Chapter 662 - Seventh Story: Above the Demon Lord's Temple ②
In the end, we decided to go once at the end of November. I don't know what will happen from the second time onward, but they apparently want to proceed as much as possible while King Seldic is on an expedition to the continent. When spring comes, war might break out on the continent. If that happens, each country will enter a monitoring system again. If it comes down to it, they might deploy the current heroes, so winter is the time to strike, they said. However, there are rumors that King Seldic will return within the year, so I really don't know how it will turn out.
On the day of execution, the Henry Party came to pick me up. Lyudmila is there too. Since it's the off-season for farming, and while I was on the continent, the Vectis Island store, which was only a middleman, had its grand opening, so she can participate fully. Now there are two dark users.
When we fly to the Demon Lord's cave in the bowl, everyone is looking up at the sky.
That's only natural, as today's weather is cloudy. Moreover, compared to when we went up before, the clouds seem to be at a lower position. Probably, the target cloud is above those clouds. It's not that we can't go up, but we can't see directly below. We'll be drifted by the wind anyway. It would be fine if there's nothing above the clouds, but if there are clouds above too, we won't know.
The old couple, who are always talking about the weather, couldn't predict the transition of the weather either. They went up with just Harold-sama added to the original Henry Party as an experiment, but everyone came back soaking wet.
"Those clouds are no good."
Henry-sama said just that one thing. I don't know for sure, but they might have been rain clouds.
In the end, after waiting three days for the weather, we finally saw blue sky. There are quite a few clouds, but they are sufficiently high. If we can see below, it should be fine.
As it turned out, it was decided to be carried out, and the loading of luggage began. Gunpowder. There are ten barrels with fuses sticking out. With those loaded, it's impossible in rain clouds.
"Are you going to use all of these?"
I know the answer, but I try asking.
"Yes. We were able to ascend to near the clouds that are the first entrance with ten barrels loaded in a medium-sized one."
In other words, they actually went up while loaded to the weight limit. Since I'll be firing Light recklessly, Wilson-san can't participate. This is painful. However, this time there are two dark users. They can put out mist and a wall at the same time. And the Priestess can use Wind Barrier. It's a big deal that the number of bowl users has increased. After all, they are constantly floating in the air until they reach the place where the fake Demon Lord is. The more, the better.
"Incidentally, are you going to do a rapid ascent?"
"It was impossible with the luggage loaded. Since we can't go up at a speed that could set a record for a medium-sized one, we'll go slowly."
That means. Wasn't it fine not to challenge the record last time too?
The two ghosts are already merged. The Priestess is with Eleanor-sama, and Fiona is with me. This time, taking the reflection from last time into account, I cast Thought Communication in advance. Since it'll be cold at high altitude, I double-cast Warm before going up. It's a bit hot, but it'll be just right once we're up.
The ascent proceeded at a normal pace. Fiona didn't need to hold out either. Harold-sama, the Priestess, and Lyudmila, the three of them, took turns for over an hour to maintain the Wind Barrier that supports Eleanor-sama's bowl from below, and finally reached the target cloud. If it took any more time, the main body might have disintegrated. Looking up and down, there was a sense of tension in another sense. After all, a certain amount of speed might be necessary.
"Now, we'll proceed efficiently from here. Everyone, please."
With a tone that contained a bit of tension as a signal, the experiment in the air began.
What we do is the same as last time. Find the barrier of the cloud and enter. When Lyudmila casts Dark, the surroundings become dark in an instant. I have the Priestess and Fiona release pale blue flames to look for the dark window. This time, with the advanced-rank Priestess added, it was relatively easy to find. Lyudmila blows mist toward the window. A part of the darkness was cut out, and a window opened where we could see, or rather, feel the scenery outside.
It's the same as last time. A palace-like building can be seen.
This time the window is not getting closer. They must not be moving the bowl.
"Now, it's the first experiment. We're doing it. Harold, Priestess, Lyudmila, please."
"Favorable Wind!"
The three chanted at the same time. However, the direction of the wind is different.
"Jeanne."
"Yes. Light!"
I put out three Fireflies.
