A Pipe Dream
Moving stealthily along the bypass, we soon reached the mining site.
The pitch-black ore, sparkling like stars embedded in the dark cave walls, was quite beautiful.
Not that I had the luxury to admire it, considering I just wanted to finish up quickly and go back to the lodging to rest.
"Let's get this over with and head back! Don't even think about resting until everyone fills their quota!"
"W-wait... Just a little slower!"
"It's a goldmine! A goldmine! There's a whole cluster of ore over here!"
Clang! Clang!
After the loud echoes of pickaxes ringing through the shaft subsided, we gathered around the torchlight to rest.
I couldn't get much actual rest, though, because Razvel and her companions bombarded me with questions, clearly impressed by how I had handled the pack of Radgits all on my own.
"How on earth were you hiding that kind of skill?!"
"I got lucky."
"But your wooden plaque... why are you still F-rank?!"
"I only recently arrived from out of town."
"You just got to Verastin? Then how did you know about the bypass? This cave was fully mapped out years ago..."
"I just overheard some acquaintances talking about it. My identity is a secret. More importantly, I'm new to Verastin, so why don't you recommend some good local restaurants?"
I brushed it off with a vague excuse and naturally shifted the topic.
This era was about two to three years before the timeline of the Velheim I had played.
Since many things had changed, it was best to gather as much information as possible.
Razvel and her party eagerly began sharing various stories.
"If we're talking about good food... the bakery in front of the guild is famous! It's cheap and tastes amazing! Though the owner seems to have some worries lately..."
Must be about his son's incurable disease. That illness can be treated by brewing the blue orchids that grow on Wind-Swept Hill.
"Our Achaia Guild is small, but we have tight-knit bonds! They also give pretty good prices when you sell monster materials!"
It used to be a pretty harsh place... and the guild receptionists were incomparably ruder than they are now.
"And at Agatha's Temple in the center of the city, there's an incredibly divine and beautiful saintess! She's so gorgeous that some adventurers even get hurt on purpose just to go see her!"
"Is that so... Wait, really?"
According to my memory, that place was supposed to be filled with nothing but elderly, cranky nuns.
I remembered it clearly because I used to practically live there, getting injured so often while hunting monsters.
Of course, since the time period was different, the members could have changed...
Could that saintess be a transmigrator like me? Coincidentally, the deity who handled my transmigration was also the Goddess Agatha...
While I was pondering whether it was a mere coincidence, Malton's advice suddenly crossed my mind.
"Ah, that reminds me, there's something I wanted to ask..."
"Yes, what is it, Doran?"
"...What do you think of black hair? Ah, not that I have it, of course, but an acquaintance of mine does..."
"Black hair?"
Razvel and her companions exchanged glances before speaking honestly.
"Well, um... to be honest, it's not very welcome, is it?"
"They say... a large portion of the evil spirits had black hair."
"And according to rumors, children of evil spirits are mostly born with black hair..."
"..."
As the full picture clicked, the color drained from my face in real-time.
To think there was such a background behind Malton's advice to hide my hair.
At this rate, I might as well have been walking around with a sign advertising myself as a transmigrator.
But there was no such lore in the original game... Why?
The most plausible hypothesis was...
...Did everyone transmigrate with their past appearance intact, causing this mess?
Since I had transmigrated with my original appearance, others likely did too.
Since about eighty percent of Earth's population has black hair, the majority of the "evil spirits" who appeared here would have had black hair as well.
Combined with the hatred toward transmigrators, it must have created the current social stigma.
I'll definitely have to keep my hair hidden under my hood from now on... Wait, has Malton already figured it out too...?
Thank goodness I had smeared mud all over my head when I stripped naked earlier...
As I massaged my throbbing temples with a grim expression, Razvel spoke up hesitantly.
"B-but... there's one thing I wanted to ask."
"Go ahead."
"With your skills, Doran, you could have easily escaped on your own... Why did you take such a risk to fight the monsters?"
"..."
I paused for a moment before answering.
"Because I couldn't just run away and leave you all to die."
Of course, that was a lie.
I might have lived an altruistic life in my past existence, but in this life, I was prepared to be as cold-blooded as necessary to survive.
The only reason I stayed instead of fleeing was because I judged it gave me a higher chance of survival.
With their skill level, they wouldn't have been able to hold off the Radgit pack for even a moment.
Rather than getting cornered in the end, it was better to keep even one more person alive to use as a stepping stone for my Chaos skill.
But there's no need to spell that out to them.
When I uttered the white lie while wearing a benevolent smile, Razvel's party fell silent.
As I was wondering about their reaction, the log window updated.
Tring!
• The adventurers are deeply moved and look up to you!
• They think of you as a slightly strange and highly perverted, but ultimately kind-hearted person! If they spread stories about you, your reputation within the guild will change!
• Due to the effect of the skill Chaos, Luck temporarily increases by 1!
No way... They're moved by just this?
