The Hidden Isle of the Burning Branch
At Veronica’s suggestion to head out to sea, the first thought that popped into my head was, “But we’re already at the sea.” As I’d mentioned a few days ago, Kudses was a port city. It was one of Germania’s famous trading hubs, complete with its own beach. As a harbor, it probably ranked right up there with Incheon or Busan back home. Of course, with autumn in full swing and the weather freezing my ass off, this was hardly the time for a beach vacation. Damn it, I’d been dying to see my wives in swimsuits.
“I do not mean a harbor on the continent. I speak of the island where the Burning Branch grows—the very material we need for the Seidr ritual.”
Veronica answered our obvious confusion. Burning Branch, huh. That sounded like something straight out of a poem. For the record, Larilura had already heard that we needed something related to Seidr, even if she didn’t know the details.
“Germania has islands?” I asked, unfolding a map and dredging up what little geography I knew. Germania and Britannia were ridiculously close; even by this world’s standards, a few days by ship would get you there. Territorial disputes over their waters were fierce, and the place was crawling with pirates and navies straight out of One Piece.
Veronica nodded. “Of course it does. The Prophet herself used Seidr during her prophetic rituals and traveled to that very island. That is why the method has been passed down so thoroughly within our clan.”
“Where exactly? You said your people don’t keep written records. I’m not exactly thrilled about chasing after some half-remembered legend.”
Setting sail to find a mythical island handed down through oral tradition… Time isn’t really the issue, I thought. We’d already told everyone back in Sargadis we’d be gone at least a month. Our main goal—rune stone research—had been put on hold, and we’d already dealt with Yerna. The only thing left to do in Germania was gather the Seidr materials. If we rushed back after just a few days of “research,” it would look suspicious anyway. Wasting time wasn’t a problem.
Still, wandering aimlessly across the open ocean sounds like a terrible idea.
The sea was vast—vaster than the land humans lived on, just like back home. Heading out into that endless, terrifying expanse to hunt for an island whose location we didn’t even know? Even someone with seawater for brains wouldn’t attempt that. Even hiring a pro wouldn’t save a half-assed plan like that. No expert sailor could carry a suicide mission where we’d run out of food or get lost in the middle of nowhere with no land in sight. And that wasn’t even counting typhoons, rogue waves, or sea monsters. No wonder sailors had a reputation for being rugged bastards. Anyone crazy enough to charge into that kind of danger relying on nothing but their own skill had no choice but to become either a show-off or a real man.
“You need not worry about the location,” Veronica said. “It is a large island, and even an ordinary ship can reach it in three days.”
That sounded manageable. Even accounting for getting lost, ten days’ worth of supplies would be enough. The real problem was that no such island appeared on any map, despite being supposedly close and large.
“Three days away? It’s not on the map.”
Dana rested her chin on my shoulder and peered at the map. I absentmindedly patted her head, thinking the same thing. If a regular ship could reach it in three days, it had to be part of Germania’s territory. Depending on the exact distance, it might even be caught in a border dispute with Britannia.
An uninhabited island that doesn’t appear on any map… That was already suspicious. The fact that it was supposedly large only made it worse.
“It is fortunate that it remains unknown,” Veronica said, sounding almost relieved. “If humans had discovered it, the island would likely have been stripped bare.”
She looked at us and asked, “Have you forgotten the barrier that hid the Sacred Beast’s Forest?”
“……Ah. Right. You’re saying this place has one too?”
“Indeed. It is concealed by the same kind of barrier.”
Veronica smiled proudly and continued explaining. The barrier only allowed entry to those with sufficient ancient divine mana and deep knowledge of runes! The same barrier supposedly protected the island where the Bicorn prophet had gone to obtain Seidr materials.
Naturally, the rest of the party looked uneasy.
“Wait, then we won’t be able to get inside?”
“Does that mean we’ll have to wait on the ship? Should we bring extra food…?”
“There is no need for such concerns. Unlike the Sacred Beast’s Forest, there are records of other guests being welcomed. More importantly, the Holy Water barrier only disrupts one’s sense of direction and prevents recognition of the island. With Nord and myself present, it will not be an issue.”
Veronica spoke as if trying to ease our worries. She had a point. Even someone with no sense of direction could reach their destination if they were riding shotgun with a working GPS. If Veronica and I could point the way, the helmsman would just have to do their job.
I thought it over and asked, “Is it some kind of sacred site? Do we have to go alone?”
“Hardly. It is not a sacred site in that sense. Besides, as the Prophet’s representative, I have the authority to invite outsiders. Anyone who washes ashore may enter, but those who force their way in without permission will never leave.”
