Chapter 561: Destination (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 561: Destination (1)
The Goddess of the Stars had delivered to Sven Parav a revelation in the form of a prophetic dream. It outlined how I would die in the near future at the hands of the expedition group, who I had just been starting to believe I could trust.
Ba-dump!
The warrior's heart in my chest began to pound a loud beat, sensing danger. However, before all else, I calmly clarified. "Are you sure?"
"...I'm sorry?"
"Are you sure that you saw me die? In that dream."
This was quite the cliché in modern media. They'd show the actor getting shot in the trailer, but then in the movie, it was revealed they were wearing a bulletproof vest the whole time and the story would end happily ever after. Stuff like that happened all the time.
"I'm not sure." Even in this situation, where certainty was of the utmost importance, he was still being wishy-washy. "But no matter how many potions were used on your body, none of them had any effect."
Potions weren't doing anything... Hmm, that was a problem.
Am I... really going to die...?
To be honest, it still hadn't sunk in. My mind was a mess.
What do I do?
My first thought was that I could just pull the same trick I pulled for Amelia's older sister. However, some logistical issues immediately sprung to mind.
If this were a situation with such an easy solution... why deliver a whole prophecy about it?
No, more importantly, how would a situation like the one Parav saw even come to pass? Wasn't the expedition group's whole objective to get me back to the city alive?
Damn, why do I have to deal with this so early in the morning...
"...Lord Baron!" While I was furiously wracking my brain for what the hell I was going to do about this, Parav shook me by the shoulders. "Didn't you hear me? We don't have time for this. You need to run away."
"Run away...?"
"The goddess also told me this: your destiny is not yet written in stone. It is up to us to determine what our future holds."
In other words, the future Parav saw was one I could avoid depending on the effort I was willing to put in.
"Why... didn't you mention that earlier...?"
"Uh...? I-I don't know...?"
Man, you should've led with that.
Now I understood why everyone else bullied this guy so much.
In any case, by not 'written in stone' yet, she's probably talking about the Records Stone...
I finished assessing the situation. Reatlas was one of this world's three main gods. If she, a goddess, was saying that I could change the future, then it had to be true. Which changed things a little.
What the—? This wasn't that big a deal at all.
In a way, this was basically the equivalent of a red light on Destiny Seeker. I now knew that misfortune was lurking around the corner, but I could avoid it if I was careful.
"Thank you for telling me about this. However, I'm going to stay," I sternly rejected Parav's suggestion that I make a run for it, and for a very simple reason. "I'll take care of this, so keep talking. Everything you saw in that dream, tell me every detail."
Nothing ever got fixed by running away.
***
As soon as I rejoined my companions, Amelia pulled me aside.
"You looked pretty serious during that conversation. Was it important?"
"Not really. It wasn't much."
When I brushed her off, Amelia stopped pushing. Instead, she shut her mouth, narrowed her eyes at me in a glare, and whirled around.
...Was she mad at me? I was trying to be considerate and not worry her before I had time to make sense of this mess.
In the end, I couldn't help but tell her the truth, though I did it in an uncharacteristically roundabout way for a barbarian.
"Emily, if I suddenly found myself in danger of being executed by the commander, what would you do?"
At first, she stared at me like I was speaking a different language, but then her jaw tightened. "Are those guys... scheming something?"
"I'm not sure yet. So, what's your answer?"
The look on Amelia's face suggested she thought it was obvious. "I'd stop them. Even if I had to risk everything to do it."
"Even though they have more than a hundred people on their side?"
"Didn't you hear me? I'd stop them with everything I have."
I could hear a deep determination in her voice.
Yeah, so that's your answer, huh...
Although I was grateful for her loyalty, her response also left a bitter taste in my mouth that was impossible to ignore. If things really did end up going south, this wouldn't end with just my death. All of the people around me would get swept up in this too.
...Should I have run away?
That thought crept into my mind, but I quickly shook it away. There was a chance that running away might make things even worse.
Let's just keep an eye on the situation for now. I still have time before I need to make any decisions.
I was basing this assessment on three key pieces of evidence I derived from Parav's account of his dream.
One: The dream was set on an island.
From the description, I figured it was Chief Island. Since we weren't there yet, I should be all right for now.
Two: It wasn't set during the rainy season.
In other words, my safety was guaranteed for at least the next few days.
Three: For some reason, Erwen had short hair.
That particular detail would help tip me off as to when this might happen.
As such, it wouldn't be too late to run away later, once I had a better grasp of the situation.
"Embark!"
After that, the expedition group got on the boats and left Library Island. Squad Four didn't board our usual boat and was instead split among the three military vessels, as that would give us a much better chance of surviving the rainy season at its heaviest.
