It was said that the Divine Springs came to be when the gods descended upon this mortal realm. Their water had the mysterious effect of curing all wounds and ailments. These were also areas where clusters of magic with their own will, known as Divine Spirits, resided, as well as creatures called Divine Beasts, which were capable of forming contracts with others to share their powers.
There were a host of in-game events where you got medicine from this Divine Spring and even welcomed a Divine Beast into your party. Thanks to that experience, I knew how to get here.
“Is there really a Divine Spring here?” Aigis asked. “This is your territory, right? How come you’ve never found it?”
“We don’t have a lot of money,” I answered, “so there’s a lot of undeveloped forest around here. That’s where we’ll find this Divine Spring.”
“Huh… So, why do you already know about it?” Aigis asked with a puzzled look on her face.
A totally fair question. I’d reincarnated here from another world, but I couldn’t possibly say that to her without making her question my sanity. The problem was that Aigis would see through my lies, and quite frankly, even if she couldn’t, I didn’t want to lie to her.
“Well…”
But before I could come up with a solution, someone else extended an olive branch.
“My good friend here is quite studious, you see. I’m sure he’s done all sorts of research,” Nyarl chimed in, even though his face was as pale as a ghost. He put a hand over his mouth. “Urgh! I feel sick.”
He must’ve been queasy from all the rocking in the carriage.
Concerned that he would throw up inside the vehicle, Aigis cried out and offered him a cup of fruit water. “Could you please not vomit here?! Have some of this, okay? It’ll make you feel better.”
“Will you be all right, Lord Nyarl? You should lay down in the back and rest,” Rosalia said.
“Ugh, I shall take you up on that offer.” He moved to the back to lay down. He had taken his own self-concocted anti-nausea medicine earlier, but clearly it wasn’t effective enough.
Watching Nyarl suffer seemed to have distracted Aigis from her previous line of questioning, and she changed the subject. “Well, whatever. So, Mother’s really going to be cured by this method?”
“Correct. Her illness is actually caused by mandrake poison. If we have her drink mandrake extract after purifying it at a Divine Spring, she should recover.”
This was a healing method that the main party of the game would go on to develop, but as of this point in the timeline, only the Hades Church knew about it—and that meant they would never suspect anyone else would.
At present, they were only making moves beneath the surface, and it seemed like Aigis’s mother was the only one suffering from the disease right now, but there was no telling how things would develop in the future. I wanted to get my hands on this Divine Spring as soon as possible so I could begin mass-producing medicine.
“Lord Weiss, we have arrived.”
“Cool. Thanks,” I said.
“So this is the forest where the Divine Spring is. Are those Divine Spirits? They’re beautiful,” Aigis said, her voice laced with wonder as she let out a deep breath.
I nodded. The woods were so dense that they blocked out direct sunlight, and the way the Divine Spirits flitted about made them look like fireflies, giving the whole sight an ephemeral atmosphere. It served as a strong reminder that I was in another world.
This whole thing was hundreds of times more beautiful than how it looked in the game. CG just couldn’t beat actually being there.
“I bet this would make for a great date spot,” I mused. “I’d love to give that a try one of these days.”
“What?! Are you really talking about that kind of thing right now?! You can’t just jump straight to a date!” For some reason, Aigis turned bright red and stuck her bottom lip out. “You have to at least have tea with a girl a few times before inviting her out.”
I was trying to figure out why she was so angry when Nyarl interrupted our little chat. He joyfully freed himself from the confines of the carriage.
“Thank goodness! Finally, solid ground!” he exclaimed. “I thought I was going to throw up the whole way.”
“Lord Nyarl, are you feeling better?” Rosalia asked with concern.
Talk about ruining our moment.
Anyhow, we’d managed to get to the woods where the Divine Spring was located. Now what?
“We might run into monsters from here on out, so stay on guard,” I warned. “I’ll lead the way, since I know where the spring is. Rosalia, I want you at the rear. Nyarl, if you spot any medicinal herbs you think we can use, let me know so I can gather them up. As for you, Aigis…”
“Don’t worry,” she said, holding up a worn-out sword. “I’ll fight too.”
