Part 1
Back on Axel, Kazuma became a fugitive and his party was thrown into chaos.
"Kazuma! How could you do this to us?!" Aqua wailed in her usual dramatic fashion, flailing about. "We were supposed to rescue you from prison, but now you're one of the most wanted criminals! How are we supposed to defeat the Demon King without you?"
Megumin was also struggling with the news. "K-K-Kazuma is gone... We were supposed to continue our daily explosions together, but now he's disappeared... Who will lead our party now? Are we going to disband? No, I refuse to go back to my old life!" Megumin screamed, remembering her past struggles.
Darkness tried her best to calm down the others as they had their mental breakdowns. However, she couldn't ignore her own inner turmoil. 'It's our fault that Kazuma is gone... As a crusader, it was my duty to protect him and our group, but I let them take him and now he's on the run...' Darkness thought.
Hours passed before Aqua and Megumin finally stopped crying.
"What do we do now?" Aqua asked. Kazuma is gone and we have no idea where he went. We only know that he ran away."
They all sat in silence, reflecting on their predicament until Darkness spoke up."
This is our fault," she said through clenched fists."Darkness..." Megumin said softly.
"No!" She exclaimed. Despite her masochistic tendencies, Darkness had some common sense at times. But she often found herself in situations that proved otherwise.
"Kazuma was our ally, and we made it seem like we abandoned him when he needed us most! Megumin!" She pointed an accusatory finger at the Arch Wizard.
"Me?" Megumin asked, confused.
"Didn't Kazuma keep you in our party despite your inability to use magic other than explosions, which leave you paralyzed and potentially a burden?" Darkness pointed out.
"Gek..." Megumin outwardly flinched. Darkness was really laying it out thick. But she had a point. Kazuma really had no reason to keep her in the party. Sure she forced him by making him look like a bad guy in public, but afterwards he totally could've dumped her paralyzed body somewhere. Despite that, here she stood, living in a mansion with her party, and she even seen the wonders of casting Explosion magic twice in one day! And when there was a chance she could be arrested with Kazuma for defending him... She threw him under the carriage.
"Yes... He did..." Megumin admitted.
"And Aqua!" Darkness pointed at the goddess.
"Y-yes?!" She exclaimed.
"I may not know how you and Kazuma met, but despite that, he has show great disinterest in you, often spite or even borderline hatred, you beg him for money and accumulate debt for us, and yet, does he not still house you? Does he still not amuse some of your whims, or give you the funds you require? Many would've abandoned someone like you for causing so many problems for him, especially when it was only you two."
Aqua felt like an arrow shot through her heart. Once again, Darkness was right. Aqua has cause more problems than she has fixed them. Even the mansion they are currently residing in, rewarded to them because of the trouble SHE cause. She constantly accumulates debts and then begs Kazuma to give her money, yet at the same time treats him like trash, essentially taking him for granted.
"Even I myself, recognize the trouble I caused for Kazuma. I may be a Crusader who protects all from those who dare to attack, but my attacks seem to always fail to hit, and I can tell Kazuma is rather embarrassed to have me around." Darkness said recalling all of her adventures with Kazuma.
"Normally I would take pleasure in that thought, but now is not the time. We all have our fair share of problems, even Kazuma himself has many, but he still took us all into his party and took care of us. He may be a perverted, greedy, rude, pitiful man, but he is our leader, and he made sure we were safe. Now, he is gone, and we have no choice but to trudge on until Kazuma returns or we find him."
The others agreed. Even if Kazuma was gone, they couldn't imagine a life different than what they currently have. They were already accustomed to their lives inside the mansion, taking quests that sometimes leads to one or more of the girls vulnerable to the enemy, sometimes even traumatizing them, and reaping the rewards if it.
They didn't wanna split up, they had to stick together and stay as a three man party, hopefully reuniting with Kazuma at some point.
The others nodded, agreeing with Darkness.
"So we are agreed. We will stick together, and we must search for Kazuma where we can."
"Yes!" The others exclaimed.
Kazuma may be gone, but their bond as a party remained strong. They would stay together and find him no matter what.
Part 2
"Again, Thank you Kazuma, I'm so grateful. Without your help, we would've never gotten the egg. You're really a big help." John said as he handed me a bag full of Eris. He had thanked me countless times already, and I just sighed tiredly in response.
"Thanks to both of you too. If you two weren't there, I'm not sure if I could've defeated that bear by myself." I said as I put the bag of Eris into my pocket.
My statement was partially true; the bear was massive and without their help, it would have been nearly impossible for me to take it down alone.
Dubious of my statement, John raised an eyebrow at my words before snorting without saying anything else.
Even though both of them are not adventurers, and don't sign up for any classes, John and Ralph had proven their capabilities with their weapons. It was clear that they had trained themselves and were able to hold their own in battle.
