#190
Helmut
Episode 190
“Well, why is it in that order?”
“You saw it too.”
I saw it and it seemed like it was puzzled that I was asking. Alea’s eyebrows twitched.
“Yes, I saw it. But I don’t know why the answer is 3147.”
Stars, trees, deer, hills. The order of 3147 is as follows. That was the answer Helmut entered.
I had a clear feeling that that was the answer. But I couldn’t explain the feeling. Area could not discover the law of order. He asked again.
“What is the standard?”
Helmut spoke simply.
“You can think of it as a picture. “Draw a picture of those words.”
Aria thought at first glance. Since the stars are up, it must be night. Beneath the sky filled with stars, a breezy hill. Branches with fluttering leaves. A deer standing below and grazing on the grass on the hill.
In an instant, the scene was pictured in my mind, to the point where I wondered why I couldn’t remember this.
“… … “How did you know?”
“Just, right away.”
It was an intuition that cannot be explained in words. But if a wizard cannot explain, he will not be convinced.
After a while, Area nodded.
“The stars are the sky, and the hills are the earth. “It could have been solved that way.”
Area immediately sighed. The dungeon seems to have increased in difficulty compared to last time. Seeing that my head is already hurting like this.
‘Could it be two people coming?’
It was something that could not be helped. The problems of the 70s and beyond require someone who uses their bodies. You could do it alone, but it’s hard to say it’s safe.
Lampione probably knew this too, so he didn’t always accept one person at a time. He unites even those who come with him. I don’t know how many people can do it.
Also, his dungeon didn’t seem to specifically exclude non-mages. It was fortunate that there was no limit to the number of people.
Since the problem is a serial problem anyway, increasing the number of problems is of little use.
Area closed her eyes for a moment, rested her head, and opened her mouth.
“From the next problem, it won’t be the same as this one. That means you can’t just focus on the problem without any resistance.”
“It could mean that there is something distracting you or that you need something more to type the answer.”
“Exactly.”
“Is there a battle involved?”
“maybe.”
Area stood up.
“Then shall we go?”
There is no more time to rest. 100 is a perfect number. I think Rampione would end the issue at number 100, but that may not necessarily be the case.
Obviously, the closer you get to number 100, the more difficult the problem will become.
‘Actually, Lampione doesn’t seem to want this dungeon to be attacked.’
“Sure.”
Helmut quickly stood up. His body was not only fine, but full of strength.
It was Alea who had worked hard using magic to get here, not him. His power was the same as he had never even drawn a sword.
In fact, up until now, it was just like studying for the Academy written exam. Sitting with your butt down and studying.
Obviously, that was far from Helmut’s aptitude.
‘I’m starting to want to swing the sword.’
For some reason, out of thirst, Helmut grabbed the scabbard.
The fighting spirit that had risen sharply during the vacation sank again during academy life.
But as soon as I left the academy, a feeling flashed within me again.
Soon the time would come to revive this sense.
*
They soon entered the room with the 70th problem.
The room was spacious. It was not a small room where the problem was carved into the wall as before, but a space so vast and dark that it felt vast.
The stone statues everywhere gave off a naughty atmosphere and tension.
The peace I had until now was completely gone, and I felt like I never knew when something would pop up.
Helmut doubted for a moment.
‘Area was surprisingly timid.’
Could it be that he ran away because he was pressured by this atmosphere? So she might have brought someone to join her this time.
However, Area did not look afraid.
“Large space means activity.”
As Area opened her mouth, her gaze was directed straight ahead.
In a room painted in a gray, almost dark color, they headed towards the front in the center of the room.
The stone statues standing here and there somehow gave me a bad feeling.
There were four math problems written on the floor in the middle of the room. Four parentheses below that.
It is a neat problem with a single-digit answer in each parenthesis. If you solve it with calculations, there is no need to think any more.
“2, 5, 7, 9.”
Area chanted. It was almost as if he was talking without saying anything, so when Helmut turned around, he lightly raised his eyebrows.
“I solved it up to this point before. “It’s the same problem.”
This means that he still remembered the problem from more than a year ago. It was nothing to be admired again. Because the opponent is Area.
“If you solved the problem, why did you stop here?”
“Look closely where you put the answer to the question.”
Helmut narrowed his eyes. When I looked closely at the parenthesis under the question, I saw that it had a round groove. It looks like a hole into which a small ball can be inserted.
“Are you throwing in a ball with a number on it? “Where is the ball?”
“Yes, that is the problem.”
Area pointed out the stone statues placed everywhere. The stone statue, which resembled a vicious monster with bat wings, was about the size of three adults. It looked so vivid that I didn’t want to get close to it.
“From 0 to 9. There are 10 in total. “Then what should I do?”
“I guess you have to find the bead in the statue.”
Helmut answered concisely and moved without hesitation.
‘If I break the statue, will a bead come out? or not.’
There was no need to put in any effort. Helmut approached the statue and found a bead in its mouth.
“This is number 2.”
As soon as he stretched out his hand, Alea’s cry was heard.
“be careful!”
The moment the bead was removed, a red light appeared in the statue’s eyes. It was an amazing change.
