CH 109

The forest was burning.

Fallen trees were stacked against each other, blocking the view.

Several voices could be heard from the other side, shouting and screaming.

Indeed, unlike a moment ago, it was now the citizens of light that cried out loud with delight.

The majority of the screams were from the monstrous spider people.

The fight from our direction was pretty much over.

The Arachne were turning their backs and fleeing.

I thought that we should just leave the mopping up to the surviving soldiers of the citizens of light.

We were only reinforcements after all.

On top of that, I wasn’t very knowledgeable about this world.

There was still a lot more I needed to learn.

I had heard most of what I needed to know from Lucia, but there was a lot that she did not know herself.

Especially about this world being destroyed tomorrow.

It was going to be necessary for me to ask Rin about those matters in particular.

In fact, it was right when she was explaining such things to me that the enemy had launched the attack.

For now, I better return to Rin through the teleport gate…

I was about to turn on my heels when something made me stop.

Arisu was surrounded by several soldiers.

It did not look threatening.

If anything, it was the opposite.

The soldiers were on their knees before Arisu, they bowed their heads with a mystical reverence.

“O Saint, please, I beg of you. Please help our comrade.”

“Oh, uh, um.”

Arisu looked towards me with a troubled expression.

Well, I’m not going to be much help…

“She brought someone back from the dead. It’s no wonder that they would worship her.”

Lucia said as she stood next to me.

Ah. That was true.

She’s performed genuine miracles.

Though to be precise, the soldier that Arisu had helped was only close to death.

She could not have brought a completely dead body back to life.

I learned this at the Q&A in the white room after I defeated my first orc.

Even then, such a sight could only look like the work of God to the people of this world, as they did not live with the skill system.

The soldiers were starting to call Arisu ‘Servant of God’ and ‘The Saint’.

She was a young girl who performed a miracle, and this was a world where God really did exist.

It really was no surprise that she would be worshipped then.

“I’m sure there are many who were dealt grave wounds in this battle. The citizens of light have their own restorative magic, but Arisu’s magic is a cut above the rest.”

Lucia added.

“But isn’t she still rank 5?”

“The sight you are seeing now is the answer.”

From what I’ve heard, the capabilities of the sorcerers of the citizens of light were around rank 3 at best.

Well, she would look pretty good then.

I switched my mode of thinking.

It would not be a bad thing to show our devotion here.

“Arisu, can I leave the healing of the wounded to your care?”

“Ye- yes! Thank you, Kazu!”

Why was she thanking me?

Ahh, I see.

She very much wanted to heal the wounded soldiers.

However, the MP was our shared asset, so she couldn’t say anything.

But the fight was over, it didn’t even matter.

In any case… We would be quite free while Arisu tended to the men.

“Mm. Kazucchi, why don’t the two of us go and see Rinnchi?”

“Ah, we could do that. Why not.’

By the way, there is a healing magic called ‘flame heal’ in rank 5 fire magic.

That meant that Lucia could use healing spells.

However, it was quite inefficient compared to normal healing magic.

Furthermore, Lucia’s MP was almost empty.

And if I was going to go hear what Rin had to say, then I very much wanted Lucia to be there as well.

As a resident of this world, she would be very useful as someone who could explain things or butt in with her jokes.

“Well, Tamaki. I’m sorry, but would you mind staying and guarding Arisu?”

“Huh, do you mean it? But Kazu, won’t that mean you only have the rearguard?”

Ah, right.

Wait, no.

The fight was over anyway.

“I don’t think there is any danger left for us…probably.”

“Mmmm, I suppose so. It’s probably more dangerous for us that stay here…”

“It’s settled then. Tamaki, take good care of Arisu.”

Tamaki’s eyes shone. ‘Leave it to me! I am capable of anything when I put my mind to it!” she said as she puffed out her chest.

Alright then.

There was something about her when she was confident that made me very, very worried…

No, everything would surely be fine this time.

This guard thing was just a formality. Arisu was likely to use healing magic without reserve if she were left alone to her own devices.

All the boss rank monsters on the enemies side had been killed.

The remaining monsters in this land were not our enemy…supposedly.

But thinking such things was like raising a flag. That was such a Mia thing to think.

They were child’s play.

There was no way they were strong enough to pose a threat to Arisu and the others.

“Bye Arisu. You take care of things here.”

“Yes, Kazu!”

She nodded energetically as she was lead away by the soldiers and towards the wounded men.

