The Story Of The Second Son Of The Baron Family [EN]: Chapter 15

The sun beat down intensely, and the clouds drifted leisurely as always. A downward glance revealed a scene of strong monsters feasting on weaker ones, a common sight in this territory.

“Just in case, I’ll scout around. They might have moved in the meantime.”

“…Do so. Don’t go too far. Gaen, go with him.”

“Yes.”

If a group that size had moved, we would have noticed. In a plain with no fog and no obstacles, the movement of hundreds of giants, ranging from 5 to 15 meters tall, would attract attention. Nevertheless, I sensed they were trying to believe me by doing reconnaissance.

As Gaen and Litry departed, leaving Morito and me, Morito steered his horse closer and asked,

“Is there really something here? It’s just an empty plain as far as I can see… Don’t take this the wrong way, I believe you, but could there be something wrong with the item you brought?”

“Just a moment, please.”

As Morito said, the map could be faulty. I had only recently moved beyond letters into words [referring to a deeper understanding of magic/imprints], and this was my first time using a map in a real-world situation. I didn’t fully grasp the principles of imprinting, so an error could have occurred for some unknown reason.

But why? There’s no effect without a cause. If a map that had been working fine suddenly showed an error, there had to be a reason. If the map was wrong, it would be for some reason I didn’t know. What could it be?

“It’s the same…”

Just in case, I disconnected and reconnected the flow of mana to the map, but the massive mana reaction still shone brightly in the center. This meant it wasn’t a simple update issue. But even looking around, I couldn’t see any being with such massive mana, so what was going on?

“We’re back.”

While I pondered, my companions returned.

“There wasn’t anything special. I think Renil might have misjudged something.”

“It can’t be helped. We can’t stay here chasing an invisible illusion forever, Renil! Get on your horse!”

This place was in the heart of enemy territory. As Morito said, we couldn’t stay in one place for long based solely on my hunch. Furthermore, we had a mission. Reluctantly, I nodded and was about to step on the stirrup when a bolt of lightning struck my head. Why couldn’t I think of something so simple?

Sight.

I lay on the ground, staring intently at the earth. Sight allowed me to see each grain of soil, but not what was beneath. Until recently, there was no other way, but now there was.

Looking underground through X-ray vision drained several times more mana than before. However, as if reflecting the meaning of “X-ray vision,” I could clearly see what was underground.

“What are you doing!”

“Renil!”

“I found it!”

“What are you talking about?”

“It wasn’t on the surface. It was underground!”

It was a moment when the trust in the imprint that had been wavering was solidified.

#

‘To think that this much magic stone is buried here!’

The large mana reaction was from the magic stone buried underground. This was very surprising.

Magic stone.

Simply put, it’s an ore containing magic power. But even that explanation makes it far from simple.

A typical mineral containing magic power is Mithril. There are also legendary minerals like Orichalcum and Adamantium, but they are only legends. In any case, the magic power in such minerals has become a characteristic of the mineral itself, so its use is limited.

However, magic stone is different. Because it contains pure, unaltered magic power, it can be used in various ways. Of course, it’s weaker than stone and no different from glass, but magic stone was more valuable than Mithril in terms of its range of uses.

In a word, it was a jackpot. Magicians can’t get enough of magic stone, and would pay fortunes for it. And it was buried in large quantities. If properly developed, it would shake the entire continent.

‘Why hasn’t it been discovered until now…? Well, it makes sense.’

Magic stone contains magic power inside, but doesn’t emit it. It just keeps it. So no matter how much is piled up, it’s never easy for magicians to detect it underground. Besides, what kind of place is this? It’s monster territory, almost forbidden to humans.

If this magic stone was buried under the Magic Tower, where magicians swarm, or near a large city, someone might have noticed it. But who could have noticed it buried in a place like this? In that respect, going on reconnaissance with the map activated was genius. Really, it was lucky that I awakened the imprint that day.

Dig. Dig. Dig. Dig.

Excited by the amount of magic stone I had confirmed with X-ray vision, I continued to dig, but was still far from it. The Dig magic created a pit by pressing down on the ground, rather than removing it, so it wasn’t possible to dig beyond a certain depth. Furthermore, it was blocked by rocks.

“Renil! Come up quickly! Monsters are coming!”

“Tsk. It would be easier to persuade them if I had evidence.”

There’s still no technology to detect magic stone. The magic stones discovered so far have only been found by chance or by digging where a little magic power is felt. That’s why it’s so precious. In such a situation, doubts were bound to arise about sending personnel to a dangerous place based solely on my words.

They’ll send them. They’ll have no choice. It’s magic stone, of all things. The Magic Tower seriously searches even if a half-baked person says it’s buried somewhere. I’m young, but I’m a 4th circle magician and a genius the Magic Tower is watching. Even if full-scale development is impossible, I could lead the search sufficiently.

#

“What did you just say…? I must have misheard, right?”

“I think you said magic stone, is that true?!”

