Chapter 269: Even These Days
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 269: Even These Days
A magic broom was sweeping the front yard alone as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and Walter was performing acrobatics while perched atop the handle of a busily moving wooden broom. It was one of the few sights that truly made me feel Tresha was a Mage.
I had slept in Veritas last night and taken the Gateway to Calax early this morning. I’d just arrived at the inn. It was around 10:00 AM, so it wasn't that early.
—Screeeak...
"Oh, you're up early today, Ravi."
"Uuuugh... You're here, Yoo Eon..."
I saw Ravi sitting in a chair with her forehead pressed against the table, clutching her head. I didn't know what on earth she’d been up to, but she looked like she was in terrible shape.
"What's wrong, Ravi? Did something happen?"
"Yura... she cut my bangs..."
"Your bangs? Yura did?"
What was this about? Why did Yura suddenly cut Ravi's bangs? Did she have a hidden talent for hair design? Good heavens, I wondered who she took after—she’d been overflowing with talent since she was a toddler.
"Let me see."
"If... if you laugh, I'm going to be mad, okay?"
"Of course. I won't laugh."
Ravi's tiny head slowly lifted from the table, revealing the state of the bangs Yura had so "beautifully" trimmed.
"Pfft."
"You laughed! You just held back a laugh, didn't you?!"
‘Easy now, Horus. Control your emotions.’
It was a sight I couldn't possibly behold without laughing, so I had no choice but to suppress my feelings. Ravi's bangs, which used to be long enough to cover her eyebrows, had been halved as if they’d been hacked off with a single snip of the scissors.
"Don't be sad, Ravi. Hair grows back."
"Kgh...! I don't need that kind of cold comfort!!"
"By the way, where is Yura?"
"Hmph... she's getting a talking-to from Sister Sera..."
Following Ravi's words, I went into the inner room to find Yura sitting next to Sera, getting a proper scolding. Apparently, Yura had woken up earlier than everyone else and, out of boredom, had snipped Ravi's bangs right off.
Watching them huddled together on the bed, they both looked adorable.
"Understand, Yura? You have to go and apologize to Sister Ravi, okay?"
"Yes."
"Aha, look at her answering so well. Whose daughter is she, anyway?"
Even while being scolded, she answered so politely. As expected, Yura was a genius. A total genius.
"Ah, Yoo Eon. You're back?"
"Yes, Sera. It feels like it's been a long time."
"It's only been two days. Now, Yura, you practiced hard, right? Give Daddy a belly-button bow~"
"Daddy!"
Forget the belly-button bow she’d supposedly practiced; she scrambled down from the bed, ran over, and hugged my leg.
"Yes, it's Daddy. Have you been good, Yura?"
"Mommy scolded me."
"Hmm, I see."
Telling on her mother to her father, is she? This was a tough one. I had to think hard about whose side to take.
"Yura, even so, your mother is never wrong. You know that, right?"
"Yes."
"Right, right. Now, what do you have to do?"
"Eat food."
"You have to apologize to Sister Ravi..."
* * *
"Iris."
"Welcome back."
"Have you been resting well?"
"Yes."
The "earthbound spirit" of the magic item shop in Northeast Calax—Iris Albresto. Perhaps because I’d been dragging her around for a while, her movements had become sluggish, about a tenth of a normal person's speed.
Maybe she’d recovered a bit while resting lately, as her movements had sped up to about three-tenths. I really wondered how she’d ever managed to be the Vampire Lord.
"You said before that things would be quiet for two months without any movement from the Legion Commanders, right?"
"Yes."
"Well, is there a reason you think that?"
"Not particularly."
"I figured as much."
I wondered if there was some kind of unwritten rule where if one Legion Commander caused an incident, the others had to recuperate for two months or keep a low profile. Apparently, there was no such thing.
"I heard something strange is happening. In the Spanya Estate."
I explained what I’d heard at the social gathering in Veritas. Iris pondered for a moment before speaking.
"The timing matches up."
"Hmm? What do you mean? The timing matches what?"
"Hollow Breeze."
"Hollow Breeze?"
Hollow Breeze... I felt like I’d heard that somewhere before.
"Ah, did Mother mention it back then?"
It was an old story. I’d swiped a spell from a Skeleton Mage in the 2nd Stratum, and Mother had found out and given me a real earful.
I think she mentioned it once then. When I asked what the Hollow Breeze was, she’d just let out a deep sigh and moved on.
"What is it, exactly?"
"You don't know?"
"No, I don't."
Iris stared at me blankly, then let out a deep sigh, much like Mother had. I didn't know what the Hollow Breeze was, and it seemed like everyone but me did.
"It's a peculiar Labyrinth that appears once every three years."
"A Labyrinth?"
Hollow Breeze.
To put it simply, you could think of it as a Halloween event Labyrinth. It occurs periodically every three years on October 31st at random locations across the Surface World. A unique Labyrinth Portal that cannot be entered appears on the surface.