It's still pretty intense since it's only the third day.
Sure enough, monsters were pouring down from the sky. Of course, the ships themselves each had defensive magic circles inscribed on them that were currently being supplied with mana by dozens of wizards, so the monsters weren't hitting us at all.
Boom! Crunch! Thud!
The monsters instead collided with the mana barriers and fell into the ocean, their blood dripping down the sides.
"You looked pretty serious during that conversation. Was it important?"
"Not really. It wasn't much."
When I brushed her off, Amelia stopped pushing. Instead, she shut her mouth, narrowed her eyes at me in a glare, and whirled around.
...Was she mad at me? I was trying to be considerate and not worry her before I had time to make sense of this mess.
In the end, I couldn't help but tell her the truth, though I did it in an uncharacteristically roundabout way for a barbarian.
"Emily, if I suddenly found myself in danger of being executed by the commander, what would you do?"
At first, she stared at me like I was speaking a different language, but then her jaw tightened. "Are those guys... scheming something?"
"I'm not sure yet. So, what's your answer?"
The look on Amelia's face suggested she thought it was obvious. "I'd stop them. Even if I had to risk everything to do it."
"Even though they have more than a hundred people on their side?"
"Didn't you hear me? I'd stop them with everything I have."
I could hear a deep determination in her voice.
Yeah, so that's your answer, huh...
Although I was grateful for her loyalty, her response also left a bitter taste in my mouth that was impossible to ignore. If things really did end up going south, this wouldn't end with just my death. All of the people around me would get swept up in this too.
...Should I have run away?
That thought crept into my mind, but I quickly shook it away. There was a chance that running away might make things even worse.
Let's just keep an eye on the situation for now. I still have time before I need to make any decisions.
I was basing this assessment on three key pieces of evidence I derived from Parav's account of his dream.
One: The dream was set on an island.
From the description, I figured it was Chief Island. Since we weren't there yet, I should be all right for now.
Two: It wasn't set during the rainy season.
In other words, my safety was guaranteed for at least the next few days.
Three: For some reason, Erwen had short hair.
That particular detail would help tip me off as to when this might happen.
As such, it wouldn't be too late to run away later, once I had a better grasp of the situation.
"Embark!"
After that, the expedition group got on the boats and left Library Island. Squad Four didn't board our usual boat and was instead split among the three military vessels, as that would give us a much better chance of surviving the rainy season at its heaviest.
It's still pretty intense since it's only the third day.
Sure enough, monsters were pouring down from the sky. Of course, the ships themselves each had defensive magic circles inscribed on them that were currently being supplied with mana by dozens of wizards, so the monsters weren't hitting us at all.
Boom! Crunch! Thud!
The monsters instead collided with the mana barriers and fell into the ocean, their blood dripping down the sides.
"It's not as arduous as we anticipated. Ebost! What is our mana expenditure? Is the rate what we expected it to be?"
"Yes! We're currently having no issues!"
The three ships cut through the silver waters and sailed forward.
Most of the monsters smashed into the barrier and harmlessly fell into the ocean, but not all of them. A few aquatic ones chased us through the water, and the ones that could fly obstructed us from the air.
Graaah!
At one point, a Hipramajent appeared from below the waves to grab our boat.
"It's a Mobilus!"
On top of that, we also ran into a super-large type rank-two ocean monster. However, none of these encounters caused us any trouble since the ship was built to handle combat.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The dozens of mana cannons installed on the ship cleared our way forward with blast after blast. These ships also had mana propulsion systems that were on an entirely different level from the one on our boat, and they were always on at maximum capacity to keep us moving at breakneck speeds.
"Emaze Lula Kini Pitia!"
The wizards used the magic circles engraved into our boat to fire attack spells.
Crack! Creak! Creak!
At the same time, the ice crusher at the helm designed to help the ship traverse through frozen stretches of sea was whirring away, grinding up all the small monsters in our path.
...How much would a boat like this cost?
It was completely different from the military vessel I boarded for the Dark Continent expedition, though I supposed that the ship's purpose had been different, to begin with. That had been a boat designed to transport as many individuals as possible, while this ship was made solely for naval combat.
Six hours, twelve hours, eighteen hours...
Soon, we were around a day's travel from Library Island.
"Commander! We can see our destination!"
Our destination had appeared on the horizon.
***
On our 118th day in the labyrinth, we pushed through the heaviest part of the rainy season and arrived at Chief Island, all without a single casualty.
With that, there was only one decision left to make.
"Count Saintred, what shall we do now? Are we going to disembark and begin traveling inland?"
We still had three days left until the rainy season was over. Still, I could tell that the worst of it was behind us and the strongest monsters weren't dropping as often anymore.
