Chapter 118

Day 30.

The road to the Sanctuary grew more grueling with each passing day.

Despite that, the party managed to push on without a single straggler or serious injury. It was only possible because the members—already elite in their own right—performed their given roles to the absolute limit.

First off, the fact that we still looked like human beings and not ragged beggars was entirely thanks to Ailet.

Even though she was a Combat Mage, she was as skilled in lifestyle magic as any Study Mage. She supported the group by handling everything from meals and sleeping arrangements to even repairing our clothes.

“Lunch today is bear meat garlic stew. I’ve completely neutralized the gamey smell, so you can look forward to it.”

“…Mom.”

“…Elizabeth. If you call me by that title one more time, one of us—either you or me—will have to vanish from this world tomorrow.”

“Yes, unnie.”

“…Sigh, seriously.”

“More importantly, Elizabeth. What do you think of what I foraged? This noble purple mushroom! These ruby-like, translucent red fruits! These delicious-looking yellow root vegetables! Don’t you think they’d be great in the stew?”

“Wasn’t it Snoopy who brought those, not you? I imagine you were just lying on his back while he worked hard, barking orders at him to do this or that.”

“What! What do you take me for? So? What’s the appraisal? Are they edible?”

“They’re magnificent.”

“I knew it!”

“Yes. It’s magnificent how you managed to pick only the things that are completely inedible. A few of these are poisonous herbs that are hard to find even if you’re looking for them. Truly impressive.”

“…Hey. Snoopy. I’m sure I told you to find things I could eat.”

At those words, the Twin-Horned Wolf (Snoopy) cowered with a look of ultimate betrayal.
The beast began to scratch words into the dirt with his paw.

-Unfair. Master. By my standards, these are definitely edible.

“No, Elizabeth said humans can’t eat them! You should’ve found stuff people can eat, not monster food!”

“Stop bullying the poor puppy and do the foraging yourself next time. He who does not work, shall not eat. Your salt and spice allocation for today is halved.”

“Ugh… I can deal with the salt, but without spices, the jerky stinks.”

“Do I look like I care? Besides, you were supposedly just rolling around on the wolf’s back, so why are your clothes in this state? The side is ripped. And you’re covered in dirt…”

“Huh? You’re right. Why? I don’t know.”

“Tsk, tsk… Come here. Clean (4th Level).”

“Ooh…”

“Take off your top. Clothform (5th Level).”

“Ooooh…!”

“There, done. We don’t have many spare outfits, so stop acting like such a tomboy and try to be careful with what you wear.”

“I love you… Mo-o-ommy…!”

“…I’m going to kill you.”

Next, the reason we could still cover nearly ten kilometers a day despite the increasing number of monsters near the Sanctuary was entirely due to Elizabeth’s—or more accurately, Snoopy’s—scouting.

By now, the wolf was a veteran at scouting Demon Territories. Even without specific instructions, he pointed out exactly what we needed to see and had reached a level where he could offer his own opinions.

-This sea of trees. Strong scent of monsters.

“How many?”

-A lot.

He growled low, pointing to a section of the map with his soft paw pad.

-Especially here, this part. It’s tingling. 10-star. Maybe 11-star.

“That means it’s a Special Class. Should we detour? Avoiding the forest will cost us more than five extra days.”

“We have our Orabeoni. Isn’t an 11-star winnable for him?”

“He said the monster density is high even besides that one. Once a fight starts, they’ll swarm us in massive numbers.”

The party all turned to look at me simultaneously. Even Elizabeth’s pets did the same.
Having become the party’s decision-maker at some point, I scratched my head for a moment before speaking to them.

“Let’s detour. Like they said, it’s better than dying. Five days is a fair trade. Snoopy, I know you’ve run a lot today… but I’ll need you to work hard one more time.”

-Fine by me. But I have a condition.

“A condition? Suddenly?”

-Tonight, give our poor master—who has no friends and no boyfriend—a hug while you sleep. Every single night, she…

Before the wolf could even finish the sentence, Elizabeth grabbed my Astraphe and brought it down hard on his head.

“Die! You brat!!”

CRACK!

“Kyel-yel-yel-ping!!”

Chel also played a vital role in the journey.

A jack-of-all-trades who lacked nothing in either martial prowess or intellect, she excelled in almost every area. In particular, her ability to coordinate and lead the party was something an outsider like me couldn’t even dream of imitating.

