Have I really finished the third quest?
I haven't reached Phoebe's hometown yet, but since I used the magic circle, it seems my arrival is confirmed... Still, I'm most concerned about the reward—it's supposed to ensure the survival of some of Phoebe's acquaintances, yet I haven't received any information about it. Will I find out later?
I've earned two titles, but the Hasty Runner has a drawback to luck... The "certain conditions" likely refer to training inadequacies. I can't help but feel a twinge of anxiety about being underprepared... but I did craft high-quality gear, so I should be fine!
As I muster my resolve, my vision clears in the blink of an eye. Looking around, I realize I'm standing inside a temple set in the wilderness. On the walls of the temple and the ground beneath me, I see the same transfer magic circle I encountered in the ruins of the Earth Spirits.
Curious, I examine it, and a system screen appears:
*You can currently transfer to the Earth Spirits' ruins using the combination of the Fairy Gate key and a person... Would you like to set this as your destination? If yes, please insert the key into the ground.*
It seems I could return, but for now, that's not an option.
"Wait, we actually made it to Phoebe's hometown, right?" Completing the third quest meant we had arrived at her home... but none of the fields of flowers I had seen in the relived memories or the description of the title: "Those Who Step Into the Fairy's Garden" were here. Not a single bloom in sight...
"No way... This can't be happening..." Phoebe's voice trembled with disbelief, revealing her deep-seated hope.
"...It's okay, they have to be around here somewhere. Let's explore," I encouraged her gently.
"...Okay."
Given the quest rewards, there had to be living fairies here! As I patted Phoebe's head to lift her spirits, I stepped into the flowerless wasteland, recalling the vivid memories from earlier.
*You've received a message from your friend Lydia:*
*The MP cost for the transfer magic circle is 200. I recommend keeping one of the MP recovery potions you bought for the return trip.*
Just then, my leader's message popped up. I needed 200 MP, huh? I had to be careful with the precious MP recovery potions I bought from her—they were a steal at a 40% discount, but normally they were quite expensive.
Before moving forward, I checked if I could log out, but a warning appeared: *You will restart at Lily's home, leaving Phoebe behind. Are you sure you want to proceed?*
Quickly, I pressed "no" and closed the system window. Even though it was just a button press, the thought of everything ending filled me with anxiety.
"...If only there were colorful flowers here... I wanted to show them to Lena... Oh, that way is where that monster is..."
"Don't worry, the monster is unlikely to stay in one place for long..."
I was heading towards a location I had experienced in my memories, where I'd encountered All Mosquitoes. There might be something there, and since I needed to explore the area anyway, I had no choice but to go in without looking back.
"Wait? What is that...?"
Just as I turned, something flew toward me—an enormous grasshopper? A locust? I couldn't tell, but it was the size of a large dog! It hurtled toward me, looking menacing with its green skin and long legs.
Oh no, that thing is gross!
"Wha—?! It's disgusting?!"
I swung Archie at the creature! The bug was knocked away by the impact, but it lunged back at me again!
"Holy Ball!"
Suddenly, Phoebe, who was tucked into my chest pocket, fired a glowing orb that struck the insect right in the face, startling it. Seizing the moment, I brought Archie down in a powerful swing, slamming it into the bug! It vanished in a flash of red light.
As I swung down, I felt a sickening squish in my hand... I really wanted to wash Archie now. The bug had disappeared cleanly, but the feeling left me wanting to clean my weapon.
As I tried to escape reality, Phoebe muttered, "Could the number of large insects be increasing...?"
"That might be true. Honestly, my only area attack is also my trump card, so I'd prefer fewer large ones over small swarms."
While we walked, an unsettling squelching sound reached our ears. Holding our breath, Phoebe and I moved toward the noise.
"Whoa!?"
We stumbled upon a giant mantis, about half the size of an adult man, devouring a smaller mantis the size of a dog. I couldn't help but scream.
No way! Is this like a poison-tinged nightmare?! This isn't how the food chain works, right?! It's disgusting! I have goosebumps!
Reacting to my scream, the giant mantis turned towards us, its mouth glowing ominously red, and lunged forward!
"Ice Chain!"
"Gross! Full swing!!"
With Phoebe's magic binding the mantis in icy chains, I unleashed a flurry of punches with all my strength on its face!
After about five full swings, the mantis burst into red sparks and vanished… even the mantis it had been eating had disappeared without a trace.
"Ugh, that was tough..."
"Are you okay, Lena?"
"I'm fine... it's just that the enemy's appearance was so horrifying that it was mentally overwhelming."
"Right? It really is terrifying..."
Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I set out to explore my surroundings once more. Despite the desolate landscape, a stone-paved path made it impossible to get lost, even without a sense of direction. With Phoebe by my side, I felt confident I wouldn't stray too far, regardless of how different the scenery was.
After walking for a while, guided by memories from Yuki and Phoebe, I arrived at the spot where they had battled the All Mosquitoes.
"It seems there are no enemies around," I observed.
"…It brings back unpleasant memories," Phoebe replied, her gaze distant.
