“I don’t care. Tonight, I’m leaving for Calloah,” he said stubbornly.
Misaki didn’t feel like arguing with him.
“You’re going there, hammered like this? You’ll die on the way,” Byakuren cautioned.
“I’m not drunk!” Makoto insisted.
He hung his head, looked into his glass, and shook it, making the ice inside clink.
“I can’t even get drunk despite my best efforts…”
Alcohol did nothing to dull the pain in his heart.
Misaki and Byakuren exchanged glances and nodded.
“Makoto,” said Misaki, “I’m going to Calloah, too.”
“!!” Makoto’s eyes shot wide-open. He grabbed Misaki by the shoulders. “You mean that?!”
“I also want to find Kettle. With my skill, we won’t need to waste time searching locations where there aren’t any players.”
Makoto thanked her profusely, his mood completely changed.
Byakuren flashed him a strained smile. “Why didn’t you join the returnees?” she asked.
“They invited him, but he was too distraught to even hold a conversation…”
Misaki then explained why Makoto hadn’t join the group Wataru was leading.
Makoto turned to Byakuren with reproach in his eyes.
“And you’re just letting it go? Didn’t you lose your last close friends there?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not letting it go!” Byakuren clenched her hands into fists to get a hold of herself. “I have my work cut out for me here. We need to restore this town, secure a new outpost, and make it defendable. Without my powers, exploration would take a lot more time. My ability doesn’t offer any advantages for areas that already have completed maps.”
Tears in her eyes, Byakuren looked at Misaki and Makoto. That spurred Misaki to get emotional, too.
“Please…,” Byakuren urged them. “Find out what happened to my friends… Avenge them…and bring back Kettle safely…!”
No longer able to restrain her emotions, Byakuren started sobbing loudly. Misaki rushed over to comfort her. Makoto stood up from his chair.
The night grew dark, approaching the small hours.
After seeing Byakuren off, Misaki and Makoto searched for other players who might travel with them to Calloah. They’d leveled up quite a bit in the last battle, but traversing three areas as a party of two would be needlessly reckless. They’d gladly team up with other players who weren’t in a party and wanted to return to Calloah for the same reason as them. Best-case scenario would be if they found a healer.
“Is anyone out and about at this hour?” Makoto asked Misaki.
“I don’t see many people…”
Misaki’s unique skill allowed her to pinpoint the locations of living things on her map. Blue dots moving around town were other players, although Misaki couldn’t tell just from her map who they were.
Maybe we should ask Flamme to recruit a second team to dispatch to Calloah… No, she’s already busy managing the fort’s restoration and planning future expeditions. I shouldn’t take any more of her time.
Misaki was about to give up when she saw two red dots on her map. They were getting closer.
The walls around Fort Sandras were broken, which meant monsters could simply walk into the town.
“Makoto…!”
Misaki reflexively reached for her bow, but she let go of it when she saw who emerged from the darkness—Vampy and Theodore.
“Oh, hello! I didn’t know you two were still around!” said Misaki.
“Greetings. Master ordered us to protect this town, so here we are,” replied Theodore.
Having witnessed what these Overlords were capable of, Makoto was heartened to see them again. Byakuren would have an easier time with them around, which made Makoto happy.
“And why are you out and about at such a late hour, Misaki?” Theodore asked.
“That’s because…”
Without missing a beat, Misaki told Vampy and Theodore what she and Makoto were trying to do and why. Makoto had never seen her confide her worries to anyone. He looked surprised.
“I see,” Theodore said curtly when Misaki finished. He was about to tell her and Makoto that Shuutarou would find Kettle first, but then Vampy spoke up.
“I will go with you two,” she announced.
Vampy’s decision surprised Theodore the most.
“…And what about Master’s orders?” he asked her.
“You alone will suffice to protect the town.”
“That is true…”
Theodore couldn’t comprehend why Vampy, the most loyal of the six Overlords, would abandon the task given to them by Shuutarou.
“If I find the girl first, Master will praise me,” Vampy added.
Ah, so that’s her rationale, Theodore realized.
Vampy looked at the confused humans without emotion. “Do you accept?”
“Yes, of course! You’re most welcome!”
Misaki had no objections. With Vampy on the team, they wouldn’t need a healer.
“Are you sure about this, Misaki?” Makoto whispered to her.
“I trust both of them,” she whispered back.
Theodore walked over to Vampy and said, “Well, then. I shall dutifully protect this town.”
“Please do,” Vampy replied, staring into space.
Theodore hesitated for a moment before adding, “Please find Kettle.”
Vampy looked up at him, astonished by the unfamiliar expression on his face.
“…Where did that come from?” she asked.
“Our master’s well-being depends on her.”
But that wasn’t the only reason—Theodore had spent just a short amount of time with Barbara’s party posing as Shuutarou’s summon, but he was still affected by the news of their death and Kettle’s disappearance. During his travels with Shuutarou’s friends, he felt their welcoming warmth. It helped him understand his master better, and he also considered it a valuable experience in its own right. He hoped that Vampy might be similarly enriched through Misaki and Makoto’s company.
Theodore turned to Misaki and Makoto.
“Vampy cannot fly, so you should depart as soon as you can,” he said, handing Makoto a silver shield and sword. “I happened to have these spare items lying around. You might get some use out of them.”
Makoto accepted the items. They felt marvelously lightweight yet had extraordinary stats.
“Do your best,” said Theodore.
Makoto quickly wiped the tears from his eyes and nodded decisively.
“Hurry up, or I’ll leave you behind,” Vampy called.
She was already far ahead, walking toward the southern gate without any intention to wait for Misaki and Makoto.
“M-Makoto! We’d better go!”
“R-right!”
They ran after Vampy.
Theodore watched them until they became too small to see in the distance.