Chapter 47 - A Humble Triumphant Song
"So, what is this thing, anyway…"
"Um… I think I know, probably."
As I turned my attention back to the object to start fresh, Sora offered an unexpected reply. "Seriously?" I asked, looking at her. She tapped her finger in the empty air, as if pointing at something.
"I think it started after I got close to this. My quest log is glowing."
Apparently, she was pointing at the quest guide displayed in her field of view.
"Because of… certain events, it took me a while to notice."
"My deepest apologies for that particular incident…"
I put on a pathetic expression and apologized profusely, earning a small smile. With our lighthearted banter, which we were both getting used to, out of the way, we returned to the topic at hand.
"A quest, you say…"
"Yes, so this must be the [Teardrop of the Dust]… or so I think."
That was the entire reason we’d challenged the boss in the first place. Halzen had tasked us with procuring a material, and based on his straightforward hint of a "Lord of the Dust," we decided to take on the challenge.
—We did, but I'll be honest. At some point along the way, I had completely forgotten about it. Or rather, I was stripped of any breathing room so early on and forced into a tightrope walk that I didn't have the mental space for anything extra, so I just pushed it out of my mind.
…Come to think of it, that's right. We didn't even defeat the boss ourselves, so we didn't get any materials at all—wait, seriously? Are you telling me that after going through all that hell, our only reward is experience points?
I was just saved by one of the skills I got, but that's a separate issue. No loot from a boss fight in a fantasy game? Are they trying to pick a fight with gamers? Give me the goods, the actual items.
"…Lately, when you suddenly go quiet, Haru-san, I've started to figure out what you're thinking."
"That's good. Feel free to share in my sorrow."
"…Isn't that sorrow, perhaps, coated in greed?"
She's gotten so sharp… I approve.
"Okay then, Sora-san."
I stepped aside from the object and gestured for Sora to go ahead.
"Um…"
"Why don't you try touching it?"
She hesitated slightly, probably because she had just witnessed the recent tragedy—or comedy, or perhaps tragicomedy.
"—Hiyah…!"
With a cute little battle cry, her delicate hand touched the object. The moment it did, a change occurred.
The light, which had continued to pulse even after sending me flying, now converged on Sora's palm as if it had been eagerly waiting.
"Eek…!?"
The sight, which could be described as the light swarming her, made Sora let out a reflexive scream. With her free hand, she grabbed onto me with a thwack!.
If she had grabbed my hand, I could have played the gentleman and gently squeezed it back, but… Sora-san, that's my chest. It's becoming a rather violent scene, and because I'm losing in the STR stat department, I can't resist when she grabs me from a standstill.
Ignoring the rather unflattering picture we made, the event seemed to be proceeding without a hitch. The swarm of light heading for Sora's palm was, more accurately, aiming for the ring on her index finger.
The light gathered on the unremarkable, store-bought [Ring of Novice]…
"Ah…"
"Whoa…"
With a final, faint sparkle of light, the glow dissipated—and where the ring had once been plain, a small gem was now embedded.
Its color was not jade—but a somewhat dull yellow… kind of a sandy color. It could hardly be called a beautiful gem; to be honest, it looked a bit shabby…
"Um… it seems the quest item is complete."
In any case, we had finally obtained what we were looking for. Sora also seemed at a loss for how to react to the gem's underwhelming appearance… but well, this was just a material, after all.
"…Let's just hope the old man has good aesthetic sense."
"Ahaha…"
Believing it would shine once polished, we decided to just be happy for now. As we exchanged tired smiles, a familiar blue light enveloped us.
"Oh? Is it finally over?"
It was the precursor to the return we had been hoping for… but wait, huh? Is that really it? Was this amazing space prepared just for this one thing—
Before I could even finish my complaint, the light of teleportation flooded my vision with blue. After the now-familiar feeling of floating and the strange sensation of the air around me being completely replaced—we were standing back in the city of Istia for the first time in hours.
""……………………""
We looked at each other, and seeing Sora's indescribable expression, I thought, Ah, I must be making the same face, and then let out a wry smile—
"—Hahaha…!"
"—Pfft, heheh…!"
Our expressions mirrored each other's to that extent, and we couldn't help but burst out laughing at the same time.
After such an intensely packed dungeon crawl, the ending was just too anticlimactic. Before the thread of tension even had a chance to snap, it was suddenly loosened until it was completely slack.
All my strength drained out at once, leaving me feeling incredibly light and fluffy… I couldn't muster anything more than a weary laugh.
We had been teleported to the usual spot, the fountain plaza. As always, it was a landmark bustling with people, but between my mental exhaustion and this strange high, I couldn't care less about the stares.
And it seemed my partner, who was showering the world with a smile far more in demand than mine, felt the same way…
"Haha… Ahh, it's over!! Great job, Sora! I'm never going to an area like that again!!"
"Yes, you too! I don't want to see sand for a while either!"
The elation of completing the objective was surpassed by a feeling of utter exhaustion. As we laughed without a care for the onlookers, we must have been quite the spectacle—but even that didn't feel so bad.
In this other world I had stepped into, I had undoubtedly achieved the greatest sense of accomplishment in my life.
That heart-pounding feeling, renewed and surpassed each day, even now as I was getting used to this virtual world—was so amazing it made me want to scream.
I'm 5th in the daily rankings, apparently. What a surprise. Thank you all so much for the bookmarks and ratings.
The flood of motivation is causing my stockpile of chapters to leak out uncontrollably, please help.