Elena greeted Donald as he stepped down into the basement.
"It’s fine. I’m not sure how, but the air isn't stale."
This observation came from the expertise she had gathered while investigating numerous ruins in the past.
"I don't think there's any danger. Look, that door caught my eye."
However, the light cast by Donald's magi-device was too dim for him to see what Elena was looking at.
"Elena, it's a bit dark."
"Oh, I’m sorry."
Since she could see well enough, Elena apologized briefly and decided to conjure more light.
"Light."
The room brightened, allowing Donald to see the interior clearly.
"I see. Aside from the door, there’s nothing else in this room..."
At the far end stood a single door. As Elena had suggested, it felt as though something lay beyond it.
"Let's take a look."
"I suppose... so."
Regardless, they would learn nothing if they stayed put. Donald and Elena headed toward the door.
The door was fitted with an old-fashioned knob. It creaked slightly but opened slowly.
The moment they pushed it open, lights flickered on inside. The magi-devices were apparently still functional, and the ventilation system seemed to be running as well.
"What is this place?"
"It looks like a reference room."
Books were packed tightly onto shelves lining the walls.
A thin layer of dust had accumulated, prompting Donald to cover his nose and mouth with a handkerchief.
"The hall earlier wasn't dusty at all, though."
"Now that you mention it, you're right. I wonder if there’s a reason for it, perhaps for preservation."
Elena scanned the room. Her gaze eventually came to a halt in a corner.
"That is..."
Standing there was a figure that appeared to be a magi-doll, though it was difficult to tell if it was a golem or an automata.
It was a female model.
Elena approached the golem to confirm its nature, with Donald following close behind.
"This is a golem."
"Indeed. Though it seems someone tried to make it look as human as possible."
If an automata was the equivalent of a "doll" in modern Japan, then this golem was more like a "figure."
The entire body was made of metal, including the hair.
Lotte, whom Jin had crafted for Prince Ernest of the Kingdom of Egerea, was perhaps the closest comparison.
"It doesn't appear to be broken."
"It seems it’s merely dormant."
Donald and Elena gently examined the golem. While it was old, it didn't seem to be malfunctioning.
"I’d like to try and wake it up," Donald said with interest.
"Yes. It might be the librarian for this reference room."
However, they didn't know the procedure for activation.
"Hmm... It doesn't seem to respond to 'Magic Detection' automatically."
"Keywords don't work either. I’ve tried old and new ones, but there's no reaction."
"It doesn't look like the internal functions have failed, though."
"Right. That leaves the possibility of an activation magi-device."
Based on Elena’s theory, the two began searching the room. Their efforts were quickly rewarded.
"Elena, could it be this?"
Donald had found what appeared to be a control device.
It wasn't a small remote, but rather something closer in size and shape to an old CRT television.
"It’s a magi-device."
"Is this the mechanism to wake it up?"
Elena and Donald carefully analyzed the device.
"Without a doubt, this is it."
When Elena pressed the activation switch, a section of the control device lit up. It was a magi-screen.
"Elena, there’s text on it."
"The script is somewhat archaic....Let's see. 'If thou desirest knowledge, show thy corresponding wisdom.'"
As she spoke, the text on the display changed.
"'What has four legs and a back, yet has no body?'"
"A riddle, then," Donald groaned as Elena read it aloud.
"...A chair. One with a backrest."
The moment Elena whispered the answer, the text on the screen shifted.
"Is there more?...'A one-eyed ghost with one leg; what is it?'"
"What could that be?"
Elena tilted her head in confusion, and Donald racked his brain.
If Jin had heard it, he would have known immediately; it was a classic Japanese riddle.
"Is it not a sewing needle?"
A voice spoke from behind Elena and Donald. It was the guard.
"Since you had not returned for some time, I came to search for you. I have secured the rope ladder, so returning will be easy."
Since they had been told to use their own judgment, they couldn't fault him for following them.
Moreover, there was no sign of danger. Furthermore—
"'What is lower when you stand and higher when you sit?'"
The next riddle appeared on the screen.
"The ceiling."
The guard answered again, and the screen changed.
"Oh, it seems he was right. You're quite clever."
Donald praised the taciturn guard.
"No, I had simply heard such riddles in my hometown before."
"I see. And your hometown is—"
"Donald, save it for later. It looks like it’s finally waking up."
Elena cut him off.
Just as she said, light flickered in the eyes of the golem that had been standing still.
＊ ＊ ＊
"...Those are definitely riddles from the lineage of the Magus."
On Hourai Island, Jin watched the scene unfold.
"Riddles, huh... that takes me back."
Jin recalled how the Orphanage Director used to tell him such riddles.
The true identity of the guard was a Quinta.
The answers to the riddles were provided by Jin through Laojun.
"But a librarian golem... that’s interesting."
"My Lord, I apologize. I did not expect such a thing to remain in a ruin we had not yet surveyed."
Laojun apologized, but Jin told him not to worry about it.
"No matter how capable you are, Laojun, the continent is vast. It’s only natural to miss something. Don't let it bother you."
"Thank you very much."
Jin and the others then turned their attention back to the display from the Peeper.
＊ ＊ ＊
"Are you seekers of knowledge...? It has been a long time."
"My, you say 'a long time,' but could you tell even while you were suspended?"
Elena questioned the golem's words.
"I can. Only I was suspended; the timekeeping device has been running continuously....According to its records, the seasons have cycled 232 times in this world since my suspension."
From those words, they understood that the golem had been deactivated shortly after the fall of the Leonard Kingdom.
Elena decided to ask about those days.
"Do you know the circumstances of how the kingdom fell?"
"Yes, I know. For this underground facility was constructed specifically to escape that loathsome epidemic."
And so, the golem began its tale...