Torquetum and Woff ③
It wasn’t just similar. It was exactly the same.
But it couldn’t possibly be here, so it must just be a similar tower.
If that’s the case, then what is this tower?
“You must be surprised. I was surprised at first as well.”
“…Yes. It’s identical to the watchtower at my house…”
“For it to be this similar, perhaps there’s some connection.”
“A connection?”
“Shall we go inside?”
“Is that alright?”
“I do not mind.”
This tower had a door. A wooden door, but it had a lock.
Ms. Pachira showed me the key, saying this was it.
She opened the tower door.
Instantly, a musty, lukewarm breeze blew out. I covered my nose and mouth and grumbled.
“Don’t tell me you’ve never been inside?”
“We have not, no.”
The internal structure was also identical. A spiral staircase led up to a small room.
And from there, going up further led to the top of the tower.
The view from the top… you could just barely see the mansion’s roof, maybe?
That’s because this tower was only about as tall as the mansion’s roof.
I gave a wry smile, thinking it didn’t serve much purpose as a watchtower.
The size of the rooftop was also the same as the watchtower. Open-air, with a ceiling, and not very spacious.
There was just a single chair.
A thought occurred to me. What was the watchtower at my house like now?
I knew Mineha-san had brought various things into it.
Since a girl was using it, I couldn’t go inside.
“…Well now. The view is rather… underwhelming…”
Ms. Pachira made an obviously disappointed face.
Well, yeah, being able to see nothing but the mansion roof no matter which way you looked was bound to be a letdown.
“I think the tower was probably here first, and the mansion was built around it.”
“Hmm. That seems likely. So, what of the tower’s contents?”
“They’re completely the same.”
“Hmm. All that remains is the room, then.”
“…Room…?”
I tried to recall. Was there a room in the tower back home?
It had been so long since I last climbed it.
Ms. Pachira unlocked the door to the room.
The room was thick with dust, and various pieces of junk were scattered about.
Wooden boxes were stacked up, and scrolls were covered in dust. There were statues and paintings, too.
“Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough!”
“Th-This is dreadful.”
Unable to bear it, Ms. Pachira opened a window. Or rather, since it wouldn’t open, she smashed it with her staff. Hey, hey.
Sunlight streamed in, and a breeze entered. The dust was truly awful.
It took some time to clear away most of the dust.
I looked around the room again.
“There’s all sorts of things here.”
Wooden boxes. Scrolls. Stone statues. Paintings. They were all placed haphazardly; it was completely being used as a storage room.
I tried using the Relic [Wheel of Fortune].
Hmm, a reaction… the wall? Ehh… The wall was glowing yellow.
Yellow, huh. Yellow… It’s yellow, isn’t it.
Ahhh, yellow. Super rare. Nothing good ever comes from yellow…
“What is it?”
“Hmm.”
I tapped it tentatively. Hmm. It felt like a normal wall.
But still, it was a pure white wall. Only this part. The rest was old stone wall.
Only this section was pure white. Way too suspicious.
“Is something wrong with that wall?”
“Er, ah.”
I noticed. Ms. Pachira’s face was close. Her green hair had just one streak of white mixed in.
Fluffy white cat ears. Translucent white skin.
She had sparkling, beautiful jade eyes. Her pale pink lips were glossy.
“What is it?”
“Ah, no, um… that.”
The very bottom… a part of the right edge of the wall was glowing green.
I crouched down and touched that part. Hey, this part wasn’t wall.
When I pushed lightly, it slid open, revealing a cavity, and the green light vanished.
“………”
I’d been thinking this for a while, but is the [Wheel of Fortune] evolving?
Anyway, I reached my hand into the cavity.
There was nothing inside. However, there was something like a switch near the top. I pushed it.
Then, click-clack, click-clack, a sound came from above.
“Woff, what did you do!?”
Ms. Pachira cried out in surprise.
“What do you mean? I pushed the switch.”
“Look at the wall!”
The wall? I looked up, still hearing the click-clack-clatter sounds.
I was speechless. The white wall was rapidly changing in block-like sections.
Looking closely, the blocks were rotating individually. Flipping over.
Gradually, a picture was drawn onto the wall. It felt similar to dominoes falling to reveal an image.
What is this picture? The bottom of a ship lying on its side?
“This resembles the… Ark Ruins… on the 12th floor of the city’s Dungeon.”
