Departure
The sails swelled tight with the wind, and the boat skimmed across the sea with refreshing speed.
It wasn’t nearly as fast as a ship built with Earth’s technology, but for something driven by the strength of a single person, the speed was almost impossible to believe.
And, best of all, it didn’t burn fuel, which made it wonderfully eco-friendly….
—Or not?
Was it really right to call Magi eco-friendly?
Daeun, who had said it herself and still felt uncertain about it, tilted her head.
…Maybe not.
Something that turned animals into monsters and sickened the plants around them probably couldn’t be called environmentally friendly.
That was the conclusion she reached after a brief internal debate.
In any case, the reason Daeun could enjoy such a swift and pleasant voyage was entirely thanks to Atisha, who devoted all her time to steering the boat except when she was recovering her strength.
“Can Canaria do this too? …No, never mind. Just forget I asked.”
Daeun had impulsively asked Canaria a question that had come to mind, but she quickly took it back.
She probably could, but…
For some reason, the price of that ability felt like it would be a half-destroyed boat.
Or sails torn to ribbons.
If that happened, Daeun’s future would be limited to drifting across the open sea on a boat that looked like a rag, or being seized by Canaria and flown through the sky.
I don’t want to go through that kind of extreme experience twice.
Daeun wanted to live as long and as healthily as possible, so she was not interested in heart-pounding bare-handed flight.
She soothed Canaria, who had apparently taken offense and was now making a sulky face, as if Daeun had looked down on her.
A few days later, land finally came into view.
Even though the system had dulled her senses enough that she hadn’t gotten seasick during the rough journey, the boredom and claustrophobia of being trapped in a confined space had remained the same, so Daeun had been counting the days until they reached shore.
But when the long-awaited land actually came close enough to see clearly—
“…”
Gulp.
Daeun couldn’t bring herself to cheer.
Black soil… I think black earth was supposed to be great for farming….
But Daeun was certain that wasn’t the kind of black earth stretching out before them.
It was too far away to be mistaken for ordinary dark soil, and even from a distance she couldn’t feel a trace of life from it.
The kind of place where you planted a seed and it wouldn’t sprout into a healthy plant, but would rot away at once.
That wasn’t the only thing that unnerved her.
The black fog rising thickly like seawater mist blocked out the sunlight with its own body, giving the place a dim, sinister atmosphere even though the sun was bright and the day was clear.
If this had been a novel, it would absolutely have been the setting for the final act.
Daeun wasn’t bold enough to step into a place like that without hesitation.
When the sail that had been fluttering in the black wind finally stilled, the boat itself slowed to a stop as well.
“This is as far as I go….”
“Pardon? …Ah.”
Daeun turned toward Atisha at the sudden remark, saw her complexion, and immediately understood.
Her already bloodless face had gone even paler, to the point that it wouldn’t have been strange if she collapsed on the spot.
Right. She’d said her horn had broken, so she’d had no choice but to leave Laxia….
“Even now, it’s still a little much….”
Atisha’s breathing was far from calm.
Watching her gasp in ragged breaths as if someone had a hand around her throat made it impossible to ask if she couldn’t come along a little farther. Only a cold-blooded monster would be able to say that.
Daeun lightly patted Atisha’s back as the demon stared at Laxia with a mixture of frustration and regret.
“Thank you for guiding us.”
When Celine’s holy power wrapped around Atisha, her ghost-pale complexion improved considerably.
“The chief is at the very center of Laxia…. The roads are cleared, so it won’t be difficult to get there….”
Unlike the people of Ardina, who called the demons’ ruler the Demon King, the demons themselves—including Atisha—called her the chief.
Considering that their true nature was the Purifier Clan, it wasn’t really a strange title at all.
“I’ll give you a small boat, so take that….”
“Is that really necessary? A distance like this, we could just run—oof.”
“P-please, I’m begging you…!”
Daeun quickly clapped a hand over Canaria’s mouth before she could spout something outrageous.
Ignoring the reproachful look Canaria gave her, she let out a sigh of relief.
The group transferred onto the small boat that had been tied to the larger ship.
It didn’t even have sails, so if three adult men had been riding in it, they would have complained about the cramped space, but it was no problem at all for Canaria, who was much smaller than most girls her age, and the two adult women.
If it had been three people like Celine, it might’ve been a little tight….
“Is something wrong?”
“Huh? Why?”
“I thought I felt someone staring at me…. I guess it was just my imagination.”
Daeun, who had been fixed on a particular part of Celine as if her eyes had been nailed there, played innocent.
Celine, though she wore a somewhat uneasy expression at the suspiciously natural reaction, didn’t actually doubt her.
