Chapter 0697 That Name Is…
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"Right now, the villagers are all on edge. My apologies."
The village chief bowed his head.
"On edge?"
In situations like this, the negotiator was Abel.
"Tomorrow, all the men in the village are planning to go hunting."
"Hunting? So the target is troublesome?"
"Yes. After all, it is a salamander."
"A salamander!"
Abel and Ryo raised their voices in unison.
Abel was stunned.
Ryo was overjoyed.
Of course, Ryo did not know the salamander monster in detail.
It had not been listed in the "Monster Encyclopedia 101" that Michael (pseudonym) had prepared for him.
But according to Earth's fantasy knowledge, salamanders breathe fire and live near magma.
A very famous fantasy creature.
And in this 'Phi', it was probably a fire-attribute monster.
Up to now, he had never even seen a fire-attribute monster.
No, come to think of it, he had seen a red bear in the Western Countries.
Even so, that was probably just a sudden mutation or a special individual.
But a salamander was supposed to be a fire-attribute monster as a species.
There was no way he would not feel elated hearing about a monster like that!
After that, the village chief was called away by villagers and stepped out.
Naturally, that left time for the two of them to talk alone.
"Abel, it's a salamander, a salamander!"
Ryo was excited.
"You know about salamanders, Ryo?"
"Of course. It's a fire-attribute monster, right?"
"That much is true… but where did you see one? They are monsters that do not exist in the Central Countries."
"Huh? Really? Ah, so that is why I have never seen one."
"How can you say you know it when you have never even seen one…"
Ryo insisted that he knew it.
Abel had absolutely no idea why.
"Then do you know about them, Abel?"
"No. I know nothing except the name."
Abel stated flatly that he was ignorant.
His attitude was almost refreshing.
"Abel, you said you were a former A-rank adventurer, but maybe you actually bought that A-rank class with money?"
"As if!"
Ryo looked at Abel with a suspicious gaze, and Abel shot back in a small but sharp voice.
"Yet you do not know about the famous salamander, do you?"
"Famous? I think in the Central Countries, most adventurers only know the name."
"Just because you don't know it yourself…"
"Then how much do you know about salamanders, Ryo?"
Abel asked.
"Thank you for asking. A salamander is a fire-attribute monster, and it is supposed to live near lava and things like that."
"…supposed to?"
"I think its appearance is something like a wyvern, or a big lizard or newt."
"…I think?"
"It uses extremely high-temperature fire magic. That much is certain."
"That is all you are certain about?"
"What is that tone supposed to mean? I gave you more detailed information than you did!"
"It is all just speculation, though, right?"
"Grrr…"
Abel shrugged, and Ryo frowned.
In the end, both Ryo and Abel had no reliable information about salamanders.
While they were having that conversation, the village chief returned.
Ryo decided to show how different he was from Abel.
"I have a question for you, Village Chief."
"Yes, what is it?"
"The reason the villagers are trying to hunt the salamander is that the village was attacked by one, right?"
"H-how did you know that…?"
The village chief was surprised by Ryo's question.
In response, Ryo gave Abel a smug look.
Was this what one called a triumphant look?
"…Why are you looking at me?"
"I was showing you the difference between Abel and me."
The fact that he said something like that made Ryo rather straightforward.
"Actually, a salamander came by the other day… and the fields to the south burned down."
"Oh dear…"
"The southern fields had only just been planted, so the damage was small. However, the grains in the northern fields will be ready for harvest in a month. If it comes back before then and burns everything… the village will be finished."
The village chief explained the situation, his face twisted with worry.
"Is there no other village or town around here?"
"Yes. The nearest town… Kokori, to the west, is about three days away by carriage. Long ago, there was conflict in that town… and the losers of that conflict were us, who moved here thirty years ago."
In response to Abel's question, the village chief explained with a bitter smile.
"So you cannot ask the town for help?"
"Yes. Merchant caravans come here, so I suppose you could say trade is taking place. But no one from the village has set foot in the town for the past thirty years. Perhaps the people involved in that conflict have all passed away by now, or perhaps they have let bygones be bygones…"
"I see."
After saying that, Abel glanced at Ryo.
Ryo silently nodded.
Seeing that, Abel continued.
"Depending on the conditions, we could exterminate the salamander for you."
"Eh!"
The village chief was shocked by Abel's words.
"Earlier, the five men who came to greet us did not look like they were used to fighting. Their weapons were just sharpened wooden sticks, too. If you cannot expect reinforcements, then… you will probably be wiped out."
The village chief asked, eyes wide open.
"Th-then… what are your conditions? As you can see, this is not a particularly wealthy village…"
"No, I am not asking for money or anything like that. If we hunt the salamander, we want all of its skin and meat, including the magic stone. How about that?"
"Th-that is enough?"
The village chief was astonished by Abel's proposal.
In practice, the village would give up nothing.
They were saying all they had to do was defeat a troublesome monster and let Abel and co take the corpse away.
"My companion and I have never seen a salamander either. In the sense that it is also a chance to gain adventuring experience, it is not a bad deal."
When Abel said that, Ryo nodded with a smile as well.
They would help people, and their intellectual curiosity would be satisfied.
There was nothing better than that.
"Then, please take care of it for us."
And so, the agreement was made.
"Before actually going out to hunt it, there are a few things I want to know."
"Yes, ask anything you like."
At Abel's words, the village chief nodded and answered.
"Was the salamander originally living nearby?"
"Yes. There is a cave about two kilometers south of the village. There had been rumors that monsters lived in the depths of that cave ever since we first moved here."
"And yet you built a village here?"
"Yes. That monster… after a while, it was confirmed to be a salamander, but that salamander never came out of the cave. More importantly, this place has a large patch of medicinal herbs to the north."
"That is useful for trade through merchant caravans."
"Exactly as you say. We can be self-sufficient for much of our food, but salt and the like are another matter."
There is a reason villages are built far from towns.
There is a reason that particular location is chosen.
But this time, that balance had been broken.
"So this is the first time the salamander has come out of the cave?"
"To be precise, it is the second time. The first time was about three or four months ago, I believe. It came out of the cave for the first time then."
"And what did it do then?"
"It stayed near the cave entrance the whole time… but a few weeks later, a traveling woman came from the east. The moment it saw her, it attacked."
