Chapter 203
Chapter 203
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 203
Chapter Title: 58-3. Fate is Cruel.
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The train was racing toward its destination.
The scenery outside revealed a clear sky above the clouds.
A blindingly bright sun and thin layers of clouds. Just as expected, the train soared through the air and successfully caught up to the floating island in the sky.
—Kiiiiieeeek.
The train came to a screeching halt.
I woke up the dozing Pine and got off with her.
'Salt Desert.'
The moment my feet touched the ground, crystals scattered with a soft crunch.
Everywhere I looked was a blinding white landscape. The ground resembled the cracked shell of a tortoise.
A salt desert floating in the air. That was the true nature of the place where the temple of Pantos stood.
"Thank you for the ride, Professor Dennis."
"No big deal. If it's a request from you, Licht, how could I refuse?"
His tone was calm. Dennis gazed out over the vast desert as he spoke.
Apparently, the fact that a mere academy student had taken down a Demon King was no longer surprising.
"..You're not scheming something again, are you?"
He smirked at me, a sign of complete trust.
Ever since I'd resolved the matter involving the Heavenly Demon, Dennis's eyes had returned to their original blue.
He'd quit drinking entirely. His hands no longer trembled, and his gait was steady.
Above all, he was now a father.
"A plan...? I wish I had one."
I sighed deeply, scratching the back of my helmet as I vented to Dennis.
The canyon trip had ended on a sour note due to the Demon King's assault.
Even if no one was hurt, we'd all been at the mercy of its power.
"No need to be modest. Without you, we'd all be screaming our last breaths."
The other students had been grouped up and sent on trips to their desired destinations.
A diversionary tactic? Or a way to preserve the memories of what was meant to be a healing field trip.
This level of misdirection should shake off the Hero Cult's pursuit.
Their target wasn't the academy students or even me. It was Pine Granasia.
"Pine, do you see that structure at the end over there?"
"Yeah... Licht. Hic."
A tower-like structure rising at the end of the rippling dunes.
I pointed it out to her, her glass armor gleaming under the sunlight.
"That's the temple of Pantos."
The tomb where the God of Emotions slumbered.
Just like a spirit made of sand, who'd think to build a temple in a desert?
Before Emperor Locke unified the four nations, each country had worshipped its own gods, or so the stories went.
The temple of Tardun we'd visited before was one example, much like how the Library of Truth lay in the deep sea.
In the game, every temple had its unique features.
The Library of Truth let you learn skills from other routes.
The temple of Tardun hid an elixir that enhanced swordsmanship.
I was certain the temple of Pantos held some clue about Pine.
"White tower."
A name fit for the Hero of Affection. Rationality or will? Nah, this suited her better.
"Take care of yourself, Hero of Conviction."
"....Isn't that a bit much pressure?"
Dennis patted my shoulder and even cast a protective spell.
A magic circle made of water droplets dispersed into the air and vanished.
"Her Highness the Imperial Princess trusts you more than her own guard, it seems."
Dennis grinned playfully, perhaps sensing the pink aura between Pine and me.
Or maybe it was respect for the one who'd slain a Demon King.
Come to think of it, I hadn't seen her personal guard since the canyon trip.
"Pine, speaking of which, where's your guard?"
"I told them not to follow... in case we were spotted."
I'd been curious, so I asked her casually.
Thinking back, her outfit in the canyon had been outrageously revealing. They might've tried to stop me during the CPR.
We were walking on clouds now.
No altitude sickness despite the height, but the salt desert in the sky was scorching hot.
The best option would've been Dennis escorting us, but he already had prior commitments.
In the distance, I spotted a blond boy and a redheaded girl.
"Licht. Why'd you try to leave us behind? That's cold."
"Yeah! Helmet Guy. Trying to hog Pine all to yourself again!"
Kainel and Ariel came running up, out of breath.
They must've followed right after Pine and I slipped away.
These two would be more than enough.
