Almark – Northern Sword, Southern Wand

The next morning, Almark decided to ask Raido, who happened to be with him on his way to the school building, about the fountain cave.

"Fountain Cave?

Leido feels good.

"Yeah, middlemen use it to train magic."

Ah.

Raido nodded as he thought.

"Are you talking about the cave by the Fountain of Lulu?"

"Lulu Fountain?

"Yeah."

Reido nods.

"It's a beautiful spring in the back of the forest. There's a cave down there."

They call it the Cave of Trials.

Sounds like it.

Reido nods with a smile.

"It seems that the interior of the cave has been magically fabricated by the teachers. It's about five or six floors underground, and the goal is to reach the bottom by the middle school graduation."

Oh, is there a monster inside?

I don't think there are any monsters.

Reido wrinkles his neck.

"But there are a lot of magic traps and tricks, and it seems that we can't proceed without using proper magic. Some of them are dangerous enough to get hurt. And there's magic in the passage of the cave, and every time I step in, the structure is different."

Amazing.

Almark brightens his eyes.

"Are we going in?"

"I don't think we can do it yet."

Reido shook his head.

"The Fountain of Lulu is quite deep in the forest. It's a primary off-limits area."

Oh, is that so?

What kind of restricted area was in the forest?

Almark was surprised.

I remember that the forest was temporarily closed after Jalanon took Eldo, but I didn't know that there was a restricted area in the primary sector.

Indeed, even when the temporary restriction was lifted, I just felt instructed not to go too deep into the woods.

I didn't know there was such a thing.

"We got instructions as soon as we got in."

That's what Reido said and laughed.

"It's not impossible that Almark doesn't know."

"Where are you banned from?"

Reido thinks a little about Almark's question.

"I wonder if Almark has ever been so far into the woods."

"Yeah."

Almark nodded.

I had Ilmis tutoring every day and I didn't have time to slowly explore the woods.

"Going deep into the woods, there's a banned entrance ticket on the way. That's all we can get in."

Then laugh a little and add.

"Well, when I was in third grade, I didn't protect most of the kids."

Oh, is that so?

"I often pick smelly flowers from the raw Mora at the top of the stand. That's why girls often go there, and boys go there because they can catch big fish in the nearby Gugu watershed."

Heh.

Speaking of which, when I visited Wendy's room, I thought it smelled good, and I remembered that there were flowers right there.

Maybe that's what Mora picked with her whole body.

"If the teacher finds out, they'll scold me, and if I run into a junior high school student, they'll kick me out, so everyone won't go that little. Well, the middle school is busy studying, so I don't come to the forest as much as the primary school."

I see.

"But I've only been to Lulu Fountain once, because it's so much deeper than Mora's raw water or Gugu's water field. I don't suppose there's any kid who would bother going that far."

"Is it that far?"

"From the elementary school building, even if you leave immediately after school, it will be in the evening by the time you arrive. It was dark by the time I got to the dorm, even if I left soon afterwards. It's close to the middle school building."

"Oh, yeah."

Almark thought.

If Leila were to go there alone, it wouldn't be a weekday with classes, but a holiday.

Maybe I was lurking in the cave yesterday when I was fighting Koren.

If you're interested, I'll take you.

After seeing Almark like that, Leido suggests so.

"This time, even after school on a convenient day. You always have your Ilmis majors, don't you?

"Yeah."

Almark nodded.

Speaking of which, Professor Ilmis also said he had business the day after tomorrow.

"Well, can you take me there the day after tomorrow? I just don't have a tutorial."

Fine.

Reido was glad.

"Thank you."

"That's fine. There won't be much to do after school until the magic festival script comes up."

In Reido's words, Almark also recalls the magic festival play.

"Oh, the Curime script."

Almark tells Raido with a smile.

"I'm looking forward to what kind of play it will be."

"That's right. Half the fun, half the fear."

That's what Reido said and laughed.

"But Reido, you could do whatever it takes."

"Hahaha, I don't want to buy it."

Reido smiles refreshingly.

The school building approached.

"But why are you interested in the fountain cave?"

And then Reido returns to the story.

Did you ask anyone?

"Yeah."

Almark nodded ambiguously.

It seemed better not to talk about Leila yet.

"Hey, I heard rumors that there's a cave like that."

I see.

Reido nods softly.

"I'll show you to the entrance the day after tomorrow. Well, I've never been in, so I can't show you anywhere."

"I'm not going in."

Almark waved in a hurry.

"Absolutely not. Then I'll stop, too."

Reido said so gently.