Chương 95: Manabreak Mine

Alaric's little drop of information had pleased Viren even more than it had Ryland. Well, it hadn't exactly pleased Ryland to begin with. Not that he was displeased by it. But he didn't feel any particular elation at finding a decent reason to go along with the excursion. In truth, because of his feelings regarding being a club member in name only, he would have gone along with them anyway. It was just a little bonus that the Prime Minister had chosen to come along as well.

"That's so amazing!" Viren was ecstatically saying about a week later when the news was official.

"Is it really?" Acrypha asked.

"Weren't you literally kidnapped the last time you met the Prime Minister?"

"And I came back too. If I get kidnapped, I'll come right back again."

"Right. You'll get rescued again."

"I won't!" Ryland let them bicker. They seemed rather happy to trade barbs back and forth. He didn't think much of it. People had far weirder ways of bonding and who was he to judge, really. On the day of the excursion, they all gathered on the academy grounds. Ryland was there, along with Viren and Acrypha, and then several other members of the Excursion Club too, which included both graduate and a regular mix of first to fourth year students.

The leader of their current excursion, as chosen by the Excursion Club's official leader, was Alendra.

"Oh, look who it is," she said, eyeing Ryland like she was looking at a very sharp knife.

"The hero of the rescue operation."

"Is that what they're actually calling me?" Ryland asked.

"Well that, and the typical other things like enigma, secret demigod, hidden archmage, an Incarnation of all things, and overpowered homeless person."

"Hmm. One of them is not like the others."

"I think Excursion Leader Alendra added that last one on her own," Acrypha said. Viren, meanwhile, looked like he couldn't decide if he ought to laugh or look outraged. They got going. The Prime Minister would be waiting for them at the main gate leading to the Manabreak mine, and they would all descend together afterwards. For all that Viren was excited, most of the academy wasn't really jealous of the Excursion Club.

That incident with the Eliminators from Kurin had soured their opinion of the Prime Minister, even if it wasn't really his fault.

"Stop looking like a puffed-up, arrogant rooster," Acrypha hissed at Viren when they were about a third of the way through Arcoryx City on their way to the mine.

"Or you're going to get people mad at you."

"I am not a rooster!" Viren said.

"I don't know. You look like you're about to start crowing, although it's entirely the wrong time of day to do so."

"Sir!" Ryland gently asked Acrypha not to pick on Viren.

"Not everyone is as tactful as you, Acrypha."

"Sir!" Viren looked at him aghast.

"You were supposed to take my side, not hers!" Ryland and the other graduate students kept them all mollified. There was one Academ going with them, who was the official overseer of the Excursion Club from the academy. Ryland didn't know the fellow apart from his name, but Academ Jules seemed to be a decent man. As they went through the academy, Ryland's mind started to wander. The string of events were reminding him of a certain Order.

While he doubted they had their hand in recent events, since he couldn't see a connection to Calamities in any shape or form, it was telling that the Prime Minister was visiting the Manabreak mine. The same location where they had captured the Vestige of the Calamity that Arcoryx Academy stored, the item that the Flourinus Order had stolen and was yet to be found. Hmm. He needed to check in on Castigor, the Fatehound he had set on the case.

Though, with the Order involved, he now knew why he had received no further updates. Their operative would be even more powerful than an Empyrean-ranked manabeast. So, as Ryland walked through the city and thought about the future, he figured he needed to act. He had to find the best way to prevent anything from happening now or later. But he just needed to go about ensuring Arcoryx's protection without alerting or alarming anyone.

Which should be easier now that he was in the good graces of a larger number of people. Or at least, now that the High Warden and the Oracle were convinced he wasn't a Calamity out to terrorize an entire nation. With that in mind, Ryland began casting as he walked, keeping his spells in a low mutter so as not to draw attention to himself. He had received a great deal of rewards from the Grand Frame too, and he needed to use those. Rewards like the Encapsulation Prints were going to be tremendously useful.

As such, the little walk all the way to the main gate of the Manabreak mine proved quite productive for Ryland himself.

"You seem positively elated, sir," Acrypha said rather astutely when they arrived.

"Well, as elated as someone like you actually cares to be, I guess."

"I am going to ignore that second statement," Ryland said.

"But yes, I think I had a productive walk."

"You did, sir?" Viren asked.

"What did you do?" Ryland took a deep breath.

"Well, you see, I had been thinking for a while on how best I ought to protect Arcoryx City from suffering any other misfortunes, such as the last Living Mana Incursion and the more recent attacks by Eliminators from Kurin, so I've decided to take a direct hand by using my past experience on Encapsulating my spells into a powerful Glyph, or set of Glyphs, and by using some Inscriptions based on…" Viren's eyes had glazed over at the speed of Ryland's words. Even Acrypha couldn't help the lost look on her face. Ah.

