Prev Next
Published at 16th of March 2020 05:23:52 AM
Chapter 6.1

Chapter 6 – Conclusion in the Forest

 

Deep inside Norfar valley, moonlight and tranquility reigned .

My body feels hot…

And yet, so cold .

The female cleric opened her eyes . A burning sensation filled her body . Deep inside it, however, she felt a terrible chill . She slowly opened her eyes fully, but her field of view was blurred, twisted .

She was some sort of wreckage in front of her and recalled what happened until then . Her party, Crack of Dawn, was rebelled against by the gryphon they used to tame and was forced to fight against a silver golem without proper preparation .

They were punched, kicked, almost killed by the golems . The gryphon abandoned them and flew off somewhere…

The wreckage before her was the contents of their magic bag, spat out after the golem broke it . It contained their important foodstuffs, magic potions, equipment reserves, stomped and crushed by the golems . She was lying next to it, like a corpse .

After remembering everything, her brain probably returned to functioning properly: the burning sensation turned into pain . Only then did she notice the wounds covering her body .

“He…gah!”

A jolt of pain struck deep into her throat . She tried casting recovery magic, but spat out a clot of blood and could not finish the incantation . Because of the failed chant, the spell was not performed, but the magic power meant for the spell still poured into her body .

At the same time, she felt sick, as if her brain was being shaken, and she felt colder .

Magic stupor .

She understood instinctively .

She had fallen into a state of magic stupor . Her body reached the limit of the magic power it could accept .

Bonne continued using healing magic on her wounded body . In her state of confusion, she used abbreviated chanting, so there was barely any effect, doing nothing to even alleviate the pain, but even so she continued casting .

Because of this, despite the lack of discernible effects, the vicious cycle of accumulating magic power continued .

It hurts… . stop… .

“He… . he…l…”

She tried chanting with all her might, but her voice wouldn’t come out . She couldn’t form full words…

I should have learned to cast spells without chanting…

Meaningless regrets welled up inside Bonne .  

Casting magic using long incantations was the simplest way . The next method was to use abbreviated chanting, reciting only the keywords required for the spell . Finally, the most difficult method was to cast spells without chanting the incantation .

Bonne had studied abbreviated chanting, but she couldn’t cast spells without chanting . She had the resources to learn, but disliked the effort needed to do so .

Her role was recovery and long-range offense, not to put herself in danger . Because of this, she couldn’t imagine a situation where not even abbreviated chanting was possible and considered it useless to practice any further .

It hurts…

Thinking that, if she could at least get rid of whatever was clogging her throat, she could chant, Bonne tried raising her body to go look for water .

A sharp pain jolted through her, from her legs to her back . She couldn’t scream . All she could do was bear with it and clench her teeth .

Bonne opened her tear-filled eyes again and the view became clear: the tears probably washed away the dirt covering her eyes . She could see many corpses of silver-colored golems around her . They reflected the moonlight, giving a dull glow .

Is there anyone that I can use…?

She looked around, bearing through the pain . The golems were not moving, but nothing else moved either .

What happened to Crack of Dawn’s members…?

She finally spotted two of them . The first was Olun, the tank . His large armor and body stood out . He was beaten and battered, collapsed on the ground, but his hands moved slightly when Bonne noticed him, so he should still be alive .

However, he didn’t look like he would be of much help to Bonne in the current situation . He looked just like a corpse .

The second figure she spotted was the leader, Stefan . His arms and legs were twisted, partly severed . It surely did not look like there was any chance he was alive…

And I’m here, injured, in so much pain…you’re all useless!!

She looked down at those two “things” . They might be called Hero Party, but in the end they were just a bunch of low-born humans . If they weren’t any use to her, there was no point in their existence .

Bonne quickly discarded any thoughts about them and looked around again . She could clearly see some wreckage and water-like liquid pooling under it .

Magic potions…

Bonne realized what the pooling liquid actually was: the magic potions stored in the magic bag . They had flown out their shattered glass containers .

If only I could drink that…

She tried raising her body again . Despite the severe pain, she managed to move her upper body, but her legs wouldn’t budge . She started crawling on her arms . She could advance just a little, but it felt like an immeasurable distance .

She managed to reach the pool, somehow, and put her lips to the muddy remains of the recovery potions . If she possessed correct knowledge about magic potions, she would have known that what she was doing was extremely dangerous .

Her brain shook . She felt strong nausea coming up . All the symptoms of Magic Stupor struck .

She bore through them and continued sipping the muddy water . Then Bonne, overtaken by a Magic Stupor so strong that she felt like she was going crazy, lost consciousness again .

