"So, Nathan, what have you discovered?"
"I have found something over here. I will explain as you follow."
Nathan Zuckerman strode purposefully toward the direction he had been exploring.
"Unlike Baron Aile, I did not think to look for traces on the corpse, so I focused mainly on the walls and the ground of this cave. Even if no magical traces are felt, physical traces could still be present."
"That's right."
Kishiar agreed.
"So, I focused on the places where traces are more likely to be left and found this. Look here."
Yuder stopped walking. Nathan Zuckerman's finger pointed to where the cave's dug-out wall met the ground. At first, it was too dark to see clearly, but when an extra light was summoned, something became visible.
'That is...'
Half-buried in the spot, no bigger than a small coin, was something difficult to identify due to the wear of time, peeking out from the long-decayed and earth-turned dust.
"It might be an object left by the First Duke Tain, or it might not be. But it certainly looks like it has been here for a very long time."
"Your keen eye is remarkable, Nathan. Well done. Shall we take a closer look?"
Praising his subordinate, Kishiar bent down to carefully lift the object. Yuder, ready to unleash his power or draw his sword at any moment, stayed alert.
In the tense atmosphere, Kishiar casually turned the metal fragment this way and that, examining it in the light, then uttered a thoughtful 'Hmm...?'
"Did you find something?"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})"Yes. It's badly damaged, but I've seen something like this before. I think I know what it is."
"What is it?"
"A brooch used by mages."
Kishiar dusted off the metal fragment and held it up clearly on his palm.
"In times when mages were rare, ancient mages used to wear brooches to reveal their identity. Nowadays, there's no need for that, but thanks to that tradition, many mages still wear gemstone brooches."
Indeed, mages often wore brooches adorned with gemstones or jewels, supposedly to compensate for their lack of magic power. He hadn't realized there was also a symbolic meaning behind it.
'Thais Yulman did too... and so did many mages from the Western Mage Union. Even the gifts sent to me were in the form of brooches...'
"Then, could this be an object of the First Duke Tain?"
"Surprisingly, no."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Look closely at the pattern on the surface."
Kishiar tapped the brooch's surface with his fingernail tip. A bit of black ash fell away, revealing a faintly engraved pattern.
"Lemon flower pattern. A mage who used this pattern as his symbol existed a thousand years ago. A very famous one. Can you guess who?"
The mention of lemon flowers sparked a memory.
"Could it be, Luma?"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})"Correct."
Yuder was right. Recalling the face of Enon, who particularly liked lemons, he exhaled softly.
"But the First Duke Tain was Luma's disciple. A disciple could well have had a brooch bearing his master's symbol."
"That wouldn't have been the case by the standards of that era. Ancient mages never passed such objects to others. However... there were exceptions."
Kishiar paused briefly, gazing at the brooch fragment in his palm.
"When mourning the dead."
As if leaving flowers at a tomb, it is said that ancient mages used to leave their brooches at the graves of their close mage friends.
"It's not officially known, but in reality, a brooch similar to this one is also stored in the imperial treasury. It's said to have been found in front of the Dawn Palace office, where the First Empress often stayed, after her demise and the conclusion of her funeral."
By then, the Archmage Luma had already left the Empire for some time. People whispered that Luma, who was a close friend of the Empress and hadn't appeared at her funeral, might already be dead. However, they were greatly surprised to find the brooch left there after the funeral.
"But since only a bouquet and the brooch were left behind, it was unclear whether Luma himself had placed it there, so it was not made public. The Second Emperor also seemed to think there was no need to widely publicize it."
"I see. So this item might also have been left in the same manner."
"It's hard to believe, but if it were an Archmage of that caliber, wouldn't it be possible? Coming all the way here, where the disciple's hidden research results are, and leaving a trace behind. It's a plausible guess, especially since there's already another precedent."
It was an astonishing possibility. Luma, known to have left the Empire never to return, might have secretly come back.
Even Enon, who seemed to know more about Luma than anyone, had never mentioned such a story. Yuder felt certain this was a fact even Enon might not know.
"Fortunately for us, we have someone who can discern whether this truly is an item left by Luma."
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})"Yes. I was thinking the same."
With a slight smile, Kishiar tucked the brooch fragment into his pocket.
"We'll need to send this to the headquarters of the Cavalry immediately upon our return."
Thinking of the brooch as possibly left in mourning for a deceased mage, the black clumps of soil surrounding it felt different. Perhaps they were part of a bouquet, like the one reported to have been left in front of the First Empress's office.
