"My story starts in the Bloody Arena held on a distant planet named Belgarun. There, I was hailed as the bloody Queen—the youngest female warrior to ever win in the Bloody Arena.
Then one day, some unknown figures contacted me with an offer to escort them to a place. I wouldn't typically accept those kinds of half-assed jobs. My mind only wavers for jobs that are hotter and more violent—like stuff that involves trekking through jungles filled with vicious monsters with sharp teeth and claws. That's how my blood boils—for adventure. But this time was different, and I accepted the job because of the huge amount of reward they offered me upfront—before the job was even done.
So, I escorted those figures without knowing it was all a trap. Once I came into this place with them, that's when I realized everything—but it was already too late. The figures with me all had masks covering their faces, so I couldn't actually see who they were, but they worked fast. In a matter of minutes, they managed to gather a massive amount of Malv flowers, while I had to prevent the guards from getting through.
I didn't want to stop the guards, but I had no choice. I was already informed that the moment someone stepped into the Malv flower field unauthorized, they would be deemed a criminal who broke the rules.
I had no choice but to go along with the unknown figures and quickly get out of that place. But those bastards… they tricked me again and abandoned me—leaving me behind to get captured by the guards."
Argh!
"Even just imagining that moment makes my blood boil with rage!"
Marian's fist shattered a piece of rock on the ground as she punched it in anger. Pieces of the broken rock flew toward Henry and Auran, who were quietly listening to her story.
"Understood. So, you were betrayed. I'm sorry that happened to you," Henry offered a few sympathetic words.
The woman seemed to calm down slightly upon hearing Henry's response. Then she crouched down again, avoiding being seen by the other prisoners working nearby in the mine.
"It's been three years since I got captured and sentenced to be a prisoner for the rest of my life in this damned place. Ever since then, I've tried numerous methods to escape, but because of this thing—" she pointed at the collar around her neck, "—which prevents me from using my enchanted mana, I haven't been able to use any of my powers."
Hearing the woman, Henry also looked at the necklace around his neck, which was the object that prevented anyone from using mana.
"Same goes for us. We also cannot use mana. I don't see how we could be of any help to you in escaping this place when none of us can use our powers," said Henry.
"But you're from the Malckoy family—one of the greatest magic families there is! From what I've heard, when it comes to anything involving magic, the Malckoy family are the masters. Don't you know a way to break this thing and get us out of here?" Marian asked with hope in her eyes.
"I'm sorry to break it to you, but although we are indeed from the Malckoy family, we're still students. Maybe I might be able to help, but only if I had more information about this object and about this place we're in," Henry answered honestly after carefully listening to what Marian said.
"Information… Right, you're still new here. Then let me tell you everything I've come to know about this place during these three years, and you see if there's anything important for our escape in those things."
She took a deep breath and continued.
"The place we're in is called the Federal Prison. It's where criminals facing life sentences are held. Almost all the prisoners here belong to the 'body-enchanted' type. I don't know the exact reason for that, but that's just how it is. Here, throughout the daytime, we're forced to do labor work in the mining fields—like the one we're in now. There are three other fields, each one designated for mining a different type of that glowing rock-like material.
Because this place holds some of the cruelest criminals known, it's heavily guarded specifically with this mana suppressing necklaces. No one can use mana because of the collars around our necks.
There are some veterans in the field who have lived almost their entire lives in this prison," Marian said, nodding toward a few old people standing far off, observing the field. They looked too old to work, and they seemed to have friendly relationships with almost all the prisoners nearby.
"According to them, there was only one man who ever managed to escape from this prison in history. Care to guess which family he came from?" Marian looked at Henry with a smirk, as if the answer were obvious.
"Malckoy family," Henry muttered.
"Exactly. His escape plan is not known by everyone, but only a few claim to have seen him escape, and it gave them some idea of what lies outside. It's said that to break this collar, someone has to be extremely skilled in the field of Runecraft. However, even if someone did break the collar, escaping is still nearly impossible because this whole place is said to be a pocket realm that exists independently from other worlds. To break out of this, we need someone who knows space magic very well—or someone crafty enough to guide us to the nearest teleportation port. That's why I saved you… hoping you two might be my chance at freedom. But if you're only a student, then…" Marian trailed off.
While she spoke, Henry fell deep into thought.
"Runecraft is the field of embedding ancient runic language into weapons to enchant them. The basic method is guiding rune power to form a symbol. It's a bit similar to the creation of a magician's spell circle. And the other requirement… a magician skilled in space magic, or someone smarter than me to brake out of this prison"
He paused for a moment, then added, "I don't know if you'll believe me, but I think I know a guy who fits all of those requirements."
"If it's about creating and guiding mana, he's an expert in that path—skilled enough to teach others. And when it comes to space magic, he has more than three years of experience in the field,"
Hearing henry, Marian grew impatient.
"Really? There's actually someone like that? Who is it?" she asked eagerly.
Following Henry's gaze, she looked over at Auran—who at the moment had a completely idiotic look on his face.
"You dare toy with me!?"