The Five Races (5)
In the old days, long before satellites or telephones existed as means of communication, our ancestors went to every length the moment they sensed something amiss, racing to send word as fast as they could.
From the classic dispatch riders thundering along on horseback to the carrier pigeons that never fail to show up in fantasy stories—there were many methods.
If one had to name the most representative and popular among them, it would have to be the beacon fire.
Light a fire and signal by the number of smoke columns. Intuitive, convenient, and fast.
Black smoke climbing into the sky is easy to spot even from far away, so confirming it is simple.
"Is there actually a fire?"
In short, black smoke surging skyward amid pure white fog was more than enough to seize my attention.
I had every reason to feel curious about that smoke and shift the screen over to the surrounding area.
But even after moving the view to the source of the smoke, there was little I could do. The map remained wrapped in fog and invisible, while the black smoke kept rising without end.
Even at maximum zoom, I can't see a thing.
I zoomed in as far as the system would allow, hoping something might appear, but nothing did. Meanwhile the black smoke grew denser and denser—smoke soaring high into the heavens as if a mountain fire had broken out.
At this point, stubbornness set in.
I turned to the all-purpose solution that always held the answer: the shop window. Interpreting the fog that blanketed the map through the game system, it was an area that had not yet been unlocked.
That place was another world, so I could take it as land my influence had not yet reached—or land without any of my believers.
So what was the move?
Just force-unlock the tile, right?
Conveniently, my paycheck had come in not long ago.
Right now I was invincible. My bank account was god.
I rummaged through the shop categories until I found the product I wanted. There was no way it would not be there. If it was missing, Kenelm—who was surely watching—would make it and sell it herself.
I paused.
...Wait a second. Could I maybe do this without spending real money?
A hypothesis that struck like lightning while I was diligently digging through packages.
What if I could unlock the tile without paying real cash?
...
The whale-like mindset of thinking of cash spending first as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I deeply reflected on that.
I shut down the hard-working whale circuits and headed into World Exploration Mode. There was no particular tile-unlock icon, but I first pressed and held the spot where black smoke was steadily rising.
"..."
Is it not working? About four seconds passed—long enough for that thought to surface.
Ping-pong—!
Unexplored region confirmed! Consume Faith to unlock it?
Nice.
I had nearly made a meaningless charge from a hasty judgment. Cash spending should always be efficient—only for necessary consumption.
I pushed aside the slight sense of regret that somehow welled up and paid the Faith.
The Faith displayed at the top plummeted in a rush. Hard to gather, gone in an instant. Just like my stocks.
Loading new region...
A short loading screen passed. Beneath the loading bar, an SD character resembling Kenelm appeared, busily hammering away at something.
Ta-da—!
Forest of the Golden Tree Opened!
"Huh, Forest of the Golden Tree?"
I'd heard that name somewhere. A strong sense of déjà vu washed over me. I had heard of the Golden Tree before—but where?
My musings did not last long. As the tile unlocked, the fog vanished, and the cause of the black smoke revealed itself.
For a moment I doubted my eyes.
"The tree... is on fire?"
A tree so massive and lush it deserved to be called a pillar of the world, its leaves full of golden light, was engulfed in black flames. Pitch-black fire licked its tongue, devouring the giant tree and spewing black smoke.
A tree so huge it seemed to reach the heavens, and smoke rising even higher still.
Even at a glance the situation was far from ordinary. Kenelm must have finally grasped it as well, for she hurriedly brought up a message window.
Beep—!
Emergency Situation Occurred!
🔥 Objective: Extinguish the fire!
I was going to do that even without being told. At a glance, a giant tree burning like that was not natural. The black flames were ominous as hell, too.
The problem was—
What do I put the fire out with?
None of the skills I had were suited for extinguishing fire. I could buy something new from the shop, but something in the back of my mind was itching—there had to be a method.
I clutched my head and pondered. Something hazy like fog seemed on the verge of surfacing.
Instinct and intuition, something deeper still, whispered to me.
That the solution was closer than I thought.
What is it? What can I do?
"Ah."
I even felt the illusion of a clogged blood vessel bursting open with a pop. Reason tried to stop me. But something that outpaced both reason and instinct moved me.
This method might not work. The odds of failure might even be higher. Of course it might fail. Anyone watching might call it stupid.
Even so, an inexplicable certainty—the certainty that this method would work—filled me.
I closed World Exploration Mode and switched the screen to the Holy Land. I rapidly shifted the view this way and that, searching for the one I wanted.
— Splash! Splash!
— "Ppi-hiiiik!"
Found her.
Iver, who had been playing in the hot spring, reacted to my touch and tilted her head cutely.
— "Ppiik?"
Let's go, Iver.