Kainel, awakened as the Light Hero, and Ariel, whose title of Blazing Flame Mage was beyond reproach.
After taking down the Demon King of Might, this was actually safer for the students too.
The academy would be in trouble if Dennis left.
"Then we'll be off, Professor Dennis."
I took Pine's hand and stepped into the stabbing heat of the salt desert.
Pine's behavior had been off since we got off the train.
She kept staring at my forehead, then whipping her head away whenever I looked at her.
What happened while I was asleep? She was hiccuping again too.
Even during my chat with Dennis earlier, she'd kept her distance.
'..And now we're holding hands like this.'
I got greedy.
Being apart felt lonely now, and being close brought a sense of peace.
When had my feelings grown this strong?
My body had outpaced my heart.
Now, I was walking hand-in-hand with her toward the temple.
"Licht... It's hot..."
No matter how far we walked, only endless white dunes.
The sweat pouring from my helmet like rain felt utterly merciless.
Who called a salt desert beautiful? A dry desert without rain lacked romance.
Should've brought water. Didn't expect this heat.
In the game, it'd just be a debuff draining HP, but this was real life.
My consciousness blurred from the heat. We needed an escape.
Then, water appeared before us. A crystal-clear puddle, transparent enough to see the bottom.
An oasis with a faint turquoise hue.
"Don't drink it, Pine."
I yanked her back as she lunged for it.
Thirsty enough to toss off her glass helmet.
It's loaded with salt—drinking it would worsen the thirst.
Undrinkable. More dangerous than poison.
"Miss Ariel, do you have any World Tree leaves?"
I barely managed, gasping. Every word was agony.
Ariel handed me a shimmering leaf.
"Here, Helmet Guy."
A fresh green leaf, like new foliage. Material from the World Tree in the elves' homeland.
"Pine, could you... transfer the magic on my body to this?"
Combine it with the branch from Quell earlier, mix in Dennis's water magic specialty.
"..How?"
"Think of it like weaving thread on a loom, reconstructing the magic."
It'd make a fine weapon.
Ariel's staff in the original Knight Heart was probably made this way.
"Got it... Licht... I'll try."
At my request, Pine's small hands dismantled the magic circle.
Her glass magic worked by twisting spell formulas like this.
The hero of the prophecy.
Truth be told, it was hard to grasp that Pine Granasia was a genius rather than ordinary.
Her golden eyes sparkled with focus, brows furrowing in thought.
'How is someone this innocent the hero of prophecy?'
To me, she looked like an ordinary girl, one who kept her distance due to her worries.
The world's grime hadn't touched her pure white self yet.
"....Like this?"
Pine rebuilt the circle, knitting the branch and leaf together like crochet.
A staff emerged, swirling with wood grain patterns—straight out of an RPG item catalog.
"Purify the water with this, Miss Ariel."
I handed the finished staff to Ariel.
With the World Tree leaf, it suited the elf Ariel better than Pine.
A World Tree was more than a tall tree.
Even this salt desert oasis could become pure drinking water in one go.
At that moment, someone tugged my sleeve sideways.
"...."
Pine Granasia, her pure white wolf ears and tail swaying alluringly, demanding something silently.
She could've just asked with words for praise.
"You did great, Pine."
"Hehe, that was nothing for me."
I gently stroked her hair, careful not to mess up the rose accessory.
Effort deserves reward.
How long had we walked?
A massive, elongated shadow fell over us.
A salt tower stretching to the heavens. The temple of Pantos came into view.
"We... made it."
We caught our breath in the shade with the others. The heat was murderous, melting us alive.
Like a frog in boiling water.
"So this... is the temple of Pantos."
Stairs descended before the tall tower.
A blessing to escape the sun, I thought.
The status window greeted me politely upon arrival.
It had been silent at other temples, so this sudden message felt ominous.
Just as I moved to step forward before more messages...
Two people only.
There was never a rule like that before, was there?