On This Earth (3)
We had finally arrived in Camborer. We would be leaving within a few days, but still.
“As a token of my gratitude…”
“I have no need of it.”
“Please, don’t say that—just one conversation with me…!”
“Begone.”
Why were so many of them clinging like this?
I shoved away the lord of Camborer, who seemed either to be angling for a free meal or else so blinded by the Hero’s renown that he had decided to try something foolish. In any case, he was clearly spoiling for trouble.
According to the young lord, the man was in something like a lame-duck state. Was that why he was acting this way? Whatever the reason, it was irritating.
“The Adventurers’ Guild has a medal for—uh.”
“There. Caught it.”
“Th-that precious medal, treated so roughly…”
“C-cool.”
The Adventurers’ Guild was just as bothersome. They had brought out some dead stock of a medal, claiming they had to acknowledge an honorary achievement even though they hadn’t contributed any strength to the recent incident.
I tossed the medal back to the person at the guild counter and walked out of the building.
[Seriously, you ain’t interested at all? Ah, right—that one’s already spoken for. Then, hmm. Ah, but the Hero don’t quite suit, y’know. Ain’t there anyone else you’re keen on?]
At that, Sangun—who had toddled all the way after us to Camborer—poked his head out.
I hated to say it, but I had no idea when this fellow was going to head off to revive the East.
“…Spare me the useless talk and go.”
Of course, even saying that, I did not truly mean only to scold him.
After all, was Sangun not a precious body capable of resolving the barrenness of the East? He was a good man—no, a good snake—who had willingly stepped forward even after I told him there would be no reward for his devotion.
How could I dare rebuke him under such circumstances? Who did I think I was?
[Hiiing. Y’see, my dream is to stand as officiant at a weddin’. Them priest-types lookin’ so darn happy doin’ it. If it were the knight’s weddin’, I could stand up there too.]
So that was why he had been so obsessed with other people’s love lives.
He was simply more interested in the feast than the rite.
I lost my words at the absurd truth. Sangun was still busily throwing names of this person and that at me.
“Begone.”
As if I would ever pursue romance or marriage. And here, of all places, in this situation.
[Hiiiing.]
For a Mountain Lord, he ought to act more grown-up.
I turned my face from the snake who was diligently wagging his tail and bought a round oriental melon from a nearby stall. It fit snugly into my fist when I took it up, which felt rather pleasant.
And the juice that gushed out when I bit into it…
The aroma and sweetness were on the mild side for a fruit, but it had the cool, crisp taste peculiar to melons of the gourd family, which I preferred.
There was so much juice that it got on my hands, which was a bit inconvenient, but still.
[Gimme one too.]
“…A whole box. How much?”
“H-huh? A whole box?”
More to the point, how was that enormous body supposed to nibble something fist-sized? It would not even register as a snack, let alone reach his stomach.
I bought a box of the melons and carried it to a corner out of people’s sight.
Sangun then used his long tongue to scoop them up one by one and eat them. I had thought he would simply swallow the box whole, but apparently that did not appeal.
[Tasty.]
Well, what did the method matter? As long as he ate with enjoyment.
With that thought, I gazed out at the street. The people who ought to be arriving any moment now were nowhere in sight—not so much as a single strand of hair.
Really, what was this? Were we not supposed to depart today? Why were they so late?
I thought of the party I had arranged to meet at the Adventurers’ Guild.
Since I could not stay at the temple—more accurately, since I had no desire to stay there—we had agreed on a date and time to rendezvous… Had they disliked the way I had unilaterally set the terms? Had they abandoned me and gone on ahead by themselves?
[Ah, here they come now.]
Whew. So that was not it. Good.
[Well then, I’ll be on my way too.]
Yet the moment the party came into view, Sangun also rose.
I had wondered if he intended to trail after me on a tour of the East, but regrettably that did not seem to be the case.
[I’d like it if we ran into each other again while I roam the East, but that’ll be a mite hard. Shame, but can’t be helped. Let’s meet again ’fore I die.]