It was time to go outside, into the world, through the Dimensional Gate.
Dimension.
A thin yet tenacious wall maintained by the interplay of time, gravity, and unknown forces. Crossing dimensions by piercing that wall is an act both wondrous and dangerous—yet most travelers arrive safely at their destinations.
However, at astronomical odds—
One in a thousand, one in ten thousand, perhaps one in a hundred million or a trillion—
Things happen that can only be explained as the gods playing a prank.
Crack.
While Iver, the Frost Dragon who might well be called the last descendant of the dragons—rulers of the mythic age—was flying through the Dimensional Gate,
Crunch— Crack-crack!
The mysterious force that exists between dimensions collided, flowed, and shattered in strange ways, seeping into the dragon's body.
Bones still young and immature grew at a rapid pace, becoming thick and sturdy. Soft scales turned tough and resilient. Her gentle eyes stretched into the long diamond shape unique to dragons.
Her pale sky-blue body grew colder and colder. Ice sprouted across her form like frost.
And so she grew.
At a speed that should never have been possible, she grew and grew again, transforming from a lesser dragon into a mature one.
Breaking through countless possibilities, a miracle like a god's prank took root in Iver's body.
At last the frost dragon burst from the long tunnel and roared fiercely, announcing the return of an absolute being to the world.
——————!!!
"Kyaaaaah!"
"Waaaaah! A monster— a monster came out of the Holy Land's gate!!"
Pandemonium.
Those who had been praying near the gate of the Holy Land were sent tumbling by Iver's wingbeats. Maidens fled clutching their skirts; children were dragged along by their parents' hands.
The king of all winged things had returned, and they could only scream and run.
Iver paid them no mind, flapping her wings with lofty grace as she savored the outside world for the first time in ages.
Those clouds drifting on the wind, the fresh air, the breath of countless living things—none of it could be felt in the Holy Land.
Clack, clack—!
"Raise your shields, all of you!"
"Show not a shred of fear! This is the Holy City! The Sixth God watches over you!"
Holy knights formed tight ranks and leveled their spears at Iver. True to the elite of the Holy City, their bearing did not waver even in the face of sudden chaos.
Flap, flap.
...
Iver's purpose was not the holy knights. She meant to pass them by without a second glance.
Hm? That is...
Until she saw a familiar face.
Iver's diamond pupils contracted sharply as she looked down at the ground. Filling her vision as if she were staring from right in front of her was a face she knew well.
Black hair swaying lightly in the wind, black eyes, and a fierce voice despite being a human woman...
Everything matched her memory.
Grin.
She had run into a welcome frenemy.
Hoh. I did not expect to meet you in a place like this.
The Sixth God had given her a critical mission, but a brief bit of mischief would be fine.
Iver ran her long tongue over her teeth. The human woman seemed to have spotted Iver flying high above as well; her brow furrowed deeply.
Her expression... was that of someone who had seen something she could not believe.
She had recognized her. Watching the woman keep running after her without even that painfully sharp axe of hers made it certain.
A little diversion should be acceptable.
The road ahead was long, but there was time for a light greeting to a frenemy she had not seen in ages.
Iver cracked her great jaws slightly and drew in a breath. A faint flame flickered inside her mouth with the inhale—then froze solid with a crack.
An ice chunk formed in an instant.
Glancing down at the ground, Iver saw the human woman charging like an enraged monkey and let out a snort of laughter.
Who would ever take that for a saintess?
Whoosh—!
The ice shard shot from her mouth and cut through the air, flying straight for the human woman's head.
"What the hell kind of bullshit is this?!"
The human woman tilted her head and dodged as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Iver had never expected it to hit.
The goal from the start had been to get under her skin. Watching her hop around in a full-blown rage, it seemed she had succeeded well enough.
"You damn lizard bastard! You're the one from back then, right? The one I axe-smashed right in the chest! You bastard, get down here! Aren't you coming down?!"
Hahaha! Who would come down when you're talking so viciously!
"Hey! Get dow—"
Whoosh! Whoosh!
"Hey!! You— you damn— get down here!! If I only had my axe you'd be dead already!"
Ice shards cut off the human woman's words mid-sentence, and she was so furious she grabbed and hurled everything within reach.
Of course none of it came anywhere near Iver.
Ah, damn. I've delayed too long. That was fun, frenemy. Let us meet again next time.
Having teased her fill, Iver beat her wings with leisurely grace and soared high into the sky. The road ahead was long; from here on she would have to move quickly.
Down below, Friga—left looking like a dog that had chased a chicken—stamped and roared at the top of her lungs.
"You damn lizard bastaaaaard—!!!"
Her helpless shout rang out across the sky of the Holy City.