Hmm… Can't seem to find a Treasure Weapon.
I had no idea how long it had been since I started following the smartphone's instructions through the Treasure Hall. I was walking through the darkness with more than a little exhaustion weighing on me.
The Treasure Hall was safe, just as the information on my smartphone had said.
It was dark and the atmosphere was oppressive, but at least there were no Phantoms. However, at the same time, I hadn't found a Treasure Weapon either.
Maybe you had to meet certain conditions before a Treasure Weapon would appear. That was what I'd been thinking, and I followed the instructions coming from my smartphone, but nothing changed.
Well, the tasks were things like pressing buttons, unlocking locks, pulling levers, or peeling off talismans — nothing too demanding, so it didn't really bother me. But I was starting to get sleepy.
It was that kind of hour… I'd planned to grab a Treasure Weapon and head right back, but even taking breaks along the way, fatigue was fatigue.
The Treasure Hall seemed to be divided into various areas. I'd never seen a Treasure Hall quite like this before.
Walking through a Treasure Hall alone was something I rarely got to do, so it was a valuable experience, in its own way.
That was when I heard a voice come through the smartphone.
"It's me, Mary. I need you to peel off the talisman on the lid of that old well that says 'do not open,' and then open it."
"Sure thing."
I approached the ancient well that had appeared out of nowhere, peeled off the talismans plastered all over the lid as instructed, and opened it.
I peeked inside, but it was pitch black. I couldn't see a thing.
"It's me, Mary. Do you understand what 'do not open' means?"
"Of course I do. 'Do not open' means you're not supposed to open it."
But come on… you're the one who told me to open it.
"It's me, Mary. You've already pressed twenty taboo switches, you know."
Finally… I wasn't sure what taboo switches were, exactly, but at least it was progress.
I sighed and spoke to Mary.
"Is there, like, a prize or something?"
"It's me, Mary. …I don't understand what you're saying."
"How can you not understand…? I cut into my sleep time to come here too, you know?"
"It's me, Mary. It's not just Lady — my head is starting to hurt too."
What do you mean? I followed your instructions, so some kind of reward should be in order, right? Like a Treasure Weapon — the thing I'm actually after.
Still, I was pretty worn out. I sighed and leaned against the wall.
That was when — I heard a heavy thud from behind. I jerked away in a hurry.
"It's me, M-Mary. Th-that's — the hidden room!"
Mary's voice was panicked.
Where there had been nothing but a featureless wall moments ago, an entrance had opened up.
The atmosphere was unmistakably different from the areas I'd been walking through so far.
I had a bad feeling about this. In my experience, anything I happened to find was usually trouble.
But this time, I really had no choice but to go in. After all, there were no Phantoms in this Treasure Hall… and there might be a Treasure Weapon inside.
I stepped inside cautiously. After descending a few flights of stairs, what I found was — a white, metallic room.
The interior was simple. In the center sat a table, and at the back was something that looked like an ancient altar.
The atmosphere here was clearly different. The places I'd been walking through until now were all dark and dilapidated, but this room was bright.
And there was something — sharp about it. It vaguely reminded me of Code's buildings.
"It's me, Mar—"
"Hello? I can't hear you very well."
"It's — ary. D — don't you — ever press that — — —"
Static crackled through, and the call cut out at the worst possible moment.
I checked my smartphone and scratched my head.
Oh no… the battery had died. Lucia had just charged it for me, but after hours of continuous calls with the flashlight on as well, the energy must have finally run out.
Well, what now? I took another look around the room.
First, the box-shaped table in the center.
On it sat a crown resting on a pedestal, with a button installed in front of it.
At the back was something like an altar, and atop it sat a dimly gleaming statue.
I crossed my arms, nodded thoughtfully, and let a hardboiled grin spread across my face.
So it's a puzzle, is it.
I see… I see, I see?
§ § § Lady was running for her life, desperately fleeing from Lucia in pursuit.
Lucia's movement speed was nothing like it had been a few hours ago. She was gliding across the frozen floor, accelerating with magic.
Inside the Treasure Hall, Lady was sprinting at full speed and couldn't shake her off. If anything, Lucia had barely used any magical energy or stamina.
At this rate, she would be the one to collapse first.
She wanted to use teleportation to escape, but even that was impossible. Lucia had marked her with magic.
