Chapter 201
By virtue of Almadelux-sama's enhancement, Shiratsuki was traveling along the route we had set several times faster than planned. Since the AI handled the navigation automatically, Ruby looked bored.
The player has to take control in an emergency, but in other words, there is nothing to do as long as no crisis arises. I explained that at the beginning, but... oh, well.
"Wow... According to our calculations, it should have taken several days, but it looks like we'll arrive before I log out today."
"As expected of the Dragon God-sama! I have no idea what you did, but it looks like you put some seriously amazing enhancement on it!"
Iris seemed a little put off, but Shiitake appeared interested in what method had been used. Naturally, I was on Shiitake's side. As a mere apprentice magician, of course I was curious whether a player could use that kind of magic.
"Getting to our destination quickly is a good thing. A few people start getting irritated if they go several days without a fight."
"Yeah..."
If we traveled by sea, we would probably be attacked from underwater. In that case, we would surely have to fight either underwater or on deck. If they had that many chances to fight, those few companions of ours—the Jigoro group—would have no complaints.
But we were traveling by air, and at a terrifying speed. That meant we outran our enemies before a fight could begin. In fact, Shiratsuki's radar had detected flying monsters approaching us several times, but they disappeared from its range a few seconds later.
To begin with, fighting in midair is extremely difficult. Many of us can fly, but Karu, Shio, and Moss-san—the two people and one beast among us—are about the only ones who can fight while flying freely in every direction. I and Nanako are back-row types, so it is difficult for us to fly as swiftly as those three. Genjuro has wings, but they are not suited for flight. Mikero can only float around softly, while Nenashi's wings are fake.
The other members could barely fly at all. Challenging the monsters that lived at our current altitude to an aerial battle would make the outcome obvious before it even began. Thanks to the increased speed, we could avoid combat without anyone becoming dissatisfied. That must be thanks to Almadelux-sama. I offer my heartfelt gratitude.
"Still, it's a little complicated, nya. We went to all the trouble of getting fully armed, but we haven't had a chance to use anything~"
"I would have liked to check how much wear and tear they suffer, too."
Iris and Shiitake had armed the battleship by repurposing parts from MacFarlane's '35-Type Dragon-Form Magical Reinforced Armor.' They had apparently wanted to test its firepower, but I hope they'll give up on that for now. There would be countless opportunities in the future.
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For several hours afterward, we thoroughly enjoyed our journey through the sky. Though we were viewing everything through monitors, we watched a great deal of activity in the heavens.
We never grew bored, with thrilling battles between enormous aerial monsters, airspace filled with pastel-colored clouds that did not exist in reality, and squid and octopuses swimming through the clouds. It even turned into a screenshot competition, and everyone got excited over who could take the best shot. Shiratsuki had been worth obtaining for that alone.
"Hmm...? Shiratsuki, enlarge the forward monitor."
'Understood.'
I had been captivated by all the various sights, but a small black dot on the monitor caught my attention, so I had Shiratsuki enlarge it. And there, rising gradually beyond the horizon, was a huge landmass!
"Towa, is that definitely our destination?"
"Yes. Even calculations based on the map we entered and the data from our route so far confirm it without a doubt."
"Good! Shiratsuki, play an announcement throughout the ship. Tell them that the Tinbrika Continent is in sight."
'Understood.'
Unlike Iris and me, who belonged on the bridge, the members who had nothing to do were elsewhere in the battleship. They had been looking for places where they could take better pictures of the scenery outside or exploring the inside of the battleship. An announcement was therefore the quickest and most reliable way to tell them that our destination had come into view.
"What a harsh land..."
"This isn't a place ordinary people could live."
As we drew closer, the continent's full extent became larger and clearer. Its abnormality then began to stand out.
Enormous black clouds covered the entire continent, making it seem as though blue skies did not exist on the ground. From a desert formed of purple sand rose sandstorms of the same purple hue, so tall they seemed capable of reaching the black clouds. Elsewhere, a forest of plants resembling flame trees spread across the land, their branches and leaves made of bright-red fire.
There also appeared to be several regions that could only be called demonic wildernesses even when viewed from a distance, such as ice fields wracked by blizzards and muddy green swamps. I began to wonder anxiously whether any intelligent life could live in such a place.
"For now, let's choose a place that seems as safe as possible for docking."
"Then... how about around here?"
What Iris displayed on the main monitor was the mouth of a great river with a cape nearby. The river was wide enough for Shiratsuki to navigate, fairly deep, and had gentle waves. Its terrain was suitable for use as a harbor.
"That looks promising. Then we'll moor there. Shiratsuki, can you make it?"
'Beginning scan... Projected threat level: Low. No problems detected.'
"Then lower our altitude. Let's land on the water."
'Understood.'
Shiratsuki slowly descended and landed at the river mouth. Unlike in the air, it rocked on the waves once it was on the water, but we had chosen a place where the waves themselves were gentle, so it was hardly noticeable. Following Iris's suggestion had been absolutely the right choice.
As far as we could tell from the monitors, there were no large monsters or anything else at the rocky area near the river mouth. Shiratsuki's radar had not detected anything, either, so there did not seem to be any dangerous enemies nearby.
"Hey, you don't have to rush off like that..."
Just as I was beginning to relax, confident that we had secured a reasonable degree of safety, the monitor showed Jigoro and the others already going ashore. They could at least have waited for those of us on the bridge... Though I understood their excitement.
"Let's go ashore too. We've come all this way, so it would be a waste not to go outside."
"Right, let's go!"
"Woohoo! Materials~ Materials~ New materials!"
"Have a safe trip."
I could not suppress my own rising excitement, either. Along with Iris and Shiitake, I happily went ashore.
