WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: LilGuyBlastoise
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Made Magic Easier by Changing the Formula ◈
Chapter 17: The Secret of the Underground Cave
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I calmly waved a hand.
“No. It’s a misunderstanding, Nen.”
I smiled gently as I explained.
“A while ago, I helped a child who was in trouble on the street. It turned out the child’s older brother was the boss of that organization.”
“You helped the younger brother of an underworld boss?”
“I think that’s why he sent the letter. It’s definitely not a threat, so don’t worry.”
“...Is that so?”
Nen withdrew her killing intent and returned to her usual gentle smile.
“Still, be careful. Those people are different on the inside from what they show on the outside.”
“Yes.”
“Then get some rest. Enjoy the newspaper.”
As soon as Nen left, I opened the letters.
First was the letter from the Magic Tower branch.
[To: Hans, Exclusive Repairman of House Valderk]
[Contents: The first shipment of Cleansing Handkerchiefs you supplied has completely sold out. They have received widespread praise among noblewomen and research mages concerned with hygiene. We would like to place an additional order for 1,000 handkerchiefs. Please deliver them as soon as possible.]
One hundred sold out in five days.
And an additional order!
“1,000...”
A smile spread across my face.
Five silver each.
One thousand would be a full fifty gold.
“I already made five hundred, so I only need to make another five hundred.”
I could earn money and train my mana.
It was a virtuous cycle that killed two birds with one stone.
‘What did Vargo send?’
I opened the second letter.
Several notes covered in rough handwriting spilled from the envelope.
[To the brother who saved my younger brother.]
Brother? Who was he calling brother?
I snorted and kept reading.
[Aren’t you curious about House Bergen, your enemy? We can’t personally step in and wield knives, but sniffing out those bastards is our specialty.]
Below it was information on House Bergen, especially Sophia’s recent movements.
- Sophia Bergen has recently stopped attending social gatherings. She has shut herself in her residence and become increasingly irritable.
- Count Bergen is under pressure from a tax investigation over tariff issues at the southern trade port.
- House Bergen’s exclusive dress shop has hired a new chief tailor, Duell.
“Duell?”
Duell was an up-and-coming tailor from the Eastern Continent who had been attracting nobles’ attention with flamboyant, unconventional fashion.
Vargo had made a sincere effort to write it all down, but there was nothing especially useful.
‘I should go buy more fabric.’
I needed to make five hundred more handkerchiefs.
* * *
The market at sunset.
“Move! Move out of the way! Can’t you see this cart?”
“Why is the road so clogged? Why aren’t they unloading the goods?”
The transport carts packed across the narrow road made it nearly impossible to pass.
As I pushed through the crowd toward my regular fabric store, I closely examined the line of carts blocking the way.
A blue wagon wheel emblem was painted on their covers.
[Blue Cart]
The new stock I had bought.
“Good grief. They say nobody accepts deliveries these days unless it’s Blue Cart.”
The merchants watching nearby clicked their tongues and whispered among themselves.
“Tell me about it. Bergen Shipping is in complete chaos right now. Goods are piled up like mountains at the port, but they can’t sort them, so they’re rotting away. Blue Cart is charging extra to carry the cargo for them, so at least they can breathe again.”
Their dissatisfied conversation sounded as sweet as honey to me.
‘So Blue Cart is making a fortune right now.’
Was my intuition really right?
The corners of my mouth rose on their own.
* * *
The underground secret room.
I wrestled once more with the heaps of white fabric piled on the workbench.
Snip, snip.
The regular sound of scissors cutting.
This was already the third day.
Making the additional five hundred handkerchiefs for the Magic Tower was harder work than I had expected.
In the brief moment the needle pierced the cloth, I had to inscribe a first-tier purification magic circuit.
The timing was so precise that if I missed it, the magic would not take hold, and it would become nothing more than an ordinary scrap of fabric.
“331... 332...”
Sweat beaded on my forehead and stung my eyes, but I didn’t have time to wipe it away.
