Chapter 197: Let's Go

Point-of-View: Shiro Blanc

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Damn it, what's going on here...it's been a whole month since I fought Kuro by the Goblin cave, where the hell is he!? Don't tell me he's gone into hiding with the intention of killing both of us...no, that's highly unlikely, there's no way he's already lost hope to that extent. I could try to kill someone he's close to in order to try and enrage him, but what's the point of that if I don't have a way of letting him know about it!? 

As it stands, I'll only blow my cover if I kill someone while he's nowhere to be found. I've been doing my best to act just like he did before this happened, I'm fairly confident that none of his friends suspect a thing about me, but what's the point of that if I can't find, let alone kill, him!? 

What's more, Fuo has been missing this whole time too. It wasn't rocket science, she had almost definitely teamed up with Kuro...damn it, not-God, why didn't you take Atticus into the equation when fucking up everyone's memories, huh!? After I realized that, I looked extensively to make sure that you hadn't overlooked anything or anyone else, but that's no the case... 

You've somehow made it so that no Reincarnator suspects a thing despite so many inventions inspired from their old worlds popping up, like the Call spell and guns, and you've even made changes to writing that refers to reincarnation and parallel worlds, so how could you overlook something that could cost me this entire battle!? Hey, I know that you can hear me! I need to talk to you! Hey! 

No answer...guess it was stupid to expect him to listen to an artificial being. Goddamn piece of shit, after assuring me that everyone's memories would be altered, he overlooked one that could easily be my downfall! Heck, it could still cost me if I'm not careful, what if no one buys the brainwashing crap I came up with!? 

Hey, answer me, not-God! You made a fucking mistake, this mess is all your fault, the least you could do is take responsibility for it! Are you listening to me, huh!? Hey, I'm talking to-! 

"What!? What do you want!?" 

Oh, he answered. Huh, in my original's memories, he was never this emotional...wonder what's got his divine panties in a wad?

"Come on, you can read my mind, can't you?" I snapped impatiently. 

"No, I cannot, I used up too much Divine Magic for that. Tell me what you want or I will return you to the living world."

I suppose that's convenient, I don't like the thought of someone reading my mind... 

"Change Atticus's memories like you've done with everyone else! That's the only mistake you made as far as I can see, so fix it!" 

"Impossible. First, because I no longer have enough Divine Magic to do such a thing, and second...there is a reason that he was not affected...his memories are not stored in Fuo's brain, they are stored in his own consciousness, which is, of course, intangible...I cannot tamper with it."

"Seriously!? Are you just saying that because you don't want to admit that you screwed up!?" 

"Of course not, I do not make such trivial mistakes. But I suppose I can let you make a request, to make up for this. That said, I will not allow anything that would give you too significant an advantage."

Hm...that's not a bad deal... 

"I guess I can work with that. In that case, it's simple, this is all I want...to make up for your screw up with Atticus's memories being intact, give me the ability to sense Kuro's location."

"That is possible, but it will likely cost a fair bit of my remaining divinity...I hardly have any divinity left to spare, if I spend too much more, I will not be able to perform my duties in reincarnation of souls. So, tell me, why must I waste my precious remaining expendable divinity for a problem that will disappear in a few months anyway?"

This bastard... 

"You said it yourself, you altering everyone's memories was going to be the first and last time you interfere in the living world, so why would you need any expendable divinity at all, anyway? And besides, I highly doubt this'll cost much...I'm asking you to let me sense someone who's literally got the same genetic make-up as I do, how hard can that be? Just use your Divine Magic to, I don't know, make us resonate or something so that I can sense him!"

"...that is not how magic works, but I suppose it is a rather simple request, even with my scarce remaining divinity, it will not consume more than a third of it...and you are correct, I have no intention of ever interfering in the living world again, so I do not actually need any expendable divinity. Very well, I shall grant you this power...you will be able to sense Kuro's approximate location, specifically, within a two kilometer radius margin of error."

Two kilometer RADIUS...? So, then, I could be off by upto four kilometers? 

"There, it is done. Do not bother calling for me again, I will ignore you."