She sure was happy, in spite of the battle that just transpired.

Perhaps it was due to being level 23.

It must be.

I too have been fighting a vicious battle since the morning, yet I don’t feel that tired.

“Hey, you guys. I will escort you. The teleport gate is this way.”

A different soldier said as he proceeded to act as our guide.

Wait a second, this is the guy Arisu brought back a moment ago.

Ah, well, I was still thankful that someone was guiding us.

“Oh, I guess I haven’t introduced myself yet. I’m Haganran Nagaraga from the Hagusa clan. You can call me Hagan.”

“Much obliged, Hagan.”

I offered my hand but he looked confused.

Ah, they had no tradition of handshaking here.

Lucia had been confused as well, now that I think of it.

“In our clans, we shake each other’s hand as a sign of friendship and trust.”

“I see. You give them your hand instead of your weapons then. That is a good tradition.”

I shook hands with Hagan.

His hand was very rough and strong.

The fearless man gave a jolly laugh.

He’s probably a good guy. I think.

Though we met under the worst conditions.

“Well then, show us the way, Hagan.”

Hagan nodded with a hardy “Aye.”

※

Mia cast ‘fly’ on everyone and we all rose into the sky.

Even Hagan was balancing himself artfully.

We made a straight line towards the teleportation gate.

As we were flying, Lucia’s stomach did a cute little growl.

Oh, my.

Come to think of it, the rest of us had eaten a feast before we warped to where Rin was, but Lucia looked like she hadn’t eaten yet.

“Want to eat this?”

Mia took a Snickers bar from her rucksack and opened it before handing it to her.

The strong smell of chocolate wafted around us.

Lucia looked at it dumbly.

Hagan was flying in front of us, his dog ears were twitching.

Ahh, really now, I suppose I had no choice then.

I took out my own Snickers bar from my rucksack and handed it to Hagan.

“Please try it, consider it a poison tasting for Lucia.”

“Oh, oh. Well, if it’s a poison tasting than I have no choice then.”

Hagan bit into the chocolate bar.

He ate it so enthusiastically that the stubble around his mouth had pieces of chocolate stuck all over it.

Seeing this, Lucia cautiously bit into her own Snickers bar that she was holding.

“It’s…sweet.”

“It really fills you up. I brought it as a field ration.”

“I see, it seems that you have some amazing preserved foods in your world.”

It wasn’t exactly the best feeling to receive such high praise for this kind of junk food…

But as I watched Lucia ravenously devour the snack, chocolate covering her cheeks, I was able to make peace with it.

Lucia noticed that I and Mia had been staring at her, and her cheeks turned bright red. Her mouth was still full of chocolate when she turned her head down in shame.

“I am sorry. That was very vulgar of me.”

“But this is a battlefield, and you’re a soldier. I don’t think you need to worry about such things.”

“Is it that simple, I wonder.”

I looked over to Hagan and pointed.

The man who was practically the poster child of a rough-cut soldier was licking the chocolate off his fingers and the candy wrapper. He looked quite delighted as his dog ears wiggled.

“That was great! Do you have another one?”

“See. You should be avaricious like him.”

I said with a laugh and handed over a second chocolate bar to Hagan.

Lucia laughed shyly.

“I’m quite full from this one bar.”

“Mmm. You’re fuel efficient.”

Fuel efficient? The elf princess cocked her head to the side.

Ahh, this is a world where cars don’t even exist. I’m not really sure how to translate it.

“It’s like the destruction efficiency for a given amount of MP. In other words, a small meal.”

“I understand. It’s like a horse that runs off a small meal.”

She understood the nuance with this simple conversation.

I didn’t know if translation magic was just that great or what.

Most likely it was just that Lucia was quick to catch on to things.

“Hands, sticky, sticky. Kazucchi, water, pour. Wet the handkerchief. We should wash for them.”

“Ah, right.”

“Kazucchi, you should lick the chocolate off of Lucia’s cheek as well.”

“No, we won’t be doing that.”

I gave both Lucia and Hagan a wet cloth and had them wipe away the mess from their mouths. After that, we finally reached the tree where the teleport gate was.

Perhaps it was camouflage, but there was no bridge plate or ladder around. Only a giant tree.

However, the ground surrounding the tree was hardened from being trodden over.

Even the grass had been stepped on, you could see the soil underneath.

As it were, the camouflage was not very effective…well, it was fine I suppose.

According to Hagan, usually you were supposed to make a signal and a rope ladder would fall from the top of the tree.

