57 - Chapter 57: Episode 1 - Does the True Ancestor Like Tomatoes? (Part 1)
Part Two begins.
Under a gentle sunlight, a single carriage traveled slowly along the highway.
There were no other carriages around, just that carriage alone running along the road, isolated. Although it was one of the main highways, a larger and easier-to-travel road that passed through tunnels instead of over mountains had been built a few years ago, so this road was treated like an old highway leading from the frontier to the suburbs, and few people used it from a safety perspective.
However, if other travelers had been around, they would have been speechless upon seeing that carriage. After all, the horse was tremendously large in stature, and furthermore, it was a shadow horse whose outline seemed to waver.
Yes, it was the carriage of the Serious Breakers party.
After the battle against Delgamiride on the Harvester Plains, the Serious Breakers party spent about a week recuperating at the Triad estate.
The Three Idiots had exhausted their magic to their limits, and as for Kazuha and Lilitia, they had pushed themselves so far as to summon the power of their future selves due to the influence of Broken Reality, leaving them completely drained of mental, physical, and magical energy, forcing them to stay in bed for four full days.
Incidentally, among the Three Idiots, even Geoglyph, who had temporarily turned completely white-haired, was fully recovered after a single day of thorough rest. They were a bunch with uselessly high recovery power.
After that, they spent a few days sightseeing within the Triad territory since they were already there, and yesterday morning, they departed for the Imperial Capital.
"---Sigh, I'm tired. That's it for today. As I thought, without suspension, the vibration in a carriage is terrible, making it hard to chant."
Inside the carriage, Geoglyph sighed, leaning his back against the rear tailgate.
"It seems convenient, but it looks like a lot of work, Geo's magic."
"Well, I've just put everything into the preparation, what I'm doing isn't any different from a general mage. I have to replenish what I use, and once I've used it all up, I'm exactly the same as a general mage."
Geoglyph gave a wry smile to Latia.
At that time---to defeat Delgamiride, Geoglyph needed to deploy the greatest magic he had developed, Broken Reality. Broken Reality, a kind of desire-materialization magic that grants everything one wishes for, would fall under the Zeroth Magic Formula if applied to existing magical classifications, corresponding to the era of the gods known as the so-called Progenitor Magic, and from another perspective, it is a feat equal to a divine miracle.
Naturally, there was no way Geoglyph, a mere human, could use such a thing without risk---even if a proviso was attached.
In the first place, even if he could construct the formula, the fuel to run it---namely, magical energy---was overwhelmingly insufficient for a single living organism. An average mage would either be sucked dry with nothing happening, or otherwise suffer a blowback, causing the spell to explode and burn the caster's brain.
To resolve this, Geoglyph took the group of spells he had been accumulating for ten years since learning magic, specifically Stock Chant, and reverse-converted them all into magical energy, thereby establishing Broken Reality.
That said, the control aspects required separate magical energy, so he ended up using all the stored magical energy and all the energy he personally possessed---resulting in his hair turning completely white due to magic deficiency. However, thanks to a recovery power commensurate with that ridiculous amount of magic, he has now returned to his original blond hair.
However, some things did not return.
Yes, the group of spells he had been accumulating for ten years and keeping in a standby state within storage magic.
Over the last few days, he had replenished enough to make normal combat possible, but compared to before, it was like night and day, and if he were to use Broken Reality again, it would take a corresponding amount of time. Therefore, he was chanting and stocking magic whenever he found free time, as he was doing now.
"You were quite generous against the evil god, weren't you? Will that return to normal?"
"Well, given time. I've set up macros for automation and parallel processing, but to get back to where I was before the evil god battle, it'll probably take about half a year to a year."
"The fact that you can compress ten years of magical accumulation into half a year to a year is abnormal enough, you..."
Geoglyph shrugged at Marianne's question, and Lilitia was speechless.
"But now that it's come to this, I guess the close-quarters combat training I've been doing recently will finally pay off."
"Are you going to buy a weapon?"
"Hmm. I've studied the sword the longest, but buying just some store-bought equipment feels a bit off. Then again, I feel it would be rude to have a famous blacksmith forge one for me. I'm essentially a mage, after all."
"A weapon... hey, Geo. Can't you use that 'bam!' thing from before?"
"Hmm? That time? Bam?"
"You know, the 'bam!' you used when you defeated the evil god!"
"Ah, the Wave-something Cannon... For now, I can only use that while Broken Reality is deployed... No, but, a gun... Hmm, but still..."
At Latia's question, Geoglyph crossed his arms and groaned.
