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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“A divine beast…you say? The divine beast?”
Tom’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Yes. Specifically, I’m searching for a phoenix.”
“A phoenix? I thought those were just legends.”
“They exist. I heard the last sighting was in the north.”
If that had been a lie, I wouldn’t be here. I would be at the academy, protecting the students and plotting Halphas’s demise.
Anyway, both in the original story and in reality, the phoenix was essential for defeating Halphas.
If Halphas was the embodiment of death, destruction, and war, then the phoenix was the symbol of regeneration and rebirth.
To kill Halphas, I needed to negate his powers, which meant I needed the help of the phoenix, his antithesis.
Ideally, I would bring the phoenix itself to counter Halphas’s powers. If that wasn’t possible, I needed its blessing to protect myself from his influence.
As long as I survived, I could find a way to kill Halphas.
“A phoenix… You’re searching for something truly remarkable. I once went on a quest to find a dragon…”
Was he about to launch into a long, rambling story?
I finished my meal, patiently waiting for the coachman, who, surprisingly, had a connection to a renowned Archmage, to continue.
“Have you ever seen a dragon?”
“No.”
“Dragons are…massive.”
They were. The largest ones were the size of small towns. A single swipe of their claws could level the academy.
Of course, that was in the game. Reality might be different.
They could be stronger, or weaker.
Fortunately, I didn’t need to fight a dragon. Even max-level players with top-tier equipment struggled against dragons in the game.
Fighting one in reality would be suicide. I hoped this insane status window wouldn’t demand I slay a dragon.
“Did you…see one?”
“An unforgettable experience. I still remember it vividly. It was a clear, sunny day… A dragon appeared near the village where we were staying. A single breath turned the entire village into a sea of flames. Its eyes…terrifying. I couldn’t even move. I would have died if it weren’t for Merlin.”
“You were lucky to survive.”
“Having Merlin as a friend was the best decision of my life.”
I watched Tom gaze wistfully out the window, lost in his memories, then stood up. While relaxing was nice, I had things to do.
“Do you know of a good grocery store?”
“There’s a store called Basil’s Groceries on the east side of town. The owner is generous, and the prices are reasonable. I’m going to rest.”
“Get some rest. We have a long journey ahead of us.”
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[Contractor, look! The ground is completely white!]
At Rue’s excited prompting, I opened my eyes and looked out the window. As she had said, the landscape was covered in snow.
Enough to build hundreds of igloos.
“So much white garbage…I mean, snow.”
Now that we were in a snow-covered region, the tightly sealed carriage was starting to get cold.
Should I get a blanket?
I briefly considered the question, then pulled out a neatly folded blanket and wrapped it around myself.
Complacency was deadly in extreme environments. It was best to be proactive.
[Snow is cold, right? I want to touch it~]
“You’ll be disappointed.”
[Don’t ruin my expectations!]
She was like a child. I ignored Rue, who was glued to the window, and pulled a piece of dried meat from my backpack.
There was nothing to do.
Aside from mealtimes, our days consisted of sitting in a carriage, traveling along the road. It was mind-numbingly boring.
If I had a companion, we could at least converse, but Rue wasn’t exactly ideal for casual conversation.
Perhaps I should just sleep.
I closed my eyes, letting my consciousness drift. Tom would wake me when we arrived.
I was about to fall asleep when—
[Whoa! What was that?!]
My backside!
I clutched my aching posterior and opened the carriage door. Tom was standing outside, examining a broken wheel.
“Some idiot left a rock in the middle of the road. Damn it…”
“Is the wheel broken?”
“Yes. This is…problematic.”
“Do you have a spare?”
“I do, but…”
“Where is it?”
“In the cargo hold. But you can’t change it alone. It’s too heavy—”
I didn’t respond. I simply retrieved the spare wheel from the cargo hold and examined it.
About sixteen inches in diameter, made of oak. It wouldn’t be difficult to repair. I placed the spare wheel next to the broken one and activated my skill.
“Repair.”
“…You have skills?”
“I do.”
“I’m starting to understand why Principal Merlin favors you.”
I inspected the repaired wheel, then stood up.
“Is this…sufficient?”
“It is. I should have known when you handled that shovel so skillfully. I’m in the presence of greatness.”
Tom chuckled, then climbed back onto the driver’s seat.
“Let’s continue.”
I climbed back into the carriage and closed my eyes.
There was nothing to see but the endless expanse of snow.
[Contractor, look! Something’s following us!]
…Of course, as soon as I thought that, something happened.
I opened my eyes and looked out the window. The carriage had started moving again.
What was that?
I stared at something moving in the snow. It was too far away, and partially obscured by the snow, to identify.
I pulled a telescope from my backpack and focused on the pursuers.
“…Humans.”
Humans stalking us through the snow. I quietly retrieved my shovel.
This was going to be a nuisance.
[Contractor, are those…people?]
“Bandits.”
[Wow, bandits actually exist.]
I opened the small window that connected the passenger compartment to the driver’s seat and informed Tom,
“We have company.”
“Bandits? Just my luck.”
“They’ll be a nuisance if we ignore them. I’ll deal with them. Stay inside.”
“Alright.”
The carriage slowed to a stop. I stepped outside and observed the bandits or rather, the wolves emerging from the snow.
Armed with bows and basic weapons. I lengthened my shovel, gripping it firmly.
Eight of them.
I turned to Rue.
[Eight. No mages, it seems.]
Mages wouldn’t resort to banditry. Even low-ranking mages had plenty of opportunities for legitimate employment.
I addressed the surrounding bandits, my tone practiced and confident.
“You’ll regret this.”
“Haha, listen to this kid.”
“You’ll~ regret~ this~”
What was with these cartoonishly villainous bandits? I threw my shovel at the one who was mocking me.
“Boss!”
He couldn’t even dodge that?
I had expected more from someone who looked like they had some experience. I looked away from the bandit, whose head had been split open like a canoe, and scanned the remaining group.
They looked like ordinary bandits, just…dressed for the cold.
I walked towards them, their bodies frozen in fear, and uttered the word I had used countless times.
“Craft.”
Three down.
“Only five left.”
I ignored the impaled bandits and looked at the remaining ones.
“Pissing yourselves in this weather? Your…assets…will freeze. Need a fire?”
“M-monster…”
[Contractor, they’re terrified.]
What a cowardly bunch.
If they were going to carry weapons, they should be prepared to die.
I ignored the trembling bandits and retrieved my mithril shovel, which stood proudly in the snow like Excalibur.
The blade was coated in blood and brain matter. I would need to clean it later.
I wiped the blade on a bandit’s coat, then looked at the remaining bandits, who had completely lost their will to fight, and began counting.
“One, two, three, four, five…”
“Run!”
How anticlimactic.
I watched them flee, their footsteps leaving long trails in the snow, then turned back to the carriage.
All that remained were three corpses and a crimson stain on the pristine white snow.
“You’re quite…efficient.”
“It’s less troublesome in the long run.”
“That’s true!”
Tom laughed heartily and climbed back onto the driver’s seat.
“Let’s continue. If we don’t encounter any more…complications, we should reach our destination in three days!”
Three days? We still had a long way to go.
I glanced at the bandits’ corpses, slowly being covered by the falling snow, then climbed back into the carriage.
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