Voyage Amid the Storms
After receiving my Silver Rank plaque, Celion insisted on celebrating my promotion and led me to a restaurant that looked thoroughly upscale.
The interior was dimly lit, filled with a soft, subtle fragrance of wood. Not the damp, musty scent of old timber that had soaked up water over the years, but a fresh, living aroma, as if the forest itself had been brought indoors.
“Wow…”
A forest scent instead of the smell of food? What kind of care did they put into this place to make a restaurant smell like that?
“Amazing, right?”
Celion seemed perfectly at home here. She exchanged a few light words with a staff member who approached, then started walking, and I followed her to a cozy table tucked deep inside the restaurant.
“Anything you can’t eat?”
“No, I’ll eat pretty much anything. I even like monster meat.”
“That gamey stuff?”
“I’ve gotten used to it.”
“Hmm…”
Celion gave an awkward little laugh at my answer and ordered for us. She had offered me the menu so I could choose, but the dishes all had names I’d never seen before, and I couldn’t bring myself to pick one.
“Just get me the same thing you’re having, Celion.”
“All right. Then, if you would?”
Once the staff member left with our order, Celion rested both elbows on the table and propped her chin on her hands.
“So, where did you learn that swordsmanship?”
“Pardon?”
“You didn’t use anything like that before.”
“Ah…”
I nodded and told her everything that had happened. How a blacksmith here had asked me for a favor and I’d headed into the desert; how I’d met a strange old man there and set off with him in search of an ancient legend.
“Wasn’t that a little reckless?”
“That’s what makes it an adventure.”
“Mmm…”
I kept going—about the guide star that showed us the way, the dwarven legend of the Star Forge, the Quicksand Whale we’d run into, and the sandstorms.
At first Celion listened with genuine interest, but the further the story went, the more her expression turned to pure disbelief. I couldn’t blame her.
I would have looked the same.
Who would easily believe a fairy-tale quest for some ancient legend? But every word I spoke was the truth—the path I had walked with my own feet.
“So, did you meet the dwarves? Did you find the Star Forge?”
“Yes. We found it.”
The moment I nodded, the food we had ordered began arriving on a cart. Conversation naturally paused while the dishes were set on the table, but once we started eating, it picked up again.
“So that swordsmanship of yours came from the dwarf?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I’ll be…”
“Hard to believe, right?”
“No. I believe you.”
Did she really? I gave her a skeptical look and stuffed a big piece of meat into my mouth.
“Anything else?”
“Do you know the story of the Thunder Bird?”
“That giant bird that shows up in the Hairan region?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not about to tell me you met a Thunder Bird, are you?”
“Why not? I did.”
I launched into the tale with as much flair as I could manage—the journey to the Hairan Highlands, the people I’d met once I arrived.
“But what were you even doing all the way out in Hairan?”
“Getting a horse, of course.”
“A Hairan breed?”
“Yes.”
“Did you get one?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Oh… Will you introduce me sometime?”
“He’s pretty shy around strangers, so you’ll have to be careful.”
It was a little sad not being able to focus on the delicious food, but if it meant satisfying the person treating me, I could keep my mouth running without a break.
I watched Celion’s reactions and kept talking.
When I reached the part about heading into the Thunder Bird’s mountains to find a purebred Hairan, she let out a gasp of admiration. When I told her a Thunder Bird had appeared amid a thundercloud, she gave a strange little smile.
“So you’re saying you came face-to-face with a Thunder Bird and ended up with a purebred Hairan in the process?”
“Yes.”
“That’s incredible.”
“You don’t believe me, do you?”
“No, I do. Your stories are just that entertaining.”
“Want me to keep going?”
“There’s still more…?”
There was still a great deal more. To properly explain my adventures, I would have to tell her why I had crossed the sea all the way to the Karuma Empire in the first place.
The meal stretched on, and just as many dishes kept arriving. Thanks to that, I managed to pour out about half of my adventure chronicle.
“You really never stopped moving, did you?”
“I’m not finished yet.”
“There’s still more…?”
I nodded and used a soft piece of bread to mop up the sauce left on my plate. If I had to pick the most spectacular part of my adventures, it would be the war in Greenfall.
Of course I hadn’t even started that story yet; in the tale I was still racing toward the Oblein Holy Kingdom.
I was just about to launch into the part about the drug-addled Holy Knight I’d met there when I heard rapid footsteps. A man with a sword at his hip stopped right in front of Celion and me.
“So this is where you were.”
“Mmm, Valder?”
“Some of the expedition’s supply goods are missing. Did you finish the paperwork properly?”
At the words of the man called Valder, Celion glanced sideways at me. Apparently her comrade had come looking for her because she hadn’t finished her work.
I looked down at my empty plate and smiled faintly.
“That was delicious. Thank you.”
“Mmm… Sorry. I’d love to hear more of your stories, but…”
“We can do it next time. It’s fine.”
