“Lady Diz. The knight brigade is preparing for departure as well. However…”
Kona, who had just stepped down from the carriage, bowed her head apologetically toward Diz. Diz shook his head, saying, “I know.”
“It’s not going to make it in time, right? That’s fine. Just make sure the preparations are done in a way that’s visible.”
“The necromancers are watching?”
“They probably have something like 【Far Sight】. That’s why we’re acting as decoys.”
“Understood. I’ll relay that to the troops… but…”
Kona’s gaze shifted to the darkness outside the city-state where Ur and the others were about to make their move.
“Can we… really do this?”
“Can’t see a thing, huh?”
Shizuku agreed with Kona’s somewhat apprehensive voice. Ur felt the same. Compared to the area around the island devouring turtle, which was lit up for reconstruction work, the outside was enveloped in complete darkness.
“I knew it… Diz, are we really going to make it?”
“We’ll make it.”
Diz answered immediately, walking over to Dal and Sul, the horses pulling the carriage, and gently stroked their necks.
“From here, head northeast to the base of the mountain range. The old fortress. Can you make it?”
At their master’s command, the horses let out strong, short whinnies. It was a confident sound.
“These two can see perfectly fine even in the darkest night. No need for reins. Trust them.”
Hearing this, Ur looked at the black horse, Dal, who glared back at him. There was pride and confidence in his eyes about his work. Regardless of the fact that he was a horse, Ur nodded at the trustworthy look in his eyes.
“They’ve even carried us to the island devouring turtle. I’m not worried about their abilities.”
“Thank you… but you’ll need to brace yourselves a bit.”
“…Brace ourselves?”
At the slightly ominous words, Ur frowned.
“I don’t want to take too much time. I’m planning to have Dal and Sul go full speed. Outside the city-state, beyond the human survival zone.”
“Meaning?”
“It’s going to be really bumpy.”
Ur and Shizuku exchanged glances. Akane’s carefree voice rang out in the dark night. [Sounds fun!]
What happened during the journey?
To put it simply, Dal and Sul were not just exceptional horses—they were monstrous. The moment they began to gallop through the dark night, their muscles bulged, horns sprouted from their foreheads, and their neighs echoed under the starry sky.
The sheer pressure they exuded kept any monsters at bay. The two horses ran in perfect unison, tearing across the plains at a speed that left everything behind, pulling the carriage along.
“My tongue…!? Moga!?”
“Sir Ur, I’m sorry. I’m going to climb on top.”
“Hmm, I guess four people at this speed was a bit too much.”
“Ahahahaha!”
Inside the violently shaking carriage, the four of them ended up in a tangled mess.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
Forest near Canaan Fortress, north of the satellite city-state Alto.
In the distance, the light of the barrier surrounding Canaan Fortress was clearly visible. They were still a considerable distance away, but they had chosen this spot to avoid being detected if they ventured any closer. Having successfully reached their destination, Ur jumped out of the carriage pulled by Dal and Sul.
“Ugh… eugh…”
He immediately collapsed onto the ground, his face pale and exhausted.
“Are you alright, Sir Ur?”
“Nii-tan’s gonna die~”
“Quit messing around, little sister, just because you can fly…”
At any rate, it seemed they had managed to reach their destination without being noticed.
Using the magical lanterns they had brought, Ur let out a sigh of relief as they illuminated the surroundings.
“Alright, sorry, but you’ll have to wait here, okay?”
Diz gave gentle instructions to Dal and Sul. Despite the way they had been teasing Ur just moments ago, Dal now nuzzled up to Diz, as docile as could be. Sul did the same. Ur was amazed at how intelligent they were.
“By the way, is it really okay to leave them here? If monsters come—”
“If necessary, these two can escape on their own. It’ll be fine.”
“I see.”
“Well, if it’s just small monsters, they’ll stomp them to death and that’ll be the end of it.”
“Scary.”