Needless to say, I can't deny the fact that both of them are a big factor in the battle victory.
They showed me that even human in commons could practice their skills with swords, bows, and arrows without the help of an adventurer card.
However, the influence of adventurer cards that can change an individual's feats cannot be underestimated either.
Even though both of them are not adventurers, and don't sign up for any classes, John and Ralph had proven their capabilities with their weapons. It was clear that they had trained themselves and were able to hold their own in battle.
Needless to say, I can't deny the fact that both of them are a big factor in the battle victory.
Yet, using the same principle, I never ever saw Darkness hit her opponent using her sword, even one time, which is a hole on itself.
As we continued talking, I couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if I had faced the bear alone without their aid. Would I have survived? Could I have taken down the beast on my own? The answer was probably no.
I never knew.
Bringing my thoughts back to the present, John ask. "So, where are you going to go next."
"I, as I planned, will take the escort quest to go to Lorm Kingdom." I replied.
"Lorm Kingdom, huh?" John looked off into the distance with a thoughtful expression. Then he continued, "Me, my brother, and several of our buddies travelled there once before. It took us at least four or six days on the road."
He leaned against the doorframe as he recalled the journey. "It was exhausting. The road after Belzerg Border was like riding over piles of rocks-my butt hurt so much," he chuckled.
I chuckled at his comment.
"We too, hired people-an adventurer, just like you."
"Because of the monster?"
"Hm? No, the monster... Meh, if it's you, it must be fine, we just encountered a few goblins... And wolves."John shrugged nonchalantly.
Please don't meh me. I rolled my eyes inwardly at his overestimation of my abilities. But I chose to brush it off with a light snort.
Despite some fleeting doubts, I chose to brush off his overestimation of my abilities. "Yeah, if you say so," I replied with a slight laugh.
The silence permeated the air. As time passed, I could feel the awkwardness growing with each passing second. But John decided to make a move.
He straighten his posture, then stared right into my eyes. "Well, I won't hold you any longer. I wish you the most luck on your journey." He offered me his hand.
I hesitated for a moment before shaking it firmly and smiling. "Umu, thank you, I hope the egg can cure your mother and help her recover."
"Yeah, it should be... Uh-Oh, do you like reading books?." Suddenly, he changed the subject as I was about to leave.
Books? Well, I loved reading my favorite anime novel back in Japan, but I couldn't say the same for biographies or encyclopedias. In high school, I hardly ever read unless my teacher assigned it.
"Uh... Sure, I read some books back when I was younger, m, mainly novels."
"In that case, I have something for you, wait a second." Before I could ask why, he disappeared into his house.
Minutes later, he comes back with a leather satchel and a book in the other hand.
"You'll be going into quite a journey, right? So, I have something for you, here." He showed me the book he brought.
I took the book, it titled Mercy Over This Knight's Wrath. "My dad was a librarian so we had piles of books scattered around. You'll be on the road for at least a week, right? Uh... You can read, right?" I nodded, keeping my eyes on the book, reading the small portion synopsis of the book on the first page.
"Uh huh, I could read this just fine." I said as I closed the book.
"It's one of my favorite books. I hope it could kill your boredom on the road." He opened the satchel, gesturing for me to put the book inside. "Here, put it inside."
"And... uh... the satchel?" I asked reluctantly.
"I'm sure you'll need this... Noticed you hadn't one." He said staring at my shoulder and waist.
"But-" I stopped myself before I could ask why. This guy helps me, and I helped him, in some way, so the least thing I should be doing is thanking him. "Thanks... I really appreciate it."
I weakly smiled at him as I placed the book in the satchel.
Suddenly, John smacked my shoulder. "Hey, what's with that face?"
Without realizing it, I must have been making a pitiful expression.
"Um... no, I'm sorry. It's just..." I struggled to find the right words. My emotions were a jumbled mess that I couldn't explain. "I-I can't repay you for this."
He sighed and rested his hand on my shoulder. "Hey, buddy, don't worry about it. I don't know what you've been through, but I'm sure it was a rough experience for you."
Although I had only met John that day, he seemed like the kind of guy who would listen and offer support like a brother. But in reality, we had only been on the road together for less than half a day.
Why did I feel this way? Maybe it was because he was the first person I met who seemed relatively normal compared to all the crazy and quirky people in Axel. He was a decent person, just like me.
I hadn't expected anything from John, but deep down I knew that wasn't true.
My face fell with an inexplicable anxiety as I lowered my gaze.
"We may not have been together long, but we did share quite a bit fighting off that bear. You helped me, Ralph, and especially, you helped our mother. The least I can give you is this." He pushed the satchel on my chest.
John continued, "Your road in the future might be rough, but just believe, one day... Maybe things will be better for you." Unconsciously, I hold the bag.
