The witch held the Relic plate and spoke with a nostalgic air.
"Mm-hm. The explanation still floods straight into your head. Nothing's changed there."
"So the witch has touched a Relic plate before?"
"Oho, that's a tale from ages past. By the way, young Wof — are you curious about Kon's name?"
The witch set the Relic plate down.
The unexpected question made me flinch.
"Wh— ah, well, yes."
"Mm-hm. So you do want to know."
The witch's eyes gleamed with an unsettling light.
Now that she put it like that… not really.
"I wouldn't say I'm desperate to know or anything."
"Mm-hm. I suppose I could tell you."
The witch smiled. It was a very charming smile.
My heart skipped a beat. For a different reason than you'd think.
"There's a catch, isn't there?"
"Well now, would you at least hear me out?"
I'm used to this back-and-forth with the witch.
But that smile still gets me every time. It truly was a witch's smile.
"Fine."
The witch rose to her feet and surveyed the room.
Then she plucked a single red letter from a stack of papers on the shelf.
"Now this, this is a troublesome and thoroughly annoying letter. Young Wof, have you ever heard of the Grand Guild, eh?"
"The headquarters of the Delvers' Guild, right?"
"Mm-hmm. And this letter is from the Grandmaster himself, no less."
"The head of the Grand Guild?"
"That's right. The Grandmaster—name of Alhazard Abramirin. An old coot even I can't stand, eh."
"...Abramirin..."
What was that? Seemed like an odd combination of sounds.
Though come to think of it, there was that dish called aburani-shin mirin-zuke or something.
"What's more, what's more—this old coot's a common human, yet he's lived for nearly six hundred years, eh."
"People can live that long?!"
The average lifespan for common humans was about a hundred years. Most died well before that.
"Well, well, there are ways, eh. Things like the Sacred Egg of the Talisman, for instance. But let's set that aside and get to the point. That old coot is asking me to investigate a certain location. Mind you, it should already be resolved and safe by now, so there shouldn't be any danger, eh."
"Where is it?"
"Well now, it's something even young Wof knows about. That forest, eh."
"...Ah. That forest."
That forest. The forest where I was defeated.
It shouldn't exist anymore. I have no idea what happened after that.
"Honestly, it's really something. I don't know who it was, but how kind of them to go and unseal one of the most lethal death dungeons in the hinterlands, eh."
The witch was visibly irritated, practically radiating the sentiment that this was quite the nuisance.
Her large fox ears, standing rigidly upright, were proof enough.
So that forest really was a dungeon after all.
Well, well. I suppose I have to own up to it now. I raised my hand.
"Uh, um, witch. That was me."
"Hmm. Hmm. Young Wof. What was you, exactly?"
"...I'm the one who unsealed that forest..."
"..."
The witch fell silent.
I fell silent too. The witch looked at me, then at the ceiling, then at the letter, and then she sat down on the black sofa.
She set the red letter down as if offering it to me.
She stared at me intently. Then suddenly she smiled. What a lovely smile.
"Yes, yes. In that case, I don't need to tell you Kon's name, do I? Pleased to work with you, young Wof."
The last grains of sand had fallen from the hourglass.
"Yes. Likewise."
And so I ended up investigating that forest together with the witch.
Then, seeing the elixir that had gathered in the egg-shaped vessel, the witch spoke in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Well now, young Wof. You see, there are sacred eggs of elixir scattered all over the world."
As she spoke, the witch placed the lid on the sacred egg of elixir and held it in her hands.
"Is that so?"
"Mm-hmm. The elixir inside the sacred eggs gets used up once you use it. And even though they're said to be scattered all over the world, the number of sacred eggs is limited. Which makes them rare and extremely expensive. And above all, all elixir is contained in egg vessels."
The witch toyed with the sacred egg of elixir in her hands as she spoke.
"All of it?"
"Yes, yes. The others are egg vessels too. Now then, now then, there's an interesting bit of trivia here. The great sage Rautas, who possessed the one and only Relic in all of history — [Wisdom] — had this to say: 'All sacred eggs of elixir have a Mother Grand Sacred Egg. The many sacred eggs in the world are all its children.'"
"So you're saying this sacred egg… was filling similar egg vessels with infinitely regenerating elixir?"
What intent did they have in doing that?
Could it be that this sacred egg was the source of all elixir?
