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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuziro
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The Wolf Who Chases the Wind, Kundt, and Wagner pressed onward without rest.
Moving without a scout, relying solely on torchlight, was akin to being blind, but The Wolf Who Chases the Wind more than pulled his weight, and prevented any ambushes.
Thankfully, the path ahead was linear, without any forks, so they didn’t have to worry about getting lost.
If that hadn’t been the case, the three of them, without Iyer as their guide, would surely have been lost for a long time.
“It’s a relief that your prediction was correct…”
“Hmph, of course.”
As The Wolf Who Chases the Wind had predicted, they didn’t encounter many monsters.
The fewer monsters they encountered, the closer they were to the heart of the cave.
And since they hadn’t found any trace of Pichoni and Ronchevich during their search so far, they were likely to be in the deepest part.
Or they had already been digested in the Sandworm’s belly.
Wagner hoped it wasn’t the latter.
Wagner’s footsteps, which had been pressing forward without rest, came to a halt.
They had reached the end of the very long passage.
“This is…”
At the end of the passage, they were met with a vast cavern.
It wasn’t the narrow passage they had been traversing, but a cavern so tall that the ceiling was out of sight.
The Wolf, who had entered the cavern, clicked his tongue and said.
“I’m getting a bad feeling about this.”
It was in a similar vast cavern that the Sandworm had appeared.
They had managed to drive it away with the combined efforts of five people, but they hadn’t been able to defeat it.
If such a monster were to appear again when there were only three of them…
“I don’t even want to imagine it.”
“Please stop saying such ominous things…”
It was even more unsettling to hear The Wolf, who had a good intuition, say such things.
Moreover, wasn’t it The Wolf himself who had said that his intuitions were usually correct?
They say that bad premonitions were more likely to come true than good ones, and when a bad premonition came from The Wolf’s mouth, it felt as if it would really become reality.
Before the other two, Wagner began to examine the cavern, realizing that it was slightly different from the ones they had seen before.
In a corner of the cavern, Wagner knelt down and ran his hand over the debris on the ground.
Black ashes were smeared on his hand.
It was a familiar sight to Wagner, no, to all adventurers.
“Traces of a fire…”
Wagner muttered, looking at the soot on his hand.
And the fact that there were traces of a fire led to one conclusion.
“We’ve found traces of people.”
Kundt and The Wolf, who had gathered where Wagner was, were convinced after seeing the remaining traces of ash.
People had been there.
Convinced that people had been there, they began to examine the cavern, checking for other traces.
The cloth pouches, bottles, bags, and other items that emerged made them even more certain.
“But if that’s the case, where did the humans who were here go?”
“…”
Although he didn’t say it, Wagner had the same question.
Judging by the amount of ashes, the people who had been in this cavern hadn’t just stayed for a short time.
It must have been at least three or four days.
They must have judged that this place was safe to some extent, but where had they gone now?
It was then that Wagner was lost in thought.
“Wagner, come here for a moment…!”
Kundt, who had been examining one side of the wall, gestured to Wagner.
Wagner approached Kundt and asked.
“What is it, Kundt?”
“…”
Kundt pointed at the wall without saying a word.
Following the direction Kundt was pointing, Wagner slowly scanned the wall.
Slender metal rods were embedded in the wall at intervals.
It wasn’t just two or three.
The metal rods were positioned one on the left and one on the right, as if drawing stairs.
The alignment of the metal rods was directed upwards.
Like a ladder to climb up…
Wagner and Kundt’s eyes met.
“…We have to go up.”
“Right.”
If the people who had spent several days in the cavern had moved, it was likely that they had gone up using these.
Then what they had to do was follow that trail.
There was just one problem.
“This… it looks like I won’t be able to climb it.”
“Me neither…”
The metal rods embedded in the wall were not thick enough to support the weight of Kundt or The Wolf.
If Kundt or The Wolf, who were two or three heads taller than ordinary men, tried to climb up, the rods might break.
Then there was only one path left.
“I’ll go up alone.”
“Will you be alright?”
Wagner nodded.
In truth, Wagner was also a man of substantial build, so he had some concerns, but it was clear that he was better suited than the other two.
Once the decision was made, all that was left was to act quickly.
Wagner, who had put down all the heavy things he was carrying, looked at his shield and then put it down as well.
Instead, he took out the one-handed sword that was attached to the shield and tied it to his waist.
“Then… If anything happens, I’ll shout right away.”
“We’ll be waiting below. Be careful…”
With the shield and other burdens removed, his body felt considerably lighter.
After testing his footing on the rods, Wagner thought they would hold and began to climb the wall with force.
Slowly.
One by one.
Occasionally, falling debris forced him to stop, but Wagner patiently climbed the rods.
They weren’t embedded as high as he had thought.
Seeing the end of the rods, Wagner drew the sword from his waist, grabbed the last rod, and leaped up with all his might.
Wagner landed on a rock formation that was not visible from below.
‘It’s a good thing it wasn’t visible from below.’
The slope made it impossible to see that there was such a rock formation from below.
But thanks to this rock formation, Wagner understood why the people in the cavern had climbed the wall.
The people below must have felt that it was safer to be on this invisible rock formation than to be below, so they climbed the wall.
Wagner carefully made his way down the slope of the rock formation.
As he neared the very end of the rock formation, something began to catch his eye.
