Chapter 8: Various Intentions
Several days had passed since the departure of the heavyweights. Stroman was running through the village after being called by the guards at the south gate. The sun had already begun to set, and the time was transitioning from evening to night.
When Stroman arrived at the south gate, one of the guards was talking to three individuals who appeared to be adventurers.
“What’s going on?”
“Ah, Stroman-san. They seem to be adventurers.”
“Hmm… What business do they have in such a remote village?”
As Stroman inquired, the man who seemed to be the leader of the adventurers removed his hood. Underneath the hood was a fair-skinned face so well-proportioned that one could easily mistake him for a woman. However, his sharp eyes gave off the aura of a seasoned warrior. The ears protruding from the sides of his hair were a distinctive feature of the Elvish people.
“Well, it was farther than I thought. No big deal. We’re just here to level up.”
“This town has nothing to offer for a stay, you know? There’s not even an inn, let alone a restaurant.”
“Oh? But this is Doodle Valley, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“We heard it’s a good place for leveling up. We’re not planning to stay in the town anyway.”
“…Alright. The other two, remove your hoods as well.”
At his words, the two behind him also removed their hoods. Stroman stared intently at the three of them.
“The Divine Registry doesn’t have any colors, right?”
The Divine Registry doesn’t need to be tampered with; if someone commits evil deeds and accumulates karma, it gradually turns black. However, it’s unusual to be asked for the Divine Registry just to pass through a village gate, unless it’s at a national border. The Elvish man looked back at Stroman with a curious expression.
“The Divine Registry? Did something happen?”
Stroman responded hastily to the Elvish man’s words.
“No, it’s just that adventurers sometimes cause trouble.”
“Don’t worry. We’re as clean as a whistle.”
“Really? Well, that’s fine then.”
“You’re quite cautious. Did something happen? We’re just here to level up.”
“…No, nothing’s wrong. This is a frontline town against monsters, so all sorts of people gather here.”
“Hmm… Well, we’re just here to level up. You can trust us on that.”
With that, the three of them entered the town. It’s true that adventurers do come here to level up. Stroman felt relieved that the heavyweights weren’t around.
The three men set up a tent in the town square. A small man who was stacking firewood on the cobblestones spoke to the Elvish man.
“Bryan, what do you think?”
“I think we’ve hit the jackpot.”
“I thought so too. They’re way too cautious. Now, we just need to find our target.”
“Well, there’s no rush. We can take our time leveling up while narrowing it down.”
The square, which must have once been bustling with people, was now almost deserted. Even in such a lonely square, being inside the city walls allowed them to relax. Under a tarp-like tent, they lit a fire and slowly enjoyed a warm meal. That alone was enough.
The news of the adventurers coming to level up quickly reached Kimijima and her group. They were told to be cautious just in case something happened.
The next day, when the three of them went to the outpost, they noticed three unfamiliar men talking at the counter where monster materials were being processed. Sakuragi got excited when she saw the man who seemed to be the leader.
“Takatou-kun, look! An elf!”
“Huh? Oh, he’s not an elf, he’s Elvish, right?”
“Yeah, but he’s really handsome, isn’t he?”
As Sakuragi said, the Elvish man had fair skin and narrow eyes, looking like a handsome actor straight out of a movie. Sakuragi squealed with delight, while Nishina responded with a slightly annoyed tone.
“But he might be targeting Sensei, you know? He could be a bad guy.”
“Someone that handsome? I wonder…”
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This village didn’t have an adventurers’ guild branch, so adventurers had to check at the state military outpost to see if they could sell their monster materials.
Meanwhile, Kimijima and her group had come to the outpost to meet with Spells and Mainui. The Elvish man, Bryan, noticed them and approached with a curious expression.
“Huh? Why are kids like you in a place like this?”
Nishina, who was addressed, flusteredly replied.
“Uh, we’re not kids. We’re state military.”
“…State military? Oh, how brave.”
Bryan smirked, amused by Nishina’s determined demeanor. Just as Nishina was about to retort, Spells and Mainui emerged from the office.
“Sorry to keep you waiting… Huh? Who are you?”
Spells looked at Bryan, who had been talking to Nishina, with a puzzled expression. Bryan, upon seeing Spells’s face, showed a look of surprise.
“What… Why is a sage here…?”
“Oh, you know me. So you’re adventurers from the Federation? Doodle Valley is part of the Federation, so it’s not strange for a Federation sage to be here, right?”