In the Aldon forest, Dietrich came to and found very unique scenery before his eyes . Cornelia, in light gear after removing her armor, was hugging Bernhart from behind, for whatever reason . There was no intimate atmosphere at all, however: both of them were staring at the ground before them, with very grave expressions on their faces .

Kristoff was sitting on the ground, with his eyes closed and legs crossed . He had a block of mithril on his lap and his hands over it, as if they were looking for something . The block of mithril probably came from the golem, but it was not glowing anymore .

“…what’s going on?”

“Oh, you’re awake . ”

The voice came from the side . Dietrich turned and saw Roa sitting next to a small folding table, using pots, mortars and glass containers to concoct magic potions . It was a pretty strange sight, considering they were in a magic beast forest . The twin wolves were at Roa’s sides, watching him work .

I remember I prostrated, and…what happened next?

Dietrich looked through his memories, but they were cut off halfway . He recalled that right before losing consciousness he felt a sharp pain, then it felt like he was doused in chilling water and a multitude of worms crawled all over his body; he realized that was the reason why he lost consciousness .

Did the gryphon do something to me?

Scratching his bedhead, Dietrich instinctively found the right answer . He had suffered through all sorts of unpleasant and painful sensations, but now he felt completely recovered . His body brimmed with strength .

“Would you like some water?”


Sponsored Content

“…yeah, sorry for the trouble . ”

Dietrich drank the water Roa gave him, then looked around again .

He saw Grandpa Gry, on top of the remains of the mithril golem . It looked extremely proud, like a king atop a throne . When their eyes met, the gryphon deftly twisted its beak into a grin .

“… . . ”

I was “crybaby” and now I’m “sleepyhead”…

Dietrich wanted to protest that they were both humiliating names, but he swallowed his words . If he said anything thoughtless they might end up arguing again .

“Grandpa Gry, he needs to eat first . ”

Grandpa Gry wanted to start the training immediately, but Roa interrupted . Dietrich recalled that they had continued fighting without eating anything for dinner and felt that his hunger was reaching its limits .

“You said that something like that was possible if you became a great wizard or a sage, right? And you also said that if they go without meals for too long, magic users can become Liches, right?”

Grandpa Gry replied, but avoided Roa’s eyes .

“It’s not, that’s why you explained it like that to the other three…Grandpa Gry, why are you especially strict to Dietrich?”

<… . I dislike that man…>

“You’re saying that again? Sheesh…and it’s disrespectful to talk from a high place like that, come down . ”

Grandpa Gry begrudgingly obeyed and descended from its mithril throne . Roa didn’t think Grandpa Gry really hated Dietrich: he knew it was just acting difficult . If it really hated him, it would do much worse .

Grandpa Gry acted like that because it saw Dietrich as a rival . On the other hand, for some reason the twin magic wolves seemed to have taken a liking to Dietrich . They were currently kicking his legs around, inviting him to play now that he was awake . He didn’t know what they meant and thought they didn’t like him either, though .

“Here, please eat this . ”

“Oh, thanks . ”

Dietrich took the bowl he was suddenly given . Steaming soup filled it .

“…is it safe to eat?”

The soup was filled with lots of meat and colorful vegetables .

“Grandpa Gry says it is . I made the soup with Wild Boar meat and Whiteroot herbs . ”

“I see…”

Dietrich wasn’t worried about the flavor of the soup, but whether it was safe to make soup in the middle of a magic beast forest . In magic beast forests or their surroundings, the smell of food would attract the magic beasts, so it was common sense for adventurers not to cook meat or make soup .

Roa understood the meaning of the question and answered that it was all right .


Sponsored Content

“… . ”

Dietrich glanced at Grandpa Gry, who joined in the conversation, then drank the soup, which filled his empty stomach with warmth .

Grandpa Gry shouted in protest, but Dietrich ignored that too and continued drinking .

“Delicious…by the way, I forgot to ask since so many things happened, but what happened to Crack of Dawn?”

Dietrich suddenly asked a question to Grandpa Gry .

Surprises, new fears, shouting, so many things happened that he couldn’t ask before, but the question never left his mind . If the gryphon was here, something must have happened to Crack of Dawn, the party it used to belong to . Something surely not pleasant .

The mass creation of golems that almost caused Nostalgia’s death was surely tied to Crack of Dawn . Dietrich was naturally concerned about it .

<…… . . >

Grandpa Gry did not reply . It did not change its expression and looked straight at Dietrich, a heavy pressure in its eyes .

“… . he won’t tell us . Something like, if we learn something we aren’t supposed to know, we will seem suspicious when they interrogate us about what happened . ”

Aah, they’ve been annihilated then…

Dietrich reached a conclusion . He had half predicted it, since Crack of Dawn’s servant beasts appeared without their subjugation collars . They were likely killed by the silver golem horde . With a word like “interrogation” being mentioned, something as grave as that surely happened .

