Bound for the Trial
"Whew, whew..."
"Are you alright? Shall we take a short break?"
I thought I had grown accustomed to it after a few outings, but reality proved otherwise. I was fine at first, but after walking for just a short while, I felt my breath growing shallow. I was acutely feeling the lack of my Stamina stat.
"I'm fine. Let's keep going."
Still, I didn't want to hold her back. I was only slightly out of breath; it wasn't a major hindrance to my movement. If worst came to worst, I could always activate Absolute Obedience.
After catching my breath for a moment, I started walking behind Gwen again. Apparently, the Trial was located deep within the ruins of the village. I only knew that it was situated in some ruins near Alan's village, but not the exact location, so I had to follow Gwen, who had acquired a map. This was also one of the reasons I had waited for her.
Over time, the ruins had crumbled and weathered, gradually losing their shape, but they still retained a rough outline. I didn't know much, but it was clear that the architectural style was far more advanced than that of the village I had lived in. Such a civilization had lost its brilliance in an instant. We were walking through a space filled with Chaos—the substance responsible for this ruin—relying on nothing but a single sword each.
It was then.
"Shh."
Gwen stopped in her tracks and pressed her index finger to her lips. Then, she pointed to the right.
"Let's go around."
"Yes."
I replied and stole a glance past her. A Chaos Beast was sleeping there. At first glance, it looked like a bizarre, black ball of fur, but it was actually a Chaos Beast modeled after a sheep. It was a creature commonly known as a Woolball.
As expected, she's just bypassing the minor mobs, I thought.
Gwen was slipping past the Woolball without waking it. Indeed, waking a Woolball would only cause unnecessary annoyance; it was a low-tier mob that yielded almost no rewards or SP even if killed. There was no time to waste on such things.
That's Gwen for you.
Though warm-hearted by nature, she was extremely efficiency-driven when it came to these matters. She wasn't called the best starter character for nothing. Even without much guidance, she managed perfectly well on her own, and her results were always excellent.
Perhaps because we were still at the entrance of the village, only minor mobs like Woolballs were in sight, with no sign of threatening enemies like Ruins Golems. Thus, Gwen continued to advance, actively avoiding any monsters.
*Step, step.*
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed. They were coming from ahead, but the hazy Chaos blurred my vision, leaving only faint silhouettes visible. Judging by the shapes, there seemed to be four people. Come to think of it, this was the first time I had seen other people outside the barrier.
There were generally three types of people one could encounter outside the barriers.
First, Heroes like Gwen. They made up the vast majority of those wandering outside the barriers. After all, roaming outside without being a Hero was practically a death wish.
The second category consisted of those reckless enough to do just that. Those who roamed freely outside the barriers without being affiliated with the Holy Church. People called them Pathfinders.
And the last category comprised criminals, such as bandits or tomb raiders. In truth, there was no clear-cut line distinguishing them from Pathfinders. Just like the bandits who had raided the inn before, a Pathfinder could easily turn into a bandit, and vice versa.
Ultimately, what mattered outside the barrier was possessing enough strength to avoid falling prey to them. Gwen possessed that kind of strength. Even so, she did not neglect basic vigilance. She paused for a moment, focusing her senses on the distant silhouettes. After a brief silence, she spoke.
"They are Heroes affiliated with the Holy Church."
At those words, I pulled down the hood I had been loosely wearing, concealing my face as much as possible. Since these Heroes might have stayed at the inn where I used to work, there was a chance they would recognize me. For the record, the hooded robe I was wearing belonged to Gwen. Since I was still young, our builds were roughly similar, allowing me to wear it without any trouble.
Meanwhile, upon entering the Chaos Zone, Gwen pulled out a cloak bearing the emblem of the Holy Church from her inventory and put it on. Her reasoning was that there was no need to hide her identity outside the barrier. Inside, wandering around alone with the appearance of a young girl invited various troubles, so she had used her robe to conceal herself to some extent. Outside the barrier, however, she was free from such concerns. After all, no ordinary girl would ever roam the Chaos Zone. Furthermore, the Church's cloak served as a means of mutual identification.
One of the four figures walking from afar raised a hand high. That person was also wearing the Church's cloak.
"Oh? Hey! Long time no see!"
Gwen waved back in greeting. As they finally drew closer, I was able to get a detailed look at the party of four.
At the front was a man who appeared to be a tank, clad in heavy armor and carrying a shield. Behind him was a warrior-like man holding a sword in one hand, followed by a woman with a bow slung over her back, who was waving her hand. At the very back, a balding man held a book. The woman seemed to be an archer, and the balding man a priest. It was a reasonably well-balanced party.
Gwen greeted the woman who had been waving.
"Hello, Ryutmila."
Ryutmila?
Ryutmila was a name I recognized as well. Though not a playable character, she was one of the few high-ranking Heroes who used a bow. In fact, among the build paths for archer Heroes, the "Ryutmila Route"—where one became her successor—was practically the meta.
Unlike Gwen, Ryutmila looked quite mature. Yet, the reason Gwen addressed her so casually was that Gwen's actual age was much older than she appeared. I knew this, so I wasn't surprised, but the problem lay with Ryutmila's companions.