This is probably the other side, but light, dark, and wind magic can be used. This is because the Wind Barrier is not forcibly canceled. For example, within the barrier Dune makes, water magic can be used. For example, Lindwurms and the like fly in the sky even though they don't have huge wings like Wyverns. They are flying with magic power. Probably, the one who made this place is good at powerful wind attribute magic. I don't know what kind of existence that is, though. At any rate, the Priestess and Eleanor-sama thought of a way to use that characteristic.
One Firefly is put on the wind Harold-sama created. The direction is sideways. Perhaps because the barrier is wide, the Firefly flew for a while, and then the light weakened and it disappeared. It must have been caught in the black mist and disappeared.
The second one is put on the wind Lyudmila created. The Firefly flies toward the door. When it flies slowly toward the window, it suddenly disappears. It was jumped by Teleport. If it's jumped by Teleport, the Firefly loses its connection with me, the caster, and disappears. In other words, it can't be seen by the one keeping watch at the destination.
The third one is put on the wind the Priestess created. The Firefly flies slowly upward, then diagonally upward, and as the Priestess canceled the magic, it fell downward in a parabola, as if a stone had been thrown up, and finally the light weakened and it disappeared.
"Did you see!"
Eleanor-sama's voice is a bit excited.
"Yeah. I saw. It was just as I thought."
From the tone, it's likely the Priestess.
"Priestess, you are truly a wonderful person."
"I-Is that so? Look, I've been a Priestess for a thousand years, after all."
"A genius of magic is exactly what someone like you would be called."
"Well, I was technically treated as an elite when I was alive too."
Um, Eleanor-sama. It's fine to be moved, but playing two roles by yourself is a bit confusing. No, I know it can't be helped, though.
What does it mean?
According to the Priestess, the Teleport magic circle is a plane, not a solid. Certainly, I've never seen a solid one before. In other words, you can bypass it and go to the back side. Magic, after all, can cause powerful and complex phenomena with a set of a magic circle and the caster's voice, and this kind of thing is apparently possible depending on the caster's ability.
"There's Translate above Teleport, right?"
"Yes, there is."
"That one doesn't need a magic circle for the exit, right?"
"So it seems."
"Then, thinking in reverse, isn't it fine even if there's no magic circle on the entrance side?"
"Is that how it is?"
"Probably."
Hearing it like this, the commentary of one person in two roles is also quite interesting. Henry-sama has been in a good mood all along.
At any rate, the experiment regarding the Teleport trap ended, and the mystery was solved.
"With the movement of the Firefly just now, we've understood the approximate size of the Teleport trap. Fortunately, this place is surprisingly wide, so we can bypass it. With this, we can go beyond that window too."
"Are you going?"
No matter how I think about it, it's dangerous. It's not a place where living humans should go.
"We're not going yet. It's meaningless unless we have a plan to return safely."
"I'm a ghost. I think I can manage somehow. It's no problem even if I disappear."
"No. Even if you're a ghost, if we're going, we're all in the same boat. I won't allow you to steal a march on us."
"Geez, I guess I have no choice."
"An expedition is only over when everyone goes, returns safely, and has a toast."
"Hehe. Thank you."
This time, it's not just words, but even the expression is two people in one role. Finally, it became a smile with a slight bashfulness. Henry-sama is greatly delighted.
I pretended not to hear Harold-sama saying, "Next time, merge with my wife."
The first experiment ended, and we actually tried approaching the window. Just in case, I had several Fireflies drift in front of the bowl and confirmed whether they would get caught in the Teleport as we advanced.
A few disappeared, but we were able to go near the window safely. Since I've cast Sight on everyone, we decided to observe. The window is sufficiently large, about the diameter of a small bowl. We brought the bowl closer and took turns observing. Eleanor-sama told us not to get too close to the window because it's dangerous.
I can feel a black palace standing in the middle of a black forest. Looking closely, that's not all. There are mountain ranges in the distance, and there are also ponds and rivers. Everything is black.
"This is it."
"Yes. What do you think, Priestess?"
The one person in two roles began.
"It's not that we can see it, right?"
"I think so. It's better to say we feel it."
