Chapter 5: Spring Palace (part five)

Oh my god. This chapter is a headache and a half. There are so many terms @_@ I needed to google some of them just to know why they are called that. If later I was proven wrong I will just edit it later.

TL: clover

ED: clover, eristol

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This is my first time stepping into my older brother’s Wunderkammer.

Wunderkammer is not only an alchemist’s workshop, but also a showcase of magical artifacts collected from every corner of the world.

In the center of the room there was a large desk, which was likely to be a workbench.

Some burn marks and chemical stains were splattered here and there.

Various laboratory equipment and processing instruments cluttered the desk.

Glass test tubes, distillation bottles, burners, oil lamps, etc. were in meticulously arranged in an orderly fashion.

The cabinet to the right was stuffed with body parts of beast specimens.

Especially noticeable among them are the unicorn horn procured from eastern Hafan and the fossil of a basilisk he ordered from the southern continent.

Most of them were fossilized specimens, but there were plenty of specimens stored in bottles and preserved with alcohol.

A cabinet to the left was tightly packed with ore samples from Aurelia.

These were not just any ordinary ores; these were special minerals with innate magical properties.

Every item was stored in appropriate boxes or vials, each with labels describing their origins and properties.

My brother’s meticulous personality truly showed in these cabinets.

A cabinet to the front of this room was chalk full with a variety of wands made from these materials.

The cabinet was stacked with countless small boxes, each containing an individual wand.

The boxes were labelled with the details of magic contained within and the materials used to make them.

There are many wands that can execute the same magic, but their output varies depending on their components used to make them.

Perhaps my older brother has been living here day and night and researching to grasp the differences of each kind and draw out the best magic.

From what I could see, there was no wand that could dispel Klaus’ Phantasmal Maze.

The next course of action was decided by this.

It will be difficult to seek help from my father or the other adults.

I, at least, have to keep track of Claus and Ann by myself until help comes.

I examined the wardrobe in a corner of the Wunderkammer.

Of course, it was also labelled and organized.

While checking the label, I found a box of clothes my older brother used when he was around the age of eight and opened it. These clothes are all imbued with defensive magic.

I turned it inside out as I dragged out my older brother’s childhood outfit.

I took off my dress and donned my older brother’s old outfit.

Tied up my hair with a ribbon.

Put a crystal-powered, silver pocket watch into the breast pocket of my outer coat.

Fitted on the alchemists’ leather gloves.

After putting on the black leather boots, I slung the biggest leather bag I found in this room over my shoulder.

Both were waterproof with grease.

I put two star crystal lamps in the bag which won’t get oxidized.

The most important thing is choosing the wands to bring with me.

Wand of Glam Sight.

It is the same as the wand Eduard-oniisama used.

The effect lasts for about thirty seconds.

Wand of Hold.

It was made of amber, and a resin-coated cockatrice fossil was embedded at the tip of the wand.

The grip was made of sterling silver, engraved with a cross between a rooster and a snake.

The core material is a dried basilisk tail.

The duration of the effect is about three seconds.

I stuffed two or three of each wand into the leather bag along with other wands that seemed useful.

Wand of Gust.

Wand of Urd Sight¹.

Wand of Levitation.

Wand of Castling².

Wand of Feather Falling.

Wand of Lock.

Wand of Grease.

Wand of Mage Finger³.

Wand of Water Walking.

I was looking over the wands and found a wand that was strictly locked away.

This is…a wand of Sailor’s Song.

Only this wand is special.

Should this wand be waved to a specific song, it is said that the〈Alchemist’s Star〉 will fall. In truth, the magic imbued in this wand creates a meteor in the distant sky and sends it plummeting to the ground.

It is because of the magic of the 〈Alchemist’s Star〉, the Visitors clan are also called 〈Aurelia of the Stars〉.

On the other hand, the recoil from its use is not on the degree of other wands.

If a mediocre alchemist attempts to use it, it is said that just dropping one star will cost his own life.

It is too dangerous, I can’t use it.

I grabbed an Animated Rope⁴.

The utilization is similar to a wand.

It can be freely used a set number of times.

I deftly packed away a bottle of Obscuring Mist.

A bottle of Moonlight Gallnut Ink.

It is an ink made from Hafan’s special mineral, moonlight ore.

The letters written with this ink emit moonlight as long the moon is visible.

Since there is no ordinary Gallnut Ink, this should be enough for the time being.

I gathered up rest of my supplies: a piece of chalk, a pen and some scraps of parchment, a bottle of distilled liquor and a small box of chocolate for precaution.

Finally, I picked up an athame knife⁵.

I left my older brother’s Wunderkammer, closed the door and locked it.

First of all, let’s use the wand of Glam Sight.

Pale green magic circle appeared and converged on my eyes.

When the magic showed its effect, I quickly used it on Spring Palace, and then detailed information about the magic of Phantasmal Maze appeared before me.

Creator unknown, the performer is Klaus Hafan, the time it was set up is about thirty minutes ago.

Speaking of thirty minutes ago, it was when I saw my brother off.

It seems that Klaus left the room due to my blunder.

Duration of the magic is three to four hours from the time of creation.

It is as I feared.

It will be too late if I wait for the effect to be over before asking for help from my father or Duke Hafan.

Normally, when a mage casts a spell, the creator and performer are the same. The reason the creator and the performer are different this time means it was launched from a magic scroll. Conversely, if a magic is cast from a wand, it would be possible to know who the creator is but not the performer.

This magic is being maintained by Klaus’ magical energy and his spell cards.

It seems many small spell cards have been deployed on several places in this palace.

Both magic scrolls and spell cards are mainstream magic items in the eastern Hafan.

They serve as a blueprint and an amplifier respectively.

It seems that the spell cards, spread out like a barrier, have amplified the magic, so the end result was such a vast labyrinth.

Next, let’s examine the underground transfer gates.

As I began sprinting towards the basement, I recalled the moment when my older brother was heading for the magic academy.

—Huh? The underground transfer gates are managed by one-time keys.

How did Ann go to the Ruins of Visitor in the original scenario?

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¹ Urd is the name of one of the three Norns (Fates) in Norse mythology. Urd is the one representing the past. So, Wand of Urd Sight means that the wand could be used to see the past.

² Castling is the act of moving the King to a safe position in a blink of an eye, by trading the King’s place with one of the Rook. So, Wand of Castling is for trading the place of the user with the target.

³ Wand of Mage Finger: The Japanese version of Mage Hand in D&D, it appears as a spectral, floating hand. The hand lasts for the duration or until the user dismisses it as an action. In this novel, it can only be used for fine works. (source)

⁴ Animate Rope is another reference to DnD. Although in DnD it’s a spell, not an item. It’s a spell to animate a rope-like objects, can be used to grapple or restrain things. (source)

⁵ Athame knife: a ceremonial blade, generally with black handle. The athame was not to be used for actual physical cutting. (source)

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