Every joint in my fingers ached.
‘Still, each one of these handkerchiefs is worth five silver.’
Silver coins were being created at my fingertips.
This work would turn the poor me into a rich man.
I was having so much fun making money that I didn’t even notice how hard it was.
Just then, the wall of the secret passage opened, and Ellen entered.
“Welcome, my lady.”
“Long time no see, Hans. You still look busy.”
“I always am.”
“What are those?”
Ellen’s eyes widened at the pile of handkerchiefs.
“Are those Cleansing Handkerchiefs?”
“How did you know?”
“I bought one a few days ago because my friends recommended it. They sell them at the Rowen Magic Tower shop.”
She looked at me as though she couldn’t believe it.
“This was your work? My goodness... It’s popular among noble ladies these days. They say that if you wipe skin blemishes or rashes with one, they go away almost immediately.”
“Skin blemishes and rashes go away?”
“It’s true. I saw the effects myself.”
“I see.”
It was an unexpected effect.
I had given the Cleansing Handkerchiefs several experimental spells, but even I hadn’t expected them to remove skin blemishes.
‘Did Trace Erasure recognize blemishes on the skin as traces...?’
Either way, it wasn’t a bad thing.
It was better than good.
‘This could sell well.’
It would be a very appealing product for women who wanted beautiful, flawless skin.
“How did you think of making something like this?”
“It was made by chance while I was conducting several experiments. Even I didn’t expect this effect.”
“That’s amazing. Really.”
Ellen looked genuinely impressed.
“But, Hans, why do you work yourself this hard? You don’t sleep or rest...”
She looked sadly at my hollow eyes and roughened hands.
“If it’s because of money, I can raise your salary. Or I can provide however much support you need. You could live comfortably without suffering like this.”
Her words came from kindness.
With House Valderk’s wealth, they could probably let one person like me live comfortably forever.
“I appreciate the offer, but I’d rather stand on my own than live comfortably by relying on someone else.”
“On your own?”
“My dream is to make money with my own strength and use that money to become even richer. Help given by others will run out someday, but strength I gain myself will not disappear.”
Ellen couldn’t speak for a moment after my firm reply.
She stared at me with a strange expression.
“You really are different from the commoners I knew.”
She lowered her head with a bitter smile.
“I envy you. Having such a clear goal and confidence.”
Now that I thought about it, there was no strength in her voice.
Her usual confident air was nowhere to be found, and her shoulders drooped.
She clearly had something on her mind.
“Is something worrying you?”
I asked carefully.
“Are you having trouble with your magic studies?”
“No. If it were that, I would’ve asked you long ago. This is... a different problem.”
Ellen let out a deep sigh and sank weakly into a chair.
“Next week, there will be a reception banquet for the Crown Prince in Rowen. There will be a ball.”
“A ball? Isn’t that a good thing?”
“It would be, if Sophia weren’t involved.”
She bit her lip.
“Have you heard the rumor? Sophia brought a genius tailor named Duell from the East.”
“The tailor from the Eastern Continent?”
“That’s right. Sophia has been telling everyone that she’ll wear a dress made by Duell and become the star of this ball.”
Ellen’s face darkened.
“They say Sophia’s dress won’t be ordinary clothing. The pattern ripples with the light, and it shines by itself even from a distance. At its presentation, everyone stared only at that dress. They said nobody could even notice the person standing beside it.”
‘Patterns rippling with the light are nothing special, but shining by itself...’
The answer came quickly.
“It’s magic that overlays an illusion. The fabric itself doesn’t change. It deceives the eyes of the people looking at it.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because that’s the only kind of magic that can create such an effect on fabric. It’s a trick of the eye. It may be flashy, but it’s ultimately just an illusion.”
Of course, even a trick of the eye was still impressive magic.
“Do you not have a dress prepared, my lady?”
“I do have a dress made for this occasion. Father commissioned it from a master in the Imperial Capital. It’s beautiful and luxurious, but...”