“There’s something like this on the 12th floor?”
“Y-Yes. It looks similar.”
The Ark Ruins… why would that be depicted on the wall of this tower?
When the entire wall had changed, text finally appeared. It was in an ancient language.
“…Um, let’s see… ‘Hayarn’s Legacy. An endless dream someday. Those who seek and wish. Take the Holy Seal to the second Tower.’ …Holy Seal?”
“This must be it.”
Click. Ms. Pachira removed something from the wall.
The instant she did, clatter-clack-clatter-clack, the picture reverted to the plain white wall.
What Ms. Pachira had taken out was shaped like a round medal.
A unique pattern, not text, was carved on its surface. Judging by the color, the material might be copper.
Wait a minute. I feel like I’ve seen this pattern somewhere before.
“Is this the Holy Seal?”
“It seems so. Here.”
Ms. Pachira handed the Holy Seal to me.
“Eh?”
“I shall give it to you.”
“Are you sure?”
“It’s nowhere near enough, but consider it a token of my gratitude. Besides, the second tower is likely at your place, is it not?”
“Probably… I think so, anyway.”
There might be other towers, but well, I couldn’t exactly not investigate the tower at home.
Ms. Pachira suddenly murmured.
“Hayarn’s Legacy, you say.”
“You know about it?”
“An endless dream someday. I recall reading that phrase in some book long ago. I cannot recall the details. However. If those Ark Ruins are involved, this could become quite serious indeed.”
Ms. Pachira twitched her cat ears slightly, and her two tails, one long and one short, swayed.
“…Is there something about them?”
“I do not know if there is. After all, the 12th floor is a megalithic zone. Especially the Ark Ruins, nothing is known about them. No one knows. Why is there such a floor, and why is there a megalith like a giant, overturned ship’s hull there…”
“So it’s stone. Then why is it called the Ark?”
“That, too, is unknown.”
“But the city’s Dungeon, huh. It’s closed off right now, isn’t it…”
“Indeed. Not until the investigation team returns.”
It’ll have to wait until then.
Anyway… I’m curious, so I’ll investigate the tower at home when I get back.
The only problem is Mineha-san.
On the way back. Someone called out from behind me.
“Oi. You.”
I looked around. No one there. Me?
“What is it?”
I stopped and turned around. It was a pair of men.
Their appearances were just… lanky and fat. How else to put it? Lanky and fat.
Their clothes were, well, nothing special came to mind.
Their vibe was… henchman A and B.
The one designated A, Noppo, spoke.
“Y-You just came out of Torquetum’s place, didn’t you?”
“Yes, I did. What about it?”
“Y-You bastard. What business did you have with them!? What’s in that bag!?”
The one designated B, Debu, barked while glaring at me.
Ugh. I was troubled. What was with these henchmen A and B?
“You bastard! Don’t just stand there, speak up!”
“H-Hey, Noppo. Let’s just kill him already. This pest.”
“Y-Yeah, Debu. You pest bothering our Torquetum!”
Pest… Noppo and Debu drew their swords. A longsword and a thick sword.
Why swords? Wouldn’t it normally be a knife?
Also, seriously? This isn’t some back alley.
It’s a busy city street with plenty of eyes. In fact, several people are watching us from a distance.
Drawing swords in a place like this? What are these guys thinking? They’ll get caught.
Besides, hmm. Right now, both my hands are full with bags.
That’s because, as a small token of thanks when I left, Ms. Lupinus had loaded me up with lots of sweets.
The apple on top was from Ms. Liv.
“Dieeee!”
“Pest, dieeee!”
Noppo and Debu charged at me. They certainly had momentum. Just momentum.
This was annoying. Both my hands were full. Can’t be helped.
I dodged Noppo’s sluggish longsword and deflected Debu’s slow, thick sword with a spinning back kick.
My core strength had improved considerably thanks to the Witch’s training.
“Buhii!?”
And even if both hands were full, my legs weren’t.
“You bastard!”
Noppo backed away fearfully. I used Debu as a springboard and jumped.
Debu fell flat on the ground.
“Debuuu!”
“He used me as a stepping stone!? Gubeh!”
I brought an axe kick down on Noppo’s head.
A direct hit to the crown. Noppo collapsed to the ground.
I defeated the somehow incomprehensible Noppo and Debu.
No, really. What was up with those guys?