Wander, Ild, Boto, and Majima, who heard that there seemed to be a magic stone mine underground in monster territory, looked at me with disbelief and asked again.

“Yes. The depth is deep and monsters are approaching, so I couldn’t see the real thing, but I’m sure of it.”

“You should have brought it! You should have brought it no matter what!”

“But how can you be so sure if you haven’t even seen it?”

Wander was so disappointed he hit the desk. However, the others wanted to judge the truth of my words first. There was no reason for me to lie, but a false report couldn’t be ruled out. I told them in detail about what happened during the reconnaissance.

“That’s an amazing item… Can I take a look?”

“Yes. If you look here, this square is the room we’re in. The blue dots are mana reactions, and the strength is indicated by the darkness and lightness. And if you spread the mana a little wider…”

The five blue dots on the map gradually became smaller, and a larger number appeared. As the range widened, the presence of the magicians in each room was displayed.

“You can see even wider.”

“Oh! Did you really make this? It’s an amazing artifact. I feel like grabbing your pants and begging you to show me some related data.”

“Can’t you make more of these? If you take it on the fall expedition, you can avoid unnecessary battles and detect ambushes, so it would be very useful.”

That’s right. This is a really useful item. It has also been tested in the field, and if you just spread it, there are plenty of people here who will test it. It wasn’t difficult to make either. Once the imprint was engraved, it could be used on the premise that others could also give it magic power. Of course, it was impossible to check the engraved imprint.

The problem was that the operating method of this map was a bit complicated. Simply injecting magic power would only show the surrounding terrain within sight, and to show its true value, it had to be used with Search or Seek.

“I’m sorry. I managed to make it by chance, but it only reacts to my magic power… I’m continuing my research, so I’ll try to make it so that everyone can use it by the time of the fall expedition.”

“Hmm… I’d like to have you join my research, but it’s a personal research achievement, so I can’t help it.”

“Tell me if you need anything. I’ll support you as much as possible.”

“Thank you.”

I protected the map from those who were eyeing it greedily, quickly stored it in my pocket, and changed the subject back to magic stone. What’s important now is not the map.

“Anyway, I confirmed a huge mana reaction during the reconnaissance, and then went to that place. It was a wide, empty plain, but suddenly I felt a stronger scent of mana from underground. As you know, magic stone hardly emits any mana. Even so, if it’s that much, there must be a huge amount buried there.”

“But it might not be magic stone, right?”

“As you said, it might not be, but I think there’s enough reason to check it out.”

I know that the buried magic power is magic stone. But they don’t. But they will have no choice but to check. If it’s magic stone, they should check it, and if it’s not, they should check it even more. If such a magic power crystal is buried underground, aren’t you curious about what it is? Endless curiosity and exploration. That is the essence of a magician.

“I’ll talk to His Excellency. As Renil said, there seems to be enough reason to check it out, and besides, if it’s just a confirmation and not a full-scale development, it would be enough to go with a small number of people. I’ll go myself. Renil!”

“Yes, Elder.”

“Be ready to depart at any time. You’re the only one who knows the exact location.”

“I will.”

#

The decision was instantaneous. Duke Zick was a knight and a nobleman. He knew the value of magic stone well enough. The next day, as soon as the sun rose, I, Wander, and ten other members, including the commander of the Knights, rode our horses at a rapid pace towards our destination.

“Is this the place?”

“Yes, it is.”

As soon as I finished speaking, the earth sank in an instant. As if he hadn’t earned the realm of a 6th circle magician by playing *ttakji* [a Korean game similar to Pogs], his power was on a different level than mine. However, the limitations of the Dig magic were inevitable, and from then on, the knights began to step in.

Smack- Smack-

When the ground was dug with pickaxes and shovels wrapped in magic power, it was dug at such a rapid pace that it was hard to believe it was solid ground. The soil was moved to the space that Wander and I had pushed aside in advance, and when the pit, large enough for several people to lie down in, looked like a small circle when looking up, I shouted.

“Stop!”

As a result of checking with X-ray vision, the magic stone would reveal itself if we dug a little deeper. Unlike Mithril, which can withstand even weapons wrapped in magic power, magic stone is as weak as glass. From now on, it was time for delicate touches rather than violent movements.

From this point on, tools that would appear when excavating ruins appeared: nails, brushes, hammers, etc. The magic power contained in the magic stone would leak the moment even a small scratch was made, so we had to be careful. That’s why it’s difficult to develop a magic stone mine. Not long after carefully digging, the greenish-yellow luster that everyone had been waiting for was revealed.

“It’s real magic stone.”

“Is this the magic stone? I heard it’s as precious as Mithril…”

“Kuhahaha. Magic stone, magic stone! You’re such a lucky guy! From now on, your nickname is Lucky! Lucky!”

While Wander was hitting me on the back as he was intoxicated by the light of the magic stone, I was filled with other thoughts.

‘How much can I get for this?’

End of Baron’s Second Son – Episode 15