She lowered her head.
“It would be better if I were the only one embarrassed. That’s not the problem. This is an event held before His Highness the Crown Prince. If I’m overshadowed there, it means House Valderk has been overshadowed by House Bergen. The family’s honor is at stake.”
Even if she had won in the theory and practical exams, being overshadowed at the ball, the flower of high society, would tarnish all those victories.
Especially before the Crown Prince, that defeat would be talked about for years.
For noble houses, a ball was no different from a battlefield.
“Would you like me to help?”
“You? But, Hans, you’re a repairman. You can’t make a dress from scratch.”
“Nothing is impossible, though modifications are my specialty.”
“Modifications?”
“Bring me that dress. I’ll make the illusion magic of that person called Duell look like a crude parlor trick.”
“Really? You can really do that?”
“Of course.”
Ellen’s eyes shook at my confidence.
She probably wanted to clutch at even a straw.
“What do you need? Tell me anything.”
“I need mana crystals. The more, the better.”
“Fine. What else?”
I was about to name additional materials.
“What are you doing here?”
A cold voice came from behind me.
A chill like my heart had frozen.
I flinched and turned around.
Someone stood in the darkness at the entrance to the secret passage.
“F-Father!”
Ellen’s face went pale as paper.
It was Count Valderk.
Two people stood behind him like shadows.
Both were familiar.
One was Zebas, the House Valderk butler who had once visited the fabric shop.
The other was Nen.
The Count’s expression was cold.
The warm smile he usually showed Ellen was nowhere to be seen.
“Ellen, have you forgotten what this place is?”
“F-Father, it’s not what you think...”
“You brought an outsider into this forbidden area? A lowborn commoner whose origins you don’t even know? Have you lost your mind?”
His roar echoed through the underground secret room.
Though she trembled like a leaf, Ellen stepped in front of me.
“It’s my fault! Hans knows nothing! I forced him to come here!”
“Move aside.”
“Father, please! Hans is my benefactor! He improved my grades and helped me.”
“Benefactor? There is no benefactor for one who breaks the family rules.”
The Count’s gaze turned toward me.
It was a blank gaze, as if he were looking at an insect.
No, as if he were looking at someone already dead.
“Take this man away at once.”
“Yes.”
At the same time as the reply, wind blew.
No, I thought it was wind.
“Urgh!”
In an instant, both my arms were twisted behind my back.
An overwhelming grip.
Before I even had time to turn my head, I was slammed into the floor.
“I’m sorry, Hans.”
A quiet whisper reached my ear.
It was Nen.
At some point, she had climbed onto my back and subdued me.
She was no longer the usual kind maid.
She was a beast.
The strength in her grip was overwhelming enough to be called monstrous.
“Let him go! Hans did nothing wrong!”
Ellen tried to rush forward, but Zebas stepped in front of her.
“I will escort you to your room, my lady.”
“No! Father! If you hurt Hans, I won’t forgive you! I’ll never see you again!”
Ellen’s cries faded into the distance.
Still restrained by Nen, I was dragged away.
Resistance?
Impossible.
I didn’t even have time to use mana.
“Keep your mouth shut and stay still.”
Nen whispered quietly into my ear.
“Even if you explain yourself now, you’ll only anger the head of the house further. If you don’t want to die, follow quietly as though you’re dead.”
I bit my lip and nodded.
Clang.
The sound of the heavy iron-barred door closing echoed through the cave.
I was thrown onto the floor.
“Urgh...”
It was a damp, dark cave.
Drip, drip.
Water fell from the ceiling.
The air was mixed with the smell of mold and old dust.
I never imagined there would be a place like this beneath the Valderk estate.
It was a secret prison different from the secret room, one no outsider could ever know about.
“Hans.”
Nen stood in the darkness beyond the bars.
Her expression looked complicated.
“You’ll have to stay here for a while.”
“What will happen to me? Am I going to die?”
I asked calmly.
In truth, I was only pretending to be calm.
Cold sweat ran down my back.
