Chapter 281: The East (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 281: The East (3)
Despite his confident words, Alon didn't actually know much about the abominations.
His confidence stemmed from the fact that he had someone who could help him in various ways when crossing the sea.
Of course, since there's quite a distance between us, I'm not sure if I can ask for help immediately.
Regardless, the only way to find out was to try and make contact.
Alon took out the communication orb he had received from Alexion to contact Ladan and channeled mana into it.
Soon, the magic orb began to vibrate with a low hum.
Alon looked down at it, stroking his chin.
What should I do if I can't get help from Ladan?
Would he have to just rest and wait, even if it took a bit of time? Just as he was pondering this...
[Brother!]
Before long, Ladan’s face appeared.
"It’s been a while. Have you been well?"
[Of course I have, Brother! How about you?]
"I’ve been doing well too."
Though Alon had only asked a simple greeting, Ladan was already excited and making a fuss. After a brief chat, Alon got straight to the point.
"I’m a bit sorry to ask, but could you help me with something?"
[Of course, Brother. What is it?]
Seeing Ladan step forward to help without even asking for details made Alon feel a strange sense of pride.
He proceeded to explain the series of events, and after hearing everything, Ladan responded.
[I understand, Brother! I’ll head over right now!]
He shifted his body as if he were about to come running that very second.
Alon asked calmly.
"Thank you for agreeing so readily. But by any chance, how long do you think it will take to get here?"
[To where you are, Brother?]
It was an important question.
Hazard said it’s been like this for two months...
That meant the sea would stabilize in effectively four months. In other words, if it took Ladan more than two months to arrive, there was no point in him making the arduous journey.
"Given the situation, if it’s going to take too long, you don't have to come."
Alon added more context to the situation.
Ladan hummed in thought for a moment, then nodded.
[Don't worry, Brother. I’ll be there immediately! It won't take that long! About—]
He held up two fingers with vigor.
[Two days is plenty, Brother.]
His voice was still full of energy.
On the contrary, Alon was the one who faltered.
"Two days??"
[Yes.]
"Did... did you understand what I said correctly?"
No matter how he looked at it, it didn't make sense. The distance between Laxas and this place was immense.
However...
[It’s possible, Brother. Just wait for me!]
Ladan curled his lips into a grin.
[I’ll see you soon, then.]
He hurriedly deactivated the magic orb and vanished.
Alon stared blankly at the magic orb.
"Marquis, what did Ladan say?"
"He said he’s coming."
"Oh, that’s good... But why is your expression so strange?"
Evan, who could now read Alon’s stoic face to some extent just by the atmosphere, asked.
"...Because he said he’d be here in two days."
"Huh? Two days? Not two months?"
Evan asked with a face that said, What kind of nonsense is that?
"...Does he just not know where we are?"
"To be honest, I suspect that’s highly likely."
"Is two days... even possible?"
Evan tilted his head as if he truly couldn't understand, then let out an exclamation.
"Wait, it might be possible with that."
"That?"
"Yes, that ship that floats in the air... Ah, but when I saw it last time, it didn't seem that fast."
While Evan muttered to himself...
"Well, since he said he’ll be here in two days, let’s just wait."
Alon decided to trust Ladan for now.
"I hope he gets here fast, please, fast—"
"...Did you want to go to the East that badly?"
Penia was fidgeting beside him, clearly wanting the journey to the East to proceed quickly. She stopped and gave a bright smile.
"Of course I want to go! It’s the place you wanted to go so badly, Marquis."
"...Is that all?"
"Of course."
When Penia claimed this with a straight face as if there wasn't a shred of a lie, Basiliora, who had been watching from the sidelines, snorted.
[Hmph, it’s actually because she found out from a book that there’s an ancient library in the East with precious magical knowledge— Gack!]
Penia quickly wrapped the book she was reading in mana and pressed down on Basiliora.
[S-Stop it! Why am I being treated like this for telling the truth—!!]
But Basiliora continued to protest undeterred. Penia simply sat down on top of the book.
[Gwaaaah! You're heavy!! I'm being crushed!!!]
"Don't call me heavy!!"
Penia, who was bickering with Basiliora over her weight, belatedly noticed Alon’s gaze and subtly shifted her eyes.
