kscans

Chapter 196 - The Reservoir and the Fortress Overlooking It

The horse carrying Mo and me trotted east, its hooves clopping rhythmically. The sun was intense, but a soft breeze carried away the heat.

We were in a grain belt. Fields of wheat stretched on endlessly, with watchtowers placed at regular intervals among the golden stalks, likely to detect monster attacks.

Two horses had been prepared, but Mo had clung to my back, claiming she couldn't ride. From her practiced movements, I suspected she was hiding the fact that she could.

"Did you get into a fight with Famu before we left?"

When I wasn't around, she was the party's leader. I'd asked her to look after the house, but a shred of anxiety remained. I could only pray that Mizuki and Myra would support her properly.

"...I told her I was your girlfriend, and she got angry."

"..."

It felt like those two spent more time fighting than getting along. I wanted to tell them to be friends, but it was a delicate subject, so I couldn't say anything.

"Try not to say things that get on Famu's nerves. If she gets truly angry, it's all over, you know?"

"...Mash, what would you do if a friend of yours said he wanted Famu to be his girlfriend?"

"I don't have any friends, so that would never happen."

That was a tough question. If it wasn't my friend but some random guy, I'd probably be racking my brain for the rest of my life, unable to answer.

"...Mash."

"What is it?"

"...You won't allow us to find other lovers."

"That's right."

I couldn't answer the question of whether that was okay, but the statement itself was true.

"...I think I've said this before, but I plan on loving you forever, Mash. But I'm not Famu. If you were to die, I might find someone else."

The hands gripping my back tightened, and her head pressed against my back.

"You don't need to be tied to me after I'm dead. You can live your life freely, Mo. But while I'm here, I want you to be with me and only me."

"...I've decided on that, so I think I'll be okay. But I understand Famu's feelings so strongly. I want things to stay like this forever. I don't know if I could really bear it when that time comes. I might start thinking of a way for you to live forever."

She had a lifespan more than ten times my own. It reminded me of her former fiancé, Zeno Leafkraut. He was said to be researching mental manipulation and immortality. I'd thought it was creepy and unsettling, but maybe he had started that research out of a loneliness like hers.

After riding for a while, a small, tree-covered mountain came into view. I could see a stone aqueduct stretching toward a mountain pass. Atop the mountain peak stood a fortress with a towering spire.

"Don't tell me that's the Star Union villa? Tell your mother for me that's not a villa, it's a fortress."

I pointed at the spire. It was a sturdy stone citadel, just like the ones I'd seen on my journey to Miglutt.

"...Mash, not my mother. Your mother-in-law."

Following the aqueduct up the mountain, we arrived at the shore of a large lake. We dismounted and took in the view. It was an artificial lake, created by connecting several low mountains with a dam to store water. The surface was calm, without a single ripple, but the sound of cicadas echoed from the trees surrounding it.

"...The water stored here is sent to the city and the surrounding fields. That's why they built a fortress to stand guard."

"I see. So the people in the city drink this water?"

I could create water with magic, so I didn't need it, but the vast majority of people couldn't use magic. Mo shook her head.

"...This is for industrial use. The drinking water is drawn from a source further east."

"Maintaining this must be a lot of work. Do they use lead in the pipes?"

I had read a book in my world that said lead was used in ancient drinking water pipes, causing lead poisoning in many residents. However, another book claimed this was an exaggerated myth, and that the effects were minimal as long as the water was flowing.

"...The person who made this reservoir said not to use lead pipes for drinking water."

"The person who made this lake? Don't tell me..."

Mo gave a small nod in response to my words.

"...Yes. Okita Soji."

There was that name again. Okita Soji had wielded his sword for the dog-eared race. They revered him as a peerless hero and continued to wear the color of his light blue haori. Okita Soji had built a city for other races, leading many who fled persecution to establish Miglutt. Okita Soji had fought the God of the End. He had challenged it without a sword, was defeated, and passed from this world without ever returning. And now, Okita Soji had apparently also built this irrigation lake. A man who carried the legends of multiple figures from my world. Was Okita Soji truly just a single person?

A gust of wind blew, and the lake's surface rippled. The wind caressed our cheeks and fluttered Mo's hair, which sparkled in the sunlight. It carried a pleasant scent.

Mo squinted, watching the ripples spread across the water. Then, she gently squeezed my hand.

It was at that moment I thought I saw, for just an instant, a building like an old church bell tower on the water's surface. I thought it might have been the reflection of the fortress, but the fortress was behind us.

"...There was a settlement here before the lake was made."

It seemed she had seen it too. It wasn't a hallucination.

"Really? But wasn't Okita Soji a transfer from a thousand years ago? How could a building from that long ago still be standing?"

"...The water in this lake doesn't circulate, so the stone buildings don't decay."

"Is that how it works?"

Mo nodded.

"...It's a fish reef now."

She pointed, and I could see the dorsal fin of a large fish moving through the water. Looking around, I saw no one fishing. This was a water source, so it was probably a no-fishing zone. If so, there was no point in creating a fish reef.