I had a vague sense of it already. If this was a sacred egg, mass production would be possible.
With that, one could amass a tremendous fortune.
But the dangers would multiply as well.
Not that I was one to talk, since I had been planning to brew and sell potions myself.
I had the feeling elixir shouldn't be used that way.
That was probably why there were only a countable number of sacred eggs containing elixir.
"Well now, well now — whether that's really true or not, I wouldn't know."
The witch set the sacred egg of elixir down on the table.
"………"
"Hey there, hey there, young Wof. Where did you find that sacred egg of elixir?"
"The Junkyard."
"Oh my, oh my — the Junkyard, you say? That dungeon in the city?"
"Yes. It was emitting a blue light."
Hmm hmm. I see, I see. Well, that Junkyard has all sorts of things in it, you know.
"I believe the waste from surrounding dungeons accumulates there too."
"Yes, yes. Young Wof — do you know that dungeons, broadly speaking, fall into two categories?"
"Yes. The deepest dungeon, and the lowest dungeon."
"Quite, quite. And the lowest dungeon doesn't have a Junkyard. So the waste from the lowest dungeon also flows into the Junkyard at the deepest level."
"Right."
"And so, just like that, the accumulated waste builds up, layer by layer, becoming hills and mountains — and that's how the current Junkyard came to be. That's why nobody knows what lies directly beneath it. Perhaps even now, something incomprehensibly vast is still sleeping down there... Who's to say, really."
"...Please don't scare me. I'm planning to go back to the Junkyard once it reopens."
"Oh no no, I'm just saying it's a possibility, that's all."
Wasn't that basically a threat?
I forced a wry smile, then took a long, deep breath.
"Now I can finally put that burden down."
"You can, you can. Talking about secrets always makes you feel lighter."
"Yes. Now I can finally let go of both of these."
"Hmm? Hmm? What do you mean by that?"
"I have a request for you, Master — my teacher, the Witch."
"Oh my. What might that be, hmm? My dear pupil, young Wof."
"I'd like to offer the Elixir's Sacred Egg and the Relic Plate to the Witch."
The Witch smiled.
"I see, I see. Hmm. I refuse."
"Huh, why not? Don't you want it? It's an amazing item."
"Well, well, that may be true, but that's exactly why I can't just give it to Kon, right?"
"That's because you're my esteemed, noble master, the Witch."
"My, my, that's lovely to hear. The part that sounded like you were reading from a script was just my imagination, right?"
"Nothing of the sort."
"Mhm, mhm. Kon believes in you. Kind-hearted young Wof would never try to dump a troublesome burden on his master, right?"
"I would never do anything like that. Still, I think it would be better for the Witch to have it than for me."
That was genuine. The Witch, a Rank I, would keep it properly stored.
She wouldn't misuse it either. She'd probably use it for research.
"Feel free to use the Relic Plate as well, if you'd like."
"Oh no no, Kon already has more than enough Relics. Besides, there's no telling what kind of Relic is inside this plate. Hmm hmm. That's right. Why don't Kon just take custody of the Relic Plate?"
"Really?"
"Mhm mhm. I'm curious what Relic might be inside. I happen to have a way to look into it, so shall I make some inquiries?"
"Come to think of it... I am curious. Please."
"The only thing is, it'll take a bit of time. Is that alright?"
"Of course. So then, what about the Elixir?"
"Well now, you should keep the Elixir safe with yourself, just as you have been. And besides, Kon may not have much use for it, but it seems like Wof will have plenty of occasions to need it. Saying this might give the wrong impression, but Kon is a Witch who can abandon anything when it comes to necessity and profit. But Wof is different — my dear pupil could never cast aside what matters. Right?"
The Witch picked up the Elixir's Sacred Egg and held it out to me with a soft gesture.
She had a point. I'm the type who couldn't abandon it.
Even if it became a headache down the road, if someone asked me for help, my body would probably move on its own.
That's my greatest weakness… and the part of myself I can accept.
"Thank you, Witch."
I took the Elixir's Sacred Egg from the Witch.
I tucked it deep into my pouch. Then a thought crossed my mind.
"You said you could throw everything away based on need and cost-benefit — does that include me, your disciple?"
The Witch blinked for a moment.
"Well now, well now… who can say?"
She wore a gentle, mischievous smile.
Her cheeks slightly flushed.