“…Grass?”
From the end of the rock formation, green grass was growing sporadically.
At first, the grass was sparse, but the closer he got to the end of the rock formation, the more abundant it became, until it was almost like being in a meadow.
That wasn’t all.
There were also vines intertwined on the wall.
It was puzzling why plants were growing so profusely in such a deep place, close to the heart of the cave, but… at the same time, he felt that he was getting closer to the mystery of this cave.
At the end of the rock formation, there was a small passage in the wall.
It was initially hidden by the thick vines, but after clearing them with his sword, the entrance was revealed.
The passage leading from the entrance was also covered with grass.
He walked all the way through the passage until he reached the end.
Slash!
“Stop right there.”
A man who appeared from inside the passage pointed a sword at Wagner’s neck.
With the tip of the sword pressing against his Adam’s apple, Wagner raised both hands to show that he had no intention of fighting and took a step back…
“…Wagner?”
The man called his name.
At the sudden mention of his name, Wagner turned his head to check the person who had pointed the sword at him, and his eyes widened.
“Ronchevich! Pichoni!”
His companions, Ronchevich and Pichoni, whom they had been desperately searching for, were looking at him with surprised expressions.
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As I rummaged through the bag and looked at the remaining contents, a sigh escaped my lips.
Now, the antipyretic herbs were almost gone, and the same was true for the food.
Although I hadn’t eaten at all, feeding Guinness regularly for over two days had depleted the food supply.
But it couldn’t be helped.
If Guinness had been well, I could have rationed it out little by little, but her condition had been too poor.
All that was left was the pain-relieving herbs? But with the food and antipyretic herbs gone, it would be difficult to hold out any longer.
“…”
I scratched my head as I looked at Guinness, who was quietly asleep.
There was nothing else for it.
I had to go.
I had hoped that Wagner and the others would complete their mission and return, but it seemed to be taking longer than expected.
In this case, I had no choice but to go and find them.
The problem was that I would have to leave Guinness alone…
As I thought that and turned to look at Guinness again, our eyes met.
She had been looking at me for some time.
“When did you wake up?”
“…I wasn’t asleep.”
R-really? Then you should have said something.
I almost had a heart attack from being stared at without a sound.
Of course, I maintained my composure and didn’t show that I was startled…
Guinness’s gaze turned to the bag I was holding.
She must have been watching me check the remaining contents of the bag.
Guinness, who had been staring at the bag in my hand, quietly spoke.
“The food’s all gone.”
“…Yes. There’s hardly any left.”
“The medicine too.”
Indeed, Guinness was a veteran adventurer.
She had accurately gauged how much food and medicine she had consumed and how much was left.
It wasn’t something I could lie about, so I nodded in acknowledgment.
Guinness, who had been staring at the bag, spoke.
“Iyerpol.”
“Yes.”
“Move me.”
“What?”
I couldn’t help but be surprised by Guinness’s words.
Guinness must have still been suffering from pain all over her body.
She seemed to be enduring it calmly, but the beads of sweat on her forehead gave it away.
If I were to move Guinness, I would have to drag her, just as I had done when I moved her from the initial spot where she had fallen.
I couldn’t carry her on my back or in my arms.
Her upper body would be fine, but… her lower body would definitely be dragged on the ground.
It would cause her tremendous pain.
“…Will you be alright?”
Even without an explanation, Guinness would know.
How much pain that would entail.
When I asked, Guinness stared at me intently.
“I’ll endure it.”
This woman… I started to like her.
What toughness.
I could guarantee that there was no one in Tillasden tougher than Guinness at this moment.
As I was marveling at Guinness’s toughness, she looked down and muttered softly.
“You must have endured it too…”
Huh? What did I endure?
It was an incomprehensible murmur, but it didn’t seem like she had said it for me to hear, so I didn’t bother to ask.
More importantly, I admired Guinness’s determination and quickly began to prepare.
I layered my robe and Guinness’s robe together.
After laying the two robes on the ground, I laid Guinness on top of them in an upright position.
I tied the ends of the robes together in the shape of a newborn baby wrapped in a swaddle, and tied the two hoods of each robe together again so that I could pull it.
This was a makeshift stretcher that adventurers used when a companion was unable to move.
If there had been one more person, they could have lifted Guinness from both sides, making it much more comfortable for her, but right now, it was just me…
After safely securing Guinness with the makeshift stretcher, I took out the pain-relieving herbs from the pouch.
“I’m going to give you a generous amount this time. But that doesn’t mean the pain will completely disappear.”
“…I know.”
“I’ll try to stick to flat ground as much as possible, so please bear with it. If it gets too hard to endure, be sure to tell me.”
Guinness nodded, and I gave her the herbs.
Guinness, who had swallowed a larger dose of pain-relieving herbs than usual, frowned slightly at the bitter taste.
I held the mouth of the leather water skin to her lips so that she could drink plenty of water.
I grabbed the tied hood and slung it over my shoulder, lifting Guinness’s upper body slightly.
But as expected, her lower body was still in contact with the ground.
“Then, let’s go.”
I couldn’t see Guinness’s expression, but I somehow felt that she had nodded.
With just one step, a groan escaped Guinness’s lips.
Hearing Guinness’s faint groan, I dragged her and slowly moved forward.
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[Amogus!]
