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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: Pimera Mountain
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Pimera Mountain
It was still early evening, so I went to see the marquis immediately after leaving the workshop.
"Well? What is it?"
The marquis seemed quite busy, handling a mountain of work. A stack of documents, about three books high, was piled on his desk.
"I'd like to go out for a while."
"Out? Well, you must have been feeling cooped up, stuck in the royal palace. Alright. Go ahead. But where are you planning on going?"
The marquis granted permission without even looking at me, his head still buried in his work.
"I'm going to Pimera Mountain."
"Ah, Pimera Mountain. Alright, have a safe… huh?"
The marquis's head shot up with the speed of lightning, sending papers fluttering from his desk to the floor.
"Wh-where did you say you were going?"
"Pimera Mountain."
Finally, he was showing the reaction I'd expected.
"Why are you suddenly going there? There's nothing to see, and no people live there."
"Yes, I'm aware. But I believe I must go there to have a weapon made from the fang I received. My master craftsman told me that the fang is no ordinary item."
"That strange fang?"
The marquis still thought of the tusk as something insignificant, so he stared at me with a dumbfounded expression.
"Hmm, even if you go to Pimera Mountain, will the dwarves help you? They don't move easily."
"My master, Giranox, is from there. So it shouldn't be a problem."
"Your master is human."
"Yes. There's a bit of a story there, but in any case, there won't be any issues. Besides, there's nothing particularly dangerous in that region, is there?"
"Well, it is land belonging to the Holy Kingdom…"
There's nothing dangerous there, but the danger will come from the outside.
I had mentioned twice at the royal palace that I was having a weapon made from the fang. Once in front of the king, and once in front of the duke.
Quite a few people heard it, so the news must have reached Beil's ears. It was obvious Beil would be preparing something, so I had to move before he did.
"If I don't give you permission, you'll just run away again, won't you?"
"Haha, of course not."
The marquis was referring to the time I went to Asse Castle while pretending to take a short trip nearby.
"Sigh, I suppose giving you permission is better than having you run off. But take Arin with you."
"Understood. Thank you."
"Be careful on your way."
"Um…"
"What is it?"
"It's nothing. I'll be on my way, then."
"How anticlimactic."
I was about to tell the marquis to be wary of Beil, but I stopped myself. It would require explaining a great many things, and right now, I had no way of explaining them.
It seemed I would have to deal with Beil on my own.
"It won't be easy, but…"
**
In a room where all was submerged in darkness, only a single pair of eyes smoldered like embers.
*Thud!*
Before the man with the burning eyes, another knelt, slamming his head against the stone floor.
"Please give me one more chance! I haven't been able to do anything. Please!"
*Thud!*
The man, who was beating his head on the ground until it bled, was Dar, the one who had been defeated by Yuren and humiliated in front of so many people.
*Thud!*
Before Dar, sitting silently with a terrifyingly intense gaze, was Beil Pabian.
"The moment you failed to secure the tusk as reported, your value ceased to exist."
A voice like a beast's growl rumbled from Beil's throat, completely unlike his usual gentle tone.
"On top of that, you kicked away the opportunity that fool Yuren Lox handed you in just three seconds. It seems a better choice to just rip your throat out right now, don't you think? Is there any reason I should give you another chance?"
At Beil's monstrous voice, Dar felt a cold sweat pour madly from his entire body.
"Th-that's why. I fell for his provocation. Since it's happened once, it will never happen again. I will create an advantageous situation from a distance and make sure to snuff out his life. Please! Just one more chance!"
*Thud!*
Dar slammed his forehead into the ground again. It was torn to shreds, to the point where bone was visible.
"…"
A long silence followed. Dar had never felt a moment so terrifying in his entire life. Even the extreme pain in his forehead was fading before the terror of Beil.
"Pimera Mountain, Sajima Mountain, Phorn Hill, Pokate."
At the place names coming from Beil's lips, Dar lifted his head as if mesmerized. This was a test. If he didn't know, Beil would tear his throat out on the spot.
