Solo Ruins Exploration (1)
Solo Ruins Exploration (1)
In the end, I was sent back to this timeline after all.
It was the exact time I had struggled so hard to return to just before I died.
I had told myself not to give up and to do my best first, but it seemed there were simply some things beyond my control, no matter how hard I tried.
Inside the cave, Katrin, the students, and the knights I had brought back were warmly greeting one another.
Yesterday, I had rescued Katrin and the students and brought them to this cave, and just moments ago, I had brought back the knights who had been searching the Forest of the Seal.
Right after that, the 'Save Point' was set, and I regressed straight back to this exact moment.
Watching the people chat, I called my inherited abilities to mind. As expected, nothing appeared before my eyes.
Since I had returned to the past, that was only natural. Everything I had gained in the ruins was gone.
I patted my chest. I could feel the pouch tucked inside my robes.
Not everything had vanished. The Ego was still waiting in the ruins, and the map was right here in my chest pocket.
Now that I had ended up in this timeline, I had to put the plan I'd been agonizing over into action.
I approached Katrin and the knights, who were deep in conversation.
"What? You're going out again?"
Katrin asked, concern in her voice.
"Yes. There are still missing knights, and I think I need to keep looking for Ride."
"B-but those knights didn't respond to the flare signals, either..."
Perhaps feeling apologetic toward the knights, Katrin's voice trailed off.
Though she spoke softly, Sir Miro agreed with her.
"Yes, we couldn't wait any longer, either, which is why we came here."
"Besides, it's going to get dark soon."
Just as Katrin had said, the sun was sinking behind the trees.
"I wasn't planning on coming straight back, anyway. If I come back every night, I won't be able to search far afield. I think I'll have to travel around for a few days."
At my answer, Katrin pulled me into a corner.
She spoke with a stern expression.
"What are you thinking? It's far too dangerous. Do you know how worried I was after you went off alone to find the knights today?"
"I came back fine, didn't I? I couldn't bring everyone back, but I still brought them with me."
"You really did well, and I was grateful. But..."
"But you want to find them, don't you? You just can't move because you have students to protect."
"Well, yes, but..."
"That's why I'll go look for them."
Having her weak spot pointed out, Katrin glared at me.
"You brat. You haven't even finished growing yet."
I was frustrated about that, too. Even if I was still in my mid-teens, being shorter than Katrin was ridiculous.
Since the rest of my family was on the taller side, I could only hope I'd have a late growth spurt.
"Besides, this isn't like you. You're not the type to work this hard for people you don't even know."
Honestly, Katrin was right on the mark. That wasn't my reason now, either.
"Maybe I've changed after learning from you, Katrin. Or maybe I was influenced by the Princess..."
When I said that, Katrin tilted her head and muttered to herself, "Could that really be it...?"
Like hell it was.
It was all a lie.
I hadn't changed from before. Well, maybe I had changed a little because of the Princess and Katrin, but I still put myself first.
There was no way I'd go out just to rescue total strangers. Besides, Ride was dead, and the other knights were unlikely to be alive anyway.
My reason for going out right now was purely for my own benefit.
"I'm telling you this because I'm confident I can handle it. I'll look around for a few days and come back. I trust you and the knights to keep this place safe, Katrin."
Since I had rescued Katrin and the knights, it was hard to doubt my skill when I spoke so confidently.
On top of that, since I was doing this to save lives, Katrin found it hard to refuse.
If I weren't Katrin's student, she would have given permission much sooner.
"...Fine, then. Be careful, and come back quickly."
"Yes. You take care, too, Katrin. Monsters might storm this place as well, so make sure to keep a strict night watch and post sentries."
"We'll handle that ourselves. Just make sure you return safely."
"Yes. Don't worry."
Once Katrin gave her permission, I spoke to the knights. They were worried about my plan to search for the remaining missing knights, but they were deeply grateful.
Meanwhile, the students watched me leave and offered ambiguous farewells.
"Be careful and stay safe."
The fear of the monsters and the Seal Grounds hadn't yet faded for these students. Hearing that I was roaming such a dangerous region alone, they seemed to regard me with a mixture of awe, jealousy, inferiority, and envy.
"I honestly wish you'd just stay. But since you're looking for Ride, I can't stop you... You really must be careful. If it gets dangerous, turn right back."
Fortunately, Bria offered a heartfelt farewell, full of concern.
I refused the rations they tried to hand me and set off immediately.
My destination: the ruins drawn on the map. The very place where I had died.
As I traveled to the ruins before my death, I had constantly compared the terrain marked on the map with the route taken by the expedition party.
I had even asked the Headmaster how far the place we'd just been teleported to was from the site of our original 'Field Study.'
Thus, I was ultimately able to trace a route on the map from where we had been teleported during this Field Study all the way to the ruins.
"In the end, Count Chaipree's knights fifty years ago weren't on the wrong path, either."
From atop a tree, I muttered to myself as I looked down at the nest of red Tail-feather Lizard monsters.
Whether because it was night or because the monsters had already eaten him, I couldn't see Ride's corpse anywhere.
Not seeing Ride's corpse didn't matter. I hadn't come to find Ride anyway, and what I needed from his corpse was already in my possession.
I had returned to the nest where Ride died only because it lay along my route.
The spot where Count Chaipree's knight's corpse had been found, this nest, and the ruins all lay almost in a straight line.
