Chapter 36

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on April 5, 2025

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I focused momentarily and sensed the magical power around me, detecting a concentration of it in a location slightly away from this café. Its artificial movement indicated that magic was about to be used.

It was a highly suspicious presence, but the initial ripple of magical power I had felt wasn’t on this small scale, so I expanded the range of my magical detection. Scanning several kilometers, I found various places where magic power was gathering.

Estimating the amount of magic in the identified locations, it was woefully insufficient compared to the wave I initially felt. By my guess, there must be many such places. Roughly, worldwide? Excluding the oceans, the Earth’s land area is about 150 million square kilometers; whether this estimate is correct or not, it shows just how much magical power was felt initially.

The scale was immense, which initially triggered a sense of crisis, but that quickly faded. At this magnitude, there wouldn’t be much point in worrying about what I should or shouldn’t do. Unless it’s something cosmic-horror level, like the end of the Earth, there’s nothing much I can do. I don’t believe in any gods, so I have no one to pray to. These days, the trend seems to involve calling out to all known deities.

“Current Sky.”

Sitting at the front, Doyugeon called out.

“Did you not feel something just now?”

Given that he also has the magic detection skill, he must have sensed something. Anyway, there’s probably nothing immediate we can do, and if something does occur, handing it over to the security team is likely the best option. It would be better not to dwell on unnecessary thoughts.

“Maybe it was a mistake.”

“Is that so?”

Since magic is my area of expertise, he seems hesitant when I deny it. Though his feelings are correct, deceiving him this way probably wasn’t the best move.

“Rather, let’s pick something to order.”

I flipped the menu around to show Doyugeon. He turned it back toward me.

“I already decided.”

He pointed to the Soboro Bread and soda on the menu. Soboro Bread? Soda? I glanced around the store. There’s no oven here. When I scanned the café earlier with my magic, there was no sign of a baking area at the back, so the bread must be sourced from nearby bakeries. The soda is likely a commercial product. With Soboro Bread and soda, what’s the point of coming to a café?

“What did you choose?”

He asked. Though I urged him to choose from the menu, I hadn’t yet decided what to order.

There’s no cake on this café’s menu. Normally, if I visit a café, I’d choose a cheese cake, but if there isn’t cheese cake, I’d just pick any cake. However, this place doesn’t even sell cake, leaving me bewildered.

As for choosing from the bread that looks like it’s picked up around the neighborhood, no thanks.

I came here after hearing from Yumina that the coffee was good, but I didn’t expect that the only thing that might be good here is the coffee. I don’t know much about coffee anyway. Whether instant or handmade, I drink it for the caffeine, not for taste.

I was deep in thought when I noticed his gaze. Hmm. I don’t want to keep him waiting too long, so I’ll eat something random.

“Cream Bread with Cappuccino sounds good.”

My mom says that every bakery makes cream bread as a basic item. I don’t know the reason, but if mom says so, it must be true. Though, it could be one of her jokes trying to fool her daughter.

As we waited after placing our order, the café door opened, and the security team leader entered. He seemed like he wanted to say something, so I vaguely waved my hand. The security team leader glanced at me, looked over at Doyugeon briefly, and approached. He quietly whispered into my ear.

“There are some strange signs.”

According to the security team leader, after the intense ripple of magical power, a phenomenon of magical accumulation in certain locations is happening worldwide. So, my guesses were correct. Hmm, no good answers.

I whispered back to the security team leader.

“Why is magic gathering?”

“We are considering the possibility of it being magic-related.”

That means he doesn’t know.

The security team leader added a few precautions and pulled out a mage robe from his coat.

[C-Rank/Melophon Royal Workshop’s Marphinya Robe]

I had to put on this poorly designed mage robe again. After draping it over my clothes, the security team leader adjusted it for me and stood silently beside me, likely intending to guard up close. But doing so makes it obvious that I told Doyugeon earlier that nothing was wrong.

Sure enough, he stared at me suspiciously. He gave a quick glance to the security team leader and said,

“You said you didn’t feel anything earlier.”