He had once again blitzed through information he should probably have disseminated with more care and tact. They were students, after all. Then again, he had seen smart and accomplished adults showing the same reaction, so it wasn't really their fault. It was a Ryland thing.

"Basically," he amended.

"I've Inscribed a spell on the city to keep it safe. That's about it." They both looked like they wanted to ask why he hadn't started off with that, but they respectfully kept themselves mum.

"What kind of Inscription is it supposed to be, sir?" Viren asked. Ryland was considering how best to reply, since he didn't want to inundate Viren with too much information again. It was strange. He took classes fine. No one gave him those blank looks during Magical Intuition. Which meant the common denominator was that he didn't get the time to plan properly. That was the main difference. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

If he just started babbling without the intention of actually teaching someone about the topic, then he always ended up more or less rambling. Which wasn't really ideal. Hmm. Something to keep in mind for next time. Before he could land on the best reply for Viren's query, it was time to proceed to the next stage of their little trip. The Manabreak mine and the Prime Minister of Androvia.

"Welcome students!" he said, addressing the Excursion Club.

"I feel honoured to be accompanied by the future of Androvia to the depths of Arcoryx City. I understand that our meeting at the academy hadn't gone as planned, but I am glad that you are looking past that unfortunate incident to join me once more in this little adventure." The students politely clapped, and the Academ leading them all replied formally that they were the ones who were actually honoured to be helping the Prime Minister while he was in the city.

There were some other formal exchanges of pleasantry and the like, but eventually, it was time to get going.

"Ryland," Alendra said. She had an odd look on her face.

"You've been requested to join the front." He exchanged quick glances with Viren and Acrypha, neither of whom looked at all surprised by that development for some reason. With a nod of farewell at them, he decided to head to the front. For now.

"And what am I to do there?" he asked once he began accompanying Alendra to the front.

"Be your annoyingly powerful and significantly odd self, of course," she said.

"Probably."

"Hmm. How does it feel to be the Excursion Leader?"

"What? Where did that come from?"

"From… my mouth? Or do you require something different?" He tried a few experimental blinks and pauses.

"I'm afraid my non-verbal means of communication aren't quite polished at the moment."

"No! I mean why are you asking me that?"

"…because I'm curious?" She glared at him a little like he was lying, which he really wasn't. He was mildly curious about everyone he felt like he could call a friend.

"It feels weird," she finally said.

"I wasn't really expecting this in all honesty. I thought I was just doing my part, and suddenly, they said I was doing tremendously well so I'd be the best leader they had at the moment."

"Well, congratulations all the same."

"Thanks," she said after a moment of hesitation. At the front, the others seemed a little wary of Ryland. He was also curious just what they thought and just what they knew, and what exactly the difference between the two were. Most of the Sentinels and Wardens accompanying the Prime Minister hadn't actually seen him in action. But no doubt, after what he had done when he had first encountered the Eliminators and dropped the bound and chained Dyron among their midst, they had to have surmised a lot.

And apparently, that had only raised their hackles about him. The Prime Minister, however, beamed as Ryland arrived.

"Hello, there. Marionys Ryland. What a pleasure to meet you properly."

"Greetings, Your Honour," Ryland said.

"To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Oh, nothing much at all. We're about to head into the Manabreak mine. I've heard it can get quite dangerous in there, so I thought I'd ask you to accompany me as we head into darkness."

"I hear the mine is very well lit, actually." Klyne Faldor blinked at him. So did the rest of his attendants.

"Well," the Prime minister, quickly recovering his stride.

"I'd be quite glad to have someone like you along with me, regardless."

"Someone like me, is it?"

"Indeed. I believe we have much to talk about. Now come. Let us see what the Manabreak mine has in store for us." The mine held in store what mines usually contained within them. That meant tunnels lined with wooden scaffolding, Glyphtech lamps shining at evenly placed intervals, Glyphtech pumps dealing with any dangerous gas, and the like. Nothing at all as Ryland remembered. It also currently held a group of students, some Academs, several overpowered mages, and the Prime Minister of Androvia.

The first leg of their trip had them walking to the nearest mine train. Academ Jules did a good job of explaining everything about the mine to the students in an engaging manner, often adding a small anecdote or joke with every bit of information he imparted. Ryland could see how he had become the overseer of the Excursion Club. He was quite good at this.

"Can someone tell me what they mine here?" Academ Jules asked.

"Living Mana," one of the students quickly answered.

"Correct! We obtain all the Living Mana we use in all our various Glyphtech and the like. When I was your age and first came to visit this mine, I actually ended up getting lost. I was eventually found, but only a few days later, so I ended up having to stay with the Miner Mages for a while. It was during that time I learned the fascinating art of eating Living Mana…" He continued his tale, making a lot of the students gawk even as they listened with rapt attention.

