I let Zanoba push it.
And then, the door made a [kiririkiki] sort of creaking sound as it rose and opened.
The sound in the middle of the night, was this sound?
On the interior side of the hidden door there was a doorknob. Probably to make closing it from the inside easy.
"I do not think there's a trap.... but there might be something, so please be careful."
I went inside while saying so and lighted up the inside with a lamp.
The possibility of a trap or a surprise attack ended as imaginary fears.
There was a small room.
One desk, a single wooden pedestal.
That's all.
On the desk, several books and ink pots were placed.
As for the pot, the cover is broken, and the contents have evaporated.
On the pedestal side I'm not sure what words would be good to describe it.
It might be similar to a coffin.
It's like a lump of wood the size of that.
I have the feeling that the surface is dented in the form of the doll.
After looking closely, in the place where the head goes... in the part where the eyes would set there are transparent stones embedded.
I felt intuitively that the doll in question had slept here. Most likely, that doll lays down here and recharges... no, it probably supplies magic power. [1]
"Cliff, do you know what this pedestal is?"
"No, this is the first time I've seen it."
Cliff shook his head.
I touch the pedestal timidly.
I don't think it will suddenly shut on me but...
I stretch out a hand to a certain book disregarded on a desk.
I understood that it was left unattended for a considerably long time, but, fortunately, there was no trace of being worm-eaten.
Would the doll in question do the insect extermination?
The cover had a title and a crest.
The title isn't readable.
When I open it, the text is also not readable.
If it's in letters that I can't read then that means it's either Heavenly God language, or Sea God language.
Or else it might be written in some other minor language.
But I have a feeling that I have read both the crest and the letter somewhere.
Where was it?
Was it at the Magic University Library?
I turn the page.
Then there were some figures.
The figure of a human body, it's a figure of the magic formation.
Furthermore, the human figure where there are four hands and feet appeared when I turned up a page.
"...Zanoba."
"Yes."
Zanoba who was waiting at the entrance, came towards me.
"I think, this is what was written in the doll, but what do you think?"
"I can't read it. However, perhaps this is it without doubt."
"How, show me."
After hearing such an exchange, Cliff had also stuck his head in.
While turning the pages lightly we looked through the book as a group.
The string binding together the pages is considerably old and, despite the paper, seemed like it would come loose at any moment.
A figure, an arrow, and a letter.
Even if a commentary or an explanatory note is written, I wouldn't understand it at all.
Illustrations of the parts of the arms, magic circles, indicators, and some kind of notes.
These sorts of notes are written in the margins in various ways.
"If your simply looking at the figure, it resembles the magic formation of a magic tool."
Cliff said it alone.
"Is that so?"
"Oh, I understand it because I studied it recently, I have seen similar magic formations. Perhaps, that doll would be a magic tool."
"I see."
I try to hypothesize.
The previous former resident.
No, perhaps the first resident here, had probably studied the doll.
This magic circle might have touched upon some sort of taboo, so it was done secretly.
I think the doll was trying to protect this house, like the role of a security guard.
And the first resident half-completed it.
Going off the looks of that doll, it seems there were still a number of problems remaining, but they succeeded up to the point of making it able to move around inside of the estate and fight.
However, the first resident disappeared.
Whether he moved away with things left half finished or it was exposed and he was caught, I don't know.
It is very likely that he died of an unexpected accident, and the result of the research remains.
Probably... the doll at first might have been sleeping on this pedestal all the time.
However, it started up for some reason.
It moved around while cleaning in the house, and started to act to fight off the intruder.
Perhaps, it was programmed that if it finished cleaning, to return to this pedestal and charge.
Unfortunately I think the person who was murdered was recognized to be [an intruder] by the doll.
However, if it goes out to the garden then, it wouldn't have been surprising if someone had witnessed it, but...
No, the door of the entrance was broken like that wasn't it.
Come to think of it, in the building, only that door was broken.
The former resident might have changed it. For security or something.
Since the shape of the door is changed, it wasn't able to open it.
Originally it was programmed to patrol the garden, but it gave up because the door couldn't be opened.