"A traveling woman…"
"From the east…"
At the village chief's explanation, Abel and Ryo muttered to themselves.
In both of their minds, the woman named 'Marie' appeared.
At the same time, they both realized why a salamander that had not come out for thirty years had suddenly left the cave, and why it had attacked the woman.
(When the "invisible wall" was opened, the salamander became active? Or angry? Either way, that must be the cause.)
Ryo shook his head slightly in his mind.
"And… what happened to the woman who was attacked?"
"Yes. To be honest, I saw the scene from a distance as well, and when the salamander leapt at her, she cut it down in a single stroke with her sword… it seemed the salamander suffered a fairly deep wound. The woman then left toward the west."
"…She wounded the salamander? And then left without delivering the finishing blow?"
"Yes."
Abel frowned and asked, and the village chief nodded.
"A wounded monster becomes more ferocious."
Abel forced the words out with a sigh.
"A race of humans that wounded it… or beings that merely look human. It would harbor resentment against them. The reason it has come out again now is probably that its wounds have healed. But its grudge has not disappeared. If it had been an adventurer, they would certainly have finished it off…"
"She was not an adventurer, after all."
At Abel's words, Ryo shook his head slightly.
That's right—Marie was a general of the Phantomkin.
"You two know that woman?"
"We know of her, but…"
"I fought her a little while back."
In response to the village chief's question, Abel answered in the affirmative, and Ryo clearly stated that she was not an ally of theirs.
"So we understand the first attack. What about the second?"
"It was four days ago. Since the first attack, we had been keeping watch on the cave entrance, and then it came out. It was slow, but it came straight toward the village… We had no choice but to meet it outside the southern fields. However, we could not stop it… and in the end, three villagers died."
"How did you drive it back then?"
"We could not drive it back. But when it started to rain, it ran back to the cave."
"Rain…"
Abel nodded slightly.
If it were a fire-attribute monster, it would not be hard to imagine that it would dislike water.
Thinking that way, Ryo, a water-attribute magician, seemed like a perfect fit for this request.
"It was shortly before the second attack. A merchant caravan came by, and they brought some troubling news."
"Troubling news?"
"Yes. Around the town of Kokori too, monsters had become more active… or rather, more ferocious. Monsters that had never come out from deep in the forest were now coming close to the town, and they were attacking people more often."
"For the past three or four months?"
"Yes. Just like the salamander."
The village chief said that and sighed.
Even if the matter with Marie had not happened, perhaps the salamander and the village were destined to clash sooner or later.
To be sure, it was Marie who opened the invisible wall, but it had already been said to be quite close to breaking down.
If it had eventually collapsed, something like this would have happened anyway…
"So the fact that we passed through here at this time was, in a sense, lucky?"
"That is the only way to think of it."
Abel seemed to have given up on many things and shrugged, and Ryo likewise shrugged and agreed.
Things made by human hands will eventually break.
Perhaps even alchemy could not avoid that.
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Chapter 0698 Salamander Subjugation
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Ryo and Abel moved toward the cave, guided by the village chief and the others.
Along the way,
they passed by a place that had first looked like a green pond.
"So it really was… trinitite."
Ryo muttered as he looked at the hardened green ore.
"Trini-what?"
"Trinitite. It is an artificial ore created when sand melts under extremely high temperatures and then cools. It must be the result of the salamander's fire-attribute magic."
"The sand melted? Like a vessel or something?"
"Yes, something like porcelain. Though, compared to a kiln, it must have been at an incomparably higher temperature."
On Earth, trinitite had been created by the Trinity atomic bomb test.
Apparently, it had emitted strong radiation, but this was different.
This was probably just the result of pure heat and cooling.
"We have to be careful around the salamander."
Ryo's mutter was serious.
Ryo and Abel arrived in front of the cave where the salamander was supposed to be.
The villagers, including the chief, were watching from a hill a little way off.
"Isn't that cave kind of hot?"
"Maybe lava is flowing deep inside."
"Well, salamanders do seem to like lava…"
"Wasn't there a legend that salamanders usually eat lava?"
"Didn't you say you didn't know anything about salamanders?"
"I did. As an adventurer, I don't know. Legends are just legends; they do not count as knowing."
With that, Abel shrugged.
Even if one knew the legends, there was no way that knowledge would ever be useful in adventuring.
"
Ryo chanted.
"It's about three hundred meters in."
"Is it hard to go inside?"
"Yes. The cave is only just wide enough for a person to pass through. Also, as for anything more than five hundred meters in, I have no idea what the situation is."
"Even your magic can't tell?"
"
Ryo reported with a faintly frustrated expression.
Sonar is like ripples spreading across a still water surface.
If the water disappears halfway, you cannot grasp the information beyond that point.
"Then it would be best to lure it outside the cave."
"Then I can attack with water-attribute magic… ah…"
"What is it?"
"It seems to have noticed us and is walking over."
"That works out."
With those words, Abel drew his sword.
"As planned, I'll hold it in place with
"Yeah! "
The moment Abel answered Ryo's words.
"It's coming!"
The salamander suddenly accelerated and burst out of the cave.
"
Ryo constructed a wall of ice in front of the salamander.
Bang.
With a tremendous sound, the salamander slammed into the invisible wall of ice.
Just as planned… or so it should have been.
Whoosh.
But in an instant, the ice wall melted.
"The magic melted!"
Could something like that even happen?
"Magic is still a physical phenomenon."
If that were the case, then it was only natural that it would melt once it exceeded its melting point.
If you understand it, you can stay calm.
"Abel, the salamander is too hot!"
"Yeah. I never thought Ryo's ice would get melted."
"Tch… I've suffered psychological damage just from having the facts pointed out to me."
Abel frowned as he spoke, while Ryo looked annoyed.
Indeed, when he had intervened in the battle between the Union and the Inbury Duchy, his Ice Bahn had been melted by the Union's artificial golem.
But even then, the frozen ground had not melted instantly…
"It evaporates the moment it touches it…? Abel, be careful."
"Yeah. More importantly, is that something a swordsman can even fight?"
Abel was holding his usual magic sword.
He was in position, but a monster that emitted heat strong enough to melt even Ryo's ice in an instant… a melee class like a swordsman, who must get close to attack, was at a disadvantage.