To be honest, reproducing the firearms from his original world was not impossible. Setting aside the precision and performance, the principle itself is the extreme of primitive physical laws, where a projectile is launched by the explosive force of gunpowder. The problem would be its scalability and convenience.
If made larger, it becomes a cannon, and as long as the trigger is pulled, even a child can kill an adult.
He had concerns about whether it was right to bring such dangerous items into this world. That said, magic already exists as a weapon with greater scalability than firearms. Besides, as time progresses, similar weapons will likely emerge, and if other world-travelers reincarnate in the era after Geoglyph and the others, stopping the flow here might be meaningless.
But in my case, I have magic, so I don't need something like that, Geoglyph thought, while Latia looked at him with sparkling eyes.
"---Did you like it? The 'bam'..."
"Very much!"
Nodding eagerly, Geoglyph shuddered, thinking he might have created a terrible trigger-happy person, and gave a vague smile.
"Well, I'll think about that in due course. ---More importantly, is Lilitia's health okay? You and Kazuha were the ones pushing yourselves the most."
Using a vague answer like a former politician, Geoglyph shifted the attention to Lilitia.
"I'm still a bit sluggish, but somehow---Ah, no, it's still tough, so Big Sister, give me a lap pillow...!"
"I will not."
"Big Sister is so mean!"
"Ho ho ho! Try and catch me!"
Geoglyph and Latia looked at each other as the two flirted boisterously in the cramped space.
"She's been influenced, hasn't she."
"She has."
Then, the two of them simultaneously looked toward the driver's seat.
"Hey, Kazuha. I feel like you're strangely close."
There was Later holding the reins at the driver's seat, and Kazuha snuggling up to him with a map in one hand.
After that decisive battle, Kazuha, who had summoned her future self, had fallen ill just like Lilitia. It seemed that Later had taken care of her devotedly at the time, and she was trying to maintain that distance even after her recovery. From the perspective of a furry fan, it was only natural to care for a fluffy beastman who seemed to be suffering, but Kazuha did not see it that way, rather, she saw it as an opportunity and was making her move.
Furthermore.
"Do you dislike it?"
She had somehow acquired and was now practicing the furry-fan-special move of winding her proud tail around his arm.
"I don't mind at all...!"
Naturally, the furry fan whose weakness was struck welcomed it in a dramatic, manga-like fashion. As a result, they continued to stay in close contact. Just don't have an accident, Geoglyph sighed.
(Well, in our case, romantic relationships won't go that easily. ---Having memories of a previous life is unexpectedly troublesome.)
It seemed that a hint of spring was finally arriving for this party, but perhaps because they were the Three Idiots, it would not be straightforward.
●
Continuing along the highway in this manner, as the sun began to set, a village along the mountain path came into view.
They weren't in a hurry, so they thought they'd stay the night here, but as the party relaxed, fully armed men rushed out from the village entrance and blocked their path.
"Stop! Stop right there!!"
With expressions of desperate urgency, Later understood there was hostility but didn't know the reason, so he followed the instructions, tightened the reins, and stopped the carriage. Then, the men surrounded the carriage, and an old man who had positioned himself directly in front of the party asked who they were while maintaining a tense atmosphere.
"You people, who are you?"
"What do you mean? We're just adventurers."
"Liar! Would a mere adventurer use such an ominous horse! You're members of the Delgamiride Cult, aren't you!?"
'Ah...'
Being pointed out by the men, who were likely villagers, the party looked up at the sky.
During that decisive battle, the carriage they had originally used was destroyed and became useless due to the recklessness of their intrusion. Since repairing it would be a bit of a hassle, they received a normal carriage from the Triads as a temporary measure, but the horse pulling it was the usual shadow horse.
This horse, called Orbus by Marianne, was ominous, but since it could be summoned when needed and returned when not, it took up no space and cost nothing in food.
In short, it was maintenance-free and convenient, but it did make everyone they met wary.
"Marie."
"Yes, yes."
When Marianne reluctantly dismissed the shadow horse, the vigilance eased slightly.
"Still, these guys said something interesting. Teacher, the Delgamiride Cult... if I recall, they're the ones who supposedly summoned that giant beast, right?"
"That's right. According to Big Brother's investigation report, that was the case."
For the Three Idiots, it was a story they heard afterward. The war itself had apparently been orchestrated, and the Delgamiride Cult was the one operating in the shadows. Midglyph, who had been running around handling the aftermath on his father's orders, had suggested that the evil god might also have been summoned by the cult, though he didn't know how.