The magical power spread and in an instant, the statue came to life. The guy’s head quickly jerked forward. Sigh! Its teeth bit into the air and made a creepy sound.
If the reaction speed had been slow, the hand from which the bead was removed would have been bitten off and separated from the arm entirely.
-crrrrrrr
Its wings spread out and flapped. Helmut put his marbles in his pocket and immediately drew his sword.
“Are you okay alone?”
At the same time as Area’s question, Helmut’s sword loaded with vis cut down the guy mercilessly.
Quad deud deuk! Because it is made of stone, there is quite a bit of resistance.
The one with one of its wings off hit Helmut with its front paw. Whiing! The guy’s claws fiercely tore through the air.
Helmut asked leisurely.
“If you stab your heart, will you die?”
“This guy is not a monster, but a golem. “It’s something that moves with magic, so the core will be where the magic gathers.”
Helmut easily saw the guy’s vital point. I could feel the magic power stirring on my forehead.
The movement of the statue was not slow, but it felt extremely slow to Helmut, who had faced numerous monsters. It is difficult to say that the hard body of the statue is harder than that of an actual monster.
In one fell swoop, his sword pierced his forehead. Kwakagak!
The light in my eyes lost its light like a candle going out. The stone statue that lost its core turned into a stone and collapsed again, as if it had never moved.
The moment the body touched the floor, fragments flew out. The touch that brushed my cheek felt slightly stinging. Helmut scanned his cheek. There doesn’t seem to be any injury.
Area said, still standing in the center of the room.
“Be careful, this is Lampione’s space. These guys here aren’t just illusion magic. Being in Rampione’s space means that you have accepted Rampione’s magic. That means accepting even illusory attacks as real.”
Helmut approached Area and handed her the bead. It was a bead with the number 2 written on it.
“Should the remaining numbers 5, 7, and 9 go through the same process?”
“Yeah, it’s a hassle, right? “I wish you would hurry.”
If you do it this way, each problem will take up some time. I had to deal with it quickly and move on to the next problem.
However, Area, who was not actually moving, quickly added.
“The golem moves with Rampione’s magic. Those types of magical creatures are resistant to other people’s magic. If I handle it with magic, it consumes a lot of magical power. I don’t know what’s coming next, but I can’t waste my magic power. “The moment I saw the bead in that statue’s mouth, I knew what I had to do.”
So, instead of fighting the statue, they decided to wait for the next opportunity. Just in case. That was a wise choice.
And since he came with Helmut like this, it means that the battle is Helmut’s responsibility.
Helmut tilted his head.
“I’m not planning on passing down magic from one archmage to another, but that’s too picky.”
I doubt whether I will be able to obtain his magic book at the end of this dungeon.
But it was also true that I couldn’t give up just because of doubt.
Helmut immediately moved his body. After cutting down all three remaining statues, he handed all four beads to Area.
When the beads were put together, a white light appeared on the other side. A door was created at the end of the wall.
“let’s go.”
The battle continued in the next room. There were some problems that could be easily overcome without a battle due to luck, but from the 70s onwards, solving problems usually involved combat.
There were rooms where even solving the problem itself could not be done peacefully. It was a room where golems attacked from the beginning.
There was a problem in the middle of the room, but the golem moved before I could approach it.
“I will use magic to erase existence and solve the problem. Just try to entice them. “You must not attack!”
Area spoke decisively.
“Barrier of concealment!”
Area’s appearance disappeared, and her presence was completely erased. It won’t even be visible visually. Helmut was the only target.
But the situation was a little different from before. Helmut dared to ask again.
“… … “Don’t attack me?”
“Okay, just until I figure out the answer. Hang in there.”
Area immediately concentrated on solving the problem.
Helmut glared straight ahead. He was a difficult opponent to just hold on to without attacking. I want to get it out of sight as quickly as possible.
A disgusting brown, shiny body, and numerous legs covered in rough hair.
It moves towards us quickly, exposing its disgusting snout studded with tiny thorn-like teeth and moving its numerous legs. Quarrrrrrr!
The rush of so many legs hitting the ground was like a current. A stream full of filth.
I got goosebumps. Faced with a giant centipede-type golem, Helmut frowned.
‘At this rate, it wouldn’t be a problem to use up two wishes.’
Lampione seems to have similar tastes to the Dean of Greta Academy.
It would be easier to catch and kill him quickly. The problem is that we can’t kill that guy because we haven’t figured out the answer yet. If you solve a problem and no one can figure out the answer, it is a failure.
He glanced towards Area. Knowing what was in Helmut, the golems all targeted Helmut first.
If you hide yourself with magic like this, Area won’t even be touched.
Just looking at each other made my patience burn out.
‘I wish I could answer quickly.’
Just because it was Area, it wasn’t like he was wasting time on purpose. No, it’s not even about wasting time. Not even 30 seconds passed.
It’s just that Helmut himself wants to kill him quickly, so the passage of time feels slow.
Soon Alea’s cry was heard.
“The answer is 5, 6, 2, 1!”
“… … “How can I get an answer from him with that?”
A moment later, I heard an answer from Area.
“word.”
