Chapter 270: Farune Island (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 270: Farune Island (4)
The sea surged with powerful waves. Arua Raven was currently flying above the chaos, screaming at the top of her lungs for the first time in a really long time. "Mr. Urikfried! You've got this! We're almost to land!"
She looked down from the sky; Abman was in the water getting swept back and forth, relying on a single plank to stay afloat. Every time the waves crashed over the board Raven's heart constricted, but there was nothing more she could do.
I have to take care of at least Mr. Urikfried...
The moment the ship capsized, everyone separated and disappeared, and the only one she found while searching the area was Abman. She kept following him so as not to lose track of him.
"Huh?"
Abman apparently lost his grip on the board, because his body disappeared beneath the surface of the water. Raven hastily dropped her altitude but Abman was nowhere to be seen.
"Mr. Urikfried! Mr. Urikfried!" she screamed as she searched the area for a while, but there was no reply. Raven trembled, a chill running through her. "...No, he'll be fine."
Forcing the trembling down, Raven steeled herself and moved toward the shore.
"Found you!" Scouring the coast, she finally found the person she was looking for. Abman had been washed up by the waves and was passed out on the sand. "Whew."
He was breathing all right, and his body temperature hadn't dropped that much. Raven quickly used a flame-type support spell to dry Abman's wet clothes and body, then waited for him to wake up.
It was then that a man emerged from the woods.
"You're not the one I was looking for... But this isn't too bad, either."
***
Blood rushed to my head. Why did this guy have Raven's ring? No matter how positively I tried to think, I couldn't come up with an explanation that was anything other than bad.
"Hey, why do you have Raven's sub-space ring?" I asked, still clinging to a last shred of hope. "Explain." Praying there was some kind of misunderstanding at play here that I couldn't see, I exercised superhuman patience. But the answer I got in return wasn't what I expected.
"I'll ask the questions first."
Don't want to give me the upper hand in the conversation? Then you chose the wrong time to show up.
"Really?"
"Let me ask again. What have you guys done—"
"Then die."
I kicked off the ground and sprinted forward, figuring that we could ask questions after we established the pecking order here. When I used Leap to jump up and Giantization to balloon in size, he backstepped to widen the distance between us.
[Your total weight is over 1100 lbs. The special terrain effect Recoil will be applied to your blast radius.]
That bit of distance won't save you from this.
Crash!
The ground rippled out from my landing point.
"Ah...!" The slender man bounced up like a spring. I didn't miss that opening and immediately dove forward, my massive barbarian hand outstretched.
[Nebarce Greenhop has cast Emergency Escape.]
The man suddenly disappeared from right under my nose like a mirage. But there was no cause for confusion. Like moving the camera in a 3D game, I scanned my surroundings and caught sight of him about twenty yards away. Ah, so he was a Blink user. He didn't get far, though.
Dash.
I adjusted my trajectory in mid-air. Since this guy was a top-tier archer, an arrow was already flying in.
Whip!
The white light enveloping the arrowhead told me the arrow was layered with a skill. That wasn't a problem, though.
[You have cast Transcendence. The next skill you use will be strengthened.]
I hadn't chosen Bayon's essence as my royal reward just because it worked well with Giantization, after all.
[You have cast Leap. By the authority of the transcendental body, the potential inherent in this skill is now unlocked.]
Transcendental Leap, for short. Its effects were simple. The ability became usable and castable in mid-air, significantly increasing its utility.
[Travel time is significantly reduced.]
You also got fast. Really fast.
Flash!
The moment my foot kicked into the air, I was already in his face with the full force of Leap driving me.
Crash!
His body flew into the air again, unable to handle the recoil. I quickly reached out and gripped his neck.
"Urgh!" The man moaned in pain. There was no room for sympathy, though. Maintaining distance was a matter of life or death for a long-range fighter, after all. Since he hadn't been able to do that, he deserved to die.
"Die." I tightened my grip on his neck. I wasn't too worried he would run away. Not only was the cooldown time for Blink considerably long, but even if he escaped using another skill, I'd just have to catch him again.