I felt a slight pressure on the hand she was holding.

"...When it was decided that this settlement would be submerged, the villagers were supposed to move to Miglutt. But some people objected and said they would remain in the settlement. They were elderly people who wanted to live out the rest of their lives quietly here."

Her tone was a little subdued, her gaze still fixed on the water.

"A dog-eared village?"

She shook her head.

"...On the day the village was to be flooded, the people who had objected were gone. Everyone assumed they had gone to Miglutt with the others, so the release of water began, and the settlement sank beneath the waves."

"Hey, Mo, what kind of story have you been telling? I'm going to throw you in the water, you know?"

She didn't react to my words. It seemed she intended to continue.

"...The people who confirmed it returned to Miglutt and reported to the former residents of the settlement, but they were told that the objectors hadn't come to the city. While everyone was wondering, the settlement's bishop had a pale look on his face."

Her face also seemed paler than usual, as if drained of blood. Had she been possessed by something evil?

"I think I know where this is going. I've heard stories like this in my world. But go on, I'll hear you out."

She glanced at me for a moment and gave a small nod.

"...'The day before,' the bishop said, 'they asked to borrow the church keys to clean it as a final service. The key to the hidden room was on that ring, too. Surely they didn't...' He shook his head as if to deny his own imagination. The truth is unknown. But no one has ever seen them since."

Until a moment ago, the occasional breeze had been light and refreshing. But the wind that blew after she spoke was thick with the lake's moisture, somehow lukewarm and clinging to my entire body. The cicadas fell silent, and an eerie quiet settled over the area.

"...There's one more clue as to their whereabouts."

"What is it?"

"...If you walk this shore at night, a lukewarm wind like this sometimes blows. When it does, countless arms appear, covering the surface of the lake. They are white, clearly not of the living. And the hands reaching from the water will grab the hands, feet, body, head, and hair of anyone who approaches the lake and drag them into the water."

The story seemed to be over. She gave a small shiver and fell silent.

"And you're saying those are the hands of the people who stayed behind in the church's hidden room?"

She nodded. "Enough hands to cover this entire lake?"

She nodded again.

"Just how many villagers stayed in that settlement?! How big was that church's hidden room?!"

I couldn't tell the exact size, but it looked to be at least a kilometer to the opposite shore. If enough people to cover that area had shared the settlement's fate, it would have been a metropolis, not a village.

"...Maybe a hundred arms?"

She revised her estimate downwards.

"A hundred people? Or fifty people, with both arms? Isn't that still too many?"

"...Maybe the hands of those who were dragged in are added to them?"

"Why is that a question?"

I cupped her cheeks with both hands.

"Why are you trying to scare me?"

In this world, there were monsters. Things in human form, and things that could only be described as abominations. So what if ghosts were added to the mix? It was only because supernatural beings weren't accepted in my old world that they seemed scary. If you thought of ghosts as just another type of monster, they weren't scary. Though, there was the fear that I might not be able to beat them. Getting caught off guard was also scary. Things that moved creepily were scary. Slimy, wet, cold, and lukewarm things were scary. Not knowing when or where they might appear was scary. The possibility of being cursed was scary. This was getting confusing. I am not scared of ghosts, I told myself.

"...The suspension bridge effect?"

she asked, tilting her head. It's a psychological phenomenon where sharing a frightening experience can lead to mistakenly feeling romantic attraction or affection.

"I don't get it... Was it your mother who told you to tell me this story?"

"...I told you before. Not my mother. Your mother-in-law."

"So, it was your mother-in-law who told you to aim for the suspension bridge effect?"

Mo nodded.

"You said you weren't scared of ghosts, but you're actually terrified of stories like this, aren't you? You were scared of the headless cow, too."

"...I'm not scared. I don't get scared."

In that case, the suspension bridge effect wouldn't work. But her mother seemed to think it would.

"You brought a change of pants, didn't you?"

Now that Cecily and Aira were gone, I had some free space in my storage. I'd allocated a corner of it for Mo, but she hadn't brought any luggage besides her wand and a nightgown-like neglige for sleeping. She had a tendency to assume others would prepare whatever she needed.

"I don't have a spare pair. But I have a washing spell."

"I see... so it's okay if you wet yourself."

"...I-I won't! What about you, Mash? Are your pants okay?"

"I'm an adult, so I won't wet myself."

If worse came to worst, I could just wear Mizuki's pants, like Famu did. I had a special pair saved.

"...Hmph, I'm an adult too, so I won't wet myself!"

The fact that she answered like that meant she was probably scared.

"...Actually, several of the knights on watch here have really gone missing recently. Mother told me to solve it with you."

Mo changed the subject from underwear.

"If that's the case, we should have brought everyone. What are we supposed to do if we end up fighting a monster?"

"...Mother isn't worried. She believes that even in the worst-case scenario, Laciel-sama will save us."

"Gnnn..."

Goddess Summon was my last resort. I wanted to resolve this without resorting to that.

"Fine. Let's go to the fortress and question the garrisoned soldiers."

Mo nodded at my words.