Chapter 220

Chapter 220 Strongest Sage, Extracts Info

『Of course, there would be a trap . Probably the instant the lock at the entrance was broken, the entire warehouse would go up in an huge explosion magic . 』

『But then, the dollmaster would also die if they did that . . . 』

『The dollmaster is a sacrificial pawn anyway . Blowing them all away would erase both those who could damage the dolls and evidence along . 』

In fact, mana reaction that feels exactly that is leaking out of this warehouse .

The dollmaster was probably told that the magic tool was for eliminating intruders in time of emergency .

The dollmaster who cannot read magic circles probably set up the magic tool themselves without knowing that it would kill them along with the enemy .

There's a high chance that they're under a high level of mind control that bars them from even questioning what the magic tool is even .

『Uwaah, they're really treated like a disposable . . . 』

『Because they are . To the point that you feel sorry for them . 』

Well, that doesn't mean I'm going to hold back though .

Even the demons must have picked humans that were easy to control .

Those who are virtuous steer clear of demons, so they're usually hard to manipulate .

Folkia had a great number of citizens controlled, but that was because the sub-demons were staying nearby .

Strong mind control that persists long after the demons have gone away requires willingness from the person put under the control .

The dollmaster must have allowed the demons to control them due to some kind of reasons .

With that in mind, there's no need for sympathy .

『 . . . Here it is . 』

We're standing in front of a warehouse with blue walls .

It's quite old, but the door has a newish lock installed .

『Entry off-limit for non-personnel . 』

『Managed by: Waterworks Administration Bureau – Ecial Branch . 』

That's what written on the door .

Looks like this building belongs to the so-called Waterworks Administration Bureau .

Mana reactions of one human and the dolls could be sensed inside the building .

The human's mana reaction is very small .

『Waterworks Administration Bureau . . . . I've heard that Saihill has a large-scale water service, is it being managed here I wonder?』

『Doesn't seem like there's flowing water inside, this place is probably a mere warehouse . . . Anyway, that lock is a trap, so don't touch it . 』

The lock looks like a simple padlock, but the inside seems to be fitted with a transmission-type magic tool .

It's probably connected to a magic tool inside that will blow up if it gets broken .

Well, the fact that it won't go off without breaking the lock is proof this trap is third-rate .

『Will it explode if you touch it?』

『It won't explode as long as it's not broken, but there's a possibility some kind of alarm will go off if you touch it . . . Not like we need to politely go from the front anyway, we can just do it this way . 』

I invoke soundproofing magic and put my hand on a wall next to the door .

Afterward, I invoke attack magic the size of a human .

『Ah, you're going to break it . . . 』

『Wouldn't it be quicker if you just let me go ahead and break everything then? I mean, I'd be all right even if the whole building go under . 』

『That would badly mess up the inside . Something that could be a clue might be there, so I'd like to preserve it as much as possible . 』

I don't really have much expectations, but there might be something that could be a hint inside .

And even if there isn't, causing too much uproars could lead them to us .

Well, punching a hole on the wall isn't any better though .

『 . . . Then it might be better if I don't go in . . . 』

『Yeah . You three, please be on the lookout here to stop anyone coming . Our enemy is alone, I'm gonna capture them real quick . 』

『Got it!』

After we're done consulting, I destroy the wall with the attack magic .

There's no sound due to the soundproof magic, the hole is just enough for me to pass .

I jump inside through that hole .

Just as the mana reactions tell me, there's a huge number of dolls and one man inside .

" . . . Ah?"

As the man sounded confused to see me coming through a suddenly collapsing wall, he threw a sword in his hand at the same time .

It's like attack first, question later, before confirming the situation .

He looks to be very adept at it, there's absolutely no awkwardness in the way he moves .

It's probably not something from the demons' control, but originally his .

. . . I figure it out after seeing his movement and atmosphere .

This guy had killed dozens of people even before the demons came into the picture .

Well, it's not like he's strong though .

Not like he could use chantless magic like Giruas after all .

"Wha . . . The hell are you!"

The man pulled out another sword while sounding surprised to see me swatting down the thrown sword with my hand .

He even had a spare sword ready huh .

Of course, I'm not obliged to answer .

I zeroed in on the man and restrained him with magic .

. . . Right then, I felt something strange .

The mana on the man's his body isn't that of a normal human .

Unrelated to the fact that this man's a murderer .

His heart isn't pulsing .

Dead man . . . Or rather, it looks like the man got revived after purposely being killed off .

I didn't notice until after I got this close since the camouflaged spell art used life force instead of mana as a base .

And the reason the enemy went out of way to do all this must be for silencing the guy .

Sure enough, the moment my restraining spell was cast, the magic that maintained his life force was canceled .

To extract info, I attempted to cast a new spell to maintain life force, however . . .

" . . . Been dealt with huh . "

My spell was blocked off .

Looks like it's been made so that only spell that makes use of life force can work .

. . . Guess I'll confirm one thing before this guy dies .

There's probably nothing much I could get out, just a hint should be enough .

Simple questions with either yes or no answers can be done with a certain magic .

The magic has a heap of side effects, but there's no need to worry about that on someone that's about to die .

"Are the people backing you related to Waterworks Bureau?"

I cast 【Magic Interrogation】 as I asked .

It's called interrogation, but in actuality, this magic practically reads your thoughts .

It causes a huge load on target's brain, so it can probably only used once on this guy .

Even if the target is of healthy body and mind, using this magic five times would make them practically dead after all .

However, it fits well in situations like this .

You simply need to cast the magic as you ask a question, and the answer will come out soon .

–Then, the magic returned a response .

I immediately analyze the mana and derive an answer .

The answer is yes .

Just as I thought .

. . . With this information alone, I ascertained which places should we raid to trace the people who are collecting life force .

Next, we just need to cross check with the info we got from observing this village, and whether we should raid the place or not .

I got out of the warehouse while thinking that .