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Amy guided us through the ruins. Along the way, we chatted about various things. Yui seemed to be less fond of Amy and hid behind me, not saying much.

Well, who would have a good impression of someone trying to draw blood with a syringe right after meeting?

“But, Amy, what’s on the wall posters?”

“There are murals and ancient texts!”

They definitely looked like something that would come from a ruin.

“But how do you know that’s related to S-Rank Monsters?”

“The mural shows a total of four monsters, and while I don’t know the other three, I recognized the Volcano Dragon!”

The Volcano Dragon hasn’t vanished from history. So if Amy identified it correctly, that mural must indeed be related to S-Rank Monsters.

“However… even if I can guess about the mural, no matter how I look at the texts, I can’t interpret them.”

“Don’t you know, Amy?”

“I’m trying hard to interpret them, but it’s incredibly difficult to decipher letters I’ve never seen before…”

But if we can’t interpret the texts, won’t we miss out on important information?

“Ah, we’ve arrived!”

Around us, there was an unnaturally flat plain. In the middle stood a round stone structure, resembling the ruins Amy mentioned. How on earth did she find something like this?

We followed Amy into the building.

Inside were the murals and unreadable texts Amy talked about. At the same time, sunlight poured in from above. That’s because the ceiling was missing. The overall shape of the round building looked as if someone had blown its roof away.

“By the way, there was also a connected picture at that cut-off part… I wonder who did such a thing.”

“How can you confirm what’s missing?”

Since there was no ceiling, we couldn’t check the removed part. Anyway, it was clear we wouldn’t be able to understand the ancient texts. So, we only looked at the pictures below.

They depicted a group that looked like primitive humans and a large white, faceless entity. The next image led up into the clouds, bringing that sequence to a close.

“What is this snow mountain?”

“That’s probably the snowy mountain behind the village where the Dragonkin live.”

“Is that really a thing?”

“The snowy mountain exists, but I’m not sure about the Dragonkin.”

Then that mural must depict something real.

“Why didn’t you mention that sooner?”

So, Luna knew about this while I was rushing to come to the island to gather this information and didn’t say a word?

“I thought it was a superstition. Nobody besides the Dragonkin has seen the deity they worship.”

In the end, it seems to be the same as the goddess I saw. There are believers, but whether it exists or not remains a mystery until seen.

‘Is all this information just speculation?’

Still, if that mural is accurate, it should be in the same place for hundreds of years. However, the location marked on the mural is imprecise, so we need to find someone who can interpret it.

If I only had a smartphone to take pictures of it… but there’s no such concept as photographs here.

“Let’s take a piece home.”

“Pardon?”

“Ah, before we leave, let’s ask Amy for a Teleportation Stone to Marquina.”

*

Why didn’t I think of this from the start?

Naturally, in matters like this, there’s someone older than anyone alive right now… Well, maybe not just someone, but one particular creature.

The World Tree. A being that would have stood shoulder to shoulder with other S-Rank Monsters since they existed on the continent. It wouldn’t be strange at all for the World Tree to know where the other monsters are.

We decided to return to the Empire and head to Alvheim immediately to meet the World Tree.

The forest had a barrier set by the World Tree, but since I had drunk tea made from its hair before, we didn’t wander around and could enter Alvheim without any issues.

Normally, we would have been stopped by the guards at the entrance, but no elf was unaware of how we helped save Alvheim by hunting the Volcano Dragon.

“Welcome.”

Waiting for us there was Evangelin, the female elf we had made in Kanplin.

“Yggdrasil is waiting for you. This way, please.”

It seemed she knew I would be coming through the Future Sight. That made things easier. I was pondering how to deal with a fuss if they insisted I couldn’t simply meet with the Yggdrasil.

“Yggdrasil, I have brought them.”

Evangelin spoke and waited for a moment, then the door to the audience room opened without a response, and as we entered, a voice echoed in my head.

[Welcome.]

“Hi.”

[It seems you have finished your task safely.]

“What’s the matter?”

[Demon God.]

“Wasn’t that something I couldn’t speak about?”

[Well, it’s all over now, isn’t it?]

If that’s the case, it would have been great to know sooner. I could have attacked by shaking up Luke’s mother’s severed head as part of my strategy.

“I guess you knew I’d come today, so you must know why I’m here?”

[Yes. You need information on monsters, don’t you?]

Just as expected, the Future Sight is reliable. It’s nice to skip the explanations. I pulled the three murals I had brought from the previous ruins out of my inventory to show the World Tree.

“Do you know where this is?”

The World Tree pointed to one of the murals. It depicted a long white figure with human-like souls surrounding it.

[The first mural seems to depict the Heavenly King Balarain. Its location is unspecified but should be where the Red Thunder Cloud can be observed.]

Finally, accurate information is coming through. Until now, we hadn’t even known the names of the monsters we were looking for, but it’s just as I trusted the World Tree!

The second one was entirely painted blue, featuring a serpentine creature in the center.

[The second mural depicts the Imugi Leviathan. Its location is the Whirling Coast.]

Where is the Whirling Coast? I thought of the sea, but the word “whirling” makes it seem difficult to navigate.