"No. Until the rainy season is over, we will wait here."
Jerome decided we should stay on the boats. It seemed that after experiencing the rainy season firsthand, he'd concluded that going out onto land at this point would be dangerous.
You know, you should've just trusted me from the start.
"So wouldn't it have been better if we waited until after the rainy season like I suggested?"
"There is no guarantee we will be able to leave this floor anytime soon. A day might come when we might have no choice but to travel during the rainy season, so I reasoned that experiencing it at least once when we are fully prepared would be best."
"It's not as arduous as we anticipated. Ebost! What is our mana expenditure? Is the rate what we expected it to be?"
"Yes! We're currently having no issues!"
The three ships cut through the silver waters and sailed forward.
Most of the monsters smashed into the barrier and harmlessly fell into the ocean, but not all of them. A few aquatic ones chased us through the water, and the ones that could fly obstructed us from the air.
Graaah!
At one point, a Hipramajent appeared from below the waves to grab our boat.
"It's a Mobilus!"
On top of that, we also ran into a super-large type rank-two ocean monster. However, none of these encounters caused us any trouble since the ship was built to handle combat.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The dozens of mana cannons installed on the ship cleared our way forward with blast after blast. These ships also had mana propulsion systems that were on an entirely different level from the one on our boat, and they were always on at maximum capacity to keep us moving at breakneck speeds.
"Emaze Lula Kini Pitia!"
The wizards used the magic circles engraved into our boat to fire attack spells.
Crack! Creak! Creak!
At the same time, the ice crusher at the helm designed to help the ship traverse through frozen stretches of sea was whirring away, grinding up all the small monsters in our path.
...How much would a boat like this cost?
It was completely different from the military vessel I boarded for the Dark Continent expedition, though I supposed that the ship's purpose had been different, to begin with. That had been a boat designed to transport as many individuals as possible, while this ship was made solely for naval combat.
Six hours, twelve hours, eighteen hours...
Soon, we were around a day's travel from Library Island.
"Commander! We can see our destination!"
Our destination had appeared on the horizon.
***
On our 118th day in the labyrinth, we pushed through the heaviest part of the rainy season and arrived at Chief Island, all without a single casualty.
With that, there was only one decision left to make.
"Count Saintred, what shall we do now? Are we going to disembark and begin traveling inland?"
We still had three days left until the rainy season was over. Still, I could tell that the worst of it was behind us and the strongest monsters weren't dropping as often anymore.
"No. Until the rainy season is over, we will wait here."
Jerome decided we should stay on the boats. It seemed that after experiencing the rainy season firsthand, he'd concluded that going out onto land at this point would be dangerous.
You know, you should've just trusted me from the start.
"So wouldn't it have been better if we waited until after the rainy season like I suggested?"
"There is no guarantee we will be able to leave this floor anytime soon. A day might come when we might have no choice but to travel during the rainy season, so I reasoned that experiencing it at least once when we are fully prepared would be best."
Well, when he put it that way, I couldn't argue. Now that he'd seen it for himself, he would be able to make informed decisions even in an emergency.
"Also, one of the missions assigned to our expedition group is investigating this floor. We need to experience as much of it as possible to give the palace a thorough report. Including everything that happens during and after the rainy season."
Or so he said, though I couldn't help but feel that he was making things harder for no reason. Still, I figured a soldier's perspective must be different from most people's. The expedition group even had a specific knight who was in charge of recording all of our battles.
Then I guess we'll weather the storm until the rainy season is over...
The most important factor now was Erwen. If her hair was still the same even after the rainy season was over, that would mean that the prophetic dream wasn't going to come to pass just yet.
"Erwen, are you planning on cutting your hair short any time soon?"
"Huh? Well, I like how it looks right now... but if that's what you want, M-Mister, I'll—"
"What are you talking about? I like long hair! Don't even think about cutting it! Got it?"
"Uh...? Ah... okay! I'll never cut it!"
All right, with that, she probably wouldn't cut it of her own volition. Even if it meant getting all my own hair burned off and going bald, I needed to keep her hair safe.
"Oh!" I heard Ainar shout. "Bjorn, so you're that kind of guy?"
What was she talking about?
I chuckled at her nonsense, but for some reason, Amelia was looking at me appraisingly.
"Hmm, I didn't think that was your type, Yandel."
...Should I clear this up?
When I happened to meet eyes with Raven, she cleared her throat before twisting a curl of her chest-length hair around her finger.
"Mm...!"
Ah, whatever. They could think whatever they wanted to. It didn't really matter either way. I had plenty of other things to worry about, so I didn't intend to waste my energy on something like this.