“Well, it is strange. Why would the nation’s brain be in such a rural area?”
“There’s a talented individual who recently transferred here, and we’re here to level up.”
Then, a man behind Bryan couldn’t help but mutter.
“A talented individual who transferred… Could it be a Celestial?”
Bryan hurriedly tried to stop him, but Spells overheard.
“What’s that? Are you after a Celestial?”
“N-no, we’re here to level up.”
“Hmm… Well, let’s leave it at that.”
“That’s what it is.”
“Ho ho ho. Well, it’s fine. In any case, they’re not in the village. Let’s head out.”
Spells replied meaningfully to Bryan and his group, then called out to Kimijima and her friends and left the outpost. Bryan watched them for a while before soon leaving the outpost himself.
As Spells and his group were preparing at the gate, Bryan and his two companions approached again. They were also heading out of the village to level up, so it was natural, but seeing Spells preparing a beast-drawn cart with the state soldiers, they came closer.
“Can we hitch a ride part of the way?”
“Hmm… If there’s room on the cargo cart, I suppose.”
Spells checked, and it seemed they could accommodate three more people. Bryan and his group boarded the cart loaded with maintenance tools and accompanied them to the road maintenance site.
“Hey, Spells-san. Are those kids really that promising?”
Bryan asked casually as the cart rocked along.
“Well, yes. Saint’s Crown. Does that ring a bell?”
“No way! Who is it? That guy?”
“That’s a secret. But if it’s Saint’s Crown, they have a high chance of reaching Celestial rank. You understand, right?”
“…I see. That’s why a sage is here.”
Bryan was also an adventurer from the Federation. The Federation had fewer Celestials compared to other nations, and they were eager to have even one more. Spells, on the other hand, had his own reasons for being here, aiming to hide Shigeto’s existence.
“So, you’re also here to level up in the backcountry. You must be pretty capable, huh?”
“Yeah. Trident. You’ve heard of it, right?”
“Oh. So you’re Dual Swords Elegance.”
“Wow, it’s an honor to be recognized by the sage.”
When they arrived at the road maintenance site, everyone got off the carts. Seeing Bryan and his group head further into the hinterlands, Spells and his group also began their leveling up.
About two weeks had passed since Shigeto and Regress headed into the hinterlands to level up.
Slowly but surely, the three of them had raised their rank by one more level, reaching the fifth tier. Sakuragi, in particular, had already entered the four-digit rankings, showcasing the power of Seitai the Saint’s Crown.
“Senpai! Don’t worry. Reg-san is with them!”
“I know… But I’m still worried.”
“Could it be that you’re worried about Miree-san?”
“Hey! Stop it. Sensei is fine.”
“Hehe. Sensei is the picture of seriousness. He wouldn’t fool around.”
“Misaki-chan!”
While Kimijima and Sakuragi were talking during dinner, Nishina was busy devouring a second helping of meat.
“By the way, Takatou-kun, aren’t you eating too much?”
“Huh? What about you, Sakuragi? You need to eat to build stamina.”
“Ah. Mages don’t need that much stamina.”
“Even so, you’re doing close combat training, right?”
“Well, yeah. But I don’t want to get too muscular.”
Close combat training was handled by Mainui, but there were only two close combat specialists, Kimijima and Nishina. Mainui didn’t like training them simultaneously, so she alternated between them daily.
Mainui was a straightforward soldier who had ingrained a self-driven training regimen. Naturally, her special training was intense and rigorous. But even so, the two never complained and endured it, gradually improving their base physical abilities.
There was a mine in the direction of the mountains from Gallarblue. The state soldiers had heard rumors that the monster parade might have originated from here.
Regress casually confirmed it.
“Yes, this is the source. This is where you can find the freshest monsters to feast on.”
Just who was Regress, really? It was pointless to ponder over something that couldn’t be understood, but even Miree was amazed by how much he knew. He was truly a mysterious man.
We had arrived at the Gallarblue mine. While hunting monsters, we had quickly made our way to Gallarblue. Genuin, who had been hiding his true strength until now, moved at an incredible speed. The journey that had been so difficult for Kimijima and me to escape from was completed in just a few days. Moreover, being with high-level monsters meant we were rarely attacked at night.
My Iaido, which required concentrating all my abilities, had the drawback of rapidly depleting my mana. To address this, Regress produced a ring and a necklace.
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