My eyes began to sting and I felt myself getting emotional. "Shit..." I cursed under my breath and quickly rubbed my eyes with my fingers.
After a brief chuckle, I let out a heavy sigh. John's advice had brought me some relief. "You're good at making people tear up, huh?" I joked with him. He grinned in response.
"Well, thank you so much... " I said, adjusting the satchel on my shoulder.
"No problem, buddy," he replied, raising his fist for a bump, which I reciprocated.
" ...Maybe one day I'll come back."
"You better." he responded shortly.
I chuckled. "Take care."
"Likewise." With the last goodbye, I left John's house with a cloud of anxiety and a little bit of sadness.
This farewell with John turned out to be more dramatic than I could've imagined.
In the back of my mind, I made a mental note to myself that one day I would return here and share a drink or two with him. Oh, and I also need to remember to buy Geida-san's entire collection of weapons apparently.
Well, that could wait.
Gesturing my hand a goodbye as John watched me disappear into the main road village, I made my way to my next client.
On the way, I bought some food. Then I accepted the job, which the client requested that their departure was tomorrow.
So given the free time, I went to the clothing store. While I couldn't find my favorite green-colored cloak. I got a grey-colored cloak instead, it's almost the same as the one I had back then, plus this one had the additional hood on it.
I also bought a new dark-brown pants and pair of boots.
Done with my new attire, I moved on to another store, where I bought camping supplies, including a map and a compass.
Now, with the map, I knew where I was and which city I'd headed to.
Currently, I am in the Village of Lux. I had to escort my client to the Lorm Kingdom, which is to the east of the Belzerg Border.
Lorm Kingdom is a small kingdom compared to Belzerg, as it only has three major cities, it stretches from southeast to northeast along the border of Belzerg. It's safe to say that almost the entirety of Belzerg's northeastern border was covered by Lorm Kingdom.
From the information I got from the conversation with the shop owner, Lorm Kingdom is an ally of the Belzerg Kingdom.
For that reason, I assumed Lorm isn't safe either. Considering its small territory, it'll be hard for me to move around. With quick scouring, they could find me in a matter of months.
I considered fleeing into another nation. My next option would be heading east towards Alsforth Kingdom. The most eastern country on the continent bordering Lorm. Separated by a mountain range, Alsforth was almost two-thirds the size of Belzerg and hugged the eastern sea of the central continent.
Alsforth Kingdom certainly could be a safer bet, going far-east. The owner said that Belzerg and Alsforth have quite a bad history even though, right now their relation with Alsforth is on a neutral term.
It also said that the reason both Kingdoms didn't attack each other was that Both kingdoms were preoccupied with ongoing wars - Belzerg with the Demon King in the west, and Alsforth with a Demi-Human nation in their north.
The fact that there was only one way in and out of Alsforth through a hill pass on the west also made it difficult for either kingdom to send troops. Plus, with its location being the farthest from Belzerg's capital city, which was located in the western side of the continent, it seemed like a safer option for me.
With my mind made up, I now focused on finding an inn to rest for the night.
And tomorrow came in fast, and it wasn't long before I was on the road.
The person I was escorting was named William.
The job was pretty simple. William had a carriage, but the road he intended to take to the town of Kelan, one of three major cities in Lorm Kingdom, was riddled with monsters and potential bandits. As a result, he needed someone to be his bodyguard.
Contrary to my belief, he is a rather generous merchant, providing me with food on the journey.
He looks like he's in his fifty. With a brown hair and mustache, with strands of white hair showing. He's almost the same height as me, being a bit taller.
Again, William is another nice or maybe normal person I've met.
On the road, we would mainly stop if there were any monsters.
When there weren't monsters, I just sat in the back of the carriage reading a book that John gave to me back in the village, while keeping my Enemy Detection skill active.
It seems that somehow, John picked the most relatable book for me to read. Is he really want to send me some message through this book?
Turns out, the book was about a boy training to become a monster hunter in a world plagued by monster. Unfortunately, a secret was revealed and he was betrayed by his friends.
Sound familiar? This boy was literally me. Maybe John chose this book for me because it hits close to home. Or maybe it's just one of his favorites.
Either way, I couldn't think much about it anyway, as my thoughts were interrupted when William called out to me at the same time my Enemy Detection went off. "There are monsters ahead," he said, bringing the carriage to a stop.
I looked towards the source of the signal and saw a massive bunny-like creature the size of a bear (in my world, at least) eating a fish.
I use Farsight to get a better look at the creature. It has brown fur, yellow eyes, and an out-of-character long tail.
A strange sight, indeed, but not too surprising considering all the giant chimera-like creatures I've encountered before-two-headed bears, giant cats called "Rookie Killer," then giant toads, giant ants, giant boars, and who knows what next? Giant cockroaches? Do they even exist? I hope not; that would be a terrible sight.