"Ugh...!" His wriggling intensified. If I applied a little more strength, his neck would probably snap right then and there.
That was when I came to my senses. "Hey." Breaking his neck here wasn't a good idea. I should at least hear him out. If the story I heard wasn't the one I wanted, just snapping his neck wouldn't be enough.
Thud.
When I loosened my grip on his neck, the guy fell to the ground. I stomped on his stomach to make sure he didn't pull any funny business and lowered my torso to lean over him. Then I grabbed his wrist.
Snap!
I twisted his wrist instead of his neck—the wrist with the hand wearing Raven's ring. The guy couldn't even moan at the horrible pain and his eyes rolled back. But that wasn't my problem. I'd been very patient until now.
"Where did you get this ring?" I asked the same question again. Earlier we'd run into a bit of a debacle in which we both ignored each other's questions to ask our own, but this time was different.
"W-What on earth are you talking about?!" Although it wasn't a proper answer, it was an answer.
"Just answer the question."
"Gah...!"
"This ring, where did you get it?" I scanned his paper-thin body. His wrist was already crushed, but there were still plenty of parts that could be broken.
It seemed he'd come to the same conclusion. "K-Kerman's Magic Workshop in District Seven!" he shouted urgently. "Kerman's Magic Workshop, that's where I got it!"
That was an answer I hadn't expected at all. "...What?" I expected him to say he picked it up by accident or stole it, but that he didn't kill her. I was planning on moving onto the next phase of my interrogation as soon as he tried to feed me a vague line like that, but I instead froze. "You bought it...? You didn't steal it from Raven?"
Dash.
I adjusted my trajectory in mid-air. Since this guy was a top-tier archer, an arrow was already flying in.
Whip!
The white light enveloping the arrowhead told me the arrow was layered with a skill. That wasn't a problem, though.
[You have cast Transcendence. The next skill you use will be strengthened.]
I hadn't chosen Bayon's essence as my royal reward just because it worked well with Giantization, after all.
[You have cast Leap. By the authority of the transcendental body, the potential inherent in this skill is now unlocked.]
Transcendental Leap, for short. Its effects were simple. The ability became usable and castable in mid-air, significantly increasing its utility.
[Travel time is significantly reduced.]
You also got fast. Really fast.
Flash!
The moment my foot kicked into the air, I was already in his face with the full force of Leap driving me.
Crash!
His body flew into the air again, unable to handle the recoil. I quickly reached out and gripped his neck.
"Urgh!" The man moaned in pain. There was no room for sympathy, though. Maintaining distance was a matter of life or death for a long-range fighter, after all. Since he hadn't been able to do that, he deserved to die.
"Die." I tightened my grip on his neck. I wasn't too worried he would run away. Not only was the cooldown time for Blink considerably long, but even if he escaped using another skill, I'd just have to catch him again.
"Ugh...!" His wriggling intensified. If I applied a little more strength, his neck would probably snap right then and there.
That was when I came to my senses. "Hey." Breaking his neck here wasn't a good idea. I should at least hear him out. If the story I heard wasn't the one I wanted, just snapping his neck wouldn't be enough.
Thud.
When I loosened my grip on his neck, the guy fell to the ground. I stomped on his stomach to make sure he didn't pull any funny business and lowered my torso to lean over him. Then I grabbed his wrist.
Snap!
I twisted his wrist instead of his neck—the wrist with the hand wearing Raven's ring. The guy couldn't even moan at the horrible pain and his eyes rolled back. But that wasn't my problem. I'd been very patient until now.
"Where did you get this ring?" I asked the same question again. Earlier we'd run into a bit of a debacle in which we both ignored each other's questions to ask our own, but this time was different.
"W-What on earth are you talking about?!" Although it wasn't a proper answer, it was an answer.
"Just answer the question."
"Gah...!"
"This ring, where did you get it?" I scanned his paper-thin body. His wrist was already crushed, but there were still plenty of parts that could be broken.