Even if she teleported away, Lucia would follow without question. The way this expressionless girl chased her down without so much as raising her voice — there was something terrifyingly absolute about it.
Driving her out wasn't an option either. The Treasure Hall could perform divine abductions, but expelling someone wasn't one of its core functions.
If the person wanted to leave on their own, that was one thing, but Lucia had no intention of doing so.
Lady was trapped in a spiral of extreme confusion and terror when Mary caught up to her.
"It's me, Mary. This is bad! Cly found the Altar Room!"
"What!? How!?"
The Altar Room was the deepest sanctum of this Treasure Hall.
It wasn't exactly a room they were tasked with protecting, but finding a small room in this vast Treasure Hall should have been incredibly difficult.
"I tried to explain, but the call got cut off! He ran out of battery!"
"You're kidding…"
"But I managed to tell him not to press the button!"
In the Altar Room were the Star God's statue and a crown. And one single button.
The statue and the crown were taboo switches. Placing the crown from the table onto the statue's head would revive the Phantoms that the Star God had personally created.
And that was preparation for an invasion of the outside world.
But the more important thing was the button on the table.
Unlike the previous taboo switches, it wasn't a button that revived sealed Phantoms.
"If he presses that, the worlds will merge! It's too early!"
It was a button that connected this Treasure Hall to the outside world.
In principle, it was supposed to be pressed after enough fear had been gathered and the Star God had returned.
The moment that button was pressed, this Treasure Hall — which existed in a separate dimension — and the Imperial Capital Zebuldia would merge.
The [Star God's Diorama] and the outside world would become freely traversable, and the Phantoms — who currently could only slip out by riding on rumors — would be able to roam the outside world at will.
The only reason the button hadn't been pressed yet was that the time hadn't come.
The Star God hadn't returned, and the collection of fear was still only half complete. And for humans, a button that would allow Phantoms to appear in the outside world would be nothing short of calamity.
In other words, simply put, it was a button that no one benefited from pressing.
She racked her brain furiously as she ran.
At the very least, since Mary had warned him, even that guy probably wouldn't press the button. As for the crown — well, putting it on the statue was fine, or rather, it might even be advantageous.
If the Phantom that a god had poured power into was revived, the tide of battle would reverse in an instant.
The statue looked like it was designed to have a crown placed on it, so even if he was only a Hunter, the chance of him putting it on wasn't exactly low. Nothing had said "don't place the crown" like in the previous areas…
The good news was that she now knew where Cly was — the one who, too busy running for his life, hadn't had the chance to confirm his location.
She would lead the way to Cly. If she could reach him, Lucia's anger should subside.
If this continued, the entire Treasure Hall would end up frozen solid.
Lady steeled herself, confirmed that Lucia was closing the distance in silence, and squeezed out every last drop of speed she had left.
"Big brother! Big brother, she's over here!!"
§ § § "Fascinating, fascinating, fascinating."
I nodded approvingly as I gazed at the softly gleaming crown.
I was weak, but I was still a Treasure Hunter. It would be a lie to say I had no interest in ruins and mechanisms. I simply prioritized safety — and in a safe Treasure Hall like this, there was nothing wrong with taking a thorough look.
After descending the stairs from the hidden entrance for a few seconds, what I found was an extremely interesting hidden chamber.
A statue gazing up at the heavens, a silver crown, and a big red button.
What truth did these three things reveal?
And then there were Mary's calls, cutting in and out.
My Treasure Hunter blood was stirring.
I'd love to sit down and puzzle through this properly, but a considerable amount of time had already passed since I entered this Treasure Hall. I needed to get back soon, or it would be morning.
"Well, I'm taking the crown, at least. I am a Treasure Hunter, after all…"
Talking to myself, I lifted the crown from the pedestal. It was light.
I spun it around to examine it, but aside from patterns engraved on the surface, nothing stood out.
Hmm, hmm, I see… So this is a Treasure Weapon? Doesn't seem like what I'm after, though.
I looked over at the ostentatiously displayed statue. A peculiar humanoid figure. Right at the top of its head was a groove — a groove that would fit this crown perfectly.
I nodded. A mechanism so simple even an idiot could figure it out. Really, this Treasure Hall was making a fool of me.
All I had to do was place this crown on that statue, right?
……………………Ugh.
After agonizing over the decision, I ended up putting the crown on my own head.
Look, I get it? I understand that I'm supposed to place this crown on that statue. I can tell some kind of mechanism will activate.