Just imagining one fly towards you, I stop at the thought as it catches me a shudder.
Aside, How is there a fish in this place? Is it from a lake or something? But where? There's no lake, and the road on which we lead was an uphill road. So how, in this absurd world, is there that big clump of a fish?
Is there any lake around here? Or farmland? Matter of fact, I Heard that fish in this absurdly odd world also could be planted and harvested.
Or maybe it was from another carriage after us? In any case, the fish could be from anywhere, not that it matters. What matters is the rabbit was blocking the road a distance away.
"Well damn..." I muttered under my breath.
"Head Cracker," William said grimly.
"What?" Is that the monster's name? I couldn't help but question the strange naming convention for these creatures. I would've just called it a Giant Rabbit.
"You heard me, Head Cracker. That thing will crack your skull open." William replied with passive-aggressive undertones.
"That's...informative," I sarcastically replied, though how lame the name sounded, it did provide some useful information.
"Say, can you do it? Kill that thing?" William's doubt was evident in his voice.
"I... I'm not sure." I almost admitted defeat before even trying. But I couldn't know for certain unless I attempted it.
The plan I came up with was simple: stab it in the head like I always did with other monsters. Would it be enough to defeat this one, though? It was still pretty damn big, even if it wasn't as big as the bear John and I fought before.
No, let me try to kill it first. In the case that I fail to do so, I hope I can just shoo it away. "Say, can I borrow your rope, William-san?"
He then turned his head and took a look at me over his shoulder, as if examining my strength based on my body build. "What'll you do? You're going to throw a lasso on that thing? I wouldn't recommend."
He pointed his finger at the rabbit, then proceeded. "That pair of feet had a power to crack your skull open. At the least, you wanted to do is to get that thing away from the way."
"Oh? Do you know more about this monster, William-san? Please tell me everything you know," I asked eagerly.
He turned to look at me before responding, "Fought that thing on the Capital in the past, the thing's jump and then use their leg to throw a kick on their opponent's head. I say that you'd better scare that thing off, get that monster out of the road. Back then, that monster killed a squadron of Knights alone." As he continued to explain, I grabbed the rope on the wall hanger. The rope was so long that I could use Bind two times on the monster, at least.
I honestly could cast Bind without any ropes, but I want to preserve my mana. It costs me less to use some ropes that already exist, saving my mana for later fights in case I fail and have to use some skills in advance.
"However, your-in this case our best bet would just wait here until that thing moved away. Hoping he's not going to attack us after his meal."
I finished my preparation by putting the rope on my shoulder. "First, I'm not going to put a lasso on that thing, second, I'll try to kill that thing, and if it doesn't succeed, I'll get the thing chasing me to the woods, clearing the way, which then you should advance right away."
"Hmph... How about you?" Even though his tone didn't show it, his face seemingly had slight unnecessary disagreement at my idea.
"I... I'll catch you up, somehow." I climbed down from the carriage and crept towards the unsuspecting bunny behind the bush with my Lurk activated, trying not to make any noise.
The plan was simple in theory. First, I used Bind to make it immobile, and then I stabbed it in the head.
Arguably, my signature move if I were to say so myself.
If all goes well, I will thank Eris-sama for my success. If it comes to avail, then my next option will be to scare it off or get that thing to chase me around the woods.
With Smokescreen, I could at least use it twice after using Binds.
In any case, I could cast three Smokescreens right now, in my peak mana condition, other skills excluded. Smokescreen drains a significant amount of my mana, a third of my mana, I can feel it. It is so, I must use it wisely.
As I got closer to the bush where the rabbit was feasting on its mackerel meal, I could see its teeth tearing into the fish.
In addition, Between the decision to kill the rabbit and get the rabbit out of the way by chasing me, I'd say the latter was way easier and more practicable, but there's a reason on my behalf, a selfish one that is.
To test myself mostly. How far I could become, there's still a long way for me to become stronger or at least smarter. At least I could sharpen myself using this chance.
One thing that I learned in this world is that, at certain times, utility skills like Drain Touch, Bind, and Freeze, which can paralyze, blind, immobilize, and so on, are quite broken.
CRACK. Suddenly, a loud crack echoed through the air,
Causing the rabbit to stop its feast and look in my direction. Or rather, behind me.
I cursed myself for being so careless; as cliched as it can be, my foot stepped on a stick.
Crap! Just my luck! And I thought I was supposed to have high luck!
Shit, please just go back to your breakfast.
As I held my breath and stood frozen behind the bush, staring at the rabbit's yellow eyes blinking in confusion and fear, I couldn't help but blame myself and this world for being so unpredictable.
Please, Eris-sama. If you're there and hear me, please make this bunny go back to its meal.
As if my prayer was answered, the bunny continued biting the mackerel.