"Well, this allows us to conjecture a few new facts."
Kishiar spoke as he walked towards the central area.
"Firstly, this place might be even more important for the research findings of the First Duke Tain than the underground dungeon where the research journal was found. Secondly, after this place was created, someone infiltrated and left a brooch of mourning. Thirdly, that someone is presumed to be Luma."
Laid out like that, it was truly remarkable. It felt like reading a page from an ancient legend.
"Combining all three leads to one conclusion: this place likely had significance enough for Luma to visit. And I have just discovered traces of an ancient 'Sword Formation' right here in this central area."
Kishiar stood in front of the corpse at the very center.
'Sword Formation?'
It was a term Yuder couldn't recall ever hearing, likely related to ancient knowledge. But as Kishiar continued, it indeed seemed to be the case.
"The Sword Formation is a tactical setup from an old strategy game no longer played. To succeed in this formation, a special rule required promoting all ordinary pieces to knight pieces, allowing the multiplied knights to overwhelmingly push against the enemy with their superior strength."
"That sounds almost too overpowering for a tactic."
"Haha. It's indeed overpowered, but it's considered an unrealistic tactic nowadays, hence not used anymore. However, some speculate that strategy games were based on real military strategies, suggesting that such tactics might have been possible in ancient times."
"…So, knight pieces represent masters of the sword. Does that mean, in ancient times, it was easy for ordinary people to become swordmasters?"
Nathan Zuckerman, who had been listening quietly, asked with a slight frown.
"It's uncertain. What I meant to say is that the layout here resembles that of the Sword Formation. When we discovered the fourth-floor research lab in the underground dungeon of Tainu, something was also hidden in a manner related to strategy games. It seems the First Duke Tain was as fond of strategy games as I am."
Kishiar's eyes sparkled. It seemed he found great enjoyment in discovering traces of such ancient strategy games.
"…So, what's the relevance of this formation to our current situation?"
"In any case, if the formation is successful, the greatest advantage is here. At the center, where the piece is placed."
Kishiar looked down at the corpse beneath his feet.
"So, if there is any trace of the First Duke Tain hidden here, it might be right below this."
"Then it should be easy."
Yuder's eye shone brighter, now with a golden hue. Simultaneously, the ground where the corpse lay collapsed, revealing something hidden.
It was a bundle of papers wrapped in black leather.
'Just as Kishiar speculated.'
Yuder snatched it up and carefully unfolded it. The writing inside was in an ancient language that was unrecognizable, yet the paper felt oddly familiar.
'As if torn from somewhere… Could it be a separated page from that journal?'
Touching it, it seemed likely. What content could be so important that it needed to be hidden this way? After confirming the papers were safe, Yuder handed them to Kishiar.
"Good. We'll check it when we return. If we delay any longer, our little guide might think we've disappeared and come looking for us. Let's head back now."
"Yes, understood."
The return journey was much faster than the way in. Once Yuder emerged onto the ground, he immediately closed the entrance to the cemetery, and Kishiar likewise disassembled the structure he had erected.
Now, no one would know what had transpired here.
"What? You're leaving at dawn tomorrow? Didn't you say there was more to see?"
Seeing the three mercenaries announcing their departure upon their return, the inn's elderly owner expressed deep disappointment. He had expected to earn a few more days of lodging fees, and his sadness at their sudden departure was evident.
"Yes, we are departing earlier than expected. However, your granddaughter was an excellent guide, which expedited our work. As a token of our gratitude, we would like to offer an additional fee for her guidance."
"Really? Ha-ha-ha. Anne will be so happy to hear that."
The old man's face lit up with a smile as he accepted a few more silver coins. He then prepared a lavish meal for the three, using the best ingredients he could find.
Naturally, more than half of that meal ended up in Yuder's stomach.
"I have carefully packaged the brooch and sent it by courier hawk. Now, the only thing left is to decipher these papers."
Kishiar unfolded the bundle of papers he had concealed and brought with him, sitting in a chair.
"I'll be translating it on the spot, so the meaning might not be exact... But if you're curious, would you like to listen?"
"Yes."
"I'm not that curious, so I will step outside for a bit. Earlier, I saw the little girl chopping wood in the backyard on behalf of her grandfather."
Nathan Zuckerman rose and silently left the room. Kishiar, watching his departure with a subtly amused smile, waited until the door closed before extending his hand.
"Hmm. When an opportunity presents itself, how can one refuse? Come over here and let's look at this together."
