Pitch-Black Space

Around the time the midday sunlight shone over the countryside.

A gigantic cube appeared near the Royal Capital.

Each side was several hundred meters long, and its color was pitch-black. It was as if darkness had solidified.

Here and there, I could see farmers and knights standing near the cube and discussing something.

I brought Liricia with me and came over near the cube as well.

A vertical wall so tall I had to look up at it.

The boundary with the field had been cut away cleanly.

“What the hell is this…?”

“This is my first time seeing it, but I feel some kind of ominous power from it.”

Liricia was glaring at the cube’s wall with a wrinkle between her brows.

I slowly reached out my hand.

I timidly touched it with my fingertip, but nothing happened. There was only a hard sensation, like rock.

“It’s safe to touch… Looks like Edgar and the others are inside this thing.”

“I heard that the children were exterminating boars that were ravaging the fields, so they must surely be together.”

I drew my sword and struck the black wall.

It only made a hard clacking sound, and not even a single scratch appeared on the wall.

Next, I held my sword at my waist and thrust with all my strength.

“Haaah!”

Clang!

A loud sound rang out, but there was no change in the wall.

“Even though some evil power is involved, my Holy Wave doesn’t work on it…?”

“Kou-chan may know something.”

“Let’s ask.”

I took out my sub-device and held it to my ear.

“Kou, I came near the black cube, but all I can tell is that it gives off an evil presence. I have no idea what it is. Even if I hit it, it doesn’t get scratched at all.”

“Oh-ho. Could you record a video of yourself hitting it and send it to me?”

“A video… Liricia, can you do that?”

I moved the sub-device away from my ear and asked her.

Liricia took out her own sub-device and pointed it at the cube.

“Yes, I shall try. I am recording now, so please strike it.”

“Got it.”

I struck the black wall with my sword. It made a hard, metallic sound.

Liricia operated her sub-device with a serious expression, then looked up.

“I sent it to Kou-chan.”

Kou’s voice came from the sub-device.

“Oh. This does not seem to be physical hardness? It is the hardness of severed space?”

“What does that mean?”

“I believe the inside of this black cube has become a subspace. To put it simply, it is another world. It’s a small world~”

“Why would something like that be next to the Royal Capital? Is it my fault?”

“Master does not seem to be involved?”

Liricia, who was beside me, let out a gasp.

“The Demon King-san came here, did he not!? Could he have done something?”

“That guy! —But what’s the purpose of this? Is something going to come out from inside? Or…”

“I have absolutely no idea.”

“If even Kou doesn’t know, then we’re out of options. Is there a way to get the people inside out? Like connecting it with a dungeon?”

“Hmm, even if I try to set it up, I cannot. It is like I do not know the coordinates or IP address. It seems bug-like.”

“Then does that mean the people inside can never be rescued?”

“That would be the case. To begin with, I do not even know what it is like inside. There might not even be water or air.”

“…Don’t say something that scary. Let’s pray they’re alive.”

I ended the call.

Liricia, who had been listening beside me, lowered the corners of her brows sadly.

“What shall we do? It seems that besides Edgar’s squad, several farmers and adventurers have also been trapped.”

“This is a problem. Is there anything we can do… Maybe we should ask Rubel or Mackybell.”

“Cordelia-san the witch may know something.”

“Ah, right. That old lady probably knows all kinds of things. Good, let’s head back once.”

“Yes!”

Liricia and I headed toward the Royal Capital along the path between the fields.

Because we were trotting, Liricia’s long silver hair streamed behind her and glittered.

Meanwhile.

Inside the subspace.

Under the purple sky, black shadows shaped like wolf-like beasts were moving around. They targeted prey and attacked.

The ones the beasts were targeting were the children of Edgar’s squad. They were desperately fighting under a great tree.

Mok, the boy with glasses, shouted while drawing his bow.

“Everyone! Watch your left and right so you don’t get surrounded! Chaana, keep your back to the great tree and absolutely don’t move away!”

“Yesh! —Waaah, what is this place?!”

The small healer girl cast healing magic beside the great tree with tears in her eyes.

Yuma, the evasive swordsman boy, moved lightly while swinging his knife.