“Did I? I don’t remember saying that.”

I responded with an expression of confusion. If it wasn’t me, what could he do about it? With that in mind, I couldn’t help but slightly avert my gaze under his intense stare.

“Anyway, let me explain the situation. Aren’t you curious?”

I broadly mentioned the unusual phenomenon of magic gathering.

“Oh, then are they monsters?”

“Could be, or it might not be.”

“That much is clear.”

“Heh.”

He logged in and brought out a sword. Don’t bring swords into a café! The café owner frowned as he brought out our order, glanced at the security team leader standing nearby, said nothing, placed the food and walked away. Oof, what a bother.

Doyugeon wiped his sword with the hem of his clothes.

“You keep cleaning it, but you probably won’t need to use it.”

“Why?”

“Why? It’s dangerous.”

Explorers can respawn while logged in, but not always. If they are logged out and die, they are dead for good. Though it may not have been officially tested by any group, there are occasional news reports of explorers dying due to accidents because their physical abilities were enhanced, leading them to overestimate themselves.

Not to mention that in an emergency situation like monsters appearing in the city, the risk of death is ample enough to exceed danger. Any goblin, which could be easily defeated under normal circumstances, could easily take off someone’s head with a single arrow if not handled properly. It’s absurd to risk your life leveling up amidst such confusion over something unknown.

“It’s dangerous, so that’s why we need to hunt it.”

Huh? Is he in his teenage thrill-seeking phase?

I shook my head and took a bite of the cream bread. It is indeed a cream bread with cream-flavored filling. It’s not bad, but since I’ve eaten chicken recently, the greasiness left a bit of a bad taste. I should have ordered something else.

I picked up the cappuccino and blew on it. Since I don’t handle hot things well, I usually let freshly brewed coffee sit for a bit before drinking, but this time, with the bread feeling a little heavy, I decided to take a sip. After blowing on it a little more, I took a small sip. The inside of my mouth tingled from the heat. Ah, it’s hot. My body briefly trembled.

I set down the coffee cup. Coffee is a great drink, but the heat is a problem. I don’t like iced coffee either and prefer it scalding hot, enough to warm me from the inside as it slides down my throat. It’s a sort of miraculous and mysterious experience with every cup, though I don’t handle the heat well despite enjoying it.

I felt sorry for the guy cleaning his sword with his sleeve and handed him a handkerchief. I don’t know if it’s suitable for cleaning a sword, but it’s better than his sleeve.

I don’t know why he’s cleaning it so diligently. In the game, monsters dissolve into experience points after being defeated, so the sword doesn’t get stained with blood. And the guy certainly isn’t clumsy enough to fall or drop his sword during the fight.

Also, this sword was prepared in the dressing room and meant to be used and discarded. He has already done some gacha pulls and secured an F-grade sword, so why is he cleaning this one?

Upon further thought, does it belong to me? After Doyugeon’s sword broke during the previous battle with an orc, I gave him one of my spare swords because there hadn’t been a gacha update at that time. Hmm, if it’s not his sword, it makes sense that he’d take care of it out of courtesy.

When I was about to sip the coffee which had cooled slightly, a scream was heard from afar. I set the cup down and widened my perception to confirm that goblins were popping up in locations where the anomaly was detected. A goblin swung its sword at a passerby.

Before the sword made contact, I narrowed my focus and stopped observing. Screams and chaos echoed in from the distance. Uh, this is dangerous. Although it’s not immediately apocalyptic, it’s not a good situation. The world may not end, but I’m worried about my parents’ safety if I log in.

As I pulled out my phone to call them, Doyugeon bolted upright.

“What’s going on?”

The distant cries and chaos continued outside the door.

“I don’t know, sit down first.”

I pressed my magic forcefully down on his shoulders, making him sit back down.

He looked flustered and asked,

“What, you mean you’re not going to tell me what those screams outside are about?”

I thought about explaining for a moment. Ignorance is bliss, but he might figure it out anyway.

