Winter Falling on Steel
Winter fell upon the steel. Before I knew it, autumn had passed without incident. No major events, just taking on requests, earning money, studying, and training day by day. The chaos with the Evil God felt like a lie now; things were so peaceful. Thinking about it, if incidents happened every single day, it'd be impossible to keep up. This was probably the real normal.
Living in the Trust Union, one thing I'd realized was that most people here were decent. Sure, some tried to get close because I was human, tempt me, or subtly pull me to their side. But on the surface, everyone acted nice, followed the rules and laws, and lived peacefully. Of course, there were genuinely good people too.
It had been months since the Hands Collector vanished without a trace. Even Riko, who'd been investigating, grumbled that she had nothing solid.
Before long, winter arrived.
"Warm up the room, or let me sleep hugging Radamu!"
Po'runga, who'd been getting more touchy lately because she hated the cold, whined as she clung tightly. Surprisingly understanding, Larirure Larirarion muttered, "Then maybe it's time to crank up the heating," while flipping through catalogs for heating systems.
"Radamu, let's visit your parents in the spring."
"Like a formal meeting?"
"No, to help with the farm...! A formal meeting...!"
We'd planned to head to Larirure Larirarion's hometown in spring to lend a hand with farming. Staring at the calendar, checking requests, birthdays, and everyone's schedules, I felt that peace again... and wondered if this was okay.
The goddess hadn't said, "Go here and do this!" So I had no idea what I was supposed to do.
"I've used a lot of power already, and excessive interference in fate isn't good either."
That's what the goddess had said... and honestly, even intervening in my life took effort on her part. All I could do was investigate and solve things myself.
Whether it was the Maou, the elves, or some organization, I wasn't sure if I could handle it all, but I renewed my resolve to keep going. For today, though, I'd decided on a normal rest day.
It might sound funny after declaring I'd push harder, but Noksu had said rest was important too.
"Bro, when's our next chicken fry sale?"
"They call our party base a restaurant in the union city."
We still hadn't settled on a proper party name, but selling chicken and booze every other week had us treated like a eatery. Human-made fried chicken had become a hit in the Trust Union, drawing huge lines whenever we sold it—enough to rival a full season's earnings in one go.
So yeah, we had plenty of money. No financial worries ahead. But I'd lost my sense of purpose, wandering aimlessly despite desperately training. The new constellation skill I'd gotten last time had crushed my motivation.
Of course, to others, it'd sound like whining from someone blessed with too much.
Anyway, I'd shifted to gathering knowledge, spending days studying hard at the library with Hyacinth. One such day, Mortis approached me.
I used to call her Nex, but with Noksu around, it got confusing, so we'd settled on Mortis. She was the most detached in the party, with awkward vibes toward everyone. It had been ages since she'd initiated a conversation with me.
"What, no mana either?"
"Uh, isn't that like seven months late?"
To show off my mana training, I made various attributes swirl in my palm. Noksu praised my ridiculous talent in a different sense... but Po'runga squinted suspiciously, muttering, "Another divine blessing, huh?"—hitting the nail on the head.
Anyway, it was ridiculously late. He widened his half-closed eyes, handed me his head, and asked again.
"Lord Las Hand, the Shining God I serve, has given a revelation. At Aunt Noksu's request too. But cases where a priest doesn't go to the temple and follows someone else are extremely rare."
"Y-Yeah..."
"I simply can't understand why Lord Shining God told me to follow you."
She followed the gods' words and conveyed their will, but after watching me up close, she saw I was clearly born with divine power—yet received no other revelations. Laden with blessings from all sorts of gods, she questioned why she had to follow me specifically.
If my value was that high, there were plenty of strong priests or holy knights. The Shining God wasn't trying to make me his follower either. So she'd held off until now to ask.
"..."
"...Is that it?"
"Yes."
Okay, I got why she'd approached me after so long, but that was it? I couldn't say, "Maybe 'cause I'm the hero."
That'd lead to "Then why's the 'hero' so weak?" or "Why send me, the weak one, instead of someone stronger?" And I'd have no answer since I didn't know Lord Las Hand's intent either.
I asked if no revelation had come down... but she said her faith wasn't enough to hear it.
"Even if Lord Shining God speaks to me, I'm lacking and can't hear. To hear a god's voice, you need the basic caliber and vessel to withstand it. The gods don't just watch—they risk dragging a follower's soul to the astral plane if they force it, unable to endure the divine radiance."
Meanwhile, I chatted casually with the Goddess of Fate... No clue how much priestly caliber I was born with. She said my overflowing divine power looked like an unstopped faucet flooding a drought-stricken land—wasted everywhere since I couldn't absorb it.
Thanks to that, just being near me had gathered a ton of divine power for her. Gratitude after months in the party!
"I don't know. What should I do?"
Ah, not wanting to leave or disappointed in me. She was just lost on her role.
Thinking about it, a B-rank adventurer like her just watched us daily, healing training injuries occasionally. She read books leisurely, but it bugged her subtly.
"Still, you heal... and as a B-rank, you could fight if needed..."
"You don't rely on me, though?"
I shut my mouth at that. True, I handled everything myself. Like her, I was drifting without knowing my next step.
Then Mortis suggested a trip somewhere far for fresh stimulation. Sounded good, so I brought it up at dinner with everyone.
"A trip? Hmm... Not bad. Broaden our horizons... We've got money. How about the Default Kingdom for custom gear?"
The four kings—called Great Kings—ruled the largest kingdoms in the Trust Union, including adventurer unions and guilds. Their realms predated the heroes, evolving slightly over time but embodying history itself.
Larirure Larirarion's pick, the Default Kingdom, was the dwarf king's domain: Aaaaa Aaaaa. First time hearing it, I thought, "Seriously?!" But it was a name passed down generations—the ultimate default from the gods, endorsed by heroes. No arguing there. Gods had some real weirdos.
"Or the border kingdoms? Wanna see the Ego Wall."
Hyacinth suggested border realms along the Trust Union's frontier, home to the massive 500m Ego Wall built by heroes. It warned of and repelled climbers—nearly invincible. Downside: constant wars nearby, risk of stray arrows.
"What about Erfant Kingdom? Buy memorize spellbooks and magic tools galore."
Choices multiplied. Noksu said relying on magic tools wasn't bad; splurge on quality gear.
Ruled by an Overlord archmage. Great Kings had unique scales.
"...Four Great Kings, right? Who's the last?"
"The undead, Avatar of Death. A land of solemn silence. Naijok Kingdom in the Naijok Mountains."
Mortis explained: Meet the dead, help lingering souls reincarnate as undead for family... a haven for the departed, with paths to the astral plane. The king rivaled gods, nameless—called Avatar of Death by others, Immortal by heroes. An ancient unnamed being... insane scale.
These were why the Trust Union stood. They backed the heroes; assassinate them, and it crumbles—or so the guild master said. With that power, killing hero-me would be quicker.
So... where to? As party leader, I asked Mortis to pick.
"Hmm..."
About a week later, at breakfast, she nodded and spoke.
"Let's go to the Default Kingdom, get new gear... Quality equipment matters."
"...Sure."
"Radamu, never make that girl decide again."
I nodded at Larirure Larirarion's sharp words, no retort.
Our first party expedition: the Steel Kingdom, dwarf king's tech marvel. Airships, golems, steel steeds pulling carriages—or riderless ones. Gate travel: one day round-trip. Default Kingdom it was.
"I'll handle the union paperwork."
Since she'd chosen it, she'd file expedition docs as B-rank senior. Eager for her first lead, she headed out post-breakfast.
...We left two days later.