Since the Three Idiots had no direct involvement, their recognition was light, something like "Hmm, such people existed," but they sensed that the situation had spread to the common people.
"I am Geoglyph Triad. The third son of the Triad family. See."
Therefore, Geoglyph ostentatiously showed the cloak with the Triad family crest, featuring three crossing great spears, attempting to appeal as harmless.
"As a precaution, though it's not proof, we should show our guild cards as well."
Following Latia's lead, the other members also showed their guild cards, and finally, the villagers lowered their weapons. Once the vigilance was gone, the old man who had first questioned them bowed his head.
"My apologies. I thought those people had come again... I am Giz. I serve as the village chief of this village."
"That's fine, but what on earth happened?"
"Actually... no, it's not a good place to talk, so please come to the village first."
As he began to guide the party to the village, the village chief had a very exhausted face.
●
"I see. So either remnants of them, or another faction is roaming the area."
"Yes... They told us to have food ready because they're coming to collect it today... They went through the trouble of notifying us the day before... I sent a messenger to the Lord, but it likely won't make it in time..."
At the village chief's house, the party, having heard the outline of the situation, relaxed without hesitation, sipping tea and munching on tea snacks. Perhaps because they had managed to defeat an evil god, their threshold for a sense of crisis had risen too high.
"Hey, Lili-no-ji. What exactly is the Delgamiride Cult anyway? I heard recently that they were originally from the Refill Church."
"What's with that nickname? Well, they certainly were a faction of the church originally."
When Later asked Lilitia, she explained while sighing at the nickname.
Originally, the Refill Church is a sect that considers the goddess Refill as its primary deity. That said, it is not a monotheistic religion, but a polytheistic one that worships various other gods. It's simply that the central god is Refill.
Historically, it is a religion that has existed since the time of the first Demon King, Yusuke---about 3000 years ago. At least until the split 600 years ago, the Delgamiride faction was also a branch of the Refill Church, and records show they got along without any particular problems.
However, around that time, there was a change in the leadership of the Delgamiride faction. And the claims of the man who became the new leader sparked a controversy within the Refill Church.
He claimed, 'The primary deity Refill is a goddess, and her companion is the male god, Lord Delgamiride.'
It would have been fine if he had only thought it in his heart, but he claimed it openly and began pushing it onto other factions, which became a major problem. Just as it began to develop into a religious war with casualties---the actual goddess Refill descended upon the holy land, unable to watch any longer, and denied the claim.
She said, 'Why on earth would I have to marry such an evil god! I, I mean, someone who is a bit forceful and relentless, but somehow takes care of me---Hah...! I-I don't like Narugami-san at all, okay!?'
As a side note, the Refill Church, which had no knowledge of a god named Narugami, hurriedly established a sect.
However, it didn't end there. Even after being denied by the actual goddess, the Delgamiride Cult, who could not accept it---or rather, who could no longer back down, broke away from the Refill Church. Under a plausible pretext of 'correcting this world, and for that, destroying it once,' they apparently went underground and carried out terrorist activities day and night. The incident of the evil god's resurrection also seems to have happened as part of that flow.
"And so, they split from the Refill Church several hundred years ago. They seem to still have roots in the underworld, but they have absolutely nothing to do with us."
"Were they having a ship war in the world's largest religion? And to be directly denied by your favorite, that's a guaranteed funeral atmosphere..."
"When you think about it that way, religious disputes seem like pointless fights. Radical believers are just troublesome fans..."
Marianne and Geoglyph were fed up with the secrets of the Refill Church---facts that only a researcher would likely know.
As for Later.
"Hmm... So it's like Mount Hiei and the Nichiren sect of old. They had a religious war like the Tenmon Hokke Rebellion, and since there was no one to mediate or grant imperial permission, they remained split and went underground without ever being restored."
He was satisfied, comparing it to Japanese history.
"This man is strangely knowledgeable about history. I don't have an image of him studying."
"No, I think he's probably a specialist in the Sengoku period. The type who reads manga based on history, gets curious, researches the background, and ends up becoming strangely knowledgeable only about that specific period. For example---Ray, do you remember when the Kamakura Shogunate was established?"
"1192, let's create the Kamakura Shogunate."
"Recently, it seems it was 1185."
"Heh."
From that disinterested response, as expected, it seemed to be manga knowledge.
And then---.
"It's terrible! They're here again! ---The Delgamiride Cult has come!!"
News arrived that the Delgamiride Cult, the center of the discussion, had invaded the village.
Since I accidentally updated on the Kakuyomu side, I posted them together, so the next posting date is still undecided.