Chapter 134
Chapter 134
Chapter 134
Immediately after deciding to accept the present and move forward, the first thing I had to do was apologize to Arietta.
"I'm sorry, Arietta. Yesterday, I was a bit..."
"Oh, no, it's alright. I was worried I might have upset you... It's a relief you're okay."
Arietta waved her hands, stopping me as I bowed my head.
She truly is an angelic person.
"Master! What about me? Don't you have anything to say to me? I'm waiting!"
And our attention-seeker, Eleanor, as always, was demanding my attention.
Normally, I would have ignored her, thinking it would spoil her, but…
"Alright, Noah. Thanks to you, I came to my senses. Thank you."
"Uh-oh...? Th-this isn't Master! You fake!"
"This kid?"
Even when I thanked her, she made a fuss. I genuinely felt grateful, unlike usual, and told her so, but perhaps I should have maintained the same attitude with Noah?
"Well, ahem, ahem. It's not bad."
"..."
Well, that's just like you..
Eleanor is the type who would be happy even if an enemy praised her.
But for her to refuse my praise, who she serves as Master? Impossible.
In fact, she's so happy right now that her ears are practically flapping, but she's hiding it.
"...How about trying a little more?"
What a shrewd one.
She's the type who only hears what she wants to hear, so she probably intends to make me repeat this until she's satisfied. But Eleanor is a monster who doesn't know satisfaction. It's best not to engage.
"No, you're right, that wasn't like me. I said something unnecessary."
"Oops..."
I will no longer utter any words of praise for you.
This is your own doing, so don't blame me.
"Again! Do it again!"
"Do what again?"
"Anything!"
"You two. I'm sorry to interrupt your playing, but we have a problem."
As I was trying to peel off Eleanor, who was clinging to me, Baekyang appeared with narrowed eyes.
"Baekyang... your horn!"
Eleanor shouted, her eyes wide with shock.
It was the expression of a child looking at a pirate who had lost an arm.
"What should we do? Master. Baekyang's horn is gone. Would it be okay if we just stick a branch in there as a makeshift replacement?"
Eleanor asked with a serious expression, holding a branch.
Her absurd drive to act is one thing, but her casual response is terrifying.
"...I hid it with magic, so don't do that."
"Right, so let's put that down."
If Baekyang's excuse had been even slightly delayed, just imagining where those branches in Eleanor's hand would have gone makes me dizzy.
Eleanor then looked down at the branch for a moment before throwing it away.
"Why hide it?"
"The village ahead is forbidden to goblins."
"Why...?"
Baekyang sighed deeply and answered Eleanor's thoughtless question.
"Goblins are avoided."
"Isn't that too much?"
"It's familiar, so it's okay."
Goblins are avoided.
In the Empire, yokai are relatively rare, so such feelings of aversion are less prevalent, but the Federation, where many yokai live, is different.
The racial trait of goblins to torment humans. Even recently, it only ended with torment, but in the past, the degree was different.
Goblins deceived, tormented, and eventually killed humans.
They have changed thanks to interactions with people.
But as long as that precedent exists, it's only natural that they can't integrate into human society.
They might even be treated worse than most yokai.
That's why cases like this, where entry is forbidden, occur.
Baekyang is quite kind for a goblin, but it would be impossible for her to escape that prejudice.
Don't I already know how terrifying prejudice can be?
But Baekyang continued as if she had already grown accustomed to such matters, seemingly unconcerned.
"To put it simply, the village ahead won't accept outsiders, let alone goblins."
"Huh...? Why?"
"There seems to be a problem."
If the problem is severe enough to block the entry of outsiders, there's only one thing.
The Federation's anomaly, 'The Yokai-fication of the Forest,' which is the cause of the [Goblin Forest] storyline.
The already entangled space is turning into a sentient monster. It's a situation that gives them enough reason to suspect everything coming from outside.
It seems the phenomenon is more widespread than I had thought.
I didn't expect to be blocked like this so early in the Federation.
I let my guard down because it was a side story.
"So, we're sleeping outdoors again today?"
"Sleeping outdoors isn't the problem, our supplies might be in danger."
"Oops..."
Eleanor quickly hid her wrist behind her back. This kid... She must have secretly stolen a potato or something.