If they were the adventurers of Velheim from my memory, it wouldn't have been surprising if they sneered and said, "Hah, look at this bastard spinning silver-tongued nonsense."
Well, on the surface, I did save their lives, so it was understandable that they were looking at me through rose-colored glasses, but still...
"Ahem... It's really nothing. Anyone else in my position would have made the same choice."
"Seriously, it's really no big deal. So there's no need to thank me."
"Um... I'd prefer if we kept this quiet. Honestly, I don't really want my name spreading around."
• Intelligence has increased by 2!
• They feel an absolute duty to share this heartwarming tale with other guild members!
• As a side effect, rumors of your eccentric behavior may spread.
Everything I say just backfires.
Since it had come to this, it would be better to use the goodwill I had built up to pry for deeper information.
Wearing a natural smile, I casually spoke up.
"By the way... has anything strange happened around here lately?"
"Strange?"
"Yes, like rumors circulating among adventurers... or perhaps something regarding a 'dungeon'?"
When I threw out the bait, the adventurers exchanged glances and tilted their heads.
"Well... I did hear that unusually strong monsters have been spotted lately..."
"Yeah. In a way, the Radgits appearing in this cave might be part of the same thing...?"
"Hmm... I don't know if it's related to a dungeon, but there's been a rumor that an S-rank adventurer was spotted in the nearby forest recently."
"An S-rank?"
If true, this was definitely a major development.
S-ranks were superhuman beings, of which only a handful existed in the entire world.
After all, the adventurer rank I had achieved in my past life was also S-rank.
They were heavyweights treated as strategic weapons and managed directly by the kingdom—capable of destroying castle gates with a single sword and decapitating high-ranking demons.
Since such figures would never wander around aimlessly, the appearance of an S-rank usually meant a major incident or a catastrophe was brewing.
And if we were talking about what was about to happen near here soon...
...It seems almost certain they're here because of the dungeon.
But it was a bit strange for an S-rank to be moving already.
Deploying an S-rank recklessly carried the risk of injury, which would be a massive loss for the nation, so they were usually saved as a last resort.
In fact, even during my time playing the game, I knew that S-rank adventurers weren't deployed for dungeon raids until much later.
Yet, for one to be spotted here already...
...Are they trying to conquer and close the dungeon early?
Since many transmigrators had crossed over to this world, information must have been leaked along with them.
This meant there was a high probability that the upper echelons of this world already knew about the series of catastrophes that would strike in the near future.
Since these disasters were so massive that knowing about them didn't necessarily mean they could be stopped, I couldn't tell if this was a good thing or the opposite.
A major incident was definitely going to erupt soon, but because the path leading to that future was so hazy, my head was starting to throb.
Since my very life was on the line, I couldn't just ignore it...
As I pinched the bridge of my nose in deep thought, Razvel asked tentatively.
"Um... if there's something troubling you, would you like to have your fortune read?"
"...A fortune reading?"
"Yes! Our spearman friend here comes from a family of gifted diviners! We'd love to repay our debt to you even just a little bit like this!"
"Then... since we still have some rest time left, would you mind?"
I figured I could just treat it like a daily horoscope.
True to its nature as a fantasy world where magic existed, divination in Velheim was surprisingly accurate.
If I could catch a glimpse of the near future, it would be a huge help in mapping out my plans.
Huh...?
But the moment the spearman pulled out a crystal ball, an intense wave of déjà vu struck my mind.
For some reason, it looked incredibly similar to an artifact I had mass-produced countless times back in my gaming days.
"Excuse me, but that crystal ball looks somewhat familiar... Where did you get it?"
"This? It's an heirloom passed down through generations in my family... But since most crystal balls look alike, maybe you're just mistaken?"
"Is that so... Yes, surely that's it."
Suppressing my uneasy feeling, I watched as the spearman closed his eyes and chanted an incantation in a dreamlike voice.
The crystal ball began to flicker with a soft light, and an image started to take shape.
"The reading is complete. Hmm... I see a collapsed cave, and countless people isolated beyond it... Where on earth could this be?"
"I wonder. I have no idea."
...Is it the dungeon?!
The part about countless people being isolated bothered me, but I didn't have the luxury to dwell on its meaning.
Because the words that followed made my heart skip a beat.
"And... there is a skeleton knight fighting on a battlefield, and I can feel your energy from this undead, Doran. And his opponent has horns and wings... A-a demon?"
How did he know I can transform into an undead...?!
While astonished by his incredible divining power, I also furrowed my brow.
A demon? My level was only sixteen right now, and yet I was going to clash with a demon soon?
"And... wow!"
The spearman gasped, looking at me with sparkling eyes.
"You become a hero and save countless lives, Doran! Truly, an unfathomable number of people!!"
"Huh? What?"
Just a pipe dream.
I let out a dry chuckle and stood up.
There was no way.
Hadn't I already resolved myself? In this life, I would live only for myself.