“Sister. I have a bit of a concern… can I get some counseling?”

“A concern, Kelly? You, whose head is filled with nothing but blood, violence, and Orabeoni, have a concern?”

“What’s that supposed to mean? You want to go a round for the first time in a while?”

“Forget it. Anyway, what is it?”

“It’s… I keep feeling weird about Orabeoni…”

“What kind of nonsense are you spouting now? You’ve been staring at him 24/7 from the start.”

“No, it’s not that much…”

“Stop with the pathetic lies.”

“Fine, whatever… it’s true I like him like you said, unnie… but especially lately, I feel like I’m becoming more and more strange…”

“How?”

“How should I put it…? I want to get much closer to him than I am now… or rather, it’s like my heart is overflowing… I can’t control it.”

“That’s just your usual self.”

“No, I’m saying it’s getting way too extreme!”

Seeing the sincerity in her voice, Chel finally took her hand off the grimoire she was holding.

“Judging by your tone, something really is off. Stop beating around the bush and explain it clearly.”

“…First of all, whenever I see Ailet or Elizabeth acting friendly with Orabeoni, something starts boiling inside me…”

“Jealousy? Isn’t that a normal reaction?”

“…I feel murderous intent. Seriously.”

“You mean you want to kill them?”

“Yeah. I don’t know how many times I’ve unconsciously gripped my halberd.”

“…No way. Even toward me?”

“…….”

“My god.”

“And that’s not all. If it was just that, I’d try to control it somehow…”

“There’s more?”

“I know this sounds crazy… but I want to eat Orabeoni.”

“Coming from your mouth, that doesn’t sound strange at all.”

“No, the meaning of ‘wanting to eat him’ is different.”

“…What do you mean?”

“It’s not lust. It’s hunger.”

“…What?”

“I feel an appetite. I want to eat him and make him mine forever… like we’d become one…”

“You crazy bitch…”

Kelly gave a bitter smile at Chel’s cursing.

“It’s weird, right?”

“Did you get hit by a monster during combat? Some mental interference?”

“A mental type? No. You know that doesn’t work on you or me.”

“The Blessing of Madness isn’t invincible. If it’s a mental attack that exceeds the limit, it can be pierced.”

Kelly shook her head.

“No, it’s not that. At the very least, if I was breached, I’d be able to perceive that I was targeted… but there was none of that.”

“Then what on earth…”

“I don’t know.”

“…Kelly.”

Chel gazed silently at Kelly, who was wearing a clumsy smile.

Thinking back, things had been strange from the start.

In the past, ever since tens of thousands of Merina Elves were slaughtered by the allied forces of the Noina Elves and humans, the Merina Elves had loathed humanity with a passion. Those familiar with the race often said that after “Madness,” the next tag used to describe them was “Misanthropy.”

Kelly, in particular, hated humans more than most. Even after descending from the moon to the surface, that hatred hadn’t faded; if anything, it had only escalated.

And yet, this same Kelly had accepted the man known as Sword God far too easily. She had fallen for him with a speed and depth that made one wonder if this was even allowed.

Chel herself might hold romantic feelings for him now… but that was only because she had experienced the man named Sword God by her side over a long period.

If Kelly hadn’t introduced him while wearing that foolishly lovestruck expression, Chel probably wouldn’t have even exchanged a word with him.

‘Perhaps… is there something I don’t know? Is this also the workings of Merina? But why would Her Holiness…?’

Lost in thought, Chel slowly raised her head.

“…Do you think you can hold out until we return to Redna City?”

Kelly nodded.

“I’ll try. I have to, don’t I? At least I recognize that this isn’t normal, so I’ll manage somehow. Trust in my diamond-hard reason.”

“I feel like there’s nothing less trustworthy than your ‘reason’… but fine. I’ll keep a close eye on things too.”

“If it comes to the worst… you know what to do, right?”

“Yeah. I’ll stop you even if I have to crack your skull open.”

“Hehe. That’s my sister. So reliable.”

And above all, the one making the greatest contribution to this journey was, undoubtedly, Kelly.

Aside from myself, she possessed the strongest martial power in the party.

She provided a map that updated in real-time, and whenever a non-combat dilemma arose or something was needed, she would point out the way to go or what to do as if receiving a revelation from the heavens.

By this point, some were starting to believe that the “Workings of the Goddess Merina”—which was mentioned as a joke—were actually real.