But this fellow was stepping on a death flag, was he not?
I clicked my tongue at Sangun casually trampling the cliché, then took another bite of the remaining melon and reached into my inventory.
Whoosh.
Biryuho’s heart traced a parabola and dropped—only to be snared by Sangun’s tail.
It was sealed inside a transparent cube the mages had prepared, so even if it had hit the ground there would have been no problem, but still—nice reflexes.
[Eh? What’s this?]
“Biryuho grew strong by devouring a demon’s corpse. You could do the same.”
[Ain’t like just eatin’ it makes you strong, but… well, true enough. Still… is it really all right for me to take this?]
Ah, so it really did work. I had not saved it for this purpose, but fortune had smiled on us.
I looked at the heart resting on Sangun’s tail.
My purse had been so light that I had been forced to sell the hide, claws, tail, and entrails… but I had kept the heart just in case.
Not because I had planned to give it to Sangun, but simply as a choice left open for some possibility I myself did not yet know.
There was the saying that the densest energy gathered in the heart, and I had thought it might prove useful for some future incident or for crafting equipment.
[Really? I can really eat it?]
But… honestly, I no longer believed the day would come when I crafted equipment from it.
In an ordinary game it would be the material most readily cited for enhancement, yet this place was not one where common game knowledge necessarily applied.
If I was going to leave it sitting unused, better to give it to Sangun.
He was a confirmed ally, capable of restoring desolate land, able to consume both demon energy and mana—plenty of useful abilities. Enhancing him now would mean I could call on him someday. Just like this very moment.
“Eat it.”
[Huh…]
So instead of urging him with glances, I waited at my ease.
Sangun seemed to grasp my sincerity at last; he finally pushed it into his mouth.
Clang.
The sealing cube shattered, and the heart slid down Sangun’s throat. The snake’s round eyes shone blacker than usual.
[Knight, you just watch. See what becomes of the East.]
Well. Would I ever have occasion to see it? I let the thought rise but did not voice it.
Whoosh!
A gust of wind rose, and the white snake left the city.
“Demon Knight!”
Now it was time for me to leave as well.
“Bemyurhen truly is far.”
“It is a city nicknamed the easternmost city, after all.”
“The easternmost… W-we won’t suddenly run into sea beasts again this time, will we? Or have to board a ship?”
“Surely not.”
“‘Surely’ is what gets people killed.”
“…We shall prepare.”
Listening to the conversation between Deathbringer and the Archmage, I lowered my brows a fraction. The sea again? Memories of the fight with the Sea Dragon flickered through my mind.
Hmm. Still, this time it probably will not be. I denied it at once. This was no mere wishful thinking; I had grounds for the denial.
If this turned out to be another naval battle, it would be the third time the concept overlapped, would it not?
Absolutely impossible. Differentiating concepts by region was the iron rule of every game. Two overlaps might be tolerated, but three was pure brain-rot; they would never have done that.
I believed that fact without the slightest doubt and urged my horse onward. The mount that had been turning its head toward the roadside grass faced forward again.
“Looks like we’d best rest here for the night. We passed a stream earlier as well.”
Before long a space suitable for a campsite appeared. The trees around it had been thoroughly cleared, and stones were gathered in a circle atop the flattened grass—clear evidence of past campfires.
Apparently it was a campsite favored by many travelers. Though for a campsite, they seemed to have cleared the trees a bit too thoroughly.
“Is rain coming?”
“Yes.”
“Ohh… the young hunter is clever.”
“Well, for something like this…”
“But I don’t see any rain clouds…”
“Not yet, of course. But look—the clouds are moving fast, aren’t they? You have to take that into account.”
In any case, if rain seemed likely, unpacking now was the right choice. The sun had not yet set, but resting two hours early was better than searching for a campsite while getting soaked.
“Hand me the reins.”
“Here.”
“Catch, hunter.”
I confirmed that the party was tethering their horses, then tied my own a short distance away.