I released my breath, surprised. Oh, Eris-sama, is that your doing!? if it is Thank you! I swear that I will donate some of my money to Eris' church later!
I proceeded to approach until I had my distance close enough.
Looking at the terrain, I could just jump out and stab the head. Though, I'd rather choose the safer approach.
Exhaling, I unsheathed my sword, while stretching my other hand forward.
"[Bind] [Bind]!" I silently cast my spell two times as I plunged forward the instant later.
It plopped to the ground with four of its legs tied down, dumbfounded with the state he was in. His legs were tied down with a double-tied rope around his entire body.
Putting all my might into both of my hands, I thrust my sword into the center of his forehead before he could react.
"Geh-!" Holding my breath, I held my knife as it struggled. Its body convulsed as my knife penetrated its head all the way down to the brain. After that, I twisted the knife, causing it to convulse harder for a few seconds before finally slowing down and stopping.
"Well... Hah, that was easy... Hah." I said in heavy pants, pulling my knife out of the rabbit's head, blood spurting as I reflexively dodged the way, preferring not to get any blood stains on my clothes.
While I was admiring the monster that I just put down, I heard a clacking wooden wheel behind me that was reaching to me slowly.
I turned around and saw the approaching William, who had a slight melancholic expression. He stopped a few meters away. "While I admit that was quite a spectacular kill-show, but we're getting nowhere." he spoke in a monotone voice.
"Huh? You mean? I killed the rabbit." I gestured with my hands proudly as I moved out of the way, showing the dead, tied-up rabbit.
"Now we could con-" we could continue our journey is what I wanted to say, which I stopped as I realized that the rabbit-or in this case his massive corpse that as big as a adult bear on my old world was still in the middle of the fucking road lay dead, motionless. "Well... I didn't think of that."
William just rubbed his hand on his forehead, he sighed tiredly with disappointment.
And because of my... again, carelessness, we had to delay our journey. As we, me and William moved the body aside, that took at least thirty minutes of our time.
I couldn't move it alone. Well, I could, but looking at the size of the body and the weight, which is roughly a thousand pounds, I can't do it alone. Otherwise, it would take at least an entire day to just move this thing aside.
On our success in tossing the rabbit aside, we managed to create an opening through which our carriage barely passed.
Oh, and also, William-san cut a portion of the rabbit's meat to be preserved with salt and eaten at a later date.
After the event, we continued on our journey once more. We traveled a good amount before the sun started setting.
We stopped on the side of the road and set up camp. Of course, when two people are alone together, a conversation will come up eventually.
"Hey, I've got a question for you." William said.
"Yeah? What is it?" I asked.
"What business do you have from the Lorm Kingdom? The job is a one-way trip, after all."
I looked up at the starry sky, thinking about what to say. And after some quick consideration, I decided to tell him a bit of my story.
"I... I am running."
"Running? From what?" William inquired.
"From everything, I guess... "
Well, it seems like not a bit, in the end, I told William a lot about my story, leaving out the details about being a wanted man.
How I grew from nothing, with an idiot for a teammate, living in a stable, to three idiots for teammates and living in a mansion.
How we took down the Destroyer, and how when things got a bit tough afterwards, they threw me under the bus.
"It sounds like you got the short end of the stick, kid." He leaned slightly forward as if bowing in sympathy.
I didn't reply, just continuing to stare into the sky.
"So, are you heading to the Lorm Kingdom, or do you plan to go even further?" William asked.
"I.. plan to go into the east, Alsforth Kingdom."
William was slightly surprised. "That'll be a long journey... You really intend to go way out there?" He leaned his body forward, as if interested in my journey.
"Uh yeah? Why?" My response was nonchalant.
"Alsforth... As far as I could remember, they have a bad taste with Belzerg."
"I thought that they were neutral."
"Well, they are right now, but, in the past, they had an uproar towards each other. Belzerg and Alsforth. If the Demon King had been defeated, Belzerg likely would have a scratch on them." It could be the case, assuming that the Demon King would be defeated in a short time.
However, it seems that it's not the case. Until now, after 800 years, I heard that this particular Demon King has never been touched or even seen, thanks to his fierce general.
Belzerg didn't even manage to kill one general back then. So, it's kinda hard imagining Belzerg would end the conflict with Demon King soon.
Even the one that they managed to kill is because of me, Beldia died in my hand, I saved Axel town from Beldia and yet they treated me like shit.
Well, it's not really just me in that battle, but still! It's mostly me! Aqua or Megumin could never accomplish such a feat if it weren't for me!
Irritated a little, I cursed them in my mind.
I thought about the conflict. Yet, on the larger board, I don't really know about the situation between the two countries officially. So, I shrugged the thought, hoping no war breaks out while I'm in Alsforth.