And just like that, I was back in the apartment. Tch, that bastard. Well, at the very least, this is better than nothing, not to mention that I'd previously lied and said that I could sense his presence, now it was true. Now, then, where exactly are you, Kuro...? 

Damn it, this sensing power is harder to use than I thought...I could sort of tell which direction he was in and I could also get a vague sense of the distance, but it hard to say exactly where he was without being able to properly visualize it... 

Oh, that's right, there's a map in his room, I can use that to help me visualize. I headed into the bedroom and rummaged around until I found it, before spreading it open and focusing again...let's see, if I'm reading this right, then he's...wait, no, this can't be right. Let me try again and see... 

Again, the same result...what's going on? What's he upto? Why...is he all the way in Platinberg!? 

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Point-of-View: Kuro Black

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"So, which way are we going?" Inquired Fuo, as we got ready to start heading out. 

"Straight ahead, our first target is the Giant King. The Beast King is closer, in the forest area to the east of the Rustlands, but I'll go after him on the way back. This is gonna be a long journey."

It was currently the afternoon the next day, Fuo had gone back into the Rustlands this morning and gotten us some essentials, like changes of clothes and stuff. She got a whole bunch of stuff, which was all held inside the new version of the Store and Extract spell. She stole them all though, using the Store Spell Card, since she used a Stealth barrier after the guards let her inside through the gates. 

She couldn't afford to be seen, so it couldn't be helped. She then exited the Rustlands using the same teleport spell she used to get away from Shiro before he could kill her. I couldn't lie, I'd been just a little anxious waiting for her, since she is my only ally and all. I let out a quiet sigh of relief when she returned, though I made sure to be subtle about it so that she wouldn't notice. 

And now, I planned to hunt down five of the six monster kings, excluding the Devil King, who was a bit too far away. My first target was the Giant King, who was hiding somewhere in the Giants' territory. Next, I'll go after the Were King, who was in the savanna to the west of the Goldlands, formerly Goldway and The Valaque Empire. 

After that, I'd take a boat to Platinberg, I can use my Eyes of Compulsion to force someone in the Goldlands to take us there in a boat. And once I get there, I'll target the Reptile King, who was hiding in the underground dinosaur cavern. I might snag myself a few more Crosses as well, depending on how things go. And that's when I'll start heading back. The quickest way to get back to the Rustlands from Platinberg is to head straight south from there. 

To the south of Platinberg, and north of Silvland, was a vast mountain range, where the Imp King was in hiding...yeah, I'll probably let Fuo have that one. After that, it's past Silvland, through the snowy area, and back towards the Rustlands. I'll be to the north of the Rustlands by then, and after that, I can head for the forest area, where the Beast King is. 

The Devil King was in the volcanic mountain range to the east of Bronztan, it'd take me too long to make a detour in that direction, so I'll spare that one. Oh, Fuo had also stolen a cart and a couple of horses using the Store spell, along with food and water troughs for the horses. So we won't have to walk the whole way, that was certainly a relief. I almost went crazy that time when I walked all the way back to the Rustlands from Goldway by myself. 

Factoring in variables like the horses' stamina and distance, it'd probably take us about a week to ten days to get to the Goldlands from here, and then maybe half a day to get to the savanna, and from there, another half a day to get to the beach north of the Goldlands. I had no idea how long it'd take us to get to Platinberg by boat, but hopefully, it wouldn't take more than a couple of weeks. 

I'd heard that there were plenty of fishing boats used in the Goldlands, but right now, it wasn't the right season for fishing, so stealing a boat and someone to steer it without being seen shouldn't be too difficult. After that, it should take three to four weeks to get back to the Rustlands from Platinberg. 

If all goes according to plan, it shouldn't take more than two months to get back to the Rustlands. That would be...sometime around the end of September, which would leave me with three full months left before the deadline. Yeah, technically speaking, I did have enough time to go after the Devil King as well, but...I didn't feel comfortable leaving Shiro alone for that long, there's no telling what he might do if he gets impatient or anxious... 

"Alright, you ready to head out, Miss Moody?" I greeted Fuo as she arrived, earning a glare from her. 

"Grr, I'm not moody! Asshole. Hmph, whatever...let's go."

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