However, it was also a bad matchup for a water-attribute magician like Ryo.
"So it's an enemy we're both bad against."
"I should have charged the adventurer's fee much higher."
"That… is probably not the point."
"Of course I'm joking."
"You're amazing, Ryo, being able to joke in this situation."
Abel said in exasperation.
They were exchanging silly banter, but neither of them could think of an effective response.
Even as they talked, Ryo tried deploying multilayered barriers and using Ice Bahn to restrict its movement, but none of it had any effect.
Naturally.
The instant they touched it, the ice melted.
Even when he unleashed
"It is not hitting."
"It's melting the instant it is about to hit."
Abel, with his sharp eyes, had caught the moment when the ice spears melted.
It never even reached the salamander's skin.
"This is… seriously bad, isn't it?"
"I cannot think of an attack method."
Both Abel and Ryo were being driven into a corner.
"I'll stop its movement!"
"How?"
"
When Ryo cast the spell, the water vapor contained in the air around the salamander transformed into mines.
Mines that would freeze solid the moment they were touched.
"Now, if the salamander moves, it'll freeze."
"Ooh!"
Abel praised him.
That should work, indeed…
Ssshh, ssshh, ssshh…
"The spell is activating and freezing it…"
"But it's melting and evaporating instantly…"
The Dynamic Steam Mines were activating, but the ice they produced was evaporating away.
"This heat is truly beyond the norm."
"So it cannot even stop its feet?"
Both Ryo and Abel frowned.
For now, neither of them had taken any damage.
The salamander was running toward them, but honestly, it was not that fast.
It was possible to maintain distance.
As long as it could not get close, the heat was not so frightening…
Swish.
Abel's sword gleamed once.
"Huh?"
"Just now, a ball of flame flew at us."
Ryo was startled, and Abel answered in surprise as well.
His body had moved before he could think.
He had cut down the fireball launched from the salamander with his sword.
In other words, a long-range magic attack.
"I did not even see the flame form."
"Neither did I. My body moved on its own, but if I cannot even see the 'start' of the magic… this is bad."
Abel knew.
He knew how difficult it was to keep cutting down things you could not see.
Eventually, his defense would inevitably break down.
Even so…
"It cannot be stopped, it attacks from long range too, and all attacks are nullified…"
"When I heard about the fight with Marie-san, I got the impression it was a reckless, all-out charge kind of monster…"
"Maybe it learned from fighting that phantomkin."
"A monster that's intelligent?"
"Put another way, that means it holds a very deep grudge."
"We have to do something and defeat it…"
"Eventually, the villagers will become casualties."
Both Ryo and Abel understood that they were in a situation where they could not back down.
"That phantomkin called Marie landed one strike with a sword, right?"
"That's what they said. Probably a quick-draw technique."
"Quick-draw? Ah, a high-speed sword-drawing technique?"
"That sword flash was truly only a moment."
Heat spreads.
That meant they had to finish it before the heat spread.
That also meant they just needed to finish it before the heat spread… probably.
"So we just need to reach the salamander before the sword melts."
Abel seemed to understand.
"I want it to charge at us…"
"Yes. If it fires flames like before… and even worse, from close range…"
"I couldn't cut that."
Both of them had the same concern.
In the battle with Marie, it may have learned that if it charged in, it would be struck by a sword flash and take damage.
No, the possibility was high that it did.
Now then, what should they do?
"Saturation attack is justice."
"Hm?"
"We'll unleash attacks in such quantity that the enemy cannot possibly handle them. If we are lucky, we'll inflict damage, and even if not, it should at least prevent counterattacks and hold it in place."
"That may be true… but while the salamander is doing nothing, Ryo's ice would melt just by approaching, right?"
"Yes. That is why this is a serious saturation attack. As a water-attribute magician, I will crush the fire-attribute monster head-on!"
Ryo exhaled long and hard.
Then, naturally, he inhaled deeply, and a forced deep breath was achieved.
"
A spell named after permafrost, which reduces the vibration of water molecules in the air and freezes them in place.
"
Countless more ice spears rained down.
"
He added movement to his usual
"
After hearing that there had been a story about fleeing in the rain, he cast a sudden downpour spell that would surely deal damage, even if it could not finish it off.
"
Tens of thousands of ice spears concentrated fire on a single point.
Five water-attribute spells were unleashed upon a single target.
"Whoaa…"
Wonder escaped from Abel's lips before he could stop it.
It was a scene beyond imagination.
Flames melted the ice, the spells emitted the light of mutual annihilation, and the atmosphere raged wildly.
The world froze and melted, then froze again…
The falling ice melted, then fell again…
The atmosphere evaporated, then pressed in again…
The rain evaporated, then fell again…
The ice spears that had once pierced even the Pope's absolute defense now drove into the salamander…
And yet…
"It is not enough to defeat it."
The frustration leaked from Ryo's mouth.
Even with Ryo's full-power saturation attack, the salamander could not be defeated.
And yet, perhaps because it was consciously firing fire-attribute magic to repel Ryo's spells, its feet had stopped.
Now, Ryo was not alone.
"Leave it to me."
The moment he heard those words.
A flash of purple lightning.
Abel's single strike severed the salamander's neck.
"Since when were you behind the salamander…"
Ryo was amazed by Abel's skill and the sharpness of that sword flash.
"Didn't Ryo say you would prevent counterattacks and hold it in place? So I thought I would be the one to finish it off."
"Inside that storm of magic?"
"There is a sword art called 'Absolute Shadow'. You could call it the pinnacle of evasion. I activated it and slipped through the gaps between Ryo's spells. The salamander also seemed to have a hard time dealing with Ryo's magic. I could tell its attention was focused entirely on that."
"What is that line, like something the genius swordsman protagonist would say…"
Abel said it casually, while Ryo could only be astonished.
"You took all the good parts, Abel, but well, that is fine."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Abel smiled wryly at Ryo's words.
In any case, the salamander extermination was a success.
But everything was still not over.
"It has been dead for about thirty minutes, but it is still sizzling."
"Even though you've been keeping it cooled with your rain the whole time."
Both Ryo and Abel intended to dismantle the salamander.
They had already agreed that anything they could salvage, such as a magic stone, would belong to the two of them.
But the salamander was still hot…
"Is its blood hot?"
"Probably. The blood flowing from the severed neck makes a sound when it hits the ground."
