Toward the Hidden Land

According to Margaret-jō, there are no monsters between the forest and the village, only animals like wild rabbits and field mice. So now that we've come this far, she seems relieved that we can finally relax.

But it's precisely at times like this that you run into dangerous opponents who should never normally be there. We must not let our guard down.

"Ah! This is the first bright, open place I've seen since I first logged in!"

"This is indeed my first time seeing a grassland in daylight."

But my companions were completely relaxed. If anything, they seemed to be enjoying the peaceful environment of the grassland and blue sky.

"It's my first time too."

"It's my first time in the daytime as well. The same goes for you, right, Izam?"

"That's right."

Come to think of it, the only places I've visited so far were sewers, underground cemeteries, forests and mountains, and a lake and the wetlands around it. Every one of them had a gloomy atmosphere! Most of that was because of the 【Light Weakness】 that had tormented me in the past, though!

In fact, Ruby was the only one among us who had started in a grassland and therefore knew what a grassland looked like during the day. Iris and Genjuro had visited a grassland at night during the 'Azure Moon's Trial,' though.

While we chatted, the village drew considerably closer. They had probably noticed us as well. We could tell from here that things were growing hectic.

"Margaret-jō, it seems we shouldn't get any closer."

"So... it seems."

"Then we'll leave here. But could you tell us what you know?"

Although I was interested in human settlements, it would be foolish to approach carelessly and get attacked. We should probably give up for today.

Margaret hesitated a little at my proposal, but ultimately nodded.

"...I understand. There is a Birdian city in the rocky mountains to the northwest of here."

"What!?"

Of course, Ruby was the one who reacted most strongly to Margaret's words. That was only natural, since the Race her friend was considering choosing was precisely the Birdians.

Margaret was startled by Ruby's reaction. She didn't know about our circumstances, after all.

"Sorry. Please continue."

"Y-yes. Birdians are monsters you can reason with, and they occasionally come to this village to trade. So I thought they might welcome you, Izam-sama..."

"I see. How far away is it?"

"Apparently, it's about an hour for a Birdian, but I've never been there myself... I'm sorry. I don't know the exact travel time."

So the distance between humanity and monsters varies depending on the continent. She had concluded that, since we hadn't attacked humans indiscriminately, we could probably establish a good relationship with the Birdians as well.

And it would take about an hour by air. I looked northwest. There was a rocky mountain with sheer cliffs, its summit hidden by clouds. It looked like it was going to be a rather demanding journey.

But that was precisely why it was worth going. I certainly wanted to act like a villain, but I also enjoyed adventuring itself. A Birdian city in an unexplored region... I absolutely wanted to visit it!

"You heard her, right? Our destination is the Birdian city. If anyone objects, speak up."

I turned around and checked with everyone. ...It seemed no one was opposed.

"Then let's go. Thank you for the information, Margaret-jō."

"Don't go doing anything reckless from here on out!"

"Goodbye!"

"Take care!"

"Bye-bye!"

"Kyuu!"

To avoid agitating the villagers any further, we should leave now. Besides, even though it was Friday, staying up all night would be bad for our health. For now, our goal would be to reach the foot of the rocky mountain today.

"Ah, wait!"

We had only just turned around and started walking northwest when Margaret shouted loudly. Wondering what had happened, we turned back.

"Thank you! Thank you so much! I'll try to convince everyone in the village! So please come visit us next time!"

Margaret loudly expressed her gratitude to us. She probably also intended to tell the villagers that we weren't enemies. I lightly waved one of my four arms to show my agreement, then left the area.

◆◇◆◇◆◇

Yes, I'm logged in. After that, we headed northwest from the front of the village and truly reached the rocky mountain without incident. Actually, the grassland had simply continued all the way to the mountain. It was incredibly peaceful, yes indeed.

So I decided to climb it starting today, using the weekend. Well, I could fly with the power of my robe, and Genjuro could fly for short periods as well. Karu could obviously fly too, while Ruby could cling to the rock face, so there was no problem there.

That meant the three of us would need to support Iris and Jigoro. Iris in particular might have a very difficult journey ahead of her.

"Then shall we climb? Are you two ready?"

I asked the two who were most likely to die on this climb.

"My first rock-climbing experience being in a game!"

Oh, he's really enthusiastic about this. All right, he should be fine.

"Heh heh heh! I came prepared for exactly this kind of thing!"

"Prepared?"

"These!"

What she handed me were metal fittings of various shapes. The only thing they had in common was a hole roughly five centimeters in diameter. What were these? I had no idea, but for now, I would use 【Appraisal】 on them.

――――――――――

Mountaineering Piton Quality: Superior Rarity: R (Rare Class)

A metal fitting used for passing ropes and the like during mountain climbing.

They come in various shapes so they can be driven into cracks in rock faces.

――――――――――

Oh! These were those things ropes were threaded through on mountain trails! I didn't have mountain climbing as a hobby, so this was the first time I'd learned that they were called pitons. And, naturally, their quality was the highest.

"Please drive these into suitable places, Izam! I'll use them to climb!"

"Ah... I see."

In other words, the climbing procedure would go like this.

① I fly around and search for a crack at a suitable height

② I drive in a piton

③ Iris climbs using it

④ I retrieve any piton that ends up below her feet

We would repeat that process. Th-this was going to be quite a lot of hard labor, wasn't it?

"I'm counting on you, Izam!"

"Indeed, leave it to me!"

Whoa!? That old man and his granddaughter sensed what was coming and ran away! ...Well, I suppose I'll do it.

"Oh, there's a rope for Jigoro too. Would you like to use it?"

"Nah, I'll climb just like this!"

What? Are you out of your mind? You'd die if you fell, wouldn't you? You're going to free-climb it?

