Volume 6 Chapter 1 - Route Options

Part 1

Before I noticed it, I had become 12 years old.

I realized it when I suddenly looked at my adventurer\'s card.

The number in the age column had become 12.

I wonder when my birthday passed.

While we were traveling my sense of time had deviated.

Nevertheless, it\'s already been two years since the teleport.

How time flies.

Conversely, you could say that it cost us a whole two years.

After spending two years, you can say that we\'ve finally been able to return to the Central Continent.

If we\'ve made it this far, it wouldn\'t be an exaggeration to say that Asura Kingdom is right in front of us.

When I think about the things that happened on the way to the Milis Continent, it seems like the journey from here on will be easy.

We have the money and the means to travel.

If I had any worries, it would just be the fact that my family is still missing… but Paul is searching together with an organization; however, even with that, no one has been found yet.

I believe that they are still alive.

However, even if I were to put in my best effort, at this point it\'s not like they would suddenly be found.

Part 2

Currently, we\'re at the Dragon King Kingdom\'s most eastern point, the port city, East Port.

It\'s the same as West Port, a town filled with marine products and transported goods.

After we found an inn we held an operations meeting.

It’s the same as usual with all three of us surrounding a map facing each other.

"Now then, let\'s talk about things from now on."

The two were looking at the map with serious faces.

It\'s something we\'ve done many number of times, so you\'d think we would get bored of it, but for Eris who is bad with the difficult talks, this is the only time when she listens with a serious face.

"In order to get from here to Asura Kingdom there are three routes."

Just like that I pointed my finger at the map we just bought and started explaining.

It\'s a simple map that only marks out roughly the locations of villages and the forests.

Creating and selling detailed maps is severely forbidden in this kingdom and against its laws.

It seems they\'re afraid of other kingdoms acquiring one.

Well, it\'s fine as long as we understand the general terrain.

"The first route is the general one used by merchants for trade purposes."

Then I followed along the map with my finger.

It\'s a roundabout route that follows a path around the Eastern side of the Dragon King Mountain Range.

"It\'s the safest route of them all. With our movement speed, it should take around 10 months to arrive."

It\'s the one that costs the most time, but since it\'s the road that has the most maintenance done to it, it\'s also the safest.

"Why is it bad if we don\'t take the roundabout way?"

Then Eris raised an obvious question.

No matter what the time is she will come out with obvious questions.

Since she\'s honest, they\'re easy to explain.

"The route that circles around West is covered in a forest."

I pointed my finger to the Western side of the Dragon King Mountain Range while answering that question.

To the West of the Dragon King Kingdom, there\'s a large dense forest area spread out.

Essentially, you cannot pass through it with a carriage.

However, if you have someone who knows the details about that path, you can cut your movement time by several months.

The prerequisites include horse riding skills as well.

Eris and I cannot ride a horse.

Ruijerd can probably do it.

However, no matter how small we are, it\'s impossible to fit three people on a single horse.

Since that\'s the case, we would have to pass this route on foot.

In the case of going on foot, we have no idea how many days it will take us to get there.

It seems practically everyone chooses the safe Eastern roundabout route.

It might not be all that big of a difference in time, or the Eastern route might even be faster.

If you\'re in a hurry, going around is the way to go.

That more or less summarizes the explanation.

"I see, then West is no good."

Eris seems to have accepted it.

"Then, the third route is…"

While saying that I pointed my finger to the final route.

Get on a boat and cross over into Begaritto Continent, we can search as we go and pass straight through into Asura.

I don\'t know how many days this would take.

"Although, this route is already rejected."

"Why?"

"Because it\'s dangerous."

Begaritto Continent is said to have a stronger flow of magic power than the Magic Continent.

If you look at it, the average monsters are equal in strength to those of Magic Continent, but in addition, there are a large number of labyrinths that exist underground and above ground strange weather phenomena often appear.

That climate can be explained in a single word.

Desert.

The continent is covered in sand.

And then, there are giant scorpions of the same size as the Great Land Turtles, and giant worms that eat those scorpions as their staple food are prevalent.

In the afternoon it\'s scorching heat, at night it\'s mid-winter.

There\'s almost no oasis, you can\'t take any breaks.

Also, if you head even further into the center of it, the sand disappears and for a while it turns into a snow-covered tundra.

From a desert it suddenly turns into a land covered in ice.

If you make it that far then monsters that you can eat almost entirely stop appearing.

Going to that sort of place to search and cut through… it\'s not realistic at all.

"Since that\'s the reason, we\'re going to take the route that goes around to the East."

"Rudeus is a coward, as usual."

"I am a person of many fears after all."

"I think it would be all right if it was us though?"

It seems like Eris wants to go to the Begaritto Continent.

Her eyes are sparkling.

However, the distance to go through the Begaritto Continent, it can\'t even be compared to the distance of going from Milis to the Central Continent.

"We would have to take a long boat trip, Eris are you alright with that?"

"Let\'s not go with Begaritto."

Since that\'s the case, we decided to go with passing the Eastern route.

Part 3

I\'m in a white room.

This feeling of something rising up from within my body.

It\'s a sensation which I\'ll never get used to no matter how many times, I\'ll sum it up in a single word.

Sheet.

"Suddenly going with sheet, as always, you\'re vulgar."

A mosaic. It\'s Hitogami.

Cheh… what do you mean same as always.

I was finally starting to forget and then you appear again.

"It\'s been a year hasn\'t it."

Yeah, it\'s been a year.

It\'s been a fairly long time.

Could it be you can only show your face once a year?

If that\'s the case, then I would be able to feel a bit relieved in my heart.