With a sharp strike, he cut off one of the beast’s legs, but it regenerated immediately.

While twisting away from the beast’s fangs, Yuma clicked his tongue.

“No good. We need more power.”

“Move, move! —Hyaaah!”

Keely, the boy warrior, used Advance and slammed down his long-handled axe with all his might.

Slam!

A loud sound rang out, and the shadow beast vanished like smoke.

Mok shouted, his glasses glinting.

“Only Keely’s attacks can defeat them! Everyone else, focus on holding them back! Aim for their legs!”

“““Got it!”””

Yuma, Keely, and Seema the ranger answered in unison.

The children fought the shadow beasts with all their might.

However, the beasts were gathering faster than they could defeat them.

Even in that hopeless situation, the children gritted their teeth and continued fighting.

Believing that Captain Edgar would come.

—However, the battle did not continue for long.

Because they were focused on the shadow beasts that had multiplied around them, they did not notice the shadow beast moving along the branches above the great tree.

A bear-sized shadow swung its claws as it leaped down at the girl Chaana.

Yuma, who had been facing ten enemies at once, shouted.

“Chaana, watch out!”

“Huh? —Nooo!”

Chaana screamed, crouched down, and covered her head with both hands.

Mok and Seema, who were nearby, gasped and turned around. They tried to attack the shadow bear, but they would not make it in time.

“Run, Chaana!”

If they lost the healer, the cornerstone of the party, it would be over.

Mok knew he would not make it in time, but even so, with a desperate expression, he ran toward her, trying to shield her with his own body—

At that moment, a dignified voice thundered.

“Fire Release—Blazing Downpour Technique.”

Crimson masses of flame poured down as countless raindrops.

Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble!

The rain of fire blew away the gigantic bear shadow and dozens of shadows around the great tree.

The children looked up with tears in their eyes.

Edgar was standing at the top of the tree next to the great tree where the children were.

When he released the signs he had formed with both hands, a light of relief appeared in his black eyes hidden beneath his messy hair.

“You’re all safe. You did well.”

“Captain!”

“Captain Edgar!”

“Edgar-san!”

“Waaah! Captain!”

When Edgar landed on the ground with a single kick, the children rushed over to him.

The smallest of them, Chaana in particular, threw herself at him with her momentum and hugged him while crying.

Mok asked with a serious expression.

“Captain Edgar, where are we?”

“Sorry, I don’t really know. It seems like some kind of magic or ritual, though…”

“Do you think we can escape?”

“No, it continues on forever. We’ll have to observe the situation for a while.”

“No way…”

The children’s faces darkened, and they fell silent.

However, Edgar showed his white teeth with a smile and spoke in a bright voice to encourage them.

“For now, this place is dangerous, so we’re moving somewhere a little easier to defend.”

“““Yes!”””

After that, under Edgar’s guidance, they walked through the forest.

Leaves as red as blood were piled on the ground.

After a while, they came to a place where large rocks, each as big as a hut, were piled up.

Edgar said,

“Everyone, hide here. With the rock walls and roof, it should be easy to defend in a trapezoid formation, right?”

“Yes—but where are you going, Captain?”

“There’s a seriously dangerous one out there, so I’m going to check on it.”

“Huh? An opponent you can’t beat, Captain…?”

At Mok’s question, Edgar showed his white teeth with a smile but did not answer.

Chaana tightly grabbed Edgar’s clothes with her small hand.

“Captain, are you going away…?”

Edgar patted Chaana on the head to comfort her.

“If I don’t figure out how dangerous it is, our response will be delayed. It’s okay. I’ll definitely come back.”

“Captain…”

Edgar looked at Mok and Yuma.

“It would be nice if we could contact the outside… Endure for one hour.”

“Understood.” “We’ll do it.”

“All right, do your best.”

Edgar gently removed Chaana’s hand, then vanished from the spot with a single kick.

All that remained was the eerie forest and the purple sky.

The children stared blankly at the place where Edgar had disappeared.

However, Mok clapped his hands and urged everyone on.

“Now, let’s fix our formation. After that, we’ll each rest for five minutes in turns.”

“““Yes!”””

The children obediently followed his instructions, took up their respective positions, and rested in turns.