But Jigoro seemed determined, grinning as he stretched. Ah, there was no point in saying anything more to him.

"Iris, he doesn't seem to need it."

"I-I suppose not."

"Still, I'll hold on to it in case of an emergency."

"Oh! Yes, please!"

I took the rope from Iris as she hurriedly tried to put it away. Honestly, Jigoro. Since Iris had gone to the trouble of preparing it, he could at least have accepted it.

She was clearly very happy that I had accepted it, wriggling her tentacles with delight. Well, Jigoro's carefree personality was nothing new, so I supposed it was fine.

"All right, we're ready. Let's head to the Birdian city!"

"All right!"

"Kyuu!"

◆◇◆◇◆◇

"Nnngh!"

"Iris...! H-hang in there! Just a little farther!"

"Kyuuu!"

The mountain climb went smoothly at first. The rock face continued almost vertically, but I, Genjuro, and Karu could fly, of course, while Ruby could also climb easily by clinging to the ceiling.

Jigoro seemed to be enjoying the hardship of scaling the sheer cliff itself, so I left him to it. As for Iris, she was making good use of the pitons she had made herself. She passed her tentacles through the holes in the pitons and used them as supports to pull her body upward. She was taking the utmost care, so it took some time, but we were making steady progress.

However, a problem arose around the time we passed through the clouds. The poor visibility inside the clouds was troublesome in its own way, but that was all.

Above the clouds, though, the rock face was no longer vertical. It had become an obtuse angle. In other words, it had taken on a shape like a rat guard, preventing anything from climbing up.

Because of Iris's body structure, even with the pitons she ended up hanging in midair. As a result, Iris had to climb hand over hand at an extreme altitude.

Since it was far too dangerous, Karu and I tied Iris to ourselves with ropes, reducing the weight she had to bear as much as possible. Iris looked like she was having a very hard time, but the rat-guard section of the cliff would end soon! Hang in there!

"Izam! This is bad! Something's coming!"

W-what!? An enemy!? Now of all times!? I was grateful that Ruby had detected it, but things were already dangerous enough without adding another problem!

The enemy Ruby had spotted soon came into view for me as well. Birds. And quite a lot of them. It was an unpleasant sight that reminded me of the Vultures we'd encountered on that mountain. First, 【Appraisal】!

――――――――――

Race: Rock Ptarmigan Lv. 12–16

Job: None

Skill: 【Claws】

【Beak】

【Agility Enhancement】

【Flight】

【Water Resistance】

【Lightning Resistance】

――――――――――

Oh? They're not very strong. There doesn't seem to be an advanced individual leading the flock, like there was with the Vultures, either.

But Rock Ptarmigans... If my memory serves me, they were a bird species that had been designated endangered several decades ago, weren't they? And the game had made them enemies.

Still, I would ignore the guilt I couldn't help feeling right now. Rather, I should be relieved that they were opponents my magic could easily wipe out.

"Remote Magic Circle Activation, Spell Adjustment, Dark Wave!"

With the 【Dark Magic】 I excelled at, the flock of Rock Ptarmigans far below our level plummeted helplessly. It seemed the immediate crisis had passed.

But that didn't mean there wouldn't be another attack. And next time, the enemies might be our equals or stronger. We had better hurry!

"Oh, the buffs are about to wear off. Strength Boost, Strength Boost, Strength Boost, Agility Boost, Agility Boost."

"Thaaank youuu!"

I cast a combination of 【Enhancement Magic】 that let Iris move as quickly as possible while still supporting her own weight. Iris desperately stretched out her tentacles and moved forward little by little, but surely. Karu and I pulled her along as much as we could.

"Hang in there!"

"Just a little farther!"

Ruby and Genjuro were cheering near the end of the rat-guard section. They must have understood that encouraging her was about all they could do.

"...This kind of feels like one of those old energy-drink commercials."

"Bwah!?"

"Kyu?"

Jigoro, who had scampered up the rat-guard section without even a safety line, suddenly said that. "Fight! One shot—" Wait, no, no!

Jigoro! You idiot! You made me let my guard down! Though I'd been thinking the same thing for a while now!

A-anyway! Iris! Just a little longer! Hang in there!

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuaaaaaaaaaah!!!"

With a final burst of effort, Iris finally climbed over the rat-guard section by following the pitons. Well done! There wasn't much farther to go from here!

"I've put the pitons in place!"

"The climb is nearly over!"

While I was completely occupied with Iris, it seemed Genjuro and Ruby had gotten everything ready. The long rock face would be over soon!

◆◇◆◇◆◇

"Heave... ho!"

"We've arrived."

About ten minutes later, we finally finished climbing the steep rocky mountain and reached the summit. It hadn't taken all that much time, but it had been mentally exhausting...

"Ahh! This feels great!"

"Indeed, the breeze is pleasant."

Since it was a rocky mountain, I had expected the summit to be covered in jagged stones and exposed ground. Surprisingly, however, the entire area was covered in soft grass. A cool breeze characteristic of high altitudes blew gently through it, making the grass sway lazily.

"This is a nice place."

"The Birdian city is here, right?"

"Yes, it should be. And it's probably over there."

I pointed toward a giant tree standing alone in the grassland. It was inferior to the giant tree visible near the entrance to the 'Ancient Moving Tower,' but it was still plenty impressive. I was honestly surprised to find something like this atop a rocky mountain.

The ground was flat, and there were no artificial structures that looked like houses. In that case, the city must be atop that giant tree. Yes, this was definitely fantasy!

"Then let's go."

"Yes!"

"I hope they're friendly!"

"Don't let your illness act up and make you pick a fight, Jigoro."

"Old man, you ever heard of a boomerang?"

"Kyururu!"

And so, we proceeded toward the giant tree at the mountaintop.