Watching a red hand slowly extend toward him, Dar frantically spun his thoughts. Considering the connection between the four regions, Yuren, and the fang, one answer emerged.
"D-dwarves?"
The blood-red hand that had been reaching for Dar stopped.
"Th-they're places with dwarves where Yuren might go to forge the fang!"
As if he had given the correct answer, the reaper-like red hand retreated back to Beil. After a brief silence, Beil's mouth opened.
"I have sent wolves to each region. A report will come as soon as Yuren arrives at one of them."
The growl had vanished from Beil's voice, which had returned to its usual calm tone.
"Ah, yes!"
"I will give you twenty wolves. This is your last chance."
"Understood. Thank you!"
*Thud!*
Dar smashed his already mangled forehead into the floor once more.
"Leave."
"Thank you so much."
Dar bowed repeatedly before clutching his neck and exiting the room.
"…"
Even after Dar left, Beil remained seated and motionless for a long time.
"How long are you going to stay like that? Come out."
"Hehehe!"
From the pitch-black darkness, a child who looked to be in his early to mid-teens popped out with an innocent laugh.
"Hey! If you knew, you should have said so! How embarrassing!"
Beil frowned at the child's light voice and laughter.
"I still find that hobby of yours difficult to understand. What's an old man like you doing?"
"It's no different from you pulling out human spines raw. It's just a hobby."
"So, what is it?"
"What is it? I came to help my partner. We need to finish this before they get suspicious, don't we?"
Beil said nothing, merely glaring at the child.
"Yuren Lox is currently the most famous person in the royal palace. We can't just have him end up missing. It'll cause problems."
Beil seemed to agree, listening quietly to the child's words.
"You were planning on killing that piece of trash who just left anyway, right? Using my ability, I can make Yuren and that trash kill each other in front of everyone. I can create the perfect situation where no one will suspect a thing!"
"What do you want?"
Beil closed his eyes, organized his thoughts for a moment, then spoke quietly again.
"Don't be so cold. What would I want from a partner? I'm just asking you to help me reach the position you're going to climb to. Let's help each other out."
Beil gave a small, reluctant nod.
"An excellent choice. With my power, I'll make sure Yuren and that trash take each other down. It'll be a clean finish. Hehehe."
The child's laughter echoed emptily in Beil's room as he departed.
**
The next day, Arin, Giranox, and I left the marquis's estate and headed straight for the Magic Tower.
"Giranox, how did you get from Pimera Mountain to Asse Castle?"
"When I was leaving the mountain, my master gave me a jewel. I used that to travel to Asse Castle and then settled down there."
"Warp?"
"No. On foot."
"On foot? Huh, how long did it take?"
"About half a year. I was intentionally moving slowly, too."
Half a year for travel. To me, who came from the modern era, it sounded absolutely dreadful. Without the Magic Tower's warps, this world would be truly exhausting.
Listening to Giranox's tedious travel story, we warped to Beharn Castle, where the closest Magic Tower to Pimera Mountain was located.
"Hmm…"
As we stepped out of the Magic Tower in Beharn Castle, it was immediately clear that we had entered a different country.
"It's insanely huge."
While the clean and orderly streets, even more so than the kingdom's capital or the empire's, were impressive, my gaze was naturally drawn to the giant statue of a goddess in the center of the town.
"The Holy Kingdom, indeed."
Beharn Castle belonged to the Holy Kingdom of Iokal, so the characteristics of a religious nation were strongly evident. The people, too, were dressed in neat clothes with tidy hair.
"Have you been here before?"
"Yes. I actually considered settling here, but given the nature of the country, there were a lot of tiresome things."
I thought I understood what Giranox meant. Since Iokal was a holy kingdom, there were many things one shouldn't do, and many things one had to do.
"I don't really have a religion, so it was a bit difficult for me to stay in the Holy Kingdom. There were a lot of things that got in the way."
"I can imagine."
"That's why I went to the free Crassis Kingdom. I grew up in a dwarf village, so I didn't belong to any nation."
