Final Droplet
Rena turns into wind and runs through the streets of Mildiana.
Over the course of a few days she had memorised the entire structure of the academic city, which boasted a vast area.
Her body, which has already become a demon, feels no fatigue or anything. It was impossible for a human body to do such a thing.
As a result of the investigation that lasted, Rena felt one thing strange.
(There’s no place to lock up the missing elves.)
Rena, who had convinced from the outset that it was humans work, thoroughly investigated every corner of Mildiana’s numerous noble residences.
Not to mention hidden rooms and escape routes in case of emergency, of course, but even the underground cells etc. were thoroughly investigated.
Her technique not only makes her presence unrecognisable, but it is also possible to see through objects. And not to mention the fact that it is impossible for a normal human being, even an beastkin or a dragon, to be aware of her in that state.
The first suspicion is of abduction by the nobility. The women of elves are particularly beautiful and highly valued as sl*ves. However, although sl*very continues in the Empire today, only elves are not allowed to be sl*ves, and violating this is punishable by heavy fines.
It is said that when the Empire allied itself with the Kingdom of Tsefte-Aria 100 years ago, the Empire accepted this clause from the Elf side.
Rena feels that the Empire is really different country from the one in which she lives.
But even so, it seems that there are still quite a few people who want sl*ves from the Elves. It is said that anyone who is found out will be sentenced to a heavy fine, and nobles will be stripped of their titles and suffer the pains of ruin.
Regardless of the punishment, it is human nature to want to lash out at a beautiful person. Therefore, Rena searched the mansions and other residences of the nobles above the Count who were more or less able to suppress the dispute, but not a single elven sl*ve was found.
And here the thought of the sheer number of missing elves had crossed her mind. What kind of facility would be able to hide such a large number of elves?
No matter how wealthy the mansion of a great nobleman was, it would be impossible to hide elves in the size of hundreds of people. Even if it were possible, it would not be possible to prepare the food and drink needed to keep them alive without suspicion from everyone.
And it seems that the Military Ministry has already conducted its own investigation of the nobleman’s residence. Such talk was heard in several of the houses.
In the light of the above, it has to be denied that the nobles have been abducting elves on a large scale.
Exactly how the abduction of the elves was achieved is also unknown. If mercenaries or ruffians were used, there would definitely be a leak somewhere. That kind of information would have been immediately sent to the military headquarters, and the reasons should have been identified immediately.
So, what was cited next was the plural crime, but this one lacks conviction.
It does seem as if it is not just this Mildiana that has missing elves.
In this world, even if one or two people were to go missing, it would not turn into a major riot, so it will only be discovered late. It is said that it is only in the last year or two that word of the disappearance of one or two elves has gradually begun to circulate throughout the Empire.
In particular, there have been so many missing persons in Mildiana recently that not a day goes by without hearing talk of disappearances in the streets. With the simultaneous prevalence of more abductions of elves everywhere, it’s not clear why there has been a recent spike in the number of victims in Mildiana.
–It is clear that certain intentions are indeed sensed, but there is no physical evidence anywhere. People suddenly disappear one day, leaving no trace at all.
As a result of these conditions, Rena stood in front of the entrance to a certain building.
The High Magic Court in the central region of Mildiana.
The entrance to the temple-like white building was supported by a few columns. It was a rather old building, which Rena knew had been there since her military school days in the Empire.
The High Magic Court is a facility that deals exclusively with the study of magic conduction. It is a facility where people with a great deal of magical power and deep magical attainments gather, and is used for a variety of purposes related to magic, from the creation of grimoires to the discovery of new techniques, and there are similar facilities in the plural outside of Mildiana.
It is the Sanctuary that is directly administered by the state, and most of it is not clearly defined because the internal information is also military secret.
Although parts of the area are accessible to the general public during the day, only negligible information can be obtained there. It is better to use the library if you want to gain knowledge about magic.
“Lucifer told me that phrase “Final Droplet” was elves.”
[Final Droplet.]
It is possible that this is a magic-related metaphor that Rena has never heard of before, not to mention Lucifer.
If you want to know why, then it was because someone who had used the “Final Droplet” might have incurred heavenly punishment, specifically the phrase “Crazy Wings”.
What it means is that someone might have used the Final Droplet as a catalyst for some kind of magic and ‘summoned the Crazy Wings’.
