peaceful' to mind.
"It's been a while."
Elia closed her eyes and took a breath.
He followed suit, taking a deep breath.
The refreshing scent of phytoncides filled his nose.
The air was as good as the Yodel Forest.
"Did you live here for a long time?"
"That's right. About a thousand years?"
"Oh."
It was a number he understood was long, but it didn't quite sink in.
"Owner. If you ever need to go to Gearheim again, take me with you, okay?"
"Of course. Bello-nim seemed to be looking forward to it a lot."
Before leaving the 18th floor, after saying their thanks.
Bello, his eyes sparkling, had grabbed his hand.
He begged him to please visit again with Elia.
He said he wanted to have an in-depth conversation with the alchemist who created such an incredible thing.
"Hehe. It's only natural, since he saw the Philosopher's Stone I made. As an excellent appraiser, he must have recognized its true value."
Elia nodded along with her self-praise.
There was a strangely similar quality between Bello and Elia.
They shared many overlapping interests, so despite the huge age gap, they would surely be good conversation partners.
"Well then, shall we go in?"
Elia stepped forward and grabbed the doorknob.
She grunted a few times, but the door wouldn't open.
Ranya, who had been watching, silently approached.
"Hey, Dokkaebi friend. Don't break it, okay?"
"I know."
With a light nod, Ranya turned the doorknob.
*Creeeeeeeeak!!!*
She put so much force into it that the ground beneath her feet shook, but the door didn't open.
"It's war, I tell ya!"
"What is it?! What is it!! While Momo and I were playing!!"
They must have come in a hurry from splashing around in the pool early in the morning.
Kancho was soaking wet, and Momo was equipped with a large duck floatie.
The other friends manifested right after.
"Kick!"
Dark let out a sneer, probably because Ranya was struggling.
Fortunately, Ranya was too focused on opening the door to hear.
"Ranya, hold on. If it won't open even like this, there must be another condition. Elia, don't you have a key or something you used to get in?"
"Huh?"
Only then did Elia slap her forehead and look around the flowerbed.
Kancho clicked his tongue at the sight.
"This three-thousand-year-old hag is hopeless. The number of times she forgets things is just going up by the day..."
*Thwack!!*
Kancho was hit by a swung flowerpot and went rolling down.
"He went all the way over there!"
Momo put her hand on her forehead and gave a chubby thumbs-up.
Satisfied with the hit, Elia smiled and winked.
"Found the key?"
Hiding keys under a flowerpot or in a milk box seemed to be a universal thing.
Before an enraged Kancho could re-manifest, he quickly turned the key.
The moment the click sounded, a strange halo of light brushed past his eyes.
"Owner, behind you."
At Seira's words, he turned his head.
The key must have been the trigger.
Golden particles filled the area around the hill.
The particles began to move and then took shape.
'Two of them.'
Two girls of similar height.
The light was creating a story about the two children.
Holding hands and running across the hill, lying on their backs to watch the stars.
Building a small campfire to cook and eat food.
The shapes weren't clear, but he could tell how long the two had been together.
"Is that Elia and Elia's friend?"
Elia smiled and nodded.
"A friend I spent a hundred years with. She was a half-elf. We cooked, studied alchemy, chatted, lay down to watch the constellations, and fell asleep. We did everything together."
How many more shapes were drawn?
The color of the light began to change.
The particles lost their golden hue and became slightly murky.
From that point on, he couldn't see her anymore.
The friend Elia had spent a hundred years with.
All that was depicted was Elia sitting alone, researching something.
"At the time, half-elves had a chronic illness. They would suddenly become unable to move, without any warning signs."
Even as Elia spoke, the murky particles continued to form shapes.
Shapes that lasted far longer than the golden ones.
It didn't show the exact passage of time.
But he could still tell.
Compared to this period, the moments Elia spent with her friend were absurdly short.
*Swaaaaaa.*
The particles, which had been growing murkier, now turned a vivid red.
At that moment, the Yodel Ranger squad leader Kancho re-manifested.
Kancho climbed onto his shoulder and pointed down the hill with a finger.
"Captain. There's something down there. I tried to look, but it's too far down to see clearly."
He turned his gaze to where Kancho was pointing.
There was nothing visible...?
He furrowed his brow.
For a moment, something had twitched.
Soon after, his sense of presence detection picked something up.
He didn't know what it was, but there wasn't just one or two.
Enough to fill the area around the hill and more.
Before long, the area below the hill began to glow red.
'That's unsettling.'
It was far, but he could tell.
That light was the eyes of beings that had just awakened.
"Yodel Ranger Squad Leader Kancho! I'll sweep them away!"
Just as he was about to pull a heavy machine gun from his inventory, Elia placed a hand on Kancho's head.
"Eh?"
Kancho looked up at Elia with a blank face.
It was something she would never normally do.
Elia stepped forward and spoke.
"Owner. Leave this to me."
She put on the Star Gauntlets and stared down the hill.
"This, too, is a part of my past that I must face."
He looked at Elia, then quietly nodded.
At his reaction, Seira and Dark silently put their weapons away.
"Let's go."
Elia took a step down the hill.
At the same time, something began to draw across the sky.
Dozens of alchemical circles summoned by the Star Alchemist.
----------
T/N:
Just for being a free member, you'll get 5 advanced chapters every week!
Access 35 chapters in advance on my Patreon:[email protected]//towerup