“Um… Orabeoni. Let’s take a quick detour.”

“A detour? Here? Where to?”

“Toward that rocky mountain over there.”

I questioned her with a suspicious look.

“…Is it that revelation again?”

“Yes. It’s more of a feeling than a revelation, though.”

“What’s over there?”

“I don’t know exactly… but probably something good?”

“…Orabeoni. We’ve never lost out by following her lead, so let’s just go.”

“Alright. Let’s do that. I’m getting curious myself.”

An hour later.

The party let out gasps of admiration at the sight before them.

“My god. It’s Heatstone Ore. Why is something you only occasionally see in the depths of a labyrinth just sitting out here in the open? Is it because this is a Demon Territory?”

Ailet groaned as she touched a pitch-black stone glowing faintly from a crack in the rocks.

“The mana it contains is enormous. To think it has this much magical power without even being refined into a magic stone…”

Elizabeth’s eyes gleamed as she clung to the ore.

“High-grade Heatstone! Money! Let’s dig! We have plenty of room in our spatial pouches! Let’s pack them to the limit!!”

Even the usually composed Chel couldn’t bring herself to nitpick Elizabeth’s words this time.

“It would be a waste to leave it behind, wouldn’t it?”

“…Most likely. Even just filling our spatial pouches would provide enough for our guild’s annual income.”

I let out a hollow laugh as I watched the group start clattering away, digging up stones as if they had forgotten they were in a Demon Territory.

“That Goddess Merina of yours. She certainly is miraculous.”

“Hey, Orabeoni, what are you doing!? If you don’t help, I’m cutting your share out of the distribution!”

“Alright, alright. Move aside. It’ll be dark by the time you finish digging like that. I’ll slice them into cubes so they’re easier to pack.”

Well… in that manner, things flowed quite smoothly up until Day 30.

…At least, on the surface.

Day 40.

The journey toward the Sanctuary became exponentially more harsh.

The main issue was the monster grades, which spiked sharply the closer we got to the Sanctuary.

KWAAA-RUMBLE!!

Leo was frantically backing away while surrounded by three bear-like monsters.

“Ugh… These things! They are all Soldier-class or higher! Be careful!!”

Elizabeth shouted in dismay at the sight.

“They weren’t there during scouting…! Hey! Snoopy! Did you actually scout properly!?”

“Is this the time for that!? Tight formation! Kelly and I will protect Ailet! Leo and the other pets, protect your master! And Orabeoni!!”

“Right. I’ll take care of the rest, so leave it to me. You guys just hold the line behind my back.”

“Orabeoni! I’m sorry! Always leaving the dirty work to you…!”

I shook my head and drew Astraphe. The situation wasn’t good enough to afford any leisure.

“Let’s just wrap this up and eat. Besides, there are no giant monsters this time, right? We should be thankful for that much.”

THUD-THUD-THUD-THUD!!

“They’re coming. Everyone, focus. I’ll start by creating a fracture to break their momentum.”

KRA-ZAAAP!

That wasn’t the only problem.

Second-class or even First-class monsters would launch ambushes every two or three days, as if they were looking down from above and tracking our exact location.

“…A Cresax!? You’ve got to be kidding!! Don’t touch the shadows! The part that touches them will undergo shadow corruption! Orabeoni! Holy Light!!”

“Ah, that type? Got it. Holy Light!”

FLASH!!

From time to time, Doppelgangers—no, ‘Duh-ppelgangers’—would appear and put the party in a bind.

“Kelly! Chel! Ailet! Elizabeth! Get away from him! He’s the Doppelganger! I’m the real one!”

“…Which number ‘Sword God’ is that one again?”

“…The third? Or was it the fourth?”

A Dragon-type flapped its wings in the sky, patrolling as if on guard duty.

“Phew… Has it passed?”

“Yes. It seems safe to move.”

“My god… A creature you’d be lucky to see once in a lifetime appears every other day? Elizabeth. Send Snoopy out again.”

“A-alright.”

Nevertheless, the reason the party didn’t lose heart and found the strength to carry on was…

Wooooo…

…Because far in the distance, a spire rising above the clouds had finally come into view.

The party gasped in awe at the sight.

“…That is the Sanctuary of the Sea God.”

…Well. To my eyes, no matter how I looked at it, that building didn’t look particularly holy.