"I recommend you go to another nation, beside Alsforth. It would be wise to avoid becoming entangled in any potential war between Belzerg and Alsforth," he said with a serious tone. I looked at him, trying my best to keep my emotions hidden.
"Where do you suggest then?" I asked, keeping my tone neutral.
"Well... perhaps Elroad would be a good choice, but it's in the opposite direction of where we're headed." He gazed up at the starry sky as he tried to recall his memories. "There's also Theocracy."
"And where is that located?" I inquired curtly.
"It lies south of Alsforth." So I have to pass through Alsforth anyway? I wanted to protest, but I held my tongue back.
If I remember correctly, the nation is separated from Alsforth by another mountain range.
"I see... Well, I'll consider it once I reach that point. Thank you for the advice." My words hung in the air as we continued to spent a bit more time talking before William went to sleep.
I was left alone by the campfire. The book I had been reading previously in the cart now sat on my lap.
I have almost finished the book.
On the boy's journey, he realized that the raging anger and revenge that craved for more blood, didn't do him any good. And one by one, he and his former friends made peace, until he was able to be with them again, and he even managed to find love.
After reading some portion of the book, it raised some questions of several what ifs in my head.
Could the girls and I be a party again?
I looked at the book before I stared into the crackling fire.
Maybe... but I doubt it.
There's no way they would ever be able to find me in the next kingdom, Alsforth...
There's no half-measures, I will go to the easternmost city of the continent, leaving Axel, leaving Belzerg, to hell with the Demon King.
I couldn't care less about who or when the demon king is going to be killed, as long as it doesn't bother me, as long as I get my peaceful, uneventful life back.
I really don't care.
I closed my eyes before falling asleep.
Part 3
And unknowingly, three days had passed, our journey was really tame, we visited two villages on the road. Had a few run-ins with monsters, but for the most part the ride has been peaceful.
Right now, we're slowly getting closer to the Wall Border.
The Border Wall became more visible in the distance.
Once we got to a certain distance from it.
William stopped the cart.
Fortunately, the sun will be setting soon, so the Old-Will decided to set up a camp on a small hill where Border Walls could be seen. Continuing our journey tomorrow.
This time, Old Will made a soup for us from that giant rabbit meat.
Speaking of Giants, we encounter another 'giant' themed monster one more time, it was Giant Mole, Old-Will called the thing foot snatcher.
After so many encounters with this Giant beast, I am wholly convinced that everything in this world is Giant Sized for some reason.
Giant Frog, Giant centipede, Giant Rabbit, Giant cat as a rookie killer. Giant spider, Giant Mantis. All of the fauna on this world is just my Earth's fauna but bigger.
Such a lazy world design in my opinion.
Well, putting the Giant thought aside, there's a more important issue right now.
It's about the Border Patrol.
I couldn't pass the main entry gate the normal way, considering I am a wanted criminal and all.
I don't know if the Border Patrol that guards the entrance were already alerted about my whereabouts.
I hope they don't, considering we didn't see any wanted posters containing my name in the last two villages we went into.
My other concern was the use of some sort of communication magic or tools.
My best bet would be to get to the other side on the dark of night, jumping through the walls that stand at least ten meters. I can't be sure.
But looking at the map, the road to the next town in the Lorm Kingdom is far ahead.
Walking wouldn't be a good choice, for that reason, I can't say goodbye to Old Will for now.
And in the other case, Old Will didn't know my status as a criminal, I was reluctant to revealing myself. If I tell him, I don't know what he would react to it.
However, the best chance would be to get to the other side, while securing my ride to the next town, which is William's Carriage.
And after considering my choices, I ought to make a decision to tell Old-Will about my status, given sooner or later, we eventually have to pass through the Border Patrol.
But... In case Old-Will acts negatively towards my revelation, whether I like it or not, I have to kill him, which I really don't want that conclusion.
So, hoping that Old-Will will be understanding, I steeled myself despite the unknown outcomes.
Like me, Old-Will likes to read books, well mostly about trading and business.
Right now, he is silently reading his book in deep focus. His eyes move from left to right, equipped with a monocle.
"Old-Will, I had something I wanted to tell you." With a serious tone, I interrupted his session.
After our time spent on the journey, I somehow called him Old-Will now, we have been open to each other quite much, telling our stories.
So, I would like him to trust me despite my status as a criminal.
He lifted his gaze, then closed his book, putting his eyeglass in his pocket before responding to me. "Done, go ahead."
How do I say it to him? I don't have any idea how to approach this topic. While I kept arranging words in my head.
We've been on the road for at least four days now, so I hope you understand my situation.
No, that's not it... Do I need to beat around the bush or just go straight to the topic?
While I was choosing my words carefully, it seems like I've been silent for quite a long time. Old-Will narrowed his brows and said, "Kid, are you going to tell me something?" His tone was slightly irritated.
"Uh-Uhm yeah... " Before I could die of embarrassment, I took a deep breath, calming myself.