Was that a weapon for children? It was just short enough that she could swing the heavy blade without straining. While it was a fact that she would grow up to be a powerful warrior, at the moment, she was just a normal young lady. She didn’t have the magic sword she used in-game, so I thought it best not to push her too hard.
“Thanks, Aigis,” I said, “but as your friend, could you allow me to serve as your protector? This is my territory, so I’d like to escort you properly.”
“Hmm, well, if you say so…”
She squirmed a bit as she put away her sword. In my time getting to know her, I’d come to realize that this so-called evil young woman just wasn’t used to having friends, so she mellowed out big time whenever someone treated her like one.
Thinking back on her words and actions in the game and in the garden, it seemed like she was the type of person who tried to solve her problems with pure strength. If she lost control, she could be a terrifying force, so I was glad to have figured out a way to calm her down.
“Is it just me,” Aigis said in a hushed voice, “or is there a good chance Weiss grows up to be a real scumbag of a man?”
“Well, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit concerned about his future,” Rosalia replied. “That said, I would find great satisfaction in being deceived by him.”
“Oh, c’mon.” I narrowed my eyes as the two girls whispered together. “And you too, Rosalia?”
She just winked at me. “I’m only joking, Lord Weiss. I certainly have no qualms regarding your friendship with Lady Aigis. However, please, do not forget about me, okay?”
“Of course I won’t,” I said. “We’re together forever.”
Rosalia smiled. “Thank you very much. Hearing those words brings me great joy.”
“I have a friend… I’m so happy!” Aigis giggled to herself with a bright smile.
“Why must I be subjected to all this flirting?!” Nyarl wondered aloud, clearly fed up with the rest of us.
I paid him no mind. In any case, our group had fallen into formation, so we entered the Forest of Divine Spirits.
✦ ✦ ✦
“This is more exhausting than I expected…”
Nyarl started complaining not long into our little hike. I could understand where he was coming from, though—this really was pretty tiring.
“Well, we’re using a game trail,” I explained, “so not only does it take more out of you than a flat road, we’ve gotta keep our guard up in case we’re attacked by monsters. Not much we can do about that.”
“You need to train harder,” Aigis said. “‘Might solves most problems.’ That’s our family’s motto.”
“If you’re exhausted, let’s take a break,” Rosalia chimed in. “I made lunch for us in case we get hungry, so I hope you’ll enjoy it!”
The women in our party were tough as all hell. Rosalia came as no surprise, but even Aigis wasn’t remotely out of breath. Also, that was one hell of a family motto. Talk about brawn over brains.
“There are supposed to be monsters in these woods, but we haven’t run into a single one,” Aigis said. “We might end up getting to the Divine Spring without having to fight anything.”
“Hey now,” I said to her. “Can you please not raise any flags?”
“Flags?”
Aigis looked puzzled by my choice of words. Well, that wasn’t how the word “flag” was used in this world. I told myself to be better about not using slang like that, but before I could finish the thought, I heard some kind of scream.
“See? This is all on you, Nyarl!” I said.
“How is it my fault?!” he cried.
“Lord Weiss, these noises…” Rosalia looked around. “There’s a fight nearby. One of your subjects might have wandered into the woods.”
“We have to go save them!”
We tread softly as we rushed toward the origin of the noise, only to come upon a small rabbit creature being attacked by goblins.
Wait, that’s no rabbit! That’s a Divine Beast!
“All right, we’re saving that little guy!” I said. “Nyarl and Aigis, hide! Rosalia, you draw the goblins away!”
“Understood,” Rosalia said. “You’re even kind to animals. I’m fine with buying you time, but it’s okay if I defeat them, right?”
Rosalia held up her weapon and dashed toward the goblins. She sounded like a certain archer during his final moments, which left me temporarily concerned, but then I remembered that goblins were mob monsters from the early part of the game. They stood no chance against her.
The real problem was this Divine Beast. They were creatures that lent their powers to those who possessed strong desires. In the game, they were basically mascot characters, and they formed pacts with the hero and heroine, giving them special skills and even turning into a means of transportation in the latter half of the game.