"With ordinary monsters, I would lift the hind legs with ice to bleed them out, but…"
"Even Ryo's ice melts against this abnormal heat… I suppose we just have to wait a little longer."
"To think I would be made to feel such humiliation… I need to improve my mastery of water-attribute magic even more!"
"W-well, do your best."
Ryo looked frustrated, and Abel gave him a little encouragement.
Actually, fighting a monster that could use magic by instinct with human magic was quite difficult.
Abel knew that.
But he also knew that those words would not comfort Ryo.
"Well, even if Ryo becomes serious about magic training, it would not inconvenience anyone, so that is fine, I guess."
With that mutter, Abel shrugged.
Another thirty minutes later.
With Ryo's rain falling, the salamander corpse no longer sizzled.
Abel touched it with the tip of his sword.
"It collapsed."
"No way…"
"Abel broke it with brute strength!"
"Ryo, you were watching too! It collapsed the moment I touched it with the tip of my sword."
"I will let you have that one."
"…"
Indeed, the salamander's body crumbled apart so easily.
What remained was a very deep red, fist-sized…
"Since it is red, is that a fire magic stone?"
"Yeah. It is something you rarely see in the Central Countries."
"Will the Knightley royal family buy this?"
"Probably. I think they will, most likely."
"Half the rights belong to me, after all. I'll demand an outrageous price!"
"Don't say that right in front of the person who's actually buying it…"
Abel shook his head slightly.
Abel was the head of the Knightley royal family, His Majesty the King.
In other words, he was the very person who would be buying it.
And he owned half the rights to this magic stone.
"Abel, please hold onto that magic stone."
"Me?"
"I'm a bit full up with baggage."
Saying that, Ryo let his eyes drift away.
He was lying.
Abel knew the reason.
"You think it might be hot, don't you?"
"W-what are you talking about?"
It seemed he had hit the mark.
"Too bad."
With those words, Abel picked up the red magic stone without the slightest hesitation.
"Ah…"
"See? It is not hot. Magic stones do not emit heat."
"They don't?"
"Yeah. You touched wyvern magic stones before too, right? There were no hot magic stones, were there?"
"Now that you mention it… I had no idea that magic stones do not emit heat."
Ignorance is a disadvantage.
Ryo tilted his head as he looked at the red magic stone in Abel's hand.
"If magic stones do not emit heat, then why was the salamander producing so much heat?"
"That must be how it is. Strange, isn't it?"
"Yes, very strange."
There still seemed to be many secrets in this 'Phi' that Ryo did not know yet.
"Someday, I would like to properly research magic stones."
"You do use magic stones in alchemy, right?"
"Yes, that is true, but… I am not very strong in that area."
"Is that so?"
"I was interested in magic formulas, so I researched all sorts of things with Kenneth too…"
Saying that, Ryo's eyes turned nostalgic.
"When we return to the kingdom, I will have to work even harder at alchemy than before…"
"Didn't you just say earlier that you would improve your mastery of water-attribute magic?"
"I-I will do my best at both."
"That sounds rough."
Ryo wore a determined expression, while Abel smiled wryly as he watched him.
In any case, the salamander extermination ended with the acquisition of a fire magic stone.
When they reported back to the village, they were thanked by the chief and all the villagers.
After the feast that night, the two departed the next morning.
"We had just entered the 'Corridor,' and already we ended up fighting a rare monster called a salamander."
"I don't know whether it is really rare, exactly… but it's certainly not a monster found in the Central Countries."
"Being with Abel makes me worried about what lies ahead."
"Me? The salamander was not my fault."
"That, time will prove."
"Time…"
Ryo declared it flatly, and Abel made a troubled expression.
"A long time ago, a great sculptor carved a marble statue called 'Time Reveals the Truth'. It was truly magnificent."
"Hm. And how does that relate to me?"
"No, it has nothing to do with you at all."
"Hey…"
"All I mean is that 'time' will make everything clear."
"That so? Well, when it comes to time, there is indeed one truth that no one can ever resist."
"What is that?"
"That as time passes, everyone gets hungry."
"As expected of Abel, the hungry swordsman…"
Exchanging such conversation, the party finally exited the Eastern Countries.
The two men, two horses, and twenty
-x-X-x-
Extra 17 – Postcard Side Story (Rejected Version) 'The Art of Red and White'
-x-X-x-
"Did you know, Abel? Humans live by meat, and die by meat."
"Nope, never heard that."
Ryo spoke passionately, while Abel brushed it off lightly.
The two were currently preparing to cross the mountains. Before that, they had been procuring meat as portable rations. Their bags were already stuffed full of jerky, and each of them was carrying extra meat that would not fit inside.
" 'Meat is art. The art of red and white' …Don't you think those are wonderful words?"
"What do you mean by red and white?"
"Lean meat and marbling. Even lean meat alone already feels very meat-like! But when the balance between the two is perfect, it becomes art."
"I see. I didn't know that. Never heard of those words before either."
"Please do remember them. If you say that to a gourmet, the way they look at you should change."
"Hm. By the way, are those words from some famous person?"
"I just came up with them right now, you know?"
"Hey…"
Meat is delicious.
Delicious things are justice.
Therefore, meat is justice. Proof complete.
-x-X-x-
Extra 18 – Postcard Side Story (Rejected Version) 'The Hopeless Knight'
-x-X-x-
"Abel, the job I was hired for was the one where I was supposed to track down a hopeless knight member, right?"
"The phrasing 'hopeless knight member' is a bit much, but… yes, that's right."
"But what we ended up doing was a job where we got attacked by dangerous infiltrators."
"Yeah, well, and then we beat them back."
In front of Ryo and Abel lay four adventurer-looking people who had attacked them, only to be counterattacked and knocked unconscious.
"I think this is a breach of contract."
"A breach of contract?"
"We ended up doing work outside the scope of the contract, so there should be an additional fee apart from the advance payment. Accordingly, the alchemy tool we just confiscated… I am not saying to give it to me. I was just wondering if I could have a quick look at it."
"Oh… can you tell anything just by looking at it?"
"Probably not."
"Hey…"
Abel must have had some expectations.
When Ryo answered that he did not know, Abel frowned.
"Abel, the summit of alchemy lies far away. There is no way someone like me, who has only just begun learning, could possibly understand it so easily!"