"Old-Will... I can't get past the Entrance Gate." I remarked, looking Old-Will in the eyes.
"And why is that?" He briefly replied.
After taking and letting out a deep breath once more, I answered.
"Because... I might be wanted by the guards." I paused a bit, then continued, "You could say that I am a criminal on the loose. They're-the Kingdom was on the lookout for me."
On my revelation, Old-Will didn't change his expression nor move.
Please, Old-Will, don't give me some troublesome answer... don't make me do this to you.
The scent of smoky embers became more apparent as we locked eyes, the only sound between us was the soft crackle of flames in the fireplace. We stood there, frozen in a tense silence, unsure of what to say next.
My heart pounded in my chest as I waited for Old-Will's response, while he stared at me with an unchanging manner. I wanted to continue explaining myself, but Old-Will responded before I could even open my mouth.
"So? What are you going to do?" His voice held no emotion.
I took a deep breath and tried to remain calm. "Is our deal... The carriage escort. After finding out that I am a criminal, do you still want me to continue as your escort?" I asked calmly, but inside I was fully prepared and nervous.
Old-Will sighed faintly before replying, "I figured you were a criminal all along. That's why we stopped before reaching the border."
"Huh?" Confusion swirled in my mind as I tilted my head slightly. And then it clicked.
When thinking about it again, this camping doesn't quite make sense, we could just go past the border, and get some progress before the sun settle down.
I thought Old-Will stopped before reaching the border is because of my luck, as I can't think any other possibilities, However, now, it didn't seem like the case.
I really thought about why we're stopping. It's odd, but it works in my favour, so I followed through.
As I understood his reasoning now, I realized that if a criminal like me was found inside his carriage at the border, it could create problems for him with the Border Guards and ultimately with Belzerg.
It would complicate things for him and could even lead to accusations of smuggling a criminal out of Belzerg.
"S-so you knew?" I asked nervously, my hand tightening on the handle of my sword on my back.
He nodded then continued. "But don't you worry, I'd rather choose to have you guarding my stuff rather than wandering alone into the 'inbetween land', fragile to the bandits arm... Or monsters."
Between land that referred to by Old-Will is the first forest between Belzerg and the Lorm Kingdom.
Back then, Old-Will told me that place was prone to bandits. Not having a fighter on his carriage would be a terrible decision.
"You've proven quite capable; you managed to kill a Head Cracker, a rare type of rabbit that can trouble a squadron of guards. But you... " He pointed at me "You could kill it swiftly, with your combination of skills, which surprised me."
Yeah, Giant Rabbit, we encountered that massive monster. Of course, thanks to my Bind skill, I managed to put it down swiftly without a sweat.
"I see..." I was perplexed. I didn't even consider this reaction from him.
I see him as an ordinary merchant, but after this conversation, he's quite a calculative person.
My perspective of him changing is rather quick. Well, he's a merchant for a reason. To be able to read a person.
As I was lost for words, Old-Will broke the silence once more. "Aside, How are you going to pass through that massive of a wall?" He said, looking far into the distance, where the wall stretched as far as the eye could see.
"I can climb around it." I replied confidently.
I had rope and arrow ready, so climbing was not the problem, it's the guards.
"That's risky. What about the guards?"
"Right now would be my best bet. I could sneak above the wall in the dark. But it'll leave you alone unguarded." I can't leave the non-fighter Old-Will open to the monster unguarded.
But, if only he could get past the gate right now, that would make things way easier.
"You should go, I'll try to talk to them, maybe I could get past the gate." He said, packing his things up.
"Isn't it under the curfew hours?"
"Maybe, but let me talk to them first. If I'm allowed, then I'll just park my cart in front of the gate, with the guards' eyes on me."
Oh yeah, I almost forgot that this man is quite clever.
Using the logic, he could use the guards that patrol around the gate as a substitute for my absence, to watch over him as he takes his rest. Speaking of hitting two birds with one stone.
"Then, I'll be waiting for you on the other side, I'll be on the right side of the road." I told him as I prepared myself.
He nodded. "Understandable."
"Be careful." After our brief agreement, I parted ways with Old-Will.
I navigated my way through the darkness using my Lurk and Enemy Detection skills active.
From a distance, I could see Old-Will's cart moving towards the entrance gate on the main road, barely illuminated by minimal lighting.
After several minutes of walking in the woods, I finally reached the Border Wall. My distance was quite far from the main gate, eight battlements away, and between battlements is roughly thirty meters.
The Wall's height really exceeds my expectation. As I got close to it, it stands at an impressive fifteen meters.
Looking at the far-stretched walls, it had me ponder, how the hell did they build these walls.
Did they use magic? No way they used Labor right? This wall literally built covering every corner of Belzerg Border. Circling it.