That made navigation easy, and since I had passed this way once before, reaching this spot hadn't been difficult.
"It starts now."
From this nest to the ruins lay uncharted territory I had never traversed.
I felt confident based on my past experiences, but the Seal Grounds were by no means a forgiving place.
After moving far away from the nest, I climbed a high tree, made myself a crude sleeping spot on a branch, and dozed lightly while waiting for morning.
As time passed and the sun rose, I set foot into the unfamiliar terrain of the Seal Grounds.
Mmm. To be perfectly honest,
I failed to reach the ruins on my first attempt.
The map made it look like a distance I could easily cover in about two days, which was why I had set off alone with such confidence.
Reaching the nest where Ride had died was easy enough, and even at night, it wasn't particularly dangerous.
But getting beyond the nest and into the unexplored regions of the Seal Grounds was far worse than merely difficult.
Thinking I could move around comfortably at night was sheer arrogance, and the idea that staying in the trees would let me avoid monsters didn't hold up in other parts of the Seal Grounds.
Chased by nocturnal beasts with keen night vision, I had to run like crazy without getting a single wink of sleep. I even took a beating from tree-climbing monkey monsters that knocked me out of the canopy.
Though I managed to draw close to the ruins while being battered into a complete mess, my body was so covered in wounds that moving any farther became impossible.
Gazing at the vine-covered ruins in the distance, I gnashed my teeth.
"This is way too grueling! I'll try just one more time, and if that doesn't work, I'm giving up!"
I thought it would be better to handle it properly during the 'Practical Combat Class.'
With that resolve, I closed my eyes.
The moment I closed my eyes, the surrounding monsters pounced on me.
And then, I regressed to the past once more.
When I opened my eyes, Katrin and the knights were exchanging greetings just like before.
I gritted my teeth, enduring the lingering pain, and approached Katrin.
I gave Katrin the exact same explanation and set off again.
Traveling through the trees as before, I reached the nest, but this time I proceeded with extreme caution.
At night, I rested in the safest spots I could find, climbing to the treetops whenever possible to monitor the flow of mana.
Fortunately, on my second attempt, I managed to reach the ruins without dying.
"The problem is that I don't have much time left."
My body was in a ragged state, and I had lost weight from being unable to eat properly, but more pressing than either was the tight deadline I faced to explore the ruins and return.
"Before any of that, I have to get past that nest to even attempt an exploration, right?"
A dark night.
Monsters had taken up positions atop the vine-covered ruins.
They were blue Tail-feather Lizard monsters, similar to the ones that had killed Ride.
I had seen this before I died as well, but there was a monster nest in this ruin, too.
When I came here with the Royal Knights, we had simply pushed through by brute force, but now that I was alone, that wasn't an option.
"Still, it isn't as if I'm completely out of options."
Clearing out all the monsters would obviously be impossible, but simply slipping into the ruins was entirely feasible.
I had definitely seen a skeleton inside the ruins back then.
It wasn't as though there hadn't been a nest back then, either.
If an ordinary person without special abilities could make it through a nest and enter the ruins, then I could certainly do it, too.
Mercenaries or adventurers who entered the ruins probably had their own methods, but I also possessed useful inherited abilities.
I gave the pouch tucked inside my coat a final check and tightened the strap of the greatsword slung over my back.
It was difficult to wield a greatsword right now. I gripped my dagger and took a deep breath.
Phew.
As I let out my breath, I simultaneously settled my mana deep within me.
Then, using as little mana as possible, I erected a soundproofing barrier around myself.
Fortunately, clouds blanketed the starlight, and the soundproofing barrier blocked any noise I made.
I suppressed my mana to the absolute limit; now all that remained was to approach with extreme caution.
Slowly, slowly.
I crept toward the ruins.
Checking the wind direction to make sure my scent wouldn't drift toward them, I approached in a low stance.
Even when I reached the edge of the ruins, the monsters hadn't noticed me.
I slipped past the monsters sleeping along the perimeter undetected, remaining unharmed even as I brushed past one that seemed to be murmuring in its sleep.
But getting all the way to the entrance without being detected proved impossible.
Rumble.
When I was just a short distance from the entrance to the ruins, the largest monster—the apparent alpha—lifted its head.
Although I held my breath and flattened myself against the ground, the beast drew its head back and turned its gaze straight toward me.
Growl.
The monster's growl grew louder and louder.
The sleeping monsters opened their eyes one by one.
'Getting this far was already a miracle.'
Realizing I had definitely been spotted, I immediately flared my mana.
Flare!
Though I didn't go so far as to go berserk with the necklace, I focused my mind and raised my mana to its peak.
Roar!
As I flared my mana, the monsters let out monstrous roars.
There was no way they wouldn't shriek when an intruder trespassed in their nest.
The monsters began charging at me.
The entrance to the ruins, visible in the distance moments earlier, disappeared from view behind the swarming beasts.
Even so, I concentrated even harder on the mana I had gathered.
I did my absolute best to recall the sensation I'd experienced in the ruins before my death.
Back then, it had been close to a fluke, but it was undoubtedly a technique I could perform deliberately.
I remembered the sensation. The mindset of that moment, too.
And then, time slowed down.
The monsters slowed down, and their roaring shrieks began to fracture.
Bang!
Within that decelerated world, I shot forward like a bullet.