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Sumi-Sumi was a player obsessed over blacksmithing, and was considered one of the best. The weapons crafted by him were always valued highly by warriors, many of which would drool at the thought of owning one.

But as a spellcaster, Mira had little reason to contact a blacksmith making weapons, so she only spoke a little with Sumi-Sumi before while hanging out with Solomon. Or rather, the Nine Wisemen only knew of Sumi-Sumi as Solomon’s friend.

Soul Howl had run into Sumi-Sumi again somehow.

「Well, yes it’s the same Sumi-Sumi. We really didn’t talk before, but we got kinda close while I got stuff for Irina. That’s how I learned about that.」

Soul Howl quickly became more talkative, likely because he was talking about his beloved Irina.

Some time in the past, way before even a glimmer of the Brilliant Chalice appeared in Soul Howl’s mind, he had been obsessed with obtaining items to make Irina more powerful.

His quest proceeded smoothly, thanks to his great efforts, so he could use rather powerful weapons as burial articles. Eventually he hit a snag, one of the weapons he wanted to use to power her up was no longer available.

Everything else he could find, even if it was made by famous blacksmiths or using rare materials, was inferior to what he already had, so it would not make Irina stronger.

With no other options available, he decided he would have to find a superior blacksmith himself. That was how he began to search for Sumi-Sumi, the only superior blacksmith he knew of, even though he was unaware of whether Sumi-Sumi had arrived in this world or not yet.

That search was not a lengthy one though, as Soul Howl knew the country where Sumi-Sumi lived, so it was easy to check there. Once he got there, he found out that Sumi-Sumi had retired from making weapons, so it took some time of convincing before his request was accepted.

「It turns out that Sumi-Sumi is now part of the Rising Sun Committee, being the chief of the Modern Technology Research Institute there. That’s how I also got to learn a bit about the Rising Sun Committee.」
「I see, so that’s how you found out about that.」

Mira could understand how that had happened. Sumi-Sumi was essentially the best blacksmith player, which meant a lot of recognition in the entire continent.

「By the way, what does this Modern Technology Research Institute do?」

Since her main question had been answered, Mira asked about the institute that Soul Howl mentioned. Anyone would be curious about that, considering that virtually all players knew of Sumi-Sumi, who was also the chief of that institute.

Soul Howl explained in very simple terms. The Modern Technology Research Institute researched Earth’s technology, or to be precise, they were testing how much of that they could recreate in this world.

「Modern Technology is the blanket term they use, but they actually have dozens of groups focusing on more specific topics, like industrialization, ship building, architecture, medicine, agriculture, and some are even trying to start a space program. From what I heard, that’s the biggest division within the Rising Sun Committee. The trains running along the entire continent and the flying ships are all products from them. As you’ve probably already assumed, they also have an incredible lineup of members. Basically half of all the players famous for crafting are there.」

His explanation of that location done, Soul Howl mentioned visiting them again soon, so the best jeweler Tiffanies could work on the Neuron Crystal.

「Ohh! That sounds like an incredible place!」

The Rising Sun Committee was an organization founded by former players who owned countries. There were multiple institutes under their wing, researching various things. One of them, the Modern Technology Research Institute, was composed of many of the best crafters.

When Mira learned of its existence, she also raised her voice, quite happy about that. She was excited for a similar reason as Soul Howl. The drops from Machina Guardian were some of the highest level, and only a select number of people knew how to properly craft them into equipment.

She had the materials, but not a way to use them. But knowing a place like the Modern Technology Research Institute existed solved that instantly.

「So, where is it? I’ve gotten quite a haul of materials myself, so I’d really like to know its location!」

That place sounded like a paradise for someone with materials, so Mira stepped closer to Soul Howl, demanding to know its location.

「Now that you mention it, I bet the people there would cry with joy seeing Neuron Crystals, Clearmaterite Alloy, and Aethermite. Or even more for an Eye of Apollo.」

Soul Howl quickly understood what Mira was getting at. 「I was told to keep it secret from everyone,」 he started, but then added 「but I guess making an exception for you would be alright,」 and explained where it was located.