We talked about the Holy Kingdom and the Crassis Kingdom as we purchased horses and immediately set off for Pimera Mountain.
"Come to think of it."
As we traveled, I realized I still hadn't introduced Arin and Giranox to each other.
"Arin."
"Yes."
"That rapier I gave you. This friend of mine made it."
"Ah!"
"Giranox, you knew the sword Arin carries is one you made, didn't you?"
"Ah, yes. Of course…"
Giranox's face turned red with embarrassment as he nodded.
"To think someone so young could create such an outstanding sword. Your skill is remarkable."
"N-no, not at all. It's because you are a special knight. It's not because of my skill."
"Thank you for making such a fine sword. I'm using it very well."
"Oh, my!"
As Arin bowed her head slightly, Giranox immediately dismounted and began bowing deeply to her.
"P-please, come by anytime, and I will repair it perfectly. Thank you for using my sword."
"Thank you."
"No, no. Thank *you*."
Watching the two of them exchange pleasantries, a warm smile naturally formed on my face.
**
"So this is finally Pimera Mountain."
After four days of riding, we finally arrived at our destination.
"Aren't you hot? I'm fine since I wrestle with fire every day."
"I'm alright, but Arin seems to be struggling a bit."
"I am fine as well."
Beads of sweat had formed on Arin's face. Even though she was dressed lightly, the high temperature seemed to be taking its toll.
"It's going to get a little hotter as we go up."
By the time we reached the mountainside, the temperature had risen considerably, to the point where I could feel a slight change even with my Heavenly Martial Body's resistance to fire and water.
"Arin, draw that sword and the spirit…"
Just as I was about to suggest a good method to Arin, a very faint sound reached my ears. It was a tiny sound, like a twig snapping underfoot.
"What's wrong?"
"Quiet for a moment."
I focused my inner energy on my hearing as much as possible, then expanded it twofold with Onslon's Watchtower.
*Boom.*
"Aim for the core…"
"I can't aim for what I can't see, you old geezer!"
"Stop the useless chatter and focus!"
The sound of something breaking, and a gravelly voice like grinding metal, came through as a whisper.
It was a faint sound, but I knew for sure. It was the sound of dwarves fighting something.
"Giranox, Arin."
"Yes? What on earth is happening?"
"I'm going on ahead. Follow me right away."
"What? But you'll have trouble finding the way…"
"I don't know what's going on, but it seems the dwarves are under attack. Move as fast as you can."
"What?"
*Paaaang!*
With those words, I leaped off my horse and pushed the Soaring Dragon's Step to its limit.
"G-Grand Prince!"
Giranox called out, but I didn't look back, heading straight for the source of the sound.
*Has Beil already attacked? But there were several places I could have gone, so how?*
*KABOOM!*
*Rumble!*
The sounds of destruction and impact grew louder as I got closer.
"You fiend!"
"Kuaaaargh!"
*CRASH!*
As I leaped over a steep hill, I saw the dwarves. And I understood what was happening to them.
"Golems…"
Three 4-meter-tall Lava Golems, covered in patches of molten rock, were engaged in a fierce battle with dwarves who were barely 150cm tall.
They had already been pushed back once; the steel entrance to their village was utterly destroyed.
"Hmm…"
I had once thought about my abilities and who my natural enemy might be.
The answer had come quickly.
Golems.
My poison, a special ability, was completely ineffective against them, and their tough exteriors were difficult to pierce with hidden weapons. Moreover, if their core wasn't destroyed, their regeneration was faster than a troll's.
I had wondered how I would ever manage to take down the Diamond Golems that would appear later.
"Lava Golems. This will be a bit annoying."
Lava Golems were no easy opponents. Still, as I moved forward to help the dwarves, my eyes caught sight of a small, pulsating orb within the body of a Lava Golem.
"That's…"
The golem's core. The heart of the golem, which would cause it to collapse with a single touch, was clearly visible to my eyes.
"Ah, I was right about the natural enemy. *I'm* the golem's natural enemy."