Pushing aside these thoughts, I focused on using my Enemy Detection skill to scan the area above the wall. Surprisingly, it didn't detect any signs of enemies. After waiting a few more minutes to ensure it was safe, I took out my arrow with a rope attached and shot it over the wall with a loud KA-CHINK.
I tugged the rope a few times, then I used all my strength to tug on it to see if it could take my weight, but it did not budge, it showed no signs of fraying.
"Yosh." I exclaimed in satisfaction.
Before starting my climb up the wall, I looked at my trembling hands. A wave of uneasiness washed over me as I realized that once I crossed this wall and left Belzerg behind, I would be on my own.
No more Darkness taking hits for me while enjoying it, no more Megumin destroying everything in sight (but being useless afterwards), and most importantly, no more Aqua to resurrect me if I were to meet my demise.
It is the fact that the Priests who had the ability to ressurect a person is extremely rare, no, rare is understatement, as rumor says that the Kingdom only had three of them in disposal Aqua excluded. Even the latter is no ordinary human, that blue thing was a literal goddess.
And which, to gain the ability to resurrect a person, you had to really dedicate yourself to the Priest class.
With uncertainty about what the future holds, I can't get back into the life I had on Axel before. I had to be stronger and smarter to survive.
My uneventful life on Axel may be mediocre and boring, but it's not that bad either.
Even though my daily activity is just me getting annoyed and harassed by the three idiots of a teammate.
I unknowingly enjoyed them.
The daily Explosion I did with Megumin, A Fight that always broke out with Aqua, and the contagious shame caused by a masochistic Darkness being beaten by a monster while gettting witnessed by many adventurers.
The thought of being completely alone in this world made me clench my fists, but I quickly pushed it aside and steeled myself.
With the absence of Aqua's resurrection magic, I must take countermeasures against everything from this point forward. Knowing that if I die, then I will have died for sure. It will be over.
I took a deep breath and focused on my goal: getting out of Belzerg alive. I couldn't afford to make any more mistakes or take unnecessary risks. From this point forward, everything was up to me.
Screw Aqua, Screw the three of you, Screw Axel, Screw Belzerg, Screw Demon King. I don't really care if it's not me that defeated the demon king; I couldn't care less, as I intended to go into the far east while the demon king is on the far west.
I don't care if it was Dust or Mitsunagi who killed the Demon King. I just want to survive and start a good new life for myself, being a merchant or whatever, getting rich and having a beautiful wife, and then having many kids with her while spending my old age in retirement without any of this life-threatening shit.
As if struck by memory, I took out my adventurer card. My eyes shifted between data and sentences, until I found what I needed.
[Skill - Acquired: Climb]
It should've made climbing easier, right?
"Let's do this." My heart pounded in my chest as I prepared to climb the wall. I exhaled slowly, trying to calm my nerves, and grabbed the rope. With each pull, I ascended higher and higher.
And it's true, I climb like a pro, even though I haven't done any climbing activities before, I feel like I've really mastered this.
As I ascended higher and higher, I couldn't help but wonder why there were no guards on the battlements. Was it because Lorm was allied with the neighboring nation, or was it simply due to a lack of manpower? Nah, that couldn't be the case, Belzerg is the biggest nation after all. But those thoughts quickly disappeared as I reached the top of the wall and peeked over into the darkness of the battlements.
Feeling the coast was clear, I hopped onto the rampart, then quickly pulled my rope. In the far distance, I saw Old-Will getting into conversation with the guards.
Using my Farsight to get a better look at their gestures. It seems like the guards didn't agree and shook their heads.
Later, Old-Will turned his carriage around.
I swallowed the disappointment caused by the outcome, quickly tossed the rope towards the direction I was coming from. Swiftly sliding down the rope, which then whipping the rope to restore my equipment and leaving no trace behind.
Still using [Lurk, I walked across the vast grassland under the dark green glowing sky. It reminds me of our adventure, somehow.
Looking at the stretched walls of Belzerg, I said in a low whisper, "Sayonara... Aqua, Megumin... Darkness."
I teared up, imagining how my life would be in the future without the special cafe on Axel.
Oh how I will miss that succubus cafe.
With a clutched feeling in my heart, I walked a few distances away until I stopped at the relatively big tree on the right side of the road before the woods and started a campfire.
With my stomach still full, I slowly drifted to sleep while keeping my Enemy Detection skill active.
And soon, morning came.
I waited for quite some time, while waiting for Old-Will to pick me up, I made myself some cooked rabbit-a normal rabbit this one, that I hunt nearby.
Until I saw a cart dragged by a quite big brown horse coming into view.
It stopped in front of me. "You ready?" Old-Will asked, gesturing for me to get inside.
"Umu." I nodded as I got into his cart, entering through the dense woods, we continued our journey into Kelan City of Lorm Kingdom.