By the Grace of the Gods (LN) - Volume 13 - Chapter 15

Chapter 8, Episode 15: Quick Breather

My morning confession had delayed the start of our day’s journey somewhat, but we had now resumed our route to the City of Lost Souls. Just like the day before, we frequently encountered Undead monsters but our trek was going more smoothly than ever, because we were riding the emperor scavenger slime today.

“Never thought to ride on a slime,” Remily said. “It’s pretty comfortable once you get used to it.”

“A surprisingly smooth ride,” Sebas added. “As if we were gliding on a flat board.”

The emperor slime crawled just like any other slime, but its enormous size gave it a larger stride (if I could call it that) that helped with the rough terrain. According to Sever, we were going about as fast as a horse’s trot, which was plenty fast for being able to glide through the severe terrain of these valleys with ease. Moreover, riding the emperor slime helped with fighting the Undead. While fighting them on foot could take time away from our journey, the emperor could simply absorb a few Undead and keep going. Even when we had to go through larger hordes, we could whittle them down with long-range magic before we came up to them and mow right through without having to stop.

“It can cushion anything that bumps into us or catch us if anyone falls. This is a safe and convenient method,” I said.

Still, mounting the emperor slime did have one downside. The Undead—currently being digested by the emperor slime—were right under us. At least the Undead couldn’t escape the slime on their own, and I had set up a waterproof cloth coated with Light magic between us and the slime to keep the Undead out of our sights and to prevent the emperor slime from accidentally swallowing us up. It also served as a failsafe to prevent us from being attacked. While I thought this mode of transportation was highly efficient...I’d be lying if I said the Undead being digested just below us didn’t bother me.

Since I suppose all of us were thinking of what jiggled beneath us, conversation stopped for some time.

Reinbach was the one who eventually broke the silence. “About our conversation this morning, Ryoma... I’ll only share that with my son and his wife.”

“I trust you and both of them,” I said. “Are you sure you don’t want to tell Elia?”

“Hm. When she was younger, we held a family meeting about how to raise her, keeping in mind that she had the potential to be a child of the gods... In the end, we had decided to teach her what was important to know as a person, more than what was important for a noble to know. Our first order of business was to show her as much love as we could. We would protect and grow her young heart. Of course, we’d want her to learn to protect herself from malicious intent. But while she was a child, we could protect her instead. If her powers did awaken one day, we would pray that we’d taught her to believe in others.”

Come to think of it, I stereotyped nobles—even children—as calculating and two-faced. Elia must have seemed like a nice, normal girl because of the policy Reinbach spoke of and because of her family’s efforts to raise her that way.

“Elia grew up to be a genuine, kind girl,” Reinbach continued. “But politics aren’t her forte because of it. If we told her about you, she might unknowingly draw attention to you through any changes in her that she can’t quite control. Young ladies of nobility raised with more traditional values also attend her school, many of them shrewd and observant. We must mitigate the risk of news spreading whenever we can.”

“That is very kind. Thank you,” I said, knowing that Reinbach would’ve liked to tell Elia the truth right now if he could’ve.

“Without you, Elia would have to question whether or not she was a child of the gods all her life. Even though she won’t know the truth now, it will spare her from a lifetime of asking herself an unanswerable question. Oh, even my heart feels lighter. I look forward to sharing the news with Aria.”

Aria was a name I hadn’t heard. From the context, I could at least guess that she was a Jamil.

“Aria is Reinbach’s wife,” Remily explained.

“Elia’s grandmother,” I confirmed.

“Miss Aria was not in the best health for most of her life. She was greatly concerned for her granddaughter’s future until she passed, when Miss Elia was little. If I go first, I will enjoy sharing this with her,” Sebas said.

“I’m glad to hear that, but don’t be in too much of a hurry to leave this world,” I said.

“Exactly. A weight off your shoulders is one thing—but don’t let it lower your guard,” Sever said.

“What’s the harm? It’s such a beautiful day; let’s enjoy it,” said Remily. Sure enough, the weather was great. Our leisurely journey under the cloudless sky was accompanied by a refreshing breeze in our faces. “Besides, we won’t have time for that once we make it to the City of Lost Souls. Better build up our strength! Let’s talk about something fun. Any ideas, Ryoma?”

“You could give me a prompt, at least... Anything...?” I muttered, worried that topics I would’ve usually chosen to talk about had been exhausted. Left alone, I’d start rambling about magic again... “How about your favorite spots to travel to? I’d be interested to see them, and I may want to know about a few places where I could hide out if the world finds out I’m a child of the gods.”

