Chapter 64: Your Name (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 64: Your Name (5)
Boradori, this punk. She says she’s told me everything every single time.
Yet, every time an incident occurs, something new keeps popping up.
Of course, I usually let it slide, knowing that telling everything you know isn't as easy as it sounds.
But looking at his reaction earlier, it’s safe to assume he just flat-out hid this one.
And the reason is…
Is this guy already trying to raise his market value?
I’d let my guard down, but now that the end of the year is approaching, he’s finally showing his true colors.
I stared at Violet with eyes full of suspicion.
However, Violet was far too busy chatting with the Canine girl next to him.
“I thought your sorcery was weak compared to the discipline you’ve cultivated. So, you used time as the price. I see. That method would indeed allow for an incredible burst of power in an instant.”
Delia, the Canine shaman, nodded in admiration.
It seemed her affinity for him had reached its peak, thanks to the "I-beat-Silence" clout Violet had dangled as bait.
It just goes to show how famous Silence is in the world of shamans…
But as time passed, I only grew more curious about how he had actually managed to defeat Silence that day.
“The problem is, there’s a limit to how much I can rebuild it,” Violet said.
“Still, wouldn't that be an incredible insurance policy for races with long lifespans, like Elves?”
“Ah, the method I referenced was actually an Elven failure. Since it uses 'Soul’s Time' rather than simple chronological time, an Elf would have to accumulate over a hundred years to match the power of the ten years I’ve built up.”
“I see. But Elves primarily use magic rather than sorcery. How did you find records of Elven sorcery?”
“There are traces of an ancient Elven tribe near our territory…”
“A stroke of fate!”
Sure, a stroke of fate. If you can call it that.
It’s obviously not traces of an ancient tribe, but rather a transmigration or reincarnation perk.
The territory that guy lives in is a rural village where they do nothing but farm.
Unless it was the neighboring territory belonging to the RoFan heroine, there was no way traces of an ancient Elven tribe would be lying around.
“Hmph.”
But Delia wasn't the only one reacting to the mention of ancient Elven ruins.
The original owner of the seat Delia was occupying—none other than Violet’s childhood friend and the RoFan heroine—was watching them with a meaningful expression.
“How interesting.”
Chilly. It felt like a dagger was flying straight toward a heart.
But it’s fine.
It’s not my heart.
“The method of utilizing ancient spirits is interesting to me as well, but to humans, it might feel similar to a dark mage’s human sacrifice…”
“True. However, the spirits dwelling within us Beastkin have been passed down by our ancestors for generations…”
The stupid purple-haired guy was rambling on, oblivious to the daggers being thrown at his chest. But what could I do?
Thanks to his efforts, we were able to move freely through the Beastkin village.
…Honestly, it feels more like a dungeon than a village.
I still can’t get used to the artificial traces visible here and there.
“The place that matches Lord Violet’s description is here.”
The place we arrived at was a massive, blank wall.
It was so empty that one might wonder if the Canine tribe had left it vacant for some future urban development project.
“This area is scheduled for development under future village plans, but…”
Wait, why is that actually true?
“It doesn’t matter, since it’ll take the Dwarves another few decades to find the time anyway.”
As Delia spoke and stepped back, Daisy stepped forward and began tapping on the wall here and there.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
She tapped along a considerable stretch of the wall, like someone checking a watermelon in summer, but there was no sound of a hollow space.
Is this not the place?
Just as the others began to doubt.
“Is it here?”
Violet tilted his head, cut his finger with a simple spell, and began drawing something on the rock.
“The classic move is to bite your thumb, though…”
The lack of detail was a bit disappointing, but the speed at which he drew the magic circle-like pattern was extraordinary.
“As expected!”
Seeing the Beastkin shaman’s eyes sparkle with admiration, he must be doing it right.
“Something like this. Daisy?”
“Hmm.”
“……Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
“What is it this time…?”
Despite his whimpering, Violet led Daisy to the sorcery he had drawn.
“You just need to pour some Divine Power in here.”
“Interesting. Is this sorcery?”
“That’s right.”
“Interesting… I’ve never seen anything like this before…”
Between us.
The short murmur made the surrounding temperature feel like it had dropped to freezing.
Even if a GL drift development suddenly occurred right now, I’d just have to accept that the time had come.
“Hmph.”
She seemed to be listening, at least. As soon as Daisy’s hand touched the sorcery, a holy light began to fill the space.
And then.
“This isn't going to collapse, is it?”
“I-it’s normal, so don’t be scared!”
“You look like the one who’s most scared, though?”
The cave shook, and the massive wall began to crack open.
“To think our village had a place like this!”
“How wondrous, for a giant wall to part so naturally.”
These were strange remarks coming from people who had carved a village out of a mountain and lived with elevators, escalators, and even lighting and ventilation systems.
But then again, it wasn't any stranger than their race being called the Canine Tribe, so I decided to just let it go.
“As expected of Lord Violet.”
At the Beastkin shaman’s admiring voice, the expressions of the Canine warriors looking at Violet began to fill with respect.
At this rate, if this guy ran for Village Chief, he’d probably be the first human ever elected.
“Oh. Truly impressive, Violet.”
Clap. Clap. Clap.
However, Violet himself was merely walking on eggshells, watching Daisy as she gave him the most awkward applause imaginable.
“Violet!”
“You are amazing!”
“You’re the best, Violet!”
Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap.
But our individualistic friends, true to their race's name, seemed to lack any sense of social cues.