"I'm going to sleep for a bit, so don't disturb me unless it's my turn on rotation."
With that, I returned to my quarters so I wouldn't be disturbed, laid back on the bed, and shut my eyes to think.
No matter how I look at it, they didn't come here with orders to kill me... so why would I suddenly get executed?
How could something like that happen?
I think it'll probably involve the village chief somehow...
I didn't have any concrete evidence to back that up yet, but that was my immediate thought. I was still wary of the chief—I had a sneaking suspicion that he had some sort of method of stealing another person's body like an evil spirit could.
If he does have an ability like that... the scenario in Parav's dream is definitely plausible.
There were even two clear routes we could take on the way to that scene: Either Commander Jerome Saintred got his body taken, or...
My body gets taken.
Either of those situations could lead to the expedition group executing me, so now the most important question was this:
How do I stop that from happening?
Operating under the assumption that one of my hypotheses was correct for now, I started brainstorming solutions.
He said that Erwen had short hair...
So what if I just shaved her head entirely? Then would the dream not happen?
...That's probably not how that works.
The goddess said so herself that the future could be changed. I was pretty sure that a difference in hair length wasn't a big enough deal to alter the course of fate.
It had to be something else.
Yeah, something...
Something that would make a bigger difference.
Flash!
Suddenly, a thought struck my mind like lightning as it occurred to me that I might be making this more complicated than it needed to be.
In the prophetic dream Goblin had, Jerome Saintred was the one who killed me...
So wouldn't everything be fine if I just got rid of him?
Well, when he put it that way, I couldn't argue. Now that he'd seen it for himself, he would be able to make informed decisions even in an emergency.
"Also, one of the missions assigned to our expedition group is investigating this floor. We need to experience as much of it as possible to give the palace a thorough report. Including everything that happens during and after the rainy season."
Or so he said, though I couldn't help but feel that he was making things harder for no reason. Still, I figured a soldier's perspective must be different from most people's. The expedition group even had a specific knight who was in charge of recording all of our battles.
Then I guess we'll weather the storm until the rainy season is over...
The most important factor now was Erwen. If her hair was still the same even after the rainy season was over, that would mean that the prophetic dream wasn't going to come to pass just yet.
"Erwen, are you planning on cutting your hair short any time soon?"
"Huh? Well, I like how it looks right now... but if that's what you want, M-Mister, I'll—"
"What are you talking about? I like long hair! Don't even think about cutting it! Got it?"
"Uh...? Ah... okay! I'll never cut it!"
All right, with that, she probably wouldn't cut it of her own volition. Even if it meant getting all my own hair burned off and going bald, I needed to keep her hair safe.
"Oh!" I heard Ainar shout. "Bjorn, so you're that kind of guy?"
What was she talking about?
I chuckled at her nonsense, but for some reason, Amelia was looking at me appraisingly.
"Hmm, I didn't think that was your type, Yandel."
...Should I clear this up?
When I happened to meet eyes with Raven, she cleared her throat before twisting a curl of her chest-length hair around her finger.
"Mm...!"
Ah, whatever. They could think whatever they wanted to. It didn't really matter either way. I had plenty of other things to worry about, so I didn't intend to waste my energy on something like this.
"I'm going to sleep for a bit, so don't disturb me unless it's my turn on rotation."
With that, I returned to my quarters so I wouldn't be disturbed, laid back on the bed, and shut my eyes to think.
No matter how I look at it, they didn't come here with orders to kill me... so why would I suddenly get executed?
How could something like that happen?
I think it'll probably involve the village chief somehow...
I didn't have any concrete evidence to back that up yet, but that was my immediate thought. I was still wary of the chief—I had a sneaking suspicion that he had some sort of method of stealing another person's body like an evil spirit could.
If he does have an ability like that... the scenario in Parav's dream is definitely plausible.
There were even two clear routes we could take on the way to that scene: Either Commander Jerome Saintred got his body taken, or...
My body gets taken.
Either of those situations could lead to the expedition group executing me, so now the most important question was this:
How do I stop that from happening?
Operating under the assumption that one of my hypotheses was correct for now, I started brainstorming solutions.
He said that Erwen had short hair...
So what if I just shaved her head entirely? Then would the dream not happen?
...That's probably not how that works.
The goddess said so herself that the future could be changed. I was pretty sure that a difference in hair length wasn't a big enough deal to alter the course of fate.
It had to be something else.
Yeah, something...
Something that would make a bigger difference.
Flash!
Suddenly, a thought struck my mind like lightning as it occurred to me that I might be making this more complicated than it needed to be.
In the prophetic dream Goblin had, Jerome Saintred was the one who killed me...
So wouldn't everything be fine if I just got rid of him?