I picked up a strange object

Our return was nothing special. We didn't want to waste time walking to the guild. Doris told me to just teleport to the guild. I guess it will save us a lot of time. But I don't want to cause any troubles with the gate guards.

I teleport to the city gate and enter normally. The guards were a bit startled though. Well, we ignore them and go straight to the guild. When I open the door, Ms. Maria looks at me with a smile on her face.

Other receptionists are talking among themselves. Was something happening? We go to Ms. Maria.

"You are back a little later than I thought, Mr. Belmont." (Maria)

"We took our time investigating and found this."

I bring out that casket. Ms. Maria flinches seeing the casket.

"What is this casket, Ms. Maria?"

I ask her about the casket but everyone has taken a distance. Even Ms. Maria is frozen.

I put the casket away in my singularity. Ms. Maria started moving again.

"Mr. Belmont, I have to ask you, where did you find that casket?" (Maria)

"At the bottom of Yves lake. It was the casue of the pollution."

Judging from everyone's reaction, I have picked up something uncommon.

"Mr. Belmont, you said that you found that at the bottom of Yves lake, didn't you?" (Maria)

"Yes. It was at the very bottom. I had to search for a bit but found it eventually. Although it was totally dark at the bottom. I had to use light magic for illumination."

I enjoyed the ambiance and all but I wouldn't try it again. It's too much hassle with not much in return.

"You really go beyond all expectations, Mr. Belmont. Are you fine though? You touched that casket directly." (Maria)

"I noticed that everyone was acting weird when I took the casket out. Was that bothering everyone?"

"Judging from the way you are acting, I take it that you have no idea what that casket it. That casket is referred to as The Tomb. These are mysterious caskets found all over the world. These caskets are always sealed but they exude miasma so they are deemed hazardous." (Maria)

The Tomb? That's some serious naming sense. But a casket that exudes miasma. Interesting!

"So, what should I do with it?"

"Throughout history, only 12 have been found. This makes the 13th. The Adventurers Guild has specifically made some rules regarding this object. You are to hand it over to the guild at once." (Maria)

"I am curious though. What is sealed inside of it?"

"No one knows. The other 12 have never been opened as not many can get close to it. The one you found is pretty small. The bigger ones exude so much miasma that the surrounding life forms just die." (Maria)

I look at Doris and she is listening to our conversation with great interest.

"Do you know anything about it, Doris?"

"That object does exude miasma. If it was me from before, I would have noticed it. But maybe due to master, I have grown totally resistant to these small changes. I failed to notice it sooner." (Doris)

"No need to apologize. We all kinda ignore some insignificant things, don't we? How about we get someone to analyze this for us?"

I contact Aera. She appears before me without any delay.

"Oh, hello, Ms. Maria." (Aera)

When she saw Ms. Maria, she was startled for a moment but she greeted her.

"Hello." (Maria)

She greets her back. Aera looks at me and I bring out the casket. I have created a barrier so the miasma won't leak to the surrounding area.

"Master, this casket is releasing miasma. Although it's not very strong." (Aera)

I didn't even say anything and she already figured it out from a look.

"Yeah. I didn't know until Ms. Maria told me. So, what is this actually?"

She takes the casket from me and takes a good look.

"This is just a portal, master. It's connected to Hades. The miasma is from Hades." (Aera)

Hades? That's probably the land of the dead. This planet has its own land of the dead, probably. I don't think all the dead people go to the same place.

"Ms. Maria, it seems to be a portal to the Hades."

But she is frozen again. Well, for normal humans, Hades is a terrible place. But I think it'll be pretty cool to go there. I wait for her to come around.

"Sorry, to think that The Tomb was actually a portal to the Hades?" (Maria)

"You believe me?"

"I think I understand what sort of person you are. You don't lie very often, do you?" (Maria)

"I have never been good at lying to others."

"How should I report it to the headquarters? I will consult this matter with guild master and the Mage Association. For now, you can keep that casket with you." (Maria)

"Are you sure? Won't you get in trouble for not taking something like this?"

"No, I won't. This is the first time, The Tomb has been discovered in this country. It will cause an uproar if I announce this out of nowhere." (Maria)

I left the guild saying that she should contact me when she needs The Tomb. Me, Doris and Aera are now walking to Ms. Pablo's store.

"But still, a portal to the Hades? Who does stuff like this?"

"It's probably someone with a bad personality." (Doris)

"Could it be Pluto?"

"No, I don't think so. Pluto does not hold grudges against anyone for a long time. It must be someone different." (Aera)

We push this matter aside as well. When I arrive at Ms. Pablo's shop, she was standing at the reception as usual.

"Mr. Belmont, I take it that you are here for the map you commissioned?" (Montana)

"Yes. I believe it is the promised time."

"Yes. Here, this is the map." (Montana)

She gives me a booklet. I open it and see that the pages show different places and when combined together, it becomes the map of this country. That's neat. I pay her for the map. This time, she didn't give me any discount. Well, the cartographer made the map so he needs to be paid in full.

I did give a 3 day deadline after all. It's tough making a map in 3 days. I give the map to Aera.

"Analyze it and update your records. Do make adjustments if missing something."

Aera takes the map and starts looking through it.

"By the way, do you handle animal products?"

"Is it about that felis you took in?" (Montana)

"Yes. I think Fiona said that she would talk to you about that."

"She did drop by to ask me. Currently I don't but I have the means to arrange for those products. They are not hard to find after all." (Montana)

"Sorry for making you deal in things you normally don't."

"No no, it's no problem. Besides, you always give me new ideas, Mr. Belmont." (Montana)

We were about to leave when Ms. Pablo asked me something.

"Are you planning on traveling?" (Montana)

"Yes. Fay is making the arrangements for our travel. I don't know where to go though."

"Then how about the academy city of Galdur? It's not too far away and is the city that has The Royal Academy." (Montana)

"An academy city. It's not a bad idea but I will have to ask Fay about it. But I will think about it."

I greet her one last time before leaving. It's only lunchtime and I am already done. Then I can conduct those experiments I was thinking of in my free time. But let's head home for now.