They began to chant Violet’s name while mimicking Daisy’s applause.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
“……”
In the sudden Omedetou atmosphere, I joined in slightly.
Violet glared at me with eyes full of resentment, gritted his teeth, and beckoned me with his finger.
“What? Why?”
I really am the easiest target, aren't I?
“You take the lead. There’s a slightly dangerous object ahead.”
“If it’s dangerous, why am I the one leading?”
“You’re the strongest among us.”
“I don’t know about that. The Chieftain is here too.”
I was serious.
I didn't feel like I would lose, but I wasn't certain I could win either.
Usually, when I get this feeling, I end up losing.
“I know, but the Chieftain is going to look after his shaman anyway.”
In short, he was telling me to look after them.
“What’s in there?”
“A sword said to have been sealed by the Goddess.”
Oh, now that’s a proper fantasy development.
“Since it’s the Goddess’s sword, is it a Holy Sword? And there’s a guardian protecting it, and we have to defeat it so Daisy can obtain the sword?”
“A sword?”
Perhaps I got a bit too excited by the epic development.
Daisy, who had been watching Violet with narrowed eyes from a distance, came over upon hearing the word "sword."
—Ah, no, it’s not that.
With a somewhat reluctant expression, Violet sent me a message via magic that was completely different from what I expected.
—It’s not for Daisy; it’s a Magic Sword used by the Demon King.
“……?”
No, what the hell.
Why is that here?
As I walked at the very front of the group, I received information from Violet.
—Like I told you before, there’s no Hero here. Originally, Daisy doesn't even use swords.
Come to think of it, the Daisy from the original work that Violet described was a typical novel Saintess.
Instead of showing the potential of a Fist King like she does now, her role was to provide heals and buffs from the back.
She even gets kidnapped by the Demon King later on.
—The sword sealed here is a Magic Sword. To put it simply, think of it as Silence turned into a sword.
Master Silence, is it you again?
You really are mentioned everywhere. If you’re dead, please just stay gone.
—It doesn't suppress surrounding mana or mana users when sorcery is activated like Silence did. Instead, it absorbs the opponent’s mana and allows the user to use it.
In other words, the more you fight, the more mana you lose.
—There’s a reason the Demon King doesn't fall even when the RoFan male lead party gangs up on him. In a battle of attrition, it’s a broken Magic Sword that can even push back the RoFan male leads.
And the Demon King apparently has as many of these broken items as there are RoFan male lead candidates.
Is this the original author’s idea of a balance patch?
—So, we need to deal with the Magic Sword in advance to lower the Demon King’s power!
This is something that must be done!
I turned my head and glared at Violet as he said that.
It was a silent pressure, asking why he hadn't mentioned something so important.
—I-I’m innocent! Originally, there was no way to enter the Canine village. I was planning to progress through this slowly once the event to meet the Beastkin opened. But then you suddenly showed up with Bell, a middle boss! And we even got invited to the Canine village! Things just developed so fast I didn't have a chance to say anything!
Unlike his usual treatment as a shaman in the Beastkin world, he seemed genuinely distressed this time, so I decided to believe him.
Of course, believing him and scolding him later are two different things.
“There really is nothing here.”
After walking for quite a while, a space with a temple-like atmosphere suddenly appeared.
In the center, a magnificent black sword was thrust into the middle of a holy light.
“A Holy Sword?!”
The words burst out from the Canine warriors.
Honestly, except for the color, the impact was such that anyone would see it as a Holy Sword.
“Who’s going to pull that out?”
Should I, as a swordsman, pull it? I’ve handled some fake Magic Swords before and didn't get mind-controlled.
But that sword wasn't a knock-off made by dark mages; it was a masterpiece Magic Sword used by the Demon King.
If I picked it up and my eyes rolled back like Prince Ellen’s, it would be dangerous in many ways.
Even if I was his cousin’s savior, in the worst-case scenario, I could be lynched and killed by the Canine warriors.
“Well, obviously…”
Violet’s gaze turned toward Daisy.
I see, so only Daisy can break the Goddess’s seal and dominate the Magic Sword!
“Are you sure?”
—If things go south… we can just subdue her!
Is this really the Violet I know?
The guy who was prepared to get a hole in his stomach just to help the RoFan heroine.
Now he’s trying to use the RoFan heroine as bait.
“T-this is a necessary task.”
Perhaps unable to hide his expression, Violet suddenly blurted out an excuse and ran over to Daisy to start explaining things.
“Hmm. So, I just have to grab that and pull it out?”
“Ah, yeah.”
“Then first, let me get permission from the Goddess.”
“C-can you do that right away?”
“Yeah. She said that if I do something first and ask for forgiveness later, she’ll forgive everything. But she also said it would be better if I asked for permission first whenever possible.”
“……No, then doesn't that just mean you can do whatever you want?”
“The Goddess is a bit of a free spirit, you see.”
I think that’s just you.
What exactly is Daisy to the Goddess?
No, before that, if she says it like that, is there even any point in asking for permission?
“Yeah, she said I can take it.”
After a brief prayer that seemed almost pointless, Daisy, having received permission from the Goddess to retrieve the Magic Sword, approached it.
“Oh…”
Following her footsteps, the holy seal began to part.
Like subjects bowing to their rightful king, the Goddess’s light led her to the Magic Sword.
Daisy grabbed the Magic Sword as if it were nothing…
“Hey. Is that really okay?”
“Wh-what?!”
Damn it, Boradori! Her hair is turning black!