“There are goblins gathered where the magic was concentrated.”

“Goblins? Then we need to go out and kill them.”

He tried to get up again, so I pushed him back down with magic.

“Why would you kill them? It’s dangerous.”

“Well, precisely because it’s dangerous.”

Seriously.

“That’s why I’m telling you to stay seated.”

I glared at him, and he seemed like he had a lot to say but was struggling to speak.

The security team leader, who had been busy with phone calls earlier, left the room and my phone rang. Mom.

“Just sit down and call your parents first.”

Doyugeon, who hadn’t thought about it until now, pulled out his phone with a sudden realization. You just thought of your parents now? What a disloyal kid.

After contacting them, I learned that my parents are under thorough protection. Perhaps I’m in more danger. Hmph, this sounds reasonable. Mom and Dad would only be in danger if it was a societal collapse scenario.

After calling and hearing more reassurances, I hung up. There’s no need for major concern. On the other hand, Doyugeon’s parents aren’t under special protection, but they are located far from the incident. Thank goodness.

I took another sip of coffee, and the warm sensation spread through my body. It’s warm but a bit cooled, and I find the strange temperature between lukewarm and piping hot quite satisfying.

Schrodinger once told me not to mention update details ahead of time, even after I ignored him and chased him away. This is likely the result of that. Since no big incidents occurred since then except for now, it should be true.

Had I known about this beforehand and informed everyone, lives lost now could have been saved, and people would have had fewer future sorrows.

“Hmph.”

I voiced an unintended sound. The tangled feelings in my chest eased a bit. Considering all the possibilities led me to remind Schrodinger not to share things beforehand.

Placing the responsibilities on a minor like me, who should bear it all? It’s annoying.

The security team leader, who stepped outside, returned. According to him, the monsters appearing outside are only goblins.

“There’s no immediate threat, but it’s safer to stay put for a while.”

“Shouldn’t logging in be enough?”

“It’s currently blocked.”

What does that mean?

“Login.”

After saying “Login,” a system window popped up.

[Login Delay Notice]

Due to a high number of users logging in, there is a delay. Please wait.

Queue Position: 1089

Estimated Wait Time: Unknown

What is this? I repeated “Login.”

“Login.

[Login Delay Notice]

Due to a high number of users logging in, there is a delay. Please wait.

Queue Position: 1097

Estimated Wait Time: Unknown

My queue position fell back. Tsk. It’s absurd. The system works like a game, but there’s no need for this to be gamified.

The security team leader gave a few more instructions and left again.

After finishing the last sip of coffee, I noticed Doyugeon anxiously staring at his phone. Is he on social media? I’m afraid he might suddenly dash out.

I stood up and approached him.

“Lift your arms.”

I motioned with both palms facing upward for him to raise his arms, and he did so, though confused.

I slipped into the space created and sat on his knees. Now, he won’t burst out randomly, right?

“What? What? What?”

“Owner, can I have another cappuccino, without the cinnamon powder?”

“What? What do you mean?”

The owner, seriously looking at his phone, replied with a bead of sweat on his face.

“One cappuccino, with no cinnamon, please.”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

I leaned back into a comfortable position. Resting in Doyugeon’s embrace, the height difference works well. The commotion outside the café continues, though.

A while passed. The distant screams were gradually getting closer when Doyugeon kept looking at the door. They were definitely approaching, and it was certainly scary.

“Don’t worry. The guards will protect us. If it gets really bad, we can escape through the café’s back door despite the risks.”

It will be chaotic outside, likely more dangerous than here.

Doyugeon looked at me briefly before focusing back on the door.

“I’ve realized something; you say some really strange things often.”

“What’s strange?”

“Furthermore, you say these strange things as if they are completely normal, leaving me questioning whether it’s me who is wrong.”

What do you mean?

He grabbed me with both hands, lifted me, and set me on the seat beside him.

Our eyes met.

“Miss, people are dying outside.”

“I know.”

I know more than you do.