"Then what, is there an alternative?"
Eleanor's minor misdeed aside, retreating due to a lack of supplies is dangerous.
The professors of [Scientia] cannot endure if we have to acquire enough supplies for the journey and return.
Due to the land tainted with yokai energy, space-type magic like [Teleport] cannot be easily used in the Federation.
It might have been possible if I were my former self, but now I cannot use [Teleport] itself.
No, can I use it?
I don't know.
"...There is one."
Baekyang looked displeased as she spoke. I can guess what method she's referring to.
"Are you talking about the Samdo River?"
"You know about it. Yes. The Samdo River, the River of Death that connects various parts of the Federation, would at least get us to the Goblin Forest quickly."
"Hmm..."
The Samdo River.
If the Empire has magical floating trains, the Federation has the Samdo River.
Of course, unlike the magical floating trains, which are safe and fast means of transportation created by technology, the Samdo River is a kind of phenomenon.
Due to the dense yokai energy, a region where space itself is entangled has been created.
If you know how to find your way, it can be a convenient means to travel instantly from one end of the Federation to the other, but if you don't know the way, it's over.
Because the Samdo River is as good as entering the belly of [Yokai King] Kang-cheol.
If you cause trouble on the path or have an accident, you'll be eaten.
"If there's a problem..."
Baekyang looks at Eleanor with meaningful eyes.
"Why? Why are you looking at me? No matter what, I don't cause trouble in situations like this?!"
"A thief with a guilty conscience, that's not exactly it."
"Isn't it? Then what's the problem?"
I tapped my head with my index finger and said,
"Mind."
"...What's wrong with my mind?"
"I'm not saying anything weird or anything, so don't glare like that. As I recall, the Samdo River is riddled with phenomena that eat away at a person's mind, including hallucinations."
Therefore, for people with painful pasts or deep regrets, it can be poison.
Eleanor is both.
She was hurt by what happened in Chrysos and simultaneously felt regret for her helplessness.
It's not a question of whether she can endure it.
Can't we simply ignore the fact that she can endure having her wounds dredged up and causing pain?
"I'm fine."
"What a lighthearted attitude."
"These are all things we have to overcome and face, aren't they?"
"But they are also things we don't necessarily have to look at in that way. If you know you have a wound, that's enough; you don't necessarily have to pour salt on it and deepen the pain, do you?"
"We do need to. Because we have work to do."
"..."
It's just like Eleanor to say that.
But I felt a slight chill at her mission-like fervor, which was close to madness.
But I can't refuse.
As long as she says she's fine, I can't back down.
"Alright, then, just in case, I'll ask. Are there any other members who might have trouble in the Samdo River?"
"..."
It seems there are no problems.
Come to think of it, Arietta is practically immune to mental attacks, and Marie is similar.
Yokai energy is the power of chaos.
It's not purified by divine power, but it also can't significantly affect Arietta, who has no mana.
Furthermore, for Marie, who is shrouded in demonic energy that erodes, it's merely good prey.
"Then the problem is me..."
Mana is susceptible to yokai energy due to the correlation of power. Eleanor would be the same, but she'll probably be fine.
Not only did she say she could endure it, but in the unlikely event, there's also the power of harmony held by the [Key of Understanding].
Perhaps the most dangerous person among this group might be me.
"What will you do?"
"We have to go, I guess."
Me backing out is impossible. If I were to run away for something this trivial, I wouldn't have started.
There was a problem with my identity, but that's fine now.
"It's okay."
The ribbon on my wrist, tied by Eleanor, proves that I am still here. If I have this, I'm okay.
"Oh, what is it, Master?"
When I stroked her head, thinking she was admirable, Eleanor looked noticeably flustered.
This is another rare sight.
It would be good to honestly say it's because she's admirable, but...
"No, just. You were in a convenient position to rest my hand."
"I'm not an armrest?"
I don't want to see this kid acting impertinent for some reason, so this much will do.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Drip--
The place Baekyang guided us to was a foggy wilderness.
Considering it's called the Samdo River, it's an ironic environment, but there's a reason it's called that.
"Master. I hear the sound of water dripping."
"Don't listen too closely. You might get enchanted and drown."
"Is it really the Yokai King's belly?"
"Yes, this Samdo River itself is the Yokai King, Kang-cheol's physical body."