At any rate, it seemed there was no issue. Ur and the others proceeded onward. They extinguished the magical lanterns and relied on natural light to guide their way, but the starlight alone made it incredibly dark, so caution was necessary.
[Keep up, everyone~]
“Lady Akane is a bit bright, isn’t she?”
In the midst of this, Akane, who was freely flying through the air while guiding them, was quite helpful.
But aside from visibility, the condition of the ground was also bad. They had to step over tree roots that seemed to deliberately entangle their feet.
“Ugh, again?”
Ur frowned as his foot was caught by a tree root. It was as if the roots were intentionally trying to trip him—
[────ｚ]
“…!?”
It wasn’t just as if—the roots were actually moving, trying to ensnare him.
“Monsters!?”
The moment Ur leaped back, the tree root that had tried to grab his ankle writhed in the air, having missed its target. In the darkness where he could barely see his own feet, the sudden attack sent a chill down Ur’s spine.
But this was no time to be shocked. Ur and the others’ duty was to protect.
“Diz!”
“Lady Diz!”
Ur and Shizuku simultaneously called out a warning to Diz, who was ahead of them.
[ｚ………………]
“Akane, your transformation is slow.”
[Diz is too fast~]
But by then, Diz was already there, having literally bisected the evil spirit tree treant that had attacked. As the tree monster let out its dying scream and collapsed, Diz complained to Akane.
By the time Ur and the others had noticed and prepared themselves, the fight was already over.
“As someone with 【Spirit Possession】, you don’t need training. It’s a matter of instinct. Do your best.”
[Muuu~]
Akane, still in the form of a sword, wriggled. Ur turned his gaze to Diz.
“…I knew it, but you’re really strong.”
“I’m not that impressive.”
“Are you being sarcastic?”
If that’s the case, then Shizuku was nothing but scraps, and Ur was even less. But Diz shook his head.
“Really. I’m not that powerful. Even now.”
Diz’s profile, illuminated by the magical lantern at his waist, wore a troubled expression.
“There are people far more incredible, and threats far greater. No amount of effort could ever catch up… That’s why I want Akane to do her best.”
[Muuu~]
“…Either way, as a guard, I’m feeling pretty useless.”
“Then let’s give you a job. They’re coming again.”
At Diz’s warning, Ur and Shizuku braced themselves once more. Just like before, they could feel multiple presences and malice directed at them from the ground and the darkness ahead. At the same time, Ur struck down a tree root that flew at him with his spear.
” 【Evil Spirit Tree Treant】— It seems this area is their habitat.”
“Annoying!!”
[ｚ……!]
These creatures, which disguised themselves as trees and ensnared their prey with roots, were essentially carnivorous plants. However, if you weren’t caught off guard, they weren’t much of a threat. They didn’t have the strength their appearance suggested, and with a single swing of Ur’s dragon fang spear, they were easily shattered.
The troublesome part was that they blended in with the other trees, making it hard to tell how many enemies there were. And on top of that, bat-like monsters were also flying around. They had to deal with them quickly.
[ｋｙｙｙｙ!!]
“So this is where the necromancers have set up their base…!”
“Three coming from above!”
“…Just as expected.”
Facing attacks from both the ground and above, Ur and Shizuku swung their weapons at the writhing shadows, while Diz calmly dealt with whatever approached. They steadily reduced the number of monsters. Then,
[ｋｙｙｙｙｙ!!]
“One of the giant bats is escaping.”
Perhaps sensing the disadvantage, one of the remaining giant bats flew away. While it was better for them to escape to conserve energy, giant bats were pack creatures. There was a chance it would return with reinforcements. Letting it escape wasn’t a good idea.
“Can I hit it…!?”
Ur strained his eyes, which were starting to adjust to the darkness, to track the panicked giant bat as it flew away. With the 【Hawk’s Talon】 he had bought from the Golden Hammer equipped on his right hand, he grabbed a stone from the ground. As Lenden had said, the Hawk’s Talon firmly grasped the jagged stone.
There was no issue with its function. So if there was a problem, it was—
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