But still… that would leave me with next to nothing.
I came here to obtain a Treasure Weapon. Whether this crown counted as one was uncertain. But I could at least verify that before putting it on the statue.
What I find in the Treasure Hall is mine. That's the rule.
The phrase "disqualified as a Treasure Hunter" flashed through my mind. But honestly, I'd been disqualified a long time ago.
Besides, Mary never actually told me to put the crown on. My phone died, so maybe she was going to tell me later, but still…
After all that rationalizing, I took a deep breath.
So it comes down to this button, huh… I was thinking that when a cold breeze suddenly blew in from the entrance.
"Oh, Lucia."
Tumbling down the stairs and through the entrance was none other than Lucia.
Labored breathing, pale skin. Sharp eyes.
She was clearly not herself. Those eyes fell on me and widened dramatically.
This was the kind of situation where I'd better say something fast.
I hurriedly spoke to Lucia.
"Um… what brings you here this late at night? What a coincidence."
"!?!? Th-that — that's what I should be saying to you!!"
A wave of cold air surged forth, and frost crept across the walls and floor. I was feeling far from comfortable myself and couldn't help but sneeze.
Cold attacks that didn't deal real damage were one of the few attacks that even the Barrier Ring couldn't fully counter.
"O-of course — I mean, look… right! I was searching for a Treasure Weapon! I found some really great intel. Want me to tell you about it later?"
"…Do you understand why I'm here, brother?"
A strangled voice. Now that I thought about it calmly, she had a point.
To enter this [Otherworldly Treasure Vault], you needed the information from the emails sent to a smartphone. The fact that she was here meant she had surely come after finding the notes I'd left behind.
That was when I looked at Lucia's face — which had regained just a trace of its usual color — and blinked.
"Hm? Did I… worry you?"
"…Are you an idiot?"
"N-no, it's fine! This Treasure Hall is safe. I already knew there wouldn't be any Phantoms, so…"
"………………"
Lucia was trembling in silence. I was in trouble…
In my defense, I had absolutely no intention of causing her worry. I'd planned to grab a Treasure Weapon quickly and come right back.
Who could've guessed I'd be stuck here this long unable to find one… In other words, it was all that Mary's fault for calling me.
Now that Lucia had shown up, my little adventure was over. I didn't want to cause any more worry, and I was getting sleepy anyway.
Still, I really wished I'd gotten that Treasure Weapon…
"Look, I'm sorry. Everything I needed to do here is done, so let's head back. You're so kind, Lucia."
"You…! You…!"
Lucia finally seemed to be recovering a bit.
I had never been able to beat Lucia. Ever since we were children, I'd been looking after her — well, lately, it was more the other way around.
Smiling brightly, I watched as Lucia let out a resigned sigh.
"Hah… Very well. I admit I got a little flustered. There's a lot I want to ask, and everyone must be worried too, so let's go back quickly."
Things she wanted to ask… I wasn't sure I had much to say, really.
This Treasure Hall had indeed contained no Phantoms, but no Treasure Weapons either. All in all, it was a completely wasted trip. Well, I did get some excitement out of it.
Lucia headed for the entrance.
As I moved to follow her, I remembered — the one thing I'd forgotten.
Man, I was on top of things today, actually remembering things like that.
And so, with a grin on my face, I reached out and casually pressed the button that had been installed on the table.
The world shook. Lucia whipped around and rushed toward me.
Her face was twisted tight.
"!?? Brother, what did you just do!?"
"Huh? I just pressed the button?"
"Why!? Why did you press it!?"
"Because Mary told me absolutely not to press it, so—"
"She TOLD YOU NOT TO and you pressed it anyway!!"
Lucia grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me violently.
"Wait — Lucia, listen! I — was — told — the same — kind — of thing — over and over — by Mary — all the way here! Just — look — at this smartphone—"
Let me make my case here. Up until now, I'd been forced to do the same kind of thing over and over.
She told me to press buttons I wasn't supposed to press, peel off talismans I wasn't supposed to peel, and open wells I wasn't supposed to open. Of course I'd press the last button too.
"And besides, your source was a Phantom!! You shouldn't listen to what a Phantom tells you!! Honestly, honestly, honestly, honestly, honestly!!"
Lucia screamed. Her first proper scream in ages, and it rang in my ears.
And then, the world shifted with a deafening crack.