“What nonsense. So are you going, or not?” Maria answered his earnest words with a dismissive tone.
Glenn let out a pitiful sigh. “How cruel. Show some interest in me too. Maria, you really don’t care about anyone except Kanami...”
“So which is it?”
“Don’t get so angry. Of course I’m going.”
“Great, it’s unanimous.” Maria used her lava powers to create steps on the side of the large hole and started walking up them before anyone else. Sheer tried to stop her.
“It’s not unanimous! What about my opinion?!”
“You don’t count. Technically, you’re a prisoner.”
There was no stopping Maria. Seeing the party leader completely unfazed, Sheer sadly turned to the other girl for help. “R-Reapy... Mar-Mar’s saying she’ll burn down the Holy City!”
“Don’t worry! In this world, the only one stronger than Mar-Mar is the Sovereign Queen Lorde in the North! Even if she burns Yggdrasil, I don’t think she’ll get caught, so relax!” Reaper said.
“No, it’s not about getting caught or not—it’s more an ethical issue...”
However, such a conventional sense of ethics was absent in Reaper, a Grim Reaper, and Sheer’s hopes were completely dashed. Still, perhaps thinking of Sheer trembling in terror of what was to come, Maria, from her position at the front, offered some reassurance.
“Of course, if it can be resolved peacefully, we won’t burn it down. I was just talking about the worst-case scenario.” Though generally a shy person, and despite calling Sheer a prisoner, it was clear that Maria still cared deeply for the other girl.
“Yeah. Right. You wouldn’t just burn it, would you?”
“But I’ve always been drawn to the worst possible outcomes since I was born. So be prepared for that, Sheer.”
“Ugh, I have a bad feeling. A really bad feeling...” Sheer sighed, her shoulders drooping in defeat, as she slowly started following the others.
Finally, Maria made the departure announcement to everyone. “All right, everyone, let’s head for the Southern Alliance! There, we should be able to meet the Apostle Deiplachra, said to be a sage from a thousand years ago. We’ll surely find a way to defeat the Sovereign Queen Lorde or some kind of clue for finding Master Kanami!”
Thus, Maria’s party—comprising the odd combination of “Witch,” “Grim Reaper,” “Former Strongest,” and “Niece of Palinchron”—sealed the second Dungeon, left Dahrill, and headed south as a group.
It seemed that the memories left behind in this place ended there. The effects of Past Sight gradually faded, and I returned to the present. The world that had been altered in my vision reappeared.
✦ ✦ ✦
The spell’s effect ended, and my consciousness returned to its original place. Good. Seeing my friends looking healthy and energetic made me relieved. I felt like Maria was overdoing things a bit, but she was being careful not to hurt anyone, so I’d let it slide. When it came to me, she’d tried to burn me without caring whether I lived or died, so I felt like she’d grown a lot.
For some reason, having Glenn and Sheer Regacy accompany her was also within acceptable limits. In fact, having a proper, sensible friend for Maria was an unexpected stroke of luck.
The only problem was that they’d headed south. After taking a deep breath, I informed everyone that the spell had ended. “Phew. Snow, it seems the cause was Maria after all. I read the magic left behind in these ruins with Dimension, and there’s no mistaking it.”
“I see. So you’ve become capable of doing something like that, Kanami.”
Snow and I understood the reason for the devastation, but the other two did not.
“Hm? Who’s Maria?” Titee asked.
“She’s the girl who was exploring the Dungeon with me a while back. She’s skilled in Fire magic and possesses a Guardian’s magic gem. It seems she’s the one who did this.”
“Hmm. She did this? It’s quite something.”
“That’s because she has Alty’s magic gem. When it comes to Fire magic, she’s probably unbeatable, right?”
“Alty? Who’s that?”
“Huh? Right, I guess you wouldn’t know Alty. She’s the Thief of Fire’s Essence.”
“Ah, I see. I knew that a Thief of Fire’s Essence existed, but I didn’t know her name was Alty.”
It seemed that there had been no interaction between Titee and Alty. It was interesting to get confirmation that not all of the Guardians knew each other.
“Also, there was Reaper and Glenn, and Sheer was there too,” I continued.
“Reaper? Ah, I know that magic spell, Grim Rim Reaper. I think it was the spell Kanamin threw at that Arrace guy. That’s what’s possessing Mar-Mar now, isn’t it? Hmm, this is getting interesting.”
Even though she hadn’t known Alty, it seemed she knew who Reaper was, so the connection from a thousand years ago was quite strange.
“Wait, my brother is...? I hadn’t heard that.” Snow seemed much more concerned about Glenn than Reaper. I remembered hearing that Epic Seeker was participating in the war, but had Glenn left partway through?
“Yeah, he was in a party with Maria. I’m sure I wouldn’t mistake his face.”
“If it’s my brother, it’s not that strange for him to be helping Maria.”
“So, after burning this place down, that party seems to have headed south to find a countermeasure against the Sovereign Queen Lorde. It might be better to meet up with Maria’s group first...but then we’ll be late meeting up with Ide and the others...” They were also looking for a way to find me, so I wanted to let them know that I was safe as soon as possible.
“I don’t mind; you can head south first,” Titee said. Having lived for a thousand years, she probably thought of it as a slight detour. After the battle on floor sixty-six, she knew exactly where she was going and wasn’t in a hurry.
It would certainly be reassuring if Maria and Reaper joined us. Over the past year, it was clear that they’d gained even more power. However, I hesitated to involve people like Sheer and Glenn, who weren’t directly related to any of this. I was extra concerned precisely because they were kind people who would willingly help if they knew the circumstances. I weighed the pros and cons of joining forces and hesitated.
“Please, wait!”
Suddenly, an unexpected voice of opposition arose. It came from nearby, from one of the trees blooming with white flowers. It seemed to be a tree that had been planted fairly recently. The tree trembled as it spoke.
“Huh?!” I drew my sword on the tree in surprise. Titee also went into a defensive stance, and Snow held Kunelle close and took a large step back.
Unfazed by our turmoil, the tree continued to tremble and speak. “Phew... Finally, you’ve been caught in my net. However, that uniquely powerful magic is unmistakable. It’s been a while.”
The scene felt familiar. Snow, who was currently standing behind me, had used a similar spell before. Back then, she’d made a stone speak, but this time it was a tree. From the low voice and the fact that it was a tree, I figured out who it was.
“Are you...Ide?”
“That’s right. I’m Ide, the Thief of Wood’s Essence. Please don’t be so surprised. This is a communication spell I created in the past with the help of Kanami and Seldra. I believe it’s called Telephone. It’s just a simple Telephone, so don’t worry.”
That answer confirmed my suspicions. In the process, I also learned that I was involved in the development of this spell. The mention of the name Seldra made me think it must have been when I was the captain of the guard in Viaysia.
“Hmm, from the look of it, it seems you’ve recovered a fragment of your lost memories. Then perhaps this is truly a long-awaited reunion, Master Kanami.” Ide seemed to sense the state of my memory from my reaction. The Vibration magic transmitted through this tree might have been picking up not only sounds but also images.
Immediately after that, Ide addressed the person who was the true target of his visit. “My Sovereign Queen Lorde. It’s been a long time. Are you well?” His words to his sister and queen were quite formal.
“Ide, it’s been awhile.” Titee stepped forward and gestured for me to stay back. Now that she knew the voice belonged to Ide, she seemed to want to speak first. I had no intention of interrupting the family reunion, so I nodded in agreement.