Oh, right. She held a pretty high position among the Bicorns. Still, the part about never being able to leave was a little creepy. It was probably just a stronger, wider-range version of the disorientation barrier we’d dealt with at the circus.
While I was mulling that over, Dana rested her chin on my shoulder again and muttered, “Hmm. Then we’ll need to find someone who can keep their mouth shut. Sailors are famous for having loose lips, aren’t they? It’d be a pain if they blabbed everything they saw.”
“As long as we don’t give them any proof, it should be fine,” Franc said. “Sailors love to exaggerate, so without evidence, nobody believes their stories anyway.”
“Really? That’s a relief.”
If even Franc, who was basically a local, said so, it was probably true. Dana and I accepted it.
With that, we started planning our sea voyage—figuring out how to hire a ship and stock up on supplies at the harbor. Regular passenger ships wouldn’t work, so we’d probably have to charter an entire vessel.
Then Larilura suddenly spoke up. “Um, excuse me~? If it’s an island out at sea, the climate’s probably different from the mainland, right~? If it’s cold, we’ll need warm clothes, won’t we~?”
“A fair point, but you have it backwards,” Veronica corrected. “That island is overflowing with fire mana. You know how some countries are hot year-round? It is similar to that.”
A subtropical island, then? Makes sense for a place where something called the Burning Branch grows. This world probably had an equator, but three days’ travel meant it wasn’t anywhere near that. Like the underground graveyard, climate here seemed to be determined more by local environment than geography.
“Aha♡! In other words, we’ll be wearing light clothes, right?”
Larilura’s ears perked up at Veronica’s answer, and she grinned mischievously.
“Senior~? You weren’t secretly hoping to see us in swimsuits, were you~? Curious about how we’d look wearing nothing but tiny scraps of cloth that barely cover more than our underwear~♥?”
“Yeah. I’m dying to see it.”
When I answered with complete sincerity, Larilura’s ears turned bright red.
“Huh? Huh?! W-wait, if you say it that seriously all of a sudden……”
“I’ve never gotten to see my wives in swimsuits before.”
“…………Ah, right~. Of course. Yeah~. I knew that from the start, you know?”
If she knew, why did she look so disappointed? Dana chuckled at Larilura’s reaction and wrapped an arm around my neck.
“You really want to see swimsuits that badly? You perverted bastard. Can’t you wait until next summer?”
“You don’t get it, sis. Coming to the sea and not wearing swimsuits is an insult to the ocean itself.”
“Is it not simply your own lust talking?”
Shut it, horned girl.
“I’ll wear one. A beach trip sounds fun. Oh, but it’s not dangerous, right?”
Franc seemed willing as long as it was safe. As expected of our Franc—she had her head on straight. Veronica scratched her horn, trying to recall the old stories.
“According to the legends, there are no monsters to worry about. It is said to be a paradise filled with edible fruits.”
“Kek. Hiding a place like that behind a barrier just to keep it to yourselves? That’s kinda mean.”
“Hmph. It is divine land that cannot be handed over to humans. I will not demand the return of our lost territories, but it was originally ours, so any complaints are meaningless.”
“It was a joke. You’re just protecting what’s yours—nobody can argue with that.”
Anyway, that settled what we needed to do. We wrapped up the discussion for now.
“Are those the only materials we need for Seidr? Just two things?”
“There are still a few more. None of the remaining ingredients are rare enough to require a personal expedition, so I believe they should be available through human markets……”
“Got it. Let’s check the Mage Guild. We were going there anyway.”
I’d lost the Puppetry enchantment on my spear, and Larilura’s Ringling had been half-destroyed. Even if the island itself was safe, the journey there probably wouldn’t be—pirates existed, after all. Reinforcing our combat strength was essential.
Veronica hesitated for a moment before speaking. “Then…… would it be all right if I came along as well?”
“You’re the only one who knows what the Seidr materials look like. Of course you’re coming. Just tell me which ones are best through telepathy while you’re in Bicorn form.”
“N-no, I mean…… I want to go in my original form…………”
Goddamn it, don’t suddenly start using polite speech. That’s jarring as hell. Veronica seemed to realize her uncharacteristic behavior and looked mortified, but she didn’t take back what she’d said.
“I-I’m just curious. We’ve never been able to see how other races live their lives……. I don’t want the other Bicorns in my clan to tease me for regaining my original form but still not knowing how the world works……”
“Well, I don’t mind, but…… what about the curse?”
I was completely caught off guard, but I still managed to ask the obvious question. Veronica fidgeted, looking oddly shy despite her seductive appearance, and muttered quietly.
