Chapter 187 - What is Kept at a Distance
"As I thought, there's a letter inside. And... paper and a fountain pen?"
"Shall we read it?"
"Yeah. For now, I'll read it, and if a reply is needed, I'll write it after returning to the Mountain Cabin."
The four-fold letter and the paper for me to use both seemed to be of quite high quality.
The fountain pen-like object felt like a magic tool, so I wonder if the Dragon Capital is more advanced than human nations?
"Um..."
"Lord Shou,
We apologize for our sudden visit the other day.
Regarding your island and the Ancient Ruins, we are currently investigating literature.
As the Dragonkin, your island is a solitary island far removed from the continent, and we are unable to secure investigators to dispatch at this time. Therefore, we would appreciate investigation reports within a reasonable scope.
Furthermore, we are separately investigating the Winged Folk's impudence that you reported.
We will inform you of any progress, including the literature investigation, via this Magic Transfer Box.
Sincerely, Argenta"
Whoa, seriously...
"What will you do?"
"Is this a quest, too? Well, I guess I'll do it within a reasonable scope? They seem to be investigating the Ancient Ruins for me too..."
"You're right."
I returned the letter to the Magic Transfer Box and put the whole box into my inventory.
After this, I'm going upstairs to investigate beyond the Observation Deck, so I'll probably write the reply after I'm done and come back.
The letter said, "within a reasonable scope," so it should be fine if I don't reply immediately, right?
...
...
...
From the upper staircase, through the Transfer Elevator, we arrived at the Collapse Site, which was a dead end.
There was something I wanted to try here.
"Lupi, Sweee, wait here for a bit too."
I told Lupi to wait. I had Sweee come out of my hood and ride on Lupi's back.
"What's wrong?"
"No, it's just, the other day, in the cave where the centipede was, I could see things like structural integrity."
"Ah!"
I wanted to see what was behind the area blocked by earth and sand in this Collapse Site.
I concentrated, trying to see the entire collapsed section, but I only understood what was directly in my line of sight.
"Hmm, it'll be troublesome if I can't see a wide area. I guess I need to level up my Civil Engineering Skill more."
Being careful, I approached a little. The bottom part was green... seemed fine. The top part... had a yellow mesh, occasionally mixed with orange.
"I feel like it's dangerous."
I nodded at Mion's words.
Generally, green means safe, red means dangerous. Yellow means caution... orange probably means really bad.
"For now, this is fine for today. I'll think of a way to deal with it later."
"Okay."
I called Lupi and Sweee, then crawled through the hole beside us to reach the Observation Deck.
Last time, we went from the Observation Deck to the Water Source Area, and then to Lupi's old den.
Today, I planned to descend the Water Source Area to see if there was another route into the Ancient Ruins and to look for ingredients...
"~~~♪"
"Thanks, Sweee."
"Woof."
I placed the small white flower Sweee had picked for me on Lupi's mother's grave.
"Alright, let's go."
"Woof-woof."
Descending the Observation Deck, we proceeded for a while until we reached the Water Source Area.
I slowly followed the stream flowing southeast, but...
"...There's something there... or rather, something's following us?"
"Woof."
"Ah, I see. Call them over."
Lupi gave a light bark in response, and a family of Drab Wolves, who seemed to have been secretly (?) following us, came into view.
"It's the wolves!"
Four rust-colored wolves approached, a pair of adults and two pups, I think?
They knelt before Lupi, who was sitting...
Well, Lupi is superior, or rather, she's the 'Wolf King.'
"If we encounter Greydeer or Ranziboa on the way, let's hunt them."
"Woof."
With Lupi in the lead, I followed, and the Drab Wolves trailed behind us.
Lupi seemed unusually enthusiastic; was she trying to make a good impression?
She looked adorable trying to walk with a dignified gait.
"Oh, is this...? Lupi, wait a moment."
[Clefol]
"A plant that thrives by clear streams. Its roots and leaves are edible and possess a strong, stimulating aroma, making them useful as a condiment or seasoning.
Cooking: Both leaves and roots are edible."
"Wasabi!"
"Eh, is that wasabi?"
"Yeah. Ah, well, I guess you wouldn't normally see the real thing."
But Mion probably eats at conveyor belt sushi places, or does a chef grate it right in front of her?
I only knew it because I was dragged along by my grandpa on his wild plant foraging trips.
"~~~?"
"No, Sweee, you absolutely shouldn't eat that..."
I could only imagine a future of agony for her.
Lupi and the Drab Wolves, perhaps due to their keen sense of smell, were already keeping their distance.
Well, what kind of animal eats raw wasabi...? Do Greydeer eat it?
I gathered only two plants, thinking I'd be the only one to eat them, and then we moved on.
"Hmm?"
The babbling stream eventually became a small river, and where the river width exceeded 1 meter, the path suddenly opened up.
"Is it a waterfall?"
"Looks like it."
Lupi, who had stopped at the edge, looked at me with a 'what now?' expression.
I caught up and looked down; it was quite high. More than 10 meters, so jumping down was not an option.
If I had brought a rope, I could wrap it around a large tree and descend... but that wouldn't work for Lupi and the others.
"Woof."
As I pondered what to do, Lupi seemed to be consulting with the Drab Wolves (?).
Ah, they're probably asking if there's another path down.
"Baaark."
"Oh, there's another way."
"Amazing!"
"This side must be this family's territory, huh?"
The Drab Wolf father (?), who was leading, was followed by Lupi. The mother and pups followed behind me.
Carefully descending a rather steep slope, trying not to slip, we returned to the small river we had left and reached the base of the waterfall.
"It's quite high even from below."
Looking up, I saw the place we had just been.
The water flow wasn't much right now, but it would be incredible if it rained heavily. The bottom of the waterfall pool looked quite deep...
[Presence Detection Skill Level Increased!]
Lupi reacted simultaneously, and the Drab Wolves also assumed a wary stance.
Sensing a presence unlike any before, I requested the Spirit's Blessing...
Thud!
"Whoa!"
A Fireball flew from where I had detected the presence, and I stepped forward to block it with my Round Shield.
The explosion damaged my HP and knocked me back.
"Shou-kun!"
"I'm fine. Thanks to the Spirit's Blessing, the HP damage isn't significant."
I remembered Goblin Magician's Fireballs doing quite a bit of damage, but my level was low back then, and now I have the Spirit's Blessing.
The problem is that I only have a vague idea of where the opponent is, based on Presence Detection.
Previous monsters attacked visibly, but this is the first time an enemy has used magic without showing itself.
"Woof!"
""Baaark!""
At Lupi's command (?), two Drab Wolves split to the left and two to the right.
I see, they're planning a pincer attack...
"Don't push yourselves!"
When I called out, each of them wagged their tails in response.
We would wait here, I suppose, but I had to be wary of incoming Fireballs...
"~~~!"
Was it Sweee's Spirit Magic? A thin film of water appeared in front of my face.
"Ah, I see!"
"Sweee-chan, you're amazing!"
I should have used it this way too! Or rather, I forgot about the magic barrier Bell-buchou used!
With this, I should be able to block Fireballs before they hit. Now, I just need the Drab Wolves to successfully lure out the attacking monster...