Chapter 3: Crane’s Guidance
Kuroa mentioned the “Instant Teleportation Device.” Could it be something akin to the “Anywhere Door” from that iconic national anime?
“Are you saying that we can go anywhere in an instant with this?”
I asked, unable to believe such a magical tool could exist. It felt absurd, even in a world filled with magic.
“Row-san, I believe that in the future, it will indeed be possible, but unfortunately, we can’t do that just yet,” Kuroa replied.
Anon, intrigued, prompted further with, “What do you mean by that?” Naturally, anyone would struggle to remain calm in the face of such a groundbreaking invention.
“First, this ‘Instant Teleportation Device’ has a name. Its official title is ‘Crane’s Guidance’—though I can’t take credit for naming it,” he explained, steering the conversation back.
“This ‘Crane’s Guidance’ can only activate accurately when paired with a corresponding device.”
“Paired?”
“That’s right. To put it simply, this ‘Crane’s Guidance’ is a magical device that allows instantaneous travel to a location where a corresponding device has been set up.”
I see, so it doesn’t allow travel to just anywhere, but only to predetermined locations… Still, that doesn’t seem like a significant drawback.
“Eventually, I hope to enable travel to specified locations with a reasonable degree of accuracy, even without a paired device.”
Wow, that’s amazing! I was excited, but then I noticed that Sensei seemed less than enthusiastic. Perhaps she could already perform instantaneous teleportation on her own. It was both fascinating and terrifying.
“About five years ago, we had already decided on the direction of our research. Since then, I’ve submitted papers to the Magic Guild and obtained patents along the way. You might be surprised to learn that ‘Crane’s Guidance’ was actually developed based on portals.”
Anon exclaimed, “Ah! That makes sense. Considering the movement capabilities of portals, it does seem applicable for teleportation.”
I had certainly benefited from portals. They were essential items for instant returns from dungeons. Especially in the first dungeon I explored, the 《Mirror Labyrinth》, I had repeatedly set up portals to return, strategizing for each floor before attempting again. Without portals, that entire strategy would have been impossible. Despite using them countless times, I had never considered the brilliance behind their invention.
“I’ve believed for a long time that portals would be the key to developing the ‘Instant Teleportation Device.’ Portals themselves are a representation of lost technology, created through a series of procedures without a full understanding of the underlying theories, making research incredibly challenging.”
“That’s true. There are so many unknowns about them,” Anon agreed with Kuroa’s explanation.
“Since we aimed to create an unknown magical device, every problem we faced was far from straightforward. It required not only combining existing technologies and knowledge but also many breakthroughs and new insights.”
Breakthroughs. Overcoming existing concepts. It often necessitates shattering common sense. I couldn’t help but be curious about how that was achieved.
“The issues of how to manage the vast amounts of mana required for teleportation and how to accurately designate a destination—these were problems I managed to solve on my own. However, there was one problem I simply couldn’t overcome.”
“A problem you couldn’t solve?” Anon asked, intrigued, given her expertise in magical theory.
“Yes. Portals were originally designed with a safety lock that prevented teleportation to any location other than ‘outside the labyrinth’ or ‘from outside to the labyrinth.’ This lock was a tricky one, and without a fundamental understanding of portal theory, we couldn’t figure out how to disable it. But to repurpose the portal as a ‘teleportation device,’ we had to unlock this safety feature. This was the greatest hurdle in our attempt to utilize portals as ‘Instant Teleportation Devices.'”
Kuroa hesitated for a moment, as if choosing his next words carefully.
“I’ll just say it—actually, it wasn’t me who accomplished this.”
A sense of dread washed over me. My heart began to race.
“I still remember it clearly. It was shortly after the rumors of the summoning of heroes to the noble families and high-ranking clans had spread—about a week later, I believe. A member of our clan burst into the lab, looking frantic. ‘The theory to disable the portal’s safety has been proposed!’ they said.”
Kuroa’s expression turned slightly bitter as he recalled that time.
“I never expected someone else would get ahead of us, but what surprised me even more was who accomplished it. I never thought she would beat us to it.”
My ominous feeling was confirmed. I was almost certain of it.
“The person who achieved this was none other than Princess Puffy of this kingdom.”
I looked up at the sky, desperately searching for the right words to express my thoughts. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t find them.