Just then...
"Well—unlike some people, I just really want the Marquis to solve the mystery."
Evan chimed in as if he had been waiting for his turn.
However...
"Hmph, you're just excited because you heard there are many beautiful beastkin women in the Eastern Country."
At Penia’s sharp retort, Evan flinched and argued back.
"That’s not it at all."
"What do you mean it’s not? The other day when you said you were bored and asked me all sorts of things, your eyes completely changed the moment I told you there were many beauties and that they liked humans."
"No, that was just out of curiosity—I told you, I never had those kinds of thoughts!"
Evan acted shamelessly.
However...
"That was a lie."
"...What?"
"What I said was a lie. You seemed so bored that I just made it up so you’d have something fun to imagine."
"Ha, it was a lie... Gulp."
Evan, who had been showing blatant disappointment, belatedly caught himself. Like Penia just moments ago, he subtly shifted his eyes and looked at Alon.
"..."
Penia was smirking as if she had baited him, Basiliora was screaming, and Evan was still acting sheepish.
Looking at them, the thought There isn't a single person in this world I can trust flashed through Alon’s mind.
[Kyuu?]
In the midst of it all, only Blackie tilted his head innocently.
...It was late afternoon.
Two days later.
"Brother!"
"Ladan...??"
Ladan really did arrive in exactly two days.
Even Alon, whose default state was a stoic expression, widened his eyes slightly.
"It’s good to see you, Brother!"
Ladan was breathing heavily, clearly exhausted.
Moreover, seeing that his complexion wasn't great, Alon pushed aside the question "How did you get here?" that was about to burst out of his throat and spoke.
"...Did you push yourself too hard to get here?"
"No, Brother! When you call, I have to come running immediately."
Ladan gave a refreshing smile, showing his white teeth, but he looked worn out. Alon brought him inside first.
* * *
After Ladan had some time to catch his breath...
Alon learned how he had been able to arrive so quickly.
"You used this to get here so fast?"
"That’s right, Brother."
Alon looked at the object Ladan handed over.
It was a wing-shaped ornament meant to be attached to the ankle, something he knew well.
'Restless Rune.'
In the game, it was a relic obtainable through a minigame in Laxas.
In exchange for consuming a certain amount of mana, it had the effect of doubling the number of tiles one could move in a single turn. It was an essential item for players who enjoyed playing as rogues.
Since rogues, who always landed critical hits when attacking from behind, were extremely advantaged the wider their movement range was.
But I didn't expect it to be this helpful for simple travel.
After staring at the Restless Rune with a fresh perspective for a moment...
"...What is all this?"
"Ah—I used all of those to get here too, Uncle Evan. That item consumes a lot of mana, you see."
Seeing Evan looking curiously at the pile of artifacts and Penia practically drooling over them, Alon spoke.
"You must be tired, so let’s rest for a day."
"I’m fine to leave right away, Brother."
"There’s no need to overdo it. I’m already grateful that you rushed here like this."
"Brother..."
Ladan looked deeply moved by Alon’s words.
Alon wondered if it was really something to be that moved by, but he wasn't so socially inept as to ruin the moment.
Alon gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
The next day, after letting Ladan rest sufficiently...
"Are you leaving?"
"Yes."
"Then I’ll have the ship, supplies, and maps ready. They were made by some quite skilled fellows, so they should be able to withstand an attack or two."
Alon visited Hazard before departing for the East. It was to collect the items Hazard had promised to prepare.
"I’ll just take the supplies and the maps."
"Hmm? You don't need the ship?"
"No, I already have one."
"...You do?"
Hazard expressed doubt but soon shrugged it off.
This time, Alon asked.
"By the way, your expression earlier seemed serious. Did something happen?"
"Ah, it’s not a rumor from our side, but I heard some strange news from the elves."
"Strange news?"
"They say the elves have been dying one by one recently."
"...Suddenly?"
Hazard nodded.
"Well, it’s not like they were attacked; they say most of it is likely natural causes. There are elves whose lifespans are coming to an end, after all. It’s just a bit unsettling because it seems to be happening so simultaneously."
"I’m sure it’s nothing," Hazard added as he said his goodbyes, and Alon left.
