55-Episode 55: Those in the Tower

We managed to land safely on our backs, having prevented the tidal blast of the megalo whale.

I would have liked to have gone down by the tower, but if that tower was dangerous, there was a chance that it would attack us as we approached. If that tower was dangerous, it could attack us as we approached.

I would have no problem blocking the attack, but I couldn't take such a risk because of the danger to Gyro and his friends.

That's why I decided to land a little farther away from the tower.

Also, our destination tower stands in the center of the five-kilometer-long Megalo Whale, but Gyro-kun's magic power wouldn't last long enough to reach it, so that's another reason.

''Whew, I'm tired!''

Gyro-kun and the others, who were not used to flying for long periods of time, slumped to the ground exhausted.

''I'm going to go check that area out for a bit, so you all get some rest while you can.

With that, I hand everyone a potion that restores magic power and then run.

My destination is the black tower that grew on the back of the Megalo Whale.

''Even so, it's a wreck.

I looked at Megalo Whale's back while moving at high speed with my body-strengthening magic-enhanced legs.

It's not just a matter of time before you get to the point where you'll be able to see your own skin.

''This isn't a normal condition. Did you fight something to get away from here?

The back of the megalohale I saw in my previous life was much more slippery and beautiful.

What in the world had happened to make it look this ruined and terrible?

And before long they reached the Black Tower.

'If you can get this close and not be attacked, isn't that an aggressive piece of architecture?

Would this be safe to bring everyone?

I move even closer to the tower and lightly examine its structure.

"It's so big....

The tower has a cylindrical column structure with a diameter of about 15 meters.

The height of the tower is something like 30 meters.

The base of the tower was pierced into the body of the Megalo Whale, and the skin around it had sunk down to bite into it.

''Someone stuck this tower into the Megalo Whale?

That's a terrible thing to do.

"And do you feel strong magic in the tower?

As you get closer, you can feel the magical power from inside.

I knew this was no ordinary structure.

This tower is probably, um, definitely that thing.

''It looks like we'd better check it out quickly, so let's get back to calling everyone right away.

You're not going to be able to do that.

It's a big tower.

Weird Patterns.

Who the hell built this thing on the back of a demon?

I mean, what the hell were they thinking, building a tower on the back of a creature?

'It's a huge demon, so maybe they were going to use it like a battleship?

Everyone who has seen the Black Tower up close has their own opinions about it.

But I have to say that their opinions are wrong.

That's not true, people. No, guys, this is not a tower.

I first point out everyone's misconceptions.

'What?　That looks like a tower, doesn't it, big brother?

No, it's not a building. It's a thing.

""Things?"

Everyone nods their heads in unison at my phrasing.

'Yes, it's a giant magic item.

....

Everyone looks at each other with a scowl, then a few seconds later, their eyes widen.

''Magic item-uh-uh?!''

Everyone shouts in surprise.

What do you mean by "this is a magic item?　I mean, is there even such a big magic item in the first place?

Mina can't believe it and denies that the black tower is a magic item.

But it's true.

It is definitely a magic item. You can feel the flow of magic from this structure. It's not just one spot, but the whole place is filled with magic. This is because there are huge magic circuits spread out all over this tower.

Oh no...

Mina's muttering represented everyone's true feelings.

Everyone seems to have a hard time believing that this is a magic item.

But in the era I used to live in, magic items of this magnitude were commonplace.

I'm sure this magic item is what brought the Megalo Whales so close to the land.

I take turns looking at the black tower and the Megalo Whale fry across the ocean.

Megalo whales are oceanic creatures and they don't go near land. Originally, Megalo whales were open ocean creatures and would never go near land. Even fishermen go out to sea if they want to catch the big ones.

'But what kind of power does a building this big have to be a magic item?

I guess I'll have to look into that.

Yeah, I don't know.

This magic item is of a type I've never seen before.

That means it's most likely not from the time I was alive.

In fact, compared to the damage to Megalo Whale's skin, the magic item has very few scratches on it.

''For that reason, let's go inside and investigate.

Can we get in?　But this isn't a building, is it?

Liliera nodded her head, wondering if this was a magic item, people wouldn't be able to enter it.

''No, at this size, there should be room for people to enter for maintenance and adjustment... see?

After a little investigation, I found the entrance.

However, since the door was locked, or perhaps not open, it was forcibly destroyed to create an entrance.

Then let's go.

You've just smashed the door in.

Relentless.