Looking around, all I could see were the barren wilderness and the cold stone path, punctuated only by a few distant insects. The absence of any buildings, homes, or signs of civilization felt utterly alien.
"Hey, Phoebe… what materials are homes typically made of in your homeland?"
"My house is made of a stone called brick, but generally, wood is used. There should be many houses just beyond that small mountain over there…"
Wood, huh? That made me think—those houses could easily be eaten up by termites. I recalled how Taylor had made me scream in fear during a punishment game, where I had to protect Earth from bugs and aliens. In another game, even concrete apartments were devoured by those pests.
In this fantastical world, it wouldn't be surprising to encounter insects that consumed everything in their path. I turned to where Phoebe pointed to a small mountain, which looked more like a substantial hill to me. Climbing to the top might give us a better view of the entire Fairy Garden.
"Shall we head over there... hmm?"
As I prepared to start walking towards the mountain, a mining point shimmered on the ground nearby.
"What's that? Why is there something here?"
"Is something wrong?"
"No, it looks like something is buried in the ground, so I'm going to dig it up."
"That's… a flower bed, isn't it? I don't think anything could be buried there."
I moved the mining point over the flower bed, plunged Archie into the ground, and began to dig. To my surprise, six fragments of a metallic substance emerged.
'You unearthed a broken weapon.'
How tasteless…
"Just a little digging and I find metal scraps? That's strange, isn't it? I can't imagine insects burying things…"
"This used to be Yuki's staff."
"What!? Wait! I've heard that players, including Lena, may forget things, but they don't leave their belongings behind. So why is Yuki's staff here?"
I didn't know why it was there, but when I rearranged the metal pieces, they resembled Phoebe's staff.
Of course, the broken one was covered in dirt and far from pristine white; it looked like it had been snapped with brute force, and the shape was somewhat distorted.
"This is awful! Who could do something like this?"
"Well, it's clearly the work of the enemy insects, right? But as Phoebe said, I can't imagine them burying anything…"
As questions filled her mind, the system screen appeared.
"There's a message left on the weapon by a player. Would you like to play it?"
"Message!?"
"W-Wait, did you figure something out, Lena?"
"Uh, it seems Yuki left a message on the weapon. Let me check it."
She pressed the 'yes' button, and a voice began to play.
"To the nameless player, my name is Yuki. Although, by now, I must be retired. I failed the Number Quest because I couldn't protect my partner or my students… By the time you hear this, the Fairy Garden will likely be destroyed.
I have a favor to ask: if you encounter a giant mosquito-like enemy called All Mosquito, please defeat it at all costs! Avenge me, Caleb, Phoebe, and all the fairies! When it unleashes its powerful attack, it splits into many small creatures to evade harm, so try to immobilize it or catch it off guard when that happens! Be careful—if you cast magic carelessly, it has a long, slender mouth that can absorb your spells and return them as a counterattack! And its weakness is..."
"The message has ended."
The voice cut off abruptly, having clearly spoken to its limit. It seemed to cram in as many words as possible, the rapid pace making it hard to follow.
So, unlike a virtual experience, in the original history, Yuki-san was the first to fall, which means Phoebe doesn't know she's safe… I guess Caleb, having used up all his magic points, and Phoebe, who could only use support spells back then, were in an impossible situation where there was no hope of rescue.
But I never knew there was such a system… People have died, but I'd never encountered a messaging system like this before. Is it only activated when a number quest fails?
"Um, I didn't hear anything. What did Yuki-san say?"
"Uh, I'll tell you now."
Since I thought she wouldn't understand if I mentioned retirement or the number quest directly, I explained that retirement meant not returning to this world and framed the number quest as my mission.
"Wait… If you aren't coming back to this world, does that mean we'll never see each other again?"
"Yeah, that's right…"
"No, no… Yuki-san…"
As Phoebe began to cry in her pocket, I struggled to find the right words to comfort her and could only stroke her head gently. Damn, I'll definitely take down All Mosquito if I ever get the chance!
Ten minutes later, Phoebe finally stopped crying.
"I'm sorry, Lena-san… I shouldn't be crying right now, but I let it get to me. Somewhere deep down, I thought if I just held on, I'd get to see Yuki-san again, but I guess that's impossible…"
"You don't need to apologize; parting is always a sad thing…" I fully expected a number quest to trigger, but nothing happened. I was sure there had to be some kind of trigger, but... well, even without a number quest, our tasks remain unchanged.
"Lena, it's alright now. Let's go… I want to climb the mountain and check on everyone's safety!"
"Understood… But keep Phoebe in your pocket. If she flies, she could easily soar over the mountain, but I can't help her if she gets attacked by flying insects…"
"I know, and I don't want to leave you behind."
As I exchanged words with Phoebe, we made our way to the small mountain she had pointed out. On the way, we encountered insect-like monsters. The oversized beetles and stag beetles, fitting comfortably in my hands, were manageable—I managed to hold back my screams. However, every time I encountered a caterpillar the size of a soccer ball or spiders the size of puppies, I couldn't help but scream. Gritting my teeth, I fought back and struck them down!