"That’s all the supplies packed."
"Then shall we head to the East?"
Having finished their preparations, Alon’s party set out toward the east where the sea lay.
A few days later, they arrived at the coast.
"Now, everyone, please step back."
After confirming that the party had moved back, Ladan immediately pulled a small key from his robe.
And then...
"————"
Ladan muttered something and thrust the key into the empty air.
Vwooom!
A heavy ripple appeared in the empty space, and then...
Thump! Ka-ga-ga-ga-gak!!!
A massive ship began to reveal itself.
And then...
Thump!!!
With a loud noise, a giant, ink-black ship fully manifested.
Ladan shouted toward the party, who were staring blankly at the sight.
"Brother, you can board now!"
After everyone boarded, the ship began to move forward.
"Huh? There shouldn't be anyone on board?"
"Oh...!"
While Alon was puzzled that the ship was moving without a navigator or helmsman, Penia let out an exclamation of admiration, realizing how the ship functioned.
"...Is it moving with mana?"
As Alon muttered, Ladan, who was beside him, nodded with a smile.
"That’s right, Brother. This 'Treasure Vault' moves with my mana."
"Treasure Vault?"
"Yes. That is the name of this ship."
"Did you get this from the relics of Laxas as well?"
"I did. It’s an item I especially cherish."
Alon nodded. It was certainly something Ladan would cherish. Even at a glance, it looked incredibly impressive.
However, something else was unexpected.
"Um, aren't you using that ship that flies through the air we saw last time?"
"Ah, I can't use that for long periods."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, it devours mana stones like crazy."
Alon accepted Ladan’s answer. If the fuel efficiency was that poor, it might be fine for a short-term battle, but it wouldn't be suitable for a voyage that would last over a week.
"Hmm, if you want, Brother, shall we take that instead?"
Ladan asked with a look of uncertainty.
Alon shook his head.
"No, there’s no need. It’s just that I heard there are many abominations during this period, so I was a bit worried—"
He couldn't finish his sentence.
■■■■■■■■■■—!!!!!
Ironically, not long after Alon had left the land...
A blood-curdling cry echoed in their ears.
Alon immediately turned his gaze.
"Holy shit!?"
The moment Evan’s curse reached him, Alon’s eyes widened.
A staggering number of monsters were swarming toward the Treasure Vault as if they had been waiting.
There were too many to count.
The sea and sky, which had been nothing but blue, were suddenly crawling with monsters.
Though they each had different appearances, every single one of the giant monsters was large enough to cover the blue sea and even blot out the sky.
"Ha..."
The scale was so overwhelming it elicited a hollow laugh.
However, since it was clear that taking a detour would take far too long...
Should I use Defying Heaven to freeze them? No, can I freeze all of them? If so, maybe it’s better to use Meteor—
Alon began to rack his brain for a way to eliminate the monsters.
Just as Penia wiped the excitement from her face and began to chant a spell—
"Don't worry too much, Brother. I’ll handle this."
"Ladan...?"
Ladan gave a nod as if telling him to leave it to him.
He then thrust the spear he was holding into the deck of the Treasure Vault and turned it like a key.
"Release."
The moment the word left his lips...
Vwooooooom!!!
From the ink-black ship, blue lines began to flow through the air.
Complex blue mana, intertwined like a mechanical circuit diagram, began to be drawn in the void.
A massive amount of mana exploded outward in all directions.
And then...
Riiip!
As the lines simultaneously tore through the air like cracks, what appeared was...
"...Weapons?"
They were weapons.
Spears, knives, swords, hammers, axes. Countless other weapons of unknown purpose began to pour out from the blue rifts.
Furthermore, they weren't just ordinary weapons.
There were some Alon recognized and some he didn't, but they were all relics.
Relics that could be obtained from the coast of Laxas, each possessing its own unique ability.
Were there dozens?
No.
Hundreds?
No.
Thousands.
Like Alon’s Meteor Shower, an incredible number of weapons filled the blue sky, greedily devouring the horizon.
And then...
"Ejection."
With Ladan’s murmur as the signal...
Flashes of light were fired.
And what followed—
Was the arrival of a Blood Sea.