And the gryphon was hiding something . Dietrich didn’t want to think that it led the annihilation of the party itself, but, at the very least it abandoned them to their deaths .

Roa probably realized such a possibility existed, but he did not seem worried about Crack of Dawn, nor happy about their demise . He too was probably hiding a complicated state of mind…

“…I see, yeah I get it . It’s true that it might be better for us not to know right now . ”

“Anyway, what are you doing there?”

Dietrich felt he was going to think of something he didn’t want to, so he changed the topic . With “there”, he meant Cornelia hugging Bernhart and Kristoff holding his hands over the block of mithril .

“Cornelia and Bernhart are practicing to share magic power and cast spells together . They will use their combined magic power to use Cornelia’s earth magic and stop the golem from moving . Kristoff is training to inspect the contents of mithril, a modified version of his sonar magic . He will be able to detect where the golem’s core is . ”

Grandpa Gry nimbly used its front paws to hand a thin stick to Dietrich . It was as long as a broadsword, but very thin, thinner than even a finger, resembling a needle more than a stick .

Dietrich noticed it glowed in a familiar light and his brow furrowed .

“A mithril stick?”

What am I supposed to do with this?

Dietrich glared at the cackling Grandpa Gry .

“Are you making fun of me?”


Sponsored Content

A needle that not even children play-fighting would use? Everyone would think so, especially a swordsman like Dietrich .

“Well, you see . ”

Roa interrupted .

“It’s the base used to infuse magic power and create a sword . ”

Grandpa Gry boasted, again .

“I should infuse magic in this?”

“As Grandpa Gry taught me, after being bathed by holy power, mithril can be infused with magic power . Apparently emitting holy light changes its structure and makes it easier for magic power to flow through it . In normal swords, however, the mithril content is too high, so a normal person’s magic power would be completely absorbed, so it won’t work . The solution is that stick . ”

When Roa discussed what to do with the servant beasts, his first question was about mithril . Not knowing the characteristics of the enemy’s body made it impossible to come up with countermeasures .

Roa himself knew about mithril, albeit very little, but it was all from books . Since Grandpa Gry knew so much about magic, he would probably know much more, so Roa asked about mithril .

As a result, he gained new knowledge . After coming into contact with large amounts of magic power, silver turned into mithril . If magic flows into mithril, it emits holy light . Roa already knew that much .

He didn’t know, however, how mithril changed after emitting holy light . He thought mithril did not conduct magic power, but that was wrong . Mithril accumulated magic power and controlled it…in other words, it absorbed magic spells .

When it absorbed magic power beyond its capacity, it turned into a core and magic manifested around it . This was not known because the magic power of an average person would be completely absorbed by the amount of mithril needed for a core, making it seem inert to magic .

Even a mere mithril knife could absorb a spellcaster’s entire magic power . A whole sword’s worth of mithril would eat up even a legendary wizard’s magic power . Because of this, Roa and Grandpa Gry crafted a needle that looked like it did not have any practical use .

Grandpa Gry’s grin from above irritated Dietrich, but he held it back and kept silent .

“Wind Cutter…”

Dietrich recalled how Grandpa Gry cut through mithril with Wind Cutter . If he could use that magic on his sword, he could probably defeat the mithril golem .

“Cornelia and Bernhart will use earth magic together to stop the golem, then Kristoff will find the location of its core . Finally, Dietrich will cut it down . That’s “our” plan . You have to pour in all your magic power, or it might fail . So you have to succeed on the first try . It’s a pretty huge gamble . ”

The plan Roa explained was pretty simple . The role of Nostalgia’s members was not too different from the usual . The problem was whether they could do what they were told to .

Dietrich looked at Grandpa Gry’s very eager expression and felt irritation well up within .

This damn bird expects us to fail, huh… .

If Nostalgia failed, it would save them, then surely taunt them mercilessly . It could be Dietrich overthinking it, but it was pretty likely . He wanted to avoid that at all costs .

“You can practice until dawn…about six hours . If the mithril golem comes up early, Grandpa Gry will keep it at bay, I made it promise that . Please do your best . ”

Grandpa Gry was supposed to be the one to tell them how to defeat the golem, but, for some reason Roa, explained it all . Dietrich found it quite puzzling, but also more reliable than Grandpa Gry taking command .

Dietrich was convinced and decided to first down the soup Roa made for him .

Please download our sponsor's game to support us!
Report error

If you found broken links, wrong episode or any other problems in a anime/cartoon, please tell us. We will try to solve them the first time.

Email:

SubmitCancel