This was the horse I had wrung out of the young lord of Camborer after telling him that if he was truly grateful he should hand over a mount. Its name was Frederick.
Apparently its mother had been brought from Munmunt for “her,” and this one carried that bloodline or something…
Lacking local knowledge, I still had no idea whether that was good or bad. I simply took their word for it.
Neigh.
“Wait.”
Still, it looked top-class at a glance. Large frame, clear eyes, and solid power when running—this was clearly no ordinary horse.
Its temperament seemed foul; even without me separating it, it refused to mingle with the others… but that suited the concept, so I found it only amusing.
How had such a horse come to me at just the right moment?
Neigh.
“…Hah.”
For the record, its haughtiness extended not only to the other horses but to me as well.
I took out an apple for Frederick. I had heard it sometimes threw its rider when displeased; this was a bribe offered in the hope that it would not.
Frederick snapped the apple up at once.
“Um, milord… they say rain is coming. At least share the awning with us.”
Meanwhile Dev—who had been persistently attempting conversation even though I had not answered once—approached. Behind him the Archmage and the Inquisitor watched with expectant eyes.
Flutter.
Instead of answering, I simply sat beneath the tree where I had tied Frederick. A crestfallen Deathbringer retreated again.
Tap-tap.
Neigh.
…Fine. Another apple.
I debated whether I ought to be grateful that Frederick was not the least afraid of me, or feel something more complicated about being regarded as a snack totem, and took out another apple.
Before long a fine rain began to fall. By sunset it had become a downpour accompanied by thunder and lightning.
“Fire!”
“We’re saved…”
While I covered only Frederick—who hated getting wet—with a waterproof cloth and myself simply endured the moderate rain, two sets of footsteps came scrambling from the direction the party had been heading.
“Someone’s coming.”
“Eh? Oh, you’re right.”
“Attackers?”
“Doesn’t seem like it…”
“Ah, we’re just traveling peddlers passing through! Please don’t attack!”
“We’re not dangerous!”
Whether because I had settled a little apart from the campsite under a tree, or because we had not even lit a campfire, the two failed to notice me and approached the party first.
They had both hands raised high, as if to declare their harmlessness.
“Stop right there.”
“Y-yes!”
They set their packs on the ground within the radius of the campfire’s light and raised their hands again.
Deathbringer scanned them with sharp eyes, then made a hand signal. From past experience, it meant they did not appear to be dangerous sorts.
“Thank you. We lost our way in the forest, and then the rain started…”
“With rain like this, you’d have been better off digging a hole under a big tree and spending the night rather than looking for a path. Haven’t been at the peddling trade long, have you?”
“As if we didn’t know that and simply chose not to.”
The two bantered lightly and settled a short distance away.
They pulled cloth from their packs, stretched it between tree and ground, secured it, and arranged a campfire in the resulting triangular shelter with no ordinary skill.
“So there was another reason, then?”
“Oh yes, oh yes. But to explain why we started running pell-mell, we’ll have to go back a bit in time…”
They seemed rather skilled with words as well. Once they had set up in an instant, they cleared their throats.
“Now, now—until the sun set, the rain was still fairly light, wasn’t it? Light enough that even if you got a bit wet, it seemed better to keep looking for a nicer spot.”
“That’s right.”
“That’s why we didn’t settle in one place! Our packs happened to be full of cloth, so if they got soaked they’d become terribly heavy; we figured we might as well search a little more.”
“And then, what a coincidence! As the two of us hurried our feet through the forest, we spotted a cabin far off!”
“And?”
“Naturally we thought ‘perfect!’ and headed for it. The lack of any sign of people made us a little uneasy, but if it was empty, so what? Better than wet packs!”
“True enough.”
“So the two of us dashed straight for the cabin and found the door. But right at that moment the rain grew heavy and thunder crashed!”
“And the dark surroundings lit up in a flash, our vision clearing—!”
“C-clearing?”
“Well now, let’s pause the story here. Do you happen to know about the incident that took place in this area?”
“What? Don’t stop—keep going! Don’t go off on a tangent!”