"You are oddly humble and yet boastful, you know that?"
"Well, I suppose so."
"I was not complimenting you."
After saying that, Abel handed over a small box-shaped alchemy tool.
Ryo accepted it and looked at it with delight. He turned it over… looked at it as it was… lifted it up and peered at it from below.
Carefully, thoroughly, and with great relish.
"Thank you very much."
"How is it? Figure anything out?"
"Yes. As expected, I did not understand a thing."
"I see. As expected, huh."
The summit of alchemy was indeed, e-x-p-e-c-t-e-d-l-y, far, far above him.
"It must be a communication device. Or maybe it just sends messages."
"You do know a thing or two."
"In cases like this, that is usually how it goes."
"How it goes…"
Also known as meta-deduction.
"If you just say something that sounds plausible, you can get it right pretty often."
"Yeah. From now on, I should probably stop believing anything Ryo says."
"Abel, those who believe shall be saved, you know? You should trust me."
"I wonder why guys who say, 'Trust me', are the least trustworthy ones…"
"Abel's personality is so twisted…"
"Ain't that rich, coming from Ryo, of all people!"
In the end, is it just me, or are Ryo and Abel really two of a kind…
-x-X-x-
Chapter 0699 At the Frontier I
-x-X-x-
"This is definitely a barren wasteland, but there is a road, isn't there?"
"That means people are traveling through here."
"There must be merchant caravans and the like. Which means the economy is developing. Which means…"
"Means there's good food."
Ryo loved delicious food, and Abel did too.
After the two of them left Bondrin Village, where they had exterminated the salamander, and passed through two more villages of roughly the same size, this was where they were now.
The mountain range that had risen high to the north and south was now far off to the north.
As for the south side, there were no mountains in sight at all.
As scenery, it could no longer really be called the 'Corridor'.
"But there's nothing in Abel's knowledge about this area, right?"
"Yeah, I don't know anything about it. The small states east of the Union have always been highly volatile."
"Volatile?"
"They're born and they perish, merge and split apart."
"What a true example of impermanence…"
Ryo gave a small shake of his head at Abel's explanation.
The party continued along the highway for a while.
It was not quite to the level of a caravan, but they began seeing wagon carts.
"There are more merchants besides us. This is a scene we never saw in the villages up until now."
"It is indeed a scene we never saw, but… we are not merchants."
Abel corrected him with a sigh.
Still, he understood.
If someone looked at the two of them with their two beloved horses and the trail of carts behind them, they might well mistake them for 'merchants'.
Yes, what followed them were the ice carts… ten of them.
While crossing the wasteland known as the 'Corridor', half of them had already ended up in the party's stomachs.
"So if we're starting to see wagon carts now, that means we should be able to reach a big city before we eat through all the food in the carts, right?"
"Didn't Ryo say the food in the carts was originally for Andalusia and Feiwan?"
"I-I did say that, but… we had no choice but to eat it too as an emergency measure! There was no helping it!"
Yes, while passing through the 'Corridor', it had been mostly a wasteland with neither monsters nor even animals.
The villages they had stopped at here and there had been built around places where water gushed up like an oasis, and the residents were barely able to manage food production for themselves.
So Ryo and Abel had ended up dipping into the food in the carts…
"I was the one who said we shouldn't."
"Yeah, and Ryo was the one who started eating them without hesitation, saying it would be fine and fine and fine."
"But we'll actually be able to reach a city now, won't we!"
"Yeah. Good for you."
Ryo looked exactly like the sound effect 'hmph hmph'—huffing in a sulk—while Abel shrugged.
It was already afternoon when something unusual… no, something imposing appeared before the eyes of the party moving along the road.
"Is that… a rock mountain?"
"Yeah. There are watchtowers too… it's a kind of fortress."
What Ryo and Abel saw was a fortress-like city built into several rocky mountains, complete with watchtowers.
"It looks like the road continues down around the lower side of the mountains… but I can see something like a gate."
"Yeah, there is one. And there are people who look like guards… well, their clothes are all over the place, but they are definitely there. Everything about this is different from the villages we've passed through."
"A city with military force…"
"What do we do? Keep going and enter the city? Or stop here and turn back? It just feels a little fishy."
"Fishy?"
"Yeah."
Abel nodded.
Even while they were talking, the party kept drawing closer to the rocky mountains.
Watchtowers had been built near the summits, but on the way up there were also holes carved into the rock, and they could see people with bows and arrows keeping watch over the road.
There were also spear-bearing men around the gate.
In Bondrin Village, the villagers had carried spear-like tools with the ends of wooden shafts sharpened, but these were nothing like that…
"They're carrying proper weapons."
"Yeah. And for some reason, they seem really tense."
"Really? Isn't this what city security is like?"
At Abel's words, Ryo tilted his head.
They were guarding the city to prevent suspicious people from entering.
It seemed natural that they would be tense… but.
"If there were no tension in relations with the surrounding area, it would not be like this. Most people come here for trade. That is good for the city folk, and if the economy turns over well, the taxes collected increase too, which means the guards get proper pay. So they ought to welcome visitors, not be all tense."
"Well, that makes sense."
Since Abel's explanation was perfectly reasonable, Ryo nodded as well.
"But sometimes I want Andalusia and co to be able to sleep on proper straw bedding."
"Yeah…"
"So I want us to stay in a proper, nice inn."
Ryo made his case, thinking of Andalusia.
Abel also wanted to honor that wish, but…
"However, what about money?"
"Huh?"
"We only have money that can be used in the Eastern Countries, right?"
"Ah…"
Ryo was left speechless by Abel's point.
Yes, they were no longer in the Eastern Countries.
It must have been a long time since any major trade had been conducted with the Eastern Countries.
Which meant money from the Eastern Countries probably would not be accepted.
"Then there is no choice. Abel will…"
"I'm not going to attack some bad merchant."
"Y-you preempted me…"
Ryo frowned.
But then Abel seemed to think of something.
"A merchant, huh… well, I suppose there's no helping it."
"So, the Righteous Swordsman Abel is going to attack corrupt merchants and, as a bonus, seize the money they've saved up…"
"No matter how you look at it, that would be an illegal act."
"It is not for selfish greed. It is to help the oppressed people, and the powerful Abel must rise up!"