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We climbed down from Shiratsuki's deck to the bank of the great river. The ground was almost entirely sand, with only a few small, rounded stones, making it easy to walk on. Taken by itself, it looked like an ordinary riverbank. But this continent, as expected, was not ordinary.
"The sand... It's a strange color..."
"It is difficult to believe this is a sight from our world... Though I suppose it is a virtual world—the game."
Every grain of sand and pebble on the riverbank was bizarre beyond description. Most of the sand and stones were blackish brown, with patches of dark red and green mixed in here and there. Short grass grew in places, but every leaf had poisonous-looking spots. Everything was vaguely sinister, filled with things that were not remotely normal.
Yet all they looked like to us were raw materials for something new. I crouched down, picked up several pebbles at my feet that differed in color from the sand, and immediately used 【Appraisal】 on them. The results were as follows.
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Miasma Sand Quality: Junk Rarity: C (Common)
An ore found only on the Tinbrika Continent, in the form of extremely fine grains.
When processed, it turns a deep black.
Miasma Blackstone Quality: Junk Rarity: C (Common)
An ore found only on the Tinbrika Continent. This is an especially small piece of it.
It is extremely hard and particularly heavy. Most pieces are angular, so care must be taken not to cut one's hands.
Miasma Redstone Quality: Junk Rarity: R (Rare)
An ore found only on the Tinbrika Continent. This is an especially small piece of it.
It is extremely hard, yet light enough to float on water. It is slightly warm and prone to cracking.
Miasma Greenstone Quality: Junk Rarity: R (Rare)
An ore found only on the Tinbrika Continent. This is an especially small piece of it.
It is so brittle that it shatters from the slightest impact. When it crumbles, it produces a beautiful tone.
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Even though these materials existed only on this continent, their value seemed limited to being found only here. The items one could pick up here did not appear to be especially powerful. I had never expected the entire land to be valuable, so there was no reason to be disappointed.
Besides, if I left it to Iris and Shiitake, I was sure they would find some kind of use for them. It meant relying on others, but leaving things to those with the right skills was best for everyone.
I could think about the new materials later. For now, rejoining the people who had gone ashore first was the priority.
"Hmm? What is Nenashi doing?"
Jigoro and the others had gathered at the riverbank. When I approached, I found Nenashi putting several vines into the river for some reason. Unable to figure out his purpose, I asked Eiji, who was standing closest to me.
"Oh, Izamu-san. He's trying to fish right now."
"Fishing?"
"Yes. Nenashi-san tied some portable rations to the ends of his vines and is letting them drift down the river. If something bites..."
"Ohhh! We've got one!"
While Eiji was explaining, Nenashi raised his voice in excitement. It seemed that something had taken the bait. We were still within Shiratsuki's radar range here, but perhaps the smell of the food had lured it in.
If we ended up fighting, we might learn the level of the monsters on this continent. I was unsure whether an aquatic monster would make a good benchmark, but even a rough idea would be useful. For now, we would watch and see what happened.
"Nnnnnngh! I-it's heavy! The vine's about to snap!"
"Nenashi-san, calm down. I'll support you."
It seemed difficult to pull the catch up, and Nenashi was struggling badly. Mikero was the first to come to his aid. Mikero fixed one of his many eyes, resembling a glass marble, on Nenashi and began casting 【Healing Arts】 and 【Soul Arts】.
That eye was called the 【Healing Evil Eye】, and it had the effect of restoring the vitality of any living creature it stared at. Furthermore, Mikero had a priest-type Job, so he could use 【Healing Arts】, and as a priest of Eifa-sama, he could also use 【Soul Arts】. If I were not undead, I could probably use 【Healing Arts】 as well... What a shame.
We were not simply standing around watching, either. I used 【Enhancement Arts】 to raise the vine's strength and durability by increasing its Strength and Defense, while everyone else grabbed Nenashi's vines and pulled together. Seeing this scene reminded me of the fairy tale 'The Enormous Turnip.' But with everyone being monstrous beings, and not a single one of us sharing the same Race, the scene was thoroughly evil. It should never appear in a children's picture book.
"Heaveeeeeeeee-ho!"
"Ha-ha! That's one hell of a big one!"
When everyone combined their strength and hauled in the fish that had taken the bait, it burst forcefully out of the water. Carried too far by its momentum, it leaped into the air, and it was far larger than I had imagined. It was more than three times the size of the Great Evil Fish we had hunted in droves before.
It looked extremely similar to a catfish. However, it had nearly twenty whiskers, and they were constantly writhing, making it quite creepy. In any case, 【Appraisal】!
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Race: Elder Wisefish: Catfish Lv. 73
Job: Wise Fish Lv. 3
Skills: 【Mighty Fangs】
【Tough Fish Scales】
【Tail Strike】
【Whisker Manipulation】
【Vitality Enhancement】
【Defense Enhancement】
【Dexterity Enhancement】
【Intelligence Enhancement】
【Mental Strength Enhancement】
【Water-Ice Magic】
【Storm Magic】
【Lightning Strike Magic】
【Aquatic】
【Lung Breathing】
【Slashing Resistance】
【Piercing Resistance】
【Water Resistance】
【Wind Resistance】
【Lightning Resistance】
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Level 73! It was a considerable specimen. It could apparently use both physical attacks and magic with equal skill. On top of that, it possessed a variety of resistances... It had no openings. We would have to fight it head-on.
Moreover, judging by the 【Lung Breathing】 in its stats, it could fight on land unlike the Great Evil Fish. In fact, the Elder Wisefish: Catfish, which had been washed up onto the riverbank, deftly used its fins to get back up before leaping ferociously at us!
Was I cursed to fight fish monsters whenever I came to another continent? I pushed that pointless thought to the back of my mind and shifted into a combat stance.