“I thought about that too. I can hide my horns with the Berkanan rune, and if anyone asks, I can just say it’s transformation magic……. It wouldn’t even be a lie……”
She had a point. “I transformed into a Bicorn using magic!” wasn’t technically false. Her true form was that of a Bicorn, and turning into one was indeed rune-based transformation magic. Everything checked out. Even a lie detector wouldn’t catch it. A perfectly honest lie, if you will.
……Veronica’s situation really is tragic.
Born under a curse that meant she could only show her true form to her own kind, and even after the curse was lifted, she still had no experience with men and remained stuck in her original state. Meanwhile, while her people were picking fruit in the forest, other races had built dazzling civilizations. It must have been heartbreaking. This was way beyond gold spoon versus dirt spoon—this was a whole different species of spoon. Typical of a bloodline-ruined isekai.
Come to think of it, when we first arrived in Kudses, she’d complained about seeing elves and other races walking around freely.
Veronica had been cooped up the entire time we were in Sargadis. Even if she hadn’t shown it, arriving in such a thriving trading city must have been a massive culture shock. She’d hidden her presence and stayed indoors before, but this was probably the first time she’d actually walked through lively streets and felt it for herself. It must have been like a young woman from a developing country arriving in a place like L.A. for the first time. No wonder she was overwhelmed. This world had no internet or telecommunications, after all. Even her fellow cursed kin probably couldn’t tell her much about human civilization.
Thinking about it that way, asking her to wait in the room felt cruel. I looked away from the nervous Veronica and glanced at the rest of the party for their opinions. No objections.
“Alright. Let’s go together.”
“──R-really?”
Veronica’s face lit up instantly, as if she hadn’t expected us to agree so easily. She looked like she’d been bracing herself for rejection.
“Just don’t use polite speech. It sounds even weirder than your usual way of talking and stands out way too much.”
“Ah, um, understood—wait, I mean! Understood! I shall do so!!”
She shot to her feet and planted her hands on her hips with confidence. I was a little worried, but seeing her light up like a kid made it impossible to say no. I chuckled and slung my spear over my shoulder.
“First the Mage Guild, then we can do some sightseeing.”
Coming all the way to a foreign country and doing nothing but work would be a waste. Even salarymen on business trips got to goof off a little in their free time without getting scolded. We’d finished one job, so wandering around tourist spots or swimming a bit wouldn’t get us in trouble.
With that, we headed straight for Kudses’ Mage Guild.
Fewer people than last time.
Maybe it was the time of day? It was broad daylight, yet the place wasn’t crowded. Veronica seemed to be holding up fine too. She still went pale whenever children passed by, but it didn’t look like she was about to lose control.
“……Gulp.”
Her attention was more focused on the street vendors and food stalls—especially the food. When I lightly smacked her back to snap her out of it, she tensed up. If she reverted to Bicorn form here, we’d be screwed.
“Welcome. Are you guild members?”
We avoided the crowded areas and reached the Mage Guild, where the receptionist asked us to confirm our identities. Being a trading city, even the receptionists were good-looking. It felt like the branch manager cared a lot about appearances.
“Larilura?”
I called out to Larilura, who had officially registered as a guild member, but she just clasped her hands together and bowed her head energetically. This idiot hadn’t brought her guild card.
“Here.”
Left with no choice, I handed over my own card. It was the otherworld Costco premium membership Cromwell had given me.
“Magical media and materials are sold on the second floor.”
I’d been gambling on whether Cromwell’s permit would work, but after the receptionist verified it with magic, she smiled and let us through. We went up to the second floor, asked around, and eventually found the section selling magical materials. Veronica carefully selected several items and paid for them with her own money. When she came back carrying an armful of paper bags, I offered to help, but she politely refused. Something about that successor thing again.
“What did you buy?”
“Mountain Golem roots and Griffin saliva. They are magical media that have been used since ancient times.”
“Is that enough?”
“The other materials are of high quality, so it is fine. Surprisingly, the items handled in human society are quite good.”
Veronica seemed satisfied with her shopping. We were lucky we didn’t have to go hunting monsters just to get these. While we were buying materials, we’d also left Ringling 3.5 with them for repairs, so now all that was left was to enchant my spear.
We bought the medium we needed for the enchantment—since we hadn’t brought a giant golem core—and entered one of the testing rooms the guild lent out for free.
“……Huh?”
All that was left was for Larilura to apply the enchantment, but she paused while smearing the medium on the spear shaft, tilting her head in confusion.
“What’s wrong?”
“No, it’s just not working properly……. Maybe I don’t have enough mana?”
“Mana? Try this.”
I handed her the jade seal filled with mana and explained how to use it. Larilura understood right away. She tried channeling the stored mana into the spear to apply the enchantment.
“Huh?”
That was when something unexpected happened.
The spear that had absorbed Larilura’s mana suddenly began to pulse, and the entire testing room started to shake violently.