"In that case, you're handing all the stolen money over to the people, right?"
"I-I mean, part of it would need to be kept as necessary expenses for our operating funds…"
Ryo's desperate excuse.
Abel gave a small shake of his head.
While they were having that conversation, the party arrived at the gate under the rock mountain.
"The security is pretty heavy."
"Yeah, their clothes are still all over the place, but their weapons, spears and swords and such, are proper enough."
"They're… showing cards."
"Merchant Guild cards, probably."
Ryo watched the guards checking visitors, and Abel answered while looking at the cards the visitors were presenting.
"I only have an Adventurer Guild card, though…"
"That should do just fine. You got this."
"…Huh? What about Abel?"
"Like I'd have one. I'm retired as an adventurer, remember?"
Yes, Abel was a former A-rank adventurer.
"Abel, please just say you are a sixth-rank adventurer from the Eastern Countries."
"That wouldn't mean anything here, though…"
Yes, this was no longer the Eastern Countries.
"So Abel is my baggage carrier, then, as a C-rank adventurer?"
"I'm a little dissatisfied, but there is no helping it. I will accept that."
"No, actually Abel is the hungry swordmaster. He'd endure any hardship for the sake of eating something delicious, right?"
"If I am a hungry swordmaster, then Ryo is a gluttonous magician."
"A gluttonous magician… I already have some pretty nice nicknames, like the Silver Duke and the Icefall, you know… 'gluttonous' is a bit… I mean, in other words, that just means a greedy eater, right?"
"Greedy eater Ryo. It suits you perfectly."
"That is not cool at all…"
Ryo frowned and gave a small shake of his head.
After a while, it was their turn.
"I'm Ryo, a C-rank adventurer."
Saying that, Ryo held out his Adventurer Guild card.
"An adventurer? Not a merchant?"
While taking the guild card, the man who seemed to be the guard captain asked suspiciously, glancing at the line of
"This is food for ourselves and the horses. Does being an adventurer mean we cannot do business or something?"
"No, anyone can do business. As long as you can prove your identity, there's no problem even if you're an adventurer."
After answering Ryo's question, the captain carefully examined the guild card.
"Knightley Kingdom? Affiliated with Rune?"
"Yes. Um, is there a problem?"
"No, when you say Knightley, that's a western great power, right? And its affiliated adventurer is all the way out here in the eastern fringes?"
"Yes, there were various reasons… We're on our way back to the kingdom now."
"Hm."
The captain looked Ryo over from head to toe.
Ryo was wearing his usual smile.
Yes, the kind of smile Abel called a 'people charmer'.
After looking at Ryo, the captain shifted his gaze sideways.
To the man standing just behind Ryo at an angle…
"And that man?"
"I'm the baggage carrier for the C-rank adventurer Ryo."
"Huh?"
At Abel's answer, the captain replied in a bewildered voice.
"…A baggage carrier?"
"Yes, a baggage carrier."
Abel repeated the same answer to the captain's second question.
It was not unusual for adventurers to form a party with a baggage carrier.
In fact, for solo adventurers, it could be said to be common.
They would have a baggage carrier transport things like the meat of monsters they had exterminated.
However, the man before them did not have the presence of an ordinary baggage carrier.
Even so, since the employer, the adventurer, had shown his guild card and was taking full responsibility for the baggage carrier, the guards could not act unreasonably.
"Well, fine. You understand that the adventurer who hired the baggage carrier bears full responsibility for the baggage carrier's actions, correct? If anything happens, C-rank adventurer Ryo, you are responsible."
"Yes, I understand."
"Then you may pass. Welcome to Zaarash Fortress."
And so, the two men and two horses entered Zaarash Fortress.
-x-X-x-
Chapter 0700 At the Frontier II
-x-X-x-
"So this was a fortress, huh?"
"He called it Zaarash Fortress."
Ryo and Abel rode in on Andalusia and Feiwan, pulling ten gigantic
Even after passing through, they were not yet in the city.
"That is quite a large bridge."
"A giant
"As expected of a 'fortress'."
Inside the gate, there was a long, massive bridge.
From a defensive standpoint, it would be extremely effective.
"A rocky hill with a watchtower, a river and a bridge… huh? A river?"
"It does not seem to be a river, strictly speaking."
"This is… a city inside a lake?"
"Probably not a lake, but a huge oasis."
"How astonishing…"
Yes, from atop the bridge, what the two of them saw was a fortress-like island within a gigantic oasis that could easily be mistaken for a lake…
"A huge oasis and an island fortress at the end of the wilderness? There was no way to tell from the highway at all…"
"This oasis… is it surrounded by rock?"
"Sort of like a caldera lake?"
"Cald… what? What is that?"
"No, um… an oasis inside a gigantic plate-shaped rocky mountain, with an island in the center."
Ryo gave up trying to explain and organized the situation in his mind.
The interior and exterior of the rocky mountain presented completely different scenery.
"There are lots of rocky hills inside the island too."
"They've hollowed out the rock and seem to be living inside it."
After crossing the bridge and entering the island, the two were surprised once again.
What they saw there was certainly not what one would imagine when hearing the word 'fortress', but rather something closer to a desert trading city.
Stalls lined the roadside, and there were also buildings made of stacked bricks.
However, there were also many uneven rocky hills, and buildings could be seen partway up them and even on the peaks.
"I'm sure the important people live up on the rocky hills."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. And every day, they look down on us commoners and revel in their superiority. They sit there drinking and saying things like, 'Look, people are like ants'."
"Your imagination is as twisted as ever, Ryo."
Abel shrugged at Ryo's imagination.
Abel was the King of the Knightley Kingdom.
In other words, he was the most 'important person' in the kingdom.
Incidentally, Ryo was the premier duke of the Knightley Kingdom.
In other words, he was probably the second most 'important person' in the kingdom.
"Would Ryo live in a high place and say things like that?"
"Of course not. I'm a duke who stays close to the people!"
Ryo answered with his chest puffed out for some reason.
"I don't think I'd ever say such things either."
"Maybe not right now. But someday, Abel might become a tyrant king or something."
"What are you talking about…"
"If that happens, I'll stop you by force."
Ryo said this with a strangely tragic, resolute expression.
"Ah… yeah, if that ever happens, I'm counting on you."