[There will be violent whirlpools around the area where Leviathan resides, making it easy to identify.]

The last mural depicted a light blue mountain peak with snow falling, and obviously something dragon-like.

[The last mural is the Ice Snow Dragon Skana. As for the location, I believe it’s better known to Luna than to me.]

Indeed, the snowy mountain is said to be where the Dragonkin live. It seems Luna was right.

“If we were to rank them, who’s the strongest?”

[All three are too powerful to rank, but if I must, it would likely be the Ice Snow Dragon Skana, which I mentioned last.]

“Why?”

[Unlike other monsters, it possesses reason like I do.]

Does that mean it can speak and think? Thinking beings are indeed more difficult than those who rely purely on instinct.

“Okay, then we should be going.”

We carefully stored the murals back in our inventory.

[Are you leaving already? You’ve come quite a long way; it would be nice for you to rest a little.]

“I have a lot to prepare.”

Depending on how strong our hunting target is, the preparations can vary immensely. In that sense, this hunt won’t end in just a few days.

Considering the time needed, it’s best to set off as quickly as possible. So,

“We don’t have time to waste!!”

*

After finishing our business at Alvheim, we used the Teleportation Stone we received from Amy to move to Marquina.

The first target we intended to hunt was the Heavenly King Balarain. The reason for hunting it first was nothing special. We were just tackling them in order.

According to the World Tree’s explanation, the stage for this battle would be in the sky. However, unfortunately, in this world, there was only one technology capable of flying in the sky.

Wyvern Riding.

Fighting an S-Rank Monster while riding a wyvern? That would simply be a suicide mission. Hence, we came to Marquina to create our stage.

Upon arriving in Marquina, the first person we sought was the Dwarf King Drago, as he was the one currently imprisoned and was the figure we needed.

Meeting the king isn’t easy, but since we had a history of saving Marquina, we were treated as VIPs. Thus, it wasn’t difficult to gain an audience.

“What did you just say?”

“The dwarf trapped in prison—we’re going to take him out.”

“For what reason?”

“I need something from him.”

“Do you really think that will work?”

Is there any reason it wouldn’t? After all, I captured him.

“Unfortunately, that won’t be possible.”

“Why?”

“Because he’s a serious criminal.”

At least he hasn’t been sentenced to death. I thought he’d be dead on the day he was captured.

“He not only invaded Marquina but also attempted to harm his kind. According to our Marquina customs, his punishment is to live out his life in prison. Thus, even if it’s your request, I can’t easily comply.”

“That’s too bad.”

I pulled out a bomb from my inventory. The Dwarf King raised an eyebrow.

“……?”

“Luna, Yui, Riche. Get ready. Today, Marquina is going to disappear from the map.”

“…Are you suggesting war? Do you really think you can win against us?”

“Why do you think it’s impossible?”

If left alone, I could single-handedly stop a Colossal Machine, so how could I not win against just a Dwarf?

“…Why on earth do you need him? There are dozens of dwarves who can make things better than he can.”

“Old farts like him have become rigid and lack creativity.”

Only those who can shout “NO” when everyone else shouts “YES” can provide me with what I need right now.

And among dwarves, there is only one who meets that requirement on the continent.

Even if Luna can fly, she can’t go that high and can’t continuously fly while fighting. Otherwise, she would fall due to magic exhaustion.

The Dwarf King Drago has no choice. This isn’t a request; it’s more of an unilaterally delivered notice.

“…I understand. I will allow it.”

It should have been like that in the first place. I followed the Dwarf’s guidance to the prison. I expected the dwarven prison to be hi-tech, but it was just a classic prison.

Inside, there was a dwarf lying against the wall with his back turned. He seemed to become aware of my presence and spoke up.

“Why are you here again today? Did you come to laugh at me?”

It seemed dwarves often came here to tease him. I greeted the somewhat sulky figure.

“Hello?”

“……This voice is.”

As the dwarf quickly got up to check my face, he snarled. Well, I did block his ambition, so it wouldn’t be surprising for him to be hostile.

“You bastard! Because of you!”

Why is it my fault? It’s his fault for being weak. Meanwhile, the guard opened the prison door. The dwarf glared at me suspiciously.

“What’s going on here?”

“I’m here to let you out.”

“Ha, are you messing with me right now?”

Of course, he can’t believe I’m letting him out when I put him in here myself.

“I’m letting you out because I need you, so stop wasting time, and get out quickly.”

Having glared at the open iron bars and me in turn, he maintained his watchful demeanor but cautiously stepped out.

“What do you need me for?”

“I need someone to build an airship.”

“…What is that?”

“A flying ship.”

“Ha, you’re even more of a dreamer than I thought. Do you really think something like that exists in reality?”

From my perspective, coming from a world where airships existed, it makes you seem more foolish for not having created one yet.

And doesn’t that mean you need me even more? Only the one who created the Colossal Machines would be able to make such a thing.

Old farts have completely lost their imagination, so they can never create it.

“Make it.”

“…What?”

“Make it. You slave.”

If you don’t want to die.

 

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