It seemed he'd come to the same conclusion. "K-Kerman's Magic Workshop in District Seven!" he shouted urgently. "Kerman's Magic Workshop, that's where I got it!"
That was an answer I hadn't expected at all. "...What?" I expected him to say he picked it up by accident or stole it, but that he didn't kill her. I was planning on moving onto the next phase of my interrogation as soon as he tried to feed me a vague line like that, but I instead froze. "You bought it...? You didn't steal it from Raven?"
"I don't even know who Raven is!"
He sounded genuinely wronged. It didn't seem like he was lying... but you never knew. He could be clever enough that he came up with a lie on the way over.
"A-Agh!"
I grabbed his dangling hand and took off the ring. Then I opened the ring's sub-space and searched inside. It was filled with equipment, consumables, and items that appeared to be personal. Checking a few of the items, I let out a deep sigh.
What, it really wasn't Raven's?
It wasn't Raven's ring. As proof, it wasn't full of magical ingredients like it should have been. There was no way this guy stole the ring and tossed all the expensive spellcasting components on the ground, either.
Oh, come to think of it, Raven said she bought it at a magic workshop too... Yeah, I believed in her the whole time. Mm-hmm, she's not just any regular woman. There's no way she went down so easily.
"D-Does that clear up the misunderstanding?"
Oh, uh...
"So it turns out this is your ring." Like any barbarian whose honesty was his greatest strength, I coolly admitted I was in the wrong and took my foot off the guy who was squirming on the ground with broken wrists.
"B-But why are you putting it in your pocket...?"
Mm, because that's a whole separate issue? This ring is mine now. People from Noark are the original treasure hoarders, right?
"Do you have complaints?"
His silence told me just how displeased he was by my actions. Simply put, the transfer was approved. Now that I had permission, I stripped him bare of his weapons and equipment, thus completing the necessary preparations for a nonviolent conversation.
"Who are you?"
Starting with his name, I interrogated the guy about his background and the events that took place on this island. He must not have wanted to die yet because the words came out easily. His name was Nebarce Greenhop.
"Your face looks familiar for some reason..."
"It should, considering we've met once before."
"What? You and I? When?"
"When the imperial capital of Karnon caught on fire."
As soon as I heard that, I remembered him. When I ran into the Fallen Scholar that day, there had been a dork following behind him.
To think it was him.
Anyway, that wasn't important. It didn't look like this guy knew anything about what Fallen Scholar and Baekho talked about after they left, either.
"Now, tell me everything that happened today."
After that, I was able to hear the side of the story that I hadn't been able to get from the priestess. First, it really was the blond these guys were after.
"That man was originally from Noark. But he betrayed the castellan and ran away with a treasure."
"W-Wait. Mr. Drous is from Noark...?"
"That's a fake name in the first place. It was very difficult to find him because he changed his face and went into hiding."
Having trouble believing it, the priestess stared out into space in a complete daze. Well, I would feel the same if someone told me that Missha was an evil spirit or something like that.
"So, what happened to him?"
"He died."
"Are you certain?"
"It was right over there. You can see where Lady Rainwales got rid of the body."
The place he pointed to still had traces of acid. Geez, so brutal.
"So what were you doing this whole time that you only showed up now? And where are your teammates?"
"Me and one other left the group to track down the people who ran away. That's when I got separated from my partner in the middle."
Hmm, sure. So you were pursuing them when you turned back empty-handed and ended up here. Wait, then who triggered the event?
It suddenly occurred to me to ask who broke the island's offering, but I didn't get the answer I was hoping for.
"How the sea ended up like that...? I don't know, either. The ground suddenly started shaking during the chase and then my surroundings went dark."
Huh, he doesn't know, either? That makes this even more suspicious...
As I stood there trying to get my thoughts in order, the archer cautiously asked a question of his own. "So, what happened to Lady Rainwales? Was there no one here when you arrived?"