Half of the various research institutes from the Rising Sun Committee were dotted around the countries founded by players, while the other half were hidden in the rest of the continent. The former mostly focused on scientific discoveries, while the latter did mostly technical and practical research.

The Modern Technology Research Institute was one of the latter. It was hidden in an island in the sea surrounding the Earth and Ark continents, known as Cadiasmite Island. There were some steep and harsh mountains on its northern side, and hidden within them was the institute.

「Of all inaccessible places, they chose that one…」

The biggest peak in Cadiasmite Island was 8,000 meters tall, and there were plenty of others that reached 6,000, making it a proper mountain range. Mira felt like such a place would be too cumbersome for a research institute, but before she could really ask anything about it, Soul Howl explained that they had no choice.

「Now calm down a little. They have a lot of experimental prototypes there, but even those are chock full of technology that’s never been seen before in this world. Revealing such inventions early could lead to an imbalance of power and incite conflict, but the people there want to use that technology to improve the lives of everyone else, and not cause wars. Though I’m sure they would happily provide their services to defeat monsters. Either way, because of the delicate nature of all that, they chose to build the institute in a place guarded by nature. Or at least that’s what Sumi-Sumi told me.」

Sometimes technology created to fight monsters was also used in wars between humans. Even things not meant to be used as weapons could end up hurting people. So all those former players who only desired peace were afraid of the wrong people getting their hands on their research, so they built the institute somewhere that no one could find. That was quite a lot of commitment for research they hoped would better the world.

「Hmm, when you put it that way it actually sounds like the ideal location.」

The terrain was rough and surrounded by mountains and cliffs. Just exploring that area was difficult, so stumbling upon the secret institution there was essentially impossible. But that also made visiting it a hard task, and the prospect of it clouded Mira’s face.

「Apparently Sumi-Sumi kept receiving orders from various countries that wanted to get to war, so he jumped at the opportunity of joining the research institute. He was adamant he wouldn’t create tools for war again when I saw him, so convincing him took a lot of work…」

Soul Howl let out an exhausted sigh thinking about all that again, but then managed to break out a smile again as he said 「deep down he still has a passion for crafting weapons though.」

He also explained how there were others who joined the research institutions for similar reasons as Sumi-Sumi.

「I guess artisans also have a lot going on in their lives. Anyway, where’s the actual location of the institute? I really don’t want to search aimlessly in that place.」

It was hard to tell whether Mira had really gotten the message or not. She simply brushed the topic aside, bringing out the map she had bought a few days earlier so Soul Howl could give her the exact location, since she had been in that place once and did not have fond memories of the place.

She knew the research institution was somewhere in the mountains in the north of Cadiasmite Island, but with how vast those mountains were, even an aerial search would take a long time. Instead she would rather know the exact position.

「I know, I know, don’t be so pushy. I’ll tell you everything.」

After holding back Mira who kept pushing the map onto his face, he pointed at a spot on it. It was on the far north of the island, just at the edge before the sea.

「There’s a tall cliff there, but a portion is hidden with a Exorcism barrier. Going through it leads to the entrance of the institution. Look for two sharp rocks like spears, go between them and head straight south and you should find yourself in a cave.」
「I see, I see, hmhmm…」

Mira marked the location on the map with a pen and wrote down everything Soul Howl said, making sure to highlight the description of the landmarks so it was clearly readable.

「Listen here… Never show that map to anyone, alright?」

Soul Howl’s voice was stern, seeing that vital information that was as valuable as a state secret written so plainly on a large map.

「I know, I know!」

In contrast to his worries, Mira just continued being her usual self. So just in case, she wrote 『TOP SECRET』 in large letters in the upper right corner of the map.

Soul Howl could not stifle a heavy sigh as he muttered 「Never change, Elder, never change…」