Being in the belly of the [Yokai King] is not a metaphor. Kang-cheol has become yokai energy itself and permeated the Federation.
The Samdo River can be considered the physical body of Kang-cheol, who has become a concept.
Within the Samdo River. Kang-cheol can appear anywhere. Even if Kang-cheol, who appears like that, dies.
As long as yokai energy remains in the Federation, Kang-cheol can revive at any time.
Unlike the [Demon King], whose life is connected to all demons, the [Yokai King] possesses 'yokai energy' itself as life.
"That's... a bit pitiful."
"..."
Pitiful.
It might be a word unsuitable for dragons, of which there are only five in the world.
But it is also the most suitable word for [Yokai King] Kang-cheol.
Because he is an existence who abandoned all freedom solely to become a dragon.
Kang-cheol cannot leave the Federation. He cannot leave the Samdo River.
The most bound existence.
All he can do is expand the range of the Samdo River, slightly widening his movable radius.
...It's an act close to struggling.
How much would his movable range increase by devouring one or two humans or yokai?
Drip--
Like dropping a single drop into a river.
Not needing to expand his body in such a way alone shows how meaningless it is.
This sound echoing in my ears is nothing short of Kang-cheol's self-mockery.
He quietly remains silent, simply devouring those who cause a commotion.
"...Don't mind it. It's not something we can do anything about."
"Well, that's true."
There's nothing we can do right now.
This is something that an equivalent being, Tia, will handle.
In this matter, we can only be assistants.
"By the way, are you seeing things or anything?"
"I do see something. I see Descentura screaming."
"..."
Can she speak of such memories so calmly?
No, that can't be.
If it were an insignificant memory, it wouldn't have appeared and flickered before her eyes in the first place.
She's merely enduring it.
"...Don't suppress it too much."
"Hehe, it's okay. Who do you think I am? I can endure it."
"Then, well... it'll be fine."
Eleanor has grown. She has achieved growth beyond what I imagined.
Her mind was once shattered like a glass bead, but it will no longer break. She must have already experienced all the difficult things.
The broken glass, the fragments that became shards of glass, they no longer divided into smaller pieces.
"Master, are you alright?"
"Well..."
What would I see in this Samdo River that disturbs the mind?
I had worried about that.
Whether it would be my lost past, or Oz's memories. I was prepared for whichever appeared.
But I see nothing.
Yes, I see nothing.
[Contemplation] has stopped functioning.
"It's unsettling."
Although I've deliberately deactivated it before, this is the first time it's been forcibly nullified. A sense of helplessness I haven't felt in a long time.
It's a faint unease that I can't know what will happen beforehand.
"Still, there shouldn't be any problems."
Because combat is forbidden in the Samdo River.
"Oh, Oz..."
At that moment, someone clung to my back with an anxious voice.
I was startled. I hadn't noticed because [Contemplation] was deactivated.
Normally, it would be Marie who would harbor this kind of anxiety, but...
"I-I can't feel anything. I don't even know what's in front of me..."
This time it was different.
That, what's-her-name. The felt volume was a bit different. She had a volume that Marie couldn't possibly have.
"It's alright, Arietta. If you're really anxious, would you like to hold my hand?"
Arietta usually senses her surroundings by spreading divine power.
That's why she's powerless in the Samdo River, which is entirely covered in yokai energy.
It's probably like being suddenly thrown into darkness.
I felt an anxious tremor from her clinging to me.
"L-let's go like this. I want to confirm that Oz is nearby."
When I extended my hand, Arietta shook her head and clung to me instead.
She must truly be terrified. Her way of addressing me has even returned to old for the first time in a while. Then there's no choice.
"Understood."
Enjoying the present... No, I'll just have to put up with the slight discomfort.
"No."
Just as I was about to move, holding Arietta, Eleanor began to murmur in dismay.
"I've been had..."
Eleanor looked dejected, as if she had been outsmarted. She's a strange one.
After staring at Arietta and me with narrowed eyes for a while, Eleanor suddenly began to flinch.
"...What are you doing?"
"Oh, I was just thinking it's surprisingly an act that requires courage... Now that I actually think about doing it myself, it's hard."
"What were you trying to do?"
"...It's a secret.”