A friend who could stop a king from going off the rails… in a story, that would surely make for something wonderful.
"This is absolutely beyond the scale of a fortress."
"Yeah, it's crowded and huge."
Both Ryo and Abel were astonished by the size of Zaarash Fortress.
"I can't say it's as big as Rune, but… it might have a population comparable to Kyradea."
"How many people is that?"
"Must have been twenty or thirty thousand."
"And all of them in one fortress…"
This was clearly not the scale of a 'fortress' the two of them knew.
After walking for a while.
"Right, we need money."
"Hm?"
"Ryo, can you take out the Eastern Countries' money right away?"
"Yes, I can, but… we probably can't use it in this fortress, right?"
"It won't work as currency, but gold should be fine."
"…Huh?"
Still tilting his head, Ryo was led along by Abel.
The ten gigantic carts followed as well, but the roads were wide enough that it was not a problem.
It was not a problem, though they did attract a lot of attention.
After walking a while longer…
"This is it."
Abel said that and stopped in front of a shop bearing the emblem of scales.
"What is this place?"
"The Merchant Guild."
Abel answered Ryo's question.
"I'm not registered with the Merchant Guild, though?"
"That should be fine, since you're registered with the Adventurers' Guild. It's not like you're trying to open a proper shop or anything."
After saying that, Abel tied Feiwan up in front of the shop and went inside.
Ryo hurried after him.
The interior of the Merchant Guild was quite spacious.
In one corner, there were many chairs and tables set up, where people were discussing matters.
Probably business between merchants.
On closer inspection, there seemed to be a number of private rooms as well.
Surely transactions were conducted in those too…
As Ryo stopped and looked around, Abel raised his right hand slightly.
Seeing that, a young man who appeared to be a guild employee came over.
"How may I help you?"
"I want to make this usable."
Saying that, Abel showed him the Darwei gold coins he had received from Ryo.
"Understood. This way, please."
The young man then led the two of them to a private room.
The man said, "Please wait a moment," and left, leaving the two in the room.
"How many did you take out of the cart?"
"One hundred gold coins."
"Well, that should be enough."
Abel nodded at Ryo's answer.
Then the door opened, and a stout man entered.
He looked every inch a 'merchant'.
"I am Myfa, the exchange chief of this guild."
"I'm Abel, luggage carrier for C-rank adventurer Ryo."
"…And I'm that C-rank adventurer Ryo."
The order of self-introduction was a little strange, but that should be ignored.
Exchange Chief Myfa's eyebrows twitched slightly, but he said nothing and checked the Adventurers' Guild card Ryo handed over.
"I have confirmed it. So… you would like to 'make usable' this unusual foreign currency, and in particular the gold coins?"
"Yes, this."
Abel handed Myfa just one Darwei gold coin.
Myfa examined the gold coin carefully.
He also weighed it on the scale in the room.
After several checks…
"I have confirmed that this is a gold coin of excellent quality. However, I am ashamed to say that I have never seen this currency before. Which country's gold coin is this?"
"It's the gold coin of Darwei, in the Eastern Countries."
"Darwei?"
Abel answered, but Myfa tilted his head.
"Right, you wouldn't know. We, people of the Central Countries, know the Eastern Countries as the 'Eastern Lands'. Their current dynasty is the Darwei Dynasty, and over there it's simply called 'Darwei'."
"I see. So it was a gold coin from the East."
Myfa said that and looked at the coin in detail once again.
Perhaps realizing that the emperor's face depicted on it was different from those of the Central Countries, he nodded.
"I understand. However, currency from the Eastern Countries cannot be used here."
"Yes, I know. That is why I came to the Merchant Guild. And because you know that too, you, the 'exchange chief' came out, didn't you?"
"…Abel-dono seems to be quite knowledgeable about the Merchant Guild."
Myfa said that and smiled.
At that moment, Ryo felt it.
That was the smile of a merchant.
Yes, the smile of a merchant who has caught the scent of money.
"Even if it cannot be used as currency, its value as gold remains unchanged, does it not?"
"Indeed, you are correct."
Yes, Abel was not trying to have it taken in as currency, but as gold… gold.
The value of gold is high anywhere in the world.
"Gold standard…"
Ryo muttered about a system that once existed on Earth.
After that, a fierce back-and-forth took place between Abel and Myfa…
"…Understood. Then let us settle at 850,000 florins."
"I want 50,000 florins of that in silver coins."
"No problem."
One hundred Darwei gold coins were exchanged for eighty Central Countries gold coins and five hundred silver coins.
When Exchange Chief Myfa stepped out, Ryo spoke to Abel.
"Abel, you really know a lot about merchants and business deals."
"Well, I am the king of the Knightley Kingdom, after all."
"His Majesty the King knows about merchant guilds and trade?"
"Of course. We have merchants take part in the nation's projects, don't we? If the king doesn't understand that stuff, it's a problem. If I can't judge which merchants or merchant houses to include, then that's the end of it… Am I supposed to leave that to government officials? That would only create a breeding ground for corruption."
"I see…"
"And I started studying that sort of thing back when I was in the royal castle. If you only have half-baked knowledge, merchants will make a fool of you."
"Th-that's true…"
Ryo nodded, thinking of acquaintances from his Earth days and of the merchant Gecko.
"Still, my elder brother was even more amazing."
"Former Crown Prince Cain…"
"I need to work harder so that my elder brother won't laugh at me."
"I think Abel's ability to keep striving is amazing."
Politicians involved in the central core of state governance must be knowledgeable in every field.
More so than bureaucrats and officials.
That is what it means to be a 'person in charge'.
The people must always be aware of whether their country is in such a state…
"If I get the chance, I'll make sure to let everyone know just how hard King Abel works."
"…That's embarrassing, so please don't."
Abel blushed and tried to stop him.
Even after becoming king, Abel remained a shy person.
"Ryo-dono, you're a C-rank adventurer, yes? Would you be interested in earning some money here in Zaarash Fortress… no, forgive me, would you be interested in working here?"
"Working?"
"For now, we're planning to stay one night and leave right away."
Ryo tilted his head at Myfa's question, but Abel answered immediately.
"I see, that is regrettable. However, if you ever feel like working, please inquire here."
Myfa said that and handed over a sheet of paper.
"Hiring people who can fight?"
