Chapter 111
Chapter 111
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 111
Chapter Title: Elves of the North
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The white-haired elf the Hero's Party welcomed as a companion in the north of the continent barely spoke.
'Rain'.
The first word she said after meeting us.
That was her name.
"Little Rain? Grown-up Rain? Should we call her something like that?" "Her hair is white, too, so it fits." "But Little Rain's hair has a silver sheen, doesn't it?" That the other three, besides me, had put their heads together to puzzle over this was another story entirely.
Perhaps that's why I don't have many memories of talking with her.
Instead, whenever I gazed at the stars alone at night, she would sit quietly beside me, and we would watch the sky together for hours.
After a few months of spending time together in silence, one day, she told me her real name.
With a small smile.
'Igraine, priestess of the World Tree.'
After that, we started talking, little by little, just the two of us at night.
*
*Crack, crumble.*
"Hah."
I took care of two Ice Golems and, catching my breath, looked down from the hill.
*Whoooosh!*
A fierce, cutting wind blew.
The white of the snowfield and a vast sea of trees unfolded before my eyes.
This was the second area of the 'Frigid Lands' expansion pack. Following the 'Par Snowfields' was the 'Salva Snowfields'.
In this region, large-scale forests began to appear. The types of trees were mostly cold-resistant ones like conifers and birches.
If I were to compare it to Earth's latitudes, it would be a region close to Russia.
I remembered wandering around this area in the past, when I first came to this world. Of course, since the setting was a thousand years later, its appearance had changed somewhat.
And it was here that I met her.
The fifth and final companion of the Hero's Party.
"The elf, Igraine."
In the past, whenever I thought of them, I would become short of breath and my mind would go blank, making it impossible to continue my thoughts.
I tilted my head.
"It's not as bad these days."
Had there been a change of heart that I was unaware of?
The pain in my chest that I felt whenever I thought of them had faded considerably.
In a tomb in the desert, I saw the crest of the Melissa family.
On a rocky mountain in the plains, I visited the headquarters of the Supreme God's faith, where Saintess Elena had been.
In a dwarven village, I came across a petroglyph of the dwarf Ain.
And now, the last companion whose trace I had yet to find, 'the elf Igraine'.
It is said that aside from wandering elves or small elven villages, the majority of elves form a single kingdom centered around the World Tree.
However, the location of that World Tree was unknown even in the era I was active. One could guess that spirits or some kind of magical interference was hiding the massive tree.
Could the elven kingdom still be intact after a thousand years?
Igraine said she was a priestess of the World Tree.
But the place I met her was a snowfield in the frigid north.
Which means...
The World Tree is in a vast forest in this cold northern region?
I should have asked Igraine for the location of the World Tree.
An endless snowfield, and a massive sea of trees.
In the end, I had no choice but to search for traces of the elves in this vast snowfield, with no clear path forward.
The exploration of the 'Salva Snowfields' progressed at a crawl.
For one, the area itself was much larger than the first, the 'Par Snowfields', and the scale of the forest was immense.
The 'map' interface, a part of the game's system, served as a guide of sorts.
However, unexplored areas remained dark. I had no choice but to slowly complete the map over several days.
When my guildmates were around, we ran carries together. I also did my daily quests consistently.
In between all that, I explored the snowfields, leveling up whenever I had a spare moment.
The sheer size of the world was staggering. It was as if the 'Astria Continent' itself had been copied and pasted.
I'd heard that the pixelated building game that was popular on Earth also had a huge map. With the technology of the future, even a world like this could be realized in such detail.
And today, there were two sets of footsteps.
*Crunch, crunch.*
*Crunch, crunch.*
While exploring the vast forest of the snowfields, I glanced sideways at Chris walking beside me.
"Aren't you running carries, Chris?"
"But you're exploring, Rain."
"Have you cleared the Ice Crystal Tower?"
"Hmm...? I should be able to clear it without much trouble once I reach the max level for this area."
She said this with a gentle smile directed at me.
I nodded.
"That's true."
The entry level for the Ice Crystal Tower is 45, and the named monster's level is 50, so if you reach the max level for the current area, the penalty from the level difference will be almost nonexistent.
However, most of the vanguard players were earning gold by running carries in the 'Frozen Palace of the Tundra'. The members of Red and White were no exception.
Even the vanguard players who weren't running carries were mostly leveling in the monster-dense areas of this region or attempting the Ice Crystal Tower.