The Prime Minister didn't really poke or prod Ryland much at first. It was only when they reached the mine trains and got on one that he felt somewhat like a fish with lots of sharks nearby. Or maybe that was just residual traces of guilt. A notion he had long since discarded.

"Excellent," Klyne Faldor said.

"Now that we have some privacy, I think we can talk freely." Indeed, the way the Prime Minister had insisted things be carried out, they certainly had a good deal of freedom to talk without worrying others would overhear them. There wasn't anyone from the academy on the train with them save for Ryland himself. Just Klyne, the old Sentinel Ryland had met during the fiasco, and a Senior Warden for security purposes. Ryland glanced at the other two members of their little party as the train started rumbling along.

"It's fine," the Prime Minister said.

"If necessary, we can chuck them off the train." Both the Sentinel and the Senior Warden looked highly alarmed at this. Probably because, with Ryland present, the suggestion was a strong possibility. Although, Ryland suspected the Prime Minister himself was capable of it too.

"I'm curious why you were so interested to meet me," Ryland said.

"Really?" Klyne asked in surprise. His eyebrows were as silky as his dark hair, artfully cropped and styled. The buttons on his coat glinted like they were imbued with mana.

"Can you think of no good reasons?"

"Several, actually. But thinking of them is not the same as confirming them."

"True enough, technically." Klyne smiled at him.

"But if you must know, you are possibly the most intriguing person I have ever met in my life, and I have met a lot of people."

"You seem to know all about me, Your Honour."

"Well, of course I do, Marionys Ryland. I didn't allow Dyron to exist in court for free, after all. As soon as word of you started spreading, as soon as we received an alert about the wobble in Arcoryx City's security Inscriptions, I had Dyron tracking you and telling me everything he knew." Ryland nodded as though that made sense.

"And through that, you manipulated him into coming after me himself."

"Well… not at first. I didn't even understand your relationship yet, and he wasn't sure why you were here in the first place. But through some discreet investigations and information gathering, we eventually deduced that you were ostensibly here to gather these pieces of your former body." He frowned, wondering just how much Klyne Faldor knew about this mine's history. About Ryland's history.

"And is that when you thought you could start making use of me?"

"Well, yes. I recognized the gleam of avarice in Dyron's eyes. It didn't take long for me to understand that he was highly jealous of your prowess and would go to great lengths to raise himself to a similar level. So, I thought why not take care of two birds with one stone."

"Your Honour…" The Sentinel looked like he was trying hard to believe what he was hearing.

"I recall you were the one who suggested Great Archmage Dyron to approach Ryland, to find something that would allow you to make proper contact."

"Correct!" He flashed a boyish smile.

"We of House Faldor never really stopped collecting all our famous treasures. So I had Dyron looking through our collection to see if any of the Relics were actually something that belongs to you, Ryland. And lo and behold, Dyron found that necklace. He was so happy!" Ryland shook his head. What he didn't get was the timeframe of all this.

"When did this all happen?"

"Oh, I don't know. A month or so ago? Is that important?"

"No. I was merely curious."

"Well, listen to this. One of your birds visited us not that long ago, in search of one of your pieces, I believe. Good old Dyron killed it rather easily just so he could continue with his experiments before you became aware of its existence." Ryland couldn't help but scowl.

"Well, what little regret I entertained for the way I dealt with him has evaporated entirely." He directed the scowl at the Prime Minister. The train shook hard.

"Assuming you are telling the truth, Your Honour." The Sentinel stepped forward.

"I have allowed you great liberties, Ryland, but questioning the integrity of His Honour is beyond reprehensible."

"Even after he admitted to manipulating others?"

"He is doing what is best for the nation!" Ryland wasn't moved by that excuse one bit.

"Forgive me, but I fail to see how this was supposed to benefit the nation." The Prime Minister looked like he was happy to explain, but a heavy earthquake shook them all again. They all looked ahead. The tunnel the train had been passing through finally opened up into a large cavern. One where the air was thick and churning with Living Mana. The whole area was filled with Miner Mages, but it looked like they were having some sort of trouble. Everywhere Ryland looked, the Living Mana was surging. Acting up.

Almost turning into an Incursion.

"Oh, look at that," the Prime Minister said.

"It seems we might be in need of your frightful magic, Ryland." Ryland frowned at the Prime Minister for a moment, before turning to the mess in front of him.

"Indeed. Those from the academy might be in need of my powers. I believe I will simply transport everyone out of the mine itself." He smiled humourlessly at the Prime Minister.

"You and your attendants can handle this mess, yes Prime Minister?" Before anyone could reply, before they had even finished looking at him in surprise, Ryland cast [Translocate] and disappeared.