"That\'s not the case."

I thought so.

The first time it wasn\'t even a week before you showed your face again after all.

"In any case, as always, you\'re so cold to me. Even though you managed to get your hands on a demon eye thanks to me."

I didn\'t ask for it.

These are things which wouldn\'t really change whether or not I had them, and I\'d rather have an essential person that would have helped us on our voyage.

If I\'d gotten that, I wouldn\'t have been thrown into a prison and I might not have ended up missing the information that got me into a fight with Paul.

I am sure it must have been quite amusing to you.

Without acquiring the correct information I got into a fight with Paul, got depressed, received some comfort, then somehow or other we discussed and reconciled; it must have been fun to watch!

"That really was quite enjoyable. However, isn\'t it fine?"

Fine?

What\'s fine?

"Well, thinking of it all as my fault."

Cheh…

…Sheet.

When I\'m in this room, I feel like I returned to the past.

The time when I would always blame everything on others.

I reflected on it.

Reflected…Yeah, sheet, I can\'t remember what kind of reflecting I did.

Why? Sheet… damn it…

"Well, that is your flavor as well. After just reflecting on it a bit, you won\'t be able to advance forward at all."

Cheh, alright.

Just for now.

When I open my eyes I\'ll remember. I\'ll be able to reflect.

That\'s why I\'m going to get serious and accept it.

I\'m going to get serious and listen to what you say.

"Listen? Ohhh, this time unusually you\'re going to honestly listen to my advice?"

Yeah, that\'s right.

However, you know, there\'s one bit of advice I want to know.

"What is it? If it\'s something that I know, it\'s fine if I answer it for you."

I\'d like you to tell me the location of my family.

"Isn\'t your family in a different world?"

Don\'t make fun of me, Zenith, Lilia, Aisha, those three.

If possible I\'d also like to know where Sylphy, Ghyslaine, Philip, and Sauros are as well.

"Hmm."

What is it?

If a person is lowering their head and asking like this.

Quickly tell me.

"I wonder what I should do."

Why do you always take that viewpoint from above?

Just peeping into someone’s life, a peeping tom- bastards like that.

What are you?

Do you only tell me things that are convenient for you?

Even though you\'ll let me meet the Great Demon Emperor, you won\'t let me meet my family?

"Yeah yeah, sorry sorry. I was going a bit overboard."

It\'s fine if you understand.

"However, is it okay? This time, I might lie you know?"

Oh, a lie!

Finally I get to hear that kind of talk from you.

That\'s right, you are the type to lie aren\'t you.

"No, it\'s not really about whether I lie or not. I\'m asking if you\'re willing to believe in my words."

No, I won\'t believe them.

Since right now is an emergency situation I\'ll move according to what you say, but if you were to lie even once, I would never listen to your advice again?

"Then, I\'d like you to make a promise with me."

What kind?

"If in the case that you reunite with your family following my next advice, I\'d like you to believe in me from now on."

Believe in you, and become a puppet on strings you mean?

Listen to what you say and with a yes-yes, and serve you like a manservant?

"Nope, it\'s just, each and every time, you\'re belligerent like this and it\'s a bit tiring isn\'t it."

Even if I wasn\'t belligerent it\'s pretty tiring.

Don\'t you get it?

If possible I want to forget the sensation of being dragged back into the past that I wish I could fix. I reflect on it and memory that started to fade becomes fresh in my mind. Then, when I wake up in the morning there\'s this amazingly degrading feeling and I start to feel depressed.

"That true? I\'ve done something bad. Then, do you want to decide on a rule? For example, only getting my advice on a certain day next time."

Yeah, that\'s a good idea!

How about if we make the next time you appear 100 years later?

"In that case, you would be dead by then.”

Never show up again is what I\'m saying.

"Hah… Well, I figured you would say that. Then, is it fine? Going without any advice this time."

…No, wait just a second.

I\'m sorry about that.

I\'ll compromise as well.

If by following this advice I successfully manage to reunite with someone from my family, I\'ll stop being belligerent when I talk to you.

"Will you trust me?"

No, I can\'t go that far, but at the very least I\'ll stop with repeating the pointless "will I or will I not" dialogue.

"How positive of you."

That\'s why you should compromise as well.

Just like this time, don\'t just suddenly show your face.

Give me some time to prepare myself.

Otherwise enter some other guy\'s dreams and send me a letter.

"That is difficult. In order to appear in dreams, there are actually some conditions."

Hmmm?

Conditions?

In other words, it\'s not like you can just show your face whenever you want?

"That\'s exactly what it means. Appearing in their dreams won\'t work unless our wavelengths match up. It\'s considerably uncommon. People who can match up with the timing to receive my advice. You\'re pretty lucky."

Yeah, I\'m so happy that I feel like I\'ll shed tears.

To the point where I want to let others feel this happiness.

Like those trash bugs around there or so…

But, hmm, is that how it is?

So there are conditions.

Incidentally, what are those conditions?

"Well, I don\'t really understand them myself. I just think, \'Ah, will it work with this guy on this day\' and then it connects."

Oh~.

In other words, that means you can\'t control it.

Then, we\'ll have to give up on rules.

We\'ll have to go with something different.

That\'s alright I guess.

I\'d like if you\'d at least give me a bit more details in your advice.

Go over here and then come over there, without knowing what it would be good to do, it confuses me.

It feels like I\'m dancing on top of your palm and being played with, which is irritating as well.

"Okay, details. I get it, let\'s go with that."

Alright, then, I\'m depending on you.

"[Cough] Now then, I\'ll give you this time\'s advice."

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In the next instant, a vision flowed into my demon eye.