Of course, at this point, having just entered the second area, it still seemed impossible due to the sheer amount of time required.
In the end, that meant the only person currently exploring this huge forest region was me, who had finished farming the Frozen Palace of the Tundra and cleared the Ice Crystal Tower.
I grumbled for no real reason.
"This is inefficient. You should be leveling up when you have the time."
"How can traveling with you be inefficient, Rain?"
"I-Is that so? If you're okay with it."
I fidgeted with my fingers unnecessarily.
Chris gently took my fidgeting hand in hers.
Holding Chris's hand, I continued walking through the snow-covered trees.
*Crunch, crunch.*
*Crunch, crunch.*
It slowly filled the space around us.
I noticed something was wrong when I could no longer feel the warmth in my hand.
"!?"
I frantically looked around.
It was hard to see even an inch in front of me.
"Fog? In a northern forest?"
Something is strange.
This fog isn't natural.
The chat window won't open.
The messenger window won't open.
None of the interfaces will open.
Of course, I could probably still log out.
Soon, a sense of unease washed over me.
Is Chris okay?
"Chris? Chris? Where are you?"
I called out for her anxiously, my voice filled with worry.
Should I log out and check on her?
No. I've finally found a clue.
I can't back down now.
I took a deep breath.
And then, I began to slowly make my way through the fog.
There's definitely something in here.
*Crunch, crunch.*
After about ten or so minutes of this.
"...in! Rain!"
*Whoosh!*
"Aah!?"
I was startled by the warmth that enveloped my body.
My danger sense didn't react.
This feeling, this touch.
It's definitely Chris.
I looked up to see her face.
Chris's face, on the verge of tears, came into view.
"I-I was so surprised, I was about to go to your room right away! But then I thought, my Rain would definitely keep exploring!"
I scratched my cheek awkwardly.
Chris knows me too well.
Anyway, how did she find me in this magical fog?
Reading the question in my eyes, Chris put on a confident expression.
"No matter where you are, Rain, my Rain-detecting radar will activate!"
"Wow."
Chris is amazing.
My danger sense was neutralized, but she says she can detect me.
Chris gripped my hand tightly with both of hers, as if she would never let go again.
I thought for a moment.
"Hmm."
A magical fog.
You can't see ahead, and you lose track of your surroundings.
If it's a gimmick, it's a pretty nasty one.
But this must also be a gimmick that can be overcome.
This time, not with the system, but with my experience adventuring in this world.
I just need to find my way using the common sense of this world.
I gently brushed my palm against a large conifer nearby.
"Do you know that story about tree rings?"
"Yeah. That you can tell the direction by looking at the rings on a tree stump?"
"That's actually misinformation. The idea is that the spacing of the rings is different on the side that gets more sunlight and grows faster, but in reality, there are too many variables like the slope, wind, and tree species for it to be reliable."
"Ooh...! You're so knowledgeable, Rain!"
Chris clapped her hands in admiration.
I blushed with embarrassment.
"Uh, umm. It's not really like that."
Then, I looked at the branches of the snow-covered conifer. They were slightly skewed in one direction.
It's a subtle difference, but more branches are growing in that direction.
If the World Tree is really around here, the surrounding plants must have been influenced by it.
"This way."
I took Chris's hand and, having found my direction, started to move forward.
For about an hour, I advanced cautiously, carefully checking the trees in front of me.
The surrounding fog began to thin.
This confirmed it.
If I keep going in this direction, I'll surely reach the place I'm looking for.
As I went a little further, the white snow covering the trees disappeared, and a wave of green came into view.
I pointed out what I saw to Chris.
"......? Chris. There's no snow from here on."
"Oh! You're right!"
At the same time, I could feel that the surrounding temperature had risen noticeably.
It was still lower than the continent's average temperature, but it was an environment where plants could grow properly.
*Flinch.*
In that moment, my senses picked up on a sharp intent.
*Clang!*
I instantly drew Astaroth, knocked away the projectile flying toward us, and stepped in front of Chris.
Chris had already taken out a talisman, her eyes sharp.
"What the?!"
Rolling on the ground was an arrow.
And then, high up in a tree before us, from between the leaves, 'he' appeared.
Long, white hair, long ears, and beautiful features.
But his sharp jawline and sturdy build clearly indicated that he was male.
The appearance of an elf, something I had only seen occasionally on players.
This time, it wasn't a player.
The first elf NPC I had encountered on the Astria Continent.
He looked down at us with cold eyes.