"Preferably experienced? What, are they planning to fight some other place?"
Ryo tilted his head, and Abel asked the question.
"No, no. It's for self-defense. It seems they want experienced people to train the city's defense force."
"Hm. It looks like this is being advertised by something called the Fortress Training Association."
"Yes. It is by no means a suspicious organization; it is basically part of the administration of Zaarash Fortress."
In response to Abel's question, Myfa replied with a smile.
That same smile Ryo had felt was a 'merchant's smile'.
"I have one question."
"Yes, what is it?"
"First of all, which country does this Zaarash Fortress belong to?"
"That is a very difficult question."
At Abel's question, Myfa's smile disappeared and he frowned.
"I am merely the exchange chief of the Merchant Guild. In other words, I am not responsible for anything outside the Merchant Guild, so I will say this clearly… officially, it belongs to no country."
"An independent state?"
"I would not go that far."
Compared to his usual manner, Myfa's answer was unusually evasive.
"Until ten years ago, it was unquestionably part of the Go Kingdom."
"Hm."
"But a political upheaval occurred, the Go royal family was destroyed, and the Marquis of Nyusha attempted to take the throne in its place… however, the nobles who had served the Go royal family, influential merchants, and even part of the common people opposed him, and five years ago, civil war began. That civil war is still ongoing."
"I see. So the ruler of this fortress is not a noble, but…"
"As you can tell, it is self-governed."
"The core of it is the influential merchants."
"Yes."
Abel spoke as if stating a fact, and Myfa did not deny it.
Myfa, as exchange chief of the Merchant Guild, seemed to know a great deal about the merchants' movements.
"To put it plainly, if the merchants are the ones in charge, wouldn't it be better to cooperate with this newly risen Marquis Nyusha and focus on business rather than opposing him? I would think most merchants would make that judgment…"
"Well… that is beyond what someone like me, a mere exchange chief, can say."
Myfa slipped away from Abel's questioning with that familiar merchant's smile.
After receiving some information about lodging, the two left the Merchant Guild.
It was four in the afternoon.
Figuring they should probably start looking for a place to stay for the night, Ryo and Abel were walking through the city.
"How did you know the influential merchants were in control?"
"If the nobles were ruling it, wouldn't the gate guards all be equipped the same way? But if it's merchant self-governance, then it makes sense that the clothes they wear are all different."
"Why did you think it wasn't centered on the common people?"
"First of all, self-governance can't function without money. In general, the center of self-governing systems is made up of powerful people who have lots of money. Most of them are merchants engaged in some kind of business, right?"
Abel answered Ryo's questions smoothly.
What Ryo thought of was the city of Sakai during the Warring States period, where self-governance by influential merchants had been practiced.
In the end, it would be subdued by Oda Nobunaga's threat backed by military force, but…
"But the western forest is…"
"There, the elves live in that forest, so it is an exception."
Abel flatly dismissed Ryo's resistance.
Every answer was clear and precise.
"In situations like this, I really do think Abel is amazing."
"Stop it."
Ryo praised him honestly, and Abel became embarrassed.
"And your exchange negotiations with Myfa-san were excellent too."
"One hundred Darwei gold coins for eighty-five gold florin coins… well, if you consider only the value as pure gold, that was a reasonable amount."
"Didn't Myfa-san originally say eighty coins?"
"A merchant… no, to be precise, someone from the Merchant Guild would naturally say that. A 20% commission… honestly, I did think that might be fine too, but well, it never hurts to try. We've already made five gold coins' worth of profit."
"So that means we can stay at a nice inn for Andalusia and Feiwan."
"Not for you, Ryo?"
"We're just a bonus item attached to Andalusia and co."
Ryo declared.
Hearing that, Andalusia gave a pleased whinny.
"Right, Abel, why did you say we'd be leaving the fortress tomorrow without even hearing about the work at that Fortress Training Association or whatever? Even if we're leaving tomorrow, we could at least listen to the details…"
"Ryo is known to be a man with a lot of money."
"Huh? Well, I do have the equivalent of eighty-five gold coins, so I guess that's definitely a lot of money. Hm? Known? Known to whom?"
"To Myfa, of course—and to the people in the Merchant Guild. The Merchant Guild will have been able to infer that eighty-five gold coins were prepared and handed over to an adventurer in a robe, won't they?"
"Well, I suppose they could."
Ryo tilted his head, not quite understanding what Abel meant.
"A trick that has been common for ages… a person known to have money dies, and the money he should have had disappears."
"Ah…"
It was a common plot in old American movies.
Especially in places like Las Vegas, where people who made money gambling would be targeted…
"Merchants are scary."
"Myfa the exchange chief may not have meant it that way, but there is no harm in being careful. There are all kinds of people out there."
"But if we stay at an expensive inn, it will end up becoming obvious that we have money."
"True enough. That's why we can't obtain perfect safety. The best we can do is try to avoid trouble as much as possible."
Abel said that with a wry smile.
The two turned off the largest street, which ran right through the center of the fortress.
Including the roads, this was more like a city than a fortress.
"But why did he tell me about the training job? If he was planning to steal the money back, then I guess that makes sense, but I think there was some other purpose too."
"There was, of course. Because Ryo is a C-rank adventurer."
"Huh? I am a C-rank adventurer, yes, but… is that really the only reason?"
"C-rank is proof of being top-tier. Aside from the royal capital of Knightley or Rune, there probably aren't many here in the frontier. If such a person comes along and is known to be trying to earn money, of course they'd try to recruit him."
"I see."
Ryo nodded at Abel's explanation.
Ryo had only ever lived in Rune and the royal capital, so this wasn't something he could really feel instinctively.
"Oh, right—I remembered Kyradea didn't have anyone of C-rank or above."
He recalled the only example he had in mind.
"Kyradea, huh… Even when good talent is raised there, they just move to Rune right away…"
"That's unfortunate for Kyradea. And its curry was delicious, too."
Ryo lamented on Kyradea's behalf.
"Oh, this must be it: the 'Sleeping Sand Inn'. It's a nice inn with a foreign feel to it."
"Foreign feel? Well, it does seem like a good place."
Ryo and Abel had arrived at the inn Myfa had recommended as the best inn in the fortress—specifically, the Sleeping Sand Inn, which also took proper care of horses.