It manifests exactly at 00:00 on the 31st, and the Labyrinth opens at 10:00 PM that evening. It lasts until the next sunrise—a bizarre form of Labyrinth quite different from the ordinary ones.
"When the Hollow Breeze occurs, everyone on the surface wears ghost masks and celebrates."
"What's the reason for that?"
"That's how the Hollow Breeze is weakened."
"That's very strange. Is there some kind of causal relationship?"
"You'll find out."
Ultimately, once every three years, powerful explorers from all over the Surface World gather to prevent the opening of the Hollow Breeze. In the past, every time it occurred, the openings were so catastrophic that not only Cobalt Grades but even Palladium or Titanium Grades would die in droves.
"Mana Erosion occurs at the site where the Hollow Breeze is set to appear."
"You said it started about two years ago... so the timing seems to fit."
In the region where the special Labyrinth called Hollow Breeze is about to manifest, bizarre incidents occur for three years leading up to it—people gradually go mad, or plants and animals die off in mass numbers.
Because of this, the Page of Arcana travels across the entire Surface World every three-year cycle to pinpoint the location of the Hollow Breeze. They register places with persistent crop failures or simultaneous deaths as candidates.
They supposedly prepare by assessing the intensity and danger of the Mana Erosion.
"So the Hollow Breeze is going to occur in the Spanya Estate?"
"It's highly likely."
Still, the situation is better now than in the past. When the time for the Hollow Breeze approaches, most cities on the surface hold festivals and pray for it to pass peacefully.
Whether it actually works or not, the damage has reportedly decreased significantly since the Hollow Breeze festivals began.
"Was the reason you said there would be no news for two months because of the Hollow Breeze?"
"Yes."
"Then, well, is a Legion Commander behind that too? What kind of Monarch is it this time?"
"It's not a Monarch."
"But it is a Legion Commander?"
"Yes."
"That's unusual. Can they really compete with the other Legion Commanders then?"
Iris Albresto, who was a Legion Commander of the Demon King, was the Vampire Lord. Similarly, Lilith Astaroth, the Succubus Queen, was also a Legion Commander.
Could someone possess combat power on the level of a Legion Commander without being a Monarch who rules over a species?
"The Necro Species has no Monarch. Humans classify them as a species for convenience, but it's just a collective name for all Undead."
"The Necro Species... I see. Fitting for Halloween."
One of the beings holding a seat among the Demon King's Legion Commanders. In human classification, it belongs to the Necro Species, but humans call a dead pig that becomes Undead a Necro Species, and a dead person who becomes Undead a Necro Species as well.
"Then... is there no way to stop it? What's happening in the Spanya Estate?"
"You just have to get all the people out."
"Is there anything I can... no, wait. Wouldn't it be enough to just tell them the Hollow Breeze is going to happen there?"
The Page of Arcana puts great effort into pinpointing the location every year to minimize the damage from the Hollow Breeze. So, it seemed I could just go and say the Hollow Breeze was likely to occur in the Spanya Estate and tell them to evacuate everyone.
"The Necro Lord... ah, you said it's not a Monarch."
"It's something similar."
"Then I'll just call it that. If we kill this 'Necro Lord' fellow, will the Hollow Breeze end completely?"
"Probably not."
"Why? You said he's the one causing it."
Iris shook her head at my words.
"What comes out of the Hollow Breeze are the lingering thoughts of living beings that have died over the past three years. It will happen even without him. Unless no one died for three years."
"That's a very difficult premise."
It meant that every living being that had reached death over the past three years would pour out as something akin to the Necro Species. If even an Orichalcum-grade explorer had died that year... things would get very ugly.
"I suppose we have to stop it?"
"Is it a bother?"
"No, not particularly."
In any case, to eliminate the Demon King or whatever he is, I had to deal with his subordinates first.
"Understood. I'll find a way somehow."
"Okay."
* * *
"So that's how it is."
"Gack."
Rubia fainted. Foaming at the mouth was a certainty.
"This is a grave matter. To think the Hollow Breeze might occur in the Spanya Estate."
"I had no idea! I heard my sister went back to the family and was living well!"
When I checked with the Evil Eye's vision, that didn't seem to be the case. The Spanya Estate I saw through the shared vision had a sinister energy that was hard to describe in words. It would have been nice if I could feel the mana, but unfortunately, long-distance sensory sharing requiring such high-level techniques was still difficult.
"Lord Delbaheim! What do I do?! My house is going to be destroyed!!"
"Calm down, Rubia. The Page of Arcana actively supports and restores damage caused by the Hollow Breeze."
"But... my father...!"
"Hmm."
Should I ask the Page of Arcana for help?
"Tsk, who do I know there..."
One person did come to mind.
"Does that person still walk around naked these days?"