It’s not out of the realm of speculation, but Rena thinks it’s the strongest possibility at the moment. She didn’t have such thoughts in her head as retribution for killing elves or heavenly punishment. Gods don’t act on things like that.
And that would crush the possibility that a large number of the missing elves are still imprisoned somewhere as well.
Creatures used as ritual catalysts would on most occasions disappear from the world without a trace, or die immediately. As a result, the need to imprison a large number of elves was likely unnecessary.
Then there is also the possibility that magic is involved in the unbelievable series of disappearances of the elves.
Suddenly, they disappear. If that was the use of a transfer spell or something like that, that would explain it. In fact Rena herself had accompanied Lucifer on his journey from Tenebrae to the vicinity of the imperial borders using the transfer spell.
But there is a problem with the transfer technique. It is both terribly difficult and, if used, it is instantly noticeable to those skilled in magic perception. The first point is particularly problematic. Now Lucifer is using a human body, and his magic power is greatly reduced from quality to quantity, so he can’t operate the transfer technique.
That’s how high the spell is.
Not only does Rena have to spend the corresponding magic power, but it also leaves a mark anyway, so its use is strictly forbidden in the empire.
Where the culprit is the user of the transfer technique, there is not even a trace. Needless to say, the weakened Lucifer hints at the possibility of a spell that is superior to his current fighting and magical self.
The feeling of not wanting to admit that there was no doubt that there would be such a powerful user. Rena makes it a point not to give up the worst possibilities. She also has the unique idea that the less she wants to admit, the closer she gets to the truth.
She would have liked to have concluded her investigation at this point in time and immediately called Lucifer back to Tenebrae to monitor the situation in the Empire discreetly.
…… But unfortunately, my beloved husband has a bad habit of being so strongly drawn to such unknown and dangerous things.
Even though she knows that no matter what the threat is, if he shows his true nature it will all be over.
She is now filled with the desire to take her beloved away and put him in a safe place, and to have everything from taking care of his daily life to keeping it all to herself. If possible, she would like to spend her eternity just like that.
(…. I miss you, Lucifer-sama)
Reina sighs here.
“No, no, no. What am I thinking about when I’m on a mission? I must now concentrate on the matter at hand. And then be praised for excelling in finding out what is relevant to unraveling the truth.”
She pressed her cheeks to relax again.
Rena enters the High Magic Court with an insufficiently tense expression.
Then immediately she felt a sense of offence. Trace amounts of magic were felt throughout the stone-built floor. But nothing particularly strange happened with this alone.
As soon as she puts her hand on the floor and investigated, she realised what kind of magic was constantly being activated. It was all over the interior of the High Magic Court.
It was really a little bit of magic power. However, even so, it was possible to know that a high level magic was being carried out.
(…… Special Spell. Roughly the 12th rank)
The so-called special spells are part of magic that do not fall within the 7 major attributes and are not offensive in nature.
Since most of them are significantly difficult to master and the necessary magic power is extraordinarily high, an ordinary practitioner would not want to learn them deliberately. The reason is that no matter how well one understands the spell, one will never be able to use it.
The transfer spell that Rena can use is also equivalent to one of these special spell. Then again, the formula that expands across the entire floor also looks like something close to that.
(Does this work in human beings? That said, I may be half-demon, but I was also human after all, so it seems highly unlikely that this is the case. In other words.…)
When Rena flashed out of the spell activator, she immediately turned her attention over there because she felt something from the entrance.
There was a woman standing there.
(An elf? I think I’ve seen …… somewhere, isn’t she the receptionist who fell down from Lucifer-sama’s stare?)
With a lifeless expression, the female elf with glasses, walks slowly up and steps on the floor. Instantly, the floor shimmers and the female elf disappears without a trace.
(Disappeared. It really seems to be right to regard it as a type of transference technique. But why did she disappear at such a time ……?)
Rena switched her thoughts.
First I have to follow the tail. If I can follow the magic circle across this entire floor, I may be able to get closer to the truth.
She puts her hand on the floor to get the details of the magic formula. She analysed the limited activation conditions and poured our own magic power onto the floor.
Rena then disappears from that place in a similarly split second.
Note: I have replaced the term “Last Drop” or “Terminal Drop” (末期 の 雫) with “Final Droplet” to make it the same as the previous web.