He'd asked the same question when we first met. Hmm, was this why he'd answered all of mine so honestly? Because he wanted to know where she was? I couldn't be sure, but right when I was about to reply, two figures emerged from the bushes.
Dash.
"Erwen! There! It's Bjorn!"
"M-Mister! You're here!"
It was Ainar and Erwen.
"I don't even know who Raven is!"
He sounded genuinely wronged. It didn't seem like he was lying... but you never knew. He could be clever enough that he came up with a lie on the way over.
"A-Agh!"
I grabbed his dangling hand and took off the ring. Then I opened the ring's sub-space and searched inside. It was filled with equipment, consumables, and items that appeared to be personal. Checking a few of the items, I let out a deep sigh.
What, it really wasn't Raven's?
It wasn't Raven's ring. As proof, it wasn't full of magical ingredients like it should have been. There was no way this guy stole the ring and tossed all the expensive spellcasting components on the ground, either.
Oh, come to think of it, Raven said she bought it at a magic workshop too... Yeah, I believed in her the whole time. Mm-hmm, she's not just any regular woman. There's no way she went down so easily.
"D-Does that clear up the misunderstanding?"
Oh, uh...
"So it turns out this is your ring." Like any barbarian whose honesty was his greatest strength, I coolly admitted I was in the wrong and took my foot off the guy who was squirming on the ground with broken wrists.
"B-But why are you putting it in your pocket...?"
Mm, because that's a whole separate issue? This ring is mine now. People from Noark are the original treasure hoarders, right?
"Do you have complaints?"
His silence told me just how displeased he was by my actions. Simply put, the transfer was approved. Now that I had permission, I stripped him bare of his weapons and equipment, thus completing the necessary preparations for a nonviolent conversation.
"Who are you?"
Starting with his name, I interrogated the guy about his background and the events that took place on this island. He must not have wanted to die yet because the words came out easily. His name was Nebarce Greenhop.
"Your face looks familiar for some reason..."
"It should, considering we've met once before."
"What? You and I? When?"
"When the imperial capital of Karnon caught on fire."
As soon as I heard that, I remembered him. When I ran into the Fallen Scholar that day, there had been a dork following behind him.
To think it was him.
Anyway, that wasn't important. It didn't look like this guy knew anything about what Fallen Scholar and Baekho talked about after they left, either.
"Now, tell me everything that happened today."
After that, I was able to hear the side of the story that I hadn't been able to get from the priestess. First, it really was the blond these guys were after.
"That man was originally from Noark. But he betrayed the castellan and ran away with a treasure."
"W-Wait. Mr. Drous is from Noark...?"
"That's a fake name in the first place. It was very difficult to find him because he changed his face and went into hiding."
Having trouble believing it, the priestess stared out into space in a complete daze. Well, I would feel the same if someone told me that Missha was an evil spirit or something like that.
"So, what happened to him?"
"He died."
"Are you certain?"
"It was right over there. You can see where Lady Rainwales got rid of the body."
The place he pointed to still had traces of acid. Geez, so brutal.
"So what were you doing this whole time that you only showed up now? And where are your teammates?"
"Me and one other left the group to track down the people who ran away. That's when I got separated from my partner in the middle."
Hmm, sure. So you were pursuing them when you turned back empty-handed and ended up here. Wait, then who triggered the event?
It suddenly occurred to me to ask who broke the island's offering, but I didn't get the answer I was hoping for.
"How the sea ended up like that...? I don't know, either. The ground suddenly started shaking during the chase and then my surroundings went dark."
Huh, he doesn't know, either? That makes this even more suspicious...
As I stood there trying to get my thoughts in order, the archer cautiously asked a question of his own. "So, what happened to Lady Rainwales? Was there no one here when you arrived?"
He'd asked the same question when we first met. Hmm, was this why he'd answered all of mine so honestly? Because he wanted to know where she was? I couldn't be sure, but right when I was about to reply, two figures emerged from the bushes.
Dash.
"Erwen! There! It's Bjorn!"
"M-Mister! You're here!"
It was Ainar and Erwen.