As Celion rose from her seat, Valder gave me a slight bow in quiet greeting. I returned it with a silent nod of my own.
I watched their retreating backs and sank into thought.
The storytelling had started because Celion asked, but once I got going alone, I found myself enjoying the telling.
I could understand, just a little, why drunken adventurers loved to boast about their exploits.
Leaving the restaurant, I headed straight for the Adventurers’ Guild.
Because it was still mealtime, the guild hall was quiet. Only a few receptionists were visible; the rest must have gone off in shifts to eat.
I looked around and approached a receptionist who seemed free.
“Hello.”
“Oh, what can I do for you? Looking for a request?”
“I’d like to join the Monster Island pioneering expedition. How do I register?”
“Monster Island…?”
His reaction was almost identical to the first receptionist I’d met. Before he could say anything more, I pulled the Silver plaque issued by the Swordsmen’s Guild from my pocket and showed it to him.
“I’m Silver Rank.”
“Huh…?”
The receptionist stared at the plaque in my hand as if he couldn’t believe it. Then he shot up from his seat, came out from behind the counter, and approached me.
“Mind if I take a quick look?”
“Go ahead.”
I nodded and handed him the Silver plaque. He examined it for a long time with a doubtful expression.
Was there really something to see just by staring at it like that?
Maybe there was a mark only guild staff could recognize, something that made forgery impossible.
“Ah… well now…”
“Is something wrong?”
“No. The rank plaque is fine. So you want to join the Monster Island pioneering expedition?”
“Yes.”
“All right. Give me a moment.”
He returned the plaque, went back to his seat, and began filling out paperwork. The amount of forms was considerably larger than for an ordinary request.
After what felt like a long while, the receptionist—having filled out more than ten pages—handed me a small wooden plaque and a booklet about the size of my palm.
“This is the guidebook and a temporary member’s proof plaque. Don’t lose them—it’ll be a real problem if you do. The ship usually arrives around this time of year, but the exact date is unknown. So I recommend you stay quietly in this city and don’t wander far.”
“Hmm… When do I become a full member?”
“You’ll receive that once you arrive at Monster Island by ship.”
“Thank you for your help. I’ll be going now.”
Leaving the Adventurers’ Guild, I began buying the various supplies listed in the guidebook. “Supplies,” though, were nothing more than the tools any ordinary adventurer would already carry.
The sea’s fickle weather made the sailing schedule uncertain. While waiting for the ship, I visited the Swordsmen’s Guild and trained my swordsmanship.
Sometimes I practiced alone; on days when Celion was there, we sparred together.
About two weeks later, a massive ship docked at the harbor of the Karuma Empire. It was the Radon, the vessel that traveled between Monster Island and the empire.
“Wow…”
I watched the Radon from a distance. The ship was large, solidly built, and thoroughly imposing. From its hold poured crates filled with monster byproducts and minerals of every kind.
Every laborer on the pier had to swarm over them just to move the cargo.
“So you came out to look too?”
“Ah, Celion.”
While I was admiring the Radon, Celion approached from behind. A faint heat still radiated from her body—she must have come straight from sword practice.
I pointed at the goods spilling from the ship and asked her. The crates held things like sharp claws, scales, and thick pelts.
“There’s so much of it. Are all those materials from Monster Island?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow…”
What kind of monster had they hunted to get claws that huge sticking out of the boxes? Or maybe they weren’t claws. Horns, perhaps?
I sorted through the flood of monster images rising in my mind and let out a small laugh.
“When does the ship leave?”
“A week from now.”
“That’s a tight schedule.”
“Monster Island is short on people. As soon as the ship’s inspection is finished, we set sail.”
A week later, time had flown. With every preparation complete, I rode Nightmare to the harbor—the agreed meeting place.
A large crowd had gathered, most of them people who had come to bless the Radon as it departed for Monster Island.
In front of the Radon, the pioneering expedition members who had arrived early were waiting for the rest. I walked toward the red hair streaming in the sea breeze.
“Celion!”
“Oh…”
Celion had been smiling brightly at the sight of me, but the moment her eyes fell on the massive Nightmare beneath me, her mouth closed. I had promised to introduce him, yet this was the first time Celion and Nightmare were meeting face-to-face.
She reacted exactly as I had expected.
“Th-this is the one…?”
“Yes.”
I glanced around and nodded. Several other adventurers had brought horses as well, but among them Nightmare stood out the most.
Nightmare swept a look over the other horses, then snorted a disdainful huff! with an utterly arrogant expression.
I soon mixed in with the other adventurers and began boarding the ship. It seemed I was the last of the party.
As I climbed aboard, I gazed out at the open sea.
The vast blue expanse stretched out like a mirror of the sky.
If we reach the edge of the ocean, we won’t just fall off the bottom… right?
I swallowed the flicker of unease and tugged on Nightmare’s reins.