You're not going to be able to do that.

Everyone's weapons are lit up with light magic and we go inside.

It's not dark...

As Mina said, the inside of the tower was dim and bright.

'So the light from the magic running through the tower is the light. I just think this would be a lot of waste.''

It seems oddly underbuilt compared to the enormity of the structure.

Anyway, let's move on.

I walked at the front of the pack, and Jairo was behind me. Mina and Norbu are in the middle, with Liliella and Megri in the back.

I cast a search spell and look for signs of life around us.

"There's no sign of life inside the tower. It looks uninhabited.

The inside of the tower is a spiral staircase that goes down, and I can see something glowing at the top.

''I found out when I got inside, but I can sense quite a bit of magic from that glowing something.

Perhaps this tower has the property of trapping magic power.

The inside was filled with more magic than I felt from the outside.

This is something that might be a bit of a bad idea.

We went down without a second thought.

◆

Is this the powerhouse?

When they descended to the lowest level, they found all sorts of devices arranged there.

''A magic amplifier, a control machine, and a giant extractor?''

Each one is a familiar magic item mechanism, but the size is off the charts anyway.

Could they have been made to fit the size of the Megalo Whale?

Do you know what this is, brother?

'Yeah, maybe, but it's a device that stores the magical power extracted from the Megalo Whale inside this.

You can tell that much just from looking at it?

Mina is surprised, but I'm sure experts can tell this much just by looking at it.

This is because he was a wise man in a previous life.

Maybe it wasn't made by a human.　

Yeah, I was somewhat convinced by the patterns on the interior.

'It's not human, then who made it?'

Of course that's.........

Just as I was about to answer Liliella's question, a response suddenly appeared in my sensing magic.

''What's wrong?''

Everyone looks at me suspiciously at my reaction.

'It looks like the person who made this is here,'

If the reaction came out of nowhere, does that mean he was hiding in the wards, or was it the gate?

I looked in the direction where the response appeared and saw a passageway leading to the back of the room.

Then I hear footsteps coming from the back of the passage.

Everyone readies their weapons.

"Who are you people?

The one who emerged from the darkness was a demon, a deformed being with silver hair, brown skin, and bat wings.

''Majin!''

Gyro-kun and the others, who had encountered the demon before, change their faces.

''Huh?　A genie?　Huh?

Only Liliera-san, who has never seen a demon before, doesn't seem to be able to catch up with her understanding after being called a demon.

''Hm, I didn't expect a human to come to this place.

The demon takes one look at us and lets out a sigh.

''After all, a demon like that can't even be a watchman?

Perhaps he's referring to the fry of the Megalo Whales?

Did you plant this in Megalo Whale?

I question the demon while pointing at my feet.

''You have no right to answer........nah!

When the demon refuses to answer my question, he spreads his magic-powered wings and accelerates explosively, jumping into my bosom.

''Lex-san!''

Liliera-san screams.

''First you die!''

The demon's hand blade, clad in reddish-black light, approaches my abdomen.

However, I half-turned my body to repel the attack, while conversely grabbing the demon's arm and pulling him in.

What?

And then I half-turned around behind the demon, I pushed him down to the floor and mastered the joint.

''Guaaaah!

''Mana jamming!''

Furthermore, by pouring magic power of a special wavelength into the witch, it disrupts the opponent's magic operations and suppresses the activation of magic.

''.....　You can't use magic?

As expected, the demon who was trying to counterattack with magic screams in surprise.

''Come on. Shall I ask you to teach me?

"But I will not answer to anyone!　Guardian!　Kill the intruder!

In response to the demon's voice, several black demons appear from the depths of the passage.

They don't look like ordinary demons, and it looks like they're the defense device of this tower.

The demons jump at me, who is restraining the Lord.

"Look out!

Liliella's spear pierced the demon that attacked her.

''I won't let my brother get to you!

Furthermore, Gyro-kun and the others also stand in between to intercept the demons.

Yes, this is a chance for everyone to practice.

"Hey, guys, I have to take care of this guy, so I'll leave it to you to take care of them!

All right!

I got it, brother!

Okay, now I can focus on binding the demon.

Are you sure?　Those humans are no match for the Guardians.

But the demon speaks to me in a fearless manner.

It's a very generous attitude, even though she's mastered her joints and her magic is sealed up. This is something.

This is a good thing.

Calm down!　Don't try to deal with this alone!

You are at the mercy of the swift movements of the demons that move around in the dim light.