“I don’t know.”
Nen pushed a small basket through the bars.
It contained a water bottle and bread.
“If the head of the house intended to kill you, he would’ve cut off your head back there. The fact that he brought you here and imprisoned you means... there’s still a reprieve.”
“A reprieve...?”
“Lady Ellen is desperately trying to stop him. To save you. So don’t give up hope.”
She turned to leave, then stopped again.
“And... I know this is unfair, but endure it. Knowing a noble’s secret is something that always puts your life at risk. I’ll come again tomorrow.”
Nen’s footsteps faded, and even the torchlight disappeared.
Perfect darkness descended.
“Haah...”
I slumped onto the floor.
Things had gone terribly wrong.
“...I don’t know what I should do.”
The seed money from stocks that had finally begun to grow in earnest.
The Cleansing Handkerchiefs recognized by the Rowen Magic Tower.
The mana core that had begun at the first tier’s beginner stage was now approaching proficiency.
If I overcame this wall, even the second tier would no longer be a dream.
I had only just begun.
Was I going to die here so meaninglessly?
‘No. I can’t die.’
If Nen was right, it wasn’t over yet.
If the Count had intended to kill me, he would have done it already.
I looked at the basket of food Nen had placed inside.
‘For now, eat.’
If I wanted to survive, I had to preserve my strength first.
I tore off some bread, put it in my mouth, and chewed.
After washing it down with water, I finally felt my mind begin to work again.
But once I sat still, anxiety came rushing back.
‘No. I need to do something.’
There was nothing better than imaginary training for steadying my mind.
Being locked in prison did not mean my time had stopped.
If anything, I now had time without interruptions.
I sat down and closed my eyes.
Inside the virtual space in my mind, I summoned Paim’s gang and began a battle.
‘Attack before the opponent attacks.’
Spatial Stitching Needle.
Invisible Thread.
Perhaps because of all my training, I could now deal with a group like Paim’s even with my eyes closed.
But what about someone strong like Nen?
If the same situation happened again, could I dodge in advance?
Her movements had been like wind, rushing in before I even had time to predict them.
They had been frighteningly fast.
‘There doesn’t seem to be an answer right now.’
Still, I kept training to respond.
I laid Invisible Thread out in front of myself beforehand.
I tried firing Spatial Stitching Needle.
I did everything I could in my imagination.
After some time, my mana ran dry.
It would take a while to recover.
The Mana Reflux Magic Circle was in the workshop.
‘It can’t be helped. I’ll draw a new one here.’
I leveled the dirt floor and drew a magic circle with my fingertip.
Without a mana crystal, its core power source, it would only make recovery slightly faster.
Still, that was better than nothing.
‘Done.’
I sat inside the magic circle and focused on the sensation of mana seeping into my depleted core.
Then,
‘...What?’
Something was strange.
The recovery was faster than expected.
The difference was very slight, but it was there.
‘That means mana is flowing somewhere in this cave.’
My heart pounded hard.
‘Is there a hidden mana crystal somewhere?’
It was a threadlike flow of mana that I would never have sensed without setting up the Mana Reflux Magic Circle.
It led deeper into the cave, toward a dead-end wall farthest from the entrance.
The rock wall looked smooth.
Yet I could sense a faint irregularity.
‘Hmm... What are these curves?’
My eyes, which could catch even a single crooked thread or loose strand in cloth, caught the traces.
Grooves thinner than hair.
Regular intervals.
Calculated angles.
‘They were not formed naturally. Someone made them.’
I brushed away the dusty dirt.
Countless lines emerged one after another.
‘A sealing circle! There’s no doubt.’
The formulas looked complex.
Not one, but dozens of them overlapped.
‘Why would they do something this excessive?’
What on earth had been sealed here?
I hesitated for a moment.
It would not be difficult for me to unravel these formulas.
‘Could this be an exit?’
If there was a space beyond this wall... could it be a path out?
This was no time to hesitate.
‘Let’s do it.’
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