"Right. It should be pitch black, after all. The buildings and everything are all black, but we don't know the real colors."
I see. It's not that they're black. It's just that colors can't be identified.
"Since we can't see the sun, I don't know the direction."
"I know. Wilhelmina, please."
"I have accepted."
When I handed one Firefly for light to Will, a wooden fish was quickly prepared.
"What's that?"
The Priestess didn't seem to know and was surprised.
"It's a tool to know the direction. It was brought from the continent."
"Heh, that's amazing. The world has become convenient. Show it to me properly when we get back."
"Yes."
The direction was south. Since we invaded from the north... in other words, from the direction of the Royal Capital, I thought we were facing north, but it was the opposite.
"I knew it. It's the opposite, isn't it?"
"Which means?"
"Yeah. Hey, Fiona, did you understand?"
The Priestess suddenly threw it to Fiona.
"Yes. I think it's probably the Central Mountain Range."
My mouth moved on its own and the voice came out. So this is what it feels like to be one person in two roles... wait, eh! The Central Mountain Range?
Everyone looked at me at once. Come to think of it, I had Thought Communication on, didn't I? I'm sorry.
According to Fiona, if you look at the Central Mountain Range from the north... in other words, from the direction of the Royal Capital, and reflect it in a mirror, it looks like that. In other words, the top and bottom are the same, and the left and right are reversed. This was apparently understood by Fiona, a ghost who knows the world that humans don't understand. Ghosts disappear. And occasionally, they appear in completely different places. That is apparently subtly different from humans jumping with Teleport.
"We're seeing it. You call this the other side, right? To put it in words, isn't it like looking outside from inside a mirror... in other words, the opposite side of a mirror?"
So she says the direction is reversed. And since it's a world reflected in a mirror, the left and right are also reversed... Hmm, I'm getting more and more confused.
According to the Priestess, the other side is literally a world on the opposite side and is similar but different from the world we live in.
"There are worlds, right? Including worlds other than the one we live in."
The worlds the Priestess talks about are probably the worlds in the scriptures. Basically, the world we live in is different from the world where the Goddess lives.
"About other worlds, in the scriptures, only the world where the Goddess lives is written, but it's said there are others, right?"
It's also said that there are various worlds, such as the world where ghosts live and the world where the Demon Lord lives. Of course, I don't know if it's true. As the Priestess says, such things are not written in the scriptures.
"It's the personal idea of my magic master. He said there might be three."
"Three?"
"Yeah. My master said so. Maybe my master heard it from his master too."
"I see. By the way, what kind of worlds are they?"
"Er, it's a personal idea, so please understand that. I don't know if it's true."
"I understand. Just as a reference."
"Right, right, in that way."
Since she said it was a personal idea twice, and even so she's talking to us, she probably believes it even if there's no basis.
The three worlds the Priestess talks about are apparently the world of gods, the world of demons, and the world of living things we live in between them.
In the world, the sun rises and it becomes day. And when it sets, it becomes night. And between day and night, there are dawn and dusk.
For example, if the time of the sun during the day is the world of gods, night is the world of demons, and the dawn and dusk in the Interstice are the world of living things. In other words, they are connected even though they don't seem to be.
"The Goddess, you know, maybe she created those three worlds at the same time. The Goddess also has relatives like her eldest son, the war god, and her eldest daughter, the goddess of art, right? Just as she gave birth to daughters and sons, she even gave birth to three worlds."
She gave one of the three to us living things. Because the three worlds are connected to the other two worlds, they influence each other. In other words, if the world of living things we live in becomes strange, the world of gods... probably the world where the Goddess is, also becomes strange. The Goddess gives guidance so that doesn't happen. She says that might be the revelation.
"Maybe this is the place that connects those three worlds."
In the theory the Priestess's master advocated, the appearances of the three worlds are very similar. The difference is that the world of gods is overflowing with light, and the world of demons is enveloped in darkness. And the world of living things has both light and darkness.
Magic is divided into three: magic that uses the power of this world, magic that benefits the living, and other magic, and furthermore, there are two poles of light and darkness... I see, the hint was in the secret books.