But we were flying this time, so that didn’t have much to do with us.

We slowly descended from above and landed in the branches of the tree.

A guard who was on watch saw us and pointed his spear in surprise.

The citizen of light watcher looked at us with a nervous expression and asked us what we were doing.

“Now, wait a minute. We are not on the pacifist side. The sorcerer behind me is an ally accepted by Rin herself.”

Hagan stepped forward and tried to explain the situation to the nervous soldiers.

But wait a second…what did he mean by pacifist side?

“The pacifists are traitors to the human race. They claim to want coexistence with the monsters, yet they attack as terrorists.”

Lucia explained briskly.

I suppose the question had been written on my face.

Even so… Coexistence with the monsters, I didn’t quite understand it.

I don’t even think it’s possible…to talk with them.

Was this group like a religion?

“Hmm. The coexistence side, the fifth generation…”

Mia was mumbling something to herself.

I think I will ignore it.

“In any case, you mean that such groups exist. That our enemies are not just the monsters.”

“Yes.”

“If being completely uncautious of them is bad, you really could have told me sooner.”

“Well, actually,” Lucia says.

“These pacifists exist in any country. Embarrassingly, I have heard that they exist in my own country as well. For us, the existence of these pacifist groups was common knowledge…”

Ah, right.

I suppose they could not have guessed that we outsiders would not have known about them.

As an example, it would be like if a northerner came to Tokyo and hadn’t thought at all about the mosquitoes and cockroaches…I think.

…Well, that was a questionable example.

Though, I did not think that we were in any danger, currently, anyway.

The four of use entered into the magic circle.

A sorcerer who was amongst the soldiers began to sing the enchantment.

For some reason, I would always think of the national anthem when I hear thing song.

I feel a dizzying sensation, and at the same time, we disappeared and reappeared in the hollow of a different tree.

I can hear a song that sounds like the ringing of a bell.

It is the barrier magic that the world tree sings.

We had all returned to the base of the world tree.

We listened to that music as it echoed around us as we crossed the bridge that leads to the top of the tree.

And once again, we warp from a different teleport gate.

The next destination was also a familiar spot.

We stepped out of the hollow of the tree.

The sight of the treetop village where Rin was spread out before us.

“Well, you shouldn’t need me as a guide anymore then.”

“Thank you, Hagan.”

“No, thank you. You’ve done a lot for me.”

We shook hands once again before crossing the bridge and parted with smiles on our faces.

Hagan said “Later then.” and turned his back to us and walked towards a different bridge.

In the next instant.

Numerous spears landed in Hagan’s body.

The man who had been smiling a second ago was killed in the blink of an eye.

“Ah…what?”

I let out a dumb exclamation.

I frantically turned my gaze towards the direction where the spears had flown from.

A lone man was standing there.

He was smiling with an expression full of malice. He was an eerie looking man with cat ears.

There were over a hundred spears floating around him.

Uh…what was.

What did…

For a moment, I was not able to think.

“It’s the pacifists!”

Lucia dashed forward, she pulled the bone whip from her belt as she charged straight at the man.

The staff-like weapon curved like a whip.

The eerie looking man hurled a dozen spears in Lucia’s direction.

Lucia stopped.

She planted her feet in front of us as we all stood there in shock.

“Bright Shield.”

A shield made of billowing flames materialized in front of Lucia.

The spears rammed into the shield of fire and melted away.

Wait, what… Were the spears that the man had been using all made of magic to begin with?

The shield of flame disappeared.

The man’s eyes had widened in shock.

While I and Mia were still unable to move, Lucia went in for the attack.

She swung her bone whip, it wrapped around the man’s neck. She pulled.

The man was pulled towards the ground, at the same time he sent all of the remaining spears towards…

His own body.

“Lucia, look out!”

A few of the spears were headed for Lucia who was close by.

Lucia threw down her bone whip and frantically tried to get out of the way.

She probably hadn’t killed him with magic because she wanted to take him in alive…

But her efforts had not been rewarded.

Pierced by his own spears, the man who had attacked us fell dead in an instant.

Blood ran from all over his entire body like waterfalls, his body fell limp.

I looked once again at the fallen Hagan.

Without Arisu, we could not save him this time.

For that magic, it was necessary to act within at least 10 seconds of the mortal wound being inflicted.

“What…what was that. What the hell was that!”

“That is a pacifist.”

Lucia answered cooly as I began to yell in agitation.