“A healthy mix of optimism and pessimism,” Remily said. “I would choose a town along the Adora river. The river is a major source of transport and tourism. The more people there are, the easier it is to hide. If you ever need to make a run for it, you can leave by land or water.”

“With your experience living in the forest and your skills in Space magic, Count Baramus’s territory to the south may suit you well too,” Sebas suggested. “Surrounded by thick woodlands, it would be easier to conceal yourself. And their famous high-end furniture and woodworking do draw in some tourism.”

“From my experience as a knight, if you’re in a situation where you have to make a run for it, it’s already too late. Wanted posters can spread your name and likeness through the country. Even without it, the order could always find some clues by spending enough man hours investigating a town. You are in a situation where you can ask the Jamils for aid, so I recommend you do that as much as possible. If you find yourself in too much trouble to do so, either flee the country or hide out in a location too dangerous for them to hunt you down easily,” Sever chimed in.

If I wanted to follow that advice, I could build a hideout in the Sea of Trees of Syrus. My destination was where a village had once stood, so I should be able to build a lodging for one. Maybe I’d finally swing back to the forest of Gana and fix up my house there.

“Anywhere you go, I doubt you’ll have any trouble surviving,” said Reinbach. “Instead of worrying about running from the public in case your secret comes out, I think you should build up your own status so you can stand your ground in any public court. Specifically, you can raise your adventurer rank.” Even when Reinbach and I had first met, he had recommended that I work on improving my rank. That was right after my status board had been made, and we had discussed how much magical energy I had. In hindsight, he must have already suspected that I was a child of the gods. “A rank is rare even among nobles, but you could go straight for S rank. Even nobles would hesitate to interfere with an S-rank adventurer.”

“I just turned C rank... What would I need to do to get to S rank?” I asked.

“You have two options. You can either spend years and decades completing quests, or you can fast-track it with brute force.”

Reinbach began to explain in more detail.

S rank was partially an honorary title. Individuals or parties considered to have contributed greatly to the guild or kingdom at large were promoted to S rank. Worgan, the guildmaster of the Gimul branch, had earned his rank this way. On the other hand, sometimes adventurers with exceptional skills would join the guild. Someone like me, a child of the gods, was a good example of that. Another reason the guild designed the S-rank title was to give those individuals status and protection, as well as put a leash on them. The title would come with some red tape, but it would give me status and deter a lot of people from messing with me.

“When I became an adventurer, my career as a knight was considered part of my contribution. That’s why they gave me A rank right away,” Sever said.

Remily chimed in. “Same with me. If I went back to adventuring, they would add up my old rank and my history as a royal sorcerer and probably give me S or a high A rank, almost S rank. You know, the three of us could just form an S-rank party.” That did sound like a blast, but Remily was getting us ahead of ourselves, and I told her as much. “That’s because I haven’t told you this amazing trick that’ll help you climb the ranks in no time.”

“You mean, like, bribery...?” I asked.

“No! You just need to efficiently rack up enough points to get you to S rank. You know how Sever’s or my career would contribute to our adventurer rank?” Remily prompted.

“I see... I just need to have a career that will boost my rank.”

“That’s right! And I’m talking about you becoming a Gladiator. It’s a spectacle, sure, but you gotta be strong to make it up the ranks. By the same token, you can climb that ladder a lot faster than the adventurer ladder as long as you can prove your strength. A high rank in the Colosseum is a guarantee of your abilities in combat.” Remily’s suggestion reminded me of applying for a certification to get a promotion on Earth. At least the concept was familiar. “It’s not a path you can take without the strength to back it up, and you’ll have the opposite of a low profile. As long as you can live with that, I think you’ll go far. It’s a legal and relatively safe place for you to gain more experience, and you can learn a lot from it. Once you’re a famous Gladiator, you won’t be underestimated as often just because of how you look.”

“That’s true... I have a former Gladiator who works for me, so I’ll ask him about his experience when I see him,” I said.

As a former champion, Ox was sure to have a lot to tell me about that career. Even if I wanted status fast, there was no sense in rushing into it. Maybe I could even check out the Colosseum as a spectator before I decided if I wanted to fight in it. If I did, I could have Ox tag along with me. Hopefully he’d be willing to provide commentary that would help me understand the matches better, and if he wanted to participate in a match himself, I’d love to watch him. Making extra money would help him buy his freedom faster too.

“I’ll stop by once I return to Gimul,” I said.

“I think you should,” Remily agreed.

We continued our small talk—some useless and some not—while we rode on the back of the smooth-sliding emperor slime. At the pace we were going, we were sure to make up the time we lost yesterday and make it to our destination before sundown.