"Who is she, for Lady Ryutmila to speak to her so familiarly...?"
They seemed unable to process the situation. Ultimately, Ryutmila introduced Gwen to them.
"This is Hero Gwen. Her epithet is the Rose Hero, and she was my classmate at the Hero Academy."
At that, their eyes widened, as if they had heard of the Rose Hero before.
"This young girl is the Rose Hero?"
"A young girl?"
"But no matter how I look at her..."
"Don't let her appearance fool you. She's at least—"
*Shring.*
At that moment, a cold sound rang out. It was the sound of Gwen slightly drawing her sword from its scabbard.
"Ryutmila."
The killing intent that emanated from her in that instant felt potent enough to kill a man by sheer pressure alone. Even standing behind her, I couldn't help but flinch.
Meanwhile, Ryutmila shrank back slightly but recovered almost instantly. It made me realize she wasn't a high-ranking Hero for nothing.
"Alright, alright. But who's the kid behind you?"
At the question pointing toward me, Gwen answered without hesitation.
"A porter."
It was a decent quick-witted excuse, but not enough to fool Ryutmila.
"He seems a bit small to be a porter, don't you think?"
Ryutmila's eyes drifted to the sword I was holding. I tried to hide it quickly, but I couldn't escape the sharp gaze of an archer.
"That sword... Isn't that the one you used back when you were a Hero Candidate?"
Ryutmila wore a knowing smirk.
"Ah, now I get what's going on."
"What do you mean you get it?"
"Well, you know... *Ahem*. Seriously, the Lidval bloodline is a total cheat. How is it even fair that you can keep a teenage body no matter how old you get? I guess that's why, even at your age, you're hanging around with a young boy—"
Gwen's killing intent flared even thicker. As if anticipating this, Ryutmila quickly changed her tune.
"Well, just kidding. A master-disciple relationship, right? I'm starting to think about finding a successor myself. See you around!"
Ryutmila waved hastily. Gwen waved back in response, but her face was entirely devoid of a smile.
With that, we parted ways with the party of four and headed toward the Trial once more.
"Hey."
"Gwen?"
"Forget everything you just heard."
"Forget what?"
"My a—no, never mind."
I was sorry to say, but I already knew her age through her status window.
"How much further to the Trial?"
"Based on what I've heard, we should be about halfway there."
She turned her head to look at me.
"You're adapting remarkably fast."
Was I really adapting fast? It was more likely due to the fact that I was occasionally utilizing Absolute Obedience.
"But step back for a moment."
"Pardon?"
"It seems we'll have to fight this time."
She pointed toward a Ruins Golem blocking the alleyway with its massive, heavy frame. Spotting the golem, I nodded and stepped back.
"Understood."
If she said we had to fight, then we had to fight. Truthfully, I was a little excited. Since arriving in this world, this would be my first time seeing a Hero in combat.
In a way, you could call this the sole perk of being dropped into this godforsaken world.
I recalled when I first encountered Hundred Braves. Back then, what had drawn me into the game were the characters' unique skills and the awe-inspiring ultimate skill cutscenes. Now, I was about to witness it in real life, right before my eyes.
Of course, while I was merely a spectator for now, the thought of having to clash with such forces myself one day made my future look bleak.
Let's see...
However, my anticipation was shattered in an instant.
Approaching the Ruins Golem stealthily, Gwen quietly drew her sword. She raised the blade above her head. As she did, a crimson aura began to swirl around the blade, casting a shimmering haze.
After a brief pause, she simply swung her sword from top to bottom. A clean strike. The red-hot blade melted through the Ruins Golem as if it were cake, slicing it clean in half before the creature could even react.
While it was a flawless victory, it left me feeling somewhat underwhelmed. It had been clean—far too clean.
It's my fault for getting my hopes up.
Come to think of it, Gwen's approach was the correct one. Rather than waking the Ruins Golem and engaging in a flashy battle, it was far better to cleave it in one blow if possible. Though very few people actually possessed the strength to do so.
"Could you help me with something?"
"What is it?"
"I need to extract the Barrier Fragment from this thing, but I don't know where it is. Can we look for it together?"
A Barrier Fragment was a tiny crystal found inside all Chaos Beasts. They were formed when particles shed from the barriers accumulated inside the beasts. Returning them to the barrier stones that sustained the barriers would extend their lifespan. Consequently, handing them over to the nations maintaining the barriers yielded a set amount of money. In gaming terms, it was like the gold dropped by monsters—the primary source of income for Heroes.
A golem's Barrier Fragment... Now, where was that located?
Of course, I had no idea. How could I? I had never encountered such uselessly specific details while playing the game. Ultimately, after wrestling with the golem's remains for about five minutes, Gwen discovered the Barrier Fragment in the left side of its chest.
"It's smaller than I thought..."
Gwen muttered with a slightly disappointed expression as she slipped the fragment into her inventory.
"We've wasted some time. Let's get moving again."
It was at that exact moment. A vibration began to rumble beneath our feet.
Huh?
Gwen seemed to have felt it already. She turned her head toward the source of the tremor. Golems were swarming from that direction. And it wasn't just one. A whopping three golems were heading our way all at once.