It's a good thing that they're not as good as they could be. Don't you think it's better to save them quickly?

Right, so they're waiting for me to come to their rescue.

But that's not very smart, because I trained them.

I trained them all.

It's just that they're a bit confused by the seriousness of the battle, and they don't normally have any trouble with this kind of monster.

"Don't worry, if you do what I've taught you so far, you can beat them, guys!

Oh!

Yeah!

Jairo and Megri jumped at the demons.

Naturally, the demons evade, but Liliella-san thrusts her spear at them in time.

''Hah!''

The demon evaded this attack just in time, but then Mina's magic was slammed into it even more.

''Thunder Lance!''

The demon that received a direct hit from Mina's magic went down to one knee, where Liliella's attack pierced the demon again.

This is the second one.

''Protection!''

The demon's attack on Jairo-kun from behind was repelled by Norbu-san's defensive magic.

''Deeeeeee!''

Jairo-kun attacked the demon whose stance had collapsed after attacking him, and he leapt and thrust his sword boldly from directly above.

And from the stabbed sword, an attribute strengthening flame erupted, burning the demon from the inside out.

''Thank you, Norbu!

Don't be too reckless!

Sorry, sorry.

Yay!

This time, Megri created a foothold of magic power in the air and attacked the demons while flying around in all directions.

Although he is a fast-moving demon, he is unable to follow Megri's movement to utilize his foothold in a place where it does not normally exist, and he accumulates damage little by little and is defeated.

"Bah, that's ridiculous!　A Guardian is this easy for a human to do this much?

And finally.

"Guh!

The mohumofu was attacking the demons using the acceleration caused by its flight magic.

The demons tried to knock down the mohumofu, but it was extremely difficult to hit its tiny body, and every time the mohumofu's attack hit it, a part of its body was shaved off.

'Well, now it's just you. Let's see if you can tell me what this thing is.

With the trend completely decided, I'm going to talk to the demon.

Now you understand that there is no more opportunity to counterattack.

But for some reason, the demon let out a scowling laugh.

''Kuh! Kuhahahahahahaha!　All right!　I'll teach you!

The demoness looks up and shouts out.

''This is a magic weapon!　It's a white thing that accumulates a demon's life force and explodes at once when it builds up the necessary amount!

A magic weapon?

And it's going to explode?

It's a little difficult to find a magical creature in this day and age, but with this monster's magic, you can bet that it's going to blow up enough to wipe the entire country off the map!

''What?!''

Liliera-san shouts in surprise at the demon's words.

''Fuhahaha!　Awesome, human daughter!　There's no point in trying to escape now!　As far as flying magic is concerned, in this era of people who can't even use flying magic, you'll be caught in a huge explosion before you reach safe land!

Oh, you'll be dead like that!

'Oops, don't worry about it. Because I have this transference bracelet on me! With this, I could get away to a safe distance in an instant!

The demon smiles at you.

I see, so that's why this guy didn't resist.

''It doesn't matter if I'm bound or not!　All you have to do is pour a little bit of magic into the bracelet!　Farewell, human!

The demon tribe shouted that and everyone rushed over here to stop them.

However, there is no sign of the demon's magic item to be activated for any length of time.

"Why is that?

The fact that the magic item didn't go off makes the demon upset.

'No, you've been blocking magic since a while ago, haven't you?'

Mana jamming is a magic that interferes with magic manipulation.

That means it also interferes with the act of channeling magic power to magic items.

''Ah.''

I remembered that the demon was being blocked from doing magic, and I finally understood that it was the kind of magic that also blocked the activation of magic items.

''.........Let's talk about it, human.

Hmph!

"Gogah!

Goss!　And with a good sound, the demon kisses the ground.

"Spider Hold!

I cast a capturing spell to restrain the magician and take away all the magic items he was wearing.

Now I can't escape anymore.

It looks like they had a lot of other things, so I'll confiscate these items as well.

''d*mn it!　I can't move!

A bound demon struggles to get out of it, but it's not so sweet a spell as to be able to get out of it with that much.

But, you know, this isn't the end of the story.

'Fluffy!'

Coo!

As if he was waiting for it, Mohammo got on top of the demon and cheerfully began to gnaw on its wings.

''Oh, stop it, you beast!　Don't take a bite out of my wing!　Ah, ah, ah, ah!

Huh, that's for licking us off.

I hope he doesn't get a stomach ache from eating weird stuff.