第１１０３堀：調査メンバーの挨拶 (Part2)
"This is a research report on the ecology of the Great Forest's monsters, which I’ve been compiling on my own for the last ten years."
"Wait, ten years?"
"Yes. It’s my hobby."
I stated it plainly, seeing no reason to hide it. While I did have a practical reason for starting this research—to detect dangers before they manifested—at its core, it stemmed from my own insatiable curiosity about monsters. I wondered how they would react to my admission.
"Huh, I see. So that’s why Yuki brought you along."
"The aptitude is certainly there. The only question is how much you can actually do, but this report tells me everything I need to know."
Instead of showing disgust or mocking me, Comet and Agil reached for the report with genuine delight, their eyes scanning the pages. I was genuinely surprised; I had fully expected to be laughed at. Perhaps, given that they had mentioned investigating the Great Forest themselves, they were researchers in the same vein.
I was still mulling this over when the two of them finished reading, far faster than I expected, and set the report back on the table. Had they found it lacking in interest or value?
"Yes. This is a rare talent."
"Indeed. To think we had a student like this. Perhaps I should have interacted with the other students more back then."
"Eh?"
Their assessment caught me off guard, and I could only manage a vacant, foolish response.
"Exactly. Ten years of meticulous records. You’re the ideal collaborator for our survey of the Great Forest."
"If you’ve been tracking data this consistently, there’s no doubt about it."
"Then let’s hear what you have to say, Wazfi. And we’ll need a map of the Great Forest as well."
Agil said this and headed toward the back of the room. A map of the Great Forest? I supposed I should offer the one I had constructed for my report.
"Um, if you need a map, I have the one I made right here..."
"Wazfi, was it? You can draw maps, too?"
"No, it’s entirely self-taught. I only made it so I wouldn’t get lost, so the precision isn't exactly high. After all, the Great Forest is, fundamentally, just trees."
"Ah, now that you mention it, that’s true. It’s impossible to map a forest like that without using *that* method."
"That method? Wait, are you talking about the way maps are made in Weed?"
"Yes, exactly. Oh, by the way, Yuki. Is it alright to show her the map?"
"Yeah, a map of the Great Forest should be fine. It is her field, after all. It’ll be useful to compare it with the one she made herself; in fact, it would be a disservice not to show her."
It seemed Weed possessed a map of the Great Forest with higher precision than anything I had ever seen. I couldn't imagine how a map of nothing but trees could be so revolutionary, but as I pondered this, Agil returned, carrying a long paper scroll.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. This is the map of the Great Forest. Now, which part of the forest does this report of yours cover?"
She spread the map across the table and asked her question, but the words barely registered. My attention was entirely consumed by what lay before me.
"What is this!? This level of precision... it’s as if you’re looking down at the world from the heavens!"
It was impossible. No magic could achieve this; it was so impossibly detailed that it felt beyond the reach of even the gods. To think such a map existed... it was breathtaking. I had heard rumors about the "Weed way of doing things," but I hadn't realized their technology was this advanced.
"Ah, I suppose that was the first thing you'd notice."
"Well, anyone would be shocked to see a map like this."
"Indeed. I didn't warn you before I laid it out, but anyone would be stunned."
"Oh, I apologize. I got a little carried away. Please, forgive me."
Hearing the three of them speak, I finally regained my composure. *This is bad,* I thought. *If I’m not careful, I might be facing execution for interrupting Yuki-sama...* I despised the nobility, but I was clearly in the wrong for cutting them off. I offered a sincere apology, knowing my own lapse in judgment.
"Don't worry about it. I’m not going to have you executed for something like that. Now, as Agil said, use this map to explain the classification, migration patterns, objectives, and ecology of the monsters you’ve studied, as far as you know."
"Um, well, then, first..."
And so, I began to present the fruits of my monster research. I would soon see if coming to Weed was truly worth the effort.
Wazfi is, in Earth terms, a biologist or zoologist. The other researchers on the team are scholars specializing in energy-based studies. Given the difference in their focus, she can be considered quite exceptional. It reminds one of a certain *Souvenirs Entomologiques*.