And so she never saw Daeun’s faint, sly smile, and the truth sank beneath the surface….
Thwack—
“…”
“…”
…That would have been the end of it if there had been no other witness.
Only then did Daeun remember that there was a pink-haired girl beside her.
And not just any girl, but one who was extremely, extremely displeased.
Meeting those pink eyes head-on—eyes that looked both disdainful and contemptuous—made Daeun swallow hard.
“…”
“...Canaria.”
“What.”
Daeun gave her a thumbs-up.
“Don’t worry. You’ll grow up to be as tall as Celine someday too. …Actually, now that I think about it, that might be a little disappointing. Then I wouldn’t be able to hold you like this.”
“Just die.”
“W-woah?! It’s slipping! It’s really slipping…!”
D-Did it touch—!
After being dangled in the air by a tiny hand and nearly sent diving into the sea, Daeun barely managed to sit back down, gasping as her damp hair clung to her skin.
“That’s nice to see. Watching the two of you warms my heart.”
“...You’re joking, right, Celine?”
“Pardon? I was sincere….”
“...Right. Thank you.”
It was one thing to thank her for saying they got along, but how could she look at what had just happened and think that?
Or was that only because I’m the victim, and to a third party it actually does look like they’re getting along?
But if that were true, then even Daeun’s viewers were furiously flooding the chat with hooks and barbs.
“Is this a chat window or a hook factory…?”
“Take this….”
“Take what? Wh—whoa!?”
Thump!
Daeun, who had been questioning the voice that came from the deck, ducked reflexively to avoid the shadow falling over her head.
Canaria reached out and caught the object dropping above them.
“What’s this…?”
“You’ll need it….”
A wooden stick, flat at one end and narrow at the other.
What Atisha had thrown was an oar.
It was also the same object Daeun had touched on the day they first boarded the ship.
“That boat doesn’t have sails….”
If they caught the current heading toward the continent, they might be able to land without rowing at all.
But they had no way of knowing how the current in this area flowed, and they couldn’t just wait blindly.
If the current dragged them out to sea instead, nothing could be worse.
“Here.”
“Hm? Why give it to me…?”
“...Huh? You said you wanted to row.”
“Uh… I don’t remember saying I wanted to row in particular.”
“...You didn’t? Then I guess I have to do it…. Or ask Celine.”
Canaria’s voice trembled faintly, and Daeun’s eyes trembled right along with it.
This is definitely a trap…. A wicked little trap set by Canaria to tempt me…!
But knowing that changed nothing.
“Th-come to think of it, my dream was always to be a boatman!”
Daeun’s strength was far too weak to resist the surging waves.
She half-snatched the oar from Canaria’s hand and took it over.
It wasn’t as though she had meant to dump the work on Canaria in the first place—she’d only been startled by the sudden offer….
And the same went for Celine.
How could I push this on those thin little arms?
With a heavy sigh, Daeun tightened her grip on the oar with both hands.
She wasn’t skilled at it, but it wasn’t her first time either.
If she rowed with enough flair, wouldn’t Canaria look at her with admiration?
Taking a surprisingly convincing posture, Daeun rowed with all her might while entertaining that hopeful thought.
So even a worm has its own trick, huh…? I guess Daeun has something she’s good at after all.
…Wait, that isn’t admiration at all.
In fact, that isn’t even praise. Isn’t that just a backhanded insult?
Why was every imagined outcome turning out like this?
With a somewhat dissatisfied expression, Daeun kept rowing.
And yet, for some reason, she didn’t feel the boat moving forward at all.
The reason became clear thanks to Canaria.
“Idiot.”
Slip—
With a single motion of Canaria’s hand, the knot came undone, and the rope that had been holding the boat still slid free.
“This is so embarrassing….”
Daeun buried her face in both hands.
The tips of her ears, which she had failed to hide, were burning red.
“Have a safe trip….”
“Okay.”
“We’ll be back.”
“Thank you….”
With those simple farewells, the boat cut through the water and headed toward Laxia.
* * *
After days of sailing, Daeun finally set foot on land.
“Ugh!”
It was common for people who had been on a boat for a long time to complain of seasickness once they got back on land.
Having grown accustomed to the rocking motion, their bodies simply failed to adapt to stillness again.
But the reason Daeun was retching now wasn’t seasickness.
“Bodies….”
Celine murmured, her expression carrying the full weight of despair.
They hadn’t expected a welcoming crowd, of course, but….
Daeun certainly hadn’t expected this, either.
Bodies.
And more bodies.
Even when she looked around, there wasn’t a single living person in sight—only corpses, greeting their party in silence.
Daeun squeezed her eyes shut.