Unlike Dev, who had been tossing in indifferent interjections, the Inquisitor and Berserk had plunged headlong into the tale. When the peddlers diverted, they even stamped their feet.
“It’s connected to this, you see. So—you don’t know?”
“If it’s about this area, no.”
“Oh my. Then we must tell you.”
“Now, now—this campsite. Isn’t it a bit too wide for ground worn down by ordinary travelers?”
“It is wide, yes.”
“And the reason for that… aren’t you curious?”
“…Is there a special reason?”
“Of course there is.”
When the innocent Inquisitor followed along exactly as intended, the peddlers grew excited and deliberately made the atmosphere solemn.
Even my gaze drifted that way unbidden.
“A few years ago, you see. At this very campsite… several priests and inquisitors were slaughtered.”
“What?!”
“Oh.”
“The culprit was never identified. But the victims’ corpses discovered at the time were so horrific they defied description. Limbs torn apart, the fragments twisted and crushed by fire and heat… those who recovered the remains couldn’t sleep for nights on end.”
“This campsite became so wide precisely because of that incident. Dozens of trees were smashed in the fighting then, leaving the clearing you see now.”
“…And the culprit still hasn’t been caught?”
“That’s right! Still not caught! Even now.”
So this campsite was unusually wide because such an incident was tied to it.
Yet the peddlers’ words somehow smelled of fabrication rather than pure fact, leaving me doubtful. Of course—I had been burned by merchants’ tall tales more than once or twice. This, too, felt rather exaggerated.
“Well then… back to where we left off… the moment the thunder crashed again!”
“The moment our vision brightened with white light!!”
“T-the moment?”
“Through the creaking open crack of the door— a white skeleton!!”
“Haaah!!”
“A skeleton!”
“And when the flash faded and darkness returned, from inside came a crunch-crunch sound along with a pair of eyes gleaming brightly… how could we possibly go in there?!”
“A murder scene?!”
“C-could it be the criminal from that past case?!”
“Come on. It was probably just a fox or something. Why would a criminal from years ago still be there?”
Sharing my sentiments, Deathbringer interjected. The Inquisitor and Berserk heard him, then deflated like punctured balloons.
“What, so it was a lie?”
“Is that… so?”
“Us seeing a skeleton there was no lie. The crunching sounds… well. The truth is, the moment we heard them we screamed and bolted. Haha.”
“The two of us are cowards, you see. We ran screaming without thinking… and then we spotted this light.”
“Glancing through the campfire we saw armor gleaming… so we figured a knight would be all right. Looking back it was rather foolish. Haha.”
“Eeeeh. Boring.”
“I see. Still, I’m glad you made it safely!”
In the end Deathbringer’s interruption seemed correct. A skeleton meant the person had been dead a long time, so the cause of that skeleton’s creation could not still be waiting there.
The crunching and the glowing eyes… just as said, probably a fox or some wild beast. It would not suddenly start eating a skeleton; more likely it had been chewing on a rat or something that had entered the cabin.
“More importantly, from the way you speak, the distance isn’t that far? Between the cabin and where we are.”
“Probably not. Ten or fifteen minutes at most.”
“That’s extremely close.”
The peddlers seemed to think the same; they laughed awkwardly and tried to lighten the mood. Well, the story had been fairly entertaining while it lasted, so even their embarrassment carried its own kind of amusement.
“Hmm. Then why don’t we stop by tomorrow on our way?”
“Eh? Why?”
“Is that necessary?”
“Just in case you don’t know, softie— a skeleton means the person’s been dead quite a while. You won’t catch any culprit.”
“I know that too! And I didn’t bring it up to catch a culprit. I simply felt pity for one who could not even be buried in the earth, and proposed preparing even a modest grave for them.”
“Who’s going to know or care about something like that…”
“What of it? I have no objection, Inquisitor.”
“Don’t know why, but Berserk doesn’t mind either.”
And so their tale produced a minor addition to our schedule. It was not a bad thing.